This past January, a stop work order for a rogue skatebowl under the bridge leading to Quest University was issued by the DOS and a fine of $1,000 was levied because proper permits had not been secured.
Last week, that classic made-in-Squamish narrative was back in the news. In a 4-3 vote, council rescinded a previous declaration to have the facility dismantled and gave the project’s organizers a one-year reprieve to get their act together. But the bad feelings generated by this controversial project will linger for some time to come.
Council’s decision flies in the face of warnings from district staff regarding potential liability issues associated with the site. As well, neighbours adjacent to the area are vehemently opposed to the project and have submitted a litany of concerns.
Those anxious residents have been tossed summarily under the bus by muni hall. They have also been ridiculed and accused of being “Not In My Backyard” elitist snobs by overzealous social media critics. One blogger on the Pique magazine website reduced the discussion about this issue to its lowest common denominator when he challenged readers to “Find a NIMBY and slap them silly.”
The ongoing political drama has been heightened by the antics of the skatebowl’s principal champion, Coun. Bryan Raiser, who announced he was “tired of the District of Squamish being a place where community initiatives go to die… If someone wants to do something awesome in our community, then I say go for it.”
Presumably, Raiser’s sentiment would apply whether that someone follows the rules or not.
It would appear council has set a precedent here: the door has been opened for any local enterprise to circumvent municipal regulations and then negotiate for legitimacy later. However, Auli Parviainen, who is a member of the Squamish Chamber of Commerce board and a former mayoral candidate, claims Squamish is already “chock-a-block full of illegally built structures,” with many proponents having sought permits “after the fact.” Parviainen says it would be unfair for the DOS to apply the letter of the law to the skatebowl, while ignoring a catalogue of infractions elsewhere.
Meanwhile, an ad hoc committee called the Skateboarders Mason Society has been formed to lobby on behalf of the project. That group is spearheaded, interestingly, by the owner of a local skateboard shop.
According to reports, the unsanctioned facility was cobbled together by volunteers who will have donated the equivalent of $100,000 in work and material by the time the project is complete. Of course, around here, trumpeting volunteer involvement takes us into sensitive pastures where sacred cows graze.
Whatever spin we put on the fallout from muni hall’s skatebowl flip-flop, the whole acrimonious affair could come back to haunt some council incumbents at the polls in November.
