Latest news with #CBRM
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
CBRM unveils catalogue of pre-approved housing designs to help spark development
Cape Breton Regional Municipality has created a catalogue of pre-approved housing plans that are free for residents and are expected to speed up the building permit process. CBRM unveiled the 15 different plans, called fast-tracked housing designs, on Monday in front of city hall. Spokesperson Jenna MacQueen said there was lots of public interest in the plans, which were paid for as part of an $11.4-million grant from the federal Housing Accelerator Fund. "Some people are very excited. Some people are saying, 'I can't believe this hasn't happened sooner.' There's some people that are even from different municipalities that are looking to build here because they were shocked that this was being done here," she said. MacQueen said the plans are pre-approved for building permits because they meet building code requirements and were created in consultation with CBRM staff and home builders. That could shave six months or more off the permitting process, she said. 'Reducing housing barriers' Many of the 15 designs will fit on an average-sized lot in CBRM, but they range from a 435-square-foot backyard suite to a six-unit multiplex, MacQueen said. "What we're doing is making sure that we're reducing barriers to make sure that people can build housing here in the CBRM," she said. More than half of the federal housing grant has been dedicated to Cape Breton University's Tartan Downs housing project and the Cossitt Heights subdivision that's already being built by Joneljim Construction. The rest is paying for a new online permitting system, grants for the development of new affordable housing units, a parking study, staff housing co-ordinator and an overall housing strategy. MacQueen said the Housing Accelerator Fund, which is administered by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, also supports tax breaks for affordable housing, but CBRM has decided to forego the tax revenue on its own in order to direct the federal funds to the other initiatives. The fast-tracked housing designs are available on CBRM's website. MORE TOP STORIES
CBC
4 days ago
- Business
- CBC
CBRM unveils catalogue of pre-approved housing designs to help spark development
Cape Breton Regional Municipality has created a catalogue of pre-approved housing plans that are free for residents and are expected to speed up the building permit process. CBRM unveiled the 15 different plans, called fast-tracked housing designs, on Monday in front of city hall. Spokesperson Jenna MacQueen said there was lots of public interest in the plans, which were paid for as part of an $11.4-million grant from the federal Housing Accelerator Fund. "Some people are very excited. Some people are saying, 'I can't believe this hasn't happened sooner.' There's some people that are even from different municipalities that are looking to build here because they were shocked that this was being done here," she said. MacQueen said the plans are pre-approved for building permits because they meet building code requirements and were created in consultation with CBRM staff and home builders. That could shave six months or more off the permitting process, she said. 'Reducing housing barriers' Many of the 15 designs will fit on an average-sized lot in CBRM, but they range from a 435-square-foot backyard suite to a six-unit multiplex, MacQueen said. "What we're doing is making sure that we're reducing barriers to make sure that people can build housing here in the CBRM," she said. More than half of the federal housing grant has been dedicated to Cape Breton University's Tartan Downs housing project and the Cossitt Heights subdivision that's already being built by Joneljim Construction. The rest is paying for a new online permitting system, grants for the development of new affordable housing units, a parking study, staff housing co-ordinator and an overall housing strategy. MacQueen said the Housing Accelerator Fund, which is administered by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, also supports tax breaks for affordable housing, but CBRM has decided to forego the tax revenue on its own in order to direct the federal funds to the other initiatives. The fast-tracked housing designs are available on CBRM's website.
CTV News
5 days ago
- Business
- CTV News
Free housing unit design plans rolled out in Cape Breton Regional Municipality
It was an open house of sorts on Monday on a new form of housing being proposed for the Cape Breton Regional Municipality (CBRM). Fifteen designs, ranging from single units to a six unit multi-plex are now being offered to residents through the federal Housing Accelerator Fund. The designs were on display on Monday outside City Hall in Sydney. Darlene Leblanc, a resident from Gabarus, N.S., said she liked what she saw for the most part, but wondered whether the proposed housing units would work as well for rural living as they might in urban areas. 'Because they want to be able to incorporate the sewage and water, whereas where I'm in a rural area I wanted to get more information on rural,' Leblanc said. 'Because I would have to have a well and septic put in.' The CBRM said the plans are free and were designed to meet local building codes. A spokesperson for CBRM, Jenna MacQueen, added they have also been fast-tracked in hopes people might be able to start building sooner in a city that has been told it needs at least 1,000 new housing units by next year. 'We're hopeful that this will actually help address some of the housing issues people have experienced in the CBRM,' MacQueen said. 'We're hearing of a lot of people who want maybe an accessory dwelling unit in their backyard, but they don't know how much a plan could cost or even where to begin and we're helping to remove that barrier for people.' Northside-area Coun. Gordon MacDonald was also hopeful these types of units might help when it comes to the municipality's housing shortage, even though he had questions at first about how the proposed new units might fit into existing streets and subdivisions. 'Well, I guess initially when any kind of design comes forward you're kind of concerned about how it's going to fit into the neighbourhoods, but these designs are laid out and they look great,' MacDonald said after viewing the designs. 'Most neighbourhoods, they would fit right in.' Leblanc said while she needs more information first, there is another option that might be worth considering for herself. 'Maybe I want to sell a chunk of my land and build a couple of those on it, have a road going and see if it would be worth my while,' she said. The CBRM says more public engagement sessions - as part of its Housing Strategy - are coming up Wednesday and Thursday in Sydney, North Sydney and Glace Bay. For more Nova Scotia news, visit our dedicated provincial page
CBC
5 days ago
- Business
- CBC
CBRM councillor expects increasing conflict between new housing, property owners
Increasing development is helping solve the housing shortage in Cape Breton Regional Municipality, but it's also causing conflict with existing property owners. One municipal councillor says he expects clashes will increase as developments ramp up under new rules designed to ease the housing crunch. Last week, CBRM council rejected an appeal by Paula and Shaun Hickey, who opposed the planning department's approval for construction of an 18-unit apartment block on Reservoir Road near the regional hospital in Sydney, N.S. Paula Hickey told council the proposed three-storey building would look out of place in between her home and the one on the other side. "They're only 1.5-storey buildings, so that structure is going to loom over our existing properties," she said. Hickey also said the building is too close to the property line, may not have sufficient parking and could overwhelm municipal sewer and water services. Smaller development sought "We believe that the proposed development ... will negatively affect the adjacent dwellings," she said. "It'll cause increased traffic congestion, loss of privacy and environmental impact in our quiet neighbourhood." She said increased housing is important, but development should be smaller in her single-family residential neighbourhood. CBRM planning staff say the building meets all the criteria for the zone under new planning rules adopted in September 2023 under a report called CBRM Forward. Staff have also told council that public works says the infrastructure can handle the development. CBRM has been told it needs at least 1,000 new housing units by next year to ease the housing shortage. In an update to council earlier this month, planning director Tyson Simms told council that more than 900 units will have been started or built by the end of this year. Last week, Coun. Gordon MacDonald said he sympathizes with the Hickeys, but council went through a lengthy public process to create the new planning documents that make it easier for developers to build. In addition, the proposed apartment block on Reservoir Road meets all the criteria, he said. "Unfortunately for the residents that feel they're going to lose some of that privacy, because I certainly can relate to that, … we'll have to support the recommendation of our planning department." MacDonald said he expects conflicts to increase as housing projects ramp up under the new rules. "It's going to be unfortunate, but we're going to run into more of these situations as we go simply because we are looking for people to build and these kind of buildings are able to accommodate several families in one build." Deputy Mayor Eldon MacDonald, whose district includes Reservoir Road, said people who took part in public sessions during the development of CBRM Forward were overwhelmingly in favour of relaxed rules that would spark new construction. "When I attended the consultation processes that we undertook over that two-year period, a surprising number of people, it was the vast majority of people, the only thing on their minds was housing," he said. "The lack of it, the affordability of it and the need for densification. It's a challenge. It's not easy, but it was by far the biggest issue that I heard." Council unanimously overruled the Hickey appeal, paving the way for the new apartments.
CBC
13-06-2025
- Politics
- CBC
CBRM councillors call for thorough review of fire departments, equipment and staffing
Councillors in the Cape Breton Regional Municipality have called for a full review of volunteer and career fire services over concerns about the number of departments and the cost of staffing and equipping them. This week, Coun. Gordon MacDonald called for a thorough review following talks over a lengthy list of issues raised at last week's meeting. "We know through our discussions at the committee of the whole last week that there are many deficiencies and inefficiencies happening in fire services," he said Tuesday. "We've really got to start identifying where these issues are, what [are] the issues that they're causing to fire services, where the resources are needed the most [and] how best we are able to get those resources to protect the citizens of the CBRM." Last week, the Glace Bay volunteer fire department threw up its hands and ceded budgeting of its operations entirely to CBRM's fire service. At the same time, the municipality's fire chief and deputy chief warned council that more than 20 fire trucks in various stations across the municipality are nearly 25 years old and are about to reach the end of their useful life and could cost at least $20 million to replace. Council also heard from the regional fire chiefs association that volunteer ranks are getting desperately slim. Councillors unanimously agreed to have the chief administrative officer conduct a review, but they did not set a timeline on the review or determine how it should be done. In 2016, CBRM commissioned a consultant to review the fire service, resulting in what's known as the Manitou report. It recommended centralizing control and funding of the entire fire service and eliminating some stations, but that has not happened. Deputy Mayor Eldon MacDonald said that report would be a good starting point. "We need to provide our services [as] fast and efficient to our residents as possible and currently that's not happening and that review is much needed," he said. Two stations in Sydney are staffed around the clock by unionized career firefighters. CBRM also has 32 volunteer departments throughout the county. Three of them — in the former towns of Glace Bay, New Waterford and North Sydney — are considered composite stations that are owned and run by volunteers but also have a full-time career firefighter on hand around the clock. Fire service officials say the rising cost of firefighting equipment and vehicles has made it unaffordable for many volunteer departments to operate as they used to, citing that as the main reason Glace Bay handed its budgeting over to the municipality. CBRM does provide grants for equipment and vehicles, but Deputy Chief Craig MacNeil said a basic truck now costs around $900,000 without the modifications required for local equipment and needs. He would not say that CBRM has too many departments and vehicles, but he has been asking volunteer departments about the possibility of downsizing the fleet. List of pressures going to province "We have 130 pieces of equipment right now in CBRM," he said. "That's the exact same amount of equipment [Halifax Regional Municipality] has. We have a lot of fire trucks and a lot of fire stations." MacNeil said even if a 25-year-old truck still runs, the insurance industry considers it as being at the end of its life, and keeping it in service could cost the municipality and property owners more in insurance premiums. Council has not decided how it will handle the 22 aging vehicles but has agreed to review and consider the list, and Mayor Cecil Clarke said it will be added to a list of financial pressures that CBRM intends to take to the provincial government. The overall review is also expected to consider volunteer numbers, which are a concern as well, Westmount fire Chief Rod Beresford told council last week. Beresford, who chairs CBRM's association of regional chiefs, said even in departments where numbers are higher, the volunteers are not all fully trained. In Westmount, a suburb on the opposite side of the harbour from Sydney, only one volunteer works in the area during the day, Beresford said. And a neighbouring department with more volunteers does not always have a fully trained complement, he said, so backup firefighters might be able to arrive on scene with a truck, but might not be trained to fight a large structure fire. That's why he asked for and got approval for an automatic response from career firefighters in Sydney for any call involving a possible or working structure fire in Westmount's territory. Meanwhile, a provincewide review of fire governance that's also underway is expected to be completed by the end of this year.
