Have your say in Deep Bay. The RDN is holding a workshop this Saturday on the Area H official community plan (OCP) update.
The Regional District of Nanaimo released a participant guide last week for the meeting and the ongoing working group is looking for as much input as possible.
The goal of the four hour workshop is to help “develop goals and a strategy for the future growth and development of the Deep Bay area on which to base updates to the OCP,” according to an RDN release.
It is open to everyone but will be of particular interest to people living or owning property in Deep Bay and the surrounding neighbourhoods.
“We started by building a working group which more a less represents the community,” said Area H director and RDN chair Bill Veenhof.
“When you put out the question, ‘where’s Deep Bay going?’ the immediate thought is about Baynes Sound Investments,” he said of the Surrey Based company which has presented several proposals for the 341 acres they own in the middle of the community.
“But there are other issues in Deep Bay,” he continued, “marina parking, development, do we have enough commercial space, those kinds of things, so all those questions will be discussed.”
He said there is one more large public meeting planned before the working group’s draft plan is “put out to the population at large.”
“You’ll see the plan shift based on the information we get from that process and then it goes to a board vote and we’re done,” Veenhof quipped about the long process.
He said his best guess at this point is that the draft plan will be done in the fall and go to the RDN board in late spring or early summer 2017.
The NEWS has been contacted by a couple concerned residents who say the current planning process is very important since it could lead to a tripling of the Deep Bay population.
The workshop is open to everyone but they ask that people pre-register so organizers can plan the group activities and refreshments, but people will not be turned away.
For registration, the agenda, participants guide and a lot more information about the process visit the Schedule of Events page of the project website at www.rdn.bc.ca/cms.asp?wpID=3626.
People should bring a photo of a place, person or event in Deep Bay that is meaningful to them to share.
The workshop is 1-5 p.m. this Saturday, Sept. 17 at the Deep Bay Marine Field Station, 370 Crome Point Road.
The RDN also invites the public to an open house on the Dunsmuir Community Park Master Plan near Qualicum Bay the previous evening, Friday, Sept. 16 from 5-7 p.m. at the park, 326 Horne Lake Road.
