Get smart and save $20,000. Bowen Island has signed up to compete in the BC Hydro Power Smart Community Challenge. To win we have to sign up the highest percentage of residential customers. If we win we get $20,000 towards the upgrading of a municipal building. This is good because we have undertaken to retrofit the library by 2012 as part of our commitment to reduce our carbon footprint. All you have to do is dig out your hydro bill and go to BC Hydro on-line. Go to power smart and sign up to track your electrical use over the next year. Get the whole family on board and see how much you can reduce your power consumption. We’ll also be tracking the total use for Bowen. It costs you nothing to do it, it will probably help you to save money on your Hydro bill and it may help us get the $20,000.
One critic has dubbed the latest Snug Cove Master Plan “McMain Street”. It has now been almost three weeks since the plan was presented and it still hasn’t appeared on-line. One can only hope that the planners have taken to heart the many criticisms voiced and are reworking it. One major area of debate is the vision of a street with all 3 and 4 storey buildings that starts on top of the marina parking lot and goes up both sides of the street to the Pub.
The head planner assures us that the sight lines as we enter Snug Cove won’t change very much. I went to our website and looked at the drawing of Snug Cove that we posted September 21, 2006. I looked at how far it is from Cardena to Miller and envisioned the entire length built out on both sides. It was then that I realized that most communities revamp their main street because they really don’t like what they have but I question whether this even applies to us. I think that most of us get a warm and fuzzy feeling as we emerge from the ferry and drive through the Cove. It is kind of quirky but also authentic and charming.
You wouldn’t think from looking at the new plan that we’ve been working on this for a very long time. I thought that the general consensus was that we wanted a village model rather than a main street model. The village was supposed to radiate out from the Miller/Dorman corner. There also seemed to be some consensus on putting a green space between the ferry line-up and the stores on the south side of the road. The new proposal has two ferry marshalling lanes plus parking plus a one way traffic lane. When we tried a similar configuration a few years ago all hell broke out and traffic marshals were required on Sunday afternoons.
The Civic Facilities people seem to have agreed with the planning consultants on the best plan for a new performing arts and recreation centre. I’m only going from hearsay but my understanding is that the complex will be entered at the top of the hill just before you reach the school grounds. You will enter through the community living room. It will be large and airy with a fireplace. To the left will be the recreation centre. It will be near the school playing field and have, among other things, a small gym. If you turn to your right you will enter the performing arts centre that will have retractable seating and accommodate an audience of 185. The whole thing sounds rather appealing. It will cost 8 or 9 million dollars but we shouldn’t write it off too quickly. Between grants and benefactors it may actually be possible.
One nifty aspect of the design is that it connects to a commercial area that sits on the hill below just above Seniors Lane. This is good in that a commercial area in that location helps to make the Miller Corner the centre point of the village. The bad thing is that it cuts off any bypass road that might spare the main intersection from the cross-island traffic.
One last item. There will be a public hearing on December 4 regarding the secondary suites by-law. While the by-law is good and necessary there is one point that bothers me. As it stands an investor can buy a house, divide it into two units and rent both of them out. This is great for investors and speculators but it does nothing to build a community. There should be a requirement that a member of the family of the owners live in any house that has a secondary suite. In this way we can provide affordable housing while keeping a balance between homeowners and renters.
Now dig out that Hydro bill, go to bchydro.com find residential power smart and sign up for the community challenge
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