West Vancouver mayor blames market as premier doubles down on housing rebuke

Provincially mandated housing targets have been unpopular with some municipalities. Now, the province has overruled West Vancouver on zoning.

The District of West Vancouver is in the provincial government’s crosshairs after building only a fraction of the housing units it was ordered to approve, prompting a rare order overruling council.

The premier defended the housing minister’s decision to authorize more housing in the Ambleside area of the community, doubling down on the NDP government’s “build more” strategy to address the housing crisis with more supply.

“West Vancouver is not unique in terms of their treatment by the provincial government, in terms of our expectations that they hit minimum standards and providing the housing that people need,” David Eby told reporters on Wednesday.

He also doubled down on the mandate to greenlight a minimum number of units each year.

“We were clear from the very beginning, this was not optional work,” he said.

Minister Christine Boyle’s letter to mayor and council notifying them of her order on Wednesday acknowledged that “the district has taken actions to address the objectives,” but said she was not satisfied with their plan and laid out a schedule for progress reports in addition to measures to allow for more density.

“They have the legal authority to do what they’re doing,” confirmed Mayor Mark Sager. “I, personally, think it’s better to work with a spirit of co-operation rather than rather than imposing things.”

While the letter and the premier’s statements are firm, they both insist they’re working toward a shared goal of more options and availability for those wanting to live in the city.

Sager told CTV News the district had approved several projects that would’ve met or exceeded the province’s mandated minimums, but that the builders pulled out – in some cases after they had building permits and had invested considerable money.

“We live in a market economy and the (housing) market right now is this really tough,” he said, echoing the messages sent to the province by developers struggling to sell newly built condos that many consider to be unaffordable or too small for the asking price.

Eby is undeterred, showing no sign of backing down on his housing policies, which include the mandated minimum units and controversial blanket multi-plex zoning.

“I’m incredibly proud and grateful for the work that municipalities have done to respond to the housing crisis,” he said. “It is why British Columbia has the fastest declining rents of any province in Canada, despite facing huge housing challenges.”