April 30, 2013
Promising Update for the Southlands
After more than two years of planning following the Mayor's Summit in 2011, we have received some promising news for the Southlands project. After delivering all of the information requested by Delta Municipality, Council has announced a plan to formally consider the OCP amendment and rezoning application for the Southlands. Delta Municipality will host a Public Information Meeting on May 23rd, 2013 followed by First and Second Reading on June 10th, 2013. With Council support, these two dates could culminate with a Public Hearing.
Key features of the Southlands plan includes preserving 430 acres as farmland and pastoral viewscapes as well as a mix of housing choices on a portion of the land of less than 110 acres with 950 homes. 80% of the land will be transferred to the people of Delta for agriculture, parks, trails and open space. At the center of the new developed area will be a neighbourhood centre with a market square, which will be an important link between agricultural activities on the land and everyday life in Tsawwassen.
The Public Information Meeting on Thursday, May 23, 2013 will be an opportunity for the public to review the plan before proceeding to First and Second Reading. Formal consideration for the application will then begin on Monday, June 10 with the First and Second Reading of Bylaws. We are looking forward to these dates and hope that people are willing to offer some support over the next 8 weeks.
The Cottage Courtyard, our Southlands Information Centre, will be reopening its doors on May 1st. Initially the Cottage Courtyard will be open Wednesdays and Fridays from 11am – 3pm with plans to open on a weekend day as the summer progresses. The Cottage Courtyard is a life-sized representation of how neighbourhoods and agriculture can be harmoniously integrated. Come and take a tour through the sunny, landscaped courtyard and the cottage style home and imagine what it would be like to live in a Southlands neighbourhood.
These two events and the reopening of the Cottage Courtyard are promising steps for the Southlands proposal and for the future of change in the Tsawwassen community.