qathet Regional District (qRD) board will consider a request to apply to the Agricultural Land Commission (ALC) for exclusion of a five-hectare parcel for seniors housing in Gillies Bay on Texada Island.
At the September 6 committee of the whole meeting, directors considered the request from Selkirk Mountain Forest and Texada Island Nonprofit Seniors Housing Society to apply for the exclusion; that the board direct staff to initiate an exclusion application to the agricultural land commission with Selkirk; that Selkirk pay a $1,500 agricultural land reserve application fee, plus costs of posting a sign and advertising the notice of public hearing.
Electoral Area B director Mark Gisborne said he was at the agricultural advisory committee meeting when the proposal came before the assembly.
“It was received quite favourably by the agricultural advisory committee, but two of the three committee members were insistent that an agricultural capacity study be done to show the land is not suitable for agriculture,” said Gisborne. “My understanding was that committee support was conditional on an agricultural capability study showing the land is not suitable for agriculture. I haven’t seen the study yet, but because the committee said they needed the study, that hangs up my support.”
Electoral Area D director and committee chair Sandy McCormick said the regional district is not the decision maker on the proposed exclusion and she would expect that the ALC would ask for that.
Manager of planning services Laura Roddan said the agricultural capability study is required documentation with the application to the ALC.
“The landowner is aware of that, and I explained that to the agricultural advisory committee at their meeting, but they wanted that in their resolution,” said Roddan. “It is information that is required as part of the application.”
City of Powell River director Cindy Elliott said she is in favour of moving forward with the process and if it is discovered that there is something in the study that would change her mind, it would have to be dealt with down the road.
McCormick said there are checks and balances built into the system. She said the ALC in its due diligence will ensure the soil composition and various other components of this property either are or are not conducive to agriculture and will be the ultimate decision-maker.
“What’s important for us in supporting it is that we believe in this housing and this community-driven project,” said McCormick. “They have struggled for more than a year to find a suitable location. This particular location is a whole pile of scrubby trees. You’re not talking about a huge piece of land that is going to be made into a farm.
“We are not agricultural experts, so it’s not up to us to make that decision. It’s up to us to make the decision on whether we believe in this project and want to see it go forward.”
The committee recommended that the regional board support the request from Selkirk and the housing society to apply to the ALC for exclusion; of the five-hectare parcel of land from the agricultural land reserve (ALR) to accommodate a seniors housing project at the corner of Gillies Bay Road and Airport Road in Gillies Bay, with Gisborne opposed.
The committee also had a recommendation that the regional board adopt a proposed ALR exclusion policy to guide board decisions related to requests from landowners seeking support from qRD to apply to the ALC for exclusion of land from the ALR. The committee voted to refer the policy to staff and the qRD agricultural advisory committee for further consideration.
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