Glenmore residents gave a collective sigh of relief when the District of West Vancouver council defeated a motion to let Collingwood School construction efforts extend into their summer nights.
The request was made by Platinum Projects on behalf of Collingwood to relax the noise control bylaw for the site and allow for construction between 5:30 and 8 p.m. during the week. After two years of working on Collingwood's facelift, the contractor was hoping to extend the hours to finish the project by September school start.
But after council heard a handful of Collingwood neighbours plead their case to enjoy their sundecks in the summer evenings, in a 4-3 decision Collingwood was denied the extension.
"I have grandchildren who go to Collingwood," Coun. Bill Soprovich said at the Monday night meeting before voting against the motion. "But I listened to Mrs. Scott, a very mild lady reiterating, 'Who stands up for us?' Well, I think I do."
The school is upgrading to a new 7,000-square metre wing on the Morven Drive campus, including 150 underground parking spots.
Mayor Michael Smith said if the motion were defeated, it would put the district's bylaw department and Collingwood in an "impossible situation."
"I am sensitive to the neighbourhood - of course I am," he said. "It's been a long process there, but the pot of gold at the end of rainbow is when this is finished, the problems of the street - parking, dropoffs and everything else - go away."
Smith said the exemption included an out, which means if the district allowed the extension and the noise level was not adhered to then they'd pull the plug on the later hours.
"So logic and common sense tells me that we should approve this motion, hold the contractor's feet to the fire to make sure that he monitors the noise level and make sure that it's acceptable to the community, and that it is done inside and it is done quietly," Smith said.
Soprovich shot back saying the residents have put up with a lot in the last two years.
"There's something called quiet enjoyment," he said. "And it's been disrupted by construction that is ongoing."
Glenmore residents have had a few run-ins with the school since construction started. Last September, Andrzej Lepiarcyzk filed an unsuccessful petition in B.C. Supreme Court to force the school to abide by the district's 600-student limit at the Morven site.
