TEAM Says Governments and the Private Sector Should Cooperate to Build Affordable Middle-Income Housing
Colleen Hardwick says we don’t have a supply problem, we have an affordable-supply problem
VANCOUVER (Sept. 28): TEAM for a Livable Vancouver says governments and the private sector need to work together to deliver housing that middle-income earners can afford.
“We can’t rely on developers who are making building decisions based on the market alone to deliver affordable middle-income housing,” says TEAM mayoral candidate Colleen Hardwick. “Government has a role to play in setting the stage for success. Affordability, not just supply, must be a driver – and government action needs to reflect that priority.”
A recent report by a group of respected urbanists and academics emphasizes that such housing intended for people who live and work in Vancouver must be planned – instead of relying on market fluctuations. Hardwick notes five key points in the report:
A moratorium on upzoning of existing affordable rental housing that meets the following criteria: buildings with 10 units or more that are in adequate condition, where rents are currently affordable to a median-income earner (i.e., spending less than 30% of their income on rent)
Stopping land speculation through strategic zoning with public infrastructure requirements
Identifying new infill housing in neighbourhoods, avoiding one-size-fits-all upzoning, and using neighbourhood-based, citizen-involved community planning
Identifying hidden new housing opportunities by reviewing land-use allocations, identifying fallow or obsolete development and producing an “opportunities map”
Simplifying and speeding up approvals without forgoing neighbourhood engagement and technical evaluation
The experts’ report, New Directions for Prioritizing Middle-Income Secure Affordable Housing, highlights the critical role of land cost in housing affordability. Hardwick points out that upzoning increases the value of land and fuels speculation, baking higher land costs into the price of housing that is ultimately produced.
“City Hall has to avoid unnecessary land-value escalation, capture increases in land value for public benefit, and explore ways of removing or reducing land costs from the affordability equation,” she says. “Instead of simply asking how many units were approved, we need to ask questions like who can afford the units in question? For how long? And who will actually live in them?”
Hardwick stresses that middle-income housing can’t come at the expense of housing for the more vulnerable. “Governments must continue to prioritize low-income, supportive and secure rental housing, as well as housing for seniors and people with special needs.”
