The Process is Really Screwed (... I Mean Skewed)!

Unfortunately, I have had to think a lot lately about how well our public servants serve us, or not. First of all, in the Federal arena, where we seem to lurch from one scandal to another and usually involving millions if not billions of our dollars. The Adscam scandal clearly showed us that our bureaucrats don't all have the good sense or integrity to tell their political masters where to get off when they ask them to do something highly questionable. Then again, we don't have whistleblower legislation in Canada which would protect them but I would still question them taking our paycheck and then "the easy way out".
That brings us to the provincial level, which I have already written a few missives about (see blogs "So Much For Due Process" and "If You Live in Lantzville..."). The situation here is much the same except that our problems are exacerbated by a very polarized political climate. I truly believe that there are more ideologues per capita in B. C. than anywhere else in Canada. The main distinguishing feature of a political ideologue is that they are convinced that their side can do no wrong and the other side can do no right. The result is that they spend all their time and energy yelling at each other over the "fence" and the problems of the common man never seem to get to the top of their priority list. This process is a little further advanced in the United States but the expected results can already be seen - the battle lines have been drawn, the troops conscripted, the media 'hacks' brought on board and its all-out war!
Is refusing to talk to each other really going to help us solve our problems or is it all about making sure that it is YOUR solution that is picked - even if it isn't perfect. We need a government that will truly govern for ALL of us, adopting the best ideas no matter which side they come from and we need to get back to talking to each other or we will not be able to move forward.
Finally, we arrive at politics at the more local level, regional districts and municipalities. One of the biggest issues that these governments deal with is land use and planning (development). Now, I have a neighbour who tells me that "you can't stop development". Given that he is the son of a retired realtor and small-scale developer, maybe that's what one would expect, except for the fact that it doesn't seem to matter what a developer might be proposing to do in Lantzville, he's for it. My own common sense tells me that it is impossible for all developers and all of their proposals to be "good for the community", yet he actively supports them all.
Here in Lantzville, we've had lots of challenges over the past 10 years. We've had three major development proposals for the same piece of property, a long-standing promise to complete Lantzville Road to Dover reneged on, the RDN wanting to put a landfill up in the foothills behind us, a scheduled OCP review delayed for years, several pieces of land taken from us by the City of Nanaimo for intensive commercialization, a huge 'Welcome to Nanaimo' sign insinuated within our boundaries, a plan to import water all the way from the Englishman River dam, a study to see if we should incorporate (in part, in response to all these things already mentioned), and recently, a major proposal for development up in our foothills. All throughout this, there has been one constant - the tremendous difficulty in the average Lantzville resident feeling like they have a say and can make a difference!
The developers/proponents control the flow of information and, since they are in the 'marketing' business, they only tell you what they want you to hear - I learned a long time ago that it's always the other stuff that matters most to you and me. Unfortunately, the bureaucrats are reluctant to require these people to be more 'up-front' with us. I am not sure if this is because their political masters have told them to bend over backwards to not appear business-unfriendly or if it comes from the fact that they are 'planners' and 'planners' love to see their plans come to fruition. In any event, this is what the public faces when a land use issue is raised in their community, and no, it doesn't seem to matter which community we are talking about - all developers seem to have gone to the same school, as have all politicians and 'planners'.
The very first hurdle for the public is to find out that there is a land use issue - there are required newspaper ads at some point in the process and many jurisdictions now have their own website, some better than others. Depending on the specifics, there may also be a requirement that there be a notification posted on the affected property, which sounds good. However, when some jurisdictions require a sign that is no more than .75 m x .6 m and others only require a sign to be posted for a minimum time period (as short as 3 days), one can see that finding out about the issue in the first place can be a challenge. Sadly, these methods all require an individual to have the time or opportunity to see the notification. If you are within a certain radius of the affected property (usually 200 m), you should receive an official notification in the mail, however, many land use issues can/will affect people much further away from the property than that.
O.K., so now you know that there is a land use issue and you want to find out more (the specifics). You will usually be directed to you regional district or town office to see the actual application made by the land owner. This application will generally make reference to various Acts, Bylaws and other planning documents (e.g., Local Government Act, Regional Growth Management Plan and Official Community Plans), which usually are many pages long and written in semi-legalese. One Bylaw may refer to an Act which references a specific agreement, and so on. Are you starting to get discouraged yet - try not to be because that's what most developers count on?
Assuming that you are able to grasp the "ins and outs" of the application, the applicable rules and legislation and the sometimes-convoluted case that the 'planners' have put together, you now get to speak to the matter at a public meeting of your local politicians. For some people, this will be enough to "scare them off" - you have to gather your information and thoughts, get yourself on the Agenda, appear at the appointed date and time and then stand up and "have your say". You may also be asked questions by the assembled politicians and then you get to sit and wait until they get to that item on the Agenda so that you can see if your comments had any impact on them. If the politicians decide that they need to hear from more of the public on the issue, they may require a Public Information Meeting be held or they may feel that the proposal still has enough merits that it should go to Public Hearing.
Oh goody, now you get to spend even more time preparing for that - putting together an "information package" for interested parties and notifying people outside of the official notification area about the issue and asking them to take time out of their busy lives to attend yet another meeting, making up signs and placing/moving them (believe it or not, some people actually go around and damage or steal them), creating informational web sites, calling people in the community you know who you think would care about the proposal's impact on the community, preparing a list of questions or a presentation and then actually attending the meeting and asking those questions or making that presentation. Remember, this is all on your own time and dime.
Contrast this with the developers' situation - this is their business, it's how they make a living and they work at it day in and day out. Since they have an expectation of profit, if they need something done, they hire a consultant, whether it be a planner for interpretation of the relevant documents, a lawyer for advice on the legalities and application of the various Acts, Bylaws and legislation, a public relations firm to prepare glossy brochures and put the right 'spin' on their proposal, architects to design a 'pleasing' facade, engineers to design their infrastructure and landscape designers to provide pleasing sketches of native vegetation. We, the time-challenged, economically-limited and sometimes just plain 'frazzled' public are left to do it all on our own with the good of our community our only motivation/reward!
Given all of the above, maybe my neighbour is right - "you can't stop development" - but you certainly can't if you're not prepared to try!