Climbers and outdoor enthusiasts may soon have another camping option in Squamish.
Council passed second reading of a zoning bylaw amendment that clears the way for a campground at 2023 Centennial Way, an undeveloped three-hectare parcel of land along the Mamquam River.
The not-for-profit Mamquam River Access Society (MRAS) is behind what is described in the district staff report on the proposal, a low-impact, rustic, affordable 40-site campground. No recreational vehicles would be allowed, according to the report.
A topsoil production site was on the property in the 1990s, and the area has been used informally for camping in recent summers, according to district staff.
In order to proceed, a portion of Crown land has to be rezoned from resource to recreational use.
The Squamish and District Forestry Association has long objected to this proposal.
“We continue to believe this land parcel is quite suitable for certain industrial – small-scale primary processing – uses,” Eric Andersen, a spokesperson for the association, told The Squamish Chief.
“We are concerned the district is not following its Employment Lands Strategy.
“It identified an insufficient supply of precisely this type of medium industrial land. It proposed reconsidering land use [on] Centennial Way favouring light and medium industrial, and giving attention to Centennial Way as a designated truck route.”
Should the campground proposal proceed, the next steps would include fundraising by the Mamquam River Access Society, the removal of wood waste and remediation of the site, followed by construction of the campground, according to the district staff report.
A public hearing on the campground proposal will be held on Tuesday, Feb. 2, at town hall.
