After being referred twice and finally brought to Council’s September 29 meeting, Councillor Lisa Dominato’s “Missing Middle” motion was hijacked at the 11^th hour by none other than Mayor Kennedy Stewart. Without any official advance public notice, Stewart added his “Making Home” amendment that would allow for multiple homes to be built on a single-family lot.

Council members, who had not been consulted about Stewart’s plan, made multiple revisions to his amendment during a nearly four-hour evening meeting, sending the proposal back to staff for clarity regarding feasibility, and instructions to include public consultation through the Vancouver Plan A report is due back after May 2021.

The final, heavily amended motion proposed by Cllr. Adriane Carr passed in a 7-2 vote with only Mayor Stewart and Cllr. Christine Boyle in opposition, and Councillors Melissa De Genova and Jean Swanson abstaining. Cllr. Carr made it clear that public consultation was crucial before the Mayor’s controversial plan could go ahead.

Mayor Stewart, who later said he was “flabbergasted” that council members rejected his amendment, fought back throughout the meeting, accusing NPA councillors of intentionally stalling an opportunity to ease the city’s housing crisis. “This is not about delaying,” Carr shot back, “it’s about hearing from residents.” Under Stewart’s proposed pilot plan, up to 100 homeowners could re-develop a single-family home into as many as six homes so long as two were set aside permanently for middle income earners (defined as those making between $80,000 and $120,000 per year).

Cllr. Colleen Hardwick, meanwhile, said she was concerned about the lack of “data” to support the plan (to date the city has not provided an explanation for why its housing forecasts are far in excess of Statistics Canada’s), and said the economics of Stewart’s plan would not improve housing affordability because it continues to raise land values that would contribute to an even deeper affordability problem.

Cllr. Pete Fry said he was deeply troubled that Dominato’s original motion had been “Frankensteined” by multiple amendments, which was evidence of “a deeply flawed process.”

Cllr. Swanson lamented the fact that those who benefit from the plan – middle income earners – already have far more housing options than those making minimum wage or below, whose only options are “a tent or a storefront.”

The morning after the Council meeting Stewart sent out a divisive campaign-style post from “Team Kennedy” saying that the NPA does not care about affordable housing for middle income earners, and made a plea for public donations to carry out his housing plans, before an official election has been called.

Photo: City of Vancouver