A new Official Community Plan (OCP) is in the works for Sparwood and the District has formed an OCP Community Planning Team to help.
The OCP provides a long term vision for the community and was last updated in 2002. The District is working on a rewrite to deal with the inadequacy of the current OCP, the need to develop a future land use strategy that corresponds to anticipated growth in various sectors, as well as an interest in improving the livability of the community.
Golder Associates Ltd. is assisting the District with the update and the OCP Community Planning Team will provide input into the planning stages of the rewrite and participate in public engagement events.
At a council meeting on Monday, mayor and council appointed five community members to serve on the planning team; Tracey Brook-Baker, Jenna Jensen, Tracy Kaisner, Cal McDougall, and Nicole Palone. Mayor Lois Halko and Councillor Andy MacIntyre were named to represent Sparwood Council.
“I want to thank council and mayor for allowing me the opportunity to serve our community by being on this OCP committee,” commented MacIntyre. “I’m really looking forward to it and hopefully we can cover some ground with the work our CAO and our staff has already put forward for us. It’s going to be a lot of fun.”
A representative of the Sparwood Chamber of Commerce will also sit on the planning team.