A big thank you to Martin Millerchip, newly retired Editor of the North Shore News, for his support of North Van City Voices and his belief in our attempts to publicize the failure of City Hall to engage the community in discussions. We wish Martin all the best.
With the final phase of City Shaping now in effect, we note that not a single moment has been given to the public discussion of land use. This is disrespect for the community.
Quoting in part, his farewell column:
I was horrified when I heard of open houses that purported to let residents shape the future but then didn’t allow the removal of blocks that signified density, only their rearrangement.
It makes absolutely no sense to me that the two municipalities of North Vancouver continue to plan in splendid isolation from one another. The district’s OCP plans increased density in Lynn Valley, Lower Capilano and Lynnmour – essentially encircling the city. There is nothing wrong with that concept as far as creating what passes for affordability and perhaps attracting a younger demographic – if the district was a magical entity unto itself. But it isn’t, and meanwhile the city is chasing the same younger demographic in spades. If the city’s draft OCP is adopted, there won’t be any single-family zoning in the municipality. Logically, joint city-district planning might have endorsed the same concept, but would the district density targets have remained the same? And would a major development on the waterfront with only one access point – as is being planned by Concert Properties – be allowed to proceed without a Marine Drive corridor transportation plan in place for all of North Vancouver? Individually and in groups, North Vancouver residents are asking these questions. But these days it seems that developers and planners have louder voices at town hall; that our politicians are no longer there to control change but to manage how we adapt to them. Perhaps, when Marine Drive, Capilano Road, Keith Road, Main Street and Mountain Highway are at a standstill for more of the day than they are already, a tipping point in the amalgamation debate will be reached.
– See more at: http://www.nsnews.com/opinion/letters/big-development-drives-big-change-1.778880#sthash.q6xfkDWY.dpuf
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North Van City Voices 