My family has a 100-year history in Horseshoe Bay, as my great-great-grandfather purchased the property that is now Sewell’s Marina from Colonel Whyte to build a summer cottage retreat from the hustle and bustle of Vancouver prior to the First World War.
As Horseshoe Bay developed, my grandparents moved their summer activities across Howe Sound to Grantham’s Landing and, in the early 1960s, to Roberts Creek.
It is from that little beachfront cottage, packed with aunts, uncles and cousins or on the beach with friends around a campfire, that I first remember the lamenting of BC Ferries’ service to the Sunshine Coast. Or perhaps it was sweltering in the car for interminable multi-sailing waits and being neither here nor there, with no movement or sense of progress. “Why, oh why, don’t they just build a road?” was the refrain.
No talk of a bridge at that point, but a road to the Sunshine Coast seemed eminently sensible and would be open 24 hours a day, allowing people to come and go as they pleased, creating opportunity on the coast, driving business and tourism. Just get on with it, everyone said. Even then I could feel the passion, but clearly, it was not simple.
Fast-forward 40 years and the refrain largely remains the same. What is new are some concerning statistics. An important segment of the workforce on the southern Sunshine Coast, those aged 25 to 44, is estimated to have declined by 44 per cent over the past 25 years, while the number of young families with children aged one to 14 years has declined an alarming 39 per cent. While there may be a number of reasons, it is generally accepted that economic conditions and opportunities are throttled back by the current transportation connections to the Lower Mainland.
As Minister of Transportation Todd Stone has said, “We’ve heard from stakeholders from Powell River to the Sunshine Coast that highway access is important for attracting tourism and investment. We’ll look at the opportunities available and see how the costs and benefits stack up against the existing transportation options.”
In other words, let’s get some facts on the table and have an informed discussion. A variety of options from road alignments to bridges and tunnels will be examined over the next several months to provide a high-level assessment of the possibilities.
The implications for communities, including Squamish, of a fixed-link connection could be significant depending on the alignment. The capacity of the Sea to Sky Highway is a limitation that we can appreciate even today. As Britannia and Squamish grow and visitors to Whistler increase – to say nothing of a Garibaldi at Squamish – there can be no doubt that travel times and visitor experience could be compromised.
Over the next few months, I will be meeting with communities from the North Shore, the Sea to Sky and the Sunshine Coast to hear thoughts and concerns as we enter into this assessment. The outcome of the assessment, due in late fall, will provide information for a discussion about the next steps. Like those campfire discussions of my youth, I imagine the talk will be lively.
