Fraser-Nicola MLA Tony Luck has called for an emergency town hall meeting in Hope to hear the community's concerns about a proposed gravel pit expansion.
Residents are being invited to provide their thoughts regarding the potential increase to the size of Hope Ready Mix Ltd.'s mining, quarry, and gravel extraction/ operation to 50 hectares.
The meeting is taking place on Feb. 21, at the Hope & Area Recreation Centre, from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.
"Due to the overwhelming number of residents contacting us, we have decided to hold a public town hall for the residents of Hope," said Corally Delwo, the constituent assistant for Fraser-Nicola MLA Tony Luck, via email. "We will be contacting Jake Klassen and the ministry to have them present for any questions people have. Having all entities present is the best way to, hopefully, come to a resolution."
Since the end of December 2024, residents have been voicing both their opposition towards and concerns over the proposed expansion. These concerns include: increased truck activity; the owner, Jake Klassen, allegedly exceeding the permit’s load limit; ruining tourism in Hope; and further damage to land that was once the habitat to species such as the Spotted Owl and Mountain Beaver.
The District of Hope council and mayor, and First Nation representatives, have been invited to attend the meeting as well. Karina Thomas, a resident of Othello Road who requested the public meeting, said she began asking questions about the permit application after becoming worried about how the expansion would affect residents on Othello Road and Kawkawa Lake Road.
Thomas is concerned that truck traffic will be diverted from Kettle Valley Road to "down further west to come out a few hundreds meters past the Othello Road and Kawkawa Lake Road turnoff. And continue to run all the Hope Ready Mix traffic through town along Kawkawa Lake Road."
This new traffic plan, according to Thomas, would affect about eight of the residents living there and see the trucks driving further along Kawkawa Lake Road, going past the park and lakeside residents. That could move the existing problem "from Kettle Valley Road to Othello Road and further exacerbate the issue as the trucks would now drive the entire length of Kawkawa Lake Road," she said.
Because of this, Thomas said she began looking into the plan and brought her concerns to the ministry, the District of Hope, Fraser Valley Regional District (FVRD), First Nation representatives, Luck, and Hope Ready Mix. A meeting was held between them and Thomas and, during it, the officials realized that the expansion was bigger than they had initially believed. They also realized that there were details in the plan that needed to be further clarified.
This, along with mounting complaints from the community, was the lightning rod that sparked the upcoming public meeting.
"We can't accept our safety being jeopardized," Thomas said. "The MLAs are trying to investigate why the ministry of mines isn't doing proper public engagement on these types of things. And that is a really key issue that they need to get to the root of.
"But the reason I took this on is because I want to educate people. Make it transparent. Have town halls," she said. "And then, hopefully, if we do it right, we'll actually come up with something and it probably won't be perfect for every party, but it will be the best that we can make for every party."
A petition, Stop the Hope Cemetery Pit Expansion, was also posted online Feb. 2.
As of Feb. 11, the petition has 650 out of the 700 signatures it needs.
Those interested in signing the petition can do so by searching for “Stop the Hope Cemetery Pit Expansion” on openPetition.org.
Are you a Hope local with thoughts on this? Email a letter to the editor to kemone.moodley@hopestandard.com.
