City woos feds with higher buildings, step toward fourplexes

City councillors have opted to keep some of the changes the provincial government rolled back from Ottawa's official plan, adocument thatcharts the city's development for decades to come.

The motion passed at Wednesday's council meeting focuses on allowable heights for buildings along minor corridors, or what staff describe as collector-type roads where increased density would be expected.

Councillors had originally rejected the new heightsbefore theywere unilaterally imposed by Ontario's housing ministry.

"We're in a different environment today around the housing crisis,"said Coun. Glen Gower, who proposed the move along with the mayor.

"It's not often we get to have hindsight and have a chance to revisit decisions we made two years ago."

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The decision also looks forward, encouragingstaff to explore allowing fourplexes,a policy that would put the city in a better position to receive coveted federal housing funds.

Change to add density

Ontario Housing Minister Paul Calandratabled legislationlast weekto revert official plans in cities across the province to what they were before the province made controversial changes to expand municipal boundaries.

The shrunkenboundary will not be affected by Wednesday's decision.

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Instead, the motionfocusedon adding density and lifting a limit that's rankled builders for years.

"We always had a very big problem with it overall," said Jason Burggraaf, executive director of theGreater Ottawa Home Builders' Association. "We were very glad to see that retained in this iteration of the official plan, because I think it's very critical to Ottawa's intensification goals."

Two years after councillors first debated the building heights, Burggraaf said the city's housing market is under much more pressure and prospective homeowners are being forced deeperinto the outskirts a situation that puts addedstrain on municipal services.

City hopeful about funding

Beyond the changes to the official plan, this motion also ensures the ongoing comprehensive zoning bylaw review looks into allowing four residential units per lot.

It's something federal Housing Minister Sean Fraser has been outspokenabout, urging cities to "be even more ambitious."

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Fulfilling that expectation could help the city secure its $150-million ask through the federal housing accelerator fund, which it believes will spur the creation of 7,000 new units.

Ottawa's application included its current plans to allow triplexes across the city, a level of density thatwas not enough for London, Ont. It received funding only after followingFraser's directive to move to fourplexes.

"We know that this is something the federal government has been talking about with other jurisdictions. And we know that we're under intense pressure from both the feds and the province to demonstrate that we are being aggressive on density," said Coun. Jeff Leiper, chair of the planning committee.

Leiperwouldnot directly link the shift to the city's ongoing housing talks, but said the "passage of the four-unit motion, even if that is just to ask staff to take a serious look at that, should be a signal to everyone that we are going to be committed."

Mississauga's mayor went so far as to use thestrong mayor powers bestowed upon her by the province to push through four units without council's approval.

Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe has pledged to never use those powers, and this council win suggests he may not need to.

While Fraser would not confirm if Ottawa is getting close to a deal, his office told CBC it views the motion as "a positive development and a step forward."

Sutcliffe told CBC's All In ADay this week he's hopeful about the negotiations, but cautious.

"Obviously I worry about it until it happens. I worry about everything until it actually happens. So there's no guarantees until you get the commitment but we've been working very closely with the housing minister," he said.

"I spoke to him a couple days ago. Our offices have been in regular contact. We're talking almost every day about this."

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Not everyone pleased with decision

Building more housing, and particularly more affordable housing, has been a key priority for the latest term of council.

But some still worry about going too far.

Two councillors voted against the motion River ward's Riley Brockington and Rideau-Rockcliffe's Rawlson King citing potential concerns from residents.

"I fully embraced the need to build across the city, but I don't believe that we need to build blindly," Brockington told councillors. "We don't want building heights to get out of hand."

Others have expressed concerns about takinga cookie cutter approach to planning in a sprawling city like Ottawa.

But Gower said staff won't recommend a sweeping revision until they've made sure water and sewer services are up to snuff, and that "there won't be some surprises later on."

"There may be some areas of the city that would need to have further upgrades in order to properly support that," he said."So we want city staff to take that time to do the studies and come back with some recommendations."

That work will appear in the city's comprehensive zoning bylaw, which won't be finalized until 2025.

Will that be fast enough for Fraser's office?

"It think so," said Gower.