The Province's housing target for the District: what was ordered, and what it means for your street

On September 23, 2023 the Province issued a housing target order for the District of North Vancouver under the Housing Supply Act. It took effect on October 1, 2023 and runs to September 30, 2028. It requires a minimum of 2,838 net new completed housing units over those five years — completions minus demolitions — and sets the figure at 75% of the Province's estimate of what the District needs.

The order does not say where the homes go, what they look like, or who builds them. It sets a number and a reporting schedule: the District must report progress to the Province at the end of each period and, if it falls short, explain what it will do about it. The District's first interim report, covering October 2023 to March 2024, is linked below.

Separately, the Province's 2023 legislation on small-scale multi-unit housing and transit-oriented areas applies to every municipality. Lots that used to allow one house must now allow several homes, and land near frequent transit must allow more height. The District had to change its zoning to comply; a council cannot opt out.

So what is left for the District to decide? Quite a lot, and it is where the difference between candidates actually lies: which town centres carry most of the growth; whether the roads, water, sewer, schools and parks are planned before the homes arrive or after; how long a permit takes; what developers contribute toward the infrastructure their projects rely on; and how carefully the new small-scale homes fit the streets they land on.

Max's housing page sets out his proposals on each of those, with the partner each one needs and the trade-off each one carries. None of them pretends the target is optional.