Description
Each neighbourhood can function as a vibrant and complete community, offering most, if not all, of the daily goods, services, and employment people need within walking, cycling, or rolling distance. These compact neighbourhoods help to reduce the need to travel longer distances that are impractical to make using active transportation.
This action will require promoting and planning at the municipal level, and will be led by the Region of Waterloo and Area Municipalities. Please see below for the most publicly available updates.
THE REGION OF WATERLOO
Regional Official Plan Amendment (ROPA 6) includes development of 15 minute neighbourhoods in all cities and townships which supports intensification and strives to create complete communities that provide opportunities for people at all stages of life to live, work, learn, shop and play in close proximity. Click here to learn more.
CITY OF WATERLOO
This action is addressed through the City of Waterloo Official Plan (2024 Phase 1 review) which heavily emphasizes planning for complete communities through various mechanisms.
CITY OF CAMBRIDGE
The Official plan review will consider a range of policies to support the concept of “15 minute neighbourhoods”. The City’s Cycling Master Plan (2020) considered a “minimum grid” and “City Spines” in order to create a complete connected network of regularly spaced cycling routes with the intent that most Cambridge residents would be within 400 m of a designated bicycle route. City Spines are All Ages and Abilities (AAA) cycling facilities that provide high quality and direct connections to all major destinations in the city (major commercial areas, parks, schools). The intent of the City Spine network is to connect to the various growth centres and nodes in the City including urban growth centres, city nodes, community nodes, and neighbourhood nodes as defined in the Official Plan.
CITY OF KITCHENER
The City of Kitchener has launched work on a new Official Plan entitled Kitchener 2051 which will includes updates related walkable, bikeable, mixed-use neighbourhoods.
TOWNSHIP OF WOOLWICH
The Township of Woolwich identifies creating “15 minute neighbourhoods” where people can meet their daily needs by walking, cycling, or rolling as a focus of planning practices, the Active Transportation Master Plan and Official Plan updates.