According The Chief's report last week, district staff's reply to Coun. Paul Lalli's question as to the viability of marine and commercial uses of SODC lands was that, "details for investors were vague because the sub area plan hasn't yet been endorsed."
Why should a clear, solid strategy for employment and economic development uses of this peninsula, particularly those marine-related, be dependent upon first approving a plan for high-density housing?
So far, housing uses is where all the real emphasis and detail is. This use should have the lowest priority. Controversial high-rise residential towers should have even less priority.
What the public clearly wants is expanded waterfront amenities. How to pay for these?
According to the Squamish Oceanfront policy statement: "Employment-related uses are essential to Squamish's long term health and contribute to tax revenues. However, there is little demand, so they generate little revenue for landowners. Therefore, they cannot support amenity provision in the near term.
This is a fallacy (certainly for the SODC lands), which should be challenged. In reality, employment-related land uses (e.g., manufacturing, water-dependent uses) are going to have to be expensively located (or relocated) elsewhere.
Rather than relying on housing developer "amenity packages," a prosperous business community tax base is needed to help fund recreational and cultural amenities.
It is local family-wage jobs that the public also clearly wants - first priority of any "sustainability" vision for Squamish.
The draft Sub Area Plan states: "To avoid becoming a bedroom community, Squamish will plan the Oceanfront peninsula to provide a good balance of jobs and housing."
It is not the Oceanfront peninsula that needs a jobs/housing balance, but Squamish as a whole.
This draft plan compartmentalizing the peninsula only exacerbates the risk and problem of the community as a whole becoming a long distance, extended sprawl of the Lower Mainland.
As a means to obtain both the jobs and the recreational, cultural amenities the community desires, this proposed large scale housing development strategy is unconvincing.
Eric Andersen
Squamish
