In December 1998, the City of Surrey Department of Planning and Development entered into partnership with a number of stakeholders with the aim of demonstrating more sustainable community development standards "on the ground."
The East Clayton Neighbourhood Concept Plan was the first and most important part a larger work known as the Headwaters Project.
Developed by the City in conjunction with UBC's James Taylor Chair (Professor Patrick Condon), the Pacific Resources Centre, and a multi-constituent advisory committee, the East Clayton Neighbourhood Concept Plan is the first time sustainability principles have been used as the basis for a sizable new suburban community. The East Clayton area includes over 560 acres of land and will eventually provide homes for over 13,000 people.
A key feature of the approach is to concentrate on the process of resolving competing sustainability imperatives as much as the outcome.
Through a series of design charrettes (workshops), various stakeholders worked together to ensure that each of their priorities are fairly accounted for and represented. Since final designs incorporate the values of all those partaking in the process, they are likely to be smarter and to be seen as inherently 'fairer' than conventional designs generated by a more limited range of people.
In previous work with Surrey City Council, the James Taylor Chair helped produce a list of seven design principles for sustainable communities. At the outset of the East Clayton project, Council agreed to support the application of these principles to the development's design. "Since this meant we had to make so many changes to the conventional development standards, we thought that a four-day, multi-stakeholder design charrette was the best way to go", says Condon.
The individuals at the design table were either vested with sufficient authority to negotiate new standards "on the fly," or they were delegated to represent larger constituencies (such as local landowners). The charrette structure guaranteed that the local landowners' interests were represented, and it enabled a group of local individuals to appreciate how the underlying principles and features of the East Clayton plan came together to form a highly mixed-use and sustainable community. Carefully developed and strictly enforced guidelines helped to facilitate the charrette process.
They are:
1. Build capacity for integration through shared awareness and determination to act jointly.
2. Involve early on (preferably at the beginning) those people, agencies, and organizations that can influence plan policy and development standards (including their implementation).
3. Share information equally.
4. Share resources across mandates for mutual gain.
5. Build confidence in the process, in plan policies, and in alternative development standards.
6. Ensure the direct involvement of municipal staff.
7. Gain access to the necessary technical expertise.
8. Deal with issues efficiently.
More than anything else, the East Clayton Neighbourhood Concept Plan is a "green infrastructure" plan. East Clayton will be one of North America's most significant examples of an integrated system of green streets and affordable sites. Parks, playgrounds, and natural areas are essential and integral components of this system. East Clayton has narrow streets, and roadways that throughout the site use one-third less blacktop than standard suburban sites. Storm water management will enable natural infiltration to occur, thereby minimizing runoff and avoiding detrimental downstream flooding events. Yard and street infiltration devices will eliminate nearly all downstream consequences of development. East Clayton also shows how a combination of efficiencies can dramatically decrease site infrastructure costs while also reducing dependence on the automobile.
The East Clayton Neighbourhood Concept Plan benefits both the environment and the people who will live within it. This mixed-use plan means that, if they so choose, people can live, work, and play in the same community throughout their lives. Units will cost 20 to 30 per cent less than a standard home in the same area, and secondary suites will provide a mortgage aid for homeowners while providing good housing for lower income families. Jobs will be located close to homes, and home-based work opportunities will be provided in the region's first live/work area located outside of the centre city. Finally, a "Rapid Bus" will connect all residents to major employment, shopping, and cultural centers to the east and west.
The East Clayton Neighbourhood Concept Plan offers a blueprint for sustainable development, and is now influencing the development of "lighter, greener, cheaper, smarter, and complete communities" throughout the Northwest.
More information on the East Clayton Neighbourhood Concept Plan is available from UBC's James Taylor Chair