Salt Spring Island’s Local Trust Committee (LTC) will have a new chair — a 45-year resident of Lasqueti Island.
Trustee Timothy Peterson, from the Lasqueti Island Local Trust Area, was appointed Thursday, Nov. 24 by Islands Trust Council (ITC) chair Peter Luckham, a Thetis Islander who had served the previous two terms as Salt Spring’s LTC chair.
Peterson, who was also recently elected by fellow trustees to become ITC vice-chair, will join two Salt Spring Islanders voted in by public election in October — newly elected trustee Jamie Harris and re-elected trustee Laura Patrick — completing the three-person Salt Spring LTC in time for its first public meeting in December.
The local trust committee chair position is, as part of the Islands Trust Act, appointed by the ITC chair for each of the 12 committees in the Islands Trust area. Peterson, a third-term trustee, was also appointed to chair Galiano and Hornby Islands’ LTCs.
In his letter of interest submitted to ITC as part of his vice-chair appointment, Peterson describes himself as an artist, musician, gardener and cook.
“I have been a small business owner, and have worked at a variety of island-based occupations,” reads the letter. “I value the natural environment of our islands and recognize the varied threats to our environment from increased development pressures and climate change. I also recognize the threats to our communities and rural lifestyle from the challenges of housing availability and affordability, reduced community diversity, and the increasing difficulties of maintaining local services. I believe that working together we can address these challenges in a meaningful and productive way.”
The Trust press release with a full list of the chair appointments for each island is available here.
LTCs are responsible for land use planning and regulation, as laid out by the Islands Trust Act; their responsibilities include preparation and adoption of official community plans, zoning and subdivision bylaws, regulation of soil removal and deposit, and authorization of permits.
Salt Spring Island’s newly formed LTC will hold its first meeting Tuesday, Dec. 13.