How long will it be before we realize the Gore-tex is being pulled over our eyes?
According to the District of Squamish Draft Economic Development Recommendations, we have "a powerful brand in the 'Outdoor Recreation Capital of Canada' [ORCC] that invites people to live, work, and play in Squamish [and] differentiates Squamish from other communities, and provides a competitive advantage to its businesses." What powerful brand? What competitive advantage?
Our population has stagnated at an estimated 17,000 residents. Business growth has been unspectacular, to say the least. Taxpayers will soon be on the hook for major infrastructure costs at the same time as our commercial/industrial tax base has failed to compensate for the loss of Woodfibre and B.C. Rail. According to some observers, anywhere from 50 to 70 per cent of locals who hold down a job commute to work beyond the borders of the ORCC.
While we tread water waiting for our downtown and the Squamish Oceanfront development lands to hit full stride, West and North Vancouver showcase vibrant, diverse micro-communities, like Dundarave, Ambleside, and Edgemont villages. Both municipalities leverage their outdoor recreation assets in spades, with operations like the Grouse Mountain complex, and the Cypress and Mount Seymour ski centres. The City of Burnaby offers a network of attractive outdoor-activity-oriented urban parks, including the Barnet Marine Park, the Burnaby Fraser Foreshore Park and the Burnaby Lake Regional Park.
The proposed Sea to Sky Gondola will go a long way toward getting us into the game. In the meantime, as many downtown Squamish merchants have discovered, the ORCC brand is not making them a whole lot of money. Thousands of visitors swing through town to mountain bike, hike, climb, paddle, ski, windsurf, hang-glide you name it, and then hit the road after dropping less than 10 bucks for a coffee and a sandwich.
That being said, for numerous vendors, locating in Squamish has been good for the bottom line. Fast-food mainstays, like Tim Hortons, Wendy's and McDonald's, and retailers, like London Drugs and Wal-Mart, opened stores in a high-traffic marketplace with an above-average disposable income base, including the well-heeled Whistler demographic.
But simply establishing a business in the ORCC does not necessarily guarantee a leg up on the competition. Although there are long waiting lists in many jurisdictions to secure a coveted Dairy Queen, KFC, or Taco Bell franchise, the Squamish DQ sold its last Dilly Bar a few years back and the building was razed. This past June the KFC and Taco Bell outlets, housed under the same roof along Highway 99, near the much-traversed Stawamus Chief hiking and climbing routes, served their last bucket of chicken and burrito, respectively. Across the road from Shannon Falls, the Klahanie Roadhouse Restaurant has ceased operations. So much for our competitive advantage.
Of course, there are many factors, including management and financing issues, which cause some businesses to fail while others thrive. Whatever spin we put on the situation, in terms of our municipal tax base and job-creation prospects, this community has not fully capitalized on its outdoor recreational assets. Our future well-being depends on how we address that deficiency.
