history
March 2010
On March 5, 2010 we published an ad entitled "Land Economics and Affordability" in which we discussed the pressures of urbanization on land economics, and the resulting problem of affordable housing in areas close to urban centres.
February 2010
On February 5, 2010 we published an ad entitled "The Big Picture" in which we address the "red herring" notion of "over development" on Bowen Island, and suggest that the focus instead should be on the Big Picture challenges to our community.
January 2010
On January 8, 2010 we published an ad entitled "2010 Preview" in which we discussed the Official Community Plan review and what lies ahead for the Cowan Point and Cates Hill projects.
December 2009
On December 25, 2009 we published an ad entitled "A Reflection About 2009."
On December 20, 2009 we made a submission to the Official Community Plan ("OCP") Steering Committee in response to their invitation to the development community to contribute to the OCP update. In that submission we described some of the challenges for Bowen to be more sustainable (social, environmental, and economic well being), some items that should be addressed by an updated OCP to achieve greater sustainability (diversity, affordability, community life/spirit, local economy), and how some of the planning mistakes of the past can be changed.
On December 18, 2009 we published an ad entitled "Bowen Island's Future - What Will It Be?" in which we discussed the current review of the Official Community Plan and suggested that a competition of ideas regarding Bowen's future be undertaken - allow the public to be the jury, and the best and most convincing ideas win.
On December 11, 2009 we published an ad about our dreams for what Bowen Island could be like if it was a sustainable community.
November 2009
On November 27, 2009 we published an ad entitled "Community -- What Does It Actually Mean?"
On November 13, 2009 we published an ad entitled "Local Economy - Does It Really Matter?"
October 2009
In advance of the public information meeting on October 17, 2009, we ran the following advertisements:
- Advertisement entitled "Sustainability and the Future of Bowen Island" in the Bowen Island Undercurrent on October 9, 2009 and in the Bowen Island Times Editions on October 16, 2009 (2 pages)
- Advertisement entitled "Density Transfer -- what it means and how it could help toward the goal of sustainability" in the Bowen Island Undercurrent on October 16, 2009.
At the public meeting we provided a handout to attendees.
May 2009
Almost 10 years after the comprehensive zoning for Cates Hill (see June 1999 below), there is a greater awareness emerging about the vital ingredients and necessary preconditions to create and maintain a truly sustainable community. The most important are obvious, namely local employment, affordable housing, and environmental well being. But of equal importance is the composition of the social fabric -- without a healthy diversity of age, lifestyle, income, family status, etc, no community can sustain itself in the long run.
We want to find out if a 24-lot single family subdivision in the special location of Parkview Slopes within the Snug Cove area is truly the preferred choice over a diversified live/work community with alternative housing.
And so we submitted our application for density transfer and rezoning to Bowen Island Municipality on May 28, 2009.
June 1999
The zoning for Parkview Slopes was part of the comprehensive zoning for Cates Hill which was approved in June 1999, and which was the outcome of an extensive public consultation and planning process following the implementation of the then new Official Community Plan (Bylaw No. 139) in February 1996.
At that time we had proposed that the area now known as Parkview Slopes could include the creation of a small neighbourhood/community college surrounded by a live/work community composed of artists and artisans. The then new Island Pacific School was intended to become the nucleus and first phase of a "micro college." What has since become the small neighbourhood park and the land surrounding the Tir-na-nOg Theatre School was intended to be accessible to Island Pacific School and other users of the micro college for outdoor recreation and sports. To the north of that area, above what is now known as Artisan Square, the intent was to provide boarding facilities for Island Pacific School and temporary students of the micro college. The micro college was intended to teach and train crafts and artisan skills which had developed and evolved over the last 300 to 400 years and which, since the age of industrialization has taken over, are now increasingly at threat of being irretrievably lost (such as movable type printing, glass blowing, leaded glass compositions, string instruments, small wooden boats, bookbinding, classic furniture building, restoration of art works and museum exhibits, etc). What has since become the Rivendell Retreat was intended to be the centre for the teaching of artistic and spiritual underpinnings for the artisan trades and crafts. What has since become the Artisan Square was intended to provide part of the live/work community with the aim of establishing a fully functional arts and crafts community on Bowen Island.
In hindsight, we realize that we were most likely ahead of our time, or perhaps the public was not ready for our ideas, or we simply were not good enough in sharing our vision, a vision which was and still is based on many existing arts communities throughout Europe which have flourished for hundreds of years.
However, our proposal was at least partly successful on two fronts: 1) approval of a retreat on the site which now accommodates Rivendell Retreat, and 2) approval of sites for Island Pacific School and Cates Hill Chapel (however, they were located at Carter Road instead of Parkview Slopes). The bulk of the remaining lands on Parkview Slopes received zoning for 24 residential lots with a minimum size of 900 square metres. Subsequently "vehicle repair garage" use was added to this area to allow Leigh Automotive Garage to operate within Parkview Slopes.