Saanich staff says the council should revisit Quadra-McKenzie plan, amid public outcry

Saanich City Council is rethinking its approach to the Quadra-McKenzie Plan (QMP) following substantial backlash from residents. After months of heated debate, staff has introduced proposed changes and will ask this week for further consultation before any final decisions are made.

The Quadra-McKenzie area, identified as a Primary Growth Area (PGA) by regional planners, was slated for significant redevelopment as part of a wider strategy to address housing supply, diversity, and affordability.

At an Oct. 21 2024 council meeting, Saanich Mayor Dean Murdock said he was impressed by the level of public engagement in Phase II of the QMP and encouraged people to continue to be involved in the process. That public engagement included multiple pop-up events, open houses, online surveys, targeted stakeholder meetings, and a town hall.

“This is your document. It is what will guide Saanich over the coming decades for these major corridors,” he said.

Based on public feedback, a staff report prepared for the council’s Feb. 11 meeting recommends the plan be re-examined and requests the council considers, among other things, adding more parcels for three- and four-storey buildings rather than six-storey buildings.

The goal of the original plan was to create a sustainable, transit-oriented community along the major corridors of Quadra Street and McKenzie Avenue, with a mix of housing, businesses, and public spaces. However, the proposal sparked some intense opposition from residents who expressed concerns about traffic, the preservation of neighbourhood character, and the proposed scale of development.

Backlash and Concerns

The full draft of the plan, which was first presented in October 2024, proposed significant increases in density, including 18-storey towers near major intersections and six-storey apartment buildings in areas currently dominated by single-family homes.

One of the most contentious aspects was the proposed redesign of McKenzie Avenue, which included reducing vehicle lanes to make space for bus lanes and dedicated bike paths, as part of an effort to promote a more sustainable and active transportation system.

While the District of Saanich emphasized the need for densification to meet provincial housing targets, many residents felt the proposal was drastic and did not adequately consider the character of the community. Saanich received its housing target mandate of 4,610 units from the province in 2023 under the Housing Supply Act.

“Existing family neighbourhoods and homes should not be displaced by high-rises in this area,” said Roberta Hesselgrave, a vocal critic of the plan. In an email to the council, she pointed to the 2017 Shelbourne Valley Action Plan, which called for "gentle densification" and warned against rapid, large-scale changes.

This sentiment was echoed by several residents who feared the scale of development would fundamentally alter their neighbourhoods.

“I am very concerned about the proposed Quadra-McKenzie Plan,” wrote Megan Parry in her email to council members.

“I have been in this neighbourhood for close to fifty years and have witnessed many development changes over that time period. All of these changes were gradual, with thought about the community of family homes and the local green environment.”

In response to the pushback, Murdock acknowledged the frustration and emphasized that the goal of the QMP was not to displace residents but to address the growing demand for housing.

“We are not about to expropriate homes to make way for large developments,” Murdock said. “This plan has been misunderstood, and it’s clear we need to recalibrate.”

Murdock told the Times Colonist last Friday, “I’m under no delusions that this plan is going to be perfect when it’s finished, but I know we will have a better version of it because of this process,” he said. “I just regret that it’s created the kind of frustration, consternation, and fear that it has, largely based on a misunderstanding of what this was intended to do.”

Scaling Back the Plan

At a special council meeting scheduled for Feb. 11, the staff is expected to present a revised version of the QMP. The updated plan would scale back the proposed density, limiting six-storey buildings to areas near major streets and centres, with a greater focus on low-rise developments such as three- and four-storey buildings. The controversial changes to McKenzie would also be put on hold, with staff recommending that the proposed lane reductions be explored in a separate process.

The feedback from these sessions was clear: while many residents recognized the need for growth, they expressed concerns that the original plan did not strike the right balance between density and preserving the existing character of the community.

The staff report reveals that many residents feared the QMP would strain local infrastructure, increase traffic congestion, and place undue pressure on schools and utilities. The group Save Our Saanich has been particularly vociferous in its opposition to the proposed QMP and generated a petition to counter it. As of Feb. 8, the petition had reached 4,128 signatures.

A divided community

While opposition to the plan was strong, some residents supported the increased density, arguing that Saanich had long been failing to meet housing demand.

“For decades, Saanich has underbuilt and artificially kept housing numbers low by implementing a strict low-density zoning regime,” said Scott Rycroft, a Saanich resident in favor of the plan. “This is a primary reason why housing prices are so high.”

Additionally, some residents questioned whether the proposed changes would actually lead to more affordable housing or whether they would simply result in higher-priced developments that did little to address the housing crisis.

In her comment on Cadboro Bay Local’s Facebook page, Collette Baty points out that things cannot remain static in a growing region. “I’m not sure how we expect to solve the housing crisis, urban sprawl, climate change, and maintain undeveloped space for wildlife and the natural ecosystem if we don’t densify to a degree that will disrupt the status quo,” they wrote

Baty’s comments come under a post featuring a Feb. 8 Globe and Mail article titled “Residents gear up for a fight as Saanich feels the growing pains of density” which is also critical of the plan’s calls for increased density.

‍ Next Steps

Saanich’s council is now faced with three options for moving forward.

The first would proceed with the revised land use and transportation changes as outlined, without additional public engagement. The second would allow for further consultation with the public, extending the timeline for the plan by several months, and would cost an additional $30K. The third option would involve two rounds of public engagement before final revisions are made, with an estimated cost of $60K and an extended timeline.

Staff have recommended a revised approach that includes another round of public engagement, ensuring residents have a chance to review and comment on any proposed changes before the plan is finalized. This process is expected to take place in late this spring to early summer, with a final proposal to be presented to the council in the fall. Murdock stressed the importance of ongoing consultation and said that the revised plan would reflect the community’s concerns while still addressing the need for growth.

“We are committed to making sure that we get this right,” he said. “This process is about finding the right balance between growth and preserving the things that make this community special.”

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Editor's note: A previous version of this article contained a quote that did not originate from Save Our Saanich (SaveOurSaanich.com) and has been deleted from this article.