Mayor's Message - Year End

December

Over to Ottawa

At the end of November, I travelled to Ottawa for the Green Municipal Fund Council meetings (you may recall I am one of six municipal representatives on this national body.) I took the opportunity to head there two days early to meet with various federal department representatives and MPs. A key meeting was with the Canadian Coast Guard and Transport Canada to speak with them directly about derelict vessels, a long running challenge we face in Porpoise Bay and elsewhere up and down the Coast. I presented a potential solution that I believe is feasible and look forward to following up with them early in the new year. While no promises were made, I’m cautiously optimistic about this complicated multi-jurisdictional topic. I’d like to thank our MP, Patrick Weiler, who was, as always, supportive and helpful.

From Wednesday to Friday, I attended the Green Municipal Fund’s Council and committee meetings. With a focus on providing funding to municipalities for innovative solutions for things like climate adaptation, sustainability and creating liveable communities, it’s an energized and positive group of elected, senior federal government and business leaders. We will have more announcements about specific projects in the coming weeks but for now, I’m pleased to share GMF’s new Growing Canada’s Community Canopies initiative – a program for communities to access  funding for urban forestry projects. More details about this to come in the springtime.

And Back to Cowrie Street

I returned from Ottawa in time to participate in this year’s Light the Lights at Rockwood and then join the Parade of Lights on Cowrie Street, which against all odds happened under dry skies! Organizers think the attendance at Rockwood topped other years, and if you attended the parade, you would have seen the spectacular creative decorations on the many parade floats. Thank you to everyone for coming out to sing carols and cheer on the parade – it was a magical evening! A big thank you as well to the District of Sechelt’s Lucy Clark, staff of our parks and public works teams, Theressa from the SDBA and the other volunteers for helping to organize and pull everything together!

Sadly, I am obliged to end this message on a very sad note. In the last month, we have lost several members of our community including three particularly prominent people – Bev Shaw, wife of former councillor Tom Lamb and proprietor of Talewind Books, former councillor and big ideas guy, Doug Hockley, and shíshálh elder Barb Higgins. My heart goes out to their families and friends.

This holiday, I hope you will be able to spend time with the people who bring you the most joy. On behalf of Council, my best wishes for a happy holiday season and a wonderful and healthy new year.

Sincerely,

John Henderson