What's happening ?

The RMOW is proposing an amendment to the OCP to help address the community’s ongoing shortage of employee housing. The amendment would allow for additional accommodation capacity to support new employee housing initiatives and incorporate the Whistler Creek West Neighbourhood Plan into the OCP. It will also help with implementing the Whistler Municipal Land Strategy.

Project Objectives

The project objectives are to:

  • Increase the allocation of additional bed units under Policy 4.1.2.9(b) to support employee housing initiatives;
  • Provide a dedicated allocation of bed units to support implementation of the Whistler Creek West Neighbourhood Plan;
  • Integrate the Whistler Creek West Neighbourhood Plan into the OCP to further guide future development in that area; and
  • Consider amendments to land use designations for parcels identified in the Whistler Municipal Land Strategy.

Why now ?

Whistler continues to face on ongoing shortage of employee housing, affecting local businesses, services, and community well-being. The current allocation of 1,000 additional bed units under Policy 4.1.2.9(b) to support employee housing initiatives is nearly fully committed.

An OCP amendment is needed to provide sufficient capacity for new employee housing initiatives and support implementation of the Whistler Creek West Neighbourhood Plan and Whistler Municipal Land Strategy.

What does this mean for you ?

Increasing accommodation capacity would support the delivery of more employee housing and improve future housing availability in Whistler. Incorporating the Whistler Creek West Neighbourhood Plan into the OCP will help guide how that area evolves over time. Considering amendments to land use designations for parcels identified in the Whistler Municipal Land Strategy may result in new opportunities for employee housing development.

Existing OCP policies will continue to guide how all new developments are evaluated, including considerations such as environmental protection, infrastructure capacity, and community impacts.

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Looking ahead

A larger reassessment of our OCP, and the vision and values we want for out community, will be initiated within the next two years.

Learn More

The OCP is the RMOW's most important guiding document that sets the community vision and long-term community direction. The purpose of the OCP is to establish policies that guide decisions on community planning and land use management. “Official Community Plan Bylaw No. 2199, 2018” was adopted by Council on June 23, 2020 and is available online: https://www.whistler.ca/ocp/

Maintaining Whistler’s accommodation capacity limit is a key tool used to manage land use and development and is measured using bed units. Chapter Four of Whistler’s OCP provides for growth management objectives and policies to manage land use and development with the aim to:

  • maintain Whistler’s unique sense of place;
  • protect the natural environment;
  • provide a high quality of life for residents; and
  • provide exceptional experiences for visitors.

The accommodation capacity limit is outlined in the following OCP Policy 4.1.2.9.

Continue to maintain an accommodation capacity limit measured in bed units, consistent with the following:

a) Recognize the existing approved accommodation capacity estimated at approximately 61,500 bed units.

b) Allow for up to 1,000 additional bed units for various initiatives to address Whistler’s current critical shortage of employee housing. Continue to monitor ongoing housing needs and evaluate proposed developments relative to the municipality’s rezoning evaluation criteria.

c) Support the additional development capacity associated with the proposed development of Kadenwood lands by the Squamish Nation and Lil’wat Nation for low to medium residential development, with a capacity of up to 332 bed units. Recognize this initiative as important to reconciliation.

d) Provide regular updates on the accommodation capacity inventory, and review treatment of auxiliary residential dwelling units within the accommodation capacity.

Bed units are a measure of development intended to reflect servicing and facility requirements for one person. Different accommodation unit types and sizes are allocated a specified number of bed units.

The policy has and will continue to result in a significant amount of new employee housing. So far, 74 new employee homes have been built and 269 units have been approved for future development.

The Whistler Creek West Neighbourhood Plan establishes a long-term vision for the area, consisting of a land use framework, public realm strategies, and development policies which will frame the municipal led rezoning to authorize additional density and help support the construction of additional employee housing. The Plan is the result of extensive community engagement and was endorsed by RMOW Council on December 16, 2025. To learn more visit the project webpage here: https://engage.whistler.ca/wcw

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