Designed to enhance community engagement, ASK Salt Spring weekly gatherings bring together diverse groups to discuss challenges and find solutions. While admittedly hard to believe, according to MP Elizabeth May, ASK Salt Spring is the only such weekly forum in Canada. 

In 2025, ASK Salt Spring hosted 41 gatherings welcoming numerous guests from various levels of government including MP Elizabeth May, MLA Rob Botterell, Island Health, BC Ferries CEO Nicholas Jimenez, BC Seniors Advocate Dan Levitt, Owen Page of the Ministry of Transportation and Transit, and Local Community Commissioners. 

Community guests included teams from Lookout Housing and Health Society, Gulf Islands Residence Association (GISRA), School District 64 staff and Trustees, Islanders Working Against Violence (IWAV), Lady Minto Hospital Foundation, Restorative Justice, Cats of Salt Spring, Mental Wellness Initiative, Cohousing Advocates, Primary Care Network, Island Community Clinic Society, The Salt Spring Foundation, Chuan Society, Arts Council, Transition Salt Spring Economic Co-Op (TSSECC), Hands Across the Water, Farmland Trust, our Library, GIFTS/Diverse Village, wildlife experts from a variety of organizations, and many others. 

For more details about these 2025 gatherings, please read the 41 2025 reports as well as the 246 reports since ASK Salt Spring began on October 4, 2019 at asksaltspring.com.

Welcoming over 500 Salt Springers to these 2025 gatherings, all reports were published by the Salt Spring Exchange and included in their newsletter that is sent to over 8,000 subscribers. While numbers participating each week varied dramatically, readership of these reports on the Exchange remains high.

Key 2025 themes were:

• Housing: Discussions focused on providing homes for those needing subsidized housing as well as worker housing. The focus of these discussions was on affordable housing units like Drake Road, Croftonbrook, Heartwood House (formerly SeaBreeze Inne), and the proposed Kings Lane and Norton Road projects. Conversations also explored less traditional routes like rooming houses, shared housing, and below-market purchased housing like the Brinkworthy model. While funding was generally accepted as the biggest hurdle to providing more housing, the need for changes to regulations was also discussed. 

• A Kinder Community: The need for Salt Spring to build a “Culture of Care,” by sharing and listening to community stories and learning to address grief together was a frequent theme at ASK Salt Spring gatherings. Chuan’s newest project, Phoenix Landing, was celebrated as an important step toward supporting our most vulnerable. The second Friday of every month, the Restorative Justice Team lead community conversations designed to help us address difficult topics with empathy and compassion. 

• Infrastructure: The often disruptive challenges of significant road construction, progress with the new firehall, and North Salt Spring Waterworks District (NSSWD) partial moratorium suspension were discussed. The wisdom of reducing speed limits on Fulford-Ganges as well as expanding the current 30 km speed limit in Ganges was also explored. The imminent release of our first ever Ganges Crosswalk study was applauded. Concerns about BC Ferries’ decision to berth both proposed new ships in Crofton generated a great deal of concern.

• Health: The exciting news of the proposed team-based Community Health Centre on Salt Spring was lauded as very good news, balancing oft-repeated concerns about too many Salt Springers without doctors, long waits for specialists and mental health services, and healthcare gaps for those with special needs.   

• Seniors’ Care: The need for better models to support seniors to stay at home, get the in home care they need, provide better support for caregivers, and expand/enhance long term care facilities were explored. 

• Local Governance: Frustration with the seeming inability of our local government to get things done quickly was a recurring ASK Salt Spring theme. The Islands Trust Official Community Plan (OCP) review, the important advocacy role of our MLA Rob Botterell (our guest the first Friday of the month), and the accomplishments/challenges of our new Local Community Commission were discussed frequently, a common thread woven into many ASK Salt Spring discussions.

Collaborative, community-driven solutions in 2025 ASK Salt Spring conversations included: 

Housing: The exploration of the zoning, infrastructure (water/sewer as well as road/transit), funding, and regulatory modifications needed to build more housing in Ganges was a common ASK Salt Spring theme. A renewed push to convince the province to allow us to charge a Speculation and Vacancy Tax was supported by many. The need for more density in villages balanced by preserving our rural character and protecting our environment was another recurring theme. A desire for more collaborative initiatives among the local government to achieve this success was cited often. Many supported the establishment of an organization to reduce reliance on government funding by soliciting private funding for predevelopment, construction, and maintenance costs.

A Kinder Community: To make a difference, it was suggested that we donate to nonprofits addressing the needs of our most vulnerable like Lookout Housing and Health Society, Chuan Society, the Mental Wellness Initiative, Islanders Working Against Violence (IWAV), Community Services, the Goodwill Ambassador Program, and Copper Kettle/Wagon Wheel. If you are a health practitioner, volunteer for Reach Out Salt Spring. All of us can share and listen to each others’ stories, building that caring fabric of our community. And, be kind.  

Infrastructure: You can enhance our road safety by driving within the speed limit, stopping whenever there is a pedestrian in a crosswalk, moving your car off the road when snow is expected, and alerting EMCON when you see a hazard (1-866-353-3136) 

Health: Register with Health Connect if you do not have a doctor and suggest others do so as well. Not only are those on the list being assigned doctors but accurate statistics of how many Salt Springers need doctors has an impact on the funding we get from Island Health. Donate to the Lady Minto Hospital Foundation’s Primary Care Fund, so that they can reach their target of raising $3.5 million for our team-based Community Health Centre.

Senior Care: ASK Salt Spring reports emphasized the need for a senior action plan to identify needs, funding, and develop a “Made on Salt Spring” model that meets the needs of our seniors. These reports also suggest the need to support community-led initiatives for aging in place, expanded adult day programs, help for family caregivers, and advocacy for more home health care workers. Reports also suggested more support for successful programs like Community Services’ Housing First, Better at Home, and its Senior Navigator. It was also noted that our community should advocate for expanded and enhanced long term care facilities.

Local Government: Collaborative, community-driven solutions to enhance our local government placed a strong emphasis on interagency initiatives in which Islands Trust, Local Community Commission, and our Improvement Districts work together to achieve successful implementation of priority projects. Other community actions included attending Local Trust and Local Community Commission meetings, informing yourself through local media like the Salt Spring Exchange, Gulf Islands Driftwood, and CHIR.fm radio station, consider running for election in the October 17, 2026 election, and come to ASK Salt Spring gatherings to ask your locally elected officials questions and engage in productive dialogue with them. 

As this is only a brief overview of some of 2025 ASK Salt Spring conversations, you can get lots more detail in the many reports at asksaltspring.com.

Anticipating an information-rich and productive array of interesting topics in 2026, please join the conversation every Friday, 11-1, in the SIMS (former Middle School) classroom next to the Boardroom. 

Just in case you are interested. . . .This report has been written by Gayle Baker, founder of ASK Salt Spring, currently also a Salt Spring Local Community Commissioner.