Editor's note: This is a copy of a letter to the owners of Garibaldi Springs Properties. It was copied to The Chief for publication.
Re. Please, not another golf course!
I am writing this letter to you in response to your Request For Proposals that was posted in The Chief on Friday, Feb. 18, 2011.
This letter is not a proposal to operate the property. I am writing to share a concept for converting the existing golf course lands into an eco-friendly, family-themed park called Garibaldi Green Park. I am sending a copy of this letter to The Chief in hopes that my concept will inspire someone to come forward with a new innovative business concept for Garibaldi Springs and not just another golf course.
Garibaldi Green Park would be a four-season quality entertainment and activity park that is LEED certified. Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is an internationally recognized green building certification system, providing third-party verification that a building or project was built using strategies intended to improve performance in metrics such as energy savings, water efficiency, CO2 emissions reduction, improved indoor environmental quality, and stewardship of resources.
As an example, the Happy Hollow Theme Park and Zoo in San Jose, Calif., recently received the United States' first LEED Gold-certification for a theme park. The park includes seven green roofs with local plant species, educational pavilions, eco-rides, a puppet theatre, and many play areas.
The Garibaldi Greek Park can strive to be Canada's first LEED-certified amusement park. The park could include a variety of activity stations such as a paved trail network that is both rollerblade and bike friendly, a mountain bike and uni-cycle technical course for beginners and intermediates, a working greenhouse with local and seasonal vegetables, a slack line area, a solar-powered go-cart course with vehicles themed according to endangered or extinct animals, a nine-hole disc golf course with each hole offering educational panels on the ecosystem, plus a globe field with a large two-metre-diameter soccer ball that looks like a globe. The globe field would also include a large open-air stage at one end that can be used for community or private events, plus seating areas for picnics or resting in the shade. The ideas are endless.
Entrance fees would be sold based on a full day-use pass, a half-day use pass, or a local membership pass. Entrance for the park would be 100 per cent free to anyone over 65 years old.
I can go on, but I will stop here. I hope this letter inspires community discussion, feedback and actions that move away from the cliché casinos and golf courses.
Michelle Neilson
Squamish
