Hello everyone,
Thanks for taking the time to write to me this past week. In order to ensure you all get answers from me in a timely way, I’m writing you all at once. I want you to know that I’ve read each of your 483 emails! They were mostly about Clover Point so I’m going to focus on that this week. For those of you who signed up for sheltering in parks updates, there is nothing new to report except that we are still on target to get everyone in inside by March 31st and there are emergency indoor shelters open during this cold weather snap.
I’ll start with background information on the Clover Point proposal and address your concerns. Then I’ll look at Clover Point again from a couple of different perspectives, one related to democracy and one related our ecological responsibility. I’d be honoured if you took the time to read the whole post.
I like writing these posts as it’s a way to respond to your thoughts, questions, concerns and ideas and to ensure that everyone has as much information as possible. If you’d like to receive an email each week you can sign up here (top right hand side.)
Clover Point
So many of you have taken the time to share some of your favourite memories at Clover Point. Thanks for doing so! You’ve said that it’s a place of refuge. A good place for car picnics on windy days. A place to share a cup of tea with an elderly parent. To watch the birds. To take in the magnificent view of the strait and mountains, wonderful for sunrises and sunsets, as well as storm watching. You like to eat your lunch there on your break or to get ice cream at the Beacon Hill Drive in and enjoy it in your car. And so many other stories.
One of my Clover Point car moments was years ago when I was going through a break up. You know that point in a break up where it still seems like a good idea to try and see each other even though the break up is definitely happening?! We got burgers from Big Wheel Burger and drove down to Clover Point. I think we were both grateful for the beautiful views while eating our burgers in the car, as it was much easier to look out at the ocean than it was to look at each other. A real solace.
Many of your emails seek to understand why this proposal and why now, what about consultation, and how will we consider accessibility concerns? There are also many of you who have sent passionate emails saying it’s a really good idea to change Clover Point in the way that we’re proposing. I’m not going to take a “side” here, because I think it’s always more complex than sides. I’m going to talk about the circumstances that the led to this proposal, and about engagement, consultation and accessibility. Then I’ll talk about next steps and where we go from here.
Last year, staff came to Council with a recommendation to replace the old Dallas Road balustrade near Ogden Point as part of the civil and engineering works that were happening in that area because of the sewage project. It was more cost effective to do it at the same time as the sewage project than as a stand alone project in the coming years.
The balustrade replacement project went very well in two ways. First, it was very recently completed – the final touches were installed just a few weeks ago – and it came in under budget. This left approximately $250,000 that could be used to make additional improvements to the waterfront. And second, everyone loved it! We got such positive feedback about the yellow deck chairs, the path for people walking as well as riding bikes, the additional angled parking spots for up close viewing of the ocean.
So with this remaining budget for public realm improvements, and the sewage project still underway at Clover Point, staff turned their minds to a similar approach as they had at the balustrade: what could we do now to improve the public realm in a cost effective way.
To get ideas for Clover Point, staff referred back to previous public consultation on ideas for Clover Point including this 2017 Fairfield Gonzales neighbourhood report that was produced by the Fairfield Gonzales Community Association Land Use Committee. Please take the time to read it; the residents put a lot of work and effort in.
Staff consulted this document as well as the Fairfield Neighbourhood Plan and the Parks and Open Spaces Master Plan both of which had extensive public engagement. Policy direction in all of these documents points to enhancing pedestrian access to the waterfront.
Drawing on all this information and wanting to capitalize on the opportunity as they had up the road near Ogden Point, staff proposed the new interim treatment at Clover Point which has generated all the buzz this week! The proposed design is exactly that, an interim proposal the can be implemented in time for this summer while we have a longer conversation about the future of Clover Point.
One of the key things that came up in many of your emails this week is concerns that what staff had proposed to keep Clover Point accessible to those with mobility challenges did not go far enough. On Thursday, Council directed staff to report back on February 25th with some different options to address these concerns. Thanks to those of you who have proposed design ideas. I’ve forwarded them to staff.
A few other concerns that some of you raised is how windy it is and not a good place for picnics. Also the kite surfing crowd – a sport which I learned a lot about this week, thank you! – said we need to keep the grassy space open for kites to land. The good thing about an interim treatment and the installation of chairs and picnic tables, etc. is that they are easily moveable as necessary. There was also some concern about food trucks and lots of questions about garbage flying around etc. The food trucks are just an idea. People seem to have enjoyed the food carts that were along Dallas Road last summer, so perhaps maybe they’d also enjoy them at Clover Point from time to time.
The whole point of the proposed project is to try something a bit different down there that will make the place feel more like a park than like a space for cars to park, while keeping it accessible to as many people as possible. Many of you in business will know the Six Sigma PDSA methodology: Plan, Do, Study, Act. It’s an iterative, four-stage problem solving model used for improving a process or carrying out change. And it’s also so that we can learn by doing, not by talking or theorizing or studying. This is the approach we propose to take over the next few years at Clover Point. And all your feedback has been and will be most helpful in this regard!
I’ll post a further update on my blog after the Council meeting on February 25th.
“The majority of people feel the same way I do.”
This is a phrase I’ve heard uttered often this week about Clover Point. And every time Council proposes to take a bold action that changes the status quo, whether it’s bike lanes, reconciliation efforts, sheltering during the pandemic, or this week, Clover Point, I hear the same message, “The majority of people feel the same way I do.”
Those of you who have written to me this week to tell me this have shared a screenshot of the number of “likes” on your Facebook page, or you site the majority of comments in a Facebook Group that you belong to, or point to the number of people in an online media poll where the majority of voluntary respondents have supported your point of view, or note that all the callers on one radio show are saying the same thing.
This approach to difficult issues – asserting that a majority of people hold a particular view based on social media, an online poll, or talk radio – threatens democracy, undermines civic dialogue, and inhibits our collective ability to tackle complex problems.
“The majority of people agree with my point of view,” is a product of the echo chamber of social media where algorithms predict our likes and interests and feed us content that reinforces what we already believe. This documentary, The Social Dilemma, lays this all out really well. In social media land, differences of opinion are trounced on and facts become irrelevant. The most notorious case in point: there are millions of Americans who believe that Donald Trump won the election.
As noted above, we’ve received a number of emails from seniors and people with disabilities this week requesting that Clover Point be left as is so that they can continue to enjoy it. Here are some other emails we’ve also received from seniors and people with disabilities.
From a senior
“Dear Mayor and Council,
“As an 88 year old resident of Victoria, I want to urge you to keep Clover Point car-free. Clover Point is a unique and much visited part of Victoria. It is very important to keep it car free in order to maintain its natural, unspoiled beauty. I can enjoy it when I get a ride to that area, and then can walk out to the end of Clover Point, enjoying the natural sea shore, WITHOUT VEHICLES as part of the view and landscape. When I can no longer walk I shall sit in a car parked along the road … I DO NOT NEED TO BE ABLE TO DRIVE TO THE END OF THE POINT TO APPRECIATE THE SPLENDID VIEW!!!
“By the way I am an active citizen who VOTES every chance I get!!”
And from a person with a disability:
“Fully support the proposed changes — I have a toddler and avoid Clover Point. We walk down to Dallas Road and there’s nothing for us at Clover Point.
“The cars backing in and out, the exhaust, and the fact that the green space is enclosed on all sides by a parking lot makes it unsafe and frankly, super boring. Which is a shame because it’s such an incredible and unique spot!
“I love the city’s new vision and I’d love to see Clover Point made into an actual park.
“I have a disability which among other things means that I can’t drive. Make Clover Point a safe, accessible place and everyone wins. There are tons of other places to park in a storm and look out the window.
“Maybe some wind breaks in the new design would be neat.
“Also, shout out to Councilor Young who first proposed this back in 1994! Wow!”
And if these two emails aren’t evidence of a healthy diversity of opinion even within the most affected groups, the survey conducted this week by the Fairfield Gonzales Community Association is a bit more evidence that there is no strong majority opinion on the topic of Clover Point, one way or another. This survey was open from Tuesday morning to Wednesday afternoon and was completed by 992 people. It is voluntary and non-representative The results show that:
48.0% support the proposal (475 votes)
9.2% somewhat support the proposal (91 votes)
42.8% oppose the proposal (423 votes)
There is this great movement afoot in the United States called, “Make America Purple,” where Democrats and Republicans with strongly held views sit down, one-on-one, and have a conversation. What they’re finding is that they have more in common than what sets them apart. I’ve done this too. Some of you may remember a few years ago when Paul Seal who ran a Facebook page called Victoria BC Today was waging what felt like pretty personal attacks on me online. I invited him to my house for tea. And he came! We found that there were quite a few things we could agree on and also that it felt good for both of us to have a face to face conversation.
So a request from your mayor who loves each of you and this city very much: the next time you’re thinking that the majority of people see something the way you do, or when you’re feeling really strongly about an issue, reach out to someone who thinks differently about it, and invite them to have a conversation. I can guarantee that if we all do this, it will make our city better, and also, it will feel good because being connected with each feels better other than being divided from each other.
What’s our responsibility to the creatures we love?
A final consideration that has been niggling at me all week in the discussion of Clover Point is that few people have talked about the ecological health of the area.
Clover Point is part of the Victoria Habour Migratory Bird Sanctuary. Here is a great site, maintained by local bird watchers that lets us know the birds that have been seen recently. This past Friday alone, there were 19 separate species spotted.
Here is what someone who likes to drive down to the point shared this week with respect to nature: “I have witnessed, many a time, Orcas swimming so close you could almost touch them, Humpback’s slapping their large flukes just feet away. I have witnessed Eagles eating their catch on the rocks below as well as many an Otter frolicking on the rocks as well. I hear the sea lions barking and watch them swim by and occasionally jump out of the water.”
In 1956, according to Beacon Hill Park history, which cites a Daily Colonist article, “A circular drive with an oiled surface will be completed around the point.” Since 1956 storm water runoff from vehicles has been going directly into the habitat of the wildlife we all cherish. This article in the International Journal of Urban Sciences outlines the negative impact of heavy metals released from from car exhaust, worn tires and engine parts, as part of storm water runoff. In addition to heavy metals, the most common storm water pollutants from vehicles include oils and grease, and sediments from construction vehicles.
For years we pumped raw sewage right into the ocean off of Clover Point. As of December 2020, we are no longer doing so; we now have a sewage treatment system in place that aligns with the values of our community in the 21st century. I know that staff and Council will come to a solution for Clover Point that addresses the needs of people with disabilities and senior’s with accessibility challenges to have access to the water.
But for the rest of us, it’s time for the days of driving right up to the ocean to come to an end. I know this will feel like a loss to many people. But by letting go of this practice and by thinking of something much, much bigger than ourselves, there is also a lot to be gained.
Almost post script: On Saturday morning, after shoveling the sidewalk and checking in with the people running the emergency cold weather sheltering sites, I got back into bed with a cup of coffee. I was staring out the window, reflecting on how little was said about protecting nature at Clover Point this past week, and this Alice Walker poem popped into my head from her book called, Her Blue Body Everything We Know. This is my Sunday offering to you all.
With gratitude,
Lisa / Mayor Helps
We Have A Beautiful Mother
We have a beautiful
mother
Her hills
are buffaloes
Her buffaloes
hills.
We have a beautiful
mother
Her oceans
are wombs
Her wombs
oceans.
We have a beautiful
mother
Her teeth
the white stones
at the edge
of the water
the summer
grasses
her plentiful
hair.
We have a beautiful
mother
Her green lap
immense
Her brown embrace
eternal
Her blue body
everything
we know.
