by Sylene Argent, Local Journalism Initiative
Staff in the Planning Department for the Town began working to update Essex’s Official Plan two-years ago, and are inviting community members to attend one of three upcoming planned open houses, so they can get public feedback on the draft document to date.
This document will set the tone on how to use the land in the Town of Essex over the next 25-years. Through the document, policies are set for growth and development. The review ensures the Town’s document aligns with the Provincial Policy Statement (PPS) and the County of Essex’s Official Plan.
“The Official Plan is an important document because it will provide the blueprint for how the Town will grow over the next 25-years,” Rita Jabbour said, who is the Manager of Planning Services for the Town of Essex.
“People of all ages should be engaged in its development because it will provide a valuable opportunity for them to shape their community with their future needs in mind, such as on housing options for when they are ready to start a family or retire, and the employment, recreational, and cultural opportunities that will influence their decision to live and work in their hometown.”
“An Official Plan ensures new development and growth considers a broad-range of interests and perspectives, and that land-use planning decisions reflect provincial, County, and municipal values,” Lori Chadwick, Director of Planning Services for the Town of Essex, previously told Council.
As the Planning Act requires OPs to be updated every five-years, Essex Council hosted a statutory special meeting to kick-off the creation process for the Town’s new Official Plan (OP) in June of 2022.
At the time, it was explained Town staff in the Planning Department, and consultants, Marisa Williams and Will Lamond for WSP Canada, will lead the project.
Essex’s current OP came into force in 2009 and was updated in 2015. OPs must conform to the Planning Act and be consistent with the Provincial Policy Statement. There have been several updates to both the Planning Act and PPS since the Town’s current OP was updated, and those changes are being implemented in the new OP.
The new OP will also take Town-driven initiatives that have come into effect since the last OP was adopted into consideration when developing the new OP, such as the 2019 - 2022 Strategic Plan; the Climate Change Adaptation Plan; the Agritourism Development Strategy; the Parks, Recreation, and Culture Master Plan; the Development Standards, Streetscape Plans, and Urban Design Guidelines; and the most recently adopted Short-term Rental policy.
In terms of growth management planning, Williams previously told Essex Council the Town’s OP is supposed to align with the County’s growth management plan, which was created in Phase 1 of the County of Essex updating its own New OP.
The Growth Management report includes the projections Watsons & Associates prepared in Phase 1 that looks at the range of growth projected for the County by 2051.
This includes from the current population of 199,100 to grow between 268,100 - 315,000 individuals; the current households of 71,000 to grow between 101,2000-124,200; and the current 72,300 jobs to grow between 107,900-124,200.
The County of Essex hosted an open house towards the end of June to gather public feedback on its New Official Plan document. A statutory public meeting will be held prior to the official adoption of the County-based document. That will likely be in September. At that point, it will have to go to the Province for review and approval.
Essex’s new OP must also conform to the County of Essex’s Official Plan.
The Town project team is working with County staff to ensure alignment of the two projects.
In the review, Williams previously told Essex Councillors, the Town of Essex will need to designate enough land for residential population growth for at least the next 15-years, with a mix of various housing operations. The OP needs to consider climate change and better identify key natural heritage features. It will also need to develop policy related to consultation of Indigenous communities regarding planning applications, archeological, and historical sites for resources.
Open houses for the Town of Essex OP are scheduled to take place at the Essex Arena on Wednesday, September 4 and at the Harrow Arena on Wednesday, September 11. Both events are drop-in style, and will be in operation between 5 and 7pm.
In addition, an open house is planned to be hosted at the Colchester Harbour Community Centre on Wednesday, August 28, 5-7pm. This event will have a focus on the Colchester Scondary Plan, which is intended to guide residential and commercial growth in the hamlet. It is also looking at improved connection to the Lake Erie waterfront.
At the July 15 regular meeting, Essex Council received an update on the Colchester Hamlet Secondary Plan.
That update included consultation efforts, plans for future public consultation, policy directions made, and overall goals of the document as a part of the Town’s new Official Plan project.
Chadwick explained at that recent meeting that a secondary plan sets out a cohesive vision and a set of planning directions for the future growth and development of a specific area.
As part of the development of the Town of Essex’s new Official Plan, the Colchester Hamlet Secondary Plan has been updated to align with the policies of the new Official Plan, emphasize the development potential in the heart of the Town’s waterfront and agri-tourism area, establish a realistic development scenario based on the level of growth the County has allocated to the Colchester Secondary Settlement Area, and improve the framework of the Colchester Secondary Plan adopted in 2009.
The vision is to “achieve a beautiful, lively, and connected community with a mix of uses that support residential life and the Town’s fast-growing tourism industry,” Chadwick previously told Council, adding principals for the plan include connecting to the waterfront, animating the Secondary Plan Area with a mix of uses, being a centre for tourism, encouraging growth through intensification, and achieving a high-quality and beautiful public realm.
Adoption of the New Official Plan and the Colchester Hamlet Secondary Plan is anticipated this fall, it notes on the Town of Essex website.
Residents wishing to share input on the Town of Essex Official Plan can do so at www.essex.ca/OfficialPlan
A statutory meeting will be held in the future to present the draft Official Plan document to Essex Council.
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