Saanich will reconvene a public hearing Tuesday night to decide if its first new Official Community Plan in 16 years is ready for prime time.
Following a marathon public hearing this past week when the public were given time to weigh in on the merits of the plan, council will spend May 7 deliberating the contents of a plan that is designed to lay a foundation for growth in the district.
The public input this past week offered a broad range of opinions on the document, with some supporters appreciating the need for change, some suggesting the document was neither aggressive nor ambitious enough in tackling the need for more housing, while others raised concerns about the pace and nature of change.
Mayor Dean Murdock said much of the concern that was raised and feedback given has been heard over the past two years of public engagement.
“I think that the OCP represents change, and of course that’s going to create some uncertainty and probably fear for some folks about what that will mean in their neighbourhood,” he said. “A lot of very common themes that emerged talked about protecting the natural environment, retaining the character of neighbourhoods and preserving what we love about Saanich, and I think those are shared aspirations.”
One of the biggest sticking points raised during the public session was what happens to local area plans.
The draft OCP includes all of the local area plans and adopts them as policy, rather than forming part of the bylaw. The idea is to have the updated OCP take precedence, while still being informed by the local area plans.
While Saanich staff and council maintain the change will have a negligible effect, many residents suggested the plans were being discarded and their neighbourhoods would be vulnerable to massive change.
Murdock doesn’t see it that way, and insists district staff will still consider the guidelines in the local area plans when considering new development applications.
But the change means the OCP will be the dominant document and could override the neighbourhood plan.
https://www.timescol...ty-plan-8699701
Edited by Victoria Watcher, 06 May 2024 - 05:15 AM.