Immediately after its month-long August break, District council will be considering third reading on its controversial zoning bylaw overhaul.
On Sept. 1, council will be discussing the matter, and should it pass third reading, it will almost certainly become a reality. Bylaws that pass third reading rarely fail at adoption.
These measures attracted the ire of many locals, as evidenced by a public hearing on July 28 that saw about 20 people speak well into the night. Virtually no one expressed any support for the proposed bylaws at the time.
Council had an opportunity to pass third reading at that meeting, but after hearing the opinions presented by the public, chose to defer the matter until after their annual August break.
Tomorrow, they will be revisiting the matter.
Several zoning changes are on the table, with bylaws broken up into several sections. Some sections, like Section D and F will be skipped due to administrative issues. They will be discussed in the near future.
Section A is a measure that would change zoning for single-family houses in Valleycliffe and the Garibaldi Highlands. In its place, zoning for lowrise apartments would be installed.
Section B would swap zoning for houses in some areas to zoning for parks and resource operations in some unsurveyed Crown and private lands in Valleycliffe.
Section C would rezone Aspen East into a ‘neighbourhood node’ that would have residential spaces as well as locations for business. The idea is to create an area where residents can live and find most of their needs.
Section E would create an ecotourism zone by Highway 99.
Section G would rezone commercial areas around Save-On-Foods and Nesters to preserve the areas for grocery stores.
Section H would change residences around the Quest University area.
Section I would create a tourism-centred zone by the business park.
These changes have been outlined in greater detail here.
These changes have been outlined in greater detail here.
