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The rumours are true

There’s been a rumour circulating around town that I have decided to not seek re-election to municipal council this November. It’s true. I’ve decided not to run for another term. “And why not?” Good question. I did intend to be in this for two terms.

There’s been a rumour circulating around town that I have decided to not seek re-election to municipal council this November. It’s true. I’ve decided not to run for another term.

“And why not?”

Good question. I did intend to be in this for two terms. Here are four things that led to the difficult decision.

My affordable housing consulting business — advising other municipalities facing their own version of Whistler’s affordable housing crunch on options they might consider to deal with it — has taken off. Ironically, it was affordable housing that made me decide to run for council and it’s affordable housing that’s contributing to my decision to move on. The work is challenging and rewarding and, I like to think, tells a good story about how hard Whistler’s worked on this problem and how far we’ve come. It also pays better and no one wants to beat me up over it when I bump into them in the produce section of the grocery store… and of course, I’ll miss that.

Within the next year, my wife Leslee and I will join the ranks of empty nesters. For a couple of years now, we’ve been planning a smaller, dare I say more sustainable, nest on Bowen Island. Over the next several years we’ll be transitioning to becoming islanders, at least part time, a shift that will require increasing time and attention on my part. If we don’t manage this change properly, our daughters may never come home to Bowen.

And as onerous as it sounds, I expect to spend at least some of the time I’d have devoted to memorizing all 600 pages of the typical council information package every two weeks to my second love…. sailing. I’ve been channeling my inner pirate most of my adult life and I see it as playing an increasingly important role in my semi-retirement. Political discourse will take place on deck with suitable beverages in hand.

Finally, I’d like to state unequivocally that I’ve loved being at the council table during this term. We’ve managed to accomplish much of what we set out to do, not the least of which is more affordable housing. I’m proud of and excited about the decisions we’ve made, the deals we’ve struck to ensure the upcoming Olympics will, in fact, leave a lasting, positive legacy behind and, on balance, I believe this has been a tremendously productive council.

Having said that, it’s been difficult dealing with the sometimes very personal and strident criticism directed at this council as a whole and individually. I expect harsh words from the cranks and the terminally discontented, but it’s disheartening when people I know and respect in this community level criticism in a harsh, unhelpful and, hey, let’s call a spade a spade, not entirely informed fashion. When my good friend, G.D. Maxwell, for example, twists what I consider our extraordinary efforts to engage the community in the budget process to a pithy but inane, “Council to Whistler: Screw You!” I can’t help but feel my time would be better spent pursuing other goals. The kind of criticism we’ve all faced seems to generally respond favourably to one-on-one explanations but if there is a better way to respond to the entire segment of the community that’s been dissatisfied with our actions over and over again, I’ll have to leave finding it to whomever comes after me.

Thank you for the chance to be of service and rest assured, you’ll still have Tim Wake to kick around… just not as municipal councillor.

Tim Wake

Whistler

Our sustainable ‘non’ parade…

I don’t like to be the one to complain about something when I did nothing to help… but I’m going to break that moral high-ground for a moment… What the heck was that on Canada Day?

We were standing right by Caramba! and witnessed the parade from the beginning and I can only imagine how much worse it got by the end… It was very unorganized, to say the least.

For those of you who missed it… you didn’t miss much! It was a very small parade to begin with, perhaps 10 minutes in length. And as you may have already known, there were no “vehicles.” no loud, exiting fire trucks, or the floats with great music with people dancing, singing or just waving… there were golf carts… maybe 6 in all… the rest were on foot… very few banners even identified who each group represented… there was a couple of dogs… And the rest were on bicycles. I was sad and disappointed. If this is the only way to work with sustainability we should just save everyone the trouble next year and give it a miss.

My suggestion? Offer free bus fares from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in and out of the village to encourage everyone to find a different means of transportation to see the parade and have a designated bike locker/roped off area where people can ride in and leave their bikes/packs at a secure location for free or for a small donation to charity, perhaps right outside the library or near the Brewhouse. Have prizes for the best and most original floats/entries… encourage kids to dress their bikes up and then have ice cream prizes for the most colourful bikes… add a doggie parade to it and have WAG involved, offering information and doggie bags readily available for everyone.

To me parades are as much about fun as they are about information. We have so many groups in our community and I really didn’t see more than a couple of them represented.

But whatever you do… bring back the floats, the noise and the vehicles!

Oh, one great idea out of all this was Nesters offering apples! Thank you for that…

Karen Garrett

Whistler

A big disappointment

Re: Canada Day parade

It was an ill-conceived concept, made worse by the fact it was poorly organized and executed. Also, is there not a bylaw that prohibits riding a bike thru the village? After this year’s pathetic display — or rather lack of it — it will take a lot of effort to get it back to being a celebration of all the various aspects of Whistler and its vibrant community. Momentum lost is hard to regain.

Over the years the Whistler Canada Day parade had grown into an event both locals and visitors enjoyed being part of. We met several visitors who plan their holiday to Whistler especially for the parade, and one told me that the small town they come from in Saskatchewan could put on a better show!

In fact it was fortunate that a group of visitors from Denmark chose to walk in our parade as they at least added some colour.

Good parades are invariably led by a band — followed by the RCMP and mayor — so why was this band placed between various people wobbling away on their bikes?

Why not hold the cake cutting ceremony after the parade ends, so that the participants can enjoy it, rather than well over an hour later when everyone has dispersed.

I certainly hope the organizers of the Olympics do a better job! The frenzy to “go green” seems to have gone too far. Everything in moderation!

Gay Cluer

Whistler

Transit is rolling

Re: “Gas prices have an impact on commuters and transit” by Jesse Ferreras (Pique July 3)

Thanks Jesse Ferreras for pointing out the commuter options that exist for Whistler employees in the article.

I want to take this opportunity to provide some additional transit information and make a couple of small corrections regarding the WAVE service in Whistler.   Monthly passes actually cost $55 per month (not $50), and we now have six-month and 12-month WaveCards that offer even more savings.

Regarding options for Squamish residents, the Squamish-Whistler Commuter became a fully-funded year round system as of May 5, 2008. The Squamish-Whistler Commuter is a “blended” service modeled after the Pemberton Commuter — in other words, our transit buses complement the Greyhound schedule so that we are not just offering four round trips per day to Whistler but 13 daily round trips between Squamish and Whistler with the last bus heading back to Squamish at 12:20 a.m.

These developments are part of the WAVE Five-Year Business Plan, which includes expansions that we’ve started implementing as of April 22, 2008. We look forward to continuing to roll out this plan and thank everyone who contributes to making our transit service the one that carries more passengers in every hour of service than any other transit system in the province.

Visit www.busonline.ca for all schedules, rates and pass information, the WAVE business plan and more.  

Emma DalSanto

Transportation Demand Management Planner

Resort Municipality of Whistler

Wilson Liberal candidacy impossible

RE: Andrew Mitchell's June 25th article, "Strong interest in Liberal candidacy"

I did not "confirm" there was support for reinstating Blair Wilson as the Liberal candidate. I also did not say it was technically possible for Wilson to be included in the candidate search. He could not be included in the search because last December the Liberal Party said that Wilson cannot be the Liberal candidate, so how could he be "technically" included in the candidate search?

K.D. Halliday

President, West Vancouver-Sunshine Coast-Sea to Sky Country Federal Liberal Riding Association

Communities share a vision

Last Saturday my business partner for our manual snow removal business, Whistlers Snow Masters, informed me of the death of one of our hardest working, highly productive workers. Kenny Edmonds makes the second Mount Currie resident, friend and employee of the last two years we have lost. How many more heartbreaking stories (especially those relating to alcohol) until enough is enough?

I had gotten to know Kenny quite well. I recall a few occasions sitting with him in Tapley’s after a long day’s work chatting with him about his future dreams — whilst watching him munch through a platter of chicken wings. Yes he had issues with alcohol but he was a good guy who took pride in his work — it was always important to him that a job was well done.

I have shoveled, laughed and joked with our Mount Currie friends — they can bring a million smiles. One of the biggest challenges we face with our business is the ugly ebb of substance abuse weighing its heavy toll. We do what we can to encourage more sober evenings — there are good days and there are bad. Many a time we get thanked through gifts of deer steak and salmon. So often have they graced our snow-filled days with great humour and determined labour — making light of a job that can otherwise be pretty hard work to get done.

Without Mount Currie folk there’d be a lot more Whistlerites shoveling their own pathways and stairs! With shovel and ice pick in hand, for the past 16 years, these guys have been clearing the way for pedestrian traffic throughout Whistler Village and its surrounding neighbourhoods; ensuring doors can be opened and rendering areas safe. As the employment pendulum swings a continued high, commercial machinery remains incapable of replacing traditional form, as powder days continue to create 24-hour flu epidemics across our town (and I understand why...!), our dependence on Mount Currie to labour the snow away is probably greater than ever before.

Consider for a moment the effect Mount Currie has on your daily life — on the lives of the inhabitants of Whistler. Now consider the effect the development of our community has on theirs. As we talk so passionately of The Spirit of Whistler, let us remember The Spirit of their Nation. For we are two communities living side by side and sharing a similar vision — for we all identify with our personal success. It’s a vision of identity and of pride in belonging. It’s a vision of humanity, understanding and sustainability.

In Whistler, we take pride in boasting of our community values, our management of culture and natural heritage. In preparation for 2010, we’ve spent millions on a centre that speaks of community; of a united diversity in the arts and in culture — for this is Canada! All I plead for is that the always real Whistler takes valuable time to truly embrace that of which we speak. How can we address Mount Currie’s REAL needs? How we can make the concept of bridging cultures a concept that is real? Never mind government policy — I don’t give a damn about what we can’t change — but please, let’s not brush Mount Currie under a carpet. Please, let’s make the idea of bridging cultures real.

These people are the same as us. No more, no less. They learn from their surroundings — with what they can identify with best. They do not go out to wish themselves or anyone harm — but, like us, they can only connect and relate to that that connects and identifies with them. Relating to others does not entail focus on difference, but identification of where we connect. We are all people; we all have something to share.

The Lil’wat people experienced dramatic loss of language, culture, and family unity — their face of pride masked by substance abuse kindling dark clouds of racism and giving false appeasement to a far deeper fight. It is time we embraced a synergistic approach to create a logical balance of key values and community concerns. Our communal well-being is actually dependent on everyone’s gain. It simply stands to reason we work avidly in uniting our community’s embrace.

The sharing of ideas and considered view of different perspectives delivers solutions, which left to fend to our own devices, we simply could not hope to attain.

Listening, interpreting and communicating meaning, we must build our understanding for cultural bridges where foundations stand in solid ground. 

If we are a community that encourages entrepreneurial spirit and innovation to build community pride and create an economic base strong enough to preserve our values; if we are a community looking to ensure sustainability as we look towards the future, then we MUST be a community committed to harness understanding of perspectives and culture unfamiliar to our own, especially when the culture lies close to our home.

As we are in our passions of where we live, where we work and where we play, the Community of Whistler must find unity in our vision and our core values. As it is true that in 2010 Whistler will take the international stage in hosting the Winter Olympic Games, so we must take action to actively embrace the diverse cultures through which we pivot our nations’ pride.

This valley is presented with an amazing opportunity - the opportunity to show how a cross-cultural society can work. The future is ours to create. If for nothing more than this — it’s time we now focused to find unity across this valley we call our home.

Caroline Smalley

Whistler

You were there when I needed you

The last time I wrote in this venue to all of you, my friends and neighbours of Whistler, I really believed I may be writing the final chapter of my life.

I’m reaching out to all of you in the name of “cancer awareness.”

My family knows cancer very well and we have never won the fight before now. When cancer came calling, cancer always won the fight.

I didn’t know at the time I got cancer what a wonderful caring community we have here in Whistler; how many kind, thoughtful and courageous people live here.

We have many more cancer fighting people who live here in our resort community, many more people who need help. You all helped me, I’m your proof that help works.

Could I have beaten cancer without your help? Maybe, but I sincerely doubt that without the grace of God and the prayers and the graciousness of all of your support and friendship, emotionally and financially, I would have.

I’ve had another chapter in my life, you gave me hope and courage. Hope and support are imperative, for without it cancer “thrives.”

Please take the first step in joining the fight. It can be an easy step and very gratifying. Just try, you’ll see.

Every action we take in life has cause and effect. Why not take some action that will help the cause towards effecting a change for the better, take a chance in a cure for cancer in our lifetime.

I know in my heart that the actions of many of you, in making me your cause here in Whistler, had a positive effect on me. You helped me with my mental attitude and finances, which gave me courage to fight.

“None of us are immune,” but for those fighting cancer right now please help, so they can have more time to enjoy family and friends.

I’ve won my fight with your help and it feels good, really good.

George Cook

Whistler

Squamish deserves the truth

RE: “Oceanfront planning goes public” (Pique, July 3)

Squamish needs an updated integrated land use plan for the whole lower Mamquam Blind Channel waterfront.

What is instead happening today, in the Oceanfront and Nexen peninsula planning processes, is a compartmentalizing of the Squamish Estuary Management Plan.

These lands are designated in SEMP for water-dependent industry and transportation use. (Residential use of the waterfront was also thoroughly discussed during the SEMP process. This use was assigned to the mid-Channel area.)

The idea that this current use designation is no longer relevant reflects a compartmentalizing of Squamish from the rest of our coastal region and the world. Strategic waterfront lands, such as the Oceanfront, are increasingly scarce!

The notion that some form of housing is needed to finance Oceanfront development is a fallacy. It is necessary to look outside, in order to see this.

The place for Nexen peninsula planning to start is with SEMP (1999), Section 4.3: “Substantial amendments, such as significant area designation changes, must undergo public review.”

In other words, the District and SODC are first obliged to provide a rationale for land use re-designation. Then the myriad alternate suggestions being received can be properly confronted and evaluated. The District must also follow this procedure in the OCP Review.

Squamish citizens deserve not only an open public planning process. They deserve to hear the truth — about the environmental, legal, and economic development circumstances of this site.

Is the District denying that the SEMP it signed off in 1999 is a land use plan? That should be a disappointment to the many people and agencies involved in that process, from 1978.

The District itself has not undertaken a comprehensive assessment of Squamish waterfront land resources since 1990. A new assessment, in consultation with stakeholders and bona fide experts, as well as the public, is overdue.

Oceanfront planners might take a lesson from Squamish’s sister-city, Shimizu, Japan — where an “Interim Waterfront Park” is being implemented. The Shimizu goal is to protect scarce lands required by water-dependent industry and transportation, for future generations.

This very same port lands conservation strategy is also now referred to in provincial government policy. ( BC Ports Strategy , March 2005.)

Eric Andersen

Squamish

p class=Style1>Time for a better location?

Re: Big things from small studio (Pique letters July 3)

After attending a strata meeting regarding the dance studio, I wonder if a new location is not in order now that the popularity may pick up.

Soul Funktion is running a dance studio in a commercial district. The area is packed with cars and current businesses have nowhere for their customers to park. Kids are dropped off at random areas. Mothers who are late race through the parking lot and cause great distress for those of us who work in the area. The studio has not been soundproofed so it also causes noise havoc for other businesses and has no plans in the foreseeable future for such improvements.

As for the community, the locals who live and work in that community are not impressed. Me being one of them.

Isn't it time to find a more suitable location for kids to dance safely in and in a properly designed danced studio? I think Millennium Place would do just fine.

Joanne Laderotue

West Vancouver