An Official Community Plan (OCP) is the highest level policy document for a municipality – it informs and guides how the community grows for the next 10 to 20 years. The Official Community Plan is a bylaw adopted by Council that sets out the vision, objectives and policies that will guide the future growth and development of Mackenzie. It integrates policies on land use, economic development, environmental stewardship, municipal services and infrastructure, transportation, protective services, community facilities and services to set a clear path for elected officials and staff to follow. It is like a roadmap for the District into the future!

Mackenzie’s Official Community Plan was previously developed in 2014 and it is split up into a few sections that deal with things such as:

• The community’s vision, goals and key directions
• Current and future land uses such as residential, commercial, industrial)
• Future roads, water and sewer
• Future parks and trails
• Creating a resilient community that is economically diverse
• Ways to be environmentally sustainable
• Improving the ways that we move around
• Building an inclusive community and dealing with social issues

One of the main parts of the Official Community Plan is the Land Use Map. This identifies what land uses we want to see and where they should be in the next 20 years. Usually, things stay the same in established neighbourhoods, but sometimes we may want to change an area over time from one land use to another, such as industrial to commercial for example. Changes like that can be challenging but also exciting for a community and these types of changes have to be done carefully, in collaboration with community members with an overall bigger picture in mind.

The Official Community Plan acts as this living document that provides a roadmap to guide the District on how to evaluate and approve future development. It will provide a clear direction for how Makenzie should grow in the coming years so that growth is well planned and supports the community’s vision for the future.

A great Official Community Plan introduces a land use and community development framework for Mackenzie that works towards enriching the lives of current and future residents. It will establish clear objectives and policies for the District that will guide the fabric of our community into the future. Although most of the required content of the Official Community Plan is informed by legislation, its success can only be measured by how much the community is behind it. This is a document built for the community by the community and a great Official Community Plan is one that reflects the values and voices of our community members.

Our community does! Every person is asked to provide input: District Council, District Staff, Indigenous neighbours, community groups, stakeholders, government agencies, children, seniors, etc. Council will adopt an Official Community Plan that they believe best represents the interests and objectives of Mackenzie as a whole.

It’s OK! There are a lot of strict Provincial laws about what an Official Community Plan must have in it and what it needs to do. Leave the legal language and all of the acronyms to us. What we want to know from the average person are your general thoughts on big picture questions like this:

• What will you be doing and what will be important to you in 20 years?
• What will you need from the District in order to succeed as the future you?
• What are your favorite things in Mackenzie and what would make them even better?
• What are your least favorite things in Mackenzie and what would make them better?
• In 20 years will you live in the same house, or will you need to be in a different type of house? Are there enough of those houses around now? Will there be enough in 2050?
• What should future residential development look like in general? Are you OK with the look of the current neighbourhoods in town now?
• What economic programs might help reduce the impacts of the cyclical nature of our resource economy?
• What should future industrial development around town look like and where should it go?

There are a number of ways to get involved! Complete the online community survey available on this webpage between June 24th and July 13th. Come see the project team during the community wide open house on June 24th at the Mackenzie Recreation Centre from 5:30 pm to 8:00 pm.

Periodically check back at the "Timeline" section on this webpage for upcoming events and engagement opportunities.