Vantreight Hill Project - the benefits

The project does have some significant benefits to the community, farming and the environment, here is a list of eight:

1. Development is located in a location of low environmental impact.   Much of the current new house construction in Central Saanich is on ALR land.   Farms have been sold off as individual lots and many formerly farm fields now sprout houses.   Adding this 57 houses will reduce the demand to build more houses in ALR.
2. Consolidating six lots with a total area of 235 acres into 2 lots is the biggest single action to protect farmland in Central Saanich in more than a generation.   One lot will be the second largest lot in the ALR in Central Saanich.   These two lots will also have no subdivision covenants on them.
3. 7.5 acres for community/allotment gardens.    This is the biggest addition to new land for community gardens in this region in ages.   This will make the idea of the Zero Mile Diet much more realistic for people.   
4. The 12 acres of the highest environmental values on the Hill will now be protected from any sort of development.   1.6 acres will be park as requested by Central Saanich.
5. The farm will be able to be passed onto the next generation to manage, the fifth one.
6. Several miles of walking and biking paths will be added allowing from better access from Dean Park to Saanichton.
7. Half an acre of field currently paved with a road will be returned to field as the road access will no longer be needed. 
8. Central Saanich will see an increase in property taxes from the development but will have to provide almost no services to the development.  A net financial gain for the whole community.