Encourage smaller, denser housing
Many people around the world live in smaller housing units in denser neighbourhoods. In Toronto, many freehold lots are between 15-20 feet wide. The typical Vancouver lot is 33 feet wide. We could double the density in the City by encouraging the development of smaller, attached homes on freehold lots that are 15-16 feet wide. Density alone is not enough to create a livable city, but density will help to reduce emissions as well as helping to improve the affordability of housing in Vancouver.
The Ecodensity planning process kicked off efforts in this area. Laneway housing is a good example smaller, denser housing we are starting to see across the city.
http://vancouver.ca/engsvcs/watersewers/sewers/permits/laneway.htm
-
Marie C
commented
There are some wonderful tiny houses, like the ones in the link below. http://www.tumbleweedhouses.com/
They are perfect for single people and could exist on small lots. They'd make great options for seniors, students just starting out and so on. Not everyone wants to live in an apartment or condo, so this keeps the footprint small. You could have a mini-community on the size of one lot of some of the homes here in Vancouver!