All posts by De Clarke

Sustainability

Two Wheels good: E-Bikes on Cortes Island

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Last April, some EV owners on Cortes Island held an “EV Faire” at Manson’s Hall; they brought their vehicles to show and discuss, and giving test rides to some attendees. Coverage of this event focussed on the big shiny cars; but there are actually more e-bikes than e-cars on Cortes Island, and I felt the bikes didn’t get enough page space.

I therefore asked e-bike owners to contact me if they would like to be interviewed, so I could profile them and their bikes. The first three respondents all had quite different bikes, so this article has three sections, one for each bike:

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Local Politics

Confidentiality or Secrecy? A Slippery Slope

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(EDITORIAL: Originally published Nov 2, 2019. Reposted to front page Nov 5 due to demand.)

The Board of Directors is committed to performing its functions of office truthfully, faithfully and impartially to the best of its knowledge and ability based on the following values:
(a) to work as a committed team in a spirit of collaboration and community;
(b) to be caring and respectful in all interactions and relationships;
(c) to be open and honest, and to adhere to the highest standards of ethical conduct;
(d) to deliver effective public service through professionalism and creativity; and
(e) to be accountable to constituents and to the region as a whole.
— From the Strathcona Regional District Code of Conduct

On October 30th, just a few days after the decisive referendum on Area B Bylaws 328 and 341, the Cortes community received quite a shock: SRD (Strathcona Regional District) published on Tideline a press release detailing a motion of censure against Regional Director Noba Anderson. This censure rests on a claim that Director Anderson inappropriately released confidential in camera information (namely, the Craig Peterson report and two legal opinions whose significance is not explained).  Our community’s assessment of this charge against her depends on how we understand in camera privilege and SRD’s use of it.

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Arts

Transformations On the Shore: Local Art

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Since its inception in 1997, Campbell River‘s chainsaw sculpture show, “Transformations on the Shore,” has been a favourite event for both locals and tourists. Artists come from as far away as Alberta to participate in the summertime live sculpting event.

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Local Politics

Ambush vs Engagement: How SRD Deals with Cortes Island

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(EDITORIAL…. This article is a footnote or digression to the feature article “Confidentiality vs Secrecy: A Slippery Slope“. However, it also can be read on its own.)

Here’s an example of what I would call downright peculiar (when describing SRD’s dealings with Area B, Cortes Island).

When Craig Peterson (private investigator hired by SRD) suddenly arrived on Cortes Island in the New Year, he was quite open and frank about his mission here. He said he was here “to investigate the charges against Director Anderson.” For many islanders, it was the first they’d heard about any allegations or charges against our Director.

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Local Politics

Editorial: What Have We Done?

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During the couple of weeks immediately surrounding our two elections (federal, and assent voting), I have not wanted to muddy the waters with discussion of any issues outside the immediate and practical ones:  evaluating and choosing our federal candidates, and determining the community will regarding Bylaws 328 and 341.  Now that both elections are over, however, I think we might want to reflect on the last year in Cortes politics and what the results of our recent referendum imply.

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