Let’s Place It!
What is Place & Placemaking?
A place is more than a space, it’s where people feel a deep connection to and have a sense of belonging – you’re drawn to it and want to spend time there. It’s welcoming, enjoyable, and safe for groups of all ages, incomes, and lifestyles.
Placemaking is the process of using the community’s vision, aspirations, needs, and wishes to create places to which people will enjoy and feel connected. Placemaking can be a small initiative, like adding planters with flowers to spruce up an area, or a large initiative, like updating old bylaws to have a place-based approach.
Examples of Placemaking in Fort Saskatchewan:
- Downtown Murals
- West River's Edge (WRE)
- New Land Use Bylaw project
What is the new Land Use Bylaw Project?
The City of Fort Saskatchewan is creating a new Land Use Bylaw (LUB). The LUB is one of the most important bylaws for a municipality as it guides day-to-day planning and development activities. It will be a key tool in implementing the vision, objectives, and place-based approach of the new Our Fort. Our Future. Municipal Development Plan (MDP).
A LUB is a key element of the planning framework for every municipality in Alberta. LUB’s impact the various places within our community and set the standards for development on private land in a municipality. Examples of what LUBs can regulate include:
- Where a business or storefront can open in the community
- What a building or property can be used for
- What a building or property can look like
Why is a new LUB needed?
A new LUB is required to ensure consistency with the MDP. The MDP took a “place-based approach” with emphasis on the residents’ and visitors’ experience of various places in the city. Creating welcoming, enjoyable, and safe places for all ages, groups, and lifestyles will strengthen the city’s identity and provide great quality of life within our neighbourhoods.
The MDP recognizes seven (7) different place types within the city:
- Downtown
- Established Neighbouhoods (e.g. Sherridon, Pineview)
- Developing Neighbourhoods (e.g. Westpark, Southfort)
- Future Urban Areas (e.g. annexed lands)
- Major Employment Lands (e.g. industrial lands)
- Special Study Area (e.g. Clover Park)
- Open Spaces and Natural Areas
By recognizing that these areas within the city are different, we can create custom regulations that reflect the uniqueness of our neighbourhoods.
Why use a place-based approach?
If we create and design great places, we can attract talent, which will then in turn support our current businesses and bring new businesses to our community.
A place-based approach, with an emphasis on design and flexibility, ensures the LUB supports development that meet the needs and aspirations of our community.
Project objectives
The new LUB will:
- Reflect the vision and objectives of the MDP, focusing on built form and place types rather than use.
- Focus on making places that are diverse and inclusive.
- Include regulations that:
- Enable diverse housing and support redevelopment and intensification in mature neighbourhoods, while respecting community character.
- Facilitate mixed-use areas to create vibrant communities and places wo which people feel connected.
- Facilitate intensification of highway commercial development that integrates with surrounding areas.
- Include user friendly and gender inclusive language.
- Incorporate visuals to clarify regulations.
Engagement
Locally Focused Engagement
The LUB project includes an in depth review the existing neighbourhoods to gain a deeper understanding of existing development and the unique neighbourhood characteristic. This will be done through data analysis and many conversations with residents and local businesses.
To date, the City has hosted information sessions, working groups, neighbourhood walking tours, and stakeholder workshops with residents and business owners to better understand what makes our existing areas unique.
Information Sessions
In June 2021, the City hosted project information sessions to initiate conversation with the residents of mature neighbourhoods.
View the Engagement Summary Report
Working Groups
In 2021, working group sessions focused on building deeper understanding of residents’ experiences with their neighbourhoods. The sessions commenced in September of 2021 and mature neighbourhood residents will continue to be engaged throughout the new Land Use Bylaw Project.
Read the Mature Neighbourhood Working Group Series 1 Summary Report
Walking Tours
In August of 2022, residents joined the City during 5 walking tours through the mature neighbourhoods. In our discussions, residents helped us better understand the existing characteristics of the development and the built form that gives these areas their identity.
The greater understanding of the mature neighbourhoods helps ensure the LUB regulations respect the neighbourhood context while achieving the objectives set out in the MDP.
Read the Mature Neighbourhoods Walking Tours What We Heard Report
Stakeholder Workshops
In November of 2022, Internal and Stakeholder Workshops were held. The purpose of these sessions was to gather feedback and insights from stakeholders who will be directly impacted by changes to the Land Use Bylaw.
Read the Stakeholders Workshop What We Heard Report
Internal Parties and Resident Workshops
In February of 2024, workshops were held for Internal Parties and Residents. The purpose of these sessions was to gather feedback for the drafted Downtown Fringe District. Feedback provided from these sessions would be considered in the changes to the Downtown Fringe District and the new Land Use Bylaw.
Read the Internal Parties and Resident Workshops What We Heard Report
Upcoming engagement includes:
- Additional stakeholder workshops
- Online survey
- Open house
| Pre-Land Use Bylaw Research 2021 | Draft Land Use Bylaw 2022-24 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 |
2023 |
2024 | |
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Stay connected
To learn more and to participate in upcoming engagement opportunities for the new LUB: