THURSDAYSEPTEMBER 4, 2014
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ANOTHER PIECE OF THE TRAIL PUZZLE
Singing group has 425 songs; looking for new members
City quietly purchased 13 acres beside the Englishman River last year for $750,000
A27
A6
LONG WEEKEND PARTY
Rave rocks Bowser folk RCMP attended but no arrests made; 300 attended CANDACE WU
news@pqbnews.com
Noise from a so-called rave in Bowser over the long weekend has drawn negative attention from a nearby neighbour who said the party kept her up “all night, all weekend.” “On Saturday and Sunday there was a big rave here,” a resident of Little Qualicum River Village told The NEWS Wednesday morning. “I called the police three times over the weekend.” The resident said she felt “victimized” by the party and did not want her name published for fear of retaliation. “It was two days of booming, loud music,” she said, adding she’s been recovering from a recent surgery. “And kids these days are bloody scary, they come equipped to conduct riots — this is the worst generation ever produced because they are so bloodthirsty.” She vowed to stop this from happening again — threatening to take out “a court injunction to stop them from ever coming back here.” RDN director Bill Veenhof, who represents the area where the party was hosted, said hundreds of people attended the event on Island Timberlands property near Cochrane Road and the Inland Highway. According to Island Timberlands spokesperson Morgan Kenna, the company did not permit the party, nor did they know anything about the event taking place. However, a Facebook event page deemed “The Drop Fest 2014” advertised the party from Aug. 30 at 11 a.m. to Sept. 1 at 5 p.m. “located in a magical forest on Vancouver Island, two hours from Victoria and 40 minutes from Nanaimo.” Organizers posted directions, a list of artists who would be headlining the event and notified party-goers it would be a $65 admission fee. See PARTY, page A7
CANDACE WU PHOTO
Wildflower Marijuana Inc. CEO William MacLean, left, answers questions posed by River’s Edge residents, including Lehann Wallace (with the microphone) at a meeting in the neighbourhood on Tuesday night.
PROPOSED POT PRODUCTION FACILITY
Residents pledge to continue fight CANDACE WU news@pqbnews.com
River’s Edge resident Lehann Wallace said she’ll “stop at nothing” to protect her neighbourhood from a medical marijuana operation proposed for land adjacent to the quaint Nanoose Bay suburb. “We are going to do whatever it takes to stop it,” Wallace told a crowd of more than 100 people Tuesday night, including fellow disgruntled
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neighbours, regional district officials and the CEO of Wildflower Marijuana Inc., the Vancouver-based company causing all the commotion. Wildflower Marijuana is proposing to build a 68,000 square foot medical marijuana production facility on ALR land that was formerly Paradise Acres Ranch, a 125-acre property that comes with a three-bedroom, fourbathroom, 4,077 square-foot home. Wildflower CEO William MacLean
See RDN, page A9
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declined to comment on weather the company has officially purchased the land, or if the deal is contingent on Health Canada’s licence approval. Wildflower is also reportedly looking to open a similar facility south of Nanaimo. The proposal came to light last week after The NEWS reported on the looming development idea, which is now in the hands of Health Canada.
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