2024 PHARA AGM Recap
The 2024 Annual General Meeting of the Pender Harbour and Area Residents Association (PHARA) was held immediately following the April 30 Town Hall at the Community Hall. PHARA is pleased to welcome Brent Mulhall and Scott Topham as newly elected directors. Also re-elected to two-year terms were President Peter Robson, Vice-President Suzanne Yuile, Director Bill […]
The 2025 Volunteer Awards: Two Women of Distinction
At our recent Town Hall, PHARA and the Pender Harbour Rotary Club were proud to honour Lyn Charlton as the 2025 Volunteer of the Year and Linda Curtiss with the Lifetime Achievement Award. Thanks to the Pender Harbour Rotary Club for their partnership in the awards. 2025 VOLUNTEER OF THE YEAR PHARA President Peter Robson […]
Government Says Land Act Amendments Not Coming Back, but Filing in BC Supreme Court Seems to Say Otherwise
On March 20, 2025, the BC Government held an information session on the recently released addendum to the shíshálh Nation / BC Foundation Agreement. PHARA representatives attended and understood the government to say it will NOT be pursuing a joint/ consent decision-making agreement with the shíshálh Nation (under Section 7 of the DRIPA) for docks and instead will continue to use “shared” decision making as […]
BC Government Agrees to Negotiate Aboriginal Title on Sunshine Coast
DEAL SIGNED BEFORE ELECTION BUT WITHHELD FROM PUBLIC. Two months before the last provincial election, the BC government signed an updated agreement with the shíshálh Nation to negotiate Aboriginal title and to explore “exclusive” decision-making by the shíshálh Nation. The agreement was withheld from the public for six months – until well after the election. […]
Government’s Request for Dock “Self-Registration”
Recently, the PHARA Board has been contacted by several members regarding a government email requesting the voluntary “self-registration” of docks. We have sought clarification from the government on this matter. • Click Here to read the letter we sent to Minister Cullen on September 19.• Click Here to read the Ministry’s response from November 14. Key Observations: 1. No […]
PHARA Addresses Housing Needs with the SCRD
The following letter was sent to the SCRD by the PHARA board on January 21. These proposed measures would empower homeowners and developers to be part of the solution and ensure that infrastructure improvements align with community growth. Read the letter
PHARA Hosts All Candidates Forum
A packed house at the Pender Harbour Legion on Oct. 8 set the stage for a spirited all-candidates’ debate hosted by PHARA. The four candidates vying for the Powell River–Sunshine Coast seat tackled key issues, with much of the discussion focused on the contentious Dock Management Plan (DMP) and the province’s Declaration on the Rights […]
PHARA’s Responds to Docks & Boathouses Self Registration
A letter was emailed by the Pender Harbour and Area Residents Association on Thursday, September 19, 2024 to Nathan Cullen, Minister of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship, Deputy Minister Lori Halls and Premier David Eby. We received a response from the Province November 14, 2024. Dear Minister Cullen, The Pender Harbour and Area Residents Association […]
PHARA Challenges BC’s Reconciliation Law
A petition has been filed in BC Supreme Court, challenging the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (DRIPA). That is the law the BC government uses to implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) in BC. The petition was filed by the Pender Harbour and Area Residents Association […]
PHARA Challenges Constitutional Validity of B.C.’s Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (DRIPA)
After extensive deliberations and exclusion from government negotiations with the shíshálh Nation, the Pender Harbour and Area Residents Association (PHARA) board has instructed its legal counsel, McMillan LLP, to file proceedings in B.C. Supreme Court. PHARA will ask the court to rule that the DRIPA is beyond the province’s constitutional power and that Order in […]