By Jack Brittle, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
On January 28, Burlington City Council approved a new amendment to the Burlington Official Plan to “Engage with the Community to implement four units as-of-right and the other actions identified in the Housing Strategy, including implementing opportunities to increase the range of housing options available.”
The approval means that new amendments will be added to the Burlington Official Plan and Zoning Bylaw legislation, both adopted in 2020.
The amendment will expand permissions to allow up to four units on residential lots within the urban area and amend the Residential Neighbourhood Area policies.
The city designed this amendment to meet the requirements of the federal government’s Housing Accelerator Fund.
In the background section of the recommendation report on the amendment, it states that “This project focuses on using planning implementation tools such as the Official Plan, and Zoning Bylaw and identified opportunities to put into place a policy framework and regulations to help support a variety of housing options within the City’s Urban Area, with a particular focus on the City’s neighbourhoods.”
The city is currently in Phase 1 of its Zoning Bylaw project, which focuses on residential areas.
At the January 13 Committee of the Whole meeting, the city’s Commissioner of Development and Growth Management Curt Benson said that the city heard from citizens at a 2024 statutory meeting that eliminating barriers for the number of units that can be put in an ARU (additional residential unit) that are external to the main dwelling was a big want.
Paul Sharman, Ward 5 councillor, said then that he was very pleased with the amendment but is still waiting on more direction from the province — and with the upcoming provincial election, it is less clear what the form of that direction will take.
“I really appreciate this report and all the work that’s gone into the Official Plan amendment coming out,” Sharman said. “Particularly as it relates to the additional housing that we need so badly. I do look forward to when we get some clarity from the province that will actually allow us to build homes.”
Mayor Marianne Meed Ward echoed his thanks for the work that has been done to craft the amendment and reiterated the importance of the legislation.
“I really want to commend staff for the extensive work and consultation that has gone into this,” Meed Ward said. “Some of it was done to us through the province, although we didn’t disagree with it. They said three units as of right. We went for four because it’s good planning, but also to qualify for Housing Accelerator Funding to address the key issue of our time, which is affordable housing.”
“We’re not just reacting to provincial or federal legislation,” Meed Ward continued. “This is something that we believe is in the best interest of our community as well.”
Despite the city’s plans, some remain skeptical of their plan for the “four units as of right.”
Albert Faccenda, a developer for Coral Gable Homes, says the proposal is illogical.
“Sadly, it’s my respectful opinion that none of these units will be built,” Faccenda said. “If you build four units as rentals on a single parcel of land, there’s no return on your investment. In fact, it’s probably going to cost you money. So, I’m not sure where the logic is in this decision.”
The city claims that through the Housing Accelerator Fund (HAF) investment, 2,724 new residential units will be built by the end of 2026.
Faccenda thinks that the city is mainly motivated by the $21 million that it will receive from the federal government by implementing this legislation.
“The federal government was giving money to the municipalities if they would approve and allow in their zoning bylaws four units as of right,” Faccenda said.
The city also reports that these funds will support some key actions in the city’s Housing Strategy, such as more housing opportunities for Burlington residents by cutting red tape and updating their zoning.
One of the ways that the city says the Housing Strategy will meet the community’s needs is by tackling unaffordability.
Sharon Will, communications advisor at the City of Burlington, echoed this idea.
“The strategy has actions to support making housing more attainable for residents at different income levels,” Will said.
Faccenda is doubtful that this will adequately address the crisis, however.
“This is just all smoke and mirrors at the end of the day,” Faccenda said. “Nobody is going to build these units. And the only reason they signed on was the $21 million that they’re getting for free to do this. It doesn’t make any financial sense.”
“They expect you to put four units on two-storey homes,” Faccenda continued. “They’re not allowing you to build any higher. So how can you squeeze four units in two storeys? I have no idea. But this is a technical thing that a builder with 47 years of experience would realize, not a politician who said, ‘All this sounds good,’ but they haven’t done the math.”
Faccenda explained which types of housing he would prefer the city to focus on.
“Instead of building one house, I would build two houses,” Faccenda said, “But the cost of those two houses would be significantly lower than the price of the one house where these new homes are becoming prohibitive to young people to buy. The city said they were going to be doing this. It’s been 20 years, and they haven’t done anything. So, single-family homes in low-density areas, that’s all you can build. You can’t build anything else as of right.”
Faccenda explained what he believes the city’s motive to be.
“They’re trying to appease the people that don’t want development in Burlington,” Faccenda said. “Development in Burlington, people don’t want to see it. They don’t want to see high rises. They don’t want to see their neighbourhoods destroyed by putting a semi in the middle of a street full of houses. So the mayor’s in a tough spot. She has to try to appease the voters or not get elected, and also follow the direction of the provincial government. But, the provincial government’s not holding the city accountable for following the rules of development.”
Faccenda said that, in his experience, building rental units is extremely unpopular amongst developers.
“You’re looking at $3 to $4 million for this type of building,” Faccenda said. “You know how much rent you would have to collect for that beast? And if someone is going to build rental units, wouldn’t they build them in high rises where the land costs significantly less?”
“I have no interest in building them,” Faccenda continued. “And we’ve examined this thing completely. Nobody wants to build rental units because it’s very difficult, if not impossible, to evict tenants. So, in other words, it’s all tilted in favour of the tenants.”
Faccenda also said that he would be more inclined to build these units if developers were allowed to sell them individually as condominiums, which the city is not currently allowing.
“They said ‘No, these are just rentals,’” Faccenda said. “Well, nobody’s going to build these particular units because the cost is too prohibitive.”
Faccenda summarized his thoughts on the housing strategy as a whole.
“There will be basements finished and granny flats built, but these were permitted before,” Faccenda said. “Triplexes and four units as of right, I don’t think will be a great hit.”
