At their May 27 meeting, the Strathcona Regional District Board (SRD) approved a motion to provide the Cortes Island Food Bank with close to $24,000 for its new outlet in Manson’s Landing.

Mark Vonesh (Regional Director, Cortes Island): “I’d like to move that a financial contribution of up to $23,425 be approved from the Electoral Area B Community Works Fund to the Cortes Island Food Bank Association to support construction of a food security hub, subject to finalizing a funding agreement between the association and the regional district.”

The minutes state that Michael Lott of Gold River seconded the motion, but the voice in the audio sounds more like Robin Mawhinney, Regional Director for Area C. 

Mark Baker (Chair of the SRD): “Discussion? All in favor. Motion is passed.”

SRD Funding the Cortes Island Food Bank

The money comes from federal gas tax revenues, which in BC are administered by the Union of BC Municipalities (UBCM). A similar motion was turned down on October 2, 2025, because the funds would go to a third party. 

As Chief Administrative Officer David Leach explained at that time:
“The challenge is, again, these are UBCM resolutions. It’s not an SRD asset. So is this a priority within the regional districts? Do you have any other regional deficiencies that you could use this money for yourself? That’s the challenge. It qualifies, but it’s to a third party.”

Some directors were concerned that granting money to a third party could be interpreted as meaning the SRD did not have any applicable projects of its own.

The Union of BC Municipalities later advised the SRD that funding for the Cortes Island Food Bank be eligible as cultural infrastructure if it was included in board-approved planning documents. This interpretation is based on the precedent set by communities using gas tax funds to enhance community centers that host programs such as emergency shelters and food services, thereby contributing to food security outcomes. SRD staff responded by incorporating the project into their 2026 to 2031 financial plan.

Thank-you to Everyone Concerned

Beatrix Baxter, president of the Cortes Island Food Bank, emailed, “We were thrilled to get the news that our funding request was approved. This was funding we were hoping to get last year as we faced the loss of our former food storage location and needed to make emergency renovations to the shipping containers at the Village Commons. Unfortunately, due to questions about whether a nonprofit can count as a beneficiary of that particular infrastructure funding, we weren’t able to access that funding last year. We’re so grateful to our Regional Director and to the SRD board, CAO and CFO for their work in negotiating an effective strategy so those funds are available to us this year.”

“We hope other nonprofits on the island will work with the Regional Director to use this strategy to fund future projects. We’re continuing to work on the shipping containers, adding a roof between the structures and improving accessibility. We’re excited to show the public everything that we’ve been working on at our open house later this summer. It’s been a huge effort, and we couldn’t have done it without the support of the SRD, our Regional Director, Food Banks Canada, and our amazing local donors who consistently show up to support our work. The need in our community is growing, and we’re very glad to be working on eradicating hunger with the support of our local government.”

Links of Interest:

• Cortes Island Food Bank
• The Face of Poverty on Cortes Island – Cortes Currents
• New Executive Director Responds to 5 Myths about Food Banks – Cortes Currents
• Hunger Count 2025 – Food Banks Canada
• Articles about, or mentioning, the Cortes Island Food Bank

Top image credit: Artists conception of the roof connecting area between the Food Bank Sea Cans – courtesy Cortes Island Food Bank

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