Official Community Plan Review

Hi, you can find more information and definition in Part 4.1 (Growth Management) Policy 5

To answer the first part of your question: Has the District adopted the Ministers Bylaw Standard in s. 553 of the Local Government Act?  No; the section you refer to enables the Minister to impose regulations upon a local government, or through a more likely scenario, work with a local government to develop a unique bylaw applicable to their specific area. The District of Central Saanich, like all local governments, must comply with the ALC regulations, but there is not a provincial regulation specific to the District and we are not considered a “regulated community’. 

 In regards to how the following are addressed in our local bylaws:

1. Accessory Home Occupation: our Land Use Bylaw includes ‘Home Occupation’ as a permitted use. 
2. Accessory Tourist Accommodation: Two options are found within our Land Use Bylaw.  Within the Agriculture 1 zone there are specific conditions for farm camping and these proposals are approved through a Temporary Use Permit process.  Bed and Breakfast operations of up to 3 bedrooms are also permitted in the A-1 zone.  
3. Accessory agri-tourism accommodation: At this time our Land Use Bylaw does not permit other forms of tourist accommodation in addition to those listed above. However, in the draft OCP there are two policies specific to these types of agri-tourism uses: # 4.2.2 and # 4.4.17 both are copied below. 
4. Direct Farm Marketing: is a permitted farm use that local governments cannot prohibit, therefore it is considered part of Agriculture.  Note this means any farm sales need to comply with the 50% of products being from the farm regulations, otherwise approvals from the ALC and Council would be required. 

The draft OCP includes the following:

Encourage diversification and innovation in the agricultural economy and support measures to improve the economic viability of farming where they would not negatively impact the agricultural capability of farmland or the environment. This may include value-added processing, vertical integrated farming, farm-gate marketing, and agri-tourism.

Support diversification of the agricultural economy in accordance with provincial ALR regulations, including:

1. Encourage the agricultural community to consider agri-tourism uses to increase awareness of, and promote farm activity;
2. Work with the agricultural community to partner on the promotion of agri-tourism operations and agricultural events that highlight farm operations and products;
3. Consider amending regulations for Agricultural zones to support agri-tourism accommodation accessory to an agri-tourism business; and

4. Continue to support Bed and Breakfast businesses in Agricultural zones for up to three bedrooms, which do not have to be accessory to an agri-tourism use.

The particular policy you refer to is more applicable to agriculture diversification, primarily focused on enhanced agricultural operations. However policy 17 in the Economic Section does more specifically address agri-tourism, noted below:  

1. Support diversification of the agricultural economy in accordance with provincial ALR regulations, including:

1. Encourage the agricultural community to consider agri-tourism uses to increase awareness of, and promote farm activity;
2. Work with the agricultural community to partner on the promotion of agri-tourism operations and agricultural events that highlight farm operations and products;
3. Consider amending regulations for Agricultural zones to support agri-tourism accommodation accessory to an agri-tourism business; and 

4. Continue to support Bed and Breakfast businesses in Agricultural zones for up to three bedrooms, which do not have to be accessory to an agri-tourism use. 

Through this policy the possibility of agri-tourism accommodations has been identified, but it would require direction from Council to proceed with such a project in the future.

The first fundamental principle of our existing Central Saanich Official Community Plan is to “Support Agriculture.” The District’s OCP has many policies which support agriculture and food production. Many of these focus on protecting larger tracks of land for agricultural use, supporting the Agricultural Land Reserve, and directing growth and development to our urban centres to avoid sprawl on to rural and agricultural lands.

With approximately 70% of the District’s land base within the Agricultural Land Reserve, regionally Central Saanich plays a significant role in food security and agriculture in general. To support farming in our community recent initiatives by the District include developing guidelines to make it easier for farmers to establish farm worker accommodation on their property, as well as drainage enhancements at Maber Flats.

Some emerging themes we are hearing in our early OCP engagement includes helping new farmers access farmland, as well as establishing local food hubs and food distribution centres to help farmers get their products to the market. Expanding or improving crop production land will continue to be a priority in the District.

We recognize the timing of this application may influence some discussions during the OCP Review to some degree; however the application process will be kept separate from the broader OCP discussion as much as possible.