Expect to see the former Garibaldi Springs Golf Course enclosed by a barbed-wire fence, a local developer warned after council sent a development proposal for the land back to the drawing board.
At Tuesday's (Nov. 8) Committee of the Whole, council directed District of Squamish staff not to spend time or money on Townline Ventures Squamish Ltd.'s proposal to rezone portions of the former course to create 180 small lots and an 80.6-acre park. Council decreed that the project needs to go back to the public first.
The development would impact the neighbourhood's character, Coun. Paul Lalli said. Earlier on Tuesday, Council had its first chance to read comments from an Oct. 5 open house on the plan, and Lalli said they didn't look positive.
Townline owns a combined 127.55 acres of property north of Garibaldi Highlands and east of the former golf course. It also controls an 8.2-acre parcel at the end of Newport Ridge Drive.
The proposal under consideration would hand 80.6 acres of the course owned by Squamish developer Doug Day to the district as a park. Townline would also dedicate 15.8 acres of the Meighan Creek watershed as green space, build a $45,000 tot-park for the community and put $50,000 toward the district's park programming and infrastructure.
But to meet traffic requirements of the rezoning and future access to an additional 250 lots Townline owns in Garibaldi Highlands, the company is pushing to rezone a portion of the course for a road to access the Highlands road network.
Normally a backer of development, Lalli said the proposal needs to address some major concerns, such as the road requirement and the loss of a golf course. Residents bought townhouses beside the greens and fairways on the presumption that it would remain a golf course, he said, adding the hotel Executive Suites Garibaldi Springs was built there for the same reason.
"I think it is up to the developer to work with the groups in the neighbourhood," Lalli said.
The traffic from the project would put a lot of pressure on the already busy Garibaldi and Tantalus roads intersection, Coun. Doug Race said, while Coun. Corinne Lonsdale added that she doesn't support the proposed 300-square-metre lot sizes.
Squamish has a reputation of leading developers down the garden path, Lonsdale said. She said she didn't want Townline to do a bunch work just to have council vote against the project because it doesn't have the public's support.
"You need to listen to the community when it comes to land use," Lonsdale said.
Mayor Greg Gardner, the only council member to vote in favour of staff pursuing the needed rezoning, warned council not to micro-manage the process. Although he said he, too, saw holes in the proposal, he noted there would be more opportunity for public input.
Afterward, Day told The Chief that the whole process was "dysfunctional." The project was council's idea, he said, adding that originally the district was considering buying the park land. After spending more than $100,000 in property taxes and maintenance this year and keeping the land open to the public, Day said even if council came back to him on its hands and knees, he's not sure he's willing to go through the process again.
"This is the last straw for these guys in Squamish," he said. "They have been jerking around members of Urban Development Institute for five or 10 years and this believe me, is the last straw."
As of Thursday (Nov. 10) morning, Day said he was meeting with a company to fence the property.
"No more doggie walks, no more kids playing in my sandboxes," he said.
