The Town of Gibsons has launched an online survey to find out what residents think of an offer to buy part of the Town-owned land beside Stonehurst, a heritage property at 529 Gibsons Way.
The Town announced last week that it had been approached by the current owners of Stonehurst about purchasing part of the property known as Lot 23.
The lot, which was first purchased by the Town in 1980 for $50,000, is mainly used as public parking, although the front edge has been preserved as green space.
The owners of the Stonehurst property have offered $725,000 for 57 per cent of the lot, which the Town said is assessed at $746,000.
The development proposal, which has not yet come before council or committee for consideration, involves preserving and upgrading Stonehurst as a small boutique inn with a main floor coffee shop or bistro.
Twenty-one new residential units would be added elsewhere on the property as a cluster of three- to four-storey buildings.
The Town said the proposal would allow for improvement of that green space, known as Inglis Park, and its official designation as a park, preserving Stonehurst, keeping the parking spaces and adding more housing.
It would also bring in revenue that “could be used to help fund affordable housing, future policing costs, or infrastructure needs.”
The Town also said that if council agrees to the proposal, any sale would be subject to final approval of the overall development and if it does not get approval, the sale would be cancelled.
The online survey will be active until Sept. 4 at:
https://gibsons.ca/community/community-resources/stonehurst-proposal
