We all know that majority rules is one of the most basic tenets of democracy. When an election occurs, or a vote comes up in the House of Commons, the legislature or the council table, the results of the vote determine the outcome. Discussion sometimes continues, but the decision is made.
Some circumstances, though, require us to dig a bit deeper. Issues involving individual rights, for example, should never be decided by a simple vote. Imagine if Abraham Lincoln had polled the electorate before signing the Emancipation Proclamation, freeing the slaves in the (then divided) United States. What do you suppose the outcome would have been?
The point is that leadership and vision are often required when important decisions are made; otherwise every issue would come down to the squeaky wheel getting the grease.
The instance of the proposed Newport Ridge Drive rezoning - allowing for a development with smaller building lots than are currently allowed under residential single-family (RS-1) zoning to occur - is a case in point. In last week's Chief, the headline "Residents united against small-lot plan" certainly gave the impression that the vast majority of area residents opposed amending the zoning to allow for a development with lots as small as 300 square metres (less than half the size of the minimum lot size in RS-1).
And perhaps they are, but their input is only one variable in the equation. We're told Squamish's Official Community Plan has designated the Newport Ridge Drive area as a good candidate for the sort of small-lot development that's proposed in this case - it's a major thoroughfare (though it's not certain, because of fisheries issues, whether it will ever serve as a third access road to Garibaldi Highlands), close to shopping and transit. Certainly the road can handle the additional traffic generated by the more dense, small-lot development that's proposed. As for parking issues - well, single-car garages don't necessarily mean more vehicles will be parked along the street than the street can handle.
Given the current state of the real-estate market, it seems to us that the developer's aim of selling the small-lot homes for between $475,000 and $525,000 is a bit pie in the sky. But that's just the market today. We agree that it's not the developer's job to ensure true affordability - that's the job of government. One tool that government can use to do that is zoning for a variety of housing types, encouraging developers who think they can make money selling smaller homes, duplexes, condominiums or apartments to have at 'er. Sometimes it's also necessary for governments to go beyond that to promote affordability with the sort of "interventions" mentioned in the 2005 Affordable Housing Strategy. But that's another editorial.
The decision on the proposed Newport Ridge Drive rezoning should hinge on a number of factors - the input of those who already live in the area being just one of those. Public input is, after all, an important part of the process, but at the end of the day it's the principles of good planning that should prevail.
- David Burke
