The complex nature of the land development process results in community associations and residents largely reacting negatively to proposals, and often only when they are at the final approval stages. In order to help community groups enhance their own capacity to effectively engage in land use and development processes, Smart Growth BC provides a Community Assistance Program (CAP). Like programs that provide legal advice, CAP helps community associations and individuals with their questions about the land development process and with the details of individual developments.
The Community Assistance Program provides several types of resources to community groups:
- Written information. CAP provides extensive references for academic resources, government reports, websites, etc. This information includes "The Smart Growth Toolkit", which covers numerous components of smart growth;
- Verbal information. Community groups are free to call for advice on pertinent 'smart growth' practices, policies, tools, standards, examples, etc.;
- Guidance. CAP gives advice on building your community's 'capacity to organize' locally (e.g.. advice, answers, referrals, professional assistance with plans, submissions, opportunities to network, facilitation, and possibly some training); and
- Community workshops. CAP cooperates with communities to organise full or half-day workshops that introduce the principles of smart growth and helps them to strategise on making "smart growth" happen in their backyard.
Small Communities Workshop
Do you want to have a say in how your community plans for the future? The Small Communities Workshop is for citizens, community groups and decision-makers. It’s for those who want to see smart growth principles and practices incorporated into community plans and, more importantly, implemented in development practices at the local level.
The Small Communities Workshop is a half day or one day interactive session that looks at what smart growth is and how other communities in Canada have managed growth. It explains the costs of sprawl and unsustainable development, and proposes a smart growth alternative.
The small communities workshop:
presents legal tools for implementing smart growth principles and practices
provides ideas and strategies for promoting this information to developers and local government
is supported by research findings on the benefits of smart growth practices
is designed to address the issues and needs of your community
The workshop is offered free to non-metropolitan community based organizations across BC. However, host communities are asked to provide travel expenses for the facilitator as well as meeting space and event promotion.
Communities we've been to with our CAP workshops
2007
Clearwater/Wells Gray
Salmon Arm
Comox Valley
Sooke
Richmond
Otter Point/Shirley
Lions Bay
2006
2005
2004
2003
Comox Valley
Mill Bay
Squamish
Prince George
Duncun
Maple Ridge
2002
Prince George
Sunshine Coast (Gibsons)
