Francine Bastien

The Town of Brome Lake recently unveiled its new housing policy. If implemented, it will transform the face and character of the municipality.

Significant figures

The document establishes some statistical findings. Of the 3,683 housing units listed in TBL, 81% are single-family homes. Eighteen percent of these dwellings is occupied by tenants. As for the 2,830 households (permanent residents) who occupy these accommodations, 45% are over 65 years old; the 25-45 year-olds make up only 17% of this cohort.

Between 2016 and 2021, the population of TBL grew by 10%, a trend which should persist until 2031, estimates the document.

If the growth of the aging population is certain, the influx of young households is much less so.

It is in this context combined with a greater demand for housing whose prices continue to rise that TBL’s housing policy takes place.

Priority: seniors and young households

Thus, the town has set itself the objective of promoting a mix of residential products for these two target clienteles. The town will activate its right of pre-emption on certain lands; it will encourage the creation of accessory dwellings in urban areas in order to further densify the areas of Knowlton, Foster and Bondville.

TBL a key player in housing

In order to ‘rebalance the real estate market’ TBL is committed to facilitating the construction of at least 300 new housing units by 2035 with the aim of diversifying and attracting people with incomes lower than the median income in Town of Brome Lake. Moreover, “the new housing planned under this policy must be carefully designed to harmonize with the natural and environmental setting of Brome Lake.’’

The plan also seeks to protect the quality of new developments by updating “the current site planning and architectural integration plan bylaw to better protect the aesthetics, environment and heritage character of the Town.’’

Attracting young people with tax incentives and encouraging cooperative projects to facilitate access to property, allowing the construction of smaller housing for older clients are some of the means to achieve the town’s policy. Making housing less expensive, revising the urban plan, redistributing the city’s territory, supervising development and exploring new municipal powers with certain urban planning tools to allow the rapid creation of more housing promises to transform the face and character of TBL.

View the document here