Secondary suite reform proposal would leave it up to bureaucrats

Calgary city council will take another crack at reforming its time-consuming and contentious secondary suite approval process on Monday with a proposal that would put the decision in the hands of the bureaucrats.

A notice of motion signed by five councillors and Mayor Naheed Nenshi will be presented that proposes making secondary suites discretionary in all low-density land use districts in the city.

"You do it online or you show up to the third floor at City Hall and say 'this is what I want'. They go through a checklist and can tell you quite quickly whether you meet the criteria or not, and then you'll be able to move forward without ever going to City Hall," Nenshi said.

"So it's a much faster, much cheaper process, and it takes the decision-making out of council's hands and puts it into the hands of administration, where it should be."

Nenshi believes the notice of motion will pass with a large majority.

But some councillors have indicated they will support only parts of the motion.

Currently, applicants in areas zoned for secondary suites must apply for a permit and submit to an inspection, while those in areas without the necessary zoning are required to plead their case before city council.

A study funded by Couns. Druh Farrell and Brian Pincott earlier this year found that more than eight in 10 secondary suite applications brought to city council over the past three years were approved.

Last month, a University of Calgary graduate student, Kylee van der Poorten, said her research indicated that there were nearly 14,000 secondary suites in the city in 2015 and that the vast majority of them were illegal. 

Using census data and the legal registry to find the suites, she found that only two per cent — about 278 — of the units had permits from the city. 

• MORE CALGARY NEWS | New zoo bridge opens, reconnecting Bridgeland and Inglewood
• MORE CALGARY NEWS | Mainstreet Research considers legal action against Nenshi's campaign pollster