Post by Glenn on Nov 24, 2006 12:24:38 GMT -8
I attended the CRD Parks meeting November 23, 6-9 pm at the Ambrosia Centre, 638 Fisgard Street.
Purpose of Meeting
Lynn Wison (478-3344) is the CRD Park Planner leading CRD’s park management planning process for the Sea to Sea Green Blue Belt vision (parks from Finlayson Inlet to Sooke). The CRD have held one Advisory Group meeting (earlier in November) and the first of two public meetings to gather input into their drafting of a new Park Management Plan (regulations, permissable uses building new facilities, etc.). The purpose of the two meetings is to gather public input for the new parks management plan they are drafting.
Advisory Group
The Advisory Group has on it the CRD (Gordon Tolman), District of Sooke (Councillor Jen Smith), First Nations (Denise Purcell, TeMexw Treaty Assoc.), the Juan de Fuca Electoral Area Parks Commission (Louise Patterson), Lisa Mort-Putland (TLC), Linda MacMillian (Sooke Chamber of Commerce), Susan King (Ayum Creek Society), Kate Emmings (Habitat Acquistion Trust) and Dave Chater, Public Representative, Parks.
These are the people guiding the process, which as you see have a stong ‘conservation’ representation, which comes directly from the CRD Parks Masterplan ‘mandate’.
CRD Park Land Areas Under Study
· Kapoor Regional Park Reserve (around Leechtown),
· Sooke Potholes Regional Park,
· Ayum Creek Regional Park Reserve (at the mouth of Ayum Creekat Sooke Basin) .
· Sea to Sea Green Blue Belt Regional Park Reserve (two large irregular tracks, one above and one below Sooke Mountain Park accessible by the Harbourview Rd). Map on CRD website, coordinates below.
Public Representation
The meeting was well attended by ‘huggers’, hiking clubs, mountain bikers (South Island Mountain Biking Assoc. (SIMBS) and offroad vehicle (ORV) representatives, dirtbikes, wheelers, etc.. Although there was much wide-ranging discussion, the bottom line regarding motorized access is as follows.
Motorized Access to CRD Parks
The battle for motorized access was lost in the late 1990’s when the CRD Parks Masterplan 2000, Bylaw 2743, was pushed through and approved. The 2000 Parks Masterplan prohibits motorized access and contains only a ‘conservation mandate’. CRD planners must carry out this mandate until the Parks Masterplan is revised starting in 2009. The Parks Masterplan usually apples over a 10-yr. term.
There was considerable discussion from hikers, huggers, mountian bikers and ORV representatives. As expected the ‘huggers’ said motorized access is absolutely unacceptable. I said at the meeting that this conflict could be avoided if Recreational Use Areas were set physically apart from the Conservation Areas (requires changes to the Parks Masterplan). It was said (in many different ways) that CRD Parks needs a “recreational use mandate” to accomadate the historical recreational users of the area, prior to any parks involvement in the area.
Recreational Use Areas must be in the next revision of the CRD Parks Masterplan. If that were in place, then CRD planners would be required to include areas for all user groups, including off-vehicle road users, mountainbikers, hikers, huggers and the lot.
These conflicts have been successively resolved in the US as lands are routinely set aside for conservation and recreational users (Oregon, Utah, etc). Although the CRD was advised to learn from the US example, they are not motivated to do so. This is outside of their current mandate.
Next Meeting
The next meeting is in Sooke on Saturday, November 25, 1-4 pm (1-2 p.m. open house) at the Sooke Community Hall, 2037 Shields Road.
There is a CRD reponse form that can be filled out and sent in by December 1, 2006. I suspect the short turn-around time is designed to limit public input. I would suggest everyone fill-out the form and pop it in the mail ASAP. You get get it:
www.crd.bc.ca/parks/index.htm
The only way to achieve motorized access is to keep the pressure on the CRD over the next several years and lobby hard for separate Recreational Use Areas in the CRD Parks Masterplan.
Purpose of Meeting
Lynn Wison (478-3344) is the CRD Park Planner leading CRD’s park management planning process for the Sea to Sea Green Blue Belt vision (parks from Finlayson Inlet to Sooke). The CRD have held one Advisory Group meeting (earlier in November) and the first of two public meetings to gather input into their drafting of a new Park Management Plan (regulations, permissable uses building new facilities, etc.). The purpose of the two meetings is to gather public input for the new parks management plan they are drafting.
Advisory Group
The Advisory Group has on it the CRD (Gordon Tolman), District of Sooke (Councillor Jen Smith), First Nations (Denise Purcell, TeMexw Treaty Assoc.), the Juan de Fuca Electoral Area Parks Commission (Louise Patterson), Lisa Mort-Putland (TLC), Linda MacMillian (Sooke Chamber of Commerce), Susan King (Ayum Creek Society), Kate Emmings (Habitat Acquistion Trust) and Dave Chater, Public Representative, Parks.
These are the people guiding the process, which as you see have a stong ‘conservation’ representation, which comes directly from the CRD Parks Masterplan ‘mandate’.
CRD Park Land Areas Under Study
· Kapoor Regional Park Reserve (around Leechtown),
· Sooke Potholes Regional Park,
· Ayum Creek Regional Park Reserve (at the mouth of Ayum Creekat Sooke Basin) .
· Sea to Sea Green Blue Belt Regional Park Reserve (two large irregular tracks, one above and one below Sooke Mountain Park accessible by the Harbourview Rd). Map on CRD website, coordinates below.
Public Representation
The meeting was well attended by ‘huggers’, hiking clubs, mountain bikers (South Island Mountain Biking Assoc. (SIMBS) and offroad vehicle (ORV) representatives, dirtbikes, wheelers, etc.. Although there was much wide-ranging discussion, the bottom line regarding motorized access is as follows.
Motorized Access to CRD Parks
The battle for motorized access was lost in the late 1990’s when the CRD Parks Masterplan 2000, Bylaw 2743, was pushed through and approved. The 2000 Parks Masterplan prohibits motorized access and contains only a ‘conservation mandate’. CRD planners must carry out this mandate until the Parks Masterplan is revised starting in 2009. The Parks Masterplan usually apples over a 10-yr. term.
There was considerable discussion from hikers, huggers, mountian bikers and ORV representatives. As expected the ‘huggers’ said motorized access is absolutely unacceptable. I said at the meeting that this conflict could be avoided if Recreational Use Areas were set physically apart from the Conservation Areas (requires changes to the Parks Masterplan). It was said (in many different ways) that CRD Parks needs a “recreational use mandate” to accomadate the historical recreational users of the area, prior to any parks involvement in the area.
Recreational Use Areas must be in the next revision of the CRD Parks Masterplan. If that were in place, then CRD planners would be required to include areas for all user groups, including off-vehicle road users, mountainbikers, hikers, huggers and the lot.
These conflicts have been successively resolved in the US as lands are routinely set aside for conservation and recreational users (Oregon, Utah, etc). Although the CRD was advised to learn from the US example, they are not motivated to do so. This is outside of their current mandate.
Next Meeting
The next meeting is in Sooke on Saturday, November 25, 1-4 pm (1-2 p.m. open house) at the Sooke Community Hall, 2037 Shields Road.
There is a CRD reponse form that can be filled out and sent in by December 1, 2006. I suspect the short turn-around time is designed to limit public input. I would suggest everyone fill-out the form and pop it in the mail ASAP. You get get it:
www.crd.bc.ca/parks/index.htm
The only way to achieve motorized access is to keep the pressure on the CRD over the next several years and lobby hard for separate Recreational Use Areas in the CRD Parks Masterplan.
