Jennifer Miller
Whistler Question
The rezoning application that would have paved the way for a London Drugs store in the heart of Whistler Village was killed this week, but the company's president said there is still the possibility of a London Drugs store in Whistler's future.
"Obviously we're disappointed but we said all along we would respect Council's decision," London Drugs President Wynne Powell said Tuesday (Feb. 20). "The pieces just didn't line up to the comfort of Council at this time."
Council voted unanimously on Monday (Feb. 19) not to move forward with the rezoning application that would have allowed for almost 13,000 square feet of retail space in an underground section of the Village Centre complex. London Drugs has been eyeing that space as part of a two-level store plan for more than two years.
Even though the Village Centre space is now out of the question, Powell said London Drugs will continue to look for other spaces in Whistler that would be convenient for both locals and tourists, and provide enough space to retain the various departments that give London Drugs its "special magic."
"This particular chapter's closed but I don't think the book's completed yet," Powell said.
He said the amount of public support for the store within the Whistler community has been humbling and he's grateful for the citizens who invested their time to campaign for the store.
"We're absolutely delighted at the tremendous outpouring of support from the residents of Whistler," Powell said. "We are always wishing to reach out to communities that are wanting us to come to them."
But he said Council's suggestion that a 5,000-square-foot London Drugs would be better for Whistler just won't work for the company's model. "No, we couldn't bring that special magic that London Drugs brings in that size of store."
He said at about 17,000 square feet, the proposed store design for the Village Centre was already smaller than the average London Drugs, and with less than 5,000 square feet on the ground level, it was a creative proposal. "It was a pretty small footprint," he said.
A smaller store means departments would have to be cut and that puts London Drugs' ability to draw customers into the store at risk, he said.When asked about the possibility for a London Drugs in Squamish, Powell said he could see stores in both Squamish and Whistler in the future. "We don't believe they're exclusive," he said.
The Squamish community has been asking for a London Drugs for a long time, but there are concerns that Squamish could become the shopping place for Whistler, he said. "We don't think it's a good sustainable model in the long run," he said.
Jim Watts, who created the London Drugs Yes website and collected about 1,100 names on a petition in favour of the store, also expressed disappointment with Council's decision.
"People are very disappointed and angry," Watts said on Tuesday. "They just don't understand what the problem is."
Even though he said he's glad he went ahead with the petition, he feels the decision against London Drugs was made long ago.
"I think they made up their minds long before and they weren't willing to listen to the 70 per cent of the population that would like to see this store a reality," Watts said.
Along with others, Watts criticized the lack of a formal public consultation process for the rezoning application. "When a citizen has to go out and start a petition and a website in order to force the government to look at our feedback I think that's pretty poor," he said.
But Mayor Ken Melamed and some councillors argued that with all the letters, petitions and informal public dialogue about the issue they had a good understanding of how the community felt. "We need to move on," Melamed said. "We've had enough dialogue. Twenty-two months is a long time."
Watts said he'll keep the London Drugs Yes website up and people are still welcome to sign the petition and make comments. Though he thinks the issue is dead at the current Council table, he said it will be up to voters in the next election to decide if it's still an issue.
Ultimately, it was the expected effect the store would have on the character of the Village that prompted Council to vote in favour of squashing the rezoning application.
The Village was designed to be a "special place" for visitors to the resort, a place that people enjoy while on vacation because it's different than what they see in their everyday lives, said Mike Kirkegaard, manager of resort planning for the municipality. The location, size and character of a London Drugs doesn't belong in the Village, he said. "We can't jeopardize what makes us attractive," he said.
Melamed and each councillor spoke about the unique quality of the Village and its draw for visitors to Whistler.
"The more we look like Coquitlam Centre, the less reason people have to come here," said Councillor Gordon McKeever of the prospect of a single, 17,000-square-foot retail space in the Village.
Moving ahead with the rezoning would take Whistler away from the unique and authentic experience that people are looking for when they come here, echoed Councillor Bob Lorriman.
Councillor Eckhard Zeidler expressed fears of setting a precedent for large stores in the Village. "This is not a genie that I wasn't to see let out of the bottle," he said.
Mayor Ken Melamed said Council has heard the community express its needs for affordability and a range of goods, but it's difficult to balance the needs of the community with the success of the resort.
"I've come to understand really we are so joined at the hip, we are a resort community, it is a unique animal," he said. "We're acting in the long-term best interests of the community and the resort. We have an obligation to do that."
He said the municipality would try to address the community's needs for affordability through other initiatives.
Despite an air of tense energy at Monday's Council meeting, the crowd of about 65 that waited until about 10 p.m. for Council's vote on the rezoning application were well behaved and patient.
After the meeting, Melamed said the decision was a gut-wrenching and difficult one.
"I don't feel relieved. I feel a certain amount of anguish because I know that there are people who are going to be dissatisfied with the decision and feel like I've betrayed them, and I take that personally and I have to try and mend those relationships," he said. "It doesn't end tonight."
