Chilliwack city staff have been instructed to meet with the developer of a rezoning application to ask for further changes. (Image Credit: Pattison Media)

By Fraser Valley Today staff

City Council

Chilliwack councillors want more changes before accepting a controversial rezoning proposal

Mar 18, 2026 | 4:00 AM

CHILLIWACK — A proposed townhouse development on Keith Wilson Road was sent back to staff Tuesday after several Chilliwack city councillors said they were not comfortable moving forward amid strong neighbourhood opposition. The opposition included a petition with more than 200 signatures expressing concerns.

Councillors voted to refer the rezoning application for 44877 Keith Wilson Road back to staff to continue working with the developer on reducing the height of the proposed buildings before bringing the plan forward again.

The application sought to rezone the property from an urban residential zone to a low-density multi-unit residential zone to allow a six-unit townhouse development. The proposal would permit a building height of 9.3 metres, down from the original 10 metre design but still higher than the 8.5 metre limit council had previously suggested in December.

Several councillors said they were struck by the unusually large amount of correspondence from residents opposed to the project.

Councillor Chris Kloot said he has rarely seen that level of feedback and remained concerned about the height and overall fit within the neighbourhood. “I would have liked to have seen options explored where the basement was inground, or where the reduction of the height was still reduced further,” Kloot said, adding he was not comfortable supporting the proposal in its current form.

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Councillor Jeff Shields was one of several councillors who complained that the lack of a public hearing under current provincial housing rules limits opportunities for residents to speak directly to council. “We suddenly lose residents in Chilliwack with that. Their voice is now gone. It’s unfortunate because there’s a lot of feedback from the neighbourhood, a lot of concerns.”

City planning staff told council the developer could still pursue small-scale multi-unit housing under the current zoning, potentially allowing even more multiple units on the property without rezoning and with the 10 metre design back in place.

Councillor Harv Westeringh said that the risky scenario made the current proposal more acceptable to him. “Potentially, you have eight units there, all of them 10 metres high, with no council input.”

When it came time to vote, a majority of councillors supported going back to the applicant to ask for another revision of the design. And they sent the bylaw amendment back to staff for further work with the developer.