Public scrutinize draft plan

Green transit, creating a pedestrian and cyclist friendly community and affordable housing were noted as priorities at the first public meeting following the release of Jasper’s draft community sustainability plan.

About 30 residents showed up for the public meeting, which included brief presentations from the municipality and Parks Canada, and was followed by group discussions surrounding environment, land use, housing and economic sustainability.

“It’s an opportunity for the community to look at the plan and suggest priorities,” said Jasper’s manager of corporate services Verne Balding. The public has until Nov. 16 to offer their input into the plan.

The sustainability plan contains 159 action items. While some will require no change, such as the need to reside policy, others represent wholesale change in Jasper. The municipality is turning to the public to prioritize what should be done first. While the plan will guide land use decisions for the next 30 years, currently Parks Canada and the Town of Jasper are focusing on the next five years. According to Coun. Mike Day, the plan will undergo a review every five years, where priorities will be re-evaluated.

“It’s a living document,” Coun. Day said.

On top of prioritizing action items, participants also broke out into groups to discuss environment and services, economic sustainability, land use and housing, and social, cultural and governance.

“We have to think about our priorities. We can’t do everything at once,” said Jasper National Park superintendent Greg Fenton.

Housing discussion centred on the proposal to release four portions of land from the Parks Canada reserve.  The lands are parcels GA, GB, GC and FV, and would fall under the jurisdiction of the Jasper Community Housing corporation. Parks Canada will release the land on Connaught St. for high density, perpetually affordable housing (PAH) developments. By transferring land to the municipality at less than market value, high density housing can be built and the savings are transferred to owners. PAH models cap the amount a home can appreciate in a year. The cap is usually tied to the annual rate of inflation.

Plans to make Jasper more pedestrian and cyclist friendly include placing sidewalks on both sides of the road, and event closures on Patricia St. It also includes a push to incorporate more pedestrian and cyclist-friendly infrastructure into the community, such as more bike racks. 

Green transit was also chosen as a priority, as the public discussed the opportunity to include green transit in town. Last year, the Town of Banff piloted a bio-diesel bus program, which proved successful for the municipality.

However not all public input made it into the draft plan. A group of high school students calling for greater integration of youth into the community were upset. 

“We’ve been pushing the need for a youth centre,” said Adrian Butler. “We mentioned it at every stage, but it’s not in the draft plan. 

The plan does include an action item to work with local schools to encourage involvement in civic life, however the students say that doesn’t go far enough. They want more access to municipal decisions.

“Youth should be a priority. Allowing us to be more involved in the community helps with leadership skills,” said Emily Fenton. “We want to have as much of a say as the rest of the community.

Kai Okazaki said there are other formats for Jasper’s youth to get involved.

“It would be nice to have an advisory role so we can act as stakeholders for youth,” Okazaki said.

The public can submit their requests in writing.