Squamish residents have to pick their battles carefully in terms of what they value most in the community, says local developer Mario Gomes.聽
鈥淚 think we need to pick our fights in a way,鈥� he said. 鈥淚f you want affordability and you want more quality people to come to town and you want more businesses to show up, first you need to bring the people.鈥澛�
Gomes was responding to some of the concerns raised in Squamish around parking and possible loss of views of the Stawamus Chief due to new developments being built downtown. Shovels will soon be in the ground on Gomes latest housing project, The Main, in downtown Squamish after the project was approved for its development permit at council on Oct. 18.聽
The six-storey project of one and two-bedroom apartments held a grand-opening at its presentation centre on Saturday.聽
Council granted the project a variance of the development permit, allowing one off-street loading spot rather than the required two.聽
This sparked a discussion of parking in downtown.聽
A couple of Squamish residents who live in a development next to The Main site said there was already a parking shortage in the area and said the project will make it worse.聽
The Main includes a total of 135 parking spots for its 110 units and commercial operations; the municipality requires 129.
鈥淎dding all of this extra traffic coming through, I think it is going to be an issue,鈥� said Crystal Senkpiel, who lives nearby. 鈥淲hat you as a council have set up, having one parking spot per [unit], is not OK.鈥澛�
Gomes, who lives and works in downtown Squamish, said he doesn鈥檛 think parking is much of an issue.聽
It is almost unheard of in a downtown core, regardless of location, to have two parking spots for a one-bedroom unit, he said, adding 鈥渋t鈥檚 not realistic.鈥�
Looking to the future of downtown, Gomes said he would like to see more municipal spots dedicated for car-share vehicles.聽
鈥淭o me that is almost a no-brainer,鈥� he said, adding progress is inevitable, but it is important to shape it. 鈥淭here is no doubt in my mind that is where we are going as a society.鈥澛�
The street-level floor of The Main will include 10,000 square feet of commercial space that could be divided into 10 different businesses or could be as few as three retailers.聽
Gomes says he would like the community鈥檚 feedback about what type of business they would like to see set up in the building.聽
A native of Brazil, Gomes said he has incorporated touches of his homeland into The Main in an effort to encourage a more vibrant street.聽
The sidewalks in front of the development will be extra-wide with extra-large benches and have wind-inspired drawings and LED lights embedded in them, Gomes said.
The businesses will have glassed garage doors that can be opened up in the summer months and create more of an open community feel on the street, he added.
The development will also have Squamish鈥檚 first green roof of its size.聽
鈥淚t is probably the size of a football field,鈥� Gomes said, adding the roof will help reduce heating costs and is longer lasting than the typical roof.聽
