The Official Plan is an opportunity to set a long-term direction for a community. It looks at its need for growth, the land it has available to do so, and how it will thus meet its targets for expansion. It allows the community to understand how to plan, and allocate, for the needs of the population for the next few decades.
But the plan has the potential to do so much more. The plan can provide an opportunity to develop smart growth, growth aligned with the way a community wants to be shaped. It’s the chance to create a city that provides for its citizens, and keeps the future in mind.
What are the Demands for Growth?
One of the biggest challenges facing many cities is the demand for population growth, and doing so within the confines of the land within its boundaries. Sprawling to your borders in a few decades hampers longer-term growth, and can jeopardize the community’s future ability to attract economic opportunities.
But some larger cities, cities with little room for physical growth, are being told to find room for tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands of new residents. This places a burden on the city to transition to second-generation infill and intensification, and increase the capacity of existing infrastructure already built withing its borders.
Presenting this challenge to the public, and getting their feedback on how they would like to see the growth happens, is vital. Stakeholder engagement provides the council with input on the concerns people have about how growth will impact their ability to work, live and play in the community. These concerns need to be taken into account during the planning process.
Working Within Existing Legislation
Fitting a plan for community growth and economic prosperity can be difficult when working within the confines of legislation passed down from senior government entities. Provincial policies and legislation can dictate intensification targets, environmental regulations, planning and development processes, and many more factors that can impact community plan development. This can then be further complicated if there is a regional body included in the process, which can then dictate more policies and regulations affiliated with the community plan.
When speaking to stakeholder groups, at all levels, it’s important that these factors are laid out clearly for all parties. Understanding the restrictions being faced is the starting point for the creative solutions needed to create a thriving community that factors in the new demands for population and economic growth.
In the case of one of our clients, a large Canadian city, the growth project is adding almost 50% in additional residents in the next 30 years. This has to be done despite other large communities being situated at two of its four borders. So, while there may be room for greenfield growth now in some directions, it is vital that second-generation infill is incorporated into the current official plan.
Densification and the 15-Minute Neighbourhood
Recognizing the restrictions in developing the official plan and the ability to meet growth targets precipitates the need to look at the plan a little differently. How do you create density without throwing up towers in every neighbourhood? How do you ensure the city is Future Ready, prepared for people movement and resilience demands that come with the future growth?
The first action is to link mobility with growth. As corridors become more defined, providing room in development for rapid transit and active transportation corridors that link people to the different parts of the city without having to rely upon a personal vehicle is imperative. Access to mobility of all kinds is a vital component of community planning, and integrated mobility networks help make this happen as you reimagine your corridors.
The second is to look at the approach to height. Classifying building heights will direct intensification in different parts of the city, keeping neighbourhood residential units at lower heights while putting higher density developments in city centres and along rapid transit corridors.
Reimagine the neighbourhood from an amenity and walkability perspective. What resources should be within a five-minute walk? A 15-minute walk? This can help direct the placement of different types of amenities in the community planning process, giving people the ability to access opportunities to work and play within the 15-minute neighbourhood.
Next Steps
The establishment of the official plan contains guidance for planning activities to meet community, regional, and provincial expectations for residential and economic growth. By re-imagining the official plan by integrating considerations for mobility and height, and how neighbourhoods can access amenities, you can create a vibrant city that gives people equitable access to the rest of the community.
To learn more about how WSP can help you re-imagine your official community plan, visit our Planning Hub:
