The City of Vancouver is looking for the public’s feedback on the draft of the Vancouver Official Development Plan, also known as the city’s “ODP.” This plan has the ability to shape the city for decades to come, with guidelines that span to 2050 and beyond. The ODP is in development in response to a new provincial requirement to have a citywide plan in place by June 2026. Retired architect and real estate planning consultant Michael Geller told CTV News it’s about time for a plan like this. “Virtually every other municipality has an overall development plan,” Geller said. “Until now, Vancouver has never really ever had one.” A large portion of the report focuses on the city’s Generalized Land Use Designations also known as “GLUs.” The strategy behind GLUs is to promote growth across various neighbourhoods, trying to strike a balance between public amenities, housing and employment. GLU designations range from parks and open spaces to mixed-use highrise buildings. While the ODP is not an explicit rezoning policy and does not guarantee approval of specific developments, it will be implemented over time through strategic plans. The report outlines that rezonings will be spearheaded by private property owners or the city. “I don’t think there’s one part of the city that isn’t expected to change,” said Geller. The ODP will be reviewed every five years, and the city is asking for the public’s feedback on its current draft until Oct. 29. Geller hopes that all voices will be heard equally. “The city is trying to be responsive to the concerns, certainly of the development community. If anything, perhaps not as responsive to the concerns of neighbourhood residents,” said Geller. CTV News reached out to Tom Davidoff, an associate professor at UBC’s Sauder School of Business, about the rollout of GLUs. “There is an issue that if you do development one site at a time, it can be hard to plan infrastructure,” Davidoff said. “There are a lot of expensive infrastructure needs in the city and the region, and so it certainly does make sense to unroll major upzonings neighbourhood by neighbourhood for that reason.” He added if the right projects are approved, it could help the city’s bottom line. “I think if the city plans infrastructure improvements, that’s going to make land in certain areas inevitably more valuable as it’s better-served land,” he said. “There’ll be more demand to build towers.”
