Tag Archives: Gerald Whalley

Housing

Allegations that Rural Directors Bullied Area D; Who bullied who?

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At the May 27 SRD Board Meeting, Mayor Kermit Dahl of Campbell River accused Regional Directors Mark Vonesch, Robyn Mawhinney and Gerald Whalley of bullying Regional Director John Rice:    

“For example, when Director Rice was outvoted on a development in Area D by three electoral area Directors who wanted to show him, ‘Stay in line or else we’ll show you.’ They could stop him from succeeding in moving Area D forward.”

This is not the first time Campbell River Directors have made this allegation.

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Politics

Mark Vonesch Removed; Susan Sinnott New Vice-Chair of the SRD

Mark Vonesch was removed from his position as Vice-Chair of the SRD through a non-confidence vote, and Campbell River Director Susan Sinnott was elected in his place.

The voting followed what is becoming a familiar pattern: the five Campbell River Directors and their allies voted to remove Vonesch, while the Directors from Gold River, Tahsis, and Electoral Areas A, B, and C supported him.

The Alleged Plot

The vote was preceded by a roughly two-hour in-camera session, after which Campbell River Mayor Kermit Dahl addressed the public meeting.

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Politics

Cortes, Quadra and Read Island items at the March 25th SRD Board Meeting

At its March 25 SRD Board meeting, Campbell River and its allies passed a resolution to draft a bylaw making the average Quadra Island homeowner pay an additional $588 in property taxes to help fund Campbell River’s Recreate Strathcona Gardens project. (This fight is not over yet.) Whether the proposed bylaw will pass remains to be seen, but a large number of noncontroversial Cortes, Quadra and Read Island items were passed at the same board meeting. They pertained to: 

  • A Quadra Island Right of Way
  • Vacancies in Advisory Planning Commissions for Areas C & D
  • Squirrel Cove Aquaculture 
  • Who Pays Administrative Costs for the Electoral Areas Services Committee
  • Cortes Island’s Active Transportation Plan
  • Funding Opportunities for Active Transportation in Areas B & C
  • Legacy Gifts in Regional District Parks
  • Residency Requirement for Short Term Rentals
  • Proposed Electoral Areas Grant in Aid Service 
  • Waste Pick-up Contract on Cortes Island
  • Renewal of Post Office contract for Read Island
  • Grants-in-Aid for Quadra Island 

As these are all short items, Cortes Currents decided to use them as examples of how the SRD conducts board meetings.

Continue reading Cortes, Quadra and Read Island items at the March 25th SRD Board Meeting →
Politics

Campbell River Not Joining Electoral Area Land Use Planning Service

(Part One of the March 18, 2026 Area B Director’s Report )

By Regional Director Mark Vonesch

I’m really excited to share this newsletter with you. I have the results from the housing survey, but before we get to that, Cortes Island just had a big political win.

Continue reading Campbell River Not Joining Electoral Area Land Use Planning Service →
Housing

SRD Looking into developing two Provincial lots on Quadra Island

Strathcona Regional District (SRD) staff will be asking the Ministry of Forests about the possibility of obtaining two provincial lots on Quadra Island for development. Three of the four Regional Directors at the Wednesday, January 14, 2026, Electoral Areas Services Committee meeting voted to proceed. 

Meredith Starkey, Manager of Planning for the SRD, brought a list of 13 Federal, Provincial and Regional properties to the meeting. She explained that the report provides an overview of public land available near Quathiaski Cove and Heriot Bay on Quadra Island which could be considered for future affordable housing.

 “There’s really only three sites that are currently undeveloped in a suitable size and some other conditions that make them more suitable than others. They all have constraints.”

Continue reading SRD Looking into developing two Provincial lots on Quadra Island →