North Cowichan is fortunate to have something quite unusual in its municipally owned forest reserve. Logging was halted in 2019, followed by extensive public consultation and scientific review, with the five member nations of the Quw'utsun Nation also participating in discussions about the future of the forest. A strong majority of residents who participated in the consultation supported conservation rather than a return to logging. These forests are also heavily used by residents and visitors for recreation, including several annual mountain bike races. As discussions about their future continue, we need to respect the public process and recognize the environmental, recreational, and community value of keeping these forests intact.

What is the OCP? The OCP is the Official Community Plan. It is our community’s long-term vision for how North Cowichan should grow, developed through extensive consultation with residents. It guides where development should occur while protecting farmland, the environment, and existing communities.

The North Cowichan Official Community Plan is not being followed. The plan took years to create, at significant cost. More than 1,200 residents and community groups participated over three years, through public workshops, multi-day public hearings, and opportunities to review and critique the plan. Changing the OCP so soon after the community helped create it does not respect the time, effort, and input that residents put into the process.

A core purpose of the OCP was to limit urban sprawl and concentrate development where services and infrastructure already exist. Extending services to new areas may provide short-term benefits, but it can also create long-term costs that are ultimately borne by taxpayers. Continually considering amendments also takes time and resources away from development applications that already conform to the OCP, slowing the process for developers who have followed the plan.

The Kingsview development is an example of why we need to consider the long-term consequences of these decisions. Adding 809 new housing units in an area with a high wildfire risk raises serious concerns about emergency access and evacuation. The limited routes onto Maple Bay Road and ultimately toward Duncan will also have to accommodate a significant increase in traffic. Before approving development of this scale, we need to be confident that our roads, emergency access, and other infrastructure can safely support it.

We created the OCP for a reason. We need to follow it, make better use of the land and infrastructure we already have, and respect the community process that created it.

North Cowichan is fortunate to have something quite unusual in its municipally owned forest reserve. Logging was halted in 2019, followed by extensive public consultation and scientific review, with the five member nations of the Quw'utsun Nation also participating in discussions about the future of the forest. A strong majority of residents who participated in the consultation supported conservation rather than a return to logging. These forests are also heavily used by residents and visitors for recreation, including several annual mountain bike races. As discussions about their future continue, we need to respect the public process and recognize the environmental, recreational, and community value of keeping these forests intact.

What is the OCP? The OCP is the Official Community Plan. It is our community’s long-term vision for how North Cowichan should grow, developed through extensive consultation with residents. It guides where development should occur while protecting farmland, the environment, and existing communities.

The North Cowichan Official Community Plan is not being followed. The plan took years to create, at significant cost. More than 1,200 residents and community groups participated over three years, through public workshops, multi-day public hearings, and opportunities to review and critique the plan. Changing the OCP so soon after the community helped create it does not respect the time, effort, and input that residents put into the process.

A core purpose of the OCP was to limit urban sprawl and concentrate development where services and infrastructure already exist. Extending services to new areas may provide short-term benefits, but it can also create long-term costs that are ultimately borne by taxpayers. Continually considering amendments also takes time and resources away from development applications that already conform to the OCP, slowing the process for developers who have followed the plan.

The Kingsview development is an example of why we need to consider the long-term consequences of these decisions. Adding 809 new housing units in an area with a high wildfire risk raises serious concerns about emergency access and evacuation. The limited routes onto Maple Bay Road and ultimately toward Duncan will also have to accommodate a significant increase in traffic. Before approving development of this scale, we need to be confident that our roads, emergency access, and other infrastructure can safely support it.

We created the OCP for a reason. We need to follow it, make better use of the land and infrastructure we already have, and respect the community process that created it.

North Cowichan needs more housing that working people, families, and seniors can actually afford. The Cowichan Valley living wage is $25.75 an hour, compared with B.C.’s minimum wage of $18.25, while housing costs have risen substantially. At the same time, North Cowichan has identified enough capacity within existing OCP and zoning to accommodate projected housing needs. We can encourage lower-cost rental, co-op and ownership housing through municipal land, partnerships, appropriate density and incentives, while concentrating development where infrastructure and services already exist. Public incentives should result in housing that remains affordable. This would help increase the supply of affordable housing without encouraging urban sprawl, sacrificing farmland and natural areas, or unnecessarily increasing future infrastructure costs for taxpayers.

North Cowichan has a significant unhoused population, and everyone in our community deserves a safe and adequate place to live, that provides warmth in the winter and protection during our increasingly hot summers. Recent improvements to sanitation have helped conditions, but much more needs to be done.

Mayor Douglas’s attempt to repurpose the former Cowichan District Hospital as an addictions and recovery centre did not move forward, but we need to continue looking for solutions. North Cowichan cannot address homelessness, addiction, and supportive housing alone. We need to work with the Province and other partners to provide appropriate housing, services, and support for some of the most vulnerable members of our community.

What is the OCP? The OCP is the Official Community Plan. It is our community’s long-term vision for how North Cowichan should grow, developed through extensive consultation with residents. It guides where development should occur while protecting farmland, the environment, and existing communities.

The North Cowichan Official Community Plan is not being followed. The plan took years to create, at significant cost. More than 1,200 residents and community groups participated over three years, through public workshops, multi-day public hearings, and opportunities to review and critique the plan. Changing the OCP so soon after the community helped create it does not respect the time, effort, and input that residents put into the process.

A core purpose of the OCP was to limit urban sprawl and concentrate development where services and infrastructure already exist. Extending services to new areas may provide short-term benefits, but it can also create long-term costs that are ultimately borne by taxpayers. Continually considering amendments also takes time and resources away from development applications that already conform to the OCP, slowing the process for developers who have followed the plan.

The Kingsview development is an example of why we need to consider the long-term consequences of these decisions. Adding 809 new housing units in an area with a high wildfire risk raises serious concerns about emergency access and evacuation. The limited routes onto Maple Bay Road and ultimately toward Duncan will also have to accommodate a significant increase in traffic. Before approving development of this scale, we need to be confident that our roads, emergency access, and other infrastructure can safely support it.

We created the OCP for a reason. We need to follow it, make better use of the land and infrastructure we already have, and respect the community process that created it.