Aug 6 2009 - 1:00pm
The Affordable and Attainable Housing Strategy, completed by CitySpaces Consulting Ltd. in 2007, recommends 29 actions to address the greatest housing needs in the community. The City of Fernie proposes a consistently applied policy framework, through the Official Community Plan (OCP) Amendment Bylaw, to implement these 29 actions. The purpose of the proposed Bylaw No. 2062 is to strengthen the policy foundation in the OCP for affordable/attainable housing and to implement specific action items recommended by CitySpaces in the Strategy. The proposed Bylaw would:
• establish affordable and attainable housing as an essential component of community life of equivalent importance as parks, schools, roads and services;
• support the provision of housing for a broad range of individual circumstances including rental housing and home ownership;
• require that for all multi-unit residential or mixed-use developments requiring rezoning at least 15% of the total number of housing units in the development would be subject to a housing agreement ensuring, in perpetuity, that the units would be available at below-market prices to eligible purchasers as determined by the City and described in the housing agreement; and
• develop density bonus regulations to encourage developers to incorporate into areas already zoned for multi-unit or mixed use development affordable or special needs housing in exchange for additional residential density.
The City of Fernie invites interested individuals, developers, community organizations and other agencies to provide input concerning proposed Bylaw No. 2062 related to affordable and attainable housing at an Open House scheduled for:
Date: August 6, 2009
Location: Senior Citizens Drop In Centre
562 – 3rd Ave
Time: 1:00 pm to 5:00 pm; 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm
For more information please contact:
Bruce Lennox, Director of Planning at 250-423-2258 or at bruce.lennox@fernie.ca
