Cowichan Citizen’s Lexi Bainas covered the long awaited opening of the causeway bridge. Onlookers watch as Tom Shandel steers his kayak under the new bridge Saturday, March 28 as part of the official opening ceremonies. Photograph By Lexi Bainas/Citizen Members of the crowd at the official opening of the
Continue readingTag: CVRD
Cowichan Conversations: Rather Than Considering a “Communications Officer”, It Would Seem That Certain Regional Directors Would Derive More Benefit From a Hearing Aid.
Richard Hughes- Political Blogger Lavonne Huneck is one of my favourite political free thinkers in the Cowichan Valley. Here is her take on the CVRD and the confusion that lives there. It appears that a number of our regional directors are unaware of the final outcome of the Eco-depot. This
Continue readingCowichan Conversations: Cowichan Politicians Reject Staff Driven Bid For Hiring PR Spinners-Slash Budgets
Richard Hughes-Political Blogger It is too easy to poke at our politicians of all stripes and all stations but recently encouraging signs have emerged that show our elected folks are paying attention. At the CVRD table perhaps it is an injection of newly elected Directors that is making the difference.
Continue readingCowichan Conversations: Shawnigan Community Fights Against Contaminated Soil Dump
More than 200 residents from Shawnigan Lake showed up to discuss last week’s decision by the provincial government to allow a company to dump contaminated soil near Shawnigan Lake CHEK TV reports Shawnigan area residents jammed into an overflow room at the Community Centre to get updates on their
Continue readingCowichan Conversations: CVRD Failed To Enforce Their Land Use Authority–Shawnigan Faces 5 Million Tonnes of Contaminated Waste
Richard Hughes-Political Blogger Here is the CVRD response to the BC Liberal governments decision to allow 5 million tonnes of contaminated soil into the Shawnigan Watershed property on Stebbings Rd. Truth is the CVRD blew it from the outset by refusing to enforce their land use authority. The anaemic response
Continue readingCowichan Conversations: BC Libs OK SIA Permit, 5 Million Tonnes of Contaminated Soil Destined For Shawnigan Watershed
Richard Hughes-Political Blogger What a shame! Residents were duped into process with various government agencies, a mugs game at best. Polite, respectful and ineffective. Money talks. The so called appeal hearing is a cruel and expensive joke. The CVRD dragged their feet for months before they engaged in useless corroboration with
Continue readingCowichan Conversations: A Look Back To Loren Duncan’s Stated Concerns About Runaway Senior Staff Salaries
Richard Hughes-Political Blogger Longtime CVRD Director Loren Duncan put his concerns about CVRD senior staff salaries on record in June 2013. As a semi recovering politician I have an appreciation for not only his insight but for stating it publicly. The group or table dynamics are such that it is
Continue readingCowichan Conversations: CVRD Directors Approve Consultant Driven Formula For Senior Staff Salaries
Richard Hughes-Political Blogger There has been a great deal of discussion regarding the pay levels of CVRD Senior Staff and Department heads over the last couple of years. These key positions deserve to be well paid by qualified personnel, but the level of pay is disproportionate with the incomes of
Continue readingCowichan Conversations: CVRD-Board Ducks and Transfers Additional Power To CAO
Don Maroc Getting toward the end of a three-hour meeting of the Cowichan Valley Regional District Board last Wednesday (11 Mar. 2015), Corporate Secretary Joe Barry tiptoed through the bylaws to be voted on. It was routine stuff. Board Chair Jon Lefebure was almost chanting, “may I call the question?
Continue readingCowichan Conversations: Liberals Squirming Over ‘Jiggery Pokery’ Taunts From NDP’s Brother Bill Routley
Richard Hughes-Political Blogger BC Lib’s urbane quick wit , the sharp tongued Mike DeJong, is doing a not so slow burn over constantly being harpooned by Cowichan NDP MLA ‘Brother Bill Routley’ for their sleazy tactics and heartless governance. Well actually Routley admitted that one of their MLA’s might have a heart. Probably.
Continue readingCowichan Conversations: Maroc-Is the Cowichan Valley Ready For the High Tech Sector?
Don Maroc – Cowichan Conversations Blogger At Wednesday’s meeting of the Cowichan Valley Regional District’s Board (CVRD) Damir Wallener delivered a very professional presentation extolling the financial virtues of a hi-tech industry cluster for the Cowichan Valley. Wallener claims that some years ago he moved to California, probably the famed
Continue readingCowichan Conversations: CVRD It’s Time to Write Into Stone Protections Against the Depredations of Developers
In spite of Cowichan Bay Estates developer’s disgracefully inept efforts to control the forces of nature after their single-minded rush for profits led them to clearcut and remove topsoil from a forested drainage into Cowichan Bay, the local government has been told it has no jurisdiction to take action. CVRD
Continue readingCowichan Conversations: Will This Turn Out To Be An Environmental Horror Show In Upper Cowichan Bay-CVRD Officials Fail To Act!
Richard Hughes-Political Blogger Cowichan Bay Estates, tucked away off Vee Road in upper Cowichan Bay gives the appearance of being at the verge of an environmental horror show that could threaten homes and properties downside of the development, and yet nobody seems to be acting to put an immediate halt to
Continue readingCowichan Conversations: Solar Panel Show and Tell at the CVRD’s Regional Services Committee-Jan 28th 6PM
Don Maroc Cowichan’s premier cheerleader for climate change mitigation, Peter Nix takes the promotion of roof-top solar electric panels to the Cowichan Valley Regional District’s (CVRD) Regional Services Committee next Wednesday (Jan. 28), at 6 pm. Shawnigan Lake’s Blaise Salmon will join Nix asking the CVRD directors to assess the
Continue readingCowichan Conversations: California Was Fun But Nothing Beats The Cowichan Valley
Richard Hughes-Political Blogger We recently returned from our winter reprieve with friends in Sunny California. It was a great get away and we were treated to wonderful food, music, the occasional wee glass of wine and some day trips around the San Jose area, Monterrey and also squeezed in visits
Continue readingCowichan Conversations: Maroc-Black Days Ahead For Cowichan Newspapers
Don Maroc – Cowichan Conversations Six weeks of trying to keep warm by a small propane fire. Six weeks of carrying picket signs, of waving at horn-blowing motorists, explaining to passers-by why they are outside the offices of the News-Leader-Pictorial, when their jobs are inside the building. These selfless people,
Continue readingCowichan Conversations: Black Press Goes On A Buying Spree-Buys Cowichan Citizen While Cowichan News Leader Workers Strike Continues
Richard Hughes-Political Blogger The Vancouver Island Community Newspaper Group has been sold to Black Press; this includes the Cowichan Valley Citizen. Black Press and The Vancouver Island Community Newspaper Group have shuffled the deck that may well be a lump of coal in the Christmas stockings of striking workers picketing
Continue readingCowichan Conversations: Breaking Story-Another Derelict Vessel Curses Cowichan Bay
Richard Hughes-Political Blogger Another abandoned oil leaking derelict vessel has moved into Cowichan Bay. Local concerned residents have tried to contact authorities to have it moved. CVRD Director Lori Iannidinardo told Cowichan Conversations that Western Stevedoring’s Brian Thacker. frustrated with inaction from the Environment Ministry or DFO, has stepped in
Continue readingCowichan Conversations: I See a GreenTidal Wave of Good News for Cowichan
Climate Change, Greenhouses Gases, Global Warming, Wind Power, Solar these subjects are being discussed or touched upon pretty much on a daily basis. Peter Nix, Don Skerik and others are doing something positive about. They are installing solar panels throughout Cowichan and it is catching on big time. It makes
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