The General Meeting that was held on October 1^st, 2025 ran for over four hours and still did not manage to get through everything on the agenda. We don’t normally make editorial comments, but we will make one here: the GFPID Board needs to find a way to get through meetings more quickly, or start holding more meetings.

This post summarizes what happened and indicates some areas of contention. It provides timestamps (which may not be precise) from the official video recording of the meeting so that you can fill yourself in on anything of interest.

PLEASE NOTE that while meeting packages (agenda, minutes, supplemental materials) are provided on the Upcoming Meetings page, these packages are removed and no longer available after the meeting is held. 

For your convenience, we are providing a key indicating the character of different segments.

🌿 efficient and reasonably collegial

🐌  took a long time to get there

🌀 confusion

🔥 disagreements

🎆 drama

Housekeeping items

1. Call to order, acknowledgement of the Snuneymuxw First Nation on whose traditional territory this meeting takes place.
2. Introduction of late agenda items and adoption of agenda

• • Addition to New Business: discussion of overtime policy
  • Include correspondence from Ryan St Pierre to Correspondence
  • Debate on budget extracted from Finance Committee report and added as 4^th item under Unfinished Business

3. Adoption of September 3, 2025, General Meeting Minutes

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CORRESPONDENCE 🌿

[00:08:50] Correspondence (included in meeting package) received and referred to Communications Committee for initial response: letters from Ryan St Pierre and John Lewis were received but the correpondence was not included in the meeting package.

NOTE: the cutoff for including correspondence for a specific meeting is now 9 am one week before that General Meeting. Correspondence not received by deadline will be included with material for the subsequent meeting.

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FINANCIAL REPORT 🌿

[00:11:30] July 2025 Financial Statement (Corporate Officer) received

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COMMITTEE REPORTS

Finance Committee

[00:12:45] Report by Committee Chair Chorneyko. Next open meeting October 22, 2 pm (topic will mostly be internal controls).

Disagreement as to whether recommendations that affect the budget should be dealt with here or under budget discussions; because the recommendations come from the Finance Committee they are dealt with under this report.

Recommendations from the Finance Committee:

[00:14:15] MOTION: that the board accept the recommendation of the finance committee to allocate $10,000 in the budget for the 2026 election. CARRIED 6/1. 🐌

Extensive discussion. The higher allocation is intended to pay for an advance poll, which many citizens have expressed a desire for, but policy 24-09, which is in the GFPID Handbook of Governing Policies (adopted February 7^th 2024),  prohibits advance polling. (The specific policy document is linked from the FAQ page rather than in a page relating to policies). Trustee Chorneyko (Finance Committee chair) notes that policy can be changed and recommends putting the money in the budget and amending the policy later. Trustee Moher wants to analyze return on cost of advance polling and is concerned that volunteers may no longer be available to handle a second day (the budget assumes volunteers will not be available).

[00:26:00] MOTION: That the Board accept the terms of reference for the Finance Committee. CARRIED. 🌿

[00:28:10] MOTION: That the Board ratify the decision to hire Carol Waldo in the position of administrative support for the Corporate Officer.  CARRIED. 🌿 (The contract is open-ended.)

[00:29:40] MOTION: That the board allocate $50,000 in the 2026 budget for fractional Human Resources support. DEFEATED 3/4 🐌  🔥

(Fractional HR = hiring experienced human resources professionals on a part-time/contract basis, providing access to HR expertise without the costs associated with a full-time HR department.) Extensive discussion, with many strong opinions with regard to accessing HR services and resources, and even with regard to the community as a whole.

NOTE: Trustee Chorneyko mentioned that in consulting re free resources he was pointed by WorkSafe BC to the BC government’s Promote Respect in the Workplace webpage.

[00:49:30] MOTION: that the board accept the Finance Committee’s recommendation to secure a $100,000 operating tax advance against the 2026 levy. CARRIED 5/2. 🐌  🔥

Extensive discussion. Although budget years follow the calendar year, the levy for any given year is normally paid out in June, which creates challenges when expenses are higher than forecast and money runs out before the next levy is received. An advance entails costs of approximately $1500, but is intended to provide a buffer against shortfalls. The use of such an advance was strongly supported by staff member Carol Waldo, who provides administrative support relating to finances to the Corporate Officer.

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Communications Committee

[1:05:39] 🐌 🌀

Report by Committee Chair Moher. No correspondence has been responded to since July. Templates for standardized responses (which appear to have not yet been shared with the Board) have been created, and pending correspondence has been tagged for appropriate template responses.

MOTION that the Corporate Officer be given permission to respond to correspondence using the responses developed by the Communications Committee, and that communications will be dealt with by the CC and CO at the conclusion of each general meeting.

Extensive discussion, much resulting from confusion about the process for responding because the process referred to the Committee is not exactly what the terms of reference provided in a previous meeting laid out. It is clarified that letters requesting action would be acknowledged and referred to committees, the Board, or the Chief as applicable, and acknowledgements will be cc’d to the addressed recipient.

MOTION to table this motion until after the Correspondence policy is discussed later in the agenda. CARRIED.

NOTE: the relevant part of the agenda was not reached and discussions will therefore be moved to next month’s agenda.

Hiring Committee

[1:23:40]  🔥🐌

Report by Committee Chair Johnson regarding the hiring of a Corporate Officer. See draft job description, ad, job posting, and time management policy in the meeting package. Extensive discussion. The Chair and Trustees Bussler and Chorneyko disagree with the proposed reporting structure, and base framework in terms of hours and their management.

MOTION that the Board accept the job description, job posting, time management policy, and hiring ad and that the Board move forward with the hiring process. CARRIED 4/3 (For - Appel, Johnson, Moher, Moeller; Against - Bussler, Chorneyko and Mercier)

Website Committee

[1:46:15] Report by Chair Appel submitted in written form in meeting package.   🌿

Policy Review Select Committee

Placeholder listing to keep the item on the Agenda.

Freedom of Information Response Select Committee

Per minutes of July 2nd meeting, the Select Committee was due to report to this meeting.

MOTION to extend the deadline to the October meeting was CARRIED.

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CHIEF'S REPORT

[1:49:30] 🐌

Verbal presentation, no written submission in package.

Trustee Bussler requested that the Chief put more information in written submissions to the Board to document necessary information and avoid the need for discussions clarifying details.

MOTION: that the GFPID allocate $25k from 2025 deployment funds, $25k from capital reserves for Equipment, and $30k from 2025 SOS income, a mix of rental and coursework, for the purpose of purchasing auto extraction equipment per the quote received from Associated Fire Safety on October 1^st, 2025. CARRIED

Re the above motion, Trustee Chorneyko raised issues of liquidity and need to prioritize replacement of turnout gear given that legislation regarding the latter is in the works. Trustee Moeller noted that the Chief has brought forward simultaneous proposals to replace auto extraction gear, turnout gear, and the command vehicle, and asked if we can afford all three or if it will cause GFPID will run out before the next levy.

Answers: the vehicle costs would draw on the capital reserve fund for trucks, which has money in it. Auto extraction funds exist though some are not yet allocated. Funds are already allocated for some turnout gear in 2025 and 2026. GFPID should be able to acquire the equipment without running out of money. Turnout gear replacement is being written into 2026 plan, but because that legislation has not yet been passed (first reading was in 2024 and it has not advanced further), the scheduling in the proposal for the first stage of replacement (25%) happening by January 1st 2026 will likely be revised. Some funding is available to help with turnout gear costs. GFPID will get GST back.

MOTION: that the GFPID direct the Gabriola Volunteer Fire Department to pursue the UBCM 2026 Next Generation 911 grant for mobile terminals for vehicles. CARRIED

MOTION: that the new command vehicle be electric. (The motion did not proceed to discussion because there was no seconder.)

TRAINING REPORT

[2:14:00] 🌿

(Deputy Chief) Included report from September meeting because that meeting was adjourned with business outstanding. On request, described deployment to Wesley Ridge fire.

Association Report

[2:18:15] 🌿

Preparing to provide fireworks for Halloween.

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BUSINESS ARISING FROM THE MINUTES and UNFINISHED BUSINESS

Report from the In Camera meeting held on September 17^TH 🌿

[2:18:40] The meeting was held to discuss legal and personnel matters. Resolutions passed:

RESOLUTION: that trustees are entitled to access district records and information subject to a privacy management program.

CHAIR: We're currently working on a privacy management program starting off with an audit of the records, which is the first step in establishing one; there are deficits in the historical record keeping practices of the improvement district, and it is not obvious where or how private information is stored, who has access and whether historical information is kept secure. Critically, the archive of in camera minutes does not appear to have been well maintained. There are some digital records, but the signed legal documentation seems to be absent or poorly maintained, and as that may contain confidential information, it's necessary that we audit our records.

RESOLUTION: that the corporate officer must provide records and information upon request in a timely manner.

RESOLUTION: that the fire chief and corporate officer are employees of the board and accountable to it.

RESOLUTION: that a protocol be established for the chair and trustees to review banking information using district resources, not personal resources.

CHAIR: At present, trustees Moher and Moeller approve transactions remotely using their personal computers, and there is no means for any trustee to access financial information otherwise, and this seems like a lapse in diligence and security to have such a high degree of informality around financial approvals.

RESOLUTION: that staff be directed to separate the employees personnel records from District records. [Note; process is underway.]

RESOLUTION: that the trustees be shown the district's files on September 23 2025 at 2:30pm

CHAIR: that took place, and that was the first opportunity for the trustees to examine the hard copy records of the district. There appear, in my opinion, to be serious shortfalls in the completeness of the records. Notably, there do not seem to be signed copies of in camera meeting minutes, nor is there a complete record of correspondence, resolutions or contract considerations. Digital archives are likewise lacking; there does not, for instance, appear to be any record of electronic correspondence prior to some time in 2023, and at some point in the recent past, the official email box of the improvement district for the past couple of decades seems to have been emptied or become inaccessible. Trustees have not been able to assess the condition of the digital records of the improvement district, including correspondence by current contracts, and there is no central repository of digital files, which are spread across three or four computers, none networked, in various states of repair or disrepair.

Trustee Johnson says that the Chair is reporting on the in camera meeting, and that it should not have been in camera. The Chair says that that is why they decided to report on it, but that “the deliberations certainly touched on a number of issues that are rightly kept in camera”.

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Report on motion from September General Meeting 🌿

The motion passed in the September meeting was that the Corporate Officer compile the information requested in the correspondence from Mr. James Arends, and that it be distributed to the trustees. The information has not yet been provided to the trustees.

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BUDGET AND 2026 LEVY 🐌

Debate on procedures

[2:23:15] 🐌 🌀 🔥

NOTE: two open meetings to discuss the Budget were previously held, on September 10^th and September 23^rd.

Initial discussion in this meeting focused on proper procedures and whether it was necessary to follow GFPID policy. It is unclear whether relevant GFPID policy, which requires 14 days notice for any meeting where bylaws are passed, was properly approved and in effect. The Board decided to carry on even though 14 days notice had not been given.

MOTION: that the GFPID consider the budget today and the bylaw in a separate meeting. DEFEATED

Debate on the budget 🐌  

[2:35:00] Two options were presented by the Corporate Officer: the differences between them were in staffing arrangements.

• Current model (status quo): staffing arrangements remain the same
• New staff position model: a new command-level staff position (Assistant Chief) will be created. The position will replace most of the Day Firefighter and Duty Officer duty shifts and handle a substantial amount of what is now overtime coverage for the Fire Chief and Deputy Chief.

The cost savings realized by hiring a new Assistant Chief is projected to be approximately $40,000.

MOTION: that the Board accept the status quo option. CARRIED unanimously.

Extensive discussion of the above motion included:

• Details of duties and coverage that would be replaced by an Assistant Chief position
• Discussion re past increases to firefighter pay, including raises to meet minimum wage levels
• Discussion of whether it is appropriate for a hiring decision to be made without proper discussion by including it in a budget and whether doing so would be a solution for the issues
• Discussion of whether the savings in the “new staff position model” could be realized through other means (no alternatives appear to have been explored at this point)
• Confirmation that staying with the current model does not preclude making a decision to hire a new staff position at a later date

The status quo budget reflects an overall increase of 21.72% (breakdown noted).

Comments from the floor

[2:54:30]

• Question re legal constraints on carrying a surplus over to the next year—it is not prohibited.
• Question re 300% increase in office/trustees expenses—election expenses and licencing fee.
• Question re increase in professional fees—the amount added in $50,000 for HR consultations, but this was voted down previously during the meeting and will not apply; the rest of the increase primarily budgets for support for union negotiations.
• Comment that hiring command level staff can have the side effect of limiting opportunities for captains and lieutenants.

The Chair reads a prepared statement

[3:03:58]  🐌 🔥  🎆

CHAIR: So we have to pass a budget. Once we pass the budget, we enact a bylaw, and when we enact that bylaw, we are taking money from our friends and neighbors. As trustees, it's our job to make sure the improvement district can fulfill its purposes indefinitely. That's the job, and in my opinion, this budget misses that mark. I've been the chair of the board for three months or so, and I have got limited information about how we manage the money we take in. All the information we have about how money has been spent in 2025 is a single Cash Flow Statement covering the first half of the year and a similar statement for the month of July. At the beginning of July, we received $1.4 million dollars. If history is any indication, most of that money, capital reserve aside, will be spent by some time in May.

And I have concerns about personnel and staffing. I'm concerned about the potential for the assistant chief position, because no description or scope of work has been presented for that position, and the only justification provided is a reduction in duty officer costs as a result of increased salary cover. The duty officer position is on call and not a job that's stationed at the hall, and duty officer costs have increased substantially. We currently pay $18 and change an hour for every hour the duty officers on. I've seen no record of when that decision was made, why, or by whom. It’s not reflected in the minutes or the in camera minutes, such as they are. So we're being asked to fund staffing costs to save money, or we're spending money on staff of staffing costs without the requisite justification, and we've been told that we cannot change this.

I'm not saying that that rate of pay is not warranted. It is, though, a substantial, unapproved change in costs which we are now being asked to accept and normalize without question. I've asked to have it explained to me, to no result. There does not seem to be any plan associated with the budget for expenditures. There does not seem to be any procurement process. Requests for policies governing these functions remain unresolved. Major capital expenditures historically have been made without any reports or projections being presented to the board. There's no clear distinction between purchases that are discretionary and those that require Board approval. We've got a situation where two trustees of seven have privileged access to financial transactions and records, and this information is not shared with the board generally.

We're being asked to approve a budget to fund Fire Department functions substantially outside of its scope, as reflected in the constituent bylaws, which authorize neither the deputy chief position nor the proposed assistant chief position. We have the EMR agreement, the attendant duties and expanded scope of service, that hasn't been formalized by by law as a function of the fire department.

Authorization for the fire department to deploy its staff to support third party for profit training courses is not established by the bylaw that sets up the authority of the fire department. Tax money has been used to pay firefighters for this work, and this has been reimbursed. I've been told that it's been changed and we're no longer operating the subsidy, but the board has not been party to any negotiations of terms or changes to the contract. This is a contract that could have substantial implications for the revenue of the fire department and the suggestion that revenue from it be allocated to capital funds is my favorite part of the budget. But the board doesn't have access to the operational guidelines of the fire department it levies taxes to fund.

I don't know how my colleagues here feel about taxation. I take it pretty seriously. We're taking this money from our friends and neighbors. To me, that's the same as if we go door to door to every house and business on the island and make demands: 500, 800, 10, 12, too large, whatever it is, pay up, fork it over. We're taking it.

These people deserve better for their money than to have it go to a black box and then be told to rest assured when they have questions. So I think the way that this budget addresses staffing is short sighted and based on the state of affairs that needs to be accounted for and explained if it's going to be funded. I think the assumptions it makes about the union and how it will work and who will be in it are flawed and poorly articulated. I think the assumptions it makes about staffing structure generally, the real costs of correct administration, and the needs of the improvement district are unproductive and disrespectful to the taxpayers. Our job is to make sure the improvement district can fulfill its purposes indefinitely, and I don't believe that this budget does.

[3:07:30] Discussion: various comments and questions, not all are itemized here. Strong arguments and strong feelings about the issues raised.

• Audience member offers thanks for the statement.
• Question from audience asking for clarification on access to accounts. There are three signatories for account access, Trustees Moher, Moeller, and the Chair. Chair Mercier has the authority to access the accounts, but has not done so because there is no system in place that will permit him to do so with Read-Only privileges from an organizational computer (as opposed to his personal computer). Further discussion about the existence of printed records and opinions are expressed that the Chair does have access and is just choosing not to use it. The Chair is asked what he wants and he details a long list; in sum he believes that the lack of information leads to rubberstamping decisions and that is disrespectful to the taxpayer.
• It is a bit unclear, but it appears that copies of in camera minutes, signed by the Chair, are kept in a secure location by the Corporate Officer. No one can find the copies of in camera minutes prior to early 2025. (Note that there was some confusion in the discussions re minutes between regular minutes and in camera )

MOTION to approve the “current model” budget as presented by staff. CARRIED 4/3 (FOR: Chorneyko, Johnson, Moher, Moeller; AGAINST: Mercier, Bussler. ABSTENTION (counts as vote for): Appel.)

Bylaw 113

[3:26:06] 🌿

Bylaw 113 authorizing tax levy is read three times and approved. Trustee Bussler and Chair Mercier vote against, Trustee Moeller abstains.

Statement by Trustee Chorneyko

[3:33:10] TRUSTEE CHORNEYKO: They say crow is best eaten young and tender, so this is me eating crow. I ran on a platform of getting costs under control in this organization, and I’m now realizing that simply isn’t going to happen. This organization is transitioning from a stipend pay model to one of union wages,  and this is being driven by the people in the field doing the work, and we as the board, and the community, need to embrace this new direction. If there are members of the public that have deep feelings on these taxation increases, we need you on the Board. Even though there’s a transformational change happening in the cost structure of this organization, there’s plenty of work to be done in modernizing our work processes which will result in efficiencies. I invite people who are passionate about cost savings to become involved.

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Motion to adjourn DEFEATED [3:35:50]

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Privacy Commissioner 🌿

(Report from the Chair) There is one active FOI request at this time, likely to require engagement of consultants, but being handled internally at this point. There are two investigations; one has been completed and the other is under consideration by the OIPC.

Privacy Management Program

[3:38:50] 🐌 🔥  🎆

Motion tabled from the August 06 General Meeting.

MOTION: THAT the board accept the Privacy Management Program Outline submitted by Trustee Chorneyko - and THAT the Corporate Officer be directed to establish a Privacy Management Program - and THAT the Corporate Officer report on progress towards the establishment of a Privacy Management Program at each regular General Meeting of the board until further notice.

Trustee Chorneyko notes that this is a legislative requirement under PIPPA that has been on the floor for three months.

Chair Mercier proposes an amendment to add the words “to work with the Chair” after the word “directed” to the motion. The reason for the amendment is that “formally, and by policy, the Chair of the Board is designated the head of the public body under the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, and  that Act requires that the head of the public body establish a Privacy Management Program. It’s […] for us to delegate some or all of that responsibility to the Corporate Officer, that delegation has not been made.”

Trustee Johnson is hoping that the FOI people send guidance in these matters and wants to hold off on proceeding until such guidance is received.

Chair Mercier notes that guidance documents are available, and says that he has already begun to work on this because he is required to do so. It is noted by Trustees Moher, Chorneyko, and the Corporate Officer that a draft policy and draft program have been circulated by the Corporate Officer. The Chair states that an audit of files is still required before policy and program can be implemented.

The meeting devolves into a heated argument, largely between the Chair and Trustee Moher, as to who holds responsibility for implementing a Privacy Management Program.

Trustee Moher points out that the Corporate Officer is charged under the Local Government Act with the duty to “maintain and keep safe” records of the improvement district. The Chair states that the responsibility for the development and implementation of policy and procedures resides with the Chair. Trustee Moher argues that while responsible for ensuring that the work happens, the Chair does not need to do that work themselves, and that the Chair’s only legal responsibility is as a contact. The Chair disagrees, lists the requirements of the position, and states that in the absence of formal designation of an alternative to do work associated with FOI and Protection of Privacy, the responsibility still resides with the Chair. GFPID also has an existing FOI policy that designates the Chair as responsible for FOI requests. Trustee Moher says, “We’ve heard all this before a number of times, it’s time to move on,” the Chair reclaims his time to finish making his statement. The Chair says that files designated as available without formal request are not publicly available and have not been provided to the board. Files are kept on “a number of unnetworked computers containing a variety of information,” some of which are subject to privacy legislation and there is not an effective framework for organizing, cataloguing and protecting data and ensuring access as required by law.

The Corporate Officer states that “Everything is in a room with a locked door. I have not had time to go through it. It is all there, it is all secure.” The Chair says that there is no information about what is on which computers or how many email addresses are in use by the organization or what information accrues to them.

The meeting devolves further into more arguing.

MOTION: to add the words “to work with the Chair” after the word “directed” to the motion. CARRIED 5/2

MOTION: THAT the board accept the Privacy Management Program Outline submitted by Trustee Chorneyko - and THAT the Corporate Officer be directed to establish a Privacy Management Program - and THAT the Corporate Officer report on progress towards the establishment of a Privacy Management Program at each regular General Meeting of the board until further notice. CARRIED 5/2 (Moher votes against, Moeller abstains)

Revision of Bylaw 98 🌿

[3:55:15] Report; draft is in minutes package. Work has not been completed and currently we have no formal authority for components of GFPID activities. Union negotiations may affect content.

MOTION: that Bylaw 98 be added as a standing item to the agenda. CARRIED.

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Meeting adjourns.