Tan Mei Xi/ Vancouver Co-op Radio Local Journalism Initiative -Affordable housing is within reach for British Columbians with a manageable amount of government investment, says a housing expert.

The Affordable Housing Plan produced by the BC Non-Profit Housing Association (BCNPHA) calls for an annual $1.8 billion in government investment for building affordable housing. Jill Atkey, CEO of the BC Non-Profit Housing Association, noted that the level of investment her organisation called for is “not dissimilar from the investments made over the past two years provincially and federally”.

According to the BCNPHA, in 2016 there was a backlog of 80,000 rental units and an additional 117,000 renter households that needed income assistance to afford their rent. In addition, there were at least 6,860 people across the province experiencing homelessness.

To address these issues, the BCNPHA calls for 115,000 rental units to be built before 2026; income support for renter households experiencing challenges affording their rent; and a 'housing first' approach to addressing homelessness.

According to the Plan, investments made in housing will yield significant community benefits. For example, the BCNPHA stated in the Plan that "The proposed annual investments of $81.6 million for homelessness... have the potential to save $177 million annually in other areas of spending within BC."

Roy L Hales/Cortes Currents - There could be a federal election next Spring and Green party leader Annamie Paul is looking for promising candidates. Also, the Canadian Government is expected to release its proposed climate legislation on Monday. These were a couple of the ideas mentioned Saturday, when the North Island-Powell River Greens hosted a ZOOM conference entitled Annamie Paul in conversation.

>>> Growing support

She was joined by three Green candidates from the recent provincial election. Kim Darwin received a third of the votes in Powell River-Sunshine Coast. Alexandra Morton and Gillian Anderson received just under 20% in North Island and Courtenay-Comox, respectively.

Roy L Hales/Cortes Currents - There could be a federal election next Spring and Green party leader Annamie Paul is looking for promising candidates. Also, the Canadian Government is expected to release its proposed climate legislation on Monday. These were a couple of the ideas mentioned Saturday, when the North Island-Powell River Greens hosted a ZOOM conference entitled Annamie Paul in conversation.

>>> Growing support

She was joined by three Green candidates from the recent provincial election. Kim Darwin received a third of the votes in Powell River-Sunshine Coast. Alexandra Morton and Gillian Anderson received just under 20% in North Island and Courtenay-Comox, respectively.

Odette Auger/ Cortes Currents - The following article is an excerpt from a program that was originally aired on Cortes Radio. This program was funded by a grant from the Community Radio Fund of Canada and the Government of Canada’s Local Journalism Initiative.This is Odette Auger with Cortes Currents.

In the parking lot at Strathcona Gardens Recreation Complex, COVID-1919 Ambassadors take in screening checklists, supervise hand sanitizing, as the novice hockey kids arrive at the arena.

The ambassadors are basically replacing the parents- without dressing rooms, the kids show up in all their gear, walking through the parking lot with skate guards. They ensure kids hand sanitize before putting on their gloves, and the masked ambassadors take the guards off and space them out 6 feet apart along the hallway in the arena. 

CRMHA sends out regular emails outlining COVID-1919 protocols, updates to how this translates to the arena. Assessing how measures were working, making adjustments to trouble shoot.

Jeanine Sumner and Jodi Check Broer are two of the covdi19 ambassadors trained to support the novice age group. They share their thoughts and explain how things are different this year. 

“Upon the kids returning to play,” says Sumner,  “Parent volunteers, such as ourselves, also known as COVID-19 ambassadors were identified and trained and that included new entry and exit points, no use of the change rooms. The kids were not allowed inside the building due to the capacity COVID-19-19 restrictions in 19 restrictions yet. So wearing masks, hand, sanitization health check screening for all the kids, ambassadors and coaches minimal contact with any inside the facility and arena, thorough disinfection protocols, tracking number of players, coaches, and volunteers.”

Odette Auger/ Cortes Currents - The following article is an excerpt from a program that was originally aired on Cortes Radio. This program was funded by a grant from the Community Radio Fund of Canada and the Government of Canada’s Local Journalism Initiative.This is Odette Auger with Cortes Currents.

In the parking lot at Strathcona Gardens Recreation Complex, COVID-1919 Ambassadors take in screening checklists, supervise hand sanitizing, as the novice hockey kids arrive at the arena.

The ambassadors are basically replacing the parents- without dressing rooms, the kids show up in all their gear, walking through the parking lot with skate guards. They ensure kids hand sanitize before putting on their gloves, and the masked ambassadors take the guards off and space them out 6 feet apart along the hallway in the arena. 

CRMHA sends out regular emails outlining COVID-1919 protocols, updates to how this translates to the arena. Assessing how measures were working, making adjustments to trouble shoot.

Jeanine Sumner and Jodi Check Broer are two of the covdi19 ambassadors trained to support the novice age group. They share their thoughts and explain how things are different this year. 

“Upon the kids returning to play,” says Sumner,  “Parent volunteers, such as ourselves, also known as COVID-19 ambassadors were identified and trained and that included new entry and exit points, no use of the change rooms. The kids were not allowed inside the building due to the capacity COVID-19-19 restrictions in 19 restrictions yet. So wearing masks, hand, sanitization health check screening for all the kids, ambassadors and coaches minimal contact with any inside the facility and arena, thorough disinfection protocols, tracking number of players, coaches, and volunteers.”

Roy L Hales/ Cortes Currents - On Friday, Health Minister Adrian Dix and Chief Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry announced there were 16 new COVID cases in Island Health. This is our region’s highest daily total since the pandemic began.

Over the course of the last five days, the number of active cases on Vancouver Island has increased from 39 to 67.

Two people were admitted to Intensive Care Units, which hasn’t happened for months.

While a series of media reports are coming out of two schools and the hospital in Nanaimo, the number of active cases in North Vancouver Island quietly increased from 8, on Monday, to 15 by Friday. After five days, the number of cases is close to double.

Yesterday, November 13th, Island Health issued a press release stating they had been contacting patrons of Browns Socialhouse, in Courtenay, about a possible exposure to COVID-19 on November 3rd and 5th.

“Contact tracing has been completed and anyone identified as a close contact has been instructed to self-isolate.”

“ … If you have not been contacted by public health, then please be assured you did not have a high-risk exposure related to this case. No ongoing COVID-19 risk from this exposure has been identified.”

 Island Health’s Chief Medical Health Officer, Dr. Richard Stanwick, has also issued a Public Health Order stating “Effective November 13, all owners and operators of campgrounds and RV parks must collect information from each patron that would enable contact tracing, including names and phone numbers. This information must be kept for a period of 30 days.”

 

North Vancouver Island is divided into four Health areas:

Comox Valley

Campbell River, which includes Cortes, Quadra and the other Discovery Islands.

Vancouver Island North

and Vancouver island West.

The most recent statistical breakdown of cases within those areas shows the cumulative total of cases up until the end of October. Comparing those numbers with those of the previous monthly summary, there were 8 new cases in the Comox Valley, 6 in Campbell River and 1 in Vancouver Island North during October.

Most of those people have recovered and there more active cases,

A monthly update of the cumulative cases in each health area, up until the end of November, should be released about this time in December.

Roy L Hales/ Cortes Currents - On Friday, Health Minister Adrian Dix and Chief Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry announced there were 16 new COVID cases in Island Health. This is our region’s highest daily total since the pandemic began.

Over the course of the last five days, the number of active cases on Vancouver Island has increased from 39 to 67.

Two people were admitted to Intensive Care Units, which hasn’t happened for months.

While a series of media reports are coming out of two schools and the hospital in Nanaimo, the number of active cases in North Vancouver Island quietly increased from 8, on Monday, to 15 by Friday. After five days, the number of cases is close to double.

Yesterday, November 13th, Island Health issued a press release stating they had been contacting patrons of Browns Socialhouse, in Courtenay, about a possible exposure to COVID-19 on November 3rd and 5th.

“Contact tracing has been completed and anyone identified as a close contact has been instructed to self-isolate.”

“ … If you have not been contacted by public health, then please be assured you did not have a high-risk exposure related to this case. No ongoing COVID-19 risk from this exposure has been identified.”

 Island Health’s Chief Medical Health Officer, Dr. Richard Stanwick, has also issued a Public Health Order stating “Effective November 13, all owners and operators of campgrounds and RV parks must collect information from each patron that would enable contact tracing, including names and phone numbers. This information must be kept for a period of 30 days.”

 

North Vancouver Island is divided into four Health areas:

Comox Valley

Campbell River, which includes Cortes, Quadra and the other Discovery Islands.

Vancouver Island North

and Vancouver island West.

The most recent statistical breakdown of cases within those areas shows the cumulative total of cases up until the end of October. Comparing those numbers with those of the previous monthly summary, there were 8 new cases in the Comox Valley, 6 in Campbell River and 1 in Vancouver Island North during October.

Most of those people have recovered and there more active cases,

A monthly update of the cumulative cases in each health area, up until the end of November, should be released about this time in December.

David P. Ball/Vancouver Co-op Radio, local Journalism Initiative -Dr. Thomas Madden, with Acuitas Therapeutics at UBC, says that most vulnerable communities will be first to receive the "90% protective" vaccine he helped discover.

A Vancouver scientist says he is proud of his team's contribution to the world's most promising vaccine candidate yet to defeat COVID-19 — and potential begin the end of the ongoing pandemic.

And with the Prime Minister promising that any vaccine distributed by Canada would target the most vulnerable populations as a priority, seniors and those with compromised immune systems and respiratory illnesses would likely be at the front of the line.

Dr. Thomas Madden's his firm Acuitas, based at the University of British Columbia, has become something of a global celebrity after it played a key role in developing the most promising coronavirus vaccine yet — believed to be 90 per cent effective, far higher than average flu vaccines or any COVID-19 candidate so far.

Photo credit: Virus illustration by Robert Couse-Baker via Flickr (CC BY SA, 2.0 License)

David P. Ball/Vancouver Co-op Radio, local Journalism Initiative -Dr. Thomas Madden, with Acuitas Therapeutics at UBC, says that most vulnerable communities will be first to receive the "90% protective" vaccine he helped discover.

A Vancouver scientist says he is proud of his team's contribution to the world's most promising vaccine candidate yet to defeat COVID-19 — and potential begin the end of the ongoing pandemic.

And with the Prime Minister promising that any vaccine distributed by Canada would target the most vulnerable populations as a priority, seniors and those with compromised immune systems and respiratory illnesses would likely be at the front of the line.

Dr. Thomas Madden's his firm Acuitas, based at the University of British Columbia, has become something of a global celebrity after it played a key role in developing the most promising coronavirus vaccine yet — believed to be 90 per cent effective, far higher than average flu vaccines or any COVID-19 candidate so far.

Photo credit: Virus illustration by Robert Couse-Baker via Flickr (CC BY SA, 2.0 License)

Roy L Hales/Cortes Currents - BC Health officials tell us the number of COVID 19 cases is doubling once almost every 13 days.

There were close to 5,800 active cases as of 4:30 PM, Thursday, November 12th.

“The data shows us that the virus is able to transmit far more easily in the colder weather when we are spending more time indoors, which means that many of the things that we were able to do safely this summer are no longer safe,” said Provincial Health Officer said Dr Bonnie Henry.

Campbell River Health Area in October

Six people in the Campbell River Health Area tested positive during October., according to the BC Centre for Disease Control’s latest monthly cumulative COVID case count for local health areas.

Two of these COVID 19 cases were at Carihi Secondary school and reported in the media. The others could have been anywhere in Campbell River, its outskirts, or the Discovery Islands.

These are not the first cases reported in the Campbell River Health area. There were a dozen earlier this year, but none in August or September.

Recent COVID 19 cases on Vancouver Island

A less geographically specific report for the past two weeks, states there were 18 new cases in North Vancouver Island, which includes the Comox Valley, Campbell and other regions to the north. Some of these people have already recovered.

Island Health’s Public Health COVID-19 Status Dashboard shows a total of 51 active cases, as of yesterday, and 11 of these are in North Vancouver Island.

British Columbia’s COVID-19 Dashboard confirms that there are 51 active cases on Vancouver Island. None of these have been hospitalized, admitted to the ICU and there has not been a new death reported in months.