reVISION Plan Review - PROJECT COMPLETE

At a two part workshop held on July 25 and August 2, staff presented the Third Round Public Engagement Report to Municipal Council. The report is available to view here. Council had discussions on various topics raised during the 14 public engagement meetings held in April and May. Council then gave direction to staff for each topic as to what changes should be made to the draft documents in response to the comments received. Staff will now make the requested changes to produce a Final Draft. Below is a summary of the general direction provided by Council to staff on each of the topics listed in the Third Round Public Engagement Report.

Farm Animals -

Council chose Option D, form an ad-hoc committee of farmers and citizens to deliberate and present revised regulations to Council. Council chose to separate Farm Animal Regulations from the draft documents. The committee will be formed and will work to recommend an approach for regulating Farm Animals which Council can consider as an amendment to the planning documents. This will allow the draft documents to move forward without being significantly delayed by this single topic. Until the new regulations are determined, existing regulations will be carried forward from the current plan (only affects Single Unit Residential and Rural Residential Zones).

Recreational Vehicles -

Council chose to maintain regulations for Recreational Vehicles only on Marvin's Island. Consideration as to whether these regulations should apply to all areas under the Single Unit Residential Zone will be researched further. The draft regulations for Recreational Vehicles will be removed from all other zones.

Yard Sales/Garage Sales -

Council chose Option B, to remove all regulations for Yard Sales from the draft documents.

Solar Collectors -

Council chose Option C, to remove regulations for solar collectors attached to a main structure, permits and setbacks will be required for off-building solar collectors.

Coastal Protections -

Council chose Option B, to await information on the Coastal Protection Act and Regulations proposed by the Province of Nova Scotia. No coastal setback or protections will be included in the draft documents at this time.

Chester Islands (Minimum Lot size) -

Council chose Option D, to distinguish those islands that currently are within the Chester Village Planning Area and to reintroduce the minimum lot size for new lots of 10 acres. Those islands outside the current Village Planning Area, will not have the 10 acre minimum lot size applied and will remain with minimum lot size determined based on on-site septic system requirements as determined by the Nova Scotia Department of Environment.

Exit 6 Zoning (Hubbards Gateway Zone) -

Council chose Option B, to remove the Gateway Zone and replace with the Settlement Residential Two Zone, with a note that further discussion between the Settlement Residential Two and Mixed Use could be had at the joint meeting between Council and CPAC.

Settlement Residential Two Zone (Fox Point Lake & Mill Cove) -

Council chose Option B with some changes, to reduce the area covered by the Settlement Residential Two Zone, by removing the SR-2 Zone from the area south of Mill Cove Park between Highway 329 and the ocean, referred to as the "finger" of SR-2 Zone. This area will be changed to the General Basic Zone so that both sides of the Highway are subject to the same regulations.

Target Hill Road Zoning -

Council chose Option B, to replace the Mixed Use Zone with the Single Unit Residential Zone for properties with frontage on Target Hill Road.

Home Based Business -

Council chose Option B, to remove Home Based Business from the General Provisions Section and insert language for Home Based Business directly into the Single Unit Residential Zone and coastal Island Zone sections of the Land Use By-law.

Non-Conforming Uses (MGA 6-Month Period of Discontinuation) -

Council chose Option B, to add language to extend the 6-month time frame to 12 months for all Non-Conforming Uses. While this would apply to Non-Conforming Farm Animals, that specific aspect can also be addressed by the ad-hoc Farm Animal Regulations Committee discussed in the first section of the workshop.

Hamlet Zone Boundaries (New Ross, Western Shore & Chester Basin) -

Council chose Option C, to revise the Hamlet Boundary in New Ross to exclude some larger lots along Rose Bank Road and Gold River.

Watercourse, Water Bodies, and Wetlands 20m Setback Requirement –

Council chose Option B, to reduce the required setback distance from 20m to 15m. This discussion also resulted in Council providing direction to reduce the Lakefront Overlay from 20m to 15m (noted later in this report).

Outdoor Wood Furnaces –

Council chose Option B, to reduce the horizontal setback requirements for Outdoor Wood furnaces by 50%, the result being that these devices must be setback 22m from property lines and 45m from an existing dwelling on an neighbouring property. In addition, Outdoor Wood Furnaces in the General Basic Zone and Mixed Use Zone will have no regulations and will not require a permit.

Gateway Zone (Reformat and Introduce Maximum Setback) –

Council chose Option C, to restructure the Gateway Zone’s list of permitted uses, add language for “all other commercial/institutional uses”, and implement a Maximum Front Yard Setback to address site design.

Signs –

Council chose Option B, to move forward with staff suggested changes to simplify and lessen regulations for signs: remove smaller size limit in GW & HM Zones, consider awnings as wall signs and allow up to 20% wall area covered by signs, separate Home Based Business signs, remove one sign per lot limit, allow internally illuminated signs and clarify that setbacks for signs are from property lines.

ADDITIONAL TOPICS:

The following topics were not included in the report but were raised during discussion with Council. Direction was provided as follows:

Lakefront Overlay –

Reduce the Lakefront Overlay from 20m to 15m around all lakes.

Kaizer Meadow Zones (Setbacks & Vegetated Buffer) –

Bring forward the existing watercourse setback (25m) and vegetated buffer requirements (25m) for only the Kaizer Meadow Industrial Zone and Kaizer Meadow Zone. This will result in no change to the current regulations in place for these zones.

Business Park Zone –

Council directed staff to apply the Business Park Zone to the area identified. At the time the draft documents were originally prepared, the location of the Business Park was not yet confirmed.

Farm Animals Existing Regulations –

Bring forward existing regulations for Farm Animals. This affects only Single Unit Residential Zone & Rural Residential Zone (to become Settlement Residential One). Only those areas that currently have regulations for Farm Animals are affected. This is an interim measure to maintain existing regulations while the ad-hoc Committee is formed and works to recommend a long-term approach for Farm Animal Regulations for the entire Municipality.

NEXT STEPS:

At the meeting, Council also directed that staff hold a meeting with the Citizens Planning Advisory Committee to discuss the Third Round Public Engagement Report and the process to date. Following this meeting, a joint meeting between Municipal Council and the Citizens Planning Advisory Committee will be scheduled to work toward a recommendation from the Committee to adopt the Final Draft documents. Dates for these meetings will be posted when they are available.

For any questions related to the reVISION Muncipal Plan Review Process, please contact us at 902-275-2599 or email: revision@chester.ca

Following the 14 public meetings held in April and May, staff have prepared a report to Council which summarizes the feedback and comments received at the meetings.

Please click one of the following links to view the report. The first link will open the report including attachments, the second link will open the report only, without attachments (smaller file size):

1) Third Round Public Engagement Report (Including Attachments) - 115 MB

2) Third Round Engagement Report (Report Only) - 1.4 MB

Staff have presented a portion of the report to Council at a session held on July 25, 2018. The remaining portion of the report will be presented to Council in the near future. Council will then provide direction to staff to make changes to the draft documents.

Once the requested changes have been made, staff will bring the revised documents to a meeting with Council and the Citizens Planning Advisory Committee to review the final draft documents. The date and time for this meeting has not been set, but updates will be posted to this site as more information is available.

If you have any questions regarding the Third Round Engagement Report, the process going forward or any aspect of the reVISION Plan Review process, please post a question here or contact us at 902-275-2599 or email: revision@chester.ca

July 11, 2018

Following the completion of the 14 public engagement meetings in April and May, staff have prepared a report for Council, summarizing the comments, concerns and suggestions heard during the public engagement meetings. The report also offers options for Council to consider ways in which the documents can be altered to address concerns raised. Staff will work with the Citizens Planning Advisory Committee to make any changes requested by Council.

Council has scheduled a workshop session for July 25, 2018 from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. in Municipal Council Chambers (151 King Street) to review the report and discuss options. Please note, while open to the public, this workshop is not an opportunity for public comments or presentations. Members of the public who wish to make a presentation to Council can request an appointment at a regular scheduled Council meeting. No decision to adopt or reject the documents will be made at this meeting. Council will decide what the next steps are in the process and provide direction to staff.

Please note, this workshop pertains only to the Municipal Planning Strategy and Land Use By-law, and does not include the Chester Village Planning Documents.

If you have any questions regarding the reVISION Plan Review, please contact us by phone 902-275-2599 or email: revision@chester.ca

We have now completed the scheduled 14 public meetings to explain and gather comments and feedback on the Draft Planning Strategy and Land Use By-law. At each meeting we have been taking notes to gather the comments and questions asked . The final seven meeting notes are now available for review. This will allow anyone a chance to view what questions have been asked at the meetings.

Click one of the links below to view the meeting notes from that date:

May 3, 2018 - Blandford Community Centre

May 7, 2018 - Hubbards Fire Hall

May 9, 2018 - Chester Basin Fire Hall

May 14, 2018 - Canaan Little Red Schoolhouse

May 17, 2018 - Western Shore Legion

May 23, 2018 - Chester Legion

May 28, 2018 - New Ross Fire Hall

NEXT STEPS - Staff are now working to write a report that will summarize all of the feedback and comments received during the 14 public meetings. This report will be presented to Municipal Council. Council will provide direction to staff and the Citizens Planning Advisory Committee to make changes to the draft documents based on the feedback and comments received so far. It is expected that this report will be presented to Council in July (date to be confirmed). The meeting with Council is open to the public to attend and once confirmed the date and time will be advertised.

If you have any questions regarding the reVISION process, please post a question here or contact us at 902-275-2599 or email: revision@chester.ca

We have now passed the halfway point of our 14 public meetings to explain and gather comments and feedback on the Draft Planning Strategy and Land Use By-law. At each meeting we have been taking notes to gather the comments and questions asked . We are posting the notes from the first seven meetings today, with the remaining meeting notes to follow. This will allow a chance to view what questions have been asked so far.

Click one of the links below to view the meeting notes from that date:

April 9 - East River Union Hall

April 12 - Hubbards Fire Hall

April 16 - Chester Legion

April 17 - Chester Basin Fire Hall

April 23 - Western Shore Legion

April 25 - New Ross Fire Hall

April 30 - Bonny Lea Farm

Please let us know what you think of the draft documents by posting a comment or question, email your comments to revision@chester.ca, or by attending one of the remaining Public Meetings between 2-4 pm and again between 6-8 pm (May 14 at the Little Red Schoolhouse in Canaan, May 17 at the Western Shore Legion, May 23 at the Chester Legion or May 28 at the Fire Hall in New Ross).

Planning and zoning help to sets out the vision of the community. The Municipal Planning Strategy and Land Use by-law are a set of documents that help to guide development in the Municipality. While it does regulate land use, it's not just about telling you what to do with your land. It also helps to ensure that your neighbors, both now and in the future, are developing their property in a way that suits the character of your community. Zoning is the tool that we can use to help ensure that development occurs in a manner that is respectful of the environment and helps to protect property values by preventing incompatible land uses.

The Municipal Planning Strategy (MPS)is a document that describes our goals for future growth and development, and what we should do to shape that growth and development.There are many benefits to having an MPS. The MPS:

• Lets the public know what the municipality's general land use planning policies are.
• Helps members of the community understand how their land can be used now and how it might be used in the future.
• Makes sure that growth is coordinated and meets the community’s needs.
• Helps to guide where roads, infrastructure, parks and other services should be built.
• Provides a policy framework for municipal zoning by-laws that set local regulations and standards, like the size of lots and height of buildings.
• Shows Council's commitment to the future growth of the community.

A Land Use By-law (LUB) is a document that sets the rules that will achieve the vision set out in the MPS. For example, the MPS may have a policy that says a certain area should have low density, residential development only. Based on that policy, the LUB creates a zone which would specify how many residential units can be built on a lot, what type of houses are permitted, and how far you have to set your house back from the property line.

• Confirm the vision and planning goals developed by CPAC and staff, as a result of the information gathered during the first round of consultation;
• Present some specific ideas regarding planning, and gain public feedback to assist CPAC with their next step in the development of the revised Municipal Planning Strategy

The feedback from these meetings can be found here.