Form & Character Design Guidelines Project

Thank you to everyone who has provided input on the Draft Form and Character Design Guidelines, your feedback is appreciated! A summary of what we heard during the phase one and two engagement is available under Documents.

PROJECT UPDATE: The April 2025 draft of the Form and Character Design Guidelines is being presented to the Governance and Priorities (GPC) Committee on April 14th, 2025. A link to the GPC agenda is available here.

What are Form and Character Design Guidelines?

• Design guidelines establish the benchmarks for ensuring high quality design that meets City Plan goals. The guidelines will address site layouts, building and landscape design, lighting, energy efficiency, sense of place, and more.
• The design guidelines provide an opportunity to support the City Plan's five main goals of a Green, Connected, Healthy, Prosperous, and Empowered Nanaimo as experienced in the built form.
• The City has a number of different design guidelines that establish the benchmarks and aspirations for the quality and form of new development, including the General Development Permit Area Guidelines, neighbourhood specific guidelines, and some guidelines for master planned development sites. Please see the City's Development Permit and Area Plan webpages for more information.
• The Form and Character Design Guidelines are part of Development Permit Area 8 (DP8), and will be applicable to all new multi-family, commercial, industrial, and mixed-use developments in the City of Nanaimo.
• The current guidelines have been created at different times over the past 30+ years and reflect many different best practices in urban development. This project will consolidate and update the current design guidelines to implement City Plan goals and policies.
• The guidelines are meant to give clear and concise direction on how new developments can be approved by Development Permit where they substantially comply with the guidelines.
• It is important that the guidelines allow for flexibility and creative solutions in the design process while still reinforcing the vision for the city.

City Plan in Action

Form and Character Design Guidelines address two priority actions in the City's Integrated Action Plan:

1. To update the Development Permit Guidelines to be consistent with the City Plan policies (Priority Action #202); and
2. To include guidelines on energy, climate, and water efficiency using passive design techniques from a site and building perspective (i.e. shading, rainwater management, green roofs, building orientation etc.) as part of development permit requirements (Priority Action #5).