| Summary: | The use of Development Cost Levies is a relatively new mechanism by which
municipalities may charge development a share of costly new infrastructure. Their use is an
improvement upon the previous ad-hoc system of land use contracts. The equity of
Development Cost Levies is widely disputed, but this thesis finds that their use is fair and
justifiable when judged in the context of the unprecedented growth of the Lower Mainland.
The paper finds that Development Cost Levies are generally passed back to the landowners,
unless the market is inelastic, in which case they are passed forward to the purchaser.
The thesis specifically examines Development Cost Levies for parkland acquisition in
mixed-use neighbourhoods. Park acquisition levies in mixed-use neighbourhoods are
currently charged only to residential development in B.C. municipalities. This thesis
examines whether the usage of parks by employees warrants commercial development paying
a share of the parkland acquisition levies in mixed use neighbourhoods.
In order to determine if commercial development should pay a portion of the cost of
park acquisition, a park survey was conducted in an existing mixed-use area to determine
employee usage of parkspace. A literature search revealed no other park surveys which
examined employee and resident usage of parkspace in mixed-use neighbourhoods. The
survey found that employees generated 83% of the usage of parkspace in two mixed-use area
neighbourhood parks. The findings of the survey indicate that commercial development
should be paying a proportional share of development cost charges for parkland acquisition in
mixed-use neighbourhoods. This information was then applied to a recently upzoned area of
the City of Vancouver to illustrate a sample calculation of Development Cost Levies. === Applied Science, Faculty of === Community and Regional Planning (SCARP), School of === Graduate
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