North Park’s Updated Local Area Plan
The City of Victoria has been engaging with the community on an updated Local Area Plan (LAP), also known as the Villages and Corridors Plan for North Park, Fernwood, and Hillside-Quadra, since early 2020. Following the Public Hearing on July 14th, 2022, Council approved the new neighbourhood plans and the associated amendments to the City’s Official Community Plan (OCP).
Now that these plans are finalized, they will help inform updates to zoning bylaws and the OCP. The purpose of a neighbourhood plan is to guide growth for more sustainable and inclusive communities over the next 10 to 20 years. North Park’s last LAP was completed in 1996!
How We Got Here
Community engagement for the update of these three neighbourhood plans began in 2020. After two phases of engagement, the draft plans and design guidelines were shared with the community in October 2021 for feedback. Revisions to these draft plans were made based on public input received in the third phase of engagement before being brought forward for Council’s consideration.
Future Directions for North Park
Based on the engagement from the LAP process, the key projected needs for the future of North Park were the desire for more diverse housing options as the community needs change. This housing shift includes different sizes and types of homes and opportunities to rent or own along major transit routes and on the exterior streets.
The LAP also focused on protecting and enhancing existing parks in the community, especially in multi-generational gathering spaces. North Park residents desperately desire more access to green spaces and indoor community facilities for various activities and desires.
While each neighbourhood in North Park has distinct traits and individual priorities, the community desires the enhancement of the 15-minute neighbourhood. This means a broader range of housing options (as stated above), walkable urban villages with local businesses, and public park spaces. There is also the desire for planning for the support of equitable, diverse, and inclusive communities.
So, what does this exactly mean for North Park? This updated LAP will encapsulate the future visions for the area and provide development direction that residents, landowners, builders/developers, City Planners, and Councillors can commonly refer to as new development ideas are proposed within the neighbourhood.
Final LAP Plan Documents
- The final version of North Parks LAP can be reviewed here.
- Check out the eight-page neighbourhood plan summary for a quick read on the LAP in North Park here.
- The proposed General Urban Design Guidelines.
- See all of the details on the Engage Victoria Website here.