Plans for a marina just south of Lions Park include 134 boat slips. A bylaw amendment that would allow for the construction of the marina is currently before council. A second public hearing on the matter is scheduled for July. 6. Photo by Paul Everest - Click on picture for larger image
OSOYOOS TIMES-June 30, 2010
By Paul Everest – Osoyoos Times
While concerns over plans to build a marina near Lions Park grow, Osoyoos town council gave second reading to a zoning bylaw amendment that would allow for the project to go ahead.
The reading was given at a special council meeting held on June 24.
The amendment received first reading on May 3 and a public hearing on the matter was held on May 17 where some members of the public asked for more information about the project, some voiced concerns and some said they were in favour of the marina proposal if certain conditions were met.
Council therefore decided that a public information meeting was necessary before second and third reading would be given.
On June 10, an information meeting on the marina proposal was held at the Sonora Community Centre.
At its June 21 meeting, council scheduled a second public hearing for 6:30 p.m. on July 6 at the Sonora Community Centre.
In response to some public concerns raised at the first public hearing and the information session, Town of Osoyoos staff have changed the bylaw amendment to include information to clarify where the marina would be located and the definition of a marina.
The site where the marina would be located is now described as “the immediate area surrounding Lions Park lagoon.”
The definition of a marina is indicated as “the use of buildings, land or surface of the water for the sale and/or rental of water sports equipment, boats, docking berths, marine supplies and may include the sale of petroleum products.”
Some councillors brought up concerns at the special meeting about how the public might react to council giving second reading to such a controversial bylaw at a special meeting on a Thursday morning that was only publicized through the Town’s eNews service the day before.
Coun. Margaret Chadsey asked Town staff why council was giving the amendment second reading and not simply amending the first reading given last month, especially when this proposal has “held the public’s attention.”
Mayor Stu Wells added that he did not like the “optics” of this being done at a special meeting.
Michelle Martineau, the Town’s deputy corporate officer, added that the purpose of the special meeting was to provide the definition of a marina and describe the area where the marina would go.
By having council give second reading to the amendment at the special meeting, she said, the public would have that information prior to the second public hearing.
No new information is allowed to come forth following a public hearing, Martineau said, and public hearings have to be held between first and third readings.
Council also discussed concerns about having the sale of petroleum products included in the amendment.
Wells said he was “having trouble” with the amendment’s fuel component and asked if it could be taken out until a later time.
Alain Cunningham, the Town’s planning and development services director, said advice should be sought from the Town’s Waterfront Steering Committee on that question.
Coun. Michael Ryan tabled an amendment that would exclude the sale of petroleum products from the bylaw, but that amendment was defeated after only he and Wells voted in favour of it.
Chadsey said it was not the appropriate time to deal with Ryan’s amendment as the purpose of the special meeting was to provide more information about the marina proposal.
She added that if council is reluctant to have the sale of petroleum products at the marina, it can deal with that issue following the second public hearing.
Coun. CJ Rhodes said having a fuelling facility attached to the marina concept is necessary to accommodate tourists, but he hopes the Town will find the “right way” to establish such a facility to protect Osoyoos Lake.
Concerns about parking around the site of the marina and exactly how much space the project would take up were also addressed at the meeting, with Wells suggesting a survey of the proposed site of the marina take place.
Cunningham said, however, that a survey would mean higher costs for the project and a number of delays in the process of having the marina concept approved at various levels of government.
The marina concept is a joint endeavour by the Town and the developers of the Watermark Beach Resort on Main Street.
The current proposal is to build 134 slips at the lagoon between Lions Park and the Lake Osoyoos Sailing Club with half the slips belonging to the resort and half the slips controlled by the Town.
The bylaw amendment that received second reading on June 24, if approved, would add the creation of a marina to the permitted uses for the Lions Park lagoon area, which is zoned Parks and Recreation.
A number of residents have questioned the proposal, bringing up concerns such as potential pollution and safety risks.
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