A proposed development that could triple the population of the village of Anmore will have deleterious impacts on Port Moody’s utilities infrastructure, traffic, environment, wildlife, parks and recreation facilities, says the city’s mayor.
Meghan Lahti says a plan by developer Icona Properties to build 2,200 new homes on 150 acres of property the company owns at the corner of 1st Avenue and Sunnyside Road will even increase the risk of a human-caused wildfire by further expanding into the wildland-urban interface.
The draft assessment, to be considered for endorsement by Port Moody council at its meeting on Tuesday, May 27, expands on a preliminary review of Icona’s development proposal sent by Lahti to Anmore at the end of March, along with a request for more time so city staff could thoroughly evaluate several technical studies that weren’t made publicly available until April 10.
While Anmore council agreed to extend its deadline for Port Moody to submit its comments to April 30, several members were irked.
“We can’t let another municipality drive our decisions,” said Coun. Polly Krier.
“They seem to be getting overly involved in Anmore’s business,” added Coun. Kim Trowbridge.
In the latest assessment, that spans 10 pages, Lahti details a number of “significant concerns” with the proposed project, which requires an amendment to Anmore’s official community plan (OCP) along with agreement from Metro Vancouver to expand the region’s urban containment boundary before it can proceed.
More infrastructure for utilities
They include significant expansion of infrastructure like water, sewer and drainage services in Anmore, much of which would have to be built through Port Moody.
But, said Lahti, the village has yet to engage its neighbour to explore how such construction might proceed, where it could occur and how it would be paid for.
“While coordination with the city could be explored if a coordinating or shared project is identified, no such discussions have taken place to date,” Lahti said.
She added Port Moody is currently upgrading water and sewage infrastructure along Ioco Road and any further work to accommodate growth in Anmore would require full resurfacing of the busy roadway.
“If the village is interested in partnering on this infrastructure, time is of the essence.”
Lahti also said an alternate routing of utility services through Bert Flinn Park is a non-starter because of its designation as a park and the risk to environmentally sensitive areas like Mossom Creek.
“Adding an additional 4,500 residents in close proximity to Bert Flinn Park will add pressure on the natural environmental values of this park,” she said.
Strain on road network
Adding so many new residents would also strain the only two roads — Ioco Road and East Road — that connect Anmore to the rest of Metro Vancouver.
Lahti said the routes could only support about 40 per cent of the anticipated traffic the new development would generate without significant upgrades. But physical constraints like topography, property accesses and limited capacity at some intersection make them unfeasible.
Suggestions put forth in the technical reports to ease traffic along the two-lane roadways, like the construction of bus laybys and increasing transit service also aren’t realistic, said Lahti. The former poses safety and livability concerns while Translink hasn’t confirmed any plans for the latter.
A possible private shuttle service operated to link residents of the new development to transit in Port Moody would also have to run all day to be effective, Lahti said.
“Without a realistic and coordinated transportation strategy, the Icona development risks overwhelming the existing network in the area,” she said.
That assessment echoes an independent review of the proposed development’s traffic impacts conducted by Port Coquitlam transportation engineer Alon Weinberger on behalf of the Anmore Neighbours Community Association.
He said vehicle trips during peak hours on weekday afternoons would be almost double the estimate provided in the technical study commissioned by Icona. And the numbers would only increase further on warm summer weekends when visitors from around the region flock to Buntzen Lake and Belcarra Regional Park.
Environment and wildlife also impacted
Lahti said Port Moody’s environment and wildlife would also be negatively impacted by the proposed development, including the water quality of Schoolhouse Creek’s watershed, increased risk of erosion along its banks, decline in forest health because of changes in light availability and fewer trees and a narrowing of wildlife corridors.
As well, Lahti said, Port Moody will bear the pressure of more residents accessing its parks, playgrounds, sports fields and recreational amenities like its pools and arena as the proposed development includes only one park, a 5 km network of greenways for casual users and a 20,000 sq. ft. community centre that likely won’t include a pool or ice surface.
“The future residents will need to leave Anmore to meet these needs,” Lahti said.
As part of its process to consider Icona’s proposal, Anmore also solicited comments from Belcarra, local First Nations, TransLink, Metro Vancouver, Fraser Health, BC Ambulance, RCMP, the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority and village residents.
Anmore planning consultant Tim Savoie, who recently retired as Port Moody’s city manager, said all interested parties will have more opportunities to provide commentary if the development proposal gets to a public hearing and again if its referred to Metro Vancouver for its approval to expand the urban containment boundary.
MARIO BARTEL 