Environmentalists watched their pipe dreams turn into nightmares this year as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau approved Kinder Morgan’s pipeline expansion.
But as much ink as we spilled on oil, no single story persisted like the North Shore’s untameable housing market, where prices heated up and vacancies froze.
We watched the City of North Vancouver commit to history, West Vancouver commit to the environment, and the District of North Vancouver pledge to create affordability.
But in terms of pure chutzpah, we were perhaps most captivated and exhilarated by the hard-headed Seymour Salmonid Society’s mission to move a mountain.
JULY
Iranian authorities seize sculptor’s passport
Celebrated artist Parviz Tanavoli, who divides his time between Tehran and West Vancouver, had his passport seized during a trip to his home country.
The sculptor and author was on his way to London to promote his new book, European Women in Persian Houses, when he was barred from leaving Iran. While no reason was given for the prohibition, Tanavoli later noted: “There are some extremists in Iran, they’re very anti-art, Western culture, and they don’t appreciate people like me.”
Following international outcry, Tanavoli’s passport was restored and he returned home to West Vancouver.
“I can’t tell you how good it feels to be here … with my family. This is a paradise.”
District of North Vancouver responds to recklessness with irreverence
Signs sporting phrases like: That Was Worth the Spinal Damage, Said No One Ever and Listen To That Nervous Feeling were erected around Lynn Canyon in an attempt to plant a rational thought in the minds of impulsive cliff divers.
The signs were installed months after a Coquitlam teen died after coming to the canyon to cliff jump. District of North Vancouver Fire and Rescue Services were called to the canyon 70 times in the first seven months of the year.
The old signs began to feel like “part of the furniture,” noted district spokeswoman Mari Welman, explaining the new signs are meant to spark an “internal dialogue.”
City council says OK to LoLo BIA
After the much-maligned negative petition process drew opposition from a minority of the area’s property owners, city council approved a Business Improvement Area for Lower Lonsdale.
Coun. Holly Back had asked to delay the final vote after questioning why Lonsdale Quay Market will pay between 50 and 55 cents per $1,000 of assessed property value – roughly half the rate charged to other properties. Given the benefits provided by the Quay, Back ultimately backed the BIA.
“The only negative I get is from non-business owners. Sorry, they don’t count,” she said.
While Back warmed to the BIA, Coun. Pam Bookham opposed it every step of the way, blasting the Lower Lonsdale Business Association for failing to attract BIA supporters despite receiving a
$120,000 grant.
“I don’t consider 19 testimonials out of 600 to be a strong argument,” she said.
West Van goes into tree-age mode
Approximately 48 per cent of surveyed West Vancouverites decried an interim tree protection bylaw as heavy handed, resulting in the formation of a task force to explore alternatives.
Dozens of mature trees were felled hours before the interim bylaw came into effect in April.
“It looks like they clear cut a section of Stanley Park,” said Liesa Norman, noting her Altamont neighbourhood smelled like “Christmas in spring.”
Commenting on residents fearful the new bylaw would affect their enjoyment of their homes, Mayor Michael Smith offered a prescription: “Take a couple of Aspirins and they’ll feel better in the morning.”
AUGUST
Lions Gate towers get ready to roar
After about a decade of consultation, construction kicked off on a 460-unit development at Capilano Road and Marine Drive comprised of 18- and 12-storey towers, a community centre, commercial space, and low-rise apartments and townhouses.
The development was initially set to be phased over eight years, but the new plan is to finish it in 30 months.
Appraising neighbourhood traffic, District of North Vancouver Coun. Doug MacKay-Dunn described the area as: “Very, very, very, very busy.”
West Van councillor Michael Lewis mourned
Michael Lewis, the three-term councillor and longtime autism advocate died of lung cancer at the age of 66.
During his tenure as president of the Autism Society of Canada, Lewis fought against what he branded a discriminatory and dysfunctional system that required parents with autistic children to pay out of pocket for support services.
As parents of an autistic child, Lewis’ widow Jean recalled him saying: “Just because we can afford it, what about everyone else that can’t?”
His council colleagues remembered him as soft-spoken and reasoned but possessed of the ability to make a point with wit and clarity.
In calling for a ban on LNG tankers in Howe Sound, Lewis said he envisioned “the LNG tankers coming out from Woodfibre crashing into an oil tanker coming out of Burnaby; but it was all getting mopped up by the stuff coming off the garbage barge.”
Seymour rock slide blasting begins
The Seymour Salmonid Society is moving mountains to clear the Seymour and remove the waterway’s status as B.C.’s most endangered river.
Low-velocity explosives and pneumatic drills were used to chip away at the 50,000 cubic metres of granite that tumbled into the river in 2014. The house-sized rocks made the river impassable for the huge quantities of coho that traversed Seymour on their way to the Burrard Inlet.
“We’re going to let Mother Nature, with those… water flows, move the rocks downstream to the deep pools that are situated in the canyon,” said society president Shaun Hollingsworth.
The society also invested in a $30,000 fish fence and other stop-gap measures to help the salmon and steelhead survive the rocky river.
Bus depot shows its tail lights to North Vancouver
Despite protests from municipal governments, TransLink closed the bus depot at Third Street and St. Davids Avenue and dispatched the fleet to Burnaby.
The City and District of North Vancouver cited the challenges of moving buses over a bridge following an earthquake in their opposition, but TransLink decided the cost of a new plot of land on the North Shore would simply be too high.
“Current estimates put the cost at $100 million – something TransLink cannot presently afford,” said spokesman Chris Bryan.
SEPTEMBER
Cap U students launch housing plan
The University’s student alliance is pushing the province to allow the school to take on debt in order to create dorms paid for by students.
“We’d gladly trade parking ability to have housing opportunities,” said Capilano Students’ Union president Jullian Kolstee.
Sewell’s project withdrawn at 11th hour after overseas marketing mixup
A huge Horseshoe Bay development was abruptly yanked from West Vancouver’s council agenda after it was discovered Westbank was advertising the project overseas.
The 159-apartment and townhouse project was eventually approved, albeit with a “locals first” rule in place.
Addressing the overseas marketing, Westbank marketing manager Michael Braun apologized and attributed the oversight to “schedule changes.”
A heart stops and help rushes in
West Vancouver Police Department Const. Jeff Palmer was back volunteering with the Cops for Cancer Tour de Coast a year after a heart attack felled the officer.
Palmer said he felt a warm rush, “Then the lights went out.”
Jamie McPherson, a B.C. Ambulance Service paramedic, saw Palmer fall and immediately administered CPR.
“I’ve had some very good fortune to survive when most people don’t,” Palmer said. “That had a lot to do with the people who were there to help me.”
OCTOBER
West Vancouver homes are greenhouse monsters
West Vancouver committed to lowering the district’s carbon footprint 40 per cent by 2040 after monster houses were identified as the main contributor to the 260,000 tonnes of greenhouse gasses emitted by the municipality.
The district’s per capita emissions are 4.8 tonnes per year, compared to 3.1 tonnes per year in the rest of Metro Vancouver.
Council approves final funds for Green Necklace
More than 10 years after city workers put the first patch of tarmac on Keith Road, City of North Vancouver council unanimously approved the final piece of the Green Necklace cycling and pedestrian path.
The unanimity came after Coun. Rod Clark, who had previously dubbed the trail “the black necklace,” opted to throw in the towel and support the project’s completion.
Construction is set to get underway in the summer of 2017.
Warnings issued over ‘creepy clown’ pranks
Creepy clowns are no laughing matter in North Vancouver, according to teachers and principals who warned teens about the dangers of the penny-ante Pennywises.
Clown pranks “truly (are) terrifying for people and can spark violence,” wrote North Vancouver school district superintendent Mark Pearmain.
Former North Van MP bids for Tory leadership
Following a 2015 election loss to Liberal MP Jonathan Wilkinson, Andrew Saxton joined the running to become the next leader of the Conservative Party of Canada.
Saxton indicated he’ll tout his record of fiscal stewardship as he seeks to “have significant input into keeping Canada great.”
Seymour trails closed by CMHC – and then opened
Hikers, dog walkers and mountain bikers were barred from Seymour trails after the Canadian Housing Mortgage Corporation posted No Trespassing signs around the former Blair Rifle Range.
After an outcry from elected officials and unhappy trail users, CMHC reversed their call to restrict passage onto the 644-acre plot.
Tower power prevails in Central Lonsdale
City of North Vancouver council split in approving a 187-foot, 144-unit Central Lonsdale rental project.
More than 300 residents – one of whom dubbed the development “trickle-down housing” – signed a petition opposing the project. However, Coun. Holly Back noted Hollyburn Properties’ previous development attracted 840 hopeful renters.
“I’m afraid my heart goes out to the people who need housing,” she said.
The rental building won support from retired District of North Vancouver planner Phil Chapman, who stressed the need for housing options as he spoke to council: “as a concerned parent with two millennials I can’t get rid of.”
Police find firearm following school threat
North Vancouver RCMP recovered a gun after an international student at Seycove secondary was accused of threatening to “do harm” to a teacher. Police were tight-lipped on how the student got the gun, whether it was loaded, and what motivated the threat. The student was subsequently expelled and deported. Another student who was investigated also returned to his home country.
Spike in property crime
Theft from North Vancouver autos ratcheted up nearly 40 per cent over 2015. Approximately 60 per cent of the violated vehicles were left unlocked, according to North Vancouver RCMP Supt. Chris Kennedy.
Residential break-ins were up 43 per cent over 2015 and bike thefts were up 13 per cent.
Residential break-ins were up more than 30 per cent in West Vancouver. Shoplifting, fraud and theft from auto were also on the rise in West Vancouver.
NOVEMBER
Broken elevator strands elderly tenants - again
Elderly tenants in a West Vancouver apartment went two months without an elevator – only to watch the newly-fixed elevator break days after being repaired.
“We’re back to square one,” said Sydney Rose, 85.
Rescued rescuer recuperating
North Shore Rescue volunteer Jay Piggot is on the mend after a surgeon removed his gall bladder and 85 per cent of his liver to remove his cancer.
The community rallied behind Piggot, contributing $100,000 to a crowd-funding trust intended to allow his family to face treatment without financial worries.
Piggot is planning to return to NSR early in 2017.
“I make the cancer live by my rules. I don’t live by its,” he said.
Trudeau green-lights pipeline
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced federal approval of Kinder Morgan’s Trans Mountain pipeline expansion, which will triple the amount bitumen bound for Burnaby’s Westridge terminal and increase Aframax tanker traffic in Burrard Inlet 700 per cent.
The expansion will help fund a “carbon-free world,” according to Trudeau.
The Tsleil-Waututh Nation promised to stand between the earth and the pipeline.
“We’re willing and able to go to court,” said Rueben George, spokesman for the band’s Sacred Trust.
The federal court quashed a previous application by the nation to have the National Energy Board process declared unlawful.
A $1.5 billion anti-spill plan did little to allay the fears of pipeline protester Janice Edmonds, who suggested safeguards would be ineffective when it comes to air quality.
“You can’t put a boom around the air,” she said.
Discussing the issue in May, Burnaby North-Seymour MP Terry Beech noted that he had a voice, “But I don’t have a veto.”
Teens get crash course in U.S. democracy
Handsworth secondary students observed the U.S. election of new president Donald Trump from Whatcom County, Wash., where they met with the county auditor and heard from both major parties.
“That was a very somber, sad place,” principal Dave Overgaard said of the local Democrat headquarters.
Student Eva Wardell likened seeing a man in a Make America Great Again shirt to “seeing the tooth fairy.”
Chlorine leak at North Van plant sends two to hospital
A minor chlorine leak at the Canexus plant in North Vancouver sent two employees to hospital while a third was treated for respiratory issues. The plant’s sirens sounded before dawn after the discovery of a small leak.
West Van elects Lambur to council
Peter Lambur, a 65-year-old architect and urban planner, was elected to West Vancouver council in a byelection, replacing the late Michael Lewis.
Lambur’s campaign focused on managing growth without disturbing community character.
Teachers applaud ruling on class size, composition
The Supreme Court of Canada came down on the side of the teachers’ union on class size and composition, ending a 14-year legal battle.
“A whole generation of kids have gone through the system where we could have done better things for them,” said West Vancouver Teachers’ Association president Rob Millard, discussing the case early in 2016.
The province previously warned that the cost of the teachers’ victory could amount to $500 million in retroactive liabilities.
DECEMBER
West Van OK's first rental in 40 years
Council voted 5-1 to allow Hollyburn Developments to build 41 rental suites in three- and four-storey buildings, surrounding another rental tower.
”I don’t think it’s good enough to tell people to bugger off if they can’t afford to be here,” said Coun. Craig Cameron.
Lynn Headwaters road closed for months
It could take months and millions of dollars to restore access to Lynn Headwaters Regional Park from Lynn Valley.
The District of North Vancouver closed Lynn Valley Road at Evelyn Street on Dec. 1 over landslide fears.
The closure cuts off access to about 175 parking spots.
Museum officially approved
North Vancouver’s itinerant history finally found a place to hang its hat after city council unanimously approved a new museum in Polygon’s development at 131 West Esplanade.
The vote represented the end of “30 years of a dream,” according to Coun. Don Bell, who said the city could expect a “first-class modern museum and not just … a repository of dusty artifacts.”
The approval came nearly a year after council – citing financial sustainability concerns - nixed plans to put the museum into the Pipe Shop building.
Housing market dips, housing prices soar, vacancy rates sink
Sales of single-family homes in West Vancouver plummeted 58 per cent over the summer with some observers attributing the cooling market to the newly enacted tax on foreign homebuyers.
One real estate agent dubbed the 15 per cent tax: “One of the most shocking events that’s ever arrived in our industry.”
But despite indications of a cooling market, many homeowners watched their assessments from July 1 jump between 30 and 50 per cent.
But while values spiked, North Shore vacancy rates notched lower, with the District of North Vancouver’s vacancy rate sliding to 0.1 per cent.
In order to reverse the downward spiral, District of North Vancouver council united on a plan to build between 600 and 1,000 affordable units over the next decade.
