The City of Delta now knows how many new housing units the province wants to see built in the next five years.
On Tuesday afternoon, Minister of Housing and Delta North MLA Ravi Kahlon announced housing targets for the first 10 municipalities selected as part of the Housing Supply Act.
The target orders for Delta are 3,607 housing units.
The other municipalities include: Abbotsford (7,240), Kamloops (4,236), District of North Vancouver (2,838), District of Oak Bay (664), City of Port Moody (1,694), District of Saanich (4,610), City of Vancouver (28,900) and City of Victoria (4,902).
“The housing crisis is hurting people, holding back our economy and impacting the services we all count on,” said Kahlon in a news release. “We’re taking action and working with municipal partners to make sure more homes are built in communities with the greatest housing need.”
The housing targets mark a 38 per cent increase in overall housing to be built in these communities over what was projected to have been created based on historic trends.
In addition to the targets, the province has sent each of the 10 municipalities a list of housing target guidelines, including a recommended number of units by size (one bedroom, two bedroom, three bedroom), rental versus owned units, below-market rental units and units with on-site supports. These guidelines include more than 16,800 below-market rentals.
To support implementation, the province will continue to provide local governments with resources to speed up approval processes, including $10 million for continued implementation of the Development Approvals Process Review, and the province’s work accelerating and streamlining provincial permitting across multiple ministries and developing a new digital permitting process.
Municipalities will be evaluated after six months, and every year thereafter, on their progress toward achieving the housing targets and actions taken to meet the target.
“As mayor of Delta, I am dedicated to enhancing housing opportunities for all present and future residents of our city,” said Mayor George Harvie. “Delta acknowledges the proposed housing targets set forth by the Ministry of Housing and is committed to working collaboratively to achieve our shared objective of ensuring that every individual, regardless of their circumstances, can secure housing.”
