Community facilities, recreation programs, clubs and gathering places help make West Vancouver a desirable place to live. They support health, social connection and community life for residents of all ages.
Longstanding institutions such as the Hollyburn Sailing Club, West Vancouver Lawn Bowling Club, West Vancouver Tennis Club, the Silk Purse Arts Centre and the Ferry Building Gallery contribute qualities that cannot easily be recreated: history, cultural identity, affordability and a strong sense of community. We should maintain and improve these assets where needed without unnecessarily changing the qualities that make them special.
As community needs evolve, some facilities will require expansion, modernization or new investment. The question is not whether change occurs, but whether it is justified, affordable and supported by residents. Well-designed community facilities can provide lasting benefits, but major investments must be based on demonstrated need and a clear understanding of costs and alternatives.
Plan Major Facilities Carefully
West Vancouver faces important decisions about major community facilities, including the future of the ice arena and Seniors’ Activity Centre.
Before Council decides to replace, relocate or substantially expand an existing facility, residents should have clear answers:
- What problem are we trying to solve?
- What do current users value about the existing facility?
- Could renovation or a more modest expansion meet the need?
- What locations and alternatives have been considered?
- What will the project cost to build, operate and maintain over its lifetime?
- How will it be paid for?
- What other municipal priorities might be delayed or displaced as a result?
The future of the Seniors’ Activity Centre illustrates why these questions matter. If additional space is needed, we should explore practical options that increase capacity while preserving the welcoming, personal and social character that existing users value.
Be Transparent About Facility Funding
I do not support using additional housing density as a means to finance municipal facilities when that density would not otherwise be justified on its planning merits. Decisions about height and density should be guided by sound planning principles, not by the desire to fund a public facility.
Proposals that combine private development with public facilities also deserve scrutiny. Residents should understand who owns and controls the facility, how public access is protected, what compromises are being made, and who bears the long-term costs.
If the community needs a major new facility, Council should be transparent about its cost, the available funding options and the trade-offs involved.
Value What Already Works
Good stewardship is not only about building new things. It is also about looking after what generations of residents have created.
Our recreation facilities, community clubs and gathering places do not all need to be transformed into larger, newer or more elaborate versions of themselves. Sometimes the right investment is maintenance, accessibility improvements or modest renewal that allows a valued institution to continue doing what it already does well.
That approach can preserve community character while making better use of public resources.
My Approach
I would approach community facilities with the same questions I apply to other major decisions: What do we need? What do we already have? What do residents value? What are the alternatives? What will it cost over the long term? Will the result genuinely improve quality of life?
Sometimes the right answer will be to build something new. Sometimes it will be to expand or renovate. And sometimes the best decision will be to take good care of something that already works.