District of Squamish plans to increase Development Cost Charges (DCC), but the move is being opposed by some developers who have written to the district.
DCC pay for growth in town, particularly for new infrastructure such as water mains, sewer, roads and parks.
The district’s DCC bylaw was last updated in 2015, and staff is proposing increase in the charges for residential, commercial and industrial building.
The proposed update would increase the rate for low-density, single-family homes by 45 per cent, for small-lot single-family homes by 75 per cent, by 50 per cent for town homes, and 69 per cent for apartments.
Big increases, however, are for commercial and industrial segments. DCC will increase by 123 per cent this year for commercial projects and 95 per cent for industrial projects.
The biggest increase is for institutional projects, where the DCC increase by 143 per cent.
Gary Buxton, the general manager of community planning and infrastructure, said the principle behind DCC was that “growth needs to fund growth-related projects.”
Since 2015, a number of master plans have been prepared or updated, and the community has grown and is continuing to grow. As the community grows, so too does the need for additional growth-related municipal infrastructure, Buxton said.
However, Anne McMullin, President and CEO of Urban Development Institute, an association of the development industry, said the proposed rates were quite substantial. She said DCC would add to the purchase price of homes and significantly affect housing affordability for those wanting to own a home in Squamish.
Dave Ransier, one of the owners of Team Target, said the increase was necessary, but also called it a regressive tax as those buying or renting apartments and townhomes would be paying more than those living in single-family homes.
Matthews West, the company developing the Oceanfront, wants the proposed increase in rates to be phased in due to the longer timelines for development projects.
However, district official Buxton, said existing water, sewer and drainage and road infrastructure were strained with increased usage and demand from new development, and significant new infrastructure and parks was required.
The DCC bylaw is a key mechanism to help municipalities fund these required growth-related infrastructure projects.
