Guelph home builders looking to stop city’s comprehensive zoning bylaw

Two local building associations are filing an appeal to the Ontario Land Tribunal.

The Guelph and District Home Builders Association and the Guelph Wellington Development Association are said to be against the City of Guelph’s new comprehensive zoning bylaw.

In a joint news release, the two associations say the new bylaw will end up creating more red tape and roadblocks for the housing industry. They say this will stand in the way of Guelph’s commitment to build 18,000 new homes by 2031 under the province’s More Homes Built Faster Act.

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First vice-president of the GDHBA Josh Kaufman said in a statement that “the bylaw will have a direct impact on housing supply, affordability, and attainability in Guelph.”

The comprehensive zoning bylaw, which was passed by Council on April 18, includes the use of tools such as charts, illustrations and notes to add clarity and assist in interpretation, as well as flexible zones that permit multiple building types and updated mixed-use zones. There was a 20-day appeal period which has since elapsed and none were filed with the city.

Mayor Cam Guthrie said after the bylaw was passed there are expectations that the city would like to see developers adhere to sustainability and environmental goals.

No date has been set for the appeal to be heard.

Global News has reached out to the City of Guelph for a comment but did not receive a response by the time of publishing.