FRASER HEIGHTS COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION MINUTES
November 25, 2015
President’s report
• Web site – www.fhca.ca
• Marcie Kroeker, president
• FHCA is a volunteer organization – we volunteer our time to represent the community dealing with issues that affect our community such as safety, traffic, development
• The FHCA gathers four times a year to discuss issues that affect our community
• FHCA helps shape policy and issues that involve our community
• If you have problems in our community, please send your information to us and we will look into these issues (go to Contact Us on the fhca.ca website). This is our primary site to collect comments from residents about community issues so we know about them and can send them on to the City.
• If you are not currently on the email list, go to our website and sign up (on the right side of website page). You will receive four notifications and four reminders of the upcoming meetings per year. There may also be notifications of open houses or events affecting FH residents.
• Our Community Association mailing address is PO Box 74042, Surrey, V4N 1N9.
Treasurer’s report
• Financial statement – total account balance is $3535.33
RCMP update on safety and security – District Commander Sergeant Laurie Clarkson can be reached at laurie.clarkson@rcmp-grc.gc.ca.
• Corporal Bob Keay (bob.keay@rcmp-grc.gc.ca) attended our meeting. He has been working with the neighbourhood liaison unit for about 8 months. They are going through restructuring now to focus more on communities – to see where crime stats are. They regularly canvas businesses to see about activity in the neighbourhood and offer advice. Their new name is Community Response Unit. Laurie is his direct boss. They are looking at increasing # of officers in this unit. They have been targeting adults who hang around with youth and knock on doors to ask residents about neighbourhood concerns. This unit works throughout Surrey.
• District 2 got several new recruits/officers but it takes 6 months of training at the depot and ride-along with trainers before they patrol on their own.
• School liaison officers – there are 17 in Surrey and they focus on concerns and issues at the schools. Two officers are assigned to Fraser Hts Secondary and Pacific Academy High Schools (they do visit the FH elementary schools as well). Their role is interactive, directly working with the students. They do educational presentations, have preventative programs, provide students with life skills and teach them how to report various incidents. Surrey’s prevention program has been recognized as one of the best in Canada.
• This month is pedestrian safety month. Make sure you are visible when walking in low light or at night time. Wear light clothing/wear a safety vest or use reflectors on your clothes. After educating students on pedestrian safety on November 30th, reflectors will be handed out to increase visibility when walking at night.
• Heather Paradis (heather.paradis@rcmp-grc.gc.ca) presented crime stats from 2014 to 2015. There were 29 Break and Enters in 2014 but only 9 in 2015 – these numbers have gone down. Property crime also decreased (stats are taken from all reported cases so if you didn’t report an incident, it wouldn’t be part of the stats).
• If residents want more information on Emergency Preparedness, they can call/email Heather.
• The big wind storm on August 29th caused a lot of damage. Many residents were without power for hours to days. Make sure you have a kit with supplies for a minimum of 3 days to preferably a week. Pack the essentials in a Rubbermaid tote (bin with wheels) or a backpack.
• Another Emergency Preparedness meeting will be held in February (watch for the date). It is about 3 hours long and is intended for 30 people so to guarantee a space, call 604-543-6795. You can find more information at www.surrey.ca/sep or www.getprepared.ca
• If your house is not well ventilated, it is not recommended to use a gas fireplace or gas stove when power out as the carbon monoxide can build up in the house. If you use your barbeque, do not bring it in the house.
• Muster points for emergencies in Fraser Heights are usually at the local schools or Rec Centre. It is best to make arrangements with your own family members to meet someplace in the event of an emergency.
• If you don’t report crimes in Fraser Heights, there will be no record of them so police can’t track the criminals/hot spots of activity. Call the Non-Emergency RCMP number 604-599-0502 about any incidents, no matter how small they seem. You can also make reports at http://www.surrey.ca/city-services/667.aspx or by using the new Surrey app called Surrey Request for emergency and non-emergency issues (pictures can be attached to your reports). This app has a link to the RCMP emergency and non-emergency numbers.
Development:
• The development plan (7914-0322-00) of acre properties in Parkview Place (south of 104 Ave and west of 167 St) is to subdivide these properties into 53 single lots with 41 of them being the smaller RF12 (3445 sq ft lots), 1 park lot and retain 2 existing houses. This will be going for reading on Monday, November 30th at City Council. Most residents were upset that RF12 housing had been proposed for this area. Current housing developments in most of FH are RF (5 to 6 houses per acre). In addition to the higher density, there were concerns about parking, access in and out of this area and a housing structure that was not in line with the rest of FH. The infrastructure for increased traffic in FH is not in place. We are a community surrounded by Highways and have very limited access in and out of FH (we only have 3 routes to get in and out of FH – 156 St, 160 St, 176/SFPR or Hwy 17).
• Residents were requested to attend the meeting at City Hall (Surrey Central) on Monday and sign in early (6:30 p.m.) so they could speak to the matter. Even if residents do not live in this area of FH, let’s stand together on this issue so it doesn’t happen elsewhere in FH. Take your neighbours, sign in to speak to mayor and council and be concise and clear about your concerns and how you would like the area to look. State concerns using precise locations/addresses and speak briefly. Mention sizes of trees etc. 9 letters of concern came to our directors but there were probably more. These letters caused the minimal changes along the east side of the proposed development – the City took out one lot so the lots are wider but still much smaller lots. Residents should stay until the end of the meeting.
• There were also concerns about the houses being too close to the #1 Hwy without an adequate buffer for noise and pollution. The trucks on the Highway, through their exhaust, put fine particles/fumes in the air which can cause significant health issue for houses along freeway. All of FH is landlocked by freeways so this is a big concern to FH.
• Forward any concerns you have about development issues to Don Luymes at the City If less houses were put in, more trees could be retained and provide a better buffer.
• Don Luymes (dluymes@surrey.ca) had held an open house on East Fraser Heights Concept Plan at the Rec Centre that was well attended. It was apparent FH residents did not want RF12 housing in that area, they wanted buffers and other issues addressed. The City reviewed all requests/suggestions and made changes to the plans that were more in line with the residents’ ideas for the area.
• The City sends notification of future developments to residents within 100 metres of a site to be developed. This means that most residents in an area have no idea about future land use, especially if they do not speak English.
• During the last wind storm, many trees fell down or large branches snapped off them, causing a lot of damage. Arborists took down several other trees, if they found anything wrong, to prevent future disasters from those trees.
• Historical perspective – In the early days of FH, Fraser Glen was going to be an industrial park – Nesters was going to be strip mall with townhouses behind it. In order to get this changed, it took the whole community to rally together.
• When Pacific Academy (PA) was planning their campus in FH, they came to the community to discuss their plans and together, the community went to council with PA to support their application.
• The Official community plan has pretty much stuck to that plan set in 1980s until recently.
• 156 St and 110 Ave – the proposed development was for RF 12. Only a few residents received notification of this (they were within 100 metres of the site). Residents nearby sent letters to the planners, mayor and council that this did not fit with the surrounding community so the proposal was changed to RF (5 or 6 houses/acre).
• Dave Hayer spoke about the changes from when he moved to Surrey in 1972. He lives in the Clayton area where there is RF 12 housing. Parking and congestion are big concerns as well as space in the local schools. He urged FH residents to stand together as one community to oppose this type of housing.
• FH residents also got the location of the SFPR (Hwy 17 or South Fraser Perimeter Road) changed. Originally, it was going to run along 112th and divide our community. The City/province listened to residents and moved it to where it is now located.
• City hall does consult with our community for feedback – their doors are open for discussion. It is important to let them know when you have concerns as one voice speaks for many.
• It is important to attend council meetings. Due to FH residents’ responses to East FH development, the City is trying to accommodate everyone’s concerns and comments. They hope to bring their new plans to council before Christ mas. The biggest concerns were for keeping the density consistent with what we already have here, retain more trees and provide residents with a look and feel as to what we already have. Don heard us. Changes were made.
• Densities that were between Hwy 1 and 100 Ave, west of 176 (Hwy 17) were proposed as 10 to 15/acre. East of 176 on Barnston were to be mostly urban residential 8 – 10/acre.
• 177A Street, near the businesses, was proposed to have medium density clusters of 10 to 12 per acre
• The proposed housing on Lysean Drive ranges from 2 to 4, and 4 to 6 per acre plus a new park is planned for that area
• Residents were concerned that the City identifies trees to be saved but developers can pay to take them down. Developers are required to plant trees to replace these trees but they are considerably smaller and are often not planted in the same area). The Ruby Hill development at the entrance to FH (160 St and 104 Ave) had all the trees removed as small RF12 lots meant there was no space for trees. Many large trees, that had been identified to be saved, were taken down and now this development is an eyesore when entering FH.
• Emails had been sent to the City asking for trees and landscaping around the Ruby Hill development but City/Province haven’t acted on this. Please continue to send emails to the City as residents have complained that the once beautiful entrance to FH has now been replaced by a big ugly, cathedral-like housing development (tall and dark) that needs to be hidden amongst trees.
• Multiuse pathway by Pacific Academy along Barnston Drive West – many trees were taken out but new trees were planted (fewer than those removed). Lighting was also installed (it wasn’t on the original plan but was requested by residents).
• 162 St and 110 Ave – 6 RF lots are proposed for this site. It is also on the agenda for the Nov 30 for public hearing. It was stated that the housing surrounding it had 5 houses to the acre. Some residents were concerned that one extra house/acre may not match what already exists.
• 10555 160 St – 6 small family lots (RF12) were proposed for this lot which is the same type of development as in neighbouring Ruby Hill. The application is in the preliminary stages and can still be contested. Send an email to the planner, mayor and council if you have any concerns.
• Some FH residents want to stay in FH but downsize to smaller homes or homes on one level which can be hard to find. The majority of feedback was to keep densities down and consistent through FH.
• In East FH, low density townhomes have been proposed. Multifamily housing was proposed for area west of 176 on 100th but concerns were traffic issues that would arise from this. 177A can be quite busy in rush hour.
City of Surrey Parks and Recreation – Surrey Bend Park:
• Doug Merry (dmerry@surrey.ca), from the City of Surrey, Parks did a presentation on Surrey Bend (SB).
• There is a report under Parks and Rec on the City website: http://www.surrey.ca/files/DraftSBRP-ManagementPlan-July1220101.pdf
• SB is made up of 860 acres with over 5 km of waterfront. To compare sizes, Stanley Park is 1000 acres and Tynehead is 642.5 acres. Tynehead has multiple access sites but SB will only have one access site.
• It contains the last piece of undiked land that has significant flooding annually
• There are a variety of ecosystems at SB with unique bog and swamp lands
• SB is divided into 3 units – Bog, Fraser River Unit and Parson’s channel unit.
• Development focused on the south-east area. There is no budget for anything west of this at this time.
• Due to sensitivity of the ecosystems of SB, only a small part of the park will be accessible
• Train tracks cut off part of the park
• Enter parking lot off 104 Ave, beside the pond. The grey area (on Concept 2 map) is ferry to Barnston Island
• There will be picnic tables, benches, washrooms and water hookups. There will also be 3 park shelters which can be reserved. They are reported to be able to hold about 44 people each. They can be reserved by contacting Metro Vancouver. Question was – will it cost to reserve them because Derby Reach does but Tynehead does not. Answer was – most likely not.
• Natural play areas made from rock/wood will be in the accessible area. Where the lands are subject to flooding, the ground has been raised by about 1 meter
• There are about 10 Km of paths made up of gravel. Dogs must be leashed. The intent is for foot traffic, not bikes. Land around the trails is quite boggy so stay on the trails.
• Scheduled opening date is April 2016.
• Question – will there be fire pits or barbeques – no, they had not been mentioned when planning
• Shared costs (half City of Surrey and half Metro Vancouver). City paid for planning and Metro paid for construction so it met their standards.
• Park will most likely be open dawn to dusk as no lights are proposed for SB. There will be a gate to close off parking lot.
• Eventually an overpass will be built to connect SB to FH. Doug said this would be decades away but is in the long term planning. This would make a loop for those cycling through FH.
• Question: Will there be boat ramps/launch – the City determined it was a natural area. Parson’s channel is active so no place to launch boats is in the plans.
• Fishing opportunities – SB is close to water and there is nothing to stop people from fishing as people already currently do so.
Doug Merry also presented on the Infestation of European Chafer Beetle
• This invasive beetle arrived in 2001. It lives in the soil under grass. The larvae do damage by eating the grass roots but the grass damage seen is due to raccoons and crows who pull up the grass to eat the beetle larvae. There are infected lawns seen all over FH.
• To decrease the number of larvae in your lawn, keep grass healthy and well aerated as weak lawns are more susceptible to infestation.
• The City has been experimenting with different types of lawn such as micro-clover which has a different type of root system.
• Creeping thyme, mosses and other plants can be used instead of grass as they have a different type of root system which is not attacked by the beetle larvae – or plant more trees, shrubs and flowers instead.
• Nematodes – this is an expensive way to treat the larvae – there is a 2 day window to apply and lawn must be watered (not good under watering restrictions). It is not very affective for most people.
• When mating, these beetles fly and are attracted to light – there seem to be more lawns damaged in areas where street lamps are as they often they lay eggs around the lit areas
• A website – www.Surrey.ca/chaferbeetle – is being developed and will be up and running in the near future
• Don’t put chicken wire over lawn as this will prevent raccoons and crows from eating the larvae – we want them to eat as many as they can to help control the problem.
Fraser View park off-leash dog park
• Currently, an off-leash park is being installed in South Surrey so Fraser View Park (160 Street and 112 Ave – north east corner) may possibly be the next park to receive an off-leash area for dogs.
• If Fraser View Park is next, it will be planned for in 2016 and developed in 2017. If you are interested in getting this off leash site in FH, please email Doug Merry (dmerry@surrey.ca) as the community that makes the most requests will be next to get their off-leash park. We were one of the identified areas to get an off-leash park by 2019.
Members Concerns/Announcements:
• It was reported that 275 people checked in at the East FH Land Use Concept open house at the FH Rec Centre. This shows a unified community to have such good attendance when issues arise!
• Rexall garbage bin – it is a disaster as garbage is left out of the bins and there’s an infestation of rats. Residents were advised to phone bylaws or take pictures and report this on the Surrey Request app. Surrey usually deals with requests made on this app quite quickly.
The next two scheduled meetings for this school year are:
Wednesday, February 17, 2016
Wednesday, May 4, 2016