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Medium Density – Missing Middle


The City of Edmonton is proposing changes to the medium density provisions of Zoning Bylaw 12800. CHBA – ER submitted a letter to Mayor and Council on July 8, 2019 outlining industry concerns and areas of support.


On July 9, CHBA – Edmonton Region presented to the Urban Planning Committee to address the residential construction industry’s concerns with the proposed bylaw amendments. CHBA – ER asked the Committee to consider:

  • Implementing a six month transition period. The proposed changes could impact projects that are already in planning stages but have not been issued permits. A transition period will assist with effective implementation.
  • Removing required street orientation of entrances features and individual unit entrances at grade. Individual entrances at grade are simply not possible for all sites and could result in an entire project becoming less dense which defeats the purpose of providing for the missing middle. Additional entrances can also create more costs for maintenance.
  • Eliminating mandatory minimum bedroom requirements in RF5. Requiring more bedrooms than the market demands would create additional costs. Incentives to meet this objective would be more flexible and allow for more creative solutions.
  • Removing the requirement for articulation of buildings. Certain sites won’t allow for proper site use with forced articulation and it could also result in less affordable housing. CHBA – ER recommends using wording that will create a preference towards an interesting façade rather than mandatory rules.
  • Discussing the lost opportunity for multi-family bungalow products. CHBA – ER would like to have further conversations to identify either an exception for this product or a zone where is can be accommodated in order to keep this housing option available.

CHBA - ER firmly believes that by working with the City of Edmonton, the concerns identified can be addressed and the benefits of updating the bylaws can move forward. The proposed amendments move forward to a Public Hearing on August 26, 2019.


Thank you to Dhruv Gupta from Akash Homes for presenting on behalf of CHBA – ER at the Urban Planning Committee meeting on July 9, 2019.