The Sidney Community Association president welcomes revisions to the draft of Sidney’s new proposed Official Community Plan, but also raises questions as residents have until June 13 to comment on the revised draft.
“Council direction and public input has resulted in a much improved draft OCP,” said association president Dennis Carlsen, in a statement to Black Press, pointing to “significant improvements” around environmentally sensitive areas (ESAs), while also lamenting council’s decision to back away from policies that would have supported the daylighting of Mermaid Creek.
He also questioned moves around key development sites like the current Cedarwood Inn and Suites.
Carlsen expressed skepticism around council’s decision to change a part of the property to multi-unit residential after staff had recommended its designation as neighbourhood townhouse. That new zoning category would limit residential heights to a maximum of 2.5 storeys. The multi-unit residential designation allows council to consider a development of up to four storeys on the back of the site. Couns. Scott Garnett and Peter Wainwright opposed the change on May 30.
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Carlsen said the change gives council more latitude when considering a development proposal for this site.
“They are expecting that a future council will abide by the intent. As we saw with the previous council, this expectation may be misplaced. It also gives the impression that the developer is driving policy which is not a good thing.”
A motion to change the neighborhood commercial zone — which would impact the front portion of the Cedarwood location — to allow council to consider a fourth storey if the “development provides a suitable number of high priority housing, such as affordable units below market, accessible units, and other community amenities” failed 5-2, drawing only support from Couns. Sara Duncan and Terri O’Keefe.
Sidney Mayor Cliff McNeil-Smith in an interview last week that the municipality has not received any formal application for the site, nor is the OCP process about directing a specific type of development toward the Cedarwood Site.
Council is instead looking at the compatibility of land uses within the existing neighbourhood.
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