An Official Community Plan is a general guide for land use within the municipality. Area plans focus on specific areas and their unique context to provide a greater level of detail for land use, density, form, character and the pacing of development. An area plan can apply to a group of neighbourhoods, a single neighbourhood or entire designated areas. It may guide the development of new communities or the redevelopment of existing ones.
There are also Area Concept Plans that have been endorsed by Council. However, until an Area Plan has been adopted as part of the Official Community Plan, the Concept Plan is used as a guide to direct land use within the area.