In 1859, Charles Dickens published A Tale of Two Cities, an epic novel based on the French Revolution. The underlying theme of the book is the ambivalence associated with that tumultuous era, aptly mirrored in the following excerpt from the opening paragraph: “It was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness… it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair.”
One hundred and fifty-seven years later, is there a better summary of the events unfolding in our own backyard, albeit on a much smaller and less frenzied scale?
The overriding question in Squamish these days is whether the glass is half empty or half full. For every tenant complaining about skyrocketing rents and housing prices, there are likely 10 existing homeowners who are jumping for joy at the chance of cashing in on a robust real estate market.
Although many observers are all shook up by the changing social and economic climate, there are a host of others ready to become movers and shakers. Would it be a stretch to say that for every disenchanted resident who pulls up stakes in search of rosier prospects elsewhere, at least four newcomers are ready to capitalize on opportunities here? As David Greenfield, a partner in the Sea to Sky Gondola operation, told Glacier Media about Squamish recently, “A lot of people are waking up to the fact that this town has a lot to offer.”
Depending on whose viewpoint you accept, the Garibaldi at Squamish resort is either a rapacious land grab by greedy Lower Mainland developers or the biggest bonanza to hit town in decades.
And the highly controversial Woodfibre LNG (liquefied natural gas) proposal will be the fast track to environmental degradation or a stepping stone to economic diversification.
The Squamish Chief recently published a letter to the editor from Glenn Stainton, a longtime Squamish resident and member of the Woodfibre LNG Community Committee. He wrote that both Woodfibre LNG and Garibaldi at Squamish should be encouraged because they will provide employees with decent wages and make homeownership more affordable for many families.
In response, Kerry Brown, one of the founders of the Inside Edge Knowledge Association, wondered how many local people looking to buy a house will fill those Woodfibre LNG jobs and how many jobs will go to newcomers. He warned that “more people moving to Squamish will only help to ensure the current sellers’ market and cause housing prices to rise even more.”
Whatever spin we put on the situation, as much as some pundits are convinced the wheels are coming off, others are ready to grease the wheels.
