PLANNING & DEVELOPMENT HIGHLIGHTS
Each year the City participates in the Vancouver Chapter of
the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties
(NAIOP)
Municipal
Survey of Commercial and Industrial
Development Costs
. Annually, NAIOP acknowledges
municipalities that excel in creating environments that
are positive to business creation. The NAIOP Development
Cost Survey is distributed to 20 municipalities within
Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley. Each community
is required to identify the costs and processing times
associated with the parameters of a specific scenario. In
2013, the NAIOP survey indicated that the City continues
to offer the best tax ratio for industrial properties.
The Official Community Plan update began in the fall of
2012. In 2013 Long Range Planning staff continued with
the update process and prepared 9 background studies
and public summary reports for online distribution.
Concurrently, the City conducted online surveys, internet
forums (PlaceSpeak), two Community Café meetings (in
Chilliwack proper and Sardis), and a workshop in Yarrow.
The City reached out to the youth through presentations at
two elementary schools, a middle school and a secondary
school. A workshop with the real estate and development
community was held along with discussions with the
School District, CEPCO and business and community
groups. By the end of the year, the first draft of OCP 2040
was completed and is currently under internal review. It
is anticipated that the draft plan will be ready for public
vetting in early 2014.
The Planning Department prepared a new Heritage
Designation policy which was subsequently adopted by
Council. The new policy sets out a clear procedure and
requirements of heritage designation and it has helped
register two Municipal Heritage Sites at their owners
request.
In Fall 2013, the Chilliwack Health and Housing Contact
Centre officially opened its doors, after a 5 year+
concerted effort by community stakeholders to provide
Chilliwack with one-stop access to health and social
services. This project, identified as a key priority within
the Healthier Community Strategic Plan, provides 22
supportive housing apartments for people who are
homeless or at risk of homelessness. It further provides
a broad range of community health support services
open to the entire community and are delivered by
Pacific Community Resources Society and Fraser Health.
The B.C. government provided close to $3.4 million for
the renovations and approximately $230,000 in annual
operational funding for the residential component. The
City contributed $500,000 and waived development cost
charges and building permit fees to support this project.
The City continued to lend support through 2013 for the
newly established Healthier Community Stewardship
Council, a multi-sectoral committee, co-chaired by the
City of Chilliwack and School District #33. This Council
provides leadership in the development of networks
and partnerships with stakeholders and the community
at large. The goal is to improve the health of the entire
community, primarily through implementation of the
Healthier Community Strategic Action Plan (addressing
homelessness, crime, and mental health and substance
abuse); and secondarily, by identifying additional
opportunities to proactively address community health
needs.
A new Hillside Development Standards Policy was adopted
by Council to successfully integrate hillside development
within our community’s unique natural context. The new
policy encourages flexibility and innovation in terms of
how the challenges of hillside development are addressed
and also incorporates guiding principles that should be
achieved with all hillside developments.
In September the City won the 2013 Open for Business
Award provided by BC’s Small Business roundtable.
Award evaluations were based on how municipalities
enhance small business competitiveness, recognize the
contributions of business to the community and promote
the principles of the BC Small Business Accord.
Planning & Development
21
2013 Annual Report
