BAMFIELD COMMUNITY AFFAIRS SOCIETY

General Meeting Unofficial Minutes

 Monday, 17 November 2025 at 18.30pm
via Zoom - hosted by Jamie Willock

Attendees (18): James Willock (Chair), , Julie Bradley, Robin and Bob Schmitt, Jomy Thomas, John Mass, Ben and Margot West, Tom Jensen, Susan Derasp, Stella Wenstob, Bob Beckett, Stacy Denton, Amy McConnell, Ilan Perez, Alison Bird, Max Salamon, Tom ?

Regrets: Jan Teversham   

Acknowledgement of Indigenous Lands: The BCAS acknowledges that the land on which we meet is within the Traditional territory of the Huu-ay-aht First Nations where indigenous peoples have lived since time immemorial.

The meeting was called to order at 18.32

Chequing          $12,853.06

Savings              $28,337.85

Member Equity         $5.21

Total Assets     $ 41,196.12

.Jamie is interested in hearing about any ideas for GIAs given the amount of money in the account now. He will be sending expenses incurred for running the Zoom account and  reminded everyone that other Bamfield societies or groups are welcome to use the account for their meetings.

He also put forward the idea that other discussions could be initiated  in the general meeting other than reports of the various societies and wondered if anyone had topics to discuss. John Mass suggested the west side boat ramp is something to start thinking about. It is in bad repair and has limitations to its use. He thought perhaps a Development Plan could be created through a GIA grant. Jamie agreed and added it to the agenda for a preliminary discussion..

COMMUNITY REPORTS

Bamfield Community School - Robin Schmitt

• An in-house Remembrance Day assembly took place with children reading poems
• There are currently 34 students as some families have recently moved away.
• The concert is probably going to be on Dec 17^th.
• The school will have a  table at the Craft Fair on December 7th and have been very creative this year!

Bamfield Community School - Jomy  Thomas

1. During the week of November 17
   • Monday -Adult Dodge ball
   • Tuesday -yoga with Alessandra from 5-6
   • Wednesday Community Lunch with Renee   

                       Dance workout with Irene 5.30-6.30

• Thursday French Conversation 5.30-6.30

2. On Nov 27 there will be a workshop for knitting woollen hats (toques?) run by Caitlin and AB.
3. December activities will be updated on the community calendar.

Bamfield Arts Council – Julie Bradley

• The Craft Fair is on Dec 7 from 11-2.
• Thanks for coming to Oysters, Authors and Ale where the Silent Auction raised $3,800 and more will be added from the ticket and beer sales.

Bamfield Huu ay aht Community Forest- Amy McConnell

• Signs and maps are being finalised to show all the trails in the Community Forest.

Bamfield Harbour Authority - Tom Jensen

• The AGM was held on November 12.
• The dock cannot be reached by road at the moment due to the water pipeline works that are ongoing. The crew can stop to let people through to access the dock. It’s very muddy .

Bamfield Centennial Park - Sheryl Mass

• Nothing to report.

ACRD DIRECTOR’S REPORT: Bob Beckett

1.Alternate Emergency Route

Over the last couple of weeks, the board, has had an opportunity to meet with the Ministry of Transportation to discuss not only the impact of the Bamfield Road being closed down and the effects of the fire, but also the proposed alternate emergency route out of the Alberni Valley.  Of course, there's push, especially from the Ditidaht Nation to recognize the Bamfield, Lake Cowichan, or Youbo route as the preferred route. That hasn't been finalized, but  these things are being discussed at a very high level with lots of lobbying at the provincial government level.

2. Bamfield Road communication

I recognize that communication regarding the opening of the Bamfield Rd, and specifically information regarding temporary closures and disruptions has been very frustrating. I appreciate everyone’s patience and understanding as we look to a time when the work can be completed and the risks mitigated for both travellers and those working the site. In the meantime, I continue to communicate with both ACRD staff and MOTT staff regarding the importance of ensuring that Drive BC has current and factual information on Drive BC. Again, I appreciate your patience and understanding.

3. 2026 budget

The ACRD staff and Board are beginning their budget deliberations and early in the new year ACRD CFO Teri Fong will once again be making a presentation to BCAS to provide an overview of the proposed budget and seek our community’s input. During our boards budget deliberations, I will advocate once again to keep any proposed increase as reasonable as possible recognizing the impact on our businesses and home owners.

Questions:

Re#1

Jamie said that there is a future button on the Drive BC website that will show updates on road situations. Bob said that a lot of people found using DriveBC difficult. Only the current situations is shown and people cannot find out if planned cancellations are still happening. Stella received an email from Drive BC in response to her complaints which she will forward to Bob to show him their current level of engagement with the community. Bob will continue to engage with them for improvements in making timely updates.

Re #2

Stella asked whether the OCP would be in next year’s budget. Bob said he would get back to BCAS with any information.

West Bamfield Boat Launch- Preliminary Discussion

The boat launch is adjacent to Bamfield Point resort ( aka Pacific Gateway/Tyee).

• It is a steep ramp with quite a bend in the approach.
• When there is a north swell it is difficult to use.
• In the summer, speedboat wash makes it difficult .
• There are rocks adjacent that prevent large barges using the launch.

At the moment Bob from Bamfield Point is the main user of the launch. There are two other private boat launches on the west side. One is at Harbourside Lodge but the future for using it is uncertain. The other is at McKay Bay Lodge but they do not want it to become a public launch area.

Nothing will happen unless a big push is made by us.

• It could be modified to make it easier to use ( re swell and wash issues)  by building a breakwater. Bob at Bamfield Point has a permit to allow that to happen.
• Rocks would still have to be removed to allow large barges to access the ramp.
• The concrete ramp also needs to be repaired and extended to allow for use at low tides.

A GIA could be used to get a Development Plan with estimated costs. MOTT would have to be involved. There is about 100 feet of waterfront available in the ROW and quite a lot of ROW space at the top of the approach for turning around.

NEXT MEETING

The next meeting will be on Monday  19 January 2026.

Meeting Adjourned at 19.04