The Planning Department is often involved in a range of projects including the development of regional, watershed, community and local area plans, bylaw development & amendments and topic specific planning projects. Planning projects have included:
Agriculture
Regional Agricultural Plan - This document provides an overview of the current regional food system in the North Okanagan, identifies opportunities and makes recommendations that would help support a healthy, resilient and sustainable agricultural sector.
Economic Development
North Okanagan Employment Land Inventory Map - This mapping resource offers information on land that is available for office, commercial, industrial and institutional development. Review the Terms and Conditions.
Regional Employment Lands Action Plan - This plan provides recommendations that will help strengthen, diversify and enhance the regional economy. Actions have been identified for municipalities and the Regional District to take on together and work on individually.
Environment
Shuswap River Watershed Sustainability Plan - A non-regulatory guidance document to help decision-making authorities, resource managers, water users, recreation users, and residents make informed and integrated decisions regarding the watershed. The key considerations are Water Quality and Quantity; Ecosystems & Biodiversity; Recreation; Interagency Relations, Roles and Responsibilities; and Education & Awareness.
North Okanagan Conservation Fund - A dedicated source of funding for the specific purpose of undertaking environmental conservation projects. This Fund will help communities ensure the sustainability of our environment and protect our quality of life now and in the future. The Fund will provide over $80,000 annually to eligible conservation projects. North Okanagan Land Acquisition applications can be submitted year round. See previous projects here.
Housing
Regional Housing Needs Assessment - This report provides a comprehensive overview of local housing profiles, identifying the current challenges and gaps in the region's housing stock. This report was updated in 2024 to meet the Province's requirement for Interim Housing Needs Reports.
Regional Housing Strategy - Housing affordability was identified as the most significant challenge during the development of the 2020 North Okanagan Regional Housing Needs Assessment. Addressing affordability is complex and will require action from various levels of government, non-profits and the development community. The Regional Housing Strategy identifies the objectives, actions and opportunities to address these challenges.
Swan Lake Residential Infill Plan - In the spring of 2021, the Regional District initiated a public consultation process to determine the desired growth and development within the existing residential neighbourhoods adjacent to the Swan Lake Corridor (RDNO residential nodes, 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 9, 10). View a map of these nodes. The goal was to identify what types of infill and levels of density are supported in these areas if the sewer was expanded to these residential neighbourhoods. Bylaw 2920, 2021 was Adopted by the Board of Directors on June 15, 2022 and the changes have been consolidated into the Electoral Areas "B" and "C" Official Community Plan Bylaw.
Local Plans
Kingfisher Local Area Plan - This plan provides a comprehensive plan addressing the social, environmental, economic, recreational and infrastructure assets and capacity in the Kingfisher community.
Swan Lake Commercial Area and Neighbourhood Plan - This plan provides direction for the Swan Lake area within the RDNO for the future development and use of lands within the plan area specific to Environmental Issues; Agriculture; Housing & Residential Land Use; Commercial and Industrial Development; Parks and Recreation; Transportation; and Utilities- Water and Sewer Services.
Electoral Area Annexation Study Phase One and Phase Two - These reports examine the financial, social and land use impacts of cumulative municipal annexations in key electoral area boundary regions. The study provides a series of recommendations to be considered and tools that can be used to evaluate municipal annexation applications.