Residents got a chance last Thursday to see the latest refinements to the development proposal for the Southlands.
An open house hosted by the municipality at the South Delta Recreation Centre included presentations by municipal staff and storyboards explaining the proposal. It was clear from what was on the storyboards that the proponent, Century Group, has been working closely with civic staff to come up with an application to meet all requirements.
As the proposal winds its way through the application process, those opposed to any development on the controversial Tsawwassen property say they're frustrated another proposal has made it even this far.
"People have lost any faith they had that our local government will respect the wishes of the community they are supposed to represent and instead make decisions based on political pressures and greed," said Southlands the Facts spokesperson Dana Maslovat.
The Century Group is proposing to develop the 536-acre Southlands with housing on 20 per cent on the site, while handing over 80 per cent of the land to Delta. Much of the land to be given to Delta is intended to be farmed.
Following the concepts of new urbanism and agricultural urbanism, the rezoning involves the construction of 950 residential units in various forms over several phases.
The company, which recently revised its application by submitting all the remaining phases, notes the proposed cottage homes (201 units) represent a "missing middle housing" sought by Tsawwassen residents.
The Southlands neighbourhood would also include a mix of town-homes (230), cluster houses (94), fee simple row houses (10) and country flats/live-work studios/condos (415).
Many of the housing types are in short supply in Delta, a fact mentioned on a storyboard.
Approximately 80,000square-feet of ground-oriented commercial space is also proposed, which would be concentrated along a new High Street and in the Market Square.
According to the application, at the heart of the first phase is the Market Square, which includes a large public plaza "where the community can gather to fully engage in the urban farming experience."
Maslovat said his sense is that as information is finally coming forward regarding the impact of the development, people are becoming even more adamant it should not occur.
"The two traffic studies clearly show major problems, with the TFN report estimating double and triple wait times by 2015 and thousands of extra cars on the road. The fill required for the proposed Southlands development will require approximately 100,000 dump truck loads of fill, not to mention construction noise and inconvenience for the next 20 years.
"There are also concerns about the location of the houses as they are far away from amenities, especially transit, which will in turn require more car trips. This is before even considering the impact on bird and wildlife populations and the loss of arable farmland," Maslovat said.
The Century Group says the development emphasizes the importance of linking small-scale farming with residential communities.
"More than merely preserving agricultural land, the challenge and the opportunity is to activate the land towards a type of agricultural activity that maximizes the benefits for the community and the region," the company stated in a recent report.
Century also notes the community-based farming opportunity envisioned can provide a regional model for other agricultural land adjacent to or within urbanized areas.
At a presentation to Delta council this month, president Sean Hodgins emphasized he wants to be involved in the discussion on what type of farming activity could take place on the land.
When it comes to the amount of land that would be farmed, though, Maslovat said the "80-20" proposition isn't a correct term
"Once you take out the space for walking trails, roads, etc., as well as the forested portion, we are likely losing more like 40 to 50 per cent of the viable agricultural land of the Southlands - more like 200 to 250 acres," Maslovat said.
Saying he was interested in what people had to say at the information meeting, Hodgins, who has many supporters of his own, told the Optimist, "I think people have come a long way in understanding the nature of our proposal and that it brings many improvements towards the future of our community.
"The complaints of some activists continue to be alarmist hyperbole. Most people understand that 950 additional homes in a community of an existing 8,500 homes is a fairly modest increase."
The application is to come back to Delta council in mid-December, at which time civic politicians will consider whether to move the proposal along for first and second reading. If it were given the green light to move forward, a vote on preliminary approval would likely be considered in mid-January 2013.
