B.C. adopts new housing permit strategy to get more homes built quickly
CTV
British Columbians are about to learn how the provincial government plans to overcome barriers to new home development.
British Columbia is adopting a “one-stop-shop” approach to housing-related permits to help speed up the approval process to build more homes, officials announced Monday.
The new Permitting Strategy for Housing means B.C. will have a cross-ministry team dedicated to prioritizing housing permits, which are currently handled by multiple ministries with different processes.
“As we turn things around and start to build record levels of housing, we are taking action today to remove obstacles to constructing new homes that families desperately need,” Premier David Eby said in a news release on Monday.
Indigenous-led projects, BC Housing applications and multiple-unit developments will be given priority, according to the province.
The government says priority will also go to housing projects in municipalities that are subject to the speculation and vacancy tax “because they have the greatest housing shortages, lowest vacancy rates and most demand for housing.”
Forty-two new positions have been created to make up the team expediting this new strategy, with the goal of increasing that number to 203.
“Establishing a single-application approach is an investment that will deliver more housing for people faster, and this will also result in immediate and future benefits for the entire natural resources sector,” Nathan Cullen, minister responsible for water, land and resource stewardship said in the release.
