Negotiated Value: Community Amenity Contributions and Value Capture in the City of Vancouver

The case study reviews the Community Amenity Contribution (CAC) policy in Vancouver, BC. CACs are either fixed-rate or negotiated charges levied on new development for higher-value development rights through rezoning. The city calculates how much value is created through the public action and recovers between 70 and 80 percent of that increase (the “land lift”) on behalf of the public. CACs arose in the 1990s as Vancouver experienced strong growth and redeveloped several downtown brownfield sites. Since then, the model has become a key land value capture tool—while also catalyzing public debates about the politics of density.