Council will know in December whether the Cheema family will be granted permission to build on land adjacent to the Garibaldi highlands, with a final decision on public trail access expected in February.
District staff confirmed on Tuesday that a draft of the new Official Community Plan is expected in December. That updated document will reveal whether the District will allow the Cheema family to begin developing their 400-acre property.
Bob Cheema attended a committee meeting on Tuesday to remind councillors an OCP that doesn’t allow the development could mean running and mountain bike trail access will be closed.
“I don’t know what other words to use,” said Cheema. “I need something to move on and the biking community needs something to move on.”
Many popular mountain biking and running trails run through the land, including routes used by large events during the summer like the Spakwus 50, Marathon Mountain Bike Race, the Squamish Triathlon and the BC Bike Race.
Cheema said his current liability insurance on the private land runs out in February and his insurance provider won’t renew the policy unless they see evidence of development. He said the December timeline is good news.
“I don’t see a big issue, unless something goes sideways with the OCP,” he said. “If there’s no development there, we won’t have a policy, so there will be no race and no one crossing the land.”
Coun. Doug Race suggested that District staff could also investigate legal options to allow the District to cover the liability for citizens using the private land.
“There are solutions like that if there is a will,” said Race.
There may not be a will. Cheema said the family has allowed access for 12 years, and while he insisted that he’s not making threats or holding the cycling trails hostage, he said any workarounds wouldn’t be worth it if his development plans are not green-lighted in February.
“It doesn’t work. How would you control right of way on a 400-acre site? Why should I do that, if I’m not moving forward on the development? It’s good for the community, but who is going to pay my property tax? Who will pay my mortgage?” he said. “It’s time to get it done.”
The previous version of the Official Community Plan, drafted in 2010, prevented development in the area until the population of Squamish reached 22,500.
While there are no specifics for the land yet, the Cheema family has plans for a mixed-use development that will roll out in phases. As the development plan moves forward, the green space containing mountain bike trails could be transferred to the District, according to Cheema.
In an interview on Monday, Mayor Patricia Heintzman said it’s crucial the District approach development in areas like the Cheema land carefully, with an overarching plan.
She said the purpose of the population caps are for matching a tax base with the costs of installing infrastructure in new developments. Whether the current limitations are still appropriate or not is one thing being looked at in the policy review.
