Powell River-Sunshine Coast MLA Nicholas Simons says he’s working to connect officials in Sechelt with representatives at the ministry of public safety to discuss Seawatch.
The District of Sechelt announced Jan. 30 that road closures and access restrictions imposed on the neighbourhood after a new sinkhole was discovered last December would continue.
“The District of Sechelt has contacted MLA Nicholas Simons and Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General, Mike Farnworth, to request information on possible assistance for the residents in Seawatch but have yet to receive a favourable response,” the district’s release said.
Simons told Coast Reporter last week that he “confirmed with the deputy minister of public safety that there’ll be someone assigned to talk with the District of Sechelt to try to see if there are any possible ways through this that minimize the harm to families and reduce the stress to families.
He added, “I’m not aware of any provincial programs now that address these kinds of circumstances… There are no easy answers, but I’m at least glad that there’ll be someone at the province who can at least assist in perhaps giving a road map to the district.”
Simons said ongoing legal action could have an impact on what the province is able to do. Two homeowners have civil suits pending against Sechelt, several engineering firms, the developer and others. One of those suits is scheduled to be heard in 2020.
Some residents have also now started an online petition calling for a public inquiry into why the development was allowed to proceed in the first place.
“There’s no solution in sight as far as I can tell, but the right people are going to be talking to each other… It’s an unprecedented situation. We have to figure out how the province can assist,” said Simons.
