FRIDAY NOV 4, 2016
VOL. 42, NO. 88
$1
including GST
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School Bus to run this Friday
PAC celebrates return of 5-day service
The tiny hemp home
Islanders all dressed up
Bowen entrepreneurs aim to go big, by building small Shelagh MacKinnon (L) and Lynne Hartle stand at Snug Cove’s corner of community signs. The land is owned by Telus, and Hartle and MacKinnon worry the space for the non-profit signs (and the foodbank sign in particular) is threatened by plans to create a beautified community space beside the Museum & Archives, and a trail through the telus land to connect to Senior’s Lane. Rob Forbes, with the Museum & Archives, says they are working on a design that will get final approval from Telus. “Of course we are open to feedback from the community, but the decision rests on Telus,” says Forbes. Meribeth Deen, photo
Chum salmon returning to the Bowen Island Lagoon have attracted crowds this past week. One on-looker described salmon watching as being akin to watching professional sports, “You just want to cheer them on...” Other creatures are enjoying the return of the salmon as well - like this little American Dipper, seen with a chum egg in its mouth. Tim Pardee, from the Bowen Island Fish & Wildlife Club says the chum have also been spotted heading up Davies Creek beside Bowfest field. Mary Lepatourel, photo
Photos from one of Bowen’s best celebrations
Chapman makes the case for creation of Community Land Trust MERIBETH DEEN EDITOR
The time has come for pre-manufactured homes, said Councillor Gary Ander on Monday at a meeting focused on housing solutions for Bowen Island. Within five years he added, the cost of building a house will be well over $400 a square foot and will be out of reach for most people. Mayor Murray Skeels added that what drives costs on Bowen is not so much land, but infrastructure. The third out of four presenters at Monday’s Council of the Whole meeting on Monday came forward with a proposal to eliminate the cost of land and infrastructure, while tapping into new funding for affordable housing. Michael Chapman introduced himself as a director of the newly formed Housing Bowen Society, which aims to find housing solutions that can be put in place quickly to address current needs. “Everything that we have done so far in our work has led us to believe that the affordability of housing is dire,” said Chapman. He offered some rough numbers on people affected by the housing situation, based on respondents to Susan Detweilers call-out over social media. Respondents representing 71 households and a total of 152 individuals – including seniors, children, business owners, firefighters, and many people who work full-time on Bowen got in touch with Detweiler to create a picture of Bowen’s housing struggles. “There are a lot of good things happening in the community, and one of those things is that we’ve started a discussion about what housing on Bowen can look like,” Chapman told council. “The Housing Bowen Society has come up with a project we call Home Bowen, we are proposing building 25 -30 homes, using a pre-fabricated or modular style construction… the advantage of this style of construction is that it’s durable, its quick and its habitable. You’re not creating a ghetto you’re creating homes for people to live in.” Through this proposal, a 500 square foot studio apartment would cost $625 per month in rent, a one-bedroom apartment would cost $750 in rent and a two-bedroom apartment would cost $1000 per month in rent. The key to creating housing at these prices, Chapman explained, is the creation of a community land-trust for housing. “What’s the magic to make these numbers work? It’s not magic, it is one of the older systems of community land tenure, and it is called a community land trust. They’ve been using these in Europe for more than 100 years.” continued PAGE 3
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