COMOX NEIGHBOURS - PLS EMAIL MINISTER OF HOUSING TO EXTEND OCP DEADLINE

Dear Comox Neighbours,

Thank you all for your signatures on this petition, which has 6,817 views! 224 local, like you have signed it and 125 people shared it! Amazin!!!!

HERE'S AN IMPORTANT NEXT STEP - PLEASE in the next 7 DAYS, EMAIL Minister of Housing, and Premier Eby to take action on extending OCP deadline across province. 

Below is an example letter. Feel free to copy, paste, put your name and address and SEND!

We understand if the Minister receives many individual emails in a short time frame, there is more possibility that this issue will be flagged and brought directly to her.

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Request to Minister for OCP Deadline Extension – Town of Comox Community Consultation

To: The Honourable Christine Boyle, Minister of Housing and Municipal Affairs (HMA.minister@gov.bc.ca)

CC: Premier David Eby (David.Eby.MLA@leg.bc.ca), Planning and Land Use Management Branch
From: [Your Name]
Date: [Current Date]
Re: Urgent Request for Extension of December 31, 2025 OCP Deadline – Meaningful Consultation Required

Dear Minister Boyle,

As a signatory to a community petition on the Town of Comox OCP, I write to request a six-month extension to the December 31, 2025 OCP deadline. The current timeline prioritizes speed over democracy and undermines the very principles of Bill 44 and Bill 26, which call for fairness and inclusion.

Why Extension Is Necessary - Evidence from Town of Comox OCP Process:

• 400+ residents completed the initial OCP survey, prioritizing preservation of small-town character.
• 400 residents attended open houses, with a clear majority supporting 4-storey height limits.
• Hundreds of written submissions reinforced this consensus.
• 224 residents signed a petition requesting meaningful neighbourhood consultation.

Despite this extraordinary engagement, input has been ignored in favour of generic, developer-driven vertical planning that have little context to small towns, like Comox.

Process Failures Under Current Timeline:

Inadequate Consultation

• Height increases (4 to 6–12 storeys) were only revealed at late-stage open houses. 
• Neighbourhoods most affected were never directly consulted.
• Democratic Deficit – Resident consensus (4-storey limit) is disregarded, leaving participants feeling their voices don’t matter. This will affect future OCP input.
• Contradiction of Bill 44 – Procedural boxes are checked, but substantive inclusion is absent. This breeds opposition, not support, for housing initiatives.

Why Ministerial Action Matters

An extension would:

• Honor Democratic Participation – Allow sufficient time for neighbourhood consultation, grassroots groups, and local expertise to be heard.
• Improve Housing Outcomes – Build community support for appropriate solutions (missing-middle housing), rather than imposing generic templates.
• Fulfill Legislative Intent – Uphold the fairness and inclusion required under Bills 44 and 26.
• Without action, OCPs risk producing outcomes directly at odds with provincial objectives: disenfranchised residents, eroded trust, and housing opposition rather than cooperation.

Our Commitment

This request is not opposition to housing. Residents explicitly support more housing—but the right housing that responds to the missing middle, designed with genuine community input is the intent of Bill 44.

Extending the deadline ensures OCPs deliver both urgent housing action and democratic legitimacy and achievable projects that reflect our community.

Minister Boyle, I urge you to seriously consider extending the OCP deadline by six months province-wide. Doing so will demonstrate provincial leadership that values both housing solutions and the democratic voices of British Columbians, respecting the communities we call home.

Thank you for your urgent consideration.

Sincerely,
[Your Name]
[Your Address]
[Your Email]
[Community Name], BC

 
This letter is being sent by community members who participated in democratic consultation processes and are requesting that their participation be meaningfully incorporated into planning decisions.