As we move along with the updating of our Official Community Plan (OCP) it is probably worthwhile to look back on how well the plan has served us to date and what we might to do to make it more usable in the future. The first thing that we have to acknowledge is that there were two very definite sides in the last debate. There were those who wanted to promote development and those who wanted to stop it. The plan which emerged was a hodgepodge of concessions on each side with enough contradiction built in to allow anybody to find something in the plan to support their case. The upshot was that we had no clear vision and for over a decade we have had factions pulling in different directions.
Our past ineffectiveness has helped to clarify where we have to go in the future. I believe that there is a general consensus that our vision for Bowen’s future includes supplying lower cost housing options for our seniors and our young adults who would like to raise their families on the island. I believe that most of us agree that the way to lower housing costs is to reduce land and servicing costs and the way to do that is to increase density. When you run the numbers, looking at everything from convenience to living costs you end up acknowledging that the place to increase density is Snug Cove. If we can agree on that one thing, everything else can flow from a commitment to actually take the actions necessary to make it happen.
As I look back at all of the studies and public processes that confirmed our commitment to development in Snug Cove I see things like “Snug Cove Village Plan – Draft #5, May 2003” and it reminds me that we have been walking down this road for a very long time. As we look at the twists and turns we have taken we see small groups nitpicking specific proposals and consultants proposing grandiose schemes that had no chance of acceptance. We have seen this as a lack of consensus within the community but in truth they have just been time wasting distractions which have hidden the real cause for our delay. The truth is that it all comes down to a lack of adequate sewage disposal. That’s it, every other problem pales by comparison.
In analysing why proper plans weren’t put in place years ago to expand the sewer system as needed to meet the requirements of a growing community the same old obstructionism keeps popping up. Because the various players involved didn’t have a common vision, nothing of substance has ever happened. As an example of what can be accomplished if a group has foresight and common vision we need look no further than the all-weather playing field currently being completed. Twelve years ago the recreation commission was very frustrated about the lack of playing fields on the island. They tried to get funding from every source they could think of but they got nowhere. So they lobbied to have a reserve fund established with a small portion of property taxes going into the fund every year. It took twelve years for the fund to get large enough to actually provide enough money to tip the balance and allow a field to be built. If they had not had the money already set aside it is highly unlikely that the new field would have been possible.
Obviously a project such as a sewer is ultimately going to be paid for by the users. All we are really talking about is interim financing. We could get money by selling assets such as some of the surplus land or come up with some other more creative way of getting the project rolling but instead we keep coming up with gold plated schemes and applying to the government for handouts that never work out. Of course we also have the option of allowing a developer to finance the project in exchange for advantageous rezoning. This is where we’ve gotten in trouble before. As the saying goes “he who pays the piper calls the tune.”
The sewer is only one example of practical measures not undertaken. Bringing up parking in Snug Cove is enough to send our councillors running for the exits. Ask how the new community centre is coming and they just roll their eyes. There are many simple, practical matters that simply have to be dealt with before any long term plan can be implemented. When the OCP is updated the hope is that our municipal council and staff will be inspired enough by the community’s consensus that they will actually get to work moving things forward. As a community we have drifted aimlessly long enough.
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