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Edmonton city council moved into its fourth day of public hearings on the new proposed zoning bylaw Thursday, hearing from remaining panelists both in favour and opposed.

Proceedings began Monday and comments from both sides raised concerns regarding the impact to the environment and housing affordability.

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By Thursday afternoon, 147 people had registered to speak in opposition to the bylaw and 126 had registered in favour. However not all speakers who signed up spoke at the public hearing.

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Residents who spoke on Thursday raised similar concerns as earlier delegates who said they were opposed to the bylaw because they worried increased density would cause problems with traffic and parking, impact property values and harm the look and feel of neighbourhoods with more infill that does not keep enough greenspace. Some added the new zoning bylaw will largely benefit developers and said the lack of public involvement and consultation has made getting on board with the bylaw difficult.

Christina Trang, with the Chinatown business improvement area (BIA), who opposed the bylaw told council on Thursday what is happening in Chinatown is a symptom of improperly planned zoning. She  said the zoning bylaw must include regulations regarding the concentration of shelters, safe injection sites and other social services. Trang said the lack of consultation adds to the frustration.

“There does not seem to be a mechanism to protect neighborhoods that carry most of the burden in this new zoning bylaw,” said Trang. 

“We’re concerned that the news will make things inadvertently worse for us since the City of Edmonton’s response to the Chinatown murders last year to improve safety for downtown and Chinatown. Chinatown hangs on by a thread. We need the City of Edmonton to follow through on its promises to deconcentrate safety services in Chinatown.”

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The new zoning bylaw, if passed, would reduce the number of standard zones to 24 from the current 46. City staff suggested the zone reduction will allow greater flexibility in building types and use combinations, streamline the permitting process and reduce the number of rezonings going forward.

Members of the public including environmental groups, youth advocacy and student groups, community leagues and developers were among those who spoke in favour of the bylaw earlier this week, but support was still littered with concerns.

Yash Bhandari, speaking on behalf of advocacy group Grow Together, urged council to pass the bylaw because of its potential to have a range of housing types built across the city, because it will increase housing supply and may slow down how fast rents are rising.

“Let’s be clear what the zoning renewal entails — ending exclusionary zoning. These rules weren’t designed to maximize the well-being of our city’s residents or responsibly steward the city’s finances,” he said. “These antiquated rules were designed to exclude people like me and my family from wealthier neighbourhoods.”

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The new bylaw will allow for higher density in all residential zones in most cases. Townhomes, row housing and small apartments up to three storeys tall with eight units could be built in even the smallest residential zones where only single-family homes with a garden suite can be built today.

Renewing the zoning bylaw is part of the long-term City Plan to be more imaginative about the future of Edmonton, which includes thriving urban development as the city moves towards a population of two million.

The current bylaw which was adopted in 2001 no longer meets the needs of the city, according to staff. With the last significant overhaul completed 60 years ago, the “outdated regulations” may create obstacles that will obstruct land development, incur cost and time to develop and put a strain on government resources.

The public hearing will resume on Friday.

— With files from Lauren Boothby

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