[BCMA] CMA Clip Serv: Share the wonders of the RBCM - NIMBY

Tue Apr 20 11:35:48 PDT 2010

The James Bay - RBCM/BC Archives situation is an obvious case of "NIMBY" (Not In My Back Yard).

The City of Vancouver Museum (aka Vancouver Museum, aka Vancouver Centennial Museum etc.), Vancouver Maritime Museum, RCM Police St. Roch NHS, HR MacMillan Planetarium, Vancouver City Archives etc. also share that NIMBY problem.  Even in Cumberland, BC when I was Curator there, I had merchants complaining that because the museum was so successful in bringing in visitors, the merchants could not just drive up and park in front of their stores like they used to! (What were they thinking!)

It is sad to see the NIMBY attitude but I think you will find it in or next to many successful "tourist destination" places such as Victoria, the Vatican, Mont St. Michel, Disneyland etc. as locals tire of traffic and noise. It is also common in gentrified areas. The Vancouver area desperately needs more mass transit, but heaven forbid they should reactivate the old railway/streetcar tracks! For example, Richmond ripped up many of their tracks up just as a group was restoring an old Interurban tram. 

I don't know that there is an answer other than working to make the facilities relevant to the locals and treasured by them. How? That is the $64,000 question (referring to an old TV show for you younger readers - $64,000 was the top prize - like a Howie Mandel's Deal or No Deal $500,000 today).  It is hard enough for the Vancouver museums' complex when they actually deal with local history. It is extra hard for the RBCM when they deal with a much broader brush of history, not all of which will seem to be relevant to local residents.

A couple of thoughts- Maybe some preferred status for locals based upon address? E.g. Free admission, discounts at the gift shop, invitations to lectures and event. Try to have the "Friends" recruit and lobby locally. The goal is to turn opponents into supporters.

I expect that Pauline and crew will have thought of this so maybe I am only reinforcing their thoughts. 

Colin MacGregor Stevens,

Manager,

New Westminster Museum and Archives,

302 Royal Avenue,

New Westminster, BC, 

V3L 1H7

Phone Office:    604-527-4639

Work Cellular : 604-830-6965

Fax:                  604-527-4641

E-mail: cstevens at newwestcity.ca <mailto:cstevens at newwestcity.ca>  

Web Site: www.newwestminster.ca <http://www.newwestminster.ca>  

From: Moderated BCMA subscriber listserv. [mailto:bcma at lists.vvv.com] 
Sent: Monday, April 19, 2010 10:00 AM
To: bcma at lists.vvv.com
Subject: [BCMA] CMA Clip Serv: Share the wonders of the RBCM

Share the wonders of the Royal B.C. Museum 

Maclean Kay, Victoria Times Colonist, Sunday, April 18, 2010 

When my wife and I moved to Victoria in December, a few factors went into choosing a specific neighbourhood, such as grocery store(s) within easy walking distance and proximity to the ocean. More than 

anything else, we wanted to be central, so we chose James Bay. 

We had appointments to view apartments in Oak Bay and Esquimalt, but the view overlooking the Inner Harbour and closeness to gems like the Royal B.C.. Museum was too much to pass up. 

I wasn't aware of this when I moved, but the Royal B.C. is at a crossroads. 

It isn't just one of Victoria's landmarks, but the finest museum in Western Canada. Treating it as anything but a gem to be protected and nurtured isn't just irresponsible, but suicidal. 

As wonderful as it is, it needs help. It's ludicrous having the B.C. Archives below sea level, so near to a fault line with a major earthquake overdue. Even more ridiculous, the museum's loading bay can't accommodate modern delivery trucks -- so artifacts are sometimes unloaded on the street. That's simply unacceptable. 

That's not a criticism. The existing facilities worked for years, but need to be modernized. 

To its credit, the museum is taking steps now, before a genuine tragedy takes place. Can you imagine the reaction if one of China's priceless terracotta warriors was damaged -- on the sidewalk? 

Accidents happen, but this would be inexcusable. 

One of the first parts of the process is community consultation. I'm a firm believer in local politics and community organization, so I decided to attend the most recent James Bay Neighbourhood Association meeting. 

Partly to get to know my new home better, and (full disclosure) partly because an old family friend is involved with another project seeking community approval. 

To my delight, the museum brass was there in force, including CEO Pauline Rafferty, consulting the association about their rezoning and expansion plans. 

Rezoning is crucially important. Through a historical quirk, the museum is actually zoned as a two-family dwelling. (So is the legislature, for the record.) 

Legally, they could knock the museum down and build townhouses, but their cafe, among other things, is technically not allowed. Amusing, but this presents real challenges when the museum needs to add something; technically, they shouldn't be allowed to. 

The museum is jumping through all the hoops necessary to change that, en route to an ambitious and impressive expansion plan. Community consultation is a necessary step for any rezoning process, and to its credit, the museum is talking with James Bay, the downtown residents association, and Fairfield-Gonzales. (Technically, they only need to include James Bay.) 

I assumed, in my naïveté, that fellow James Bay residents would see the museum as I do -- a privilege to be so near to, and a world-class collection to protect and nurture. 

But some of the issues raised were flabbergasting. 

Buses to the museum should not congest traffic, and neither should any construction. Size is bad, so the archives should be moved somewhere else. 

There should be no parking spaces whatsoever at the museum. (Of course, we could just give up cars and use public transit, but they didn't mean James Bay residents should stop driving -- just everyone else.) 

The carillon might be about to fall over, but under no circumstances whatsoever should it be rebuilt or moved. 

One resident demanded to know whether the museum was secretly planning to include condos. Fox Mulder would be embarrassed to suggest that. 

There were also some worthwhile, thoughtful questions and concerns. But the thoughtless, knee-jerk antidevelopment stance of some residents disappointed me. Too often, I cringed when someone used the open microphone to harangue or lecture Rafferty; it was embarrassing. 

James Bay is a wonderful community, and I'm glad we moved here. Isn't sharing a good thing? 

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