September 1 Council In Focus

Residents protest waste removal plan in double-header meetings

September is the last full month of this Council term as municipal elections fall on Saturday, October 17 this year.

The return to the Council table for the first time since the summer break meant a busy evening for Councillors and residents alike, with a Committee of the Whole (COW) meeting scheduled just prior to the evening's regular Council meeting.

Committee of the Whole

The first meeting of the evening began on a technical glitch, and online attendees were not admitted until the meeting was underway. Afterwards, Deputy Corporate Officer Kristal Kenna confirmed to The Watershed that the agenda (HERE) was adopted without changes, and the minutes of previous COW meetings on May 12 (page 3) and July 7, page 7) were also approved without amendments.

Councillors Neville Abbott, Michael Broughton, Jaime Cunliffe, Ron McLaughlin and Mayor Ken Berry were all present in person for both meetings. Joining them at the table was Chief Administrative Officer Ross Blackwell, and Director of Operations Eric Villeneuve was also present. The gallery topped out at 21 attendees both in person and online.

The role of a COW meeting is to allow members of Council to allow time for discussion of outstanding issues. A decision was made to defer discussion of the Code of Conduct bylaw to the regular meeting, as it appeared on both agendas.

• Community Recognition Awards Policy (page 11)

Council members discussed several options (as outlined beginning on page 13), after which it was decided that Councillors Abbott and Broughton would meet with Chief Administrative Officer Blackwell to narrow down and clarify the parameters of the awards before bringing it back to Council for approval.

• Proclamations Policy (page 24)

Blackwell presented a draft policy regarding the establishment of a clear, fair, and consistent process for considering requests for municipal proclamations. When members of Council decided to leave the existing policy as it stands, Blackwell commented that he was getting the sense that "Council doesn't like policies. These policies are only here to make sure you have guidelines." He noted that drafting both the policies took a look time and represented a "gold standard."

• September Water Projects Update (page 37)

Director of Operations Eric Villeneuve offered an update on a number of existing water-related projects in the Village. These included:

• Universal Water Metering Project is on schedule and currently under budget. Oceanview Road will receive the first installations, which will take place later this month with an anticipated completion date in Spring, 2027. The Neptune 360 online portal will allow residents to check on and understand their water usage. BC Hydro hookups are expected before the end of 2026.

• Centre, Upper Bayview, and Bayview Water-main Replacement (CUBB) Project design is currently underway, with approximately $1.3 million of the budgeted $5.1 million already committed. Construction is deferred to 2027. The budget numbers generated some discussion about the anticipated actual costs, as the $5 million figure was generated in 2022.

• The Alkalinity and PH Adjustment Project has been deferred until the water metering installation is complete.

• Villeneuve recommended that the Well-Water Investigation Project be cancelled. He said that well water is not considered a reliable secondary source for the community, and that most of the capital involved has to be spent before a drop of water is even generated. Council members leaned more toward deferring the well water question, but no firm decision was made.

• Highway Noise Monitoring Project (page 41)

Villeneuve offered a report on the installation of noise monitoring sensors along the highway, as well as the initial data set. He said that early indications show that daily average noise levels are very typical for a community situated beside Highway 99, with 65 decibels as the benchmark. Abbott said that the focus of the report missed the mark, as the goal was not to look at averages noise figures, but at the number of instances the measurable noise goes above 65. Local resident Vince Reiche, who has championed the project, agreed to work with Villeneuve to better identify when peak decibels occur — due to motorbikes, sports cars, and noisy truck brakes — and then to report back to Council.

The Committee of the Whole meeting adjourned just under an hour after it began.

Regular Council Meeting

Council resumed after a short recess, and the meeting's agenda (HERE) was adopted with a few minor changes.

Public Participation

Bayview Road resident Dierdre Bain objected to the proposed new waste removal program that would limit garden debris to a single container weekly, which she said seems completely contrary to the current efforts to limit wildlife attractants. She said she was concerned that these changes are moving forward without sufficient resident consultation, and strongly urged Council to reconsider these changes.

Bain later read a letter from Sam and Sherrill McCall who are also opposed to the waste collection bylaw changes.

Online, long-term resident Norma Rodgers said that after reading the agenda package she wondered why the administration would rush a garbage bylaw amendment to facilitate a new contract before advising residents about the changes. She noted that local residents expect communication and due process when major changes to garbage collection are proposed. 

"Garbage accessible to bears from 5:30 a.m. curbside on garbage day and allowing residents to store garbage outside in these 'bear resistant' bins is returning to practices that Bear Smart fought to remedy years ago, when the Village killed so many bears," Rodgers said. She added that passing such a bylaw would make the Director of Operations (DOO) and current administration responsible for increases in garbage consumption and habituation of bears.

Former Councillor Marcus Reuter addressed three points. He opened by asking Council if a double standard is at play when input from over 60 residents opposing recent Zoning Bylaw amendments was excluded from the record of the public hearing, but the recently-launched OCP survey does not require a name and assumes the residency question will be accurately answered.

Reuter's second point addressed clear cutting of a property across Rundle Creek. "Fundamentally, we’re talking about thousands of tons of rock and mud and debris, now potentially hanging by a thread above public infrastructure, residents’ homes, a rail-line and tens of thousands of people who use Highway 99.  We’ve already experienced a record-breaking storm and El Nino is on the way. Now think Battani. And worse."

Reuter reiterated his concern that the existing Soil Bylaw was not enforced, and asked Council to take action. He also asked Council to take accountability for making these decisions, noting that election season is here.

North Vancouver resident and Executive Director of the North Shore Black Bear Society Holly Reisner addressed the proposal on the agenda to move the entire Village to bear-resistant waste disposal carts.

Reisner told members of Council that what she called "Schaeffer-style carts" that are attached with clips have not been successful in the District of North Vancouver. She said the size of the carts mean they are too large to store inside garages, so they are very often stored outside of people's homes, which attracts bears.

She said the clips do not deter the bears, who will "tip the bins and use their claws or head to pop the lid open and break the clips right off. Or, they tear the lid off at the hinges. Another technique is to jump on the carts until they crack open."

Reisner noted that the District of North Vancouver is constantly repairing and replacing broken carts, a process which can often take weeks, leaving the garbage unsecured. 

She said many residents of North Van are looking to their municipality for an alternate solution. Reisner also lauded Lions Bay for the current system as a "far more effective way to prevent bears from accessing garbage." She said the proposed change would represent a significant step backwards in Lions Bay’s efforts to coexist with local bears.

Long-time local resident Alison Dudley was the lone voice to speak in favour of the staff amendments to the waste bylaw. Dudley notes that she works downtown, and that the timing for putting out garbage is not realistic for those who work outside the Village.  

Mountain Drive resident Rebecca Caspersen said she was puzzled why bylaw changes and changes to the pick-up schedule would be considered when the community has implemented steps that have made a positive impact for bears, and supported residents with scheduled pick up and a Community Recycling Depot (CRD). She noted that the established pick-up schedule should have been built into the initial proposal, and that bylaw changes will be to the detriment of community members and wildlife.

Caspersen asked whether bagged garden waste is allowed, or if residents will be limited to a single large container that must be rolled up and down steep driveways. She noted the importance of removal of additional garden waste to meet FireSmart standards, and how the cost of that removal needs to be included in the proposal. She echoed earlier callers in noting that the bins are not bear-proof and so should not be stored outside.

Casperson asked if the $20,000 in savings take into account the $40,000 made through the blue bin program and CRD over the past year, and wondered if this is the price that staff put on a bear's life. She expressed surprise that the recommendation was put before Council, particularly with all three readings in one meeting. "Where is the consultation with the community and Bear Smart experts?"

On a different topic, Ryan and Erica Duffy were present to register their objection to the installation of porta-potties on Oceanview Road, again without community consultation. Chris and Andrea Marino, who also live on Oceanview Drive echoed these concerns, citing the smell as an issue, and asked that they be relocated.

Public Toilet Controversy

In response to the outcry from residents regarding the pilot project locating the public toilets on Oceanview, Blackwell said that the project was begun after staff had been trying to find a solution for two years, and that he personally witnessed a woman relieving herself between two cars on the street. He said this is a public health issue and Villeneuve said he'd bring a report back to the next Council meeting.

Garbage and Recycling Collection Bylaw Amendment Shot Down

Director of Operations Eric Villeneuve offered a report to Council with regard to changes to the current garbage and recycling collection contract (Bylaw No. 455 and

Amendment Bylaw No. 668, page 118), which drew such concern from residents earlier in the meeting. Villeneuve said that the contract has been awarded to waste disposal company GFL.

Discussion included concern over the removal of green waste, particularly important considering the attendant fire risk, the problems in both the communities cited by Villeneuve (North Vancouver and Squamish) with similar bins, and the timing of pick-ups (which has already been addressed to accommodate working Village residents with an amendment earlier this year).

There were also concerns expressed that the wording of the bylaw undermines the use of the CRD and current recycling programs.

After discussion grew so heated that the Mayor called a five-minute break to restore order, a first reading of the proposed bylaw changes was defeated.

Blackwell responded by saying that Council had been informed that a new contract would require bylaw amendments, and told Council that they "have put staff into an impossible position that we had warned you about."

Berry then invoked the Mayor's privilege to bring the question back for reconsideration, where it was once again defeated.

Code of Conduct Bylaw tabled

A second and third reading of the new Code of Conduct bylaw (page 19) was moved by Councillor Michael Broughton and seconded by Mayor Berry. In the once-again very heated discussion that followed, Berry noted the bylaw had been in the works since early in the term.

Councillor Jaime Cunliffe said she was unwilling to support the bylaw, in light of anticipated provincial legislation addressing the subject, and that members of Council would be attending the Union of BC Municipalities (UBCM) before the next scheduled Council meeting.

It was decided to table the motion until after the UBCM, to ensure that the new bylaw would meet provincial criteria.

Tree-cutting season returns

With the end of the bird-nesting season, Council addressed a number of tree-cutting permits.

A consent resolution approved all permits with a single vote, so that subject to the conditions outlined in each, permits were approved at 140 Mountain Drive (page 59), 60 Sunset Drive (page 72), 420 Bayview Road (page 90) and at 255 Stewart Road (page 106).

Surveillance feasibility study defeated

Councillor Michael Broughton presented a report (page 134) requesting that staff investigate the cost and feasibility of installing security cameras at all six north and southbound entrances to the Village. Broughton's report noted that "recent unsolved police events" give rise to the need for more security around the Village.

He referenced the recent murder in Brunswick Beach and arson in Kelvin Grove, both currently unsolved, and said that cameras would also be useful in recording the number of hikers and vehicles that visit the Village.

The discussion that followed covered the complexities of installing cameras on Ministry of Transportation and Transit (MOTT) property, concerns about privacy of local residents and references to Big Brother. The motion was ultimately defeated.

Emergency Services

Fire Rescue Dispatch Report (included with correspondence on page 141):

In July, Lions Bay Fire Rescue (LBFR) attended 17 incidents, with 31 uses of apparatus and 101 members attending. Average turn-out time for the month was 8:22, average travel time was 14:03 and the average time on scene was 2 hours, 52 minutes.

LBFR were also on scene and pivotal to extinguishing the Lone Pine Creek wildfire in August.

Correspondence

Public correspondence received from July 17 to August 27, 2026 (beginning on page 137) opened with a letter from Metro Vancouver Board Chair Mike Hurley regarding a change in zoning for the former site of the Molson Brewery. Hurley wrote a second letter (page 152) regarding Metro Vancouver's Housing Data Dashboard Launch.

Others included:

• MLA Constituency Lead Jatinder Sidhu regarding the future of the funding of the Local Government Climate Action Program (LGCAP) (page 139).

• Village of Slocan Mayor Jessica Lund regarding her support for LGCAP funding (page 145), along with Salmon Arm Mayor Alan Harrison (page 147).

• Cathy Peters with the Anti-Human Trafficking Initiative (page 148), regarding her presence at the upcoming Union of BC Municipalities (UBCM).

• New Westminster Mayor Patrick Johnstone wrote seeking an independent review of the North Shore Wastewater Treatment Plant Project (page 149). His letter was joined by one from West Vancouver Mayor Mark Sager, making the same request (page 175).

• Johnstone wrote a second letter asking for support in his advocacy that Provincial Legislation Requiring Housing Targets or Density be Directly Tied to Infrastructure Funding (page 166).

• Executive Director of Howe Sound Biosphere Region Initiative Society (and long-time Lions Bay resident) Ruth Simons wrote thanking Council for its ongoing support of the Howe Sound Community Forum and Memorandum of Understanding (page 154).

• Lions Bay Mayor Ken Berry wrote to Fortis regarding concerns over Helijet flyovers above Lions Bay (page 177).

  
  

Local correspondence began with a letter from Kelvin Grove resident Mark Shelnitz regarding his concerns over maintenance of Village rights of way, the possibility of the Village offering financial incentives to residents for replacing old toilets, and the possibility of using dogs to deter geese from pooping on the beach (page 181).

Others included:

• Strata resident Dylan Smith objecting to paying his utility bill (page 181). McLaughlin, on correspondence duty, suggested that staff respond to this letter, as well as to Shelnitz.

• Bayview Road residents Sherrill and Sam Smith asking Council to consider closing public parking due to high wildfire risk (page 183).

• Erica Duffy making a formal complaint against the installation of portable toilets near her home on Oceanview Road (page 184). McLaughlin noted that this topic is expected on next month's agenda.

• Mountain Drive resident Rebecca Caspersen wrote of her ongoing concern over traffic and parking in the Village (page 185). Blackwell suggested that the incoming Council should meet with local provincial Ministers to address these issues.

Other Items of Note

• Council approved the minutes from Regular Council meeting on July 21 (page 5), and the Special meeting of Council on August 12 (page 14), both without changes.

• Action Log (page 17). Abbott asked for an update and clarification on the application for the Federation of Canadian Municipalities Green Municipal Fund for a Municipal Fleet Electrification Transition Study, which Kenna confirmed is underway. After discussion of the ongoing problem at Lions Bay Beach, Blackwell said staff is not equipped to establish a goose management plan, and that Council needs to retain a specialist.

• Broughton was asked to further investigate the offer of a donation of a Michael Tickner painting by local residents, and report back.

  
  
  
  

Closed meeting addresses Steering Committee Membership

The meeting was closed briefly to address a selection of residents to take part in the Climate Adaptation Plan steering committee.

Council returned to report that Greg Banta, Norm Barmier, Penny Nelson, John Robb, Andrew Wray, Clara George, Ruth Simons, Gary Blackwell, and Tony Greville had been selected to serve on the committee.

Berry thanked these volunteers for their support of the community, and with that, the second meeting of the evening adjourned.

The next regular meeting of Council is scheduled for September 22, with the open portion of the meeting slated to begin at 7 p.m.

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