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Remembering Salt Spring’s first Pride parade

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Remembering Salt Spring’s first Pride parade

The following was read by 2019 Salt Spring Pride parade marshalls Corrie Hope Furst and Wendy Judith Cutler at the Sept. 7 rally on the Salt Spring Public Library steps before the parade.

In the summer of 2007, the third year of celebrating Pride on Salt Spring Island, a year after we moved here full time, we met with a few south-end queer friends at the (now demolished) Fulford Inn for pizza night. We started talking about next year’s Pride and we said, half kiddingly, “What about a parade?” At first we all thought it was just a crazy fantasy. At some point, we all thought “Why not?”

We showed what a small number of people who come together can do.

We formed a small sub-group of GLOSSI, our own anarcho-splinter group, and started meeting: Wendy,  Corrie, Kareno and Kimi, Juli MacDonnell and Michael Bushby. We operated by consensus, were non-hierarchical and used feminist collective process. We did all the things we had to do. Also, Corrie got the Vancouver Gay Band to join in with some members of the Salt Spring Concert Band that she was in at the time. Wendy contacted “Businesses Against Bigotry” and organized parade contingents to show up. The Unitarians somehow got a huge rainbow banner sent from across the country. We decided, of course, to begin the Parade on Rainbow Road.

We encountered some fears and resistance from some in the queer community about how the larger community would react. Caffyn Kelley, one of the co-founders of GLOSSI, led a workshop to allay peoples’ fears and also one to make signs and posters.

We were adamant that the parade would be people-powered (no cars), political, peaceful, raucous, inclusive, celebratory and pure Salt Spring Island, welcoming all. We think there were about 300 to 400 people in the parade and many more watching and loving it.

Rowan Percy, an esteemed member of our community, wrote about the parade:

“It takes us beyond everything, into a world where we can envision things, think a bigger world, a more inclusive world, a world with more breathing space.”

And Kimi Hendess in a letter to the editor wrote: “May all of us feel proud, carry this into our lives the rest of the year and continue to march not only for ourselves but for the freedom of all beings everywhere.”

We are grateful to be part of this wonderful island community.

Thanks to DAISSI and all who planned and participated in this year’s Pride.

Ganges sewer upgrades shared

Gail Sjuberg
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Ganges sewer upgrades shared

About a dozen people on Salt Spring can now say they’ve got the poop on Ganges poop.

They’re the ones who attended the Capital Regional District’s Ganges sewer plant open house on Thursday. The event was an opportunity for CRD staff to share details about the system’s recently completed $3.9-million upgrade and for people to ask questions about how the service operates.

Malcolm Cowley, manager of CRD engineering design services, led the proceedings, beginning with the innocuous-looking influent pump station, where all flushed waste arrives via the system’s sewer pipes about 25 feet below ground level.

“The pumps and the pipes and the valves were really old,” said Cowley. “They were all corroded and weren’t working very well anymore. It all needed to be replaced.”

Waste is then pumped into a tank for screening, with the solids put into a bin for hauling to either the Burgoyne Bay septic site for transfer to the Capital Regional District Hartland Road facility or direct hauling to Hartland.

Wastewater then goes into an “equalization tank,” which allows for variations in the flow of incoming waste. It can store extra water arising from rainy days and control the amount of water going into the treatment system.   

“From there it goes to a concrete tank divided into two,” explained Cowley. “The first half is what’s called the anoxic tank and then it goes to the aeration tank, and then the membranes that do all the biological treatment and filtering are located in another tank.”

And what comes out at the end of the process?

According to sewer plant lead Luke Sturdy, who at participants’ insistence brought out samples of pre- and post-treatment effluent at the open house, the final product is water with a fecal coliform count of two or three units per 100 millilitres of water, so virtually negligible. Swimming beaches are not closed to the public in B.C. unless the fecal coliform level exceeds 200 units.

Tom Toynbee was chair of the Ganges Sewer Local Services Commission when the membrane bioreactor (MBR) technology was chosen in 1996 to replace the rotary biological contactor system originally used at the plant when it opened in 1985.

“At that time [the MBR] was leading-edge technology,” Toynbee said. “It continues to be extraordinarily good compared to any others.”

“It is considered tertiary treatment,” Cowley confirmed. “It was kind of piloted here in Ganges,” he added. “It was a new technology back then and it has proven itself to be a very effective technology . . . [The effluent] has a negligible impact on the environment.”

Some people at the open house were surprised to learn that the outfall pipe extends 4.8 kilometres from the harbour into Swanson Channel. Cowley said the less effective original sewage treatment process would have determined the outfall length in the 1980s.

For more on this story, see the September 4, 2019 issue of the Gulf Islands Driftwood newspaper, or subscribe online.

LTC sends Vortex plan to APC

Gail Sjuberg
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LTC sends Vortex plan to APC

Even though the proponent of a development on the former Fulford Inn site did not get what he asked for at last Tuesday’s Salt Spring Local Trust Committee meeting, trustees urged him to stick with the process to see the property revitalized.

South-end resident David Fullbrook, who is the developer behind The Vortex concept, was clearly frustrated with his Trust experience so far when his development variance permit application was being discussed at the public meeting at the Harbour House Hotel.

He was critical of a 111-page staff report that he did not have an opportunity to see and discuss with staff before it was submitted to trustees for consideration.

“Fundamentally about this report and the flaw of this report is that any developer who is in this business awhile is going to try to seek some kind of cooperative understanding with the planning authority and try to find a way to bridge gaps and compromise and mitigate and find agreement, and this report is not a reflection of that process,” he said.

Report-writer Shelley Miller recommended against issuing the DVP for several reasons, ranging from septic system location to the proposed number of signs to the size of the accommodation units.

Fullbrook said he felt “sandbagged” by the report and maintains that most of the issues could have been resolved before the report came to the meeting, but he was not given a chance to do that. He also said Trust staff want him to rezone the property, which would be a much lengthier process than the variance to the existing Commercial Accommodation 2 and Rural zoning he is seeking.

The Vortex envisions construction of 17 commercial guest accommodation units, a restaurant, three units for retail sales and a public gathering space for concerts, events or markets on the high-profile property that once housed the Fulford Inn at the head of Fulford Harbour.

Fullbrook, who is an experienced developer as the principal and founder of Merchant House Capital, said he wants to create a heart for the south-end community again and a place that tells Salt Spring’s various stories, but he has lost faith in the Islands Trust’s process.

“How do you expect us to continue investing in this process when we’ve been through three planners, and we’ve been upset all the way along and then when the final report is issued it is so inaccurate?” he asked LTC chair Peter Luckham, who was encouraging the applicant to work with staff to resolve outstanding issues and questions during their heated exchange.

Both trustees Peter Grove and Laura Patrick said they wanted to see the site developed, but needed more information and assurances on topics such as First Nations consultation and sea-level rise adaptation before proceeding.

“I only see opportunity here, not failure,” said Patrick.

“This is a big project,” said Luckham. “It is not going to be easy and straightforward.”

The LTC moved to refer the question of accessory uses and the proposed accommodation unit sizes to its Advisory Planning Commission for advice.

He urged the applicant to work with staff to resolve the other outstanding issues and address trustees’ concerns.

Youngsters donate to The Root

Gail Sjuberg
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Youngsters donate to The Root

The Salt Spring Island Farmland Trust’s new food security facility is nearing completion, and it has gotten a bit of help from a group of young donors.

India, Emerson, Renée and Pasley Hayden made a donation to The Root of $224.35, which they raised in their annual lemonade stand fundraiser. Each year for the last 10 years, the kids raised money through the stand to donate to various island charities and causes. This year, the siblings saw an importance in food as a community builder and as an agent for environmental sustainability, and felt The Root was a worthy cause. 

“We thought it was really cool,” said India Hayden. “It’s cool that you can come here and process your produce.”

“You don’t have to buy all of the equipment yourself, you can just come here and do it,” Emerson Hayden added.

The family opens their lemonade stand every year on the July long weekend. They began with the “Kids Making Change” campaign started by Lady Minto in 1999. Their venture started as a simple lemonade stand with just India and Emerson.

“Our stand has evolved,” said Janine Fernandes-Hayden, the kids’ mom. “It used to be a little wagon with a cardboard backdrop, and now we’ve built a little brace around the wagon. We’ve got little flags on it. It’s become a bit more gourmet too.”

“Each year the kids do a bit of research, we talk about it and then decide who we want to donate to. It’s always been important for us to do it locally,” Fernandes-Hayden said.

The Root itself is nearing completion, and as a thank you for their donation, the family was able to get a special sneak peak of the facility. Trust president Patricia Reichert led the kids through the facility, starting with the main floor of the building. That floor will contain the building’s kitchen, as well as a preparation area, walk-in refrigerator and packaging area.

Once complete, The Root will be a state-of-the-art food production facility and completely carbon-neutral. Reichert explained that no sources of emitting energy will be incorporated in the construction. This includes induction cooktops and other high-efficiency appliances. It will also function as a teaching kitchen, with lessons for anyone from people wanting to learn basic food processing skills like knife work to future food industry professionals.

Upstairs at The Root is a two-bedroom apartment that was included to provide housing for any potential staff who needs it at the facility. The property was rezoned to allow for a residence, Reichert explained, and though modest, having a residence in the facility will ensure that another community need is met.

“When possible, a building like this should include housing in our community,” Reichert said. “Even though it’s small and seems like one little thing, those things add up until they’re actually addressing the bigger problem.”

The Farmland Trust continues to look for donations to help with the operation of the facility.

For more on this story, see the September 4, 2019 issue of the Gulf Islands Driftwood newspaper, or subscribe online.

Musicians wanted for Bandemonium

Driftwood Staff
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Musicians wanted for Bandemonium

Bandemonium is once again looking for musicians who play woodwind, brass or percussion instruments, and who read music to join the Salt Spring Concert Band.

Bandemonium has been providing a place for musical camaraderie through the Salt Spring Concert Band since 1993. Wendy Milton, the band’s co-founder with husband/trumpeter Derrick, has once again taken the helm as music director after a 20-year hiatus.

According to a press release from the group, one of Milton’s first goals is to recruit more players. The band needs musicians who play woodwind (flute, clarinet, saxophone), brass (trumpet, French horn, baritone, trombone, tuba) and percussion instruments.

“Almost 1,000 musicians have found a musical home with Bandemonium in its 27-year history. In recent years membership has dwindled, so it is time, once again, to rejuvenate the band’s ranks,” the press release explains.

Bandemonium has always welcomed high school students, and for many years the band’s numbers were augmented by student musicians from Gulf Islands Secondary School’s International Program.

The original, larger membership, with balanced instrumentation, allowed the Miltons to program all styles of music in those early years. Once again Wendy hopes to rehearse and/or program music to meet the needs of all members — some easier selections to allow the inexperienced players to fully participate, and allow the whole group to focus on musicality, and some challenging works to keep the experienced players happy.

Milton brings decades of musical experience to Bandemonium. She graduated with music degrees from the University of Toronto, but feels that her real education came from playing with dozens of music and theatre groups in the Toronto area. She founded the University of Guelph Concert Winds, and taught music at the elementary, high school and university level. But her first love is for teaching privately, which she continues to do at her home base — Island Winds Music Studio.

Milton is currently the music director for exitStageLeft Productions, who have just completed a sold-out run of Beauty and the Beast at ArtSpring.

Bandemonium rehearses Monday nights from 7:15 to  9 p.m. in the SIMS music room,  beginning this Monday Sept. 9.

Anyone interested in joining Bandemonium and having some musical fun is asked to contact Wendy at islandwinds@telus.net or 250-537-4654.

For more on this story, see the September 4, 2019 issue of the Gulf Islands Driftwood newspaper, or subscribe online.

Couple cycles around the world

Marc Kitteringham
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Couple cycles around the world

Martin and Kathy O’Neil just got home from a bike ride.

That might not be the most exciting news at first glance, but when you consider the fact that their trip lasted two years, went through 24 countries and covered over 30,000 kilometres, it becomes a bit more exciting.

On a June morning in 2017, the couple set out for a ride. Their goal was to ride across Canada, one of Kathy’s dreams. When they arrived in Newfoundland, after realizing that a flight to Ireland was shorter than flying back to Victoria, they decided to just keep riding.

“It was kind of spur of the moment,” Kathy said. “I was like ‘OK! We’ll just keep going.’”

After boarding the plane to Dublin, they made their way through Europe, North Africa, the Mediterranean, the Middle East and Asia before returning to North America in June 2019. They spent two years in close contact with each other, only separating for a short three-hour period when Martin wanted to go on a tour in Cambodia. Their schedule was set by the amount of daylight hours they had and whether or not they were close to a major city.

“When in your life do you not have to be anywhere at a certain time? Since the time you start going to school, you never have that freedom. There’s always somewhere you have to be somewhere down the line in the pretty near future,” Martin said.

“It’s just freedom,” Kathy agreed. “You can go as far as you want, stop when you want and you’re free to explore, not harm the environment.”

Planning for a two-year cycling trip around the world is one thing, actually doing it is quite another. While they were expecting to see some amazing sights during their trip, the difficulty of actually riding around the world was a bit harder to fathom. On a two-year trek, cyclists are tested to their limits. Things are not comfortable. No matter the weather, they still have to keep riding, dealing with poor road conditions, exhaustion and constant exposure to the elements.

“You’re planning for two years, looking at cycling blogs and maps, sipping your wine and thinking, ‘Oh yeah we’ll go here and there . . .’ Then when you get out there you see that the weather can really make or break your day. We went through extremes from 50 degrees in Southeast Asia to a blizzard in England where we got snowed in” Martin said. “When you think you’re at the end of your line, you keep going. You really discover a lot about how hard you can push yourself.”

The O’Neils still ride their bikes every day and they’ve learned to live more simply and be in the moment. While it was difficult to be away from loved ones for such a long time, the couple’s experiences will stick with them forever. They described moments of extreme beauty, the inexhaustible kindness of people despite language and cultural differences, and the utter freedom of being on the road as some of their favourite memories of the trip.

“The things we saw were so amazing. I don’t even think you can anticipate it,” Kathy said

“The world is so beautiful and 99 per cent of the population of the world is kind and good,” she added. “You look around and think, ‘Wow, how did we get here, and look at this amazing world.’”

For more on this story, see the September 4, 2019 issue of the Gulf Islands Driftwood newspaper, or subscribe online.

Juniors join tourney

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Juniors join tourney

BY Marcia Hogan

DRIFTWOOD contributor

The 9th Annual North/South Tournament and fundraiser for Salt Spring Golf Club brought out a variety of new golfers over the Aug. 26-27 weekend: fathers and sons, introductory lesson graduates and a team of junior members.

Caravans of golf carts streamed from tee to green on every hole as four players from the South battled the four players from the North for geographical dominance.

Every player was accountable for one drive for their team. There were several players who resorted to buying their drive from golf professional Isaac Weintraub when they reached Hole 8.   

Two tricky putting contests allowed winners to deduct many strokes from the team’s score. A good chip into the duck pond on hole number one allowed one exceptional team to tee off at the 150 marker and score an eagle. 

The warm camaraderie on the course carried inside to the live auction at Penny’s Pantry. The tournament succeeded in raising thousands of dollars for necessary upgrades to the course. The winner of the tournament was too close to call at this time.

The 18-hole ladies group held the Bank of Montreal Cup competition on Aug. 20. Dora Reynolds won for the third time in the past 18 years with a net 71. Elaine Shaw was runner up with a net 73.

Tax-supported safety service proposed for Salt Spring

Gail Sjuberg
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Tax-supported safety service proposed for Salt Spring

After multiple incidents of vandalism and issues relating to community security on the island, Salt Spring’s Capital Regional District electoral area director Gary Holman will be seeking voter approval for a small tax requisition to fund a security service for the island.

“Basically it is to assist, administer, promote, organize, implement and monitor community safety initiatives and programs on Salt Spring,” Holman said. “It can range from security-type measures to community outreach supportive measures. There’s a pretty broad range of things that you could spend the money on.”

“The initiation was the vandalism and to some degree there seemed to be a civil disorder issue in the village. The Chamber [of Commerce] kind of took the issue and ran with it. They’ve been initiating a number of meetings over time to try to get the community together to resolve these issues,” Holman added. “There’s a gap in our services here, and I think it justifies establishing a separate service.”

The CRD Electoral Area Services Committee will give its recommendation on the bylaw to the CRD Board on Sept. 11. On the same day, the board will pass three readings of the bylaw, starting the approval process. The bylaw will also need to be approved by the provincial government, which will determine if it is within the scope of the CRD.

Since the new service would depend on a tax requisition, it needs to go to voters for approval. Holman explained that an alternative approval process will be used, which requires those who are against the establishment of the service to fill out a petition form. If 10 per cent of the electorate votes against the proposal, it will not pass. The process, formerly known as a counter-petition, is typically used when proposals already have community support and for smaller amounts of money. The petition will be available for 30 days after two public notices are presented.

“If you oppose the service, you sign a petition,” Holman explained. “The petitions will be located at a public venue so people, if they didn’t want the service to be established, they would come to that location and sign the petition against establishing the service.”

The maximum requisition for the service will be $68,000, and Holman explained that the initial tax will be much lower until the CRD has more experience with the service.

“Then over time as we become clearer about what our priorities are, then we could gradually increase the requisition,” he said.

Holman said a new commission would not be formed. Instead, an advisory group of stakeholders already set up by the Chamber of Commerce would inform how the money is spent. Stakeholders include the RCMP, Community Services, the Chamber of Commerce, businesses and Island Women Against Violence.

“If voters approve the service, then we would work with the stakeholder group, which would include the RCMP and organizations like Community Services, to determine how to start spending the money next year,” Holman said.

Though the funding could be used in theory for various different things, Holman said it would most likely fund something like a citizens’ patrol or increased resources for Community Services groups.

Viewpoint: Parks belong to all of us

Contributed Article
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Viewpoint: Parks belong to all of us

By GREGG DOW

SSIPARC chair

It’s been an exciting year for the Salt Spring Island Parks and Recreation Commission (PARC) with the completion of Phase One upgrades to Centennial Park, the opening of the Lions Commemorative Family Bike Park, transition of the pool operations, an updated strategic plan and expansion of our partnerships with local contractors to provide a variety of new PARC recreation programs.

Salt Spring’s community parks belong to all of us. They provide a place for recreation, socializing and contribute to our healthy community. Unfortunately not all park users are respecting these community gems, by leaving behind garbage, cigarette butts, empty cans and in some cases, vandalizing park structures. Please help us keep these community spaces clean and attractive for other users by practicing in a “pack it in-pack it out” approach. Not only will this practice increase the overall appearance of our parks, it will assist in reducing the maintenance time PARC staff must expend to clean up the mess, which detracts from other maintenance and park upgrades like trail expansions.

Dog owners can also contribute by picking up after their pets and obeying signage for being “leash smart” by nature. Remember, our off-leash parks still require that you have ongoing control of your dog, and pick up after them.

In response to an increase in complaints about issues in our parks, we increased funding to our bylaw enforcement patrols this year.  These increased patrols were focused on educating park users, both local and visitors, on by-laws surrounding dogs, camping, smoking, alcohol consumption, and littering. Our goal is to ensure our park spaces are being respected and are welcoming to all users. While these increased patrols have raised awareness, more work needs to be done. To this end, PARC is considering an additional budget increase in 2020 to support additional patrols. While we recognize this funding could be better used to support other parks and recreation services in the short term, we believe that the long-term reduction in behaviours which damage our park infrastructure will pay off.

As a number of our park facilities are at or near the end of their useful and safe lifespan, we are working to revitalize and/or replace aging infrastructure in consultation with the community. We commit to ongoing consultation prior to park improvements, to ensure we have heard from everyone. As a recent example, an addendum to the Centennial Park Master Plan was made by PARC that will ensure that we retain as many trees as possible during park upgrades and we will be incorporating the berm into the new playground design, scheduled for replacement later this fall. Again, our parks belong to all of us, and your input is both valued and heard.

Thank you in advance for your efforts to ensure our community parks and recreation spaces are welcome and open to all, and for your ongoing participation in future community consultation initiatives.  If necessary inappropriate park activity should be reported to CRD bylaw enforcement by calling 1-800-665-7899.

Editorial: Clean stream

Driftwood Staff
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Editorial: Clean stream

When it comes to how a community deals with its sewage, the adage “if it’s out of sight, it’s out of mind” seems to apply.

Less than a dozen members of the public came to an open house at the Ganges Wastewater Treatment Plant last week to see the results of a $3.9-million upgrade. Perhaps people imagined the event would include a down-and-dirty tour of the physical plant and that is what kept them away. Instead, those attending got an in-depth but not graphic explanation of how the system works and what parts were upgraded and improved.

The lack of interest is surprising, though, because proper treatment and disposal of human waste is critically important to public health and that of the environment. And if you are a property owner in the sewered area, you paid the bill for upgrades that benefit everyone who flushes a toilet in Ganges.

The village of Ganges has had a sewage treatment plant for almost 34 years and a state-of-the-art one since about 1998. That is when the Capital Regional District and Ganges Sewer Commission fully implemented a cutting-edge “membrane bioreactor” (MBR) disinfection system being piloted by a company called Zenon Environmental, which it is still using. The result is effluent containing a microscopic amount of fecal coliform — about two or three units per 100 millilitres of water. (Swimming beaches in B.C. are closed to the public when the ratio exceeds 200 units; Kits Beach in Vancouver reported 65 units last week.) Combining crystal-clear effluent with the Ganges sewer outfall pipe being 4.8 kilometres long means that the CRD really couldn’t do a better job of dealing with our waste. 

Something that came up through the open house event, though, is that people still throw plastic items into toilets — feminine hygiene products, baby-wipes, etc. — and that creates a huge problem for treating our waste. Without that kind of contamination, the end product might actually have other practical uses.

As one open house attendee suggested, it’s time for a public education campaign about what not to flush down the toilet. “Out of sight, out of mind” should not be a guiding principle when we’re talking about septic waste.

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