In his recent letter to the editor (Mayor not at fault for this mess, Burnaby NOW, Dec. 27, Mr. McQueen calls the decision to close the bus loop at Brentwood "asinine" and lays the blame on TransLink. But looking at the process makes it clear that the all-NDP/BCA mayor and council made the decision.
The mall owner, Shape, made an "amazing master plan" which eliminates the loop. Corrigan and council approved the plan last September. They had already, in June, approved the loop-closure-related recommendations in a transportation committee report. The purpose of that report was to "seek the necessary council authorization" for rerouting buses, the consequence of closing the loop in order to make way for Shape's as yet (and even now) unapproved construction. The Now reported that Coun. Colleen Jordan called the changes "amazing."
Coun. Sav Dhaliwal moved the report in committee, then voted against it in committee and council. At least he showed some backbone.
Surely council and mayor could require the developer to keep the loop as a condition of "transit-oriented development" and densification. Of course corporate owners don't want a grungy bus loop crowded with the poor and lame taking up space that could be dedicated to sexy shops and "sleek towers." But council, and not Shape, is elected to be the master planner, and to protect the public's interest, not Shape's profits.
The report disses the loop for not being sufficiently "urban." This term mimics Shape's master plan, which stresses the need to be "urban." Certainly more pedestrian roadkill may give us transit users the hip urban edge that comes with living dangerously as we trundle across the highway pushing our strollers, shopping carts and walkers.
The mayor and council's process - of their making - is deeply flawed. First, transit users were not consulted. Council's transportation committee has no one representing transit users, a large, diverse and vulnerable group. There is a bicycle advisory group sub-committee: great, but it's also council green-wash. Green for most means riding buses, not bikes.
Secondly, they left it to the private corporation to gather public input. Shape held a little publicized "information meeting" June 26 - after council had approved the loop closure.
Thirdly, the transportation committee report has an obvious omission: it doesn't explicitly mention but requires closing the ramp/pedestrian overpass which provides safe access to and from SkyTrains. This would not have passed scrutiny by anyone who actually uses transit in the area.
The report also states that "most" walk distances will be shorter. When - three years? And it's time and safety that counts: waiting at intersections and for elevators means more time and more missed connections. This will be worse when the ramp/overpass is closed.
At the public hearing on Dec. 10, I asked Corrigan and council questions about the loop closure. Will the ramp be closed? Will the sidewalks be salted and cleared in icy/snowy conditions? Who is liable if someone is injured - the developer or the city? None of the questions were answered.
Afterwards, Coun. Pietro Calendino reprimanded me and expressed his displeasure with "political rants and all the s**t you're talking about."
Shape's vice-president was quoted in the NOW saying that the sidewalks near the mall would be maintained. But they didn't shovel a long stretch on the south side of Lougheed Highway. Maybe they don't want to cross it either.
Helen Ward is a Burnaby resident.
