Welcome to Lake Flashback. Reporter Lexi Bainas has been combing through oldnewspaperswiththeassistance 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 weekaround Cowichan Lake in years gone by.
This week around the Cowichan Lake area…
10 years ago:
Let’s talk real estate!
A decade ago there were still some bargains for sale in the Cowichan Lake area.
Checking out the Lake Cowichan Gazette of Oct. 8, 2008, we see many listings for homes at under $300,000. No wonder everyone was moving to the Lake!
Try this: “This two-bedroom and den home has lots of potential. Large kitchen with plenty of room for a growing family. Beautiful hand-crafted wood stairs to the basement…Did we mention the garden? Lots of room to grow your veggies on the sunny side of Youbou on this .25 acre property. $235,000.”
And how about: “Up & down duplex: revenue producer; live in the top and rent out the bottom. Renter in place at $650 per month, including utilities. This is a very solid home with a big double garage, workshop in the back, lots of concrete, garden area if needed all on a big 60 ft by 147 ft lot. Only a 5 minute walk to downtown Lake Cowichan and all stores. Woodstove downstairs is vented to upstairs and provides excellent heating. Big savings on your fuel costs! $259,900.”
And one more, right downtown: “If privacy is what you want, then look no further. The lot has lots of trees, a quiet grove to sit, fencing and a lovely garden area. The double-wide mobile has 2 bedrooms, built-in stove top & oven and wood stove to keep you warm in winter. $189,900.”
25 years ago:
Although the front page of The Lake News of Oct. 13, 1993 was mainly taken up with declarations by mayoralty candidates, Earle Darling and Pat Foster, there was also an unusual item near the bottom of the page.
Entitled “Youbou referendum coming: on fire dept”, it really caught the eye.
“Youbou residents will be asked to take part in a referendum on the proposed fire department during the municipal elections in November,” the story said.
“John Ward, director of Area I, says the referendum will provide the voters answer to the proposed $740K fire department. It is needed to replace the service Fletcher Challenge [forest company] provided up to now.
He said a meeting is to be held this week with Fletcher Challenge Canada Ltd. “to tie down the property and the access road”.
Not all voters in Area I will take part in the referendum. Only those who will be taxed for the new service will vote on it.
Meanwhile, Darling was running on his record, seeking another term as mayor of Lake Cowichan.
“I am very pleased with council’s record of progress and community involvement the past three years. A number of programs and initiatives undertaken by council will have long range benefits for Lake Cowichan,” he said.
Examples included the Ohtaki exchange, the log cabin industry at Meade Creek, and the international student program in the school district, he said.
Foster, who had already served as a school trustee and a village councillor, said she “wanted to make sure development is controlled and well-planned to ensure that in the future the quality of life we now enjoy will be retained.”
She called for a regular program of paving streets and fixing sidewalks as well as “everything she can do to ensure our lake stays clean.”
40 years ago:
“Election fever slow starting” says the headline of The Lake News of Oct. 11, 1978.
“With the close of nominations two weeks away, elections for village council and school board positions are good possibilities but two vacancies on the board of the Cowichan Valley Regional District could be harder to fill.
Both Ald. Ernie Burns and Hazel Elves have decided to seek another term on village council and both are calling for spending restraint in Lake Cowichan.
Burns said the village borrowing power “is down to zero” because of the large debt the community incurred when it built a new sewage system, and that he couldn’t support major projects such as the proposed civic centre, which, he said, “is not as pressing” as water and road improvements.
Elves, “completing her first term after several unsuccessful attempts to land a council seat, supports keeping the mill rate down” and keeping out of “extravagent” projects such as the new civic centre, the paper said.
In the village and rural school board contest, at least one opening for a trustee still exists. Although declared candidates agree that declining enrolment is a problem school boards will have to deal with for years to come.
That last sentence proved to be true over and over again.