Town of Port Hawkesbury
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Town of Port Hawkesbury Municipal Planning Strategy Submitted to meet the requirements of the Integrated Community Sustainability Plan March 2010 Last amended: June 2021 Port Hawkesbury Muni cipal Planning Strategy Table of Contents CHAPTER 1 - INTRODUCTION............................................................................................................... 3 1.1 Legislative Mandate ............................................................................................................. 3 1.2 Purpose ................................................................................................................................ 3 1.3 Background to the Plan ....................................................................................................... 4 1.4 Sustainability Principles ....................................................................................................... 4 1.5 Planning Process and Community Consultation ................................................................. 7 1.6 Implications of the Municipal Planning Strategy ............................................................... 7 CHAPTER 2 - PLANNING CONTEXT ....................................................................................................... 9 2.1 Physical Setting .................................................................................................................... 9 2.2 History & Early Development .............................................................................................. 9 2.3 Population.......................................................................................................................... 10 2.4 Employment ...................................................................................................................... 10 CHAPTER 3 - LAND USE POLICIES ....................................................................................................... 12 3.1 Residential Development.................................................................................................. 12 3.2 Commercial Development ................................................................................................. 22 3.3 Industrial Development ..................................................................................................... 30 3.4 Open Space and Recreation .............................................................................................. 33 CHAPTER 4 - COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT ....................................................................................... 35 4.1 Transportation ................................................................................................................... 35 4.2 Town Services .................................................................................................................... 37 4.3 Community Services .......................................................................................................... 40 4.4 Leadership in the Environment ......................................................................................... 43 4.5 Special Considerations ....................................................................................................... 46 4.6 General Development Policies .......................................................................................... 47 CHAPTER 5 – IMPLEMENTATION ....................................................................................................... 50 5.1 Municipal Planning Strategy ............................................................................................ 50 5.2 Development Agreement .................................................................................................. 53 5.3 Sustainability Strategies and Building Capacity ................................................................. 56 5.4 Capital Projects and Timeline ........................................................................................... 56 5.5 Site Plan Approval .............................................................................................................. 57 APPENDIX A: IMPLEMENTATION STRATEGIES ................................................................................... 58 APPENDIX B: PRIORITIZED CAPITAL PROJECTS .................................................................................. 61 APPENDIX C: Destination Reeves: Complete Street and Design Element Guide (see attached) APPENDIX D: Port Hawkesbury Active Transportation Plan (see attached) 2 Port Hawkesbury Muni cipal Planning Strategy CHAPTER 1 - INTRODUCTION 1.1 Legislative Mandate The Municipal Government Act, Chapter 18 of the Statutes of Nova Scotia, 1998, gives the Town of Port Hawkesbury the authority to regulate land use planning and development within its boundaries. Among other things, the Act enables the Town to adopt a Municipal Planning Strategy, which is the primary vehicle for Town Council to express its planning objectives. This Municipal Planning Strategy encompasses the entire area of land within the official boundaries of the Town of Port Hawkesbury as shown in the Context Map. 1.2 Purpose Section 213 of the Municipal Government Act states that the purpose of a Municipal Planning Strategy is to provide statements of policy to guide the development and management of the municipality. These statements are established to do the following: (a) to address problems and opportunities concerning the development of land and the effects of development; (b) to provide a framework for the environmental, social and economic development within the municipality; (c) to establish policies that are reasonably consistent with the intent of the statements of Provincial interest, and (d) to specify programs and actions necessary for implementing the municipal planning strategy. Specifically, the Municipal Planning Strategy for the Town of Port Hawkesbury has been prepared in order to: • Guide the decisions of Council with respect to the regulation of development and the provision of public services and facilities. • Provide for orderly growth and development which will preserve and improve the living environment for the community. • Describe the integration of environmental, economic, social and cultural sustainability into broader community planning objectives. • Enhance the Town’s position as a regional centre in the Strait of Canso area. • Protect the natural and built environments from disruptions caused by uncontrolled development. • Provide a variety of services to maximize social benefits for the community without placing an unnecessary financial burden on the residents. This Municipal Planning Strategy develops these goals into policies which are implemented through a variety of means outlined in the Implementation Section (Chapter 5). 3 Port Hawkesbury Muni cipal Planning Strategy 1.3 Background to the Plan In September 1968, the first Port Hawkesbury Municipal Development Plan (Municipal Planning Strategy) was approved by the Minister of Municipal Affairs. The Zoning By-law (Land Use By- law) was approved a year later in October 1969. A new Municipal Development Plan was prepared in 1976 but because of technical and thematic problems, it was not granted ministerial approval. Early in 1977, the Planning Advisory Committee for the Town of Port Hawkesbury requested and received assistance from the Community Planning Division of the Department of Municipal Affairs to review the Municipal Development Plan and Zoning By-law. The 1976 documents were reviewed and revised in partnership with the Planning Advisory Committee and the documents were approved by the Province in March 1979. In accordance with the requirements of what was then called the Planning Act, the Municipal Planning Strategy (Municipal Development Plan) had to be reviewed within 5 years of its adoption. Council, through the Planning Advisory Committee and with the assistance of the Community Planning Division, began another review process in the fall of 1984 and the revised planning documents were approved in 1986, and revised again in 1994. Since the 1994 review the Town has seen many changes. Therefore, in 2004, under the direction of the Port Hawkesbury Planning Advisory Committee, the Eastern District Planning Commission began a full review of the Municipal Planning Strategy and the accompanying Land Use By-law. Council approved these new documents on May 9, 2006. In 2005, the federal government and Province of Nova Scotia entered into an agreement where funds equivalent to a portion of the federal excise tax on municipalities would be transferred to municipalities to help fund capital projects related to sustainability. One condition of the Gas Tax Agreement is that each municipality prepares an Integrated Community Sustainability Plan (ICSP). Port Hawkesbury has decided to incorporate its ICSP into its existing Municipal Planning Strategy given the synergies between land use planning, community development and developing a sustainable vision for the future. This Strategy is based on the 2006 document but amended in March 2010 to greater address principles of cultural, economic, environmental and social sustainability. 1.4 Sustainability Principles An Integrated Community Sustainability Plan is a long term plan, developed in consultation with community members, which provides direction for the community to realize sustainability objectives it has for the cultural, economic, environmental and social dimensions of its identity.