What is a Complete Community?

What is a complete community?

A “complete community” is one that provides a diversity of housing to meet identified needs and accommodates people at all stages of life. Complete communities provide a wide range of employment opportunities, amenities, and services within reasonable walking and cycling distances of people’s homes. They also support the efficient use of infrastructure through more compact forms of development and promote the reduction of a community’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions through the provision of alternative modes of transportation and movement for residents.

Striving to become a more complete community is intended to operate as an overall goal, recognizing that complete communities may look different across regions. All communities have the potential to be more complete, regardless of their existing context and physical characteristics.

What is a Complete Community Assessment?

A Complete Community Assessment is a desktop-level, geospatial exercise that analyzes a community’s “completeness” by mapping its Housing, Daily Needs, Transportation, and Infrastructure assets to assess how well residents are served across the community, with the goal of having all services within a compact and energy-efficient 15-minute distance. The results of the assessment are then used to identify additional housing needs, improve connections between residents and services or amenities they frequently access, understand how municipal infrastructure can be used more efficiently, and determine where growth should be directed.

This assessment is being funded through the Government of BC’s Complete Communities Program(External link) and reflects a key commitment under the BC Climate Action Charter(External link) which requires all local governments to create complete, compact, and energy-efficient communities.

To learn more about how the Complete Community Assessment will be done, explore the Ask a Question section below.