A new administrative report from the City of Calgary indicates that the controversial shift to citywide residential grade-oriented infill zoning, known as blanket rezoning, has placed negligible strain on municipal infrastructure.
Report Details Minimal Infrastructure Impact
The report, presented to the city council's infrastructure and planning committee on Wednesday, was commissioned in response to a motion from the previous council. This motion, passed on May 14, 2024, requested that administration track development applications under the new R-CG rules and identify where densification might necessitate upgrades to water, road, and park systems.
The findings are based on one year of data following the implementation of R-CG as the base residential zoning district in August 2024. According to Maggie Choi, the city's manager of growth infrastructure planning, the analysis shows an extremely low demand for new utility investments.
Less than one per cent of the 1,949 R-CG homes reviewed by city planners since October 2024 have required utility upgrades, Choi told committee members. She emphasized that while individual street-level changes can feel significant to residents, the broader infrastructure impact has been minimal.
Breaking Down the Numbers on New Housing
The report provides a quantitative look at how blanket rezoning has altered Calgary's housing landscape. Overall, the introduction of R-CG zoning has increased the city's total housing stock by approximately 0.4 per cent. This translates to roughly one new home for every 240 existing homes.
In terms of housing types, the data reveals a clear trend towards semi-detached units. The report found that 64 per cent of new R-CG applications are for semi-detached homes, which currently constitute 34 per cent of the newly zoned R-CG housing stock.
Context of a Continuing Political Debate
This infrastructure assessment arrives at a critical political juncture. Choi noted the report was compiled before the current council's recent notice of motion to repeal blanket rezoning entirely. That proposal is scheduled for a decisive vote at council's meeting on December 15.
The report underscores a key administrative perspective: while no single R-CG project triggers the need for major parks or mobility network upgrades, the city must continue to analyze, monitor and manage the cumulative effects at a community scale.
The findings aim to provide an evidence-based counterpoint to concerns that rapid densification in established neighbourhoods would overwhelm existing services, suggesting the infrastructural footprint of the policy's initial phase has been remarkably light.
