considers nel

SINGLE-FAMILY zoning
regulations designed for
specific areas in North
Vancouver District may be
coming soon to a neighbor-
hood near you.

By Michael Becker
News Reporter

On Tuesday, a move to restrict
the allowable size of houses.in es-
tablished neighborhoods
throughout the municipality was
abandoned.

But district planners have al-
_ teady held preliminary discussions
_with residents representing several

North Vancouver District neigh-
‘ borhoods to consider specific zon-

ing linked.to neighborhoods.

Registered restrictive covenants,
based on private initiatives, are in
place to control development in
some areas of Pemberton Heights,
Capilano Highlands and
Marlborough Heights.

Representatives of the Norgate
neighborhood have met with staff
to plan the drafting of a new
single-family residential zone
specific to their area.

District staff are rezommending
to council that mectings with
community groups and ratepayer
associations be set up in April to
discuss the concept of neighbor-

‘hood zoning throughout the
municipality.

. Said North Vancouver District

Mayor Murray Dykeman, ‘‘Coun-

cil is trying to deal with the issues
_ coming forward and also provide

_ the stabilizing influence on zoning
_. matters and building restrictions

so that people are not constantly

HOWE SOUND .

NOAGATE HOMEOWNER IAN Macmillan tives in one of the first Hullah houses

borhood after the Second World War.

dealing with this problem.

“We are trying to get some
guideiines in place so that people
will know where they are at.”'

Doug Allan, senior development
planner for North Vancouver
District, said the neighborhood
zoning concept resulted from
ongoing discussions with Norgate
residents,

The neighborhood, an enclave
of small houses built approximate-
ly..40 years ago, has been under
constant development pressure for

decades as commercial and indus-
trial business has grown at its pe-
rimeter.

From 1947 to 1953, Hullah
Construction built just over 400
houses in the Norgate areca to
ineet the needs of returning war
vets.

The average original Norgate
house, 850 sq. ft. (76.5 sq. m) or
1,000 sq. ft. (90 sq. m), sits on a
6,000 sq. ft. (540 sq. m) lot with
an extra 1,000 sq. ft. (90 sq. m) of
lane allowance. .

New planning group formed

A NEW advisory planning
body created to provide a
wider community perspec-
tive on=planning for the
Howe Sound region will be
in place next month.

. By Michael Becker
_ News Reporter

The Howe Sound = Round
~ Table (HSRT). steering commit-
tee is seeking nominees from the

community to become members

of the HSRT.

The advisory group will - in-
clude members representing gov-
ernment, ‘industry, community,
native and other groups with in-
terests in the Howe Sound
region.

The round-table concept was
introduced in B.C. in 1989 with

_ the formation of the provincial
round table on the environment
and the economy.

The provincial body includes
citizens representing a diversity
of interests and perspectives.
Members are appointed by cabi-
net.

The provincial advisory body
subsequently proposed the cre-
ation of local round-table
groups to advise communities on
issties concerning sustainability.

The B.C. round table defines
sustainability in part as the
promotion of ‘‘long-term eco-
nomic development that in-
creases the benefits from a given
stock of resources without draw-
_ing down on our stock of en-
vironmental assets.”’

When people usually talk

_ about Howe Sound’s future, the
debate tends to revolve around

ROZLYNNE H
chairman for the. HSRT
steering committee.

conflicting visions and com-
peting resources. ;

According to Rozlynne Mit-
chell, the chairman for the
HSRT steering committee, the
road to consensus leads to the
round table.

Mitchell came to the process
through her role as a member of
Save Howe Sound Society.

Said Mitchell, ‘‘When I
became aware of the round-table
concept, it made sense to me and
it’s made sense to others.

“The only time we met with
individuals from a_ different
perspective was in a confronta-
tional sense. People were arguing
and fighting or it was through
newspaper headlines.

“There was no procedure
where we could discuss things
and work them out.

‘T honestly believe that when
people get. to know what is
underneath what is being said,
we can start working together.

People can live with some of the

_ decisions being made. Right now

decisions are being made that are
not .ones that we can all live
with,"’ she added.
Mitchell believes
HSRT will benefit
Sound stakeholders.
“When you have this broad-
based participation it ensures
that when decisions are made
and implemented, they are going
to be supported by the public at
large,’’ she said.
“Long-term, I

the
Howe

that
all

hope these

‘types of processes will result in

not having so many disputes. We
resolve things before they start.’’

The HSRT is envisioned as
operating at ‘‘an arm’s length”
from government.

But the steering committee
recommends that funding for the
group be sought from the three
levels of government as well as
the private sector.

The region covered by the
round table includes West Van-
couver, Lions Bay, the Greater
Vancouver Regional District
(Bowen Island), Squamish, Gib-
sons, Sechelt, Whistler, and the
Squamish-Lillooet Regional
District.

West Vancouver's population
of 40,600 accounts for approxi-
mately 55% of the total popula-
tion of the Howe Sound region.

The HSRT is one of five pilot
projects sponsored by the pro-
vincial Commission on
Resources and Environment
(CORE).

For additional information
about nominations for the
HSRT call Linda Thorstad at
CORE, 387-1210, or ‘Mitchell a
926-4808. ; :

Sunday, March 21, 1993 - North Shore News - 3

d zoning input

Norgate residents seek relief from development pressures of commercial expansion

NEWS photo Mike Waketlald
built in the neigh-

The character of the neighbor-
hood has been maintained with a
restrictive covenant.

Said Allan, ‘It addresses things
like color of houses, heights of
fences, and J think it said you
couldn't keep cows. It was fairly
generic, but I think the basic in-

“tent was to keep the basic charac-

ter of the neighborhood.’’

But Allan said the restrictive
covenant does not address devel-
opment issues.

“‘Hullah basically had a house

WY man to

THE NEW president of the
Insurance Corp. of British
Columbia (ICBC) is West
Vancouver resident Bill
McCourt.

. By A.P. McCredie

News Reporter

At a Friday morning press con-

ference introducing the 57-year- .

old Simon Fraser University (SFU)
associate professor, ICBC chair-
man Len Devito said the ‘i0-
month nationwide search for a
new president attracted 130 -ap-
plications.

“We went into the search with
the attitude that we would try to
obtain the person best qualified to
lead this corporation in the
1990s,’’ said Devito. ‘‘Bill’s lead-
ezship qualities are outstanding,
and [ think these qualities will
serve both him and ICBC’s cus-
tomers well,’’

Prior to teaching at SFU, Mc-
Court was executive vice-president
of BC Tel from 1989 to 1991.

He joined the telephone com-
pany in 1982, following 18 years
in management and executive
positions with Eaton’s in Van-
couver and Toronto.

He will assume his new position
on Tuesday, April 13, after com-
pleting his current term in SFU’s
faculty of business administration.

design, and what it amounted to is
that if you bought the lot, you
bought the house design,’’ he
said.

The planner said most Norgate
residents wish to retain the basic
design characier of the area and
yet allow for renovations and ad-
ditions.

“One of the things we’ve been
suggesting to them is that we.
design single-family zoning regu-
lations that apply specifically to
Norgate, that would deal with
issues like building height, eave
height, roof slope, setbacks and
that sort of thing, and | think
that's where ihis whole concept of
neighborhood zoning took off
from,”* Allan said.

As of 1991, about 1,500 people
lived in the Norgate neighbor-
hood.

lan Macmillan is one of them.
He lives on West [Sth Street, in
one of the first Hullah houses
built in the neighborhood.

‘“Norgate is very afraid of en-
croachment by the surrounding
area. Infill is a problem because
we think it will happen, but many

of us don’t want it to happen.

“We are cut off from the rest
of the district; we look as though
we're ripe for redevelopment,” he
said. .

The existence of the neighbor-
hood has never. been a sure thing,
Macmillan said. ; :

“At one time this was to
become an airport, about 40 years
ago, before the housing. Norgate
has always been given a date of
execution, fet’s say. Here we are,
a pocket of land that’s very pleas-
ant and yet we’re surrounded by
these pressures. that are forcing
themselves upon us,’” he said,

head [CBC

Bes .

Bs

BILL MCCOURT.

“Obviously I’m delighted to
take on the challenge of ICBC,”
McCourt said at the press con-
ference. ‘I intend to be spending
the next few months listening to
the employess, the management,
the board, and the unions involv-
ed in ICBC.” ‘

Devito said that the final two
canuidates for the presidency were
McCourt and interim president
Robyn Allan. ‘

McCourt was chosen: over
Allan, Devito said, because of
“his track record and his demon-
strated respect for both colleagues
and customers.’”

index

{8 Outdoor Feature
Spiritually Speaking
& Travel

@ Vintage Years
What’s Going On

Weather
Monday and Tuesday, rain. Highs 11°C, Lows 5°C.
Canadian Publications Mai! Sales Product Agreement Number 0087238