We’ve got trees that might go down, taxes that will probably go up, and more wheel-spinning on a plan to quicken crash clearing on the Ironworkers this Monday.
All three councils are in session this Monday but if you want to see some serious synthetic mud-slinging, we recommend the District of North Vancouver’s Inter River turf war.
District of North Vancouver
Soccer or trees?
That’s the key question Monday night, as council weighs a proposal to add a second artificial turf field to Inter River Park.
Approximately 130 trees would be chopped down to make room for the field, much to the chagrin of Lynnmour residents who touted the value of an urban ecosystem that offers a bulwark against noise and air pollution while also providing a place for unstructured play.
Members of the soccer community have argued that there is no other place to put the field. North Shore News columnist Andy Prest argued that artificial turf is a needed alternative to muddy grass fields and the “soggy Siberian salt mine” of gravel fields.
Council is also slated to vote on a plan to replace their 22, 1990s-era voting machines with 23 new, more reliable devices.
Despite ending up in the slow lane at last year’s Union of BC Municipalities conference, the district is still moving on their initiative to quicken crash clearing on and around the Ironworkers Memorial Second Narrows Crossing. District staff are scheduled to brief council on their efforts to get the plan endorsed at this September’s UBCM as well as a new agreement that gives City of Vancouver firefighters the task of responding to all northbound bridge crashes and district firefighters the job of handling southbound collisions. The deal replaces a previous arrangement that divided the bridge mid-span and essentially forced firefighters to get around the bridge’s median to crash sites.
West Vancouver
Council is slated to get their first look at a 26-storey, 133 unit highrise proposal earmarked for the Earls site at 303 Marine Dr. Monday’s vote will either send the project to a May 14 public hearing or stop it in its tracks. (Earls is slated to move shop to Ambleside.) The proposal is consistent with the district's Marine Drive area plan.
Council is also set to vote on bumping 2018 tax rates up 3.65 per cent of 2017, which would mean an extra $126 for owners of homes assessed at $2.8 million.
City of North Vancouver
City council weighs in on the always-contentious issue of infill housing Monday.
Darwin Properties has offered to sweeten the prospect of three infill buildings at 151 East Keith Rd. with four studio apartments that would be rented to vulnerable seniors at a steep discount. Based on 2017 rates, the studios would be 49 per cent cheaper than market rents.
The new buildings, which top out at 59 feet, would be neighbours to the 15-storey, 89-unit rental building on the site.
Council is also set to examine perennial agenda item 2601 Lonsdale Ave. After being deferred, delayed, discussed and defeated, the six-storey, 44-unit mix of rental and strata is back on the docket Monday. The project would exacerbate traffic and block views, according to a contingent of neighbours who have opposed the project.
Council is also set to look at the city’s 2017 financial statements, which showed a $41 million surplus, as well as the financial picture for Lonsdale Energy Corp. The city utility posted a $799,595 profit for 2017, making the municipal heat source 42 times more lucrative than in 2016.
Council is also set to discuss allocating space for electric vehicle charging stations and the question of who bears the ultimate financial responsibility if oil spills from the Trans Mountain pipeline.
So if you're looking for excitement and drama, we recommend you go to a council meeting anyway.
