There’s a love affair brewing in Calgary, perhaps lusty enough to make even Valentine’s Day die-hards blush.

It’s not like the sweetness of Romeo and Juliet or the passion of Mark Antony and Cleopatra. No, it’s more indicative of the smouldering turbulence of Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy.

It’s blossomed beautifully from division and fear into, well, a backstop of sorts.

Calgary’s once-maligned Local Area Plan (LAP) process has become a darling second option for those opposed to full-on citywide rezoning.  Dozens of the more than 600 speakers have brought up Local Area Plans in an almost endearing way, embracing something once shunned with intensity comparable to a single-use items bylaw.

There’s something eerily similar in the objections that came up during the debate over the three approved Local Area Plans. Speakers came up one after another expressing familiar frustrations.

“We think the residents of Renfrew have every right to fear that this plan will have negative, drastic and long-lasting impacts on our neighbourhood streets,” one speaker said during the public hearing on the North Hill Local Area Plan back on March 24, 2021.

In January 2023, there was a strong contingent of folks – particularly from the community of Wildwood – who didn’t want the Westbrook Local Area Plan for that area approved either.

“The Westbrook LAP will be set to destroy housing choice for families who wish to live in a single-detached home with a backyard,” the speaker said.

“The policy is playing Russian roulette with residents waiting to be first to have H-GO next door to them and lose their privacy and enjoyment.”

The sentiment was similar in June 2023 for the Heritage Local Area Plan. Particularly for this Chinook Park resident.

“To disrupt this thriving community that has undergone decades of upgrades and improvements and has been adapting over the years is nothing short of shameful,” the speaker said.

“This is not a languishing, dysfunctional neighbourhood that needs improvement.”

Every Local Area Plan put forward by the City of Calgary has been contentious when it comes to a public hearing. Issues over increased density, parking, retention of single-family neighbourhoods, traffic, infrastructure, privacy and character have come up at every hearing. 

Those are many of the same concerns with citywide rezoning. So, what’s changed about LAPs?

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.

The debate over citywide rezoning has inflamed citizens across Calgary. There’s not one ward in Calgary immune to many of the similar concerns expressed during the LAP process.

Over the first 11 days of Calgary’s public hearing on citywide rezoning, Local Area Plans have been mentioned multiple times on each of those 11 days. The mentions have been predominantly favourable, and by those opposed to the current citywide rezoning plan.

“Good news. Council already has a solution. It’s the LAPs. Council should double down on that process,” one Day 9 speaker said.

“It includes engagement with complete communities and is sound planning. Let’s put more resources into the LAP process so it can be expedited.”

Another citizen, one on day 11 who was opposed to citywide rezoning, said that the LAP process was a good way to examine places to upzone residential land. 

“I do agree that people have put in a lot of time and talent on those area plans with all the community associations agreed and signed off on those things,” she said.

“The fit and finish, character, contextual features – they would all have been taken into consideration.”

Another on Day 10 said that LAPs work as a staged process.

“I think you could go to a fairly large-scale rezoning once you have a local area plan in place,” the speaker said.

“It would be the next logical step because then you can start implementing the zoning that’s been agreed upon.”

LAPs are ongoing

Right now, there are five Local Area Plans in progress: Greater Forest Lawn, Riley, Chinook, South Shaganappi and West Elbow.  The City of Calgary confirmed Friday that even while this public hearing is going on, there is still community engagement going on for those five plans.

JoAnne Atkins, director of civic affairs with the Varsity Community Association, is taking part in the South Shaganappi Local Area Planning process. She also spoke against citywide rezoning. On Day 11 of the public hearings, she referred to LAPs and offered advice.  

“A lot of people have commented on the Local Area Plan process as a better way to identify areas that are appropriate for increased density, and I agree this should work in theory,” she said.  

“We are in the middle of the (South Shaganappi ) SS LAP, however, this process is far from perfect. If you have a top-down approach from the city that is not responsive to feedback it will never work properly.”

Community feedback, or the perception that it’s lacking, has dogged the LAP process. It’s similar to concern around the citywide rezoning. The City of Calgary has taken iterative steps to try and improve, but it’s still lagging in the minds of many participants.  

Lisa Poole is the rep for her community in the West Elbow LAP but spoke against citywide rezoning. In her public hearing presentation, Poole indicated that the city should continue with the LAP process.

She said that people like the concept of the LAP process, but she doesn’t think it’s well executed, and doesn’t deliver as intended. Plus, she said there are 16 communities in her plan, and she said that’s too many.

“My experience so far has been that the engagement is extremely prescribed,” she told LWC.

“I consider it to be fake engagement because so far it seems to be a check box exercise which makes people feel more outraged than engaged.”

So, why support it in her presentation?  Poole said she hopes this long public hearing is a “wake-up” for the engagement team. She’d like to see some of the concerns raised in the public hearing reflected in ongoing LAP engagement, particularly around the selective use of R-CG.

“The LAP has potential, but the engagement has to be authentic or there will be resistance,” she said.

LAPs and rezoning

On day 11 of the public hearing, Ward 3 Coun. Jasmine Mian asked a speaker a question on her knowledge of the impact of an LAP in their neighbourhood.

“We’ve just been hearing a lot about LAPs and I don’t know if people realize that the floor of all LAPs that have been coming in is exactly the district (RCG) we’re talking about,” Coun. Mian said.

The speaker responded that it doesn’t apply across neighbourhood borders, and only applies to the Neighbourhood Local designation. (Neighbourhood Local is one of the labels on areas designated for low-density housing when they put together the LAP). 

Ward 10 Coun. Andre Chabot said we’re hearing more about LAPs because they’re just seen as the lesser of two evils. There are still major flaws with the feedback process in the LAPs

“What is being perceived by the public is that we are just basically going from bad to worse with this (rezoning) proposal, and going back to just bad (LAP) would be less intrusive than what’s being proposed,” he said.

Ward 12 Coun. Evan Spencer said people may be embracing LAPs as the last bastion of development conversation.

“I think they’re worried that their opportunity for conversation is disappearing, and they know that they had it with the LAP process,” he said.

“I think the general sentiment that we’re hearing here is that while that has issues, we appreciated that the city was willing to give us runway and an opportunity for a long-form conversation.”

Still, the process from start to finish for an LAP is about three years. Less than half of Calgary’s communities have entertained the process (most aren’t of the vintage where this work is needed). That means using the LAPs could push a potential rezoning for these areas off for more than 10 years away – holding a land use redesignation at bay.

“I mean, you want to live to fight another day,” Spencer said.

“There’s definitely that dynamic at play for at least some of the folks speaking and using the LAP as an opportunity to try and have another opportunity to fight further down the road.”

Mayor Jyoti Gondek said that going back to the Guidebook for Local Area Planning there has been resistance to these development plans. She said there were people that were uncomfortable with any type of change in their neighbourhood.

“What we have heard overwhelmingly in this public hearing that we’ve been through, is that people appreciate the local area planning process,” Mayor Gondek said.

“They really appreciate the fact that they can sit with professional planners and understand how their community can grow and evolve over time.”