The risk to Johnsons Landing residents is definitely “unacceptable” as your article of May 24 reported (“Risk level for some ‘unacceptable’”). Why? Because the hazardous land which the report deemed an unacceptable risk remains in the landowners’ name, and thus any liability which might ensue does also. That is totally, completely, and devastatingly unacceptable!
The only acceptable solution is for the Crown to control the land and it will have the same status as all other Crown land in the province. The Crown has deemed it hazardous, has engaged geo-technical advisors who agree. It is, after all, Crown land deposited on top of private land. Is that not then Crown land?
Return it to the Crown. Compensate the few affected landowners their 2012 assessed value. This is the only acceptable course of action. It would cost far, far less than the rescue and recovery operations and would enable these people to move forward in their lives.
If readers can help these landowners in any way go to indiegogo.com/projects/johnsons-landing-landslide-relief.
Kate O’Keefe
Kaslo