Introducing the Suburban Plan Newsletter

Newsletter updates will be a chance for our team to share information, upcoming engagement opportunities, updates, and what’s next for the Suburban Planning process. Newsletters will be sent out approximately once a month and/or at major project milestones.

Kickoff of the Suburban Planning Process

At the December 9th meeting of Regional Council, Halifax Regional Municipality (HRM) planning staff presented the Suburban Plan Workplan and Community Engagement Strategy.

The report provided an update on the Suburban Planning process, workplan and a Community Engagement Strategy, which will guide the Suburban Planning process’s engagement approach.

What is the goal of the Suburban Plan?

Many of the current community plans guiding land use and development in HRM’s suburban communities have not been fully updated since their adoption. Since then, the municipality has experienced amalgamation, significant population growth, increasing traffic, and changing weather trends. The Suburban Plan will create a new plan and by-law for the Suburban Area. The new planning documents will reflect the current vision for these communities and respond to the challenges and opportunities they are experiencing.

The key themes that will be explored through the Suburban Planning process will include:

• Land use and design
• Complete communities
• Housing
• Environment and sustainability
• Mobility
• Economic prosperity
• Culture, arts and heritage

The Suburban Planning Process

The Suburban Plan will be developed in three phases:

Visit the project webpage to learn more.

What is the Suburban Plan Area?

The Suburban Plan study area generally includes the lands located outside of the Regional Centre (Peninsula Halifax and Dartmouth outside the Circumferential Highway), where municipal water and wastewater services and conventional transit are available or planned to be considered.

The Suburban Plan area includes many neighbourhoods and communities, such as Armdale, Bedford, Clayton Park, Cole Harbour, Dartmouth outside the Circumferential Highway, Eastern Passage, Fairview, Sackville, Spryfield, and Herring Cove.

While the intent is that the Suburban Plan focuses on serviced areas, minor changes to the study area may be required to efficiently administer the plan based on additional analysis and community engagement.

How can I get involved?

We encourage everyone to continue following the Suburban Plan process and share your comments with us! Please visit the project webpage for more information and to complete our survey. Please stay tuned for our next newsletter and more details on engagement events being planned for January and February 2026.