A commentary by a retired urban planner.
The Sept. 1 editorial “Difficult measures needed as Greater Victoria densifies” is correct: difficult choices about housing do lie ahead.
But something more than a rambling discussion of densification, homelessness, mental health and policing is needed.
First, we must decide what the goals for housing should be. The editorial’s introduction indicates that there are several: making housing affordable and ensuring the region’s continued desirability (let’s call that quality of life).
Later it adds limiting the outward expansion of the built-up area as well as addressing drug use and homelessness and beefing up mental health services and law enforcement; but let’s just focus on housing.
Second, we must focus on actions and actors. The challenge with housing is that it must be viewed as a partnership between the three levels of government – who set the policies — and the private sector — who build what the policies allow.
And over the past 30 years the absence of the federal and provincial governments from the housing portfolio has left local government using its very limited tools; and the private sector building whatever makes it the most money.
Even now as the federal and provincial governments stir into wakefulness, they have yet to grasp the enormity of the challenges, to clearly articulate their goals and certainly not yet to adopt “some expensive and politically challenging measures.”
Their currently stated goal of increasing housing supply so that housing becomes affordable is unattainable in the globally attractive region that is Greater Victoria.
It is unattainable because our region is globally attractive — the people who will buy the increased supply of housing are global people (from Alberta, Toronto, Europe, United States, etc). They can pay the current high prices and more.
Yes, we must encourage sensitive densification and Victoria, Saanich and other municipalities are to be congratulated on their “missing middle” policy endeavours.
But “missing middle” is a model of housing types (duplexes, mini apartments, etc). It needs to be matched by a financial model which shows how real people (the article mentions nurses and trades workers) can afford those physical housing types.
Currently the only financial models are to own, to rent, or to rely on B.C. Housing.
That gap for missing middle financing is where the federal and provincial governments must step up to the plate.
Or we will end up with the worst of all worlds: increasing densification diminishing quality of life while providing stratospherically expensive missing middle housing for that global population.
And yes, let’s also try to address drugs and homelessness and mental health and policing … the list goes on.
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