WELLINGTON COUNTY – Residents can share their opinions on where future development can go, what it might look like and more during a public meeting discussing amendments to the County of Wellington's official plan Thursday.
According to a report on the Official Plan Amendment (OPA) 123, the changes proposed in the County of Wellington's Official Plan are in parts four, six, eight, nine and 10 which focus on general county policies, rural employment areas, detailed primary and secondary urban centre policies, local planning policies and creating new lots.
Most of the amendments focus on part eight of the official plan which discusses the detailed primary and secondary urban centre policies.
The meeting will occur this Thursday at 11 a.m. in county council chambers.
A list of proposed changes is available below:
- permitting the use of up to two additional residential units in a single or semi-detached dwelling or rowhouse and up to two additional residential units within a main residence
- provisions to prevent residential units in secondary buildings or structures when two additional residential units already exist in the primary dwelling
- restricting uses in the rural employment area not conforming with the definition of "area of employment" like manufacturing and warehouse work
- removing a restriction preventing buildings, structures or uses that would interfere with a neighbouring farmer's ability to expand its existing livestock operation in the Palmerston Industrial Park
- removing sections on special residential areas and accessory commercial to residential in Mount Forest
- limiting the size and number of units allowed in a converted dwelling and specifying the minimum lot area, frontage, off-street parking and floor area
- allowing multiple residential developments such as townhouses and apartments in areas designated residential as long as the medium-density development on full municipal services does not exceed 35 units per hectare for townhouses or row houses, and 75 units per hectare for apartments
- provisions to ensure the central business district provides opportunities for higher-density residential mixed-use development
- permitting residential development through mixed-use developments within the central business district provided that retail, office or service commercial uses are located at street level
- removing a section on providing lower-intensity uses in terms of height, density and site coverage where the central business district abuts low-density residential areas
- replacing the design considerations for the central business district and highway commercial to encourage aesthetically acceptable and pedestrian development
- adding a new subsection on establishing zoning provisions to permit and regulate land use within the central business district and the residential transition area
- redefining the central business district's residential transition area and modifying the objectives to provide opportunities for residential development close to downtown cores through compatible residential and mixed-use developments and protecting or incorporating heritage properties into new development when possible
- allowing residential and mixed-use developments ranging from single detached dwellings to appropriately scaled multi-unit and mixed-use buildings with commercial uses located at street level in the central business district
- amending the highway commercial zone to include opportunities for mixed-use development that won't negatively impact the planned function of the area
- allowing residential development in highway commercial zones through mixed use developments when commercial uses are located at street level and land use compatibility can be addressed
- directing low-density and low-coverage commercial development to highway commercial areas
- allowing municipalities to restrict residential uses on incompatible highway commercial lands and consider requests to permit residential uses where the potential incompatibilities with non-residential uses are adequately addressed
- including a new zoning bylaw to require on-site parking, landscaping, buffering, setbacks, maximum lot coverage and building heights and other provisions deemed appropriate to achieve desirable development and appropriate transition to adjacent land uses in highway commercial areas
A full report on OPA 123 and the proposed amendments is available here.
The county's existing official plan can be found here.
Isabel Buckmaster is the Local Journalism Initiative reporter for GuelphToday. LJI is a federally-funded program.
