BYLAW NO. 1862 - Langford Official Community Plan Bylaw, Amendment No. 33 (Regional Context Statement)

Schedule A

13.0 Regional and Inter-jurisdictional Cooperation

Langford’s imperative for this OCP is to harness development forces to contribute to sustainable and positive change.

As with many communities, the City of Langford exists as part of a community of communities. Most directly, this wider community is the fourteen municipalities and electoral areas that constitute the Capital Regional District (CRD) and which encompass the southern end of Vancouver Island. The City of Langford is also inextricably linked with the Province of British Columbia, Canada as a nation and the world, not only through a myriad of agreements and treaties, but also through our shared humanity and common objective of sustaining life on this fragile planet.

The City’s long-term prosperity is largely influenced by the relationships it maintains with other governments and jurisdictions. The City has a record of successful collaborations with other organizations, municipalities, first nations and senior levels of government, and intends to enhance existing relationships and forge new ones as required.

→ Inter-Municipal Cooperation

Objective 13.1

Develop strategies for the efficient co-delivery of services and programs.

Policy 13.1.1
As may be practical, seek opportunities to efficiently deliver programs and services with neighbouring municipalities. Specific areas may include, but are not limited to: i. Park acquisition and development;
ii. Recreation programming;
iii. Servicing (e.g. efficient, connected sewers, roads, energy systems or others);
iv. Ongoing community planning;
v. Greenhouse gas emissions reduction strategies, climate protection and/or climate adaptation;
vi. Sharing and/or providing administrative support services;
vii. Environmental initiatives such as creek and/or watershed enhancement;
viii. Local economic development initiatives;

Objective 13.2

Implement regional-scale systems and programs.

Policy 13.2.1
The City recognizes the need for inter-municipal planning in areas such as transportation routes, settlement patterns and economic development. Inter-municipal co-operation and regional liaison on transportation issues such as public transit, road upgrades and the rapid-bus transit link between major centres and the metropolitan core is vital to the design and planning process and should be retained on an ongoing basis.

Policy 13.2.2
Work with adjacent municipalities and other agencies to plan and develop a network of greenspace, trails and sidewalk connections between the urban areas of Colwood & Langford. This may include parks, natural areas, environmentally sensitive areas, trails as well as protected private open spaces and agricultural lands that have value as undeveloped open spaces.

→ Inter-Agency Cooperation

Objective 13.3

Broaden Involvement or Service Agencies in Community Planning.

Policy 13.3.1
Include other governments and/or non-governmental organizations in community development initiatives.

→ Regional Context Statement

“The purpose of the Regional Growth Strategy is to help realize the region’s vision, through the commitment of the Capital Regional District, the Juan de Fuca Electoral Area and local municipalities to guide growth and change toward common objectives.

Objectives:

• Significantly reduce community-based greenhouse gas emissions;
• Keep urban settlement compact;
• Protect the integrity of rural communities;
• Protect, conserve and manage ecosystem health;
• Deliver services consistent with RGS objectives;
• Create safe and complete communities;
• Improve housing affordability;
• Increase transportation choice;
• Strengthen the regional economy; and,
• Foster a resilient food and agriculture system.” (CRD Regional Growth Strategy, 2018)

The City of Langford was incorporated in 1992 and has been experiencing rapid growth and development since this time. This growth trajectory, while remarkable, is consistent with the CRD’s Regional Growth Strategy (RGS) and Langford’s municipal boundary has always been coincident with the Regional Urban Containment and Servicing Policy Area of the former RGS and the Urban Containment and Supply Area of the current RGS.

The Capital Regional District adopted its first regional growth strategy in 2003 and the City’s first Regional Context Statement formed part of this Official Community Plan when this plan was written and adopted.

The current RGS was approved by the Board for the Capital Region in March 2018. A regional context statement identifies and defines the policy links that exist between an Official Community Plan and a Regional Growth Strategy as local planning and land use policies are expected to link with and work towards the goals and objectives established in the RGS.

Langford’s Growth Management and Land Use Strategy (Map 2 of this OCP) is consistent with the Growth Management Concept Plan (Map 3A of the RGS) and the Settlement Concept – Detail (map 3B of the RGS). Within these three maps, one will find the hierarchy of settlement patterns with explain the place which Langford has at the heart of the West Shore and how the growth node centered on the City’s City Centre designation is now and is expected to remain as a nucleus for development in the West Shore.

Population, Dwelling and Employment Projections

Population Change 2018-2038

Source: 2018 CRD Regional Growth Strategy

The population in the Capital Regional District (CRD) is anticipated to grow from 392,100 (2018 estimate) to 478,500 in 2038. As a key growth area in the region, the RGS anticipates that the City of Langford will accommodate 27,500 additional people in approximately 8,700 new dwellings in the same period. This translates to a population of over 65,800 by 2038.

In 2008, the Official Community Plan stated that some 22,000 new units, or 200% of long-term housing forecasts, were in various stages of approval (rezoned, development permits) or planning (OCP) and that the capacity for new housing still remained in abundance throughout the community. Since that time, growth and development have whittled away at this supply of zoned and developable land, as well as the capacity to absorb new growth. Within a few years, the City will likely reach the geographical extent of its growth and further growth will be then concentrated, as it has for the past decade, on in-fill or replacement development.

A continued strong demand for traditional detached housing, proximity to new schools, and the availability of nearby parks and open spaces, will continue to draw new residents to Langford and the West Shore. It is possible, therefore, that population growth will exceed these projections.

The policy directions contained within this Official Community Plan align with the objectives of the RGS in the following specific ways:

Managing and Balancing Growth

13.4.1 Keep Urban Settlement Compact

The City of Langford’s municipal boundary is coincident with the Urban Containment Boundary designated on Map 3a (Growth Management Concept Plan) of the RGS.

The Growth Management & Land Use Strategy Map of this OCP designates areas where growth is intended, controlled, or limited so as to ensure a compact urban settlement. Intended growth areas include a range of centres as land use designations (City Centre, Village Centres & Neighbourhood Centres). Centres are defined by the 5- or 10-minute walkshed that will accommodate a wide range of uses, including residential, commercial, industrial, institutional and park/open space. Other intended growth areas include Mixed-use Employment Centres, where creative infill or redevelopment of housing is encouraged and Business or Light Industrial Centres where business uses are encouraged. The City Centre and the Mixed-use Employment Centre that includes Westshore Town Centre constitute a ‘sub-regional node” in the RGS Map 3b (Settlement Concept - Detail) in Langford. Other identified nodes include Westhills and Olympic View. The RGS does not preclude the further development of service nodes in Langford.

Section 3.0 (Our Sustainable City) of this OCP includes detailed policies for each land use designation that focuses on supporting a nodal pattern of development, transit supportive development and infill development.

Langford will assist the CRD in meeting the 2038 target in the RGS, with respect to managing and balancing growth, as all new development in Langford will be within the Urban Containment Policy Area.

13.4.2 Protect the Integrity of Rural Communities

Council will consider development in rural parts of the City if it is in the community interest subject to detailed policies that take into account local values, rural and agricultural viability and the need for housing and parkland when making decisions. Rural/Rural policies of the RGS do not apply to the City of Langford as the City is entirely within the Urban Containment Boundary identified on Map 3a of the RGS.

Areas in the City with the designation of Capital Green Lands Policy Area are park and recreation space.

Areas in the City with the designation of Renewable Resource Lands are within the Provincial Agriculture Land Reserve.

Section 4.0 (Our Natural Setting, Parks & Open Spaces) of this OCP seeks to reinforce and enhance the recreational and environmental value of treed areas, lakes, streams and open space systems, which is consistent with Policy 1.2 of the RGS.

The policies of this OCP with respect to patterns of compact urban settlement within the Urban Containment Boundary should alleviate the pressure to develop areas designated rural/rural residential in the RGS that occur within other municipalities within the region.

Environment and Infrastructure

13.4.3 Protect, Conserve and Manage Ecosystem Health

The City’s environmental development permit guidelines are in place to protect environmental features on public and private property, including wetlands, watercourses, lakes, sensitive plant communities, steep sloping terrain and natural heritage features.

The City recognizes the Regional Trail network and all regionally managed parks as having regional significance. City Centre Park, Centennial Park and Veterans Memorial Park should also be considered regionally significant.

Langford will assist the CRD in meeting the 2038 target in the RGS, with respect to a Regional Trail Network by acquiring, where possible, key properties for this initiative.

13.4.4 Manage Regional Infrastructure Services Sustainably

The City recognizes the value of the RGS goals of cooperative initiatives in the areas of regional air quality, energy efficiency, waste management and reduction, and watershed management.

Future development without sanitary sewer is discouraged, and the City seeks to promote settlement patterns which are able to use existing infrastructure or are cost-effective and efficient to serve.

The City has adopted a Storm Water Management Plan which takes into account development areas as proposed in the Plan, population projections, stream capacity and receiving water quality.

There is a recycling facility in the City, assisting in the reduction of solid waste disposal from the City.

There is a septage processing plant in the City serving the whole region and southern Vancouver Island.

Policies in Section 12 (Our Community Infrastructure) of this OCP align with the policies in Sec. 2.2 of the RGS.

Housing and Community

13.4.5 Create Safe and Complete Communities

The City’s emphasis on the creation of compact, walkable and mixed-use centres which provide convenient vehicular, transit and cycle / pedestrian access (Section 2.0, 5.0 & 7.0 of this OCP) is consistent with Policy 3 of the RGS.

The area identified as a Sub-regional Node on Map 3a of the RGS is the area of the City that has been developed as the pedestrian-oriented town centre, an auto-oriented commercial area and a business park/industrial area.

Going forward, maintaining a pedestrian focus will be a priority (Section 5.0 – Our Built Environment) and mixed-use infill in areas that are currently predominantly auto-oriented commercial will be encouraged. A mix of housing will be integral to the City Centre core area and is included in the pedestrian-oriented town centre in the form of apartments, condominiums and ground-oriented multi-family developments. Mixed use developments containing commercial and residential uses in one building/development are encouraged in the City Centre.

13.4.6 Improve housing affordability

Policies in Section 7.0 (Our Housing) of this OCP support the development of a range of housing choices along the housing continuum to accommodate the needs of all incomes and ages in all parts of the community, including affordable housing.

In addition to the types of homes available, secondary suites will be permitted in all parts of the community thus increasing the stock of affordable housing options in the City.

Options for the location of secondary suites, including within the primary dwelling, within a single-storey backyard garden suite or within a two-storey carriage suite above a detached garage, will provide flexible choices for homeowners wishing to establish a mortgage helper or accommodate inter-generational living on one property, as well as aging in place.

Langford’s polices align with the CRD’s 2038 targets in the RGS and will work towards an overall increase in the supply of affordable housing.

Transportation

13.4.7 Increase transportation choice

The City will endeavor to reduce outbound commuting by encouraging an increased supply of housing and work opportunities in identified nodes, allowing people to live, work, and play locally.

The OCP, particularly Section 8 (Our Multi-Modal Transportation System), identifies a rich multi-modal transportation network that will guide choices about street design that is integrated with regional transportation systems. The multi-modal network includes infrastructure for public transit, accommodating a bus rapid transit connection to downtown Victoria, planning long term for rail-based commuter rail service along the E & N Rail corridor, as well as encouraging the creation of pedestrian and bicycle linkages throughout the community.

This network will link centres, extend into surrounding neighbourhoods and connect to and through the E&N rail corridor and the Galloping Goose Regional Trail. Centres are based on 5- or 10-minute walksheds (400 & 800m) as a means to focus uses and the intensity of development in such a way that it encourages greater walkability.

A long-term plan for a more finely-grained City Centre road network is also indicated in Section 8.0 of this OCP.

Improvements in pedestrian and cycling infrastructure as well as more intensive infill development in Langford’s core will help the CRD meet the 2038 target in the RGS with respect to the percentage of trips being made by walking, cycling or transit.

Economic Development

13.4.8 Realize the Region’s Economic Potential

The RGS goal of strengthening the regional economy is supported by Section 10 (Our Local Economy and Jobs) of this OCP. The OCP is supportive of development which provides for a variety of economic uses that add to the interesting and dynamic fabric of the community. A diverse range of economic advancement opportunities are present in the City, from home-based businesses to large scale retail, wholesale commercial and business park/industrial areas.

An important objective of this OCP is to provide suitable land areas for commercial and business activities to provide local job opportunities and strengthen the City’s tax base. This Section contains further Policies regarding establishing Langford and the West Shore as a regional recreation and sport tourism destination.

Policies in Langford’s OCP will help meet the 2038 RGS target of a 0.36 jobs/population ratio in the West Shore.

Food Systems

13.4.9 Foster a Resilient Food and Agriculture System

Policies in Sec. 11 of this OCP (Our Food System) align with the policies and objectives of the RGS, and by encouraging the active farming of agricultural lands Langford will help the CRD meet the 2038 targets with respect to food systems.

Climate Action

13.4.10 Significantly Reduce Community Based Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Policies in Sec. 2 of this OCP (Our Sustainability Goals) align with the policies and objectives of the RGS.

Section 3.0 (Our Sustainable City) of this OCP includes detailed policies for each land use designation that focuses on supporting a nodal pattern of development, transit supportive development and infill development.

Langford will continue to work closely with its regional partners in an effort to meet the 2038 targets within the RGS”