With the upcoming election less than one month away, a new report is highlighting additional costs that city regulations tack onto the price of an infill home in Calgary’s inner city communities.
The Calgary Inner City Builders Association (CICBA), the organization behind the report, is calling on candidates running for mayor and city council to work with them to shave down those costs.
The report, released Wednesday, found the regulatory cost to build an infill townhome is “disproportionately high” on a per-unit basis.
Using data from the last two years, CICBA found those costs total $146,098 per unit for an infill townhome, much higher than the $87,380 the regulatory costs add to a single-detached infill and the $47,688 added to the typical semi-detached infill.
“The worst part about these costs is you can’t eliminate them, but you can reduce them and you can look at different ways of doing that,” said Shameer Gaidhar, chair of CICBA. “But those costs get passed down to the end user.”
According to Gaidhar, the costs are broken down between additional construction to meet conditions on the development permit, as well as fees for on and off-site infrastructure.
However, Gaidhar said one of the biggest impacts is carrying costs during the approval process with infill townhome projects requiring a minimum of 225 days between permit applications and shovels going in the ground, but an appeal can extend that timeline to 265 days.
Single and semi-detached infills typically take 40 days, the report said.
“A project sitting empty costs $500 per day… That’s on the minimum end,” he said. “Whoever the next mayor is, whoever the next council is, we want to work with them to reduce those costs.”
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At least three candidates running for mayor have pledged to repeal citywide rezoning, a policy Gaidhar said has already reduced timelines by six months, or the cost equivalent of $90,000 per unit.
Sonya Sharp, running for the Communities First party, reiterated the promise Wednesday at a press conference where all of the party’s candidates signed a pledge to repeal the policy and revert back to the city’s previous zoning if they’re elected.
When asked how she would ensure the policy reversal doesn’t negatively impact building costs, Sharp said she would look at other mechanisms to reduce timelines for developers.
“There is opportunity… to shave the process time for development permits and building permits to get across the finish line for these groups faster,” Sharp said.
“There’s also opportunity to look at some of the fees we’re charging these groups. What we need to do is create a sense of certainty.”
Jeff Davison, who is running as an independent and is also promising to reverse citywide rezoning, said the city must reduce approval timelines to lower the regulatory costs.
“If we establish clear and consistent development rules that communities and developers have agreed upon, then everyone has more predictability on costs, completions and overall community development,” he said in a statement to Global News.
Jeromy Farkas, a former city councillor and runner-up in Calgary’s 2021 mayoral race, has pledged to repeal and replace citywide rezoning with a new targeted community strategy that “supports gentle density” while building a more affordable homes.
Farkas told Global News the request from CICBA to reduce costs is “reasonable,” and said he would work with builders to identify ways to create certainty for builders, but won’t support cutting “needed protections” around inspections or safety.
“I’m very willing to work with industry but we got to make sure that the asks that come from the developers are counterbalanced with the legitimate public good and ultimately the financial responsibility of the city especially when he comes to the fees and the permitting,” he said.
The Calgary Party’s mayoral candidate, Brian Thiessen, said he’d fix citywide rezoning rather than repeal it, and noted several points in CICBA’s report are included in his party’s housing platform including pre-approvals for early consultation with community.
“We’re exploring real options to get this done and streamline the regulatory process while maintaining safety controls and regulations,” Thiessen told Global News.
According to the report, a recent decision by council after work between industry and city administration reduced per-unit regulatory costs by $21,250. Those policy changes, although originally quashed by council earlier this year, included the elimination of a policy around bike and mobility storage in new builds — a cost of $5,000 per unit.
Incumbent mayoral candidate Jyoti Gondek said she wants to build on those efficiencies with continued work with local builders.
“Members of industry want to work willingly with our administration so it’s important to give administration direction to have those working groups,” Gondek said. “If we’re not talking to home builders to understand what the costs are, there’s no way we can change processes.”
CICBA’s report also issued a challenge for the next mayor and council to reduce the regulatory costs on townhomes by a further $80,000 per unit by October 2026.
“We’re not saying ignore regulations, we’re not saying ignore necessary costs,” Gaidhar said. “We’re just saying let’s find streamlined ways to do things.”
Calgarians head to the polls on Oct. 20.
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