#1Dec 11th, 2009
Islands Trust land-use policies are creating a scarcity of developable land, driving real estate prices up, pushing out young people and replacing them with retirees who travel less, said Rob Clarke, chief financial officer for B.C. Ferries.
Clarke delivered that message to a recent meeting of the Gabriola Ferry Advisory Committee.
Gulf Islanders have accused the ferry corporation of hurting island economies by imposing high fares. Those fares have in turn pushed down ridership and made doing business on the islands more expensive, they say. Fares on some Gulf Islands routes have doubled in the past five years, with the corporation saying the increases are necessary to cover costs.
"I think if you go up and down the entire Gulf Islands archipelago, the chances of you finding subsidized housing, co-op housing, multi-family dwellings, the kinds of housing that would attract young people starting out is virtually nonexistent, and that's the issue," Clarke said in an interview.
The notion that rising ferry fares are damaging Gulf Island economies can't be backed up, he said, citing a 444 per cent rise in lot prices on Gabriola between 2001 and 2008.
He said if fares harm local economies, housing prices "should be falling, not rising, and yet it's rising."
Clarke had Vancouver-based consulting firm Urban Futures study Gulf Islands demographics, using census data. The study found a disproportionate number of people between the ages of 50 and 75 on Gabriola compared with the provincial average, and fewer under age 50.
Clarke blames Islands Trust policies that discourage growth, families and commuters. More families and commuters would increase ridership and help to keep fares down.
"Islands Trust has a preserve-and-protect mandate, which means they're trying to keep the nature of the islands a very static place, and if you want to have young people moving in, you have to be providing affordable housing," Clarke said.
"People can't afford to have $1-million properties when they're just starting out. In fact, many can't afford to buy them at any time, and so I suggested that the Islands Trust policies may in fact be a larger contributor to this phenomenon than fares."
Andre Lemieux, Gabriola Ferry Advisory Committee chairman, said he has witnessed property values rise dramatically, changing the community. "All of a sudden people with a lot of money are buying homes and displacing young families with kids," said Lemieux. "The result of that, it reduces traffic on ferries and use of elementary schools."
Gabriola elementary school enrolment fell 33 per cent over the past decade, compared to 23 per cent in the Nanaimo-Ladysmith school district.
Sheila Malcolmson, Islands Trust trustee for Gabriola Island, challenges B.C. Ferries' assessment, noting that within the census data, some under-50 age groups actually rose during the study period. "We have not said no to any development applications that have come before us in the seven years that I've been a trustee," Malcolmson said.
"I think if B.C. Ferries doesn't take responsibility for looking at elasticity between the price you pay for the product and demand for their product, I think they're missing a seriously important part of the equation. And I wish B.C. Ferries would convey to us directly their concerns."
