I visit relatives in Castlegar regularly and they often pressure me to move to Castlegar. I resist because one encounters unsightly industrial-zoned land no matter from which direction you approach Castlegar. I am fearful that if I moved to Castlegar the property next door might end up being zoned industrial.
Coming from the west (Grand Forks) on Highway 3 one encounters industrial-zoned land to the left half-way down the hill into Castlegar. Coming from the south (Trail) on Highway 22 one encounters more industrial-zoned land on the left again. (Curiously above that industrial area is a new residential area with a view of the industrial area.)
Coming from the East (Salmo) one encounters industrial-zoned land on the left just before the airport. Coming from the North (Nelson) and taking the Robson exit one encounters yet more industrial-zoned land on the left, right, and, at the Robson end of the Robson bridge, a huge industrial equipment yard and depot.
Why does Castlegar have to have so much industrial-zoned land at every entrance to the city? Surely, zoning could have been managed so that industrial lands were all located in one area. Re-branding the city, as was done recently, won’t alleviate this problem let alone solve it. Castlegar is located in a beautiful area but bad zoning is ruining it in my opinion.
Fred Peet
Brentwood Bay, B.C.