A question mark remains over whether the David Avenue extension will be built in Bert Flinn Park after Port Moody council opted to defer a motion to remove the road right-of-way in favour of research on possible alternatives.
About 300 people attended Tuesday's city council meeting, at which 34 people spoke during the public input period, largely evenly split between supporters of Coun. Rob Vagramov's motion to remove the road right-of-way from the official community plan and those who felt the city needed to keep all options open, particularly without a development proposal at Ioco to consider.
Ioco Road resident Sue Round voiced her support for the motion to remove the right-of-way, saying she's not against development at the Ioco townsite but is "100% opposed to putting a road through Bert Flinn Park."
"It is a truly special and accessible place," she told council. "I love that I can be on the trail within 30 seconds of leaving my door."
Soren Jensen said he spoke for the park's mountain bikers, saying a road through the park would leave its popular trails "decimated" and cut into pieces. "Port Moody couldn't ask for a better crown jewel," he said. "You couldn't buy it, but you can save it."
Hunter Madsen, who is spearheading the Save Bert Flinn Park movement, said building the David Avenue connector would not divert traffic from Ioco Road because any development at the townsite would add too much extra traffic to the area.
"A road would forever ruin this nature park," Madsen said. "Just imagine building a traffic corridor and major bridge, and how it's going to create an ugly, messy construction site for years to come."
Many others also expressed their love of the park and mutual hope that a road would not be built, but said the motion was ill-timed.
"It subverts the requirement for public consultation," said Aaron Robinson, who added that removing a significant and long-planned connector should be the subject of extensive research with "all the information communicated and debated."
Former city councillor Sandy Liles said she was part of the "long, hard fight" to create Bert Flinn Park but it was done with one proviso — that there be a road connecting David Avenue to the Ioco lands because they were likely to be developed in the future.
"Council is here to do a job, to negotiate and liaise with developers and develop sound traffic plans to move people effectively as part of that," she said. "I say that as a dog walker, as a lover of that park. I urge council to tread carefully and represent all the community that is here."
In discussing the motion, council was largely unanimous in its opinion that any decision on the connector would require much more time, information, public input and debate; Vagramov voted against it.
"Despite the rhetoric and the fear-mongering, the park is not in imminent danger of being developed," said Coun. Meghan Lahti, who was first elected to council in 1996 based largely on her involvement in efforts to turn Neighbourhoods 3 and 4 into a park. "There is no development proposal in front of us. The fact is, we have time to get this right and we should leave no stone unturned until we find a better option."
Lahti moved to defer Vagramov's motion until staff could obtain a legal opinion on removing the right-of-way; get professional traffic, environmental and financial analyses to investigate and compare alternatives to the existing route; and prepare a public consultation plan to review all the options with residents and stakeholders.
Staff are expected to come back to council with a study on how long the investigation would take and any associated costs.
"If there's a concern in the community and people aren't confident we're doing the right thing, then we should do whatever we need to assure them and us that we're doing the right thing," Mayor Mike Clay told The Tri-City News.
The downside will be that pursuing a significant new project takes staff's focus away from ongoing work on the zoning bylaw update — now 11 years in the making, Clay said — as well as the transportation plan, Coronation Park plans and more.
The proponent behind the potential Ioco development says plans for an open house to showcase the developer's ideas is on the back burner until he can connect with city staff. James Cheng said Brilliant Circle Group's proposal includes 83 acres of land set aside to connect Bert Flinn with Belcarra Regional Park as well as additional developed park space.
"People will be able to access 3,000 acres of beautiful forest preserve rather than just 311, and that to me could be a real benefit," Cheng said.
spayne@tricitynews.com
@spayneTC
