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whistler - November 19th, 2005
12 months of posting to the Pique and you don’t know Chris Manuel?
Article: 41905
Grouping: News
Publish Date: Thu 10 Nov 2005
Quizzing the candidates
The all candidates surprise pop-quiz I conducted at WORCA's table 18 consisted of five questions followed by an unverified compilation of the responses from the candidates and myself.
My purpose of this exercise was to evaluate how much the candidates knew about this particular municipal taxation issue, and more importantly, to inform all of the candidates of this issue with a quick pop-quiz. It started with two relatively easy true/false questions that also set up the background for the next three. Next was: Who has to pay? How much? and What have been the effects?
1. For several years, Whistler's five-year financial plan contained a management objective to: "establish a precedent and methodology for increasing revenue sources from recreational users." True.
2. In layman's terms this means that our council has instructed our municipal managers to find a method of increasing municipal revenue (taxes) from recreational participants and to implement an example. True.
3. Since this management objective has been in place since the late ’90s, which recreational participants have been selected for the precedent or example to generate these increased municipal revenues?
• The Alta Lake commercial canoe access agreement and Business Regulation Bylaw 1645, report 03-93 requires canoe and kayak rental companies to pay an environmental levy (head tax) for every boat that paddles down the River of Golden Dreams.
• The X-Country ski trail users are charged a fee for use of the groomed trails around Lost Lake.
• The Meadow Park Recreation Centre charges indoor use, user fees.
• Tourism Whistler charges the golfers using the Tourism Whistler golf facilities.
To the best of my knowledge, no motorized recreation provider, amusement ride operator, downhill rider or slider, nor at least two-thirds of the golfers are required to pay any environmental levies, user fees or participation based taxes to the municipality.
Yet couldn't the same kind of business regulation bylaw be implemented for any Whistler business license?
4. How much additional municipal taxes have these selected participants been required to pay?
The environmental levy in the canoe operator contracts is $1 per canoe per trip. Expressed as a percentage of the cost of participation, last summer the most expensive option for renting a canoe and paddling for two or three hours down the River of Golden Dreams was $49.99 per person, two per canoe plus taxes. This amounts to about a one per cent environmental tax on our community's most expensive canoe rental option. The least expensive option for the above canoe trip is a $20 all morning rental, upon which this bylaw creates a five per cent environmental tax.
5. What has been the effect on the participation rates of the recreation option selected by our municipal managers for the implementation of their precedent?
I estimate the combined commercially rented canoe and kayak participation rate on the River of Golden Dreams has declined by 60 per cent to 80 per cent in the five years since I last operated the Alta Lake concessions. This compares to Tourism Whistler’s 19 per cent decline in room nights. In addition to the environmental levy, this decline results from a number of factors including possibly other pricing decisions made by the concession, non-concession and municipal managers.
Please note the total dollar amount collected from this environmental levy is trivial. My annual sponsorship of a Pitch-In day cleanup by canoe of the lakeshore and river banks costs far more than the total of my currently expected environmental levy. I, and some of my canoe rental competitors, am actively involved in numerous volunteer environmental monitoring and/or restoration projects.
The point is the principle. I wouldn't mind if the municipality increased taxes on all internal combustion motor users, but not on canoeists! I don't believe any natural recreation activity (hiking, biking, or boating) should be selected for the "establishing of a precedent and methodology for increasing revenue sources from recreational users."
All management objectives to increase revenue should have any reference to 'recreation user' deleted and replaced with 'internal combustion motor user.'
Sustainability is as simple as that! A point that I hope all candidates will reiterate this week.
Unfortunately Ken Melamed, your spirited defense of the current situation has cost you my vote for the first time in your political career. As the environmental voice on the council that implemented this ridiculously biased bylaw, I find the hypocrisy of your position inexcusable.
I will continue to recommend your rock work skills as all my guests admire the fireplace, and alas I hope we can still carve the odd turn together in the future.
Chris Manuel
Whistler
Article: 41822
Grouping: News
Publish Date: Thu 03 Nov 2005
The enemy within
To all the candidates vying for a spot on the team which will council our municipal bureaucracy for the next three years, a huge thank you. Your dedication to our community, not to mention the sacrifice of your personal privacy, is exemplary.
Should you make the team, your task ahead is daunting, the issues complex and often contradictory. You will be representing the interests of a community of diverse individuals, before a bureaucracy mandated to serve the entire public. This public includes the corporate entities and the developers, as well as our community’s individuals. This creates conflicting interests for the bureaucrat whose job depends directly on serving the corporate developer, but is only indirectly associated with the individual voter’s interests.
Some examples where this conflict has manifested itself in recent years include:
• Z.A. Bylaw 1621, 2003, where the original initiative proposed allowing three-bedroom suites, but was changed back to the previous two-bedroom limitation. This thwarted the individual homeowner's ability to increase the local supply of accommodation, and thus increased the perceived need for council to approve any developer's offer of employee accommodation.
• When various Residential Tourist Accommodation (RTA) zoned properties, particularly our mayor's, were seen as advertising for more people than their zoning allowed, the zoning capacity was increased by 25 per cent. (Z.A. Bylaw 1671, 2004.) This benefited all RTA zoned properties, at a time when the community was becoming increasingly concerned about an over supply of the commercial tourist accommodation and the related low occupancy levels.
• The cost for a new employee-restricted property was increased by $20 per square foot earlier this year with an efficient and effective bureaucratic initiative. An employee on the WHA wait list will now pay $20,000 more to any developer that provides a new 1,000 square foot unit. In contrast, many developers of commercial property have avoided providing the required accommodation for the employees of their development by paying a token $5,908 (Bylaw 1507, 2000.) Various council members, the Non-Cost Housing Task Force, and many others have complained about this inadequacy, yet the bureaucratic response has been spectacularly ineffective in the timely delivery of any change.
These are some examples where the typical homeowner, the average commercial accommodation investor and all of Whistler’s accommodation seeking employees have lost out, while the corporate developers and specific RTA investors have benefited. In all cases our municipal bureaucracy failed to present council or the public with a complete and accurate description of the effects of their actions. I'm not aware of any recent actions by our municipal bureaucracy that have actually had the opposite effects.
While I have a tremendous respect for the many civil servants who are dedicated to impartially serving our civilized society, I'm also reminded of the British comedy show "Yes Minister" in which the Prime Minister's aide, regarding an impending election, asks if he is ready to "do battle with the enemy?" The Prime Minister responds that his opposing candidates are "merely the opposition, the bureaucracy is the enemy!"
Chris Manuel
Article: 41444
Grouping: News
Publish Date: Thu 29 Sep 2005
Rivers Day rocks
A river of smiling faces flowed through Lost Lake Park on Sunday, Sept. 25 in celebration of the ninth annual B.C. Rivers Day. There were so many events and activities for children of all ages that we hardly had time for them all. There was fly-casting, canoeing, fish colouring, critter identifying, a scavenger hunt, and even a "water Olympics." Did you know that you can balance over 30 drops of lake water on a single penny?
Phil Chew, chair of the Whistler Fisheries Stewardship Group, kept a steady stream of hungry tummies moving along at the barbecue, while Heather Beresford, Veronica Woodruff and Betty Rebellato’s exceptional efforts organized about a dozen sponsors and volunteers to make it all flow smoothly. Mother Nature provided the perfect warm and sunny fall day for several hundred old and new friends to enjoy a beautiful day at the beach surrounded by Whistler’s spectacular mountain scenery.
Many thanks to all involved for a wonderful day.
Carmen and Natasha Manuel
Article: 39185
Grouping: News
Publish Date: Thu 03 Mar 2005
A question of value
On Monday, March 7th at 7 p.m. in council chambers a public hearing will be held regarding bylaw 1697 to rezone Lakeside Park and the adjoining lot from RS1 to LP1. Although this rezoning has been described as a "housekeeping" issue by municipal staff it is, in my opinion, an insult to all the people of Whistler, particularly to the local Alta Vista neighbours.
The permitted uses of the current RS1 zoning includes "(d) park and playground". The proposed LP1 zoning's permitted uses include "(d) concession including rental of outdoor recreation equipment and supplies". This rezoning bylaw has been deemed necessary at this time as the result of the requests of the Alta Vista neighbours of Lakeside Park to remove or relocate the municipality’s commercial concession operations from this residentially zoned neighbourhood park.
These municipal boat rental concessions were originally created in the ’80s to facilitate the summer outdoor water sports recreational opportunities for the residents and visitors, at a time when the resort was striving to become a four-season vacation destination. Former concession operators used to supply a large variety of water sport options including Laser sailing, canoeing, windsurfing, catamaran sailing, kayaking and rowing sculls, all at very affordable prices. The profits from the canoe, kayak and pedal boat rentals were used to support the large variety of Olympic event activities, as well as numerous community and children’s water sports-related programs.
The current concession operation is now one of several local outfits offering canoe and kayak rentals, but none of the other more challenging activities. The cost of the activities still offered has almost tripled compared to those charged by the former concession operation only four years ago. For example, a family of four with two small children used to be able to rent a canoe and paddle the River of Golden Dreams for $54 all-inclusive. That same family would now be charged $49 per adult and $24.50 per child plus taxes totalling over $157 for the same activity. I can't help wondering how this particular example has contributed to "Whistler's perceived value" as surveyed by Tourism Whistler.
Meanwhile, the local residents have endured increased vehicular traffic and a decrease in maintenance of their neighbourhood park, despite a dramatic reduction in the boating participation levels on Alta Lake.
As a result I, and several of my neighbours, feel that the community would value this waterfront park more if they had unencumbered access to it, as opposed to the current situation where a significant portion of the available space is occupied by the commercial operation. We feel that the municipality should conform to the existing RS1 zoning, with its "park and playground" intended use, and to relocate the commercial operations to the LP1 zoned Rainbow Park, if their value to the community is deemed sufficient to warrant their occupation of any extremely rare waterfront park land.
I would like to invite anyone who has experienced Lakeside Park to express your opinion now either in writing or at the Public Hearing this Monday.
Chris Manuel
10 year Lakeside Road resident, Whistler
Former concession operator
Article: 38549
Grouping: News
Publish Date: Thu 06 Jan 2005
Congratulations Bombardier on your choice of, and our council’s approval for, launching your 2006 product line on Green Lake in Whistler this September. I'm sure that you will appreciate the spectacular scenery and the world class hospitality that our resort is known for.
As the responsible corporate citizen that you are striving to be, I trust that you would enthusiastically participate in some of the environmental initiatives that are currently underway here in Whistler.
As you may or may not be aware the Resort Municipality of Whistler has established the assessment of a $1 "Environmental Levy" on each and every canoe or kayak that is commercially launched from municipal park land to undertake the 1-2 hour paddle from Alta Lake to Green Lake down the River of Golden Dreams. The Municipal Stewardship Department uses these funds for environmental impact mitigation projects within the river’s watershed.
Hopefully in the near future this department will begin to address the "excessive sedimentation loading" of the River of Golden Dreams and the environmental devastation that is resulting. This situation was detailed in the 1999 Proper Functioning Condition Symposium's Final Report. The ancient trees falling into the river by the Valley Trail bridge at the bottom of Lorimer Road are one example of this devastation. The preferred mitigation strategy involves a large, hotel foundation-sized sediment-settling pond just up-stream of the river’s junction with the Alta Lake outflow, and adjacent to the old gravel pit just across this Valley Trail bridge.
I, like most avid paddlers and supporters of all naturally-propelled water sports, am very concerned with your new internal combustion motor-powered watercraft being commercially debuted on Green Lake. I feel that every hour of internal combustion motor operation is at least a million times more environmentally impacting than the paddling of a canoe or a kayak. When you consider the locally established precedent of a $1 environmental levy on the operation of a canoe or a kayak I would like to invite your multi-national, multi-billion dollar corporation to consider funding the above preferred solution to the "excessive sediment loading" problem located just upstream from your chosen debut location.
The timeframe is perfect, as this project would have to be completed within D.O.F.’s August in-stream works window. The projected costs would only add from 10 to 15 per cent to what you are already reported to be spending in our fair community. Your product launch could include a ribbon cutting ceremony complete with the dedication of the Bombardier Settlement Pond. How could a responsible organization like yours possibly dismiss such an opportunity to balance the launching of your new product line with this environmental initiative?
Of course as an alternative I could always invite some of my friends to participate in a late September canoe camp and natural water sports regatta on Green Lake to express our "concerns."
Chris Manuel
River of Golden Dreams Tours
Whistler
Article: 38077
Grouping: News
Publish Date: Thu 25 Nov 2004
In response to Dave Myrick, Chandler, North Carolina:
I doubt that we have ever met, and yet I was moved and saddened that you "no longer feel welcome in Whistler."
I settled here in 1989 after some extensive travelling in the U.S. and around the world, and continue to be amazed at the compassionate and respectful nature of so many individual Americans that I have had the pleasure of meeting and getting to know. I have, however, been appalled by the condescending and belligerent nature displayed by so many of your fellow citizens, especially when they are gathered into groups.
I guess it is a part of our human nature that we all have a unique opinion and fortunately in the little corner of this planet we share I believe we are all free to express it. Since all of our ancestors have endured many significant sacrifices in order to earn this freedom, are we not obliged to use it to ensure that our own unique opinions are considered?
Fundamental to maintaining our ability to express our opinion is our responsibility to ensure that we are able to consider everyone else's opinion regardless of whether or not we agree with it. In this regard, I was very pleased to hear last week that my government has (finally) agreed to allow what you describe as "the only balanced conservative and liberal news network" to be heard here. To be fair, however, I should point out that virtually all "American" news networks and their respective opinions have always been available to the vast majority of Canadians through their dominance of the various network affiliations. I, however, doubt whether the vast majority of American citizens are able to as easily and fully consider any "non-American network" opinions.
Dave, I commend you for making the effort necessary to consider all of the various opinions that are expressed in our "small town newspapers". I personally, on behalf of all of Whistler's opinionated residents, would like to apologize to you if you feel "alienated" by some of our opinions, I'm certain that was not the intent.
Also, I personally, on behalf of all my fellow residents on this small corner of the planet (including you, Dave) would like to express my appreciation to all the "small town newspapers" for facilitating the _expression of our opinions, with such "a very large voice".
Chris Manuel
Whistler
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