Expand and enable “missing middle” transit supportive housing options in the Sugarbush South neighbourhood, near the City’s post secondary institutions and public transit.
As part of the City of Waterloo’s Housing Accelerator Fund grant, the City is implementing nine housing initiatives focused on increasing the supply of housing and/or streamlining development approvals processes. Initiative 3 relates to enabling more “missing middle” transit supportive housing options to be built in the Sugarbush South neighbourhood shown in the map below.
Like many communities across Ontario, Waterloo is facing significant housing challenges which is contributing to increased housing prices and rents. The City’s Affordability Housing Strategy (IPPW2023-002) identified housing gaps such as the need for rental and ownership units within medium density “missing middle” built forms along transit routes and near amenities. “Missing middle” housing tends to refer to a variety of low and medium density, multiple-unit housing forms, such as triplexes, fourplexes, townhouses, additional residential units and low and mid-rise apartment buildings.
Sugarbush South was initially developed as a suburban community from the 1950s to the 1960s. With the development and continued growth of the post-secondary institutions, there has been significant pressure on the City’s near-campus neighbourhoods to accommodate students, staff and faculty. This has resulted in intensification in near-campus nodes and corridors, such as on the periphery of the neighbourhood (north side of Cardill Crescent and east of Holly Street), as well as the conversion of single detached dwellings into multi-unit dwellings.
Draft Official Plan Amendment, Draft Zoning By-law Amendment and Draft Urban Design Guidelines for Sugarbush South have been released. Comments are due by October 31, 2025 to inform the final Official Plan Amendment, Zoning By-law Amendment and guidelines.
Key actions:
- HAF Grant Net new units: 50
- HAF Grant Implementation timeline: December 1, 2023 to June 30, 2026
Return to City of Waterloo Housing Accelerator Fund page.
