B.C. mountain resort has mayor but no voters in area home to grizzlies and goats
November 20, 2012 - 10:40 AM
INVERMERE, B.C. - British Columbia's newest mountain resort municipality now has a mayor and councillors but not a single voter in the area that's home to grizzly bears and goats.
Minister of Community, Sport and Cultural Development Bill Bennett says cabinet has approved the incorporation of the southeastern B.C. community of Jumbo.
Bennett has also appointed Greg Deck, Nancy Hugunin and Steve Ostrander as Jumbo's first mayor and councillors and the municipality is expected to be operational by its Feb. 19, 2013 incorporation date.
The $450-million year-round ski resort is planned for the foot of Jumbo Mountain and Jumbo Glacier, 55 kilometres outside Invermere, in B.C.'s Purcell Mountains, about 250 kilometres west of Calgary.
The project has been on the books for more than two decades and the Regional District of East Kootenay requested incorporation almost four years ago, but fierce resistance has slowed the project and the Ktunaxa (TEN'-a-ha) First Nation and provincial NDP remain opposed.
A government release says the Jumbo resort is projected to provide years of construction employment and create up 800 permanent full-time jobs.
News from © The Canadian Press, 2012