1495 replies to this topic

[Tony]

Should a majority of presenters at hearings must be in favour for a project or plan etc. at a public hearing for it to move forward?

[dasmo]

Should a majority of presenters at hearings must be in favour for a project or plan etc. at a public hearing for it to move forward?

They removed the requirement/ability for public hearings on most projects now so the question is less relevant. If a developer wants to build a 6-plex tower next to you…too bad. Now they will want to build a 12-plex because it costs so much just to buy the lot so the public hearings will still happen. But they will be about getting it down to an 8-plex vs a 12….

[Awaiting Juno]

MMHI was such a fluster cluck - it was bad policy and anyone truly "pro-housing" could see right through it. Meanwhile: the meat and potatoes of getting things done in a way that meets the needs of communities continues to elude the City of Victoria. How long does it take to get a building permit for a project that does not require rezoning? That's a boring, but very critical step that causes many to wait an inordinate amount of time. Time where they're paying interest on loans and tying up other housing while waiting for housing to be built.

 

How many people are are displaced by projects and what are the measures in place to assist them with their transitions to alternate housing? Moving is a massive and expensive headache for many people - but this is an afterthought in development. 

 

How many people have space they would rent long term, if doing so wasn't a massively risky prospect? How do we better balance the needs of landlords and other housing providers with those of tenants? How do we incentivize providing affordable housing? 

[dasmo]

MMHI was such a fluster cluck - it was bad policy and anyone truly "pro-housing" could see right through it. Meanwhile: the meat and potatoes of getting things done in a way that meets the needs of communities continues to elude the City of Victoria. How long does it take to get a building permit for a project that does not require rezoning? That's a boring, but very critical step that causes many to wait an inordinate amount of time. Time where they're paying interest on loans and tying up other housing while waiting for housing to be built.

 

How many people are are displaced by projects and what are the measures in place to assist them with their transitions to alternate housing? Moving is a massive and expensive headache for many people - but this is an afterthought in development. 

 

How many people have space they would rent long term, if doing so wasn't a massively risky prospect? How do we better balance the needs of landlords and other housing providers with those of tenants? How do we incentivize providing affordable housing? 

You sound very anti-housing.... 

Edited by dasmo, 12 September 2024 - 09:17 AM.

[spanky123]

Should a majority of presenters at hearings must be in favour for a project or plan etc. at a public hearing for it to move forward?

 

Council can and has voted however they want independent of the hearing sentiment. 

[Mike K.]

How many people are are displaced by projects and what are the measures in place to assist them with their transitions to alternate housing? Moving is a massive and expensive headache for many people - but this is an afterthought in development.

The City of Victoria has a tenant relocation policy in place. It provides tenants with support services, money (in some cases a significant sum of money), and if a rental is replacing their building, right of first refusal in the new project.

[LJ]

The City of Victoria has a tenant relocation policy in place. It provides tenants with support services, money (in some cases a significant sum of money), and if a rental is replacing their building, right of first refusal in the new project.

At a significantly higher price.

[Beacon Hill]

You were close. I played the three meeting vids in background today, skipping the Blah blah blah to just get the for against count. I must say it would make a funny video seeing the essence of folks through body language and tone. The call in who was snoring gets the prize. The cameo by Leo was cute with his mask and graphs. Steve Hammond was on the mark. 

Aug 4 was 50/50 at 26 for and 26 against.

Sept 1 was 28 for and 45 against.

Sept 2 (which showed Videos submitted for the Aug 4th meeting) was 18 for and 10 against. 

 

So 72 for and 81 against

That includes the Fernwood and James bay associations being against. 

 

The ratio against is higher in the letters. 

Thank you - all I remember is that it was pretty close. And that it became tedious because the same very few points were repeated over and over and over again.

I don't know anyone well-versed on the MMI who believed that the units that would be built would be considered affordable housing, but instead any increase to the supply of housing has an effect on cost overall. It is perplexing to me how some believe that the law of supply and demand is somehow suspended when it comes to the housing market. 

Imagine if there were limitations on, for instance, new cars that could be brought into Victoria to be sold. The result would be both new and used cars would be more expensive, especially in a time of population growth. If someone suggested that to help solve this affordability problem, we should allow more new cars to be sold, would it make sense to oppose this idea with the argument that new cars are too expensive for many people to afford? Of course not. When more new cars are purchased, more used cars come on the market, and generally all cars are more affordable.

[Mike K.]

Premier David Eby said on CFAX Victoria’s MMHI would deliver $500,000 townhomes, so I think even the premier was under the impression there would be an affordability element to the initiative.

[dasmo]

Premier David Eby said on CFAX Victoria’s MMHI would deliver $500,000 townhomes, so I think even the premier was under the impression there would be an affordability element to the initiative.

Idiot.

 

Thank you - all I remember is that it was pretty close. And that it became tedious because the same very few points were repeated over and over and over again.

I don't know anyone well-versed on the MMI who believed that the units that would be built would be considered affordable housing, but instead any increase to the supply of housing has an effect on cost overall. It is perplexing to me how some believe that the law of supply and demand is somehow suspended when it comes to the housing market. 

Imagine if there were limitations on, for instance, new cars that could be brought into Victoria to be sold. The result would be both new and used cars would be more expensive, especially in a time of population growth. If someone suggested that to help solve this affordability problem, we should allow more new cars to be sold, would it make sense to oppose this idea with the argument that new cars are too expensive for many people to afford? Of course not. When more new cars are purchased, more used cars come on the market, and generally all cars are more affordable.

This is more like the mandating of electric vehicles. Which will make all cars more expensive..... 

Edited by dasmo, 12 September 2024 - 07:09 PM.

[Harry]

I am curious if Aldo's partner doesn't retain their seat in the upcoming election will they get offered a job with the city or will they get awarded a contract of some sort through the city?

[Seechelle1969]

Her wife is a deputy minister, not elected politician, who has worked in public service for 30 ish years and worked her way up (started as a research officer I believe). If the conservatives get in there will likely be a big change in deputies across all ministries.

[Awaiting Juno]

Her wife is a deputy minister, not elected politician, who has worked in public service for 30 ish years and worked her way up (started as a research officer I believe). If the conservatives get in there will likely be a big change in deputies across all ministries.

 

Given the bloat over the last 7 years, expect big changes within government. The growth in the administration of public programs is difficult to justify. 

[Blair M.]

It's been practice in B.C. to staff the Deputy Minister and Asst. Deputy Minister positions with the party faithful. Not elected positions, but nudge-nudge-wink-wink political, all party insiders to some degree.

 

Should Rustad get in, most all (all?) the NDP Deputy and Asst. Deputy Ministers will be out of work, to be replaced by the Conservative Party faithful.

[Matt R.]

Didn’t realize Matt Dell was in this band, they ripped pretty hard 20 odd years ago or so.

https://youtu.be/NX3KYwY5PZg

This one too.

https://x.com/mattde...525997055840312

[Sparky]

^ Serious head banger music.

[Awaiting Juno]

^ Serious head banger music.

 

Post-concussion syndrome. That explains a lot.

[Matt R.]

Pretty screamo. On trend at the time.

[Awaiting Juno]

How can a city, in one breath talk about making downtown vibrant, and in the next breath fail to support local businesses with basics like bylaw enforcement?? Our city could be nothing short of AMAZING, but we seem to prefer the spiral where businesses struggle under the weight of high taxes AND lack of bylaw enforcement with businesses either failing or leaving the core? This city also completely ignores the reality of existing affordable housing supply (long-tenured rentals) and incentivizes the gentrification of our community (see missing middle). Further: more support should have been given for home conversions - in part by making the eligibility criteria a moving target (ie: any home 30 or more years old) rather than a specified construction date.

[Awaiting Juno]

"Hard choices" in budget 2025? Budget 2024's operating budget was 27 percent larger than 2020's operating budget. Could our council please focus on the easy choice of prioritizing core services and looking for more efficient ways of delivering those services? Given the previous council also wasn't known for being spendthrifts, I imagine that there's more than a decade of built up fat that could be trimmed with little pain to the general public. The wallets of their special interests might be lighter - but the public they are supposed to be serving might get more bang for the buck.