Councillors in Gibsons have some concerns about the seeming profusion of tent-style buildings and shelters on industrial and commercial properties.
The issue came up at the March 19 council meeting during deliberations on a temporary use permit (TUP) to allow a Quonset hut style tent at the Gibsons Recycling Depot property on Venture Way.
In a letter objecting to the TUP, an area resident said, “please, please, please, no more tents,” before going on to list the other Venture Way businesses that have had tents in place for some time.
Council approved the recycling depot permit, but Mayor Bill Beamish also noted that it was one of the few businesses that’s actually bothered applying for a TUP as required under the Town bylaws.
Chief administrative officer Emanuel Machado said the whole question of tents “has gotten a little bit away from us” and said in some cases the tents are now being treated as permanent structures.
“There are a few implications for this. There are the obvious form and character matters, but there’s also structural integrity – we have no idea how they were built or what materials were used,” Machado said, adding that there’s also concern over temporary structures becoming permanent and not being reflected on the tax rolls. “It creates an imbalance.”
Coun. David Croal said there’s another aspect to consider. “I know one business [on Venture Way] that has a fairly large tent – it was to facilitate a project which employed a lot of people in this community… It may not be coming back to us as taxes on the tent but it is coming back to us as money being spent in the community because it’s generating employment.”
The Town is also dealing with a heavy-duty mechanic shop on Highway 101 near Payne Road that wants to use a tent, and Machado said the planning department will be coming to council soon with suggestions for a more flexible policy.
Machado said the planning bylaw doesn’t always capture unique situations, and businesses with a specific project requiring cover that’s temporary shouldn’t have to go through an extensive planning application.
Beamish agreed that council should develop a policy soon. “We need to actually either enforce our bylaw or not enforce our bylaw, or not have the bylaw. We look foolish otherwise,” he said.
