Every year in early summer, a group of determined individuals competes in Seek the Peak—a challenging race that ambles its way through West Vancouver, kicking off at Ambleside Beach and winding its way up the legendary Grouse Grind to The Peak of Vancouver.
The course is grueling, to say the least. I’ve completed it four times now, and each time, the 15 km path and 1,400 m climb put my body and my mind to the test.
When you sign up for the race, you have the option to either face it alone—or sign up as a team, breaking the course into four different legs.
Last time that I ran the race, it occurred to me that this test of endurance feels JUST like climbing through BC’s land use regulations process!
- The climb is going to test you. There’s no way around that.
- Every leg of the exploration process is unique.
- Staying the course requires an intentional, nuanced approach.
- While you technically can do it on your own… the path is much, much more manageable with the right team around you.
I think we’ve spent too many years overlooking how important connection and collaboration is in land use approvals.
Gone are the days where someone—private party or development firm, it doesn’t matter—can scale to achieve the peak by themselves.
Finishing the race requires a plan. Stamina. Preparation. Support.
Preferably, from someone who’s been on the course before and can see what’s coming before it’s on top of you.
For me, finishing Seek the Peak AND getting my clients’ projects across the finish line are both about keeping an open mind, listening to those with wisdom to share, creating a clear plan to reach the end, and being mentally prepared to enjoy theprocess.
With private landowners, this looks like being open to new relationships. Having a wide variety of tools available to support clients in unique situations. Leveraging my breadth of knowledge and experience to predict what might be challenging along the way, and get ahead of the problem before it arises.
Have you found navigating land use regulations to be an uphill challenge?
Could you use support like this in your project?
If so—I care deeply about helping you reach your “peak” and would love to schedule a conversation to see how we may be able to collaborate.
Book a call here if you’re interested in chatting.
PS – this is a photo of my daughter and me following our workout at Grouse Mountain this summer!