Category Archives: Community

Beginnings of the Co-op at Refuge Cove

Norm Gibbon’s novel ‘Sea Without Shores’ is set in the tiny village of Refuge Cove, on West Redonda Island, during some of the years he was a member of the community. Refuge Cove’s story goes back several decades before that, but in today’s broadcast Norm outlines some of the history surrounding the beginnings of the Refuge Cove Land and Housing Co-op. 

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Newcomer to Vancouver: Toilets, the biggest culture shock of them all

Editor’s note: A comical glimpse into how someone from another culture perceives urban British Columbia.

By Mina Kerr-Lazenby, North Shore News, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Something horrific happened to me recently.

There I was, sitting on the loo. I’m doing my business, minding my own business, when I glance upwards mid tinkle … only to be met with the startled and unwavering stare of a stranger.

I had been sitting in the presumed private space of a public restroom cubicle when I had inadvertently peeped through the gap between the door and the stall’s wall at the same moment a woman, washing her hands at the sink in front, had glanced up into the mirror and locked eyes with my own. 

My stomach dropped (lucky I was on the toilet).

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Sandcastle Day on Cortes Island

Sunday, August 13, was Sandcastle Day at Smelt Bay on Cortes Island. There were about 20 entries, made by sculptors whose ages ranged anywhere from 18 months to 81 years. Some of participants live on Cortes, but others are visitors from as far away as Campbell River, Victoria, Vancouver, Langley, Quebec City or even England.

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Richard Andrews First Month as Project Manager of the Village Commons

Richard Andrews compared his first month as Project Manager of the Village Commons, in downtown Mansons Landing, to the years he was the Executive Director of a non profit in Vancouver.

“There’s a lot of planning going on right now.  We’re in  phase one of our build. We have the welcome pole to make, and a big pavilion. The funnest work is going to be making a playground.  The vending zone and the playground are mysterious right now. I have an idea of what they might be. I have an idea of what people want because we have  a lot of documentation from the Cortes Community Economic Development Association (CCEDA) about the community process they went through to determine what was to be done with this property,” he said.

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