Ken Sim's ABC pitches 4,200 rental homes on City land, new supportive housing rules | Daily Hive

Ken Sim's ABC Vancouver housing platform pitches 4,200 rental homes on City-owned land, and tougher rules for supportive housing operators

Ken Sim and ABC Vancouver candidates during the press conference on Oct. 5, 2026 announcing new housing-related platform promises and other priorities. (ABC Vancouver)

Mayor Ken Sim’s ABC Vancouver is proposing new construction incentives, new rental homes on City of Vancouver-owned land, and tougher consequences for supportive housing operators with persistent safety problems — all part of their bid for a second term as the governing party.

The party released its “Keep Building Vancouver” housing platform today, combining changes they want to pursue under the jurisdiction of the City with demands for the next Government of British Columbia.

This comes ahead of both the civic election on Saturday, Oct. 17, 2026 and the provincial general election on Saturday, Oct. 24, 2026.

In addition to the housing platform, ABC also released their “Vancouver Agenda” platform today, which sets out 10 broader priorities covering housing, public safety, education, childcare, and economic development, along with a plan for what they would do in the first 100 days after being re-elected.

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Incentivizing more affordable rental homes, and larger homes suitable for families

The housing platform also focuses on moving approved developments into construction and making it easier to build homes for families and middle-income workers.

“Some of the biggest challenges facing our city require every level of government at the table,” said Sim.

“Our plan is about building more homes, creating more choices and making Vancouver more affordable, while being clear about where we need the Province to step up.”

One housing proposal would offer developers a financial reason to begin construction sooner.

ABC would explore a temporary program called “Start Building Vancouver,” which could lower certain municipal fees and/or allow developers to pay them later if an approved project begins construction within a specified period. Additional incentives could be offered for rental housing, larger homes suitable for families, and homes rented below market rates.

The platform materials do not specify which fees would qualify, how much relief would be available, or the deadline for starting construction.

Building 4,200 rental homes for middle-income households on City-owned land

The party also wants to expand housing development on publicly owned land. It would give the City’s Vancouver Housing Development Office (VHDO) a stronger role in determining vacant parcels, older civic properties, and other underused City-owned sites for housing, with existing public amenities retained or replaced where needed.

Under the proposed approach, the City would keep ownership of the land and make it available through long-term leases and partnerships. Third-party organizations would build and operate a mix of secured purpose-built market rental housing, strata market residential ownership housing, and co-operative housing, while the City would receive ongoing revenue.

ABC notes that an initial group of City-owned sites has already been identified with the development potential for approximately 4,200 middle-income rental homes. This would also provide the municipal government with a new source of non-tax revenue. Earlier this year, City Council approved several major rental housing projects put forward by the VHDO, but non-ABC city councillors rejected the overarching framework for its implementation.

A separate workforce housing initiative would seek partnerships with employers, unions, non-profit organizations, and the provincial and federal governments to help people working in Vancouver find homes in the city. This could include homes benefiting nurses, teachers, firefighters, police officers, childcare workers, and other middle-income workers.

The party notes that using City-owned land and partnerships to build more housing on suitable sites could help make these projects financially feasible without leaving property taxpayers to cover the entire cost.

Its broader affordability approach focuses on reducing construction barriers and increasing the number and variety of homes. This would give renters more choices and put downward pressure on prices. It supports funding from the provincial and federal governments for social housing and middle-income housing, while arguing that Vancouver’s municipal property taxes cannot sustainably subsidize housing across the wider market.

Accelerating the permitting process

For smaller developments, ABC wants to make townhouses, rowhouses, multiplexes, and family-sized apartments easier to build. It proposes expanding the selection of pre-approved designs, including buildings with four or six homes, to reduce design expenses and approval delays for homeowners and smaller builders.

It would also review regulations that it asserts add unnecessary costs to three-bedroom and other family-sized homes, and speed up implementation of the City’s Official Development Plan (ODP) around SkyTrain stations, major streets, and neighbourhoods identified for growth.

Faster permitting remains central to the party’s housing approach. ABC notes that it would continue working toward its 3-3-3-1 targets: three days for renovations, three weeks for single-family detached houses, three months for multi-family and mid-rise developments, and one year for high-rise towers and other large projects.

More applications would be processed through combined development and building permits, digital systems, and faster or automated reviews where suitable. ABC notes that projects that already meet zoning and building requirements should be able to proceed with fewer delays.

The party points to Vancouver’s 2025 housing figures to support its approach. City statistics show 12,795 homes were approved that year, which is 54 per cent above the annual target, including 10,277 secured purpose-built rental homes. Separately, the City recorded over 2,300 completions of secured purpose-built market rental homes — an annual level not seen in more than 40 years.

ABC also cites reductions in permitting times of 50 per cent for laneway homes, 36 per cent for single-family detached houses, and 46 per cent for development permits for multi-family and mid-rise projects.

Major new measures to address the mental health and addictions crisis, and new standards for supportive housing operations

During the civic election, in addition to voting for elected municipal officials, voters will also be completing two non-binding public safety plebiscite questions on whether they support stronger enforcement against public hard drug use, and the creation of a new secure medical treatment facility.

The party’s public safety proposals include a request for at least 100 new involuntary care and voluntary care beds somewhere in the city, potentially within a portion of the old St. Paul’s Hospital in the West End or another suitable location.

ABC wants the provincial government to commit to such a strategy, provide a timeline and funding to implement and operate such a facility.

Putting problematic non-profit operators of supportive housing on notice

The party calls for overdose prevention sites (OPS) to be kept away from schools, parks, and major commercial streets, following the City’s past experiences with some OPS facilities that are highly disruptive, with nearby residents and businesses reporting a surge in crime, public disorder, and cleanliness issues in their neighbourhood and business district.

For supportive housing, ABC proposes an enforcement system it calls “Three Strikes and You’re Out.” This is a policy to address problematic non-profit housing operators deemed to be unconcerned about being a good neighbour.

Operators of these buildings with repeated serious problems — such as drug dealing, violence, fires, and other dangerous conditions — would be required to make improvements. Those could include stronger security, better management, protections for tenants, and closer work with health and emergency services.

Providers that receive formal warnings and repeatedly fail to resolve serious, ongoing safety problems would face escalating enforcement. After three strikes, the City would seek to legally revoke the operator’s business licence.

On the justice system, ABC wants the provincial government to fund prosecutors, courts, and other resources needed to support tougher federal bail and sentencing measures and address repeat offending. It also wants the provincial government to pressure the federal government for a broader port-security strategy targeting organized crime, illegal goods, and stolen vehicle exports.

Accelerating the replacement of aging SROs

ABC is also seeking binding provincial targets requiring municipal governments across Metro Vancouver to accommodate supportive housing and homeless shelters. It reiterates the issue that Vancouver carries a disproportionate share of that responsibility and wants future capacity prioritized in communities that have provided less.

During his first term, Sim repeatedly argued that Vancouver bears a highly disproportionate share of the Metro Vancouver region’s supportive housing. The party says that Vancouver accounts for about 25 per cent of Metro Vancouver’s population, but has more than 75 per cent of its supportive housing, with much of it concentrated within or near the Downtown Eastside. Sim has been calling for other municipal governments in Metro Vancouver to step up in enabling supportive and complex care housing and other services within their communities.

In 2025, under ABC’s leadership, the City suspended new projects that created net new supportive housing within Vancouver. Instead, there was a focus on prioritizing one-for-one replacements of aging single-room occupancy (SRO) buildings and temporary supportive housing.

For aging SROs, under the platform, the party wants the provincial government to create a funded program that would provide residents with self-contained homes with private kitchens and bathrooms. It calls for sustained BC Housing construction funding over several years and protections against displacement for existing residents.

Its platform also criticizes provincial spending on SROs and argues more investment should reach working families, single-parent households, and young people needing inexpensive rental housing.

Getting Vancouver’s fair share of provincial school-tax revenue

Education and childcare are additional areas where ABC wants a different provincial funding approach.

The party is calling for provincial school-tax revenue collected in Vancouver to be directed back to students in the city.

For childcare, it wants predictable funding over several years, adjusted for population growth, new housing, and local demand. That childcare funding would cover both the cost of creating new spaces and the ongoing annual operating costs of such facilities, with funding levels reflecting Vancouver’s costs.

The platform also extends to energy infrastructure, calling on the provincial government to support the proposed Pacific Link oil pipeline to Metro Vancouver. Sim backs Prime Minister Mark Carney’s decision to designate the pipeline as a project of national interest, arguing it would help Canada reach more export markets, create jobs, and reduce dependence on the United States.

First 100 days

If re-elected, ABC’s first-100-days commitments include a new review of core municipal services to identify duplication, with the findings made public, and a single business assistance desk intended to simplify access to City support.

It also promises greater coordination among City Council, the Park Board, and the School Board, visits to every school to hear from parents and students, and monthly public question-and-answer sessions with the mayor and relevant City representatives.

The party would begin an audit and select five community centres for attention, deliver its agenda to the provincial and federal governments, and pursue discussions with the federal government. It also lists the launch of a “Good Neighbour Policy” and an “Affordability Action Plan.”

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