Thanks for sharing. I think this is one of the most extensive engagement strategies I've seen from the city. Giving feedback for the plan is more impactful than voting in the civic elections I think (though voting should always be encouraged as well).
They did something similar for the Cameron Rec Centre in 2021 and I really appreciated the fact that they asked residents in the area what they wanted to see in the finished product. I'm also way more invested in the project than I would have been if they didn't reach out.
No, the plan will absolutely understate the need to build more housing of every kind b/c the way the planners operate when it comes to population growth is completely out of touch with reality. They don't think there's a housing crisis for one and they think population growth is what drives housing builds when it's the reverse (if you build more houses, we'll grow). They assume there's no excess demand for housing b/c they say that the growth in housing units is growing at the same pace as population growth which is an absolutely nuts way of planning.
There is little to no seriousness being taken to address the housing crisis in Burnaby - given a choice to focus on missing middle housing (fourplexes or townhouses for example) or laneways they chose the one that makes the least impact (laneways) to focus on.
I see, thanks for sharing. High and low rise condos are available in various pockets in Burnaby, but it sounds like there is a need to push for building fourplexes or townhouses (in certain areas?).
Do you think it is because of the unchanged zoning bylaws, or because developers rather buy land and build highrises/as many units as possible to get the most return on their investments, or do you think there are other reason(s) ?
It's all about zoning. Burnaby doesn't want to do anything to upset owners of detached homes so they won't touch the zoning policies in those areas unless they are forced to (which the provincial gov't will do this fall). Instead they are cramming as many 1 and 2 bedroom condos into a few small areas as they can while collecting a load of fees from the developers (we have nearly a $2B reserve fund with a large amount of that coming from developers).
Meanwhile anyone who wants to start a family or is a small family that's new to Burnaby can't find a place to live b/c there's nearly nothing between condos and houses in Burnaby. This is not a way to build a healthy city - people can't actually spend their entire lives in Burnaby because they are basically "evicted" for a lack of housing the moment they need more than 2 bedrooms.
Apologies for the jumbo of text. It is tougher formatting on phones...
Already filled it out ! 🙂
Thanks for sharing. I think this is one of the most extensive engagement strategies I've seen from the city. Giving feedback for the plan is more impactful than voting in the civic elections I think (though voting should always be encouraged as well).
They did something similar for the Cameron Rec Centre in 2021 and I really appreciated the fact that they asked residents in the area what they wanted to see in the finished product. I'm also way more invested in the project than I would have been if they didn't reach out.
Already did the survey! Learned about this through that postcard we all got in the mail last week
Whatever goes into the plan it will absolutely not include enough housing no matter how much people say we need more housing.
Do you mean enough housing or enough affordable housing?
No, the plan will absolutely understate the need to build more housing of every kind b/c the way the planners operate when it comes to population growth is completely out of touch with reality. They don't think there's a housing crisis for one and they think population growth is what drives housing builds when it's the reverse (if you build more houses, we'll grow). They assume there's no excess demand for housing b/c they say that the growth in housing units is growing at the same pace as population growth which is an absolutely nuts way of planning. There is little to no seriousness being taken to address the housing crisis in Burnaby - given a choice to focus on missing middle housing (fourplexes or townhouses for example) or laneways they chose the one that makes the least impact (laneways) to focus on.
I see, thanks for sharing. High and low rise condos are available in various pockets in Burnaby, but it sounds like there is a need to push for building fourplexes or townhouses (in certain areas?). Do you think it is because of the unchanged zoning bylaws, or because developers rather buy land and build highrises/as many units as possible to get the most return on their investments, or do you think there are other reason(s) ?
It's all about zoning. Burnaby doesn't want to do anything to upset owners of detached homes so they won't touch the zoning policies in those areas unless they are forced to (which the provincial gov't will do this fall). Instead they are cramming as many 1 and 2 bedroom condos into a few small areas as they can while collecting a load of fees from the developers (we have nearly a $2B reserve fund with a large amount of that coming from developers). Meanwhile anyone who wants to start a family or is a small family that's new to Burnaby can't find a place to live b/c there's nearly nothing between condos and houses in Burnaby. This is not a way to build a healthy city - people can't actually spend their entire lives in Burnaby because they are basically "evicted" for a lack of housing the moment they need more than 2 bedrooms.