NEWSLETTER 
APRIL 7th, 2017 
 

Council's inappropriate Priority Infill Decision on April 5th, 2017


At a Special Oak Bay Council meeting on April 5th the Mayor and three pro-development Council Members added a new dimension to deceptive decision-making. Council was to decide on their 2017/ 2018 Priorities. It was not clear from the proceedings if they intended purposely to insult the intelligence of the many residents in attendance or, if they actually thought that they could make it appear that they were not being deceptive.
The main purpose of the meeting was to decide on a Staff report recommendation to delay the Mayor and just half of Council’s priority, to spend significantly more taxpayer dollars to legalize basement suites and duplexes in Oak Bay. This had been decided without adequate community consultation.

The main issue for the community substantiated by a significant amount of previous resident input indicated that the present state of the District’s Infrastructure was their principal concern. A recently released Asset Management Engineering Report, supported by three independent and detailed consultants' reports and provided to Council over four months ago, showed our infrastructure was in critical, and poor or very poor condition.
 
Almost every resident, of the many who spoke at the meeting, was against this type of multi-dwelling development in Oak Bay’s single-family neighbourhoods and particular in North Henderson. Of the balance who spoke, all were concerned with the deteriorated state of the infrastructure and the possibility of the extraordinary taxes which would result. The majority of Council however, continued their practice of ignoring public input on development issues that conflict with their densification priority viewpoint.
 
WHAT DID COUNCIL DECIDE?
 
ON THE PLUS SIDE: Council decided unanimously to approve the Staff recommendation to delay basement suite and duplex legalization, based on insufficient staff time and funding. Staff had indicated that all available resources must be used to address Oak Bay’s neglected, aging infrastructure. Approval of a time-limited Federal Grant had been received and that had provided the motivation to proceed with what staff described at the meeting, as a necessary “All hands on deck” infrastructure improvement approach.
 
However, Council immediately followed up with a second motion:
 
ON THE MINUS SIDE: Ignoring all previous resident and staff input, the Mayor and the block vote Council members, acting as if no one was paying attention, virtually negated the previous unanimous motion by passing a second motion to move basement suites and duplex legalization ahead to the April 12th, 19th, 2017 Estimates Committee Meetings. The Mayor and his councillors virtually disregarded staff's clear and wise warning. They are now going to consider allocating significant additional tax dollars required to accomplish, what is now patently obvious, a primary infill development objective.
 
Note: Council have already approved a Provisional 2017 Annual Budget Property
Tax Increase of 4.16% - more than double the rate of inflation. The cost of the above-
noted unwanted project would be added to this. This development agenda item will make
for some interesting, creative accounting come Estimates decision time. For a report on
these meetings visit oakbaywatch.com.

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