Addressing Housing Needs in Leduc

Housing is an important topic in the City of Leduc. When people have stable housing, they are more apt to thrive. When people can afford to buy a home, our community grows stronger. 

To help ensure housing instability is prevented and there is a place for everyone in our community, the City of Leduc is advancing its Housing Strategy and strengthening partnerships with developers, non-profits, local landowners, and community organizations to create innovative housing solutions that meet diverse needs. 

This work is being supported by a $7.6 million grant from the Housing Accelerator Fund, which is administered by the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). The funding will be paid in annual installments as the City successfully implements key initiatives. 

Key Terms

  • Affordable housing means a housing unit that can be owned or rented for less than 30% of the household’s gross income. This includes the cost of the mortgage or rent and utilities.
  • Missing middle housing includes suites, duplex, triplex, up to and including 3-storey multi-unit housing. It is called “missing middle” because it is typically the more under-served housing form in communities like Leduc.
  • Missing middle other housing means 4-storey units (or more).

Key Initiatives and Action Plan

The implementation of seven key initiatives will enable us to build more diverse and affordable housing options for current and future residents, resulting in a more resilient and adaptable community for generations.

The community will be invited to participate in robust engagement opportunities about the initiatives outlined below to help ensure we find solutions that work for us all. More information will be provided on how to get involved as we move initiatives forward.

New Land Use Bylaw (LUB)

The City will create a new Land Use Bylaw over the next two years. Four initiatives in Leduc’s Housing Accelerator Fund Action Plan could be incorporated into the new Land Use Bylaw, including:

  • Initiative 1: Explore zoning changes to allow four housing units on residential and mixed-use lots, or more than 4 units in very particular and appropriate areas, to help create healthier and stronger communities that welcomes everyone by providing a greater variety of housing options. The focus of this initiative will be to create more options for housing while protecting the livability and character of where we live.
  • Initiative 3: Create pre-approved housing design templates (a design catalogue) that reflect what is permitted under the new Land Use Bylaw that will be developed. This will accelerate housing by providing certainty and reducing red tape and make it easy for builders to use our new bylaw. The design catalogue will guide infill development near transit stops and routes within densely populated areas of the city.
  • Initiative 4: Seek approval for land use changes to make it easier to build housing in Leduc. This will help ensure we have a place for everyone to live in our community. We will look to create more options for existing homeowners too, so that homeowners can change / renovate their house to meet their housing needs without moving. This strengthens our social fabric and means people don’t have to leave their friends and family when their housing needs change.
  • Initiative 6: Develop a parking and public transportation strategy to understand constraints and opportunities for improvement in these areas in Leduc. Parking is important to get right, because it impacts how people use and move around in their community. The strategy will consider if there are barriers preventing housing from being developed, and potential solutions. We also know that transportation places significant strain on household budgets and we want to make sure public transportation supports affordability and choice for households.

Policy Work Related to Housing Programs and Incentives

These initiatives are focused on adding missing middle, missing middle other and affordable housing options to Leduc.

  • Initiative 2: Create a fast-tracking and concierge services policy to formalize and combine past practices with new practices to allow us to provide more efficient permitting. This will explore innovative approaches, like:
  • Creating policies for pre-application meeting services;
  • Formalizing and potentially modifying our key performance indicators for development and building permits;
  • Exploring the option to temporarily freeze the cost of permit charges and fees;
  • Updating the Cityview web-portal to improve the customer experience; and,
  • Expanding the City's fast-track permit service to non-market and rental housing and other housing types (beyond single-detached buildings).
  • Initiative 5: Create an Affordable and Missing Middle Housing Program to help streamline housing development. The program will assess whether there are private lands or City lands underutilized or restricted by servicing, zoning or other barriers. Should one of these parcels of land be developed for non-market housing, it may be eligible for an incentive outlined in Initiative 7.
  • Initiative 7: Create a pilot program targeting new accessory housing units, innovative housing designs, rentals and affordable housing guaranteed to remain affordable for at least 20 years. This program will help incentivize the development of missing middle and non-market housing. Incentives will be considered through density bonuses, permit fee reductions, tax deductions or direct contributions. This program will require builders to have met the City’s requirements as a reputable organization.

News Releases and Council Updates

March 2025: City of Leduc to expedite initiatives to address housing needs in Leduc