A new municipal plan is on the horizon for Saint Andrews.
Alexander Gopen, the senior planner for the Southwest New Brunswick Service Commission (SNBSC), presented to the council on the document that has been two years in the making.
Municipal plans are required by the province and are expected to be updated every 10 years.
“It sets out a 10 year vision for the area, the municipal area, which really is [the] framework for the development of land,” Gopen said in an interview with The Courier.
The plan can also speak to other things such as bylaws, budgets, land and infrastructure. Land use planning is a significant part of the municipal plan. Essentially, different areas are classified based on the type of development the community and the council wishes to see.
Resident, commercial, industrial and conservation are typically the categories that development falls under.
The planning process
Before a municipal plan can be developed, the legislation requires a research study, which Gopen said began a year ago.
It involves collecting demographics, census trends, housing markets and mapping. The study is formally brought to the council for a review.
“They basically endorse it, sign off and say yes, this makes sense to us and [then] there is a public process that [is] part of it, but it is not required [the public process],” Gopen said. “In the fall of last year, we did four different sessions across the municipality and virtually.”
Those sessions and a survey garnered more than 200 responses, Gopen explained. He considered that a good amount for the population in Saint Andrews – now roughly 3,000 including Chamcook and Bayside.
“For the area, it is very good,” he said. “We had pretty good attendance at the sessions we did.”
The SNBSC will also consult stakeholders such as the chamber of commerce, the recreation department for the municipality, and local businesses.
The priorities identified
Several areas were identified as things the community wanted the future plan to focus on.
Those included:
- The continued delivery of high-quality public services and infrastructure.
- The protection and conservation of the physical environment, including the protection of the Chamcook Lake drinking watershed.
- The mitigation and adapting to the impacts of climate change, including erosion and sea level rise.
- To develop housing that meets the needs of all residents, specifically housing that is affordable.
- The preservation of the rural way of life and rural economic development, including the promotion of local agriculture.
- Tourism that supports local residents and businesses without straining resources.
- Maintaining the historically significant character of the Saint Andrews area.
Gopen said these were based mainly on public feedback through the background study. One of its main priorities is increasing the housing stock – including housing that is affordable.
“This is a good example of using data to have specific policies,” Gopen said. “In the current one, it talks about: ‘we should have affordable housing,’ but it doesn’t actually say what it means.”
The Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) defines affordable as 30 per cent of an individual’s gross income.
Gopen explained that if council wants to be involved in that type of housing, it needs to be properly defined in the plan. He said it means having the data that ensures the funding meets its requirements for rents – to meet the needs of those who need it most.
The median income, according to Gopen, in Saint Andrews is about $95,000. An individual with the income, without taking into consideration those with dependents or spouses, could pay up to $2,374 per month.
The Housing Assessment Tool created by the University of British Columbia says about 22.65 per cent of households fall in the category. About 40.33 per cent live within the low to moderate income category, or from $15,700 to $62,800.
For those who make a lower to moderate income, the affordable rent would be around $1,200.
“So, we’re sort of saying that if council’s going to be involved in funding housing, [it] should make sure that the rent is not more than that a month,” he said.
The question of tourism
About 80,000 individuals visit Saint Andrews throughout the tourism season, according to Tourism New Brunswick.
It is in stark contrast to the almost 3,000 year-round residents.
Gopen said this priority was identified to help balance the scales of those who love to visit the seaside community, but also make it sustainable and manageable for year-round residents.
“We understand that tourism is a really important part of our economy, but if it means that we can’t enjoy our own town, then it is not actually good for us,” he said.
He said striking that balance is tough, but it is something the public has decided it wants the council to consider. Gopen explained short-term rentals are a good example of the balance.
Short-term rentals, like Airbnb and VRBO, are not provincially regulated but some municipalities have developed bylaws that provide some regulation.
“A lot of folks use the income from short-term rentals to support their mortgage,” he said, adding short-term rentals and an economy based heavily on tourism also adds to affordability issues for permanent residents.
Public consultations
The next step of the process is to allow the public to see the presentation at four open houses scheduled over the next month.
It is the community’s opportunity to provide feedback now that the document is available, which can be found here. People can also stop by the town office to get a copy.
The schedule for the public consultations are:
- September 4 at 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. in the W.C. O’Neil Arena
24 Reed Ave, in the dining room. - September 10 at 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. in the Bayside Community Hall
3049 Highway 127 - September 11 at 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. in the Atlantic Salmon Federation Nature Centre
- 24 Chamcook Line #1
- September 17 at 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. virtually – registration at www.townofstandrews.ca
