Here’s an update. Mayor Kennedy Stewart withdrew his motion. This was announced via the City Clerk’s twitter:
Council Members’ Motion B4 – Rescinding Motion to Include C-2 Zones in Rental Housing Stock Official Development Plan, has been withdrawn.
However, for the rental protection changes to take effect, City staff still have yet to produce a report with bylaw changes in a Policy Report. The Policy Report would then need to be referred to a future Public Hearing. We’ll keep you posted about how staff progress with C-2 rental protections.
Our original post is below.
GWAC opposes the motion by Mayor Kennedy Stewart to rescind the protection of rental units along Commercial Drive and in other parts of Vancouver that fall under the C-2 zoning designation. This motion is on the Council agenda for Tuesday, March 12th.
The following letter was sent to Council with the support of GWAC and other community groups in the Coalition of Vancouver Neighbourhoods:
Re: Motion B.4 – Rescinding Motion to Include C-2 Zones in Rental Housing Stock Official Development Plan
May 12 Council Item B.4: https://council.vancouver.ca/documents/b4.pdf
The Coalition of Vancouver Neighbourhoods (CVN) opposes this Motion to rescind the previous directions from Council.
City Council, on November 26, 2019, voted by majority:
THAT Council instruct staff to prepare a report for consideration for referral to public hearing to amend the Rental Housing Stock Official Development Plan to extend rental replacement requirements to C-2, C-2C, C-2B and C-2B-1 zoning districts city-wide.
There exist, at present, arterial and high streets in neighbourhoods across Vancouver with C-2 zones. This zoning includes many grandfathered existing rental buildings, sometimes with residential rental units on all floors, some with residential rental above commercial, in a 3 or 4-storey form. These C-2 zones can be found on portions of streets including West 4th Avenue, Main Street, Commercial Drive, Kingsway, West 41st Avenue, Fraser, Victoria, East Hastings and Dunbar. Under existing conditions, these affordable rental units can be torn down and replaced with market condos.
The Mayor, through this Motion, is calling for the removal of this rental protection. Previously, through their vote, Council directed staff to draft changes to include C-2 in the Rental Housing Stock Official Development Plan to be brought forward at a future public hearing. The Rental Housing Stock ODP, which includes a “rate of change” policy that requires that rental units be replaced one-for-one in any redevelopment of a property, also provides for a tenant relocation policy.
In a time of extremely low vacancy rate for rental accommodation, we need to defeat this attempt to reverse the will of Council, and support the extension of rental protections to the C-2 zones.
Grandview-Woodland Area Council 