Council weighs ‘different scenarios’ on DCC bylaw

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This article was published 27/02/2025 (204 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A new balancing act has emerged for Brandon’s development cost charge bylaw as the City of Brandon worries that its upcoming bylaw may slow down projects that the city needs to provide homes for a growing population.

Brandon Mayor Jeff Fawcett provided the Sun with an update Wednesday about the upcoming bylaw that would increase charges developers pay. The mayor said council is likely to pause for a period that may be weeks to give consideration specifically about high-density projects like apartments.

“Anybody will tell you, we’re so tight on housing,” said Fawcett. “We need to make sure that the density (housing) continues to be put in place.”

The bylaw was scheduled for third reading in January, but council decided to pause and review. The pause expires on Monday, and the bylaw will resume on its track through review and administrative process until council is assured with it and passes it into effect.

A possible change Fawcett said may come up for discussion at council was a staggered approach to the fees. In that scenario, the City of Brandon might decide to introduce a cost increase in steps over time for high-density projects, rather than at once.

High-density units are the only type of development council is reviewing, Fawcett said.

The main concern for councillors at this point is to pace new development cost charges so that builders are charged fairly, but also motivated to build high-density projects. Fawcett said the tariff threat from the United States changed the equation a bit, as it placed more pressure on developers and made the future of construction more uncertain.

“There’s different scenarios we’re looking at,” said Fawcett. “How do we continue to have growth in the high-density units while still trying to commit to our development cost charges overall?”

Shawn Wood, a spokesperson for the rural construction industry, told the Sun that it makes sense to focus on high-density projects because they were most impacted by the upcoming Brandon bylaw. Wood said that apartment complexes would be charged per-door, and in some cases the fee would add between $500,000 and $1 million to the cost of a project in Brandon.

“High density is a huge piece, and I think that’s why this has come up as a topic,” said Wood. “It’s really where the most impact is.”

Wood said that with additional costs for apartment buildings for example, developers would have to raise rent. The system that lends money to developers asks for a projection on returns, and the direct way to offset high costs would be to increase the rental rates.

“The only way then to be able to spend more is to increase your rents,” said Wood. “If rents are already at $1,800 for a two-bedroom unit, you know that might bump them up to $2,400 to be able to fit in their (performance expectations). And that’s all just off the additional development cost charges.”

Wood told the Sun on Wednesday that several high-density projects are in the works in Brandon, including multiple buildings totalling around 600 units on the North Hill, as well as about three buildings in the south and other multi-units in the southeast and southwest.

These projects are expected to come in the next five years, Wood said. But he added that the timeline may be sped up or slowed down depending on how the upcoming bylaw looks for builders.

“There’s definitely appetite to put those up. It just has to be financially manageable for the developers to actually do it.”

Speaking to the need for housing, Fawcett pointed to a recent spike in population, where Brandon brought in roughly 10,000 more people in 10 years. Fawcett said that growth was accommodated in large part by high-density housing, and emphasized that the city will likely need to continue high-density housing into the future.

Fawcett outlined that buildings like apartments are most suited to serve Brandon’s goal, as they house the most people and are most cost-effective for the city when it comes time to pay for growth costs like sewers.

Council is set to meet on Monday, but it likely won’t have enough time at that point to make a decision, the mayor said. Discussions could continue for a few weeks until council decides on the path forward that balances the need for charges on high density with the need to create a good environment to build the projects in town.

» cmcdowell@brandonsun.com