A special session entered its second day as council worked to decide whether to change city zoning rules in exchange for federal funding.
Mayor Charlie Clark said on Friday that the discussion around Saskatoon’s participation in the federal Housing Accelerator Fund has been “one of the biggest tests” he’s seen in the 18 years since he first joined as a city councillor.
He lamented that the issue appears to have pitted homeowners against people in need of housing but insisted “we are not going to get a better deal if we say no” and warned against “flushing $40 million down the drain” as he urged his council colleagues to support the changes.
Ward 6 Coun. Cynthia Block opposed HAF in the process leading up to Thursday’s vote, despite being a longtime booster of promoting infill development.
She said prior to voting that she had changed her position in light of what she viewed as significant risks of rejecting the deal with the feds; these included potentially losing the HAF money, $35 million of which is to be used to subsidize local organizations building affordable housing units, and the possibility of jeopardizing federal contributions on future infrastructure and transit projects.
“People deserve to have a home, they deserve to have a roof over their heads,” Block said, adding she worried efforts to renegotiate could force Saskatoon to make even larger concessions on zoning.
Ward 5 Coun. Randy Donauer, Ward 10 Coun. Zach Jeffries, Ward 1 Coun. Darren Hill and Ward 9 Coun. Bev Dubois opposed corridor growth and land use amendments tied to HAF. While council still had yet to vote at the StarPhoenix print deadline on four more items to finalize the zoning bylaw and other aspects of the HAF-related changes, a failure of the first vote would have scuttled the most controversial measures.
“If the federal government has money for affordable housing and homelessness, they should send it,” Donauer said, criticizing Ottawa’s approach tying the funds to the city’s willingness to make zoning concessions for higher density properties.
Dubois said before her vote that “it didn’t sit right” with her to be “held ransom” by the federal government. She added that she believes the feds would be willing to renegotiate with Saskatoon, while stating “new folks being allowed into our country” by the federal government were contributing to the housing shortage.
Ward 4 Coun.Troy Davies was absent for Friday’s vote. He had left Thursday’s session to attend his daughter’s high school graduation; rules for public hearings forbid council members from voting unless they can be briefed within 10 minutes on any portions they missed.
Lesley Anderson, the city’s director of planning and development, fielded the bulk of Friday’s questions from council members; city manager Jeff Jorgenson handled a few inquiries alongside the city’s solicitor and government relations officer.
Many of the questions surrounded the exact nature of the changes the city would agree to under HAF.
Changes required for the federal money include allowing fourplexes to be built on all residential lots. Buildings up to six storeys will be allowed within 250 metres of identified transit corridors, and buildings up to four storeys are to be allowed within 800 metres of the corridors, but only on properties located on higher-traffic arterial and collector streets.
Council heard the federal government sought to impose a blanket policy of allowing four storeys within the entire 800-metre zone around transit corridors; taller buildings within 250 metres with more limited four-storey development were compromises negotiated by city staff.
Mayor Charlie Clark joined in answering questions about the negotiations between city staff and the feds.
Such arrangements are typically worked out between city staff and their counterparts in the federal bureaucracy. Council heard the HAF talks were “abnormal,” with federal Housing Minister Sean Fraser’s office contacting the mayor’s office directly, while city officials were negotiating with a team from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation.
Clark noted Saskatoon’s negotiating position “started to fall away” as other Prairie cities like Winnipeg and Regina struck HAF-related deals permitting taller buildings near transit.
Clark shared a message received this week from Fraser’s office indicating a June 30 deadline to pass the changes was firm. Rejecting the proposal would then require the city to put forward a plan to comply with its HAF commitments or lose the money.
Council also heard an extension to Sept. 30 could be possible, but that anything beyond this risked Saskatoon being “out of the pool” for the funds.
Council also heard federal officials have indicated future infrastructure and transit funds will be tied to the city allowing higher-density housing.
With a federal election approaching, council questioned city staff on housing plans articulated by the Conservative Opposition.
Council heard the Conservatives haven’t specified zoning changes, but have announced their intention to link cities’ infrastructure funding to improved rates of homebuilding and density should they form government.
The questioning for city officials also included efforts to address inquires raised frequently by members of the public. These included concerns around infrastructure capacity and who would pay for things like sewer upgrades that could be needed with higher-density infill.
Council heard infill under the new guidelines is not expected to occur fast enough to over-tax sewer, water and other infrastructure. Jorgenson noted all these systems are regularly evaluated and upgrades are performed as capacity needs grow.
Costs of these upgrades are currently spread among all city ratepayers. There are mechanisms to require infill developers to pay for upgrades in some situations if they are subdividing lots.
Council also heard that HAF would not prevent the city from imposing an infill development levy should such projects come to unduly burden city infrastructure.
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