May 7, 2026 – Response from Minister of Housing re Salt Spring Island Housing

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Ministry of Housing 
and Municipal Affairs 
 
 
Assistant Deputy Minister’s Office 
Local Government Division 
 
PO Box 9838 Stn Prov Govt 
Victoria, BC  V8W 9T1 
Phone: 250.387.4060 
Fax:      250.387.7972 
 
www.gov.bc.ca/housing 
 
 
 
 
 
May 7, 2026           Reference: 191711 
 
Timothy Peterson 
Chair 
Salt Spring Island Local Trust Committee 
4 - 121 McPhillips Avenue 
Salt Spring Island BC  V8K 2T6 
Email:
 tpeterson@islandstrust.bc.ca    
 
Dear Timothy Peterson: 
 
Thank you for your correspondence of March 31, 2026, addressed to the Honourable 
Christine Boyle, Minister of Housing and Municipal Affairs, regarding the request to 
appoint an independent housing advisor for Salt Spring Island. As Acting Assistant Deputy 
Minister, I am pleased to respond. 
 
I appreciate your detailed explanation of the housing challenges on Salt Spring Island and 
consideration of the opportunities and constraints to address housing need in the 
community.  
 
Under the Housing Supply Act (Act), only municipalities specified in the Housing Supply 
Regulation (Regulation) can be issued Housing Target Orders (HTO). Because Salt Spring 
Island is governed by the Islands Trust, and is not an incorporated municipality, it is not 
listed in the Regulation and cannot be issued an HTO.  
 
The Act permits the appointment of an advisor when a specified municipality has not met 
and not made satisfactory progress toward its housing target. Consequently, it is not 
possible to appoint an advisor for Salt Spring Island under the Act. For more information 
about the legislation and Housing Targets Program, please visit: 
https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/housing-tenancy/local-governments-and-
housing/housing-targets  
 
I note the Local Trust Committee’s (LTC) particular concern regarding water servicing. As 
you may know, any new water connections fall under the authority of the Ministry of 
Water, Land and Resource Stewardship. I recognize that the partial lifting of the North Salt 
Spring Island Water District moratorium presents a time-sensitive opportunity, and I 
commend your efforts to establish a framework that aligns available water capacity with 
the highest-priority housing needs. 

TIMOTHY PETERSO 
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Although the Housing Supply Act does not provide the mechanism you are seeking, I 
encourage you to continue working with Islands Trust staff to identify clear, practical 
actions and to explore a range of locally supported strategies. This could include engaging 
independent advisors with expertise in aligning housing objectives with environmental 
stewardship and water service capacity.  
 
I also encourage the LTC to explore funding opportunities through BC Housing including 
BC Builds to address housing needs on Salt Spring Island. For more information, please 
visit: https://www.bchousing.org/projects-partners/funding-programs. The LTC can also 
contact CRD Housing through their Housing Initiatives and Programs Branch at

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