Frequently Asked Questions
- What is Community Visioning?
- How does Community Visioning fit with the Regional Plan?
- Who guides Community Visioning in each community?
- What is the role of the Community Liaison Group (CLG)?
- How are CLG members recruited and selected?
- How are HRM communities selected for the Community Visioning?
- Which HRM communities have completed the Community Visioning process so far?
- What does a Community Visioning process produce?
- How long is each Community Visioning process?
- What topics and issues are considered during a Community Visioning process?
- What things are not considered during the Community Visioning process?
- What is the community’s vision area?
- If I am not on the CLG, can I still participate in Community Visioning?
- How can I use the Internet to participate in Community Visioning?
- What happens once Council has approved the Community Vision and Action Plan?
- If I do not have reliable access to e-mail and the Internet, how can I stay in touch and receive notices about Community Visioning meetings and updates?
- When will we have a review of our Secondary Planning Strategy?
1. What is Community Visioning?
Community Visioning is a public engagement process adopted by HRM Council as a way to implement the HRM Regional Plan. Its purpose is to build consensus amongst residents and other important stakeholders on what our communities should look like, feel like, and be like 25 years into the future. Community Visioning engages residents in an open dialogue, discovers new ideas and solutions, and forges community support for collective action.
2. How does Community Visioning fit with the Regional Plan?
The Regional Plan, approved in August 2006, is the guide for the future development of HRM. Over the next 25 years, the Regional Plan will direct growth to a series of compact, mixed-use, walkable growth centres – all linked together by a transit system. At a more local level, visioning engages the communities in and around each Growth Centre to help shape future development, programs and services. Community Visioning is important for achieving a shared vision for the future of HRM, without taking away from the character that makes each community a distinct and attractive place to live.
3. Who guides Community Visioning in each community?
Community Visioning is a citizen-driven process guided by a working group of 7 to 9 local residents called a Community Liaison Group or CLG. The CLG champion the visioning process at the local level and become community leaders. The CLG is provided with training and resource support by HRM’s Community Development Department
4. What is the role of the Community Liaison Group (CLG)?
The Community Liaison Group or CLG play a vital role in the Community Visioning process. With support from HRM Staff, the CLG develop a set of guiding principles that provide the framework for community consultation. The CLG reach out to the community and ensure that diverse voices and interest groups are represented. Using the public input they collect, the CLG guide the development of the Community Vision and Action Plan. They work with the community to provide advice and generate solutions and actions that reflect the local context. A detailed description of the CLG’s role is available on the VisionHRM website.
5. How are CLG members recruited and selected?
HRM begins each Community Visioning process with a Community Kick-Off celebration and/or other community engagement event. Residents are invited to the kick-off where they can learn and express interest in the visioning process and the CLG. Recruitment for the CLG is also advertised in community newspapers, through e-mail lists, posters and flyer campaigns. CLG application forms are made available at the kick-off and online at VisionHRM’s website. All completed CLG applications are reviewed and screened by HRM staff using selection criteria. The criteria have been established to ensure that a broad and diverse group of people and interests are represented on the CLG (i.e. renters, owners, youth, seniors, long-time residents, newcomers, racially visible persons, persons with disabilities, etc.). Selected applicants are then invited for a telephone interview and their participation as a CLG member is confirmed.
6. How are HRM communities selected for the Community Visioning?
Eventually all of the Growth Centres identified in the Regional Plan will undertake a Community Visioning process, with the exception of some places where a similar community process, which meets the requirements of visioning, is already underway or has been recently completed (for example, HRM byDesign in the Regional Centre). Communities are prioritized to undertake Community Visioning based on a set of established criteria. When recommending communities for visioning, HRM staff consider any potential synergies, which would avoid duplication of efforts and support existing projects, and immediate drivers, which would affect the future of the community due to a current situation or major initiative in the near future. A report to Council on Community Visioning explains this process in more detail.
7. Which HRM communities have completed the Community Visioning process so far?
Since the approval of the Regional Plan in August 2006, six communities have completed their visions - Bedford Waterfront, Fall River, and Musquodoboit Harbour, Penhorn/Woodlawn, Spryfield, and Middle Sackville. These community visions have been approved by Regional Council and have now entered the implementation stage of the process.
8. What does a Community Visioning process produce?
The community visioning process produces three documents:
• A Community Profile that presents the history, description, and/or analysis of the community
• A Community Vision that is based on the community’s needs and aspirations and will guide policies, programs, and priorities over the next 25 years.
• An Action Plan that will outline the steps required for the Community Vision to be implemented and achieved. It will also set priorities and lay out which actions are short-term, medium-term, or long-term.
9. How long is each Community Visioning process?
The Community Visioning process is designed to be an eight month to one year program. The CLG spends roughly one month on training and designing the visioning framework. Another four to five months are dedicated to community engagement and consultation. Approximately two months are then used to finalize the Community Vision and Action Plan, before the CLG presents the information to HRM Council.
10. What topics and issues are considered during a Community Visioning process?
Community Visioning is an open and flexible process that does not have a single focus. Rather, the visioning process reflects an array of aspirations and needs expressed by residents. Some of the topics Community Visioning may consider include:
• Community Composition and Demographics
• Community Involvement and Civic Pride
• Health and Quality of Life
• Safety
• Parks, Trails, Green Space, and the Environment
• Local Heritage and Culture
• Public Spaces
• Economic Development
• Children, Youth, Families, Seniors and Single Individuals
• Housing and Life Stages
• Transit, Streets, and Roads
11. What things are not considered during the Community Visioning process?
Community Visioning is a resident-oriented, forward-looking process which provides a broad vision for the future of a community. That said, the visioning process does not consider specific or legal procedures such as plan amendments, secondary planning strategies, new land use policies, community design standards, community development initiatives, new business procedures or the resolution of long-term and complex issues. The Community Vision and Action plan provide long-ranging, general direction that will guide future policies, programs, and priorities. The visioning process does not involve the high degree of detail that is contained in other community planning programs. For example, a vision would not plan specific bus routes and bus stops, but rather, would identify a need and outline the community’s aspirations for improved transit.
12. What is the community’s vision area?
During the Community Visioning process, the CLG will use the community’s input to define the vision area. In creating the community vision, the CLG recognizes that what happens in one area will have an impact on the rest of the community, or the whole of HRM itself.
13. If I am not on the CLG, can I still participate in Community Visioning?
Yes. Other opportunities for residents to be involved include: stakeholder focus groups, public meetings and workshops, online feedback, community projects, sharing historical information, stories, photos, etc. If you have an idea or would like to participate in any of the above, send an email to VisionHRM. Your participation is welcome!
14. How can I use the Internet to participate in Community Visioning?
Once the CLG is in place and the visioning process underway, online opportunities for feedback will be available on the VisionHRM website. The online opportunities provide an easy and convenient way for residents to share their thoughts, feelings, and ideas about Community Visioning topics. For some visioning processes, the CLG has set up a Facebook page.
15. What happens once Council has approved the Community Vision and Action Plan?
Once HRM Council has approved the Community Vision and Action Plan, the municipality makes a commitment to support the community through the vision implementation stage. A Vision Implementation Committee or VIC is created and members of the committee work with HRM staff to put the Action Plan into practice. The VIC may also be involved in community planning and community design initiatives.
16. If I do not have reliable access to e-mail and the Internet, how can I stay in touch and receive notices about Community Visioning meetings and updates?
If you do not have reliable access to e-mail or the Internet and would like to keep up-to-date about Community Visioning, simply call VisionHRM at 490-5857 and leave your name, phone number, fax number (if applicable), and mailing address. Please speak clearly and spell out any uncommon names (e.g. surnames, street names, etc.). You may wish to fax your contact information to 490-3976. You will receive updates and notices as information becomes available.
17. When will we have a review of our Secondary Planning Strategy?
The Community Visioning project will likely lead to a review of the existing land use policies for Woodside contained in the Dartmouth Secondary Planning Strategy (DSPS). Following adoption of the Vision and Action Plan, HRM planners will work with the community to begin a formal review of the DSPS for the Woodside area. This will result in updated planning (land use) policies which interpret the broad direction of the Regional Plan with sensitivity to the needs and aspirations of Woodside.
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