City of Waterloo council summary October 30, 2023
** The council summary provides a snapshot of the major items presented at Monday’s council meeting. Please refer to the minutes for an official record of the meeting.
City of Waterloo initiatives to bring housing to market faster through Streamline Development Approval Fund
Staff presented an update report on initiatives to support more homes built faster, funded by the provincial Streamline Development Approval Fund (SDAF). The SDAF is an important tool to support municipal partners so that housing can be brought to market faster. It recognizes that the province and municipalities need to work together to increase the supply of housing and make housing more affordable for Ontarians.
Under the fund, the City of Waterloo is eligible to receive up to $1,000,000. The City advanced twelve different initiatives under the fund to streamline development applications, and made significant strides to address application backlogs and modernize planning processes through investments in technology. The City retained professional consultants to identify opportunities to streamline development approvals in the areas of built form, parking and community planning permit systems. Staff also enhanced development communication tools, improving the planning webpages, digital intake and using Engage Waterloo for community awareness and feedback. The studies carried out under the SDAF will be included as part of the City’s upcoming Official Plan Review and are available on the City’s website.
Advancing equitable space use for diverse community programming through the City’s Indoor Community Space Master Plan
Council received a status update on the Indoor Community Space Master Plan, which will guide improvements to how the community accesses and uses indoor spaces for sport, recreation, leisure, community connections, arts and cultural-based activities. Recommendations in the draft plan will be in three theme areas: Policy recommendations (procedures and guidelines for using facilities), Facility recommendations (for improving existing facilities through renovations or expansions) and Future recommendations (to guide future builds expected towards the end of the ten-year lifespan of the plan). The draft plan, informed by data and trends analysis, facility tours, internal staff engagement and a public engagement survey, contains more than 60 recommendations and will be shared publicly this fall for review and comment.
Council approves update to City of Waterloo Emergency Response Plan
Council approved an updated version of the City of Waterloo’s Emergency Response Plan, an action plan for the effective coordination of City resources, services and activities for responding to the risks the City faces. The plan outlines collective and individual roles and responsibilities in responding to and recovering from an emergency. Updates to the 2017 version of the plan incorporate learnings and best practices in emergency management, and add references to the Alert Waterloo Region (www.alertwr.ca) notification system.
Staff directed to amend zoning bylaw to allow four residential units
City of Waterloo Council unanimously supported a motion directing staff to amend the Zoning By-law to permit, as-of-right, up to four residential units and four storeys on residential parcels in low density residential zones. Up to four residential units would be allowed without the need for a separate zoning bylaw amendment where existing zoning permits single detached, semi-detached or street townhouses, provided lot size is sufficient.
The motion reaffirms the City of Waterloo’s commitment to the City’s Affordable Housing Strategy to increase the supply and mix of affordable housing, and the provincial Housing Pledge to build 16,000 new homes by 2031. Council also confirmed their support for higher density housing options in areas supported by transit and near post-secondary institutions, and to increase the supply of missing middle housing. Staff will report back to Council on the amendment in the first quarter of 2024.
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Media contact:
Cari Van Niekerk
Director, Corporate Communications
cari.vanniekerk@waterloo.ca