Who Cares about Renters Anyway?
City Conversation #87: TEAM’s Vacancy Control promise is the last best hope for Vancouver’s renters
October 11th 2022—Renters & Homeowners alike want vacancy control. TEAM is the only party that can & will deliver it. Read TEAM’s vacancy control policy
Below are my remarks (and then some) at today’s press conference, speaking as Chair of TEAM’s Housing Policy Committee:
One of 13 buildings in an 11-block area currently threatened by the Broadway Plan—more coming soon unless we take action—(poor) image by Brian Palmquist
As TEAM volunteers and candidates have been canvassing door to door over the past several weeks, we have been asking Vancouverites what’s important to them in this election. Affordable housing is always high on the list. But we’ve heard some other encouraging and surprising housing messages, so did some polling. The results were surprising yet empowering and have caused us to act while there is still time.
Perhaps not surprisingly, more than 80% of renters expressed strong support for vacancy control—a percentage that other civic parties except COPE have chosen to ignore. Under vacancy control, there is a pretty tight cap on rent increases in between tenants, with allowance to landlords for maintenance and repairs but not the excess rent inflation that’s become endemic to our city. And in order to encourage the construction of secondary suites, laneways and duplexes, as well as the retention and renovation of existing homes into more homes, small buildings with 6 or less rental homes are exempted.
While 80% renter support for vacancy control was perhaps to be expected, what was surprising and so heartwarming was that more than 60% of Vancouver homeowners strongly support vacancy control. TEAM listened, and out of that reflection comes our vacancy control pledge to Vancouverites.
Why are homeowners strongly supporting vacancy control? Almost everyone we spoke with has a family member or close friend who fears for their present or their future; who fears that they will be priced out of their rental homes through demoviction like the Broadway Plan promises. One single afternoon’s research told me there are currently at least 13 Broadway Plan area rental buildings for sale—fully two thirds of the 251 existing, affordable rental apartments in these 13 buildings are being sold by agents who advertise what the Broadway Plan will allow them to be replaced with, typically FSR 6.5 and 20 storeys. The truth of the Broadway Plan was immediately and starkly evident:
A sample of 13 rental buildings for sale in just 11 blocks of the Broadway Plan area—2/3 of the rental homes (in grey) are in buildings being sold explicitly for what the Broadway Plan can replace them with—spreadsheet by Brian Palmquist
How do a baker’s dozen of Broadway Plan area buildings for sale affect current and future Vancouver renters?
Firstly, these are relatively new listings—they’ve arisen since the Broadway Plan was enacted—they haven’t been sold yet. So the Mayor’s Broadway Plan messaging that “it’s a 30-year plan” just doesn’t ring true. If 1% of the total Broadway Plan area rentals have already gone up for sale in the six weeks since the Plan has been in place—and remember this is a one afternoon informal list that covers only 11 of the Plan’s 485 blocks, just 2.2% of the Plan’s affected area—then this is definitely not a 30-year plan. At this rate, it’s a decade at most until most of the Plan area’s affordable rentals have been replaced.
Secondly, look what comes after. Four of the five listings above are being offered on the basis that you can replace them with 20-storey high-rises which may or may not have any rentals in them. And if they do, you can bet they’ll be at the bottom, facing the dumpsters, never seeing the sun. You only need to look at the mixed strata/rental buildings proposed so far to see where the renting folks go. And of course the homes are much smaller than the older, larger apartments they replace. And of course the rents will be much higher—the way they’re calculated is against average rents when the replacement building is completed, which will have inflated just as rents throughout the city have inflated way above cost of living or anything rational—at least, I think that’s what the latest iteration of the Broadway Plan’s “rules” calls for—they change frequently. Of course these “rules” will mostly change—the development industry is already muttering that the Mayor’s measures are unworkable, need to be reduced. Are we surprised.
As for renters in the rest of Vancouver, not covered by the Broadway Plan but included in the city-wide Vancouver Plan, let’s remember that the Mayor said the renter “protections” in the Broadway Plan would apply city-wide. So what you see in the spreadsheet above is what you’ll get—everywhere in Vancouver.
Please advise me of the address of any additional Broadway Plan area rental buildings that are up for sale—that’s the area between 1st and 16th Avenues, Clark in the east and Vine in the west—about 500 city blocks. There may be future updates to the data in this post—unless, of course, Vancouverites elect TEAM for a Livable Vancouver’s Colleen Hardwick as our next Mayor, together with 6 TEAM Councillors, who will reign this in with the compassion of vacancy control. If you care about your renter family and friends, you know what to do. Hopefully it’s not too late for them and for our city.
FULL DISCLOSURE: My adult son, who features in many of my City Conversations, rents in an older Broadway Plan area three storey walkup building that the Broadway Plan says can be replaced with a 20-storey tower. The building was recently sold, just after the Broadway Plan was enacted.
The Time for Action is NOW
TEAM for a Livable Vancouver is the only political party pledged to speak truth to power. Vancouver’s civic election is October 15th, this Saturday! Lots more damage will be done to our city unless TEAM elects the next Mayor and a majority (6 of 10) City Councillors—less than 6 and not much will change for the better. A majority TEAM Park Board (4 of 7) will ensure our open spaces are integrated with the city rather than ignoring them. And our voice on the School Board will help bring schools into sync with parks, open spaces and neighbourhood development.
To best ensure the election of TEAM candidates, consider voting for them as a slate and for no other candidates—each vote for another party’s candidates, or independents, for Council, Park Board and School Board lessens the possibility of a TEAM-led city renaissance.
If you are concerned that the City Conversations you’ve been reading are examples of what’s wrong with our city and want to bring back Vancouver’s livability, join TEAM and work with us to restore Vancouver as a place we can all afford to call home.
Today’s question: Do you favour vacancy control? Why or why not?
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Brian Palmquist is a Vancouver-based architect, building envelope and building code consultant and LEED Accredited Professional (the first green building system). He is semi-retired for the moment, still teaching and writing, so not beholden to any client or city hall. These conversations mix real discussion with research and observations based on a 40+ year career including the planning, design and construction of almost every type and scale of project. He is the author of the Amazon best seller “An Architect’s Guide to Construction.” He is also a member of team for a livable Vancouver, a new political party dedicated to restoring a livable Vancouver starting with the 2022 civic election. City Conversations are generally congruent with TEAM policy, so if you like the ideas that I’m writing about, please consider joining TEAM.
Unfortunately, creating more housing by retention and inclusion of infill housing, basement suites, laneway housing, or triplexing, is a process which only the very strong willed and deep pocketed can accomplish, while navigating the bizarre and often ridiculous world of the building code, planners, plan checkers, and the most powerful, building inspectors. Once you dip your toe in, it's a slow drowning into the ever changing, never defining, constantly moving quagmire that will consume your sanity and make you wish you had never started.