Welcome to Lake Flashback. Reporter Sarah Simpson has been combing through old newspapers with the assistance of the Kaatza Station Museum and Archives so we can jog your memory, give you that nostalgic feeling, or just a chuckle, as we take a look at what was making headlines this week around Cowichan Lake in years gone by.
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This week around the Cowichan Lake area…
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10 years ago
"Turning the taps in senior bathing facility" was the front page story of the Lake Cowichan Gazette of Feb. 4, 2015.
"At 90-years-old, Sam Beldessi says there are still a few things he wants to do before he moves on. One of those things is to take a bath. While it was once a fixture for many seniors living in Lake Cowichan, the bathing facility at Evergreen Place Senior Housing has been mostly empty for the past three years. The small room on the first floor is now being used as storage, a home for the building's old microwaves, food processors and bags of shredded paper. The lift chair and bathtub are still there, but with no outside funding, the taps have run dry.
"'Seeing it like this really upsets me,' says Beldessi. 'People in Lake Cowichan have to go to Duncan for bathing now, they have to sit at a bus stop and wait for hours just to take a bath.'
"Though Beldessi wants nothing more than to see the taps turned back on, he says he had mixed feelings when Island Health recently asked him to get the facility back up and running, after the same organization set in motion the wheel that would eventually crush the operation three years ago. Beldessi played a pivotal role in the bathing facility's birth in 2001, publicizing the need for such a facility in Lake Cowichan, and eventually raising the $40,000 necessary for purchasing the bathtub, chairlift and other materials."
In other news of the day, "Lake Days still leaderless" was a page 2 story.
"When he stepped down from the six-year stint on Jan. 20, Lake Days executive chairperson Bob Day was hoping the seat would be filled before too long. Two weeks and two meetings later, the top position for the town's annual summer celebration remains open. As executive chairperson, Day coordinated the Lake Days volunteers and oversaw the week's many events. Though last Saturday's (Jan. 31) meeting saw double the turnout, with eight people, as the Jan. 20 meeting, none of the heads present stepped up to take over the top job. If the Lake Days Society is unable to find another volunteer to take on the position, Day speculated that a paid employee may be hired, which would likely affect the admission price to the event for both residents and visitors alike."
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25 years ago
"Council sets stage for return of Drag Boats" was an exciting headline on the front of the Feb. 2, 2000 Lake Cowichan Gazette.
"They're back. Local organizers have been given the okay to pursue getting Drag Boat Races back on Cowichan Lake this summer. The races were once a staple of summer time events in this area but controversy over policing problems and noise levels led to their cancellation in the late-1980s. As many as 10,000 people were reported to converge on Cowichan Lake during race weekends. The population boom was a boost to local businesses, many of which have been trying to bring the event back since its cancellation. Their efforts found a voice in local drag boat racer Henry Weremi, who has been lobbying to return the races for the past three years."
In other front-page news "Cowichan gets new respect on Highway signs" was also a big one."Where is Cowichan Lake and how do you get here? Unless you're from these parts, there's not a lot of information on the Island Highway to tell motorists that our community of 6000 exists only 20 minutes away. Town Council is hoping to change that by working with the Ministry of Highways to increase the number of signs pointing travellers in our direction. Right now, only one small sign officially names Lake Cowichan as a roadside destination. Another, larger sign stating that Cowichan Lake is "worth the drive" was put up privately."
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40 years ago
On Feb. 6, 1985 the Lake News published "CPR: End of an era".
The Canadian Pacific Rail line to Cowichan Lake is fast becoming a piece of history as work crews speedily lift the last of the rails and ties that bound Lake Cowichan to the wider rail network of the island and the province. The railway lasted 71 years, thus falling far short of the glowing future predicted for it when a rail line to Cowichan Lake was still at the discussion stage.
In the Cowichan Leader of 1908, an enthusiastic writer said, '... the importance of this development can scarcely be underestimated. The building of a railway ensures...the opening of that is believed to be the finest timber valley in this province, a resource which will keep the railway in freight for a century.'
That didn't happen.
Another news story making the front page was: "Public gets last crack at zoning alterations, new community plan."
The general public will get its last chance to speak out on a proposed community plan and zoning bylaw for the Village of Lake Cowichan Feb. 19. The plan, which has taken several years to complete, includes the designation of part of Block 28 as a commercial site, which will allow development of a motor lodge there. Once the hearing is held, and village council takes note of the opinions raised there, the plan and bylaw will go to a council meeting for adoption and then to the municipal affairs ministry for a final signature. The plan states policies and ideas about social, environmental and economic development in the village, while the bylaw contains more specific details about land use.
