VILLAGE NEWS

VILLAGE NEWS HOT TOPICS....

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LionsBayArt and Garden Festival - August 15, 2010

We have had a great response from Lions Bay gardeners and artists alike to participate in our Art and Garden Festival to be held Sunday, August 15th from 11:00 am until 5:30 pm.

Odlum Brown Limited, sponsors of the Harmony Arts Festival being held in West Vancouver, July 30th to August 8th have graciously agreed to be our presenting sponsor for our 2010 Lions Bay Art and Garden Festival. We thank them for their support.

We currently have 12 beautiful and unique gardens with 14 local artists ranging from painters to jewelers to sculptors. What an amazing amount of artistic talent we have in our community!

Supervised children's art events are planned so that parents may tour the gardens and view the artists work while their kids are having a great art experience.

The Village Hall will be the communication and service hub for the event. You can pick up your tour maps, buy refreshments and use the washrooms. We also will have some interesting garden and art displays for your interest while you are milling around.

We are currently working out parking for the event with the possibility of a shuttle service that will circulate through the garden tour route throughout the day.

The Festival will culminate with closure of the gardens at 4:00 pm followed by a wine reception at the home of Ute Philips and Peter Wreglesworth at 180 Highview Place. The reception will be an opportunity to mingle and enjoy the company of gardeners, artists and Festival attendees alike.

A reminder that sensible shoes will make your garden experience safer and more enjoyable.

Please circle August 15th on your calendar and join us for an inspiring art and garden experience

MISSING DOGS AND CATS

It has been noted that there have been quite a few missing dogs and cats in the area this past couple of weeks. We are all aware that we live in a wilderness area where predatory wildlife live and these missing animals could be a sign of animal like a coyote, cougar or bear are actively hunting in Lions Bay.

If you are confronted with an aggressive wild animal that causes you distress or you feel threatened, please phone the 'RAPP' 24/7 line who reports to the Conservation Officers' Service at 1-877-952-7277. After the incident is cleared and you are safe, please report your experience to the Village Office for our records and so we can notify other residents, schools and committees of the sighting.

As soon as you notice your dog or cat is missing, immediately check around your home and neighborhood, keep an eye out for wildlife, ask friends and neighbors if they have seen your dog or cat and if so, when and where.

If your dog or cat doesn't turn up after an initial search, below are some other suggestions to locate your missing animal:

Place notices, preferably with a picture of your missing dog or cat, at the post office, local stores and on Village notice boards. As a courtesy to others, please remove these notices once your pet is found.
Talk to your neighbors, the Village Office and especially the children who play in your neighborhood to see if they have seen your dog or cat.
Check the lost and found classified advertisements in local newspapers or online media source.
Place your own advertisements in the lost and found sections of local newspapers.
Don't give up. Sometimes a lost dog or cat will show up days or weeks later.

BEARS IN THE VILLAGE

If you are confronted with a bear situation that causes you distress or you feel threatened, please phone the 'RAPP' 24/7 line who reports to the Conservation Officers' Service: 1-877-952-7277

Residents are reminded to keep their garbage stored properly, hummingbird & birdseed feeders out of reach of bears, BBQ's kept clean, pets fed indoors and fridges/freezers stored indoors. For more information regarding keeping Lions Bay bears wild and the Village's Bear Smart Commitee, click on the 'Bear Smart' page.

Invasive Species – Giant Hogweed Notice - Report from Village Works Department

On Friday, June 25^th, 2010, the Village of Lions Bay Works Department was fortunate enough to have a crew from the Invasive Species Group (ISG) visit the Village. The ISG eradicated the obvious patches of Giant Hogweed that was growing at Kelvin Grove Parking lot, Mountain Drive between 300 and 380 towards Timbertop and as well, on Bayview Road on either side of the school roadway. The ISG crew was very informative, thorough in their process and documented all their procedures. The Works Department will continue to update the ISG as to how the areas worked on, are progressing and continue the relationship for any new sightings. Should anyone see pink ribbon in the vegetation on Mountain Drive, it is because the ISG marked other invasive species for information purposes.

It is the Works Department’s goal to notify residents of the detrimental effects of the liquid produced from these plants on ones skin and eyes. Exposure from the liquid when the Giant Hogweed are cut will burn the skin, can leave lasting scars, injuries are more intense when exposed to sunlight and can cause blindness when it hits the eye. There are very simple, yet strict procedures to removing this species of plant:

1) Personal protective gear is mandatory consisting of heavy chemical resistant gloves, white non-absorbent chemical resistant coveralls, chemical resistant rubber boots, chemical face shield and duct tape (chemical resistant is necessary due to the corrosive nature of the weeds’ fluid).

2) Have the lower part of coveralls inside rubber boots and tape securely to boot and tuck the coverall sleeves snugly in to the protective gloves sealed with duct tape.

3) Use a hood to protect the head and use a face shield.

4) With a set of loppers, remove the top section of the plant and put into thick heavy duty garbage bag, continue down the stock every 2 feet including leaves. Everything goes into the bag and if the bag is ripped, place it inside another bag. Double bagging is recommended.

5) When the bottom of the plant is reached, use a spade to go around the root (it is much like a carrot type of root vegetation) and remove as much of the root as possible in to the bag.

6) Ensure NO liquid leaks from the bag and take to the local dump.

7) Cover the root hole with fill dirt and keep the area shaded (you can add shade providing plants to grow above this area), mark the area and monitor for long term success.

8) DO NOT FOR ONE MINUTE TAKE THIS PROCESS LIGHTLY, THE LIQUID WILL INJURE YOU.

9) DO NOT USE A POWER CUTTER OF ANY SORT ON THIS WEED.

10) WASH ALL TOOLS AND CLOTHING THOROUGHLY AFTER WORK IS COMPLETED

If you do not have the equipment nor the ability to safely remove this plant, DO NOT ATTEMPT TO REMOVE THE PLANT, hire a professional with the experience dealing with the Giant Hogweed.

Mountain Drive Tennis Courts Work

Sent on behalf of Chuck Partridge, Works Manager

Over the course of the past 6 weeks, the Village Works Crew has done the following pre work for the resurfacing of the tennis courts on Mountain.

Over 50 trees were marked for trimming or outright removal for safety and then removed. Additional trees were topped or removed and this has allowed the sun to dry the court properly.

After reviewing the water flow from the water springs located above the tennis court, the decision was made to divert the water and thereby reduce the erosion on the cliff face. This has been closely monitored for 2 to 3 weeks to ensure this was the correct process. With the exception of a minor tweak to this system, we believe we will be able capture 95% of the water that has been allowed to flow under the South-Eastern end of the court.

To complete this work it was necessary to have the excavator in the trail area. A new trail has been discovered and work on this new trail will begin in accordance with the Trails Committee’s schedule.

Further water diversion work is required at the top of the trail at Sunset to eliminate a breeding area for mosquitoes.

The reasons for a new trail are twofold, one for safety and one for visual stimulus. The old trail was slippery and steep and proved to be quite dangerous once the trees had been cleared closer to the courts. The drop off of 40 – 50 feet to the court surface required a safety fence which would further take away from the look of a natural trail.

Further work will level the southern entry to the court and this will allow the area to used for teaching and watching matches. Drainage will be checked on to ensure the integrity of the water diversion and adjustments made as Mother Nature sees fit to test us.

Road base will be distributed over the “drive up” area off the driveway to 295 Mountain. But it is not to be used for parking at anytime other than Public Works related projects going forward.

Thank you for your attention.

Village Update, Newsletters & Notices:

July 2010 Community Calendar

May 28, 2010 Village Update

Previous Village Updates and Issues:

June 2010 Village Calendar

May Community Calendar

April 2010 Community Calendar

March 2010 Meetings

March 8, 2010 Village Update

January 18, 2010

2010 Community Recreation & Leisure Facilities Questionnaire