Village of Chester Secondary Planning Strategy and Land Use By-law Review

The Village Review (update and rewrite of existing Secondary Planning Strategy and Land Use By-law) continues into the Fall. The latest version of the draft documents (dated August 2024, available in the Document Library) were rejected by Council following a public hearing held in September. Council, hearing from residents, was not prepared to adopt the documents until further changes were made. Direction from Council was to have the Village Planning Advisory Committee (VPAC) meet to review the main outstanding issues and provide recommendations back to Council for final changes.

The list of issues Council asked VPAC to review included:

• density concerns (Accessory Dwelling Units, Multi-unit residential structures in Core Commercial Zone)
• the extent of the Core Commercial Zone
• several ideas raised by members of the public that needed further review and legal comments including implementing a moratorium on all development in the Village or whether new development could be required to install a cistern as part of the development permit process.

VPAC met on October 10th and November 12th and have provided a number of recommendations for changes to the draft planning documents. VPAC will meet again on December 10th (beginning at 3:00pm in Council Chambers, 151 King Street). VPAC meetings are open to the public to attend and view the discussion. When VPAC has concluded their work, the package of recommendations will be brought forward to Council for consideration.

The expected process will then see staff making changes to the draft documents as directed by Council. Council will then determine whether further public meetings are required or whether the documents should be prepared for adoption (following a 3rd Public Hearing).

If you have questions regarding the draft documents, attending an upcoming VPAC or Council meeting, please do not hesitate to contact us at 902-275-2599 or email planning@chester.ca

Following the initial Public Hearing held in July, Council directed staff to make several changes to the Secondary Planning Strategy and Land Use By-law. This was based primarily on the feedback and comments expressed at the Public Hearing and in written comments from members of the Public.

Council directed staff to make the following changes:

• Density Concerns - removed duplexes from R2 Zone. R1 and R2 now allow only a Single Unit Dwelling and one Accessory Dwelling Unit per lot.
• Expansion of Core Commercial - reverted the Core Commercial Zone to the existing boundaries as they have been in place since 2004 (specifically removed proposed expansion on Duke/Water Streets).
• Seawinds Subdivision - created a new R3 Zone (former R3 becomes R4 and former R4 becomes R5) to allow only Single Unit Dwelling and one Accessory Dwelling Unit per lot.
• R5 (formerly R4) Zone Density - reduced number of units from 8 to 4 by permit, 5-12 units per lot is now possible through Site Plan Approval process

With the above changes, Council again gave 1st Reading to the draft documents at a meeting held on August 8th. A new date for a second Public Hearing has also been set for Thursday September 5th, 2024. The meeting will be held in the gymnasium at the Chester Area Middle School (CAMS), 204 Duke Street, Chester beginning at 6:30pm. Members of the public may speak at the hearing and/or submit written comments to pmyra@chester.ca by Friday August 30, 2024 at 4:30pm.

At a Council meeting held on June 20th, Council gave 1st Reading to the Village Secondary Planning Strategy and Land Use By-law. Copies of this draft of the documents are available in the Document Library on the right hand side of the screen.

Council also announced a date for a Public Hearing to be held on Thursday July 11th beginning at 6:30pm. The Hearing will be held at 54 Regent Street (Tuck Hall). Members of the public may speak at the Hearing or can submit written comments to the Municipal Clerk (pmyra@chester.ca). Written comments must be received no later than Monday, July 8th at 4:30pm.

If you have questions on the Village Review, how to submit comments or questions on the process moving forward, please email planning@chester.ca or phone 902-275-2599.

Following the public meetings held in March, staff returned to Council for a discussion and to receive direction on a series of final changes to the draft documents. Those changes have now been implemented and the Final Draft of the SPS and LUB will be brought to Council on May 30th for consideration.

Copies of the Final Draft Secondary Planning Strategy and Land Use By-law are now available by clicking the links or navigating to the Document Library.

If Council is satisfied with the documents, they may give 1st reading and schedule a date and time for a Public Hearing. If Council is not satisfied with the Final Draft documents on May 30th, they may direct staff to make further changes and/or hold additional public meetings to solicit comment and feedback.

The Public Hearing is the final public meeting where written or in-person presentations and submissions may be made to Council in support or in opposition to the draft SPS and LUB. Details on the date and time of the Public Hearing will be added to this site once confirmed.

Following public meetings in Summer 2023, and discussion with Council in October, direction was provided to staff to make changes based on public input and feedback. This work in now complete and Draft #2 of the Chester Village Secondary Planning Strategy and Land Use By-law are now available.

A summary of changes from Draft #1:

• Reverted minimum lot area in R1 (ER) Zone to 40,000 sq. ft. (no change from existing), but maintained new maximum footprint and Gross Floor Area requirements;
• Removed height exemption for solar panels (panels are permitted but must comply with maximum building height);
• Maintained primary residence requirement for Short Term Rentals in Residential Zones. Added language to confirm no "grandfathering" or existing status will be granted to existing Short Term Rentals;
• Removed Corner Vision Triangle requirements for intersections (received good support but determined to be outside of Municipal jurisdiction as vast majority of roads are Provincially owned and maintained);
• Retaining walls 2m or more in height now require a development permit. When deemed necessary the Development Officer may now call for submission of geotechnical report to confirm the work will not create or worsen erosion/hazard;
• In Outer Area, commercial agriculture, which could include keeping farm animals, is now regulated by Development Agreement;
• Shipping containers that are fully clad in appropriate siding and roofing materials shall be viewed as any other structure in the zone;
• Expanded Storm water Standard to apply to developments of 3 or more dwelling units, all commercial and industrial developments, with exception for very small additions;
• Architectural Control Changes:
  • added minimum roof pitch of 2:12 for multi-unit residential and commercial buildings;
  • Vinyl siding prohibited on buildings with footprint over 140 m2;
  • Vinyl siding limited to 25% of public façade for buildings with footprint less than 140 m2;
  • Prohibited use of metal siding, concrete block, unfinished concrete, and stone veneer (faux stone);
  • added maximum height for accessory structures of 6 m;
  • Accessory structures larger than 20 m2 must comply with Architectural Controls;
  • Added provision to prohibit dirt, stone, gravel or other aggregate as being used to replace traditional landscaping and lawn areas;
• LUB Map Changes:
  • Reverted several properties along Highway 3 from R4 to HC, based on submission from Luke MacDonald representing owners of the land;
  • Reverted PID 60093572 from R4 to HC at Owner's request;
  • Small Municipal parcel adjacent Tancook Wharf rezoned to Parks and Open Space;
  • Rezoned two areas from R1 to R2, based on changes to R1 zone to maintain large existing lot size, these lots did not it the criteria of R1 and would have been limited in development potential while under R1. Areas include: Brunswick-Victoria/Regent-Union Streets and Pig Loop-Harbour Vie Lane/Nauss Point - Municipal Sewer Plant.

Draft #2 will be presented to Council on Thursday February 29, 2024. At the meeting a discussion will occur to determine the extent of the final round of public engagement, which will include at minimum one public meeting in March. This page will be updated once the final public engagement schedule has been confirmed.

Copies of the updated documents are now available in the Document Library or by following the links below:

Draft #2 of the Chester Village Land Use By-law

Draft #2 Land Use By-law Maps (Zoning)

Draft #2 of the Chester Village Secondary Planning Strategy

Draft #2 SPS Maps

Following the series of public sessions held in the summer, staff have received a large number of written comments, emails and letters in response to the draft Secondary Planning Strategy and Land Use By-law.

These comments have been categorized and documented in the What We Heard Report (available here). Copies of all original written comments (with redactions of sensitive information) are attached to the report as an Appendix.

Council will consider the report this Thursday, October 26th. The meeting begins at 8:45am in Council Chambers (151 King St.) and is open to the public to attend.

Following the meeting, staff will make changes to the documents based on the direction from Council and then produce a Final Draft for consideration and adoption. Note: a Public Hearing will be held prior to adoption which is a final opportunity for members of the public to speak or write in favour or opposition to the documents. More information on the Public Hearing will be posted and advertised when available.

A big thank you to everyone who attended one of the four public sessions, has called, written in and/or stopped into the planning office to learn about and provide comments and feedback on the draft SPS and LUB. We have been very pleased with the turnout and submissions received to date (we had 135 attendees across the 4 sessions).

The next step in the review process is to bring a "What we heard report" to the Village Planning Advisory Committee (VPAC) for discussion and comment before the report moves to Council. This meeting with the VPAC was originally scheduled for September 12, 2023. Due to the amount of feedback received and to ensure that the report contains appropriate options for changes to the draft documents, a decision has been made to postpone the September 12 meeting. The new date for the VPAC meeting is OCTOBER 10, 2023 beginning at 4:00pm in Municipal Council Chambers (151 King Street). The meeting is open to members of the public who wish to attend. Time to speak and address the Committee is determined by the Committee members at the meeting.

Also, while the formal ask was to submit comments and feedback by August 25, 2023, we will continue to accept feedback that arrives and attempt to incorporate this into the report.

Following a series of 4 public meetings held in July and August, staff are now reviewing and processing comments and feedback received to date. In order to proceed to the next steps and discuss the comments and feedback with Council, we are asking that comments and feedback be submitted to planning@chester.ca, dropped off at 186 Central Street or mailed to Municipality of Chester, PO Box 369, Chester, NS B0J 1J0. We will try to incorporate any feedback received after this date, but strongly encourage you to submit by the suggested deadline to ensure your comments are received and considered by Council.

On Saturday July 22, staff held the first public session to discuss the draft Secondary Planning Strategy and Land Use By-law for the Village of Chester. Despite the damaging and heavy rains experienced over the previous 24 hours, there was a good turn-out and discussion. In light of the extreme weather and travel implications, we have decided to schedule a 4th public meeting. This will be held on Saturday August 5th beginning at 10:30am at St. Stephen's Community Centre (54 Regent St. Chester).

The schedule of all remaining meetings (held at 54 Regent St. Chester) is:

• Wednesday July 26 - beginning at 2:30pm
• Thursday August 3 - beginning at 6:30pm
• (NEW) Saturday August 5 - beginning at 10:30am

The content at each session will be the same, however, discussion and questions will likely differ. Please feel free to attend one or more sessions and spread the word to friends, family, neighbours and other community members.

Feel free to reach out at any time to ask questions, provide comments or discuss the Village Plan Review by emailing: planning@chester.ca or phoning 902-275-2599.