The Case of Whistler Resort, British Columbia
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Second Home Ownership: The Case Of Whistler Resort, British Columbia by Paul Alexander Clark B.Sc. (Hons.) ,University of Glasgow, 1987 THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF TIIE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS in the Department of Geography Paul A. Clark, 1992 SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY August 1992 All rights reserved. This work may not be reproduced in whole or in part, by photocopy or other means, without permission of the author. APPROVAL Name: Paul Alexander Clark Degree: Master of Arts Title of Thesis: The Changing Role Of Second Home Ownership: The Case Of Whistler Resort, British Columbia Examining Committee: Chair: E.J. Hickin, Professor Alison M. Gfll Associate Professor Senior Supervisor ~eferW. Williams, Director Centre for Tourism Policy and Research Resource and Environmental Management, SFU External Examiner Date Approved: Auaust 5.1992 PARTIAL COPYRIGHT LICENSE I hereby grant to Simon Fraser University the right to lend my thesis, project or extended essay (the title of which is shown below) to users of the Simon Fraser University Library, and to make partial or single copies only for such users or in response to a request from the library of any other university, or other educational institution, on its own behalf or for one of its users. I further agree that permission for multiple copying of this work for scholarly purposes may be granted by me or the Dean of Graduate Studies. It is understood that copying or publication of this work for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. Title of Thesis/Project/Extended Essay Second Home owners hi^: The Case Of Whistler Resort. British Columbia Author: (signature) Paul Alexander Clark (name) ABSTRACT Second homes, classified in the social science literature as residences reserved primarily for leisure-time use, play an important role in the recreational pursuits of Canadians. For the most part, however, existing studies on second homes offer findings that are too general, or limited, for greater understanding of the geographical implications of their acquisition and use. To this end, this thesis investigates the changing utility of second home ownership in a resort environment. Two research hypotheses, derived from models in behavioural geography, are used to examine those factors which affect the changing utility of second home ownership. The first hypothesis states that change in the contextual environment is a significant factor in influencing second home decision making, while the second hypothesis states that second home owners at difering stages of the family lifecycle make signijicantly diferent 1 evaluations about the utility of their second home. I The study area chosen to test these research hypotheses is the Resort Municipality of Whistler, British Columbia. Whistler Resort is a four-season mountain recreation resort situated 120 kilometres north of Vancouver. With a second home population of approximately 5,000 expected to double within ten year most dynamic second home markets at a provincial and arguably a national level. An analysis of the development history of Whistler Resort was conducted in order to examine the influence of changing external forces on decision making concerning the acquisition and use of second homes. This examination addressed the first hypothesis of the thesis. Data gathered from a questionnaire administered to a random sample of second home owners at Whistler Resort provided information on owners' evaluations and use of their second homes, as well as demographic and psychographic characteristics. These data were used to investigate the relationship between stage of lifecycle and second home utility addressed in the second hypothesis. The examination of the changing role of second home ownership resulted in two main findings. First, change in the contextual environment was found to be a significant factori- in influencing second home decision making. Second, it was found that lifecycle stage was only weakly related to second home decision making processes at Whistler Resort. , DEDICATION I would like to dedicate this work in memory of my father, Alexander Robertson Clark, to my mother, Eileen and to my stepfather, David Stark. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the assistance given to myself in researching and writing this thesis: Principally, to my Senior Supervisor, Dr. A.M. Gill, Thesis Committee member Dr. L.J. Evenden & my External Examiner Dr. P.W. Williams. I am also indebted to Professor Emeritus Archie MacPherson, the faculty, staff and fellow graduate students in the Department of Geography, Simon Fraser University for creating such a stimulating and lively academic environment. I also appreciate the contribution of the following organizations and individuals who provided materials that were pertinent to the content of my thesis: Whistler Resort Association, Resort Municipality of Whistler (Finance Department, Planning Department, Parks and Recreation Department), Whistler Museum and Archives Society, Tom Barratt, Landscape Architect, Whistler Real Estate Company, Sea to Sky Real Estate, ReMax Realty. I would like to acknowledge all of my colleagues at the Whistler Resort Association for their constant encouragement and Jean & Jeff White for making me feel at home so quickly in Vancouver. Most importantly, I would like to thank a few individuals who went out of their way to provide invaluable assistance at crucial stages of the thesis: Karl Dohan, Heidi MacPherson, Diana Waltmann. , - On a more personal level, I have had the good fortune of drawing on the support of the Griblin and Nicholson families here in Canada and my family and friends back in Scotland. Lastly, no thanks can be enough for the love, inspiration and selflessness of Eve, without whom I simply would not have accomplished this work. TABLE OF CONTENTS ... Abstract .............................................. ill Dedication .............................................v Acknowledgements ....................................... vi.. Table of Contents ........................................vu List of Tables ..........................................ix List of Figures ..........................................xi Chapter 1: Introduction ....................................1 1.1 Research Objectives ...............................2 1.2 Study Area and Methods ............................3 1.3 Organizational Structure ............................5 Chapter 2: Literature Review .................................7 2.1 The Changing Leisure Environment .....................7 2.2 The Emergence Of Behavioural Studies Of Leisure Activity ..... 11 2.3 Methodological Approaches to the Study of Second Homes ...... 13 2.4 The Environmental Implications of Second Homes ........... 16 & 2.5 The Socio-Cultural Implications of Second Homes ........... 18 2.6 Robertson's Model of Second Home Decision Making Processes . 20 Chapter 3: Methodology ...................................26 3.1 The Transactional Approach ......................... 26 3.2 Data Collection Techniques .........................29 Chapter 4: Contextual Change in the Geographical Environment .........36 4.1 Stage One: Early Resort Development (19 14- 1966) ........... 36 4.2 Stage Two: Spontaneous Growth (1967-1974) ..............43 4.3 Stage Three: Early Years of Legislative Authority as a Resort Municipality (1975- 1980) ...................46 4.4 Stage Four: Recessionary Impact (1981-1984) .............. 56 4.5 Stage Five: Economic Recovery and Resort Rebirth (1985-1989) ................................... 59 4.6 Stage Six: Maturity as a Four-Season Destination Resort (1990-1992) ...................................65 vii Chapter 5: The Relationship Between Second Home Decision Making and the Contextual Environment .....................71 5.1 Introduction ................................... 71 5.2 Relationship between Year of Purchase and Utility Values ...... 72 5.2.1 Anticipated Utility ..........................72 5.2.2 Actual Utility .............................74 5.2.3 Projected Utility ............................77 5.2.4 Situational Utility ...........................79 5.2.5 Site Utility ...............................80 5.2.6 Significance of Utility Values ................... 81 Chapter 6: The Relationship Between Lifecycle Stage and Property Evaluation ............................. 84 6.1 Introduction ................................... 84 6.2 Demographic Profile of Survey Respondents ............... 84 6.3 Robertson's Lifecycle Stage Classification Scheme ...........87 6.4 Relationship Between Lifecycle Stage and Utility Values ....... 88 6.4.1 Anticipated Utility ...........................88 6.4.2 Actual Utility ............................. 91 6.4.3 Projected Utility ...........................96 6.4.4 Situational Utility ...........................98 6.4.5 Site Utility ...............................99 6.4.6 Significance of Utility Values .................. 100 Chapter 7: Conclusions ...................................104 7.1 Summary ...................................104 7.2 Implications of Findings .......................... 106 Appendix: Survey Instrument and Frequencies ................... 111 Bibliography .......................................... 118 viii LIST OF TABLES Table 3.1 Robertson's Lifecycle Classification 3.2 Origins of Second Home Owners at Whistler Resort Table 4.1 Blackcomb Ski Enterprises - Real Estate Market Performance (1987-1990) 4.2 Typical Capital Appreciation - Blackcomb Benchlands Properties