Midcoast Morning on CHLY 101.7FM: Recent Episodes
CHLY 101.7FM
Running 28 minutes, Midcoast Morning covers local news and current affairs happening in Nanaimo and on the Salish Sea. Midcoast Morning focuses in on one big story per show, interviewing reporters about their stories, as well as those making news and those impacted by it. We also feature the curators and creators in our local arts and culture scene. Midcoast Morning broadcasts every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday morning at 8:30 A.M.. The podcast edition releases at the same time.
Tune in at chly.ca/listen or CHLY 101.7FM in Nanaimo and on the Salish Sea. Find the Podcast at chly.ca/podcasts.
A group promoting local food took to Nanaimo City Council Monday,
The folks behind the Nanaimo Food Hub are looking to boost awareness of the project, and lay the foundations for future growth.
Founded two years ago, the hub has a vision of connecting people to locally grown food.
They’re getting ready to start a second season of Friday markets at the Nanaimo Montessori School.
Midcoast Morning spoke with co-founder Tina Fabbro
Nanaimo is asking for voters' permission to sell an acre of parkland to pave the way for a road to a planned subdivision.
At a meeting Monday, Nanaimo city council approved a plan that would ultimately see the north edge of Elaine Hamilton Park in the city’s south end become a road that would serve as the main entryway to a residential development, one of six sections of the Sandstone Project.
A washroom at the park would need to be demolished, with the developer building a new facility on a different part of the park.
After initially voting against an running an AAP, council reconsidered and voted 6-3 in favour of the process, with councillors Paul Manly, Tyler Brown, and Ben Geselbracht opposed.
Midcoast Morning brings you coverage of the meeting, and speaks with the developer behind the project.
Midcoast Morning speaks with Gordon Robinson of the Coastal Fire Centre in Parksville to assess wildfire risks on Vancouver Island. The program also speaks with Steve Mjaaland of Mosaic, who manage nearly 1.5 million acres of private land on southeastern Vancouver Island.
Dinosaurs of BC, a traveling exhibition from the Royal British Columbia Museum, is making its way to Nanaimo for the summer.
Midcoast Morning speaks with paleontologist Victoria Arbour about the kinds of fossils around what’s now B.C, and what the mass extinction event at the end of the cretaceous period 66 million years ago was like.
A Documentary filmed on the front lines of what’s been called Canada’s largest act of civil disobedience is coming to Nanaimo.
Fairy Creek from director Jen Muranetz tells stories from the anti old growth logging protest and blockade that began in 2020.
Midcoast Morning spoke with the filmmaker ahead of the documentary’s theatrical run in the city.
Two stories about making a change in the environment, one on a systems level, and one about a community member trying to make a difference
The British Columbia Community Forest Association gathered in Nanaimo for a three day conference this week, Midcoast Morning explores the state of community forests in the province with the group’s executive director.
Plus Jim Senka says an experience in Northern Manitoba changed the way he looked at development and the environment. He shares the role that story played in leading the 81 year old to seek out a habitat restoration grant for his home in Harewood.
The O in Nanaimo’s downtown sign is getting a new design after several incidents of vandalism over the last few years.
The sign was installed in Maffeo Sutton Park in 2021. Each of the five foot letters in Nanaimo are painted white, except for the O, which features a rainbow design made up of 15 coloured segments.
A release from the city at the time the sign went up said that:
“The colourful "O" can mean different things to different people. For example, the different colours in the “O” represents(sic) the diversity of the 100,000 plus voices who have shaped and continue to shape our spectacular City. It also represents an inclusive Nanaimo, full of opportunity for generations to come.”
The O has since been vandalized on multiple occasions, most recently it was painted entirely white.
At one point last year, the O was spray painted with the words “no WEF”, a reference to the world economic forum.
At a meeting Monday Nanaimo city council voted 6-3 in support of a staff recommendation to commission a new design for the sign.
Midcoast Morning brings you the debate on the issue and speaks with Nanaimo Mayor Leonard Krog.
A new project puts the Coast Salish Wooly Dog in the spotlight.
Several sources suggest the dogs, which are now extinct, experienced a severe population decline in the 1850s.
The pelt of one Coast Salish Wooly dog that was lying in the Smithsonian for more than a hundred and fifty years inspired a research project that brought together knowledge holders from a variety of Coast Salish communities.
That project has resulted in a new book called The Teachings of Mutton.
Liz Hammond-Kaareema, Violet Elliot and Elliot White Hill all contributed to that book, and they joined Midcoast Morning to talk about Coast Salish Wooly Dogs.
The trio will also be part of a launch event on Saturday May 31st at the Nanaimo Museum, more information about that event can be found here:
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/book-launch-the-teachings-of-mutton-tickets-1347238820579?aff=ebdssbdestsearch
Midcoast Morning visits a temporary housing site in Cedar that is set to welcome 50 people over the coming months. Located at 1300 Island Highway South, the site is described as temporary housing, funded for three years through the provincial HEART/HEARTH program, which is intended to respond to homelessness. Made up of small modular units, day to day operations will be managed by Connective Support Society.
This week members of Nanaimo City Council got an update on the state of services for people experiencing homelessness at a Governance and Priorities Committee Meeting.
A report from city staff indicated access to basic services for people experiencing homelessness has decreased compared to a decade ago.
Midcoast Morning spoke with the city’s manager of social planning to explore why.
South End Community Association chair Sydney Robertson attended Monday’s meeting, she shared some of her takeaways with CHLY.
“Despite increased demand, access to basic needs services in Nanaimo has declined over the past decade,” says a report from staff at the City of Nanaimo.
Leaders in health, housing, and a number of other sectors came together Monday to provide an update on the state of services for people experiencing homelessness in Nanaimo at a Governance and Priorities Committee meeting Monday.
Midcoast Morning brings you highlights from that meeting, including details on new transitional housing units set to open in the coming weeks, and estimates of the number of people experiencing homelessness in Nanaimo.
A VIU and CHLY alumni was back in Nanaimo Thursday for the launch of a graphic novel telling stories from his home nation of Xwemalhkwu(Homalco)
Tchadas Leo is a journalist with CHEK News, and for the last number of years he’s been leading the work on Xwemalhkwu Hero Stories, which tells a trio of stories inspired by elders from the nation. With a launch event for the graphic novel Thursday at VIU, Leo paid a visit to the CHLY studio to speak about the project.
At a meeting Monday, Nanaimo city council voted 6-3 to reconsider a plan to build a boathouse with rentable community space at Loudon Park by Long Lake. The decision to reconsider was prompted by a motion from councillor Tyler Brown.
The gallery at the Vancouver Island Conference centre was near capacity at times during the meeting, with a number of people bringing signs expressing opposition to the boathouse project as it had been planned.
A trio of delegations presented to council in opposition to the project during the meeting.
Midcoast Morning brings you some of the council members perspectives on the issue, and speaks with one of the presenters who spoke to council about their opposition for the project.
New exhibition After Wrappers From the art collective Big Rock Candy Mountain launches tonight at the Nanaimo Art Gallery.
Featuring the work of Hannah Jickling, Reed H. Reed, a variety of guest artists, and elementary school students, it’s going to be running through July 12th.
Midcoast Morning spoke with Art Gallery curator Jesse Birch.
The Office of the Auditor General of BC has finished a look into the province’s legal aid system.
Acting Auditor General Sheila Dodds spoke with Midcoast Morning about the findings.
24 People could be forced to the streets this week as funding for a shelter in Nanaimo is set to expire.
The nonprofit Risebridge has been operating a shelter on Prideaux Street since the fall, funded by BC Housing on a temporary winter shelter contract.
On February 12th Risebridge reached out to BC housing to inquire about the possibility of extending the shelter contract.
On February 27th they were informed that BC Housing was reviewing extension requests across the province, and would follow up with updates.
After Risebridge followed up on March 28th, they eventually received a reply from BC Housing’s Director of Homelessness on April 17th, which stated that
“This year, BC Housing does not have a funding program to invite all Non-Profit operators to apply for extensions to provide broad operating extensions for all the temporary winter shelters across the province.”
Another shelter in Nanaimo, run by the Nanaimo Family Life Association, received an extension to May 31, 2025.
Midcoast Morning paid a visit to the shelter, and reached out to BC Housing.
In the lead up to this year’s federal election, Midcoast Morning is bringing you interviews with our local candidates in the Nanaimo-Ladysmith Riding.
On this program Lisa Marie Barron.
Plus, after being unable to arrange a conversation with Conservative candidate Tamara Kronis, Midcoast Morning spoke with University of Guelph political science professor Julie Simmons about a lack of media availability among Conservative candidates during this election period.
In the lead up to this year’s federal election, Midcoast Morning is bringing you interviews with our local candidates in the Nanaimo-Ladysmith Riding.
On this program - Paul Manly and Michelle Corfield.
Midcoast Morning paid a visit to local cafe White Rabbit, hoping to hear what’s top of mind for voters in Nanaimo as they get ready to head to the polls Monday April 28th.
Labour leaders were in Nanaimo this week, looking to put the spotlight on healthcare issues in this federal election.
The presidents of the Canadian Labour Congress and the Hospital Employees Union spoke to media outside of Nanaimo Regional General Hospital Monday, decrying privitization in the Canadian healthcare system and calling on federal leaders to give more attention to healthcare issues.
Midcoast Morning speaks with an expert in Canadian healthcare policy to break down the role of the federal government, what kinds of privatization are occurring in the system, and how the issue has played into the campaign so far.
Midcoast Morning follows up on Nanaimo City Council’s 5-4 decision to build an activity centre at Loudon Park by Long Lake, speaking with a councillor whose vote changed following incorrect information from staff, as well as the president of the group that’s spent decades trying to improve boat storage at the park.
A planned activity centre at Long Lake has the Nanaimo & Area Land Trust(NALT), and a member of city council raising concerns about tree loss.
Nanaimo city council changed course this week, narrowly voting in favour of a plan to spend close to $11 million building a new facility for boat storage and with community space at Loudon Park next to Long Lake.
At a previous Finance and Audit Committee meeting council had voted in favour of a plan that would have seen boat storage built in a different location at a cost of about $6.5 million.
A number of councillors were not present at that meeting, and this week, in a pair of 5-4 votes, council decided first against building the scaled down storage, and then to approve funding for the bigger building.
It’s estimated by NALT that more than 40 per cent of the trees in the park will be cut down as part of the planned building.
Midcoast Morning speaks with NALT’s executive director and Nanaimo City Councillor Ben Geselbracht about the issue.
Four major new BC Ferries are on the way but plans for a fifth have been rejected for now.
The new ships will replace four aging vessels, the Queens of Cowichan, Alberni, Coquitlam and New Westminster.
It’s the largest capital project in the history of BC Ferries.
The first of the new vessels are expected to enter service in 2029, with all four operational by 2031.
BC Ferries had requested permission to build a fifth ship at the same time to increase capacity in the system.
All decisions on major capital expenditures for BC Ferries have to go through the BC Ferry Commission, an independent regulator that also sets the limit on average fare and reservation increases.
This week BC Ferries commissioner Eva Hage released her 32 page decision on BC Ferries application for new vessels, giving the go ahead to the four replacement ships, but rejecting the application for a fifth.
Midcoast Morning speaks with Hage and BC Ferries CEO Nicolas Jimenez about the development.
Vancouver Island University is getting set to search for a new president.
Last week current president Deborah Saucier announced her resignation as of April fourth.
The move followed a vote of non confidence in her leadership from the VIU Faculty Association and a call for her removal from the Vancouver Island University Students Union (VIUSU).
Midcoast Morning speaks with a representative from VIUSU about their hopes for the change.
Plus, this weekend voters in and around Oceanside will decide on the fate of substantial upgrades to the Ravensong Aquatic Centre in Qualicum Beach.
Parksville Mayor Doug O’Brien shares the journey the project has taken to reach this stage.
Nanaimo’s northern gateway could look very different in 20 years.
The city is refining its plan for the Woodgrove area, and aims to add much denser housing to an area currently covered in concrete and chain stores.
Midcoast Morning speaks with Kasia Biegun from The City of Nanaimo planning department, and Michael Bassili of Strong Towns Nanaimo about the area.
Familiar faces are lining up for what projects to be a tight Nanaimo race in the federal election.
All five candidates from the 2021 federal election are set to run again for their respective parties.
Incumbent MP Lisa Marie Barron of the NDP is looking to retain her seat.
2021 runner up Tamara Kronis is once again representing the Conservative party, and former MP and current city councillor Paul Manly has been announced as the Green Party candidate in the Nanaimo-Ladysmith Riding.
Michelle Corfield is once again running for the liberals and Stephen Welton has been announced as the People’s Party candidate.
As of recording time, none of the candidates have been officially confirmed by Elections Canada, the nomination process closes April 7th, and a complete list of Candidates will be available Wednesday April 9th.
Midcoast Morning tees up the race in a conversation with VIU political science professor Michael MacKenzie.
It’s going to cost a quarter more to ride the bus in Nanaimo. April 1 transit fares are going up for the first time in years, following a fare review process.
A single ride will now cost $2.75 and a day pass $5.50
The price of Monthly concession passes for seniors and youth are also going up by $5.
The cost of a standard monthly bus pass remains the same at $65.
There’s also one route that’s decreased in price, the Nanaimo to Cowichan Valley Express route is now $5 dollars, down from $7.50.
Midcoast Morning speaks with the RDN’s Senior Manager of Transportation about the changes.
The company that built the Nanaimo Bastion could be looking at the end of the line.
The Hudson’s Bay Company is seeking creditor protection and is expected to begin liquidating inventory at stores across Canada in the very near future.
Midcoast Morning explores what’s going on with The Bay now, and the role it played in Nanaimo’s coal mining roots.
With trout being pumped into local freshwater lakes, and the herring spawn catching the attention of fishers on the saltwater side, Midcoast Morning explores the Nanaimo fishing scene.
Permitting delays and Cost uncertainty are among the concerns expressed this week by home builders on Vancouver Island.
The Nanaimo Chamber of Commerce gathered contractors and other key players in the construction industry together Tuesday for an Island Housing Solutions Roadmap event at the coast bastion hotel.
Midcoast Morning attended and spoke with members of the Canadian Homebuilders Association.
Cities, towns, and community organizations across Vancouver Island are increasingly leaving behind X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
This week Ladysmith joined Parksville as some of the latest communities to either shut down or publicly back away from use of the platform.
Midcoast Morning speaks with the town’s communications and engagement specialist who says the decision wasn’t a political one. The program also speaks with Nanaimo’s director of corporate communications to see if it’s looking at stepping away from X.
Plus, Ladysmith has a new mayor
Deena Beeston picked up 854 of 1740 votes cast in a byelection last Saturday. She spoke with Midcoast Morning about the campaign, and what she hopes to accomplish in the role.
As The City of Nanaimo attempts to deal with unruly conduct during council meetings, a proposed ban on recording has some councillors raising concerns.
Bylaw changes that include bans on photography and audio and video recordings of council meetings passed three readings at a February 24th council meeting, with council voting 7-2 in favour of the changes.
Under the rules, which would still need to be adopted at a later date, photography and recording at a meeting could still be permitted if allowed by the meeting’s chair.
Councillors Hilary Eastmure and Sheryl Armstrong voted against the changes, and expressed concern about their ability to stand up to legal challenges.
At a meeting this past week, Councillor Paul Manly, who originally voted in favour of the changes, said he’s not comfortable with the bylaw as it’s worded and that he would be bringing forward a motion to revisit discussion on the issue at a later date.
Eastmure, Manly, and Nanaimo Mayor Leonard Krog spoke with Midcoast Morning about the issue.
For more local reporting on this story, you can find a February 27 piece in The Discourse from CHLY alumni Mick Sweetman.
Concerns about a potential loss of representation, and a new implementation plan have caused farmers to make their voices heard at the regional district of Nanaimo so far this year.
In January, a staff report presented the RDN board with the option of consolidating a number of committees,
One of them was the Agricultural Advisory Committee or AAC, which is made up of members of the farming community and directors on the RDN board.
That potential loss of the committee caused a number of farmers to reach out and contact the RDN, and local farmer Ben Glassen advocated for the committee and issues affecting his community at a January RDN board meeting.
While a number of other committees were collapsed into the committee of the whole, the AAC was spared.
Part of the AAC’s work is an agricultural area plan, developed in 2012.
Many items from the plan haven’t been put into practice yet, and this week the RDN adopted a new implementation plan to try and address that.
This week Ben Glassen once again spoke to the RDN board about issues facing local farmers.
Glassen and AAC chair Jessica Stanley spoke with Midcoast Morning about the issues island farmers are facing.
Editor’s note, Glassen is also a volunteer at CHLY, where he hosts a farming themed program called the Tuning Fork.
The City of Nanaimo is taking another step on the road to replacing its aging public works yard.
Nanaimo city council voted 6 to 3 in favour of a plan to fund more detailed designs for the project.
The city is looking to upgrade facilities on Labieux road by building a new administration building and a new fleet maintenance facility, where it would service vehicles like garbage trucks and snow ploughs.
A plan to borrow up to $90 million to complete the upgrades had to be shelved after an unsuccessful alternative approval process last year.
The designs are projected to cost $1.8 million, staff say it’s something that will need to be completed no matter how the rest of the project is financed.
Bill Sims, General Manager of Engineering and Public Works with the City of Nanaimo, spoke with Midcoast Morning about the latest developments on the project.
The work of Black Canadian poets George Elliot Clarke, Dionne Brand, M Nourbese Philip, and Wayde Compton, as well as rapper K’naan, is in the spotlight in a new book from VIU professor Paul Watkins.
Called Soundin’ Canaan, in the book, Watkins takes what he describes as a DJ approach to analyzing works of Black Canadian poetry as forms of social, ethical, and political expression.
Watkins paid a visit to the CHLY studio to speak about the work.
It was a banner year for the Vancouver Island Marmot.
There were more marmots recorded in the wild than at any time since their population started being tracked in the 1980s.
The wild marmot population is mainly centered around two areas, Strathcona Park and Nanaimo Lakes.
The Marmot Recovery foundation is a non profit founded in 1999 with the goal of restoring the wild population of the Vancouver Island Marmot, their work includes captive breeding programs and habitat restoration efforts.
The organization’s executive director and head veterinarian joined Midcoast Morning to break down the latest on B.C.’s only endemic mammal species.
Community members are gathering downtown this afternoon to honour the lives of of missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls, and 2SLGBTQIA+ people.
The No More Stolen Sisters March begins at Diana Krall Plaza at 3:30.
Starting in 1992 memorial marches have been held in communities across the country each year on February 14th.
The event originated as a memorial march for Cheryl Anne Joe, a mother of three from Sechelt who was murdered that year in Vancouver.
Leah Vaisanen is organizing the march in Nanaimo.
Monique May is organizing a march this Sunday in Victoria. She’ll also be in attendance Friday in Nanaimo.
Both of them spoke with Midcoast Morning about the march, and the issue of missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls, and 2SLGBTQIA+ people.
University of Vermont professor Kim Coleman is hitting the mountain biking trails of Vancouver Island.
But she’s not here on vacation.
Coleman is visiting Vancouver Island University for the spring semester as a Fulbright Canada Research Chair.
She’s studying how communities manage outdoor recreation, comparing examples on the island with some she’s studied back in New England.
Coleman visited the CHLY studio to talk about how communities change when mountain biking goes
Christine Meutzner says when she’s driving around Nanaimo, she sees all the buildings that have come and gone throughout the years.
After close to 30 years at the Nanaimo Archives, Meutzner is heading into retirement.
The archives are a non-profit society dedicated to acquiring, preserving and providing public access to the historical records of the Nanaimo region.
Members of the public can do on site research by appointment at their building located at 60 Wharf Street.
Meutzner stopped by the CHLY studio to share some stories from the city’s past.
Ladysmith’s acting mayor says in her opinion, an increasing lack of civility online is the community’s greatest challenge.
Voters in Ladysmith are getting set to elect a new mayor in a by-election March 1. There are currently five candidates in the race to replace Aaron Stone, who stepped down last year to take a role as CEO of the South Island Prosperity Partnership, an economic development alliance serving the greater Victoria region.
Tricia McKay has been serving as acting Mayor in the interim, Midcoast Morning spoke with her about the political context in the community ahead of the by-election
In addition to issues with how she feels online discourse has evolved in the last number of years, McKay also cited challenges getting new commercial space, housing, and healthcare in Ladysmith.
The BC Road Show made a stop in Cedar, looking to get more young people interested in careers operating heavy equipment.
The roadshow is a trailer that contains simulators for various pieces of heavy equipment. It visits schools in the province in an effort to promote pathways into the construction industry.
Industry groups say there’s a shortage of labour in the construction right now. Midcoast Morning examines a local pathway into heavy equipment operation.
The community on Gabriola Island is mapping out how it will move through the next 25 years.
Attempts to address Impacts from climate change, an aging population and a lack of diversity of housing options need to take into account environmental concerns specific to gulf islands.
Gabriola is in the midst of the first major revision to its official community plan since 1997.
Trustee Tobi Elliot spoke with Midcoast Morning about the planning process.
Incubators for the neo natal unit and a new laser used to treat prostate cancer, are among equipment purchases enabled by fundraising from the Nanaimo and District Hospital Foundation.
The foundation announced this week it had exceeded its 1.5 million dollar goal for a recent fundraiser by over $600,000.
CEO Barney Ellis-Perry spoke with Midcoast Morning about how funding for new hospital equipment purchases works, and urologist Dr. Will Carlson shared information on one of the new pieces of equipment.
The owners of a downtown Nanaimo staple are stepping into retirement after more than three decades in the Old City Quarter.
Eric and Sandy McLean have announced the sale of McLean’s Specialty Foods to a quartet of local entrepreneurs.
The shop, known for its selection of cheeses and specialty foods from around the world, opened in 1992.
Eric McLean visited the CHLY studio to reflect on 33 years in business.
The province’s nurses union is flagging workplace safety concerns and staffing shortages as they get ready to head to the bargaining table later this year.
The BC Nurses’ Union’s (BCNU) collective agreement with the Health Employer’s Association of BC is set to expire at the end of March.
As the union gets ready to negotiate the next agreement, they’ve been having a series of regional bargaining conferences, including one in Nanaimo.
Midcoast Morning spoke with Kelly Charters, BCNU rep for Nanaimo and the North Island, about the issues nurses are facing locally.
The Vancouver Island Symphony is bringing unfinished, unpublished, and underappreciated works to audiences in Nanaimo and Courtenay this weekend.
The program will feature music from Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Charles Ives, and the late Vancouver composer Jocelyn Morlock.
Midcoast Morning speaks with the symphony’s artistic director, and with composer John Korsrud, who was Morlock’s partner.
Upgrades to Nanaimo’s transit service have kicked in this week.
This year will see 8700 more hours of service on Nanaimo routes.
5000 of those hours are on the newly renamed route 1 Nanaimo rapid line, which goes between the Woodgrove Centre and Downtown.
2700 new service hours are on an intercity route going from the Woodgrove Centre to Parksville and Qualicum Beach.
The other 1000 new hours are part of a restructured route to Lantzville.
Midcoast Morning explores the changes and the tentative plans for next year’s upgrades.
Exploring Nanaimo as a commercial real estate market, getting an update on the old A&B Sound building, and checking in on the BC assessment process.
The story of a 1985 anti logging protest on Haida Gwaii is coming to Nanaimo for a special screening
The Stand from filmmaker Christopher Auchter draws from more than a hundred hours of archival footage of the protest on Lyell island, footage recorded while the events were still unfolding
The documentary premiered at the Vancouver International Film Festival in September, and will be screening at the Vancouver Island Conference Centre this Sunday.
CHLY and CVOX reporter Heather Watson spoke with the filmmaker behind The Stand.
A true crime story and a train disaster from the island’s past are being looked at through a new lens.
Historian Dave Flawse wonders whether Henry Wagner aka the flying dutchman deserved his date with the hangman’s noose, and author Kim Bannerman explored the commemoration of the Japanese victims of the Trent River train disaster of 1898.
Both stories appeared in the book A Place Called Cumberland, released by the Cumberland Museum and Archives.
Midcoast Morning previously brought you some info on that collection, but didn’t have time to delve all the way into the stories.
At the start of the year Mick Sweetman was reporting for CHLY, he now finds himself as the Nanaimo reporter for The Discourse. Mick paid a visit to the CHLY studio to share some of the reporting that ‘s stuck with him from 2024.
The midtown water supply, pickleball courts, and land transfers to Snuneymuxw were some of the highlights Nanaimo Mayor Leonard Krog shared when he visited the CHLY studio to review 2024 at the municipal level.
The Mayor aslo spoke about the provincial election, and the future of the public works yard project, and offered a Christmas message to listeners.
A Christmas classic is going to be transformed into a live radio play free for all to attend this Saturday night at VIU.
The school’s Malaspina theatre will host a locally penned adaptation of It’s a Wonderful Life, the 1946 film directed by Frank Capra starring Jimmy Stewart.
Midcoast Morning spoke with some of those involved with bringing the production to life.
The Nanaimo Systems Planning Organization (SPO) exists to provide research, data, analysis, education and information related to the community's homelessness response. It began operating in April 2023.
In part two of a conversation around the SPO’s work, its board chair, executive director, and research and mobilization lead discuss the role of non market housing, and landowners willing to offer spaces for its creation as a measure to address homelessness.
An average of 29 people are coming into homelessness every month in Nanaimo, according to the Systems Planning Organization (SPO).
The SPO exists to provide research, data, analysis, education and information related to the community's homelessness response. It began operating in April 2023.
Midcoast Morning spoke with a trio of those involved with the organization about the data around homelessness in Nanaimo.
Ladysmith and Qualicum Beach are both in the process of getting new skateparks for their towns. An open house Wednesday night will provide residents of Ladysmith the chance to way in on different proposed designs for a new skatepark, while in Qualicum Beach, shovels are set to go in the ground for a park that could open as soon as next summer, after organizers were tasked with raising $300,000 to make the project happen.
Nanaimo city council is going to be deciding Friday whether or not a number of projects will get funding in next year’s budget.
It’s been a week full of conversations around the budget, with an e-town hall taking place Monday, and a special finance and audit committee meeting Wednesday, ahead of Friday’s meeting.
Right now the city is forecasting a property tax increase of eight point seven per cent, though that number will change by the end of the day depending on council’s decisions.
Today on the program we’ll share some information on what those decision points are, and bring you up to speed on where the city is in its budgeting process.
A shoot out with a pirate, A train disaster, a chow mein that’s been passed down to generations that were forced to move away - these are just some of the stories you’ll find in A Place Called Cumberland.
The new book from the village’s museum and archives brings together twelve different tales from Cumberland’s past, that cover topics from labour organizing, to a first hand account of growing up in Chinatown, to the story behind the bike trails that play a big part in the community’s identity today.
Midcoast Morning speaks with some of the contributors to explore what the past has to say about the ethos of Cumberland.
The federal government is one step closer to putting a temporary pause on GST, after a vote in the house of commons Thursday night.
Legislation to exempt a number of items from GST between December 14th and February 15th passed a vote in Ottawa, with support from the liberals and NDP.
Among the items included in the proposed exemption are children’s clothing, a number of food items and toys and video game consoles.
People in BC will not need to pay the 5 per cent federal GST on qualifying items during the two month period.
Speaking with Midcoast Morning, VIU professor of political studies and Jarislowsky Chair in Trust and Political Leadership Michael MacKenzie called the measure “bad in every way.”
Nanaimo-Ladysmith MP Lisa Marie Barron also spoke with Midcoast Morning about why she supported the measure.
It’s a good time for productive outrage, says Nanaimo’s new poet laureate.
Neil Surkan is getting ready to start a two year term in the position on December 1, he spoke with CHLY reporter Lauryn Mackenzie.
And Jackie Wong’s new temporary public art project Lost Intersections will appear next spring, and bring attention to the sites of the city’s former Chinatowns . She spoke with Midcoast Morning host Joe Pugh.
It’s the final day for a pop up overdose prevention site operating across the street from Nanaimo Regional General Hospital.
Dr. Jess Wilder, a physician who works in addiction medicine at the hospital is a member of the group Doctors for Safer Drug Policy, who are calling for the government of B.C. to create sanctioned, fully staffed overdose prevention sites at B.C. Hospitals.
Wilder led the effort to create the unsanctioned, unfunded Nanaimo site, which was forced to relocate off of hospital grounds on Monday.
There was also a pop up site set up outside Royal Jubilee Hospital in Victoria, which was only planned to run until this past Wednesday.
Overdose prevention sites are locations where people can use substances under the supervision of staff that can monitor for drug poisoning and respond to an overdose if needed.
Midcoast Morning visited the site in Nanaimo to speak with the physician who set it up.
Journalist and author Brandi Morin is in town to give a talk as part of VIU’s Indigenous speakers series.
A survivor of the missing and murdered Indigenous women crisis, her work has appeared in National Geographic, Al Jazeera English, The Guardian, and The New York Times.
In January, Morin was arrested while covering an encampment in Edmonton, and was charged with obstructing a police officer, a charge which was later dropped. She visited the CHLY studio to speak about that experience, and the message she’s hoping to share with people in Nanaimo.
The Bicycle Film Festival is returning to Nanaimo this Saturday.
A collection of films related to cycling will play at Malaspina Theatre starting around 6:15.
Brendt Barbur decided to start the event back in 2001 after he was hit by a bus in New York City. He joined Midcoast Morning to share more on that story, as well as to talk cycling cinema more generally.
A labour dispute that’s been impacting ports in Nanaimo and across the province is headed to binding arbitration
Federal labour minister Steven MacKinnon ordered the move Tuesday. Foremen at B.C.’s ports have been locked out since November 4th, that lockout came after the union had delivered a 72 hour strike notice for what it called limited job action, including an overtime ban and a refusal to implement tech change.
Midcoast Morning spoke with port researcher Peter Hall for context on the dispute.
Published at the end of the 1920s, All Quiet on the Western Front by Eric Maria Remarque tells the story of a young man named Paul who enlists in the German army in the first world war.
It’s newest translator spoke with Midcoast Morning about what the book has to say in 2024.
Plus, in close to 25 years, the Canadian Letters and Images Project has digitized around 35,000 letters from Canadians at war. Project director Stephen Davies speaks about what stands out.
A pair of cemetery related items were on the council agenda this week in Nanaimo. When Kevin Hills wrote a term paper on the Commonwealth War Graves Commission as part of a military history course, he learned that war graves in Nanaimo had been laid flat in the 1960s in a move to make maintenance easier. This week, his action led city council to amend its cemetary bylaw to allow that the graves be put upright at a future date. Hills spoke with Midcoast Morning about his efforts.
At the same time, the city updated its fee structure around cemeteries, which are nearing capacity. Acting Manager of cemeteries David Thompson provided more information about the state of cemeteries in the harbour city.
It’s salmon spawning season around Nanaimo. Midcoast Morning reviews the salmon lifecycle, and checks in on issues impacting pacific salmon species.
Nanaimo is looking at how to make people more aware of doughnut economics, a framework council adopted back in 2020.
An update on the topic was on the agenda at a governance and priorities committee meeting Monday.
Doughnut economics is a way of visualizing the economy that takes into account society’s needs and our ecological capacity.
It was first presented in 2012 by British economist Kate Raworth, who later wrote a 2017 bestseller on the concept.
On the inside wall of the doughnut are society's needs - things like food, housing, income, health, and political voice.
Outside of the doughnut is our ecological ceiling, separated into nine categories like air pollution, ocean acidification, and biodiversity loss.
If the economy is functioning as it should, we are in the doughnut - everyone’s needs are being met, but we aren’t blasting past our ecological ceiling.
Raworth contrasts that with what she describes as 20th century economic thinking, which she writes in the book has been fixated on growing GDP as the measure of progress.
Midcoast Morning explores what doughnut economics could mean in practice to Nanaimo
There’s less than a week to go in the city of Nanaimo’s third attempt at an alternative approval process to be able to borrow up to $90 million for upgrades to the city’s public works yard.
People opposed to the borrowing have until 4:30 PM on October 31st to submit a form in opposition.
Midcoast Morning speaks with a representative of a group opposed to the use of the AAP, as well as Nanaimo Mayor Leonard Krog.
Nanaimo city council is considering increasing funding for restorative justice in the community in next year’s budget.
Restorative justice is an approach that seeks to repair the harm caused by crime and violence by addressing the needs of victims or affected parties, holding offenders or responsible parties meaningfully accountable for their actions, and by engaging the community in the justice process.
In Nanaimo there’s a restorative justice program run by the non-profit Connective, formerly known as the John Howard Society.
It has received $50 000 a year from the city for 20 years to help with the program, but as other funding sources have dried up following the pandemic, the organisation is seeking additional support.
At an October 16th Finance and Audit committee meeting, council decided that they’ll consider granting the organisation an additional $100 000 when it comes time to decide on next year’s budget.
Midcoast Morning speaks with the program’s manager to better understand what restorative justice looks like in the community.
Why tallying the results on election day should be much faster this go around, and record numbers of advanced ballots cast in B.C.’s provincial election. Plus, getting the thoughts of community members on the campaign.
Conversations with Nanaimo-Lantzville Green Party candidate Lia Versavel and Nanaimo-Gabriola Island BC Conservative candidate Dale Parker.
Conversations with Nanaimo-Gabriola Island NDP candidate Sheila Malcolmson and Nanaimo-Lantzville NDP candidate George Anderson.
Conversations with Nanaimo-Lantzville Conservative candidate Gwen O’Mahony and Nanaimo-Gabriola candidate Shirley Lambrecht.
Healthcare was on the agenda for all three candidates in the new Nanaimo Lantzville riding this week.
George Anderson, Gwen O’Mahoney, and Lia Versavel debated Wednesday at an all candidates forum at Wellington Secondary school.
Midcoast Morning shares some of the debate, and explores the region’s healthcare needs with Nanaimo Regional Hospital District Chair Ian Thorpe.
Shnu’a’th, ᐊᑳᒥᕽ Akâmihk, The Other Side, is a new exhibition opening this weekend at the Nanaimo Art Gallery.
Running from Friday through to January 12th, the exhibition will consider relations with land, family, and ancestors through interventions in the medium of photography. Artists Eliot White-Hill and Michelle Sound speak with Midcoast Morning about their work.
With B.C.’s election campaign in full swing, Midcoast Morning checks in with UBC political science lecturer Stewart Prest, and VIU Jarislowsky Chair in Trust and Political Leadership Michael MacKenzie
This week Nanaimo city council heard from a group making the case for the city to get rid of minimum parking requirements. At that same meeting, construction downtown on Commercial Street was in the spotlight, with the city making street parking in the downtown area free for the duration.
Midcoast Morning speaks with Caelen Middleton of Strong Towns Nanaimo about parking minimums, and James Knight with the City of Nanaimo about the construction project underway on Commercial Street.
There’s a byelection this weekend to decide on a new school board trustee.
Two candidates are running to fill the vacancy left by former school district 68 board chair Charlene Mckay, who resigned in May.
On Saturday September 14th, from 8 am to 8 PM, voting will be held at the McGirr Elementary Gym, the Laydsmith Secondary Gym, the Cedar Secondary gym, and at the district Administration centre on Wakesiah Avenue.
There’s also a special voting day Thursday from 3 to 7 at the Gabriola Elementary School Gym, and on Friday at the District Administration Centre on Wakesiah Ave, Nanaimo
Midcoast Morning hears from the candidates.
At a ceremony at the Vancouver Island Conference Centre Thursday, Laurie Grubb, Joshua Waltman, Amanda Hall, and Peter Sinclair were presented with the King Charles the third coronation medal.
Last May it was announced that 30 thousand such medals would be awarded across Canada to individuals who have made a significant contribution to their country, province, region, or community.
Midcoast Morning hears from each of the recipients, to learn more about the impact they’ve made on Nanaimo.
Generative AI and Elections are in the spotlight in a new report from UBC’s Centre for the Study of Democratic Institutions.
The report identifies that Gen AI-created audio, video, and images have appeared in many election campaigns this year, including in Bangladesh, France, India, Indonesia, Pakistan, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
With BC’s own provincial election just around the corner, Midcoast Morning speaks with the report’s lead author, Spencer McKay
Could the Hullo ferry transform Nanaimo into the public transit hub of Vancouver Island?
Urban planner and self described transit nerd Denis Agar thinks so.
He worked at trans link for a decade before leaving to become executive director of a non profit transit advocacy group called Movement.
The Hullo is run by the Vancouver Island Ferry Company.
It’s been sailing for over a year as of mid August, offering passenger only trips between the cruise ship terminal in Nanaimo and Canada Place in Vancouver
It’s the final long weekend of the summer and the BC government issued a release advising drivers to plan ahead with heavy traffic and congestion expected on B.C.’s most popular routes.
Agar says fundamentally, his hub proposal would mean people could get around Vancouver Island without a car.
A Gabriola Pub is facing a court ordered sale, in the midst of foreclosure proceedings.
The Skol Pub near the Gabriola Island Ferry Terminal is listed for sale at $319, 000.
According to a Notice of Application filed with the BC Supreme Court Monday, and obtained by CHLY, the mortgage holder, Accountable Mortgage Investment Corp, will seek an order approving the sale on Monday September 23rd.
The notice of application states that a prospective buyer has come forward, and that the realtor for the property has stated that at least 4 realtors have indicated they believe their clients will be submitting competitive offers to court.
Under BCs sealed bid process for foreclosures, the deadline for bids is 4 PM, 2 business days before the hearing for sale approval.
That means anyone interested in submitting a bid for the Skol has until Thursday September 19th.
The Skol was last sold in 2014, details related to that transaction emerged in a BC Supreme Court decision earlier this year.
Midcoast Morning explores memories of the Skol.
A plan to build a new water reservoir in Nanoose Bay has generated opposition among residents.
The Regional District of Nanaimo is currently running an alternative approval process(AAP), asking for permission to borrow up to around 1.2 million dollars, which would be close to half of the project’s budget.
The plan is to combine the restoration of an existing reservoir in the Lakes district of Nanoose with the construction of a new one.
The borrowing can’t go through if 538 or more electors within the Nanoose Bay Peninsula Water Service Area express their opposition through the AAP process.
Resident Paula Chase says she’s already collected forms from more than 800 people opposed to the project. She spoke with Midcoast Morning about her concerns.
Guests:
Paula Chase - Resident, Nanoose Bay
Murray Walters - Manager of Water Services, Regional District of Nanaimo
Program Team:
Joe Pugh — Host and Producer.
Jesse Woodward — Executive Producer.
Arbie Fru — Technical Assistance.
Theme Music:
Waste Management - First One
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The Palestine Solidarity Encampment has been cleared off of the grounds of VIU, following a Sunday deadline set out in an injunction from the BC Supreme Court.
The terms of the injunction granted differed from those originally sought by the university, which would have included a campus wide curfew, and police enforcement terms.
Instead the injunction grants the university the right to remove, store, or destroy materials on the grassy portion of the quad near VIU’s cafeteria for a term of 150 days. It also forbids the erecting of structures on the grassy quad area without the university’s consent, and gathering on the area between 11pm and 7 am, with the exception of students in residence.
The BC Civil Liberties Association was an intervenor in the case, and said in a statement that it has become increasingly concerned with injunctions being used to restrict protest rights.
Guests:
Ga Grant - Staff Litigation Council, BC Civil Liberties Association
Jessie Niikoi, Arielle Reed - BC Federation of Students
Program Team:
Joe Pugh — Host and Producer.
Jesse Woodward — Executive Producer.
Arbie Fru — Technical Assistance.
Theme Music:
Waste Management - First One
From the doctor shortage, to the lack of proper heart and stroke care, Nanaimo is suffering from an overburdened and underfunded healthcare system. Why is healthcare, the very thing Canada is known for, so hard to find on Vancouver Island? And what can be done to fix this situation?
Today we’ll speak with Donna Hais, chair of the Fair Care Alliance, about the disparity of healthcare between the Victoria area and regions North of the Malahat. We’ll learn about what the problems are, how they are interconnected, and in what ways we as citizens can push for our government to address these issues.
Then, after the break we’ll speak with MLA Sheila Malcolmson about what’s being done by the City of Nanaimo and B.C. government to rectify the imbalance, and alleviate the issues facing Nanaimo. We’ll discuss ways of attracting new doctors to the province, new projects the city is funding to address immediate healthcare needs, and get a better understanding of how taxes fund healthcare in Nanaimo.
Find out more about the Fair Care Alliance here: https://weneedhealthcare.ca/
Guests:
Donna Hais - Chair of the Fair Care Alliance
Sheila Malcolmson - Minister of Social Development and Poverty Reduction in Nanaimo
On the same weekend an icon of fire fighting history was making its final flight, crews were working to get a blaze under control just south of Nanaimo.
Midcoast Morning explores wildfire risk on the mid island, and explores the legacy and future of the Hawaii Mars waterbomber.
Today on the show we’ll speak with Jamie Rose, Manager of Transportation for the City of Nanaimo, about the upcoming upgrades to the Country Club Transit Exchange. We’ll also get an update on the overall vision of Nanaimo’s transit roadmap, from the soon to break ground Downtown Exchange, to the future of Woodgrove and Southgate.
As part of the research for this story, Jack went to the Country Club exchange to speak with bus riders about the survey, and bring their questions directly to Jamie Rose.
As part of the upcoming upgrades to Country Club, the City of Nanaimo is reaching out to transit users with a survey on what they want to see. From food trucks to E-bike charging stations, we’ll look in depth at the options available for these upgrades.
Guests:
Jamie Rose - Manager of Transportation for the City of Nanaimo
On August 6th, 1945, the atomic bomb called Little Boy was dropped on the Japanese city of Hiroshima. Three days later, another atomic bomb, Fat Man, was dropped on the city of Nagasaki. This was the first time, and to this day the last time nuclear weapons have been used in war.
Today we’ll speak with Tami Hirasawa, the president of the Central Vancouver Island Japanese Canadian Culture Society, AKA Seven Potatoes, about the history of displacement and dispossession which occurred throughout the II World War.
Also on the show, Theresa Hood, a member of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom’s Nanaimo chapter. Theresa will speak to the symbolism and importance of the annual Lanterns for Peace Ceremony, which occurs every August 6th, in Sway-a-Lana Lagoon.
Guests:
Tami Hirasawa - President of the Central Vancouver Island Japanese Canadian Culture Society, AKA Seven Potatoes
Theresa Hood - A member of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom’s Nanaimo chapter
The 19th Annual Nanaimo Blues Festival takes over Maffeo Sutton park this August 8th to 10th.
Today on the show we get a behind the scenes look at how the Blues Festival got started, and hear about the history of the Nanaimo Blues scene.
Listen to Jacquie Moisan, President of the Nanaimo Blues Society discuss the ins and outs of putting together the annual blues festival. Then hear from two blues musicians who will be performing this year; Ariel Posen, new age blues/rocker from Winnipeg; and David Gogo, local legend and Juno Award winning Canadian blues musician.
Guests:
Jacquie Moisan - President of the Nanaimo blues Society
Ariel Posen - Canadian Blues Musician
David Gogo - Canadian Blues Musician
As Nanaimo maps out potential big builds over the next few years, it faces rising construction costs.
A South End Community Centre, upgrades to the public works yard and a new RCMP detachment are all under consideration at over the coming years.
At the same time, the cost of construction nationwide has risen more sharply than inflation since 2017 per statistics Canada. One source we’ll hear from today said costs are rising as much as one or two percent a month.
Midcoast Morning explores the phenomenon, and how it impacts the city’s plans.
Rules around RVs and tiny homes have been a hot topic of discussion around the board table at the Regional District of Nanaimo lately.
Concerns were raised in May that proposed updates to a zoning bylaw could negatively impact people using RVs as permanent housing on campgrounds in various areas of the regional district.
The bylaw is still under review, and while it is, enforcement on length of stay is on hold except where there’s a health, safety, or environmental concern.
The issue has also prompted discussion in articles from various media outlets about RVs and tiny homes in the context of the housing crisis.
At an RDN board meeting Tuesday, a motion from Director Leanne Salter called Creating a Future for Tiny Home and RV Living passed unanimously.
It proposed to bring a resolution to the Union of B.C. Municipalities calling on the body to lobby the province on a few issues related to tiny homes and RVs, including the building code.
Zoe Todd spoke in support of that motion, on Midcoast Morning, she speaks about her advocacy around Tiny Home and RV living, and the personal circumstances that led to it.
Vancouver Island University is suing student protestors, seeking an injunction to bring an end to the Palestine Solidarity Encampment on its grounds.
In a notice of civil claim, filed with the BC Supreme court this week, the university names six defendants, along with John Doe, Jane Doe, and “all unknown persons operating as the Palestinian Solidarity Encampment.”
In addition to injunctive relief, the university is seeking general and special damages, and costs.
Last week, Protestors had been ordered to vacate by Monday July 15th. The notice of civil claim comes after they failed to do so.
To better understand the legal stakes, Midcoast Morning spoke with University of Windsor law professor Richard Moon.
A traditional Snuneymuxw Village site in downtown Nanaimo is being returned to the nation, and an 1854 treaty played a part in getting the deal done.
Between 1850 and 1854, fourteen treaties were concluded on Vancouver Island between First Nations and the Hudson’s Bay Company.
They were negotiated on the company’s side by James Douglas, and are sometimes collectively referred to by some as the Douglas treaties.
The Sarlequun treaty of 1854 covers the area around Nanaimo. Midcoast Morning spoke with history professor John Lutz to put the treaties in context.
Continuing the conversation on considering socially responsible investing at the city level with Municipal Finance Authority (MFA) CEO Peter Urbanc.
And VIU has delivered a trespass notice to the Palestine Solidarity Encampment on its grounds, requesting that the encampment leave by 8AM, Monday July 15, or face a court action seeking damages from encampment participants.
Socially responsible investing was the subject of a lively debate around the council table in Nanaimo on Monday.
Councillor Ben Gesselbracht brought forward a motion calling for a staff report with options to update the city’s investment policy to include a percentage of the city’s portfolio in socially responsible and low greenhouse gas emissions.
It narrowly passed following a 5-4 vote.
The issue was debated by the previous council in 2021, who came to a decision to pursue socially responsible and green investments when they were within 5 per cent of maximum available yields.
Nanaimo has around 200 million dollars in various reserve funds.
Midcoast Morning spoke with Gesselbracht, and broke down council’s debate on the subject with Peter Urbanc, CEO of BC’s Municipal Finance Authority (MFA).
Rail lines on Vancouver Island have sat mostly unused for years. But the impacts of the deal it took to create those rail lines continue.
Back in the 1880s, around 2 million acres of land on southern Vancouver Island were privatized, when they were granted to the Esquimalt and Nanaimo Railway Company in exchange for building the railway.
Historian Kelly Black speaks about some of the consequences of the grant on Vancouver Island today.
A motion that included calls for Nanaimo city council to recognize homelessness as an existential crisis, and to adopt a housing first plus strategy was recently referred to the Nanaimo Systems Planning Organization(SPO).
Midcoast Morning follows up with SPO Executive Director John McCormick
Dave Witty is calling on Nanaimo to recognize homelessness as an existential crisis.
Witty brought a motion before city council this month that included a call for Nanaimo to adopt “housing first plus” as the foundational element of a homelessness strategy.
He sits on the Mayor’s leaders table, and has been exploring the response to homelessness in Switzerland.
Nanaimo city council is split between two different plans to upgrade its public works yard.
The issue, which was the subject of two cancelled AAPs returned to the agenda this week at a governance and priorities committee meeting.
Staff presented different options for the future of the project, and councillors were divided between two of them. Midcoast Morning brings you up to speed on the debate, and debriefs with Nanaimo Mayor Leonard Krog.
A local neighbourhood association is raising concerns around vacant properties
Karen Kuwica and Nancy Mitchell of the Newcastle Community Association brought the issue to city council in a delegation that shared examples of vacant property bylaws from other communities.
They say they want to see the city implement measures to help proactively address potential issues.
Also on this episode, Joy Bremner shares details on an event Friday June 21st at Maffeo Sutton Park to mark National Indigenous Peoples Day
The dollar’s in the details in Nanaimo’s 2023 annual municipal report.
Adopted at a council meeting this week, the 122 page document breaks down last year’s finances.
Midcaost Morning explores the state of the city’s finances with Wendy Fulla, director of finance for the city of Nanaimo.
A new report has provided insight into what went wrong with the two alternative approval processes that have been abandoned in Nanaimo since last fall.
It also makes recommendations to the city on what to do if it decides to run a third AAP on the same project.
The report and the alternative approval process were on the agenda at a governance and priorities committee this week, Midcoast Morning brings you info on what happened, and what comes next.
In the last week representatives from both the encampment and the school’s administration have started to hold dialogue with each other.
The school has disclosed its investment information, and representatives from the Palestine Solidarity Encampment have agreed not to disrupt convocation ceremonies.
And around 70 staff at the university have signed an open letter raising concerns about the school’s security response to the encampment.
World Ocean Day is Saturday June 8th.
First proposed back in 1992 by Canada's International Centre for Ocean Development (ICOD), an organization that no longer exists, the event was officially recognized by the United Nations in 2008.
This year the theme is Catalyzing Action for Our Ocean & Climate.
There are going to be an events to mark the occasion Saturday at Maffeo Sutton Park in Nanaimo, from 11 to 3, and on Gabriola Island at Degnen Bay from noon to four.
To mark the occasion, Midcoast Morning spoke with Tim Green of VIU’s Deep Bay Marine Research Centre.
The Nanaimo Pride Parade and Pride Festival are taking place on Sunday June 9th.
CHLY reporter Lauryn Mackenzie spoke with Nanaimo Pride Society President Lauren Semple.
Exploring cycling in Nanaimo with people at a Go By Bike Week station. Learning about the advocacy behind new minimum passing distance laws coming into effect this week, and checking in on the best way to merge lanes during construction season.
The sights and sounds of Cable Bay Trail in Nanaimo’s south end could be very different in a few years time.
The 2 kilometre trail down to the ocean is nestled amongst private land, which its owners have plans to develop.
For three years, a group called Save Cable Bay has been campaigning in an effort to turn the area around the trail into a park.
A number of community initiatives have gotten a boost this week, as Nanaimo City Council approved grants for fourteen projects.
More than forty thousand dollars is going to be spread across a number of organizations, for things like watershed restoration and community toolshares.
Midcoast Morning checks in on four of the projects, and their journey from idea to approval.
A new exhibit at the Vancouver Island Military Museum features the Chinese Labour Corps from the first world war. Museum Vice President Brian McFadden spoke with Midcoast Morning about the exhibit.
A group of novelists, poets, and playwrights will be giving readings at an event Wednesday May 22 at the Palestine Solidarity Encampment on the grounds of Vancouver Island University, which has been installed since May 1.
Called the Watermelon Seeds Festival of Literature, the authors include a number of VIU faculty.
Three of the authors giving readings joined Midcoast Morning to speak about the event.
The Regional District of Nanaimo has a new plan to manage growth in our area through 2040.
This week the RDN board approved the adoption of Shaping our Future 2024, which contains goals related to climate mitigation and adaptation, economic and food system resiliency, among others.
Jamai Schile, a senior planner with the RDN spoke with Midcoast Morning about the strategy.
Brechin Lanes owner Ray Brittain is planning to sell the business that’s been in his family for more than 50 years, citing rising costs and competition from a foreign owned chain worth roughly a billion Canadian dollars.
Midcoast Morning host Joe Pugh paid a visit to Nanaimo’s only 5 pin bowling alley, to learn about it’s past, present, and what remains of its future.
The RDN and BC Transit have a survey open, asking about the impact of a potential fare increase for trips on busses in the city.
And you may have noticed a bunch of new e-bikes around town. The City of Nanaimo has partnered with BCAA’s Evolve E Bike share to launch a bike sharing pilot program.
Vancouver Island University’s response to a Palestine solidarity encampment on its grounds has drawn criticism from the B.C. Federation of Students, The Vancouver Island University Students Union, and more than a hundred of the school’s faculty and staff.
Thousands are expected to gather Saturday at a comic convention in Nanaimo that’s paying tribute to the man who founded it.
Curious Comicon is on Saturday at Country Club Mall.
It got started in 2016, when the Nanaimo branch of Curious Comics take Free comic book day, an annual, North America wide event, and expand it into a local convention convention.
With guest artists, a cosplay contest, and various activities.
Curious Comicon Founder Mike Drummond died earlier this year. Midcoast Morning spoke with some of the organizers who are keeping the event going in his memory.
As of May 1, in communities with a population over ten thousand, short term rentals will only be allowed in an owner’s principal residence, or in a secondary suite or accessory dwelling on the same property.
A number of less populated communities, including Gabriola Island and Tofino have opted in to the regulations. In those areas the rules will take effect on November first.
According to data obtained from the website Air DNA earlier this week, there are 999 short term rental listings in Nanaimo.
The city requires short term rental operators to have a licence which costs $165 per year.
A March staff report found that there were fewer than 300 licences for short term rentals in the community.
Midcoast Morning explores the impact of the potential impact of the new rules in our area, and speaks with B.C. Housing Minister Ravi Kahlon
175 people lost their lives as a result of their jobs last year in B.C.
Flags at government buildings will be at half mast to mark the occasion. Midcoast Morning hears what else will be happening locally to mark the occasion.
Walking around Nanaimo can be a very different experience depending on where you live.
Because of how the city’s developed and amalgamated different areas over the years, the sidewalk network is incomplete.
Members of the South End Community brought concerns around pedestrian safety in their neighbourhood to Nanaimo City Council this week.
Downtown Nanaimo is set to welcome a major production for six weeks of shooting.
While Non Disclosure Agreements mean that sources can’t confirm the identity of the production, Susan Gittins has reported on the website Hollywood North Buzz that season 2 of the HBO series The Last Of Us will be filming in Nanaimo
BC’s Minister of Tourism, Arts, Culture and Sport Lana Popham released a statement earlier this month announcing that the series would be filming in British Columbia.
Whatever the production, there will be impacts to the local economy, some temporary road and business closures, and perhaps an ambience around town in the air.
The provincial snowpack is extremely low, according to BC’s Ministry of Water Land and Resource Stewardship. Midcoast Morning explores what that means, and what the situation is on the island vs. the rest of the province.
And with peak tourism season just around the corner, we check in on social enterprise 4VI two years after it made the transition from Tourism Vancouver Island.
Exploring bad leadership and threats to democracy.
Monday night in at VIU’s Malaspina Theatre, Michael Mackenzie, the university’s Jarislowsky Chair in Trust and Political Leadership will be giving a lecture called “Bad Leaders, Bad Followers: threats to democracy that we don’t talk enough about.”
It’ll be followed by a panel discussion and Question and Answer where Mackenzie will be joined by Angus Reid Institute President Shachi Kurl, former Victoria mayor Lisa Helps, and radio host and former MLA Jas Johal.
It’s part of VIU’s Engaged Citizen Speaker Series and is free for members of the public to attend. MacKenzie and Kurl spoke with Midcoast Morning ahead of the event.
It’s no secret that downtown Nanaimo has developed a certain reputation, according to a recent column appearing in the Nanaimo News Bulletin.
That assertion could be backed up by news headlines with the phrase downtown disorder, or online comments in local Facebook groups, where people express a fear of going downtown.
Midcoast Morning explores perceptions of downtown.
Public engagement suggests People want BC Ferries to be reliable, affordable, and integrated with other forms of transit.
Those emerged as the top three priorities for respondents of the companies’ fall engagement process called Charting the Course. BC Ferries recently published an report on the findings from that process.
Also this year, The BC Federation of Labour and the BC office of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives put out a ten year vision and investment plan for transit in BC.
Called Connecting BC, it puts an emphasis on expanding options to get from one community to another across the province. Midcoast Morning checks in on both.
Nanoose Bay resident Natasha Bob is working to keep a piece of local history alive.
It all started 30 years ago with the discovery and partial excavation of a burial site where a condominium development was planned.
Throughout 1994 archeological work at Craig Bay or Qilxemait, just south of Parksville uncovered the skeletal remains of more than 300 people.
Over that time period the remains of more than 120 people were removed, placed in labelled boxes, and stored on site according to a Masters’ thesis on the subject by Tanja Hoffman.
By the end of August that year, the Nanoose First Nation chief and elders demanded that development and archeological work on the site cease.
The nation launched a series of legal challenges against the developer and the province, and people took part in demonstrations calling for the excavation of remains to stop.
Eventually the province purchased most of the waterfront property from the developer, and paid for a reburial ceremony.
Today the site is a heritage park in the midst of Craig Bay.
Natasha Bob lived through these events as a teenager, standing in the path of work trucks and circulating a petition around Nanaimo high schools.
Now she’s recording a series of interviews with others who were around at the time, in order to pass the story of the events on to future generations.
The largest Vancouver Island based financial services organization is planning to merge with a credit union on the mainland.
Coastal Community Credit Union and BlueShore Financial have announced that they’ve signed a memorandum of understanding to explore a merger to form a combined credit union serving British Columbia’s West Coast and Vancouver Island communities.
Coastal Community Credit Union is the largest credit union based on the island, with close to eighty five thousand members and over three billion dollars in assets.
A Buddhist butler mixed up in murder, a decade off grid on a remote island, and the journey to self publishing,
Midcoast Morning explores the experience of some of the many authors living in and around Nanaimo.
Islands trust Council has approved this year’s budget following a quarterly meeting that took place in Nanaimo last week.
Among this year’s projects is a review of Gabriola Island’s official community plan. Gabriola Island Trustee Tobi Elliot speaks about that project and other issues relating to the community and the Islands Trust.
Nanaimo has announced the winners of its 2024 culture awards.
The prizes have been bringing awareness to the breadth and variety of cultural activity in Nanaimo since 1998.
This year’s winners include a world champion highland dancer, a member of Canadian Music Hall of Fame band Trooper, and someone who’s brought Banghra to Polish TV audiences and Nanaimo citizens alike.
The Islands Trust is a special form of government serving gulf islands in the Salish Sea.
It was created by provincial legislation in 1974, with a mandate to preserve and protect the environment and unique amenities of the gulf islands.
Multiple groups have raised concern after the trust released a document following an in-camera meeting in September.
The document said that Trust Council’s view is that the phrase “unique amenities” referred to in its mandate is broad-ranging and that such amenities may include issues such as, but not limited to, housing, livelihoods, infrastructure and tourism.
Ahead of a recent Islands Trust meeting in Nanaimo, the groups Friends of The Gulf Islands and Gulf Islands Alliance raised concerns that such an interpretation could undermine the trust’s mandated focus on environmental protection.
On Friday, federal NDP leader Jagmeet Singh was in Nanaimo as part of a tour of Vancouver Island.
He visited the CHLY studio, alongside Nanaimo-Ladysmith MP Lisa Marie Barron for a conversation touching on pharmacare legislation, Barron’s recent motion on electoral reform, Harewood Plains, and the next federal election.
The City of Nanaimo is bringing in bylaws around its electric vehicle(EV) chargers.
This week city council adopted new bylaws set to come into effect in June first that will see EV drivers pay two and a half cents a minute for the first two hours of charging at city owned stations.
Fees will increase to six cents a minute after two hours, as well as during overnight hours.
The show explores the new bylaws and the experience of driving an EV in Nanaimo in 2024.
Financial troubles at Vancouver Island University could mean the end of the school’s music programs.
The VIU Senate Planning and Priorities Committee voted to approve a proposal to phase out the University’s bachelor of music program, and cancel a jazz diploma program that was set to launch in September.
Vancouver Island University faces a deficit of more than 20 million dollars this year, and is aiming to return to balanced budgets by the 2026-27 year.
Music has been a part of the school’s educational offerings since 1969.
It’s mating season for Eagles on Vancouver Island.
Mike Yip says everybody recognizes the eagle, but not everyone is aware of what the raptors get up to month to month.
The Nanoose Bay based amateur photographer is getting ready to launch A Year of Eagles, a book he’s self publishing next month.
On today’s show we’ll spend more time learning about eagles and other raptors you can find around the island.
A new hospital, a cardiology program, and more staff are all needed in Nanaimo according to Dr. David Coupland, head of the Nanaimo Medical Staff Engagement Society.
Plus how could the raft of housing announcements we’ve been hearing from the provincial government impact Nanaimo? Kaeley Wiseman who teaches at VIU and works in the non market housing space shares her thoughts.
Sophia worked at The Nanaimo Unitarian Shelter.
She died late last year from an infection, aged 23.
With her mother’s blessing, the shelter’s Executive Director Paul Manly is sharing Sophia’s story.
In a post to the Unitarian shelter’s Facebook page titled Remembering Sophia, an open letter about the preventable loss of a community champion, Manly provided an account of Sophia’s difficulty accessing healthcare in Nanaimo, and how when she was eventually diagnosed with an infection and immunodeficiency, it was too late.
He visited the CHLY studio to remember Sophia.
Also on the program: CHLY reporter Lauryn Mackenzie gets a preview on L’Association Des Francophones de Nanaimo’s Maple Sugar Festival happening this weekend.
There’s a cloud of uncertainty hanging over many smaller media outlets around Vancouver Island and beyond.
A federally funded program to support civic journalism in under-served communities is set to expire at the end of next month, and there’s been no definitive answer one way or another about its future.
Called The Local Journalism Initiative or LJI, it provides funds to a number of not for profit organizations representing different segments of the news industry.
For example there’s one for print media, and one for community radio.
Those larger organizations administer the funding, giving money to news outlets to hire journalists.
There are different streams for different types of media, including print, community radio, and community television.
CHLY’s nonprofit newsroom receives Local Journalism Initiative funding for our news updates. Midcoast Morning is funded through a separate program.
The ambiguity around the LJI’s future has left more than 400 journalists across the country unsure whether or not they’ll have jobs come April.
Nanaimo Mayor Leonard Krog discusses the cancelled alternative approval process and the future of the public works yard project. Shoppers at Nanaimo’s Superette share memories of the store in the wake of the news that it’s up for sale.
Nanaimo has shelved an alternative approval process for the second time, after failing to follow the rules set out in provincial legislation.
To try and make sense of the situation, we spoke with Vancouver Island University Political Studies Professor Michael MacKenzie.
Lunar New Year falls on Saturday February 10th in 2024
An important holiday in the culture of many Asian nations, including China, Korea, Vietnam, and Indonesia,
Today we’ll be taking a look at some of the ways it’s being celebrated here in Nanaimo.
We’ll visit the Nanaimo Chinese Cultural Society’s Lunar New Year event, and we’ll hear the favourite traditions of a number of students at VIU.
Nanaimo’s nailed down five specific proposals it wants to see action on from the province
This week council approved the resolutions the city will bring before the Association of Vancouver Island and Coastal Communities.
We’ll be exploring what that means, what the resolutions are, how this all works, and why you should care.
Housing has been a hot topic around town this week.
The provincial housing minister was in Nanaimo for an announcement, the province announced more funding for rent banks in BC, and the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation came out with its 2024 rental market report.
We’ll hear from housing minister Ravi Kahlon, and we’ll explore the Nanaimo housing scene with VIU Master of Community Planning professor Mark Holland.
A pair of Vancouver Island Entrepreneurs have lost their space but not their vision.
Last Mother's day Sabrina Anderson and Whirly Bird launched Stray Coastal Moat Farm market, hoping to create community for island farmers.
They took over the building across from the Nanaimo Airport in Cassidy that’s hosted farm markets in one way or another since the 1970s.
In October, just as they were getting ready to put the finishing touches on their first year, the building was destroyed by fire.
In a recent Instagram post, Anderson and Bird said that their insurance adjuster found that their operations were not responsible.
They also said however that they won’t receive insurance to cover losses such as inventory or equipment.
As the pair take some time to regroup and decide what’s next, they stopped by the CHLY studio to reflect on their season at Stray Moat.
The Canada goose and the Vancouver Island marmot, two iconic species in very different situations.
We’re going to hear about a pair of efforts on today’s show, one to get our goose population under control, and one to bring marmots back from the brink.
Nanaimo’s launched a bid looking for contractors to do some Canada goose egg addling.
At the same time, The Marmot Recovery Foundation is hiring for a pair of positions this summer.
Page Pierce is Nanaimo’s new Youth Poet Laureate.
The Vancouver Island University education student will spend a two year term raising awareness of poetry and the impact that literary arts can have on community life.
Pierce, 21, has published 7 books of poetry, the first of those coming when she was 15.
CHLY reporter Mick Sweetman spoke with her in our studio.
We also follow up with Nanaimo's Poet Laureate Kamal Parmar, who reflects on her two years in the role so far.
For the next two weeks It’s Dine About Mid-Island, as the local food and beverage festival returns for a second year.
During the event a variety of independent restaurants from Ladysmith to Qualicum Beach will be offering special menus.
Midcoast Morning is taking a look at the local food scene to mark the occasion.
Nanaimo is offering tours of its public works yard this weekend.
The city is looking to borrow $48.5 million to begin replacing and upgrading parts of the facility, which was built in the 1960s.
Members of the media were invited for a separate tour Tuesday, we’ll bring you excerpts from that..
We’ll also explore the Alternative Approval Process that’s opening up this week as the city seeks voter approval to borrow the money it will take to complete the project.
British Columbia has a new French-language policy.
The five page document outlines a goal of incrementally increasing services available for francophones across the province.
Today on the program, we’ll explore what the policy means, and learn more about the francophone community in Nanaimo and across the province.
National commentator Jen Gerson is in town for a talk tonight at Vancouver Island University.
Titled “Free speech in the digital age: the problems of censorship and the perils of regulation”, the lecture will touch on the Canadian media landscape, the Online News Act and Meta’s ban on news in Canada
Gerson has been published in The Globe and Mail, CBC, The National Post, The New York Times, and also co-founded independent Canadian media outlet The Line.
CHLY’s Mick Sweetman spoke with her ahead of tonight’s lecture.
The stoppage time winner, the penalty save, the last second tackle, the dazzling dribble.
There are a lot of reasons why people might call soccer the beautiful game, but have you ever thought about beautiful refereeing?
Ross Cameron has.
He’s the head referee for Nanaimo United Football club, a referee assessor and instructor for BC Soccer.
For most people, a referee’’s done a good job if they aren’t in the headlines, but without a ref, there would be no beautiful game, so in that spirit, we bring you the story behind the stripes.
What happens at a Christmas tree farm in January? And what’s the best way to dispose of your tree? Can you put it in the green bin?
From the Hullo Ferry, to new turf fields, to some prime locations that are due for facelifts, we check in on the infrastructure of Nanaimo in part 2 of our 2023 Year in review with Nanaimo Mayor Leonard Krog.
As Nanaimo gets ready to turn the page on 2023, we’re taking a look at the year in books.
In this episode, we explore the world of Literacy Central Vancouver Island, and hear from an independent bookseller in Nanaimo about some of the year’s most popular titles.
As Nanaimo gets ready to turn the page on 2023, we’re taking a look at the year in books.
In this episode, we head to the Vancouver Island Regional Library to learn about the most checked out titles. We also hear from Literacy Central Vancouver Island’s Indigenous Literacy Coordinator Aimee Chalifoux.
As Nanaimo gets ready to turn the page on 2023, we’re taking a look at the year in books.
In this episode, we explore the world of Literacy Central Vancouver Island, and hear from an independent bookseller in Nanaimo about some of the year’s most popular titles.
International students have received some answers about how much they’ll be allowed to work over the coming months.
The federal government provided an update on a number of temporary policies impacting international students, which had been set to expire at the end of the year.
Among the updates is an extension of the waiver allowing international students to spend more than 20 hours a week working off campus.
The government also increased the amount of money prospective students will need to have in their bank accounts before coming to Canada.
Midcoast Morning takes a look at the impact of the updates on the international student community at VIU.
It’s been more than twelve years since passenger rail on Vancouver Island ground to a halt.
Back in the 19th century, governments gave away around two million acres of land on southeastern Vancouver Island to get The Esquimalt and Nanaimo Railway built. Now it sits abandoned.
But the unbroken 289 kilometre corridor stretching from Esquilmalt to Courtenay is still almost entirely intact.
In March, a small portion of the land was returned to the Snaw'naw'as First Nation. At the same time, the provincial government announced it would provide 18 million dollars to study the future of the corridor.
The sun may be setting on a Vancouver Island landmark.
If you’ve so much as driven through Duncan in the last thirty years, chances are you’ve seen the World’s Largest Hockey Stick.
Now, with its wooden structure rotting, its future is in doubt.
Built for Expo 86 in Vancouver, it made its way to the island a few years later and currently stick above the Cowichan Community Centre.
With an estimated cost of at least one and a half million dollars to restore or replace the stick,
the Cowichan Core Recreation Commission has directed staff to move ahead with decommissioning the world’s largest hockey stick in 2024, although its exact fate is still up in the air.
Nanaimo’s MP is speaking up amid concerns that the habitat of the city’s official flower is at risk.
There’s a an application to build a subdivision on land in Harewood Plains, a site that the Nanaimo & Area Land Trust describes as home to critically imperiled ecological communities including Garry Oak woodlands and vernal Pools.
The area is also where you’ll find most of the Hosackia pinnata that exists in Canada.
Also known as bog bird’s foot trefoil, and formerly Lotus pinnatus, it’s been Nanaimo’s official flower since 2010.
It’s also endangered under the federal species at risk act.
The development application was submitted in June and is currently under review by the city of Nanaimo.
Recently MP Lisa Marie Barron wrote a letter to Canada’s Minister for Environment and Climate Change Steven Guilbeault, supporting the Nanaimo & Area Land Trust’s request for an emergency order to defer development on the site until instruments are in place to protect the at risk species.
Art is in the air this weekend in Nanaimo.
To mark Nanaimo’s 25th annual artwalk, Midcoast Morning spoke with the artists behind some pieces you might see around town.
David Martinello’s new sculpture Compelling Agency was recently installed in the old city quarter as part of the city’s temporary public art program, and Amy Pye explains why having her banner design chosen to mark 150 years of the city of Nanaimo was a homecoming of sorts.
The Code Youth Collective at the Nanaimo Art Gallery previews their Artwalk exhibition, and offer some tips on how to navigate the event.
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Where do boats go when they die?
There are more than a thousand tugs, ships, and other seafaring craft in British Columbia listed on the Canadian Coast Guard’s inventory of wrecked, abandoned or hazardous vessels.
The provincial government recently announced grants totaling ten and a half million dollars for coastal cleanup initiatives.
That funding is going in part to dispose of derelict vessels.
Today’s episode explores abandoned vessel cleanup in BC
They approved a policy resolution telling staff not to enforce the building and fire codes when non-profit shelter operators were making reasonable efforts to address any issues.
Today we’ll explore some of the issues shelter operators may be facing with their buildings, and try and understand potential solutions.
Find show notes and transcripts here.
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In theory, building and fire codes exist to protect us.
But what happens if someone’s last resort for a place to spend the night doesn’t meet the building code?
That’s a reality that Nanaimo City Council acknowledged this week.
They approved a policy resolution telling staff not to enforce the building and fire codes when non-profit shelter operators were making reasonable efforts to address any issues.
Today we’ll explore some of the issues shelter operators may be facing with their buildings, and try and understand potential solutions.
Find show notes and transcripts here.
Make this project sustainable and support our non-profit newsroom by making a sustaining donation today.
Nobody likes cold feet. As the weather gets colder, those unhoused in our communities know this more than anyone. Right now, two groups are coming together to help warm feet.
Today we’re talking to Nanaimo Women Helping Women, a grassroots organization that works to support women–with or without children– in the community who are in crisis. They not only support women experiencing intimate partner violence of any kind, but they also support women who become unhoused.
The group was founded by sexual health educator Kerri Isham in the fall of 2021 after she and some other women in Nanaimo were inspired by the Netflix show Maid which follows a young mother escaping an abusive relationship and the struggle of trying to provide for her daughter.
Nanaimo Women Helping Women has several ongoing fundraisers to raise money for women in crisis. Recently they launched a winter boot program to raise money to give new winter boots to unhoused women. Having access to dry winter boots helps to prevent frostbite and trench foot as the weather outside becomes wet and cold.
In addition to their efforts, VIU nursing students have recently started a sock and shoe drive to donate to those unhoused in Nanaimo. Student hosts from CHLY’s show A Sound Constitution, have teamed up with Tillicum Lelum to run the drive, accepting donations of new and slightly used shoes and socks.
Today I speak with the founder of Nanaimo Women Helping Women Kerri Isham about the group and their current winter boot drive.
I also speak with 4th year VIU Nursing student and member of A Sound Constitution Lauren Nissen about their shoe and sock drive.
Finally, I speak with Youth Career & Leadership Training Coordinator at Tillicum Lelum Alicia Dawson about their partnership and the importance of the drive.
Additionally, a quick note! Today also marks my temporary leave from Midcoast Morning to do other work in our nonprofit Newsroom. I’ll be working full time with Local Journalism Initiative reporter Mick Sweetman until the end of March. Starting this Friday, Joe Pugh, Midcoast Morning alumni and current host of People First Radio will be taking over and bringing you the latest news that is happening on the Salish Sea.
Find show notes and transcripts here.
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Electoral reform is once again an issue in the House of Commons.
Back in the summer, NDP MP for Nanaimo-Ladysmith Lisa Marie Barron put forward a motion for the creation of a National Citizens Assembly on Electoral Reform. If created, this assembly would recommend alternatives to our current first-past-the-post system.
This comes after the Liberal government's 2015 campaign promise for electoral reform, which was ultimately abandoned in February 2017. The Liberal government cited a lack of support for reform.
In British Columbia, electoral reform has been on the table several times. A 2018 referendum saw 61 % of voters electing to stay with the first-past-the-post system. Critics described the referendum questions as confusing, and exit-polling conducted by Research Co. found that the number one reason for those who didn’t vote was “not feeling informed enough”. Turnout for the referendum was a low 42%.
Previously referendums had been held in 2005 and 2009 in BC.
Last week on November 7th, MP Lisa Marie Barron’s motion was debated in the House of Commons. This week Barron joins me in-studio to talk about her motion and why she believes we need to change our electoral system on a federal level.
I also spoke with VIU professor of political studies Micheal Mackenzie about our current electoral system and what could happen if the motion carries following further debate in February 2024.
Finally, I spoke with Gisela Ruckert from Fair Vote Canada about the need for electoral reform.
Find show notes and transcripts here.
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Nanaimo is a hub for arts & culture. This Friday, November 17th, the Nanaimo Art Gallery is hosting Making Waves, a community event to celebrate all things creative. This twice-yearly event highlights creatives from various areas of arts and culture in the city and gives attendees insight into the work they do.
Featured in this event are four artists and creators who are making waves in their work; Sophia Seward Good, founder and designer of the fashion brand Ay Lelum; Julie Chadwick, writer and journalist; Musician Micheal Clark; and Visual Artist Maynard Johnny Jr.
Ahead of Making Waves I was able to speak with coordinator Yvonne Vander Kooi about the event, as well as two of the speakers, Sophia Seward Good and Julie Chadwick. I spoke with them both about their creative process and how it comes out in their work.
Find show notes and transcripts here.
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In another move by the provincial government in response to the housing crisis, new legislation has been introduced to create more small-scale multi-unit housing. The result of the new legislation will see changes in zoning allowing for small-scale multi-unit housing to be built where previously only single-family homes were allowed. A blanket up-zoning for much of B.C.
In municipalities of more than 5,000 people, the legislation will allow for three to four units in select areas on a single-family or duplex lot, depending on lot size. As well, a minimum of six units will be allowed in select areas zoned for larger single-family or duplex lots, that are located within a yet-to-be-determined distance from transit stops with frequent service.
Under the legislation, local governments like the City of Nanaimo will be required to update their bylaws to accommodate the changes by June 30, 2024.
The new proposed changes will also phase out one-off public hearings for rezoning projects that are consistent and aligned with the Official Community Plans of municipalities.
Today on the show we speak with Housing Minister Ravi Kahlon regarding the legislation. We follow that interview with housing advocate Leo Spaltzeholz from Homes for Living. Following that, we interview City of Nanaimo Councillor Tyler Brown regarding what the legislation means for Nanaimo. We wrap up the show with City of Nanaimo Director of Development Approvals Jeremy Holm.
Find show notes and transcripts here.
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Having just wrapped up, this fall’s GoByBike Week in Nanaimo saw over 480 riders participate in the event. With the event coming to a close, it’s now time to celebrate with a film festival. On November 9th the International Bicycle Film Festival will be screened in Nanaimo with films celebrating the culture of cycling. Hosted by Hub City Cycles Co-op and the City of Nanaimo, the festival will showcase award-winning short films about cycling from around the world.
The film festival was started 23 years ago by Brendt Barbur in New York City after being hit by a bus while riding his bike. Now the festival has been shown across the world on six different continents. Antarctica has yet to have a screening.
The festival is not just about cycling. It’s also about raising awareness of environmental sustainability and bringing diverse communities together.
The films will be shown at VIU’s Malaspina Theatre at 7pm on Thursday. A bike valet service will be provided for those who ride their bike to the festival. Vendors and a food truck will be on site from 5:30 to 6:30 when doors open.
Leading up to the festival, I had a chance to speak with Alex Stanciu, the Event Coordinator for Nanaimo’s GoByBike Week about what it was like planning the weeks and festival.
And I also spoke with Brendt Barbur, founder and director of the International Bicycle Film Festival about the festival and his love for the world of cycling.
Find Show Notes and Transcripts here.
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Guests:
Alex Stanciu — Event Coordinator for Nanaimo’s GoByBike Week
Brendt Barbur — Founder and Director of the International Bicycle Film Festival
Last week the provincial government launched a new $300 million dollar conservation tool to protect old growth forests. The Conservation Financing Mechanism will see $150 million coming from the province, with the remaining $150 million coming from a funding commitment of the BC Parks Foundation.
The conservation financing will ensure that First Nations and the province can conserve critical habitats, better manage climate change and further the government’s work on protecting B.C.’s lands and water. It will also implement the Old Growth Strategic Review, protecting some of BC’s oldest trees.
The BC Parks Foundation will team up with other philanthropic organisations. Using a crowd-sourcing approach to let all British Columbians contribute to the protection of the ecosystem.
The $300 million will fund new conservation measures that are led or supported by First Nations. It will also be used for environment protection measures, capacity building for First Nations, stewardship and guardian programs, and support of low-carbon economic opportunities.
This has become one of BC’s new ways to accelerate old-growth protection as first recommended in the Old Growth Strategic Review. It will join the new Forest Landscape Plans of the province and will make clear objectives for long-term management of old growth, biodiversity, climate change, and wildfire risk.
Minister of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship, Nathan Cullen joins us today to talk about the Conservation Financing Mechanism and what to expect following the announcement.
Then we speak with the President and CEO of the Council of Forest Industries, Linda Coady about her thoughts and how this new announcement could affect the forest industry.
We also speak with Ken Wu, Executive Director of the Endangered Ecosystems Alliance, about what this funding could mean for saving old-growth forests and protecting other important habitats.
Finally, We speak with Torrance Coste National Campaign Director from the Wilderness Committee to get his thoughts on the announcement.
Find Show Notes and Transcripts here.
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Guests:
Nathan Cullen — Minister of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship.
Linda Coady — President and CEO of the Council of Forest Industries.
Ken Wu — Executive Director of the Endangered Ecosystems Alliance.
Torrance Coste — National Campaign Director from the Wilderness Committee.
The struggle to find affordable housing is something many people are facing both young and old in British Columbia and across Canada.
To help alleviate this stress, the provincial government recently introduced new changes to short-term rentals throughout BC. This move is meant to help bring back more long-term housing opportunities for renters. The government has stated that “B.C. is facing a housing crisis, with a shortage of all forms of attainable housing, including long-term rentals.”
Many short-term rental listings are found on popular services such as Airbnb and Vrbo.
Starting May 1st 2024, British Columbians will legally only be able to rent out their primary residence. In addition to their primary residence, they will also be able to either rent their secondary suite or an accessory dwelling unit as a short-term rental on the same property.
Currently in Nanaimo, if you were to rent out a short-term rental you would need to obtain a business licence. Within the new rules, local governments will get stronger tools to enforce short-term rental bylaws. In regional districts, the maximum potential fine will increase from $2,000 to $50,000 dollars, in line with that of municipalities.
Tourism Nanaimo told CHLY that currently there are around 1072 listings on Airbnb in the city and between 2018 and 2023 there has been a 70 percent increase in listings. There are also roughly 1510 rooms between hotels, motels and seasonal housing (like dorms at VIU) in the city. Hotels and Motels will not be affected by the new rules.
We reached out to Airbnb for statement. In an email, Alex Howell, Policy Manager for Airbnb Canada, states:“The B.C. government’s proposed legislation won't alleviate the province's housing concerns, instead, it will take money out of the pockets of British Columbians, make travel more unaffordable for millions of residents who travel within B.C. and reduce tourism spending in communities where hosts are often the only providers of local accommodations”
Today I speak with Mark Holland, consultant and VIU professor of the Masters of Community Planning program to talk us through what is happening with the new changes and what we can expect to see as it takes place.
I also speak with Mayor of Nanaimo Leonard Krog about his thoughts and how this is going to affect residents in the city.
Finally I wrap things up with Executive Director Carly Pereboom at Tourism Nanaimo about how the loss of short-term rentals could effect the the tourism industry in Nanaimo.
Find Show Notes and Transcripts here.
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Guests:
Mark Holland — Consultant and VIU professor of the Masters of Community Planning
Leonard Krog — Mayor of Nanaimo
Carly Pereboom — Executive Director at Tourism Nanaimo
Last week the Nanaimo Regional General Hospital saw the addition of the new Care and Connection Kiosk. The kiosks, provided by the Vancouver Island Health Authority, will allow anyone to access free life-saving harm-reduction supplies. It will also provide information on mental health and substance use support, services and treatments. Both North Island Hospital’s Campbell River campus and Victoria’s General Hospital also received the kiosks.
Island Health states in a press release, that “the Care and Connection Kiosks will, electronically dispense discretely packaged harm reduction items, including condoms, wound care supplies, naloxone kits, take-home drug testing strips, as well as syringes and safe disposal containers.”
This can be used as an alternative for people who currently visit emergency rooms for harm reduction and wound care supplies.
As of the end of August this year, 84 people have died from the toxic drug supply in Nanaimo. This is an increase from last year, when 77 people died. Harm reduction is one way to prevent the loss of more lives.
Today we speak with Dr. Shannon Waters from Island Health, physician and medical health officer for the Cowichan Valley Regional District as well as Nanaimo, Parksville and Oceanside. We will discuss the new kiosks and why Island Health has introduced them.
Then we speak with registered nurse and professor at Vancouver Island University, Sarah Lovegrove, about her past work in harm reduction. She speaks to the importance of allowing people to access proper harm reduction services and the efforts to end stigma around use.
Finally, we speak with Janelle Wilson, Organizer at Vancouver Island University’s Students’ Union. The student union is hosting a free naloxone training for students at VIU this November 7th.
Find Show Notes and Transcripts here.
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Guests:
Dr. Shannon Waters — Physician and Medical Health Officer for the Central Island.
Sarah Lovegrove — Registered Nurse and Professor at VIU.
Janelle Wilson — Organizer at VIUSU.
This is part two of our two-part series on public transit in Nanaimo. In part one, we looked at what new plans BC Transit and the Regional District of Nanaimo are working on to provide better transit for residents. On top of hearing what new plans are in the works, we discussed the new Umo payment system. Umo is coming this fall to all BC Transit Routes allowing riders to pay with the Umo app or a new reloadable card. You can find part one here.
Today, in part two we will be taking a closer look at how students at Vancouver Island Univerity, AKA VIU are commuting to campus. While many students take transit to campus, some students say bus routes don’t work for them, and that parking on campus can be frustrating. We ask, what can be done?
In part one, I spoke with the RDN’s Senior Manager of Transportation Services, Darren Marshall, about what they are doing to make public transit better for riders in our region. Today in part two we continue our conversation with him, where he gives an update on some new projects aimed at VIU students.
Then we spoke with international students Harleen Kalra and Sonal Panwar over Zoom. They speak to the ups and downs of relying on public transit to commute to school and work. Both of them are currently full-time students; Halreen is getting her Master of Education in Educational Leadership and Sonal is getting her Master of Education in Special Education. Both also work full-time.
To get a better idea of what other students think about commuting to campus, we spoke with VIUSU’s Director of External Relations Caitlin Kellendonk about parking on campus, and the bus system.
Finally, we spoke with Richard Lewis, VIU’s AVP of Facilities and Ancillary Services about the concerns students have about parking on campus and what VIU is doing around parking.
Find Show Notes and Transcripts here.
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Guests:
Darren Marshall — RDN Senior Manager, Transportation Services
Harleen Kalra — VIU Student and Public Transit User
Sonal Panwar — VIU Student and Public Transit User
Caitlin Kellendonk — VIUSU’s Director of External Relations
Richard Lewis —VIU’s AVP of Facilities and Ancillary Services
Today we’ll be starting a new two-part series on public transit in Nanaimo. In part one, we’ll be looking at what new plans BC Transit and the Regional District of Nanaimo are working on to provide better transit for residents. In part two airing Friday, we’ll take a closer look at how students at Vancouver Island University are commuting to campus.
New changes for the BC Transit customers will be coming this fall for riders in the Regional District of Nanaimo, AKA the RDN, and around the province. Meet Umo, BC Transit’s new payment system that will, as they describe: “allow users to select the best payment method for your lifestyle and travel habits.”
The new feature will have riders choosing from either downloading the Umo app to load money onto their digital pass or picking up a reloadable card for free from a BC Transit vendor. This new method is very similar to the Compass Card, Translink’s payment system in Metro Vancouver.
The Umo machines are already set up on RDN buses, but there is currently no set date for when the Umo service will start. With Umo launching soon, I spoke with Ryan Dennis from BC Transit about Umo to clear up any questions some riders might have.
While we talk public transit in Nanaimo, I check in with transit user Silvi Joseph over Zoom. We talk about how public transit works for her as her main form of commuting in Nanaimo.
Then I speak with the RDN’s Senior Manager of Transportation Services, Darren Marshell, about what they are doing to make public transit better for riders in our region.
Find Show Notes and Transcripts here.
Make this project sustainable and support our non-profit newsroom by making a sustaining donation today.
Guests:
Ryan Dennis — BC Transit
Silvi Joseph — Public Transit User
Darren Marshall — RDN Senior Manager, Transportation Services
The annual fall GoByBike Week is about to kick off this weekend and will run from October 16th to October 29th.
Nanaimo has been taking part in this event since 1997 when it was first called Bike to Work Week. Residents of Nanaimo are encouraged to register for the event and record all their kilometres ridden during the week to submit them for a chance to win bike-related prizes. These kilometres can be tracked whenever you use your bike, be it on your commute to school or work, while doing errands by bike, trail riding, or just out for a casual ride.
The City of Nanaimo states that “Getting around without a car is still the biggest way you can reduce your environmental impact and C02 emissions.” Cycling being one of several alternatives to driving in Nanaimo.
A kickoff event for GoByBike Week will be held at Maffeo Sutton Park on October 15th from 3 to 5 p.m., where there will be food, drinks, and prizes. Celebration stations will be set up throughout the week at various locations along bike routes and will be hosted by community sponsors. There will also be opportunities for fun like BikeTag, a mystery photo tag game on bicycles where the winner will receive a special prize. Returning again this fall to wrap up GoByBike Week will be the Bicycle Film Festival at Vancouver Island University’s Malaspina Theatre on November 9 from 6 to 9 p.m.
In the last few years, Nanaimo has also seen the completion of several pieces of bike lane infrastructure. The Metral Drive Corridor Project saw the addition of new bike lanes that stretch from Aulds Road to Moster Road. Another project in the last few years was the Front Street Bike lane. Both projects we part of broader road and sewer improvements.
Today I speak with the City of Nanaimo’s Manager of Transportation, Jamie Rose about Go BY Bike Week and what the City is doing to encourage cycling in the city. Then I pop next door to our neighbours at Hub City Cycles Community Co-op to speak with Tyler Walker about gearing up and making sure you are ready to cycle safely.
CHLY reporter Mick Sweetman also had a chance to speak to City of Nanaimo mayor, Leonard Krog about Go By Bike Week and cycling in Nanaimo.
Finally, some of us at CHLY cycle to work on the regular. We chat about that to wrap things up.
Find Show Notes and Transcripts here.
Make this project sustainable and support our non-profit newsroom by making a sustaining donation today.
Guests:
Jamie Rose — Manager of Transportation for the City of Nanaimo
Tyler Walker — Hub City Cycles Community Co-Op
Mick Sweetman — CHLY Reporter
Leonard Krog — Mayor of the City of Nanaimo
The world's biggest Oktoberfest might have just finished in München Germany but far away from Bavaria in Nanaimo, our own city is celebrating the festival. The Nanaimo-Daybreak Rotary Club will be hosting their own Octoberfest on Saturday, October 21st at the Beban Park Social Centre.
This got me curious about the state of craft beer in our city and the sense of community surrounding it.
The Nanaimo Craft Beer Society hosts a variety of events, but is especially known for Nanaimo Craft Beer Week, which it hosts every spring. Today I speak with Marie Hopwood, current president of the society and professor at VIU about craft Beer in Nanaimo and her research in ancient beers and how she is giving them a new life.
Nanaimo is also currently home to three different breweries. Wolf Brewing, White Sails, and Longwood. Each brewery brings its own style to the table, and twists on craft beer favourites.
I had the opportunity to speak with Brewmaster Harley Smith, from Longwood Brewery over the phone. I also visited Wolf Brewing, where I spoke with Brewmaster Kev Ward. I spoke with both of them about what it’s like to work in craft beer today.
Find Show Notes and Transcripts here.
Funding Ask:
Make this project sustainable and support our non-profit newsroom by making a sustaining donation today.
Guests:
Marie Hopwood— President of the Nanaimo Craft Beer Society and Professor at VIU
Harley Smith— Brewmaster from Longwood Brewery.
Kev Ward — Brewmaster from Wolf Brewing.
A project is underway in the Cowichan Valley to restore 70 hectares of land to its natural state as an estuary. The estuary area originally housed three Quw’ustsun villages prior to the arrival of European settlers, who then over the years dyked the estuary, using it for forestry and farming purposes. The Cowichan estuary restoration project is led by several organizations. These include the Nature Trust of BC, Ducks Unlimited, the Cowichan Tribes, the federal government’s Ministry of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship, Ministry of Forests, Ministry of Fisheries and Oceans, Ministry of Environment and Climate Change and the Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation.
On their website, it notes that the project will involve the combined removal of over two kilometres of dykes, the creation of intertidal channels and salt marsh habitat, the restoration of marine riparian and flood fringe forest, and reconnection of areas that have been historically cut off from tidal influence.
Some, however, in the community have been coming out against the project. Two town hall meetings took place over the summertime with organizers speaking out against the project. The meetings were hosted by an organization called the Land Keepers Society that first formed back in July.
On their website, the Land Keepers Society says they are “dedicated to creating a balance between the goals of society, the owner’s rights to operate profitably and the needs of the land, including all life residing there by acknowledging environmental initiatives and other land use pressures.” At the moment the Cowichan Estuary Project is the only cause they are working on. Many associated with the society are former candidates for municipal office, known to spread climate denial, misinformation, and conspiracy theories.
Today I speak with journalist Erin Blondeau, who recently wrote a story for The Breach where she describes having attended one of the town hall meetings. She will speak to us about what she saw and her story. She also shares with us some clips from the meeting.
Find Show Notes and Transcripts here.
Funding Ask:
Make this project sustainable and support our non-profit newsroom by making a sustaining donation today.
Guests:
Erin Blondeau— freelance writer and journalist
Hello and welcome to Midcoast Morning, CHLY’s current affairs show. I’m Lauryn Mackenzie.
Campaigning is currently underway for the fall election of the Vancouver Island University Students’ Union, also known as VIUSU. Next week on October 11, 12, and 13th students from all three campuses will receive an email with a unique code that will allow them to vote in the election.
Two student elections happen during the school year at VIU. This fall students will be voting for student representatives to join the VIUSU board of directors. These positions include two campus representatives, eight faculty representatives, an international student representative, and a graduate student representative.
The students elected will serve a term starting November 1st of this year, that will end October 31st 2024.
The representatives work to make sure students' concerns are heard and addressed by the students’ union. Rising tuition fees, food insecurity, and rent are just some of the biggest challenges students are facing today. The students’ union works with the British Columbia Federation of Students to advocate both the provincial and federal governments, as well as local governments to address these challenges.
Today, from VIUSU, I am speaking with Mathews Tharakan, Organizer of Member Services and Outreach about the importance of student elections. After that, Cole Reinbold, Chair of VIUSU speaks with me about the challenges she is seeing her fellow students go through. Then, I will speak with Jessie Niikoi from the BCFS about what the federation is doing to advocate for post-secondary students.
Find Show Notes and Transcripts here.
Make this project sustainable and support our non-profit newsroom by making a sustaining donation today.
On September 25th Nanaimo City Council voted 5-3 in its third reading to adopt the Zero Carbon Step Code starting in July 2024. This will start six years ahead of the provincial government’s timeline. The Zero Carbon Step Code will make it so new home builds in the city will no longer be able to have natural gas heating. This is in order to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in British Columbia.
Prior to this vote, the Alberta government-funded Canadian Energy Center, or CEC, targeted the City of Nanaimo with an advocacy campaign to sway mayor and council to vote in opposition to the adoption of the code. The CEC is also known as Alberta’s energy war room and was created by former Alberta premier Jason Kenny. Before the campaign was removed from their Support Canadian Energy website, they claimed to have sent more than 2,400 emails to Nanaimo’s Mayor and Council. It is not clear what amount of this came from residents of Nanaimo.
So why is the CEC, a government-funded lobby group from Alberta targeting the City of Nanaimo when it is just one of the many other BC municipalities moving to adopt the Zero Carbon Step Code?
Today I’ll be joined by journalist Rochelle Baker, to discuss her September 22nd story in the National Observer that reported on this campaign by the CEC.
Then I’ll speak with City of Nanaimo Counselor Paul Manly and Counsellor Sheryl Armstrong about their opinions on the Zero Carbon Step Code and their views of CEC’s advocacy campaign.
Find Show Notes and Transcripts here.
Funding Ask:
Make this project sustainable and support our non-profit newsroom by making a sustaining donation today.
Guests:
Rochelle Baker — Reporter with Canada’s National Observer
Paul Manly — Nanaimo City Councillor.
Sheryl Armstrong — Nanaimo City Councillor.
Last Wednesday Nanaimo saw a large protest centred around SOGI first outside of School District 68 and then outside City Hall and then march down to Maffeo Sutton Park. SOGI or Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity, exists to guide educators in educating students on how to be inclusive of all people and make safe spaces for students of all sexual orientations and gender identities.
The anti-SOGI protest was started by an organization called 1 Million March 4 Children. Their website states that the purpose of the march is to advocate for the end of the SOGI, gender ideology, mixed washrooms, and pronouns. They say they want to help save children from indoctrination, and “sexualization” which they believe results from teaching SOGI. Some signs at the protest went further than that, equating SOGI to pornography while another equated it to paedophilia and eugenics.
The protest was met by a larger counter-protest which included members of the queer community, parents of queer youth, and straight allies. Counter-protesters went to support SOGI, queer and trans students and youth. While others went to stand up against hateful rhetoric and misinformation towards the queer and trans community that many in the anti-SOGI protest were spreading.
Today, CHLY’s civic news reporter Mick Sweetman, joins me to report on what he saw at the protest and counter-protest, while reporting on the story.
I will also speak with sexual health educator and Child Safety Champion, Kerri Isham and Nanaimo-Ladysmith School District Superintendent Scott Saywell about SOGI and sexual health education in schools to get a better idea about what is being taught.
Find Show Notes and Transcripts here.
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This past Sunday, Earthquakes Canada reported three earthquakes off the coast of Port Hardy. The swarm’s magnitude ranged from 4.3 to 5.9. More than 50 earthquakes have been reported by Earthquakes Canada, off the coast of Northern Vancouver Island since September 14. The biggest reaching a magnitude of 5.9.
The Government of BC notes that Earthquakes are common on our coast, with an average of 3,000 earthquakes reported every year. This occurs because the coast of the province is seismically active, located in a area known as the Cascadia subduction zone. The Cascadia subduction zone stretches from Vancouver Island down to California. This is where the Juan De Fuca Plate and the North American Plate meet. It is when the Juan De Fuca plate slips under the North American Plate that an earthquake can occur and be felt on Vancouver Island. These earthquakes can also cause tsunamis, sending large damaging waves into the coast of the province.
An earthquake could happen at any moment and it is impossible to predict when the next one will happen or how big it will be. The recent quakes in Port Hardy are a good reminder of this and to be prepared if one were to happen. Today I spoke with Jeri Grant over the phone and Teron Moore over Zoom. Both work with the BC Earthquake Alliance on earthquake preparation and how to keep you and your family safe in the event of one.
Find Show Notes and Transcripts here.
Make this project sustainable and support our non-profit newsroom by making a sustaining donation today.
In part one, we spoke with The Discourse's Julie Chadwick in studio and Lauren Kaljur over the phone to discuss their background as journalists and their observations over the last decade in local journalism and how they ended up working with The Discourse. Today in part two, we will touch on what it's like to run an independent media company and hear their thoughts on Bill C 18, the Online News act for a little bit of background on Bill C 18, the Online News Act according to the federal government, today most Canadians get their news online, social media being one of the go-to ways people keep up to date on news.
Find Show Notes and Transcripts here.
Make this project sustainable and support our non-profit newsroom by making a sustaining donation today.
Hello and welcome to the first episode of the newly revamped Midcoast Morning, CHY's news and current affairs program. I am your host Lauryn Mackenzie. Welcome to our inaugural episode. With the launch of this program, we are going to first set out to understand the state of local journalism today in a two-part series.
What's changed over the last decade? It's an industry that has seen rapid change in how people consume their news. It's also an industry that has seen declining ad revenue, resulting in shrinking newsrooms both local and national. I'll be sitting down with Julie Chadwick and Lauren Kaljur from The Discourse to discuss this and hear their perspectives.
We will also touch on what it's like to run an independent media company and hear their thoughts on Bill C 18, the Online News Act.
Find Show Notes and Transcripts here.
Make this project sustainable and support our non-profit newsroom by making a sustaining donation today.
Transcript: Hi, I'm Lauryn Mackenzie, the host of the newly revamped Midcoast Morning, CHLY's current events news show. You remember the old show with Joe and Elijah, but now we are back going to continue keeping you on top of what's happening on the Salish Sea, just now in a new way. Join me every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 8:30 a.m. as we go in depth on topics that are important to you.
But don't worry, I won't be alone. Sometimes I'll be joined by fellow journalists from the Nanaimo area to discuss stories that they are working on and to keep you most up to date.
So tune in September 15th for the first new episode of Midcoast Morning, and if you already have a topic you want us to discuss, email us at news at chly.ca.
Host Joe Pugh speaks with both Community Policing Coordinator Christy Wood and Nanaimo Mayor Leonard Krog about recently released Neighbourhood Safety Audits in Nanaimo. He also looks into what’s going on to mark the month of Halloween at the Nanaimo Museum through a conversation with Steph Kveton, the museum’s programming coordinator. And to mark the 20th anniversary of CHLY, Joe speaks with Dr. John Black, professor Emeritus at VIU who was instrumental in getting the station of the ground.
The Phantoms -(Ghost) Riders in the Sky
Program Team:
Joe Pugh — Host and Producer.
Jesse Woodward —Production Assistance.
Arbie Fru—Technical Assistance.
Theme Music:
Ah Venice - Good Company (2020)
Have a tip? Email: news@chly.ca.
Find us on social media:
Twitter: @chly1017FM
Funded by Sustaining Donors and the Community Radio Fund of Canada and Heritage Canada’s Local Journalism Initiative. Sustain CHLY’s News Department for many years to come by signing up for a monthly Sustaining Donation.
Host Joe Pugh reports on the ceremonies at Maffeo Sutton Park to mark the first national Day for Truth and Reconciliation. He also speaks with Andrew Gage from West Coast Environmental Law about the implications of a BC Supreme Court Justice’s decision not to extend the injunction that had been in place at Fairy Creek since April. Finally coverage on the city’s public consultation about what to do with the space located at the Terminal and Commercial intersection.
Alice Cooper - Elected
Jim Jarrat - Raining Cats and Dogs
Elise Boulanger - It Started in The Garden
Program Team:
Joe Pugh — Host and Producer.
Jesse Woodward —Production Assistance.
Arbie Fru—Technical Assistance.
Theme Music:
Ah Venice - Good Company (2020)
Have a tip? Email: news@chly.ca.
Find us on social media:
Twitter: @chly1017FM
Funded by Sustaining Donors and the Community Radio Fund of Canada and Heritage Canada’s Local Journalism Initiative. Sustain CHLY’s News Department for many years to come by signing up for a monthly Sustaining Donation.
Host Joe Pugh speaks with Dr. Alexander Netherton, professor of political science at Vancouver Island University regarding the results of the recent federal election. He also speaks with Grand Chief Stewart Phillip, president of the BC Union of Indian Chiefs, who says the election campaign diverted attention from indigenous issues. Stephanie Fung from the Unite Local 40 speaks about a protest put on by workers outside of the Coast Bastion Hotel this week. And finally a conversation with Sheila Gurrie, Nanaimo’s director of legislative services regarding the city’s new animal responsibility bylaw.
Alice Cooper - Elected
Jim Jarrat - Raining Cats and Dogs
Elise Boulanger - It Started in The Garden
Program Team:
Joe Pugh — Host and Producer.
Jesse Woodward —Production Assistance.
Arbie Fru—Technical Assistance.
Theme Music:
Ah Venice - Good Company (2020)
Have a tip? Email: news@chly.ca.
Find us on social media:
Twitter: @chly1017FM
Funded by Sustaining Donors and the Community Radio Fund of Canada and Heritage Canada’s Local Journalism Initiative. Sustain CHLY’s News Department for many years to come by signing up for a monthly Sustaining Donation.
Host Joe Pugh speaks with Andrew Gage from West Coast Environmental Law regarding some upcoming hearings related to logging at Fairy Creek. He also completes our series of interviews with the local candidates for the federal election by speaking with Stephen Welton of the People’s Party of Canada. Still with the election, Andrea Marantz from Elections Canada explains the reasons for and potential fallout from a shortage of polling staff. And finally, conversations with Kathleen Reed, an avid diver who discovered hundreds of dead sea cucumbers off the coast of Nanoose Bay, as well as Dr. Isabelle Côté, marine ecology professor at Simon Fraser University who has since been investigating.
Music:
Alice Cooper - Elected
Program Team:
Joe Pugh — Host and Producer.
Jesse Woodward —Production Assistance.
Arbie Fru—Technical Assistance.
Theme Music:
Ah Venice - Good Company (2020)
Have a tip? Email: news@chly.ca.
Find us on social media:
Twitter: @chly1017FM
Funded by Sustaining Donors and the Community Radio Fund of Canada and Heritage Canada’s Local Journalism Initiative. Sustain CHLY’s News Department for many years to come by signing up for a monthly Sustaining Donation.
Host Joe Pugh investigates the Back to School plan from kindergarten to grade 12 students in BC. He speaks with Dale Burgos, executive director of Communications with school district 68 about what the plan is, as well as with Teri Mooring, president of the BC Teachers Federation on her organizations concerns. Joe also speaks with Dr. Sandra Allison, Medical Officer for the Central Island Region of Island Health about the plan.
CHLY’s Elijah Robinson also speaks with Nanaimo’s Kory Breaden, who recently set a world record after playing the video game Call of Duty Warzone for a 145 hour marathon session.
Music:
Jude Cole - Back To School
Program Team:
Joe Pugh — Host and Producer.
Elijah Robinson — Contributor.
Jesse Woodward —Production Assistance.
Arbie Fru—Technical Assistance.
Theme Music:
Ah Venice - Good Company (2020)
Have a tip? Email: news@chly.ca.
Find us on social media:
Twitter: @chly1017FM
Funded by Sustaining Donors and the Community Radio Fund of Canada and Heritage Canada’s Local Journalism Initiative. Sustain CHLY’s News Department for many years to come by signing up for a monthly Sustaining Donation.
Interviews with the Candidates from the Nanaimo-Ladysmith Riding in the upcoming federal election. Lisa Marie Barron of the NDP, Paul Manly of the Green Party, Tamara Kronis of the Conservative Party, and Michelle Corfield of the Liberal Party.
Music:
Elected - Alice Cooper
Program Team:
Joe Pugh — Host and Producer.
Elijah Robinson — Co-host and producer.
Jesse Woodward —Production Assistance.
Arbie Fru—Technical Assistance.
Theme Music:
Ah Venice - Good Company (2020)
Have a tip? Email: news@chly.ca.
Find us on social media:
Twitter: @chly1017FM
Funded by Sustaining Donors and the Community Radio Fund of Canada and Heritage Canada’s Local Journalism Initiative. Sustain CHLY’s News Department for many years to come by signing up for a monthly Sustaining Donation.
Following Sunday’s announcement of a federal election, co-host Elijah Robinson speaks with Andrea Marantz, BC Spokesperson for Elections Canada, about the changes Canadians can expect while voting amidst a pandemic. Elijah also speaks with Melissa Chirino, Chairperson of the BC Federation of Students, about the Influence the Vote campaign, which is aimed at mobilizing student voters in the upcoming election. Host Joe Pugh escorts CHLY’s Summer Camp Cub Reporters into the field where they speak with Barber Dave Lawrence of That 50’s Barber Shop to learn more about his Fresh Start Back to School fundraiser. On Tuesday, the Ministry of Mental Health and Addictions announced their provision of funds for a local initiative; Elijah speaks with Dr. Chris Gill of VIU about HarmCheck and how the money provided will aid his development of potential lifesaving technology. To conclude, Joe leads CHLY’s Cub Reporters into Nanaimo City Hall, where they speak with Mayor Leonard Krog about being the leader of a municipality.
Music:
Elected - Alice Cooper
Program Team:
Joe Pugh — Host and Producer.
Elijah Robinson — Co-host and producer.
Jesse Woodward —Production Assistance.
Arbie Fru—Technical Assistance.
Theme Music:
Ah Venice - Good Company (2020)
Have a tip? Email: news@chly.ca.
Find us on social media:
Twitter: @chly1017FM
Funded by Sustaining Donors and the Community Radio Fund of Canada and Heritage Canada’s Local Journalism Initiative. Sustain CHLY’s News Department for many years to come by signing up for a monthly Sustaining Donation.
In the wake of the latest report from the International panel on climate change, host Joe Pugh speaks with Heather Baitz of the Nanaimo Climate Action Hub, as well as Jeremy Holm, Director of Development Approvals at the City of Nanaimo to find out more about plans to tackle the climate crisis on a local level. Elijah Robinson checks in with Erika Berg, fire information officer of the BC Wildfire Service on the provincial wildfire situation. And finally an interview with Kamal Parmar, Nanaimo’s new Poet Laureate on her role, her style and the genre of Haiku.
More information on The City of Nanaimo’s Climate Initiatives:
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ReImagine Nanaimo infosheet “How We Adapt”: https://www.nanaimo.ca/docs/property-development/reimagine-nanaimo/3---reimagine-backgrounder---how-we-adapt-stay-green.pdf
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Quickly Understand Doughnut Economics and the Nanaimo doughnut economics model: https://www.getinvolvednanaimo.ca/reimagine-nanaimo/news_feed/quickly-understand-doughnut-economics
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ReImagine Nanaimo GetInvolved page with information on exploring options scenarios workshops: https://www.getinvolvednanaimo.ca/reimagine-nanaimo
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City’s Green Initiatives site with links to climate action initiatives and information on other corporate and community environmental initiatives https://www.nanaimo.ca/green-initiatives
Music:
Hot Hot Heat - You owe me an IOU
Tally Hall - Haiku
Program Team:
Joe Pugh — Host and Producer.
Elijah Robinson — Co-host and producer.
Jesse Woodward —Production Assistance.
Arbie Fru—Technical Assistance.
Theme Music:
Ah Venice - Good Company (2020)
Have a tip? Email: news@chly.ca.
Find us on social media:
Twitter: @chly1017FM
Funded by Sustaining Donors and the Community Radio Fund of Canada and Heritage Canada’s Local Journalism Initiative. Sustain CHLY’s News Department for many years to come by signing up for a monthly Sustaining Donation.
Elijah Robinson speaks with new RCMP Superintendent Lisa Fletcher on her recent appointment and approach to policing in the city. Plus Joe Pugh talks to Dr. William Weller about the Perseid meteor shower lighting up the skies this week. He also speaks with Bryony Dixon, the artistic managing producer of Nanaimo Fringe about the festival which is set to take centre stage this week. And a conversation with Pender Island couple Chris Hall and Stef Lowey who recently celebrated an entire year on only eating food they grew, raised, or caught themselves. Finally Joe speaks with Jane Hamilton from the Regional District of Nanaimo about some Goats who have recently come under their employ.
Music:
John MCcutcheon - Meteors/The Perseid
Perseid - Joe’s in Town
JJ Abrams - Theme From Fringe
Wild Bill Emerson and the Swamp Cats - Living off The Land
Program Team:
Joe Pugh — Host and Producer.
Elijah Robinson — Co-host and producer.
Jesse Woodward —Production Assistance.
Arbie Fru—Technical Assistance.
Theme Music:
Ah Venice - Good Company (2020)
Have a tip? Email: news@chly.ca.
Find us on social media:
Twitter: @chly1017FM
Funded by Sustaining Donors and the Community Radio Fund of Canada and Heritage Canada’s Local Journalism Initiative. Sustain CHLY’s News Department for many years to come by signing up for a monthly Sustaining Donation.
Host Joe Pugh Speaks with Bill Sims, General Manager of Engineering and Public Works with the City of Nanaimo on plans for a transit hub on Terminal Ave. He also talks with Derek Downes from the North Island Wildlife Recovery Centre about a white Raven they’ve been taking care of. Plus a conversation with Taimi Mulder regarding the Earthquake situation in BC following a magnitude 8.2 quake in Alaska this week. Finally a conversation with 17 year old filmmaker Mackai Sharp who won the people’s choice award at the Vancouver Island Short Film Festival for his documentary “Before The Beauty is Gone”
Music:
The Guess Who - Bus Rider
The White Raven - Seconds Conscious
SSION - Earthquakes
Program Team:
Joe Pugh — Host and Producer.
Elijah Robinson — Newscast.
Jesse Woodward —Production Assistance.
Arbie Fru—Technical Assistance.
Theme Music:
Ah Venice - Good Company (2020)
Have a tip? Email: news@chly.ca.
Find us on social media:
Twitter: @chly1017FM
Funded by Sustaining Donors and the Community Radio Fund of Canada and Heritage Canada’s Local Journalism Initiative. Sustain CHLY’s News Department for many years to come by signing up for a monthly Sustaining Donation.
In the wake of the provincial government’s announcement of funding further research into the grounds of former residential school sites and Indian Hospitals, Elijah Robinson talks to 'Na̱mg̱is Chief Don Svanvik about the nation’s plans to search the grounds of the former St. Michaels’s residential school for unmarked remains. Joe Pugh speaks with Professor Laurie Meijer Drees from VIU about the history of the Nanaimo Indian Hospital, which was also included among the grounds to be searched. Joe also speaks with Emilee Gilpin, managing editor of Indiginews, and Lauren Kaljur, editor of the discourse Nanaimo about a successful court challenge made by a media coalition to alter the terms of the Fairy Creek injunction. Finally Nanaimo Ladysmith MP Paul Manly offers his thoughts on federal election speculation.
Music:
Fountain Bather- Anyone Else
Fountain Bather - Better Off
Program Team:
Joe Pugh — Host and Producer.
Elijah Robinson — Co-host and producer.
Jesse Woodward —Production Assistance.
Arbie Fru—Technical Assistance.
Theme Music:
Ah Venice - Good Company (2020)
Have a tip? Email: news@chly.ca.
Find us on social media:
Twitter: @chly1017FM
Funded by Sustaining Donors and the Community Radio Fund of Canada and Heritage Canada’s Local Journalism Initiative. Sustain CHLY’s News Department for many years to come by signing up for a monthly Sustaining Donation.
Host Joe Pugh talks to NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh at Departure Bay Beach about election speculation. He also checks in with Parksville native Alicia Butterworth who is heading to Tokyo to compete in the Olympic Steeplechase. Plus a conversation with Andy Day, CEO of the BC Parks Foundation on recent purchases of multiple Gulf Islands in the Salish Sea. And, Joe speaks with Nanaimo Children’s author Lindsay Ford about her latest book, based on a historical nationwide movement that started in Ladysmith. And finally Elijah Robinson speaks to Glen Foster of the Glen Foster group ahead of his upcoming local concert.
Music:
The Olympic Anthem
Weezer - Island in the Sun
The Glen Foster Group - Three Man Band
Program Team:
Joe Pugh — Host and Producer.
Elijah Robinson — Co-host and producer.
Jesse Woodward —Production Assistance.
Arbie Fru—Technical Assistance.
Theme Music:
Ah Venice - Good Company (2020)
Have a tip? Email: news@chly.ca.
Find us on social media:
Twitter: @chly1017FM
Funded by Sustaining Donors and the Community Radio Fund of Canada and Heritage Canada’s Local Journalism Initiative. Sustain CHLY’s News Department for many years to come by signing up for a monthly Sustaining Donation.
Elijah Robinson speaks with Past President of Nanaimo Pride Lauren Semple on the defacing of Nanaimo’s rainbow crosswalk and pride Mural
Joe Pugh checks in with Karen Lindsay, Manager of the City of Nanaimo’s emergency program on wildfire risk and the city’s preparedness.
Elijah also talks to Mariah Charelson, Vice President of the Nuu-Chah-Nulth Tribal Council about recent developments in court proceedings over fishing rights for five indigenous nations on Vancouver Island.
And with 10 years passing since there was passenger rail service on the island, Joe spoke with Larry Stevenson of the Island Corridor Foundation to get an update on what is going on with the tracks.
Finally Joe welcomed Hilary Eastmure, director of the Vancouver Island Short Film Festival to the studio to discuss this year’s event.
Music:
The Babe Rainbow - Love Forever
Cat Clyde & Jeremie Albino - Freight Train
Program Team:
Joe Pugh — Host and Producer.
Elijah Robinson — Co-host and producer.
Jesse Woodward —Production Assistance.
Arbie Fru—Technical Assistance.
Theme Music:
Ah Venice - Good Company (2020)
Have a tip? Email: news@chly.ca.
Find us on social media:
Twitter: @chly1017FM
Funded by Sustaining Donors and the Community Radio Fund of Canada and Heritage Canada’s Local Journalism Initiative. Sustain CHLY’s News Department for many years to come by signing up for a monthly Sustaining Donation.
Host Joe Pugh visits Orange Day in the Bay on Snaw-naw-as territory in Nanoose.
He also speaks with City of Nanaimo Social Planner Dave Stewart about the response to the heatwave, and visits the Nanaimo Pirates of the BC Premier Baseball league on the road in Parksville.
Finally, a conversation with Vicki Wojcik of Pollinator Partnership Canada about Duncan’s new status as Vancouver Island’s first Bee City.
Music:
Summer Sage - You Are The Fire
Julie Title - Heat Wave
Faye Webster - A Dream With A Baseball Player
Wolf Parade - Kissing the Beehive
Program Team:
Joe Pugh — Host and Producer.
Elijah Robinson — Headlines.
Jesse Woodward —Production Assistance.
Arbie Fru—Technical Assistance.
Theme Music:
Ah Venice - Good Company (2020)
Have a tip? Email: news@chly.ca.
Find us on social media:
Twitter: @chly1017FM
Funded by Sustaining Donors and the Community Radio Fund of Canada and Heritage Canada’s Local Journalism Initiative. Sustain CHLY’s News Department for many years to come by signing up for a monthly Sustaining Donation.
Elijah Robinson speaks with VIU’s new chancellor Kekinusuqs or Dr. Judith Sayers on her position and issues in indigenous communities.
Joe Pugh talks with Corrie Corfield assistant executive director of The Island Crisis Care Society about their upcoming purchase of the Nanaimo Bakery and Confectionary.
Elijah also follows up on a recently released report from the Nanaimo RCMP on policing in May by speaking with Constable Gary O’Brien about the high number of Check Wellness calls.
Finally, a conversation with Nanaimo author Craig Taylor, who spent more than five years living in New York and hearing people's stories for his latest book “New Yorkers, a City and its People in Our Time”
Music:
Mother Mother - Sick of the Silence
Program Team:
Joe Pugh — Host and Producer.
Elijah Robinson — Co-host and Producer.
Jesse Woodward —Production Assistance.
Arbie Fru—Technical Assistance.
Theme Music:
Ah Venice - Good Company (2020)
Have a tip? Email: news@chly.ca.
Find us on social media:
Twitter: @chly1017FM
Funded by Sustaining Donors and the Community Radio Fund of Canada and Heritage Canada’s Local Journalism Initiative. Sustain CHLY’s News Department for many years to come by signing up for a monthly Sustaining Donation.
Host Joe Pugh examines efforts to found the first urban independent indigenous school in British Columbia. Interviews with Joy Bremner, leader of the Mid Island Metis, as well as Dale Burgos, executive director of communications with Nanaimo Ladysmith schools.
Joe also speaks with Nanaimo Mayor Leonard Krog about his support of the “Vancouver Model” that looks to decriminalize simple possession of street drugs.
Finally, in anticipation of his upcoming show at the Port Theatre, hear a conversation with Local artist Sirreal, where we touch on the delicate interplay between life and art.
Music:
JRDN and Carsen Gray - We All Here
Surreal x Gift of Gab x Jona Kristinsson - Keep Moving
Program Team:
Joe Pugh — Host and Producer.
Elijah Robinson - Newscast.
Jesse Woodward —Production Assistance.
Arbie Fru—Technical Assistance.
Theme Music:
Ah Venice - Good Company (2020)
Have a tip? Email: news@chly.ca.
Find us on social media:
Twitter: @chly1017FM
Funded by Sustaining Donors and the Community Radio Fund of Canada and Heritage Canada’s Local Journalism Initiative. Sustain CHLY’s News Department for many years to come by signing up for a monthly Sustaining Donation.
Joe Pugh speaks with protestors at an Extinction Rebellion Nanaimo protest, as well as MLA Sheila Malcolmson about developments in the Fairy Creek Logging Saga.
Paula Zerpa discusses changes in the Nanaimo Pride Society board of directors with Corinne Devison, the Events Director with Nanaimo Pride.
Joe also speaks with Adam Taylor from the Marmot Recovery Society about the Vancouver Island Marmot, Canada’s most endangered mammal.
Music:
Justin Timberlake - Suit and Tie
Who Galago - Marmot Song
Program Team:
Joe Pugh—Host and Producer.
Paula Zerpa—Co-Host and Producer.
Jesse Woodward - Production Assistance.
Arbie Fru—Technical Assistance.
Theme Music:
Ah Venice - Good Company (2020)
Have a tip? Email: news@chly.ca.
Find us on social media:
Twitter: @chly1017FM
Funded by Sustaining Donors and the Community Radio Fund of Canada and Heritage Canada’s Local Journalism Initiative. Sustain CHLY’s News Department for many years to come by signing up for a monthly Sustaining Donation.
Mick speaks with speak with Carl Buttersworth about Vancouver Island University’s new Seafood Innovation Station. Mick also gets a COVID-19 update from Island Health’s Chief Medical Officer Dr. Richard Stanwick and Victoria Schmid VP of Pandemic Planning.
He also speaks with Logan Clifford on a rally for missing and murdered indigenous women and girls she’s organizing in Courtenay. We also feature an interview with Vancouver Downtown East Side Legend Delannah Gail Bowen from Co-op Radio’s The Pulse.
Music:
Delannah Gail Bowen - Lullaby for The Missing and Murdered Women (Single) (2020)
Program Team:
Mick Sweetman—Host and Producer.
Jesse Woodward—Co-Host and Producer.
Arbie Fru—Technical Assistance.
Theme Music:
Ah Venice - Good Company (2020)
Have a tip? Email: news@chly.ca.
Find us on social media:
Twitter: @micksweetman / @chly1017FM
Funded by Sustaining Donors and the Community Radio Fund of Canada and Heritage Canada’s Local Journalism Initiative. Sustain CHLY’s News Department for many years to come by signing up for a monthly Sustaining Donation.
Mick Sweetman spoke with Sara Ladret, a woman who was sleeping in Italian Square Park downtown when the city and police kicked her out and fenced off the entire parkette. We also spoke with Mayor Leonard Krog about why the city continues to break up encampments.
Joe Pugh also brings us an interview with Holly Bright and Samantha Tydion Price of Crimson Coast Dance about their 17th annual body-talk HiP HoP PoW WoW 2021.
Mick Sweetman also speaks with the president of the Nanaimo Pride Society Alessandro Iachelli, about why he is pushing the city to ban so-called conversion therapy in Nanaimo.
Finally, Joe Pugh brings us part two of a feature with Vancouver band, The Fugitives. He again interviews band member Brendan Macleod on their album “Trench Songs”.
Music:
The Fugitives - Take Me Back to Old Ontario from Trench Songs (2020)
Program Team:
Mick Sweetman—Host and Producer.
Jesse Woodward—Co-Host and Producer.
Arbie Fru—Technical Assistance.
Theme Music:
Ah Venice - Good Company (2020)
Have a tip? Email: news@chly.ca.
Find us on social media:
Twitter: @micksweetman / @chly1017FM
Funded by Sustaining Donors and the Community Radio Fund of Canada and Heritage Canada’s Local Journalism Initiative. Sustain CHLY’s News Department for many years to come by signing up for a monthly Sustaining Donation.
It’s the one-year anniversary of COVID-19. Mick Sweetman speaks with Nanaimo Mayor Leonard Krog on how Nanaimo’s been impacted, and how we will recover.
Mick talks housing with Julie Chadwick, a reporter with The Discourse and David Eby, the Attorney General and Minister Responsible for Housing.
Joe Pugh brings us part one of an interview with Vancouver band the Fugitives on their album “Trench Songs” and the protest music of soldiers from World War I.
Music:
Beyries - Great Green Eyes from Encounter (2020)
The Fugitives - Hanging On the Old Barbed Wire from Trench Songs (2020)
Program Team:
Mick Sweetman—Host and Producer.
Jesse Woodward—Co-Host and Producer.
Arbie Fru—Technical Assistance.
Theme Music:
Ah Venice - Good Company (2020)
Have a tip? Email: news@chly.ca.
Find us on social media:
Twitter: @micksweetman / @chly1017FM
Funded by Sustaining Donors and the Community Radio Fund of Canada and Heritage Canada’s Local Journalism Initiative. Sustain CHLY’s News Department for many years to come by signing up for a monthly Sustaining Donation.
The inaugural launch of Mid Coast Morning, CHLY 101.7 FM’s new weekly current affairs show airing every Saturday morning at 9 A.M.
In our first episode host Mick Sweetman speaks with Shannon McDonald, Acting Chief Medical Officer for the First Nations Health Authority, on why COVID-19 is disproportionately impacting First Nations.
He also spoke with Nanaimo City Councillor Don Bonner on the upcoming Front Street bike lane project, as well as Hub City Cycle’s Nico Damiani on what this and other bike lanes will mean for cyclists in Nanaimo.
Also in this episode, Joe Pugh Thursday Host of The VIU Meter brings us an interview with Shane Blaq from Victoria band The New Groovement on their upcoming album, and recording in a pandemic.
Finally, an interview with Diana Morita Cole by Darren Davidson from Kootney Co-op Radio caps off the show.
Music:
Abdominal - Pedal Pusher from Escape From the Pigeon Hole (2007)
The New Groovement - The Wave from The Wave (2021)
Program Team:
Mick Sweetman—Host and Producer.
Jesse Woodward—Co-Host and Producer.
Arbie Fru—Technical Assistance.
Theme Music:
Ah Venice - Good Company (2020)
Have a tip? Email: news@chly.ca.
Find us on social media:
Twitter: @micksweetman / @chly1017FM
Funded by Sustaining Donors and the Community Radio Fund of Canada and Heritage Canada’s Local Journalism Initiative. Sustain CHLY’s News Department for many years to come by signing up for a monthly Sustaining Donation.