Diversifying the local economy and keeping a strong rural character were two of the community goals that seemed to resonate most with local residents during a recent public consultation period that’s part of the ongoing Official Community Plan (OCP) update process.
The OCP sets the general course of development for the District of 100 Mile House and establishes objectives and policies for land use.
An accompanying Zoning Bylaw re-write is a key tool to implement the OCP.
An online survey and an interactive display at public events during the District’s 50th Anniversary celebration week (July 18-26) officially heard from close to 70 residents who live within the District boundaries.
Using green stickers, residents indicated whether they agreed or disagreed with 12 community goals and the community’s vision statement.
The majority agreed with the vision statement: “100 Mile House is a vibrant resilient community set within a healthy natural environment where people can thrive personally and economically. Simply put – It is Miles Ahead!”
The community goals are:
• retain a strong sense of community, lifestyle and rural character as the community grows;
• diversify the local economy;
• maintain and strengthen 100 Mile House as a regional goods and services centre;
• protect people and properties from natural hazards;
• provide adequate water and sewer services;
• improve form and character of development along Highway 97;
• provide a full range of housing diversity;
• support commercial and industrial development by designating land for these uses;
• take advantage of existing services and infrastructure and encourage further development within the
District;
• promote good stewardship throughout the Bridge Creek Watershed:
• encourage agriculture as part of the rural character and economy of 100 Mile House; and
• reduce community Greenhouse Gas emissions.
While the majority of respondents still strongly agreed with the goals, they were less enthusiastic about the goals of reducing community Greenhouse Gas emissions; protecting people and properties from natural hazards; and supporting commercial and industrial development by designating land for these uses.
Graham Farstad is the principal planner with the Vancouver-based Arlington Group, which is working with the District on the OCP update.
“One of the interesting challenges with 100 Mile is there are an awful lot of people that say they’re from 100 Mile House, but they’re actually from the [surrounding] region,” Farstad says.
“We’re obviously interested in everyone’s comments, but in terms of documentation, we tried to focus on people who live within the District boundaries.”
District of 100 Mile House director of economic development and planning Joanne Doddridge says through the survey and other public consultation events, residents have shown clear support for the community goals in the OCP, and those identified in the Miles Ahead Community Sustainability Plan, which was completed last year.
“Confirming these goals is the first step; now refining the District’s policies to help advance these goals will follow next. There will be further opportunities for residents to offer their thoughts, so watch the District’s website for details.”
The planners have also met with a number of community groups, such as the South Cariboo Farmers’ Market, the South Cariboo Agri-Culture Enterprise Centre, the South Cariboo Sustainability Society and the South Cariboo Visitor Centre, to discuss their priories regarding future development.
“It’s giving us a good background sense of where different groups are coming from,” says Farstad. “What we’re going to be doing for the rest of this month [August] is working on initial drafts of OCP updates and also looking at refinement and reformatting of the Zoning Bylaw.
“We will be providing regular updates on the District’s website. When we have an overall draft ready we will post that on the website and have an open house and people can provide any comments they have.”
The District launched the OCP and Zoning Bylaw revision to align council and community values, aspirations and perspectives for growth within the District. It is expected to be completed by the end of 2015.
Assisting the District with the project is an advisory committee of seven 100 Mile House residents – Leon Chretien, Debbie Dengel, Tanya Hammerstron, Christine Jordaan, Don McLean, Don Savjord and Mel Torgerson.
