James Bay Neighbourhood Environment Association Cruise Ship and Housing Blues An on-going Beacon feature on planning -- to alert, inform, prompt community action and celebrate success! The threat of densification continues to loom over James Bay. A recent consultant’s report has advised City Council to ‘identify policies that allow additional density in downtown or immediately adjacent to downtown’. They suggest that the issue be addressed within the next five years, before development space in the downtown is filled with condominiums at the expense of other, less profitable space. Lack of retail/office space could put the viability of the future downtown core at risk. James Bay residents, through the James Bay Neighbourhood Environment Association (JBNEA), are committed to the creation of a comprehensive Neighbourhood Plan, which will guide any and all proposed development in James Bay for the benefit of the community as a whole. The January 2007 JBNEA meeting included a presentation of plans to upgrade Fisherman’s Wharf by Paul Servos of the Greater Victoria Harbour Commission. The proposal, which has many levels of government approval ahead, includes the restoration of aging and recently storm-damaged docks, news pilings and services, and may eventually include a re-configuration of the dock area. The Friends of Beacon Hill Park are asking for support to alter the use of the off-leash area in Beacon Hill Park (between Dallas Road and Finlayson Pt.). They propose to rotate the most dog-used area so that soil is less compacted, allowing camas, grass and other native vegetation to re-establish in the area. The Environment, Parks and Recreation Committee of the JBNEA held their initial 2007 meeting in January to discuss issues of concern to James Bay residents. Their agenda included a discussion of parkland at South Park School and Fisherman’s Wharf, and the neighbourhood’s requirements for access to green space. Heron Cove (off St. Lawrence Street) was also a topic of discussion. One of the last pieces of natural shoreline within the harbour, this area is a significant remnant of James Bay’s natural environment. The group initiated an inventory of the historic buildings in James Bay – a documentation of the built form to re-define areas of historic value which should be maintained and stabilized. Rethinking The Benefits of Cruise Tourism In 2006 the NEA’s Transportation Committee held meetings with industries and organizations related to the cruise ships at Ogden Point. The impact of all transport, and resulting traffic congestion, noise and air pollution affect us all, every summer weekend in James Bay. Many cruise lines are failing to address the reality of the human and environmental costs of their business, as they operate under less stringent environmental and labor laws, and are poorly regulated. A twelve month study on “air quality” has been commissioned to consider the impact of idling cruise ships, heli-jets, and highway coaches on James Bay residents. In a paper (through the Vancouver Island Public Interest Research Group’s (VIPIRG) Research Internship Program) titled, “Victoria’s Cruise Ship Industry: Economic Benefits and their Environmental Impacts”, Elliot Houlston & Carly Daoust concluded in 2005 that it is difficult to estimate the costs and benefits of the cruise ship industry to society. On the positive side of the ledger, they reported that cruise ship dollars (estimated at $88/passenger, $152,000/cruise ship, or just under $22 million per cruise ship season) raise current revenues of local Victoria businesses; revenues which are expected to continue to increase into the future. On the negative side, environmental impact from the cruise ship industry includes harmful emissions detrimental to all human and animal life. Canada has minimal regulations on cruise ships, allowing millions of tons of waste to be discharged into ocean waters daily from that source. The cost of this environmental degradation, including health care and other costs, is impossible to estimate. Sewage, grey water, oily bilge and hazardous chemicals are deposited into ocean waters daily, while exhaust fumes continuously pollute the atmosphere. Cruise ships have become one of the largest polluters of marine life, creating millions of tons of sewage per year. Of the two billion tons of waste dumped into the ocean each year, cruise ships are responsible for approximately twenty-four percent (77% of all ship pollution). The study calls upon all levels of government to review existing legislation. While the Province has taken a hard line with the raw sewage dumped into local waters by Victoria and the Capital Regional District, it would seem that they do not have the same concern with the toxic waste of this industry. How do you rate the Cruise Ship industry? Come to a presentation by Ross Klein on Sunday, February 4th, 7 pm at the James Bay Community Centre (140 Oswego St.), Café Room and form your own opinion. Klein, a professor at Memorial University, St. John’s, Newfoundland, has adopted the moniker of ‘Cruise Junkie’, and campaigns vigourously to raise public awareness about the environmental and social pitfalls of the cruise ship industry. The presentation (co-sponsored by the Vancouver Island Public Interest Research Group (VIPIRG) and the JBNEA), will look at problems with current cruise strategies, and at lost opportunities for Victoria and for British Columbia, in the context of cruise tourism in the 2000's. Low Cost Housing Affordable Housing became a topic of heated discussion for Victoria residents through a competition sponsored by Focus Magazine and a proposal submitted by a team of concerned citizens. The Independence Settlement Project is directed towards providing secure housing for a narrow segment of Victoria’s homeless population – those who are stabile and who are ready to re-establish themselves in society with some help. The philosophy behind the proposal recognizes that the privileged have a moral and ethical obligation to ensure the dignity of shelter, privacy and a supportive community to all. Community response at a forum called to discuss the Proposal emphasized the complexity of the issue and the necessity to address a continuum of concerns and problems simultaneously. In the meantime, the Shamrock Motel at the corner of Superior and Douglas remains available. The developer, who has proposed twenty-one 3-story townhouses for the site, has made the existing motel available for affordable housing, if a suitable site for the structure can be located. The developer has applied to the City for heritage designation of the Porter House as part of the development application for the Shamrock site.