Neighbourhood Plans
There are four City of Victoria area plans that involve James Bay:
- Official Community Plan (OCP)
- Downtown Core Area Plan – DCAP (Includes the north part of James Bay)
- Harbour Plan which involves our harbour foreshore lands, and
- James Bay Neighbourhood Plan (JBNP)
There are many other plans associated with land use in general:
- Cycling
- Urban Forest Overview and Master Plan
- James Bay Transportation Plan (June 1996) – not available online
Additionally, there are precinct area and industrial area plans which will interplay with the JBNP in the years ahead:
- Ogden Point (December 2016 draft proposal)
- Belleville Terminal
- Fisherman’s Wharf
- Victoria Accord
- James Bay Heritage Conservation areas
Official Community Plan (OCP) – July 2012 (frequently updated)
A City’s Official Community Plan, its OCP, sets out a framework of objectives and policies to guide development. Under the BC Local Government Act, a city is to have an OCP to guide land use and policy related to building form, character and design.
The OCP has as its objective the creation of a sustainable City by 2041, a City with 20,000 more residents than in 2011. However, the OCP is silent on the anticipated growth in each neighbourhood.
The OCP is village centred, with downtown being a special place.
The OCP speaks to many aspects of the City including housing, land use and development, transportation, parks, environment, infrastructure, economy, arts and culture, food systems, emergency measures, social policies, and more. The OCP is not a set-in-stone document. There have been changes since 2012 and more will be made.
Downtown Core Area Plan (DCAP) – September 2011
While the OCP process was underway, DCAP was created and approved. Part of James Bay was included in DCAP. This was a significant change for James Bay – one that JBNA has been monitoring as policies that accompany DCAP can be quite different from residential policies.
Victoria Harbour Plan – November 2001 – Revised August 2012
The Harbour Plan provides direction and certainty for land use and marine dependent activities in and around the harbour, from the Strait of Juan de Fuca to the Gorge Waterway. Since James Bay lands border the Outer, Middle and Inner harbour segments of Victoria Harbour, harbour activities.
The document states that, where discrepancies occur between the Harbour Plan and neighbourhood plans, the Harbour Plan takes precedence.
James Bay Neighbourhood Plan (JBNP) – November 1993
The JBNP was negotiated through a mediated process. The 1993 plan describes the community values that have changed little in the ensuing decades. An errata sheet, dated September 19, 1994, was added to the JBNP to reflect goals and policies detailed in the Victoria Accord, a planning vision agreement for the Legislative Precinct area. Part of the Victoria Accord, the build-out of South Block, has been realized through the Capital Park development.
Victoria Accord – June 1994
The Victoria Accord is an agreement between the City of Victoria and the Province of BC which provides a Master Plan and commitment for the development of lands within the Legislative Precinct, adjacent to the Legislative Grounds. The agreement was completed in June, 1994.
The Provincial lands were, in addition to the Legislative grounds, used for parking and temporary buildings; originally these lands included South Block, Q lot, S lot and a small parking lot between Parry and Powell streets.
The Accord called for new and consolidated government office space, housing and public amenity. In late 2013, the Province of BC took steps towards the implementation of the development of South Block resulting in the creation of Capital Park.
