Zoning By-law Consolidation

• Consolidated Zoning By-law Draft - March 10, 2023
• Mapping Draft - March 10, 2023

City Staff submitted Report PP-2019-60 to Council and the City has hired Dillon Consulting Limited to consolidate and update the By-law.

The City will receive community input from local organizations, developers, businesses, and the broader community.

1. The first Public Information Centre was held on December 11^th, 2019.
   "What We Heard" - Report
2. A second Public Information Centre was held virtually April 14th, 2021.
   "What We Heard" - Report
3. A third Public Information Centre was help April 20th at the Quinte Sports and Wellness Centre.
4. A fourth Public Information Center was held May 17th at City Hall.
   "What We Heard" - Report

Public Meeting Was Held for Draft Consolidated Zoning By-Law

There was a public meeting during the September 5, 2023 Planning Advisory Committee meeting to receive feedback on the draft Consolidated Zoning By-law.
Residents were invited to attend the public meeting beginning at 5:30 p.m. in Council Chambers at City Hall. 

Hot Button Zoning Issues

In addition to the work being completed by Dillon Consulting Ltd. on the new consolidated Zoning By-law, the City retained Planning Solutions Inc. to review several “hot button” zoning issues, including storage of recreation vehicles, boats and commercial vehicles in residential zones, storage of shipping containers in residential zones, and backyard chickens in rural residential zones. This included a review of best practices and public engagement.

With the help of Planning Solutions, additional public consultation and engagement was undertaken to ensure views of the community were understood and taken into account. The City is committed to ensuring the views of its constituents are heard prior to the development and implementation of any zoning provisions, particularly for issues where there are diverse perspectives at the community level. The additional public engagement included four (4) public information meetings and a community survey which ran from November 8, 2021 until December 15, 2021.

The findings and recommendations from Planning Solutions are included in the links below. It is important to note that these are not final recommendations. These recommendations will provide additional insight into these topics for Dillon Consulting to take under consideration in the development of the Consolidated Zoning By-law. The new Consolidated Zoning By-law will ultimately need to be approved by Belleville City Council before taking effect.

Hot Button Zoning Issues Report by Planning Solutions Inc.

Survey Results

Phase One: Initial Activities (Establishing Frameworks and Templates)

The first phase focuses on early decision-making that will ensure work is organized to fast-tract future phases. Tasks include:

1. Data collection;

2. Preparation and Implementation of an Engagement Plan;

3. Launch ESRI StoryMap for online engagement;

4. Develop a Zoning By-law “Road Map”: AODA/Belleville Accessibility Guidelines Compliant Style Guide, Document Template and Table of Contents; and

5. Design GIS framework, database structure and base mapping.

Phase Two: Preparation of the Draft Zoning By-law

The second phase focuses on transitioning the current zoning from three separate By-laws into a comprehensive single Zoning By-law. The goal is to ensure that the provisions of the Zoning By-law conforms to and effectively implements the updated Official Plan, but also improves clarity for the public and staff. Tasks include:

1. Prepare a working list of harmonized definitions;

2. Preparation of discussion papers on key issues;

3. Public open house;

4. Creation of a working version of the consolidated zoning by-law;

5. Early update of consolidated zoning bylaw following the statutory public meeting for the official plan update;

6. Compile existing zones in relation to the official plan designations and policies to ensure conformity;

7. GIS mapping updates;

8. Assemble general provisions into a master list;

9. Work on zoning issues by “urban structure” and based on the specific needs of neighbourhoods;

10. Preparation of a Technical Brief reporting on the work consolidating, analysing, streamlining, and harmonizing the zoning bylaw;

11. Finalization of the Technical Brief based on City comments;

12. Public Consultation;

13. Compile all components of the zoning by-law into the document template to create a “master” document” draft zoning bylaw;

14. Generate updated map schedules.

 Phase Three: Comprehensive Zoning By-law Document and Statutory Process

The third phase is to prepare, refine, and build consensus on the Zoning By-law. Tasks include:

1. Staff review first draft of Comprehensive Zoning By-law and provide feedback;

2. Release draft Comprehensive Zoning By-law and mapping to the public and stakeholders for comment;

3. Statutory open house including interactive GIS event;

4. Revisions and second draft of Zoning By-law;

5. Statutory public meeting;

6. Final revisions to draft Zoning By-law and release of final draft;

7. Adoption of new Comprehensive Zoning By-law by Council.