FRIDAY OCTOBER 3 2014 VOL. 41, NO. 39
75¢
including GST
Watch for more online at: WWW.BOWENISLANDUNDERCURRENT.COM
The dredges of Mannion Bay Report from this year’s Dive Against Debris
Oil spill warning
Two “drift cards” symbolizing oil from a potential spill, found on Bowen shores
One less appliance
A domestic perspective on cutting carbon emissions
Concerns raised amidst enthusiasm about pub redevelopment MERIBETH DEEN EDITOR
The owner of the Bowen Island Pub, Glenn Cormier, introduced his off-island business partner Nicholas Shaw prior to briefly presenting his plans to re-develop the corner of Bowen Island Trunk and Dorman Road. An eager and supportive audience listened, and almost all of the people who spoke following his presentation expressed their feeling Back at BICS! From left: Ainslie, Miranda, Sarah Joe, Ailsa, Sophie and Bronwen. that the project was an important Debra Stringfellow, photo step towards revitalizing Snug Cove. Many people also said that, as someone who has proven to be an adept business person and committed member of the community, Cormier is the right person to undertake the job. However, for all the accolades council heard about the project they also heard major concerns about how the development would affect notify a person, in writing, that a penalty is due and MERIBETH DEEN parking in the Cove, whether it payable. If that fine is not paid within 28 days, bylaw EDITOR services can forward the penalty to a collection agency. would fit within the density provisions of the Official Community At council this week the municipality’s chief bylaw Brokenshire says that the collection agency used by Plan (OCP), and whether any develofficer, Bonnie Brokenshire offered statistics proving most municipalities would deliver 67 percent of all oper cost charges would be added to that Bowen Islanders don’t pay fines when they are tick- monies collected back to the municipality. the project. eted. In a typical year, she said, just 30 percent of bylaw She said that when she looked into how compliant The two lots that Cormier and notices are paid. In the first six months of this year, said people are with paying fines in other municipalities, she Shaw intend to re-develop currently Brokenshire, Bowen Islanders have paid approximately looked to North and West Vancouver. In both of these house the Bowen Island Pub build26 percent of bylaw-related fines, leaving the municimunicipalities, people paid upwards of 40 percent of ing and the parking lot in front of it, pality short roughly $1,900. their fines. on Bowen Island Trunk Road. If the Council approved Brokenshire’s request to use a col“It seems to me that simply having a collection rezoning proceeds as planned, a new lection agency to recover unpaid fines with the adopagency in place increases the level of compliance,” said building will go up on the current tion of the Collection of Fines policy. This policy will Brokenshire. parking lot. This would include retail require the municipality’s bylaw services to have to
Council approves use of collection agency to enforce bylaw infractions
space on the lower floor along, the pub on the second floor, and three studio-style rental-housing units on the third. Cormier called this “phase one” of the project. The so-called “phase two” of the project would involve tearing down the current pub building and replaceing it with up to nine housing units, and one retail-unit. The most prevalent concern about the plan involved the changes to available parking in the Cove that are inherent in this plan. Cormier says that the plan includes 24 parking spaces on the lot as well as seven on Dorman Road and two on Bowen Island Trunk Road. Jan LeRoy, the owner 983 Davies Road (just beside the pub on the Dorman Road side) said that while she welcomed the idea that the pub would move away from the residential part of Dorman Road for the sake of noise, she was concerned that the Davies Road would itself become a parking lot – making the current experience of residents having to listen to people chatting as they exit the pub late at night even worse. Merrel Dyson expressed her fear that parking would become severly limited during phase 2 of the project, when the current pub building is being torn down and re-built.
LIME MOON PIE COMPANY R001877426 BI03
LIME
� �
����
� �� ���
continued, PAGE 2