CITY OF VANCOUVER
M E M O R A N D U M
From: CITY CLERK'S OFFICE Date: Jan. 2/96
Refer File: 5340-2
To: Vancouver City Council
Subject: CityPlan in Neighbourhoods
The attached Policy Report dated November 30, 1995 and the draft
discussion paper entitled "Bringing CityPlan to Neighbourhoods -
a Proposal for Discussion"* dated December 1995 refer.
Dr. Ann McAfee, Director, City Plans Division, and Ms. Ronda
Howard, CityPlan, will make brief presentations.
COMMITTEE CLERK
MCross:sr
* LIMITED DISTRIBUTION TO COUNCIL MEMBERS. (Copies on file in
the City Clerk's Office and the Planning Department).
POLICY REPORT
Date: Nov. 30, 1995
Dept.File No. RH/TF/SA
TO: Vancouver City Council
FROM: Director of City Plans
Director of Community Planning, in consultation with
CityPlan Department Heads Steering Committee
General Manager of Engineering Services
General Manager of Community Services
General Manager of Corporate Services
General Manager of Parks & Recreation
Manager of the Housing Centre
SUBJECT: CityPlan in Neighbourhoods
RECOMMENDATIONS
A. THAT Council approve the release of the discussion
paper entitled, *"Bringing CityPlan to
Neighbourhoods".
B. THAT Council invite public review of the discussion
paper, during January through March 1996, and that
Council approve the review process described in this
report (including distributing a summary of the
discussion paper to the CityPlan mailing list; staff
presentations, discussion groups, and city-wide
workshop).
C. THAT the Planning Department report back in May 1996
on the results of the public review of the discussion
paper and on a proposed approach to implementing
CityPlan in Neighbourhoods, including staff and
budget requirements.
D. THAT Council approve carrying forward the remaining
CityPlan budget of approximately $72,000 and using
$23,800 for the public review noted in "B" above, and
$44,000 for preparation of "neighbourhood planning
guides" - with costs as detailed in Appendix B.
CITY MANAGER'S COMMENTS
The City Manager RECOMMENDS approval of the foregoing.
COUNCIL POLICY
On June 6, 1995, Council approved CityPlan as providing
directions for Vancouver. Included in CityPlan are directions
for neighbourhoods, as noted in Appendix A. These include:
- ... create or strengthen neighbourhood centres in all
neighbourhoods as a place where people can find shops,
jobs, and services close to home.
- ...increase housing variety and affordability in
neighbourhoods that have little variety now to help meet
the housing needs of people of different ages and incomes
in the neighbourhoods, the city, and region.
- ...maintain and improve neighbourhood character.
- ...increase walking, biking, and transit in neighbourhoods
and between neighbourhoods, and reduce single-occupant car
use.
CityPlan includes the following statements about
implementation:
- "The City should, as a first step, bring people from
across the city together with Council and City staff to
determine how to plan for neighbourhoods and their
neighbourhood centres."
- "Develop a new planning process to be used in the planning
of each centre and its surrounding community which
promotes problem solving and resolving differences."
SUMMARY
CityPlan was adopted on June 6, 1995, as directions for
Vancouver. Among the new directions identified in CityPlan are
several that are very relevant to the city's neighbourhoods.
These include, for example, a desire for housing choice
throughout the city, reducing travel by locating jobs closer to
where people live, and choice of neighbourhood character.
Realizing that there are various ways to proceed with these
directions and that any process will involve a significant
commitment of City resources for some years to come, Council
asked staff to propose a process for implementing CityPlan in
neighbourhoods. The City would then invite public comment.
This public input would assist staff to firm up a neighbourhood
planning proposal for Council's consideration.
The discussion paper, *"Bringing CityPlan to Neighbourhoods"
outlines a proposed approach to implementing CityPlan at the
neighbourhood level. The discussion paper contains four
sections: principles, expectations, product, and process, as
well as questions and answers on topics such as cost,
boundaries, timing, and rezoning policies.
The process proposed in the discussion paper is to develop
"neighbourhood visions". Each "vision" would involve
residents, business owners and operators in a six-month
process. The product, a vision, would describe the kind of
neighbourhood people want and how to move on CityPlan
directions at the neighbourhood level. It would, for example,
identify: the location and form of neighbourhood centres;
important aspects of neighbourhood character, public places,
and services; ways to increase the type and amount of housing
and jobs in the neighbourhood; and ways to make the
neighbourhood less car dependent.
A concurrent process at the city-wide scale will assist
neighbourhood visions to build toward a consistent response to
CityPlan. Based on the visions, the City can be strategic
about the location and timing of implementation actions such as
rezonings, capital projects, and the provision of city
services.
Staff propose that the discussion paper, and a shorter summary
version, be released for public review and comment early in the
new year. Following this review, a revised program proposal
including staffing and budget will be submitted to Council in
May 1996. For Council's information, preliminary estimates of
staffing and budget required for the approach laid out in the
discussion paper are provided in Appendix C of this report.
Concurrent with the public review of the discussion paper,
staff propose assembling Neighbourhood Planning Guides and
other data, information, and tools/models to assist in the
neighbourhood program.
Costs associated with the discussion paper and public review as
well as information gathering can be met from funds remaining
in the 1995 CityPlan budget. Staff are available to undertake
the activities outlined.
The CityPlan in Neighbourhoods Program will be under the
direction of the Directors of City Plans and Community
Planning. The CityPlan Department Heads Steering Committee will
continue to provide guidance and coordination between policy
planning initiatives (e.g. Neighbourhoods Program,
Transportation Plan).PURPOSE
The purpose of this report is:
- to present a discussion paper which outlines a proposed
approach to implementing CityPlan in neighbourhoods,
including proposed budget estimate; and
- propose a process for public review of the discussion
paper.
BACKGROUND
CityPlan provides fourteen key directions for Vancouver. In
addition to ongoing City initiatives in the areas of
"Addressing Housing Costs," "Art and Culture," "the Downtown,"
and Clean Air and Water," a variety of new initiatives are
underway which further the CityPlan directions. These include:
Distinctive Neighbourhhod Character: A new zoning schedule, RS-
6, will be considered at Public Hearing in January. In February
staff will be reporting on a program to assist neighbourhoods
to maintain neighbourhood character.
Accessible Community-Based Services: Fifteen community-based
inter-departmental "Integrated Service Teams" are now in place.
Their mandate is to work with staff from civic departments and
with the community to solve community issues in the community.
Promoting Safety: Nineteen community-based safety initiatives
are underway through Police/Community Service Centres,
Community Crime Prevention Offices, neighbourhood police
offices, and police visitation programs.
New and More Diverse Public Places: On July 18, 1995, Council
adopted a City Greenways network plan involving 14 City
Greenways totalling approximately 140 km. A "Ridgeway
Greenway" is under development along 37th Avenue between
Granville and Knight Streets linking VanDusen Gardens, Queen
Elizabeth Park, and Kensington Park.
Diverse Economy: Early in 1996, changes will be considered to
the City's Industrial Schedules to facilitate city-oriented and
city-serving jobs. From January to June 1996, a public process
will consider sites for a convention centre -- a major new
initiative to enhance tourism.
Transit, Walking, and Biking: During January to April 1996,
the City will be undertaking a public process on key
transportation choices. This input will be the basis for a
draft Transportation Plan which will then be distributed for
public review.
People Involved in Decision-Making and Financial
Accountability:
Better City Government initiatives, such as the Development and
Building Regulation Review and the Public Process Review, are
addressing CityPlan Directions.
CityPlan in Neighbourhoods
These ongoing and new programs form a context for the CityPlan
neighbourhood initiative outlined in this report.
The proposed program considers all CityPlan directions, from a
neighbourhood perspective. In particular it will address
directions for Neighbourhood Centres and Housing Variety,
Distinctive Neighbourhood Character, Housing Cost, Jobs Close
to Home, Diverse Public Places and Transit, Walking, and
Biking.
1. PROPOSED NEIGHBOURHOOD PLANNING PROCESS
In June, Council asked staff to consider ways to implement
CityPlan in neighbourhoods.
The attached discussion paper -- "Bringing CityPlan to
Neighbourhoods" -- outlines a proposed approach to implementing
CityPlan at the neighbourhood level. The discussion paper
contains four sections: principles, expectations, product, and
process plus questions and answers.
a) Neighbourhood Principles:
In developing the proposed approach, staff were guided by
principles which emerged from the CityPlan process:
- Reach all neighbourhoods in a reasonable time;
- Follow up on the full range of CityPlan topics together;
- Move forward in the CityPlan directions;
- Recognize neighbourhood distinctiveness;
- Help neighbourhoods keep a city-wide perspective;
- Encourage as many people as possible to participate by
making it easy to be involved in different ways; and
- Keep costs reasonable.
b) Neighbourhood Expectations:
Arising from the principles, staff identified some possible
expectations for the scope of the program. For example:
- CityPlan directions (see Appendix A) provide a guide for
neighbourhood planning.
- Each neighbourhood will seek ways to bring CityPlan
directions to the neighbourhood level.- The City's
expectation for a
neighbourhood product
is that it demonstrates
a full consideration of
the CityPlan
directions, data, and
consequences, and shows
movement toward the
CityPlan directions.
- Targets will be set from the ground up based on
information provided in Neighbourhood Planning Guides and
the unique circumstances of each neighbourhood.
- CityPlan is intended to unfold over 30 years. As
conditions and needs will change over that time, not all
details need to be resolved now.
- Neighbourhoods will be given the opportunity and
responsibility of sharing information and work in progress
and taking stock as the process proceeds.
Expectations will need to be widely shared and agreed as a
guide for both the neighbourhood process and the product.
c) Neighbourhood Product:
Staff took the above principles and expectations into account
when considering alternate approaches to preparing
neighbourhood plans.
One option considered, but not proposed, is to do detailed
"neighbourhood plans." This would be similar to approaches we
have used in the past. The advantage of this approach is that
the product provides certainty about development directions
(e.g., zoning, design guidelines, development cost levies),
services, and capital plan priorities. The drawback of this
approach is that it can take up to three years to complete each
neighbourhood plan. Given current staff resources, it could
take more than 20 years to reach all neighbourhoods.
Staff are proposing a new approach called "neighbourhood
visions." Visions will provide overall guidance on
implementing CityPlan directions in each neighbourhood.
Visions will, for example, include the location of
neighbourhood centres, important aspects of neighbourhood
character and services, ideas to increase the type and amount
of housing and jobs in the neighbourhood, ways to make the
neighbourhood less car dependent, and actions for followup
implementation.
Not every detail will need to be resolved in the visions. They
could contain options for resolution at a later date. Since
visions will provide less detail than traditional neighbourhood
plans, they can be prepared in a shorter time, reaching all
neighbourhoods within about five years. With visions in place,
the City can be strategic about the location and timing of
implementation.
d) Neighbourhood Process:
The process for developing a neighbourhood vision is designed
to encourage wide public involvement over a six-month period.
The process has two levels -- a neighbourhood process
complemented by a concurrent city-wide process (Figure 1).
The city-wide process creates a link between neighbourhoods.
It provides a forum for information exchanges, discussion of
common concerns, and opportunities to take stock of progress
and addresses questions of equity between neighbourhoods.
To facilitate the visioning processes, and subsequent
implementation, staff will be developing neighbourhood planning
guides containing information on new approaches to implementing
neighbourhood visions. The city-wide program provides a forum
for staff to discuss new ideas for implementation with the
public.The neighbourhood process (Figure 2) includes two
activities - those that involve the public and those that
require staff to assemble information and integrate material
for further public review and comment.
(1) Introductory events invite people to participate in
developing a neighbourhood vision.
(2) At workshops residents, business owners and operators
discuss ideas for the neighbourhood.
(3) Staff assemble workshop ideas into draft visions.
(4) Workshops, displays, and surveys engage citizens in
choosing and refining a preferred vision.
(5) Staff assemble public input into a draft preferred vision.
(6) The neighbourhood discusses and proposes any changes to
the preferred vision.
(7) The neighbourhood vision process concludes with the
preferred vision being discussed with City Council in a
public forum.
Staff suggest starting with two neighbourhood vision programs
concurrently. This would complete four visions a year. A
program review is proposed at the conclusion of four visions.
This will provide an opportunity to adjust the program based
upon experience. At that time staff will be in a better
position to assess actions required to implement completed
visions and advise Council on ways to adjust staff resources
between developing new visions and implementation. In addition
to this major review, staff will be reporting to Council for
direction at the start and conclusion of each vision process.
e) Neighbourhood Program: Estimate of Costs and Staffing:
At this point, Council is not being asked to approve budget or
staff for the neighbourhood vision process. Following a
decision on the preferred process, staff will propose a program
budget.
For information purposes, staff have done some preliminary
program cost estimates. Based on the proposed program:
- Annual non-staff cost to do four neighbourhood visions is
$305,000. This cost could be partially offset by funds
normally spent on community planning projects.
- Estimated annual staffing requirements to do the
neighbourhood and city-wide processes is 20 staff. All
but three positions (multicultural, communications, and
youth coordinators) are available through redirection of
existing staff from community planning and policy
programs. If this program proceeds, there will be
substantially reduced resources for undertaking
traditional local area planning programs, area studies,
and zoning reviews.
Further information on possible staff and other resource
requirements is attached as Appendix C. A more refined cost
projection will be included in the May 1996 Council report.
2. DISCUSSION PAPER REVIEW
Staff propose that the discussion paper "Bringing CityPlan to
Neighbourhoods" be released in January 1996, for public review
and comment from January through March (Figure 3). Following
this review, staff will report back to Council with a proposed
program for implementing CityPlan in neighbourhoods. Funds
required for the public review are $23,800 as noted in Appendix
B, page 1. Source of funds is the CityPlan budget. Staff will
coordinate with other City initiatives such as the
Transportation Plan and Better City Government to take
advantage of opportunities for joint programming and
efficiencies.
3. PREPARATION OF NEIGHBOURHOOD PLANNING
GUIDES
During this same period, January to May 1996, staff recommend
starting to assemble information for "Neighbourhood Planning
Guides". The guides will include information which residents
can use to develop vision statements on such directions as
housing variety and neighbourhood character. The guides will
outline expectations for the program and provide information
about the extent of the City's resources for implementing
visions.
The guides will also include a "catalogue" of example traffic
calming methods, affordable housing actions, public place
designs, financing options, and zoning schedules to provide for
more housing variety and address neighbourhood character.
These ideas can be used by residents to develop their
neighbourhood vision and implementation plans.
The estimated cost to start preparing the guides is $44,000 as
noted on page 2 of Appendix B. Source of funds is the carry-
over CityPlan budget.
4. REZONINGS DURING NEIGHBOURING VISIONING PROCESSES
On June 6 1995, staff noted the possible problems associated
with privately initiated rezonings potentially prejudicing
visioning processes. At that time Council approved a motion
that applications for rezoning prior to adoption of a
neighbourhood vision should not justify the rezoning on the
grounds that it "supports CityPlan neighbourhood centres."
Staff have reviewed the issue of rezonings prior to and during
neighbourhood visioning programs. Staff continue to be
concerned about the potential disruption and diversion of staff
resources which might occur should a controversial rezoning be
initiated prior to an agreed neighbourhood vision. This is
particularly problematic in or near otherwise single-family
areas where development of a neighbourhood centre will be a
significant new direction for the neighbourhood.
A seperate report from the Directors of Planning and the
Manager of the Housing Centre proposes policies regarding
rezoning inquiries during the neighbourhood visioning process.
CONCLUSIONS
The adoption of CityPlan provides the City with overall
directions. These directions provide a context for: future
neighbourhood, city, and regional plans; capital plans; and the
delivery of city services.
A wide variety of programs to implement CityPlan are already
underway. Programs include Greenways, the Transportation Plan,
Community Policing, zoning schedules for more compatible
single-family zoning, and Integrated Service Teams. Further
initiatives will be considered in the context of Capital Plan
proposals.
The CityPlan directions provide quidance for improving
neighbour- hood livability. The next step is to develop
neighbourhood initiatives which respond to CityPlan directions.
This report proposes a process to develop Neighbourhood
Visions. These Visions will provide a framework for actions in
neighbourhoods which meet both the needs of neighbourhoods and
contribute to the kind of city thousands of people supported
through the CityPlan process.
The neighbourhood vision process is a proposal which is being
aired for public discussion. Following public input staff will
prepare a detailed work program for "bringing CityPlan to
neighbourhoods."
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