The Driftwood earned five honours in the 2025 Canadian Community Newspaper Awards (CCNA) competition announced Monday, Sept. 22, based on submissions of work published in 2024.

Awards are:

• third place all around in the 1,500 to 6,499 circulation category;

• second place for front page;

• first place for editorial page;

• first place for the 2024 edition of the Best of Salt Spring Island for special sections in the under 10,000 circulation category; and

• third place for Dennis Parker’s cartoon about rooster and dog evictions in the under 10,000 circulation division.

General excellence entries are derived of one paper from two months designated by the competition, with writing, photography, advertising, layout and design, range of coverage, front page and editorial page considered in the points tally.

Competitions no longer take place at the provincial level, but News Media Canada has maintained the traditional CCNA event.

Deadline change

Due to the Driftwood’s press in Coquitlam being closed for the Sept. 30 National Day for Truth and Reconciliation statutory holiday — when the Driftwood would normally be printed — letters to the editor or press releases for the Oct. 1 issue of the paper must be received by 4 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 25. Send submissions to news@gulfislandsdriftwood.com.

Display and classified ad deadlines are 4 p.m. today (Sept. 24).

Early printing also means that weekend events such as the Convergence Festival, Salt Spring National Art Prize and other exhibit openings and the Salt Spring Apple Festival, and news that occurs after Sept. 26, won’t be represented in the Oct. 1 paper.

Check the gulfislandsdriftwood.com website for news updates at any time.

Islanders Working Against Violence (IWAV) announced today that it has a conditional accepted purchase offer on the property at 210 Norton Rd., marking a significant step toward addressing the critical need for affordable rental housing on Salt Spring Island.

IWAV said in a media release that it has until early December to raise the funds needed to complete the purchase in January.

“Acquiring the property is part of IWAV’s long-term strategy to expand affordable housing, aligning with its purpose and strategic plan to create safe, supportive communities free from poverty, violence and abuse,” it said.

IWAV, which provides housing and anti-violence services across the Southern Gulf Islands, is experienced in developing affordable housing. The not-for-profit society currently operates a Transition House, second-stage housing at The Cedars, and developed most of the 74 units of affordable housing it operates at 132 Croftonbrook Rd.

The Norton Road property already has zoning for 26 units of affordable housing — for a project initiated several years ago by then-owners Norm and Diane Elliott — and is ideally located near grocery stores, healthcare services, schools and transit.

“This is exactly the type of opportunity our community needs,” said Alicia Herbert, executive director of IWAV. “With Norton Road, we can build on our success at Croftonbrook to create more housing that truly meets the needs of our community.”

According to the real estate listing, the property is 12 acres in size, with a 2,700-square-foot home built in 2003. Listing price is $2.85 million.

IWAV said that in the coming weeks its team will reach out to community members, partners and supporters to help meet the fundraising target, which was not specified in the media release.

“Safe, affordable housing is urgently needed here and across the Southern Gulf Islands. By coming together to meet this goal, we can create lasting change for women, children and families,” Herbert added.

Updates will be shared on IWAV’s website, social media channels and in local media.

An agricultural parcel snapped up by a Salt Spring Island organization two years ago in hopes of using it for affordable housing has yet to be part of a comprehensive plan, according to land use officials — and until they see one, they said, the Local Trust Committee (LTC) isn’t prepared to consider lending its support.

Salt Spring Island Community Services (SSICS) announced in 2023 it had completed purchase of 131 Brinkworthy Rd., a 10.85-acre property fronting both Brinkworthy and Lower Ganges roads, which at the time held a two-bedroom manufactured home, a 300-square-foot studio, a barn and a shed. SSICS executive director Rob Grant told the Driftwood then he felt the land was “perfectly located” and that SSICS intended to “take our time in consultation, planning and evaluation of all of the current options and priorities.”

But in clearly frustrated correspondence heard at the LTC’s regular meeting Thursday, Sept. 11, SSICS housing and facilities manager Michael Smith said he was “formally requesting” the land use authority contact the Agricultural Land Commission (ALC) and request SSICS’ parcel be removed from the Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR) — a provincial land use zone where agriculture is the priority use and non-agricultural uses are restricted.

“SSICS is currently developing and implementing a farm on a portion of the property close to and under the power lines with approval from BC Hydro,” wrote Smith. “Our second objective is to provide affordable housing on the approximate 4.5 acres in close proximity to the corner of Brinkworthy Road and Fulford-Ganges Road.”

Smith included in that correspondence several renderings of what a developed property at the parcel might look like, including what appeared to be as many as 35 smaller structures around a central hub — suggesting that in addition to being removed from the ALR, the parcel would likely require rezoning, as 131 Brinkworthy Rd. is mapped as “Residential 3” under Salt Spring’s land use bylaw, generally permitting one or two residential dwellings.

But in the letter, Smith said SSICS was not requesting a rezoning, because “in all likelihood, the anticipated development will not maximize the allowed density.”

“This has been an unusual process where they keep asking us for a letter, but there’s no application,” said trustee Laura Patrick, “so we don’t have a staff analysis as to what they are asking for.”

Indeed, in the letter Smith recognized there had been “previous communication from staff” requesting information on how SSICS intended to provide services to the planned housing units, but implied that information would not be forthcoming.

“[The] sewer connection or septic is a CRD issue and water is a North Salt Spring [Waterworks] issue,” read the letter. “We will not be able to determine how we will provide services until the ALR designation has been removed and our financing options have been explored.”

Smith wrote there was funding available for the project but that SSICS “cannot apply with the ALR designation in place.”

The current official community plan for Salt Spring allows its LTC to support such applications to remove a property from the reserve after plans have been referred to the Agricultural Advisory Planning Committee — and if the LTC believes removal of the land from the ALR would not reduce the farming capability of the property or if the new non-farm use benefits the community and could be shown to be impossible to undertake elsewhere. 

Even apart from ALR considerations, that last bar is a demonstrably high one to meet; a zoning-contrary kennel/shelter operation on Blackburn Road was shuttered in June after a temporary use permit there was denied, partly on the grounds that there were other more suitable properties for kennel operations.

On Thursday, Patrick said applications to the ALC to remove land from the reserve have not been successful, at least during her tenure on the LTC — “but we’re always willing to keep asking” when appropriate, she said.

Trustees directed staff to work with SSICS to develop a more substantive understanding of what’s being planned on the parcel — and report back to the LTC. 

Just a handful of property owners have successfully applied to the ALC for non-farm use of ALR parcels on Salt Spring, according to provincial records, with less than one approval per year since 2017 — although the uses tended to be relatively minor structures, such as the open-sided cover at the golf course driving range in 2020, or tightly connected to farm use, such as an expanded use of Ruckle Farm worker accommodations in 2019.