ABC Vancouver publishes housing plan and list of provincial asks
ABC Vancouver published a housing plan on October 5 that sets out building commitments for the next term and asks the province for 100 or more secure-care beds, SRO replacement funding, and a fair-share framework for supportive housing.
Announcement. A campaign, a party or the City chose to say this. voche.me reports it as their claim. Read the original report on abcvancouver.ca.
ABC Vancouver published a housing plan on October 5, 2026, setting out what the party says it accomplished in the current council term and what it commits to doing in the next one.
The plan, which the party calls Keep Building Vancouver, was released alongside a list of requests for the provincial government under the name Vancouver Agenda. Mayor Ken Sim is ABC Vancouver's mayoral candidate for the October 17 election.
What the party says it has done
ABC Vancouver says it approved 12,795 new homes in 2025, including 10,277 purpose-built rental homes. The party also says 2,300 or more purpose-built market rental homes were completed that year, which it describes as the highest annual total in more than 40 years. It adds that permitting times have come down: 50 per cent for laneway homes, 36 per cent for detached homes, and 46 per cent for multi-family and mid-rise development permits.
All of these figures are ABC Vancouver's own claims. This site has not checked them against City records or independent sources.
What the party commits to for the next term
The plan says ABC Vancouver would implement what it calls a 3-3-3-1 permitting framework, expand combined development and building permits, increase digital approvals and pre-approved designs, and offer a fee incentive for projects that begin construction within a defined period. It also commits to pre-approved fourplex and sixplex designs and to a workforce housing program for nurses, teachers, firefighters, police officers, and childcare workers. No cost figure for any of these commitments appears in the press release.
What the party is asking the province to do
The Vancouver Agenda calls for the province to replace aging single-room-occupancy buildings with self-contained housing, funded permanently through BC Housing. It asks for a regional framework to distribute supportive housing across Metro Vancouver rather than placing it in one area. It also asks for 100 or more new involuntary and secure-care beds, with named sites, a timeline, and long-term funding.
Mayor Sim is quoted in the press release: "Some of the biggest challenges facing our city require every level of government at the table." The press release does not include any response from other parties or from the province.
What a voter can do
Voters comparing party platforms on housing can read the full plan at abcvancouver.ca and review ABC Vancouver's candidate slate at /parties/abc-vancouver. Advance voting is open October 7, 10, and 13 from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., with 59 locations across the city. Election day is October 17, 2026. Voting locations are at /where-to-vote.
Questions this story answers
What is the Keep Building Vancouver plan?
Keep Building Vancouver is the name ABC Vancouver gave to a housing plan published on October 5, 2026. The plan sets out what the party says it accomplished in the current council term and commits to a set of building and permitting actions in the next term. All figures and claims in the plan come from ABC Vancouver and have not been independently checked.
What numbers does ABC Vancouver cite about housing approvals?
ABC Vancouver says 12,795 new homes were approved in 2025, including 10,277 purpose-built rental homes. The party also says 2,300 or more purpose-built market rental homes were completed in 2025, which it describes as the highest annual total in more than 40 years. These are the party's own figures. This site has not checked them against City or provincial records.
What is the 3-3-3-1 permitting framework?
ABC Vancouver commits to implementing something it calls the 3-3-3-1 permitting framework, which the party describes as a way to speed up development approvals. The plan gives no detailed breakdown of what each number refers to, so the exact process is not described in the press release. A voter wanting more detail would need to contact the party.
What permitting improvements does ABC Vancouver claim to have already made?
ABC Vancouver says the current council term produced a 50 per cent reduction in the time to get a permit for a laneway home, a 36 per cent reduction for a detached home, and a 46 per cent reduction in processing times for multi-family and mid-rise development permits. These figures are ABC Vancouver's own claims and have not been independently verified.
What does ABC Vancouver want the province to do about housing?
Under what it calls the Vancouver Agenda, ABC Vancouver is asking the province to replace aging single-room-occupancy buildings with self-contained units and fund that work permanently through BC Housing, establish a framework to distribute supportive housing across Metro Vancouver rather than concentrating it in one area, and provide 100 or more new involuntary and secure-care beds with named sites, a timeline, and lasting funding.
What other provincial asks does ABC Vancouver make?
The Vancouver Agenda also asks the province to address hard-drug use in public spaces through shelter and treatment options, make social housing operators more accountable, redirect school-tax revenue from provincial coffers to Vancouver students, increase the number of prosecutors and court resources in Vancouver, improve port security, and provide stable long-term childcare funding.
What does this plan mean for voters choosing a mayor or councillor?
Housing is one of the central issues in the 2026 Vancouver election. Voters comparing parties on this topic can read ABC Vancouver's plan at the link below, and compare it with published platforms from other parties. This site has covered platforms from COPE, OneCity, the Green Party of Vancouver, and the Vancouver Liberals. Advance voting is open on October 7, 10, and 13.
Where can I review ABC Vancouver's platform and compare it with other parties?
ABC Vancouver's platform, including this housing plan, is at abcvancouver.ca. You can review ABC Vancouver's full candidate slate at voche.me/parties/abc-vancouver. Advance voting is open October 7, 10, and 13 from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. at locations across the city, and election day is October 17, 2026. Voting location details are at voche.me/where-to-vote.
Sources
The pages this story draws on. Open one to check a claim yourself.
- ABC Vancouver press release, October 5, 2026abcvancouver.ca
- ABC Vancouver candidates, voche.mevoche.me
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