By Transition Salt Spring Elections & Candidates, Local News – October 7, 2026 on the Salt Spring Exchange. See the original post here.
All 5 candidates running for Islands Trust Trustee responded to a Community Resiliency questionnaire sent by Transition Salt Spring and the Farmland Trust. See below their responses to Q2 on Housing Density. (Overall survey: https://transitionsaltspring.com/election-2026-questions/)
Q2. Housing Density: Over 80% of housing on Salt Spring consists of single-family detached homes—double the regional average. This type of housing contributes to sprawl. Increasing housing density into already serviced villages cuts the driving, land clearing and ecosystem impacts, and infrastructure sprawl that add to Salt Spring’s carbon footprint, taxes and climate risk exposure, while also creating more affordable housing options.
Will you ensure the revised Salt Spring Official Community Plan (OCP) directs most new residential zoning capacity into Ganges and other existing serviced villages, rather than continuing to expand into rural and forested areas? (YES, NO, WITH QUALIFICATIONS)
Robin Jenkinson: YES Village living is great! Our choice to live in Ganges allows me and my children to walk and cycle to schools and services. More affordable housing, restored natural areas and access, and an improved village square would make it even better. I support directing most new residential zoning capacity to Ganges and, where water, infrastructure and ecological capacity allow, Fulford and Vesuvius. This doesn’t eliminate existing build-out rights on approximately 1,600 vacant lots. Site-specific rezonings and density transfers could support village projects, reducing build-out in rural areas. Importantly, any OCP review must honestly assess unauthorized rural dwellings. Good intentions and their associated income cannot replace fair rules, safe construction, adequate water and wastewater, or ecological limits. I support a fair compliance pathway for suitable units, with tenant protections.
Eric March: YES Shifting our existing land use planning from the luxury rural sprawl we are currently allowing to attainable workforce density in and around villages and amenities is going to be essential for our community’s survival. I believe we need to build housing near services, amenities, places of employment, shops, and transit routes in order to promote sustainable lifestyles and sustainable land use.
Ethan Wilding: YES I support directing most new residential zoning capacity into Ganges and other existing village areas where water, wastewater, and safe access can support it. I would advance that direction through amendments to OCP Bylaw 434 and Land Use Bylaw 355, prioritizing suitable, already-cleared land near services. Village locations still need assessment for flooding, shoreline hazards, and sensitive habitat. Compact apartments, townhouses, and smaller accessible homes can give people more choices while reducing pressure on forests and farmland. I also support suites and cottages outside villages where properties can safely accommodate them. Concentrating most new capacity and making better use of existing homes can work together.
Bryan Young: YES The Trust inherited rural zoning that allows sprawl to continue unchecked. As trustee I propose to: -Make our village-focused growth policy real: allow an added serviced dwelling on suitable village lots, and permit apartments above shops without rezoning in Ganges.-Keep village growth out of Ganges sea-level-rise risk areas. -Redirect subdivision to the LTC instead of to the Province, and requiring lot by lot rezoning. -Better use density transfers to shift rural density into villages, and downzoning high-risk or ecologically critical land. -Allow additional storeys as was done for the Drake Road housing project to take up less land. -Conserve more natural areas by requiring residential structures to be located closer to the road, allowing easier access to first responders. Curtailing development outside of serviced areas makes it easier to protect our forests.
Gary Holman: YES I will retain current OCP policies and make land use decisions that direct new housing development in or near villages or public transit routes. In considering development proposals, I will prioritize our very limited water and sewage treatment capacity for affordable housing. It is equally important to direct any new development away from, and strengthen protection for sensitive ecosystems and drinking water resources (eg, from clearcutting and wildfire) with regulatory tools such as Development Permit Areas (DPAs) enforced with ticketing penalties. As also supported by our current OCP, I will approve rezoning proposals that protect (eg, with conservation covenants) and transfer housing density from more remote areas to ‘receiving areas’ in or near villages and transit routes.