WATCH: Chip Wilson’s neighbour Colin Smith talks to BC1‘s Geoff Hastings about why he is opposed to the dock proposed by the Lululemon founder.
A battle is brewing on the Sunshine coast between local residents and Vancouver billionaire Chip Wilson.
Lululemon founder is allegedly planning to build a large private dock in front of his waterfront home in the area between Secret Cove and Pender Harbour. But many locals are against the plan, saying it would disrupt the area.
One of them is Colin Smith, who is Wilson’s neighbour.
READ MORE: Lululemon founder Chip Wilson paints over mural he commissioned last Oct.
Smith says it is not a neighbour-to-neighbour issue, but rather the residents are concerned about the potential environmental impact.
He says the breakwaters that will go with the dock are a big concern. “It is 5,600 square feet of marine habitat that’s going to be either completely devastated or partially affected by this dock.”
Smith says there are also concerns over the effects on endangered species inhabiting the area, such as rockfish and marbled murrelet.
“It is a huge dock that was proposed to be put in the wrong part of the coast,” says Smith. “The implications of a dock like this being passed on the Sunshine Coast sets a very dangerous precedent for any such construction in the future. There is nothing like this scale-wise on the Sunshine Coast for private use.”
Global News has reached out to Mr. Wilson for comment, whose office confirms he has applied to the government for approval of a dock at his property in Sechelt, but says he “would prefer to refrain from public comment while that application is pending.”
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