IMPORTANT: Please do not stop at signing this petition. To make your voice count, please complete all of the following steps:

1. Sign the petition.
2. Email the Regional Director (directorjdf@crd.bc.ca) and Parks Committee Chair (crdparks@crd.bc.ca) before the April 8 CRD Board meeting and April 22 Parks Committee meeting.
3. Comment directly on all 3 Crown land applications by May 6
   • Application 1415404 – Extensive Use Area
   • Application 1415403 – Intensive Use Area
   • Application 1415322 – Dock
4. Email your name and address to keepeastsookeparkprotected@gmail.com
5. Share these steps, links, and the petition widely.

Summay of the Issue:

As many in the region, and beyond, know, East Sooke Park is a public treasure.

It is a wild, beautiful, and ecologically sensitive place that welcomes everyone. It provides important habitat for wildlife and species at risk, protects fragile ecosystems and biodiversity, and offers public access to trails, shoreline, and wilderness that people in this community deeply value.

Now, three Crown land applications affecting part of East Sooke Park are being considered for a private, for-profit operation, on a parcel of Crown land that is located within the boundaries of East Sooke Park, as they are shown on public park maps and in the Official Community Plan. Although legally Crown land, this area is understood by many as part of the broader East Sooke Park landscape. 

Together, these applications would allow private commercial use on this parcel of Crown land within the existing boundaries of East Sooke Park, including built structures, camping, washrooms, fire pit, and other recreational uses. The combined application area spans 71.75 hectares (or about 177 acres), including a proposed Intensive Use Site of 4.87 hectares (or about 12 acres).

The application materials state that public access would be restricted in the proposed Intensive Use Site, and that the public would not be able to access part of this area.

Many community members are strongly opposed. This proposal risks interrupting public access, harming the environment, and putting species and sensitive habitat at risk.  It would introduce a private, for-profit operation into an area within the boundaries of East Sooke Park that, although being legally Crown land, many people understand and experience as part of the broader park landscape.

We are asking for your support to help keep East Sooke Park protected and public. By signing this petition, you are standing up for the protection of this special place, and sending a clear message that this parcel of Crown land within East Sooke Park boundaries should not be opened up for private commercial use.

Our local Regional Director has also expressed opposition to this proposal, and this issue is expected to be raised at upcoming CRD and Parks Committee meetings. 

Important: Petitions help show the strength of public concern, but the most important action people can take is to use the formal feedback and comment pathways provided below. Emails, letters, and comments sent to decision-makers will carry more weight than this petition alone.

This includes:

1. Email and mail the Regional Director (directorjdf@crd.bc.ca) and the Regional Parks Committee Chair (crdparks@crd.bc.ca) to express your opposition, and ask them to help protect East Sooke Park, prior to the April 8th CRD Board meeting and April 22nd Parks Committee meeting.
2. Send a letter to CRD Headquarters - 625 Fisgard St, Victoria, BC, V8W 1R7.
3. Provide comments directly on the Crown land applications by May 6th using these links.
   • Application 1415404 – Extensive Use Area
   • Application 1415403 – Intensive Use Area
   • Application 1415322 – Dock

Very Important: After you sign this petition, we also ask that you email your name and address to keepeastsookeparkprotected@gmail.com. In previous efforts to protect local land, we learned that addresses help strengthen the petition. 

Also note that by signing and/or sending your information, you consent to your name and address being shared with decision-makers for this campaign. Any comments left here may also be shared.  Petition organizers will keep your information confidential beyond those submissions.

There is no need to donate via Change.org. We do not receive those funds.

Please sign, share, and speak up. Keep East Sooke Park Protected, Public and Not for Profit!