December 2015
IN THIS
ISSUE
www.AllPointBulletin.com
Fire commissioners raise taxes, page 8
Shop locally this holiday season, page 12
ECRWSS PRSRT STD U.S. Postage PAID Permit No. 14
FREE
Delicious & easy Thanksgiving recipes, pages 10-11
Point Roberts, WA 98281 Postal Patron Local
Tsawwassen More than one way to skin a cat... projects will be game-changer B y P a t G r u bb It was entirely appropriate that Delta Chamber of Commerce executive director Ian Tait began his talk about upcoming Tsawwassen development by thanking First Nations for allowing the Point Roberts Chamber of Commerce annual meeting to take place on their historical lands. The discussion was mainly on the Tsawwassen Mills retail development, which is being built on Tsawwassen First Nation lands at Highway 17 and 52nd Street. The 1.2 million square foot destination shopping center is being developed by Ivanhoé Cambridge, one of Canada’s largest real estate developers, and will have 16 anchor stores including Bass Pro Shops, 6,000 parking spots, premium fashion stores, factory outlets, restaurants and a 1,200-seat food court. In short, it’s humongous. That’s not all. Going up right next to it is Tsawwassen Commons, a 550,000 square foot development that already has Walmart, Rona, Canadian Tire, Tim Hortons, Petsmart, Starbucks and more signed up. Tsawwassen Commons developers estimate a daily traffic count of 52,847 vehicles. While no employment count is available, 1,200 parking stalls will accommodate the traffic expected. Further down the line, expect to see a 137-acre residential component with 296 condos, 194 houses and an 18-hole golf course. Up to 2,290 residential units within two minutes of the development will eventually be constructed. Want more? Plans are underway for a 300-acre industrial park with 4 million square feet of light manufacturing, goods handling, warehousing and distribution services. Still not enough? Tsawwassen First Nation members will vote December 16 on a proposal to build a liquefied natural gas (LNG) export facility in partnership with FortisBC on their lands. The facility would be supplied by an extension from the company’s Tilbury Island LNG (See Tsawwassen, page 6)
s ... or at least there are different ways to transport your favorite kitty as demonstrated by this cat lady and her passenger who entered Point Roberts on November 8.
Photo by Meg Olson
BBC Broadcasting tells FCC it’s dropping appeal By Meg Olson Members of the Cross Border Coalition to Stop the Towers are celebrating what they hope is the end of their long battle to stop the construction of a radio tower farm on the Point. “This is great news!” said Mark Robbins, a coalition member and president of the Point Roberts Taxpayers Association. In a declaration filed with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) No-
vember 12, BBC Broadcasting Inc. president Bagh Singh Khela stated the company did not intend to continue its appeal of Whatcom County’s refusal to allow the project to go ahead. On October 7 a superior court judge in Skagit County upheld the decision by the Whatcom County Hearing Examiner to deny BBC’s application for a conditional use permit (CUP) to build an array of five 150' radio towers on the corner of Tyee Drive and McKenzie Way. The hearing
Fire commissioner election a real 13-vote squeaker By Meg Olson and Steve Guntli Whatcom County voters narrowly rejected Proposition 2015-1, which would provide funding for a new county jail. While election day results for the proposition showed the bill passing by a slight margin, later returns found the proposition “no” votes coming in higher than the “yes” votes. With most of the ballots now counted, the proposition
couldn’t muster the necessary votes. The latest ballot count on November 13 showed 29,896 (51.4%) voters rejecting the measure and 28,230 (48.6%) approving it. Proposition 2015-1 would have imposed a .2 percent sales tax increase to fund a new county jail in Ferndale. Sheriff Bill Elfo, who has championed a new jail facility for nearly 10 years, said he would work with the city and county governments to reduce the inmate pop-
ulation at the current, overcrowded jail. In Point Roberts, as of the latest counts incumbent fire district commissioner Stan Riffle has 13 more votes than Judson Meraw with 176 votes (51.9%) to Meraw’s 163 votes (48.1%) For the position on the water district board of commissioners Arthur Reber has 190 votes (57.9%) while Wayne Knowles has 138 (42.1%). (See Election, page 7)
examiner’s decision hinged on height restrictions, and the lack of county code that would exempt a radio tower from those restrictions. The company has until November 30 to appeal that decision. “In theory, they could still change their mind but this looks pretty final to me,” Robbins said. The declaration was filed as part of supplemental information the company (See Radio, page 3)
Online
allpointbulletin.com facebook.com/allpointbulletin
Inside Church ............................................. 13 Classifieds ......................................... 17 Coming Up ....................................... 14 Library Picks .................................... 16 Opinion ............................................... 4 Seniors ............................................... 9 Tides ................................................. 16