On January 24, 2020, School District 61 Trustees will be deciding on the sale of a parcel of 1.9 acres of publicly-owned land and section of Bowker Creek at Lansdowne South (previously Richmond Elementary School)
We have been told that the number of emails the School Board trustees receive is very important; the more they receive, the greater the potential influence we have on their decision. Even one line, 10 words, a 30-second message. Please write to the Trustees and also ask at least one friend to do the same.
Here is the list of School Board trustee emails to cc with your letter. Make sure every trustee gets a copy.
rpainter@sd61.bc.ca
dmcnally@sd61.bc.ca
nduncan@sd61.bc.ca
tferris@sd61.bc.ca
ahentze@sd61.bc.ca
eleonard@sd61.bc.ca
rpaynter@sd61.bc.ca
jwatters@sd61.bc.ca
awhiteaker@sd61.bc.ca
community@sd61.bc.ca
The relevant points that could be mentioned are in the letter below. If you would like to, simply copy and paste this letter to send under your name.
Proposed sale of lands and Bowker Creek at Lansdowne South
I write today to express my opposition to the sale of 1.9 acres of School District 61 (publicly owned) property and 180 metres of Bowker Creek at Lansdowne South to Victoria Hospice Society. Victoria Hospice is a worthy organization doing important work but there are other options for their proposed development. Bowker Creek, on the other hand, has no other home. The land in question is a floodplain and building on it will increase impermeability immediately adjacent to the Creek, risking even greater downstream flooding than was experienced in November.
School District 61 along with the Capital Regional District, Oak Bay, Saanich, Victoria, UVIC and Island Health have all signed on to the Bowker Creek Blueprint and its proposed vision for meandering and widening the Creek on this parcel of land. Decades of investment and effort have gone into this vision, which will be impossible to realize should the sale of the land and Creek go ahead. The collaborative efforts of these organizations and community members show what is possible when people pull together to create resilient landscapes. Restoration of this section of the Creek would provide not only community green space but an unparalleled educational resource for the children of Victoria for generations to come.
The idea of providing capital funding for school upgrades from the wholesaling of SD61 properties is shortsighted: once these properties are sold, they will never again be held in trust should they be needed in the future for school enrolment growth. Please say no to the sale!