Anmore voices concerns over Ioco capacity as Port Moody considers OCP

As Port Moody considers trimming road space, Anmore council wants to ensure those cuts don’t impact Ioco.

Anmore council recently voted to send a response letter to their municipal neighbour regarding Port Moody’s pending official community plan.

The draft OCP for the City of the Arts refers to adding more “pedestrian-friendly streets and cycling corridors” on St. Johns and Murray streets, as well as Clarke and Ioco roads. Port Moody is also considering taking 10 percent of vehicle road space and using it for more sustainable forms of travel.

While Anmore is generally in favour of the initiative, the village: “wishes to ensure” capacity on Ioco Road won’t be reduced, according to the letter.

“Anmore is assuming that the aspiration to ‘reallocate a minimum of 10 percent of road space from vehicles to sustainable modes of travel’ would not impact existing capacity of Ioco Road,” the letter stated.

Mayor John McEwen emphasized that as Port Moody densifies, Ioco Road will be at capacity as residents make their way to Belcarra, Buntzen and Sasamat.

The letter also supports Port Moody’s plan to discourage major development at the Pleasantside and April Road neighbourhoods.

That should continue until “alternative access to the Belcarra and Anmore areas is available,” the letter stated.

That section of the letter seemed “a bit weird,” responded Coun. Doug Richardson.

“That seems a bit strange when we were going to consider the Icona development without access,” Richardson said. “I don’t think we can do one thing and then ask somebody else . . . not to do essentially the same thing.”

The letter also advocated discussions between the municipalities regarding wildlife corridors, waterways, and Port Moody’s initiative to increase the amount of land protected for nature in the city.