So here we are again, less than a month from approving a Cactus Club Cafe on English Bay beach, and a proposal to transfer the lease of the Watermark at Kits is coming to the next meeting of the Park Board on Monday. Watermark wants to transfer their lease to the Boathouse Restaurant chain.
I opposed the original bid to build a licenced dining lounge at Kits beach precisely because I was afraid of the encroaching commercialization of our public lands. This fear has been more than met. While I know that the Boathouse is great place to eat, I continue to believe that large chain restaurants have no place in our parks or on our beaches. It is a fundamental policy of the Green Party of Vancouver to oppose these commercial ventures in our public spaces.
After the approval of the Cactus Club in March I heard from many others in Vancouver who are concerned about this continuing trend. I have no doubt that the lease transfer will pass, and I imagine once again by a vote of 6-1. When the next election comes around I hope voters remember who encouraged the continuing commercialization of our public spaces and who stood up against it.
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