This is Part 1 in a multi-part series on the impact of new housing rules on Coquitlam neighbourhoods.
What started with a bang ended with a routine vote during a City Council meeting.
After three years of vigorously arguing against housing changes unilaterally imposed by the provincial NDP government, Coquitlam's City Council was forced to give final approval recently to a set of bylaws that implemented many of the changes.
The new rules went into effect immediately.
The changes approved — focused on "medium density" housing — will likely radically reshape neighbourhoods near SkyTrain stations (known as Transit-Oriented Developments) for decades to come.
Mayor Richard Stewart has stated the new rules are "ill-advised" and famously said in a December 2024 Council meeting, "We need to continue to tell the province, please don't do stupid things again."
He added, "It has done so much damage to the ability of councils across the province to approve housing expeditiously." And: "These kinds of decisions are blind to the infrastructure needs of the neighbourhood; they're not going to work."
What is Changing?
The most visible change is the new "minimum allowable height" for housing developments near transit. The new height limits are divided into three tiers based on proximity to the station:
Tier 1 (Within 200m): Massive towers of at least 20 storeys are now permitted.
Tier 2 (201m to 400m): Mid-to-high-rise buildings up to 12 storeys.
Tier 3 (401m to 800m): Mid-rise apartments up to 8 storeys.
As long as developers meet new requirements, the City will have no choice but to approve the heights and densities mandated by the Province.
Can I build a tower on my property?
A typical homeowner cannot simply build a tower on their own property.
Under the new rules, the City requires a minimum lot size of 1,110 m² (approximately 12,000 square feet) before construction of these types of towers will be approved.
Since most local single-family lots are about half that size, homeowners must band together with one or more neighbours to assemble a large enough site to sell to a developer.
Furthermore, properties within the 800-metre transit zones were specifically excluded from the 2025 "multiplex" rules that allowed 3–4 units on single lots.
The City's strategy is to force large land assemblies for towers rather than allowing smaller-scale development in these areas.
The current regulatory transformation in Coquitlam is the result of three landmark provincial statutes passed in late 2023 — Bills 44, 46, and 47 — designed to address the housing crisis by accelerating density near transit hubs. These laws fundamentally shifted land-use authority from municipal councils to the Province, requiring cities to permit standardized heights and densities while removing local barriers to development.
The Legislative Framework
Bill 44: Effectively ended exclusive single-family zoning by mandating Small-Scale Multi-Unit Housing (SSMUH) as-of-right on most residential lots.
Bill 46: Modernized development financing by introducing fixed Amenity Cost Charges (ACCs), replacing the previous system of site-by-site negotiations for community benefits.
Bill 47: Required the designation of Transit-Oriented Areas (TOAs) within 800 metres of SkyTrain stations, establishing provincial "minimums" for height (up to 20 storeys) and density that municipalities cannot refuse.