Calgary city councillors overwhelmingly approve R-CG land-use changes, yet those backing a call for a plebiscite on citywide base rezoning want to ensure they, and citizens, retain the power to oppose applications that come forward.
On Wednesday, LiveWire Calgary was the first to report that a group of six councillors were putting forward a Notice of Motion to direct administration to prepare for a vote of electors to consider citywide rezoning. Couns. Dan McLean, Sonya Sharp, Andre Chabot, Peter Demong, Terry Wong and Sean Chu have signed on.
If it receives technical merit endorsement, the Notice of Motion will still need approval at a full meeting of Calgary city council.
When the Calgary Housing Strategy was approved, the addition of R-CG base rezoning was introduced as a way to help streamline the land-use redesignation process, with the premise it would eliminate a time-consuming barrier to getting more homes built.
Right now, anyone can apply for an R-CG land-use redesignation on any residential parcel in any neighbourhood in Calgary, though many of the newer city communities have an embedded base R-G designation. This allows the same building forms as R-CG.
Any land-use redesignation must go through an application process that requires advertisement and a public hearing. At this time, the public can have their say. Councillors, who must stay amenable to persuasion during the process, then weigh the merits of each proposal and then vote on it.
According to data compiled by LiveWire Calgary, even those councillors listed on the Notice of Motion voted more than 70 per cent in favour of R-CG land use designations. That led to 151 out of 155 R-CG applications being approved, the data showed.
Ward 13 Coun. Dan McLean, who is spearheading the motion, said even though most are approved, the danger of allowing citywide base rezoning is that it limits the mechanisms available to the public, or council, to oppose redesignations that just don’t work.
“I mean if we do upzone the entire city that takes the voice of the residents out, it takes my voice out so I can’t say anything about it,” he said.
“I may agree with many of them but for those that don't, I think that the people should be able to come to public hearings, and I think that people should be able to, or councillors should be able to vote on it.”
Federal housing cash question marks
Back in September 2023, federal housing minister Sean Fraser sent a letter to the City of Calgary in advance of the debate on the Calgary Housing Strategy. At that time, he indicated federal housing accelerator funding was in limbo until the city could advance the R-CG and H-GO zoning throughout the city.
Shortly after the approval of the housing strategy, and with it a recommendation to approve citywide rezoning, the City of Calgary received a staged commitment for $228 million in funding, that would be doled out as Calgary met certain milestones. Presumably one of those is follow-through on citywide rezoning as Fraser stated in his letter.
When asked Thursday, none of the councillors could comment on the potential loss of federal funding, should a plebiscite motion succeed.
Coun. McLean said there's talk of the province pushing further to have federal funding flow through the province, so he's unsure of how the money would come to the City. Still, his feelings on the idea of housing money being held up over citywide rezoning were crystal clear.
"I will not be bribed by the Trudeau Government to change my zoning laws over money," he said.
In a media conference on a defence contract announcement Thursday, Calgary Skyview Liberal MP George Chahal said that councillors putting forth a motion for a plebiscite was an "abrogation of their responsibility to govern."
As for issues accessing funding from the feds? A definite maybe they could be held up, said Chahal.
"My concern is that this plebiscite or delay could jeopardize that investment, that funding immediately. We need those funds to flow immediately," he said.
Citizens need a say, regardless of approval rate, said Coun. Demong
Ward 14 Coun. Peter Demong, who also signed on to the Notice of Motion, agreed with McLean that it shouldn’t matter how frequently the land-use redesignations are approved, citizens should get their day to speak on it.
“The important part is for the residents and the constituents to actually have their say, regardless of whether it goes through or not,” he said.
“The act of listening to the public is the whole point of a public hearing.”
One of the problems with the plebiscite, according to Ward 3 Coun. Jasmine Mian is that tens of thousands of Calgarians with properties that have an RG base zoning are going to be able help determine the fate of thousands of other city properties.
Further, Mian said that a plebiscite is kicking the issue down the road, while Calgary is dealing with a housing supply issue.
“We have a scheduled public hearing that there's already been public advertisement about on April 22. Many of my residents and said they're coming out to speak at that particular public hearing,” she said.
“It would cancel the public hearing and then delay it to the election in 2025. You think about the number of months of delay that would be and the cost – we're in a housing crisis, and I think we should act like we are.”
McLean disputed it this notice of motion was a delay tactic to push off a decision that has Calgarians conflicted.
“It's not to kick it to another council, or to this council,” he said.
“I want to kick it to the people.”
Rules around a potential vote
In 2021, a Strategic Meeting of Calgary City Council outlined the rules around a Vote of the Electors.
- Voters must be 18 years old
- A Canadian citizen
- A resident of Calgary
Further, there are guidelines around the questions formulated for a plebiscite. Citizens have considered the Olympics, fluoride (on multiple occasion) and video lottery terminals on past plebiscites.
