Provincial Master Plan Review Progressing Well - Community Update Event
Minister clarifies that it is not the intention of the provincial government that 16 years of process be duplicated at the local government level.
August 18, 2006
Invermere, B.C. - The Jumbo Community Advisory Board, Jumbo Glacier Resort supporters and guests crowded into the Pynelogs Cultural Centre in Invermere BC on Wednesday, August 16, to hear Kootenay MLA Bill Bennett, Minister of State for Mining, and Psyche Brown, BC Government Project Manager, All Seasons Resorts, update attendees on the progress of the Master Plan Review and the status of the Jumbo Glacier Resort project.
Psyche Brown, manager of the Master Plan review process under the Commercial Alpine Ski Policy, noted that the Master Plan technical review will be completed by the end of the year. Brown, representing the Ministry of Tourism Sports and the Arts, elaborated on the final discussions being held with First Nations by stating that talks are progressing well and should be completed by December.
Minister Bennett stated that although the provincial government supports the involvement of local government in the approval process, it is not government's intention that 16 years of environmental, economic and social assessment be duplicated by local government. Bennett also stated the District of Invermere must be considered and respected in relation to any pressures on District infrastructure and services due to the development of Jumbo Glacier Resort. Minister Bennett made it clear to those assembled that project proponents in BC, whether in the tourism, mining, forestry, oil and gas, or real estate industries, have a right to expect provincial government project assessment processes to have integrity and to come to a conclusion in a reasonable timeframe.
The Jumbo Glacier Resort a project has received a series of incremental approvals over the last 16 years. The land use issue was resolved at the local level by the Commission on Resources and Environment (CORE) process. CORE was a democratic public participation process involving all local stakeholders, and was a condition precedent for the Environmental Assessment Act review process, a process that included 9 years of studies and public reviews.
"The Master Plan review is due for completion before year end and we anticipate the cooperation of provincial and local governments in determining the best governance model for the Resort following the signing of the Master Development Agreement with the Province," said Grant Costello, Vice-President of Glacier Resorts Ltd.
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