A 767-unit development for the area north of the Shelter Bay ferry appears to be moving full steam-ahead towards approval after only a few concerns were voiced about it at a public hearing in Revelstoke last Tuesday.
The development, which is being headed by Ender Ilkay, calls for 767 units ranging from trailer lots to multi-acre properties along Highway 23 South near the ferry.
Ilkay previously held two open houses where he presented his plans and his proposal has been moving formally through the CSRD since July 2012.
It has passed first two hearings and a public hearing on a bylaw that would amend the Official Community Plan to allow for the development was held at the community centre on Feb. 5.
The bylaw calls for the development to recognize “the strong community interest in maintaining the rural character of the Shelter Bay area while providing a mix of land uses, residential densities and housing types, amenities and public space.”
There were only about 25 people in attendance, including Ilkay and several people from his development team.
Of those in attendance, only three people raised concerns. Virginia Thompson, who said she and her husband own property in the area, asked how emergency services would be provided at the development. Notably, she wanted to know how services such as fire, police and ambulance would be incorporated as the development grows and if there were any hard triggers for their establishment.
Jan Thingsted, a planner with the Columbia-Shuswap Regional District, said it was hard to predict when those services would be offered: “It really does depend on many different factors and it’s difficult to predict at what rate things were sell and what rate people will start to live there more permanently and start to demand those services.”
Rene Hueppi, the owner of the Mulvehill Creek Wilderness Inn, said he was concerned about increased traffic on Highway 23 and delays at the ferry that could cost him business. He was also worried about increased motorized traffic use on the flats near his property.
“There’s more and more people spreading out on those vehicles over all the area between Revelstoke and the ferries,” he said.
Thomson said she agreed with Hueppi and also asked if motorboat traffic at the development could be regulated.
Ilkay spoke up, saying all the trails in his property would be non-motorized and that no ATVs or dirt bikes would be able to access the flats through his property. He did say there would be staging areas set up for snowmobilers and ATVers to access the backcountry beyond the property.
Lastly, Brian Gadbois, a member of the Area B Advisory Planning Commission said he wanted to make sure there were no cost burdens added on to residents in Area B. He also said there needed to be some assurance that there would adequate services and retail space available as the development grows. He noted that at full build out, it would compare in size to Sicamous.
All the feedback received will now be reviewed by CSRD staff. A report is expected to go in front of the board of the CSRD at its meeting on March 21. Then, it will be given third reading and, if passed, will then be sent to Victoria for ministry approval. After that, the bylaw will come back to the regional district for final adoption.