Significant progress is being made on the provincially-required review of the town’s Official Plan, staff told council at last night’s meeting (Dec 7, 2021). Oakville’s Official Plan guides land-use planning and applications and reflects the town's long-term vision.
The original primary intent of the town’s Official Plan Review was to meet council’s goal to update and consolidate the town’s land-use policies in a single official plan – the Livable Oakville Plan. Since the work began, however, the province has updated its Growth Plan for the Golden Horseshoe and required municipalities to bring their official plans in line with the Growth Plan by 2023.
The town’s 1984 Official Plan, including the more recent North Oakville East and West Secondary Plans, still applies to the lands between Dundas Street and Highway 407. The North Oakville East and West Secondary Plans were finalized after lengthy appeals at the then-called Ontario Municipal Board. These secondary plans were enacted separately from the Town of Oakville’s Official Plan.
Over the past six years, town planning staff has carefully developed innovations to bridge and unite the plans and consulted the public and council. Staff have also analyzed and reported to council and the public on the new Provincial Growth Plan and its impacts on Oakville.
Highlights of progress include
- Completed the Urban Structure Review in 2017 to provide a framework and supporting policies that direct population and job growth in strategic growth areas; provides for the protection of natural and cultural heritage resources and public open spaces, and maintains the character of existing residential areas.
- Approved official plan amendments for key areas which resulted in policy updates to accommodate and boost employment, transit, commercial and growth needs. This includes the Employment and Commercial Review and Speers Road Corridor Study; Main Street Growth Area Reviews (Bronte Village, Kerr Village and Downtown Oakville) and North Oakville Secondary Plans Review - Part 1 (Dundas and Trafalgar Urban Core Areas north of Dundas Street).
- Currently with Halton Region for review and approval: the Hospital District Study and Palermo Village Growth Area Review (for high-density, transit-supportive, mixed-use development); the North West Oakville Secondary Plan Review (to bring the remainder of the lands subject to the North Oakville West Secondary Plan into the Livable Oakville Plan – all being either natural heritage system or employment lands); and the Bronte GO Major Transit Station Area Study (employment-focused growth area as required by the province).
Highlights of upcoming initiatives in 2022
- Parks and Open Space Strategy will consider the town’s evolving parks and open space needs, particularly for higher density communities, and how to meet those needs over the long term.
- The Urban Mobility Strategy will provide principles and implementation tools to advance urban mobility and transportation planning to support the movement of people and goods within and through Oakville.
- The next Official Plan Review projects to advance will focus on the strategic growth areas - Neyagawa Urban Core (at Burnhamthorpe Road), Midtown Oakville (around the Oakville GO Station) and Uptown Core (at Trafalgar Road and Dundas Street).
- Updates to the policies affecting existing residential neighbourhoods will be addressed through the Residential Areas Review. General policy updates will be addressed through a series of discussion papers on climate change, transportation, community uses and more.
The town’s Official Plan Review will conclude with a final official plan amendment, “the Conformity OPA”, incorporating the recommended policy updates from the remainder of the work program as well as changes required to address conformity with the Regional Official Plan, as amended, and the Growth Plan. Staff are currently targeting June 2023 for council’s adoption of the Conformity OPA.
An official plan is a legal document containing goals, objectives, and policies intended to guide a municipality's land use, development, and growth. The Planning Act requires a review of the official plan every five years. The Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe now requires Halton Region – which includes Oakville, Burlington, Milton and Halton Hills – to plan for a total forecasted population of 1.1 million people, as well as 500,000 jobs by the year 2051. Oakville’s share of the region’s forecasted growth is currently being determined through the Regional Official Plan Review, led by Regional Council.
For more information, please review the staff report (item 7.2) in the December 7 Planning and Development Council Agenda and visit our Official Plan Review page.