CALGARY – After years of debate, there are new ideas at the table of Calgary’s troubled rental market.
Councilor Druh Farrell is currently behind a move to allow secondary suites in four wards and anywhere in the city within 600 metres of public transit.
That idea, however, is temporarily on the back-burner.
Council Monday voted to ask city administration to review secondary suite policies, with an eye to creating a standard plan for everyone.
Councilor Peter Demong suggested neighbours should decide whether suites in illegal zones should be approved, instead of the city.
Currently, council deals with each of these requests, individually.
“Council has the ability to approve stuff even if it doesn’t meet guidelines. Problem is, when it goes to council, they approve stuff that doesn’t meet guidelines and they don’t approve stuff that meets the guidelines. It’s totally random,” claims
Don Hill, who’s suite recently got council’s blessing.
According to Demong’s proposal, approval from 11 of 20 surrounding neighbours would legalize a suite in any zone.
Mayor Naheed Nenshi was critical of the idea, suggesting it may not even be legal, but was encouraged by the debate.
“I am hopeful that little tiny break will lead to a compromise that will likely make nobody around council table entirely happy, but which will allow for safe legal suites for far more Calgarians. Stay tuned,” says Nenshi.
Calgary lags behind virtually every big city in the country when it comes to legalizing suites.
“The current system on how we regulate suites is ridiculous, it’s not working and we have a housing crisis,” says Druh Farrell.
Administration is expected to report back to council by the end of the year.
The city suggests there are many more illegal suites in Calgary than legal ones.
Comments