Editor:
It’s one thing for shíshálh Nation to build much needed affordable housing for their people on their own land (Selma Park Road) It’s quite another for a foreign development company to build a 100 lot subdivision (on Havies Road) touted as “a collection of 100 spacious single-family homes… 3, 5 and 6 bedroom luxury residences.”
At a recent meeting about the Homei Subdivision we were told that many of the houses would have secondary suites and the option to build “carriage houses.” So in fact, this will be much more than 100 homes – and you can bet there’ll be more than one car per lot substantially increasing traffic volume in what is now a quiet neighbourhood. And five to six bedroom luxury homes is not what Sechelt needs – it needs affordable housing.
There are several other large subdivisions in progress around Sechelt, but really, is this the time to just keep on clear-cutting and building? Sechelt’s sewage treatment plant (euphemistically called the Water Resource Centre) needs many upgrades; our landfill is almost full; our tiny highway can’t handle any more traffic; the water lines are full of leaks through which we’re losing thousands of gallons every day.
Every summer when Stage 4 rolls around we, the residents – the taxpayers – are told we’re not allowed to fill up a birdbath, while vacationers at all the Air BnBs and short term rentals are thoughtlessly wasting a phenomenal amount of water.
They think they’ve struck gold with the Church Road wells, which might supply the needs of current residents, but if big developments keep on being approved, there will never be enough water to keep up with a constantly growing population. Until all the problems in our infrastructure are resolved, there should be a moratorium on development in Sechelt.
Cecilia Ohm-Eriksen, Sechelt
