SEPTEMBER
• Sunshine Coast RCMP were called out Sept. 1 to a break-in at a home in the evacuated Seawatch subdivision. RCMP were regularly patrolling the perimeter and the District of Sechelt was using drones and video to monitor the neighbourhood.
• More than 200 people came to the Sunshine Coast Labour Council’s annual Labour Day Picnic in Gibsons, with keynote speaker Ray Haynes, a labour movement veteran.
• Gibsons council gave second reading to the zoning and Official Community Plan amendments for a 40-unit supportive housing project at the old RCMP property on School Road. BC Housing would fund the $14-million construction cost as well as operating costs under a contract with RainCity Housing.
• The Sunshine Coast Affordable Housing Society’s efforts to build new rental apartments on Shaw Road in partnership with the Town of Gibsons moved on to public hearing after getting unanimous support at the Sept. 3 council meeting.
• Karin Fischer, a Halfmoon Bay woman facing murder charges in the death of her husband, appeared in Sechelt Provincial Court on Sept. 4 via video-link from the Alouette Correctional Centre in Maple Ridge.
• Coastal Bay Cannabis was the first non-medical cannabis retailer on the Sunshine Coast to get a provincial licence. Co-owner Brenda Harris said they hope to reopen as a government-sanctioned cannabis store on Sept. 6.
• RCMP statistics showed a dramatic spike in break-ins and petty thefts in July and August, and the trend continued into early September. Sechelt Mayor Darnelda Siegers described it as a “crime wave.” All three Sunshine Coast golf clubs were targeted, as were the Sunshine Coast Botanical Garden, the Sechelt landfill, and businesses in downtown Sechelt.
• A portion of vacant land near the Sechelt Hospital was clearcut in early September to reduce the risk of human-caused fires, according to the shíshálh Nation. The lot had been used as a homeless camp.
• West Vancouver-Sunshine Coast-Sea to Sky MP Pam Goldsmith-Jones visited the Gibsons Public Market Sept. 7 to confirm $100,000 in federal funding for the Nicholas Sonntag Marine Education Centre.
• Search and rescue teams from the Sunshine Coast and North Shore, assisted by Talon Helicopters, were needed to rescue a woman who broke her leg while descending the Elphinstone Summit Trail on Sept. 10.
• The 40-day federal election campaign began Sept. 11. Gabrielle Loren (Conservative), Patrick Weiler (Liberal), Dana Taylor (Green) and Doug Bebb (People’s Party) were the only candidates confirmed for West Vancouver-Sunshine Coast-Sea to Sky Country.
• The Conservatives chose Gabrielle Loren as candidate at a May 5 nomination meeting. Loren was a partner in her own tax accounting company and lived just outside the riding in North Vancouver. She ran unsuccessfully for West Vancouver council in the 2018 civic election. She described herself as a “53-year member of the community … passionate about finding solutions to the issues faced by our community.”
• Patrick Weiler, 33, would try to hold the seat for the Liberals after incumbent Pamela Goldsmith-Jones announced she would not seek re-election. Weiler, described by the party as an environmental and resource management lawyer and international development professional, was not a resident of the riding but emphasized his close ties to the area, having grown up splitting his time between the Sunshine Coast and West Vancouver.
• Dana Taylor of the Greens entered the race after running in the 2017 provincial election in West Vancouver-Sea to Sky and finishing a close second to Jordan Sturdy of the BC Liberals. He also served as a city councillor in North Vancouver. Taylor has been a resident of the riding for more than 30 years. He said his personal goal was to “help make our riding a shining example of how listening and collaborative problem-solving can improve our environment and our quality of life at the same time.”
• People’s Party candidate Doug Bebb, a 62-year-old semi-retired mechanical engineer from Whistler, was a political rookie. In his website profile Bebb said, “I am ready to help however and wherever I can in the PPC struggle to liberate Canada from the suffocating tide of political correctness that now engulfs it.”
• Judith Wilson, a lawyer on the lower Sunshine Coast who practises family law, was acclaimed as the NDP candidate for West Vancouver-Sunshine Coast-Sea to Sky Country. Wilson has lived full-time on the Coast since the 1980s and is “a longtime New Democrat [who] has been active in local politics on the Sunshine Coast since the early eighties when she took a leadership role in fighting against fish farms on the Sechelt Inlet.” Wilson also served as a trustee for School District No. 46.
• Gordon Jeffrey was the Rhinoceros Party’s West Vancouver-Sunshine Coast-Sea to Sky Country riding candidate in the 2019 federal election. Jeffrey is a typical 32-year-old Whistler resident. When he’s not working as a waiter he can be found skiing, biking, playing music or with his dog – but he won’t be found door-knocking during his campaign. “I also won’t be sending any junk mail,” he said. “That annoys the bejesus out of me when some party sends me a leaflet with all their new fake promises that they’re not going to keep.”
• Terry Grimwood of Sechelt, founder and current leader of the Canada Fresh Party, was confirmed by Elections Canada as an independent candidate for West Vancouver-Sunshine Coast-Sea to Sky Country. Grimwood, 67, has been a Sunshine Coast resident since 2003. He has family ties to the region and spent a lot of time in the area as a visitor. He went up against NDP leader Jagmeet Singh in February’s Burnaby South by-election. He has been travelling the country working to get his fledgling party off the ground for the past couple of years.
• Several organizations on the Sunshine Coast held all candidates meetings, including Sechelt Chamber of Commerce and Gibsons Chamber of Commerce. Voice Lab hosted an event focusing on housing, transportation, childcare and economic issues facing 18 to 40-year-olds. And the Sunshine Coast Conservation Association held an Environment and Climate Change All Candidates Forum.
• Jessica Carroll, a 17-year-old Roberts Creeker, was sworn in as the new student trustee for the Sunshine Coast school district on Sept. 11.
• RCMP Const. Tessa Cameron was pulled from her position as student liaison officer for School District No. 46 due to staffing shortages, SD46 superintendent Patrick Bocking told trustees at the Sept. 11 board meeting. Sunshine Coast RCMP Staff Sgt. Poppy Hallam said Cameron was needed to fill a gap left after a frontline police officer was injured.
• The 20th annual Red Serge Gala drew hundreds of guests to the Holy Family Catholic Church hall on Sept. 12. The event is a major RCMP fundraiser in support of the Canadian Cancer Society and the Cops for Cancer Tour de Coast.
• Local RCMP constables Dustin Shevchenko, Chris Mager and nearly 40 first responders cycled through the Sunshine Coast Sept. 12 and 13 as part of the 20th Cops for Cancer Tour de Coast fundraiser, which raised more than $623,000 for cancer research and to send children to Camp Goodtimes, a kids’ camp for cancer survivors.
• Freda England, the oldest person on the Sunshine Coast at 108, died peacefully of complications from old age on Sept. 14 at Christenson Village in Gibsons. “The remarkable thing is that Freda lived her life on her terms,” said Sandy Hendricks, England’s niece and primary caregiver.
• Green Party leader Elizabeth May visited the West Vancouver-Sunshine Coast-Sea-to-Sky Country riding Sept. 14, describing it as more “winnable” than ever for the Greens without an incumbent. May was at Gleneagles Golf Course in West Vancouver for candidate Dana Taylor’s campaign launch. May said she believed the Greens had an “excellent chance” in the riding, in part because of Taylor’s track record in the last provincial election.
• Shíshálh Nation, which owns the Tsain-Ko Village Shopping Centre, announced Sept. 18, that a Shoppers Drug Mart, a Lordco Auto Parts and a BC Cannabis Store were slated to be built at the shopping plaza starting in fall 2019.
• Councillors in Sechelt voted to approve new zoning requirements for cannabis production, processing and sales at their Sept. 18 meeting, accepting a series of changes proposed after two public hearings. The amendments increase the setback from schools for production facilities from 150 metres to 300 metres and decrease the minimum lot area from 4,000 sq. metres to 3,000. Buildings would have to be 50 metres from any lot line that abuts a residential property.
• Charges were stayed Sept. 20 against Karin Fischer, a Halfmoon Bay woman accused of murder in the death of her husband. The evidence did not warrant continued prosecution, the Crown said.
• Sunshine Coast RCMP continued to devote extra resources to investigating a rash of break-and-enters in Sechelt. On Sept. 20 someone broke into the offices at the Lighthouse Pub through the roof and stole cigarettes. Another break-in was reported at the Blue Ocean Golf Club that same day. And video surveillance was being used to identify a suspect seen taking a propane tank from a business in the 5800 block of Sechelt Inlet Road and a man seen breaking into the Shell gas station in Sechelt. The Sunshine Coast Regional District landfill on Dusty Road and Waste Management’s yard on Sechelt Inlet Road were also hit by thieves.
• Telus CEO Darren Entwistle was honoured by the Gibsons Community Building Society at the 2019 Gala Fundraiser and Tribute at Gibsons Public Market on Sept. 21. Telus has contributed more than $250,000 to the society, the organization behind the market and the Nicholas Sonntag Marine Education Centre.
• The Davis Bay Wilson Creek Selma Park Community Association recognized Maggie Guzzi as their community Citizen of the Year for 2019. Guzzi served for many years on the association’s executive (most recently as vice-president) and added her significant efforts to the work that established the greenhouse at Davis Bay Elementary School.
• Royal Canadian Marine Search and Rescue Station 14 crew member David Croal, who also serves as a Gibsons councillor, was recognized with the Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary Administrative Excellence Medal. Croal received the honour at the Sept. 21 RCM-SAR annual general meeting and awards ceremony.
• Irene Bushfield turned 98 on Sept. 24. She was the only surviving member of the little group that founded Harmony Hall in Gibsons. The Hall was built in the early ‘70s with volunteer labour.
• Firefighters in Sechelt were called out Sept. 25 to a kitchen fire at Pebbles Restaurant in the Driftwood Inn on Trail Avenue. Fire Chief Trevor Pike said the building’s automatic alarm system was triggered and several guests at the hotel alerted by the alarms also called 911.
• Fortis shut off the natural gas lines to the homes in the evacuated Seawatch neighbourhood of Sechelt after an order from Technical Safety BC.
• The District of Sechelt and the B.C. Ministry of Public Safety responded to a pair of lawsuits filed in July over the evacuation of the Seawatch neighbourhood. Property owners alleged the district is aware of “steps necessary to address geotechnical instability under Gale Avenue North, Seawatch Lane, Seawatch and the surrounding region” and “Sechelt’s failure to adequately implement remedial recommendations in a timely manner caused and contributed to the plaintiffs’ damage.” The lawsuits also argued that “the defendants’ ongoing practice of temporarily extending a purported emergency on a weekly basis by means of the evacuation order and extension orders is without lawful authority, is improper and is abusive” and has caused the homeowners “significant mental stress and anguish.” In their response, lawyers for the District of Sechelt flatly denied the claims and argued that the homeowners had not “suffered any loss or damage or emotional pain and suffering as a result of the acts or omissions of Sechelt as alleged or at all,” and that the district “did not design, construct or install any of the roads, utilities, or appurtenant works in the subdivision.”
• Former Sunshine Coast ElderCollege board member and program committee chair Laurean Reid was honoured with the prestigious award of the Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteers, based on her long and dedicated volunteer work over four decades.
OCTOBER
• A new exhibit at the tems swiya Museum opened Oct. 1 that reveals the history of residential school on the Sunshine Coast. The exhibit, kelkelus ?e she welh xwuxwulh t’i walh wixiw tems staw (Tears of the Past Revealing Our True Story), was unveiled following a poignant ceremony for Orange Shirt Day – a national day of remembrance honouring survivors of residential school.
• MV Lady Rose, the last operational vessel from the Union Steamship Company fleet, was acquired by the Clayton family, who were exploring options for transforming her into a public exhibit in Sechelt. She was built at a shipyard in Glasgow in 1937. Conversations were had with several organizations about the project, including the Maritime Museum of British Columbia and Vancouver Maritime Museum, as ideas are explored for the 32-metre steamship’s revival.
• The busy round of all-candidates meetings for the seven people vying to be MP for West Vancouver-Sunshine Coast-Sea to Sky Country continued. Liberal Patrick Weiler, Conservative Gabrielle Loren, Green Dana Taylor, New Democrat Judith Wilson, Doug Bebb of the People’s Party, Gordon Jeffrey of the Rhinoceros Party and independent Terry Grimwood tackled questions from voters on the Sunshine Coast.
• B.C. Green Party Leader Andrew Weaver said repeatedly reissuing a state of emergency for Seawatch every 10 days “is an untenable situation that cannot continue.” He urged the province to “work with the District of Sechelt to come up with a solution to this local crisis.”
• Gibsons council gave third reading to zoning and Official Community Plan amendments for the Sunshine Coast Affordable Housing Society’s project on Shaw Road, and agreed to provide funding to help the society hire staff. The project involves up to 70 units in two phases.
• Ninety-year-old Paul Jones, who was stranded on a logging road in Pender Harbour for three days with minimal food and water, was rescued after being discovered by two teenagers. Jones, an avid conservationist, drove up a logging road off Menacher Road Oct. 2. His SUV got stuck on the side of the road as he was returning from what was supposed to be an hour-long trip. Nolan Johnston and Jakob Thornton, both 16, were dirt biking when they spotted the SUV and saw Jones in the passenger seat. “He wasn’t moving,” said Thornton. “I thought he was dead.” The boys called 911, and paramedics arrived to find Jones in serious but not life-threatening condition. He was transported to Sechelt Hospital. “Was I ever pleased to get out of there,” Jones said after recovering in his Garden Bay home.
• The last part of the link between Cowrie Street and Derby Road was completed, allowing people to travel between West Sechelt and downtown without using Highway 101.
• Holy Crap cereal’s company founder Corin Mullins announced she sold the business, and new company president Donna Reddy was at the helm. Holy Crap made its debut at the Sechelt Farmers’ & Artisans’ Market a decade ago.
• At an Oct. 2 Sechelt council meeting, RCMP said they’re closing in on a “property-crime ring” suspected in a rash of business break-ins. There was an increase of nearly 200 per cent in crimes like business break-ins in July, August and September.
• Sechelt council gave first reading to rezoning bylaws for Evolve, a mixed-use commercial project planned for a property in Wilson Creek with up to 9,900 sq. metres of commercial floor space and 175 residential units.
• On Oct. 1, commercial buses at the Sunshine Coast Regional District works yard on Mason Road were broken into and the fare boxes ripped out, and on Oct. 9, fare boxes were pried open and money stolen from three handyDART buses as well as regular service buses. Tools were stolen from the Mason Road site also.
• Capilano University named Micki McCartney as regional director of kálax-ay, the Sunshine Coast Campus. She started in the new role on Oct. 7.
• Sechelt was among 41 weather stations across B.C. that saw temperature records broken on Oct. 9 and 10. The morning low Oct. 9 dipped to -0.3 C, beating a record of 1.7 C set in 1959. The temperature went down to 1.0 C on Oct. 10. The previous record was two degrees, set in 1956.
• A late night stakeout at Blue Ocean Golf Course led to the arrest of a suspect in a string of business break-ins on the Coast. Around 2 a.m., a man matching the description of a suspect in other break and enters entered the property and walked past the police officers hiding outside. After a brief foot chase, he was arrested and taken into custody.
• Access to the beach and the seawalk between Armours Beach and Coles Marine was limited because of work on a $308,000 project to improve the foreshore to better protect the sewer infrastructure.
• Amendments to shíshálh Nation’s constitution were formalized into electoral law, paving the way for Nation members to run for office and vote in the Nation’s upcoming election, regardless of where they live. There are approximately 1,400 registered Nation members – about half of whom don’t live on lands within shíshálh’s swiya (territory) and haven’t been eligible to vote until now.
• Colin Stansfield took over the reins as the Sunshine Coast Regional Economic Development Organization’s (SCREDO) first executive director. He takes over from Chris Hergesheimer, who was SCREDO’s program manager for the past two years.
• On Oct. 15, police attended a mischief complaint in the 8000 block of Northwood Road, Halfmoon Bay, after a homeowner woke to find windows of her vehicle smashed out and a door handle ripped off. Further investigation revealed the culprit was a bear attracted by leftover food inside the vehicle.
• About 200 people came out to an Oct. 17 public hearing on BC Housing’s application for zoning and Official Community Plan amendments to build a 40-unit modular building at the site of the old RCMP station on School Road. A slim majority of the more than 60 people who spoke at the hearing were opposed, but almost all of them said they were in favour of supportive housing, just not at that location.
• The Elphinstone Logging Focus (ELF) campaign to stop the harvesting of the Clack Creek Forest, BCTS cutblock A93884, continued Oct. 19 when supporters placed more than 1,000 felt hearts on the trees in the cutblock, part of the area ELF would like to see added to Mt. Elphinstone Provincial Park.
• Liberal candidate Patrick Weiler was declared winner of the West Vancouver-Sunshine Coast-Sea to Sky Country riding in the federal election Oct. 21. The unofficial count showed Weiler won with 22,135 votes (35 per cent), followed by Conservative Gabrielle Loren with 17,106 (27 per cent), Green Dana Taylor with 14,099 (22 per cent) and New Democrat Judith Wilson with 8,814 (14 per cent). PPC candidate Doug Bebb received 983 votes (1.5 per cent), while Rhino Gordon Jeffrey received 206 and independent Terry Grimwood got 158.
• In an Oct. 22 letter to the mayors of Gibsons and Sechelt, Transportation Minister Claire Trevena promised to take what she heard at a meeting with local government leaders at the Union of BC Municipalities convention into her ministry’s latest consultation on the future of coastal ferry services, including consideration of a provincially subsidized passenger-only ferry service to Vancouver.
• In a presentation to Sechelt council’s committee of the whole on Oct. 23, Ted Bentley, a member of the Sunshine Coast Pickleball Association’s facility development committee, said the association is hoping the district will agree to lease them a lot in the area between the Sunshine Coast Racquet Club and the arena for a dedicated, year-round facility.
• A fire broke out Oct. 23 at The Salvation Army building at 682 Gibsons Way, which also has other commercial tenants as well as several apartments on the upper floor. There were no injuries, but some smoke and water damage.
• Shíshálh Nation Chief Warren Paull was among the many dignitaries at the B.C. legislature Oct. 24 for the announcement that the province would be the first in Canada to introduce legislation to implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Among the 46 articles contained in the declaration is the requirement that governments “consult and cooperate in good faith” in order to obtain “free and informed consent” from Indigenous groups before approving any project affecting their lands or resources.
• On Oct. 30 the Lady Rose was towed safely into MacKenzie Sea Services’ marina in Porpoise Bay, after a three-day journey from Tofino. The Clayton family acquired the last operational vessel from the Union Steamship Company at the beginning of October with hopes of restoring her as a public exhibit. The group set up a website in search of stories, connections and suggestions from the public as they plan for the vessel’s future.
