Vancouver Island Party lays out its declaration of independence from BC - Victoria NewsWhat the province of Vancouver Island would want from Canada as the terms for it joining confederation is spelled out in the party’s statement of guiding principles:• A bridge connecting the Island to the mainland• 12 MPs and 10 senators• free or reduced-rate ferries• payment of the Island’s share of the B.C. debt• seawall and dike infrastructure to protect against climate change• a commitment to maintaining the existing military bases• New light-rail systems for greater Victoria, the Nanaimo area, and the Comox Valley, plus reinvestment in the E&N, including an up-Island extension• A highway connecting the Alberni/Bamfield area to the south Island via Cowichan Lake• A Port Alberni shipping hub
The Province of Vancouver Island
#41
Posted 21 June 2016 - 02:25 PM
#42
Posted 21 June 2016 - 03:28 PM
The positions of the party are off the wall. Making a new province is not that bad idea. I would argue there is a good case to split BC into four provinces, but this guy wants Canada to offer a deal to Vancouver Island that is politically from the moon.
10 senators? No chance, 6 would be it
12 MPs? The current formula would give the Island 7, maybe 8 if it was stretched
Feds take over our portion of the provincial debt? Why would they offer to do that?
Fixed link? The cost of that would be off the wall expensive, no fed govt would pay for it
Free or cheap ferries? Why would the feds pay for this?
And then a new highway, a new shipping terminal in Port Alberni, which makes no economic sense, multiple light rail systems, and an upgrade and expansion of the E&N
He is asking from something like $150,000,000,000 from the feds. I assume the new highway, Port Alberni shipping terminal etc would all be paid from by the Vancouver Island government. Another $4 to $8 billion?
I have had some communications with the guy so I believe he is serious, but his approach makes it look like some sort of prank and not a serious idea
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#43
Posted 21 June 2016 - 04:09 PM
The moment I saw "bridge to the mainland" I knew the people invovled in this had no idea what they were talking about. Might as well ask for a space elevator to make port alberni an asteroid mining hub.
#44
Posted 21 June 2016 - 04:46 PM
The moment I saw "bridge to the mainland" I knew the people invovled in this had no idea what they were talking about. Might as well ask for a space elevator to make port alberni an asteroid mining hub.
Ya, the majority of voters here do not want a bridge.
#45
Posted 21 June 2016 - 04:54 PM
Know it all.
Citified.ca is Victoria's most comprehensive research resource for new-build homes and commercial spaces.
#46
Posted 21 June 2016 - 05:02 PM
This guy's logic seems faulty.
#47
Posted 21 June 2016 - 05:16 PM
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#48
Posted 21 June 2016 - 05:29 PM
This would kill Victoria.
Yes, we sometimes do not realize how many provincial government employees we have here.
#49
Posted 21 June 2016 - 07:07 PM
Yes, we sometimes do not realize how many provincial government employees we have here.
Victoria would still be a capital and have a civil service on the order of Nova Scotia or New Brunswick. It will likely be smaller but not dramatically so. Given the housing problems in Victoria, the loss of 20-30% of the civil servants would drive house prices down
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#50
Posted 21 June 2016 - 07:12 PM
The positions of the party are off the wall. Making a new province is not that bad idea. I would argue there is a good case to split BC into four provinces, but this guy wants Canada to offer a deal to Vancouver Island that is politically from the moon.
10 senators? No chance, 6 would be it
12 MPs? The current formula would give the Island 7, maybe 8 if it was stretched
Feds take over our portion of the provincial debt? Why would they offer to do that?
Fixed link? The cost of that would be off the wall expensive, no fed govt would pay for it
Free or cheap ferries? Why would the feds pay for this?
And then a new highway, a new shipping terminal in Port Alberni, which makes no economic sense, multiple light rail systems, and an upgrade and expansion of the E&N
He is asking from something like $150,000,000,000 from the feds. I assume the new highway, Port Alberni shipping terminal etc would all be paid from by the Vancouver Island government. Another $4 to $8 billion?
I have had some communications with the guy so I believe he is serious, but his approach makes it look like some sort of prank and not a serious idea
It's all about negotiation. You don't start out asking for nothing, you ask for the moon and settle for some star dust.
#51
Posted 21 June 2016 - 07:20 PM
Fixed link? The cost of that would be off the wall expensive, no fed govt would pay for it
We should offer to become a state if the Americans will build a fixed link.
#52
Posted 21 June 2016 - 07:55 PM
We should offer to become a state if the Americans will build a fixed link.
It'd be easier to build a link to the US, I think. Much shorter.
#53
Posted 21 June 2016 - 07:55 PM
And the guns, think of the guns.
#54
Posted 21 June 2016 - 09:26 PM
The moment I saw "bridge to the mainland" I knew the people invovled in this had no idea what they were talking about. Might as well ask for a space elevator to make port alberni an asteroid mining hub.
My recollection here is vague and may be faulty because its been years since I read an engineering report on the subject, but I thought - whatever VI residents think or want completely aside - more recent engineering studies concluded building a fixed link would be virtually technically impossible due to the open water currents, the depth of the Georgia Str - er, "Salish Sea" - the composition of the sea floor, not to mention the need to build any structure to be able to withstand the Big One etc......
#55
Posted 21 June 2016 - 09:40 PM
My recollection here is vague and may be faulty because its been years since I read an engineering report on the subject, but I thought - whatever VI residents think or want completely aside - more recent engineering studies concluded building a fixed link would be virtually technically impossible due to the open water currents, the depth of the Georgia Str - er, "Salish Sea" - the composition of the sea floor, not to mention the need to build any structure to be able to withstand the Big One etc......
you are talking the most expensive bridge ever, but those studies said was ;possible
#56
Posted 22 June 2016 - 06:00 AM
Jack Knox has his take on the new party in todays TC
While listening to Victoria’s Robin Richardson talk about his new political party, a thought springs to mind: How many separatist movements does Vancouver Island need?
There was the shadowy Sovereign State of Vancouver Island faction that emerged, briefly, in 2013 to demand that we get a divorce from the rest of Canada.
That was also the year the unrelated Vancouver Island Province group popped up with a petition calling for our Pacific paradise to become Canada’s 11th province.
Now we have a third organization, the Vancouver Island Party, officially unveiled today. It also seeks provincehood.
- See more at: http://www.timescolo...h.5wXZSALf.dpuf
#57
Posted 22 June 2016 - 07:24 AM
Are there any other areas of Canada with similar politics (other than Quebec, of course?)
#58
Posted 22 June 2016 - 10:54 AM
I'm sure lots have them, all similar non-entities that only get local press over how ridiculous they are.
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#59
Posted 22 June 2016 - 11:28 AM
OK, the guy is on the air at CFAX and sounds less sane than what is on the website
- jonny likes this
#60
Posted 22 June 2016 - 11:40 AM
you are talking the most expensive bridge ever, but those studies said was ;possible
Here's the 'latest' on the MoT website:
http://www2.gov.bc.c...land/fixed-link
What I take away from all of that is that while it might be technically possible, it's pushing the bounds of engineering (do we really want to spend billions on an unproven design? JSB, anyone?) and the costs might make taking the ferry appear very reasonable indeed...
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