ISLAND NEWS

Campsite makeup could change over time

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Martin says staff are still waiting on the results of several studies, namely a Transportation Demand Management Plan, Transportation Impact Assessment, and Visitor Management Plan. The latter of these is expected to contain ideas on how to mitigate vehicle traffic to the site, such as a reservation system Metro Vancouver representatives present at the council meeting said they expect these to be ready in the next few weeks

Municipal property located among the 97-hectares, including trails, roads, and beaches, is another area which needs to be discussed in the future, adds Martin These assets can be retained by the municipality, or handed over to Metro Vancouver for managing give the wrong impression that we’re ready to move on this,” said Gedye, mentioning how to approach the campsite phase-in, transportation to the park, and questions from Bowen Island Conservancy about proper development permitting in the area were among those concerns. say the number of camping options may not exceed 100, with no more than one-third of them accessible by motor vehicle (excluding tent cabins and camps). One staff building was also agreed upon. at Cape Roger Curtis may include a mixture of supervised overnight campsites, including group camp sites, tent cabins, vehicular campsites (but not including recreational vehicles or trailers), walk or bike-in camp sites, trails, education programs, interpretative signage, and accessory buildings or structures ” – and new Policy 190 – “Campgrounds may be permitted in a Regional Park at Cape Roger Curtis and may be accessed by backpackers, bicyclists, or by motor vehicle, but not including recreational vehicles or trailers Campgrounds in Regional Parks should be connected to a trail network and designed to minimize impacts on the environment and should have on site supervision. Site design targeting active transportation and transit to the park will be encouraged, while vehicle use to the park should be disincentivized.”

The LUB bylaw amendment also passed 5-2, with Gedye and Jurgensen again in opposition.

“I’m not even ready to sit down and entertain this first reading at this point. There’s way too much that we need to try to work through,” said Gedye “If they’ve (Metro Vancouver) made the decision to proceed with it (land purchase), then that gives us a little bit of time to figure out what the information is that we’re going to be getting, and where we can go with that”

The LUB amendment focused on a rezoning of the land in question from Rural Residential 1 to Passive Park, and specifying which type of structures would be allowed in the park and how many of each The original breakdown was: NonVehicle Access Campsites (50), Vehicle Access Campsites (35), Tent Cabins (10), Group Tent Camps (5), and Staff Accommodation (1)

Coun John Saunders said he hopes people view the first readings as just one step in the overall process “I’ve been a little bit disheartened at some of the vitriol I’ve seen around this discussion I get the sense that some people – not everybody –but some people seem to think that we ’ ve now locked ourselves into something that may not be tenable for a lot of citizens of Bowen Island ”

“That’s not the case at all There’s a whole lot of issues to work out, and all we ’ ve done at this point is indicate to Metro that we intend to work in good faith to find something collaboratively that works for both Bowen Island and for Metro,” said Saunders

“A Regional Park

Following amendments by council, the OCP portion of the rezoning application added Objective 69, which reads “To support the creation of a Regional Park at Cape Roger Curtis that may include supervised overnight camping ” This was accompanied by new Policy 155

5-year tax rates approved

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Watson says this calculates to around $400 more this year for the average property owner (based on a $1.486 million property).

The CFO added the 14.3 per cent rise will be tempered slightly by the value of new construction on the island, and a change in the Utility Class Property to Residential Property tax ratio from 4.16:1 to 20:1.

Watson says this makes the effective property tax increase more like 12.5 per cent, or about $348 per average owner.

Following this year, the five-year plan includes property tax increase of 9.5 per cent for each year from 2024-27 These

The OCP bylaw amendment passed 5-2 with Coun. Judith Gedye and Alex Jurgensen opposed.

“It seems to me that there’s a very long list of legitimate concerns I don’t want to will focus on future infrastructure costs, which are expected to be substantial in the years ahead

Regarding one of Bowen’s capital projects, Watson revealed a Community Centre grant application to the federal Department of Canadian Heritage was unsuccessful. She says the $732,000 being sought through that grant will now be pursued through the donation campaign. If the money hasn’t been raised by the fall, Watson says the outstanding costs can be pursued through the $2.287 million Growing Community Fund awarded to Bowen by the provincial government last month, or through other borrowing www.bowenislandmunicipalityca/alerts/

Bowen will also pay $345,989 to Islands Trust (up 6.8% from 2022), and $206,622 to Metro Vancouver (up 5% from 2022).

King Edward Bay

Stage 2

Mayor Andrew Leonard expressed concern about locking in the number of each type of campsite this early in the process though, pointing out that as transportation options present themselves in the future – such as the Multi-Use Path or expanded bus service – these figures may want to be adjusted.

Council decided to amend the wording to

Finally, in a 6-1 vote with Gedye opposed, council instructed staff to draft a restrictive covenant focused on establishing a phasing agreement for the project Martin says he expects the park to return for discussion in May with this covenant, and potentially refer the bylaw amendments to committees, the public, and other groups.

A second reading would likely take place sometime in the summer.

Bowen Island RCMP Stats - March 2023

Bowen Island Rcmp

The Bowen Island RCMP responded to 49 calls for service in March of 2023;

- 9 of those files were related to traffic complaints or enforcement;

- 2 of those files were minor collisions;

- 4 of those files were fraud reports;

- 3 of those files were requests to check a persons well being;

- 6 of those files were reports of suspicious persons;

As tourists return to island after the winter, please be patient People often have a difficult time understanding the ferry line

Water Guidelines start May 1

Eagle Cliff

Stage 2

Bluewater Park

Stage 3 and where to park in Snug Cove If you see someone who seems to be lost, please approach them with kindness Hopefully they will respond in kind!

All other BIM water systems

Stage 1