Town of Olds is considering letting developers build higher apartments with fewer parking spaces to ease a rental housing crunch.
Proposed Land Use Bylaw amendments would reduce the number of parking stalls required per apartment to one, down from 1.75 spaces. The two-bedroom apartment standard would be 1.25 stalls and for three-bedroom units 1.5 stalls.
As well, the amount of a lot that must be set aside for green space for multi-unit buildings in medium density residential areas would be reduced to 15 per cent of the lot coverage from 30 per cent.
The maximum height allowed for multi-unit buildings would also be increased to 22 metres, tall enough for a six-storey building. Currently, depending on location, building heights are restricted to between 10 meters and 15.25 meters under a complex formula.
“This change will support modern architectural designs, increase housing density in strategic areas, and contribute to a vibrant and dynamic urban landscape while respecting the character of our community,” says the town in a news release.
A 2023 Housing Needs Assessment Survey backed up with input from Olds College of Agriculture and Technology, developers and local businesses showed “rental housing continues to be a significant need.
Town chief administrative officer Brent Williams told council at its Monday meeting that while it is not the town’s fault buildings do not get constructed, “I believe there are things we can do to better facilitate higher-density residential construction largely focused on that rental market.”
Williams said parking, green space and height restrictions were identified as the most onerous and costly requirements for developers, which would either drive up rent costs or reduce the likelihood they get built at all.
It is also recommended that the town tweak the definitions for rental-style suites to open the door to more options.
“Hopefully, through relaxing some of these definitions around apartments and multiplexes that soon council will see some ideas from private sector developers and current property owners on how we could make better use of existing properties in town.”
Olds municipal planner Kyle Sloan said if the amendments are adopted it could trigger the development of dozens of new rental units. Most would be one- or two-bedroom units, which the housing survey showed were most in demand.
Council passed first reading of the bylaw amendments and set a public hearing for April 22 at 1 p.m. in town council chambers.