Current projects
WINTER HOLIDAYS GRANT
For the 2023 Holiday season, the SCS will be managing the Gwaii Trust Society’s Winter Holidays Grant for our community. We will be accepting proposals for projects, events, and other initiatives.
We’re very open to new ideas for how to use these funds. In the past, these funds have covered things such as Christmas Hampers, The Winter Lights Festival, community meal, gifts from Santa, thank-you dinner for First Responders, and more.
Click here for more details and how to apply!
The Sandspit Visitor Centre
The SCS has been operating the Sandspit Visitor Centre since May 2012. Located in the Sandspit Airport, this official Destination BC Visitor Centre provides information to visitors, employment to residents, and opportunities for local artists and craftsmen to sell products in the gift shop.
The Sandspit Visitor Centre is open year-around and employs approximately 2 people.
The Sandspit Inn
The SCS has been successfully operating the Sandspit Inn since May 2014.
The Sandspit Inn provides the only full-service, year-around hotel with on-site restaurant (Spar Tree Restaurant) in Sandspit. We consider the Sandspit Inn to be essential to the social and economic well-being of the community.
The Sandspit Inn employs approximately 16 people, full-time and part-time.
The Sandspit Bus
The SCS started operating the Sandspit Bus, with a current fleet of 3 vehicles, in May 2016, following the shutdown of Sandspit Taxi the previous fall.
Sandspit Bus provides transportation services to the Community of Sandspit. Operated as a chartered service requiring a reservation; adventure travelers, tour operators, individuals, and community members can access every area of the region, including remote points on both Moresby and Graham Island.
Sandspit Bus also works with the school board (SD50) to provide transportation for local high school students to get to the ferry every morning and back every afternoon so that they can attend class in the Village of Queen Charlotte. The Sandspit school only goes up to grade 7.
The Sandspit Bus is operating year-around and employs approximately 3 people.
Sandspit Recreation Committee
Originally a subcommittee of the Moresby Island Management Committee, the Sandspit Recreation Committee has been a committee of the SCS since 2011. The committee is made up of volunteers and organizes numerous recreation activities in the community. Some of these include sports programs for kids and adults as well as working with Haida Gwaii Rec to provide an exercise gym for residents. In 2019, the SCS, together with volunteers of the Committee, leveraged a major contribution Grant with Gwaii Trust ($105,000) for the construction of a new basketball court at our local elementary school.
Logger Sports Day
Originally run by a subcommittee of the Moresby Island Management Committee (MIMC - See our History section), the Annual Logger’s Sports Day is now run by the SCS and a group of dedicated volunteers. This event has been happening in Sandspit for more than 50 years and is open for anyone to participate in. There are lots of prizes and it is a fun time for all!
Moresby Market
"Handmade, Homemade and Homegrown."
The Moresby Market is a local farmer’s market operated as a Committee of the SCS and ran by volunteers.
The Market is held at the ALM School in Sandspit near the pergola and operates seasonally from 11am-1pm on Sundays (excluding long weekends), from the middle of May until October. The market gives local farmers and artisans a chance to sell their goods to locals and visitors.
Wild Harvest Festival
Since the fall of 2015 the SCS has operated the annual Sandspit Wild Harvest Festival celebrating all things wild on Haida Gwaii. This is a festival where people can meet and share their knowledge of wild plants, animals and marine life, and visitors can join the many talks, activities, guided nature walks and forays organized throughout the event, and try wild foods, drinks, teas... It is all about nature and promoting a rich and clean environment for all.
This growing festival takes place every year on the Friday and Saturday after the labor day Weekend in September. A guest chef is also usually invited to put on a 4-course gourmet dinner to showcase wild foods of Haida Gwaii.
THE SANDSPIT SEMESTER
The SCS is has been working with the Haida Gwaii Institute (formerly the Haida Gwaii Higher Education Society) since 2014 to bring post secondary students to Sandspit for a semester in Marine Conservation. The program is an extension of the Haida Gwaii Semester program, itself a part of the UBC faculty of Forestry, which has been successfully operating in Skidegate and Queen Charlotte since 2010, and has recently been extended to Masset and Old Massett. This project will significantly improve the cultural and economic health of our community in the winter months. The Institute is working toward a start date of January 2020.
Road Maintenance
In the spring of 2018 the SCS successfully leveraged some grant funding from Gwaii Trust for the maintenance of the Gray Bay road. The road was brushed from the main line out to Gray Bay, opening it up for RVs and contributing to the longevity of the road. The road was graded a number of times all the way from Sandspit to Gray Bay. The road was graded again in spring 2019 with the remainder of the grant.
We are hoping to set up a road user group in the future in order to bring together governments, departments, companies and organizations to share in the cost of keeping our resource roads in good condition.
This project provided work for 2 local contractors.
Trail Maintenance & Construction
The SCS has entered an agreement with BC Parks and CHN to ensure trail maintenance in the Damaxyaa Conservancy. With this agreement, our Trails Committee is able to maintain the Dover Trail and volunteers have insurance coverage. Some work has started in the summer 2019.
The Trails Committee is also conducting trail maintenance on other trails of Moresby Island outside of the conservancy areas. It has also secured some funding for the purchase of basic maintenance equipment.
The SCS also works with the Sandspit Salmon Enhancement Society, in conjunction with BC Parks and CHN, on upgrades for the Dover Trail that will include a universal access trail to a salmon viewing platform on Haans Creek.
SANDSPITBC.CA WEBSITE DEVELOPMENT
The SCS is working on the www.sandspitbc.ca website to promote the community of Sandspit, its services and businesses and offer information on recreation opportunities for visitors to Moresby Island.
The new version of the website went live in May 2019 and is under ongoing construction and expansion.
“A good place to live is a good place to visit”