Vancouver City Staff presentation: Final report on Mayor's Housing Affordability Task Force October 2, 2012

1. MAYOR’S TASK FORCE ONON HOUSING
MAYOR’S TASK FORCE HOUSING AFFORDABILITY
AFFORDABILITY
Final Report and Staff Recommendations
October 2, 2012 Staff Recommendations
Final Report and
October 2012

2. OVERVIEW
1. Task Force – Focus and Process
2. Task Force - Recommendations
3. City Action Plan for Implementation
– Priority Actions for Immediate Implementation
– Additional Implementation Actions
4. Next Steps

3. Task Force Focus and Process

4. Vancouver’s Affordable Housing Challenge
• Vancouver has the highest house prices in Canada
– well beyond the ability of most households to
afford even a modest condo
• Vancouver households paying more than 30% of
their income on housing:
– 40% of all households
– 50% of households headed by people under 34
• The challenge continues to grow – August 2012
RBC report indicates that:
– affordability measures further deteriorated for all
housing types in Vancouver
– affordability levels are now very close to the worst on
record.

5. Vancouver’s Affordable Housing Challenge
Housing Affordability challenges threaten the City’s:
– Diversity
“Vancouver’s economy depends
on attracting and retaining
– Livability talent. Affordable housing of all
types, including market rentals,
– Economic Competitiveness is essential to the City’s current
and future competitiveness.”
John Tylee, Director of Policy and Research
Vancouver Economic Development Commission

6. Target Groups in Need of Affordable Housing
• Lower income singles and couples with critical needs for
suitable rental accommodation;
• Singles and couples struggling to buy their first home;
• Families with children who want to live in the city rather
than have to move to more suburban locations; and,
• Empty nesters and seniors wishing to downsize without
having to leave their neighbourhood.

7. Who is the Task Force?
Mayor’s Task Force launched in
December 2011
Co-Chaired by Mayor Robertson
and Olga Ilich (property developer &
former provincial Cabinet Minister)
17 members representing a range
of stakeholders & expertise
• Non-profit housing providers
• Real Estate and Development industry
• Planners and Architects
• First Nations
• Members of City Council

8. Task Force Purpose
1. Develop innovative recommendations from an evidence
base that will help Vancouver become a more
sustainable, diverse and affordable city
2. Focus on affordability solutions for households with
moderate incomes (in the range of $21,500 to $86,500)
Affordable Rent/Mortgage at 30% of income:
Affordable Affordable Home
Monthly Price
Rent/Mortgage
Payment
$21,500 $540 n/a
$86,500 $2,160 $450,000*
*Assumptions: 10% down, 4% interest, 25 year amortization

9. Task Force Process
Task force organized itself into four working groups
Finance Form
Working
Groups
Flows Partnerships

10. Task Force Process
Two Task Force Round Tables reported back on key issues:
Academic Building Form and Design
(led by UBC professor Erick (led by Architect Michael Geller)
Villagomez) reported on economic reported on built form and
conditions contributing to regulatory improvements that
affordability challenges
10 could improve housing affordability

11. Task Force Process
Public Engagement
• Presentations to Council advisory committees
(Seniors Advisory Committee, Vancouver
Planning Commission)
• Re:THINK HOUSING Ideas Jam with the
Vancouver Design Nerds Society
• “No Place Like Home” Story Telling Sessions
in Community Plan areas (e.g. Marpole, West
End, Grandview-Woodland)
• Re:THINK HOUSING ideas competition
• Place Speak Survey – to ask for public
feedback on the Task Force Interim Report
recommendations

12. Task Force Process
re:THINK HOUSING – an open ideas competition to
broaden the discussion on possible solutions to
Vancouver’s affordability challenges

13. Task Force Process
re:THINK HOUSING
• 70 applications submitted – locally and
from diverse countries around the
world
• Task Force Jury reviewed applications
and selected winners
• Public voted on Peoples’ Choice
winners – 8,000 votes cast in 2 weeks

14. Task Force Process
re:THINK HOUSING – Winning Submissions
• $8,000 prizes awarded to 3 winning submissions,
selected by the Task Force jury
• Bridge Housing – density bonus to build over
existing buildings and infrastructure
• Thin Streets – transforming streets in housing sites
• Human Space – using side lots to create shared
equity and enable additions to single-family homes
• Co-Housing emerged as strong theme in Peoples Choice
awards

15. Final Task Force Recommendations
Ending hom elessness Rental housing Ownership
Shelters S Os
R Supportive Non-m arket Purpose Sec ondary Rented Condos Other
Housing Rental -built Suites Condos Ownership
(Soc ial Rental
Housing)
Mayor’s T
ask Forc e on Housing Affordability
1. Increase supply & diversity of affordable housing
2. Enhance the City’s and the community’s capacity to deliver
affordable rental & social housing
3. Protect existing social & affordable rental housing & explore
opportunities to renew & expand the stock
4. Streamline & create more certainty & clarity in the
regulatory process, & improve public engagement

16. City Action Plan for
Implementation

17. City Approach
• Public & Stakeholder engagement
• Talk Housing With Us – Spring/Summer 2011
• Input to Housing & Homelessness Strategy
• Council approved strategy – July 2011
• Staff support to Task Force – 2012
• Council report including Priority Actions for
Implementation
• Building on previous engagement and
approved strategy

18. Talk Housing With Us Engagement
• Public & stakeholder input into Housing & Homelessness
Strategy through Talk Housing With Us:
- Stakeholder Workshop – April 27, 2011
- Renter’s Round Table – May 26, 2011
- Housing Un-conference – June 4, 2011
- Community dialogues
• Key Themes:
- More affordable & social housing needed
- Concern over decreasing affordability and lack of rental
supply
- Need for low-cost housing for seniors & working families
- Clear leadership from the City needed

19. City of Vancouver Action Plan
Priority Actions for Immediate
Implementation

20. City of Vancouver Action Plan
Action 1: Implement an Interim Rezoning Policy that
increases affordable housing choices across Vancouver’s
neighbourhoods
Location Affordability Review after
and Form Criteria 20
based applications
Criteria

21. Connected City Housing Form:
On Arterial Focused

22. Connected City Housing Form:
Off Arterial Focused

23. City of Vancouver Action Plan
Action 2: Implement the Thin Streets concept identified
through the re:THINK HOUSING competition
Identify Thin Identify Thin Identify process
Street Pilot Street Pilot for additional
Project in Project in West Thin Streets
Grandview End using lanes projects in
Woodland and rather than other parts of
Marpole streets the City

24. City of Vancouver Action Plan
What is the Thin Streets concept?
Thin Streets: Turning Asphalt into Affordable Housing
Christina DeMarco, Vancouver

25. City of Vancouver Action Plan
Action 3: Develop an operational and organizational model for
a new Housing Authority, including a business plan.
The model and business plan will address:
Guiding
Mandate Governance
Principles
Assets & Leadership
Financing & Staffing

26. City of Vancouver Action Plan
Action 3: Develop an operational and organizational model for
a new Housing Authority, including a business plan.
Advantages of a Housing Authority model include ability to:
• Respond nimbly to partnership opportunities with the non-profit and
private sectors, as well as senior levels of government
• Rely on the skills of an experienced Board of Directors to optimize
the City’s investments in affordable housing
• Consolidate City’s non-market portfolio for administrative efficiency

27. City of Vancouver Action Plan
Action 4: Use the current Community Planning programs in the
West End, Marpole (including Phase 3 Cambie Corridor),
Grandview Woodland & the DTES to:
Identify areas appropriate for
growth and enable those areas to
generate affordable housing
through density increases
Maximize opportunities to create
transition zones between arterials
and single family neighbourhoods to
enable more affordable ground
oriented housing forms

28. City of Vancouver Action Plan
Action 5: Revise and clarify Council’s inclusionary housing
policies to emphasize a flexible and creative approach to
achieving affordable housing in large developments
Emphasize Prioritize Add flexibility
delivery of units achievement of to ensure
affordable at least 20% affordable units
housing units social housing are built even
rather than sites when funding is in absence of
available funding

29. City of Vancouver Action Plan
Action 6: Identify additional City-owned lands that may be
underused and undertake planning work to bring them forward
for affordable housing development
Current Site Examples could
RFEOI/RFP identification include sites
process for additional served by
underway on 6 site is already transit, False
City-owned underway Creek North
Sites option-to-
purchase sites,
etc.

30. City of Vancouver Action Plan
Action 6: Identify additional City-owned lands that may be
underused and undertake planning work to bring them forward
for affordable housing development
• Long history of using City land for affordable housing
– 9,600 units of affordable housing on City land
– Primarily mixed income - rents range from Income Assistance
($375) to low end of market rent
• Innovation needed in absence of government housing programs:
– Arbutus Centre – City secured 100 social housing units through
rezoning
– Alex Gair – 70 units social housing proposed through rezoning
– Current RFEOI – non-profit partner critical to long-term
affordability

31. City of Vancouver Action Plan
Additional Implementation Actions

32. City of Vancouver Action Plan
Action 7: Increase housing supply and options in strategic
locations throughout the city
Develop and initiate
planning programs
that have greatest
potential for
contributions to
affordable housing
supply (e.g. station
areas, key transit
corridors)

33. City of Vancouver Action Plan
Action 8: Increase the supply of additional secondary rental
units
• Expand laneway house initiative to allow laneway houses in additional
single family zones
• Explore feasibility of laneway houses in duplex zones
• Expand the zoning districts and housing forms for secondary suites (e.g.
duplexes, row houses, etc.)
• Consult with industry on revisions to BBL requiring all new ground
oriented development to be built “suite ready”

34. City of Vancouver Action Plan
Action 9: Create opportunities for the development of more
co-housing projects

35. City of Vancouver Action Plan
Action 10: Enhance the City’s family housing requirements to
encourage more 3+ bedroom units in new development

36. City of Vancouver Action Plan
Action 11: Support the development of Community Land Trusts & new
social financing mechanisms for affordable housing
• Work with key financial and community partners explore new financing
mechanisms and support the development of new Community Land Trusts

37. City of Vancouver Action Plan
Action 12: Evaluate the Impact
of expiring federal operating
agreements and expiring City
leases and develop options to:
• Preserve affordability of existing
affordable housing
• Take advantage of opportunities
to renew and expand the stock

38. City of Vancouver Action Plan
Action 13: Evaluate the City’s rental
protection regulations with goal of
preserving housing stability and
affordability while identifying
opportunities to renew and expand
the private market rental stock

39. City of Vancouver Action Plan
Additional Implementation Actions
Action 14: Develop and implement rezoning and development permit
process improvements that recognize the priority nature of the City’s
affordable housing goals

40. City of Vancouver Action Plan
Additional
Implementation Actions
Action 15: Take steps to provide
applicants with more certainty in
the City’s approach to financing
the infrastructure and amenities
needed to accommodate growth

41. Next Steps

42. Building on City Actions
Work is already underway on housing initiatives:
– Community Plans (underway in four communities)
– Laneway house and secondary suites initiatives
– Achieving housing through rezoning (e.g. Arbutus Centre)
– STIR/Rental 100 – significant increase in rental housing
development
– Vancouver Services Review project to improve permits
and licensing processes
– REFOI for affordable housing on 6 City-owned sites

43. Integrating Task Force Recommendations
Task Force 1. Increase 2. Enhance 3. Protect 4. Streamline
Actions supply and City and existing processes and
diversity Community affordable create
City
capacity housing stock certainty
Priority Actions
1. Interim rezoning
policy
2. Thin Streets
3. Housing
Authority
4. Community
Plans
5. Inclusionary
Housing Policy
6. City-owned
lands

44. Delivering on Housing & Homelessness Strategy
Ensure 2,900 5,000 5,000 6,000 20,000
capacity to units units units units units
meet needs of
street Mayor’s Task Force on Housing Affordability
homeless

45. A home for everyone