The City of Kimberley is looking for your input on a housing-focused review of its official community plan (OCP) and a pair of zoning bylaws.
According to Kimberley’s Interim Housing Needs Report, the city will need 1,700 new dwelling units by 2041 to keep up with demand.
“With everything that has been completed over the last few years and everything we have in the pipeline coming up, says we are pretty good shape,” said Mayor Don McCormick.
“However, having the potential and actually executing on it are different things, especially when we don’t control the housing starts. We control the environment, but it’s really up to the private sector and the developers who are investing in the community.”
McCormick says Kimberley’s housing issues are not necessarily unique, but the city has made progress.
“We’re in a very good position right now relative to other communities, but the key thing is to be in a good position relative to the demand for housing in the community,” said McCormick.
“We have been working on multi-unit housing and affordable housing for the last five or six years, and all of those efforts are finally coming to fruition right now.”
Kimberley’s existing OCP was adopted in 2018 and outlines the community’s long-term vision for growth and development.
Meanwhile, the zoning bylaws regulate land use, specifying allowable uses and building forms. One of these bylaws covers the Alpine Resort area, while the other applies to the rest of Kimberley.
The review process will focus on integrating the Housing Needs Report, developing policies for housing in commercial areas and mixed-use developments, and reviewing development permit area guidelines.
A public survey is open until June 15, and you can find it here.
“We just want to make sure we get good feedback from people, not only what they think about it, but to provide some ideas that we may have missed along the way,” said McCormick.
“The public consultation period is a really important part of the process for us and not just a box that needs to be ticked.”
Kimberley says non-housing-related issues will be addressed in future reviews.
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