Richmond’s next city council meeting is scheduled for Monday, Feb. 26. Here are some key agenda items to keep your eye on.
Homes on the ALR
Members of the Richmond Citizens’ Association will present a petition to council, expressing their opposition to mega-homes on the city’s ALR. According to a press release from the association, petitioners support reducing home sizes on the ALR to a maximum of 5,382 sq. feet, with a moratorium on new applications until the new home size is adopted as a bylaw. Currently, homes can be built in Richmond to a maximum of 10,794 sq. feet.
“Residents know these aren’t farmhouses. These are estates for speculators and the ultra–rich,” said Richmond Citizens’ member Kelly Greene in a press release. “People are fed up with these people destroying farmland and getting tax breaks at the same time.”
The group will also hold a protest outside city hall prior to the council meeting at 6:30 p.m.
Comments on proposed gaming facility in Delta
The City of Richmond is providing feedback on Delta’s proposed casino relocation to 6005 Hwy. 17A, including a request for documents needed to file an objection to the new facility. According to a city report, the new facility has approximately eight times more floor space than the old gaming centre and will include a wider-range of gambling opportunities including slot machines and gambling tables.
Some of the reasons for Richmond’s opposition include a lack of traffic analysis, potential negative impacts on Richmond’s roadways and a potential increase in crime and policing costs. The city will also request responses from the City of Delta on these comments.
Results from public consultation on Steveston laneways
Last December, The Richmond News reported on Steveston homeowners’ frustration that, due to a sewer restoration project, there would soon be a 15-foot wide laneway paved through a city-owned portion of their backyards, without public consultation. However, in January, the City of Richmond did seek the public’s feedback on the project which is located between Richmond Street and Broadway Street, west of No. 1 Road.
Now, at Monday’s council meeting, the community’s feedback will be brought forward to council.
Overwhelmingly, green space was identified as the most important design feature for the restoration project, above vehicle, pedestrian and bike access. More than 200 responses during the public consultation process were opposed to opening lanes in Steveston, and more than 150 were concerned about the loss of green space and other environmental impacts that the project might have.
Richmond's city council meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 13 in council chambers at 6911 No. 3 Rd. The public is welcome to attend or watch an online broadcast of the meeting.
