Cranbrook city council has given their approval to the long-awaited Downtown Revitalization Plan.
City officials said the document will help guide decision-making with the goal of improving vibrancy and increasing public use of the downtown area.
The plan covers infrastructure, transportation and urban design, among other topics, which was created through several feedback sessions.
“Feedback themes heard through the engagement process included people’s desire for a more walkable downtown, more vibrancy, better gateways into downtown, the love of Rotary Park, and desire for more events on downtown streets, to name of few,” said city officials.
The plan itself is not a bylaw, but it will be used to inform future decisions on bylaws and policies.
“With working towards vibrancy, it’s something we can look at from a staff perspective and council can look at it through their budgetary process on what we can to increase vibrancy downtown,” said Rob Veg, Manager of Planning, Engineering and Development Services. “The document can also be used to help with our infrastructure planning.”
City officials said staff will start implementing the guidelines outlined in the Downtown Revitalization Plan.
This will include integrating elements of the plan into the new OCP and zoning bylaw, which is expected to come up for review later this year.