Looser Winnipeg zoning rules proposed by mayor may not lead to housing boom, expert warns

A major housing regulation reform proposal from Winnipeg Mayor Scott Gilligham meant to secure millions in federal funding may not create the thousands of new homes the city needs, one expert warns.

The mayor's proposal would allow "as-of-right" construction of up to four units per lot citywide, four-storey buildings within 800 metres of "frequent" transit routes, and mid-rise rental construction around malls and commercial corridors. 

Gillingham announced the changes last week in response to a letter from federal Housing Minister Sean Fraser, setting out conditions for approving the City of Winnipeg's $192-million application to the housing accelerator fund.

"These are the type of things that look good on paper, but won't necessarily translate into the type of development that the federal, provincial or even municipalities are looking for," said Aaron Moore, a professor in the department of political science at the University of Winnipeg.

The City of Vancouver approved zoning changes allowing duplexes citywide in 2018. In the five years since, "there's been very little uptake in that," Moore said.

"The hope is that we'll get this type of development throughout the city, which would allow for the amount of units that are expected, and I don't think that's going to happen," he said.

"I think what you'll see is that large parts of the city will largely remain unaffected and then there will be certain areas that get a disproportionate amount of that type of development, but not in the number of units that are hoped for."

Gillingham says the money would fund the construction of 5,777 units over three years and lead to a total of 15,000 units of new housing over 10 years.

A 2020 comprehensive housing needs assessment report published by the University of Winnipeg's Institute of Urban Studies stated that Winnipeg needed to build 4,000 units per year for the next decade in order to meet the expected need.

The question of how the new rules would apply in areas designated as a heritage conservation district, like Crescentwood and Armstrong's Point, remains unclear. 

Last week, Gillingham told reporters those details had yet to be worked out.

St. James resident Kelly Ryback mapped out the areas 800 metres from Portage Avenue, which would likely be included in the zone around frequent transit routes.

"If you also include Ness Avenue as a frequent transit corridor, go another 800 meters north of Ness … that's the rest of the residential areas in Saint James, aside from Westwood," said Ryback, who ran for the St. James seat in last year's municipal election.

Ryback called the changes — which would eliminate the need for public hearings and re-zoning applications for fourplexes and four-storey apartments within the designated areas — "not democratic."