What’s New with Mayor Mark

Thirty years ago, Mark Sager became the youngest Mayor ever elected in West Vancouver. Since then, many things have changed. But according to Sager, his desire to serve the public, and to build an even stronger community, remains the same.

West Vancouver citizens of all ages are known for being fit and active. What is the council doing to keep up with that trend?

Anyone that knows me knows that I am passionate about fitness and being physically active. We are absolutely thrilled to partner with Tennis BC on a new tennis centre consisting of six indoor tennis courts as well as six indoor pickleball courts at Hugo Ray Park. It’s a perfect location, and it will be a great amenity to the community and to the neighbourhood. The tennis courts will be a training ground for young athletes but will be open to the public 85% of the time. Tennis BC is working on the plans and the costs - and we look forward to hearing soon about a construction start date.

We are working on completing the plans for the Place for Sport (which will replace the track located at West Van Secondary), and we want to take the opportunity to make it a wonderful legacy for the community. We increased the number of running lanes to 6-8 so that we can welcome competitive track and field events. In the design, we are also including new washrooms, change facilities, and a public viewing area that is open and accessible to everyone.

Finally, at no cost to the District, we have arranged to have the old building that housed the change rooms at the Ambleside pool removed, and that site will become an outdoor gym. There will be CrossFit equipment, fitness equipment for seniors, an open area for yoga or tai chi – and it will be fully accessible for everyone to exercise outdoors all year round.

What’s happening with the Ambleside Local Area Plan?

We have the Ambleside Local Area Plan currently underway. Staff is engaging with the community on feedback and will present back to Council in June. We are excited to finalize this and start the revitalization of Ambleside. We want to see a boutique hotel, and a much more interesting business area. Many of the buildings have reached the end of life and we need to have thoughtful development in our commercial corridor to attract new businesses to the community.

We are pleased to have secured a wellestablished local builder to restore and rebuild the Navvy Jack House, with no further cost to the taxpayers. After renovations, it will be opened and inviting to the public. I think it is wonderful to see these historic sites saved and share their history with our community.

We hear you recently had a good conversation with billionaire businessman and West Vancouver resident Jimmy Pattison. What’s the story there?

Jimmy has been a family friend for many years, and I have the utmost respect for him. When I was elected, one of the first things I did was reach out to him to see how the District could acquire his home on Argyle. He was very kind and agreed the time had come. I suggested we exchange two lots which the District owned, and he agreed. We are now one step closer to completing the Ambleside Waterfront Park Plan, and I am most grateful to Jimmy for his support of our community.

Any last closing remarks?

I would sincerely like to thank Council for their commitment, hard work and support.

Limited Time Spring Promotion UP TO $50,000 IN SAVINGS.*

DEVELOPED BY

FUNCTIONALITY

MANY SEEK PERFECTION, FEW ENJOY THE PRIVILEGE.

WITH LIMITED HOMES AVAILABLE, BOOK YOUR PRIVATE APPOINTMENT TO AVOID MISSING OUT ON THIS LIMITED TIME PROMOTION.

M-LONSDALE.COM 604.818.2539

SALES GALLERY 1230 LONSDALE AVE

The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television celebrated the country’s finest during a week-long series of awards that emphasized diversity and inclusion - and for the first time ever, gender neutrality. This meant no more ‘actress’ or ‘actor’ categories - but ‘performance’ categories instead.

“The annual Canadian Screen Awards recognize outstanding Canadian artistic talent and technical merit across all screenbased sectors, from legends in film, television, and digital media to emerging creatives. Recognizing the importance of ensuring everyone feels welcome and accepted in their work, the 2023 awards introduced several new gender-neutral performance categories, awards based on merit regardless of gender,” said Tammy Frick, CEO Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television.

Among the winners was CBC’s The Porter, which won a record 12 Canadian Screen Awards, leading the television honours overall. In comedy, the sophomore season of CBC’s Sort Of took home seven Canadian Screen Awards. Film honours were led by Clement Virgo’s Brother, which received 12 Canadian Screen Awards, another record.

Special awards included Hollywood A-Lister and Vancouverborn actor Ryan Reynolds who received the Humanitarian