Thoughtful Growth & Housing

Krishna Raisinghani

Sep 27

3 min read

Updated: Oct 2

North Vancouver is going to keep changing.

For me, the real question is whether that change leaves us with a city that works better for the people who live here.

As we build more homes, we need to pay attention to what kinds of homes we're getting, and plan infrastructure and services alongside growth.

And make the approval system clear enough that good projects can actually move.

Start With the Homes People Need

North Vancouver has a provincial target of 3,320 net new homes between July 2024 and June 2029.

During the first year, the City recorded 547 net new homes against a target of 581, or 94% of that year's target.

Housing is being built.

The next question I keep coming back to is:

What housing are we getting?

I want to see more:

secured rental
three-bedroom and family-sized homes
seniors housing
below-market and non-market housing
multiplexes, townhomes and other missing-middle choices
homes within reach of the people who work in and serve this community

That last one matters to me. My wife is a Registered Nurse, and my mom spent more than 40 years as a care aide.

When nurses, educators, first responders, childcare workers and other essential workers have to travel farther and farther to reach the community they serve, that affects more than their household.

It affects traffic, recruitment, retention, and the resilience of the services all of us depend on.

I'd like essential-worker housing to become a measurable City priority.

Make the Housing We've Already Allowed Easier to Build

North Vancouver adopted major OCP and zoning changes in December 2025 to accommodate its projected housing needs.

The City's Housing Accelerator Fund work also includes multiplex housing, prezoning and development-approval reform.

Those are important changes, but now we need to measure whether they're actually working.

A multiplex can be legal on paper and still be difficult to build due to:

Servicing requirements
Fees
Approval timelines
Lot constraints
Parking
Construction economics

I'd push for a Missing Middle Delivery Review once the new rules have had enough time to produce useful data.

How many projects are actually coming forward?
Where are they getting stuck?
What can the City change?
Allowing more housing is step one.
Getting good homes built is the test.

Protect Renters Through Change

Growth has a human side too.

When an older rental building is redeveloped, the people living there can face years of disruption.

I support clear relocation assistance and a practical path for eligible renters to return when replacement rental homes are completed.

We need more rental housing, and the people already renting here deserve to be treated fairly as the city changes.

Plan the Neighbourhood Around the Homes

Housing decisions aren't only housing decisions.

More residents mean more demand on:

transportation
water and sewer
parks and recreation
schools
childcare
healthcare
emergency services
libraries and community spaces

The City doesn't control all of those systems, which makes coordination more important.

For major projects, I want those impacts laid out clearly enough that Council and residents can see them before a decision is made.

What capacity exists?
What's coming?
Who is responsible?
Who pays?
And when will it arrive?

Make Approvals Predictable

Thoughtful review and faster approvals can exist together.

The City's current published average processing times are four to five months for home improvements, six months for business-space renovations and 11 to 12 months for new construction.

For straightforward, low-risk applications, I want a faster stream.

My starting point:

Five business days to confirm whether a qualifying application is complete.

30 days as a target for qualifying simple permits.

For more complex files: