A proposed resort commercial development requiring a zoning amendment was presented to Parksville council recently.
Proof of concept drawings for 1170 Resort Dr. show a 38-unit hotel, along with a restaurant and spa.
Nigel Gray, of MacDonald Gray Consultants Inc, said the intent of the rezoning application is to amend the property’s current split zoning so that it is completely zoned Tourist Commercial. Part of the property is currently designated A1 Agriculture. Gray made the presentation during council’s Feb. 6 regular meeting.
The application, made on behalf of owner Boting Living Resort Canada Inc., also asks for a site-specific building height allowance, to facilitate a three-storey building with sloped roofs, to a maximum height of 14-metres.
Gray said Parksville’s official community plan (OCP) designates the property as resort lands, primarily intended for tourist accommodation.
Coun. Amit Gaur asked if it would be possible to include staff housing in the proposal.
Gray said that including staff housing would most likely require an OCP amendment and added the site to the south will be predominantly a market rate housing development.
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A number of years ago, when nearby 1180 Resort Dr. was up for development, an offer to build employee housing did not receive interest from resort operators, he added.
Mayor Doug O’Brien asked if they would consider sidewalk along the property’s Highway 19A side, to provide pedestrian access to nearby services.
“Tourists staying at the resort and so forth would be able to access services at the hopefully to be rebuilt Heritage Mall, next door,” he said.
Gray said he would like to see sidewalk along the entire frontage of the resort.
Coun. Mary Beil said she has seen a number of promising proposals come forward over the years, without being built, and asked how likely it is the project will come to fruition.
“In this case the developer is a large scale resort developer and the intent, as far as I am aware, is to proceed directly to development permit on not just the piece we’re talking about now, but the balance of the property to do an entire resort project,” Gray said.
He added that development progress will depend on whether the area experiences a recession in the near future.