Pique Newsmagazine 2952

Best of Whistler

The best of Whistler’s best for 2022, as decided by you. - By Pique staff

14 360 VISION

After nearly three years of work, the Whistler 360 Health Collaborative Society will launch its new non-profit clinic model on New Year’s Day.

16 GARBAGE CONTROL

A black bear killed in Whistler Village this month serves as a reminder that attractant management “needs to be 12 months a year.”

24 GOING GREEN

The Resort Municipality of Whistler officially adopted its new Green Building Policy this month—what will it mean for builders?

28 IN THE WOODS

More housing could soon be coming to the WedgeWoods neighbourhood north of Whistler.

54 IVY LEAGUER

It’s official: Whistler hockey player Kai Daniells will play for the prestigious Princeton University next season.

58 RING IT IN

Not sure how to spend your New Year’s in Whistler? Pique’s events roundup might be the ticket.

COVER If there’s ONE thing we can possibly learn from our doggo friends this year, it’s to “SHAKE! SHAKE!” it all off. Best wishes for 2023—no need to look back. “Where are all the treats!? Wanna be friends?” - By Jon Parris // @jon.parris.art

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President, Whistler Publishing LP

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ISSN #1206-2022

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IT REALLY IS HARD to believe we are about to publish Pique’s final issue of 2022.

It feels like just yesterday I was putting the finishing touches on the first Opening Remarks of the year—my first as editor of Pique Newsmagazine—working from my home office with a mild case of COVID.

That was 51 issues ago. While the COVID didn’t stick around beyond issue 29.02, a new illness has befallen me on the final production cycle of the year, leaving me with a familiar sense of déjà vu—and a familiar

BY BRADEN DUPUIS

twist in my stomach.

The rapid test result sitting on the desk in front of me tells me it’s not COVID, this time, so I guess we’ll call that progress.

Here’s to more of that in 2023.

In the meantime, here’s a look back at some of the most memorable stories coming out of Whistler this year.

Head to piquenewsmagazine.com this week for more on 2022’s top newsmakers, and be sure to pick up next week’s issue to get the full, contextual low-down in our annual Year in Review cover feature.

WHEN THE BUBBLE BURSTS

The biggest story in Whistler in 2022 was the same by any metric: the brazen double shooting in broad daylight in Whistler Village on July 24.

The story about the double gang murder was far and away the most-viewed post on Pique’s website in 2022, and readers also voted it Biggest News Story in our annual Best of Whistler poll (see page 34).

The horrific killings were just the latest in a spree of tit-for-tat murders involving Lower Mainland gangs the Brothers Keepers and United Nations—but to see it play out in our idyllic mountain resort, in the middle of the day, was beyond shocking.

Speaking to Pique, veteran crime and gang reporter Kim Bolan said the timing and location of the brazen midday hit was likely due to opportunity rather than the desire to make a statement.

“I think people can be reassured that this [kind of gang violence] is not likely to happen [in Whistler] again for some time,” she said.

NEED A LIFT?

The second biggest newsmaker of the year, as voted by Pique readers, was the 137-day transit strike that stretched from late January to midJune—in the process becoming the longest transit strike in B.C.’s history.

For all its operational and logistical impacts, the strike didn’t register much of a dent in Pique’s web traffic: just two strike-related stories landed in our top 100 most-viewed posts for 2022—perhaps a sign of frustration and fatigue?

After all, how many times can you read that the buses still aren’t running?

STAY SAFE OUT THERE

Perusing the top posts on Pique’s website for

top stories of

she collided with a tree in Whistler Mountain’s Symphony Bowl. She was later pronounced dead at the Whistler Health Care Centre.

For those who don’t know the real people behind the names of these tragedies, it must be easy to move on—or easier, at least, without having to carry the personal grief of immense loss.

But for family members, some part of them will never leave the mountains where they lost their loved ones.

“She said to her mom, ‘insanely pretty,’ when she was on top of the mountain of Whistler,” said Gloria’s father, Arben, of her last words to her mother.

“We built a castle for Gloria—that castle collapsed in an instant.”

A TRAGIC END

Sadly, there is another common thread in Pique’s annual top-30: stories about Clorrica Riggs, the 29-year-old Australian woman who went missing on Aug. 23.

Friends, family and volunteers spent weeks searching for her, but on Sept. 25, their worst fears were confirmed. Riggs was found dead.

track for opening day.

Then, a month later, they laughed and spit out their Après Lager when Buchheister made the announcement that, actually, supplychain disruptions meant the lifts would not be ready for opening day.

Cue pitchforks, torches.

The stop gap of offering shuttles from Creekside to the village proved effective, and as of this writing, both new lifts are up and running. So we’ll all have to find something else to bash Vail about in 2023.

THE LIGHTER SIDE

As far as attention-grabbing, must-see headlines go, it’s easy to see why things like death and tragedy factor among Pique’s top posts. But while they may not register on the collective psyche on the same level as some stories, it’s always nice to see the lighter side sprinkled amongst the heavier headlines as well.

Stories like one about four Whistler ski pals reunited, four decades later aren’t dramatic or presenting high stakes—they’re just warm and fun and nice to read sometimes.

In a similar vein, there’s the recent tale

2022, some themes are readily apparent— none more so than the danger that exists in Whistler’s backcountry.

Of our top 30 posts in 2022, a full 13 of them were related to avalanches and on-mountain tragedies.

It was a tragic year on slopes in and around Whistler, with no fewer than five reported deaths and more than a few close calls.

Among them was 22-year-old Gloria Kodra, from Toronto. Kodra was skiing in Whistler for the first time in February when

“She could light up a room with her smile ... and cheer everybody up,” her brother Colin said.

“To not have her presence around, it’s going to be very hard. But we have to take it one day at a time.”

NEED A LIFT? REDUX

Skiers and boarders rejoiced when Whistler Blackcomb COO Geoff Buchheister announced in the first week of October that new lifts planned for the resort’s Creekside zone were on

of two Lil’wat Nation brothers who rescued a stranded hiker near Mount Currie, or nine-year-old Whistlerite Rio MacDonald’s entrepreneurial success. There were stories of unlikely friendship and athletic achievement, of inspirational individuals and of incredible acts of charity (but no surprises there—it is Whistler, after all).

Here’s hoping for less death and destruction and more of these heartwarming headlines as we venture into 2023.

Onward to 30.01. ■

H

A simple solution for Highway 99 congestion in Whistler

This letter was sent to Whistler’s mayor and council, and shared with Pique. Here is an idea that, at very little cost to the Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW) and to Whistler Blackcomb/Vail Resorts, would improve our carbon footprint, and improve the experience of almost all of our visitors at least for the short term of a couple of years.

Transportation causes a large part of the overall carbon output in the Sea to Sky corridor. It is easy for us all to see that this is not easily measured, and very easy to pass some of it onto others, for example, just what and who counts in terms of Whistler’s impact.

One thing any of us can see is that a car stuck in a traffic jam trying to get away from the village, or one trying to get out of the underground parking at Creekside, has a far bigger carbon footprint than a car whisking along at any other time. These traffic jams can take hours to clear, and individual cars are often lucky to get from the village to Function in less than an hour

with traffic bumper-to-bumper. The same goes for morning traffic from power line hill (north of Brandywine) to Whistler Village. Someone at muni hall should know the number of cars typically in line, and it would be surprising if the carbon impact alone is not significant.

That ignores the negative impact on the visitor, and imagine if you came up on a Saturday morning and left Saturday night! Not our advertised experience.

We know (because of the 2010 Olympics)

that the road from Function to Lorimer Drive is wide enough for three lanes. If we used traffic cones to delineate two lanes up in the morning and two lanes down at night, and used personally operated manual controls on the six major lights, with those operators in radio contact with one another, I expect that the jam would be reduced by more than half. This is not an action that would take long to implement; it could be done in a week.

This is an easy reduction in our climate

impact, and an improvement in the Whistler experience. The cost would be for a team to set up the cones, and a team of six to manage the lights at the six intersections. (I admit here that some intersections would be closed to left-hand exits during these hours.)

Yes, this is a provincial highway, but not to take action because of it, is an excuse for inaction, and the province does profit from Whistler. I doubt the province would charge Whistler with an offence, and with what, and maybe it would even be fun.

If not this, then what?

Al Whitney // Whistler

A reminder to appreciate the little things

A gigantic thank you to Mary MacDonald for her excellent article—”Adventures in Birding”— published in the Sept. 22 issue, and to Pique for publishing it. Mary wrote this while in the throes of her ongoing battle with cancer, motivated by her resolve to share her thoughts, views and ideas with us. In it, Mary, without urging, leads us blissfully, through the joys of being alive to nature, and harkens us back to when we took time to listen to nature, marvelling at the melodies of the songbirds that lift our spirits and add bounce to our stride. I wonder how many readers were urged by this excellent prose to get out, sans earbuds, and become alive to the nature that surrounds us. We are fortunate to live in this garden of

the Earth where if we cock our ears we can hear the sounds of birds, the calls of squirrels, and the sounds of animals both small and large. And, if you really listen intently, the sound of snow falling.

Mary’s article took me back to my boarding school days up in Mount Abu, Rajasthan, where the bird sounds came from bulbuls, a small, brightly coloured bird, golden orioles, budgies, swallows, doves, wood pigeons, peacocks, and a scavenger bird with a call that sounded like ‘Did You Do It’ I can still recall more than 65 years later. In our twice weekly walks through

the jungle, we listened and watched—a rustle through the bushes could signal a panther, tiger, bear, deer, wild boar, monkey, wild fowl, dove, wood pigeon or peacock. It could also signal a snake where a bite from a viper, a mere six inches long, naturally camouflaged in a pale green skin with brown dots, in a blueberry bush, could be fatal, to say nothing of cobra venom.

Mary’s article prompts us to heighten our awareness to the ambience, sounds and the bliss that nature offers us here in B.C., and Whistler in particular.

Keith Fernandes // Whistler ■

Backcountry Update

AS OF WEDNESDAY, DEC. 28

The holiday break came bearing gifts of more than 60 centimetres of snow at upper elevations. A series of storms have repeatedly impacted the region from Dec. 23 to 29. These storms created snowpack conditions that vary significantly with elevation.

Terrain below 1,800 metres saw heavy rainfall that has refrozen into a firm, meltfreeze crust. Terrain above 1,800 m primarily received snow, with strong southerly winds. The new snow covered a layer of weak and unconsolidated snow produced by the recent cold weather.

All elevations saw natural avalanche activity, with wet, loose avalanches in terrain that received significant rainfall and storm slab avalanches in terrain that remained above the freezing line.

Though many of us were kept out of the backcountry by terrible road conditions and elevated avalanche hazard, this weekend brings a clearing period between storms that

is sure to draw us back into the mountains. While hazard has generally improved with cooling temperatures, weak layers deep in the snowpack will linger. Forecasters have uncertainty about a crust with weak, faceted snow above and below that is buried by roughly 50 to 150 cm of snow. It is still possible for this weak layer to be reactive to human triggering in thin to thick areas.

As we head outside to enjoy the new snow, remember that the landscape has changed. The best way to have a safe day is to start out conservatively. Avoid letting the fresh powder tempt you into hazardous areas before you investigate snowpack conditions as you move through the terrain. Look for signs of instability, such as recent avalanches in similar terrain features or whumpfing.

We are all excited to get back into this winter wonderland, however, approach this time of uncertainty with some skepticism to ensure a safe day. As always, check out avalanche.ca for the most up-to-date information. ■

CONDITIONS MAY VARY AND CAN CHANGE RAPIDLY Check for the most current conditions before heading out into the backcountry. Daily updates for the areas adjacent to Whistler Blackcomb are available at 604-938-7676, or surf to www.whistlerblackcomb.com/mountain-info/ snow-report#backcountry or go to www.avalanche.ca.

Write to us! Letters to the editor must contain the writer’s name, address and a daytime telephone number. Maximum length is 450 words. Pique Newsmagazine reserves the right to edit, condense or refrain from publishing any contribution. Letters re ect the opinion of the writer and not that of Pique Newsmagazine GOT GOOD VIBES TO SHARE? Send them to goodnews@piquenewsmagazine.com

R I STM AS & N

2 0 2 2 C H

EW Y E A R’ S M AS S S C H E DU L E

Our Lady of the Mountains, 6299 Lorimer Road, Whistler, BC St Christopher’s, Highway 99, Mount Currie, BC St Francis of Assisi, 1360 Pember ton Farm W , Pember ton, BC

Sunday, 18th Dec:

Our Lady of the Mountains, Whistler at 9:00 am St Christopher’s, Mt Currie at 11:30 am

Christmas Eve: Vigil of Christmas St Christopher’s, Mt Currie at 5:00 pm

Our Lady of the Mountains, Whistler at 7:00 pm Our Lady of the Mountains, Whistler at 11:00 pm

Christmas Day : The Nativity of the L ord

Our Lady of the Mountains, Whistler at 9:00 am St Francis of Assisi, Pember ton at 11:30 am Our Lady of the Mountains, Whistler at 5:00 pm

New Year’s Eve: Our Lady of the Mountains, Whistler at 5:00 pm

New Year’s Day : Our Lady of the Mountains, Whistler at 9:00 am St. Christopher’s, Mt. Currie at 11:30 am

Confessions ½ hour before Mass or by appointment, call 778-257-4203

View online at www whistlercatholicchurch ca

Stop letting movie critics make up your mind for you

AVATAR: THE WAY OF WATER is now playing in theatres, and I did exactly what I said I’d do: drive to Vancouver to see it in 3D on a very big screen on opening weekend. I’m going to see it at least twice more (including once in IMAX) before it hits home media.

I get it: many of you reading this probably care a lot more about skiing and snowboarding

worthy acting or a screenplay that makes you reflect upon the meaning of human life. Instead, it’s a gorgeous tech demo featuring exciting action sequences, photorealistic CGI that puts Marvel to shame, and an adequate plot delivered by actors of varying repute. I enjoyed the movie because I love science fiction, great visual effects and action. That’s what I was hoping for and that’s exactly what I got.

they misunderstand the things they are trying to criticize. A semi-tractor unit is designed to haul trailers and a compact car is designed to be a convenient everyday vehicle. Both should be evaluated with their intended use in mind.

In my experience, many (though not all) film critics exercise that same logical fallacy. They seem to want to hold all movies to a single—and oftentimes arbitrary—standard

BY DAVID SONG

than you do about blockbuster films, but I’ve only been here for a couple of months, so please bear with me. I think the release of this jawdroppingly expensive James Cameron passion project is a good opportunity to say something about how we look at movies in general.

The popular and controversial film review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes offers the following consensus about December’s biggest box office hit: “Narratively, it might be fairly standard stuff—but visually speaking, Avatar: The Way of Water is a stunningly immersive experience.” As of this writing, it sits at a 78 per cent approval rating, which means that most critics liked the film.

Personally, I would agree with this assessment. Avatar 2, much like its predecessor, was never going to wow viewers with Oscar-

I’ve also heard from people who aren’t interested in Cameron’s latest production at all. One friend of mine watched the trailer right next to me and could not be bothered to care. Another said something along the lines of, “I can’t imagine that people are excited for another Avatar film since the first one was so mediocre.”

I don’t agree with these people, but I’m more than willing to respect where they’re coming from. Film critics aren’t typically so reasonable.

Let me be clear: I’m not trying to say that all film critics are arrogant jerks or corporate sellouts, because some definitely have worthwhile contributions to make. What I am trying to say is that I’ve seen a lot of critics approach their jobs in a way that I argue is both nonsensical and needlessly condescending.

If someone condemned a semi-truck for being fuel-inefficient and difficult to park, would you believe it was a bad vehicle on those grounds? How about if another person ripped a compact car to shreds because it can’t tow very much? Neither of those individuals would have credibility, because

of what a good movie is. In doing so, they fail to acknowledge two simple truths: art and entertainment are inherently subjective, and different movies are made with different purposes in mind.

Schindler’s List, for example, is an incredibly important movie that tells a poignant tale about a dark time in history. Ninety-eight per cent of critics on Rotten Tomatoes praised it, and for good reason. Yet, most people don’t go over to their friends’ houses on a Saturday night and say, “Hey, let’s watch Schindler’s List!” Does that mean all of those people are stupid and unable to

appreciate impactful filmmaking? No, it just means that the film in question is intended to make you think, not to make you happy.

On the other side of the spectrum, we find something like Michael Bay’s Transformers franchise. Four of the five movies in the series (Revenge of the Fallen, Dark of the Moon, Age of Extinction and The Last Knight) hold a grade of 35 per cent or less. The vast majority of critics seconded what Roger Ebert had to say about Revenge of the Fallen: “If you want to save yourself the ticket price, go into the kitchen, cue up a male choir singing the music of hell, and get a kid to start banging pots and pans together. Then close your eyes and use your imagination.”

Despite those kinds of scathing indictments, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen made $836 million at the global box office. Dark of the Moon and Age of Extinction surpassed $1 billion apiece, and even The Last Knight managed a solid $605 million as the franchise’s least profitable entry. Directors like Bay have built careers out of laughing in critics’ faces while giving fans what they want and are evidently willing to pay for.

Ironically, Bay’s latest flick, Ambulance, made a paltry $52 million against a $40 million budget, despite a respectable 69-per-cent approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Goes to show you how much the critics’ opinions can be worth.

(Read the full version online at piquenewsmagazine.com.) n

Directors like Bay have built careers out of laughing in critics’ faces...

Whistler 360 launching non-profit clinic model on New Year’s Day

TWO NEW EXAM ROOMS AT WHISTLER HEALTH CARE CENTRE AND SATELLITE CLINIC ON MAIN STREET SET TO OPEN IN COMING MONTHS

BY MEGAN LALONDE

AFTER NEARLY THREE YEARS of work toward establishing a new primary care model in Whistler, the new year is finally bringing about a major shift in the resort’s health-care landscape.

On Jan. 1, the Whistler Medical Clinic will transition to a non-profit financial model, as the resort’s last remaining and longest-standing family medicine practice officially merges with the Whistler 360 Health Collaborative Society to form Whistler 360 Health. It is the first of many changes set to get rolling in the coming months, with new spaces and new health-care staff both expected to start welcoming patients by the time the snow melts.

Whistler 360 stems from a Primary Care Task Force formed in early 2019 to explore the impacts of Whistler’s family doctor shortage— exacerbated when longtime local practise Town Plaza Medical Clinic closed its doors last spring— and to investigate how access to primary care in the community could be improved.

Ultimately, after reviewing a variety of successful models in other B.C. communities, the task force came up with the vision for a non-profit, community-governed, team-based primary clinic that could provide longitudinal

care to a greater number of patients, while simultaneously addressing many of the issues that deter doctors from pursuing careers in family practice.

“The Whistler 360 model really alleviates a lot of that burden” on family physicians, explained Whistler 360 chair Carol Leacy. “[With] the society running the administrative operations of the clinic, the doctors can focus on health-care delivery and not on running a small business.”

The Whistler 360 Health Collaborative Society swiftly gained charitable status in 2021.

“By implementing this model, we’ll be able to both stabilize our current level of providers, which is the Whistler Medical Clinic… and also

to see the space used for medical [purposes],” Leacy told council during the meeting. Whistler 360 officially took over the space on Dec. 1.

Before those spaces can open their doors, Whistler 360 hopes to add those new care providers to its team by February.

“We’ve got some interested physicians and we also have put in a request through the Patient Care Network … for two nurse practitioners, so hopefully we’ll have those by February,” said Dr. Karin Kausky, a family doctor at the Whistler Medical Clinic and founding director of Whistler 360.

“That will really, I think, help with addressing capacity of primary care,” she added. “It’s a pretty big problem and a pretty big project.”

those who do often suffer lengthy waits for care.

That is significantly higher than the one in five Canadians and the approximately 23 per cent of British Columbians who say they do not have a family doctor, according to a Sept. 2022 Angus Reid poll.

The shortage also affects urgent care in the resort, with the Whistler Health Care Centre’s emergency room regularly accommodating a significant number of patients with non-urgent needs, “because that’s the only access they have to medical care right now,” Kausky explained.

Currently, the Whistler Medical Clinic counts five full-time equivalent (FTE) physicians and one nurse practitioner. With the two additional exam rooms and new satellite space already secured, Kausky believes Whistler 360 can scale that number up to 10 FTEs in 2023.

be able to attract and retain more physicians and nurse practitioners in full-service family practice,” Leacy told Whistler’s mayor and council during a Committee of the Whole meeting earlier this month.

Renovations are currently underway on two new primary care rooms within the Whistler Health Care Centre’s walls, provided by health authority Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH), while the Town Plaza clinic’s previous home on Main Street—about a five-to-seven minute walk from the health-care centre—will become a satellite space for Whistler 360 this spring.

The satellite clinic comes courtesy of “the generosity of the new landlord, who wanted

This represents the second phase of Whistler 360’s three-phase plan. Down the road, Whistler 360 also envisions growing its team and widening its mandate to include “a wellness collaborative,” Kausky explained. “Everybody’s health and wellness is really determined by a range of social, economic, [and] geographic factors, so we want to be a part of that and really understand our community and what the community needs.”

BY THE NUMBERS

About half of Whistler residents do not have a family physician, by Whistler 360’s estimate, and

But with B.C.’s Ministry of Health recommending between 800 and 1,000 patients per practitioner, Whistler really needs closer to 16 FTEs. Moreover, Whistler’s fluctuating population, tens of thousands of daily visitors and high number of seasonal employees makes the resort “a really hard place to estimate for,” Kausky acknowledged.

Still, “The space we have clearly doesn’t get us to even the 16, so Phase 3 of our plan is to have a space that is big enough for at least 16 full-time equivalents, plus whatever allied health-care providers we have in our teambased care,” she explained. “So we definitely need more space.”

There are two options, said Kausky: a standalone building, or carving out and renovating more space within the existing Whistler Health Care Centre, a possibility VCH is reportedly exploring.

At a recent medical conference, Kausky learned that while Canada is positioned to

MAKING MOVES Left to right: Dr. Karin Kausky, Whistler 360 chair Carol Leacy, and director and past chair of the Whistler Health Care Foundation Sandra Cameron joined Mickey and Jan Burgess to accept a donation from the Dr. Rob Burgess Primary Care Fund as Whistler 360 prepares to launch its non-profit clinic model.

PHOTO SUBMITTED

“It’s a pretty big problem and a pretty big project.”

- KARIN KAUSKY

need about 10,000 new family physicians within the next five years, there are only about 2,000 currently in training.

“That’s a pretty big gap,” she said.

Operating as a society with a steady influx of funding allows Whistler 360 to trailblaze an innovative new way of providing care, she said.

“The model that I’m used to … is having a panel with 1,000 or 1,500 patients and knowing them all, and being responsible for them,” she explained. “But if we’re going to be 8,000 [family doctors] short over the next 10 years, I think we have to operate differently. So we’re really exploring ways of having family physicians and nurse practitioners be part of a real team [of allied health-care providers like, for example, mental health nurses and physical therapists] that can perhaps look after quite a few more people.”

That could mean a group of health-care providers overseen by a physician or nurse practitioner could treat 100 patients each day, compared to the 30 Kausky typically sees during a workday.

WHAT WILL CHANGE FOR PATIENTS?

Immediately? Not much, at least from a current patient’s perspective. The care centre will remain in the Whistler Medical Clinic’s existing space on the second floor of the Whistler Health Care Centre, while staff, phone numbers and emails will not change.

Kausky said Whistler 360 staff are currently working to increase walk-in and day-of appointment availability, as work to recruit new staff continues. Locals looking for a family physician, meanwhile, should stay tuned for upcoming announcements about how to make that desire known before Whistler 360 begins accepting new patients around February.

Once the team-based operation gets up and running, patients likely won’t be attached one-to-one with a physician or a nurse practitioner, but to a team of providers depending on that patient’s needs.

Among the most important long-term impact this new care model will bring is improved outcomes for patients.

“There’s so much evidence for the fact that people that are attached to a family physician and nurse practitioner have better personal health outcomes … and for the provincial healthcare system, it’s also the most economical way to provide care,” Kausky explained.

As B.C. looks to invest in that kind of health-care, family physicians are due to receive a significant bump in compensation this winter. Additionally, doctors only need to work one full day in family practice each week in order to be eligible for the new payment model, announced by the province last year and set to go into effect Feb. 1.

While that new payment structure won’t change anything with Whistler 360’s finance model—aside from a raise for physicians— Kausky is hopeful the strategy will help with recruitment and retention.

“The problem was that [physicians] could choose to do family practice, or you could choose to be a hospitalist or do emergency medicine, and those paid significantly more,” she said. “So it’s kind of levelled the playing field so [doctors] can actually choose what [they] want to do, not based on the business

model or income… I think it’s going to help a lot to keep people practicing in full-service family practice.”

COMMUNITY FUNDS MAKING VISION POSSIBLE

From transitioning to a non-profit finance structure to creating new spaces to recruiting new staff to developing and piloting new operating processes, making the kind of changes Whistler 360 has already set in motion takes significant funding. Outfitting the two new exam rooms, for example, comes at a cost of $20,000.

Luckily for Whistler 360, the society is launching in 2023 with a significant base to draw from. The Whistler Blackcomb Foundation announced earlier this month that it was doubling its popular Founders Pass Program, thanks to a donation of 50 new season passes from Vail Resort’s EpicPromise, and directing the resulting $500,000 sum to Whistler 360. The Dr. Rob Burgess Primary Care Fund, meanwhile, raised $205,000 for the initiative, and delivered that contribution to Whistler 360 the week before Christmas. “We’re just incredibly thankful for their support,” said Leacy.

The funds are also “really going to allow us to make an investment in the digital space, equipment, technology and support services that are required to really support those additional doctors and nurse practitioners,” she added.

Those new care providers will follow in the footsteps of Burgess, Whistler’s first family practitioner and Whistler Medical Clinic founder who served the community as a physician for 43 years. The Whistler Health Care Foundation set up the fund in Burgess’ honour shortly after he died of cancer in September 2021, at the age of 71.

Burgess’ daughter Micky said that $205,000 was, remarkably, raised from $0 with minimal fundraising over the last year. “It was honestly mostly from our friends and family and people that really felt connected to my dad, and a lot of personal donations from a lot of people in the community; a lot of his patients,” she said.

“It feels amazing to know that he will stay in the community, because it’s such a growing place and you know, names can be forgotten. He really pioneered primary care and medical care in Whistler … so just to have him be a part of the future of it is really important to my family.”

She said her dad was always “so proud” of the patients he saw grow from babies into parents themselves, and would be passionate about keeping that same opportunity alive in Whistler for more doctors in the future.

Micky said she hopes the Primary Care Fund will continue to grow in the coming months and years as more people learn about Whistler 360, and about the impact Burgess left on the community. “It’s just nice that that he can be recognized for the work that he did and all the lives that he changed and helped,” she said, while supporting “keeping family doctors in town, because it’s so needed … You can get lost in the system without someone looking out for you.”

As for Kausky, the family physician said she feels “a real obligation” to make good use of those funds, “to be able to take some leadership on really figuring out how to operate differently so that we can increase capacity.” n

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Black bear killed after approaching people for food in Whistler Village this December

ATTRACTANT MANAGEMENT IN WHISTLER ‘NEEDS TO BE 12 MONTHS A YEAR,’ SAYS CONSERVATION

OFFICER

BY MEGAN LALONDE

AFTER WEEKS OF unsuccessful attempts to haze a black bear out of Whistler Village, conservation officers made the decision earlier this month to kill the mature male after deeming the animal’s behaviour a public safety risk.

The incident is serving as a reminder that winter weather is no excuse for locals and visitors to let their guard slip when it comes to securing wildlife attractants like garbage and bird feeders, said Sea to Sky conservation officer Sgt. Simon Gravel.

“This bear was very active for multiple weeks around the village,” he explained. “The bear was very persistent trying to access food, and he was not very responsive. We’re talking about multiple calls every night.”

Both the BC Conservation Officer Service (COS) and RCMP responded numerous times to draw the black bear away from confined spaces like underground parking lots, courtyards and the Village Stroll, Gravel explained. The COS also worked with Whistler Bylaw to address areas where the bear had accessed food.

The situation escalated when the bear started approaching people in search of food and forcing its way into food storage areas, causing property damage in the process.

“We came to the conclusion that there were not a lot of options and public safety was compromised by his behaviour,” Gravel explained. “We had to put him down, unfortunately, despite all the efforts.” The bear was killed on Friday, Dec. 16.

The bear was between five and 10 years old, Gravel estimated, and untagged, meaning the animal had no prior encounters with conservation officers or history of concerning behaviour.

The Resort Municipality of Whistler had previously issued a bear alert on Dec. 14, warning the community about a bear repeatedly “accessing garbage and other unnatural food sources in Whistler Village and Whistler Blackcomb Staff Accommodations” and reminding visitors, locals and businesses to keep garbage out-of-reach in locked buildings or wildlife-proof bins.

Though most black bears are typically settled in their winter dens by the holidays, Gravel said it is “fairly usual” to see some bear activity linger throughout the colder months. With just a few days left in 2022, other bears are currently still active in the village area, he confirmed, “and randomly, in the middle of the winter, we see some bears coming in and out of den.”

Still, when a bear successfully finds easily accessible food sources at this time of year, the animal is more likely to stay out, the conservation officer explained.

“We did a lot of effort to mitigate that and

OUT LATE A late-season black bear death is serving as a reminder to keep attractants secured even during the colder months. Pictured, a black bear in a snowcovered Whistler Village earlier this December.

a lot of proactive audits in the village to make sure there was no food available, but it doesn’t take much for a bear,” said Gravel. “Little mistakes sometimes, a garbage bag left or a garbage bin left unlocked, there are all sorts of different events.”

The bear’s exceptional level of comfort approaching people to seek food also led Gravel to speculate that the animal may have been fed, or had food thrown in its direction from passers-by.

“That’s something that is difficult to address. In the middle of the night when bears are active, they’re encountering a lot of people, a lot of visitors, perhaps—and I don’t want to blame visitors, it could be locals, I don’t know—but people could be tempted at this time of the year, when it’s very cold, to think that the bear is hungry,” Gravel said.

“But that’s very alarming, because when a bear receives a food reward directly from someone, it is very likely to repeat the behaviour.”

The message? “Those bears don’t need food,” Gravel said.

In B.C., it is also illegal to both feed black bears and to leave attractants unsecured, he reminded the community. “We are asking the public to not be naive, to not assume that bears are in den and start to be negligent in terms of attractant management,” Gravel added. “Attractant management in a place like Whistler needs to be 12 months a year.” n

PHOTO BY HEIDI RODE

Zero Ceiling’s reach now extends far beyond Whistler

BETWEEN ITS DECOLONIZATION WORK AND ITS ADVOCACY ON HOUSING, THE LOCAL NON-PROFIT’S IMPACT ISN’T LIMITED TO THE YOUTH IT SUPPORTS

BY BRANDON BARRETT

SINCE ITS FOUNDING a quarter-century ago, Whistler non-profit Zero Ceiling has had an ambitious mandate—nothing less than ending youth homelessness.

For the handful of active participants in its renowned Work 2 Live program, which provides supporting housing and employment to young adults at risk of homelessness in Whistler, the impact is direct and tangible. But at a certain point, the organization’s leadership realized something.

“[Co-executive director] Sean [Easton] and I recognized that in order to end youth homelessness, we’re not going to do it just by supporting the youth in our program,” explained co-executive director Chris Wrightson. “We know from the youths’ experience in our program and the research that has backed it up each year that the model that Zero Ceiling uses to support youth is one that works. But we needed to be advocating for the policy changes and the supports needed in communities to impact more youth and to change the structures so we don’t have that pipeline of youth coming through.”

Part of this broadened mandate has been

years in the making, the natural culmination of a growing organization, and some of it was accelerated by the onset of the pandemic, which disproportionately affected at-risk youth, leading to a spike in demand at Zero Ceiling as hundreds of B.C. youth aged out of foster care.

In November, that took Zero Ceiling to the Housing Central Conference in Vancouver, where the non-profit presented to approximately 1,700 attendees, including representatives from

maintain jobs, and feel well,” Wrightson said.

This more individualized approach to the supports they provide has led to a complete reimagining of Zero Ceiling’s organizational structure, part and parcel of the work it has undergone in recent years to decolonize its practices and approaches in a program that disproportionately serves Indigenous youth.

“We understand ourselves as a safety net. And that’s kind of always been there, but we’ve

years to continue the decolonization work it has already started, with a focus particularly on decolonizing its governance structure.

“It’s focusing a lot on the organization itself: the structure, the governance structure, the leadership structure, and the succession plan, so that we’re not a white-led organization in the future,” Wrightson said.

That has even led to the hiring of Anita Patrick, director of the N’quatqua Child and Family Development Centre, as Zero Ceiling’s resident “Auntie” for Work 2 Live participants and grads to lean on when they need support, in whatever form that may take.

“First of all, I appreciate and love each of the youth in the program. I’m there as an auntie. I’m not prying, but I am a support for them,” Patrick explained. “They just need to be understood, respected and loved, and not in that order, and I really appreciate the opportunity I get to spend time with each of them or as a group.”

the corporate and non-profit worlds, as well as local and provincial governments.

“A workshop was done in partnership with Royal Roads University, who we’ve been working with the last five years … [We talked about] the Work 2 Live program and how youth facing homelessness really need a lot of additional supports around them to be able to move forward with their lives, get and

just leaned into it,” said Easton. “When we’re making tough decisions on how to support a participant or whether we’re going to end support for a participant, we just ask ourselves: What would our parents do? How would our parents support us through something like this? We mirror that in our support.”

Earlier this year, Zero Ceiling received a $60,000 Canadian Heritage grant over two

Now closing its 25th year, Zero Ceiling enjoyed a banner year in terms of fundraising, raising $110,000 at its 25th Birthday Family Dinner in October. With just days before the end of the year, however, the non-profit is still hopeful to reach its year-end target of $250,000 by Dec. 31. At press time, it still had just under $65,000 to go to meet its goal.

Donate at zeroceiling.org/25-years. n

As its 25th year comes to an end,

“We

B.C.’s new tourism minister wants to be ‘wind at the back’ of the sector

LANA POPHAM TAKES OVER TOURISM FILE AFTER SERVING AS AGRICULTURE MINISTER FOR FIVE YEARS

BY BRANDON BARRETT

AS A FORMER ski racer, B.C.’s ski resorts have a special place in Lana Popham’s heart. Now, as British Columbia’s newest tourism minister, the 54-year-old sees these recreational destinations in a new light.

“I was a carded racer, so I did the circuit around B.C. and unfortunately broke my arm at Whistler—but despite that, I still have a lot of good memories,” said the NDP minister. “Ski hills have a huge place in my heart and I can’t wait to get out and do a tour of them again—maybe not racing this time.”

Popham gains the tourism, arts, culture and sport file after five years spent as B.C.’s agricultural minister, and as she continues to get her feet wet at a new ministry, she is committed to continuing the work built by her predecessor, Lisa Beare.

“My goodness, is it ever an interesting and exciting portfolio,” Popham said. “I spent five years in agriculture and food and now moving over to a ministry that has so many different pathways in it, my vision is to make sure that the government continues to be the wind at the back of all of our stakeholders.”

Popham is fresh off of Destination Vancouver’s Christmas luncheon, where she got to meet 850 or so tourism and hospitality stakeholders from around the province. By and large, the message she was left with was one of hope.

“What I noticed meeting with 850 people is that there’s so much hope and people are feeling that this year, it is especially going to be an exciting year for returns,” she said. “We’ve seen the numbers start to recover in a great way, especially this past summer, so I think people are shedding the negativity of the pandemic as they see things picking up.”

While that hope is prevalent across the industry, Popham said the message differs slightly depending on which specific sector she’s speaking with. “We are finding that they have different needs depending on what part of tourism they’re coming from, and those are things we talk to them directly about,” she added.

One segment of the industry she said she’s excited to see grow further in the new year is culinary tourism, particularly as Vancouver and by extension British Columbia’s reputation grows with its first Michelinstarred restaurants added to the renowned dining guide in the fall.

“I’m really keen to see what we can do around culinary tourism and I know that Whistler has so many amazing restaurants and food producers up there, also a great farmers’ market,” Popham noted.

Although not as dire as in the past two years, when borders were mostly closed

to foreign workers, Whistler continues to experience staffing challenges as demand for the resort rebounds. A sector that was already sounding the alarm on staff shortages in B.C. prior to the pandemic, B.C.’s restaurant industry still wrestles with attracting longterm employees, the consequence of a high-stress field that has not historically been known for its career prospects.

“The pandemic has really forced the restaurant industry to think about the industry in a different way. It’s a conversation that probably needed to happen anyway, so those are the silver linings after a really tough three years,” Popham said. “But there’s absolutely an opportunity to make the restaurant industry a full-time career and opportunities for advancement but that’s something the industry has to strategize about. We are excited and willing to be a partner on that with them.”

Whistler also stands to benefit from B.C.’s new Municipal and Regional District Tax (MRDT) of up to 2.5 per cent for “Major Events,” which was unveiled Oct. 31, for events like the upcoming Invictus Games, scheduled for Whistler and Vancouver in 2025. This new

NEW FILE B.C.’s new tourism minister, Lana Popham.

PHOTO SUBMITTED

Whistler adopts new Green Building Policy

NEW POLICY CALLS FOR BIKE AND EV PARKING SPACE, BETTER WASTE MANAGEMENT AND ENERGY EFFICIENCY IN ALL NEW MAJOR DEVELOPMENTS

BY ROBERT WISLA

AREAS FOR BIKE PARKING, increased building material recycling, parking lots with ample electric vehicle charging stations and eliminating potable water use for irrigation are just some of the highlights from the Resort Municipality of Whistler’s (RMOW) newly adopted Green Building Policy.

On Dec. 6, Whistler’s mayor and council officially adopted the new 36-page policy, which sets a range of performance requirements and new guidelines for building in the resort—all of which will have widespread implications for new developments in the municipality.

“The Green Building Policy is a guiding document that clarifies the RMOW’s sustainability and green building framework. It provides guidance to property owners, developers and designers and will help us deliver on our climate action promises,” RMOW planner John Chapman said in a presentation to council.

“The policy proposes a flexible, performance-based approach addressing design, construction and operation of new construction, looking at multi-family buildings, commercial and industrial buildings, and large, single-family dwellings.”

According to Chapman, the 2008 Green Building Policy became outdated over the last 14 years, with requirements and standards that are outdated and no longer relevant. The updated policy aims to address changes to technology practices, design, and

occupancy vehicle transportation.

NEW REQUIREMENTS FOR BUILDERS

The new building guidelines are grouped thematically into six sections: energy and emissions; building materials; sustainable site design; green mobility; water conservation and rainwater management; and solid waste.

Under the updated policy, builders must submit a completed checklist and “sustainability narrative” describing how the project addresses each section of the policy as

TOURISM MINISTER

sustainability goals.

The RMOW’s Big Moves Climate Action Strategy and Official Community Plan (OCP) identified the policy update as a major priority to lower Whistler’s emissions.

Currently, energy use in building operations accounts for about 40 per cent of the community’s total emissions, including heating, cooling, appliances, and lighting. The remainder comes from fossil fuel single-

a condition for rezoning.

The checklist system under the new policy is a more streamlined approach that simplifies the process by centralizing all recommendations and requirements into one list rather than the several utilized under the 2008 policy. The RMOW hopes the simplification will help improve permitting times, which have seen a backlog over the last few months.

“The Green Building Policy provides clear, simplified submission requirements with a single checklist that details submission

FROM PAGE 22

tax will be time-limited and is separate from the MRDT rates that currently apply to shortterm accommodations in locations across the province (including Whistler), and will be applied to major international tourism events that help bolster provincial tourism and the economy. Other considerations, according to the ministry, include: events that draw significant international visitation; provide broad media viewership and exposure to B.C. internationally; create sponsorship opportunities and revenues; involve partnership from multiple levels of government; and cannot be supported by any

existing provincial or municipal program.

An example of one such existing program is the Resort Municipality Initiative, which supports 14 resort municipalities by offsetting the impacts of high visitation by diversifying tourism offerings and attracting visitors year-round. Allocations to the individual communities are not typically announced until early summer, so it’s unclear how much Whistler stands to receive in 2023, but in 2019, an ongoing $13 million in annual funding for RMI was established as part of the core budget of B.C.’s Ministry of Tourism, Arts, Culture and Sport. n

requirements for supporting documents, technical reports with up-to-date guidelines and a single checklist, RMOW planner LouisFélix Tremblay-Renaud said in a presentation to council.

“The updated policy will be easier for both applicants and our building staff. This should lead to improved processing timelines and require fewer staff hours to administer.”

A STEP ABOVE

The new policy most affects developments requiring rezoning applications, as the RMOW seeks to create a zero-emission municipality with some of the province’s most ambitious green building requirements.

For example, all new buildings going through rezoning must commit to building one step higher than Whistler’s current Energy Step Code requirements as required by the existing building and plumbing bylaw.

New developments must also commit to incorporating a low-carbon energy system as the primary space and water heating source, and must demonstrate passive design strategies to minimize heating, cooling loads and energy use.

The policy also requires builders seeking rezoning to create detailed demolition and construction waste management plans. They must include a description of measures taken to increase recycling and diversion rates, and must meet diversion rate targets.

The policy also recommends builders use locally sourced, B.C. materials for floors,

windows, doors, insulated panels, lighting, and heating where feasible.

WHAT ABOUT VEHICLE EMISSIONS?

Single-occupancy vehicles remained the most significant contributor to Whistler’s carbon emissions at 54 per cent in 2019. With that in mind, the new Green Building Policy requires all new single-family dwellings, two-family dwellings, townhouses, and single/two-family dwellings with secondary suites or lock-off units

to provide a Level 2 EV charging station or higher.

In non-residential developments subject to rezoning, at least 25 per cent of parking spaces must provide Level 2 charging or higher.

The policy also requires new developments to provide more space for bikes to park, requiring all new mixed-use, multifamily residential, industrial, commercial and institutional buildings subject to rezoning to provide at least six short-term bicycle parking spaces near the building entrance in

a weather-protected and well-lit area at grade.

Multi-family residential developments must provide long-term bicycle parking spaces in a bicycle storage facility or within each residential dwelling unit, with at least one bike parking space required for each dwelling unit under 45 square metres and at least two for each dwelling unit greater than that.

Finally, another significant change under the updated policy is the use of water, especially as it relates to irrigation. Under the new policy, new developments subject to rezoning must eliminate potable water use for irrigation and avoid installing permanent potable water irrigation systems.

Rainwater and non-potable water irrigation systems are still allowed.

While the new policy is undoubtedly ambitious, Tremblay-Renaud believes it is key to addressing Whistler’s climate action goals.

“The Green Building Policy addresses Whistler’s climate action goals and moves us to be aligned with current leading edge practices of other communities. It implements commitments in our community vision, OCP and Big Moves Climate Action implementation plan,” TremblayRenaud said. “The policy also clarifies and streamlines processes for the building sector with a policy informed by industry. Staff will continue to implement green building and sustainability in Whistler with the suite of tools and authority available to us. The policy also provides a framework for ongoing review and refinement in the future.”

Read more at whistler.ca/ greenbuildingpolicy. n

GOING GREEN A house under construction in Whistler’s Blueberry neighbourhood.

PHOTO BY ROBERT WISLA

WedgeWoods expansion makes its way through first reading

NEW SUBDIVISION COULD ADD 18 HOUSING LOTS, A LARGE, DEDICATED PARK, AND INFRASTRUCTURE FOR REGIONAL BUS SERVICE EXPANSION

BY ROBERT WISLA

THE WEDGEWOODS community, 15 kilometres north of Whistler, may soon expand with dozens of new homes.

At its Dec. 14 meeting, the SquamishLillooet Regional District (SLRD) board of directors moved proposed bylaw amendments that will essentially create a new subdivision in WedgeWoods through first reading.

If approved, the amendment would add 18 new lots—12 market strata and six non-market—for housing developments over 62.87 acres, bringing the total in WedgeWoods to 126 lots.

The six non-market lots will be located between Highway 99 and Riverside Drive, and offered for $225,000, with $200,000 going to the SLRD as part of its amenity contribution agreement. Lot pricing and building value will increase in line with the Consumer Price Index. A market lot in WedgeWoods is going for about $2 million in 2022.

According to project proponent David Ehrhardt, the non-market lots came about due to a desire from the regional district to open the neighbourhood to a wider variety of

people in the corridor.

“[The non-market lots] came about as a result of discussions jointly because the SLRD staff wanted to see a little opportunity for a slightly more affordable area in WedgeWoods, where individuals employed in the corridor have an opportunity to buy in,” Ehrhardt said.

Under the proposed bylaw, all the new lots must have a secondary suite or auxiliary

The secondary suite requirements aim to achieve a similar objective to a proposed bylaw amendment brought forward earlier this year which would allow all properties in the community to add additional suites and auxiliary dwellings for long-term rentals. The minimum lot size in the neighbourhood is a half-acre, so there is ample room on most properties for auxiliary dwellings.

donation on the western side of the highway, where a substantial non-market affordable housing project was previously proposed in 2019.

The SLRD rejected the “WedgeWoods West” affordable housing project on first reading in a close 6-4 vote, with the majority of opposition coming from Squamish and Whistler representatives.

The bylaw also requires the developer to contribute $15,000 to the SLRD to create a transit stop and bus shelter on either Highway 99 or Riverside Drive.

According to Ford, the bus infrastructure is essential, as it will play into the broader goal of creating a regional transit system.

“The idea is that we want to make it easy for transit to stop there to pick people up, and currently, there’s no bus infrastructure that goes into WedgeWoods,” Ford said.

dwelling unit in addition to the main house. These dwellings will be subject to occupancy requirements and covenanted to ensure longterm rentals.

There are no stipulations on how much the units can be rented for in the market lots. As determined by BC Housing, the six non-market lot secondary suites or auxiliary dwelling units will have rental caps set between 28 to 30 per cent of low and moderate-income limits.

“It’s good to see any new affordable housing that provides rental suites. There are some ownership units. I think that is all positive,” SLRD Chair Jen Ford said.

“There’s no question in anyone’s mind that our corridor is under a lot of pressure to build and to make available more housing in all of its forms, and so this is just one of the forms that our communities need.”

In addition to the new housing lots, the proposal also includes a sizable 307-acre land

“The Pemberton commuter bus, for example, drives right by, so putting a stop on the north side of the highway will help, and then figuring out a way to have a stop headed southbound or to have the bus come into the development to pick up southbound traffic.

“Our hope is that we get our regional transit system, and when you add a development like this, I mean, the developments are already there. But if we can get regional transit going past there and picking people up, that helps further create the evidence for the regional transit system and why

we need it.” n

WEDGE ISSUE An artist’s rendering of the site map detailing the proposed expansion of WedgeWoods, north of Whistler.

SCREENSHOT / SLRD

“There’s no question in anyone’s mind that our corridor is under a lot of pressure to build and to make available more housing in all its forms...”

- JEN FORD

And So This is Christmas

THIS FIRST TIME I heard John Lennon’s “Happy Xmas (War is Over)” it became my holiday anthem. Nothing so perfectly encapsulated the uneasy feeling I always had around Christmas. Sure, I liked some of what the time of year brought: gathering with friends and family was always fun, consuming good food and drink never got old, and who didn’t

BY LESLIE ANTHONY

appreciate time off school or work—especially when snow was involved?

But then the rest: people pathologically stressed out about Christmas shopping and a growing list they had to buy presents for. Crass commercialization, gross consumerism and needless garbage. The bizarre concatenation of Christian myth and pagan winter solstice iconography cloaked in a transmogrified Nordic saga employed to shill the whole package to kids (having fingered Santa and crew as bunk at an early age, my parents actually paid me not to tell my younger brothers). And the worst of it: societal hypocrisy—a narrow, codified slice of time when otherwise indifferent, negligent and sometimes downright bad people and organizations did good deeds and sought public

NEAR AND THE DEAR ONES Another Christmas has come and gone in Whistler. How will you fill your days until the next one?

redemption. This bit drove me to distraction: why weren’t charity and doing the right thing encouraged all year? Why did we promote caring about each other at Christmas but the rest of the year let people starve, wars rage and companies pollute and rape the land with impunity? If Christmas in all its muddled symbolism was actually about lightness and good, should it not be a time to reflect on how this noblesse oblige was conducted in general?

Then over the radio it drifted in: So this is Christmas / And what have you done? / Another

expected something out of myself.

Along with this came a change in both my own entitlements and my expectations of others. The former, which mostly engendered negative consequences, diminished, while the latter, the grist of change, increased. I became acutely aware of the flow of selfishness in society in general. And although entitlement and self-absorption have never been pretty, what we’ve observed over these past three years of the pandemic has been genuinely ugly. The constant whining over how nothing

year over / And a new one just begun. Well. That was 1971, and I was 14, teetering on the edge of teen idealism, rocked by the upheaval of the late 1960s and spun out by the assassinations, wars and famines I read about daily in the newspaper. What had I done, indeed?

It made me think. It made my friends think. And though labelling it generational might perhaps be a stretch, a call to action was silently inculcated. I see this notion—a sensibility most people I knew have held onto over the years—as a gift: that it isn’t about what you do or don’t do at Christmas, but about what you’ve done and will do between the times it passes through. As with most other things in my life, a shift to biggerpicture thinking contributed to making this time of year more enjoyable. Instead of expecting something out of Christmas, I

is working and everything is broken is like some comic childish tantrum. It’s also wrong. Because, of course, we’re the ones who’ve thrown a wrench in whatever isn’t working, and, if truly broken, the ones who broke it. For instance, when travel is frustrated by a potent combination of increased demand, powerful climate-change-induced weather, and ongoing illness and staff challenges, who’s actually to blame—and what have we done about it?

Nothing, it seems. It’s like we’ve completely forgotten what’s actually happened over the past few years. And yet, those most stressedout and on edge appear to be taking it out on whoever is in front of them. Perhaps we’d be more charitable if we better understood the pandemic as the self-actualized event that it is, acknowledging the linkage between zoonotic

disease and consumerism, overpopulation, resource extraction, globalization, climate change and biodiversity loss. Once we accept our individual—and collective—roles in precipitating, propelling and prolonging this pandemic, expectations and entitlements we have around systems and institutions (e.g., health-care, global supply chains, financial markets, mass transportation) struggling to restore themselves might change. Reading the news this holiday season (and during summer’s air-travel disaster), it shocks me that people still can’t connect the dots. I won’t give them a pass because they could clearly do better, but how do we expect air and rail companies already dealing with reduced capacity and staff shortages to cope smoothly with storms conditions that are far more difficult to manage than in the past? The answer is we can’t. This is the way it will be for the foreseeable future. So instead of passively wishing everything back to normal, perhaps more of us should pitch in. Sure, we can make contributions to the climate and biodiversity emergencies by changing our own personal consumption habits, but we can also join and fund advocacy groups fighting for change, as well as stop electing people who don’t see the writing on the wall and aren’t prepared to act. Putting rage-farming politicians in office who sell stories about restoring entitlements that no longer exist will get us nowhere.

At the end of “Happy Xmas (War is Over),” the lyrics shift subtly but meaningfully, reflecting this eternal shared responsibility: And so this is Christmas / And what have we done?

Leslie Anthony is a biologist, writer and author of several popular books on environmental science. ■

[I]nstead of passively wishing everything back to normal, perhaps more of us should pitch in.

PHOTO BY VISUALCOMMUNICATIONS / GETTY IMAGES

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Whistler his Best P i que’s 20 er

Quintessential Whistler

FAVOURITE WHISTLERITE Jack Crompton

If it comes as a surprise that Mayor Jack Crompton is this year’s Favourite Whistlerite, well, you’re not alone. Local government being a thankless job if ever there was one, it’s not an overstatement to say that the recently re-elected mayor was completely and utterly stunned at the news of his razor-thin win in this category.

“Wow, I’m speechless,” he said with a laugh.

A Whistler local for most his life, Crompton grew up in Kelowna, and would often visit family at the cabin his grandfather built in Alta Vista throughout his childhood.

It wasn’t until near the turn of the millennium that Crompton would settle down in Whistler with his wife, Carolyn, where he made the most of that first epic winter.

“Like many Whistlerites, my first bed was in a big shared house in Alpine. I lived in a closet, but there was snow every day in 1999, so I stayed. It doesn’t feel like that long ago,” Crompton said.

After a couple of years working as a snowboard instructor on the mountain and at the Whistler Community Church, he started his first company, Whistler Resort Cabs.

After a few successful years running the taxi business, he sold it and started RideBooker (and Whistler Shuttle), an online transportation concierge service that he ran until his first term as mayor in 2018, a position he has often said is the best job in town.

Crompton believes he was voted Favourite Whistlerite because of the work put in over the challenging last few years.

“I did spend the last three months through the election running around town asking for votes. Maybe people thought I was talking about Best of Whistler,” he quipped.

“The truth is we have all been through a really difficult few years. We pulled together and took care of each other. I’d like to think picking a politician indicates our shared commitment to this place and responding with the same community care to the huge challenges we all face right now,” he added.

“I couldn’t be more grateful to have gone through what we have here. Whistlerites are a special group of people.”

So if Jack Crompton is Whistler’s favourite person, who is Jack Crompton’s favourite person?

“Mike [Douglas] is obviously the forever champ, and I thought last year’s pick was bang on [physician Karin Kausky], but [91-year-old artist and bon vivant] Isobel McLaurin is my favourite Whistlerite. Izzy is the spirit of this place,” Crompton said.

Coming in second was Jeremy “Stinky” Peterson, owner of the popular Olympic Plaza sports bar, Stinky’s on the Stroll, while “Grateful” Greg Reamsbottom from Whistler’s perennial favourite band, The Hairfarmers, took third.

FAVOURITE VOLUNTEER

Denise Wood

over her time find loving homes.

“I’m really proud and humbled to be voted [volunteer of the year] just because Whistler is full of so many volunteers, so to be voted is really humbling,” Wood said.

“I’ve always been passionate about animal welfare and just love animals, and WAG has always done outstanding work, so I just wanted to be part of that.”

Wood puts a great deal of time into helping WAG. She does it all, be it walking one of the many dogs, doing social media for the organization or participating in long board meetings.

One volunteer activity she leads every year is the creation of dog bandanas to raise money for the organization. Sold at Happy Pets and the Whistler Farmers Market, 100 per cent of the proceeds go to WAG.

Over the last year, WAG, like many animal shelters across Canada, has experienced a surge in the number of animals coming to the shelter, as many people acquired pets during the pandemic and, as restrictions eased, have given them up for various reasons.

On top of having more animals in the shelter, WAG is also dealing with a record number of critical care cases.

“WAG has had 26 critical care cases this year, which is higher than normal. WAG is quite a unique shelter that takes in animals that many organizations won’t take on and provides them with that clinical care so they can have the medical care they need and be on their way to a better life,” Wood said.

While Wood is happy to receive the Favourite Volunteer honour once again, she pointed out that all the volunteers and staff of WAG make the organization what it is today.

said.

“There is nothing I find more interesting than Whistler and Whistlerites. I’ve said it many times. It’s the highest privilege of my life to be able to serve this community,” Crompton said.

It’s the third time overall and second in a row that Denise Wood has been recognized as Whistler’s Favourite Volunteer. A selfdescribed animal lover, Wood has volunteered with Whistler Animal Galore (WAG) for 13 years, helping hundreds of animals

“The WAG team, like the amazing staff there, is another part that I enjoy about volunteering, just because there is a group of individuals who are so committed to the animals and their care—and it’s really hard work,” Wood said.

Denise Wood

Jack Crompton

All photos by David Buzzard.com

WAG

using existing facilities built for the 2010 Games, with a few events planned for Sun Peaks as well.

FAVOURITE NON-PROFIT Whistler Animals Galore

It’s clear: Whistler loves its fur babies. For the 10th year in a row, the resort’s only animal shelter, Whistler Animals Galore (WAG), has taken the title of Favourite Non-Profit.

Founded in 1982, the organization has grown into one of the largest non-profits in Whistler, and has helped connect hundreds of pets to their furrever homes in that time.

The Whistler Community Services Society, the local social-service provider that operates the food bank, Re-UseIt and Re-Build-It centres, along with dozens of community programs, came a close second this year, followed by Zero Ceiling, dedicated to ending youth homelessness.

BEST DECISION BY WHISTLER COUNCIL Supporting the 2030 Olympic Bid

According to Pique readers, Whistler’s mayor and council made many a good decision in 2022, from increasing fines for parking in handicapped spots and implementing red-tape reductions to adopting a new Wildfire Resiliency Plan that will guide how the municipality prepares for wildfires over the next decade.

Yet the best decision by Whistler council, as voted by you, was supporting the 2030 Olympic bid, which would have seen the Games return to Whistler and Vancouver, for the most part

News of the bid went public at the end of last year, and quickly became a contentious topic in the province. A critical difference between the 2030 bid and the bid from 2010 was the proponents leading the charge to bring the Games back.

Four coastal First Nations—the Squamish, Lil’wat, TsleilWaututh and Musqueam—led the bid, optimistic for the opportunity to share their communities’ stories, and the story of Canada’s First Peoples and recent efforts towards Truth and Reconciliation, with the wider world, along with the development and economic opportunities that would have come with hosting the event on their traditional territories.

The bid gained support from the Resort Municipality of Whistler, the City of Vancouver, the Mountain Resort Municipality of Sun Peaks and the City of Kamloops. Yet when it came to the provincial government’s desk, it was abruptly quashed, with Victoria ultimately deeming the Games’ highprice tag a dealbreaker.

Coming in second was council’s decision to finally adopt a new Cannabis Retail Policy and related bylaws that, once fully approved, will allow up to five cannabis shops in the RMOW. This decision was followed closely by the RMOW ending COVID-19 vaccination requirements for municipal employees.

WORST DECISION BY WHISTLER COUNCIL Inaction on the Transit Strike

According to Whistlerites, council’s biggest misstep in 2022 was inaction on the public transit strike, which paralyzed most commuters’ ability to get around for months.

The 137-day transit strike that started Jan. 29 made history by being the longest transit strike in B.C. history. Precisely what

council could have done is a good question, as negotiations were between BC Transit contractor and Whistler Transit operator Pacific Western Transportation and B.C.’s largest private-sector union, Unifor.

Other than a few urgent letters and taking supportive pictures with the striking bus drivers, the perception was that council needed to do more to get buses back on the road.

While Councillor Ralph Forsyth proposed a “nuclear option” that would have terminated its cost-sharing contract with BC Transit, cancel lease fee payments to the operator, and launch an RMOW shuttle service, council struck it down.

Whistlerites’ second least-favourite decision from the council table in 2022 was elected officials voting to give the next mayor and council a substantial raise in salary.

Council moving forward with the controversial 43-unit Nita Lake housing development ranked as the third worst decision in readers’ minds.

BIGGEST NEWS STORY

Fatal ShootingGangin Whistler Village

The biggest headline to hit Whistler this year was the fatal double shooting that shattered an idyllic summer day in the village.

Meninder Dhaliwal, an affiliate of the Brothers Keeper gang, was shot dead on the steps of the Sundial Hotel in the middle of the afternoon on Sunday, July 24. His friend, Satindera Gill, unaffiliated with the gang, was shot and later succumbed to his injuries at Whistler Health Centre.

The shooting shocked the resort community on several levels. Given Whistler’s distance from Vancouver and the sheer number of civilians in the Whistler Village, brazen daylight shootings like this are exceedingly rare.

Those allegedly responsible were caught heading south on the Sea to Sky highway shortly after the shooting, and are now facing murder charges, which have not yet been proven in court.

The aforementioned, 137-day Sea to Sky transit strike was the second biggest story of the year, according to Pique readers, while a string of rare in-bound avalanche deaths last winter was deemed the third biggest headline.

BIGGEST ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERN Climate

No huge surprise here: after a year marked by extreme weather events throughout the province, Whistlerites voted the climate crisis as the community’s most pressing environmental concern. Given the community is not on track to meet its ambitious climate targets, urgency will be crucial if council hopes to reverse the trend.

The logging of old growth was named the second biggest environmental concern, while a closely related issue— wildfire—came in a close third.

- Robert Wisla

Fellow WAGer Imogen Lowery came in second this year, while Whistler Health Care Foundation vice chair Jennifer Black was third.

We love you too, Whistler.

Nicklaus North/Table Nineteen

Since

in 2018, the Function Junction restaurant has been dishing out a sort of hybrid between the heavily-sauced, foldable crust of New York ‘za, with the cheese-all-the-way-to-the-edge style popular in Detroit, and Whistlerites have taken to it like ducks to water, naming it the Best Pizza in town for the third year in a row.

“It’s true appreciation for East Coast, American-style pizza,” Scott said. “There’s lots to be said for it and not a lot of it to be found.”

Scott added that Functional’s distinct crust is “probably the most called-out thing our customers enjoy,” modelled in part off the so-called “grandmother pie” that originated in Long Island, N.Y.

“That New York piece would be the style of the sauce and the crafting of the dough. Back east they call it a grandmother pie, and we’re not necessarily doing it in a square pan, but that’s what a Nonna from New York would do,” Scott said. Ever the tinkerer, Scott is always looking to improve upon his award-winning pie, and he’s hopeful to install a new addition to the kitchen next year that would help towards that goal.

“We want to get better at it,” Scott said. “We want to move away from the electric ovens and get to gas stone deck ovens.”

Located in the heart of Function from which the pizzeria gets its name, Scott said Whistler’s southernmost neighbourhood has been full of loyal fans since Day 1.

“That’s the tremendous thing. When my wife and I were discussing the opportunity to lay roots for a pizza shop, it was Function Junction from the get-go,” he recalled. “If I was going to take a jump off the deep end, I wanted to do it in a smaller, community-focused place … It’s the same lovely, amazing and friendly faces we see all the time—everyday some of them! It’s really a treasure to be down here.”

Coast Mountain Brewing goes back to the basics

This year marks the fifth year in a row that Function Junction’s beloved microbrewery, Coast Mountain Brewing, earns the title for Best Beer Selection. If we’re talking sports terms, that would easily be considered a dynasty on the magnitude of the ’80s Oilers, the ’90s Bulls, or the 2000s Patriots, but co-owner and brewer Kevin Winter doesn’t necessarily see it that way.

“I don’t know if we consider it a dynasty,” he said. “We’re humble and we love what we do and I hope it shows in the beer. We’re always so fortunate that the community supports us the way they do and that’s what enables us to brew the beer we do. If we go six, if we go seven in a row, it’s just as exciting as the first year.”

Known for its small-batch brews across a variety of styles along with its core stable of regular beers—it’s Hope You’re Happy IPA is as ubiquitous in Whistler as snow pants and unaffordable housing at this point—Coast Mountain weathered the lean pandemic years to come back stronger than ever in 2022.

“The business is just flourishing now and we’re so fortunate,” Winter said.

“The staff uphold the

we have some people that have been here for quite a long time and we’re really choosy when we bring people onboard,” she explained.

So, what qualities does Rothdram look for in a Dubh Linn devotee? Well, considering it is one of the busiest pubs around—the pub still serves more Guinness than any other bar in Western Canada—a calm demeanour and enduring stamina go a long way.

“It’s high volume and takes a lot of endurance—and somebody that can maintain a cool head and a high quality of service no matter what’s getting thrown at them,” Rothdram said.

In a town awash with cocktail bars and fine-dining spots, a proper Irish pub, with its dark-wood interior, regular fiddle music, and portraits of Irish literary giants like Yeats and Beckett and Joyce adorning the walls, certainly helps to stand out from the crowd.

“That could be it, for sure,” Rothdram mused on the keys to Dubh Linn’s continued success. “We just had the World Cup on, so we were seeing lots of expats and tourists from England and Ireland coming in for a pint. I think if people don’t know where to go, they always know the pub’s going to have the game on. There’s familiarity there.”

Along with winning the Best Bar category, Dubh Linn also won Best Nachos, a recipe that hasn’t changed in a dog’s age, Rothdram said.

“We haven’t tweaked the recipe in all the years that I’ve been here, which has been many,” she added. “It must be the right ratio of cheese to chips.”

- Brandon Barrett

The wider industry has taken note as well. Its well balanced, North American-style Woodnutt Brown Ale is a two-time national award winner, while just this year, its juicy and floral Valley Trail Pale Ale won big at the BC Beer Awards, and its crisp and refreshing Crystal Chair Pilsener took home gold at the Canada Beer Cup.

“It’s pretty humbling to be mentioned among some of the top beers in Canada,” Winter said.

So what’s on tap for 2023? Winter said suds lovers can expect Coast Mountain to lean further into traditional, old world-style brews after the trends hewed more towards hazy and sour beers the past few years.

“We’ve seen Coast Mountain turn a bit more toward traditional beers of an older age—the pre-haze craze, if you will,” he said. “These are beers that are staples and the styles themselves have seen successful for years: Red ale, Doppelbock, a stout coming in bottles here. Tried and true recipes that folks enjoy and a little less of the trend of the day.”

- Brandon Barrett

For The Hairfarmers, 2022 was a bit of a comeback.

Of course, love for Whistler’s favourite band (21 years running) has never wavered, but after contending with pandemic restrictions, a table-saw injury, and a motorcycle accident, they’re looking ahead to smoother sailing.

“It felt so good to be back to ‘normal,’” said “Grateful” Greg Reamsbottom, singer for the band, of their shows this year.

On top of the backlog of weddings and corporate events the duo played—all over the world—one highlight was a series of shows up the Sea to Sky Gondola that might just have earned them Best Music Group/ Band in Squamish for the first time as part of the Squamish Chief’s Reader’s Choice Awards.

“Every time we play up there [on the gondola], it’s such a stunningly gorgeous venue,” Reamsbottom said. “The whole community gravitates up there for those shows. They’re all memorable.”

The pair, of course, is happy to be back to their usual fiveday-a-week schedule onstage in Whistler this winter as well.

It’s been a long road in particular for “Guitar” Doug Craig, who sliced his index and middle fingers on a table saw (not ideal when you’re a guitarist) before being hit by a pickup truck on his motorcycle after the driver swerved over the centre lane.

“That pretty much took me off the road for two months,” Craig said. “I’m just happy to have a left arm and right leg.”

While he’s still working on his dexterity with his instrument, he’s been grateful for the support, from fans, the community, and loved ones.

“When I’m onstage it helps me,” he said. “I don’t think about my injuries. It’s going to take me some time to recover … I’ll be able to rebuild and get things going again. The Hairfarmers have a really good fanbase, too. They’re pretty forgiving.”

And, judging by their decades of winning Whistler’s Favourite Band, they’re not afraid to heap on the love either.

“It’s always exciting,” Reamsbottom said of the win. “You can never take it for granted. As soon as you start doing stuff like that is when things start going in the wrong direction.”

- Alyssa Noel

very, very happy to be in Whistler’

Rob Perry took a risk when he decided to move to Canada.

Whistler’s Favourite Photographer for 2022 had earned a master’s degree in fine arts, with a specialty in photography in the U.K., then launched into work there for several years, shooting for brands like Rolls-Royce.

“I was learning at the time, so I took any job that came up— weddings, events, what have you,” he explained.

But despite his upward trajectory, eight years ago, he decided to pack up and move to Whistler. Landing a job at Coast Mountain Photography shooting on the mountain, it wasn’t until 2017 that he decided to strike out on his own and launch a business.

“I’ve very much always been into mountain biking, but these past few years, I’ve started concentrating on [that],” he said. “I shoot as much as possible and work with as many mountain bike brands as I can.”

He hit a major milestone this year when he was invited to participate in Crankworx’s Deep Summer Photo Challenge. (For the uninitiated, that event selects from the industry’s best sports-action photographers, who are each given three days to collect mountain bike photos and create a slideshow that screens for hundreds in Olympic Plaza.)

“It was a crazy experience,” Perry said. “The three days then the week after doing Crankworx, I had a lot of people asking if I was free to do work for companies. All in all, it was great to have a platform to exhibit my work. Often on shoots, I shoot [for a brand], but this purpose was to exhibit my own work in my own way. That was my main takeaway from it.”

Whistler might be filled with talented photographers, but Perry added that his experience has been one of support and collaboration rather than competition.

“Honestly, I see it as more of a collaborative thing,” he said. “Every photographer, videographer, or creative I meet in Whistler is always so helpful and kind … The scene is competitive, but, to me, I see it as a smaller sub-community of people helping each other.”

As for his new Best of Whistler title, he says he was “very surprised.”

“I’m very, very happy to be in Whistler,” he said. “I enjoy it more than words can describe. I’m incredibly grateful for all the kindness that clients, friends, and other photographers have towards me.”

- Alyssa Noel

‘I’m

Andrea Mueller

Triple Crown

Marielle Thompson may have won an Olympic silver medal this February, but she can’t seem to dethrone Stan Rey as Whistler’s Favourite Winter Athlete. Neither can anyone else, for that matter.

For the third consecutive year, Pique Newsmagazine readers have named Rey as their most beloved winter athlete, even though he hasn’t skied competitively in a long time.

“It’s just super cool to be able to connect with the community and have them supporting me and liking what I do,” said the 34-year-old. “I try to be the happy-go-lucky guy that I am, so it’s good that I’m able to inspire others. People like my personality, I guess.”

Though he was born in a small Swiss ski village called Crans-Montana, Rey has lived in Whistler since he was seven years old. Conquering pristine powder is in his blood: his grandfather was a two-time Olympian and 13-time alpine skiing national champion in Switzerland, while his father spent two years on the Swiss national junior team.

Rey tried following in his grandfather’s alpine footsteps beginning at age 10, later switching to ski cross. In his three years on the Canadian national team, the longtime Whistlerite twice competed at the X Games (finishing fourth in 2011) and added a Canadian title to his resume.

Yet, freeskiing and filmmaking ultimately stole his heart.

“When I got to [age] 24, I was kind of over competing and wanted to do my own thing, and I always knew freeskiing was an avenue I would love to explore down the road,” said Rey. “I’ve had more fun doing it than I’ve ever had on skis.”

For about eight years, Rey and business partner Alexi Godbout have operated a film company called Blank Collective Films. Their latest production, Feel Real, encapsulates the reasons why Rey loves freeskiing.

“It’s about having fun with [skiing], the camaraderie we share with our buddies out there,” he explained. “You cheer on your buddy to stomp a sick line instead of being like, ‘Oh, I want to beat them.’”

The easygoing Rey hopes to keep connecting with his fellow Whistlerites through his YouTube channel, which he started last year to share practical skiing tips with viewers. He and Godbout are also ready to make a new movie despite the departure of longtime partner Jeff Thomas.

“The main reason we make [films] is to inspire people and get people stoked for winter,” he said.

Rey could write a lengthy book about all the things that skiing has taught and given to him, but were he to pick just one, it would be the importance of respecting nature.

“The mountain doesn’t care if you’re a professional or a beginner, it’ll treat you the exact same,” he said. “And I think that’s a lesson that can actually apply to life, too. No matter if people are short, tall, have different skin colours or come from different places in the world, I think you should treat everyone the same.”

David Song

And still ...

Wei Tien Ho was surprised to be named Whistler’s Favourite Junior Athlete last year. He wasn’t expecting to win the recognition a second straight time either, but he did.

“I guess I’m surprised again,” he admitted with a chuckle. “I’m honoured. There’s a ton of great athletes just in Whistler alone, so there’s always good competition around. It definitely means a lot.”

At 18 years old, Ho will soon join the senior ranks in his preferred sports of mountain biking and freeride skiing, leaving the door ajar for someone else to take 2023’s Favourite Junior Athlete crown. It’s become more challenging to balance both, especially since he competes in two separate mountain bike disciplines: enduro and downhill. Ho formerly put his bike away after the fall, but he aims to ride all winter this year— and not at the expense of skiing.

Other young two-sport athletes, like Best of Whistler runner-up Marcus Goguen, realize that they may have to pick one. Ho will cross that bridge if necessary, but he wants to keep biking and skiing for as long as possible.

“My dream is to do both,” he explained. “I’m kind of at that stage where if I’m going to pick, I should pick, but I can’t. I don’t know many people that have done it to the top, but I really just want to be one of those who does both at the top of the game.”

Ho has only seriously competed in downhill since 2021, but continued to prove he belongs this summer, adding three top-10 World Cup DH finishes to his resume. An ill-timed crash forced him to miss the last two World Cup events on the calendar. Meanwhile in enduro, the format where he feels “the most at home,” Ho bookended his season with podium results in the 2022 Norco Canadian Enduro Series: second place on May 29 and first on Sept. 25.

The Whistlerite had intended to make a ski film with one of his coaches last year, but hectic schedules and less-than-ideal snow conditions caused him to delay the project to this season. Ho wants his first movie to highlight his own story on the slopes and how the Whistler Freeride Club played a pivotal role in his development.

“I want to add a bit of creativity and art, rather than just [make] a ski edit,” he said.

Ho also aims to accumulate points on the Freeride World Qualifier circuit this winter to qualify for the Freeride World Tour (FWT), the highest level of freeride ski competition on Earth. Connections through his sponsor, Peak Performance, will allow him to be a forerunner in FWT events at Kicking Horse Mountain Resort in Golden, B.C. and overseas in Andorra.

- David Song

-

At Creekside Market, it’s all about the customers

Have you ever walked around a grocery store looking for a specific item or brand, but no dice?

Now imagine the next time you walked into that grocery store, that item was sitting on a shelf.

That’s the kind of service customers at Creekside Market have come to expect.

“We’re limited in space—we’re only 8,000 square feet, so we’re not a big store—but we’re pretty diversified in what we carry,” said Creekside Market owner Jerry Marsh. “We don’t have to carry six kinds of canned peas, say, but we have one or two, and if we don’t carry something we can certainly get it in for a customer.”

That is also part of the reason the local grocery store was voted as having the best customer service in town in this year’s Best of Whistler survey, winning the honour by a wide margin for the third consecutive year. Creekside Market was also named Whistler’s second-best grocery store in 2022, edged out slightly by Nesters Market.

Being independently owned gives Creekside Market “a leg up” on some of its competition, Marsh explained.

“We can source out and buy anything we want from anybody, any retailer or any wholesaler, small or large, where a lot of the bigger chains are restricted to what the corporation wants them to carry and what they carry in their main warehouse,” he said. “We can talk to whoever we want to that comes in the store; like small, independent producers that are coming up with new ideas. “

That independence also enables Creekside Market to source an abundance of B.C.-made products and locally grown produce throughout the seasons.

Marsh and his wife Sana have owned the market since it opened near the base of the Creekside Gondola in 2004, after previously operating a smaller store across the street. Some of Creekside Market’s customers have been shopping at the Marshes’ businesses since the very beginning. “We do have a lot of loyal customers that we have seen for years,” Marsh said.

Even throughout the difficult months when COVID-19 restrictions were at their strictest, Creekside Market’s staff have “always been good at taking care of the customers and looking after their needs,” said Marsh. “That’s something that we all stress, especially our general manager and all the management pass on to their group, to look after the customer. They’re the No. 1 thing … They’re the ones that pay the bills at the end of the day, so [our staff] take that quite to heart and do a great job.”

Curated keepsakes nets 3 Singing Birds dual honours

For years, 3 Singing Birds has been recognized as the best place in town to find unique, thoughtful gifts for loved ones.

With its small-batch candles, handcrafted pottery and beauty products, surrounded by racks of timeless, cozy, slow fashion pieces, it has surpassed the countless other village gift shops filled with bright-coloured, Whistler-branded apparel to

win Whistler’s favourite place to shop for gifts for the last three years running.

Now, the store is being recognized for its carefully curated jewelry selection, dethroning perennial winner Keir Fine Jewellery to win the dual honour of Best Jewelry Store in 2022—even though jewelry is just one of many different categories of goods the boutique stocks on its two locations’ shelves.

“We’re so appreciative and excited,” said manager Annie Farrell, who has worked at the store for five years.

Owner Paula Jeffers opened the doors to 3 Singing Birds’ original Marketplace location, shared by the Green Moustache, just over nine years ago.

A textile designer by trade who originally hails from the U.K., Jeffers often found herself sending gifts homes to family after moving to Whistler, but grew “kind of tired of sending very generic … stuff when there was so many great artisans in Canada,” Farrell explained. “She saw this gap in the market and wanted to make a store out of it.”

The team followed up the Marketplace storefront with a second location that opened in the Fairmont Chateau Whistler five years ago.

The boutique sources its products from a variety of avenues, from trade shows to social media to referrals. Though there’s a few staple items and brands that remain in 3 Singing Birds’ rotation all year long, the store tries to switch up its inventory to showcase as many artisans as it can.

“The hardest bit is trying to choose because there’s so many great companies and we’re such a small location, even with both stores, so it’s so hard and so tough to tell brands, ‘we love your stuff but we just don’t have the space right now,’” said Farrell.

When it comes to 3 Singing Birds’ jewelry selection, Farell said its collection over the last year and a half or so has trended towards dainty pieces with a modern twist, as well as Indigenous-made beaded jewelry or wooden earrings, with higher-end pieces (like Grainne Morton’s one-of-a-kind charm earrings that Farrell called “works of art,” for example) mixed with more affordable pieces.

Whether you’ve stopped by 3 Singing Birds for a candle or a sweater or jewelry or just to browse, “We want to say thank you to everybody who supported us, especially during COVID. In the last few years, it’s been really difficult with staffing and people have been so lovely and patient and understanding,” said Farrell. “So honestly, thank you to the whole community.”

- Megan Lalonde

- Megan Lalonde

Audain Art Museum

facilities, improving the guest experience, and creating a healthy working environment that encourages staff retention.

“The current owners really listen to our team. They see the potential and believe in the spa. Year after year, they invest and continuously put money into improving the overall guest experience,” Mullan said.

“We have created a family and culture where we listen, learn and communicate with each other with respect and honesty. As our team continues to grow, we are able to retain our staff due to these qualities and the working environment we are provided with.”

- Robert Wisla

Long in the tooth

Creekside Dental Clinic is Whistler’s favourite place for dental work, continuing a winning streak several years on.

“It’s always an honour,” owner and dentist Dr. Julian Truong said. “I mean, we never expect it, but we definitely welcome it, and we’re very grateful that the community voted for us.”

Creekside Dental has been a fixture in Whistler for almost 40 years, opening to the public in the early 1980s under the ownership of Dr. John Roberts, who passed away earlier this year.

Dr. Truong believes the key to the business’ success is the team’s straightforward, honest approach, which aims to make the dental experience as enjoyable as a visit to the dentist can be.

“I think it just comes down to honesty. We just do honest dentistry here. We treat everyone as if they were our own family, and I think it just shows through our work and how we treat people. So hopefully, that’s why they remember us,” Truong said.

“We’re not trying to make a quick buck out of anyone. We’re just trying to help people. So that’s my reward when I see someone walk out of the chair, and they’re just happy with their smile and teeth.”

Top doc

Over his long career, the Whistler Medical Clinic’s Dr. Thomas DeMarco has seen thousands of patients in 52 different communities in every province and territory in Canada. Working in the health-care system might be stressful for some, but the 64-year-old loves the work.

“For me, it’s almost more of a hobby than a job. It’s just something I really enjoy,” DeMarco said, welcoming the affirmation of his work in Whistler.

“It’s always a thrill and an honour to be recognized that way by the local population. So I take that as a compliment. That’s an affirmation of what I’m doing, so I’m obviously very pleased.”

DeMarco’s commitment to the people in his care is evident in how he makes himself about available for patients even when he should be off work or on holiday.

“It’s fulfilling and sometimes challenging, but it’s certainly not a stressful job. I find it’s something that I find relatively comfortable to do, so I don’t mind being available to my patients,” DeMarco said.

“In fact, a lot of them have my personal contact information, almost 1,000 people. So even on my so-called days off or

even when I run away to Florida, I often treat patients from home. I stay in touch and try to be available and help whenever and wherever I can.”

Health-care in Whistler is in a difficult position these days. At the beginning of May, Town Plaza Medical Clinic in Village Centre closed after 25 years of operation, citing various issues, including difficulty finding physicians to continue running the practice, leaving Whistler Medical Clinic as the family practice standing in town.

DeMarco believes some of the issues around the doctor shortage will be addressed in the new year as Whistler Medical Clinic is planning to expand and take over the Town Plaza space and bring on two more nurse practitioners and, eventually, another family doctor.

“I think in the coming year, we are going to be in a better position to satisfy some of the unmet demand in the local population in terms of full-service family doctor practice, so that’s exciting,” DeMarco said.

- Robert Wisla

Dr Tom DeMarco

Whistler hockey player Kai Daniells commits to Princeton University

DANIELLS HAS 39 GOALS AND 84 POINTS IN 100 CAREER GAMES WITH THE BCHL’S NANAIMO CLIPPERS

BY DAVID SONG

WHISTLER IS KNOWN for producing skiers, snowboarders and mountain bikers (including Olympians) at a robust clip. It’s also one of the few places in Canada where hockey isn’t a primary factor on the local athletic scene. No NHL players have been born in the town in its short history, but that didn’t stop Kai Daniells from discovering his passion early in life.

Now 19 years of age, with a decorated junior career in the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL) on his resume, the Whistler kid is Ivy League bound.

On Dec. 15, the BCHL’s Nanaimo Clippers announced that Daniells has committed to Princeton University. The six-foot-tall, 180pound forward will join the Tigers for the 2023-24 season. The NCAA Division I men’s hockey program at Princeton has produced eight NHLers, including former All-Star Syl Apps Jr., checking centre Jeff Halpern, journeyman defender Taylor Fedun and goalie Mike Condon. Hockey Hall of Famer and First World War veteran Hobey Baker also called Princeton his alma mater.

Daniells felt that the prospect of an Ivy League education and a campus visit in early December helped Princeton distinguish itself from other schools he was considering.

“The [campus tour] was awesome. Everyone was super nice, and they really, really sold the place,” he said. “Between that and the

education, it was too good to turn down.”

“[Kai] came to Nanaimo a couple of years ago and earned everything he got the oldfashioned way,” remarked head coach Colin Birkas in a statement on the Clippers website. “His hard work and loyalty come to mind when I think of his off-ice traits. We all see his clutch ability and high-end skill set on the ice. Very happy for both Kai and his great family.”

Describing himself as a two-way centre who looks to create offense with his passing and playmaking skills, Daniells has notched a very respectable 39 goals and 84 points

over a shared hobby is what got him going.

“It was just being out there having fun without any worries, and just playing a game that we all ended up falling in love with,” Daniells reminisced.

That said, it quickly became obvious how good he was at the game he loved. In order to maximize his athletic trajectory, Daniells headed to the Lower Mainland to attend the Delta Hockey Academy. 2016 to 2020 were “probably the best four years of [his] life” as he spent time with dozens of like-minded teammates. They played hockey and attended

probably his goal-scoring,” Daniells said of Kuss. “Little ways to score around the net, how to position your stick and be in the right place at the right time. [He also taught me] how to carry myself off the ice.”

Those lessons proved vital when Daniells entered the BCHL as a 17-year-old in 2020— right when a global pandemic froze the entire sporting world. He, like all other athletes, needed to find unorthodox ways to train and stay motivated during the worst of the lockdowns, an ordeal he believes made him stronger and wiser.

“It was definitely a tough start,” Daniells admitted. “I was probably one of the youngest players in the league coming in there at 17, so the whole year is kind of a learning experience. It wasn’t the best, to be honest, but I’m really happy I went through it and got it over with, because I think it really helped me down the road.”

HEY NOW, YOU’RE AN ALL-STAR

in 100 career games with Nanaimo. He was named the BCHL’s Third Star of the Month in November, and should turn out to be a very solid acquisition for Princeton. Not bad for a young man born in a ski town.

‘JUST PLAYING A GAME’

Daniells doesn’t credit the Whistler Minor Hockey Association for helping him discover the sport. Instead, he thinks back to long days spent on rinks and frozen ponds playing shinny with his father and friends. The opportunity to just have fun and connect with his buddies

school together, bonding on lengthy road trips as they journeyed around playing high-level opponents across Western Canada.

Daniells’ hockey skills grew by leaps and bounds under the tutelage of respectable coaches, including Shane Kuss, the BCHL’s all-time leading scorer. Active with the Surrey Eagles from 1993 to 1997, Kuss registered 418 points in 238 regular season games and wrapped up his junior career with a Fred Page Cup championship. He was coaching Delta’s bantam team during Daniells’ second season at the academy.

“The biggest thing he taught me was

The Whistler native emerged as a top-line forward for Nanaimo in 2021-22. He was third in club scoring with 22 goals, while only three teammates bested his statistical output of 42 points in 54 games. The Clippers entered the BCHL playoffs that year as a No. 3 seed in the Coastal Conference and swept their first three postseason opponents with 12 straight wins before the Penticton Vees bested them in four games in the league final.

There’s one major item left on Daniells’ wish list before he departs for Princeton next September: a Fred Page Cup win with his Clippers brotherhood in honour of the

IVY LEAGUER Whistlerite Kai Daniells in action with the Nanaimo Clippers.

PHOTO COURTESY OF ISLAND IMAGES PHOTOGRAPHY

“His hard work and loyalty come to mind when I think of his off-ice traits. We all see his clutch ability and highend skill set on the ice.”

- COLIN BURKAS

Whistler mountain biker Cami Bragg coming off a stellar 2022

AT 13 YEARS OLD, BRAGG HAS WON MULTIPLE CRANKWORX RACES IN WHISTLER, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND IN HER AGE GROUP

BY DAVID SONG

IT’S NO SECRET that Whistler is home to a growing cohort of talented young athletes, and mountain biker Cameron “Cami” Bragg is putting herself on the radar.

At just 13 years old, Bragg has already represented the Sea to Sky at numerous competitions in Canada and abroad. Earlier this fall, she took on a new challenge: Crankworx at Cairns. Although Bragg was born in Sydney, she had never raced in Australia before. That didn’t stop her from winning two races in her age group.

From Oct. 7 to 9, Bragg prevailed in both the downhill event and the specialized dual slalom in the U15 women’s category. Her downhill time of 4:51.665 placed her roughly eight seconds ahead of the second-place finisher, Matilda Henness of Australia.

“They were pretty big [races] and I was really wanting to win them,” said Bragg, a member of the local Instinct Development team. “They were really fun.”

The young rider had to face some new conditions in Cairns. The track was dusty at the start, before becoming slippery as the race went on. It was a departure from the Whistler trails that Bragg already knows so well, and she was admittedly “kind of scared” going in. Evidently, she adjusted to the rainforest and red dirt very well.

Bragg moved to Whistler with her father, Kal, when she was two years old. At age nine, a friend suggested she try out downhill biking. She was hooked, and began competing shortly afterwards.

After a string of first-place finishes at Whistler-based competitions in the age 9-10 category, Bragg headed to her first overseas competition two years ago in Rotorua, New Zealand. There, she won three medals as a U12 athlete: first in the Air DH invitational and second at both the Crankworx DH and dual slalom events. In 2021, Bragg distinguished herself at Kicking Horse with a U15 victory at the Dunbar Summer Series Downhill Nationals. Her mentor, Whistlerite Georgia Astle, won bronze in the UCI pro/elite women’s

KAI DANIELLS

FROM PAGE 54

teammates who aged out of junior hockey last season. As of Dec. 20, Nanaimo leads the Coastal Conference with a 23-4-1 record and should be a lock for the playoffs. Only the Vees are ranked higher, at 27-2-0, and this year’s BCHL postseason final could see a rematch between the two clubs.

Daniells has also had a banner year individually, leading the Clippers with 16 goals and 37 points through 28 games. He was one of 18 skaters initially named to the BCHL’s annual three-on-three outdoor AllStar Tournament on Jan. 21 in Penticton, while his teammate Ethan Mistry was also

category at that same event.

When asked who has had a significant impact on her young career, Bragg named Astle right away. “She’s one of my coaches, and she’s been super helpful in my riding,” she said.

Although she snowboards too, mountain biking is Bragg’s first athletic love. She enjoys exploring Whistler’s vast network of trails, jumping and clawing her way past roots and rocks. The sport has brought her numerous friends, and Bragg appreciates the close-knit nature of the local community. Someone is usually free to ride with her on any given day.

2022 has been a banner year for Bragg. On May 15, she joined a U19 race in Port Angeles, Wash., as training for the rest of the season—finishing sixth out of 13 riders despite competing against older girls. Bragg proceeded to dominate her own age category this summer, racking up 11 first-place finishes and five second-place results prior to her victories in Cairns.

Two of those wins came this August at Crankworx Whistler. Bragg defended home soil with wins in the downhill and air downhill, placing second in the dual slalom. “I really liked it,” she said. “It was super fun competing with friends and seeing how that [pushes me more].”

Bragg has even managed to inspire her own dad. “It’s awesome having your kids enjoy a sport that you as an adult enjoy as well,” said Kal. “Cami, her younger brother Keir and myself ride Whistler Bike Park a lot together and Cami really loves competing, so I ended up throwing my hat in the ring to compete this year as well. We do a lot of travelling around B.C., doing all the BC Cups from Fernie to Mount Washington on Vancouver Island.

“We are also really competitive with each other—well, not so much anymore, as she beat me in most of the recent races.”

Next year, Bragg plans to keep training with Astle and her coaches at Instinct Development. In addition to the BC Cup circuit, she hopes to return to her old Crankworx proving grounds in Whistler and possibly Rotorua as well. She’s already accomplished a lot, and the sky’s the limit from here. n

chosen for the event through a fan vote.

“It’s going to be super cool playing outdoors with all the best players in the league,” Daniells said. “It’s an honour, a chance to have fun and kind of mess around and show off your skill with some of the best.”

As he prepares to move on to the biggest hockey stage of his life, the Clippers forward hopes to have shown at least a few young Whistlerites that they need not limit their athletic pursuits to skiing, snowboarding and mountain biking (as amazing as those sports are). Grateful for the position he’s in, Daniells now looks ahead to a potential-filled future. n

Main Street Poke adds more diversity to Whistler’s

‘little

food row’

WHISTLER’S ONLY POKE BAR COMES FROM THE COMPANY BEHIND MAIN STREET NOODLES AND BRICKWORKS

BY BRANDON BARRETT

WHEN PRIYANKA LEWIS and her team opened Main Street Noodles in 2017, they shouted the news from the mountaintops for all the hungry masses to hear. Five years later and Lewis took a decidedly more low-key approach to announcing her company’s latest venture, Main Street Poke.

“We just thought we’d open and let the food speak for itself,” Lewis explained. “It’s another great option on Main Street. There are already so many great establishments on Main Street, ‘the little food row,’ we call it.”

Whistler’s first dedicated poke bar opened quietly this month, just around the corner from its sister restaurant, Main Street Noodles, from which the small takeout eatery borrows in both spirit and staff. Since the short-lived Shred salad bar closed down in 2018, Lewis and her team have used the space as a prep kitchen for the noodle bar, but, not wanting to let valuable retail storefront go to waste, they came up with a concept similar to Main Street

Noodles, allowing customers the chance to build their own bowl from scratch.

“Obviously it is prime real estate, so we decided we were going to try to find something that would work for the space,” Lewis explained. “I feel like there’s a trust in Main Street Noodles, which has been there since 2017. So we investigated some ideas and some research on the trend of where

“We wanted the sauces to be unique and I feel like that’s what differentiates us,” Lewis said.

decide what they want.

poke was going and wanted to offer another healthy option for Whistler for lunchtime or for delivery.”

First, diners select their base, from either the traditional sushi rice, quinoa, leafy greens or tortilla chips, before choosing a sauce, all of which are gluten-friendly. There’s the classic house shoyu, ponzu, spicy mayo, maple sesame, creamy wasabi, miso ginger or coconut Korean.

Then, it’s time for the poke. Guests can go with the beloved ahi tuna, salmon, scallops, chicken or tofu (there are also spicy varieties of the salmon and tuna), before loading their bowl up with toppings, which includes everything from edamame and cucumber to corn, crab, pineapple and spicy seaweed. Top it all off with a bit of crunch for texture, with options like crispy onions, chili flakes and furikake, a savoury and sweet seasoning.

“It’s a really good concept for vegans, because all the sauces are gluten-friendly and a lot of the sauces are vegan,” Lewis said. In the coming weeks, the restaurant will also include a list of favoured pre-made bowls for those who are either new to poke or can’t

“For those that don’t know what poke is or find it overwhelming, we’re coming back with pre-determined bowls where we’ll recommend sauces that go together,” Lewis said. “It’s a decent-sized meal. It’s ingredientheavy, so we feel like we’re offering a really good healthy option because you can get your veggies, your greens, and it’s a great lunchtime option, or a lighter dinner option.”

Given how costly commercial real estate has become in the village, Lewis sees the model Main Street Poke is utilizing—a small space and staff with a simplified menu that is easy to execute—as an effective one for new restaurateurs looking to get their foot into the market.

“I definitely think this model is great for a new business owner as well because we’ve made it very simple seeing as we already have two establishments we’re running,” Lewis said. “The reason we did a build-your-own was because we wanted to make it simple for new hires and staffing. It’s not overly complicated for them to learn either and because we have somebody dedicated to our prep for Noodles and now Poke, that’s where the magic happens.”

Main Street Poke is open from noon to 8 p.m. seven days a week. Delivery is available daily from 5 to 8 p.m. Learn more at mainstreetpoke.ca. n

POKE PALACE Main Street Poke is the newest restaurant concept from the company behind Brickworks and Main Street Noodles.

PHOTO SUBMITTED

“It’s another great option on Main Street. There are already so many great establishments on Main Street, ‘the little food row,’ we call it.”

- PRIYANKA LEWIS

Here’s where to ring in the New Year in Whistler

FROM

FAMILY-FRIENDLY EARLY FIREWORKS TO PARTIES SET TO LAST TO 2 A.M., NEW YEAR’S EVE IN THE RESORT OFFERS SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE

BY ALYSSA NOEL

WE DON’T NEED TO rehash the challenges that marred New Year’s Eve celebrations the last two years.

But Dec. 31, 2022 might just officially mark the light at the end of the tunnel for Whistler partiers. To help you make the most of your restrictions-free revelling (well, within reason), Pique has highlighted some of the events going on around town. (While we can’t include every venue in town, we’re pretty certain you’ll have a good time anywhere you find yourself.)

Here’s to a happy 2023!

WHISTLER’S NEW YEAR’S

EVE CELEBRATIONS

> Locations around Whistler

> 11 a.m. until 9 p.m.

> Free

Take advantage of some classic Whistler holiday fun like ice skating at Whistler Olympic Plaza, tobogganing in the snow zone or the kid-friendly indoor activities at the Whistler Conference Centre.

Then, later that evening, head to Skier’s Plaza to take in the Fire & Ice show followed by

BRIGHT LIGHTS For those hoping to turn in before the clock strikes 12 on Dec. 31, Whistler offers early fireworks at 9 p.m.

PHOTO BY MIKE CRANE/ TOURISM WHISTLER

an early fireworks display at 9 p.m.

And remember, transit is free on Dec. 31 from 5 p.m. until 3:30 a.m. Jan. 1.

NEW YEAR’S EVE GALA DINNER AND DANCE

> Fairmont Chateau Whistler Macdonald Ballroom

> 8:30 p.m.

> $229 (plus taxes and fees). To reserve, email whistler.restaurants@fairmont.com or call 604-938-2006.

You might have saved some New Year’s Eve money staying in the last couple of years, so why not splurge to ring in 2023? This gala will feature a winter wonderland, indulgent buffet, and a night of dancing courtesy of the band Side One.

FIREROCK LOUNGE

NEW YEAR’S EVE

> Firerock Lounge

> 8 p.m. to 1 a.m.

> $25 (gibbonswhistler.com/venue/firerocklounge/)

Celebrate in style with this Bond-themed party.

FOUR SEASONS NEW YEAR’S EVE GALA

> Four Seasons Resort Whistler

> 7 p.m.

> $285 for adults, $110 for kids 6 to 12, and $60

for kids up to age 5. Email festive.whistler@ fourseasons.com to reserve.

This party includes bubbles, a “festive feast,” and a live band from 8:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. While cocktail attire is recommended, you’re also invited to bring the kids along too. Reservations are required.

THE WRC PRESENTS: SPARKLE—CELEBRATING NEW YEAR’S IN STYLE!

> Whistler Racket Club

> 8 p.m. to 12:30 p.m.

> $50 at mywrc.ca/events.

Dress to shine! Partygoers are invited to “bring the bling” and show off their most dazzling outfits for a chance to win a prize. Featuring the lounge disco funk dance grooves of DJ Riddim, appetizers, bubbles and more.

NEW YEAR’S EVE ON THE RED CARPET

> Longhorn Saloon & Grill

> 9 p.m.

> A table reservation can be made at 1-888-823-7932 Harnessing the glitz and glam of Hollywood, this party promises live DJs and a good time to ring in your New Year.

MOE JOE’S SLUMBER PARTY

> Moe Joe’s

> 8 p.m.

> $60 at gibbonswhistler.com/venue/moe-joes/ If dressing up for New Year’s isn’t your thing, this might be the party for you. Get decked out in your best bedtime attire (we’re guessing that doesn’t include those who sleep in the nude) and join in on Whistler’s biggest slumber party.

BUFFALO BILLS MASQUERADE BALL

> Buffalo Bills

> 8 p.m. to 2 a.m.

> $100 at gibbonswhistler.com/venue/buffalo-bills/ You’re going to need a mask for this party— and not the medical kind (well, unless you’re being extra careful). Cultivating a little bit of mystery, everyone is expected to don their finest masquerade attire for a big reveal at midnight—along with a champagne toast.

GARFINKEL’S VIVA LAS VEGAS

> Garfinkel’s

> 8 p.m.

> $90 at gibbonswhistler.com/venue/ garfinkels/

Who needs a ticket to Vegas when you can find it underground right here in Whistler? Partygoers are encouraged to dress to impress and transport themselves to Nevada. (Although don’t forget you’ll be emerging into the mountain winter, so bring a nice parka too, won’t you?) n

Whistler Film Festival wraps up in-person events, looks to holiday livestreaming

THE FESTIVAL’S 22ND EDITION MARKED THE LAST TIME IT WILL HOST SOME OF ITS FILMS AT VILLAGE 8

BY ALYSSA NOEL

IN CASE YOU MISSED the news, the Whistler Film Festival (WFF) isn’t over yet.

Yes, the in-person festival, which ran at various venues around the resort from Nov. 30 until Dec. 4, might have wrapped up for its 22nd season, but the festival’s online streaming is still going strong until Jan. 2, 2023.

About 75 per cent of the films that played on the big screen are now available at watch. whistlerfilmfestival.com/wff22, including all the winners of this year’s Borsos Competition.

“Most of our audience will watch between Christmas and New Year,” says Angela Heck, executive director of the WFF. “That’s when people have the downtime. There’s lots of opportunity to still take in our winners.”

As for the in-person festival, audiences might not have known it at the time, but the 2022 festival marked the last time its films will screen at Village 8 Cinemas. Imagine Cinemas, which owns Whistler’s only movie theatre, announced that the venue will close its doors on Jan. 5, 2023.

“Honestly, they were very good to us and let us have our festival there this year before deciding to close the doors,” Heck says. “I know Whistler must be very upset. We will miss [the cinema], of course, but we’re still going to have a festival next year.”

In fact, the date has already been set for Nov. 29 to Dec. 3.

people didn’t want to leave. They were just exuberant. They wanted to hang out, talk, make deals. Overall, the energy was just electric. It was really great.”

Another highlight this year was attracting the CMPA Indiescreen Awards—which have been held at the Toronto International Film Festival in the past—and a “reinvigorated” partnership with Variety, which co-hosted the new 10 Canadians to Watch program.

“People had a good time,” Heck says. “Deals were made.”

AWARD-WINNING FILMS TO STREAM

The Borsos Award for Best Canadian Feature went to Coyote, directed by Katherine Jerkovic, which came with a $15,000 cash prize and $20,000 in post-production prizes.

In total, there were 16 awards in seven film competitions, as well as the Power Pitch Competition and MPPIA Short Film Award.

THE OTHER WINNERS INCLUDE:

BEST DIRECTOR OF A BORSOS COMPETITION FILM - Joëlle Desjardins Paquette for Rodeo.

BEST SCREENPLAY OF A BORSOS COMPETITION FILMGuillaume Lambert for Niagara.

BEST PERFORMANCE IN A BORSOS COMPETITION FILM - Jorge Martinez Colorado in Coyote with an honourable mention to Viva Lee in Polaris and Lilou Roy-Lanouette in Rodeo.

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY IN A BORSOS COMPETITION FILMDavid Schuurman for Polaris with an honourable mention to Stirling Bancroft for Exile.

BEST EDITING IN A BORSOS COMPETITION FILMArthur Tarnowski for The 12 Tasks of Imelda.

WORLD DOCUMENTARY AWARD - River directed by Jennifer Peedom with an honourable mention to Out in the Ring directed by Ry Levey.

BEST MOUNTAIN CULTURE SHORT FILM - The Trapline by Andrea Wing with an honourable mention to Snowblind  directed by Anthony Bonello and Mike Douglas.

- ANGELA HECK

While the festival’s many parties and events drew large crowds, in-theatre audiences weren’t quite as big as organizers would’ve liked.

“There’s a lot competing for people’s attention,” Heck says. “People are going out to parties, but what we’re finding is because people were enjoying themselves so much at the festival, they’re appreciating being able to see the films at home now.”

Still, it was nice to be back to full-capacity, in-person events.

“The fact that I was able to run around and make things happen, that was a highlight,” Heck says. “There was a lot of energy. We have the industry après for passholders, and

BEST MOUNTAIN CULTURE FEATURE FILM - Know Before You Go: To The Hills and Back, directed by Mike Quigley.

BEST BC DIRECTOR AWARD - Carl Bessai for  Féline@6.15 with an honourable mention to Jules Koostachin for Broken Angel

CANADIAN SHORTWORK AWARD - Tongue directed by Kaho Yoshida.

INTERNATIONAL SHORTWORK AWARD - Warsha directed by Dania Bdeir with an honourable mention to Ice Merchants directed by João Gonzalez.

BC STUDENT SHORTWORK AWARDOmukama directed by Zane Klassen.

POWER PITCH COMPETITION - Jonathan Chuby won the WFF Power Pitch Competition with his project Duck Race.

MPPIA SHORT FILM PITCH - Nessa Aref  for My Roommate Ahriman with an honourable mention to Rosie Choo Pidcock for Sorry for Your Cost. n

“We

From Hollywood to hippos, David Yarrow reflects

ICONIC PHOTOGRAPHER VISITS WHISTLER FOR TWO EVENTS, JAN. 3 AND 4

BY ALYSSA NOEL

SCOTTISH-BORN photographer, author, and conservationist David Yarrow is known for some iconic images that range wildly in subject.

Whether he’s capturing polar bears, lions, or buffalo in the wild or shooting celebrity models like Cara Delevingne or Cindy Crawford, the images are imbued with his distinct style and decades of experience.

Yarrow is set to visit Whistler for a meet-and-greet on Jan. 3 from 4 to 6 p.m. at the Whistler Contemporary Gallery’s Four Seasons location (email info@whistlerart.com or call 604-938-3001 to reserve a spot) and a book signing on Jan. 4 from 12 to 4 p.m.

Ahead of the event, Pique caught up with the photographer by email to talk about his long career, favourite place to photograph and models versus wildlife.

PIQUE: You capture a wide range of interesting subjects. I get the sense you’re following your curiosity or what you find compelling. How do you keep that obvious passion or excitement alive as you get decades into your career?

DAVID YARROW: I will never retire, as I don’t consider following your passion to be real

work. It is far harder work for me to sit on a beach all day and do nothing than to continue to do what I do. There is no end game, no plan to change what I am doing. I just want to get better, but that will only come from commitment.

When I leave this world, I hope I will leave a legacy of a portfolio of work that is respected by my peers and enjoyed by collectors. But hopefully I am getting towards the end of the second quarter in that crusade. Photographers, like wine, improve with age.

When you started out, you were watching your photos being developed in a darkroom. Have the logistical changes

in photography impacted any of the creative aspects for you?

In 1986, only weird people were photographers, but in 2022 everyone is a photographer. Our bar has been raised as to what really is art as opposed to a strong photograph.

You’ve travelled to countless locations for work. Are there places you like to return to?

We return again and again to Montana, partly because we have a network of local contacts and fixers that deliver both logistical precision on the ground and access to the best locations,

but mostly because the canvas on which to tell stories is so rich in potential.

Has your relationship to wild animals changed over your years of photographing them? You capture such a soul to them, it’s clear there’s a connection.

Right now, I am more interested in photographing Hollywood than hippos. You cannot instruct a hippo. Artists need fresh challenges and are continually evolving. I make pictures, I don’t take them, and that does mean I am drawn towards situations in which I am not hostage to the random walk of nature—how on Earth can that be art? I will always be drawn to wildlife and will try to do better in my efforts in this space, but it’s less than a third of what I do these days.

What’s it like to be the person behind an “iconic photo” (or, I mean, several)?

Any benefit of taking an iconic photo comes later. As someone smarter than me once said, it has taken me 34 years to become an overnight success.

I am only as good as my next shot, and that leads me to look forward, not back. My best pictures are the ones I have not taken yet. How dull if it was the other way around. I don’t really care too much about my 10th best image of 2019—it’s behind me—let’s go and smash it tomorrow. n

BEAR AWARE Photographer David Yarrow gets up close and personal with a bear in Alaska.

PHOTO COURTESY OF WHISTLER CONTEMPORARY GALLERY

Village 8: Swan song

SOME FINAL NOTES FROM THE BACK ROW

THE SCREENS WERE MODEST in size, some of the seats felt pulled from an auto junkyard, and at least one urinal seemed permanently out of order, but shit, Martha, if it isn’t gonna sting when the Village 8 Cinemas closes its doors for good on Jan. 5.

For almost exactly 20 years, the little multiplex that could has lit up Whistler’s nights with the latest Hollywood hits (and

BY FEET BANKS

misses). How many of us went there on a first date? Or took our kids in for their first movie ever? Who remembers Sean, the dude who would tear your admission tickets two at a time by snapping his fingers? How many excellent Canadian films did we see there at Whistler Film Festival screenings that we would never have been exposed to otherwise?

As teenagers growing up in a resort town fuelled by adrenaline sports and socially acceptable day drinking/alcoholism, the Village 8 offered one of very few options for healthy socializing and fun after the sun went down. Part of the magic of film, for anyone

at any age, is the warmth of a shared human experience—we sit together in a dark room and ride a rollercoaster of creativity and emotion. Of humour and fear, or excitement or tears. And we do it together. When everyone laughs at the guy getting hit in the nuts in Jackass, or cheers when Spider-Man upsidedown kisses Mary Jane, or collectively falls in love with Angelina Jolie, it tells us that other people see the same reality we do, and share the same responses. The movies remind us we

are not alone. And that is a hard thing for a community to lose.

Certainly, cinema has always been a bit of a luxury in Whistler. The first movie projector rolled into town (on the train no doubt) in 1954, purchased by the Alta Lake Community Club, which held weekly movie nights using a sheet for a screen. That was the only gig in town until the mid1980s, with the completion of the Whistler Conference Centre and the one-screen

Rainbow Theatre.

For us kids, the Rainbow (and adjacent Whistler Wonderland arcade) felt like winning the lottery. Even if the only way we could get first-run movies was to show them at both screenings for three weeks. (This was OK when it was Jurassic Park, but less enjoyable for Hook and Toys, which clogged two Christmas holidays in a row.)

All this only made the Village 8 more exceptional when it opened in December of 2002. Even though Hollywood never releases even four good films at the same time, eight screens felt like a revelation. It also felt very Whistler—an underground venue, with small screening rooms and walls thin enough that during the quiet moments of a film like The Runaways you could often hear the thunderous fight scenes of the Twilight Saga: Eclipse playing next door (both starring Kristen Stewart). And of course, a bar in the lobby—Whistler style.

So let’s raise a glass and then pour some on the block for the Village 8. Operating any small business in Whistler feels like pulling off a small miracle, so to operate a theatre here for 20 years—especially amidst the disruption of streaming technology—is a public service worth recognizing. Thank you, Village 8— I wish I’d gone more. I wish all of us had. (Also, does this mean we’re getting AlpenRock back or what?) ■

ROLL CREDITS Whistler’s only movie theatre, Village 8 Cinemas, will close on Jan. 5 after 20 years in operation.

PHOTO BY BRADEN DUPUIS

Before personal locator beacons and cellphones—SPOT the difference

BY JILLIAN ROBERTS

PERSONAL LOCATOR beacons and cellphones have completely changed the face of adventure in just 20 years. If you are prepared and have the right equipment, it is possible to be rescued in a matter hours, sometimes less, in an emergency situation. Before satellite technology and cellphones it was a different story.

Whistler Search and Rescue (WSAR) formed in 1972 after a tragic avalanche that killed four people in Whistler’s Back Bowl. The subsequent search highlighted the need for search coordination, and WSAR was born.

Brad Sills joined shortly after WSAR formed, and is now in his 47th year volunteering. He recalled the process of responding to search-and-rescue calls in the 1970s, which would come via the RCMP in Squamish or Pemberton before Whistler had local dispatch. “The call would come to Dave [Cathers] and he would tear his hair out, because almost all of his capacity for mountain rescue were hippies living in the woods without telephones,” he said. “I remember him getting really mad one night going, ‘What the hell do you think I’m supposed to do? Send you losers smoke signals or something?’ We were all laughing. We taunted him a lot about being uptight and responsible.”

Despite much of the team squatting off-grid, the community was small and the “jungle telephone” quite effective. It helped that everyone could usually be found in the Boot Pub each afternoon.

It also took far longer to get messages out from those in need. When someone was injured, others in the party would have to get to the nearest town or house before help could be called. Typically, this meant that those missing or injured spent more time in the elements—and many did not survive.

Arriving in Whistler as the first lifts were being built, Cliff Jennings went on to become one of the first heli-ski guides in Whistler with Pacific Ski Air when it started the winter of 1967-68. Helicopters did not have the same power that they do today. After picking guests up, Pacific Ski Air pilots would have to slowly make their way up the mountain using the available thermals.

Knowing that they had no way to send for help, and that rescue could take a very long time, Cliff Jennings and Glen Creelman tried walking out from Decker Glacier like they would have to if the helicopter broke down. (This is long before Blackcomb was developed.) Cliff is a lifetime member of WSAR, and, using the same unreliable headlamps that search and rescue used, they traversed for 13 hours, skiing the whole time, until they crossed the frozen Green Lake and reached houses to make a phone call.

“We said, ‘Well, if we break down we are in trouble!’ Because we’d never get regular clients out that way. They would have to say, ‘Oh I wonder where they are?’ And go looking for us, for which they would have to get another helicopter because there wasn’t another helicopter in the valley.”

Even the first radios that WSAR had were huge, heavy and basically line-of-sight.

“Everyone has a cellphone now, and if they have reception it is pretty easy to either call or we can ping their phone to find out,” said Vincent Massey, also a lifetime member of WSAR.

“And then the people who are going way out there, who are really qualified, have a SAT phone or a SPOT beacon, and they can call for help. So things have changed, and now we know what to bring and we know what the scenario is because we can either text them or call them.”

Of course, it is still imperative that everyone travels prepared and knows how to use their equipment. n

SEARCH PARTY Whistler Search and Rescue on Blackcomb Glacier in 1983.

PHOTO COURTESY OF CLIFF JENNINGS

1 UP AND RUNNING After a month-long delay, the new Creekside Gondola finally started spinning after a grand opening ceremony on Friday morning, Dec. 23. PHOTO COURTESY OF WHISTLER BLACKCOMB 2 MAIN STREET POND The rain continued into Boxing Day, when pooling water wreaked havoc for drivers and clean-up crews. PHOTO BY BY NATHANIA BROOKE 3 CHRISTMAS CHEER Jill Stahr and Chantel Clayden joined the crowds celebrating Christmas Day at the Umbrella Bar on Whistler Mountain.

PHOTO SUBMITTED

ICY ROADS Heavy rain made for icy roads

dangerous driving conditions, as seen here in Creekside on Christmas Eve. PHOTO BY MEGAN LALONDE 5 REINDEER

A DAY Longtime WAG resident Lola did her cutest Rudolph impression ahead of

Christmas holiday.

ASTROLOGY

Free Will Astrology

WEEK OF DECEMBER 29 BY ROB BREZSNY

ARIES (March 21-April 19): “Perfectionism is the voice of the oppressor,” writes Aries author Anne Lamott. “It will keep you cramped and insane.” I think that’s a key theme for you to embrace in 2023. Let’s express the idea more positively, too. In Navajo culture, rug weavers intentionally create small imperfections in their work, like odd-coloured beads or stray pieces of yarn. This rebellion against unattainable exactitude makes the art more soulful. Relieved of the unrealistic mandate to be flawless, the rug can relax into its beauty.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Here are my four decrees for you in 2023, Taurus. 1. You are cleared to be greedy if it’s in service to a holy cause that fosters others’ well-being as well as yours. 2. It’s permissible to be stubborn if doing so nourishes versions of truth and goodness that uplift and inspire your community. 3. It’s proper to be slow and gradual if that’s the best way to keep collaborative projects from becoming slipshod. 4. It’s righteous to be zealous in upholding high standards, even if that causes less diligent people to bail out.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): In 2023, many interesting lessons will arrive via your close relationships and collaborations. You will have the potential to learn more about the art of togetherness than you have in a long time. On occasion, these lessons may initially agitate you. But they will ultimately provide more pleasure and healing than you can imagine right now. Bonus prediction: You will have an enhanced talent for interweaving your destiny together with the fates of your allies.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Here are some projects I’d love to see you pursue in 2023: 1. Teach your allies the fine points of how to cherish you but not smother you. 2. Cultivate your natural talent for appreciating the joys of watching and helping things grow: a child, a creative project, a tree, a friendship, or your bank account. 3. If you don’t feel close to the family members that fate provided you with, find others you like better. 4. As you explore territories that are further out or deeper within, make sure your Cancerian shell is expandable. 5. Avoid being friends with people who are shallow or callous or way too cool. 6. Cultivate your attraction to people who share your deepest feelings and highest ideals.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Mystic teacher Terence McKenna said, “You have to take seriously the notion that understanding the universe is your responsibility, because the only understanding of the universe that will be useful to you is your own understanding.” This will be key advice for you in 2023. You will be wise to craft an updated version of your personal philosophy. I suggest you read a lot of smart people’s ideas about the game of life. Make it your quest to commune with interesting minds who stimulate your deep thoughts. Pluck out the parts that ring true as you create a new vision that is uniquely your own.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): How should we refer to your romantic adventures in 2023? We could be whimsical and call them “Ritual Mating Dances on the Outskirts of History.” We could be melodramatic and call them “Diving into the Deep Dark Mysteries in Search of Sexy Treasures.” Or we could be hopeful and call them “A Sacred Pilgrimage to the Frontiers of Intimacy.” I think there’s a good chance that all three titles will turn out to be apt descriptors of the interesting stories ahead of you—especially if you’re brave as you explore the possibilities.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): “Coddiwomple” is an English slang word that means to travel resolutely and dynamically toward an as-yet-unknown destination. It’s not the same as wandering aimlessly. The prevailing mood is not passivity and vagueness. Rather, one who coddiwomples has a sense of purpose about what’s enjoyable and meaningful. They may not have a predetermined goal, but they know what they need and like. According to my analysis of the astrological omens, the next six months

will be an excellent time for you Libras to experiment with coddiwompling.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): In the theatre of ancient Greece, the term anagnorisis referred to a pivotal moment when a character discovered a big truth they had previously been unaware of. Another Greek word, peripeteia, meant a reversal of circumstances: “a change by which the action veers round to its opposite.” I bring these fun ideas to your attention, dear Scorpio, because I think 2023 could bring you several instances of an anagnorisis leading to a peripeteia. How would you like them to unfold? Start making plans. You will have uncanny power to determine which precise parts of your life are gifted with these blessings.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): Winters are cold in Olds, a town in Alberta. Temperatures plunge as low as -31 C. But an agronomist named Dong Jianyi has built a giant greenhouse there that enables him to grow vegetables year-round. He spends no money on heat, but relies on innovative insulation to keep the inside warm. In 2021, he grew 29,000 pounds of tomatoes. I propose we make him your inspirational role model for 2023, Sagittarius. My guess is, that like him, you will be a wellspring of imaginative resourcefulness. What creative new developments could you generate? How might you bring greater abundance into your life by drawing extra energy from existing sources? How could you harness nature to serve you even better?

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): In accordance with your astrological omens in 2023, I’ve chosen a quote from Capricorn storyteller Michael Meade. I hope you will make it one of your core meditations in the coming months. He writes, “All meaningful change requires a genuine surrender. Yet, to surrender does not simply mean to give up; more to give up one’s usual self and allow something other to enter and redeem the lesser sense of self. In surrendering, we fall to the bottom of our arguments and seek to touch the origin of our lives again. Only then can we see as we were meant to see, from the depth of the psyche where the genius resides, where the seeds of wisdom and purpose were planted before we were born.” (The quote is from Meade’s book Fate and Destiny, The Two Agreements of the Soul.)

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): In addition to my career as a horoscope columnist, I have written novels and other books. I have worked as a singer-songwriter in rock bands and performed a one-person show in theatres. As I survey my history, I always break into sardonic laughter as I contemplate how many businesspeople have advised me, “First, you’ve got to sell out. You’ve got to dumb down your creative efforts so as to make yourself salable. Only later, after you have become successful, can you afford to be true to your deepest artistic principles.” I am very glad I never heeded that terrible counsel, because it would have made me insane and unhappy. How are you doing with this central problem of human life, Aquarius? Are you serving the gods of making money or the gods of doing what you love? The coming year will, I suspect, bring you prime opportunities to emphasize the latter goal.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): I’ve chosen a sweet taste of advice for you to keep referring back to in 2023. It’s in rapt alignment with upcoming astrological omens. I suggest you copy my counsel out in longhand on a piece of paper and keep it in your wallet or under your pillow. Here it is, courtesy of author Martha Beck: “The important thing is to tell yourself a life story in which you, the hero, are primarily a problem-solver rather than a helpless victim. This is well within your power, whatever fate might have dealt you.”

Homework: What one element could you add to your life that would bring a major enhancement? Newsletter. FreeWillAstrology.com.

In addition to this column, Rob Brezsny creates

EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPES

In-depth weekly forecasts designed to inspire and uplift you. To buy access, phone 1-888-499-4425. Once you’ve chosen the Block of Time you like, call 1-888-682-8777 to hear Rob’s forecasts. www.freewillastrology.com

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• $11.25 travel allowance- if living in Squamish or Pemberton

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• $1200 wellness bene t – including Ski Pass

• Underground employee parking

• Recognition program with Cash Awards

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Please send your resume to hr@clique.ca or bring it directly to the Blackcomb Springs Suites.

Photo Credit Tourism Whistler/Blake Jorgenson

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At the Liquor Distribution Branch (LDB) our vision of ‘Service. Relationships. Results.’ is all about providing a valued service, building strong relationships with our stakeholders, and achieving greater results for the province.

The LDB is one of two branches of government responsible for the cannabis and liquor industry of B.C. We operate the wholesale distribution of beverage alcohol within the province, as well as the household retail brand of BC Liquor Stores.

We employ nearly 5,000 people in over 200 communities and have been named one of BC’s Top Employers 14 times over for offering exceptional places to work rooted in values of fairness and respect, work-life balance, and inclusion and diversity. We believe that our people are our greatest asset. Being a reputable employer with programs of skills training and professional development are what attract candidates to BC Liquor Stores, while our progressive, forward-thinking culture is why employees with a growth mindset thrive.

Auxiliary positions are on-call, meaning hours of work are not guaranteed and subject to availability. Some auxiliary employees may not initially work a full 35-hour week, but with more hours worked and more seniority gained, more opportunities for more hours of work will follow.

Auxiliary positions are not permanent full-time but can lead to permanent full-time opportunities with a very competitive total compensation package, including a comprehensive pension plan, medical and dental coverage (including massage and physiotherapy), tuition reimbursement and scholarship programs, and access to public service employee benefits including career support services, financial and legal services, and employee and family counselling.

We are dedicated to the highest quality of customer service, delivered with friendliness, individual pride, initiative, and retail passion! If you fit this description and you are prepared to work in a fast-paced environment, we encourage you to apply to become a part of the Whistler area BC Liquor Stores.

To be eligible, applicants must meet the following qualification requirements:

• Be at least 19 years of age

• Be able to legally work in Canada

• Be able to provide excellent customer service

• Be able to communicate effectively and professionally with the public

• Be able to demonstrate aptitude for cashier and related duties, including calculations

• Be able to perform physically demanding work, including lifting 20-25 kg boxes

• Have a valid Serving It Right Certificate™

• A Criminal Record Check is required.

BC Liquor Store Sales Associates may be required to operate a variety of mechanical and hand-operated equipment, in addition to handling large volumes of bottles as part of the LDB’s recycling program.

Rate of Pay as of April 10, 2022: Auxiliary Sales Associate - $20.33 per hour

Seasonal Sales Associate - $18.92 per hour

For exciting and challenging retail opportunities, please apply online at: http://bcliquorstores.prevueaps.ca/pages/openings/

On November 1, 2021 the BC Public Service announced the COVID-19 Vaccination Policy that defines the conditions and expectations for BC Public Service employees regarding vaccination against COVID-19. Among other possible measures, proof of vaccination will be required. It is a term of acceptance of employment that you agree to comply with all vaccination requirements that apply to the public service. More information can be found here: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/ gov/content/careers-myhr/all-employees/safety-health-well-being/health/covid-19/covid-19vaccination-policy-for-bc-public-service-employees

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What we are looking for

• You are comfortable making cold calls and setting up/leading meetings with new and existing clients.

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• Competitive salary + uncapped commission package.

• Comprehensive / competitive group health and welfare benefits

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Whistler has a worldwide reputation for outdoor recreation and boasts a vibrant village featuring restaurants, bars, retail and more. While this legendary resort is an international mountain sports mecca, it is also a down-to-earth mountain town, where community and culture have forged a unique environment. This opportunity offers you the chance to call a world-class ski hill you own—and if you are a local, well you know you’re in the right place to forge a career and lucky to call Whistler your home.

To apply, please submit your cover letter and resume in confidence to Susan Hutchinson, shutchinson@wplpmedia.com

Closing date: Open until filled.

Be a part of an amazing team as our newest Digital Account Representative!

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SENIOR MANAGER, CONTENT MARKETING

18 Month Contract

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The Senior Manager, Content Marketing is a strategic thinker, exceptional leader and strong communicator. With experience developing content marketing programs, and knowledge of web and social platforms, this position requires effective planning and execution skills, with the ability to positively engage and motivate various stakeholders.

TO VIEW OUR CAREER OPPORTUNITIES, AND TO APPLY, VISIT US ONLINE AT WHISTLER.COM/CAREERS.

SPECIALIST, EMAIL MARKETING

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What we offer: A flexible schedule offering work-life balance, a commitment to health and wellness, excellent compensation and benefits package, and a great team environment.

We’re also recruiting for: Maintenance Technician/Cleaner (Full Time, Year Round), Visitor Centre Agent (Full Time, Year Round)

TO VIEW OUR CAREER OPPORTUNITIES, AND TO APPLY, VISIT US ONLINE AT WHISTLER.COM/CAREERS.

Skiing mecca

Farming major

DOWN

Queenlike

Bagpipe sound

Marsh stalker

Comforted

Tapped item

Gives the go-ahead

Sit on the throne

Boleyn or Baxter

Spud

Feeling unworthy

Pharaoh’s amulet

Printer supply

Outback jumper

Elevator developer

Struck suddenly

Bride’s reply (2 wds.)

Does road work 19 Facet 20 Linked 33 Ranch segment 36 Took a card

Encouraging word 39 Utopia

Temple city of Japan

Nile reptile

Danger signal

Express doubts

Competition

Martini ingredient

Fourth estate

Archipelago component

A great many

Tool handles

A number of times

Backspace on a PC

Impressionist painter

Knocks

Neither good nor bad

Interior design

Wedge

Slangy ladies

Chatterbox

Cow stall bedding

“Mister Roberts” star

Zoo favorite

Cozy place to sit 73 “Goodbye!”

Changed address 76 Japanese pooches 79 Ooola’s Alley -80 Fray

Domed hairdo 83 Monastic head 84 Genetic double 85 Breakfast item

Like some chests 88 -- -pocus 90 Ice structure 91 Unsophisticated 92 Derisive comment 94 Speed gun 96 Cite

Some Iraqis

Cow’s mouthful

Gaucho’s land

Wee circle

Dagwood’s neighbor

Respiratory organ

Codgers’ queries

Actor -- Carvey

End of a train

College maj.

Time of the mammals

Castle feature

Long suits

Turbaned seer

Keen

Secret motive

Hauls along

Mountaineer’s refrain

Terra- --

Gnawed away

Archaeologist’s nd

Find the answer

Fissure

Have dinner

Potato buds

Smoke detector output

Deal initials

metal

Brace yourselves… the 2022 Maxies are here

WOW, ANOTHER trip around the sun. You remember the sun? Whatever. This being the last chance to look back on 2022, what would looking back be without celebrating those accomplishments we’d love to remember... or forget. So, once again, it’s time to open the envelopes and award the highly-coveted Maxies.

MOUNTAIN CULTURE CATEGORY

Best On-Mountain Achievement: Though temporarily lost in the Sea of Missing Supply Chain, the new Red Chair and Creekside Gonjala were up and running for Christmas.

BY G.D. MAXWELL

Now we just have to teach all those folks to ski off of Red and not stand around trying to figure out what they should have figured out on the ride up.

Least Best O n-Mountain Achievement: Where have all the groomers gone? I don’t know, and I wish people would stop emailing me asking. Your guess is as good as mine.

Best Homecoming: Crankworx returned this year after its covid-induced hiatus and proved to be a crowd-pleaser wherever events were held—and simply a crowd at the clinic.

ALL POLITICS IS LOCAL CATEGORY

Timing is Everything: After rounds of foot dragging and hair pulling, the Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW) mandated covid vaccines for its employees... March 1, 2022! Which is more or less when, let’s see, everyone else was lifting mandates, disproving the old saying about better late than never. (The mandate was lifted one month later, on April 8.)

Quick, Watson; The Needle: Jumping into the fray and doing their bit to fight the devastating effects of inflation, the RMOW announces the 8.3-per-cent solution. Which is, the increase in 2023 property taxes they need to attract and retain staff. They said it; I didn’t.

Roll Another One: After taking almost enough time—but not quite—to approve a development proposal, the RMOW finally unveiled its retail cannabis policy. The plan hamstrings long-legal potrepreneurs with three-year temporary use permits and the social responsibility of shouldering reconciliation, giving peace pipe a whole new meaning.

It’s Not Easy Being Green: Not inexpensive, either. Adding to the circus of hoops and delays builders have to jump through, the muni’s Green Building Policy piles on costs, thereby improving the affordability of living in paradise. Sorry, that’s un-affordability.

Silver Lining: Was it all bad? Naw. Humanity,

or at least absurdly high costs, encouraged council to step away, far away, from the earlier green-lighted White Gold beautification project to underground utilities and pile unknown costs on to existing homeowners.

The Old Boys—and Girls—Club: While several aspiring local candidates touted being able to speak for the younger Whistlerites as a credential, it seems they were speaking to a vacuum. With an abysmal turnout of just 35 per cent of eligible voters, the people they hoped to represent didn’t really give a damn.

EXCEPT WHEN IT ISN’T CATEGORY

Show Me the Money: B.C.’s provincial government slammed the door on the 2030 Olympic bid, deciding even they could find better ways to spend a bazillion dollars.

It’s Only a Flesh Wound: Like Monty Python’s Black Knight, the 2030 Olympic disorganizing

the Sea to Sky corridor, despite lip service to the contrary.

A Comparative Bargain?: Last winter’s Freedumb Convoy and its offshoot in Alberta is estimated to have given Canada an economic hit of somewhere in the neighbourhood of $6 billion... with a “b.” With no end in sight, the federal government invoked the Emergency Act to end it. The inquiry looking into that step cost an additional $18.8 million. When the inquiry was finished, 63 per cent of Canadians said they approved of the government’s actions, down a few per cent from the twothirds who approved in February. Seems a poll would have saved cost.

Moo-ving Tribute: While not a government, per se, Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH), our regional healthcare “government,” applauded the local clinic and, indirectly, the Whistler Health Care Foundation, when the latter raised the money for a much-needed new trauma unit at the Whistler Health Care Centre. Given

The Art of Dempsey Bob, showcased the best collection of one of Canada’s most amazing artists. Trumping it all was Bob himself, who hung around for days to talk to anyone who wanted to hear more.

After two decades of building the Whistler Writers Festival into an important cultural event, Stella Harvey steps back, Rebecca Wood Barrett takes over, and Stella moves on to be named Citizen of the Year.

The Bad: The exodus of longtime locals continues. Whether it’s age, health or simply the reality of sitting on a goldmine they always thought of as a home, the town continued to bleed the very folks who helped make it a reality in 2022. A double loss considering virtually none of their homes were purchased by locals.

The closure of Town Plaza medical office. Growing population, diminishing medics, more pressure on emergency care instead of family docs.

User numbers doubled on the River of Golden Dreams as flotillas of disposable rubber rafts littered the shoreline and at least one wrong-headed local petitioned for a ban on commercial boats instead.

The Neverendium modern Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse continued to put pressure on the liveability of Tiny Town— Housing, Staffing, Traffic and Parking.

committee rose, Phoenix-like, to take another kick at the can with yet another “budget” showing how a bazillion dollars made sense.

Nice Day For a Walk, Part I: Hewing to its voice-o-da-people union roots, the provincial NDP government refuses to get involved when BC Transit allows its carpetbagger contractor, Pacific Western Transportation, to leave Whistlerites walking for 137 days rather than recognize operating buses is a very essential service.

Nice Day For a Walk, Part II: While floating a budget long on pork, the province once again dishes up not a morsel for regional transit in

VCH should have been ponying up the money for the infrastructure itself, instead of treating the local clinic as a cash cow, the praise seems particularly tone deaf.

LOCAL CULTURE CATEGORY

The Good: Tireless work behind the scenes has laid the groundwork for a more comprehensive way to provide local health-care. Whistler 360 holds out the promise of better access for Whistleratics to needed, non-emergency health-care.

The Audain Art Museum’s amazing show,

The Ugly: Nimbys never die, they just pop up wherever building proposals appear. Whether it was the White Gold proposal now on life support or the Alta Lake Road development, the ugly side of the I’ve Got Mine, Screw You mentality continued to play out.

Whistler locals may be resilient, but the numbers turning to Whistler Community Services Society for help call into question just how much longer they can hold out.

While it doesn’t turn into a shooting war as it does in many places around the world, religious intolerance of a more muted variety is alive and well in Whistler. I won’t review the details, but no one comes out looking particularly good. Revisit love thy neighbour, please. ■

Whistler locals may be resilient, but the numbers turning to Whistler Community Services Society for help call into question just how much longer they can hold out.

Whistler