Council votes to maintain existing infill requirements after several intense meetings
City council rejected a motion to bring infill unit cap to 6, opting to keep it at 8
After several days of contentious debate, Edmonton's city council has voted to maintain infill units to the original maximum of eight.
The motion, introduced by Mayor Amarjeet Sohi, passed in a narrow win, with councillors voting 6-5. Councillors Michael Janz, Ashley Salvador, Andrew Knack, Karen Principe and Jennifer Rice voted against.
Councillors Tim Cartmell, who is planning to run for mayor, and Sarah Hamilton were absent from the Tuesday meeting. Both were away on vacation.
The decision comes after a motion to reduce the number of allowable units in new mid-block, multi-family buildings from eight to six was brought to city council.
Instead, councillors opted for a public consultation process on the merits of unit reduction, which would include more community engagement and expert research. That motion passed with a unanimous vote.
The zoning bylaw, which came into effect last year and streamlined the city's zoning regulations to allow for more infill development and density across the city, has been divisive.
Sohi, who is not running for re-election next term, said the proposal for unit reduction to infill developments would set a concerning precedent if passed.
"My worry is that as we try to build consensus, that you go to six, then the push comes. Now we are down to six, now we're going to push down to four. Where is that bottom line?" he said during the meeting Tuesday.
"There might be people who would not be happy with reducing from eight to six, and some people may not be happy with settling with six when they want to go to four or three."
He concluded that council did not have enough information to make a decision, despite having heard from hundreds of Edmontonians in public hearings last week.
Rob Smyth, co-chair of the Glenora Community League's civics committee, was in attendance, and acknowledged that the reduction would be a major step forward, particularly in more mature neighbourhoods.
He said many of the residents in his neighbourhood have been complaining that large infill developments created problems around traffic flow and parking.
"Going to six would be very much supported by, in my estimation, the vast majority of community people. I think this would tell a story that council is listening to the community," he said.
Last Friday, council members had to vote on a motion to extend meetings on the zoning bylaw into the summer break.
On June 30, Cartmell called for a moratorium that would pause approvals for mid-block infill developments, until the city re-examines its district plans. Councillors learned later that the move would go against the Municipal Government Act.
Ward Dene Coun. Aaron Paquette said the heated debates around the infill proposal have become a distraction.
"To be blunt, this issue desperately needed to be depoliticized. Politicizing land use is an incredibly poor way to run a city, incredibly poor," Paquette said during the meeting.
"Everyone can just take a step back and take this out of the silliness of an election season and put it where it belongs, into a place where community voice is heard, clearly recorded."
Results from the public consultation process will return to city council in the first quarter of 2027.
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With files from Mrinali Anchan
