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Letters to the editor

Garry Watson's four-column letter headlined "A failure in tax reform" in the Pique of May 24 is Letter-of-the-year in my opinion. It is a must-read for every taxpaying resident home owner.

Garry Watson's four-column letter headlined "A failure in tax reform" in the Pique of May 24 is Letter-of-the-year in my opinion. It is a must-read for every taxpaying resident home owner. Garry has done his homework and the facts and figures presented lead to his conclusion that people will be leaving, taxed out of their homes.

News flash! – people are leaving. Pique reported a few months ago on the rising popularity of Pemberton and quoted an Intrawest manager, who had relocated from Whistler with his family. The ordinary worker, let alone Intrawest managers, cannot afford to live here and the punitive tax situation only exacerbates the problem. They cannot be blamed if they sell their homes and relocate to Pemberton or Squamish. "Aspenization" is already here.

As a retired resident, I am also facing the dilemma of whether to sell out. I never dreamed that my modest Brio home would ever exceed the value of my old Shaughnessey home and yet, that is what the astounding assessment tells me. I bought my Brio home to live here, not to sell out and I understand how Garry Watson and all Whistler resident workers feel. What with taxes, WEF, Olympic bidding, $10 million houses (mostly unoccupied), unchecked illegal villas and rampant development, Whistler is becoming a less attractive place to live. I think our mayor and council and our community leaders have failed us. I think our MLA and our provincial politicians have failed us.

"Sustainability" becomes a joke when the only logical choice is to sell and get out.

Clive V. Nylander

Whistler

 

Your editorial of April 19, 2002 and two subsequent letters to the editor about taxes were brought to the attention of the board. The last letter to the editor from Garry Watson, in my view is a careful and accurate analysis of the current situation with respect to school taxes.

School districts do not set school tax rates. This has not changed with the legislative changes this year. Staff reviewed the legislative changes at our board meeting on May 8. I am enclosing a copy of the staff report, as it may be helpful in providing further explanations to taxpayers in the district.

Amy Shoup

Chairperson, School District No. 48

 

Assert your rights to TA rentals

You have probably read about the recent B.C. Court of Appeal decision that came down about a week ago. The RMOW took legal action against a Whistler chalet owner who periodically rented out his chalet for temporary tourist (TA) accommodation. The BCAA decision upheld the original chamber's judge decision of January, 2001 in RMOW's favour. It has taken almost three years to reach this stage, from legal action commencement.

The defendant in this case is considering an appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada, the ultimate arbiter of legal issues. If the defendant chooses to appeal it to this final stage and succeeds, then the RMOW will have permanently lost its enforcement rights with respect to its current bylaw terminology. It could take another two years for the Supreme Court to hear an appeal and render a decision. Statiscally, about one out of three judgements that are appealed to the BCCA or SCC are overturned. However, many people never pursue their full rights for a variety of reasons.

If you are in support of the right to rent out your chalet for TA purposes, and your property is not zoned for the purpose, don't be disheartened by this latest decision. It is just a mere bump in the road to rectifying the injustice that currently exists on this TA issue in Whistler. It is important to understand the context, and your legal rights.

Here is a basic primer of the steps to take to assert your rights to rent out your chalet for TA purposes:

1. Keep in mind that this recent court decision has no umbrella legal implications in terms of enforceability on anyone other than the specific party to the action. Bottom line: Each individual property owner has the right to defend themselves from any attempt by the RMOW to "shut them down." Each case in law is separate from any other, in terms of the facts and available defences. However, expect RMOW to spin the current court decision as "proof" that they are justified in continuing to vigorously pursue their "enforcement" action against any alleged TA transgressor.

2. Don't be swayed by terminology or the legal process, even though it is all a very foreign and stressful experience. The public can be easily intimidated by "threatening" RMOW letters that use words such as "cease and desist," "show-cause hearing," "consent order," and "court injunction." That is part of the RMOW strategic game plan – compliance through the threat of legal action. Everyone has the right to defend themselves in court.

3. If you are contacted by RMOW in any way, assert your legal rights. This means obtaining independent legal advice immediately. Don't reply to any letter from RMOW or contact them. Let your lawyer do that.

4. Here are the two options to consider, to obtain a legal opinion specific to your individual situation:

• lawyer referral service. This service is operated in conjunction with the Canadian Bar Association, B.C. Branch, and the Law Society of B.C. It is a vehicle for people to locate lawyers with specialty expertise and receive an initial consultation for a nominal fee. The lawyer referral phone No. in Vancouver is 604-687-3221.

• contact a lawyer who you know has expertise in the area of municipal law and related litigation.

Remember, as a chalet owner, you have legal rights that are very potent and very extensive. The RMOW cannot push you around unless you allow them to do so.

Art Collins

Whistler

 

On May 28, I tabled in the legislature a draft community charter that proposes a modern legislative framework for municipal governments. This publication sets the stage for further dialogue and feedback. It is now the turn of individual British Columbians to give us their comments.

The community charter seeks to change the way the municipal system works. It will set in place a new approach to the relationship between the province and local governments: one of respect and increased empowerment. It presents simple, concise legislation that balances broad new municipal abilities with increased public accountability.

Before drafting the legislation, a Community Charter Council made up of 11 representatives of local government and the provincial government joined me in consulting with local government leaders, but we are not finished yet. Feedback from a broad cross-section of interested people – including readers of this newspaper – will help us to finalize the legislation before it is introduced into the legislature as a bill this fall.

This is the taxpayers' opportunity to be heard and to ensure that local governments are accountable to them. I encourage everyone to participate.

The draft community charter and policy paper are available on the Ministry of Community, Aboriginal and Women's Services Web site on the Internet at http://www.mcaws.gov.bc.ca/charter/index.htm , along with a feedback link.

Our e-mail address is CAWS.CharterFeedback@gems1.gov.bc.ca

Ted Nebbeling

Minister of State for Community Charter

 

I would like to personally, on behalf of the Whistler Nordic Youth Club, give my sincere apologies for omitting to include the Cross Country Connection in the "thank you" letter which was published last month.

In fact, their knowledge and support in regards of the rental equipment was a big part of the eight-week program’s success last winter.

I would like to take this opportunity to also include a big "thank you" to our local newspapers for their support in publishing news from our Nordic Youth Club.

Michelle Crowe

Co-ordinator

Whistler Nordic Youth Club