Edmontonians have a lot of opinions about the City’s proposed new Zoning Bylaw:
• “It is not enough to build bigger buildings to achieve greater density. We need to also build a climate-resilient city and communities that are affordable, livable, healthy and safe.”
• “A lot of young people can’t even afford a house so, like, how are they going to interact with [zoning and development]? They are impacted but can’t participate.”
• “This is a fantastic and necessary move towards creating a more walkable, climate-smart and socially-just city.”
That’s just a sample of what the City has heard as it overhauls its current Zoning Bylaw. Over the last five years, the City has heard from the public, stakeholders, special interest groups and industry.
The new Zoning bylaw has a lot of heavy lifting to do. It moves us towards The City Plan’s goal to live locally and enable incremental infill with diverse housing options. It also aims to support economic opportunities, enhance equity and protect Edmonton’s natural systems through more effective and efficient land-use regulations.
Overhauling something as long and complex as a Zoning Bylaw is no easy task. Since 2018, thousands of people have workshopped, reviewed, analyzed and provided their feedback to shape Edmonton’s proposed new Zoning Bylaw. The feedback of all Edmontonians, City staff and stakeholders has helped to shape the proposed new bylaw.
Here’s a look back at some of the ways Edmontonians contributed to the project over the past five years:
• 608 attended workshops, information sessions and presentations.
• 33,000+ visited Engaged Edmonton to review and provide feedback on the project.
• 4,900+ commented on drafts of the new Zoning Bylaw and Overview of the New Zoning Bylaw.
• 32 signed up for one-on-one ‘Chats with a Planner.’
• 1 virtual roundtable and 3 virtual sessions with Indigenous Partners and Organizations.
• Almost 8,000 viewed the City Building video series.
• 7,000+ downloaded Making Space—a podcast series about zoning and development in Edmonton.
All these numbers and activities lead to a public hearing. City Council will consider the proposed new Zoning Bylaw (Charter Bylaw 20001) and city-wide rezoning (Charter Bylaw 21001) at a statutory Public Hearing:
When: October 16, 2023, at 9:30 a.m.
Where: Council Chamber, 2nd Floor, City Hall
1 Sir Winston Churchill Square, Edmonton, AB
Edmontonians will have the opportunity to speak directly with City Council about the proposed new Zoning Bylaw and rezoning map. While Edmontonians have already contributed through engagements, workshops and conversations, the public hearing is a chance to voice support for or against the bylaw with City Council.
To everyone who has contributed and will contribute through the public hearing process—thank you. No matter your position or your opinion on the proposed new Zoning Bylaw, you played an important role.
Visit edmonton.ca/zoningbylawrenewal to learn more about the proposed new bylaws and city-wide rezoning map, and how to share your voice at the public hearing.
Editor’s note: the pic at the top shows some of the feedback provided by Edmontonians on the draft Zoning Bylaw at an open house in 2022.