After four years promoting tourism, advancing business interest and managing the Adventure Centre, the Squamish Sustainability Corporation (SSC) as the town knew it is no more.
Since its inception in October 2006, the municipal arm’s length corporation has become merely the Adventure Centre landlord, and its board of seven District of Squamish councillors should dissolve, stated SSC chair, said Coun. Rob Kirkham in a letter put before council at the Tuesday (July 20) council meeting.
“At this time, the only true function of the Sustainability Corporation is it role of acting as landlord for the Adventure Centre building,” stated Kirkham’s letter.
Kirkham recommended all board directors resign to be replaced by a board of District of Squamish staff. Chief administrative officer Kevin Ramsay, planning director Cameron Chalmers and parks and recreation director Bob Kusch were recommended.
The motion was met with enthusiasm.
“I’m so relieved and excited to hand over the SSC board,” said Coun. Patricia Heintzman, who has been vocal about her discomfort with the organization’s structure in the past.
“I was never overly comfortable, and I don’t think anyone on council was overly comfortable with appointing ourselves, and I think it caused some undue sort of concern in the community too.”
Heintzman said she was happy with the outcome because it separated politics and economic development.
“The original intention was some sort of economic development body that would drive economic development not have it driven out of a committee of council but out of a separate corporation,” she said.
“It takes the politicization of economic development out of municipal hall and puts it in a separate arms length entity.”
However she questioned the reasoning behind appointing Bob Kusch, whose retirement is fast approaching, but Gardner dismissed the concern by saying he would continue on afterwards a volunteer.
“We’ve had volunteers on the board before,” said Gardner.
Kirkham also recommended the new SSC report to council on their recommended roles and responsibilities by no later than December 2010.
The motion was carried unanimously.
The SSC board was originally comprised of one paid position and local volunteers who offered different scopes of economic development expertise.
In May 2009, council voted to terminate the business development department and business lead position, held by Dave Thomson. The entire SSC board resigned en masse shortly afterwards.
This lead to the removal of several SSC responsibilities, with some of the work being handed over to a newly created economic development committee and Tourism Squamish.
All members of council were appointed to the SSC as an interim board and held those positions until this week.
“When council appointed itself to the board it was always intended to be an interim appointment so that council could make some decisions about the mandate of the organization,” said Gardner. “A few months ago I said I expected that council would be resigning in the near future.”
During council’s time as SSC board directors they ran the Adventure Centre and made decisions about the property, such as agreeing to keep Sam the Axeman on the premises after the 2009 Squamish Days Logger Sports through the Olympics.
Ramsay said the new board would be looking carefully at what role SSC should play and in the meantime running the Adventure Centre building.
