COLD LAKE – The City of Cold Lake’s administration is proposing a plan to address an anticipated housing issue in the community.
At a Feb. 20 corporate priorities meeting, CAO Kevin Nagoya proposed an innovative multi-unit housing incentive program. This solution aims to simplify and improve the current housing situation, setting the stage for a positive transformation in the community, according to administration.
Nagoya explained that the proposed policy hopes to encourage higher-density development within the city, in response to an increased demand for housing, due to economic growth, development at the nearby military base, potential carbon capture projects coming to the area, and other ongoing initiatives in the city.
"This policy in front of council is a refresher of a previous policy that was brought forth by the City of Cold Lake. It is geared towards an incentive program for multi-family housing rental inventory stock within Cold Lake," said Nagoya. The policy's roots come from a past initiative.
Nagoya acknowledged the various initiatives in progress, including the recently established vacant land rebate program, and the Housing Accelerator Fund with the federal government, which is still under discussion. He expressed concerns about the potential housing challenges in the face of economic growth and stressed the urgency of incentivizing higher-density development within the community.
"We've grown concerned that we are going to be going through another construction period in the next two years, and I think it would be valuable for the City of Cold Lake to start trying to incentivize and entice a little bit further higher density development within the community," Nagoya said.
The CAO emphasized the importance of soliciting feedback from council, recognizing the potential for both support and opposition to the program. He acknowledged the concerns of property owners and the intentional influence on the market dynamics, stating, "there will be people that will be supportive of the program, and there will be, again - even though it is going to be incentivizing - there's going to be people that are against the program."
Referring to the success of the previous program, Nagoya pointed out, "There were a lot of successes... some of the big development of fourplexes went up the last time that this developed and... the stuff behind Holy Cross, the rural housing that's there, the high-density apartments that are by the hospital there on the west side."
He noted that the program effectively created inventory for the next wave of housing demand.
Concerns about the potential negative feedback were also addressed by Nagoya, who acknowledged the delicate balance between property owners' rental incomes and the overall cost of living within the community. He highlighted the proposed incentive amount, increased to about $10,000 per unit, and an annual cap to manage applications and ensure financial responsibility.
Coun. Vicky Lefebvre expressed her gratitude for the plan and acknowledged the difficulty of finding rentals for larger families in the city.
"Thank you for getting ahead of this, so that we can be prepared for our next growth, which I'm sure is coming. I think some of the things you have here are really good. I think it was difficult when we were without places. I believe now, just even being familiar with some of the rental places, that they are hard to find, be it for families."
Nagoya concluded by stressing the importance of getting ahead of the housing challenges, recognizing that planning, development, and construction take time. He suggested initiating the proposed incentive program would contribute to the overall health of the community.
The proposal will undergo further review and consideration by City council at the next council meeting.
