Basement suites could be on the way for more Burnaby neighbourhoods

A public hearing Tuesday evening will allow Burnaby residents to give their feedback on a proposal to allow full cellar suites in more low-density residential areas of the city.

The hearing comes after a proposed bylaw amendment brought to council earlier this month.

A special council meeting was held on Jan. 12, bypassing the usual step of a planning and development committee meeting, because a current non-market housing application that hopes to construct full cellars as part of its plan needs to submit a funding request to the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) in March.

At the moment, full cellars are not allowed in single-family homes in R10, R11, and R12 residential districts, though they are permitted in many other parts of the city.

In 2019, city council amended the zoning bylaw to allow for full cellars in zones R1-R5 and R9, but did not include the R11-12 zones at that time to allow for more consultation with residents.

A report to city council from Ed Kozak, the city’s general manager for planning and development, shows a majority of residents who live in those districts strongly support cellar provisions being extended to their neighbourhoods.

At the special meeting, Kozak noted that the amendment will allow for additional housing options to be added to Burnaby’s rental stock.

Coun. Alison Gu said she would support the bylaw amendment in order to combat the housing crisis with all tools available. But she also pointed out that the majority of people surveyed during the consultation phase were homeowners in the area.

“I don't know any renters [who would] wish to live in a basement suite. … I think that if people had choices, which we obviously need to create, then affordability will be the deciding factor around whether people live in basement suites or not. So I won't oppose it,” Gu said.

“But I would like to just add a word of caution that I think the focus really, if we're looking at renter affordability, [needs to be] looking at boosting purpose-built rentals throughout the city significantly.”

Kozak clarified that in the non-profit housing development in question, the proposed basement suites would actually be the above-market rental units to create additional funding for the project, while the non-market units would be built above ground.

“So in this case, the nonprofit is looking at the overall project and utilizing the additional secondary suites to be able to make the project feasible,” he told councillors.