Dear editor,
I am writing once again about the proposed new Comox OCP.
I will try to make it as short as possible as I can only imagine how much of your time this process is absorbing. I congratulate all of you for your efforts and commitment to the Town of Comox.
First, I wish to briefly give you some of my background.
I have worked in the building industry the majority of my life, including owning a design/build construction company offering complete projects to clients. I did design work and site plans, as well as permit and variance applications. I have worked in many municipalities, and with many bylaws and planners.
I point this out to show that my remarks are informed with a depth and breadth of experience with planning bylaws.
My principal concern with the proposed new OCP for the Town of Comox is that it does not adequately preserve view corridors in the downtown area. In addition, it does not do enough to create a compelling vision for the area that is meant to be the urban focus of our town.
In addition, the Marine Plaza Area Plan, Bylaw 1003 of the existing OCP, has a much stronger vision for the downtown area than the current OCP does.
Last month I bumped into a councillor purely by chance and we had a brief conversation. I asked about the briefings new councillors receive when they start on council.
I was told that there is an orientation where new representatives meet the Town staff and find out what they do. I then asked if new councillors were informed of the town’s current OCP, and was told that this was not part of the orientation.
I then asked if this councillor was aware of the Marine Plaza Area Plan, Bylaw 1003. I was told that the councillor knew of the plan but was not familiar with the details.
At the last OCP meeting I asked Mayor Ives if this (MPAP, Bylaw 1003) was part of the Town’s current OCP and he looked at it and said he believed so for the most part, as it is Bylaw 1003.
After thinking about this for awhile, I realize it makes me wonder how council is able to properly make decisions without knowledge of the current OCP. I am also concerned that the evaluation of the proposed OCP is being done without comparison to the existing OCP.
Bylaw 1003, the Marine Plaza plan, promotes view corridors; places to sit and watch and meet with friends; it includes bike storage, and it also handles traffic and parking amongst many other things. In my view, it is a more comprehensive plan for the downtown area that what is being proposed now.
Some components of Bylaw 1003 have been implemented, but unfortunately many were not. It appears that the current OCP has been filed somewhere in Town Hall and is not referenced on a regular basis when planning decisions are under consideration.
I feel that the entire 1991 plan merits a review by mayor and councillors and I encourage them to do so.
In closing, I recommend that DPA-001 be changed so that:
Building heights on the south side of Comox Avenue are lower than those on the north side of Comox Avenue … or that buildings on the south side can be higher but with larger setbacks that allow view corridors and pedestrian areas.
If DPA 1 is passed as is, it will lead to a downtown Comox, which is to be the urban focus of our Town, with extremely limited view corridors, little connection with the waterfront and questionable pedestrian friendliness.
The Town has invested in a team of four professional planners and has a professional planning consulting group under contract (the Arlington Group).
I strongly urge that DPA 1 be sent back to this group of experts for revision, so that the combination of view corridors, setbacks and height restrictions in the downtown add up to a unique shopping, strolling and seaside experience.
Stuart MacKenzie,
Comox
