For Immediate Release
From: Pacific Spirit Park Society and the Wreck Beach Preservation Society
GVRD
BOARD HOLDS THE LINE-OF-SIGHT ON WRECK BEACH
Vancouver, BC
-- August 2, 2005 -- In its plans to go ahead with more towers overlooking
Wreck Beach, UBC isn't being a good neighbour, says the Pacific Spirit Park
Society (PSPS) and Wreck Beach Preservation Society (WBPS).
Unfortunately,
UBC hasn't been listening -- prompting the Greater Vancouver Regional District
(GVRD), at its full Board meeting on July 29, to pass a motion directing UBC to
not build towers visible during the spring/summer foliage season from the beach
-- or demonstrate that UBC has explored all reasonable locations and site
design alternatives, and prove that there is no alternative that can be
achieved without unreasonable hardship to UBC's student housing program.
In the motion
passed at the meeting, "Option (b) means the GVRD has the final say,"
said Anne Roberts, Vancouver City Councilor and GVRD Director, "UBC has to
come back to the GVRD Board if they can't adhere to (a) or (c)." (The full
text of the resolution is in the backgrounder below.)
UBC is part of
Electoral District A, which is administered by the GVRD. And GVRD staff have
advised the Board that the GVRD has the authority to regulate building
guidelines on the UBC site.
At issue is
whether the GVRD should allow UBC to continue developing residential towers
that can be seen from low tide -- the best part of Wreck Beach. A Phase One
tower is nearing completion, and UBC proposes to build more towers like it in
Phase Two.
"Just
because UBC has managed to sneak the first tower in under the nose of both the
public and the GVRD, it does not make it a just or correct benchmark,"
says Stephen Biduk, a member of PSPS and WBPS.
Since it has
already built one tower that has undermined the natural viewscape, UBC
officials take the position that it should be allowed to build even more towers
that will be visible from the beach.
"There is
much underutilized space at UBC that could be used for student housing,"
said Judy Williams, chair of the WBPS. The GVRD resolution asks UBC to consider
other locations for student housing to preserve the viewscape from the beach.
"Replicating more towers like the first one is unacceptable," stated
Williams.
At the July 29
meeting, the WBPS presented alternate locations for student housing, as well as
alternative building designs for the Phase Two towers site. A full range of
locations and design alternatives now exist, including a redesign of the Phase
Two site where WBPS's architectural consultant demonstrated how UBC could lower
the towers significantly, while maintaining virtually the same number of
student beds as originally intended at the Phase Two site. The WBPS's design
raises the towers' base and lowers their height, lowering the tower closest to
the cliff to nine storeys.
Also at the
July 29 meeting, the GVRD added a fourth option, option (d), reconfirming the
Board's request that UBC develop consultation guidelines that include broad
consultation, sufficient advance notice, and a process to incorporate
suggestions into any final decisions. Prior to the meeting, a public
consultation plan developed by UBC had been rejected, with GVRD Directors
raising concerns about inadequate public participation and disclosure.
UBC has yet to
release any new plan for Phase Two or conduct any public hearing.
Any towers
built higher than the GVRD line-of-sight analysis are not in compliance with
the Official Community Plan for Electoral Area A (OCP), a bylaw of the GVRD
adopted on July 25, 1997. The OCP requires Park values to be respected by all
new development.
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For more
information please contact:
Judy Williams -
Chair, WBPS
Email:
judyw@wreckbeach.org
Home Phone:
604-856-9598
Cell Phone:
604-308-6336 (cannot be reached if at home so try home number)
James Loewen -
Media Relations, WBPS
Email:
james3d@shaw.ca
Phone:
604-689-9697
Kim Siren -
Director, PSPS
Email:
siren1@telus.net
Phone:
604-738-5233
Background:
The motion
passed by the GVRD Board at its July 29, 2005, meeting:
" That the
GVRD Board:
a) Recommend that the Marine Student Residences-Phase Two not be
visible during spring/summer foliage season from Beach Zones "A",
"B" and "C" as illustrated in Attachment 1 of the report
dated July 8, 2005, titled "Pacific Spirit Regional Park and UBC’s Marine
Drive Student Residences-Phase Two";
b) Relax recommendation a) to no visibility of the Marine Student
Residences – Phase Two during spring/summer foliage season from Beach Zones
"A" and "B" and a maximum height limit of 53 meters
including appurtenances be considered if UBC can demonstrate that:
i)
they have explored all reasonable
locations and site design alternatives to minimize the visual impact from Beach
Zone "C";
ii) there is no alternative that can be achieved without unreasonable
hardship on the UBC student housing program;
iii) the absence of any visual impact on Phase Two buildings on Beach
Zones "A" and "B" has been proven by a verifiable study
acceptable to GVRD and UBC staff; and
iv) if any issues cannot be resolved by GVRD and UBC staff, that the
matter be referred to the GVRD-UBC Joint Committee co-Chairs;
c) Direct staff to review the GVRD-UBC Memorandum of Understanding
regarding the process for institutional development that may have an impact on
Pacific Spirit Regional Park; and
d) Reconfirm that the Board request that UBC develop consultation
guidelines that include broad consultation, sufficient advance notice, and a
process to incorporate suggestions into any final decisions. "
Attachment 1 of
the report dated July 8, 2005, titled "Pacific Spirit Regional Park and
UBC’s Marine Drive Student Residences-Phase Two" may be found on page 9 of
http://www.gvrd.bc.ca/board/agendas/gvrd/july29regular/9.2.pdf
Questions:
WBPS and PSPS
releases of July 28 and July 13, as well as other press releases and photos of
tower visibility from the beach, may be found at http://www.wreckbeach.org/towers#background
Line-of-sight
(viewscape) drawings and other background reports and presentations available
upon request.
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