Council approves second hotel at Revelstoke Mountain Resort

Revelstoke city council has approved a development permit for a second hotel at Revelstoke Mountain Resort.

Council approved the project in principle at a meeting in January, with several conditions.

Since then, city staff received a finalized riparian area assessment, which included identification, re-vegetation and enhancement of the stream-side protection enhancement area, a revised landscaping plan that includes arborist recommendations for tree protection, an integrated storm-water management plan, a noise impact assessment and a snow-shed and snow storage plan.

Daniel Sturgeon, the city planner, went through each of the new reports with council at the June 18 meeting.

Highlights included a report from a B.C. forester identifying protection and mitigation for the existing trees on the site.

Sturgeon said a survey was done of the existing trees on the site and the locations of their root systems were identified.

“As they build the hotel and they add grading to the site, they will be impacting root zones that will require some hand digging, some pulling away of dirt,” Sturgeon said.

Some of the roots will be removed and infill will be put in their place. This should save the trees from harm.

There was also a the noise impact assessment.

“That noise impact assessment had little to draw upon in terms of standards that we have in our bylaws and unfortunately there are no national standards,” Sturgeon said.

The engineer hired to do the report looked at an example from West Vancouver and established that 45 decibels of continuous noise be the maximum after construction.

Sturgeon equated that to passing traffic, a casual conversation or the sound of a dishwasher in the kitchen.

In order to mitigate non-continuous noise such as trucks and people coming and going from the loading facility at the back of the building, the city has requested that the resort submit a restrictive covenant that will restrict the use of the loading area from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., seven days a week.

Council amended that recommendation to 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Peter Nielsen, vice-president of operations for the resort, was in the audience and expressed no concerns with the amendment.

The development permit also requires that windows on the west side of the building not open, to protect the residential properties in the immediate area from additional noise.

An engineer was also employed to assess snow-shed management and snow storage. Additional canopies were added to the outside of the buildings to protect pedestrians as a result of the engineer’s findings.

“They will have to undertake some operational precautions during the winter depending on the snow year,” Sturgeon said.

A second development permit will be required for the overhead walkway connecting the new hotel and the base of the mountain.

Sturgeon said airspace easements and legal agreements will be needed for the project.

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