COWICHAN VALLEY + LADYSMITH/CHEMAINUS
Based on information and updated flood maps provided by Northwest Hydraulic Consultants, the CVRD will apply for a federal grant of up to $200,000 to support development of an asset management plan for the Cowichan River dike system. The floodplain maps presented by the engineering company represent a designated 200-year flood adjusted for a climate change and sea-level rise scenario in the year 2100.
The Cowichan Valley has received a $30,000 grant to help vulnerable people from the Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General’s Office of Crime Reduction and Gang Outreach. The funding will help create a community-based team of front-line workers to deliver better, faster access to services.
Carol-Ann Rolls
Carol-Ann Rolls is the new executive director of the Cowichan Therapeutic Riding Association, replacing interim ED Susan Lake, who will return to her role as office manager.
Work on Crofton Road by Windley Contracting from Chaplin Street to Chemainus Road is expected to be completed by July of 2021.
Julie Sevens
Nanaimo resident and business person Julie Sevens will soon open Canteen on the Green at Mount Brenton Golf Course in Chemainus. Previous to her new venture, Julie could be found at the Maple Lane Cafe, where she had plied her trade since 2012. The Mount Brenton board is giving the 25-year food and catering vet full control of the business, menu, and staffing.
Minute-Road Production Limited recently filmed a portion of “The Baker’s Sons” in North Cowichan. The Hallmark movie featured locations along the Willow Street block between Victoria Street and Mill Street, with the Willow Street Cafe central to the story and the filming.
The Cowichan Valley Capitals have recruited forward Luke Haymes from Ottawa, defenceman Sebastian Hamming from Edmonton, and defenceman Chase Ramsay from Granite Springs, New York. The team awaits word regarding the delayed 2020-21 BC Hockey League season.
Together with the Cowichan Valley Regional District, Cowichan Green Community has partnered to secure up to $750,000 in funding from the Province of British Columbia’s Stronger BC economic recovery plan for the development of a food and innovation hub. The Cowichan Food Hub will allow small and medium-scale businesses to access shared food and beverage processing facilities and equipment. The business expansion will create jobs, support local farmers, and increase food security in Cowichan.
The last phase of the patio-portal project at the Cowichan Bay Maritime Centre is expected to begin soon. Led by the Cowichan Bay Wooden Boat Society, the project is receiving almost $80,000 from the province’s Community Economic Recovery Infrastructure Program to improve public access to the community’s waterfront and provide more amenities for the community and visitors. Funding will be used to build a staircase from the 900-square-foot patio to the inter-tidal zone on the beach, and to provide picnic tables for the patio, as well as interpretative signage, a nautical shade shelter, cedar planter boxes, and a children’s play boat.
NANAIMO
Nanaimo Council voted to allocate $505,000 on pedestrian infrastructure projects, plus another $550,000 that was over and above staff’s recommendation. Some of the money has already been earmarked for pedestrian infrastructure improvements to eight intersections and one new stretch of sidewalk. The additional $554,000 will be taken from reserves to fast-track a separate sidewalk project on Haliburton Street.
Inspired Cannabis Co. at 5765 Turner Road, Longwood Station is open.
Nanaimo’s Numinus Wellness Inc. will see a site expansion of 7,500-square-feet adjacent to its existing complex to strengthen the facility’s psychotherapeutic research. The lab, with a license from Health Canada to cultivate psilocybin from mushrooms, will have increased capacity to develop products, do research, and prepare products for clinical trials. numinus.ca
Invis-Nanaimo’s Mortgage Experts won the 2021 ThreeBestRated® award for one of the top-rated mortgage brokers in Nanaimo. Invis-Nanaimo’s Mortgage Experts has won the title since 2018.
Alpine Roofs, located at 1548 Extension Road, has won the 2021 ThreeBestRated® award as the best roofing company in Nanaimo. www.alpineroofs.ca
The Lighthouse Country Marine Rescue Society will get a funding increase from $7,500 to $17,500 from the Regional District of Nanaimo. The committee endorsed a motion by Electoral Area H (Bowser, Qualicum Bay, Deep Bay) director Stuart McLean that the 2021-2025 financial plan be amended to increase the regular contribution to the society in the District 69 Marine Search and Rescue Service from $7,500 to $8,500 in 2021 and to increase the funding to $17,500 from 2022 to 2026.
Windley Contracting will soon begin construction of a deluxe bike lane with waterfront in downtown Nanaimo. The Front Street transportation improvement project, with a $1.2 million price tag, includes installation of a two-way cycle track, road rehabilitation, bus stops with bus pads, raised crosswalk, paving, electrical work, and more.
The 45-room Quality Inn hotel at 440 Selby Street in Nanaimo is now open. It’s the first hotel to open in Nanaimo since 2008.
PARKSVILLE & QUALICUM BEACH
The Arrowsmith Search and Rescue Society has secured the financing it needs to finish construction of its new operations facility at the Qualicum Beach Airport thanks to the Coastal Community Credit Union, which approved financing for the balance of the construction cost. The society had raised $700,000, including a provincial gaming grant of $250,000, but due to rising material prices and the impact of the pandemic, the cost of the project had risen to $1.2 million.
$40,000 in funding has been awarded to the Parksville Beach Festival Society via the BC Arts Council grant in support of an outdoor performance theatre in Parksville Community Park. The organization will use the funds to purchase a sound system, rollout dance floor, housing lighting, and choir risers. The society will continue to fundraise to complete this purchase, given an approximately $17,000 remaining shortfall. To donate, visit parksvilleoutdoortheatre.ca.
The Haven Society in Parksville received $17,650.50 from Royal LePage Parksville-Qualicum Beach Realty to go toward programs and services the society provides in central Vancouver Island, including the Haven Society Victim Services in Parksville.
The City of Parksville has been rated the second most resilient city in the province in BC Business magazine’s 2021 list, behind Langford and ahead of Sidney. BC Business applied 12 indicators that touched on demographic, workforce composition, real estate, and employment trends.
Former MLA for Parksville-Qualicum and Canadian Paralympian gold medallist Michelle Stilwell has taken a job as Director of Rapid Testing for CVM Medical Ltd. The company is currently providing assistance for travelers departing Vancouver Airport to destinations that require rapid testing for entry.
The RDN has commissioned CBI Health Group to serve as mobility coordinator to help Parksville Qualicum Beach residents wishing to use BC Transit’s HandyDART service undergo an assessment by a mobility coordinator to determine their eligibility. HandyDART is TransLink’s paratransit system, available for those unable to safely navigate conventional public transit without assistance. To register, visit this link.
Mohammad Shafi, 91, is retiring after more than 70 years in the shoe business, most recently between Parksville and Nanaimo. He is donating his remaining inventory to the Mt. Arrowsmith Salvation Army to support the community and help individuals walk in comfort. Born in Pakistan in 1929, he moved to Toronto in 1964, eventually relocating to Parksville in 2005.
The Qualicum Beach Museum was awarded $123,500 as part of the provincial Unique Heritage Infrastructure Grant. The money will go towards the museum’s Heritage Powerhouse Conservation and Adaptive Repurposing Project. The museum will work with contractors and the Town of Qualicum Beach on restoring the powerhouse to its original condition and appearance. The powerhouse is listed as one of Canada’s Historical Places.
The owner of Qualicum Beach’s Eaglecrest Golf Club, Semiahmoo Golf Course Ltd., has signed a one-year lease to continue using town-owned land on the 17th fairway and 18th tee box. The lease, which expires on December 31, 2021, does not stipulate nor require the owners to continue to operate an 18-hole layout. Eaglecrest will transition into a nine-hole course facility on April 1st. Under the lease, the owners will pay the town $1,902 plus GST for use of the 17th fairway land and $376 plus GST for use of the area adjacent to the 18th tee.
The Town of Qualicum Beach is selling a vacant, 962 square metre lot on 189 Sunningdale Road West for $600,000. The Residential 1 zoned property can be subdivided into two lots under the Official Community Plan designation, the lot is open to multi-family or single-family development.