Perhaps a name change is exactly what Powell River Regional District needs. Chair Patrick Brabazon brought a proposal to the regional district committee of the whole recently to change the local government’s name to qathet Regional District, after the Tla’amin Nation word meaning “people working together.”
The sentiment is a much-needed one for a regional district that spans such a large area, covering Toba Inlet to Jervis Inlet and partway across the Strait of Georgia.
Brabazon cites an “identity crisis” due to the use of Powell River in the regional district’s name as well as the municipality within it, City of Powell River. The similarity in names causes confusion among different levels of government and with the public, who often mistake the regional district and city for each other.
But the bigger problem stems from the very meaning of the new name. “People working together” is definitely a motto the regional district needs to follow, given that the five different electoral areas and the city have had a difficult time doing so.
Each electoral area is so different from the other and often initiatives and funding requests apply to a specific region.
Regional directors come to the table expected to agree on policy, but when the result doesn’t directly affect their area, the “working together” aspect tends to fall apart.
The regional district includes an immense and diverse region, especially Texada, Savary and Lasqueti islands. Lasqueti isn’t even accessible from the coast, situated between the south end of Texada and Vancouver Island. How can residents of Lasqueti be effectively represented under the same body that represents Lund, for example?
While Brabazon should be commended for consulting Tla’amin officials and suggesting a moniker that better reflects the traditional territory the regional district occupies, the proposed name change will achieve nothing if the meaning of qathet is not followed in practice. Cooperation is key.
A rebranding is a chance for rebirth of the regional district; a new era that better reflects the collaboration needed to run an effective local government.
The local government’s identity crisis runs deeper than a name, but hopefully the change will be the first step to moving forward together.
Jason Schreurs, publisher/editor
