Bylaw 147-2023, the plan d'urbanisme, divides the territory into 11 land-use designations, sets minimum housing densities and says development is to be concentrated in the urban perimeter. It sets no fines; the zoning bylaw must respect it.
The copy the town has posted shows no adoption or in-force date. It does not include Bylaw 147.1-2025, which amended the plan in April 2026 and whose text the Observer has not seen.
The foreword calls the revised plan "un instrument légal" meeting the requirements of Québec's planning act, the Loi sur l'aménagement et l'urbanisme (LAU), and says the town's plan and planning bylaws must agree with the MRC du Haut-Saint-Laurent's land-use plan (schéma d'aménagement). The plan covers the whole territory and replaces the "Règlement du Plan d'urbanisme n° 24-2006" and all its amendments (art. 1.1.2, 1.1.3).
The copy the town has posted gives no notice-of-motion, adoption or in-force date. Article 6.1 says the bylaw comes into force "conformément à la loi". The consolidation page leaves the table of amendments empty and says the consolidation "n'a aucune valeur officielle".
The town's notice of adoption, dated April 20, 2026, says council adopted "Règlement 147.1-2025 modifiant le règlement concernant le plan d'urbanisme 147-2023" at its ordinary sitting of April 13, 2026, and that it comes into force on the day the notice is published. The notice of public consultation, dated March 19, 2026, says the amendment modifies "certaines dispositions relatives à la politique sur la protection des rives, du littoral et des zones inondables et l'hébergement touristique de plein air lié à une entreprise agricole enregistrée" (provisions on the protection of shorelines, the littoral and flood zones, and on outdoor tourist lodging linked to a registered farm business). The passages of the plan on those two subjects are marked below.
The plan sets no offences or fines. It says:
A designation (grande affectation) assigns a use, function or vocation to a part of the territory. Densities are gross, in dwellings per hectare (art. 5.1, 5.1.2).
| Designation | Area and main uses listed | Density |
|---|---|---|
| A, Agricultural (art. 5.2.1) | Southern farmland with poorer soils. Farming first; also farmers' dwellings, B&Bs, quarries, scrapyards, kennels and ecocentres. | n/a |
| AD, Dynamic agricultural (art. 5.2.2) | Northern high-potential farmland. Farming first; a shorter list of related uses, without quarries, scrapyards or ecocentres. | n/a |
| ADR, Residential islands (art. 5.2.3) | The îlots déstructurés recognized by the CPTAQ: low-density housing. | n/a |
| C, Commercial (art. 5.2.4) | Commercial poles other than the village core; housing in some sectors only. | n/a |
| I, Industrial (art. 5.2.5) | Along Route 201: industry, heavy commercial and para-industrial uses. | n/a |
| MXT, Mixed, village core (art. 5.2.6) | Housing, services, specialized shops, lodging, restaurants, shops with dwellings, culture and recreation. | 20 per ha |
| P, Public and institutional (art. 5.2.7) | Churches, schools, parks and other public and institutional uses. | n/a |
| REC, Recreational (art. 5.2.8) | The abandoned rail line, now the MRC's regional linear park. | n/a |
| R, Consolidation residential (art. 5.2.9) | Most of the urban perimeter: housing, home businesses, parks, some non-residential uses that must not compete with the village core. | min. 15 |
| RFD, Low-density residential (art. 5.2.10) | White zones outside the perimeter awaiting development, on Route 201 and the 3e rang. | min. 3 |
| RO, Optimal residential (art. 5.2.11) | Most new development sectors, with a wider range of dwelling types; most will require an approved PAE. | min. 20 |
Article 5.1.2 says the density on each sheet is a maximum number of dwellings per hectare, and that a minimum is sometimes given. The R, RFD and RO sheets give only a minimum. The MXT sheet gives "20 logements à l'hectare" and does not say whether this is a minimum or a maximum.
The boundaries are on Plans 9.1 and 9.2 in Annex A, which is part of the bylaw (art. 1.1.6, 5.1). The posted copy lists Annex A but does not contain it, and Plans 1 to 7 carry only a title; only Plan 1-1 has a map. This explainer does not describe where each designation applies.
The uses listed above for A and AD are those of the plan as printed. The consultation notice says Bylaw 147.1-2025 modifies provisions on outdoor tourist lodging linked to a registered farm business.
Ormstown has one urban perimeter, the former village, plus two white zones: along the 3e rang, and on Route 201 at the Franklin boundary. Development is to be concentrated inside the perimeter (art. 3.1.1.2). The plan lists six sectors of 1 hectare or more (art. 3.1.1.3, 3.1.1.4):
| Sector (Tables 4 and 5) | Hectares | Min. density | Dwellings |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Route 201 Nord (redevelopment) | 4.23 | 20 | 85 |
| 2. Rue Saint-Paul (redevelopment) | 4.34 | 20 | 87 |
| 3. Rue Reid | 4.44 | 3 | 14 |
| 4. 3e rang (urban perimeter) | 25.66 | 20 | 514 |
| 5. 3e rang (white zone) | 57.36 | 3 | 173 |
| 6. 201 / Rang Dumas (white zone) | 42.28 | 3 | 127 |
| Total | 138.31 | 1,000 |
Article 3.1.1.4 places the six sectors "à l'intérieur de son périmètre d'urbanisation" (inside its urban perimeter). Tables 4 and 5 list sectors 5 and 6 as white zones, and article 5.2.10 describes the RFD white zones as located outside the perimeter.
With an increase of about 242 households projected by 2041, the plan says the town's residential space needs to 2041 "pourront facilement être comblés" (art. 3.1.1.4).
About 26 hectares added to the perimeter on the 3e rang must be developed in phases: before a phase starts, 75% of the previous phase's residential building lots must have a house built or work carried out under a building permit issued by the town (art. 3.1.1.3). Plan 1-1 shows four phases of 6.6, 10, 4.8 and 4.2 hectares.
Chapter III sets ten orientations (art. 3):
On shorelines and flood zones, the plan says the town is to apply the transitional regime in force since March 1, 2022 on shorelines, the littoral and the floodplain, along with the MRC's standards, and carry those rules into its planning bylaws (art. 3.3.1.1, 3.3.2, 3.6.2). The consultation notice says Bylaw 147.1-2025 modifies provisions on this policy.
The plan sets no offences or fines. The zoning bylaw must respect its classification of uses and the uses it authorizes (art. 5.1.1). The Annex A maps that show where each designation applies are not in the posted copy (art. 5.1).