A11
ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT
Date: March 10, 1997
Dept. File No. AMcA
C.C. File: 131-1
TO: Vancouver City Council
FROM: Director of City Plans in consultatin with the Corporate
Management Team
SUBJECT: Electoral Area "A" Official Community Plan (UBC) and
Governance Study
RECOMMENDATION
A. THAT Council request UBC and the GVRD forward information to
be considered at fourth reading of the OCP to the City for
review prior to action on the OCP by the GVRD Board.
B. THAT Council select a City of Vancouver representative to the
Electoral Area A Governance Study Restructure Committee.
C. THAT City staff do an analysis of the costs and revenues
associated with Option 2.4.3, Inclusion of all or part of
Electoral Area A in the City of Vancouver, and report the
results to Council by October 1997 for consideration by the
Restructure Committee.
COUNCIL POLICY
On September 26 and October 10, 1996, Council advised the GVRD of
concerns with the Draft Official Community Plan (OCP) for Electoral Area
A and recommended that enactment of the OCP be withheld until a new
governance system is in place. Concerns focused on the potential
offsite impacts (traffic, service demands) of new development on
adjacent Vancouver neighbourhoods.
On March 14,1996, Council supported a study of governance options for
Electoral Area A including the legal, financial, and technical
implications of existing and proposed new development.
On January 31, 1995, Council agreed to continue the City's policy of not
pursuing amalgamation with the University Endowment Lands. However, if
the Province and/or UEL residents request amalgamation, the City
welcomes the inclusion of the UEL within its boundaries provided the
City is compensated for any costs incurred.
PURPOSE
This report provides an update on the Electoral Area "A" OCP process and
advises Council about a proposed governance study.
OCP BACKGROUND AND UPDATE
Electoral Area "A" includes the University Endowment Lands (UEL),
Pacific Spirit Regional Park, the University of British Columbia campus,
and associated university lands. To respond to proposals by UBC to
develop additional housing, the GVRD is coordinating the development of
an Official Community Plan for the University lands.
On November 1, 1996, the GVRD Board gave third reading to a draft OCP.
However, the Board proposed changes to the draft OCP to respond to
issues raised by the City and other speakers at the Public Hearing. The
changes included provisions for:
- 50% of new housing to serve UBC related households;
- reducing single occupant vehicle travel by 20%; and
- increasing open space and/or access to community facilities.
UBC was asked to provide further information on approaches to achieve
these housing, transportation, social and community service objectives.
This new information will be considered at the May 1997 GVRD Board
meeting.
To respond to these issues, UBC has hired consultants and established
three committees of persons knowledgable on the issues of housing,
transportation, and community services. They are assisting the
University to develop a response to the GVRD. City staff from
Engineering, Parks and Recreation, Housing Centre, and Planning are on
the committees.
The work is underway. UBC is preparing to submit a response to the GVRD
Board for the May meeting. City staff note that Council may wish to be
briefed on whether the response meets the concerns raised by the City
during the OCP review. Consequently, it is requested that the
submission be available in sufficient time for it to be reviewed and
reported to Council.
ELECTORAL AREA A GOVERNANCE STUDY
In the course of developing the OCP, questions were asked about how the
Plan will be administered. Typically an elected Council administers an
OCP. The UBC situation is unusual in that:
- areas included in the OCP are owned by one landowner, the
university;
- the decision-making body for the university is an appointed body,
the UBC Board of Governors; and
- the landowner could initiate and approve development.
Concerns that the current governance arrangements may not be appropriate
to serve the needs of the area resulted in the GVRD Board asking the
Minister of Municipal Affairs to do a governance study.
On February 28, 1997, the GVRD Board approved a Terms of Reference for
the Electoral Area A Governance Study (Appendix A). The study will
include consideration of the need, present condition, and appropriate
present and future arrangements for local services (physical,
protective, community, planning, and administration). Several options
will be considered:
2.4.1 Incorporation of a New Municipality: Standard Municipal
Structure;
2.4.2 Incorporation of a New Municipality: Special Municipal
Structure to include UBC representation; and
2.4.3 Inclusion in the City of Vancouver.
The Terms of Reference have two immediate implications for the City.
1. The Study will be managed by a "Restructure Committee". The City is
invited to nominate one person to the seven member committee. The
assumption is that the City's representative will be an elected
official. The Restructure Committee will receive administrative and
technical support from a committee including GVRD, City, UBC, and
UEL staff. This report seeks Council's endorsement of a
representative to the Restructure Committee.
2. The study includes consideration of amalgamation of all or part of
Electoral Area A with the City of Vancouver. This raises questions
about the cost and administrative implications of a merger.
Council's existing policy is that the City would need to be
compensated for costs incurred through amalgamation.
The City currently provides fire protection and rescue services to
Electoral Area A. Were amalgamation to occur, all departments
would assume expanded responsibilities. The City could be required
to provide new parks, libraries, and community facilities. The City
could be accountable for the condition of roads, water, and sewer
infrastructure. These services may require upgrading or increased
maintenance to meet, or maintain, City standards. New zoning
schedules and procedures could be required to administer
development. At the same time, there would be some new revenues
through an increased tax base.
The next steps in the process include approval of the study and budget
by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs, establishing the Restructure
Committee (by June 1997), and hiring a consultant. Research and analysis
will take place during September - November. Draft Recommendations are
scheduled to be available for review by January 1998. The City will be
asked to comment.
The proposed budget for the study is $100,000, including analysis and
public consultation. This is not a lot of money relative to the
implications of the decision, particularly on the City. Staff propose
that the City take an active role in assessing the costs of
amalgamation. This would be done by each department reviewing the
implications of the options for inclusion of all or part of Electoral
Area A within the City of Vancouver.
Engineering Services will have a particularly large job to do since they
will be reviewing sewer, water, electrical, waste removal and
transportation services. Conditions of the first three of these are not
easily ascertainable. Engineering Services is presently reviewing
existing information it has on the status of the utilities and services
in Electoral Area "A" and will be meeting with UBC and UEL staff to
better understand the state of their infrastructure. If this initial
review does not provide staff with sufficient information, then staff
will report back requesting additional resources to complete the
necessary work.
The information prepared by the City will assist the City's
representative on the Restructure Committee, inform the Governance
Study, and provide a basis for Council to respond should the study
recommend amalgamation.
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