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Pemberton takes first steps towards boundary extension

Pemberton is one of the fastest growing towns in the province, but that’s not entirely why the Village of Pemberton is pursuing a boundary extension.

Pemberton is one of the fastest growing towns in the province, but that’s not entirely why the Village of Pemberton is pursuing a boundary extension. Although Mayor Jordan Sturdy would welcome new developments planned for the hillside area, the VOP has various reasons why different parcels of land were included in the map presented at the April 15 council meeting.

“We’re at the very beginning of a multistage process and this map is where we started,” said Sturdy.

According to Sturdy, they started on Pemberton’s south side with the concrete batch plant in the Rutherford area, and an application to turn that area into an industrial park.

“We’d like to see that in our boundaries, to make sure the park is complementary to the existing one in Pemberton as opposed to competitive, and that can only happen if it’s within our jurisdiction,” he said.

He also said there was a benefit to including the Rutherford power plant in municipal boundaries, as the town would receive tax revenues. Currently those revenues go to the province, Sturdy said, and are redistributed throughout the Squamish-Lillooet Regional District, rather than to Electoral Area C where the power plant resides.

But as Pemberton’s tax assessments increase, so has Pemberton’s contribution to the SLRD and Sturdy believes in the end there will be no impact on the regional district. “That’s my preliminary assessment of the issues, but we’ll know more as the process moves forward and we refer to the regional district to identify taxation issues and other issues.”

Another area included in the extension is the lands along Airport Road to the southeast of Pemberton. According to Sturdy, the airport and road are both municipal responsibilities, but taxes from adjoining properties go to the regional district rather than Village of Pemberton.

“That road is maintained by the Village of Pemberton, the water and sewage services along the road and connecting all those properties are maintained by the Village of Pemberton. If we supply those services, then we feel the properties adjacent should contribute to the community, and that would include the Big Sky Golf and Country Club.”

Another parcel of land the VOP would like to add is the Pemberton Creek Watershed, which contributes to Pemberton’s water supply. “It just makes sense to have our water supply in our jurisdiction,” said Sturdy.

The remainder of the boundary extension includes parcels of land owned by various property owners in the hillside area, including Ravens Crest and Lil’wat First Nation. Sturdy believes significant development will occur in the area over the next 10 to 20 years, with Pemberton’s population expected to double in 30 years.

“We feel that development of some description is going to be going ahead on the hillside one way or another and we believe it’s important that the development take place within the purview of the Village of Pemberton. In the regional planning this was identified as an area of settlement, and there is limited settlement supply in the valley. We would like to ensure good planning, smart growth, and a range of densities, all of which will require services and should be in the village.”

Among other things, Sturdy would like to ensure that there is some consistency to the developments, from an aesthetic point of view, and that there will be a neighbourhood plan that guides development.

“That area is also an area of significant benefit to the community in terms of recreation, which is another reason to have a community master plan. For example, I know there are bike trails in that area. I would like to pursue a no net loss policy for trails, but without a master plan it would be hard to ensure that’s the case.”

Sturdy acknowledged that there was some fear on behalf of landowners that inclusion in the VOP would result in higher taxes and charges, but he says that’s not the case. For example, people within the municipal boundaries pay a single tax rate that includes things like policing and fire costs, while people in the rural area pay a lower tax but have to pay for services like policing and fire separately.

“It’s complex, but we will be looking at those types of issues more carefully as part of the process to understand what all the implications are. The majority of people within the proposed boundary expansion will supply letters saying whether they were in favour or opposed, but we need to be sure that they’re basing their decision on good information, and that’s why we’re going ahead with a quality, transparent process.”

The VOP is still in the first stage of the boundary extension process, which is identifying the precise area. Other steps include consulting with owners and residents, consulting with the regional district, and consulting with local government and other agencies, and identifying the issues that may arise. The next stage is making a submission to the ministry for their consideration, advertising the extension and allowing time for public comments and petitions, and finally the implementation of the extension.

It’s a process that will likely take several years, Sturdy says, but he feels positive about the process now that it’s underway.

“I think the more people understand the process and see why we’re looking to expand our boundaries, the more they’ll get behind the idea.”