Housing Transition in Single Industry 'Instant Towns'
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Housing Transition in Single Industry 'Instant Towns' Prepared for: Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation External Housing Program 700 Montreal Road Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0P7 Prepared by: Greg Halseth and Lana Sullivan Geography Program University of Northern British Columbia Prince George, B.C. CANADA V2N 4Z9 tel: (250) 960-5826 fax: (250) 960-5539 email: [email protected] March 24, 2000 Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, the Federal Government=s housing agency, is responsible for administering the National Housing Act. This legislation is designed to aid in the improvement of housing and living conditions in Canada. As a result, the Corporation has interests in all aspects of housing and urban growth and development. Under Part IX of this Act, the Government of Canada provides funds to CMHC to conduct research into the social, economic and technical aspects of housing and related fields, and to undertake the publishing and distribution of the results of this research. CMHC therefore has a statutory responsibility to make widely available, information which may be useful in the improvement of housing and living conditions. This research project >Housing Transition in Single Industry 'Instant Towns' was funded by CMHC, but the views expressed herein are those of the authors, and do not necessarily represent the views of CMHC. This publication is one of the many items of information published by CMHC with the assistance of federal funds. CMHC subscribes to Canada=s Green Plan. Quantities of our publication are limited to market demand; updates are produced only when required; and recycled or environmentally friendly stock and environmentally safe inks are used wherever possible. CMHC offers a wide range of housing-related information. For details, contact your local CMHC office. Housing Transition in Single Industry 'Instant Towns' ABSTRACT Single-industry communities are a common part of the Canadian rural landscape. In many cases, these communities were developed by a single firm or industry to provide a focal point for local extraction and/or processing operations, as well as to house the needed workforce. Often isolated from other communities, the local housing market is influenced by the health of the resource industry. As a result, changes in the viability of the industry directly affect the local housing market. Restructuring pressures within the resource sector has led to a re-evaluation of the viability of constructing new, and in some cases maintaining old, single-industry communities. This research examines two single-industry Ainstant towns@ in Canada with the purpose of tracking transitions within the local housing market as the economic fortunes of the local industry and community change through time. An understanding of these isolated markets is needed to inform government policy and will be useful to resource companies seeking to evaluate new development costs, to local decision-makers interested in community development, and to households participating in the housing market. The research is based on a comparative study of Mackenzie and Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia. The scope and objectives of the research are fourfold: 1. To develop an historical and contemporary portrait of the local housing market in these single-industry instant towns. 2. To identify and track the timing of past corporate strategies with respect to the selling off of housing stock to employee residents. 3. To identify the nature and scale of economic benefits or costs which may accrue to households through housing purchase in this type of community context. 4. To identify the nature and scale of economic benefits and costs which may accrue to institutions such as the resource company or Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. The research methodology involves 6 stages. These include a background literature review on previous work on this topic, development of baseline housing data and a local housing history for each community, a review of local housing construction activity, a summary of changing housing investment values, and an analysis of the collected information. Table of Contents Abstract Acknowledgments Executive Summary.............................................................................................................. i 1.0 Introduction............................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Scope and Objectives................................................................................................ 1 1.2 Report........................................................................................................................ 3 2.0 Housing in Single-Industry Towns............................................................................ 4 2.1 Planning Resource Towns......................................................................................... 4 2.2 Single Industry Town Development.......................................................................... 9 2.3 Housing in Single Industry Towns............................................................................ 12 Overview................................................................................................................... 13 Housing Quality........................................................................................................ 14 Housing Provision.................................................................................................... 16 Resident Housing Satisfaction.................................................................................. 17 Housing and Community Stability............................................................................ 18 Alternative Housing Strategies................................................................................. 19 Impact of Town Closure on Investments.................................................................. 20 2.4 Discussion................................................................................................................. 22 3.0 Case Study Communities.......................................................................................... 24 3.1 Comparative Research.............................................................................................. 24 3.2 Profiles of Mackenzie and Tumbler Ridge............................................................... 25 3.3 Community Population Change................................................................................ 31 3.4 Individual/Household Characteristics....................................................................... 32 3.5 Income Characteristics.............................................................................................. 40 3.6 Employment Characteristics..................................................................................... 45 3.7 Discussion................................................................................................................. 49 4.0 Housing Development.............................................................................................. 51 4.1 Overview Profile...................................................................................................... 51 4.1.1 Housing Stock Structure........................................................................................... 51 4.1.2 Housing and Household Size.................................................................................... 56 4.1.3 Housing Costs........................................................................................................... 57 4.1.4 Repairs...................................................................................................................... 59 4.2 Local Housing History.............................................................................................. 61 4.3 Local Housing Construction Activity....................................................................... 67 4.3.1 Building Permit Data Methodology......................................................................... 67 4.3.2 Building Permit Data............................................................................................... 68 4.4 Discussion................................................................................................................ 76 Con=t ... 5.0 Housing Investment.................................................................................................. 78 5.1 BC Assessment Authority Methodology.................................................................. 78 5.2 Property Assessment Data - Assessed Value of Property......................................... 79 5.2.1 Assessed Values - Current Dollars........................................................................... 80 5.2.2 Assessed Values - Constant Dollars......................................................................... 82 5.3 Property Ownership Changes................................................................................... 86 5.3.1 General Ownership Description............................................................................... 86 5.3.2 Average Number of Owners per Property................................................................ 86 5.3.3 Duration of Property Ownership.............................................................................. 89 5.4 Property Assessment / Sales Ratio (ASR)............................................................... 91 5.5 Discussion...............................................................................................................