Tag Archives: Texada Island

Ferry cancellations on the mid-West Coast became more frequent starting this spring

Originally published on qathet Living

Editor’s note: Tensions boiled over at a recent Sunshine Coast ferry advisory committee meeting (FAC), and a woman said she would ‘take a gun’ to everyone’ if there weren’t changes.  

Each quarter, BC Ferries releases thorough data about ferry cancellations on its website (bcferries.com/in-the-community/resources). Stats are currently available until June of this year; the July through September stats will be released as a full data set in the fall.  

Continue reading Ferry cancellations on the mid-West Coast became more frequent starting this spring

A tale of two co-buys

Originally published on qathet Living

One was strictly business. The other is an intentional community. Both versions of shared mortgages achieved the same goal: getting people into the housing market who might otherwise be shut out. 

Do something weird.

That’s 460 Realtor Austyn MacKinnon’s advice to first-time home buyers who are navigating a crazy market like qathet’s. She should know. She and her husband did something weird to get into the market back in 2014: they co-bought an $800,000 house with acquaintances.

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April 25-27: 2023 RIEP Forum

The first Rural Islands Economic Partnership (RIEP) Forum was held on Pender Island during 2019. They were forced to hold virtual events after COVID hit, but the 2023 RIEP Forum is an in-person event that will be held on Gabriola Island, April 25-27.

“This is a flagship event for the 18 plus rural islands of BC. The reach is from Bowen Island to Malcolm Island to Salt Spring to Gabriola, to Cortes, and Quadra. Our motto is, ‘No one island can be resilient alone, and together we’re stronger and better,’” explained Francine Carlin, Chair and Interim Executive Director of the Rural Islands Economic Partnership.

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Where to find qathet’s Ghost Salmon

qathet Living, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Dam building over the last century destroyed all of qathet’s major salmon runs, and several small ones, too. Just a whisper remains of this region’s once-majestic returns.

Local experts are re-imagining these rivers for the future. For salmon. For ecosystems. And for reconciliation.

Standing on the rocky banks of the Powell River, you can see zero salmon. But 100 years ago, before the mill, you would have seen thousands.

These are the ghost salmon.

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The Union Steamships arrive in Whaletown

When the Union Steamship company started operations, in 1889, there was a single ship servicing Burrard Inlet. Three years later they expanded their market to include the canneries, logging camps and small communities springing up along the coast. The first reference to a ship stopping in Whaletown is found in an 1899 edition of the VANCOUVER PROVINCE. 

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