Proposed bylaw zoning amendments for Airport Way tourist accommodation receive mixed feedback at public hearing
A proposal to amend two zoning bylaws for a property on Airport Way in rural Revelstoke to allow for the development of a small tourist accommodation received mixed feedback during a recent public hearing.
While some were supportive of the bylaw amendments, others said they were concerned about increased traffic volume and potential erasure of the current rural lifestyle if the amendments are approved.
The public hearing took place on May 2 at the Revelstoke Community Centre, and was chaired by Columbia Shuswap Regional District Area B Director David Brooks-Hill. The meeting drew a small crowd of just 18 people, attending both in person and online.
The owner of the property, located at 4762 Airport Way, has been operating it as a vacation rental since 2018 under a temporary use permit issued by the CSRD. The current permit is set to expire this month. If approved, the amended bylaws would allow for the development of four tourist cabins, along with a six-bedroom lodge and a dwelling unit for the owner-operator. The proposed development also includes plans for off-street parking and additional on-site utilities.
The development would take place in two phases.
For this to happen, the property owner is seeking to change the Official Community Plan designation for the property from small holdings to resort commercial, and to rezone the property from small holdings to Resort Commercial 2.
Christine LeFloch, with the CSRD Planning Department, said the 7.5 hectare property could create the potential for up to 40 tourist cabins and a lodge with up to 15 sleeping units, but that scale of development does not fit in with the surrounding neighbourhood or the Official Community Plan.
A special regulation is being proposed to limit the scale of the development to what is being presented at this time. LeFloch said the property owner is agreeable to this.
Following the presentation, members of the public were invited to provide feedback on the proposed rezoning and tourist accommodation.
Members of the public who spoke during the meeting were asked to provide their full name and address. The property owner spoke several times during the meeting, but did not provide his name. He was referred to as Kelly by others speaking at the meeting.
Following the meeting, StokeFM reached out to CSRD staff for the property owners full name but was told a name could not be provided due to Freedom of Information legislation. Staff had further reached out to the property owner and were told that the owner did not want his name included in this report.
Journalistic standards do not allow for anonymity except in for rare and exceptional circumstances, which does not typically include the name of a property owner speaking at a public meeting.
A report of the public hearing will be provided to the CSRD Board of Directors, who will then consider giving the proposed bylaw amendments a third reading.
