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How We Got Here

City Strategic Priorities and Housing Accelerator Fund

Phase One of the Infill Housing Program was adopted in 2017 and included policies that encouraged both laneway and carriage houses as well as townhouses and rowhouses.

Phase Two of the Infill Housing Program began in 2024, and the Infill Housing Program and Townhouse Program were separated into two programs to address their unique requirements in terms of size and shape of buildings, as follows:

  • The Infill Housing Program focuses on a range of housing forms such as laneway houses and multiplexes, which can be built on a single lot.

  • The Townhouse Program focuses on townhouses and will typically include multiple consolidated properties, with a minimum site size requirement. Lessons learned from the first phase of the program informed program updates that were adopted in 2026.

The Infill Housing Program was undertaken with funding from the Canada Housing and Mortgage Corporation (CMHC) through the Housing Accelerator Fund (HAF) and aims to align with City Council’s 2023-2026 Strategic Priorities Plan focus area “Homes and Housing Options”, and the Province’s Small-Scale Multi-Unit Housing (SSMUH) legislation.

Public Outreach 

  • Spring 2026: Participants attended pop-up information sessions on program details as shown on these information boards, and ask a planner sessions, where interested property owners could book one on one sessions to see how infill housing could work on their property.

  • Winter 2025: Participants provided feedback on infill housing proposed design guidelines, height, parking and number units allowable, as detailed in this What We Heard report from January 2026. 

  • Spring 2025: Participants provided feedback on Phase Two of the Infill Housing Program as part the 'Our City, Our Homes' events on housing updates, sharing thoughts on proposed housing locations, housing types, streamlined permitting processes, and building floor area, as detailed in the Our City, Our Homes Engagement Summary Report from April 2025. 

  • 2022: Participants took part in a survey of feedback on Phase One of the Infill Housing Program, and the City incorporate feedback into Streamlined Guidelines for laneway and carriage houses.

  • 2017-2019: Participants provided considerable feedback for Phase One of Infill Housing as part of the Official Community Plan and Zoning Bylaw update, on policies that encourage laneway and carriage houses, and townhouses (strata) and rowhouses (fee simple)