| Area H - Annexation at what cost? |
Few Abbotsford citizens have heard about the City's desire to annex an 2600 people living on the top of Sumas Mountain known as Area H. Completion of this process will mean, among other things, a substantial rise in property taxes for both Abbotsford and Area H residents and the strip mining of Sumas Mountain for its gravel.
Below is a summary of the situation by Area H Director Keith Warrener. If you'd like to get involved, please , download the Petition to stop this by clicking here or look for the form in last Friday's issue of The Post.
Regarding the Abbotsford News headline “Mountain part of city by July?”
April 26 2007. The story is misleading readers and should be a major concern of tax paying residents.
Area H would represent aprox 1/5 the land mass of the municipality, taxpayers of the city should be aware the cost to service and govern this land is much more than the one time grant of $250,000 from the province, who admits this will be used to coordinate the conversion of bylaws between the FVRD and Abbotsford. There has been a further $250,000 offer towards a fire hall. This is peanuts considering the long term costs that will be passed to the people. $250,000 will not even buy a fire truck let alone a fire hall. City council would be foolish to accept this burden.
The 4 inch by 5inch ad placed in the Abbotsford news giving notice to the residents can hardly be considered fair notice to the taxpayers. I see why there hasn’t been much public awareness. This small map hardly reflects the fact that this is 10,000 acres. Most would see the ad on the “city page” as just another development proposal.
The question mark at the end of the headline suggests there are many unanswered questions.
Does the city manager believe the residents are so naïve, this huge expansion of city boundaries “there will be no costs to them?”
“No more Public meetings?” The city has made 3 failed attempts to annex area H in the last 4 years and has not had any public meetings.
Why have all discussions at city hall been secret?
There is no business case or legitimate rational for this expansion to wit the last 3 failed proposals. Once full municipal taxes are collected from area H the city will stand to gain a whopping $58,000. Maybe enough to pay for garbage collection?
How about Fire hydrants, snow removal, Policing, Planning, Municipal water, Sewer, Natural gas?
Why does the city refuse to commit to continuing a Supreme Court of British Columbia lawsuit launched by the FVRD vs. HIGHLAND QUARRIES to protect the Clayburn Creek head waters and ground aquifer? According to this latest proposal the city will negotiate passed in soil removal fees, estimated to $60,000 when fully implemented indicating they do not want to stop gravel extraction in this sensitive water shed.
This, in effect will give license to mining companies to continue expansion adding more truck traffic to these rural residential roads, that have been declared by the Ministry of Transportation as “far from ideal, rutting and potholes will be more sever with additional truck traffic, there will be car/truck conflict, no shoulders, sections of the road will suffer major damage due to large trucks.” In 2002 The FVRD contracted a geotechnical assessment by Thurber Engineering of Vancouver. The report states “In our judgment North Sumas Road area hazards require attention and cannot be maintained properly without redesign and reconstruction” Portions of this road are unsafe even for rural residential traffic and are subject to continual failure.
I hope the good citizens of Abbotsford are prepared in my estimation to spend over $10 million to bring this road to a minimum rural residential road standards. Further, if gravel mining is to continue/expand there will need to be a commercial truck route built as identified in our community plan.
Who will Govern the Majestic Sumas Mountain Regional Park? I represent Area H on the FVRD Parks committee, Area service committee, Executive committee, just to name a few and it appears to me there is no possibility, of transferring this park to the GVRD as is the intention of the city. 18 months ago the city withdrew from the FVRD Parks relinquishing their seat at the table and giving up any opportunity to be involved in the decision making for the 3500 acre Sumas Mnt. Park stating they wished to save $80,000 per year. At that meeting, I conveyed my concerns that if they proceeded in this direction the requisition from the GVRD would increase by aprox. $160,000. This was denied by the mayor, however within six months the new GVRD parks requisition increased by more than $150,000 per year. How can this be called good planning to save money?
Be assured I have asked all of these questions and others repeatedly, with resolutions from the FVRD Board of Directors demanding the city clearly communicate its intentions with them, and the Director for Area H. To no avail, not even a phone call to discuss the needs of the local residents. This only touches on some of the real concerns however, space does not allow.
I suggest the taxpayers of Abbotsford take up the challenge of City Manager Gary Guthrie, in his words “Revolt.” 10% of the city’s registered voters need to sign a petition to get your council to bring this huge download from the province to a referendum. This will force them to discuss this in public, and explain how a 10,000 acre land grab fits within the 2004 Regional Growth Strategy, Imagine Abbotsford dialog and address urban sprawl.
When a politician is waving the red flag with the right hand you should look to see what the left is up to! As Councilor Cadwell states “she was led down the garden path” so to are the ratepayers on the annexation of Area H. If the people demand accountability from their city officials, by gathering enough support for a referendum on “Area H” download, the ballot could possibly include a second vote on Plan A? We have until May 26.
Respectfully, Keith Warrener
Director, Area H Days
604- 614- 0144
Eves 604- 855- 9961
Email kwarrener@fvrd.bc.ca
Download the Petition to stop this by clicking here
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| Posted by Vince Dimanno on Monday, May 21, 2007 at 17:10
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