Merchants, property owners surveyed
John French
Chief Staff Writer
It is time once again for a revitalization of the downtown.
That is the feeling of many in Squamish as it was more than a decade since the last revitalization initiative downtown.
The Com-munity Futures Development Corporation of Howe Sound is currently surveying downtown businesses on the issue of revitalization.
Western Economic Diversification (WED) is funding the initiative.
Dan McRae of the local Community Futures office said Betty-Ann Thomson is going to conduct face-to-face interviews with downtown business and property owners on Cleveland Avenue and Second Avenue from Hwy. 99 to the water. The results of the interviews will be documented and by early next month a final report is expected.
"We felt that the timing was sort of right and put a project proposal for WED and WED believes in Squamish and the work we have done here," McRae said. "This project is also going on in Pemberton so we are doing them together."
McRae added that the mayors of both communities are supportive and excited. Squamish's economic development officer is also supporting the initiative, said McRae.
If through the work of Community Futures it is discovered that there is consensus then the initiative will move forward. The next steps will be to find funding and assistance.
The Main Street Program is one avenue of assistance that can be tapped into and another is the establishment of a Business Improvement Area (BIA).
The Squamish Town Centre Association was contemplating the creation of a BIA. That initiative is on hold while Community Futures completes the survey, according to the president of the association, Mohammad Afsar.
There was an attempt to launch a BIA for the downtown in the early 1990s; however, the initiative did not receive enough support and it was never created.
"The Main Street Program assists communities in downtown revitalization," McRae said.
On Apr. 5 there will be an information meeting at the Howe Sound Inn and Brewing Company to show the results of the study and to get feedback.
McRae said the meeting will feature guest speakers from places that have done recent revitalization projects.
