TEAM SAYS VANCOUVER’S PROPOSED OFFICIAL DEVELOPMENT PLAN SHOULD BE SENT BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD

TEAM for a Livable Vancouver would build a new ODP from the grassroots up

VANCOUVER (March 9, 2026) – TEAM for a Livable Vancouver says City Hall’s proposed Official Development Plan (ODP) denies the reality that Vancouver is a collection of unique neighbourhoods, each of which deserves a voice in shaping the city’s future. 

As a party that believes residents and neighbourhoods matter, TEAM strongly opposes the current version of the ODP. It’s a top-down, one-size-fits-all blueprint for Vancouver that would see massive densification.

“The ODP is based on the idea that simply increasing ‘supply entitlements’ will solve affordability,” says former TEAM City Councillor Colleen Hardwick. “But unguided supply without the right supply — housing that matches the actual needs and incomes of residents — only serves to inflate land values and displace the very people we are trying to house.”

The ODP public consultation process was inadequate. A Feb. 3, 2026, referral report shows it was limited to how recent Provincial legislation impacts the Vancouver Plan adopted in 2022. An online survey (yielding 1020 submissions), virtual and in-person open houses and pop-up events (generating 400 “touchpoints”) took place last October. Forty pieces of correspondence were received. Fewer than 0.2% of residents responded.

Compare that to the citizen engagement leading to the crafting of the 1995 CityPlan, which over three years involved more than 100,000 people. That’s 20% of Vancouver residents.

TEAM agrees with 30 top urban experts whose open letter to City Council explains why the ODP is seriously flawed and needs to be withdrawn before it’s debated at a March 10 public hearing. It should go back to staff for reconsideration – and there should be a far more democratic, participatory process than we’ve seen so far. 

TEAM’s position is clear, but where do other civic parties stand on the ODP? Who do they care most about: residents and their cherished neighbourhoods, or developers seeking to make a fortune under the massive ODP densification scheme?

The voting record of the Greens, OneCity, COPE and Vote Vancouver councillors shows that they’re all in favour of ABC’s firehose of unrestrained development. 

Whatever excuses other parties make for backing a plan that urban experts say should be withdrawn, TEAM for a Livable Vancouver will stand by residents and neighbourhoods. We’re confident that once voters understand who’s on their side, they’ll be marking their ballots accordingly in October.