The City of Victoria’s design guidelines for real-estate development projects throughout Old Town have received an award from the Canadian Institute of Planners (CIP).

 

Jurors awarded Victoria with a 2019 Award for Planning Excellence Merit for planning guidelines applicable to Old Town's new buildings and additions to existing buildings, citing the City’s “clear vision for a west coast historic district by reinforcing the importance of existing character, human scale, and ensuring compatibility within a rich heritage context” as the impetus for the award.

 

The organization lauded Victoria’s guiding document as easy to read, well illustrated with clear examples of ideal architectural forms and building character, and as inspiring for real-estate professionals.

 

CIP’s background on its decision also stated that the City’s planners “brought positive attention and awareness to the planning profession through skilled facilitation of a stakeholder group of diverse professionals with competing interests,” adding that the municipality’s efforts were “unique among other design guideline documents as they provide intuitive techniques that clarify subjective concepts for applicants and decisions makers, resulting in more refined, predictable outcomes.”

 

Meanwhile the University of Victoria’s Campus Cycling Plan was also awarded a 2019 Award for Planning Excellent Merit for the institution’s action plan on improving cycling infrastructure on the Saanich and Oak Bay post-secondary campus. 

 

“The jury was impressed by the methodology supported by four strategic keys and by a ten-year action plan, with several short term actions outlined to demonstrate how the cycling plan was designed to move forward,” the award description read. CIP also highlighted the plan’s “balanced and safe approach to sharing circuits between different modes of travel,” and its outlined objectives required to implement the vision alongside descriptions of the necessary tools to do so.

 

Elsewhere on Vancouver Island, the community of Cowichan Bay in the Cowichan Valley was commended within the Rural/Small Town Planning category with an Award for Planning Excellence.

 

Ottawa-based CIP serves as the "voice of Canada's planning community" and represents approximately 7,000 urban planning professionals across the country. The organization was founded in 1919. C

 

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