Jacob Loo Dawang

@jacobdawang

your local data scientist and housing advocate @growtogetheryeg.bsky.social 📍 Edmonton, AB

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Jacob Loo Dawang@jacobdawang· 7d

Imagine being the homeowner of one of 5 lots in this cul-de-sac and claiming you didn't see the redevelopment signs on the lot marked in red which is right next to your house. And then imagine CBC taking them at their word without questioning it. www.cbc.ca/listen/cbc-p...

This is an aerial map showing two circled areas in a residential neighborhood on Buen Vista NW:
Red circle (upper): Outlines a property or area along the street
Teal/cyan circle (lower): Outlines a larger residential area below, encompassing multiple properties and streets

Jacob Loo Dawang@jacobdawang· 8d

$14.9M/year is can fund a ton of stuff, fittingly including the infill liaison team. Without needing to raise the property tax rate at all. The list of services infill can fund without any tax increase will continue to grow as more permits roll in.

Bus Service Growth Operating Impacts ($7.4M) — the ongoing annual cost of converting three On-Demand Transit zones to conventional fixed-route bus service, using 25 new buses and adding 62,500 annual service hours. This is the ongoing, permanent cost once the new routes launch in 2027, not the smaller, partial-year cost in 2026.
DATS Service Level ($3.0M) — DATS (Dedicated Accessible Transit Service) is the door-to-door transit option for Edmontonians who can’t use conventional buses or LRT. Demand had outgrown the existing budget. Without this funding, the share of trip requests the city could confirm was projected to fall from 98% to 89%, denying an estimated 120,000 rider trips a year.
Spring Sweep equipment ($1.1M) — restores funding for the leased equipment used in Edmonton’s annual spring street sweep, which clears the winter’s accumulated sand and grit off roads by June 1 each year.
Transit Fleet Maintenance ($1.1M) — covers higher-than-budgeted cost increases (about 22%) on the parts and materials needed to keep ETS’s 900+ buses on the road, including legislated preventative maintenance and mid-life refurbishment.
Bus Cleaning Service Delivery Model ($1.2M) — reinstates a bus-cleaning budget cut in 2020 and never fully restored. Without it, 20 cleaning staff would be cut, risking unsanitary buses, reduced rider satisfaction, and lost ridership and fare revenue.
Facility Maintenance Services ($0.6M) — covers inflation-driven cost increases (about 15%) on contracted maintenance work at City Hall, recreation centres, police stations, and libraries.
Infill Liaison Team ($0.6M) — reinstates a dedicated team to field infill-related complaints, explain the City’s infill policy, and coordinate between departments. A fitting one to fund with infill’s own tax revenue.

Jacob Loo Dawang@jacobdawang· 8d

At steady state, once every 2024–2026 permit is built and assessed, small-scale infill will contribute $14.9M a year in perpetuity in additional municipal property tax revenue. Or, if Council held revenue flat instead: a 0.7% decrease to the property tax rate.

Table of RS Zone infill uplift by category showing lots, homes added, net value uplift, and annual municipal tax uplift, totalling $1.82 billion in value and $14.9 million a year in tax.

Jacob Loo Dawang@jacobdawang· 8d

We can estimate the eventual incremental property assessment uplift from all small-scale infill post-ZBR reforms based on this 2024 cohort. Rowhomes do most of the heavy lifting. They add the most units per lot and have been the most common redevelopment path since ZBR.

Horizontal bar chart of net assessed value uplift by small-scale infill category from 2024 through H1 2026 permits. Five-plus unit rowhomes are by far the largest bar, followed by 2 to 4 unit plexes, then backyard homes.

Jacob Loo Dawang@jacobdawang· 8d

When a new rowhome replaces a single-detached home, the lot's value increases by a lot. Looking at the 2024 cohort that has been completed and occupied, we're talking over $1M in uplift. Approaching $2M for 7+ unit rowhomes.

Raincloud plot of assessed value uplift per redeveloped lot for 2024 RS Zone 5+ unit rowhomes, split into 5–6 unit and 7+ unit projects, showing gross uplift and uplift net of market appreciation. Most lots cluster in the low millions.

Jacob Loo Dawang@jacobdawang· 8d

If you haven't read my previous posts, you should know that the zoning bylaw renewal in 2024 is likely Canada's most effective zoning reform. We are seeing our mature neighbourhoods finally bring on desperately needed supply, mostly thanks to the 8-unit rowhome. www.jacobdawang.com/blog/2026/q2...

Stacked area chart showing H1 building permits issued in Edmonton from 2009 to 2026, divided into four neighborhood types (Downtown, Mature, Between Mature and Henday, and Outside Henday) and seven project types (Single Detached, Addition/Conversion, Backyard House, Duplex to Fourplex, Fiveplex to Eightplex, 9+ Row House, and 9+ Apartment). The Downtown panel shows minimal permits with occasional spikes. The Mature neighborhood shows steady growth peaking around 3,500 permits in 2025, dominated by Single Detached and Addition/Conversion projects. Between Mature and Henday ranges from 500 to 2,500 permits with significant volatility, while Outside Henday shows the most permits overall, reaching 4,000 in 2023, driven primarily by Single Detached housing. Data source: Jacob Dawang, City of Edmonton Open Data.

Jacob Loo Dawang@jacobdawang· 14d

Surely they made Alberta agree to the conditions of the program right? Right? www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

Housing conditions

To be eligible to receive funding under the PT Agreement stream, municipalities and regional governments in provinces will be required to implement the following two measures:

Adopt zoning for "four units as-of-right" per lot in all low-density residential areas with municipal servicing (i.e., water and sewer) in communities with populations greater than 30,000; and

Red Deer, where Wednesday's announcement was held, was previously embroiled in issues with federal housing funding.

Then-housing minister Jason Nixon slammed Ottawa for pulling Red Deer's $12-million Housing Accelerator Fund (HAF) grant when the community did not meet requirements for zoning, while only reducing funds for Ontario cities that failed to comply with conditions of their HAF agreements.

When asked, Carney said he "look[s] at it in the round", taking a less prescriptive approach and ensuring there is some funding coming to the area.

Jacob Loo Dawang@jacobdawang· 14d

I have to say, from when I left Toronto, the east waterfront has developed really nicely! Density and mixed use really does do wonders, even when transit is good but not great.

A modern waterfront plaza with a contemporary mixed-use building featuring copper-colored metal framing and large glass windows on the left. A wide paved area with red and gray tile patterns stretches across the foreground, lined with bike racks and street lamps. People walk and cycle along the plaza while others rest on benches near the water's edge. Trees and vegetation frame the scene, with a calm body of water visible in the background under a clear sky.

Jacob Loo Dawang@jacobdawang· 15d

Ah, fresh meat. (Right from Wilson yards)

Subway with no one on it straight from Wilson yards on morning rush hour.

Jacob Loo Dawang@jacobdawang· 15d

Hey look they did the thing at Bathurst and Eg where they built a tower over a subway entrance, at one corner.

A modern mid-rise residential building with a contemporary mixed-use ground floor. The facade features a beige and gray color scheme with floor-to-ceiling windows on residential units above and large storefront windows below. The ground level shows a dark-framed entrance marked "2020" and a "Forest Hill" transit station entrance. A bicycle is parked on the left sidewalk, and a street with yellow line markings runs along the building's front.

Jacob Loo Dawang@jacobdawang· 16d

Edmonton continues to show it's possible to have newly built, ground-oriented housing for families in existing neighbourhoods at a reasonable price. You only have to make it legal and feasible. Here's a 3bed for $1,895 with a $500 lease signing bonus.

Exterior photo of modern contemporary townhouse units featuring brick and white siding with black trim and metal railings. Three townhouses are visible with large windows and private entrances. Landscaping includes young trees and shrubs. Image is labeled '2 of 18' indicating multiple units available. Listing shows 3 beds, 2.5 baths townhouse at $1,895 per month, located nearby within 6 kilometers.

Continuation of rental listing details showing lease terms and application requirements. Includes $1,895 monthly rent, garage and pet policies, 12-month lease requirement, move-in ready status, a $500 move-in bonus offer for applications submitted within 24 hours, and notation that serious applicants with verified credit, income, and employment are required. Call-to-action encourages messaging to book a private tour.

Jacob Loo Dawang@jacobdawang· 19d

Goodbye Edmonton, see you in a week!

Jacob Loo Dawang@jacobdawang· 20d

Even if the current network doesn't support those features, because of this purchase, Toronto will not have level hoardings on any future streetcar lines, not any retrofitted stops! Imagine not having to construct one-way loops for additional cost, land and operation time!

# Waterfront East Light Rail Transit (WELRT) Alignment

This map shows the proposed alignment for the Waterfront East Light Rail Transit (WELRT) project in Toronto, divided into three segments:

**Segment 1 (Red) - Below Grade (TTC)**
- Starts at Union Station
- Runs below grade through the downtown core
- Connects to Queens Quay via tunnel portals
- Serves Queens Quay Docks Station

**Segment 2 (Blue) - Queens Quay East (WT)**
- At-grade section along Queens Quay waterfront
- Runs from Yonge Slip eastward
- Passes Parliament Slip and Villiers Island
- Connects to the Cherry Portal area

**Segment 3 (Yellow) - Cherry & Villiers (WT)**
- At-grade section on the east side
- Serves Cherry Portal and Commissioners St areas
- Includes Villiers Loop terminus
- Routes through the Cherry & Villiers district

The route connects key waterfront destinations including Union Station, Queens Quay, and the eastern waterfront development areas. The map shows the inner harbour context and indicates the transition from below-grade transit in the downtown core to at-grade waterfront alignment in the eastern sections.

Jacob Loo Dawang@jacobdawang· 20d

The TTC's initial and subsequent Fleixty streetcar orders were a huge missed opportunity to introduce modern tram capabilities to the streetcar network A forward-looking administration would have ordered double-ended cars with level boarding capabilities.

Alt Text for Reddit Post Screenshot
Screenshot of a Reddit post from r/TTC (Toronto Transit Commission) by user Rody365. The post title reads: "TIL that the TTC says there is no way to do level boarding for our streetcars and that our roads are too tight for dual point switches."
The post contains a detailed discussion about a TTC board meeting regarding the 506 streetcar, including the TTC's stated reasons for why level boarding isn't feasible (citing self-leveling system requirements and varying suspension specifications across vehicles) and the poster's counter-argument that even partial level boarding would improve accessibility and speed up boarding. The post also mentions the TTC's concerns about street width limitations for double point switches. At the bottom is a reference to a video link with a timestamp of 4:48:40. The post shows 75 upvotes and 57 comments.

Jacob Loo Dawang@jacobdawang· 25d

You've seen this on Autoroute 50 right?

Jacob Loo Dawang@jacobdawang· Jul 14

Views from Edmonton's greenfield communities. If only we had a finger plan and these weren't going to be 100% car dependent.

A row of rowhomes with a pickup parked in front

A row of rowhomes behind a surface parking lot

Single family homes with garages in front.

Jacob Loo Dawang@jacobdawang· Jul 12

Every municipal public consultation for new housing or transit priority ever.

MP ana Roberts sitting in her office with text boomer caucus overlaid.

Jacob Loo Dawang@jacobdawang· Jul 9

And ZBR continues to be the most effective land use policy ever in Edmonton when it comes to building near transit. Add in the frequent bus network and 44% of homes permitted were within 800m of LRT or 400m of a frequent bus stop.

A line graph titled "Where are homes being built relative to LRT? Cumulative distribution of homes by distance from nearest LRT stop." The y-axis shows the cumulative share of homes from 0% to 100%, and the x-axis shows the distance from the nearest LRT stop in kilometers, ranging from 0 to 8 km.

A vertical dashed line highlights the 800-meter (0.8 km) mark. Multiple colored lines represent individual years from 2009 to 2026. Most years follow a closely clustered, steady diagonal trajectory, showing that roughly 20% to 25% of homes were built within 1 km of an LRT stop, and 50% were built within 3 to 4 km. However, the lines for recent years—specifically 2024, 2025, and 2026 (shaded in lighter orange and yellow tones)—diverge significantly, showing a much steeper upward curve. In these recent years, nearly 30% to 35% of homes were built within 800 meters, and roughly 70% to 75% were built within 2 km of an LRT stop, indicating a major shift toward transit-oriented housing development. The chart footer attributes the data to Jacob Dawang and City of Edmonton Open Data.

A line graph titled "Where are homes being built relative to frequent transit? Cumulative distribution of homes by distance to nearest LRT or frequent bus stop." The y-axis shows the "Cumulative share of homes" from 0% to 100%, and the x-axis shows the "Distance from nearest LRT or frequent bus stop (km)" ranging from 0 to 8 km.

Two vertical reference lines are marked: a dotted line at 400m (bus) and a dashed line at 800m (LRT). Multiple colored lines plot individual years from 2009 to 2026.

While historical years (2009–2023) track closely together in a steady, lower curve—where roughly 10% to 25% of homes were built within 800 meters of frequent transit—the lines for 2024, 2025, and 2026 diverge sharply upward. In these recent years, approximately 30% to 35% of homes were built within the 400-meter bus threshold, and nearly 50% were built within the 800-meter LRT threshold, showing a substantial shift toward transit-adjacent housing development. The footer attributes the chart to Jacob Dawang and City of Edmonton Open Data.

A geographic map titled "Map of all H1 2026 5–8 unit building permits, LRT, and the frequent bus network." The subtitle notes: "LRT stops and 800m radius in red, frequent bus stops and 400m radius in orange."

The map displays a network of city streets and a winding river corridor. It features red circular buffers representing the 800-meter radius around LRT stops and orange linear buffers tracing the 400-meter radius around the frequent bus network. Dozens of small blue dots, representing 5–8 unit building permits, are scattered across the map. A heavy concentration of these blue dots is clustered directly within or immediately adjacent to the orange frequent transit corridors and red LRT station buffers, particularly across central, west, and south-central areas. A footer attributes the map to Jacob Dawang, City of Edmonton Open Data.

Jacob Loo Dawang@jacobdawang· Jul 9

It's also worth noting that permits for 5-8 unit rowhomes continues to increase in 2026 despite downturns or flatlining of other categories of permits across neighbourhoods.

A multi-panel line chart titled "Homes permitted by neighbourhood type and project type" tracking full-year data from 2009 to 2025, with 2026 projected from H1 data. The data is credited to Jacob Dawang, City of Edmonton Open Data.

The image is split into four panels representing neighborhood types, each plotting the number of homes permitted (y-axis, 0 to over 3,000) over time (x-axis, 2010 to 2025):

Downtown: Shows very low permitting activity across all project types, generally staying well under 1,000 homes.

Mature: Highlights a massive spike in "Fiveplex to Eightplex" permits starting around 2023, surging past 3,000 by 2026. "9+ Apartments" show highly volatile peaks and valleys, spiking around 2021 and 2024 before dropping.

Between mature and Henday: "Single detached" homes and "9+ Apartments" historically led but have been on a downward trend or highly volatile, with "9+ Apartments" peaking sharply around 2021 and 2025 before dropping.

Outside Henday: Dominated strongly by "Single detached" homes, which consistently peaked near or above 2,500 permits throughout the 2010s and 2020s. "Duplex to Fourplex" and "9+ Apartments" represent the next highest categories, with apartments showing a sharp peak around 2015 and 2024.

A legend on the right identifies seven project types by color: Single detached, Addition/Conversion, Backyard House, Duplex to Fourplex, Fiveplex to Eightplex, 9+ Row House, and 9+ Apartment.

Jacob Loo Dawang@jacobdawang· Jul 9

The zoning bylaw renewal continues to deliver its promise of saving mature neighbourhoods from managed decline. The 5-8 unit rowhome enabled by ZBR continues to be THE driver of housing supply in our mature neighbourhoods.

A faceted area chart titled "Homes permitted by neighbourhood type and project type," showing data from the full years 2009–2025, with a 2026 projection from H1 multiplied by 2.1. The y-axis shows "Homes permitted" ranging from 0 to over 8,000, and the x-axis tracks the "Year" from 2010 to 2026. The bottom caption credits "Jacob Dawang, City of Edmonton Open Data."

The chart is divided into four facets by neighborhood type:

Downtown: Shows consistently low volume, rarely exceeding a few hundred permits, mostly composed of 9+ Apartments.

Mature: Shows a steady increase over time, with a massive spike starting around 2024, peaking at over 6,000 permits in 2025. The growth and peak are driven heavily by 9+ Apartments, 9+ Row Houses, and missing middle housing types like Duplex to Fourplex and Fiveplex to Eightplex, while single-detached permits shrink to nearly zero.

Between mature and Henday: Fluctuates between 2,000 and 4,000 permits. Single-detached homes make up a notable portion historically, but decline significantly by 2026 as multi-unit project types grow.

Outside Henday: Shows the highest historical volumes, peaking near 7,000 in 2015 and over 8,000 in 2024. This area is historically dominated by a massive volume of Single detached homes (dark purple) and 9+ Apartments, though single-detached permits show a sharp drop in the 2026 projection.

A legend on the right lists the stacked project types from top to bottom: Single detached, Addition/Conversion, Backyard House, Duplex to Fourplex, Fiveplex to Eightplex, 9+ Row House, and 9+ Apartment.

Jacob Loo Dawang@jacobdawang· Jul 9

Edmonton permitted 6,536 homes in H1 2026, down 29.4% from H1 2025's 9,252. Annualized, that's ~13,726 homes for 2026, below 2025's record, but still on track for a strong year. The slowdown is almost entirely apartments. A handful of large buildings getting permitted or not swings the total.

A stacked area chart titled "Homes permitted by project type" showing historical data from 2009 to 2025, with a projection for 2026 based on first-half data. The data is credited to Jacob Dawang, using City of Edmonton Open Data.

The vertical axis measures the number of "Homes permitted" from 0 to 15,000+, and the horizontal axis tracks the "Year" from 2009 to 2026.

The chart tracks seven categories of housing project types, stacked from top to bottom:

Single detached (dark navy blue, forming the top layer)

Addition/Conversion (deep purple)

Backyard House (medium purple)

Duplex to Fourplex (magenta)

Fiveplex to Eightplex (coral pink)

9+ Row House (dark orange)

9+ Apartment (light orange/peach, forming the base layer)

Key Trends:

Total permitted homes grew steadily from under 5,000 in 2009 to a peak of over 12,500 in 2015, driven largely by single-detached housing and 9+ apartments.

Following a decline and stabilization between 2016 and 2019 (averaging around 8,500 to 10,000 homes), permits spiked dramatically to an all-time high of nearly 18,500 in 2025.

The 2025 peak shows a significant contraction in the proportion of single-detached homes relative to previous peaks, replaced by massive growth in multi-unit categories—specifically "9+ Apartment", "Fiveplex to Eightplex", and "Duplex to Fourplex".

The 2026 projection shows a downward turn from the 2025 peak, dropping back toward approximately 14,000 homes.

Jacob Loo Dawang@jacobdawang· Jul 8

Top 10 perk of living in Edmonton.

A hare cowering by the side of a sidewalk.

Jacob Loo Dawang@jacobdawang· Jun 23

New city administration report and proposal on multi-tenant homes aka lodging homes, including some stuff on short-term rentals. "There's no evidence to suggest there's an issue, but because some people made up some shit, it's regulation time" What are we even doing here? #yegcc

When short-term rental regulations were introduced in 2019, it was Administration’s position that
the general use of a short-term rental property was intended to be for lodging, similar to
long-term rentals aside from the length of stay. However, no minimum length of stay was
explicitly specified, which has had the unintended consequence of allowing short-term rental
properties to be rented on an hourly basis.
Administration does not have evidence to suggest that hourly rentals are regularly occurring in
short-term rentals. However, recognizing community concern around potential negative impacts
of such stays, Administration is proposing amendments to effectively prohibit hourly rentals by
establishing a minimum booking period of 12 hours.

Jacob Loo Dawang@jacobdawang· Jun 18

I see Danielle Smith now favours a carbon tax and rebate scheme. www.alberta.ca/release.cfm?...

Whether the priority is groceries, bills, rent or fuel, the Energy Rebate ensures flexible support. With guaranteed support for every eligible Albertan – driver or not – eligible two-adult households will receive $200 in immediate relief that can be used for any household need. Families may also benefit from additional $100 rebates with each eligible adult family member or child aged 18 or older living in the same home.

Jacob Loo Dawang@jacobdawang· May 2

I also have this animation of how sunrise times will change depending on location in Alberta.

Jacob Loo Dawang@jacobdawang· May 2

Pretty much the same story for Calgary.

Plot showing daylight hours under standard time vs daylight time

Jacob Loo Dawang@jacobdawang· May 2

For Edmonton, with daylight time, sunrise will be after 9:00 from Nov, all the way until mid-Feb. For most of the winter, it will be pitch black from the time people wake up all the way until they arrive at work or school. School dropoff will be done completely in the dark for most of the winter.

Plot showing Edmonton daylight hours on daylight time vs standard time.

Jacob Loo Dawang@jacobdawang· Apr 24

Both permission and easier financing helped make Edmonton's small scale building boom possible. Over 2024-2025, roughly 36% of new small rowhome projects were backed by MLI Select financing. This is comparable to the 39% for Calgary that @marklocki.bsky.social found.

Stacked bar chart showing small infill (5-8 unit) mortgage loan insurance select approvals in Edmonton from 2022 to 2025, categorized by affordability level. In 2022, approximately 15 loans were approved, mostly at Level 3 affordability. In 2023, this increased to about 95 loans, still predominantly Level 3 with a small Level 2 portion. In January 2024, Edmonton's zoning bylaw renewal (ZBR) came into force, marked by a dashed line. Following ZBR implementation, 2024 saw a sharp increase to approximately 175 loans approved, with a more diverse affordability mix: primarily Level 3, a larger Level 2 segment, and a notable Level 1 segment. In 2025, approvals decreased to about 105 loans, with Level 3 dominating and Level 2 representing a smaller share. The chart illustrates the impact of zoning policy changes on small infill development financing.

Jacob Loo Dawang@jacobdawang· Apr 24

correct

Jacob Loo Dawang@jacobdawang· Apr 16

We're continuing to build a record proportion of homes near transit. 38% of homes permitted in Q1 2026 were within 800m of an LRT stop, up from 30% for all of 2025, which was already a record. This will pay dividends for years to come, especially as transit expansion enables more trips car-free.