Squamish council got an earful from some angry land and business owners at public hearings Tuesday night over proposed downtown zoning changes.
Attendees overflowed council chamber and into the lobby of municipal hall for the hearings that were at times heated as approximately 20 speakers took to the microphone, almost all to oppose some of the changes proposed in the annual zoning amendment omnibus.
Some speakers who own land in Squamish had come from out of town. One man said he had driven for hours to speak about the bylaw amendments.
The most controversial, and at times confusing, bylaw changes included the amendments titled Downtown Commercial and Setbacks.
With Downtown Commercial, the proposal aimed to increase commercial space and vibrancy downtown by requiring commercial use along all street frontages and an additional floor of commercial space on properties with Downtown Commercial and Artisan (C4 and C10) zoning. In addition, the commercial spaces would have to be at least 10 metres deep.
The other proposal is for an increase in setbacks from zero to 2.5 metres on certain lots abutting Pemberton Avenue, Victoria Street, Vancouver Street, Second Avenue and Third Avenue.
Many at the public hearing who spoke to these particular proposals in the omnibus complained of a lack of consultation.
Some said they feared the changes to setbacks and the requirement of more commercial space would devalue their properties. Rather than reinvigorate downtown, the changes would actually hinder future development, several speakers asserted.
In response to feedback from the public, District staff recommended setbacks only on Pemberton, Second and Third avenues, removing Victoria and Vancouver streets from the bylaw.
The setbacks would help achieve active transportation goals, according to District planner Aja Philp, who presented some of the zoning changes.
Ultimately, council rescinded second reading on these two amendments Tuesday night. The bylaws will be brought back to a future council after some tinkering and further public and stakeholder consultation.
Longtime Squamish residents and owners of Corsa Cycles, Sandra Brull and Dave Heisler, were two of many who spoke in opposition to the proposed changes, though they said they weren’t entirely sure if their property would be impacted.
“It is really worrisome because it really would effect our property values, ours and a lot of people’s in this room,” said Brull.
“I understand we want a town that looks a lot better than we have had for the last 100 years, but is it not important to take into consideration stakeholders that would be greatly effected?”
Several other speakers also expressed confusion about what was being proposed and whether or not the proposals impacted their properties.
Sabrina Gawley, president of the Downtown Squamish Business Improvement Association, told council the association hasn’t taken a position on the changes because its members don’t quite understand what they are.
“The reason we don’t have a position is we haven’t had substantial time to inform our membership. Further we can’t inform them when it is a moving target,” she said.
“As we have heard, this moving target has lead to a lot of miscommunication.”
Previously, a public hearing on an amendment to temporarily cap building heights on Cleveland Avenue to two storeys was scheduled for Tuesday night, but at a council meeting on March 7, second reading of that bylaw was rescinded and the public hearing cancelled so that District staff could engage in more public consultation.
Mayor Patricia Heintzman acknowledged Tuesday night there was a breakdown of communication between the District and the public in regards to some of the bylaw amendments.
“I am very appreciative of the community coming forward and expressing their point of view,” she said.
“I agree we haven’t done the proper community consultation on this. I think our intentions are good, and some of the unintended consequences of ideals… we heard loud and clear.”
After the public hearings, the far less controversial zoning amendment to convert the Paco Road area from a multiple-unit zone to a new light-industrial zone passed third reading by council, as did some house-keeping amendments and the surprisingly less attention-drawing drive-thru and mini-storage caps that allow these businesses on properties currently with or approved for those uses, but does not allow those uses anywhere else in Squamish.
