The Island Railway suspended operations on March 18, 2011, due to safety concerns about the condition of the tracks. Plans to reopen the line continue to this day. In fact, one of the items of correspondence at the Strathcona Regional District’s May 13th Board Meeting was an email from Nanaimo Mayor Leonard Krog.
Continue reading Should We Reopen Island Rail?All posts by Roy Hales
Sunburst Over Mansons Hall
The Sunburst pattern on the west gable end of Mansons Hall dates back to the renovations of 1978-80. As the siding was not painted, it faded.
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Some Items of Interest At the May 13th SRD Board Meeting
The Strathcona Regional District finally posted the recording of their May 13th SRD Board Meeting late in the afternoon of the 21st. Given the lack of interest most of their constituents show for local politics, this is understandable. However the minutes of their meeting are little more than a record of votes and links to (far more valuable) attachments. There were several items of interest to Cortes, Read and Quadra Island residents.
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Species at Risk on Cortes Island
Helen Hall has been the Friends of Cortes Island’s (FOCI) Executive Director for close to five years. Autumn Barrett-Morgan came to FOCI as a summer student and continues on as the volunteer Conservation Assistant. In this morning’s program they talk about species at risk on Cortes Island.
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May 19 Virtual Community Meeting: Family Support & Folk U
After hearing a number of concerns about the effects that COVID related isolation is having on youth, Desta Beattie contacted between 80% and 90% of the Cortes Island families with teenagers to see how they are coping. Her quiet, unassuming manner is almost the opposite of Maunda Aufochs Gillespie, whose bubbling enthusiasm is displayed in constant movement and ever changing facial expressions. Gillespie has also reached out into the community, giving it a platform to express itself and planting seed money where it is most needed. Their ministries, Cortes Island Family Support & Folk U, were the focus of the eighth Cortes Virtual Community Conference on May 19, 2020.
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