On March 3rd, 2019, a new contract was emailed to marina customers. The email opens with "You will notice that the agreement appears slightly different than in previous years", this is a vast understatement.
In fact, among other things, changes in the new contract include:
There was no prior warning or consultation on these contract changes.
The BCMCA has worked feverishly to try to get the Parks Board staff to either revise the contract with better wording, or failing that, simply re-use the old contract until some collaborative meetings can come up with better wording more agreeable to all. An email from Mr. Tim Collins attempted to explain some (but not all) of these new provisions, with interpretations that seem to imply either the contract wording is bad, or that his interpretation (which was not shared to all customers) could be changed at a whim.
However, he offered to meet with the BCMCA. We accepted, and asked to schedule a meeting. A follow-up email from Mr. Collins simply re-iterated the same unsatisfactory explanations, and then stated that a meeting was no longer necessary.
Marina customers deserve better treatment. Instead we get delaying tactics and stone-walling. We believe the new Board of Commissioners also wishes to see better treatment of marina customers, and needs to be aware that staff are not living up to their wishes.
In fact, among other things, changes in the new contract include:
- Revocation of overnight privileges (up to 60 days)
- Cannot park overnight unless physically moving your boat out of the marina
- Cannot leave a bicycle overnight in the marina under any circumstances
- Cannot put a dinghy in the water at your slip, even temporarily
- Marina reserves the right to change insurance requirements at any time throughout the year
- Code of Conduct now specifically names Boat Owners, with restrictions on free speech
There was no prior warning or consultation on these contract changes.
The BCMCA has worked feverishly to try to get the Parks Board staff to either revise the contract with better wording, or failing that, simply re-use the old contract until some collaborative meetings can come up with better wording more agreeable to all. An email from Mr. Tim Collins attempted to explain some (but not all) of these new provisions, with interpretations that seem to imply either the contract wording is bad, or that his interpretation (which was not shared to all customers) could be changed at a whim.
However, he offered to meet with the BCMCA. We accepted, and asked to schedule a meeting. A follow-up email from Mr. Collins simply re-iterated the same unsatisfactory explanations, and then stated that a meeting was no longer necessary.
Marina customers deserve better treatment. Instead we get delaying tactics and stone-walling. We believe the new Board of Commissioners also wishes to see better treatment of marina customers, and needs to be aware that staff are not living up to their wishes.
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