By Lyonel Doherty
Ask and they will answer.
That was the case on May 23 prior to the public hearing on rezoning the Centennial RV Park site to allow a new hotel.
Fern Gould asked if the hotel developer realized he was building on a flood plain.
Cathy Cowan, chief administrative officer for the Town, said the developer is aware of this, noting the plan is to bring in enough fill to prevent flooding.
Former Town manager Tom Szalay asked for statistics on how much money is made from the RV park versus how much money the hotel would bring in.
Tony Munday from the Oliver Tourism Association said if you charge $25 for 36 RV sites in the park, that equals $900 a day.
But an 80-room hotel at half accommodation at $140 a night would equal $5,600 a day. In six months, the RV park will make $162,000, Munday said. And in six months, the hotel will make more than a million dollars, he said. A huge applause followed that answer.
The Town of Oliver is still negotiating the sale of the two-acre property at an assessed value of $286,000 per acre. The developer will get a 10-year municipal tax exemption, but will contribute $92,000 a year towards other services to help offset what ratepayers have to pay, according to Chief Financial Officer Devon Wannop.
Local resident Bill Ross asked why can’t the community have both – a hotel and a municipal RV park. No answer was given.
Ross then asked if council would make a fair and just decision after looking at the petition, letters and emails in opposition to the rezoning.
Cowan said council had an open mind and was listening to the community. Council later approved the rezoning unanimously.
Jackie Frederick, representing Coast Hotels, said a new hotel in Oliver will attract new clientele to the community and employ people.
She said it is “very rare” that a developer is prepared to build a hotel in this economic climate.
“This is the first community in a long time where we’ve seen a developer fight for a property,” Frederick said.
“We’re not seeing that in other communities.”
