Construction of a new community hall is anticipated to begin soon. The hall, located in Connor Park in Halfmoon Bay will be a space for events, meetings and social gatherings available for the entire community on the Sunshine Coast.  

Nearby residents and visitors to Connor Park will see some work being done in the coming weeks to prepare the site and may also notice the two signs that have been recently installed. One of the signs outlines the design and plans for the hall, the other has been placed as a requirement for the Federal Government grant that is covering the majority cost for this project.

Here is what else is planned as part of the site preparation.  

Trees 

The Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD) knows that environmental conservation and protection of our forested areas and in particular, white pine trees, are very important to residents. To alleviate these concerns, the SCRD conducted an environmental assessment of the site prior to it being selected for the Community Hall.  

Following this assessment, in February, a certified arborist surveyed the site. A small number of trees within the construction footprint area were assessed and will be removed. The arborist also recommended the removal of several unhealthy or damaged trees to help manage the long-term health of the Park’s forests in the vicinity of the project area and park access roads. 

No white pine trees are part of this tree removal work. In fact, the arborist identified some areas where informal vehicle parking outside of assigned parking areas is affecting the health of white pine trees. As a result, the SCRD will work towards reducing the damage being done to these trees by ensuring clear guidance is in place on where people should park.  

The SCRD’s intention is to construct the hall with as little impact to the forested area as possible.   

Utilities  

Utility work will begin in the coming weeks This work will include the installation of a new water service, electrical connections and septic upgrades for the hall. Residents on Northwood Road will receive notification prior to this work being done as water service installation will involve some excavating work on the road.  

Additional Site Preparation 

An older shed structure, located on the Southwest side of the site will be dismantled. This structure was once used as a washroom and the old pit toilet will be fully decommissioned. Staff are doing this work in a manner that will ensure the trees that border the existing pit, located between the hall site and the playing fields are not disrupted.  

Please note that as the work outlined above continues, there will be some temporary changes to parking availability at the site. Any major disruptions and other information such as project updates and details on the groundbreaking for the hall will be communicated via the online information space for the project at letstalk.scrd.ca/community-hall and at www.scrd.ca. 

Early this morning, Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD) utility crews responded to a large watermain break at the intersection of Francis Peninsula Road, Murdoch Road and Beaver Road in Pender Harbour. The watermain break resulted in the disruption of water service for approximately 300 homes in the area.  

SCRD utility crews repairing watermain

SCRD utility crews have now repaired the watermain and are restoring water service to the system. During the watermain break, the system lost pressure so when water service is resumed for your home, you will notice some sediment in your water. With this in mind, the SCRD is asking residents to do the following; 

• Please run water from an outside faucet or a bathtub before running water from an indoor sink / tap. Sediment that is in the water due to the system losing pressure could potentially block an aerator on an indoor tap.  

• Run the water until it is completely clear.  

If you have any questions or require further guidance on this, please contact the SCRD’s Infrastructure Services department at 604-885-6806.  

Three heat pumps recently installed at the Sechelt Aquatic Centre will keep the pools warm while reducing natural gas use. A fourth heat pump installation is almost complete, returning the pool’s solar thermal system to use.

Implementing energy conservation measures is critical to managing costs and reducing the Sunshine Coast Regional District’s (SCRD) environmental footprint.

Buildings account for 54% of the SCRD’s corporate greenhouse gas emissions. These predominantly come from 12 facilities that rely on natural gas and propane. Of these, the four recreation facilities account for approximately two thirds of building emissions.

Approved as part of Budget 2024, the $250,000 project will reduce SCRD’s total corporate carbon pollution by an estimated 15%. This is the equivalent of a pickup truck driving from Vancouver to Halifax and back 61 times on the Trans-Canada highway! Funding for this project also came from a Provincial Local Government Climate Action Program grant.

This project is directly linked to the SCRD’s Corporate Carbon Neutrality Plan and its targets to reduce carbon pollution by 20% from SCRD services by 2026 and 45% by 2030 from 2019 levels.

For more information on the work being done by the SCRD’s sustainable development division, visit www.scrd.ca/climate.

While thankfully there has been no reports of any major damage or injuries following Friday’s earthquake, the event has brought the importance of emergency preparedness to the minds of many on the Sunshine Coast.  

The Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD) is also aware that these kinds of events, while rare, can be frightening and lead to many questions around emergency preparedness. To help the community understand the SCRD’s role in events such as an earthquake, the SCRD is providing insight into our response following Friday’s earthquake.  

SCRD Immediate Response
Within minutes of the earthquake, the focus of the response became the main SCRD administration building since any emergency response would need to be coordinated from this building. The building was evacuated, and a visual inspection showed no structural issues. 

While this was being done, the SCRD’s Emergency Program Coordinator liaised with fire departments, the RCMP, BC Emergency Health Services, BC Ferries, other local governments on the Sunshine Coast and the SCRD’s Infrastructure Services department to obtain a status report from each.  

Following this, emergency program staff set up an emergency coordination call. This call occurred roughly 30-minutes after the earthquake and included fire departments, emergency health services, SCRD emergency staff and input from agencies including the RCMP. Following the call, emergency program staff liaised with Howe Sound Pulp and Paper, Vancouver Coastal Health, Capilano Highways, other local governments and the BC Provincial Emergency Operations Centre.  

With no major issues being reported, SCRD communications staff then prepared and distributed a news release outlining the response and advice for residents.  

Shortly after the coordination call, the SCRD’s infrastructure services department performed flyovers of the SCRD’s major infrastructure including dams at Chapman and Edwards Lake. Staff also hiked into infrastructure in the Pender Harbour area and checked on wastewater treatment plants around the region. No issues were found at any of the major infrastructure inspected.   

SCRD emergency program staff continued to monitor tsunami risk and aftershocks in the hours after the earthquake.  

Emergency Alerts
The alert received by many residents on the Sunshine Coast came from an alert system managed by the the Federal Government. This system monitors seismic activity and can send alerts to the affected areas. More information on this system can be found here.  

In this instance, the Federal emergency alert system had already distributed an alert to residents prior to the SCRD considering use of Voyent Alert, the SCRD’s free emergency alert system. Voyent Alert is used to notify residents of impending emergencies or imminent danger. It was not used for this event since a Federal emergency alert had already been sent out and it was quickly recognized there was no need for local residents to take any action.  

SCRD staff will debrief the response to Friday’s earthquake and the potential use of Voyent Alert in future events will be part of the discussion.  

Evacuation Routes
The SCRD regularly receives questions about evacuation routes on the Sunshine Coast. The answer quite simply is that evacuations will depend on the location and type of emergency event that has taken place.  

There is no one-size-fits-all evacuation plan for the Sunshine Coast. Each evacuation plan would be unique and coordinated with emergency services on the Sunshine Coast.  

In an emergency, residents will be provided the safest route to evacuate based on the type and location of an emergency. Such information would be distributed via Voyent Alert.  

Getting Prepared
While the SCRD can coordinate an emergency response, it is everyone’s responsibility to ensure that you are prepared for an event like an earthquake.  

This means being prepared with a household plan, an emergency kit and supplies to last at least seven days. As outlined above, the SCRD’s initial focus in an emergency is ensuring that those required to provide response can do so safely. Following this, a coordinated emergency response will take place, however depending on the event and location, this could take several days.  

To increase resilience within your community, reach out to neighbours and start a Neighbourhood Emergency Preparedness Program. More information can be found here. 

There are lots of great resources to help you plan for an emergency right here at www.scrd.ca/emergency-program. Now is the time to read this information and make sure you are prepared. 

More space is being created at the Sunshine Coast Regional District’s (SCRD) Sechelt landfill, extending the life of the landfill by four years. The project will see the relocation of the existing contact water pond, with that space then, being used as a waste disposal area.

Most of the work will take place from March 3 to March 31 and will result in minimal disruption to landfill customers. Starting March 1, landfill crews will not be accepting ammonia and propane fridges, and the Ocean Plastics Depot will be temporarily closed.

“The benefit of this project is that it will give the community more landfill space pushing the anticipated closure date of the site by at least four years,” says Marc Sole, SCRD Manager, Solid Waste Services. “By extending the life of the landfill, we are able to reduce long term costs associated with exporting waste and gain more time to determine a long-term disposal option for the Coast.”

In 2022, the SCRD studied the composition of waste going into the landfill and found that 46% of the waste taken to the landfill is either recyclable or compostable.

“To make the most of the space we have left we need community members to prioritize ways to reduce, reuse and repair before they recycle or throw away what they no longer need,” says Sole.

The new contact water pond will have improved filtration and a larger capacity to prevent overflowing during major storm events.  The ground water around the landfill is monitored regularly throughout the year through testing the water in observation wells located around the landfill.

For regular construction updates visit, www.facebook.com/sunshinecoastrd

A 5.1 magnitude earthquake has struck the Sunshine Coast just after 1:30 P.M.

The Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD) has been in contact with emergency responders and are continuing to monitor the situation. At this time the SCRD has not been advised of any major issues.

The SCRD is checking its facilities and major infrastructure for any damage that may have been caused.

The Sunshine Coast Regional District urges people living in the affected areas to take the following steps:

• THERE MAY BE AFTERSHOCKS in the hours and days following the earthquake. If you are at home, stay there if possible. In the event of an aftershock, take cover under a heavy table, desk or any solid furniture that you can get under and hold on to. Avoid areas near windows and protect your head and face.

Here are key actions you can take to prepare for a community emergency:

Prepare a “grab-&-go” bag

A grab-&-go bag contains the essential items your household (including pets) will require if you must leave your home quickly and cannot return for several days. Items will vary based on individual needs, but could include personal I.D., medications, eyeglasses, cash, phone charger, toiletries, food, water, flashlight, pen, and paper. For tips on preparing a grab-&-go bag, please visit: gov.bc.ca/preparedbc

Build an emergency kit

During a major event, some utility services may be lost temporarily and emergency crews may not be readily available. Accordingly, residents should have the supplies they need to cope on their own for at least 7 days.

The Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD), through the Sunshine Coast Emergency Program (SCEP), is the lead agency for emergency management on the Sunshine Coast.

Please monitor our Facebook page for updates: https://www.facebook.com/sunshinecoastrd

At yesterday’s Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD) Board meeting, the 2025 Budget was adopted.  

As has been communicated in prior news releases about the SCRD’s Budget, the three main focuses for this year are: 

• Capacity – Previous year’s budgets have seen excess uncompleted projects carried forward. This is being addressed to ensure that there is enough staff capacity to complete projects in a timely manner.  

• Underfunding – The SCRD continues to deal with decades of underfunding of major services including water, solid waste and parks which needs to be addressed. 

• Service Levels – This budget is focused on maintaining reliable service levels in key areas such as water with an eye to future community needs. 

This year, projects being considered through the budget process have been broken down into three categories;   

• Mandatory Projects (Must do) – Projects that must proceed in the budget year due to imminent asset failure (with a defined consequence), regulatory compliance or safety requirements.  

• Strategic (Should do) – Directly relates to Board Strategic Focus Areas of water stewardship or solid waste solutions, a Board Directive, and/or is required because of policy.  

• Discretionary (Could do) – Projects that do not meet any of the criteria for Mandatory or Strategic classification.  

The Board’s focus has been on moving forward mandatory projects and those strategic projects which will maintain service levels with the potential to increase service levels in the future.   

A sample of these projects is below.   

Mandatory Projects  

• Upgrades to the Chapman Water Treatment Plant   

• Soames Creek Monitoring Compliance   

• Several projects focused on health and safety   

• Noxious weed removal at John Daley Park   

• Increased information technology data storage  

Several projects are part of the SCRD Board’s Strategic Plan and focus on two main service areas, Water Stewardship and Solid Waste Solutions. These include;  

• Design and permitting for a treatment plant for the Gray Creek water source  

• Construction of the Langdale Well Field   

• Permitting associated with Siphons at Chapman and Edwards Lakes.    

• Control System upgrades at water treatment plants, pump stations and reservoirs across all water systems   

• Reservoir maintenance in the Regional and South Pender water systems   

• Continued work and engagement on the Solid Waste Management Plan to explore future waste disposal options on the Sunshine Coast  

• Resources to support the reservoir projects with the shishalh Nation 

Several projects are required to maintain service levels and plan for future demand. These include: 

• Most SCRD services require a base budget lift to adjust to inflation and increased cost of goods and services   

• Budget for Transit Expansion priorities through 2025   

• Major project is required to repair trails and bridges at Cliff Gilker Park   

• Upgrades to Mason Road works yard for electric vehicles.    

• Pressure release valves to optimize water flow for the Church Road Well Field   

• Implementation of the Firefighter Compensation Action Plan   

• Several vehicle replacements   

• Ongoing operations and maintenance at wastewater treatment facilities 

In addition to the projects above, the SCRD Board is also moving forward with over $2 million in funding to local community partners including the Sechelt and Gibsons Libraries, Sunshine Coast Community Services, Pender Harbour Health Centre and Sunshine Coast Tourism.  

Preliminary Property Tax Rates 

Residents will note a difference from the last time the figures listed in the table below were reported out. This is due to several factors including;  

– Figures reported out in a prior news release were preliminary and had not factored in all projects approved through Round 2 Budget. This should have been made clear in the news release issued in late January and the SCRD regrets any confusion caused.  Following Round 2 Budget discussions, there were additional projects approved by the SCRD Board which factor into the taxation amounts seen in the tables below. These projects include;  

• A new paid on call model for SCRD Fire Departments and additional funding for staffing.  

• Funding for the Annual Operating Agreement between the SCRD and BC Transit.  

• A project to improve access to Chaster Park.  

• A feasibility study to explore the potential for the SCRD to take over Hopkins Landing Waterworks.

– In addition to the above, the taxation impact of property assessments on the Sunshine Coast is now known and is a factor in the figures seen in the table below. A report outlining the preliminary property assessment impacts can be found by clicking here.  

Following adoption of the budget, the following are the preliminary average SCRD tax rates per $100,000 of assessed value of Residential Properties. 

The figures below are not final and only cover the SCRD portion of your tax bill. If you do not know which area or municipality your home is in, you can search your address via the map linked here.  

Estimating the preliminary SCRD portion of your tax bill 

You can estimate the preliminary 2025 SCRD portion of your tax bill in three steps: 

Step 1 – Take the assessed value of your home which can be found here at BC Assessment.  

Step 2 – Divide the assessed value of your home by $100,000.  

Step 3 – Multiply that figure by the 2025 preliminary amounts outlined above based off your Electoral Area or Municipality.  

For example: If your home is worth $800,000 and the preliminary 2025 SCRD tax rate is $200 then the SCRD portion of your tax bill would be 8 x $200 = $1600.  

Staying Informed 

SCRD Directors have been providing outreach and presentations in their respective areas to ensure that the community can speak directly to those who are making decisions on this year’s budget.  

If you are a member of a community group or organization that would like a presentation from your elected representative, their contact information can be found at www.scrd.ca/electoral-areas-and-municipalities/. 

The best way to stay informed on Budget 2025 and ask questions at any time is at letstalk.scrd.ca/budget. 

Sunshine Coast recreation facilities are getting a fresh update, we’re upgrading treadmills, rowers and bikes so they won’t stop before you do! 

From February 19 to 21, new fitness equipment will be installed at three SCRD weight rooms, offering community members modern, user-friendly options to support their fitness goals. Fitness equipment replacement is an ongoing process – staff monitor and evaluate existing equipment, review public feedback to select and purchase new equipment, and create a cycle of replacement for equipment that has reached its end of life.       

So what’s new at each location? 

• Gibsons and Area Community Centre: Hydraulic circuit training equipment, treadmills, and rowing machines. 

• Sechelt Aquatic Centre: New treadmills, rowing machines, and spin bikes.  

• Pender Harbour Aquatic and Fitness Centre: A new treadmill, elliptical machine, and upright bicycles. 

Although the new equipment is designed to be intuitive and easy to use, for $15, users can sign up for on-site orientation sessions with attendants who will provide information on the safe use of the equipment.  

Ready to give some of the equipment a spin (literally)?

For drop-in weight room hours, visit www.scrd.ca/exercise-fitness. 

The public hearing scheduled for 6 p.m. on Tuesday February 4 has been postponed due to weather and hazardous road conditions.  

The public hearing was scheduled to consider Official Community Plan Amendment No. 641.15 and Zoning Amendment Bylaw No. 722.8. The purpose of the amendments is to change the OCP land use designation on a portion of the property at 2820 Lower Road. 

New dates for the public hearing will be provided when available and advertised on the SCRD website at www.scrd.ca/public-hearings and in the Coast Reporter newspaper.  

Stay up to date on weather related service alerts at www.scrd.ca/service-alerts.