A study released on Aug. 25 by the Fraser Institute named Rocky View County (RVC) as the most regulated municipality in the Calgary-Edmonton Corridor (CEC) and consequently the “most difficult” in which to build new housing.
According to the press release, the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian policy “think-tank,” compared jurisdictions across the CEC in several categories of red tape – including construction approval times, density opposition, timeline uncertainty, regulatory costs and fees, rezoning prevalence and the affect council and community groups have on development – based on the experiences and opinions of “industry professionals.”
“We looked at the variables we thought were most important in determining barriers that may arise in building new homes,” said Kenneth Green, senior director of energy and natural resources with the Fraser Institute.
“Across Canada, there is an ongoing discussion about the availability of affordable housing, so we wanted to find out what might be contributing to higher housing costs – other than factors in the market that nobody can measure, like what’s trendy in buying a home or how many people are moving in or out of a province?”
A main reason for RVC’s position on the institute’s list, according to Green, is the length of time it takes to receive project approval – an average of 15 months in RVC, compared to only six months in the nearby community of Strathmore, and the CEC average of 10.9 months. Rezoning time was also longer in RVC at more than 14 months, while Red Deer’s average rezoning time is less than one month, and Calgary’s is less than six months.
However, RVC’s Manager of Planning Services Sherry Baers said because the study is based on the “opinions of developers,” the numbers aren’t entirely accurate.
“Actual numbers show RVC approves planning and development files in an average of under 6.5 months over 80 per cent of the time, not the 15.1 months that developers report,” she said. “There is no question that unusual files take longer than average, but they are not the standard.”
She also said because RVC is a rural area that is more sparsely-populated, it is “unreasonable” to assume the development processes should be the same as areas that are “eight to 143 times” more populated. The County also operates under the South Saskatchewan Regional Plan, which Baers said “significantly impacts” land use management.
According to the study, obtaining approval for construction costs a typical residential developer in RVC $33,333 per individual dwelling unit, which is more than 1.5 times the costs of developing in Cochrane. However, the report also notes the issues of compliance costs can be tied to the value of homes, which is also higher in RVC.
“Urban areas exist to be developed, but RVC’s growth is aimed at specific areas – land that is not generally planned agricultural,” Baers said. “Should someone want to develop outside those defined areas, there would naturally be additional costs for rezoning, infrastructure, geotechnical work, etc. The County takes a user-pay approach, with developers covering costs rather than taxpayers.”
Green said the Fraser Institute’s goal with the study is to help create a “toolbox” for regulators who are looking to improve the environment for building new housing within their municipalities, which RVC council’s Reeve Margaret Bahcheli said is something the County is already working on.
“With residential growth pressures spilling out from Calgary, RVC is working to streamline and avoid unnecessary red tape,” she said. “But much of what might be perceived by the development industry as ‘red tape’ could simply be the County taking the time needed to ensure that the right projects are being undertaken.
“We have a unique rural-urban lifestyle mix, with among the lowest property taxes in the province, and we work hard to ensure that any new development is undertaken in ways that don’t threaten the current quality of life our residents enjoy.”
