The provincial government remains in consultation with the first 10 municipalities targeted for additional housing.
B.C.’s housing ministry said consultations with the cohort will continue through August with the final numbers expected to be announced shortly thereafter. In late May, Housing Minister Ravi Kahlon announced Vancouver and Victoria would be among the first communities subject to new housing targets set by the provincial government under legislation passed last year. Abbotsford and Delta in the Fraser Valley; North Vancouver, West Vancouver and Port Moody in Greater Vancouver; Oak Bay and Saanich in Greater Victoria and Kamloops also made the list.
Provincial authority to set housing targets in those municipalities comes from the Housing Supply Act passed late last fall. It encourages municipalities, starting those with what the province calls “the greatest need and highest projected growth,” to build more housing by knocking down barriers, including updating zoning bylaws and streamlining local development approval processes.