One of BC’s top economic drivers, the residential development business is a tough, competitive industry that creates thousands of jobs while pumping billions into the economy. And it’s no secret that multiple reports are now backing up what developers already know: despite ever increasing demand for the finished product, it’s taking longer to get projects through the myriad layers of municipal approvals and regulations – in some cases, as much as three or four times longer than a decade ago.
Indeed, a recent report by the Fraser Institute found that the District of North Vancouver and the City of Vancouver are the regions most mired in development regulations, and this is contributing to unaffordability. In an aggregate ranking of 10 municipalities, North Vancouver came out as the most regulated municipality, earning low marks in construction approval times (16.1 months compared with the Lower Mainland average of 11.2). The City of Vancouver scored particularly poorly on regulatory costs and fees. To get approval for construction, a typical residential developer in Vancouver spends $38,333 per door (30 per cent more than the regional average) before construction even starts, said the study.
Fear of Speaking Out
Surprisingly, though, few developers are willing to discuss the issue on record. Although none actually stated as much to REW.ca, there’s an undeniable sense of concern that by speaking out, they could simply make a bad situation worse and find even more obstacles and delays the next time they put an application forward. That’s not just bad news for developers, it’s bad news for consumers. Even in today’s world of low interest rates, carrying costs are ultimately yet another addition to the rising price of homeownership.
Mark Belling, CEO of Fifth Avenue Real Estate Marketing Ltd., notes that while the costs of requirements like new roads, “critter” trails and tree preservation clearly benefit owners, approval delays are a hidden cost for reasons that can sometimes seem to defy logic. “As an example, there is a municipality where if one local resident has a negative concern about a proposal, the Council has been known to delay the vote for a decision. You know the municipality isn’t going to be the one covering any expenses caused by that delay.”
Developers and city officials are unanimous that the single, best way for a builder to expedite the approval process is one of the most basic – understand exactly what kind of development a municipality is looking for, show how a project will fit into that municipality’s OCP (official community plan), then provide a complete package including all required forms, documents, certification, and surveys.
With NIMBYism on the rise, especially for projects promoting densification, community engagement prior to applying for rezoning is becoming an ever more important component of that package. And many companies are taking the process to levels unheard of in the past.
Innovative Public Consultation Initiatives
“We went through an extensive public consultation for our Ambleside project in West Vancouver,” says Michael Ward, senior vice-president and general manager of Grosvenor Americas. “But for our upcoming, mixed-use project in Edgemont Village, we took things even further. In addition to our Door Knocking Campaign, where we literally went door-to-door to open conversation with local residents, we rented a high-profile retail space in the heart of Village that became our information centre. We kept regular hours and staffed it with Grosvenor employees, so when people came in, they could engage in a genuine dialogue.
“We knew at the outset that many of the local merchants were concerned that bringing 62,000 square feet of retail anchored by a Thrifty Foods would harm their business. In fact, a third-party retail study conducted by JP Rollo and Associates showed the opposite. Over $17 million of extra retail revenue will now stay in the Village rather than go somewhere like Marine Drive – that’s a 94 per cent increase.”
When the project went to public hearing, there was virtually unanimous support from local residents.
Heeding Residents' Concerns
Nic Paolella, vice-president of development at Marcon, found extensive public engagement paid dividends for the company’s upcoming Park&Metro project in Vancouver. When it became clear the primary concern was that a four-level condominium building would look out of place in a long-established residential neighbourhood, Marcon designed the 73-unit project as two buildings that share a central courtyard and underground parkade.
“The fourth floors will be stepped back so, from the street, it will appear each building is only three levels high. Each building will look different, but both will have brick on the façade to create a sense of cohesiveness with each other and with the surrounding neighbourhood.”
The strategy paid off. “When we went to public hearing, there wasn’t a single comment or objection… none.”
Solutions via Online Communications
According to Getting to Ground Breaking, a recent study by the Greater Vancouver Home Builders’ Association (GVHBA), one innovation showing promise of smoothing the path through municipal regulations is increased use of electronic communications and web-based content sharing. Five municipalities (Surrey, Langley Township, City of North Vancouver, District of North Vancouver, and West Vancouver) already provide online access to application status, and more are expected to follow. Among the many benefits of electronic communication options are the ability to have multiple staff groups working on an application simultaneously and real time feedback/updates from building inspectors in the field.
“I’ve visited 86 countries and I still believe Vancouver is the most remarkable spot on Earth,” Belling says in closing. “We’re surrounded by mountains, ocean and ALR that you can’t build on. That’s part of the charm.”
