Over The Hurdle Sale

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Forums encourage residents to vote

By Chris Hamlyn – Nanaimo News Bulletin
Published: November 17, 2011 7:00 AM
Updated: November 17, 2011 8:30 AM

In an attempt to encourage more involvement in the political process, a number of Nanaimo organizations are thinking outside the box to get voters to the polls for Saturday’s (Nov. 19) municipal election.

The South End Community Association compiled community input from a 2008 blog on neighbourhood concerns and posed the top three to this year’s candidates for mayor and council on an online forum.

 

To read the rest of the article, click here.

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Toy Drive and Hamperville

Loaves and Fishes and the Salvation Army have a new website with LOTS of information, including dates, times, places, volunteering, donating, etc.

Click here to access it.

 

Distribution link here.

Registration for getting presents and for a Christmas hamper will occur November 28 – December 2. Time – 10:00 AM to 4:00 Pm, also Wednesday 10:00 Am to 8:00 PM

Presents for children up to 17 years. Please bring Care Cards for children’s age identification

Presents and hampers can be picked up at the Gym, old Harewood School, December 19 and 20.

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Answer to Question 3 South End Votes.

Historically, the South End has been 2 separate communities living in one neighbourhood.  Of course, there is a blurring of lines as many First Nations folks do live off reserve and in the South End, and there are support services for them in the neighbourhood.  We have been working over the past few years to build and strengthen our relationship with SFN; it has made us aware of some of the challenges that they face.

And so we asked this question:

3.  How would you support our First Nations population in Nanaimo?

Answers posted here.

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South End Votes: Second Question Posted

Answers to the second question posted to candidates is now up on the South End Votes blog.

A little framing fist:   We in the South End are absolutely ecstatic about our shiny new neighbourhood plan.  Yes, it’s ambitious…over 100 action items.  Capable Chris Sholberg and his team led us through the planning process, which they made very clear and easy.  And we want to work with the city to help execute it.   But the process toward that isn’t so clear. So the question we asked was:

2.    The South End recently completed its Official Neighbourhood Plan.  How do you see Council’s role in supporting its implementation?

For answers, click here.

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Raise Money for SECA with Epicure Spices!

Epicure Spices  bags of spreads sell for $20 each. They are ideal as a Christmas gift. Epicure is a Vancouver Island business. If you wish to sell these and raise money for SECA Contact Sandra at 753-1394

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SECA at Planners Day

A trio of hardy SECA members, as well as the beloved Tea Wagon, showed up at World Planners Day at the Nanaimo Museum this Tuesday. Though it was cold and wet, the free coffee was hot, the Nanaimo bars (also free) were scrumptious.  The City Planners and visitors were cheery in spite of the drizzle.  A big thanks to Chris Scholberg  for inviting us.

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Is the Occupy Movement a new Phenomenon?

A presentation by the Occupy Nanaimo group at the SECA meeting last week took SECA Board Member Pat Portsmouth to her bookshelf, where she uncovered a book first published in 1971 by Christopher Hill entitled “The World Turned Upside Down.”

Our resident “all things British” expert says that the roots of Today’s Occupy Movement, as well as many of the alternative relgious groups (i.e. Quakers), can be traced back to the 1600’s, when uprisings against King Charles changed the face of history.  Diggers were only one of the factions, and a group of people who “dug themself in” in protest.

One of the reviews of the book says: “Each generation rescues a new area from what its predecessors arrogantly and snobbishly dismissed as ‘the lunatic fringe’.”

If you want to dip your toe into this movement, perhaps start with this Wikipedia post.

For more/deeper reading, Pat suggests this BBC article, or of course, the book (which has never shown up on the neighbourhood bookshelf yet, but if it does, you will be the first to know.)

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South End Votes: First Answer Posted

Well, the responses are in and I have posted the answers to Question #1 on the South End Votes blog.

So far, 2 mayoralty candidates have not answered our questions, and I think we are missing answers from 2 or 3 candidates for council.

We asked this question, below, because as a diverse and inclusive neighbourhood,  we have often struggled with an overconcentration of low barrier housing.  Perhaps our most well-known facility is the Balmoral (18 residents) run by CMHC.  But we also have the New Hope Centre on our northern boundary (houses about 40 residents, overnite and short-term).  Beyond that are the non-supported operations where the monitoring can often be more by the RCMP than any staff members: former hotels and motels throughout our neighbourhood, including the Value Lodge and the Newport Hotel include another 60+ people.  Then there are the slum landlords renting out substandard housing.

Given the fact that we potentially have well over 100, perhaps closer to 200 hard-to-house folks in our neighbourhood, we’re naturally curious about how other neighbourhoods respond to supporting those who need help.  So we posed the following question to candidates:

1.  Should services and resources to the disadvantaged be spread throughout the city or concentrated in one part of the city?  What is your position regarding the Uplands Supportive Housing Project?

You can read and comment on the responses here.

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Secret society works in stealth to help beautify own neighbourhood

South-end group has several other potential projects planned for their community

Alyson McAndrews, The Daily News

Published: Tuesday, November 08, 2011

South End residents are finding new and creative ways to beautify their community. In the dark. In disguise. When no one would expect it.

Read more.

 

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