January 20 2025

Submitted by site_admin on Mon, 01/27/2025 - 23:02

BAMFIELD COMMUNITY AFFAIRS SOCIETY

General Meeting Unofficial Minutes-Draft

Monday 20 January 2025 at 6.30 pm
via Zoom - hosted by Jaleen Rousseau(Vice-Chair)

Attendees (25): Jaleen Rousseau (Chair of meeting), Tom Jensen, Bob Beckett, Bob & Robin Schmitt, Julie Bradley , Ben West, Jaslyn Haberl, Susan Derasp, Stella Wenstob, Frank and Jean Novak, Jan Teversham, John and Sheryl Mass, Nancy Hendry, Max Salamon, Jerry Gassner, Rae Hopkins, Louis Druehl, Betty Beyko, Paul Bird, Jane Morrison, Christina Jackson, Lisa Bye.

Regrets: Jamie Willock

Guest Presenters:  Ben Howell-Salty Hearts Festival                               

Acknowledgement of Indigenous Lands: The BCAS acknowledges that the land on which we meet is within the Traditional territory of the Huu-ay-aht First Nations where indigenous peoples have lived since time immemorial.

The meeting was called to order at 18.32.

Adoption of Agenda

Adoption of Minutes of November’s Community Affairs Meeting. m/JBradley s/SWenstob

ACRD DIRECTOR’S REPORT – by Bob Beckett

  1. Bamfield Sewer Referendum Debrief

On December 17th, ACRD staff, the BCAS executive and myself met via zoom to conduct a Bamfield Sewer Referendum Debrief with a focus on lessons learned regarding the process, including what went well, what could we have done better, and in the future, what is the best process for community engagement regarding matters of importance to the community.

The debrief, discussions and candid feedback during the 1.5-hour meeting were very much appreciated and valued by me and ACRD staff. Staff have provided 4 pages of meeting minutes and 7 recommendations coming out of those discussions that I have provided Jan so that she may attach them with the upcoming minutes for everyone’s review.

  1. Draft Financial Plan 2025-2029

This is the time of year that the ACRD Board works on the regional budget as well as each electoral area budget. ACRD Chief Financial Officer Teri Fong will be doing a presentation to BCAS at the upcoming February meeting regarding Bamfield’s proposed budget.

  1. Huu-ay-aht Economic Development Summit Jan. 24

There is a Huu-ay-aht Economic Development Summit this Friday at the House of Huu-ay-aht Community Center from 3:30 pm to 6:30 pm. This meeting is accessible by Zoom as well and the agenda and zoom link will be attached to Jan’s minutes. I look forward to attending and learning more about Huu-ay-aht’s economic development plans.

Huu-ay-aht Economic Development Summit

Dates: Friday Jan 24th

Time: Doors open at 3:30 PM

Locations:

Anacla Village - House of Huu-ay-aht Community Centre SUMMIT AGENDA - Anacla Village Doors Open Networking, coffee and sign in 3:30 PM Call to Order & Welcome Remarks Huu-ay-aht Nation Traditional Welcome & Blessings

4:00 PM

Session #1 Chris Fields,

Part 1 – Zoom Presentation, Chris Fields

4:15 – 5:00PM

Rynic Consulting Group

Economic Development and Interactive Product current state in the Region and Development Workshop:

the work of Economic Development Planning

Health Break Q&A & Coffee Break 5:00 – 5:15 PM

Session #2 John Watson, Part 2 – Huu-ay-aht Strategy building

5:30 – 6:30 PM

Rynic Consulting Group Action Planning Workshop

Interactive Economic Table Exercise‐Economic development

Development Workshop: pathways – Tactical deep drive into Economic Sector opportunities

Final Wrap Up and Dinner Thank you! 6:30 PM

Online option – Zoom Meeting

Time: Jan 24, 2025 03:30 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada) Join Zoom Meeting

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82900239367?pwd=TP1NmiTXz7HFF2UQsD7GToUEboYVBn.1

Meeting ID: 829 0023 9367

Passcode: 569372

PRESENTATION- Ben Howell  for Salty Hearts Festival

Ben gave an overview of the planned Salty Hearts Festival to be held in Bamfield and at Pachena on the weekend of March 21 and 22, 2025. With the encouragement of  the Huu-ay-aht group of businesses (HGB) the group has been encouraged to develop a music festival in the shoulder season to stimulate tourist activity in Pachena and Bamfield. The Pachena Bay festival will still continue in July. HGB‘s interest is to integrate the festival with accommodation usage in Bamfield. Live music will be a major component of the event with both out of town musicians as well as local ones. The Wreckage will be a local venue and jam sessions will be included. Music events would also be outside the Hacas Inn as well as at Pachena.  The event would end with a polar bear swim and brunch at Pachena on the Sunday. This will be a tester year to garner people’s interest.

There was then discussion about the need for communication so that the festival wouldn’t clash with other Bamfield events. It’s possible that BCSA could start to put out upcoming events every three months for external happenings.

Parking will be available at the airport to mitigate traffic issues in Bamfield. There will be first aid with a professional team. Portable toilets will be brought in. Both the motel and Kingfisher Lodge (Upnit) will be used for accommodation.

Discussion then followed about shuttle buses and harm reduction plans. It is still at the planning stage and several Bamfield musicians are in contact with the organisers. Ben welcomes anyone who wants to help with the event or ask about the arrangements to contact him. The best way to connect is through the email address longshotsevents@gmail.com. There is also a facebook group that some Bamfielders are on.

TREASURER’S REPORT (December 31,2024) - Susan Derasp

Chequing account                            $5,836.50

High interest savings account -   $33,163.60

Member Equity Shares                           $5.21

Total Assets                              $39,005.31

Interest this month was $26.80. During December Mandy was paid $7,200 for the Lomi composter project. Ben added that he is picking them up and bringing them to Bamfield on Friday.

CORRESPONDENCE

Jamie received a request from ACRD to send a letter of support to DFO asking for action on the west side’s water main replacement. He sent one in early December.

COMMUNITY REPORTS

  1. Bamfield Harbour Authority - Tom Jensen
  • Moorage requests have now opened for 2025,
  • There is still no dock manager so Ashley is continuing with reservations while the dock maintenance is being carried out by Board members.
  • The western boundary of the lease between BHA and the upland owners is being surveyed and will be completed sometime in February.
  1. Bamfield Community School - Robin Schmitt
  • There are now 47 children in the school as two have moved away over the holidays.
  • One of the school superintendents has resigned so there will be changes in personnel.
  • Kindergarten registration opens on February 1 for September admission.
  1. Bamfield Community School Association- Jaslyn Haberl
  • We are excited to have expanded our team in December, welcoming Casey Altorf as the new BCSA Literacy Outreach Facilitator.
  • The Community Library is open Tuesday and Thursday afternoons/evenings from 4 - 8pm, and during our other adult events and programs - come see what new titles are available on our shelves!
  • Jaslyn and Lisa took the grade 3-6 children on a fun-filled field trip to the Nanaimo trampoline park and Port Alberni harbour quay on the January non-instructional day.

Ongoing BCSA Events and Programs:

  • Adult Night Drop-in Sports on Monday evenings from 7-8:30pm
  • Yoga with Aneri on Wednesday evenings from 5:15-6:15pm
  • Twice weekly after school clubs and the monthly Friday Night Chill continue to be popular and really fun!
  • The next Community Lunch will be at 12pm on Wednesday, February 12.

Upcoming BCSA Events and Programs:

  • January 26-February 2 is Family Literacy Week across the province! Join us for:
  • The Great Big Buddy Read at the school on Wednesday January 29th from 12:45-1:15pm. Share your love of reading with a student at our school!
  • Family Games Night on Tuesday January 28th from 5:30-7:30pm; come play board games, Wii games, and laser tag with your kids!
  • The BCSA is launching a new after school arts club during Family Literacy Week: Imagination Station! If you are an artist or storyteller in the Bamfield and Anacla community, we would love you to help us facilitate a workshop teaching your art form to children ages 11-14!
  • Come walk through a story in the Community School forest and look for the Gruffalo and its friends during Family Literacy Week!
  • We will be hosting a Ceramic Mug-making Workshop with the wonderful Julie Bradley of Sea Star Ceramics! The cost of the course is $100 for 3 nights of instruction to make a pair of mugs. We will build the mugs on Tuesday February 18, add details on Thursday February 20, and glaze the fired mugs on Thursday February 27.
  • We are working with Adaps Youth and Family Services to offer Peer Support Training to our grade 12 and recently graduated youth, equipping them with skills and strategies for mental health self-care and peer support.
  • We will be a pilot community for the Belonging Network's new youth program, Stepping Stones: Indigenous Ways of Knowing and Learning. Participants will learn life skills from communication to confidence to budgeting and meal planning, and have the opportunity to enjoy local and regional field trips such as canoeing, archery, rock climbing, and more.
  • We are considering hosting another 40 hour Red Cross Wilderness First Aid training in April. The cost per person would be around $700. Please reach out to bcsacoordinator@gmail.com if you or your organization are interested, and if we have sufficient interest, we will book the course and pay an expensive course deposit.
  • The BCSA will be looking for a coordinator to replace Jaslyn’s position, as she plans to step down over the summer.

 

  1. Centennial Park- Sheryl Mass

A new park manager is being sought for the summer plus a summer camp attendant. The positions are advertised on the cork board and anyone interested can contact the Parks Board at bamfieldcentennialpark@gmail.com

NEW BUSINESS

1. NEW GIA Requests

a.  BSCA Spring Camp Activities- Jaslyn Haberl

Jaslyn is asking for funds so she can plan free Spring Break activities for the children from March 17 to 28th. At the moment she is asking for $5,000 but there may be support coming from HFN so that the exact amount will be presented at the February meeting.  This would be used to have three field trips for different age groups in the first week. For K-2 this will be a trip to the west side with an ice cream stop at the store. For 3-6 it will be a trip into Port Alberni to do rock climbing and for the grade 7s and up it will be a trip to Wild Play in Nanaimo. The second week will be a series of day camps. The funding would pay for supplies, groceries, staff pay, and the field trips. Hopefully HFN may contribute in kind for transportation so exact amounts and details will be presented in February.

b. SongWest 2025 Nancy Hendry

Last year Nancy received funding so that all 15 local people attending SongWest received a bursary to reduce the cost of tuition. This year she sent out a survey and found that 7 people request assistance with the costs while several others have said that they do not need a bursary and are willing to pay the full amount ($275). Hence Nancy is requesting $1000 to assist those who need it  to attend the event from June 6-9, 2025.

2. West Side Road signs - Jan Teversham

The west side road signs are all leaning over as the posts continue to rot. During the December storms one, at the top of Winston, was completely knocked over when a tree fell on it. There have been various discussions as to how to replace the signs. I wrote to MOTI - and they are willing to put up metal road signs in West Bamfield at no cost and then maintain them. The great advantage of these signs are that they are metal so will not rot.

One of the main reasons to have clear road signs is for safety and information for first responders. When 911 is called an accurate address or location is required before first responders are notified of the emergency. If an accident occurs on a road then it is essential that everyone knows the name of that road.

In the discussion that followed the idea was well received. Further it was noted that house numbers on the Boardwalk should be clearly visible from the water. Another related point is that Google maps  for West Bamfield has several roads that do not exist or are labelled incorrectly, and these errors can/should be fixed.

NEXT MEETING

The next meeting will not be on  Monday 17 February 2025 as it is Family Day. There is a conflict for February 18 so the date will be decided when Jamie returns.

Meeting Adjourned at approximately 19.45   m/BSills s/SWenstob