Parks Canada and the Municipality of Jasper are making Jasper’s rebuilding process simpler.

Yesterday the joint agencies released new, streamlined policy to guide the community’s recovery.

“This is an important step forward in recovering from … the hardest challenge we have faced together,” said Jasper National Park Superintendent Alan Fehr. 

A newly-developed Rebuilding Guide summarizes updates to the Town of Jasper Land Use Policy and Architectural Motif Guidelines to simplify the rebuilding process. Key values of the Rebuilding Guide include making rebuilding easier, better wildfire preparation and increasing housing availability, Fehr said.

“These changes were made thoughtfully by a dedicated team of planners and specialists to incorporate community perspectives,” Fehr said.

Beth Sanders is the Municipality of Jasper’s Director of Urban Design and Standards. Sanders said the updates to local development rules were important to implement in the wake of the July 24 wildfire which destroyed more than 350 of the community’s structures.

“The changes are important to provide some ease to Jasperites as we rebuild,” Sanders said.

Key changes to support housing include allowing leaseholders with lots formerly zoned for single-detached dwellings to build either one or two primary dwelling units on a lot; reduced parking requirements; and allowing for more options for accessory dwellings.

“It’s tidied, it’s cleaned up, it’s simpler and it’s easier to use,” Sanders said of the new Rebuilding Guide.

As part of their efforts to support Jasper’s post-wildfire recovery, Parks Canada and the Municipality of Jasper have outlined a five-phase approach to Rebuilding Jasper. The launch of the Rebuilding Guide marks the end of Phase 1. 

On September 18, the federal government introduced Bill C-76, an Act to amend the Canada National Parks Act. The bill, which enables Parks Canada to transfer some of the authority for land use planning and development to the Municipality of Jasper, received Royal Assent by the Governor General October 3.

Bob Covey // bob@thejasperlocal.com