A plan, decades in the making, to add hundreds of acres of parkland and build a new, dense neighbourhood of almost 7,000 residents and businesses off Cypress Bowl Road cleared its final regulatory hurdle at West Vancouver council Monday, by a margin of one vote.
Council already substantively debated and approved British Pacific Properties’ plans for Cypress Village in June. But when the phased development agreement, which governs how the lands will be built out over the next 20 years, came up for its final adoption on Monday, three council members made the rare move of reopening the debate.
Couns. Peter Lambur, Christine Cassidy and Linda Watt said they couldn’t be convinced the municipality was getting the best possible deal.
Lambur said he wasn’t comfortable with the upfront costs the district would be paying for the acquisition of the 262-acre Eagleridge land and restrictive covenants on what the district may do with its own lands nearby.
“My worry is not with the fundamentals of the plan itself. It has to do with the inability to modify the terms of the agreement in any way, and to me, that erodes the resiliency of the plan that’s necessary to see it through to its intended conclusions 20 years from now,” he said.
Cassidy said she wasn’t satisfied with the level of vetting the deal’s financials had gone through.
“I do not think they’re in West Vancouver’s best financial interest,” she said. “We never sought a second opinion on those financials and any deal that I go into, regardless of how big or how small, I always ask a second opinion.”
Watt agreed and also lamented that McGavin Field, where BPP currently operates its Cypress pop-up, has already been slated for community use.
“I look at that prime piece of land with some of the best views in the Lower Mainland, and to see that become a sports field and a school when there is such a tremendous opportunity for another use, like a hotel,” she said. “I do think it’s an enormous missed opportunity.”
For the majority on council though – Couns. Nora Gambioli, Scott Snider, Sharon Thompson and Mayor Mark Sager – the deal had already been thoroughly vetted by staff, consultants, council and the province over many years.
“We’ve had experts from the development community and all kinds of experts giving us advice on this project. We’ve investigated all the opportunities. It’s a very complex project proposal, but I am fully confident that we are approving a great project that is going to be a real benefit to this community over the next several decades,” Gambioli said. “I’ve been here since Day 1 on this so I can assure you I feel confident about it on behalf of the community.”
Thompson said she understood the angst of other council members, but also said she was confident that staff and council had done all of their due diligence.
“It’s a huge project. Like nothing we’ve ever seen before, and I can understand why it makes people feel uncomfortable and to make a decision on this is no easy feat at all,” she said. “To look at a project like this that is so completely thought out as a complete community, conceptually, and the dedication to creating a real quality of life up there, I’m really quite excited to bring this to West Vancouver.”
Sager specifically focused on the acquisition of the Eagleridge lands, which will be the largest transfer of lands to the public in Metro Vancouver, and said he looked forward to a ceremony after the title is transferred to the district, during which they could “take a sledgehammer” to the private property sign there now.
“The phased development agreement lasts for 20 years. This property exchange lasts in perpetuity,” he said. “And I’m sure people 100 years from today will forget about whatever details we’ve been negotiating, but will be awfully glad there is that beautiful, beautiful point of land as public property.”
British Pacific Properties issued a release the day after the vote.
“This is a monumental step for British Pacific Properties and for the future of West Vancouver,” said Geoff Croll, president of BPP. “The Cypress Village and Eagleridge plan represents a commitment to creating a walkable, environmentally conscious, mountain-side community that provides much-needed housing and amenities while preserving significant natural areas. I want to thank everyone involved in the process that had led to the creation of this legacy project that will benefit our community for generations to come.”
