The City of Delta says it’s first-ever PLAN-A-THON welcomed approximately 300 residents who came with their development questions.
The event at the North Delta Recreation Centre on Saturday, Nov. 23, marked a successful milestone in the city’s ongoing efforts to engage the community on housing opportunities, according to the city, adding the event offered property owners a chance to speak directly with development staff about options for building coach houses or secondary suites on properties.
Earlier this year, Delta introduced amendments to the zoning bylaw to meet provincial requirements for those additional housing units.
The changes balanced new density targets with existing zoning parameters, such as height, setbacks and lot coverage, to maintain the character of Delta’s neighbourhoods, the city explains.
Meanwhile, Metro Vancouver recently completed an update on regional population and dwelling unit projections, indicating fewer new singe-detached houses will be added as the number of residents rises.
A Metro report notes the number of dwelling units in the region is projected to reach 1.72 million by the year 2050, under Metro Vancouver’s “medium growth” scenario, and all the scenarios exceed 1.59 million dwelling units.
Metro Vancouver’s medium scenario has the number of units in Delta increasing to 46,290 by 2030, while the city would grow to 46,470 units by that year under the “high growth” scenario.
The region is also expected to experience a decline in single-detached units for all member jurisdictions.
The Metro report also notes, “From 2001 to 2021, single-detached homes in the region declined by 12%, whereas multiplex units more than doubled. Given historical trends and other factors, such as the limited supply of residential land and housing affordability, Metro Vancouver is projecting a continued decrease in single-detached homes and a shift towards multiplex, row houses, and apartments. About two thirds of the net new units added to the region are expected to be apartments. Half of the net new apartments are projected to be concentrated in Vancouver, Surrey, and Burnaby.”
The report goes on to explain how municipal planning policies are promoting efficient land use by implementing the conversion of low-density residential areas into higher-density developments.
According to the 2021 Census, there were 38,055 dwelling units in Delta.
A Delta report on the latest Census notes that the private housing stock in the city grew by six per cent from 2016 to 2021. The vast majority (85 per cent) of that growth was in apartment buildings, townhouses and secondary suites.
