The lack of a decent place to train might leave 34 sea cadets adrift, according to one navy lieutenant who addressed City of North Vancouver council last week.
Citing safety concerns, the North Vancouver Sea Cadet Corps. will have to move out of their Forbes Avenue base of operations this summer, according to commanding officer Brian Broom.
Built in 1966, the squat, brick building’s age and the nature of its construction are a concern, according to city facilities manager Robert Skene. While there are no plans for the site’s future, the city would have informed the Sea Cadet Corps at least one year in advance of demolition. The building would likely not lend itself to renovation, according to Skene.
While Broom arranged temporary training quarters at BCIT’s Lower Lonsdale campus beginning in September, he’s adamant the program should find a “permanent home” in North Vancouver.
“Today I ask that you please remember us in the midst of your planning,” he said to council. “We really hope that there’s going to be a building and a home that we can go back to because BCIT’s only temporary for us.”
When asked if they could move their seamanship training into the J.P. Fell Armoury next door on Forbes Avenue, Broom explained that the Sea Cadets likely wouldn’t have a night to train or a spot to parade given the other cadet programs that use the armoury.
“We’re very much low on the totem pole for that,” he said of the armoury. “They don’t see us as part of that team, they see us as next door.”
Similarly, training out of a school could also be troublesome due to limited space and sporadic availability, according to Broom.
The program, which is open to cadets between the ages of 12 and 18, includes courses in marksmanship and seamanship and also requires classroom space.
Several Navy League of Canada groups will continue to use the building, according to city spokeswoman Connie Rabold.
The city-owned, 8,750 square foot building is leased rent-free to the Navy League of Canada, according to Rabold.
