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Dances at weddings on hold

Council shelves decision on Nicklaus North until they read the acoustic study

"I was shocked."

"It is absolutely amazing that mayor and council are not looking at the dollar and cents side of it."

That was the way Cathy Henwick put it the morning after Whistler council decided to postpone giving their approval to a liquor license application from Nicklaus North Golf Club that would allow dancing at weddings.

The chair of the Nicklaus North strata council said this was the first time resident living in the 18 units above the golf club got a chance to hear what the councillors and mayors thought about the sticky situation.

"When you are the little guy, you are pretty shocked when you get a response like that," she said.

After much discussion, council and mayor decided on Tuesday night to postpone making a decision about the liquor license application until they got a chance to review an acoustic engineering study.

Nicklaus North's management team commissioned the study 18 months ago and have not yet shared the findings yet with residents or the municipality.

"I really want to see the acoustic engineering report," said councillor Grant Lamont, who spearheaded council's motion.

"If there is something that can be done to help make the lives of residents upstairs more tolerable, let's look into it. Once we let this go to the province, it is gone."

The conflict between residents and the golf club management dates back at least 10 years.

At issue is the fact that the Nicklaus North building has both a commercial component downstairs and residents living upstairs.

Residents say the noise coming from the clubhouse - especially during weddings - is unbearable throughout the summer months. But the golf course's management team hopes weddings will hope bolster revenue and put heads in beds throughout the resort municipality.

The compromise council is currently considering would allow dancing at weddings with several restrictions - like ending celebrations at 11 p.m. instead of 12 a.m. and making sure doors and windows are closed by 10 p.m.

"(Municipal) staff understand what residents have been through the past number of years and feel the restrictions should help them mitigate the problems that have been there before," said Frank Savage, a municipal planner, during his presentation to council.

"Staff also acknowledge the commitment Nicklaus North has made to reduce problems and make the commercial use of the building compatible with the residential use."

The councillors hope to get the study in time for their next public meeting on Tuesday, July 7.