Many Residents Support Legalizing Secondary Suites In The Town Of View Royal

View Royal, BC - A new Ipsos Reid poll shows that the majority of View Royal residents support legalizing secondary suites in the Town. In total, 78% of residents say they support legalizing secondary suites in the Town of View Royal. Residents see secondary suites as offering financial benefits to both homeowners and renters, with 90% agreeing "secondary suites will help make home ownership affordable for homebuyers" and 88% agreeing "secondary suites are a cost-effective way of addressing rental housing needs". The majority (86%) also agrees that "legalizing secondary suites will help ensure that these units conform to minimum health and safety standards." Yet despite these perceived advantages, residents also have concerns over the impact of secondary suites on both parking and traffic congestion. Two-thirds agree "secondary suites will put increased pressure on crowded streets where parking is already limited" (68%) and "secondary suites will increase traffic congestion in local neighbourhoods" (66%). Fewer (33%) residents agree that "secondary suites will have a negative impact on the look and feel of local neighbourhoods".

These are the findings of an Ipsos Reid poll conducted between January 17th and January 22nd, 2006. The poll is based on a randomly selected sample of 500 adult View Royal residents. With a sample of this size, the results are considered accurate to within 177 4.4 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, of what they would have been had the entire adult population of View Royal been polled. The margin of error will be larger within regions and for other sub-groupings of the survey population. These data were statistically weighted to ensure the sample's age/sex composition reflects that of the actual View Royal population according to the 2001 Census data.

More than three-quarters (78%) of citizens support legalizing secondary suites in the Town of View Royal

Secondary suites are currently not allowed in the Town of View Royal. However, like many municipalities across Canada, the Town is in the process of reviewing their bylaws governing secondary suites to determine if these should be relaxed. A new Ipsos Reid poll shows that the majority (78%) of View Royal residents support legalizing secondary suites in the Town. Of this, a relatively large proportion (46%) say they "strongly support" legalizing secondary suites, while another 32% say "somewhat support". Meanwhile, the level of opposition stands at 20%, with 12% saying they "strongly oppose" legalizing secondary suites in the Town and another 8% saying "somewhat oppose."

Residents who are the most likely to "strongly support" legalizing secondary suites include those who:

• Are aged 18 to 34 (59% vs. 43% of those aged 35 to 54 and 41% of those aged 55 plus);
• Have lived in the Town for 5 years or less (50% vs. 38% of those who have lived in the area for more than 10 years); and,
• Earn less than $45,000 (57% vs. 41% of those earning $75,000 or more).

While the majority of citizens see secondary suites as offering financial benefits, many also have concerns over the impacts on parking and traffic congestion

Residents see both advantages and disadvantages to legalizing secondary suites. Overall, the vast majority agrees secondary suites will provide financial benefits to both homeowners and renters, with 90% agreeing "secondary suites will help make home ownership affordable for homebuyers" and 88% agreeing "secondary suites are a cost-effective way of addressing rental housing needs". Most (86%) residents also agree that "legalizing secondary suites will help ensure that these units conform to minimum health and safety standards".

Despite these perceived benefits, residents also have concerns over the impact of secondary suites on parking and traffic congestion. In total, 68% agree "secondary suites will put increased pressure on crowded streets where parking is already limited" and 66% agree "secondary suites will increase traffic congestion in local neighbourhoods".

In comparison to the above issues, fewer residents believe that secondary suites will have a negative impact on the character of local neighbourhoods. Only one-third (33%) agree that "secondary suites will have a negative impact on the look and feel of local neighbourhoods".

• Attitudes towards secondary suites are consistent across key demographics.

For more information on this news release, please contact:
Catherine Gunther
Senior Research Manager
Ipsos Reid
(604) 893-1697
[email protected]

Ipsos Reid
Ipsos Reid is Canada's market intelligence leader and the country's leading provider of public opinion research. With operations in eight cities, Ipsos-Reid employs more than 300 researcher professionals and support staff in Canada. The company has the biggest network of telephone call centres in Canada, as well as the largest pre-recruited household and on-line panels. Ipsos Reid's Canadian marketing research and public affairs practices are staffed with seasoned research consultants with extensive industry-specific backgrounds, offering the premier suite of research vehicles in Canada - including the Ipsos Trend Report, the leading source of public opinion in the country - all of which provide clients with actionable and relevant information. Ipsos Reid is an Ipsos company, a leading global survey-based market research group.

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