Editor:
The town requires developers to supply money and/or community amenity contributions (CACs) in exchange for development permits, rezoning and changes to the official community plan (OCP).
The developer of the Stonehurst property has offered CACs in exchange for rezoning and being allowed to purchase the town’s property on School Road. Their offer should be considered worthless. They offer to spend millions of dollars on their Stonehurst building, turning it into a hotel, restaurant and bistro. Is turning an old building into a profitable business a valuable CAC?
The developer offers to supply a landscape architect to design a refurbished Inglis Park adjacent to their condo development.
This will be needed because, if the town sells its property, construction access will destroy the existing park area. But there’s no offer to pay the costs of whatever the architect recommends. Will this expense be left for the town’s taxpayers to pay?
The developer is also offering what they think is a valuable CAC by allocating 16 underground parking spaces of their condo development in exchange for removing 22 above ground spots on School Road. These are now easily accessible in the two municipal lots that the developer hopes to purchase from Gibsons.
The developer and Gibsons’ council will hopefully understand that what the community would get in exchange for the sale of town land doesn’t even make it worth considering.
The developer should just go ahead and renovate their building, turning it into their proposed “heritage” inn, restaurant and bistro. And Gibsons should keep their valuable and much needed lots for community parking.
Denis Prevost,
Gibsons
