A majority of Campbell Riverites at a public hearing Wednesday night told the city to put the brakes on expanding the urban boundary for development.
The proposal would add about 153 acres of land south of the Jubilee Parkway for future housing.
John Elson has lived in Campbell River for 50 years and says the city doesn’t need more urban sprawl.
“With respect to this proposal to extend the urban containment boundary, what will the legacy be of this decision? I think many will agree that opening the door for more car-dependent subdivisions in the midst of a global climate emergency is a bad idea in itself,” Elson said.
One woman told councillors there’s no rush when the city is meeting provincial housing targets.
“The future of our city, our collective city, depends on sound, robust decision making. There’s no rush to expand the urban containment boundary at this time before the official community plan (OCP) update has been completed,” she said.
Many of the approximately 100 people at the public hearing at the Tidemark Theatre urged city council to wait for the OCP plan to be updated.
Others spoke about environmental impacts, traffic pattern changes and the previous track record of the developer, Parkway Properties.
City Planning Director Jason Locke has maintained there is “no significant reason” to stop an amendment to the OCP now to change the urban containment boundary.
Developer Kevin Brooks said they plan to get into a “master planning process” after the urban containment boundary is changed – a remark that drew laughs and jeers from the audience before Mayor Kermit Dahl intervened.
Brooks said they would then “get into a dialogue” about land uses and types of housing as part of a master plan. “At this time we’re requesting that the urban containment boundary be extended to allow us then to be doing the detailed reviews that would be required to contemplate servicing, to contemplate land uses and to contemplate that mix of housing that’s needed in this area.”
City council will consider next steps at its next meeting.
