Your plan for your city

ALL that a municipal government does, from animal services to water meters and everything local in between, is guided by an official plan.
Thunder Bay’s official plan is 10 years old and a lot has changed in the meantime. There have been revisions to provincial legislation, a new city zoning bylaw and strategic plan and, as a Planning department report to council tonight gently puts it, “some significant changes in our economy.”
The city will spend the next year conducting a comprehensive review of the plan to make it consistent with provincial policy and reflect the community’s and council’s vision for the city’s future.
Last week’s official plan open house was the first step in the second stage of a four-part process to settle on that vision.
That 100 or so people turned out is a good sign that the goal of stressing public involvement is being met.
Too often, citizens only get involved with city government to react to policy decisions. Helping to shape those policies is exactly what the official plan review is about.
The official plan controls everything the city does.
It provides direction for future land use, guides public and private decisions and considers relevant social, economic and environmental matters.
It serves as a road map for all of council’s decisions on land use, expenditures for roads, water and sewer services, parks and other public facilities.
Other development tools like the zoning bylaw and subdivision and site plan control agreements must conform to the policies of the official plan.
“A good official plan helps to encourage a healthy local economy and a community that offers a wide range of opportunities for its citizens,” the report says.
Among its broad intents, the review must ensure the official plan comes into line with Ontario’s new (2005) Provincial Policy Statement, last year’s Northern Growth Plan, changes to the Planning Act and acts as diverse as the Endangered Species Act, Environmental Protection Act, Green Energy Act and the Ontarians with Disabilities Act.
The plan must also mesh with Thunder Bay’s 2011-2014 Strategic Plan. “Active transportation, public engagement, housing, food security, revitalization, urban design, and proactive development are all elements that bind the Strategic Plan and Official Plan together,” the Planning report notes.
The plan must also be mindful of numerous initiatives that have been undertaken over the last 10 years that impact land use planning policy.
The Earthwise Community Environmental Action Plan, Culture Plan, Active Transportation Plan, Transit Master Plan, Transportation Demand Management Plan, Waterfront Master Plan, Drug Strategy, Crime Prevention Strategy, Housing Strategy, Aboriginal Strategy, and Source Water Protection Plan are examples of documents that contain principles, goals and objectives that can have impacts on the nature of development that occurs in the city.
Policy issues taken by council must be incorporated into the plan. They include the role of the downtowns with respect to office and retail development, limiting development outside of the urban area and controlling urban sprawl while exploring opportunities for new residential growth areas, protecting the natural environment and the city’s natural heritage features and identifying more effective ways of engaging the public in the planning process.
Considerable work has been done already, “however, a significant amount of work remains,” the report says.
Public involvement is crucial to reflecting public priorities in the city’s official plan. More input “will be actively sought . . . and efforts will be made to engage youth.”
Please consider offering your thoughts.