Should a farmer be able to do things that aren't strictly farming, in order to keep their business afloat?
And how should farmers manage those activities while mitigating the impact on their neighbourhood?
On Monday March 10, the Comox Valley Regional District's Electoral Areas Services Commission discussed those questions, while debating an application by Smith Lake Farm to be able to increase the amount of non-farm activities on their farm, particularly disc golf, as well as increase the capacity of those events. A large number of people were present during the meeting, some supporting the application, and some opposing it.
Smith Lake Farm is located on Larkin Road in Merville, just north of Courtenay. The farm was started by Clea Adair in 2017, with the goal of building an educational agrotourism business where people could learn about farming and purchase locally-produced farm goods. Adair's business expanded in 2021 to include non-farm activities like glamping, and events, which help support the farming activities on the property. Smith Lake Farm also partnered with the Comox Valley Disc Golf Association to operate a course on the property, where players are asked to purchase farmed goods in order to play.
"Prior to 2021 lack of client base was a barrier. We couldnB次元官网网址檛 sell what we produced at an amount that made economic sense," Adair's application says. "Since the development of the agritourism and passive recreation component to our shopping this has improved considerably. 2023 marked a pivotal year for us being able to truly make a living from farming with an almost doubling of farm good sales."
"My farm cannot survive without these activities," the application says. "Not only do they no negative impact on the farm, but these activities and the patronage they attract have a huge positive impact on the farm as they allow me to bring the customer to B次元官网网址榯he countryB次元官网网址� and as stated before, cut out the middle-man so that I may profit from my farm good sales. This in turn will allow me to farm more of my property and permit me to grow my farm as we move onto the next stages of our development plan."
The farm has been subject to complaints by neighbours. Complaints included the degradation of the road due to increased traffic, increased noise levels during events, and impacts to local wildlife.
During the meeting, there were a number of delegations speaking about the application. First was Wendi Gilson, a board member of the Comox Valley Food Security Council and Apiary Inspector at B.C. Ministry of Agriculture who spoke about her support of Smith Lake Farm.
"I recommend that you allow Smith Lake Farm to get back to the important work they're doing as farmers and beekeepers by allowed them to continue to receive income from farm gate sales provided by the passive disc golf course," Gilson said.
Gilson was followed by a representative from the Comox Valley Disc Golf Society, Chris Finlayson, who spoke about the society's partnership with Smith Lake Farm. Finlayson described disc golf as the "carrot that draws people to the farm," adding that "Smith Lake Farm is a perfect example of how to save farming on Vancouver Island.
"Creative ideas and diversification keeps farms alive," he said, adding that Smith Lake Farm should be a case study for other farms in the area.
Professional biologist Warren Warttig spoke next. Warttig is also the president of MARS Wildlife Rescue, and in February he submitted a report on behalf of MARS saying they did not support the proposal. However, Warttig had since spoken to the applicants and submitted a retraction to his previous statement, subject to certain commitments made by the landowner.
"As long as activities can happen without breaking the law, there should be no issue," Warttig said.
Mark Hargrave is a neighbour to the property, and initially brought the complaint to the ALC board in 2023. In his presentation, he spoke about the late night events that took place in 2022, the traffic on the road and the effect loud noise can have on the wildlife nearby.
"We are concerned that due diligence has not been done," Hargrave said. "These are the wrong activities for the wrong area."
Director Daniel Arbour told Hargrave that the application had a specific nature for non-farm use of the land, and that "noise is not really part of the equation here."
Arbour also suggested that the commission say they were in favour of the application, based on the fact that CVRD staff showed no issues with the proposal.
"Being a farmer is very tough," Arbour said. "To me, this is exactly the type of approach that will prove to be viable for the Comox Valley for years to come ... if we don't (recommend the application be approved), it's almost a signal that we don't support events at farms."
Director Edwin Grieve noted the amount of emails that he had gotten from people living in the area that were not on the agenda package, saying that "we have to recognize the impact on the local neighbourhood."
Arbour again asked that the discussion stay within the scope of the application. However, Grieve wondered what other opportunity people in the area would have to voice their opinion.
"This is the opportunity, at this place and this time," he said. "We certainly can't expect the traditional media to report on it. We used to have a newspaper, I don't think they deliver it as far north as Black Creek anymore."
The commission moved their recommendation to the board that the matter be passed forward to the Agricultural Land Commission for final decision.
