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 Vancouver Island is changing and TimberWest - as the largest private landowner on the Island - is part of that. We are continuing our transition to becoming a leading land management company whose stewardship includes landholdings that are incredibly diverse and located where the vast majority of the population currently lives.
We recently completed the most extensive land planning and analysis exercise ever undertaken on Vancouver Island. And while our primary business will remain timber production - now and for the foreseeable future - one outcome of the exercise was the identification of new sustainable real estate opportunities for small but significant portions of our lands.
The other outcome was our commitment to pursue those opportunities in a way that helps meet the changing needs of communities on Vancouver Island.
We are doing this because, given our landholdings and proud history, we feel a strong sense of responsibility to both current and future generations on the Island. TimberWest wants to play a significant role in how Vancouver Island changes, because what we do with our land will have a huge impact on communities.
That’s why in the months and years ahead, we will be working closely with Vancouver Island communities to
determine the best use of our lands. We want to manage our lands in a way that helps meet the changing
needs of communities on Vancouver Island. Our landholdings can help us do that. Working together, for
example, we can:
- plan in creative and flexible ways to meet the particular needs of local communities;
- provide for new Island-wide linkages;
- unlock opportunities for conservation and preservation of special lands;
- use our landholdings in a way that helps communities achieve sustainable growth that brings with it
jobs, homes, infrastructure and recreation for generations to come; and
- ensure that only high quality, sustainable, conservation-minded developments occur on our land base.
By taking a thoughtful approach and working together, we can develop a shared vision for the future of our
land and local communities.
In addition to this program, TimberWest will also have a regular, ongoing program for non-core land sales. This is something that we have always had in place for those lands that have a better use than traditional timber management. Consistent with our general approach to real estate, we will scrutinize each potential land transaction to try and ensure the ultimate end use is consistent with our approach to quality, sustainable land management. We will also continue to look for opportunities to work with conservation groups who are interested in purchasing specific parcels of land to preserve them for the future.
TimberWest is taking this approach because we believe that it is simply "good business". And that is the best way to provide the broadest possible benefits to communities and the most value to our unitholders.
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