Letter To Tri City Equities Ltd.

Mar 13, 2011: from Johathan Baker, Baker & Baker, Regarding: Opinion regarding right to communicate with Councilor after the public hearing

Not long after the project passed 3^rd reading we got a directive from the planning department not to speak with Councilors, and Councilors were told not to speak with us.  According to long time Councilors, this was a new policy for Squamish.  Planning cut the communication between us and Council, and as a result, we have not been able to inform Council of any of the issues we have been facing with the planning department.  This has frozen Council’s ability to know both sides of the story and intervene if need be.  We obtained a legal opinion from a reputed municipal law specialist who stated that Council must be able to speak with the public and applicants to be able to do it’s job.  He then cited a court case where a judge said the same thing.  This is his legal opinion.