In 2005, 10 of the city’s Local Areas were reviewed for potential Community Plan updates. At the time—and with the assistance of a number of community organizations—staff set out a process to determine the criteria used in assessing the need for a Community Plan in each of these Areas.

Over 100 representatives from these nine communities were invited to participate in workshops to assist staff to develop the criteria and indicators that would help rank these communities in order of planning need. Based on this work, Mount Pleasant was recommended as the first area for planning.

2010 - Review of Criteria Indicators

In Fall 2010, City staff worked with community representatives to review and update the criteria and indicators that were developed in 2005. Five communities remained under consideration to receive one of the next Community Plans in this round: Fairview, Grandview-Woodland, Kitsilano, Marpole and the West End. Three areas (Downtown, Oakridge and Southlands) are currently not being considered for updated Community Plans in this round – either because they’ve received significant planning attention through other processes (e.g., Cambie Corridor, Central Area planning work), or because provincial policy constrains the extent of neighbourhood planning that is possible (e.g., much of Southlands is part of the Agricultural Land Reserve).

October 2010 - Community Workshop Materials

Next Community Plans Background and Final Results (PDF, 177KB)
Workshop Notes and Followup (PDF, 108KB)
October 3, 2010 Workshop: Invitation Letter (PDF, 43KB)
October 3, 2010 Presentation: Next Community Plans Selection Process (PDF, 358KB)

November 2010 - Council Motion - Resourcing and Review of New Plans

In November 2010, City Council passed a motion (PDF, 16KB) requesting that City staff to report back on the implications of doing up to three community plans at once. The motion also provided an opportunity to look at the community planning process itself and consider areas where it could be improved.

In responding to the Council motion, some of the key challenges being considered are:

How can we better balance City-wide policy (not to mention global and regional issues) with neighbourhood perspectives?
Are there ways to improve public engagement throughout the process?
Can we better manage development pressures and address demand for local amenities?
Are there ways to do community planning more efficiently?

May 2011 - Stakeholder Workshop Preliminary Materials

In May 2011, Community Planning staff held a stakeholder workshop with representatives of neighbourhood organizations, city-wide organizations, non-profit agencies and service providers, regional authorities (TransLink, Vancouver Coastal Health), and representatives of the City’s Advisory Committees.

Attendees at this stakeholder workshop provided input on the principles guiding community planning work and also tackled the four challenges outlined above. A number of materials were produced for this workshop, and you can also read the workshop notes here.

Workshop Agenda (PDF, 32KB)
Community Planning 101 Backgrounder (PDF, 218KB)
Vancouver’s Next Community Plans – Renewing Our Approach (Presentation) (PDF, 4.80MB)
Community Planning Discussion Guide (used in small group dialogues) (PDF, 308KB)
List of Participating Organizations (PDF, 20KB)

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July 2011 – Next Community Plans Open House

The purpose of this Open House was to report out findings of what we heard from the May 7th Workshop and other research. Two key documents were prepared for this event: (1) an Ideas for Action summary that consolidated and synthesized the various input that the City received with respect to enhancing the community plan process; and, (2) a summary of Case Study and Focus Group Research pertaining to the community plan process.

View the materials produced for the July 2011 Open House

July 2011 – Council Report on Enhancing Community Plans

City Council received a staff report and presentation that responded to the November 2010 motion (see above). The report detailed the work to date on enhancing the Community Plan process and outlined a series of proposed improvements. The report also outlined the resource considerations associated with doing three community plans.

Staff report – Vancouver’s Next Community Plans (PDF, 301KB)
Staff presentation – Vancouver’s Next Community Plans (PDF, 1.15MB)
Video clip of the presentation and discussion

City Council passed a motion (PDF, 54KB) endorsing the approach to community planning outlined in the staff report, and directed staff to begin planning work in Marpole, West End and Grandview-Woodland. Council also approved a rezoning policy (contained in the appendix of the staff report) for the three neighbourhoods that will remain in place throughout the duration of the planning process. The policy limits the types of rezoning applications that can be made while work on the plan is underway.

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Questions or Comments? E-mail: cityplan@vancouver.ca