Draft of OCP ready.
A partial first draft of the Town of Osoyoos' Official Community Plan (OCP) is now available for public review.
The long-awaited OCP was revealed at an open house on Tuesday, July 19 at the Sonora Centre from 2 to 7 p.m.
The 45-page draft document outlined the vision, goals and issues for Osoyoos over the next 20 years, as determined by the OCP Committee.
This initial draft also covers both the town and regional growth strategies and agricultural objectives.
Town of Osoyoos Town Planner Alain Cunningham is the OCP Committee's facilitator and is responsible for the town's Development Services Department.
We cover long-range planning, such as the OCP. That has been my highest priority since I came on board about a year ago, Cunningham said.
We are also responsible for writing bylaws, dealing with all applications for zoning amendments and building permits.rnHe added that in the first quarter of 2005, the Town of Osoyoos has seen $35 million dollars worth of building permits.
Cunningham said the goal is to have the final draft of the OCP in place by the end of the year. He added that the public will have opportunities to make comments on the draft both at open houses and public hearings. The current OCP has been in place since 1996, and Cunningham noted there have been immense changes in the community since that time.
Particularly in the last two to three years, we have seen a lot of rapid growth which was not anticipated when the OCP was prepared, he admitted.
And I think the public, too, are becoming more aware and involved in the planning for the town than they were previously.rnCunningham agreed the most relevant community concerns include the pace of development, growth issues, infrastructure, the ALR and the environment.
In part one of the OCP we put a lot of effort into defining what our growth management strategy and programs should be in the next 20 years.
This is in response to concerns about how fast we're growing. People are asking questions about what is going to happen in the future, how we're going to accommodate this kind of growth in a sustainable manner.rnCunningham pointed to the town's growth accommodation policies in chapter four of the OCP, noting that urban growth will be accommodated according to the following priorities:rn1) accommodate as much growth as possible in existing urban areas by appropriate infill, redevelopment and densification;rn2) direct appropriate growth to suitable hillside areas outside the ALR wherever feasible;rn3) consider locating proven growth needs on current ALR lands only if there are no other viable options and to the minimum extent possible.
Cunningham also said that the OCP is open-ended with respect to the proposed boundary extensions, which are not yet determined.
All we're looking at right now is the provision of a service buffer strip that will go around parts of the lake and that would be serviced, over time, with sewers. We've identified some potential development areas, but the OCP Committee has clearly stated anything that is done beyond the buffer zone is subject to consultative planning. The vision that the OCP Committee has recommended to council is to excel as a 'smart growth community' which meets current and future population needs in a socially, economically and environmentally sustainable manner.rnFurther chapters that will be dealt with in the OCP include information on residential, commercial, industrial institutional and parks, infrastructure and environmental policies.
