Community Articles (listed by posting date)
General News · 22nd January 2026
Mark Vonesch
There is so much happening in Cortes local government and I want to give you an update on some of the issues I’ve been working on.
Grant in Aid
Thank you to everyone who participated in the jury process for the 2025 Grant in Aid and a big thank you to the Cortes Community Foundation for facilitating the process. As usual, the requests for funding exceeded the amount budgeted, but this time the Community Foundation raised $25,000 in additional funding so that almost all of the requests were able to be met.
Here are all of the projects that were supported by the community jury, approved by the Electoral Area Services committee last week, and will be considered by the SRD board for final approval next week:
1) Cortes Island Women’s Resource Society - $4,100 to assist with winter operations
2) Wave and Range Club - $4,000 to assist with volunteer support and appreciation
3) Cortes Community Radio - $5,000 to assist with Love Fest & the Village Commons Music Series
4) Friends of Cortes Island - $5,000 towards the building of a new website
5) Island Death Care Society - $5,000 to assist with the facilitating of end of life planning
6) Support our Seniors Society - $1,900 to help people access heat pump incentive funding
The SRD staff report and all of the applications (with project descriptions and budgets) for Grant in Aid funding can be found here:
https://agenda.strathconard.ca/SRDAttachments/SRDCommittees/Open/EAS-IN/14-Jan-26/20260107-Area-B-GIA-Requests.PDF
The remaining projects that applied this year will be funded through the Cortes Island Community Foundation.
Cortes Governance - The Question of Incorporation
Approximately 220 Cortes Islanders have already signed the petition I released last month asking the province to support us in exploring our governance options.
Here are a few examples from why people said they signed the petition:
“I'm very curious about the pros and cons, but generally I do like the idea of being separate from the SRD and being able to develop a more circular economy.”
“It would be worthwhile to understand what the benefits of more local governance control are, as well as the potential downside through a rigorous study. “
“Many Cortes Islanders feel that we have a unique community with many shared values. We are struggling to keep our families together by providing permanent homes and a liveable wage so we don’t become a sterile retirement enclave. In order to pursue this endeavour I feel that we need more control over the decisions that affect our lives. I believe that by exploring incorporation, we may have the opportunity to shape our community more in sync with our needs.”
“I’m interested in a governance model that is much more local in its decision making which may afford greater self determination than the current system with the regional district.”
I want to be very clear that this petition is not saying that we should incorporate. It is only asking the province to pay for the costs of consulting us and producing studies so we can make an informed choice about whether incorporation is a good option for us.
There is nothing to lose by signing this petition. The worst that could happen is that the studies are completed, we learn more about how we could be governed, and we decide that change is not a good option for us.
In a best case scenario, taxes would stay reasonable and Cortes Islanders would have decision making control over our island instead of relying on people who don’t live here to decide what’s best for us.
Anyone that points to a single community (like Bowen Island) and says this is what would happen on Cortes is cherry picking data. Bowen Island is a very different community than us and, amongst other things, has expensive public water and sewage systems. There are 162 incorporated municipalities in BC and each one is different. Cortes Island is very unique and until studies are complete, we do not know if there is a better governance option for us.
If you haven’t already, please sign the petition and share it with your friends. The more people that sign it, the more likely it is that the provincial province agrees to take the next steps and pay for studies to be completed:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeJ4sKDp91_I4bXi0kaf1y9tDNAFspQbvdfWMvd67oFOqlD5A/viewform?usp=sharing&ouid=102974701837321579531
If you missed it, here’s my last months newsletter with more details about the process:
https://www.cortestogether.com/so/43PhgoDbZ?languageTag=en
Property Assessment and the Taxes you Pay
If you are a land owner on Cortes, it’s worth checking out how BC Assessment valued your property for this tax year. Here’s the link where you can type in your address and see your assessed value and how it has changed over the last five years:
https://www.bcassessment.ca/
If you want to dispute this years value with BC Assessment, the deadline is Feb 2nd and here is a link with more info on how to do that:
https://info.bcassessment.ca/Services-products/appeals
If your property value increased (or decreased) that doesn’t necessarily mean that your property taxes will increase (or decrease). For example, if everyone’s property in the SRD increased by 10%, every electoral area and municipality will pay the same proportion in taxes for the services we receive. However, if Cortes Island properties (as a whole) decreased in value compared to other areas in the SRD, then the proportion of taxes we pay for shared services will also decrease.
In my initial analysis, it appears as if Cortes property values have decreased slightly compared to others in the SRD, but I will know more details in the next month after the SRD finance department crunches the numbers.
It is budget planning season as regional districts and municipal governments are required to submit their budgets to the province by March 31st. I am working hard to keep our taxes level this year and understand that providing local government services efficiently and effectively is important to us all.
BC Ferries Service Disruption
Our ferry from Whaletown to Heriot Bay will be out of service Feb 9th - March 1st while the berths are being upgraded to prepare for the new ferry we are getting this summer (holding 50% more vehicles).
A free water taxi for foot passengers is scheduled to leave six times per day from the Manson’s Dock and take you to Heriot Bay. A free shuttle service will take you across Quadra to the Campbell River ferry. There is parking available at the Heriot Bay terminal for those who want to leave a vehicle on that side during the service disruption.
A landing barge will be transporting essential service vehicles between the Gorge Harbor and Heriot Bay and some personal vehicles will also be allowed (Thank you to everyone that pushed with me to ensure some personal vehicles will be allowed). To make a reservation, you need to fill out this request form prior to using the service:
https://www.bcferries.com/barge-booking-request
All of the details about these changes, including the water taxi and barge schedule can be found here:
https://www.bcferriesprojects.ca/heriot-bay-whaletown-tp
I am the new Vice Chair of the SRD Board!
In the inaugural meeting of the SRD Board, I was elected as the 2026 Vice Chair of the Strathcona Regional District Board. I want to thank my colleagues at the board table who voted for me and I look forward to representing Cortes and everyone living in the SRD through this new leadership role.
Cortes Island Zoning Bylaw
At the end of 2025, after a well attended public hearing on Cortes, the SRD Board joined me in approving our updated zoning bylaw with some amendments.
Thank you again to everyone that came to the public hearing and participated in the bylaw review process. The public hearing input was incorporated into the final draft and include these four main revisions:
1) Adjusting wording in the definition of the term "moorage" to clarify permitted uses and remove unnecessary or potentially confusing language. The substance of the regulation allows public and private moorage for indefinite amounts of time.
2) Revised the lot coverage regulation within the Agriculture One zone for consistency with the Agricultural Land Reserve Regulation and to ensure uniformity with any future amendments to the Agricultural Land commission Act (ACLA).
3) Adjusted the wording under Section 3 "Penalties" to remove the specified maximum amount of $50,000 and instead defer the penalty amount to be specified under the Offense Act and the Community Charter. For clarity, in a case where a penalty is issued, the amount of the penalty would be determined in court and informed by the circumstances of the case and the maximum penalty set under the aforementioned provincial legislation.
4) Corrected mapping references to the following parcels:
- Small islets in Coulter Bay to read as correctly zoned RU-1
- 1531 Seaford Rd to RU-1 (which was previously missed)
- Northern tip of 913 Whaletown Rd to read as the correct zone of R-1
The newly updated Cortes Island zoning bylaw and associated staff report can be found here:
https://agenda.strathconard.ca/SRDAttachments/SRDBoard/Open/BRD-IN/19-Nov-25/20251014-Report-Bylaw-No_-598-_Deferred_.pdf
Thanks for reading and staying informed! Please reach out if you have questions or want to chat.
Mark
Mark Vonesch
Cortes Island Regional Director
mb: 250-202-4422
email: mvoneschsrd.ca
PS: Stay updated with SRD meeting schedules, upcoming agendas, past minutes, or watch previously recorded meetings here:
https://srd.ca/government/agendas-minutes/
PSS: Sign up to my newsletters here:
https://www.cortestogether.com/sign-up
Grant in Aid
Thank you to everyone who participated in the jury process for the 2025 Grant in Aid and a big thank you to the Cortes Community Foundation for facilitating the process. As usual, the requests for funding exceeded the amount budgeted, but this time the Community Foundation raised $25,000 in additional funding so that almost all of the requests were able to be met.
Here are all of the projects that were supported by the community jury, approved by the Electoral Area Services committee last week, and will be considered by the SRD board for final approval next week:
1) Cortes Island Women’s Resource Society - $4,100 to assist with winter operations
2) Wave and Range Club - $4,000 to assist with volunteer support and appreciation
3) Cortes Community Radio - $5,000 to assist with Love Fest & the Village Commons Music Series
4) Friends of Cortes Island - $5,000 towards the building of a new website
5) Island Death Care Society - $5,000 to assist with the facilitating of end of life planning
6) Support our Seniors Society - $1,900 to help people access heat pump incentive funding
The SRD staff report and all of the applications (with project descriptions and budgets) for Grant in Aid funding can be found here:
https://agenda.strathconard.ca/SRDAttachments/SRDCommittees/Open/EAS-IN/14-Jan-26/20260107-Area-B-GIA-Requests.PDF
The remaining projects that applied this year will be funded through the Cortes Island Community Foundation.
Cortes Governance - The Question of Incorporation
Approximately 220 Cortes Islanders have already signed the petition I released last month asking the province to support us in exploring our governance options.
Here are a few examples from why people said they signed the petition:
“I'm very curious about the pros and cons, but generally I do like the idea of being separate from the SRD and being able to develop a more circular economy.”
“It would be worthwhile to understand what the benefits of more local governance control are, as well as the potential downside through a rigorous study. “
“Many Cortes Islanders feel that we have a unique community with many shared values. We are struggling to keep our families together by providing permanent homes and a liveable wage so we don’t become a sterile retirement enclave. In order to pursue this endeavour I feel that we need more control over the decisions that affect our lives. I believe that by exploring incorporation, we may have the opportunity to shape our community more in sync with our needs.”
“I’m interested in a governance model that is much more local in its decision making which may afford greater self determination than the current system with the regional district.”
I want to be very clear that this petition is not saying that we should incorporate. It is only asking the province to pay for the costs of consulting us and producing studies so we can make an informed choice about whether incorporation is a good option for us.
There is nothing to lose by signing this petition. The worst that could happen is that the studies are completed, we learn more about how we could be governed, and we decide that change is not a good option for us.
In a best case scenario, taxes would stay reasonable and Cortes Islanders would have decision making control over our island instead of relying on people who don’t live here to decide what’s best for us.
Anyone that points to a single community (like Bowen Island) and says this is what would happen on Cortes is cherry picking data. Bowen Island is a very different community than us and, amongst other things, has expensive public water and sewage systems. There are 162 incorporated municipalities in BC and each one is different. Cortes Island is very unique and until studies are complete, we do not know if there is a better governance option for us.
If you haven’t already, please sign the petition and share it with your friends. The more people that sign it, the more likely it is that the provincial province agrees to take the next steps and pay for studies to be completed:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeJ4sKDp91_I4bXi0kaf1y9tDNAFspQbvdfWMvd67oFOqlD5A/viewform?usp=sharing&ouid=102974701837321579531
If you missed it, here’s my last months newsletter with more details about the process:
https://www.cortestogether.com/so/43PhgoDbZ?languageTag=en
Property Assessment and the Taxes you Pay
If you are a land owner on Cortes, it’s worth checking out how BC Assessment valued your property for this tax year. Here’s the link where you can type in your address and see your assessed value and how it has changed over the last five years:
https://www.bcassessment.ca/
If you want to dispute this years value with BC Assessment, the deadline is Feb 2nd and here is a link with more info on how to do that:
https://info.bcassessment.ca/Services-products/appeals
If your property value increased (or decreased) that doesn’t necessarily mean that your property taxes will increase (or decrease). For example, if everyone’s property in the SRD increased by 10%, every electoral area and municipality will pay the same proportion in taxes for the services we receive. However, if Cortes Island properties (as a whole) decreased in value compared to other areas in the SRD, then the proportion of taxes we pay for shared services will also decrease.
In my initial analysis, it appears as if Cortes property values have decreased slightly compared to others in the SRD, but I will know more details in the next month after the SRD finance department crunches the numbers.
It is budget planning season as regional districts and municipal governments are required to submit their budgets to the province by March 31st. I am working hard to keep our taxes level this year and understand that providing local government services efficiently and effectively is important to us all.
BC Ferries Service Disruption
Our ferry from Whaletown to Heriot Bay will be out of service Feb 9th - March 1st while the berths are being upgraded to prepare for the new ferry we are getting this summer (holding 50% more vehicles).
A free water taxi for foot passengers is scheduled to leave six times per day from the Manson’s Dock and take you to Heriot Bay. A free shuttle service will take you across Quadra to the Campbell River ferry. There is parking available at the Heriot Bay terminal for those who want to leave a vehicle on that side during the service disruption.
A landing barge will be transporting essential service vehicles between the Gorge Harbor and Heriot Bay and some personal vehicles will also be allowed (Thank you to everyone that pushed with me to ensure some personal vehicles will be allowed). To make a reservation, you need to fill out this request form prior to using the service:
https://www.bcferries.com/barge-booking-request
All of the details about these changes, including the water taxi and barge schedule can be found here:
https://www.bcferriesprojects.ca/heriot-bay-whaletown-tp
I am the new Vice Chair of the SRD Board!
In the inaugural meeting of the SRD Board, I was elected as the 2026 Vice Chair of the Strathcona Regional District Board. I want to thank my colleagues at the board table who voted for me and I look forward to representing Cortes and everyone living in the SRD through this new leadership role.
Cortes Island Zoning Bylaw
At the end of 2025, after a well attended public hearing on Cortes, the SRD Board joined me in approving our updated zoning bylaw with some amendments.
Thank you again to everyone that came to the public hearing and participated in the bylaw review process. The public hearing input was incorporated into the final draft and include these four main revisions:
1) Adjusting wording in the definition of the term "moorage" to clarify permitted uses and remove unnecessary or potentially confusing language. The substance of the regulation allows public and private moorage for indefinite amounts of time.
2) Revised the lot coverage regulation within the Agriculture One zone for consistency with the Agricultural Land Reserve Regulation and to ensure uniformity with any future amendments to the Agricultural Land commission Act (ACLA).
3) Adjusted the wording under Section 3 "Penalties" to remove the specified maximum amount of $50,000 and instead defer the penalty amount to be specified under the Offense Act and the Community Charter. For clarity, in a case where a penalty is issued, the amount of the penalty would be determined in court and informed by the circumstances of the case and the maximum penalty set under the aforementioned provincial legislation.
4) Corrected mapping references to the following parcels:
- Small islets in Coulter Bay to read as correctly zoned RU-1
- 1531 Seaford Rd to RU-1 (which was previously missed)
- Northern tip of 913 Whaletown Rd to read as the correct zone of R-1
The newly updated Cortes Island zoning bylaw and associated staff report can be found here:
https://agenda.strathconard.ca/SRDAttachments/SRDBoard/Open/BRD-IN/19-Nov-25/20251014-Report-Bylaw-No_-598-_Deferred_.pdf
Thanks for reading and staying informed! Please reach out if you have questions or want to chat.
Mark
Mark Vonesch
Cortes Island Regional Director
mb: 250-202-4422
email: mvoneschsrd.ca
PS: Stay updated with SRD meeting schedules, upcoming agendas, past minutes, or watch previously recorded meetings here:
https://srd.ca/government/agendas-minutes/
PSS: Sign up to my newsletters here:
https://www.cortestogether.com/sign-up
