Author Archives: Scott

Meet with Candidates: David Bradshaw

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It looks like there will be at least two candidates for the Mayor’s chair this year. That’s excellent news!

David Bradshaw entered the race this week for the Mayor’s chair. David decided to run because of how the City has allowed developers to run over the rights of Property Owners and virtually ignore the OCP and Bylaws. You may recall that David was recently in the Peace Arch Times complaining about how the City allowed developers to build over the OCP height restrictions, and that they were given specific permission by Mayor Wayne Baldwin himself. No one should be ignoring the OCP, especially the Mayor! You can read more about it here. Good luck David!
55986whiterockvictoriaavecomplaints-th-06271404

Here is what happened to David when the Mayor signed off to allow Tatla to exceed the agreed building height in front of David’s building:

“The buiding looked too high to me,” Bradshaw said as he observed work taking place just a few metres from his bedroom window. He said he was later advised – after pressing the mayor and chief building official for answers – “that the beam’s height was allowed to jumped by more than two feet from the 51.25-foot maximum that residents heard at the public hearing to 53.48 feet.”

“Just a few weeks later, the mayor signs off on 53.48 feet,” Bradshaw said. “How does that happen? There’s a whole series of exceptional allowances for this project and we can’t get any reasonable explanation.”

Personally, I had my own Mayor papers filled in and was ready to submit my own papers to run for Mayor this afternoon if no one else signed up first. We cannot let Mr. Baldwin continue to believe that we agree with his bullying and complete disregard the OCP and his contempt for citizens and their need for a healthy community governed by an OCP that limits excessive growth and protects our community and our property values.

Mayor Wayne “I am the Boss” Baldwin needs to go in my opinion. We need a Mayor who will listen to everybody including residents, developers, and business to come up with solutions that benefit the entire community, not just greedy developers and the politicians that they support.

For a list of the Candidates, click here.

Bad Governments are elected by Good People who DO NOT vote!

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Be one of the good ones! Vote this year and bring some friends!

Remember what Mayor Baldwin told residents during the contested White Rock Muffler Public Hearing back in 2013?

He told residents to be quiet because he was the boss and he was running the meeting. Then he said, “If you don’t like it, there’s an election coming up on November 15th 2014. You can have your say then.”
White Rock Muffler Public Hearing

Well Mr. Baldwin, Winter is Coming. And so is November 15th.
It’s time for residents to have OUR say!

It only takes 2500 votes to win the Election in White Rock.
Mayor Wayne, I am the Boss, Baldwin wants you to think you cannot change City Hall. He is wrong. Together, we can!

Read about the White Rock Muffler Site Public Hearing in the Peace Arch News here.

Spread the word and get at least one friend who wants sustainable growth without high density to FOLLOW this page too. In a few weeks, we will be posting the voting record of each of the candidates along with a summary of which Candidates accept money from greedy developers.

Our Facebook page has 476 Likes. If everyone of you vote for Change, and if we each get 4 friends to vote for Change as well, we can send Mr.Baldwin and his Pro-High-Density slate away and stop them from turning our City by the Sea into another Whalley or Newton. Nobody wants that! That’s bad for business and its bad for residents.

Mayor Baldwin says that Towers are coming “whether people like it or not”.
Sorry to disagree Mr. Baldwin, but they are coming only if you get re-elected. You and your council refuse to listen to residents and refuse to abide by the OCP as required by law. We need leaders, not bullies.
White Rock Excessive Development Upsets Residents

Remember to vote this November 15th for change.
Together, we can fix City Hall this November.
Bad Politicians get Elected by Good People Who Do Not Vote

Remember that High Density Towers only helps Developers and the Politicians they support!
Densification increases taxes and crime and congestion on our roads. Our schools are already over-crowded and wait-times in the Emergency room are way too long as it is. By ignoring the OCP, Mr. Baldwin puts the value of our homes at risk. Do not be fooled by hype. Densification makes affording a single family home impossible and raises the cost of homes for new home buyers. It does not help with affordability. Look at the data. Years of Densification have increased our taxes, not lower them.
Years-of-Densification-has-Increased-Taxes

Mayor Baldwin promised action on the Trains as well. All we got were fences, midnight train horns, coal dust, and broken promises. I asked Mayor Baldwin why they could not at least restore the under-the-track tunnels to provide safe access to the beach. They used to be there but were removed to add a couple of parking spots. Check out what he said here. His answer was ridiculous, insulted the intelligence of everyone in that room, and showed a complete ignorance of basic science.

Lots of Promises about Trains, but all we get are fences.

Lots of Promises about Trains, but all we got were fences!

Remember the proposed South Surrey Casino that BCLC tried to force on us last year? Research tells us that people who live within 10 kms of a Casino are the most impacted by the adverse affects of gambling, and Seniors who visit Casinos are the most vulnerable to gambling addiction. Crime rates for Burglary and Assaults double within 5 years of a Casino being built in areas around a Casino. We (at NoCasinoSurrey) fought this hard (I personally donated 350 hours of my time to help) and finally won thanks to Mayor Watts and Surrey City Council and the support of the community. But we had NO help at all from White Rock City Council. You can see the details here and read the full report by NoCasinoSurrey.org here.
no-casino-south-surrey

What did Mayor Baldwin do about White Rock being targeted for a Casino?
Nothing! He said that it did not affect White Rock.
The facts are that residents within 8 kms of a Casino, and especially seniors, are at highest risk of getting a gambling addition or becoming a victim of a crime! White Rock city center would have been less than 3 kms from the Casino. It would have affected White Rock even more than Surrey. But White Rock ignored the issue while Surrey agreed that the new Casino was a bad idea.

What kind of Mayor ignores the concerns of local residents like this?
A Mayor should represent the people, not special interest groups!

White Rock needs change now!
We do not need 4 more years of Mr. Wayne “I am the Boss” Baldwin
Vote for Change on November 15th!

Do You Want Four More Years of Uncontrolled Development, Crowded Streets, Blocked off beaches, and 3am Train Noise in White Rock?

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Our City by the Sea is under attack. By our own city council, lead by Mayor Baldwin and the majority of City Councillors and funded by Greedy Developers who seems to be immune to following the OCP rules and city bylaws. Now Mayor Baldwin has hand-picked a slate of Pro-Development candidates.

Nov 11th Correction: Mayor Baldwin has denied any involvement with the White Rock Pro-Development Coalition. They may have similar goals and campaigns, but Mayor Baldwin denies that he has any connection to the Coalition. Readers should decide for themselves if there is a connection. Our apologies for drawing this conclusion.

Mayor Baldwin hand picks his slate of Pro-Development Candidates

Mayor Baldwin hand picks his slate of Pro-Development Candidates


Notice that councillors Helen Fathers and Alan Campbell are excluded. Mr. Baldwin does not want anyone on Council that he cannot control and who will not put developer’s interests above White Rock citizens. For me, this is an endorsement for both Helen and Al.

While Mr. Baldwin has been Mayor, and previously as CAO at City Hall, a large number of publicly opposed and unsuitable high-density developments have been passed by the Mayor and City Council. All of the following developments were opposed by residents and neighbours, but were approved by council anyway.

  • Bosa Towers – Mr. Baldwin helped push through this very unpopular development and even helped finance the project using your tax dollars to provide the project with a low-interest short-term mortgage worth several million dollars. Under Jean Kromm’s leadership over 3000 household signed a petition against this development. The Citizen’s strong opposition to this project was ignored by City Council and the Bosa Towers started White Rock’s downward high-density demise. Read more about this in this 2006 newspaper article here.
  • White Rock Muffler Shop – Over Height and opposed by vast majority of residents. Mayor “the Boss” Baldwin says “Because I am the Boss” and if you do not like it, there will be an election Nov 15th 2014
  • Evergreen Baptist Care Facility Expansion – Passed despite impact on neighbours and patients. Read more here and here
  • 12-Story Mega Condo at Mariner’s Reach on Vidal Street
  • Carriage Home Fiasco at Thrift and Finlay
  • The Sausalito – City allows building to exceed height restrictions despite neighbour objections
  • Bishop Hill Planning Fiasco costs resident tens of thousands in lost home value
  • Upcoming: Council to give EPCOR $13 Million Land Bonaza
  • TWELVE New 24-Story Mega-Towers Planned for City Center

So with all this development and increased density, why are White Rock Taxes so High? Some people argue that increasing density is a good thing for White Rock and that adding more people will lower our taxes. Nothing could be further from the truth! White Rock has been increasing its density for over a decade now. Let’s see how its working out for our taxes!

Here’s a graph that compares White Rock’s taxes to similar BC Cities. Notice how our taxes are WAY higher! Higher density means Higher Taxes. Check out Pitt Meadows for example. White Rock has about the same population as Pitt Meadows, but the average taxes paid by homeowners in White Rock is DOUBLE what residents in Pitt Meadows pay! And White Rock’s density is TWICE the density of Surrey. Are our taxes lower? Not at all! Our taxes are about 50% higher than Surrey for residents, and 300% higher for businesses. That’s not right!
Why Are White Rock Taxes So High

Increased density increases taxes, lowers your property values, and raises your taxes. Increased density brings increased crime, congestion, and over-crowds our schools. Increased density raises costs for everyone and makes single family housing an unobtainable dream for new families and senior citizens on fixed incomes. Do we really want a city where all the children are raised in condo towers and where are seniors can no longer afford to own their own backyard garden? I do not think so.

Why are housing prices so out of line with average incomes in White Rock? Why is housing so unaffordable? Why do they keep building Condos here in White Rock when the majority sit empty? There are global factors involved that are making it attractive for developers to cram this city with huge empty towers, while making White Rock unaffordable for new families to buy a single family home. City Council is ignoring this important issue and are blinded by their greed for Developer Campaign Contributions. Increased Density hurts our city, kills local business, and drives prices and taxes up. Read more here.

Prosperity is possible without towers. Check out how good city councils with strong vision helped this small Italian town prosper through natural beauty and tourism rather than nasty towers by clicking here.
Prosperity without Towers - Italian Style White Rock could do this too! If White Rock elects a City Council with a vision for the Future.

Why are Housing Prices So High In White Rock?

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Why are housing prices so out of line with average incomes in White Rock? Why is housing so unaffordable? Why do they keep building Condos here in White Rock when the majority sit empty? There are global factors involved that are making it attractive for developers to cram this city with huge empty towers, while making White Rock unaffordable for new families to buy a single family home.

City Council is ignoring this important issue and are blinded by their greed for Developer Campaign Contributions. Increased Density hurts our city, kills local business, and drives prices and taxes up.

White Rockers are struggling and choking over the cost of housing. But sensitivities around race have stifled an important debate about how much foreign home ownership is impacting the city. We must tackle foreign home ownership problem head on according to former Crown Prosecuter and anti-Casino advocate Sandy Garossino

We must tackle foreign home ownership problem head on says Sandy Garossino

We must tackle foreign home ownership problem head on says Sandy Garossino

Read the article by Sandy Garossino details here. Then vote for a City Council that says NO to excessive density. Vote for the People who live here, not the Developers who do not.

Do not Let White Rock City Hall Ignore the OCP and Destroy our City By the Sea and Your Home’s Resale Value!

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In front of a packed city council meeting on Monday Sept 8th, White Rock planning Director Karen Cooper recommended that Council break the law by ignoring the OCP and Local Government Act and approving a 6-unit apartment complex on a tiny single family home lot on Thrift despite a packed house of residents opposing the plan! This plan will be voted on by City Council on Sept 29th. Be there!

Here is the direct quote from our Director of Planning Karen Cooper:
“Staff support the application to rezone the property located at 14937 Thrift Avenue to allow the construction of a six-unit concrete apartment building.” – K. Cooper, Director of High Rises and Densification, City of White Rock
Karen and Ross
This recommendation suggests that the 6-unit apartment building be permitted even though it violates the existing OCP density restrictions. That is nothing new, but to do so without an OCP amendment is illegal and sets a dangerous precedent which Council it not permitted to do under the Local Government Act.

Why is this important to you and your community?
By setting the precedent that the OCP is a “guideline”, it opens the door for greedy developers to build whatever they want where ever they want! That is not good for our community and it is not good for citizens. This will impact your home and its resale value. We heard from one unfortunate homeowner on Thrift who lost over $40000 on the sale of their home thanks to excessive density and development by a developer next door (and received offers as low as $100k below assessed value!).

Building High Density is a Win for Developers/Politicians and a Lose for Citizens
Developers have everything to gain and nothing to lose when they build high density in our community. And our Mayor and City Councillors who are supported by these developers win as well. It’s the residents of White Rock that lose with uncontrolled excessive development! We lose with property values, increased taxes, increased crime, increased traffic, increased school over-crowding, and increased hospital wait times. Our small town community feel is under attack by greedy developers and by the politicians that the developer support.

That’s not right!
The role of the OCP is to protect homeowners rights and their investment!
Instead, the OCP is used by Developers to do whatever they want are your expense!

The City’s Argument:
If we look at the average density in this single family area of town, the existing developments have not used up their full density quota, so we can add the unused density to this lot.

The City’s Argument is Illegal and Invalid
This argument is not only illegal and unjust to surrounding home owners, the city’s math is incorrect and misleading. Even if “averaging” was legal, and its not, the city based their argument on a selection of lots in the area that were cherry picked for their low density development, but conveniently left out high density planned development such as the Cressey 12-Story Mega-Condo currently planned for Vidal street just a few lots away. If one took the Cressey Mega-Condo into account, the average is WAY too high.

Good try White Rock.
Please stick to the OCP and only approve legal developments.

You have seen what happened on Bishop’s Road and how developers built a condo with the balconies so close to neighbors that condo owners could watch as

Ross wrote a great article summarizing the details, which is available at the White Rock Sun “In My Opinion” column. Here is an excerpt below:

The minute the Director of Planning recommended that the project be approved by council despite the serious violations of both the OCP and the Local Government Act is the moment that this issue became much more than simply how many units are allowed. Staff and Council’s dogged insistence to shove this down the throat of the Citizens of White has elevated this to a question of Moral Compass. Do we want our community to be imposed on us by the wishes of developers and speculators from elsewhere who council members take money from or do we want to keep White Rock a great place to live and protect those qualities that have made it a place that is envied by others. To sacrifice all that we have for the greed of the developers and this council would be a sad end to what may well be the best place to live in Canada.

Double bonus points to all of the folks who filled the new council chambers to overflowing. It was wonderful to see the standing room only kind of opposition that is looking council in the eye and saying STOP! Lots of great speakers on Monday night opposing this project and this precedence. Wish I had everyone’s names but some that really stood out for me were Dennis Lypka, Hazel Stack, Garry Wolgemuth, Aroon Shaw and Scott Kristjanson.

The final decision on this proposal has been delayed until September 29. Come early to get a good seat so you can watch your council determine the future of White Rock. Will they be overcome by greed and approve this illegal project that will establish a nasty precedence that will automatically bump the allowable density levels by 20% and destroy White Rock or will they do the right thing for the Citizens of White Rock?

See you on The Beach.
Ross

See the rest of Ross’ article in the White Rock Sun by clicking here

Want Lower Taxes? We need Fiscal Responsibilty, Not Densification!

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Some people argue that increasing density is a good thing for White Rock and that adding more people will lower our taxes. White Rock has been increasing its density for over a decade now. Forget the spin. Let’s look at data to see how densification has failed to lower your taxes!
White Rock Taxes vs Similar BC Cities

Here’s a graph that compares White Rock’s taxes to similar BC Cities. Notice how our taxes are WAY higher!

Check out Pitt Meadows for example. White Rock has about the same population as Pitt Meadows, but the average taxes paid by homeowners in White Rock is DOUBLE what residents in Pitt Meadows pay! White Rock density is TWICE the density of Surrey. Are our taxes lower? Not at all! Our taxes are about 50% higher than Surrey.

So what does the data tell us?
Taxes are high because City Hall wastes millions of dollars not because we need more density!
Listen to Data, Not Political spin!

Remember that on November 15th when you vote.
Vote for sound financial management and lower taxes, Not higher density!

White Rock Finally takes Action to Measure Impact of Coal Trains on Air Quality on our Waterfront

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White Rock has at last started to measure the impact of Coal Trains on our air quality.
Why does it take the city so long to take positive action?

The Mayor and Council are able to change the OCP in the blink of an eye, but they sure drag their feet when it comes to doing something positive for the community!

Here is a picture of the Mobile Air Monitoring Unit (MAMU) courtesy of the Save The West Beach Boat Launch Facebook page.

Mobile Air Monitoring Unit located just East of the Boat launch

Mobile Air Monitoring Unit located just East of the Boat launch

Delta performed a similar study last year and found significant air pollution from the monitoring station located near the tracks. In addition, Washington State University professor Dr. Jaffe released a detailed assessment of health risks associated with living near coal trains. You can read more about that study here.

So while we wait for this latest study from the White Rock Waterfront, what do we already know about pollution from all these passing coal trains? Lots!

We already know how much coal dust gets put into our air and ocean using BNSF’s own data. This new study will just confirm it. Here is the data: 2100 pounds of coal dust flies off of the train and into our lungs and our sea and onto our homes every day.

Here’s the math:
Each car loses about 500 pounds on its 1100 mile journey from Wyoming to the coast (this is data that BNSF provides). Now let’s do the math. If we lose 500 pounds of coal (by weight) every 1100 miles, then that means that each loaded coal car releases about half a pound of coal dust per mile.

There are about 120 cars per train, and we expect at least 10 coal trains per day. That works out to 600 pounds of coal dust released per mile per day, which is 100 tons of coal dust released into the air per mile each year.

A trip around the Semiahmoo Peninsula is about 11 miles, so over 1000 tons of coal dust will land on the peninsula each year from the coal trains.

For White Rock alone with about 4 miles of track, we can expect about 2100 pounds of Coal Dust deposited on Our City by the Sea every day. That works our to be about 400 tons per year coating our streets and homes and lungs. That’s not good for tourism, its not good for business, and it certainly is not good for our health.

Winter is Coming. And so is the November Civic Election!

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I am in favor of moving the trains. This is vital for our health and to avoid potential disasters with derailments. Unfortunately, I am not sure that I can trust Mayor Baldwin to do anything about it.
Trains_Safe

The recent fiasco with the fences and the boat launch tell me City Hall is not on the right track. On Monday, I asked Mayor Baldwin if they could re-instate the access tunnels to the beach under the tracks. These tunnels used to be there and got filled in. It was an cheap and easy solution to our beach access problems.

The Mayor’s response to my question: He said it could not be done. But then he lied to me about why they cannot re-instate the under-track tunnel access to the beach.

When I asked him on Monday’s council meeting to re-instate the tunnels, Mayor Baldwin claimed that it was no longer feasible because of “Rising Ocean Levels”.

Being a researcher, I did the research. It wasn’t hard. Ocean levels ARE rising… but only 3mm/year. Mayor Baldwin was making an excuse on why they could not implement this easy and cheap fix. And this excuse is a very bad one. It is insulting that he does not think the public is smart enough to check.

Sea levels are rising at a rate of 1 foot every 100 years

Sea levels are rising at a rate of 1 foot every 100 years

He claimed that due to raising sea levels, the tunnels could no longer be built. However, this is nonsense. The tides are so much more significant that global rises in sea levels. And we have lived with these tides in White Rock for over 100 years! If we built the tunnels today, it would take another 100 years before sea levels when up ONE foot, and 1000 years before the tunnel would be unusable at low tide (when it would be used by the public). I could live with any improvements that would last ONLY 1000 years! If only they would starting MAKING improvements with our tax dollars.

Of course, Mayor Baldwin might not of lied. He may have really believed what he was saying about rising tides. Being wrong is not the same thing as telling a lie. If Mayor Baldwin truly did not know what he was saying was blatantly wrong, do we really want a Mayor who does not check his facts and makes decisions based on the kind of headlines one might read in the National Enquirer? Residents of our little city by the sea deserve better. Much better.

I found it interesting that his “5-year-plan” would cover both Mayor Baldwin’s current term and next. So if nothing happens in that time, he can still milk it for getting elected in the next term. Meanwhile, we have fences and mesh and no access to West Beach. If you know how to work Ottawa, things can move very fast indeed. Just ask BNSF.

Winter is Coming! And so is the Election. Vote smart.

Read the Peace Arch News article here

A Letter to the Editor regarding Excessive Development in White Rock

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White Rock Excessive Development Upsets Residents
Dear Editor:
Re: August 5th Stories on White Rock Residents Frustrated by City Hall

I read with interest, concern and sympathy about the frustration experienced by White Rock residents over City Hall’s coy mishandling of the “Waves on Marine” development project (the Mayor personally signed off on permits to allow over height construction, see the Peace Arch News article here) and the impending development project for 1575/1577 Nichol Road. The official indifference and lack of meaningful action shown by the City to the legitimate concerns of neighboring residents is simply shameful.

But sadly, this is not a new thing. Led as they are by the developers’ champion, Mayor Baldwin, the majority pro-development “at any cost” clique currently in command of City Council have left a record that shows a clear and unmistakeable pattern. As Mayor Baldwin has said, so long as he is in control, even greater density is coming to White Rock “whether people want it or not.”

Whether it is the Bishop Road Development, the White Rock Muffler Shop Development, the Mariner’s Reach Development, the Evergreen Baptist Development or a multitude of other smaller development projects, in all cases, the City has placed developer interests paramount above Public interests and concerns of neighbouring residents. What do you think will happen when the EPCOR Oxford Land Development Project resurfaces if all of the current developer clique on Council get re-elected in November?

Come the November 15th Civic Election, use your vote to remind the politicians that the purpose of the City is to provide for the good government of our community for community benefit, not to act as an apologist and enabler for the developer interest group.

Dennis Lypka
White rock, B.C.

Congrats on an Awesome White Rock Sea Festival!

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Congratulations and a big thank you for the organizing committee of this year’s White Rock Sea Festival. Onwards and upwards, but thanks for saving it from the brink of distinction. Here is a look at the new float they created for “our city by the sea.”

See a re-cap of the Sea Festival in the www.whiterocksun.com

The White Rock Sea Festival was a huge success this year! Congrats to everyone involved! (Picture by Dave Chesney of the White Rock Sun)

The White Rock Sea Festival was a huge success this year! Congrats to everyone involved! (Picture by Dave Chesney of the White Rock Sun)