Squamish council members returned briefly from their annual August break to approve a supportive letter for a Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish Nation) application.
On Tuesday, Aug. 15, council held a short special business meeting where they approved a letter of endorsement for Squamish Nation’s application to the Housing Accelerator Fund from the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation.
The approval was unanimous from the present council members. Coun. Lauren Greenlaw was absent from the meeting.
“The Squamish Nation is in an exceptional position to accelerate the current housing supply. The Squamish Nation’s territory is one of the most unaffordable housing regions in the world. Sḵwx̱wú7mesh homelands include dense urban locations that are easily accessed by transit and could support creating density in a streamlined manner to help meet our municipal housing targets faster,” reads the letter penned by Mayor Armand Hurford.
“Squamish Nation’s application has identified five initiatives with the potential to generate and accelerate thousands of new units of housing to benefit our community,” it continued. “The District of Squamish endorses Squamish Nation‘s proposal and encourages the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation to consider their application for the Housing Accelerator Fund.”
The meeting itself on Aug. 15 was quick and concise, lasting about 10 minutes.
The only question was from Coun. Eric Andersen, who asked about the current dialogue on service agreements between the Nation and the District of Squamish. CAO Linda Glenday responded they could follow up with staff and respond at a later meeting.
The August appearance is somewhat of a rare occurrence in the recent history of Squamish’s council.
The last time Squamish council members attended a meeting in August was in 2015, when they actually held two separate special business meetings on Aug. 4 and 25. Council also met several times in August 2014.
A spokesperson for the District, Lilly Peterson, said in an email to The Squamish Chief that like this year’s August meeting, the 2014 and 2015 meetings were also out of the ordinary.
