In April of 1989, long before the July close of the Tsawwassen Developments Ltd. (TDL) hearing, a representative of CIBC approached George Hodgins offering to sell TDL's first mortgage at an attractive discount. Council had requested the land's removal from the ALR and had designated it "urban" in Delta's Official Community Plan. Hodgins didn't "buy a farm." He bought a mortgage, anticipating payments from TDL.
Then things changed. Council surrendered to an unending torrent of anti-development speakers, TDL defaulted on its payments and Hodgins foreclosed.
In 1991, Hodgins proposed a way out. Called "Heritage Place," it was his young son Sean's first speech to council. Century would dedicate to Delta a 220-acre public park on the Boundary Bay foreshore (later sold to the Greater Vancouver Regional District), a forested 75-acre nature reserve and an 18-hole "value added" public golf course. One thousand homes were to be built over 10 years and 150 acres would be set aside for 10 years as a working dairy farm.
Council wasn't interested. It changed the OCP designation to "agricultural" then tried unsuccessfully to bury the land back in the ALR.
In 2006, Sean Hodgins outlined a new plan: one-third of the land set aside for residential development, one-third deeded to Delta as parks and one-third dedicated to community farming initiatives. A volunteer group of two dozen South Delta residents worked through 2007 and early 2008 refining that new plan for the Southlands. It was further refined and extensively documented in a consultants' charrette that included public participation.
A Southlands Charrette Book provided to Delta by Century was banned from OCP consideration and returned unopened. Delta then resumed digging a hole to bury Southlands in the ALR. Digging was suspended in 2011 when a Mayor's Summit offered a fresh look if more land were dedicated ... and if Century held off building greenhouses. Sadly, Tsawwassen's "save our farmland" and allied activists can never be satisfied with most of someone else's land. They must have it all!
Century built an appealing model of its Southlands cottage, but Part I of its multi-part zoning request, submitted last April, provides scant detail about benefits and detriments affecting Delta.
Submittal dates for additional parts remain unknown. Most significantly missing are timing and conditions under which 80 per cent of the land would be deeded to Delta, including land improvements Century separately suggested would be made.
Delta planners are seeking missing information needed to understand and consider Century's request. They are considering a date in late October to explain it to us "in case the applicant provides the information required in the near future."
Century's approach to selling the 20/80 solution seems muddled. It builds a display cottage illustrating its plan for the 20 per cent, yet it withholds key information about the 80 per cent that Delta requires for a decision. Is Century overly confident?
It's time to find, detail and document a final solution that Delta and Century can live with. Do it now! It's our last, best chance to avoid more decades of discord, dithering and digging!
