qathet Regional District chair Patrick Brabazon recently told the regional board he was pleased to announce that Telus has returned to the Lund area.
At the October 29 regional district board meeting, Brabazon reported on updates after the telecommunications company had looked at installing a cellular/internet tower at a residence in the Lund village and withdrew after community opposition to the siting of the tower.
“Having walked from the proposed cell phone tower in Lund a few months ago, they [Telus] have now returned to Lund,” said Brabazon. “They had a meeting and a survey with the Lund water improvement district, because they were considering placing the new tower on water improvement district land.”
However, when they arrived at the top of the mountain, a water district representative showed them where the boundaries were and Telus liked the other side of the boundary, which happens to be regional district property, said Brabazon.
“So, I imagine we will be hearing from them very shortly with some sort of a proposal,” added Brabazon. “They have been talking to our staff, both planning and operational services. I’m just crossing my fingers and we’ll hold out for the best.”
During the director reports, city director CaroleAnn Leishman said there had been a solid waste management plan monitoring advisory committee meeting at the resource-recovery centre site where the old city incinerator was located near Willingdon Beach. She said the committee was able to monitor phase two of the closure of the contaminated site. She said a big mound of materials was being capped.
“That work will wrap up pretty quickly, depending on the weather,” said Leishman. “It’s great to see the progress there.”
Electoral Area D director Sandy McCormick said she attended a meeting of Tourism Powell River. She said a number of items came out of that meeting, one of which was that the organization is financially okay.
“All of the money they had anticipated receiving has come in,” said McCormick. “The summer was very busy and the students were very busy. It’s anticipated that the retail operation in the Tourism Powell River office will break even.”
McCormick said Tourism Powell River had been active with its marketing committee and is now looking at developing a campaign to market this region for off-season visitors.
“They are looking at putting packages together and they’ve been talking to Sunshine Coast Tourism, which is great,” said McCormick. “The snowbirds who typically go somewhere hotter and dryer in the winter are not going there this year.
“Tourism Powell River is looking at a campaign to get them to come to our region for a holiday. That’s a new initiative and it’s interesting to hear that they are developing that along with the whole province.”
Electoral Area C director Clay Brander said during October he attended the Lang Bay Hall fall garden and plant sale. He said the weather cooperated and about 150 people attended, with COVID-19 restrictions being in place.
“I think people enjoyed being out in public again,” said Brander. “Marc Albert, coordinator of the FireSmart program, was very popular, and I handed out lots of regional district brochures, in particular, the community evacuation guide.”
Brander also reported on Powell River Public Library. He said the library has had fewer visits than last year. People are coming in less frequently but are taking out more materials each time they come in, he added.
“They [ library staff] are happy they still are providing something for the community,” said Brander.
The library received a letter concerning its hours and that people who work regular hours are having difficulty accessing the facility, added Brander. He said the library is investigating ways to accommodate those people.
Electoral Area B director Mark Gisborne said the farmers’ market at Paradise Exhibition Grounds is going to continue through the winter on Sundays.
“You can go up there and get your food and products inside the large Quonset hut,” said Gisborne. “I’ve gone out there a few times and it’s a wonderful setup.”
