By James Stiver, Director of Planning & Building, City of Maple Ridge.
Across British Columbia, local governments face a shared challenge: how to encourage development of more affordable housing, at a time when the development industry is pulling back from building due to a soft market.
Despite these economic headwinds, the population of communities like Maple Ridge is continuing to grow, and that is putting pressure on municipalities to keep investing in the infrastructure, services, and amenities that will make that growth sustainable.
Here in Maple Ridge, that work is happening every day through land-use planning, long-term capital investment and modernizing the way we deliver services. The City’s role is to use the tools available to local government to help guide growth in the right places, improve the development process, and support complete, livable neighbourhoods.
We can’t afford to put these efforts on hold because of a downturn in the housing market. Local governments need to be innovative and work in collaboration with the development industry.
As the Director of Planning and Building for Maple Ridge, I’m proud that we’ve introduced Velocity, a unique first-of-its-kind development approvals program to help advance projects that support strategically significant community priorities, such as affordable housing, transit-oriented development, and job-creating commercial and industrial development.
The program provides a dedicated ‘concierge’ -- a senior City contact who leads an integrated approvals team to help eligible applicants navigate complex planning approvals, including rezoning, development permits, subdivisions and variances.
While Velocity projects will benefit from enhanced support, the program does not replace required project reviews or remove oversight from City Council. And importantly, participation in Velocity does not guarantee a project will be approved.
Velocity is an example of Maple Ridge taking a bold and innovative approach to reducing red tape and the latest in a suite of changes the City is making to streamline and modernize our planning and permitting processes. These include tools like the Certified Professional Program and the online permit application portal — delivering real tools for real results to accelerate building and construction.
Maple Ridge is one of the Lower Mainland’s fastest-growing communities, with an estimated growth rate of 11 percent from 2021 to 2025 and a population expected to grow more than 32 percent over the next 25 years. That growth brings significant opportunities, but it also requires discipline: thinking carefully about where housing should go, how development is supported, what infrastructure is needed, and how project timelines can better align with municipal planning and capital investment.
The City’s progress can already be measured, with our work resulting in Maple Ridge hitting just over 99 percent of our cumulative two-year provincial housing target, reflecting a broader program of work through the City’s Housing Action Plan: Building Our Community for All. We’re concentrating on the parts of the housing system that local government can directly influence. Our shift to online applications has reduced new-home permit review times by approximately 75 percent, with new-home construction permits being processed in 10 weeks or less.
Recent housing actions also include four new proposed medium- and high-density zones for key growth areas, including Transit-Oriented Areas, the Town Centre, and the Lougheed Transit Corridor. These zones are intended to support apartments and mixed-use buildings close to transit, shops, services, and employment areas, while also addressing livability through updated standards for building design, indoor and outdoor amenities, commercial space, childcare, and local services.
Housing growth must also be connected to renter protection and housing choice. Maple Ridge has advanced updates to its tenant protection framework, including a new Tenant Protection Bylaw, amendments to tenant relocation assistance policies, and a new Rental Protection Policy. These measures are intended to provide clearer information, stronger protections, and a fairer process when a redevelopment might impact existing renters.
At the same time, Maple Ridge is planning for housing alongside employment growth, transportation and infrastructure. The North 256 Street Industrial Area Plan is an important example. By supporting new and expanded employment lands, the City will help attract business investment, strengthen the local tax base, and support local jobs.
Infrastructure planning is central to this work. Maple Ridge’s 2026–2030 Capital Plan includes nearly $432 million in planned investments for transportation, utilities, public safety and community facilities. The City has also prioritized several major projects to ensure our community remains livable over the long term, including extending Abernethy Way to connect to the 500 acres of new industrial lands at North 256 Street, planning for the 240 Street bridge which will provide an essential connection to Silver Valley, and supporting TransLink’s expansion of Golden Ears Way and the Bus Rapid Transit line connecting our town centre to Langley.
As housing demand grows, communities also need the amenities, infrastructure, and services that support day-to-day quality of life. That is why managing this growth cannot rest with municipalities alone. Maple Ridge is doing the work local governments can do: updating zoning, improving processes, planning around transit and infrastructure, protecting renters, and preparing for long-term growth. But supporting that growth will also require continued provincial and federal investment in schools, infrastructure, healthcare, childcare, and other essential services outside the City’s direct mandate.
The calculation is simple: cities need to keep pushing for measurable progress on housing and take practical steps to support the growth of our community. The challenge here in Maple Ridge is to continue aligning housing, infrastructure, amenities, and employment growth so that our city remains a complete, livable, and connected community for both current and future residents. I’m proud to say our team is taking this challenge head-on.
