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Regional representatives view island first-hand

Politicians and staff hold board meeting in remote location
Paul Galinski

Every August, Powell River Regional District directors and staff venture out of their boardroom in Westview and hold their monthly board meeting in a rural location.

On Thursday, August 28, a contingent from the regional district boarded a water taxi in Westview and headed to Lasqueti Island, about an hour’s travelling away, to hear local issues and to see first-hand some of the locations and situations that overlap with the regional district’s operation.

Area E director Merrick Anderson from Lasqueti served as the day’s host and met the incoming contingent at False Bay wharf on the western side of the island. After assembling near an open-air market location, the officials piled into two dusty vans—roads on Lasqueti Island are not paved—and the contingent was driven to the nearby community health centre that is currently under construction. The centre is nestled behind the community’s fire hall, close to False Bay.

Anderson led the visitors on a tour of the health centre, which is not yet to lock-up stage. While the exterior walls have been erected and the roof is on the building, the interior requires finishing.

Lasqueti does not have full-time health care. Anderson said right now, a part-time public health nurse travels over, and it is just a coincidence that her husband is a doctor.

“They have just moved to the Parksville area so we are getting more medical coverage than we’ve had in a long time,” Anderson said.

Construction of the health centre to this stage has cost about $300,000 and Anderson said he thinks it will take about that much again to complete the project. Funds for the project have been donated, rather than having come from governmental sources. Anderson said the aim is to have the facility to lock-up stage by February 2015.

The building has true Lasqueti Island ambiance. As much of the wood as possible has been harvested and milled on the island. It is very much a community facility and built with volunteer labour. “No one was paid to work,” Anderson said.

Having the new health centre is very important to the community. Anderson came to the island in 1970 and is now 65 years old.

“If you look around there is lots of grey hair,” he said. “Having the facility is going to be really beneficial.”

Regional directors were then taken to Boot Park on the west side of Lasqueti, with Texada Island looming large on the near horizon. Creating this park as space is important for islanders.

“It’s the formalizing of a place that was a public gathering spot,” Anderson said. “It’s made it more park-like.” Dedicating the beachfront as park has created a greater respect for the land. Previously, people had been extracting gravel from the beach and some had been spinning around on their four-wheel-drive vehicles. That’s stopped now, he said.

Anderson thinks the regional district contingent in attendance from Powell River and Texada Island really enjoyed their day on Lasqueti. “Now they know where I am coming from,” he said. “They know what I’m talking about.”

While geographically, Powell River might not seem the best fit for regional district affiliation, given that Lasqueti’s transportation links are predominantly to Vancouver Island, Anderson believes the current configuration is best.

“The only other regional district we might be put into is Nanaimo and they have many rural directors,” Anderson said. “You are supposed to have over 2,000 population to have your own regional district director. It’s the gods that put it together that we have our own director.”

Permanent population of Lasqueti is about 450 people. In the 2011 federal census, the year-round population was listed as 426, but Anderson said some babies have been born and some people have moved onto the island since the census. Population pretty much doubles over the summer.

It’s a bigger commitment for Anderson to be connected to Powell River Regional District than it would be if he was associated with Nanaimo. He’s usually over to attend meetings in Powell River at least once a month and he’s able to participate in many committee meetings by telephone link.

In spite of the distance from Lasqueti to Powell River, the regional district is a well-known commodity for Anderson. He was fire chief on Lasqueti for 17 years so he has worked with a lot of the main players in the regional district over the years.

“I think Powell River appreciates what we do over here,” he said.