Re-think housing supply legislation
Dear Premier David Eby:
We appreciate our provincial government’s recent legislation to boost badly needed housing numbers.
However, our mandate fails to include regulations regarding affordability, drought, green design, and environmental concerns.
Those vital issues are left to local governments such as Cowichan’s where rampant tree loss, chronic water shortages, sewage-treatment crises and other urgent dilemmas are driving urban sprawl.
Furthermore, our building codes fail to allow new technologies — nor pilot projects — to reduce our carbon footprint, address water shortages and order waste eco-treatment.
Langford’s concrete example of urban sprawl sees housing supplies maxed but unaffordable to average folks.
Many profit-driven developers would love to use Langford’s example in Cowichan; further damaging our watersheds, lifestyle and ecology.
New housing approved by Duncan council is sadly neither green nor affordable while councillors wrestle with our chronic housing crisis.
North Cowichan’s cogent official community plan thankfully controls sprawl but development pressures continue — fuelled partly by Victoria’s housing mandates.
Premier Eby, we urge you to revamp B.C.’s housing-supply legislation to welcome smart-housing models; mandate water preservation and high-quality waste treatment; stress affordability; and curb hideous sprawl that is ruining our lovely island.
Yours in smart-growth legislation,
Peter W. Rusland
North Cowichan