One year extension for City's Downtown Development Incentive program

With some advice from Mayor Pond that it's not going to be a lengthy window, City Council moved to accept a recommendation of an extension to their property development exemption program, keeping the program active until December 31st of 2024.

That will see the city forgo all fees for residential rezoning, development permit and building permit applications that result in new units until the end of next year.

Council members made the move following a review of a report from Director of Development Services Myfannwy Pope.

The renewal that the city seeks has been slow to come for the downtown core area, with few in the way of housing starts seen to date in that area since the program was put in place in 2021, that following much in the way of discussion previous towards the issue. 

The program did however serve to deliver on some commercial space redevelopment  in the downtown core area.

September 23, 2021 -- Council hails Lax Kw'alaams Holdings Tax Agreement as first of many to come towards downtown revitalization  

April 20, 2021-- Downtown remediation underway for Gitga'at building on Third

March 1,2021-- Gitga'at Development 'Corporations' Third Avenue project to be first to make use of new City of Prince Rupert Tax Incentive program

February 5, 2021 -- City of Prince Rupert delivers letters on Downtown Incentive program and warnings on unsightly premises 

January 13, 2021 -- After lengthy back and forth discussion, council members come to a compromise on amendment for Downtown Tax Incentive Bylaw

The full report advocating the extension  is available here from the Agenda to Monday's Council session it provides additional details towards current housing activity and the city's goals towards increasing the housing stock in the community.

At the Monday council session, Mayor Pond spoke briefly towards the report, noting of the timeline that the City has put in place towards the extension.

"The previous council waived all those fees, rezoning, development permit, building  fees with the intention if the result of that waiving of fees resulted in the construction of new housing units and that was set to expire some of it on November 1st, some of it on January 1st.

By this resolution Council is extending all of those for one more year.

And I emphasize one more year, because if you have a project that you are thinking about this is not an unlimited offer, this is an opportunity, it's meant to spur you on to take that on sooner rather than later"

There was no discussion of the extension by any of the other Council members at the Monday session.

On Wednesday, the City expanded on the extension plan with an information statement that reviewed the notes on the extension for the program; as well as to add additional focus for the city's desire and their efforts to see new housing created in the community and how that fits into their Strategic planning.

“These fee waivers were put in place to improve the financial case for building owners and builders to invest in Prince Rupert/ We know that the cost of building in the North can be higher. We dearly need renewal, so we are doing what we can to promote both housing and revitalization of our downtown. These are big priorities not only for the community, but for Council in our Strategic Plan.” -- Mayor Herb Pond

The City's message making used both their social media stream and the civic website.

Some additional information on the exemption program is also available from the city here.

More notes related to the Monday Council session can be explored here.

Our look at housing themes in Price Rupert can be reviewed here.

Cross posted from the North Coast Review.