LAND DEALS: 1,800 UNDEVELOPED HECTARES ON THE BLOCK

Pending sale of pristine waterfront property upsets Islanders

SHANNON MONEO

Special to The Globe and Mail

September 18, 2007

JORDAN RIVER -- Western Forest Products is selling more than 1,800 hectares of its Vancouver Island property, less than two months after saying that changes to its land would come slowly, raising concerns among everyone from timber workers to surfers.

The 31 parcels are located about 70 kilometres west of Victoria in the communities between Shirley and Jordan River, and include 734,000 cubic metres of timber that can be logged and sold before development.

Western's chief operating officer Duncan Kerr said the company evaluated its Vancouver Island holdings and decided that the land being sold is better suited to development than to tree farming.

"We're not unaware of the fact that people who have expressed interest have some form of development in mind," he said from Western's head office in Duncan.

One particularly choice piece is four km of waterfront property in Jordan River, which Colliers International, Western's selling agent, describes as "one of the single greatest opportunities on Vancouver Island to acquire a prominent stretch of predominantly undeveloped coastline."

The 25-member West Coast Surfing Associates use that coastline, and the group's so-called Clubbies are worried. In 1975, they built a clubhouse at the Jordan River campground owned by Western. In the mid-'80s, a sauna was added.

From October to April, the spot draws surfers from around the world who catch waves that rival those in California or Australia.

"A lot of people would like to see that area remain as it is," said Rick Gillie, a 58-year-old geoscientist and club member who has been surfing at Jordan River for 30 years.

The club can't afford to buy the one hectare necessary to save its two buildings and the land where long-time campers, birdwatchers and nature-lovers congregate amid tsunami warning signs.

Mr. Gillie, who lives 30 km east in Sooke, would like local or provincial governments to buy some of the campground and designate it as a park.

Robert Trussler has been camping in his motorhome at the Western site since the mid-'80s, when it was free. It now costs $12 a night. As he stoked the driftwood fire on a cool, foggy day, the Victoria senior said he knew that such a scenic spot would inevitably become a private resort or condominium development.

Western's 41 employees work in several nearby buildings on land that is also for sale. Offices will be moved, Mr. Kerr said, adding that employees are more likely to keep their jobs than their view.

Jack Burns, 63, has worked in Western's maintenance shop in Jordan River for nearly three decades. Before that, he worked in the village's copper mine, which closed in the early 1970s.

After witnessing decades of change, he said the sale of Western's land will be "the biggest change that's ever happened to this place."

He expects there will be job losses because of all the timber being sold with the land. Western employees won't have a hand in the harvest.

"The quota will take a considerable drop. The cutting season will be quite a bit shorter," he said.

"For the younger guys, it's not very good."

But he acknowledges that the land on the chopping block is valuable.

Some parcels are oceanfront and some run up mountainsides and offer fantastic views of the Juan de Fuca Strait and Washington state.

In the nearby community of Shirley, Western has land for sale near French Beach and Jacob's Creek.

The rural area, where multimillion-dollar homes hug the rocky shore and families live on small acreages, suffers from water shortages, and locals worry that increased development could exacerbate the problem.

"Water is a major concern out here," said Maureen Nelson, a Shirley resident since 1980. "There are very few places you can drill and find a good source of water."

Some draw water from Jacob Creek, which Ms. Nelson said has never been lower. Others have potable water trucked in at a cost of about $230 for 3,000 gallons, which can last from five days to a month.

Ms. Nelson, a member of the Shirley Education and Action Society, accepts that Western, which she said has been a good steward of its lands, can sell its property for development. That came about in February, when the province allowed Western to remove 28,000 hectares from its Vancouver Island tree farm licences, thus freeing up the private land.

But Ms. Nelson adds that buyers have to follow existing zoning, which in Shirley stipulates a minimum lot size of four hectares. Development plans are often met with stiff opposition in an area striving to stay fiercely rural. And with 1,800 hectares for sale at once, Ms. Nelson wonders whether a glut of expensive property will flood the market.

Colliers senior vice-president Mark Lester said there has been local, national and international interest from individuals, groups and corporations. It's unknown what prospective buyers have planned.

Western's properties, which are intended to be sold in six blocks, do not list asking prices, Mr. Lester said from Vancouver.

But according to local listings, a one-hectare waterfront lot near Jordan River is going for $900,000. A Shirley mobile home on four hectares has a $449,000 asking price.

Offers will be considered in late September and proceeds from Western's land sales may go toward debt payments or capital investments, Mr. Kerr said.