Calgary city council votes to end Resilient Roofing Program – Calgary
A Metropolis of Calgary program geared toward giving householders a rebate to put in impact-resistant roofing following a June 2020 hailstorm is coming to an finish.
Late Tuesday, metropolis council voted towards suggestions from committee that might see this system prolonged so remaining purposes could possibly be reviewed for householders who changed their roof on account of harm from the back-to-back hailstorms in 2020 and 2021.
These amended suggestions from Ward 5 councillor Raj Dhaliwal on the metropolis’s group growth committee requested administration to find out how a lot cash could be wanted to rebate these remaining householders and to discover a supply for that funding.
These suggestions have been defeated in a vote of six to 9, with simply Mayor Jyoti Gondek and councillors Dhaliwal, Gian-Carlo Carra, Evan Spencer, Kourtney Penner and Richard Pootmans voting in favour.
This system provided a $3,000 rebate to householders who skilled hail harm and have changed their roof with a licensed Class 4 impact-resistant materials.
Owners additionally had to make use of a contractor that may be a member of a roofing affiliation and needed to be updated on their property taxes.
Learn extra:
Calgary metropolis committee to determine way forward for Resilient Roofing Rebate program
In line with a metropolis report, $3.35 million in rebates had been awarded to 1,073 properties throughout town to this point.
There was additionally one other $1 million put aside for 308 pre-approved purposes for roof replacements.
Metropolis administration’s authentic suggestion was to finish this system “when the present funding is depleted.”
“I consider we have been very clear in our messaging that this can be a first come, first served foundation,” Kris Dietrich with metropolis constructing providers informed council. “It has been much more profitable that we imagined.”
This system turned oversubscribed earlier this yr, and town was pressured to create a waitlist on Feb. 18. Metropolis administration informed council that officers ensured wait-listed candidates knew this system was working out of funding.
Metropolis administration mentioned rebates have been handed out in each ward throughout town.
Learn extra:
Oversubscribed Calgary resilient roofing rebate gives 3:1 profit: examine
Ward 3 councillor Jasmine Mian mentioned she initially needed to see this system prolonged, however felt an extension would create new expectations for householders with purposes ready to be reviewed.
“There was this notion at committee that this program is kind of serving to the little man,” Mian informed council.
“The problem with this program is the resilient roofing supplies, even with the rebate, are nonetheless costlier than the opposite forms of supplies, which might imply that for those who’re actually really making a call on the margins — as individuals who don’t have the funds are doing — this wouldn’t provide help to.”
Dietrich informed council that town solely required proof of hail harm from the 2020 hailstorm for householders to obtain the rebate through the first part of this system.
“Once we opened up this system in January of this yr to extra folks than who have been impacted by 2020, we not requested for any info associated to hail harm,” Dietrich mentioned.
Dietrich informed council that there have been 1,100 folks on the wait record and, if the extension was accepted, town would want to achieve out to about 400 householders individually and ask for info “that wasn’t initially a requirement of this system.”
Dietrich mentioned town must return on its authentic first come, first served method and hand-pick householders out of that remaining group.
Learn extra:
Proposed hailstorm roofing rebate in Calgary upped to $3,000, expanded to whole metropolis
Penner, who represents Ward 11, mentioned she was involved some impacted householders could be left behind if this system wasn’t prolonged.
“Prospects which will have been affected by a hailstorm wanted time to save cash in an effort to substitute their roof,” she mentioned.
“It is a extremely inequitable program and I want that was one thing that might have been caught when it was first designed. I feel we have now a possibility to proper a improper right here.”
It stays unclear how a lot cash stays to fund this system.
Metropolis administration mentioned it’s engaged on modifications to the constructing codes to require resilient constructing supplies, however the subsequent overview of the provincial constructing codes isn’t till 2026.
—with recordsdata from Adam Toy, World Information
