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Edmonton's infill strategy has been a hot topic throughout 2017, and the discussion is shaping up to be even more spirited in 2018, as the City's Evolving Infill project enters its final stages. After multiple rounds of public and stakeholder engagement sessions, the City has developed a set of draft infill actions that will be put before Edmontonians to refine ahead of their implementation.
Four draft reports, which were used to develop the draft infill actions, are being shared with the public to help inform the conversation next year. 'What We Heard — Phase 2 Stakeholder Engagement Results' catalogues the messages relayed by Edmontonians about how to accelerate residential infill — accommodating more people and homes in established, mature neighbourhoods. The second report, a study of the city's changing urban fabric titled 'Edmonton's Urban Planning, Neighbourhood and Housing Evolution,' applies economic, social and cultural context to the current housing landscape.
The 'Municipal Tools Review' report compiles the techniques other municipalities have used to encourage infill development and connects them with comparable programs or services already at Edmonton's disposal. Finally, a 'Market Housing and Affordability Study' presents an overview of the opportunities and constraints surrounding infill, providing an analysis of the residential market by examining density, affordability, housing mix, and consumer preferences.
The draft actions to be discussed beginning in late January fall within four categories: preferred, maybe, not yet and in progress. They address a number of identified themes related to physical character, the development process, the community experience, infrastructure and amenities, laneway housing, location of infill and barriers to infill.
'Preferred' items contain a host of measures, including recommendations to better educate residents on how to effectively participate in the planning process, collaborate with developers to provide affordable housing options in all neighbourhoods, create an open source map of ideal infill development locations for medium, high-density and mixed-use projects, and propose tax strategies to incentivize infill development, particularly accessible and senior-friendly laneway suites.
Measures that have the potential to stir controversy, such as the creation of an urban growth boundary around the city, have been categorized under 'not yet.' But some work to aid in the search of the elusive missing middle is already underway, including removing the minimum site area for garden suites, and eliminating outdated barriers that hinder semi-detached developments.
"These draft actions are a result of significant engagement with stakeholders and the public, along with thorough review and testing on the part of Administration," said Hani Quan, senior planner with the City of Edmonton's Policy Development. "Now we are reaching out again to invite residents and stakeholder groups to help us refine the actions to make them as effective as possible."
Additional information can be found at the City's Evolving Infill page.
