Mid-sized Canadian cities, like Regina, aim to curb urban sprawl by revitalizing downtowns — with mixed success. (28thegreat/Wikimedia Commons), CC BY

Canada’s mid-sized cities — those with populations between 50,000 to 500,000 — have long been characterized as low-density, dispersed and decentralized. In these cities, cars dominate, public transit is limited and residents prefer the space and privacy of suburban neighbourhoods.

Several mounting issues, ranging from climate change and the housing affordability crisis to the growing infrastructure deficit, are challenging municipalities to rethink this approach.

Cities are adopting growth management strategies that promote density and seek to curtail, rather than encourage, urban sprawl. Key to this is intensification, a strategy that prioritizes adding new housing in existing and mature neighbourhoods instead of outward expansion along the city’s edge.

City centres are often central to intensification strategies, given the abundance of vacant or underused land. Adding more residents supports downtown revitalization efforts, while simultaneously curbing urban sprawl.

Challenges of intensification

Despite the adoption of bold policies, our research shows that implementation remains a challenge. In 2013, Regina set an intensification target requiring that 30 per cent of the housing built each year would be located within the city’s mature and established neighbourhoods. But between 2014 and 2021, the target was missed each year, and almost all growth occurred at the edge of the city in the form of new suburban development.

This disconnect is not particularly unique and is often referred to as the “say-do gap,” where development outcomes differ from intentions. This presents real challenges for cities trying to shift away from low-density suburban growth towards higher-density development.

Because Canada is a suburban nation, dense and compact mid-sized cities are atypical. A series of barriers further entrench this, including low demand for high-density urban living, difficulties in assembling land, aging infrastructure and overly rigid planning rules and processes that stifle innovation.

The failure to implement higher-density development raises the question: is intensification in mid-sized cities more aspirational than viable?

Success stories

Several mid-sized cities have experienced recent success with intensification. This has been marked by a flurry of downtown development activity, including new condos and rental towers.

Between 2016 and 2021, the number of downtown residents in Canadian cities increased by 11 per cent, exceeding the previous five-year period of 4.6 per cent.

Among the success stories is Halifax, which had a 25 per cent increase — the fastest downtown growth in Canada. Kelowna was not far behind, with a 23 per cent increase in its downtown residential population.

Other mid-sized cities, including Kingston, Victoria, London, Abbotsford, Kamloops and Moncton, also experienced above-average growth over this period.

Evolving downtowns

This growth can be attributed to several factors, one of the most important being downtown livability: the presence of amenities and services that meet the needs of residents. Many downtowns have evolved to cater primarily to the needs of daytime office workers at the expense of residents, who live — or might like to live — downtown.

Kelowna, however, offers an alternative experience shaped by intentional efforts to make the downtown friendly to residents. Restaurants and cafes line the streets, mixed among services including medical offices, fitness studios and even a full-service grocery store, a rare find in a mid-sized city as many downtowns have become food deserts.

Cultural and civic amenities, including the central library, city hall, museums, galleries and entertainment venues — including a 7,000-seat arena — are downtown. The downtown also borders Okanagan Lake, offering access to recreational and natural amenities. Beyond convenience, the mix of amenities and services in Kelowna makes for a vibrant downtown, which is key to increasing the appeal for downtown living.

a downtown city street at dusk
Bernard Avenue in downtown Kelowna provides a mix amenities and services, including easy access to the shores of Okanagan Lake. These features enhance liveability and increase the appeal of the downtown as a place to reside. (Nathan Pachal/flickr), CC BY

Other cities can take inspiration from Kelowna by re-imagining and reshaping the downtown as a vibrant urban neighbourhood — and not solely as a place where people come to work. Municipalities can complement these efforts by reforming overly complex and rigid regulations that impede intensification — not just downtown, but in other neighbourhoods too.

Reforming and clarifying regulations

Our research shows that while many developers support intensification in principle, they often favour low-density suburban development because it provides more predictable returns and approvals processes than downtown mixed-use developments. Many developers also lack the expertise to take on these more complex and riskier projects.

Unsurprisingly, developers in mid-sized cities want the same things as those in larger cities: clearer rules, faster approvals and financial incentives to build denser development in the locations planners are calling for, like downtowns. While developers have long advocated for these changes, governments are now responding with greater urgency.

The housing accelerator fund, introduced by the federal government in 2023, provides municipalities with millions in funding to support housing construction. In exchange, municipalities have reformed zoning regulations, introduced fiscal incentives and expedited the approval process.

In British Columbia, provincial legislation was introduced to permit up to four housing units on parcels that previously only allowed detached or semi-detached dwellings, and up to six units of housing on larger lots in residential zones near transit. The requirement for site-by-site public hearings has also been removed.

In B.C.’s larger cities, legislation was introduced to remove parking minimums and permit taller buildings and increased housing densities around transit hubs.

Regulatory reforms and improved approval processes aim to streamline development. While these are important changes in making mid-sized cities denser and more compact, the gap between planning ideals and market realities remains wide.

A major factor is opposition from residents and councillors, who frequently resist dense development because of perceptions and concerns about increased noise and traffic and lowered property values. This suggests there is work to be done beyond downtown investments, and regulatory and approval reforms to further facilitate intensification.

Read more: From NIMBY to YIMBY: How localized real estate investment trusts can help address Canada’s housing crisis

Changing cities

Nonetheless, the surge of recent development activity and downtown population growth — in Halifax, Kelowna and elsewhere — reflect important milestones in the evolution of mid-sized cities.

This signals a notable departure from the longstanding narrative that frames these cities as low-density with depleted downtowns.

Recent developments give reason to be cautiously optimistic about a future where Canada’s mid-sized cities become denser and more compact, and with vibrant and liveable downtown cores.

This article is republished from The Conversation, a nonprofit, independent news organization bringing you facts and trustworthy analysis to help you make sense of our complex world. It was written by: Rylan Graham, University of Northern British Columbia and Jeffrey Biggar, Dalhousie University

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Rylan Graham receives funding from SSHRC and the British Columbia Real Estate Foundation.

Jeffrey Biggar receives funding from SSHRC, MITACS, and the Province of Nova Scotia