ABC Vancouver releases housing platform with 4,200 rental homes on City land and new rules for supportive housing operators

ABC Vancouver released its Keep Building Vancouver housing platform on October 5, 2026. The platform combines changes the party says it would pursue at the City level with requests directed at the next provincial government. It also released a broader Vancouver Agenda platform covering 10 priorities including housing, public safety, education, childcare, and economic development, plus a plan for its first 100 days if re-elected.

ABC Vancouver says an initial group of City-owned sites has already been identified with the development potential for 4,200 middle-income rental homes. The party says the City would keep ownership of the land and make it available through long-term leases and partnerships, with third-party organizations building and operating a mix of rental, strata, and co-operative housing. The party says this would also give the City a new source of non-tax revenue.

ABC Vancouver proposes that supportive housing operators with repeated serious safety problems, such as drug dealing, violence, or fires, would be required to make improvements. Those that receive formal warnings and repeatedly fail to fix ongoing safety problems would face growing enforcement penalties. After three strikes, the party says the City would seek to legally revoke the operator's business licence. The policy targets non-profit housing operators the party describes as unconcerned about being a good neighbour.

ABC Vancouver says its first-100-day commitments include a new review of core municipal services to identify duplication, with findings made public, and a single business assistance desk to simplify access to City support. The party 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 Q&A sessions with the mayor and relevant City representatives. It also plans an audit of community centres, selecting five for early attention.

ABC Vancouver says it would continue working toward its 3-3-3-1 targets: three days for renovation permits, 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. The party says it would process more applications through combined development and building permits, digital systems, and automated reviews where suitable.

Start Building Vancouver is a temporary program ABC Vancouver says it would explore. It could lower certain municipal fees and allow developers to pay them later if an approved project begins construction within a specified period. The party says additional incentives could be offered for rental housing, larger family-sized homes, and homes rented below market rates. The platform materials, as Daily Hive reported, do not specify which fees would qualify, how much relief would be available, or the deadline for starting construction.

ABC Vancouver's platform points to City statistics showing 12,795 homes were approved in 2025, which the party says is 54 per cent above the annual target. The figure includes 10,277 secured purpose-built rental homes. The party 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. These figures come from the party's own platform materials.

The Vancouver civic election is on Saturday, October 17, 2026. Advance voting is open until October 16. You can read profiles of all 129 candidates, including Ken Sim, at voche.me/candidates. Information on where to vote and how to vote by mail is at voche.me/where-to-vote.