FAQs

Victoria's Official Community Plan provides a long-term vision for how the community will grow and change in the coming decades. City Council, staff and citizens refer to the plan for guidance on decisions such as where to locate housing and businesses, transportation priorities and how the community will respond to climate change.

The 10-Year OCP Update takes a citywide view and focuses on changes to the land use tools within the OCP to respond to the housing crisis and climate emergency quickly and more equitably.

 A city with one equitable citywide plan for all neighbourhoods can better respond to the housing and climate crises with clear and consistent policy for all communities that is easier to understand and use.

To date, local area planning has been the primary method for keeping the OCP up to date but has taken more time than anticipated and many neighbourhoods now have outdated plans and a lack of capacity to meet evolving needs. Local area planning has also resulted in a complex policy framework that can be confusing for residents, businesses and the development community. 

Yes. Key community groups and associations will be included in the engagement process. In fall 2023 we met with stakeholders to share information about the project and planning process and share the timeline for future opportunities for engagement. The City will also engage with other community groups not officially associated with community associations to ensure all voices have an opportunity to be heard and play a role in the OCP process.

 The OCP update focuses on solutions to the housing and climate crises. It will consider key policy areas related to planning for growth and change, including residential and local business needs, mobility, parks and amenities and natural assets. Modernized zoning and regulations will also be a focus to help ensure diverse housing, mobility, urban forest and public realm objectives can be met to better support our growing population. 

The Zoning Regulation Bylaw, originally adopted in 1981, remains largely unaligned with the OCP, leading to a continued stream of applicant-driven site-specific rezoning applications and resulting in an increasingly complicated and difficult to manage regulatory scheme. Under this process, the City’s zoning would be modernized for easier interpretation. The Bylaw will also be updated to better align with the vision of the OCP, reducing the need for rezoning processes for priority housing and business development in key locations. 

The existing OCP and related regulations are falling behind in meeting anticipated population growth, housing demand and climate goals. The 10-Year OCP Update will create one comprehensive plan with responsive and effective policy that will help build a stronger, more resilient Victoria, today and into the future.

 The City will provide both online and in-person opportunities that make the most of people’s valuable time. Some activities include an online survey, public open houses, pop-ups in busy locations or areas affected by proposed changes and online focus groups. It will also include place-based planning to create more detailed land use guidance for areas with outdated plans.

The engagement process will be completed one phase. Early communication and engagement preparation will begin in fall 2023. Public engagement and the launch of the survey will begin in March 2024 and run until fall 2024. After engagement closes, staff will prepare the proposed updates using public feedback in preparation for the public hearing in 2025.

Three key themes – housing, climate and community – have been developed to help guide our engagement and break up complex policy into easier to understand policy areas for both long-range and current land management. Each theme will be explored over the engagement timeline, with online and in-person engagement opportunities to discuss key topics in each theme area. Public engagement including the launch of an online survey will begin in March 2024.

The City will engage thoughtfully with the community to make sure people understand the process and how they can have a say. The City’s updated Engagement Framework will help guide our communication and outreach to ensure it is equitable, welcomes all voices and honours our communities’ diverse ways of knowing, learning and sharing. 

Council direction, existing City policy, technical analysis and years of public feedback gathered through public consultation on key City plans (e.g., the Climate Leadership Plan, Go Victoria, Parks and Open Spaces Master Plan) also give us a solid foundation to determine policy directions. 

The City made small updates to the OCP in 2022 to ensure it aligned with current master plans (i.e., Go Victoria) and to improve clarity and interpretation. These updates put the City on a strong footing to consider more comprehensive changes now.

Modernizing municipal land management tools advances solutions to both the housing and climate crises as they enable: 

The right supply of housing – multi-unit forms that can realize rental, affordable and diverse housing options in the right locations – near services, amenities and active transportation and transit routes. 

in the right way – with a supportive, high-quality public realm and modern infrastructure. These actions together can reduce transportation emissions (which account for 40 per cent of B.C.'s greenhouse gas emissions) and building emissions. They also ensure we make room for infrastructure (like trees and greenspaces) that improve our ability to adapt.

Adding housing close to safe, high quality mobility infrastructure will encourage more people to walk, roll and cycle. Locating housing close to transit options increases the viability of more frequent, reliable service both within and outside of the city. Making room for housing in the Capital Region’s urban core also reduces the need for long commutes and urban sprawl outside our local boundaries.

Council direction, existing City Policy, technical analysis and years of public feedback gathered through public consultation on key City plans (i.e., Climate Leadership Plan, Go Victoria, Parks and Open Spaces Master Plan) have provided a solid foundation with which to develop drafted policy directions. 

The City’s updated Engagement Framework will help guide our communication and outreach to ensure it is equitable, welcomes all voices and honours our communities’ diverse ways of knowing, learning and sharing.

While valuable to the process, working groups don’t always reflect the diversity of the community, are resource intensive, time-consuming and in some cases ineffective at engaging participants over a long period of time.  

The Missing Middle Housing Initiative has been approved and the outcomes will continue to be monitored and reported on. This process will not reconsider the recently established policies and regulations for Missing Middle. However, new capacity for other housing forms will be considered through this process, both in OCP policy and in zoning.