FAQs
What is an OCP?
An Official Community Plan (OCP) is a long-range planning document that helps guide how a community grows and evolves. It establishes a vision, goals, objectives and policies to help make decisions about land use, housing, and development. OCPs work together with zoning bylaws, which are the regulatory tools used to implement OCP policies.
Why are we updating the OCPs?
The RDKB is updating its electoral area Official Community Plans (OCPs) and one Rural Land Use (RLU) Bylaw to align with provincial housing legislation, recent zoning bylaw updates adopted in June 2024, and housing needs identified through the Interim Housing Needs Report.
These updates are limited to housing-related policies and legislative requirements and do not constitute a comprehensive review of the OCPs or RLU bylaw.
The following two projects involve comprehensive OCP updates and are being reviewed through separate processes:
Electoral Area E - Big White Official Community Plan Update: https://jointheconversation.rdkb.com/big-white-official-community-plan-review.
Electoral Area A Official Community Plan Review: https://jointheconversation.rdkb.com/electoral-area-a-official-community-plan-review
Why are we engaging?
We are engaging with community members to share information about targeted OCP updates related to provincial housing legislation requirements, explain what changes may mean for residents, and answer questions.
The public information sessions process will help residents understand how these updates may affect housing options, land use planning, and future development in their communities.
What is Bill 44?
Bill 44 introduced provincial requirements intended to support more housing options and remove certain zoning barriers to housing.The OCP updates are intended to align housing-related policies with these zoning changes and reflect housing needs identified through the Interim Housing Needs Report.
For regional districts without Urban Containment Boundaries, this includes requirements related to permitting secondary suites and/or accessory dwelling units (ADUs) in areas previously limited to single-detached housing. Because the RDKB does not have a Regional Growth Strategy or Urban Containment Boundary, zoning bylaws were updated in June 2024 to permit secondary suites in most residential zones.
The OCP updates are intended to align housing-related policies with these zoning changes and reflect housing needs identified through the Interim Housing Needs Report.