It would appear that residents of Pemberton aren’t really concerned with protecting land around them from future development.
At least, that’s the subliminal message that was delivered to organizers of Smart Growth B.C.’s Sea to Sky Greenbelt initiative on Thursday (Oct. 23). Only two residents of Pemberton attended, though one of them was Mayor Jordan Sturdy.
The greenbelt initiative began in response to what Ione Smith, project coordinator and presenter on Thursday, called “the perfect storm” — the upcoming Olympics, the widening of Highway 99, different land use plans, and a change in demographics that showed an influx of older and wealthier citizens who “had a lot of money to spend on the types of housing that was not really affordable.”
The result, Smith said, was unprecedented development pressures, leading to ecological vulnerability.
“There was a critical connection that was missing, on what the cumulative effects of all these land-use plans were going to be at all these different levels of government, and then a lack of initiatives that could identify where the gaps were in the protected areas,” said Smith.
Organizers of the greenbelt initiative hope to limit the amount of urban sprawl in the Sea to Sky corridor over the next few decades. The logical way to ensure this is to protect natural and agricultural areas surrounding current communities. The greenbelt also aligns nicely with the 10 principles of Smart Growth, which are aimed at creating compact, liveable communities.
In a perfect world, Smith would love to look at a map and see green, protected zones surrounding every community, creating natural boundaries. She would also love to see the “islands” of current protected land become connected to the larger parcels of land around them. Doing so would result in approximately 35,000 hectares of land being protected, she said.
In Pemberton, Smith and her team have identified Rutherford Creek, Pemberton Meadows, lands west of Mount Currie, and Lillooet Lake as areas at risk for potential development, based on their current zoning.
“It’s not our role to come to the communities and tell them what to do,” Smith said. “This is done in a way that’s useful for you… to help you make decisions.”
Mayor Sturdy found the potential to connect the “islands” notable.
“What was interesting to me was the final piece of the puzzle — saying, ‘OK, let’s connect this island to this island and create these corridors here,” he said. He then asked for more detailed mapping information, especially for the areas that are proposed linkages, from D’Arcy to Cayoosh Ridge.
“If I’m going to make that recommendation, I’m going to want to know what I’m recommending,” he said.
The other Pemberton resident who attended the meeting showed concern for current landowners.
“This would have a lot of implications for a lot of people’s property, potentially, for them to make money,” he said.
“It was never our intention to talk about how things should be changed,” said Smith. “It’s really more about moving forward in the future for land that is not zoned, especially Crown land.”
The Pemberton meeting was one of four staged by Smart Growth B.C. last week, aiming to provide an update and gather input for the future of the one-year-old greenbelt initiative. Similar meetings occurred in West Vancouver, Squamish and Whistler.
