Home Blog Page 414

Island operation receives outdoor license

Elizabeth Nolan
-
0
Island operation receives outdoor license

Good Buds Company Inc. announced last week it has been awarded an outdoor cultivation license for its Salt Spring Island property, and believes it is the first company in the nation to receive the authorization.

A press release states that Good Buds was founded by brothers Tyler and Alex Rumi, and has quickly grown into a family of professionals with a focus on quality and sustainable cultivation. The brand is guided by the principles of artisanal quality and craft growing and extraction techniques.

“We’re thrilled to have been awarded an outdoor cultivation license, and are grateful to Health Canada for approving our outdoor grow area in only four months,” said founder and CEO, Tyler Rumi. “Our outdoor license places us in a great position to keep expanding our business organically. We want passionate cannabis enthusiasts to trust us and stand with Good Buds for the long-term, so we’re committed to growing only the most potent and flavourful cannabis.”

Good Buds already has Health Canada-licensed indoor cultivation space on North End Road. Adding outdoor growing ability is expected to dramatically lower capital and production costs when compared to indoor and greenhouse-grown crops.

“More importantly, outdoor cannabis is a more sustainable way to cultivate as outdoor cultivation dramatically decreases the carbon footprint caused by traditional synthetic cannabis cultivation,” the press release states.

The Good Buds company had another first in Canada in receiving the first ever joint cultivation-oils license. The company extracts cannabis oils using only solvent-free extraction techniques.

The brothers said they homed in on Salt Spring for their business because the climate is perfectly suited for outdoor growing. Plants respond well to the bright sunlight, mild ocean breezes and pristine water quality unique to Salt Spring Island which provides an advantage over other locations.

They plan on building on the region’s reputation for natural beauty and agriculture to create a company that is synonymous with ideals such as family, quality, attention to detail and sustainability.

Good Buds states its small-batch indoor cultivation operations are already powered by more than 90 per cent renewable energy sources.

It is not known whether the company has received authorizations required by other authorities, including a Capital Regional District building permit and groundwater licensing with the Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development, that were previously unfulfilled.

For more on this story, see the May 22, 2019 issue of the Gulf Islands Driftwood newspaper, or subscribe online.

Editorial: Two wheel challenge

Driftwood Staff
-
0
Editorial: Two wheel challenge

Bike to Work week is a way for Salt Spring Islanders to show they’re serious about the environment.

We take pride in our commitment to the environment, it is part of islanders’ identities. We are represented by the Green party both federally and provincially, we have been called unicorn riders based on our opposition to the proposed twinning of the Trans Mountain pipeline, we have the most electric vehicles per capita in Canada and our local government has declared a climate emergency in and around the islands.

Meanwhile, gas prices have been breaking records for so long that it is no longer surprising to see them over $1.60. Bike to Work Week is the perfect time to save some money and park the gas guzzlers.

A 2017 survey of transportation choices on Salt Spring shows that there are over 6,000 bikes owned on the island. Let’s pull them out of the garages or where ever they may be stored. Islanders take an average 2.6 trips per day, and the vast majority of these are by car. If even a small fraction of these were done by bike, the impact would be incredible. Cycling is one of the only transportation options that has zero environmental impact.

Though it may be a long ride from Fulford to Ganges, it is not an impossible feat. A casual rider takes a little under an hour to make the trek. Modern bikes and e-bikes make hills seem like nothing, and a good bicycle costs far less to purchase and maintain than even a used car. Non-major routes are a great alternative without many cars, and the danger of riding on Salt Spring’s roads is lessened when more people do it.

If you are able to do your part and help promote cycling during Bike to Work Week, this helps create a healthy lifestyle on the island, and hopefully word will spread to our neighbouring cycling-friendly communities. Studies from Canada and the U.S. show that when communities embrace bicycle tourism, business revenues go up. Nobody is more willing to spend money than a group of hungry cyclists.

Bike to Work week should be seen as a challenge to Salt Springers to live up to our environmentally-friendly claims.

Viewpoint: Pathways cost not tallied

Contributed Article
-
0
Viewpoint: Pathways cost not tallied

By Jenny McClean

In response to the budget debates going back and forth in the Driftwood, I would like to say the following:

The North Ganges Transportation Plan, aside from the successful part that was built before the 2014 taxation referendum (that took another million out of Salt Spring property owners, above the war chest that was already held by the CRD and also a separate taxation that contributes to the bus), has not succeeded in its plan.

Two studies were commissioned and that was the JE Anderson report and the James report. Island Pathways, which receives CRD funding, joined in with plans to create a pathway loop around town going along Rainbow to Atkins, along Lower Ganges and back to town. At the time it was obvious that a certain idea would not work. 

Better ideas presented from the public included the suggestion that people could already use Swanson Road instead of the unmanageable hill they have to tackle to go on Atkins. Years went by with so much effort going into this one rigid design idea.

In the meanwhile some good projects did get built. For example, the path by Churchill Road that goes into town is quite nice and useful. 

However, with the ideas to take over road shoulders and convert them into paths in areas that were already walkable (for example, by the upper part of the Farmers’ Institute and also the pullover outside Phoenix Secondary), it was just a waste of time and money. That money continues to go out each year as the upkeep costs are paid for by property taxes. The CRD has an annual budget of $40,000 for pathways maintenance.

I attended the budget presentation by Gary Holman. That was the same presentation that the Driftwood attended.

Gary Holman stated at that public meeting that the arrangement between the CRD and the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure for the land transfer from MoTI to the CRD to enable the “paths” to be built was that the CRD (local taxes) would pay for the upkeep of the paths in perpetuity.

For many that does not matter and is just business as usual. However, when I asked at that time about the maintenance budget as it was openly known that it did have a cost, the CRD would not admit it was a budget item. The reason this matters is that those who may want a different type of design, or those who have already given money in lieu of land to Islands Trust, may wish to have some input on the design. Islands Trust collected money for a sidewalk from a property owner, yet there were no sidewalk plans. 

At that time I did not understand the politics here at all. The divisiveness was fanned by the unwillingness to listen to the public. It was not considered that the pathways cost any money at all. However, the North Ganges Transportation Plan, which includes pathways, has been quite expensive, including the $1 million extra property taxes approved in the 2014 referendum.

The writer is a Salt Spring Island resident.

Hospital foundation approves design funds for emergency department

Gail Sjuberg
-
0
Hospital foundation approves design funds for emergency department

Planning for a new Lady Minto Hospital emergency department got a boost last week with a commitment from the Lady Minto Hospital Foundation to spend funds needed for the project’s schematic design and design development stages.

At an extraordinary general meeting held Thursday, Lady Minto Hospital Foundation Society members approved using $1.5 million from the foundation’s endowment fund in order to get the project rolling. The motion passed by a 23-2 vote.

Emergency department expansion will see a 5,400-square-foot addition to the hospital at a preliminary estimated cost of between $8 and $10 million.

“This is an important step forward for a project that Salt Spring Islanders need and want,” said LMHF chair Derek Fry after the meeting. “The existing ED is too cramped to meet the emergency and urgent care needs of a community of 10,000 permanent residents plus our summer visitors.”

While Island Health has stated it will fund the operating costs for an expanded emergency department, it has committed no funding for the capital costs. Other major projects on Vancouver Island have taken precedence.

However, the Lady Minto Hospital ED expansion has been deemed a priority by the hospital foundation and its board is confident the required funds can be provided. The foundation currently has $6.5 million in its endowment fund and plans to raise more as needed.

At Thursday’s meeting, board members explained that Salt Spring can either wait indefinitely for its emergency department to be improved by Island Health and Capital Regional Health District funding or commit to covering the capital costs itself.

“Are we going to wait while some of the bigger projects are out of the way or are we going to step up and do it?” asked Fry.

“It’s not [Island Health’s] priority but it’s our priority and we can’t afford to wait,” said board member Paul Oliphant.

For more on this story, see the May 22, 2019 issue of the Driftwood newspaper. 

Garage fire extinguished by Salt Spring Fire Rescue

Driftwood Staff
-
0
Garage fire extinguished by Salt Spring Fire Rescue

Salt Spring Island Fire Rescue responded to an early morning structure fire in the 100 block of Thomas Road on Friday.

Salt Spring Fire Chief Arjuna George said the initial call came in at 4:37 a.m. and crews were finished at the scene at 8 a.m.

George said 25 firefighters responded with 19 on scene, plus four fire trucks and three support vehicles, along with BC Ambulance and BC Hydro personnel.

“On arrival, firefighters faced a fully involved detached garage structure fire threatening the main house,” said George in a press release. “Due to the fast response and aggressive attack, the fire was held to the garage only. The garage suffered severe damage with the main home receiving only slight exterior damage.”

He said two people were home at the time and were alerted to the fire by a neighbour.

“If it was not for the attentive neighbour, the result of this fire could have been far worse,” said George.

No injuries were reported, and the cause of the fire is under investigation.

Downtown windows broken again

Gail Sjuberg
-
2
Downtown windows broken again

Windows were broken in three Ganges buildings early Sunday morning, with four different businesses affected.

Salt Spring RCMP responded to the Capital Regional District office on McPhillips Avenue, RE/MAX realty and Pod in the Creekhouse building on Fulford-Ganges Road, and the Bumper to Bumper auto parts store on Jackson Avenue.

Some of the businesses have been targeted in the past. The Creekhouse building has had multiple instances of vandalism in the past year and the CRD office has also been hit.

CRD parks and recreation manager Dan Ovington told the Driftwood on Monday that no entry had been gained to the office and that efforts were underway to repair the damage. Ovington said it could be weeks before the repairs were complete.

Police canvassed local businesses in an attempt to get video surveillance of the suspect. One witness described seeing two people fleeing one of the scenes, but was unable to give RCMP a description.

Several organizations in the community have taken notice. The Salt Spring Chamber of Commerce has held a few meetings on the subject of downtown security and invited members of the Community Economic Development Commission to attend.

Commissioner Darryl Martin was at two of the chamber events and reported on them at the CEDC’s Monday meeting at the library.

“The problem hasn’t gone away on its own,” he said. “We have fragmented governance, the RCMP are on their own and understaffed.”

“This small group is trying to find a vehicle to coordinate these different groups out there . . . to come to some kind of solution to the problem,” he added.

One of the suggestions arising from the meetings is for business owners to invest in cameras and motion-activated lights. The CEDC discussed possible funding for some programs to enhance security, including a grant for cameras and lights. The Ganges Visitors Centre has used a CRD grant-in-aid to help fund that equipment. The idea of retaining a consultant to help do some community engagement in Ganges was also floated at the meeting, to be discussed further at a later date.

Anyone with information on this weekend’s activities is asked to contact the Salt Spring Island RCMP detachment at 250-537-5555 or Crimestoppers at 1-800-222-8477.

RCMSAR assists vessel near Penelakut

Contributed Article
-
0
RCMSAR assists vessel near Penelakut

Junior members with Royal Canadian Marine Search and Rescue Unit 25 Salt Spring were pulled into duty unexpectedly during a training exercise last Wednesday.

Coxswain Paul FitzZaland, along with regular crew members Mike Murphy and Paul Zolob, were heading out into Stuart Channel on a training session with junior members Erin Kelly, Kaylee Lapierre and Stella Pingle when they were tasked by the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre in Victoria to assist a vessel that had run aground in Clam Bay on the east side of Penelakut Island.

The crew arrived on scene to find a 45-foot sailboat aground close to the shore. The three people on board were not hurt and the vessel was not damaged or taking on water. RCMSAR 25 was asked by JRCC to stand by until a commercial tow operator from Nanaimo arrived on scene to help tow the boat out to deeper waters.

The unit’s junior members are Grade 11 and 12 students from the work experience program at Gulf Islands Secondary School. They started training to become crew members in February.

“This unexpected tasking was an opportunity for them to experience how a fast-response vessel operates when responding to a marine emergency,” said RCMSAR 25 spokesperson Mike Murphy.

A grant from the Salt Spring Foundation makes possible the junior members’ training by funding the fuel and equipment for their program.

SIMS jazz ensemble collects gold

Elizabeth Nolan
-
0
SIMS jazz ensemble collects gold

A sense that music is a valuable part of the learning experience and excitement about   the possibilities are building at Salt Spring Island Middle School, where the program has seen fantastic growth this year under the direction of Keith Ollerenshaw.

The latest evidence of the program’s strength came at the West Coast Jazz festival in Nanaimo, where SIMS’ senior jazz ensemble competed with high school bands from around the province and came away with the gold medal on May 1. To top off the experience, each Salt Spring student who participated also received individual awards and/or scholarships to summer music camp at St. Michaels University School.

Ollerenshaw said he was not expecting those results when he asked the group to attend the festival, which is held at Vancouver Island University.

“I just wanted them to have some practice — take them on the road, play a festival. And they did amazing,” Ollerenshaw said.

The West Coast Jazz festival is an affiliate of MusicFest Canada, the arbiter of the national-level competition. SIMS band members played jazz standards and were adjudicated by two renowned musicians: Juno Award-winner Ken Lister and drummer/band leader Kelby MacNayr. Winning the gold medal means the ensemble has now qualified for the 2020 national competition in Calgary.

In the individual categories, Salome Cullen won the award for most outstanding drummer of the festival, although stacked up against high school level competitors. Other honours received were: Avery Charles, St. Michaels scholarship and Tapestry Music Award; Ewan Holmes, soloist award; Finnian Lee, St. Michaels scholarship and soloist award; Kai Stenstrom, soloist award; and El Thompson, St. Michaels scholarship.

Ollerenshaw acknowledged the awards are nice to have, but said more importantly, the experience shows what the middle school is capable of when it comes to music.

“As a community, we should be really proud their work and excited about what’s to come,” he said, adding, “The students should be really proud because they worked really hard, but there’s still a lot to do. There’s always more growth.”

SIMS’s music program has received strong support from parents and students over the past year. Ollerenshaw said there’s a buzz that’s reminiscent of past times of strong leadership under teachers Bruce Creswick and Mitch Howard, who both died.

“I’m trying to match the standard that teachers like Mitch and Bruce established,” Ollernshaw said. “This feels like we’re headed in the right direction.”

Salt Spring Hospice improves quality of life

Elizabeth Nolan
-
0
Salt Spring Hospice improves quality of life

With National Hospice Week drawing to a close on Saturday, now is a good time to get acquainted with the local island organization that works to provide improved end-of-life experiences.

Having no physical facility of its own, Salt Spring Hospice describes a set of services rather than a location. Its volunteer members and board are perhaps most recognized for their work sitting vigil with those who are dying. But they offer much more than that decidedly valued gift.

“I think the most important thing to understand overall is hospice is really a philosophy of care. It’s really about making the end of life as worthwhile as the rest,” explained Lisa Dahling, who co-chairs the society’s board of directors.

Salt Spring Hospice volunteers are trained to provincial standards to help people deal with end-of-life. They support the people who are dying and their loved ones by sharing time at bedside vigils during the final days, whether that’s at the hospital or another location. These services are available for any age group, including children, and are not limited to any one kind of illness.

Services that extend after a death include annual group sessions for grieving people, and one-on-one support. Another priority is to update and strengthen organizational aspects to ensure long-term sustainability.

The other members of the new board are equally enthusiastic. They include secretary Sue Walker, treasurer Paul Roberts, Richard Stetson (partnership development director), Andrea Pixley (organization strengthening director) and Genevieve Martini (director for membership development).

Roberts is the sole continuing director from the previous cohort, but Walker, Dahling and Martini all have years of experience as hospice volunteers and bring a special perspective to the role. Pixley is a care aide at Greenwoods and Oliphant retired as executive director of the eldercare facility last year. Stetson retired as the Anglican parish minister in 2017. Together they have an interconnected history of working with people who are facing life’s end, and their goal is to continue developing partnerships to foster the wider perspective.

A policy shift from Island Health that seeks to take dying out of the hospital and move it back into the home is another probable change. Martini observed that although dying was medicalized and institutionalized just a few generations ago, bringing it back to the home will require a significant learning period; the associated societal and cultural skills have largely been lost.

“A great number of people choose to retire here but they haven’t brought their children to retire with them,” said Dahling’s co-chair Paul Oliphant.

For more on this story, see the May 15, 2019 issue of the Gulf Islands Driftwood newspaper, or subscribe online.

Shopland wins Mouat Cup

Contributed Article
-
0
Shopland wins Mouat Cup

BY Marcia Hogan

DRIFTWOOD contributor

The men’s division trophy event for the Mouat and Morris Cups was held May 11 with a field of 36 players.

This year’s competition was a photo finish with winning scores just one stroke apart, but it was Ian Shopland’s day. 

Not only did Shopland capture the Mouat Cup for low gross with a two over par score of 74, he did it for the second time! His previous win was in 1966, 53 years ago. This year’s win was also the 56th time in Shopland’s golf career that he managed to shoot his age or better.

Eric Beamish moved up from fourth last year to second this year, with a score of 75. Stephen Elwes’ 76 was good for third place. Elwes was last year’s winner. Fourth was awarded to Mike Horan, based on retrogression of a tied score of 77.

Shopland had the Morris low net cup in the bag until Gary Tremblay matched Shopland’s 67. Shopland and Tremblay will play an 18-hole playoff to determine the cup winner. Ted Grand won third place and Charlie Holmes took fourth when both carded a 68 and winners were determined by retrogression.

The third leg of this event is the season-long gross match play competition for the Matson Cup. All players have now been seeded, including the consolation round for the net contingent. 

1...413414415...610Page 414 of 610