NEWS RELEASE
PARKSVILLE: Saturday, February 27, 2010
The Comox-Nanaimo Presbytery announced today that after careful consideration and deliberation, a motion was passed that would enable, in principle and with a conservation covenant and other conditions in place, the sale of Camp Moorecroft in the Nanoose area, with preference to local, community-based buyer, who would allow United Church camping to continue.
The Moorecroft Camp Society Board will continue with their plans for active 2010 camping programs at Moorecroft as approved by the Presbytery. The Moorecroft Camp Society and the Presbytery will be working closely with the BC Conference, the Nature Conservancy of Canada and other agencies such as the Nanaimo Area Land Trust to put a binding conservation covenant in place. There is a lot of work to be done before any final permission around the sale is given. The motion passed was:
"That the Comox-Nanaimo Presbytery gives permission in principle to the BC Conference Property Development Committee to sell Camp Moorecroft with a conservation covenant in place and honouring the values of the Camp Futures Project Sales Policy and, all things being equal, give preference to a local community based buyer who would allow United Church camping to continue. In order for such a buyer to be able to make an acceptable bid, the bidding process would remain open for at least six months, thus enabling the proposed buyer to make an accredited offer with a secured funding source already in place.
Key to the decision was the protection of Moorecroft through a binding conservation covenant on the land to protect it in perpetuity.
For more information, contact Rev Bill Laurie, Conference Minister, or Rev Peggy Jensen, Chair of the Comox-Nanaimo Presbytery.
Rev Bill Laurie
wdlaurie@telus.net Rev PeggyJensen
tuminister@telus.net
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