The Squamish-Lillooet Regional District (SLRD) board of directors opted to refer the Tiger Bay development back to staff in hopes of getting more information at the next board meeting.
On Sept. 27, the board had a lengthy and, at times, testy discussion about the Tiger Bay development application proposed for Britannia Beach, which was recommended by staff for a third and final reading after a public hearing on the matter was held on Sept. 6. The Tiger Bay development is a major mixed-use proposal, the highlights of which include 1,050 apartments and townhomes and the construction of a surf park among other amenities.
However, the board ultimately referred the application back to staff by unanimous vote rather than entertaining a motion for third reading. Simply put, the board discussion boiled down to whether the development and the timing of the elements within the development would meet the needs of the current and new residents.
“Is each development, at minimum, looking after the demand that they’re creating by the developer, or better yet, are they positively impacting the overall ecosystem around them? Now, personally, I’d like to see it positively impact the surrounding areas,” said SLRD director and Squamish Mayor Armand Hurford.
Some concerns that remained from board members included the lack of housing in Phase 1, insufficient childcare space, and the phasing of recreational areas and services. There were also other concerns about things like a library, police station, or other similar community services.
“We're talking about building 600 units, which can house from 1,000 to 1,500 people, and not providing any recreation services,” said Pemberton Mayor Mike Richman. “If that's the case, we haven't built a complete community.”
As it stands, the first phase of development includes the surf park, skate park and pump track. The second phase comprises about 150 townhomes and apartments, commercial space, tourist accommodations, road work, and access to Minaty Bay.
The third phase includes a CN Rail pedestrian overpass and a playfield, along with about 450 more housing units. The fourth and final phase consists of the construction of a community centre and potential school site and the rest of the housing.
However, Tony Rainbow, the director for SLRD’s Electoral Area D, which includes Britannia Beach, believed things had come too far to reverse course now, and it was too early to discuss the community needs.
“I don’t think we can be making that kind of decision now,” Rainbow said of community needs. “We have got to wait and see, when the opportunity arises, what do the people in the community want to see there.”
Rainbow also disagreed that there needed to be more recreation in Britannia.
A consultant for Tiger Bay, Cameron Chalmers, briefly spoke to the board and proposed they could offer the SLRD the power to adjust the timing of the community centre to Phase 3, or defer it to Phase 4. Chalmers also proposed community amenity contributions (CAC) could be paid upon the development permit for each unit in Phase 4, although they would still be paid for upon sale for Phases 2 and 3, he said, citing cash flow reasons.
The board asked for that information to be included at the next meeting, which should be on Oct. 25.
The CACs proposed by the development equate to approximately $2.5 million over the course of the development.
At the public hearing on Sept. 6, the crowd was largely in favour of the development and wished for the CACs to stay within Britannia Beach for amenities there.
Despite the board not moving ahead with the application on Sept. 27, numerous board members spoke about their hope of finding a way forward with the development.
“There are existing residents who live in Britannia, that have lived there for a very long time, and I hope this is additive for them,” said Whistler Mayor Jack Crompton. “It's all of our hope this is additive for the people that live there — that [it] makes their lives better.”
“If this comes back with some of these adjustments, I could see enthusiastically supporting this.”
Learn more about the Tiger Bay development on slrd.bc.ca and view the meeting on the SLRD’s YouTube channel.
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