On March 15, 2022, Jp2g Consultants Inc. engineers and planners presented a draft of the North Grenville Developer’s Guide. This guide aims to provide builders with areas of consideration before they submit their applications for subdivision/condominium or site plan control.
This Guide is divided into sections to address cultural heritage, landscaping, neighbourhood compatibility, transportation, and accessibility. It also focuses on sustainable design as a key element. The guidelines apply to residential, commercial, industrial, and institutional development proposals. In anticipation of creating this document, consultants held discussions with staff, Council and various stakeholders. Of note, a special consultation was held with members of the local development industry.
First and foremost, the Guide focuses on ensuring cohesiveness between builders and the Municipality when investigating new build sites. As part of sustainable design, builders need to acknowledge the integrity of natural areas while also preserving and enhancing the water quality, ecological integrity, and biodiversity of the Rideau River and its riparian area. Where possible, developers are encouraged to incorporate green infrastructure in their design.
Given that the Municipality of North Grenville has a diverse geography, builders need to bear in mind the community they are going into as part of their design. As part of the application, builders need to demonstrate how their plan factors in existing characteristics of the intended neighbourhood, like lot size, buildings, streetscapes, street patterns and natural environment. New development must complement the area, not compete with it.
Proper and thoughtful integration of new development into existing neighbourhoods is required to ensure that the character is maintained and that compatibility is achieved. In order to do this, builders must pay especially close attention to road networks, pedestrian and open space connectivity, building design details, cultural heritage considerations, and accessibility.
New developments must also address green space and parkland, be it in the form of community parks, neighbourhood parks, parkettes or plazas, and generally open green space.
Municipal design has been an area of focus that this City Council has prioritized for many years now. The recently released Municipal Strategic Plan aligns nicely with the Developer’s Guide. Residents and developers will have an opportunity to comment on the draft prior to implementation.