University Area Neighbourhood Plan

Draft Neighbourhood Vision

The University Area will continue to evolve as a centre of education, healthcare, and recreation. Anchored by its rich history, institutional heart, and community energy, the University Area will become even more connected and livable with access to jobs, diverse housing choices, education, daily needs, local and regional parks, and transportation options.

Proposed Neighbourhood Strategies

Check out the initial recommendations for the University Area! We are proposing 7 key neighbourhood strategies for the Neighbourhood Plan to guide future growth and improvements:

1. New Neighbourhood Node: The Paton Street, Anderson Avenue, and Elizabeth Avenue intersection is identified as the core focus area for commercial and residential growth, creating a priority area for attracting additional commercial amenities.
2. New Elizabeth Avenue Growth Corridor: New zoning is proposed for the Elizabeth Avenue corridor that prioritizes development height and density closest to the Neighbourhood Node while decreasing height and density towards Churchill Park.
3. Newtown Road Shared Use Path + Residential Growth: Newtown Road is prioritized for future development of a shared use path connecting MUN to the Downtown through the University Area. Residential redevelopment is also encouraged along this corridor.
4. Prince Philip Dr. Connections: Priority pedestrian connections are identified throughout the University Area, but none are more important than improving connections across Prince Philip Drive, particularly where shared use pathways are proposed.
5. Reinforce Rabbittown’s Neighbourhood Commercial Uses: The Rabbittown community is home to the University Area’s oldest commercial businesses, and this compact neighbourhood commercial character should be encouraged to expand.
6. Freshwater Road Mixed Use Corridor: Highway-oriented commercial developments along Freshwater Road are encouraged to redevelop into mixed use centres over the long-term, providing more commercial and housing choice to the neighbourhood.
7. Park Connections: Improving connections for Rabbittown residents to Kelly’s Brook Park, and for all University Area residents to Pippy Park.

A larger version of the Neighbourhood Strategy Map can be found in the Documents section.

About the Project

The City of St. John’s is developing a Neighbourhood Plan for the University Area. The Neighbourhood Plan aims to take the visions we set for the City through Envision St. John's and make them real at the community/neighbourhood level. This plan will be shaped by the existing policies of the Municipal Plan, analysis of local conditions, and engagement within the neighbourhood and the wider community. To be successful, the vision and plan for the University Area needs to be grounded in an understanding of the unique characteristics of the community. The plan will incorporate the needs and desires of the people who live, work, and play in these neighbourhoods.

The University Area Neighbourhood Plan will focus on the area highlighted on the map above.

This project has been made possible through funding from the Housing Accelerator Fund (HAF) provided to the City of St. John’s by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). Learn more about how the City is using this $10.4 million in funding to stimulate housing growth at StJohns.ca.