Ep. 539: Housing Affordability: It’s More Than DCC’s
Guest: Raul Allueva (City of Coquitlam)
Housing affordability has been the centre of attention in British Columbia and, in particular, the Lower Mainland for decades. The causes for rising costs are many. Politicians point the finger at developers; developers point the finger at governments that impose levies and taxes and development fees on every aspect of construction.
Add in fluctuating interest rates and increases in interprovincial migration, along with a significant upturn in immigration, and it adds up to ever-rising housing costs. “Many want to put the majority of the blame on local governments,” says Raul Allueva, the Chief Administrative Officer of the City of Coquitlam, “but that is a distortion of the facts.”
Alleuva says, “The narrative on the role of local governments in impacting housing affordability is divisive and not balanced.” According to Alleuva, “there are myths and misconceptions about local government development cost charges” – myths that start with a misnomer about costs, which are regularly referred to as fees. Allueva says that is wrong – “the costs are cost recovery”
We invited Raul Allueva to join us for a Conversation That Matters about how cities need to fund parks, roads and sewers.
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Check out their profile on our partnered program, Careers That Matter!
