Calgary braces for marathon public hearing on potential repeal of citywide rezoning

Hundreds of residents are set to speak at a public hearing as council decides whether to repeal blanket rezoning. Mark Villani reports.

Calgary city council is set to hear from hundreds of residents beginning Monday as a high-stakes public hearing gets underway on whether to repeal the city’s controversial blanket rezoning bylaw.

The hearing, scheduled to begin at 9:30 a.m. in council chambers, is expected to stretch across multiple days, with strong opinions on both sides of the debate already evident.

City officials say as of Friday morning, 339 people had registered to speak, alongside 69 panels, while 2,390 written submissions — spanning more than 6,800 pages — have been submitted for council’s consideration.

The proposed repeal comes after a 13-2 vote by council in December to revisit the policy, which was originally approved in 2024 as part of Calgary’s housing strategy aimed at increasing density across established neighbourhoods.

Divisive policy returns

The original blanket rezoning bylaw allowed for rowhouses, townhomes and other multi-unit developments in areas previously limited to single or semi-detached homes.

Supporters argued the change was necessary to address Calgary’s housing shortage and improve affordability, while critics said it was implemented too broadly, raising concerns about infrastructure strain, parking shortages and changes to neighbourhood character.

The initial public hearing on the bylaw in 2024 underscored how polarizing the issue had become.

That process lasted 15 days, featured more than 700 speakers and cost approximately $1.3 million.

Now, less than two years later, council is once again preparing for lengthy deliberations — this time on whether to reverse course.

City data shows nearly 1,150 development permit applications for townhomes and rowhouses were submitted in 2025 under the rezoning framework, a figure often cited by those who support keeping the policy in place.

Opponents of repeal argue scrapping the bylaw would do little to address concerns raised by residents, while potentially worsening the city’s housing shortage.

Others have pointed to uncertainty around federal housing funding, with the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation warning in a recent letter that changes to zoning rules must continue to allow for multi-unit housing across the city in order to remain compliant with funding agreements.

Impact at neighbourhood level

For some Calgarians, the debate is not abstract policy, but rather something playing out directly outside their front doors.

Arden Conley, a 50-year resident of northwest Calgary’s Montgomery neighbourhood, said he has spent decades building a life in his home, only to find himself fighting a proposed multi-unit development next door.

“It’s just destroying everything. like, it’s taking away everything I’ve got,” Conley said.

He said the project, which could see a single-family lot replaced with a multi-unit building, would fundamentally change his living conditions.

“This is a huge building going right beside me, I mean literally three feet from my fence,” he said.

“My windows face south,” he added, “and I’ll never be able to look out them, I’ll never have sunshine come in my windows again.”

Conley said he has already spent tens of thousands of dollars attempting to challenge the development.

“I’ve got over $20,000 invested and it will cost me probably maybe another $30,000 to $40,000 yet to challenge it.”

He added that parking and safety concerns are also top of mind in his neighbourhood.

“There’s not too many people running around the city with half cars,” he said, referring to minimum parking requirements for multi-unit developments.

“It’s just a recipe for disaster or for somebody to be killed sooner or later.”

Conley said he has no opposition to providing Calgarians with more affordable housing options, but hopes council will repeal the bylaw and take a more measured approach to density.

“Stop it and put it back to where it was, and from there decide how to diversify it and densify.”

Calls for more targeted approach

In the northwest community of Varsity, homeowner Emil Kothari said he also understands the need for increased density but questions the way it has been implemented.

“Blanket rezoning, I really think in spirit has a good intention,” he said.

“But I think using this kind of approach is a problem. I liken it to doing surgery with a machete. You’re going to maybe get at the primary problem, but you’re going to have a ton of collateral damage.”

Kothari said a proposed development near his home could include multiple townhomes and secondary suites, potentially bringing a significant increase in residents and vehicles to the area.

“You’re going from two vehicles on this lot to up to potentially 20 plus,” he said.

“Developers are required only about half a stall per unit so that would mean you’d have five stalls of parking and 15 of the cars would have to be on the street.”

Questions about affordability

He also questioned whether such developments would truly improve affordability.

“It’s pretty easy to see each of these units going for $1 million or more,” he said. “That’s not affordable.”

Kothari said he would prefer to see a more localized approach to densification, with greater input from individual communities.

“Let neighbourhoods take their share of this densification but allow it to be done at a neighbourhood level where you can get granular feedback from residents,” he said.

Losing momentum on housing

While some residents are calling for repeal, housing advocates caution that removing the policy without a clear replacement could have broader consequences.

Kersi Bird, co-chair of the Calgary Alliance for the Common Good’s affordable housing team, said the organization supports efforts to expand housing options across the city.

“Blanket rezoning has had some success on those fronts,” she said.

But Bird acknowledged the policy has been contentious and said the upcoming hearing will be an important opportunity for public input.

She emphasized that if council does choose to repeal the bylaw, it must have a plan ready to replace it.

“We would like to see councillors commit to making a solid plan to replace it, a plan that involves continuing options for housing, that improves affordability, but also continues to make us eligible to unlock some of the federal housing funding.”

Bird said maintaining momentum on housing is critical as affordability challenges continue to affect a wide range of residents.

“It’s absolutely critical that we continue to move forward, not backwards on the housing file.”

She added that regardless of council’s decision, demand for housing will remain.

“No matter that happens, the morning after that vote, people are still going to need a place to live.”