In a meeting last Monday prior to the
in-cabinet council meeting Nancy Van
Insberghe was informed that the district was
no longer interested in purchasing her
property due to “liability concerns”.
Since October the district has been pointing
fingers at the province and the province has
been pointing fingers at the district as to
why the purchase of this property is not
proceeding. It must be made abundantly clear
to each of you that the reason this property
is not being purchased is solely the fault
of the district. The 8 properties which are
being purchased are all being titled to the
district. James Ridge is placing additional
conditions on this property by insisting
that the district does not want title or
wishes provincial indemnification before
accepting title. The purchase is not
proceeding as a direct result of this. He
has not given any specific reasons as to why
this is the case although there is suspicion
that the MIA altered the districts insurance
policy sometime in October to exclude the
escarpment from its coverage area.
The argument that the district somehow has
less liability by insisting that a resident
must remain on an unsafe property against
her will and by continuing to collect
property taxes on the property is nonsense.
The only way to maximize safety to district
residents and to minimize liability to the
district is to purchase the property, remove
all structures, and restore it back to its
natural state.
What is in the public record?
1)
A runout model showing that
the Insberghe property is in the path of
potential future landslides
2)
The district has agreed to do
a geotech study of the entire escarpment and
make the results public.
3)
The land immediately adjacent
to the slide area is at higher risk to slide
because it is no longer anchored by the
forest cover which used to be present where
the slide occurred.
4)
The access to Nancy
Insberghe’s property goes directly through
the slide area. Part of it is district
property and part of it is the panhandle
which the district wishes to purchase.
5)
Nancy Van Insberghe has been
out of her home for 11 months yet is forced
to pay for services and taxes which she
cannot use.
6)
The district and province
agreed to purchase the property last August
in a package of 9 properties felt to be at
risk on lots immediately surrounding the
slide.
7)
The district has purchased
properties above and below Nancy’s home due
to slide risk and/or property damage from
the slide.
8)
James Ridge, DNV and Bob
Bugslag, PEP have written letters indicating
that they empathize with Nancy’s position
and are doing everything they can to address
her concerns.
9)
Nancy has incurred substantial
legal costs as a result of the letter sent
to her in August and in negotiations between
her lawyer and district lawyer Reece Harding
and in getting property appraisals.
10)
Even though Nancy has now
stopped using a lawyer, the district’s high
priced CAO continues to retain the district
lawyer as his spokesperson (at considerable
taxpayer expense) in all communications with
her.
11)
The province has agreed to pay
for the purchase of this property as soon as
it gets approval from James Ridge with the
stipulation that the transfer of title goes
to the district.
12)
The province has and continues
to financially support its municipalities in
times of disaster.
13)
There is structural damage to
Nancy’s home including significant cracking
at the foundations and some wall areas which
appears to be from slope movement or
slippage which has occurred as a result of
the slide.
14)
Legal advice given to the
district 25 years ago was short sighted and
has resulted in significant liability by the
district today and cost to human life. The
same is true of the legal advice being given
today when there is significantly more
evidence that the Insberghe property is in
danger of a future slide.
15)
The Insberghe property was
developed 25 years ago at the same time as
the Kuttner property with an identical
geographical topology.
16)
All documentation regarding
the response to this landslide is being
saved and will be available to the general
public on the internet for decades to come.
It will be online when the next slide occurs
(even if that’s 50 years from now). The
actions that each of you takes and the long
term repercussions of these actions will
form part of your legacy. The current
location is http://seymourvalley.ca/landslide.
If you haven’t already done so I would
encourage each of you to take the time and
visit this property at 2430 Chapman Way.
It’s easy to find by following the driveway
straight up the landslide. Notice the
steepness of the driveway, the sharp corner
at the top, and realize that James is
proposing that the district purchase this
and maintain it as a public roadway. Once in
the front yard of the property, pay
particular attention to the closeness of the
landslide and the catch basin a few feet
from the living room window. Then look
straight up and notice the steepness of the
slope and realize that this is the exact
same view that the Kuttners had above their
property. Then look down and notice the
location of the Dykes and Cowards property
which have been purchased below. Notice the
houses to the south of these which Nancy’s
house will crash into if another slide like
the Jan 19th slide occurs. The
only reason that the Kuttner house did not
impact a lower dwelling is that it was
located above the intersection of Chapman
and Treetop which is where it came to rest.
This is not the case with Nancy’s home.
Regards,
Bill Maurer
604-789-2172
Seymour Valley Community Association,
Seymour Escarpment Committee, Seymour Local
Plan MC