A plan for a cabin near Echo Lake has been approved by the Squamish-Lillooet Regional District.
Zoning Amendment Bylaw No. 1523 - 2017 passed third reading and adoption on Feb. 28.
The land around Echo Lake has been rezoned to allow Black Tusk Helicopter to build a two-level cabin with a gross floor area of 150 square metres. It would have two bathrooms, a bunkroom for 10 people, a common area, a kitchen, foyer, lounge, and deck.
Also included in the application were two camping pads. Echo Lake is outside of the District of Squamish and therefore under the jurisdiction of the SLRD.
At the time of application, Black Tusk already had tenure of the area, meaning it was effectively leasing the land from the province. SLRD documents state the company was flying people in via helicopter.
The approval comes after a public hearing on Feb. 19.
“As a result of the public hearings, no changes are proposed to the rezoning bylaw,” reads the information report SLRD staff presented to the board before the bylaw was approved.
Input given during the public hearing was almost entirely positive.
There were previously some who expressed concern allowing a cabin to be built in the area would commercialize and possibly spoil what some considered to be pristine land.
However, this point of view was largely absent at the Feb.19 meeting, during which Black Tusk Helicopter promised to make the facility open to the public. A first-come, first serve online booking system will allow people to reserve the facility.
There were some concerns, however.
Some were worried about waste from cabin occupants.
In response, Black Tusk representative Danielle Saindon said waste would be flown out, and that the company was also considering composting toilets and greywater filters to address this issue.
Matt Gunn, a District planner who was attending as a private resident, wanted to see public use being enshrined in the zoning amendments, just in case another company bought the property.
Dave Williamson of Cascade Environmental answered the comment about adding public use in the zoning. Cascade is the company assisting Black Tusk with the proposal.
Williamson said that a management plan already governs the use of the area, and if another company took over, it would have to abide by that plan. The province could kick out the company if those terms were breached.
If a company wanted to re-apply to change the management plan, it would have to be reviewed by authorities again, Williamson said.
This would imply it wouldn’t be necessary to add public use to the zoning amendment.
Gunn, however, responded that he’d feel more comfortable if zoning also enforced public use, as provincial politics — and therefore, possibly land-use decision-making — tends to be more subject to change.
