Directors from the Cowichan Valley Regional District board attended the annual Association of Vancouver Island and Coastal Communities Association convention in Victoria.
The convention brings together elected officials from municipalities and regional districts from across Vancouver Island and the Central and Sunshine Coasts to discuss emerging issues of importance to coastal communities and to elect the AVICC board of directors.
“The AVICC Convention provides an opportunity for community leaders from across our region to come together and learn from each other, exchange ideas and advance regional issues to the provincial level,” noted CVRD board chair Jon Lefebure.
CVRD director Mary Marcotte is now past president of the AVICC, having served the past year as president. Director Ian Morrison was acclaimed as second vice president after serving the past year as director at large.
Throughout the convention, many issues were discussed and advancements made on topics such as development of pathways and trails along rural roads, innovative procurement practices to generate enhanced value for communities, cannabis regulations and legislation, abandoned and derelict vessels, responsible shoreline development and the current drug overdose crisis. Some of these topics and others resulted in resolutions that will be forwarded to the Union of B.C. Municipalities for consideration at its annual convention in September.
Convention delegates received updates from Island Health Authority and Island Corridor Foundation as well as a presentation from keynote speaker Charles Montgomery, author of Happy City: Your City, Your Life.
B.C. Premier John Horgan spoke to delegates about the provincial government’s current priorities as they relate to coastal communities. Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, Selina Robinson, and Green Party Leader Andrew Weaver also addressed delegates at the convention.