Team YIMBY working to end beach fire prohibition in Victoria

Last year at an Ideas - Victoria meeting, there was a lot of mention of the NIMBYism (Not in my backyard!) that seems to prevalent in our community. A lot of the younger generation has no interest in this and are moving towards a new model called YIMBY (Yes, in my backyard!) which aims to stay positive while making Victoria as awesome as possible. The first stay was to create a YIMBY Facebook page, which quickly amassed over 100 members, including the mayor, several city councillors, and several movers and shakers in town - the doers.

The first question was what should be the first project? Several ideas started to fly, but the one that really resonated was legalizing beach fires in Victoria. Prohibition of anything has been shown to be ineffective as it only makes the situation more dangerous for everyone. Right now there are issues with illicit beach fires which are usually hidden along cliffs with foliage that could catch, or between driftwood. There's often a lot of garbage and broken glass that might be left behind, and it's usually not easily accessible to the fire department.

What the YIMBY group proposes is ending the beach fire prohibition in Victoria. They want to do this with as much community involvement as possible, working towards a safe and fun resolution. So far the discussions have been picked up online and on CBC Radio.

You can hear the CBC radio Victoria interviews with

• YIMBY co-founder Kris Constable
• Victoria Fire Chief Lambert
• and most recently Mayor Dean Fortin

If beach fires prohibition ends, our proposal is that a few select locations would be chosen based on minimized risk. This would mean being easily accessible for fire trucks, away from local houses, cliffs and foliage. Fires would require a permit, which would be requested in advance. This way there is someone responsible for the area including the dousing of the fire, and the garbage clean-up. It would also limit the fires in a given evening. The alternative is clearly not working and is dangerous.

Now it's up to you! Join the YIMBY Facebook group, or attend the Ideas - Victoria meeting next Thursday at Tectoria where beach fires will likely be the main discussion.