Residents and cottagers along the Sunshine Coast say they are opposed to amendments that were made in secret that would see changes made to the Sunshine Coast Dock Management Plan.
According to a media release by the Pender Harbour and Area Resident Association, negotiations between the province and the shishalh Nation were done without consultation with those who would be affected the most by the changes proposed.
Director Sean McAllister says this is only part of the opposition the association is opposed to, but one of the biggest parts is it feels like the government is ramming it through as quickly as they can.
“What we’ve asked to do is meet with the government, and lawyers, to discuss this new plan,” he says. “They just recently extended the public engagement period until Feb. 16, so it might look like we could have a meeting.
“This is a fourth version of the dock management plan, and they still screwed it up.”
McAllister says the new amendments place unrealistic restrictions on boathouses and boats.
According to McAllister, negotiations for the dock plan have been in the works since 2015 and he says it is worrisome that it is being pushed through now.
The release states if the plan is pushed through it would force the removal of 700 boathouses at the end of their tenure and place a new maximum dock size which will exclude private vessels over 30 feet.
The association has submitted a legal letter to Nathan Cullen, Minister of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship highlighting significant legal issues.
