City seeks feedback on development of Official Community Plan

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — Fort St. John’s new 15-year public planning document is reaching the end of its development phase, and the city is seeking more public engagement. 

During the August 26th committee of the whole meeting, staff provided the city council with an update on the ongoing Official Community Plan (OCP). 

An OCP is the highest-level guiding policy document for a community, and is updated at regular intervals. In Fort St. John, the OCP is updated every 15 years, with the current plan having been adopted in 2017. 

OCPs can include plan statements, map designations, identifications related to housing needs, optional policy statements and development permit area designations. 

According to the provincial government, COPs describe the long-term vision of communities, and are a “statement of objectives and policies that guide decisions” in municipal planning and land-use management. 

Fort St. John began work on the new OCP in the fall of 2024, developing various draft policies and strategies built on community feedback in the spring of 2025. 

Following public feedback regarding urban farming initiatives, food security and agricultural processing, staff have written revised goal statements for agriculture to prioritize “access to affordable, nutritious food and greater economic opportunities.” 

Another concern noted by residents and included in the draft OCP, according to staff, is protection for lands and livelihoods. 

During the second public survey in May, a wildfire sparked in the Fish Creek Community Forest. Residents emphasized a desire for the city to “identify and mitigate potential natural hazards” in the community.

During the August 27th episode of Council Corner, City of Fort St. John councillor Trevor Bolin told Energeticcity.ca the city’s work on the latest OCP has been long in the making and continues to prioritize public feedback. 

“When I think back to some of the first [OCPs] we ever did, it was all about public engagement,” Bolin said.

“It was all about all of us coming together, whether you’ve lived here for 50 years or whether you’ve been here for five months, I think it’s that vision that we need to move forward.” 

City staff explained to council on August 25th booths would be set up at the FSJ Farmers Market inside Festival Plaza every Saturday at 9 a.m. throughout September, as well as at the 100.1 Moose FM Block Party on September 6th. 

Residents will be able to review the draft OCP, ask questions to staff and comment on the document. 

Bolin also encouraged residents to seek out members of the council if they have questions about the plan. 

“Your councillors are the easiest form of democratic government that exists in Canada,” Bolin said. 

“Whether you see them in the grocery store, you see them uptown [or] you see them out [in] their yard, stop and ask them.” 

After the final version of the plan is submitted to council and given two readings, it will be submitted to the Agricultural Land Commission, Peace River Regional District and various departments within the City of Fort St. John, including finance, capital projects and public works and utilities. 

If referral responses from these entities are favourable, the OCP will be finalized in December 2025 or early 2026. 

According to staff on August 25th, a draft of the OCP will be submitted to council ahead of the September 8th council meeting, and the final version will formally be submitted before the October 27th council meeting.