Special Events
Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD) directors are hoping to consider a new special events bylaw in the coming months.
SCRD staff got the green light to draft the bylaw at the March 17 meeting of the planning and development committee.
The regional district has had a special events bylaw on the books since 1970, but it only applies to events expecting attendance of more than 1,000.
SCRD general manager of planning and development Steven Olmstead told the committee that when they researched the existing bylaw they couldn’t find any record that anyone had ever applied for a permit.
Olmstead also said there haven’t been many complaints about the sort of events that might fall under a new bylaw. “Last year there were a couple of events in upper Roberts Creek that caused some concern in the neighbourhood, but as far as I recollect, that was pretty much it last year,” he noted. CAO Janette Loveys added that they have been approached by emergency services agencies pointing out the need for a bylaw to ensure public safety.
A draft special events bylaw could be ready for directors in April or May, and staff will be looking at a “tiered” approach, starting with events of 200 attendees or more, with the permit costs and requirements going up with the size of the event.
“We don’t want to be intrusive,” said Area A director Frank Mauro. “There are many weddings that are approaching 200 [guests]. We don’t want to burden or restrict a desire to go ahead with a special event.”
“I think it would be good in a bylaw like this to explicitly exempt properties that are zoned for assembly type uses,” Olmstead explained to the directors. “Places like the Roberts Creek Hall and commercial venues that actually have as a component of their business accommodations and facilities … that’s part of the business as opposed to a special event.”
AG Zoning
The SCRD is back on track with its proposed new AG (Agriculture) zoning classification, after an administrative error in the draft bylaw forced cancellation of a public hearing last month.
If it goes through to adoption, the AG zone would replace the current Rural 3 zoning. It would also bring SCRD zoning rules in line with the Agricultural Land Commission regulations for property in the Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR).
Staff noted during their briefing to the March 17 planning and development committee meeting that they’ve found some inconsistencies between the zoning boundaries and the ALR boundaries, but plan to deal with those on a property-by-property basis.
The new draft of Bylaw 310.148 was expected to get second reading at the March 24 board meeting, with a public hearing to follow at 7 p.m. April 12 at the SCRD boardroom.
Heritage Register
SCRD directors are backing the addition of the Pender Harbour Cultural Centre to the Sunshine Coast Community Heritage Register.
The regional district created the register in 2009, and efforts to get the group of buildings in Madeira Park added go back to 2012.
According to an SCRD staff report, the former ranger station, which was originally built in the ’50s, is one of the few remaining Forest Service complexes in B.C. The “character defining elements” of the buildings include: a typical mid-20th century design used in small B.C. resource towns, and a Dutch building style representative of other ranger stations from the period.
The buildings now house the Serendipity Child Care Centre, the Reading Centre, Harbour Artists and the School of Music.
Before voting in favour of the idea, several directors sought clarifications on what being on the Heritage Register actually means. Olmstead explained that the Sunshine Coast Community Heritage Register is maintained for information purposes, and doesn’t have any regulatory or conservation aspects. “This is not a heritage designation that would require an alteration permit – this is simply an official listing of properties by the regional district,” he said.
