City invites feedback on Second Draft of Official Plan and draft Natural Heritage Study

The City has released the draft Natural Heritage Study (NHS) together with the Second Draft of the new Official Plan (OP) for public review and comment. These materials will help guide how the community grows and changes to 2051, including decisions related to housing, infrastructure, mobility, climate resilience, and protection of natural areas.

The Second Draft of the OP reflects what the City heard during the first consultation phase, responding to more than 900 public comments received on the First Draft. Supporting materials are being released alongside the Second Draft to help residents review and understand the changes, including the draft mapping, a document showing changes between the First and Second Drafts, and a feedback and response summary showing how input has been considered.

“This is a working draft, and community feedback is a critical part of strengthening it,” said Laura Flaherty, Project Manager, Planning Services. “We appreciate the time residents spent reviewing the First Draft and we look forward to hearing where we still need to refine policies as we start working on a third draft.”

Kingston is projected to grow to as many as 220,000 people by 2051 based on 2023 projections that were reviewed and confirmed in early 2026.

Land needs assessment studies prepared by Watson & Associates Economists Ltd. have shown that the City does not have sufficient land within the existing urban boundary to accommodate the projected population and employment growth. The Second Draft includes a proposed expanded urban boundary to align with the land needs assessment, as part of long-term planning to ensure sufficient land is available to accommodate projected growth to 2051, as required by the Provincial policy.

The City recognizes that urban boundary decisions are significant and that residents will have important views on where growth should occur and how it should be phased. The Second Draft includes draft policies associated with the urban boundary expansion applications the City has received where these applications are supported by staff. These draft policies are intended to provide clarity on expectations and to establish a structured framework for how proposed expansion areas would be planned, evaluated, and sequenced. The draft policies give Council the ability to invest in infrastructure for expansion areas only when it makes sense and it gives the community a direct opportunity to comment on both the geography and the rules that would guide decision-making.

At the same time, the City has published the draft Natural Heritage Study to support informed discussion about how natural features and systems should be identified, mapped, protected and enhanced over the long term. Importantly, the draft NHS presents a number of considerations the City may choose from to guide its approach to protecting and enhancing the natural heritage system.

The draft NHS options have not yet been considered in the context of the Official Plan’s broader growth priorities and guiding principles. That broader evaluation including considering how environmental protection integrates with long-term housing needs, complete communities, infrastructure sequencing, and other growth objectives will be part of the next stage of work. The final direction will be shaped through further review of the considerations included in the draft NHS in the context of the broader municipal and provincial priorities, and public input.

The Second Draft of the OP includes some natural heritage policy direction, informed by work underway through the draft NHS. However, the City expects that additional refinements may be made in the Third Draft, as staff continue to review the study data, policy options and public comments in the context of other requirements of the Official Plan. Both documents are being released at the same time, so the public can review them together, understand how the draft NHS has informed draft policy, and provide feedback.  

Residents are encouraged to review the Second Draft of the new Official Plan and the draft Natural Heritage Study and share feedback before the consultation period ends on April 21. Feedback can be submitted online through those project pages, or by email to newofficialplan@cityofkingston.ca. Submissions received during this consultation period will help inform the final Natural Heritage Study and the Third Draft of the new Official Plan.

To participate in the consultation, and to sign up for future project updates or learn more visit Get Involved Kingston.