The townhouse proposal fronting the Beach Grove golf course must go through a public hearing.
That was the assurance from community planning director Marcy Sangret during a recent council discussion on the application which had been submitted last year prior to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Several weeks ago council approved waiving public hearings for rezoning applications but only for certain cases.
Those exempt applications have to be consistent with the Official Community Plan, routine in nature and where Delta has not received a substantial volume of correspondence in opposition.
In the event that a public hearing is waived, residents and property owners will be invited to provide written submissions for council consideration at time of third reading.
Responding to a recent letter writer who wanted assurance the townhouse proposal wouldn’t fall into one of those exempt categories, Sangret told council the application has not yet been considered by council, but a consultation process was endorsed.
The application is still under review and, should it proceed past first and second readings, a public hearing would be mandatory as the application seeks to amend the OCP.
Other considerations, including tree removal, will be brought forward when the application is before council, which was also to schedule a workshop to learn more about the proposal.
The 22-unit development along 16th Avenue would take up a small portion of the golf course property. The sale of the land to the developer behind the proposal would go back to the golf club, which says there are no plans for further development.
There’s no word when the application would come to council for considering preliminary approval and it’s not clear what type of format the public hearing would involve.
A public hearing for other applications has been scheduled for June 23 and staff are working on a strategy that includes phone-in or participation via Zoom as well as allowing some people to attend in person as long as social distancing is being followed. Residents, however, would be encouraged to participate from home.
Mayor George Harvie has removed himself from discussing or considering the townhouse proposal because he is a member of the golf club.
