By Cecilia Nasmith/Today’s Northumberland
Cobourg council this week received with great enthusiasm a report on new opportunities to make building homes less costly and more effective and efficient.
This was a result of Mayor Lucas Cleveland’s July 11 directive, issued under his Strong Mayor Powers, to get a report setting out 10 to 20 policy, financial and procedural opportunities that council could consider and implement to this end. From this list, the report recommended that council select four to six key measures on which to focus, with staff reports to be prepared on each with next steps for implementation or follow-up.
This list included 18 possibilities.
Planning policy options included adopting as-of-right zoning for missing-middle housing, implementing a zoning overlay along ‘Main Streets’ requiring development intensification, expanding pre-zoned intensification areas, streamlining and digitizing planning and development approvals, allowing more flexible parking standards, and supporting additional residential units by right.
Financial opportunities included waiving or reducing development charges for affordable and rental housing, waiving or reducing planning-review fees for affordable housing, establishing a municipal land bank or land trust, using Community Improvement Plans, and applying for provincial and Federal funding and investment programs.
Procedural and administrative efficiencies included consolidating public consultation for minor applications, implementing fast-track approvals for priority projects, creating standardized development agreements, and co-ordinating infrastructure planning with intensification goals.
The list concluded with three innovative thinking-outside-the-box ideas – pre-approved modular or prefab home designs, drastic changes to zoning bylaw designations and allocations, and infrastructure investigation within build-up areas to evaluate availability of the use of shared services and as-of-right multi-plex housing.
Councillors were effusive in complimenting staff’s work on this directive, but – as the item came up for discussion at about 10:15 p.m. during an agenda that still had some distance to go – Mayor Lucas Cleveland suggested making the actual choices another time.
Councillor Miriam Mutton noted that, since the report had come directly to council rather than through a standing committee first, it should be referred to a standing committee.
Council passed the motion, which will see the report sent to the Oct. 8 Public Works, Planning and Development Standing Committee.
