Edmonton city council hears from public on proposed infill changes

There was a full house at Edmonton City Hall on Monday, as both sides of the infill debate made their case to city council on tightening infill building rules.

“Myself and numerous other people in the neighbourhood – and when I say numerous, I mean a lot of people – nobody wants to see these monstrosity infills,” said Siegfried Kirchner.

Kirchner, who lives in the west end Meadowlark neighbourhood, is one of many homeowners looking for further restrictions on mid-block infill housing like size and height.

He believes a new infill build is impacting investments he’s made in his home, by encroaching closer to his property and creating shade for his solar panels.

“With just the windows, doors, insulation, hardie board, new roofs and solar, that was 125 (thousand dollars),” Kirchner said. “The solar alone, with the electrical upgrade, that was $36,000. Now we have a $30,000 solar system that is never going to pay us back.”

Currently, new builds can’t be taller than 10.5 metres. The mayor wants to explore limiting that, but city bureaucrats are recommending that limit stays to allow for three-storey builds.

But there is a proposal to cap the number of units for mid-block units at six, down from the current eight.

Edmonton’s mayor told reporters not to expect major changes to infill housing policies, saying Edmontonians’ views on infill were made clear during the civic election last year.

“I talked to thousands upon thousands upon thousands of Edmontonians, including many of them in mature neighbourhoods,” said Mayor Andrew Knack. “And overwhelmingly what I heard from the vast majority is ‘we want refinements, we want adjustments, we want thoughtfulness, but we’re not looking to go to either extreme.’”

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Others speaking to council Monday said the City of Edmonton hasn’t consulted enough with marginalized groups who are more likely to rent.

“I’m a renter myself, but also I was a homeowner for 20 years,” said Cherie Tellier-Klassen, with Women’s Advisory Voice of Edmonton (WAVE). “And then my life changed and I had the need to get into different options to support myself with my kid on my own.

“So we really have to understand to intricacies of women and gender-diverse folks and what their housing choices are.”

City council will continue to hear from the public Tuesday.