Repealing citywide rezoning was a principal campaign promise amongst most newly-elected city councillors in Calgary.
Jeromy Farkas, the city’s mayor-elect, said the pledge is a priority but must include a plan to replace the contentious policy.
“We’re going to be starting those initial conversations about the mechanics of that with the incoming city council,” Farkas said at a press conference in front of city hall on Tuesday. “But it’s also very important to focus on the replacement approach.”
City council approved a plan to change the city’s default residential zoning in May 2024, after the longest public hearing in city history that saw more than 730 speakers. The majority voiced opposition to the idea.
The move meant Calgary’s land-use bylaw was amended to make residential grade-oriented infill (R-CG) the default residential zoning district across the city. The changes took effect in August of that year.
R-CG allows a variety of housing types including single-detached, semi-detached, duplexes and rowhouses.
The move was a key recommendation and one of more than 80 in the city’s housing strategy, aimed at boosting supply and improving housing affordability.
Calgarians for Thoughtful Growth, a group formed in opposition to the policy, said it’s “cautiously optimistic” about the next city council’s ability to work together to repeal citywide rezoning.
“If you ask any one of the elected councillors what are the issues they heard on the doorsteps, blanket rezoning was one of them,” said Robert Lehodey with Calgarians for Thoughtful Growth.
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“Hopefully they’re prepared to try and find another way to work with communities to come up with solutions for intelligent, thoughtful densification.”
Including Farkas, the majority of the new city council promised to repeal citywide rezoning in their campaign literature.
The move was included in the Communities First party platform, which saw four candidates elected on Monday: Kim Tyres in Ward 1, Andre Chabot in Ward 10, Rob Ward in Ward 11, and Dan McLean in Ward 13.
The A Better Calgary Party also promised to repeal the policy and Mike Jamieson in Ward 12 was the party’s only candidate elected.
Independent councillors-elect John Pantazopoulos in Ward 6 and Landon Johnston in Ward 14 also campaigned on a promise to repeal.
“Almost everybody said they would repeal it or make drastic alterations to it,” McLean told Global News on Tuesday.
“That is still the first order of business to me — I want to see blanket rezoning repealed.”
However, not all elected to council agree with repealing the policy.
Nathaniel Schmidt, councillor-elect in Ward 8, said he made it clear he was not in favour of repeal and would prefer making amendments to the city’s zoning policy rather than starting from scratch.
“We have to start with listening to each other as a council and listening to our constituents and find a path forward that is mutually beneficial because we’re going to grow to two million people together,” Schmidt said.
“That’s the perspective we need to have.”
According to the Calgary Inner City Builders Association (CICBA), citywide rezoning cut six months off the timeline for a typical townhome, which saved $90,000 in costs.
Shameer Gaidhar is the chair of CICBA, said the city’s processes and timelines for redevelopment “didn’t work” before the citywide rezoning policy and worries it will create challenges if its repealed.
“On one end of the spectrum, it didn’t work, now we’re on the other end of the spectrum and they’re saying it doesn’t work,” Gaidhar said.
“Instead of repealing, why don’t we find solutions? Why don’t we get community officials and some of industry together and let’s talk about what the issues are.”
It may be some time before the process to repeal could even begin.
Repealing citywide rezoning would require an advertising period, another public hearing and debate before approval.
The new city council is currently in orientation before they’re officially sworn in on Oct. 29.
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