Skip to content
Join our Newsletter

Retail size restrictions on hold

London Drugs rezoning to proceed without confusion of retail size bylaw

Council has put the brakes on a controversial bylaw designed to limit the size of retail space in the village.

The decision came at the request of Councillor Gordon McKeever who said the issue of the 5,000 square foot size cap on village stores was getting confused with plans to put a London Drugs in the village more than three times larger than the proposed cap.

Though the London Drugs rezoning does not hinge on council’s decision to limit the size of retail space, McKeever said the two issues were becoming cloudy in the minds of the general public.

"The two events were too closely linked not to form a relationship in people’s minds," said McKeever the day after Monday’s council meeting. "It does muddy the waters for some people.

"We were on the defensive here and we shouldn’t be and that’s why I wanted to distance the two topics."

Because of the confusion, McKeever asked council to freeze the 5,000 square foot size bylaw in the approval process for the time being until a comprehensive study can be done looking at commercial spaces throughout Whistler.

This will allow the London Drugs rezoning to proceed as any other normal rezoning process, whereby the proponents must present valid arguments why recreation space in the village should be changed to allow the chain store.

"The onus is on them to prove the value in their proposal," said McKeever.

Whether for or against a London Drugs coming to Whistler, many were pleased to see the size bylaw taken out of the rezoning equation.

"I think it’s positive that some in-depth study is being done before such a bylaw, with such large implications, is passed," said Jonathan Lazar, who represents Maple Leaf Property Management, the company trying to bring London Drugs to their Whistler Village Centre building.

Local coffee shop owner Chris Quinlan, who runs Behind the Grind, supported council’s decision even though he wants to see the size limit bylaw in place.

"I think it’s good that they put it on hold because it allows us to deal with the issue of London Drugs as London Drugs, as the rezoning," said Quinlan.

The rezoning has sparked a frenzy of letters from community members. In this week’s council package alone there were several letters outlining support for the proposal as well as concerns.

Council has long been considering implementing measures that would protect local enterprise in Whistler. But it was only when the spectre of the 17,000 square foot London Drugs was raised, that municipal staff really got to work on a size restriction bylaw.

At Monday’s council meeting Councillor Kristi Wells asked point black whether or not the bylaw had been on the 2005 staff work plan. The general manager of planning and development, Bob MacPherson, answered that it had not been on the work plan, though he said this council and the previous council had been talking about it.

McKeever explained: "We didn’t come up with the 5,000 square foot bylaw as a reaction to London Drugs but it did affect the timing. Absolutely."

He added that when the size bylaw was put on the municipal agenda in mid-May, the London Drugs rezoning application quickly followed. By separating the two, the pros and cons of each issue can be weighed separately.

Municipal staff will now get to work on a study of retail uses throughout Whistler, including Function Junction, proposed commercial development on Lake Placid Road in Creekside and the commercial core associated with the new Rainbow housing development proposal. The study will look at retail uses, locations and density.

"What kind of retail experience do we want to offer?" asked McKeever. "There are some real advantages to taking a good hard look at what we want to offer our tourists and also what our residents need."

Currently there are no bylaws in place that would prevent a landlord from amalgamating several storefronts in the village and offering one large store. This is what has council, and many others in the community, concerned.

"I’m backing the bylaw because it is about retaining what is unique about Whistler," said Quinlan.

But judging by the outpouring of response from the community, many also want more affordable choices in Whistler.

London Drugs promises to bring just that, although the sincerity of that promise has been questioned recently after a chamber of commerce meeting.

Wynne Powell, president of London Drugs, reiterated this week that the company is committed to Vancouver pricing in Whistler, but if extra costs are added to the rezoning process that may change their commitment. He said there has been a suggestion that the landlord pay more than what’s usual in a rezoning application.

"If that location gets saddled with an inordinate amount of costs, that will make it very difficult to bring Vancouver pricing," said Powell.

"It’s a question of what is reasonable and balanced and some figures that have been thrown around are so imbalanced it’d be impossible for people like us to bring the kind of pricing we want to bring.

"Irrespective of that, our flyers which you receive now in Whistler are Vancouver pricing and that’s what you’d get."

The future of London Drugs in Whistler remains uncertain. There will be a full rezoning process, which includes a public hearing and gives council a chance to hear from members of the community.

And though the size bylaw is on the backburner, or "held in abeyance," council has 90 days to move it forward should a landlord begin the process of combining storefronts for one retailer.