Gary Ander has been elected mayor of Bowen Island by a razor-thin margin of two votes. Ander earned 896 votes to defeat Melanie Mason, who received 894 votes, according to CivicInfo BC.
Incumbent councillors Sue Ellen Fast, Maureen Nicholson, Alison Morse and Michael Kaile were re-elected, along with newcomers Robert Wynen and David Hocking.
Below is the full list of mayoral and councillor candidates in Bowen Island.
Candidates
Mayor
Gary Ander
Melanie Mason
Council
Sue Ellen Fast (incumbent)
Alison Morse (incumbent)
Robert Wynen
Robin Burger
David Hocking
Michael Kaile (incumbent)
Maureen Nicholson (incumbent)
Lawrence Philips
Peter Williamson
Boundary
Bowen Island is located in Howe Sound, a short ferry ride away from Horseshoe Bay in West Vancouver. It lies south of Gambier Island and east of Keats Island.
Population (2016)
3,680
History
The Squamish name for Bowen Island is “Xwlíl’xhwm,” which means, “fast drumming ground.”
Some have said the name was inspired by the sound that the water makes as flows through the pass between Finisterre Island and Bowen Island’s northern point.
Before Europeans arrived, the Squamish people established a village on the island where they fished, hunted and stopped during long trips along the West Coast, according to Bowen heritage.
Initially named “Isla de Apodaca” by a Spanish explorer, the island would later take its name from British Rear Admiral James Bowen, who commanded HMS Queen Charlotte in the “Glorious First of June” battle during the French Revolutionary Wars, as it took on the French ship Montagne.
Britain would later introduce a system whereby lands could be pre-empted by settlers. A settler did just this on Bowen in 1874.
It would see industrial activity including farming, orchards and logging. Bowen’s potential for tourism would be recognized in the 20th century, though attempts to develop resorts there would not materialize.
Today, it’s a full-time residence for certain people who work on the Lower Mainland, and a pleasant weekend getaway for writers, nature lovers and many more.
Median total income of couple economic families with children (2015)/B.C. median
$124,672/$111,736
Political representation
Federal
Pamela Goldsmith-Jones (Liberal)
Provincial
Jordan Sturdy (BC Liberal)
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