RehRomano

Metrotown is miserable exactly because of our planning. It follows the North American style of density from the last 40 years where we only build 30-story towers or single family homes.

Urbanists are saying we should instead expand the missing middle density to build livable communities and upzone the entire metro area.

You live in hell?

Knowing justin trudeau, some stern words with no action are the best we can hope for

Just building more doesn’t help. That will cause more urban sprawl and make everyone’s commute worse.

We have so much space to build within the confines of the greenbelt with density, and it doesn't only have to be in large cities. We could easily build millions of more homes and not only would that ease our housing prices with more supply, but it creates more livable communities. Building denser means we'd reduce traffic because communities can scale transit/walkability/active infrastructure, it'd reduce tax burdens because we service smaller areas, it'd reduce noise/air pollution/traffic injuries with fewer vehicles, all while improving economic opportunities for local businesses.

This is a proven model we've been using for thousands of years, and only since the rise of the automobile has this shifted in the 20th century. It's a no-brainer we should build homes it really is that simple.

And after paying all that money you still have to live in London 😔

I don’t see anywhere here prohibiting infrastructure expansion, this is a yes-and approach. All of the things you mentioned is infinitely more effective and cheaper with denser housing.

It’s all kinda moot in this context because this plan is virtually useless for bringing any real density. The city only expects 200 multiplexes a year.

Don’t threaten me with a good time

Genuinely baffling take, our entire system prioritizes the homeowner above all else. Policies like a GST exemption are the smallest of crumbs in a world where it's literally illegal to build an apartment building in 80% of the land in our largest cities.

Only looking at (taxpayer-funded) subsidies alone, homeowners get FHSAs, first time buyer tax credit, home buyer's plan, tax-free imputed rent, unlimited capital gains exemption, and a slew of other provincial grants. This is all while they build equity! What do renters get in comparison?

According to CMHC we need to build 15000 - 18000 homes per year in Vancouver to catch up on housing supply. According to the city report, this proposal is expected to net 150 - 250 homes per year.

We just spent years of research, consultation, and council meetings to get us 1% of our needed supply. Our system is deeply broken and ABC are clearly not the ones to fix it.

Ignoring these hypothetical numbers, an abundance of housing means more options for renters. In this case the developers have to compete for our rental money. This means lower rents.

Housing is financialized because it’s a scarce commodity. Removing scarcity removes financialization.

An abundance of housing improves options and lowers rents.

I have no love for the Liberals but this is indisputably good policy for incentivizing rental supply. Gotta give credit where it's due.