Council Gives First Reading to Official Community Plan Bylaw

Wednesday, April 13, 2022 – At the April 11, 2022 Regular Council meeting, the District of Sooke Council gave First Reading to the Official Community Plan (OCP) Bylaw No. 800.

The public is invited to learn more about the Bylaw at an OCP Open House on Saturday, May 7^th from 12:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the Sooke Community Hall, located at 2037 Shields Road (in the dining room on the lower level).

At the Open House, the public will be able to speak with Council and staff, and provide written comments for the public record.

Input on OCP Bylaw No. 800 can be provided by:

email to info@sooke.ca;
written comment at the May 7, 2022 Open House, or;
written comment in person or by mail delivered to the Sooke Municipal Hall.

Input on the Bylaw will continue to be received until noon on the day of the public hearing. However, early submissions are encouraged to provide Council with sufficient time to review your comments. A date for the public hearing has not been set.

Input received between April 12^th, 2022 and May 13^th, 2022 will be presented to Council in a staff report at a Special Council Meeting on June 7^th, 2022 where second reading will be considered.

Input received after May 13^th, 2022 will be included in the Public Hearing Agenda Package.

At the public hearing, the public will have the opportunity to address Council on the bylaw in person. After the public hearing closes, Council cannot receive new information including further public comment on the bylaw.

Document:

OCP Bylaw No. 800

For the latest on the OCP Review, please visit:
letstalk.sooke.ca/ocp

Contact:
Katherine Lesyshen, Senior Planner / Project Lead

District of Sooke Municipal Hall
2205 Otter Point Road,
Sooke, BC Canada V9Z 1J2

Media Contact:
Christina Moog, Communicators Coordinator
Tel: 250.642.1634, ext. 678
cmoog@sooke.ca

Background

All municipal policies, plans and regulations must be in alignment with the OCP. The OCP review is an opportunity for the District to ensure that the goals and objectives remain relevant and to update as needed, guiding the direction of land use in Sooke for the next ten years.

The evolution of the draft OCP in its current state is the result of significant community input, with hundreds of residents providing feedback through participation boards at local businesses, online forums, virtual stakeholder meetings, letters, phone calls, community pop-ups at local markets and the Celebrate Sooke! event in September, and an in-person (by registration due to the pandemic) Open House with the Advisory Committee in October.

Now that the Bylaw has been given First Reading, the Bylaw will undergo a referral period to external agencies including Provincial Ministries (such as the Agricultural Land Commission and the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure), the Capital Regional District and the Sooke School District, and legal review. Throughout the process, the District has worked with the T’Sou-ke Nation to develop the Plan.

Recommendations from the referral process will return to Council in a staff report for Council’s consideration.

Related documents: