Cambridge city councillor planning bylaw to protect rental housing market
Posted Mar 25, 2025 02:25:56 PM.
Last Updated Mar 25, 2025 02:26:02 PM.
Councillor Sheri Roberts is working on a motion calling for a rental replacement bylaw intended to ensure that should a developer buy a property containing rental units, those units are maintained as rental properties after redevelopment or renovation.
The Cambridge, Ward 5 councillor was a guest on The Mike Farwell Show and described what inspired her to take action on this matter.
“We had an example here…We had five rental units which were very affordable for the folks that were living there,” Roberts described. “A developer came in and purchased that property. Initially, there were conversations around the retention of the rental units, but that was ultimately not the decision they came to. So, those five rental units are now being removed from Cambridge’s inventory and only condominiums for purchase will be available on that property.”
Roberts said she looked at similar bylaws on the books in Kitchener, Oakville, Mississauga and Toronto, to inform her motion.
She said her motion asks staff to look at three overreaching principles: “How do we preserve the existing rental housing supply? How do we preserve the affordable rental housing supply? And, by affordable I don’t mean affordable like geared to income, but affordable to folks who are living there. And, how do we increase that purpose built rental housing?”
Roberts said that her motion is asking for staff to look at the feasibility of a rental replacement bylaw. She said her intention isn’t to de-incentivize landlords or developers. She wants to ensure that affordable rental units aren’t squeezed out by non-rental units.
The councillor plans to bring forward a notice of motion when city council meets on Tuesday night but won’t be debating the motion at that time, that will come at the next meeting on April 1.
