Editor,
I have many thoughts on this hub project, and they are not positive. In 2016 when I moved to White Rock there were three towers in the downtown core: the Avra on George, and the two Bosa towers on Johnston Road. Since that time two more Bosa towers went up on the Buy Low property and then the Oceana Parc on George Street. Another tower went up on George and Thrift and then another one on Thrift near Oxford.
Next came the three Foster Martin towers with the third one now under construction and another one nearing completion on Johnston Road beside The Blue Frog. We also have the tower beside Peace Arch Hospital on 156th Street. That is 10 buildings in less than 10 years. Give the residents a break!
The lot that is being considered for this community hub was once a parking lot that was operated by the Rotary Club. They leased it from Imperial Oil for a minimal amount and used the rental funds raised for projects in the community. Since the city kicked the Rotary Club off the property it has been a non-revenue parking lot.
I called White Rock engineering about this lot and was told it would remain as a parking lot temporarily due to limited parking during construction of Oceana Parc, but the city was considering a park on the site. The Oceana Parc is complete and the lot is still a parking lot. A park at that site would have increased the aesthetic appeal to the downtown core as has the fountain area between the Bosa towers.
I also attended an information meeting about one of the towers to be constructed and was told that the lot would be something like a park and seating area and that the city considered underground parking underneath. They were also waiting for the apartment building at George and Russell to be torn down. That is a six-storey concrete building full of residents.
This is all the White Rock side of 16th. We can't forget that there are three possible buildings going up north of the Semiahmoo mall and a 20-storey one slated at 16th and George.
White Rock has lovely murals on the sides of buildings; we have lost the Blue Frog mural, and if this so-called city hub goes in, we will lose the mural on the side of the theatre. We are not Metrotown; we are a seaside community where people come to enjoy the beach.
Since moving to White Rock, I have noticed an increase in homeless people roaming the streets with grocery carts. We have drug paraphernalia on the street, randomly dropped. I found a complete naloxone kit and syringes on the sidewalk one morning. Another day I ended up having to give chest compressions to a man who had stopped breathing, clearly drug overdosed. Had I not been there to do this and call 911 he would have died.
I think that the city should work on getting the street issues cleaned up rather than looking to build a building that appears to be a legacy project.
They should make use of the huge, empty pay parking lot to the west of Johnston Road, south of the Uptown Plaza, and continue with the city plan in that area to have lower rise buildings, which I understood was supposed to have nice walkways and park area for residents.
The parking lot should be used as a small park as they had initially discussed. We don’t have many of them in White Rock. It would benefit everyone. Another tower in White Rock is not needed nor, I believe, welcome to the citizens of White Rock.
Holly Scott, White Rock
