WCEL > Issues > Urban Growth and Development > Smart Bylaws Guide > Part 1 > Urban Containment Boundaries > Pitt Meadows Regional Context Statement

Smart Bylaws Guide – Pitt Meadows Regional Context Statement

Pitt Meadows Official Community Plan, section 1.2 Regional Context

Protect the Green Zone

The Municipality and the GVRD will work towards achieving consistency between the OCP and the elements identified in the LRSP [Livable Region Strategic Plan] Green Zone map.

Map Schedule "A" of the Pitt Meadows OCP identifies lands that are designated for urban and non-urban uses such as the Provincial Agricultural Land Reserve areas, provincial, regional and local parks. Collectively, these areas constitute our "Green Zone" lands.

The Pitt Meadows OCP recognizes and protects our Green Zone areas by:

• Identifying urban areas and limiting those areas with containment boundaries; and 
• Recognizing these areas through land use designations that protect their inherent natural resource values (agricultural, park, greenbelt); and 
• Enhancing the viability of agriculture through public policy; and 
• Implementing the Regional Greenways Plan for Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows.

Build Complete Communities 

1. Pitt Meadows support the development of greater diversity in the Municipality by: 

• Improving opportunities for residents to live and work in the area, by ensuring adequate land is available for commercial and industrial pursuits, encouraging home-based business, and by increasing housing density within the urban/commercial core; and 
• Enhancing opportunities for social and cultural interaction, by encouraging through policy, the provision of amenities, services and recreational opportunities closer to residents, and by ensuring commercial cores by centrally located within urban growth areas; and 
• Protecting culturally significant sites and heritage values; and 
• Providing a variety of housing opportunities for residents through land use designations and policy. 

2. Pitt Meadows supports the development of a network of mixed suburban activity centres by:

• Encouraging the Pitt Meadows Municipal Town Centre to be the focus of activity for the business, cultural and entertainment sectors, the central public transit hub with inter-regional connections by bus and train, and the focus for the majority of the higher density residential areas in the Municipality; and 
• Encouraging the concentration of activities in a hierarchy of lower order commercial centres based upon the needs of the surrounding population to promote compactness, community identity, local public transit service, and commercial activity; and 
• Encouraging, through land use designations and policies, housing at a range of appropriate densities and concentrating growth in existing and proposed urban communities. 

Achieve a Compact Metropolitan Region

The Regional Vision for Pitt Meadows encourages greater self-reliance. The Official Community Plan seeks to link residential growth with local skilled job creation. The Livable Region Strategic Plan encourages a better balance in housing and labour force throughout the region. The previous Official Community Plan had a combined population capacity of approximately 17,000. This Official Community Plan after an extensive review and consolidation process, now contemplates population growth to reach 20,000+ by 2021. Population growth should be matched with improvements in the employment, transportation and transit capacities of the Region and District. 

1. The new Pitt Meadows Tomorrow Official Community Plan will seek to recognize and encourage greater emphasis on economic development to promote investment and the creation of skilled jobs in the community 

2. The community expects to grow at lower rates than it has in the past, but still maintains community vitality by achieving a balance of residential, industrial and commercial growth. 

3. The Municipality will work with the Region towards consistency between the Official Community Plan and the Livable Region Strategic Plan over time and will: 

• Undertake to monitor progress made collectively to seek a better balance between population and the number of jobs in the Maple Ridge/Pitt Meadows area; and 
• Periodically review the employment capacity of the community while respecting the growth management and transportation objectives of the Livable Region Strategic Plan; and 
• Periodically review the housing capacity figures while respecting the growth management and transportation objectives of the Livable Region Strategic Plan; and 
• Continue to seek significant commitments from provincial and regional agencies in their areas of authority for assistance to enhance the local economy especially in terms of the balance between skilled jobs versus ground oriented medium density housing; and 
• Undertake a review of existing and potential urban areas to determine appropriate timing of development or redevelopment. 

Increase Transportation Choice 

The Municipality and the GVRD will work towards achieving consistency between the transportation elements of the OCP and LRSP. 

1. Pitt Meadows supports improving transportation choice through: 

• Encouraging improved urban design to provide for alternative transportation modes; and 
• Implementing the joint Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows bikeways plan; and 
• Promoting alternatives to the automobile; and 
• Helping to alter travel behavior by encouraging home-based business, granting priority treatment for transit in inter-regional movements, and encouraging special traffic lanes. And promoting vehicle trip reduction. 

2. Pitt Meadows will contribute to a transit-oriented and automobile-restrained transportation system for the region by: 

Encouraging transit oriented development through public policy and infill development (Policies 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 10.8). 

The Municipality will work towards consistency between the Official Community Plan and Livable Region Strategic Plan over time and will participate in any regional initiatives to establish improvements to public transit and will: 

• Actively participate with other North Fraser Shore Communities on Translink; and 
• Seek regional and provincial support for a continuous High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) and bus lane network to the east and west of Harris Road along Lougheed Highway and enhancement of the West Coast Express transit service consistent with the Liveable Region Strategic Plan.