One of the key elements of Prince Rupert Mayor Lee Brain's Hays 2.0 planning gets a reboot of sorts as we head into the fall (and municipal election season) with the introduction of the second phase of the Redesign Rupert program earlier this month.
Gone from the scene is the UNBC based Community Development Institute, the community planning group provided for the foundation of the first phase of the program in those heady and exciting days of planning by the new Council following the 2014 election, with the Redesign vision revealed in February of 2016.
Though as the UNBC institutes mandate began to wind down, so too did much of the visual image of the Redesign program, the concept as we noted on the blog back in February, went dormant for the most part in 2017, with little in the way of a wrap up review, or farewell by the City as to the work of the CDC to be found since.
The topic of Redesign Rupert also seemed to slip the mind of City Council for much of the last year or so as well, with few, if any mentions of the program, or where it stood as a priority for Council getting much of an airing in public council sessions.
As it returns to public prominence this fall, the focus for this second phase will be directed towards themes such as Human Capital, the need to regenerate the Downtown region and to expand on opportunities for the public on the limited waterfront space that is available to the city.
Those three legs of the focus ahead are explained further in the relaunched website for the program which offers up some of the background to the program's goals and ambitions.
To oversee the program and offer guidance along the way, the steering committee for the second phase of the program, has taken on a heavy civic presence, similar in appearance to the City's engagement with CityWest, Watson Island and the Prince Rupert Airport Boards.
Among those serving on the Steering committee are:
Mayor Lee Brain Corinne Bomben, CFO of the City of Prince Rupert Robert Long, City Manager, City of Prince Rupert Blair Mirau, City councillor John Farrell, General Manager of Community Futures Scott Farwell, President of Tourism Prince Rupert
The second phase it seems will now be more of an "in house" program, jointly operated by the City of Prince Rupert and Community Futures of Prince Rupert, the twin bodies bringing Ceilidh Marlow on board as program coordinator.
Ms. Marlow most recently worked for the Museum of Northern British Columbia and brings what she describes as a passion about community planning to her new position.
Funding for phase two of the program is coming from the BC Rural Dividend Fund, the City of Prince Rupert and Community Futures Development Corporation of the Pacific Northwest.
Last week, Mayor Brain revealed the new focus through his Facebook page, hailing the program as an opportunity to bring his Hays 2.0 vision to life in the community, a theme we suspect we will be hearing quite a bit about between now and the October 20th election date.
The full press release, along with comments from the participants in the program can be found here.
The recent "Pop Up" event one week ago on Third Avenue West provided Redesign Rupert with the first barometer of sorts of what the residents are looking for if the program is to resonate and become more than just another string of consultations and place making exercises.
For the downtown area, the need for a larger retail presence and public space dominated much of the findings, while waterfront desires include a boardwalk and public pier and more public gathering spots to enjoy the harbour that at times residents only get a glimpse of.
As Ms. Marlow works to deliver on those three goals for the Redesign plan, we'll track the developments from our archive page here, those listings also include our earlier notes on the work of the UNBC CDI program of phase one.
Our observations offer up some background to the work that has formed the foundation of the program, one which now moves towards that period of time where some results will be expected by the public for their investment both monetarily and in time and interest in the program.
It's convention season for BC municipal leaders as the province's elected officials, along with a string of BC government and opposition members prepare to take part in the UBCM convention at the Whistler Convention Centre
The theme for this years event is Communication, Collaboration and Cooperation and much of the focus will be put towards the increasing engagement between municipal government and the senior levels.
As we head towards convention week, we will offer up items of interest below culled from developments from the gathering set for Whistler from September 10 to 14.
Items from the blog focused on the North Coast and related to the convention can be found in this archive listed in their own section and, highlighted in red, our blog contributions to the theme will be marked by our blue NCR icon, allowing you to find them with a quick scan.
Items related to North Coast and Northwest involvement from other media sources will listed below in green typeface.
Notes of interest from other communities will be highlighted in orange .
Mr. Niesh who is serving his first term of office, announced his intention to be a candidate for Council in the October 20th Municipal election, making him the first of the Five sitting incumbent council members from 2014-2018 to formally advise of his plans.
He was followed two days later by Councillor Barry Cunningham, who made use of his Facebook page to announce his plans to seek another four years at City Hall, noting of his belief that the Mayor and Council have acted as a strong team since the 2014 election.
The remaining three council members and Mayor Lee Brain have yet to share their decision with the public, though in the case of Councillor Blair Mirau the decision on his political future could be made public following his late summer vacation plans, a process he outlined through his Facebook portal on Sunday.
While we await the decision of the remaining incumbents, one newcomer to municipal politics has already declared her intention to seek office, with Ms. Sarah Dantzer launching her candidacy last week, describing her political philosophy as that of a holistic environmentalist.
Sarah Dantzer is one of the early candidates to enter the field for this falls Municipal election
Active in a number of local initiatives, her most recent work in the community comes by way of the Overlook Community Garden, a program which she helped bring to the finish line earlier this month.
The announcement, which was made August 27th by the Quebec port, will see a section of port land known as the Beaumont sector expanded and turned into a container handling facility to build a new deepwater container terminal.
Don Krusel will be helping to steer the Port of Quebec City towards a new future in container terminal development, the former President and CEO of the Prince Rupert Port Authority was named to the post of Managing Director of the Quebec port's Container Terminal project this week
No timeline was revealed towards the project, but once completed, the fully intermodal will take advantage of direct access to major rail and highway networks.
Quebec City Port officials noted that the the Port of Québec is well positioned to serve as a gateway to the vast Great Lakes trade corridor, with the introduction of a new container terminal, the St. Lawrence River will finally boast a real alternative to the deepwater ports of the Eastern Seaboard.
Port President and CEO Mario Girard hailed the leadership that Mr. Krusel will bring to the Quebec City project.
“Bringing Don Krusel on board at this decisive phase in the project is a strategic move that will provide us with welcome high-level leadership. His reputation in the industry, his in-depth knowledge of port operations, and his commitment to the success of the container terminal are all major assets that will help us get Québec City’s deepwater container terminal built,”
The move by the Port of Quebec is being hailed by industry observers as an impressive first step in securing the ports footprint in the global container industry, with many of the notices of his return to the business of building port facilities making note of his achievements in Prince Rupert.
Some missed opportunities for transparency on City Council were the theme For Councillor Barry Cunningham on August 20th
Despite a vow to provide for more transparency on City council from six months ago, Councillor Barry Cunningham provided a report card of sorts for council at the August 20th council session, suggesting that Council has missed the ball on their goal for 2018.
The Councillor called attention to a resolution from Council's February 26th session which had outlined the desire to implement an invitation schedule at Committee of the Whole meetings, for progress reports from local organizations and services.
"Councillor Mirau and I drafted this up together, we had some discussions about it and that, I think that it speaks for itself. The resolution is to bring funded societies, or organizations that we fund to Committee of the Whole to open it up for discussion. And I think it is something we should be doing so we can give transparency to the community. And let the community know what exactly is going on with these, I think it's a good start towards going down that road." -- Councillor Barry Cunningham in February of 2018 seeking more transparency for council sessions
At the time Council had developed plans for an invitation schedule for such groups and services as the Library, Airport, Lester Centre, RCMP, Fire Hall, Museum, Tourism Prince Rupert and Golf Course.
Mr. Cunningham noted that it was now six months later and not one of the groups he listed had yet to appear. Observing that council introduced that plan to enhance on its goal of transparency for the public, he added that since there were now no more COW sessions planned prior to the October election, it was his hope that the next Council would embrace that goal of more transparency.
"I think it's part of this transparency that were trying to get out there, that is why I brought that resolution forward, and I just noticed, I was just going through some old notes, that in the last six months we haven't had one group, except for one that was specifically invited to come before council. I hope during the next council, as I don't think that we have any more COW's, that this resolution is respected and followed through" -- Councillor Cunningham, speaking on August 20th on a lack of follow up on council plans on transparency for 2018
For his part, Mayor Brain observed how he didn't know how that maybe fell off the radar, but that he would look into the issue further.
The themes of Transparency and accountability are often frequent campaign focus points as election years move towards voting day and as the Councillor noted in his short overview, they have been a council benchmark that has been missed more often than it has been delivered on during this four year term.
In the case of using the Committee of the Whole process to provide for more access for residents to Council proceedings, the past year has seen City Council explore a number of concepts for how they had hoped to see that process evolve over the last few years.
As 2017 came to an end, Council seemed to have settled on the status quo for the rest of the year and 2018, though not quite as effectively it would seem, as Councillor Cunningham might have hoped to see.
How the topic evolves into the soon to be launched 2018 election campaign may make for one of the more expansive talking points for those seeking to take their seats at City Hall following the October 20th vote.
The introduction of the theme to the August 20th Council session can be reviewed from the City's Video Archive starting at the fifty six minute mark.
How the city approaches its Request for Bids for services and goods made for a topic at the August 20th City Council session, with Councillor Barry Cunningham raising a number of questions with the City's Financial Officer Corinne Bomben.
The main thrust of his inquiries was whether the city approached its purchasing strategy by way of lowest price, or if it involves other factors for consideration prior to selection of the successful bids.
In response, the City's CFO outlined that cost and other qualitative factors were considered, including capabilities and letters of reference among the factors used.
Mr. Cunningham followed up with one final question on the theme, asking if local businesses were given preference if they are within a certain percentage of the lowest bid.
He was advised that it was not currently the city's policy.
You can explore the discussion further from the City's Video Archive, starting at the fifty four minute mark.
Councillor Blair Mirau is seeking a report from the finance department on the impact to the City from Employer Health Tax changes
Prince Rupert City Council finally approached the topic of a change to the province's MSP program, one which could result in a significant financial hit for the City of Prince Rupert when it comes to the health care costs for civic employees.
Councillor Blair Mirau raised the topic at the Monday, August 20th session, asking for a report from the City's Financial Officer as to what impact the provincial change will have on the city, noting that a number of other municipalities have delivered a request of the provincial government for an exemption from the additional costs that the change may bring.
The change in policy came earlier this year with the creation of the NDP government budget planning, as Provincial Finance Minister Carole James indicated that British Columbia was set to follow the lead of other provinces in scrapping MSP payments.
Set to replace them with the Employer Health Tax which the Finance Minister described as a fairer system, Ms. James further expanded on the program in July
We first made note of the percolating issue and its potential impact on Prince Rupert at that time, noting how the provincial change could add to the growing list of irritants that City Council has been compiling when it comes to its exchanges with the provincial government.
The UBCM background piece offered up a chart that outlined the funding options that are available to municipal and regional governments. Included was a mix of property tax increases and potential service reductions that would be required to meet the EHT requirements.
The UBCM has done some math for communities across the province, highlighting the impact of a change in how the province of BC collects employer health payments
With that information release from the UBCM, many communities had launched their own questions of the provincial government over the plan, with a number seeking similar exemptions as those offered to School Districts, Health Authorities, as well as to Colleges and Universities.
As well, many municipalities have questioned if the province's initiative to create fairness should come through the process of property taxation, which is how municipalities raise the resources for their operations.
And while a growing number of municipalities have been quick to action on the issue, Prince Rupert Council however seems to have let the issue slip through the summer, only now raising the topic for discussion.
Should Councillor Mirau and the others receive Ms. Bomben's notes prior to their departure for the UBCM gathering in Whistler from September 10 to 14, they may be able to use her talking points as part of their intercessions with provincial officials at the annual convention.
Mr. Mirau introduces the topic to Council at the fifty three minute mark of the Video Archive for the August 20th session.
Representatives from Ridley Terminals outlined their expansion plans for Prince Rupert City Council on August 20th
The August 20th Prince Rupert City Council session provided for another opportunity for the once delayed overview of the Ridley Terminal Expansion plans, with both President and CEO Marc Dulude and Corporate Affairs officer Michelle Bryant-Gravelle in attendance to update council on the work ahead to develop a second berth at the coal handling facility on Ridley Island.
The Ridley President and CEO, along with Ms. Bryant-Gravelle offered up a thumbnail guide to the planned expansion project at the industrial site on Ridley Island, work which will include the addition of a second shipping berth southeast of the existing dock at the coal shipping facility.
The main focus of the proposed expansion is to provide for simultaneous loading of two vessels at the Ridley shipment site, as well as to offer RTI the opportunity to diversify its shipment of products to other commodities, though no outline of what those commodities might be was delivered at the August 20th update.
Background notes related to the planned expansion of shipping facilities at Ridley Terminals (click to enlarge)
In addition to a presentation on what the new facility will look like and the space it will take up on the Ridley waterfront, Ms. Bryant-Gravelle provided a look at the range of steps required before authorization for the project will be provided.
As for the timeline, consultation through a technical committee with First Nations is underway related to their expansion plans, after that step a decision is expected from the Federal Government by the end of this year or in early 2019.
Public input will be sought out once those steps are complete as part of the evaluation process. Two public Open Houses are planned for October of this year, one for Prince Rupert and one for Port Edward.
Five federal authorities are involved in the overview of the proposed expansion plans, with consultation and technical meetings already underway.
The trail of consultation and engagement that RTI will embark on as it moves forward with its proposed second berth at the shipment terminal
(click to enlarge)
In follow up comments, Councillors Thorkelson and Cunningham both expressed their concerns over the fate of the terminal should it change hands and move to the private sector, with both also suggesting one outcome could be the closure of the facility by a rival terminal.
Councillor Niesh inquired if it would go ahead should the Terminal be sold, with Mr. Dulude observing for council that while those discussions continue, for Ridley it's business as usual and that the need for a second dock is something that Ridley needs to address in order to meet capacity requirements. He also noted how a second dock would assist RTI in its approach towards diversification into the future.
Councillor Cunningham, asked as to what other bulk commodities that Ridley may be looking to ship out of the Terminal facility, however the RTI President did not offer up any indication as to what forms of other commodities may be in the future for the terminal.
Mr. Cunningham also inquired as to how many additional jobs may be created by the expansion.
He was advised that from their current level of employment of 125 employees, an additional twenty five jobs will be created, with a dedication towards gender and origin equity employment to provide for a better representation of the local population.
Mr. Cunningham also complimented RTI for their community involvement, pointing out how Ms. Bryant-Gravelle has a strong presence in the community.
Councillor Randhawa asked for the timeline of the project and when the first ship will dock at the new terminal, he was advised that the hope is to have all ready to go by the first quarter of 2021.
In a follow up, Mr. Randhawa asked about taking advantage of training local residents for positions at the facility, he was advised by Ms. Gravelle-Bryant that RTI has a partnership with both SD52 and Coast Mountain College for training, while Mr. Dulude noted that Ridley was also providing resources towards robotics training in local schools.
Councillor Thorkelson had a number of comments related to the disposal plans both on land and in the water that will be required for the expansion project, she also offered up the strongest of council's concern at the prospect of the Federal Government selling the property.
Offering up her view that Council should take a stand on the potential sale, as they have in the past, noting that they don't really know who will be looking to purchase the terminal and what their plans may be, whether it be to operate the facility or to close it, offering up her concern on the issue, adding that the people of Canada subsidized RTI when it was doing poorly and now that it is on the cusp of moving forward the people of Canada won't get to gain the profits of the facility.
She would like to see the city put some pressure on the federal government to keep the facility owned by Canadian ownership, Mr. Dulude noted once again that for RTI the approach is business as usual and observed as to the consultation process and noted that any comments should be directed towards the Federal Minister.
With Council not quite clear on the timeline ahead for the potential sale of one of the regions' main industrial employers, the suggestion was that they keep in touch with the NDP MP for the region to keep the pressure on the Federal government to keep the industrial site in the hands of the government.
Skeena Bulkley Valley NDP MP Nathan Cullen has already taken the regional lead on the issue, having delivered a number of statements in recent weeks on the federal proposal and once again relaying his strong opposition to the federal government's plans.
You can review the August 20th presentation to Council from the City's Video Archive page starting at the seventeen minute mark.
Council heard concerns from a pair of residents of the Frederick Street area, bringing back a zoning issue that proved controversial ten years ago
A zoning arrangement of ten years ago between the City of Prince Rupert and a property owner on Frederick Street came back to haunt City Council members on August 20th, as Paul Lagace from the Prince Rupert Unemployment Action Centre provided council members with an overview of an eviction issue facing two mobile home residents, who currently reside in mobile homes in what is now mostly an industrial site on the city's southeast side.
The area which was once known as the Mountain View Mobile Home Park, is now for the most part an industrial site for a local fishing company, the last two homes more or less grandfathered into the site ten years ago in a zoning plan that seemingly tried to find common ground between the twin uses, though it was an arrangement which did cause Council members some vigorous discussion back in 2008.
The concern of the original agreement, was of the prospect of the residents to be forced out of the location and as the the ten years moved forward, the attrition of residents does seem to have taken place as predicted.
At the heart of the dispute now, is an attempt by the owner to evict the final two residents from the property, with Mr. Lagace offering up his interpretation of events that by their actions, the owners were not only trying to break a contract with the home owners; but are going back on arrangements made with the city of Prince Rupert to have the land rezoned.
He asked if there was any action that the city of Prince Rupert could do to assist the residents to help them keep their manufactured homes as a result of the owners attempts.
As part of his overview for council, Lagace noted that the two homes in question are the two last manufactured homes in the community and there is nowhere for them to move their homes.
The two residents also offered up their personal testimony of the situation and the seemingly deteriorating relationship with the property landlord.
Council members noted that the issue is a tough one to address and does seem to indicate that City Council may require better guidance in the future in other instances of changing zoning designations.
"After reading all these papers, you know my attitude is once a deal, always a deal. The owner of this property got it rezoned and the city did it in good faith, taking his word that he would stand behind his words and in this town your word is your word. I find it very disturbing that ten years later he thinks he can just go back on a deal not only with the tenants, but with the city too" --Councillor Barry Cunningham
"I think it's quite a serious situation, I was on Council at the time that this agreement was written and I was very concerned at the time that if we rezoned it, it would mean a closure of the mobile home park and we had quite a discussion about it at Council ... What concerns me, is that we were assured at the time is that this was going to be enough to ensure that if we rezoned, the people would be able to remain in their homes, and now if we can't do anything about it, then you have to start to wonder as a Councillor whether we should rezone anything, believe anybody. And it also means that we need to have better advice" --Councillor Joy Thorkelson
As for the current situation, Mayor Brain noted that the City would have to explore the issue further, before it could offer an opinion or response to the issue.
"Well this is a very unfortunate event, the only thing I can comment on right now, is that we're going to have to look into this and I know that it's a timely matter so we'll have to get on top of looking into that. I'm not sure what the legislation is or what the agreement is to be honest with you, so we'll have to get our planning department engaged and we'll have to get our administration engaged and we'll get back to you guys as soon as possible with some kind of response ... We're going to look further into this and there will be a prompt response and reply from the city"
Among some of the themes that Council will have to explore prior to providing for any comment, will be to contact the property owner to hear his side of the dispute and to determine from that, if the issue could potentially be as Councillor Cunningham noted, one of a simple landlord tenant dispute and outside the reach of Council's purview.
You can review the full presentation, along with the questions and observations from Council members from the City's Video archive, starting at the very beginning of Monday's Council session.
As we return to the blog, we first play a bit of catch up on city council themes, offering up our look at the August 20th City Council session.
An evening which provided a presentation on housing that brought back a controversial move from ten years ago for council to revisit, as a pair of residents on the city's east side find themselves on the cusp of eviction from what was once the Mountain View Trailer Park.
As well, Council members finally received their once delayed update from Ridley Terminalson the plans to add a second shipment berth at the Ridley Island facility.
Variance permits, correspondences to Council and bylaw issues took up the bulk of the remainder of the night, along with a report from the City's Financial Officer on the June Budget variance results.
Council members brought the evening to an end by providing for a few comments, observations and suggestions on a range of topics for further action by the City.
Monday was also a Committee of the Whole Session, which was the forum for the housing issue on the east side to be explained.
Some background on the work of Council on the evening and the various Agenda elements for the August 20th Council session can be reviewed here.
Further information from our overview and placement in the video archive can be found below, with the permanent record of the minutes added as they are posted to the city website.
In attendance Monday, August 20, 2018
Mayor Lee Brain -- Present
Councillor Barry Cunningham-- Present
Councillor Blair Mirau -- Present
Councillor Wade Niesh -- Present
Councillor Gurvinder Randhawa-- Present
Councillor Joy Thorkelson --Present (participated by phone)
Councillor Nelson Kinney passed away on March 24th
Video Archive for August 20, 2018
(0:00 -- 16:00) Committee of the Whole Session for August 20, 2018 --
The only business for the Committee of the whole process, was to take public comments from those in attendance..
Starting off that process was Paul Lagace, from the Prince Rupert Unemployment Action Centre, advocating for two residents of a trailer park in what was once known as the Mountain View East park off of Frederick Street, recounting for council the history of their residence in an area and ongoing dispute related to their home ownership in an area that is now mostly zoned as an industrial area.
At the heart of the dispute now, is an attempt by the owner to evict them from the property, with Mr. Lagace offering up his interpretation of events that by their actions, the owners were not only trying to break a contract with the home owners but they are going back on arrangements made with the city of Prince Rupert to have the land rezoned.
He asked if there was any action that the city of Prince Rupert could do to assist the residents to help them keep their manufactured homes as a result of the owners attempts.
He noted that the two homes in question are the two last manufactured homes in the community and there is nowhere for them to move their homes.
The two residents offered up their personal testimony of the situation and the seemingly deteriorating relationship with the property landlord.
The Mayor spoke first to the issue, calling it an unfortunate event, but noting that the city would have to explore the issue further before they could offer an opinion and response on the situation.
Councillor Cunningham offered up the observation that in in his mind a deal is a deal, calling attention to the nature of the city's arrangement of ten years ago with the property owner. Noting how he doesn't know where the city stands on the issue, that it does call attention to some of the zoning issues that the city has to review.
Councillor Thorkelson, who was on council during the original agreement between the city and the landowner and works in Fisherman's Hall with Mr. Legace, recounted some of the history related to the issue of ten years ago, she also provided some background material from the original documentation. Ms. Thorkelson observed that this incident gives council pause to consider whether they should rezone anything or believe anybody. adding that it also means that Council needs better advice when it considers zoning issues.
Councillor Niesh asked one question on the issue about the nature of the length of time of the notice that was provided.
To bring the presentation to an end, Mayor Brain thanked the delegation for attending and promised a prompt response and reply from the city.
No other residents approached council with comments or concerns for the Committee of the Whole, with the Mayor then bringing the process to an end
(16:00 -- 17:00 ) Regular City Council Session for August 20, 2018 -- Mayor Brain reviewed the list of minutes and agenda items to be noted by Council members, including one late addition, with Council then approving the Agenda.
( 17:00 -- 41:00 ) Petitions and Delegations -- Presentation to City Council from representatives of Ridley Terminals -- Ridley President and CEO Marc Dulude and Michelle Bryant-Gravelle provided an update for council on a planned expansion project at the industrial site on Ridley Island, work which will include the addition of a second shipping berth southeast of the existing dock at the coal shipping facility.
In addition to a presentation on what the new facility will look like and the space it will take up on the Ridley waterfront, Ms. Bryant-Gravelle provided a look at the range of steps required before authorization for the project will be provided.
As for the timeline, consultation through a technical committee with First Nations is underway related to their expansion plans, after that step a decision is expected from the Federal Government by the end of this year.
Public input will be sought out once those steps are complete as part of the evaluation process. Two public Open Houses are planned for October of this year, one for Prince Rupert and one for Port Edward.
With Ridley Terminals in the news recently related to a potential sale of the property by the Federal Government, Council members weighed in with comments for the Ridley representatives on that theme.
Councillor Niesh inquired if it would go ahead should the Terminal be sold, a process that is currently in motion, Mr. Dulude observed that while those discussions continue, for Ridley it's business as usual and that the need for a second dock is something that Ridley needs to address in order to meet capacity requirements. He also noted how a second dock would assist RTI in its approach towards diversification into the future.
Councillor Cunningham, asked as to what other bulk commodities that Ridley may be looking to ship out of the Terminal facility, the RTI President however, did not offer up any indication as to what forms of other commodities may be in the future for the terminal.
Mr. Cunningham also inquired as to how many additional jobs may be created by the expansion. He was advised that from their current level of employment of 125 employees, an additional twenty five jobs will be created, with a dedication towards gender and origin equity employment to provide for a better representation of the local population.
Mr. Cunningham also complimented RTI for their community involvement, pointing out how Ms. Bryant-Gravelle has a strong presence in the community.
Councillor Randhawa asked for the timeline of the project and when the first ship will dock at the new terminal, he was advised that the hope is to have all ready to go by the first quarter of 2021.
In a follow up, Mr. Randhawa asked about taking advantage of training local residents for positions at the facility, he was advised by Ms. Gravelle-Bryant that RTI has a partnership with both SD52 and Coast Mountain College for training, while Mr. Dulude noted that Ridley was also providing resources towards robotics training in local schools.
Councillor Thorkelson had comments related to the disposal plans both on land and in the water that will be required for the expansion project, she also offered up her concern at the prospect of the Federal Government selling the property.
Offering up her view that Council should take a stand on the potential sale, as they have in the past, noting that they don't really know who will be looking to purchase the terminal and what their plans may be, whether it be to operate the facility or to close it, offering up her concern on the issue, adding that the people of Canada subsidized RTI when it was doing poorly and now that it is on the cusp of moving forward the people of Canada won't get to gain the profits of the facility.
She would like to see the city put some pressure on the federal government to keep the facility owned by Canadian ownership.
Mr. Dulude once again noted, that for RTI the approach is business as usual and observed as to the consultation process and noted that any comments should be directed towards the Federal Minister.
With no further questions and to bring their review to a close, Mayor Brain thanked the RTI representatives for their time and presentation.
( 41:00 -- 42:00 ) Opportunity to comment related to an Application for Development Variance Permits -- Mayor Brain outlined how the process works related to the two properties in question one on Overlook, the other on First Avenue West.
With no members of the public coming forward, council then moved on to other business.
( 42:00 -- 44:30 ) Report from City Planner Zeno Krekic, related to an Application for Development Variance Permit for a property at 1641 Overlook Street -- Mr. Krekic provided some background related to the variance request, which is to add a new deck to the residence in question.
Council members voted to approve the variance application, with the process now to go to Final Consideration.
( 44:30 -- 46:30 ) Report from City Planner Zeno Krekic, related to an Application for Development Variance Permit for a property at 1045 First Avenue West -- Mr. Krekic provided some background related to the variance request, which is to make a variation to the front property setback.
Council members voted to move the variance application to final consideration.
( 46:30 -- 49:30 ) Report from the Approving Officer -- Mr. Richard Pucci the City's Director of Operations, speaking on behalf of the Approving Officer provided details related to proposal to stratify a duplex on Seal Cove circle into two strata properties.
He reviewed the background to the proposal in front of council and relayed how all conditions had been met and there are no identifiable costs associated with the request
Councillor Randhawa inquired as to the status of the property tax for the property in question, Ms. Bomben noted that there were a number of factors involved in determining what the assessed value would be.
Councillor Cunningham noted that the property recently had suffered a fire and inquired about some of the firewall requirements in place.
Council then voted to approve the strata conversion.
( 49:30 -- 50:30 )Report from the Chief Financial Officer -- June 2018 Financial Variance Report -- Council received a report for consideration from the City's CFO Corinne Bomben, who noted that all operating revenues and expenses were on track as of June and on budget, with capital projects ongoing, however as it is midway through the construction season, costs will be reported month by month. She also observed that the next phase of the Woodworth Dam project, one of the largest of the year, is now out for tender, with the bulk of that cost to be found as part of the water budget for next year.
Council accepted the report with no comments or questions.
( 50:30 -- 51:30 ) Correspondences to Council -- The Mayor outlined the nature of a letter from the Prince Rupert and District Metis Society, asking for a proclamation of November 12 to 16, 2018 as Metis awareness week in the City of Prince Rupert.
The Mayor observed that it was something that Council naturally would like to do, with Councillor Mirau inquiring if any events were planned, the Mayor did not know if any plans were in motion for the week. Council members approved the request.
Bylaws ( 51:30 -- 52:00 ) Vehicle for Hire Regulation Amendment Bylaw -- With Councillor Randhawa excusing himself from the conversation due to conflict of interest, Council members reviewed the proposed change to the bylaw which adjusts the period of licensing. With no comments or concerns expressed in relation to the bylaw proposal, Council voted to give final reading to approve the amendment.
( 19:45 -- 27:00 ) Reports and Comments from Council members
Councillor Randhawa thanked the city workers for their work during the tourism season.
Councillor Mirau asked a question of CFO Bomben related to the MSP phase out by the provincial government, asking if the Council could get a report on the financial impact on the projected cost to the City of Prince Rupert on payroll taxes related to the new approach from the province.
Councillor Cunningham observed on his participation in the Overlook Community Garden build day, noting how the community had come together to get involved in that initiatives, hailing the work of Sarah Dancer and the Transition Society of Prince Rupert. Adding how he hopes to see other areas of town adopt the program.
He then asked questions of the city's purchasing policy and whether it is lowest price, or if it involves other factors. In response, the City's CFO outlined that cost and other qualitative factors were considered, including capabilities and letters of reference among the factors used.
In a follow up Mr. Cunningham asked if local businesses were given preference if they are within a certain percentage of the lowest bid, he was advised that it was not currently the city's policy.
Mr. Cunningham then turned his attention to a concern from a resident who had suffered a broken water line and expressed concern over the cost, which he considered to be rather steep, Ms. Bomben advised that she could look into it.
The final topic from the Councillor involved a look at a resolution from February 26th calling for an invitation schedule at Committee of the Whole meetings, for progress reports from local organizations and services.
Noting that it was now six months later and not one of the groups he listed had yet to appear, Mr. Cunningham further observed that council introduced that plan to enhance on its goal of transparency for the public, he noted that since there were now no more COW sessions planned prior to the October election, that he hopes that the next Council would embrace that goal of more transparency.
The Mayor noted how he didn't know how that maybe fell off the radar, but that he would look into the issue.
Councillor Niesh made note that this years election will take place in October, announcing the he would be putting his name forward for this years election period.
Councillor Thorkelson asked if anyone had taken note of the consultation date from the Ridley Terminals process, with the Mayor observing that he didn't believe that they had stated a set date, offering up the prospect of contacting MP Nathan Cullen to determine that information.
Ms. Thorkelson returned to her previous theme of the Ridley presentation to again stress how the City needs to be involved in having their voice heard when it comes to any potential sale of the industrial terminal.
Noting how previous City councils took a stand against the sale of the terminal and urging Council to again to take a similar stand against the sale. She offered up the prospect of the City of Prince Rupert writing a letter to be included as part of the process, to ask that the Terminal be kept in federal hands.
Councillor Cunningham agreed with Ms. Thorkelson's suggestion, noting how they have been a strong presence in the community and it would be convenient for the terminal to be purchased and shut down by competitors.
The Mayor outlined how the process should be addressed at the next Council session, Ms. Thorkelson noted her only concern is that the process may be underway prior to the next Council session on September 4th.
Mr. Brain noted that the city could find out and call a special council session if required.
With no other comments offered up for the final portion of the evening, Council then voted to adjourn the meeting.
You can access the City Council Review for August 20 here, where a number of items regarding the council session, including links to local media coverage, can also be found.
As always, our Council Timeline is only a reflection of our observations from the Council session of the night. Be sure to consult with the official minutes from the City, when posted to their website for further review. Official Minutes of the Regular Council Session from August 20, 2018 (not available yet)
In addition to the city's official minutes, the City's Video archive provides a helpful record of the events from each public council session.
As part of their reduced schedule of work for the summer, Council members next meet on Tuesday, September 4, 2018
