Salt Spring elects one CRD Director

The Salt Spring CRD Director has local and regional responsibilities. All CRD Directors sit on the CRD Board, the Capital Regional Hospital District (CRHD) Board and the Capital Region Housing Corporation (CRHC) Board. The three rural Directors sit on the Electoral Area Services Committee that oversees a number of sub-regional services such as building inspection, and can also be appointed to various CRD committees providing region-wide services. In addition, the Salt Spring CRD director sits on a number of Salt Spring CRD advisory commissions, and participates in the Town Hall part of Salt Spring Local Trust Committee (LTC) meetings.

By provincial legislation, the CRD Board has final approval over regional and local budgets and bylaws. However, the Board rarely questions the budgets for local Salt Spring services that are paid for entirely by Salt Spring taxpayers.  What this means is that, prior to the establishment of the Salt Spring Local Community Commission (LCC), the Salt Spring CRD Director was our only elected representative determining Salt Spring’s priorities and budget allocations.

After the LCC election in May 2023, the Salt Spring CRD Director will continue to represent Salt Spring on the CRD Board and, along with four other locally-elected Commissioners, will also be a member of the new LCC.

CRD Salt Spring Local Community Commission (LCC)

The Salt Spring elected Local Community Commission (LCC) is a Salt Spring generated solution that will provide islanders with control over most of our local CRD services. It will comprise the elected CRD Salt Spring Director and four elected local commissioners. Decisions on delegated local services (which comprise most of the local services on Salt Spring) will effectively be made by a five-member, elected LCC rather than just the CRD Director.

The creation of the elected Local Community Commission (LCC) is perhaps the biggest change to Salt Spring’s local governance since the Islands Trust was established in 1974.

The separation of land use authority, held by the Islands Trust, from CRD servicing decisions is unchanged. Responsibility for repairing and rebuilding our extensive rural road network remains with the Province.

In 2022, at the request of our CRD Director, the CRD Board initiated a referendum process for the LCC. The Board gave three readings to Bylaw 4507 to establish a Salt Spring elected Local Community Commission (LCC). A second bylaw, Draft Bylaw 4508, defines the degree of authority over designated services. Get more information on the 2022 LCC Referendum campaign.

Salt Springers voted in support of Bylaw 4507 in a referendum in October of 2022, establishing an elected Local Community Commission (LCC) to administer the following Capital Regional District (CRD) Salt Spring services and facilities:

• Economic development
• Community parks and recreation services and facilities, including the indoor pool
• Wastewater disposal (Burgoyne Bay facility currently holding waste pumped from island sewage treatment plants and private septic tanks prior to trucking to a treatment facility on Vancouver Island)
• Small Craft Harbour Facilities (at Fernwood dock)
• Bus service (authority shared with BC Transit that funds 50% of the cost)
• Street Lighting (and pedestrian facilities such as construction and maintenance of pathways and some sidewalks)
• Issuance of grants-in-aid (small grants to community organizations)
• Compensation for injury to livestock by dogs

The LCC will also oversee CRD contribution arrangements with the following local organisations:

• Island Arts Centre Society (ArtSpring)
• Salt Spring Public Library
• Salt Spring Search and Rescue

Additional areas of responsibility will likely be added in the future. The four island-wide, appointed volunteer commissions that oversee 8 services will be dissolved. Area-specific water and waste treatment services will continue to be administered by commissions comprised of locally elected residents.

The LCC will meet at regular open public meetings, as required by the Local Government Act, where the public can make presentations and observe how and what decisions are made. Salt Spring’s first Local Community Commission will be elected on May 27, 2023, and its first meeting held in June.