Friday, July 21, 2023

Victoria Viewpoints: Thursday-Friday, July 20-21, 2023




Our compilation of some of the stories of note from the day, reviewing the political developments from the Provincial scene for  Thursday-Friday, July 20-21, 2023 

British Columbia Port Workers Strike



BC Wildfires






Globe and Mail






CBC




Vancouver Sun 




Victoria Times-Colonist 




Victoria News


Global





The Tyee                                       
CHEK TV

Island reached level 5 drought earlier than usual 

Miscellaneous




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Ottawa Observations: Thursday-Friday, July 20-21, 2023



Our compilation of some of the stories of note from the day, reviewing the political developments from the Federal scene for  Thursday-Friday,  July 20-21, 2023


British Columbia Port Workers Strike




Canadian Wildfires 








CBC



Toronto/Vancouver Star







Global          




Miscellaneous            



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City Council Preview for Monday, July 24, 2023 session


We will be taking a break from the blog for a few weeks (more on that to come) but before we hit the highway, a Preview of Monday's City Council Session. the only public meeting for Council for the month of July.

And while we're providing for the heads up on what they plan to work with on Monday, our review of the Council Session and any decisions that will come out of it,  will have to wait until we return in August.

But for those who like to know what their elected city officials are up to these days down on the 400 Block of Third West, here's their plans for Monday.

The night offers much of interest, with a pari of  presentations set for the Committee of the Whole; the first a look at plans for municipal website renewal followed by notes related to the City's Transportation plan

In the regular session there is much ahead as well.

Included are a number of Reports for Council, from a look at Civic Recognition planning to Variance reports from the CFO and a Fire/Rescue update from the Fire Chief. Council will also receive a report related to infrastructure replacement planning.

A number of correspondences make for the Consent Agenda part of the evening, included are letters from the Mayor of Surrey and the Province related to the recent Policing decision for that community.

Council will also review a correspondence from Regional District seeking support towards seeking funding from the Port's Community Investment Fund for recycling bins for Port Edward.

Some welcome progress will also be noted towards nuisance properties in the city, with two Remedial Action Orders up for approval by Council.  

Those for a property at 741 Third West and another at 1122 and 1133 Second Avenue West.

The Regular Session 

Monday's  Regular Council session starts at 7 PM and can be viewed by way of the Live Feed from the City Website.

The session is normally posted to the City's YouTube archive within 24 hours of the session concluding.

You can review the Agenda for the July 24th session here.  

The COW Agenda can be reviewed here.  

A copy of the Transportation Plan from Urban Systems is included in the COW Agenda link above.

The outline of Council's work ahead for the evening can be reviewed below

COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE SESSION OF COUNCIL

 Call to Order

Adoption of the Agenda --  The Mayor will Review  Committee of the Whole Agenda of the July 24th session and seek approval of Council  towards it. 

Petitions and Delegations -- 

Council will receive a Presentation from Veronika Stewart, Manager of Communications,  Engagement and Social Development  -- Ms. Stewart will  speak towards plans for the Municipal website renewal

Council will also receive a report on the City of Prince Rupert Transportation Plan

Question and Inquiries from members of Council 

Adjournment to Regular Council Session

*******************************************************************************

REGULAR SESSION OF CITY COUNCIL

Introduction of Late Items

Approval of Agenda  -- The Mayor will review the Agenda of the July 24th session and seek approval of Council  towards it. 

Public Comments regarding Agenda items -- This period offers a chance for those in attendance to speak to any items to be addressed on the Agenda for the evening. 

Consent Agenda

Report  from Corporate Administrator: 2023 Civic Recognition awards   (see page 10  of Agenda)

Council Resolution Status Update to June 2023 (see pages 11-12  of Agenda)

Report  from the Manager of Communications, Engagement and Social Development: Municipal website renewal  (see pages 13 - 15 of Agenda)

Monthly Fire/Rescue report   (see pages 16 - 17 of Agenda)

Proclamation: National Drowning Prevention Week (see page 18  of Agenda)

Report  from the Director of Operations and Intergovernmental Relations: Infrastructure Replacement Strategy/Disaster Mitigation and Adaptation Fund (DMAF)  (see pages 19 - 20 of Agenda)

Report  from Chief Financial Office: May 2023 Financial Variance Report  (see pages 21 - 25 of Agenda)

Correspondences

North Coast Regional District Board Highlights   (see page 26 of Agenda)

Email from Northern Health : Re BC Speak Survey   (see page 27 -29 of Agenda)

Letter from the Office of the Mayor from the City of Surrey: Re RCMP   (see page 30 -32 of Agenda)

Letter from the Office of the Province of British Columbia: Re RCMP   (see pages  32 -  34 of Agenda)

Thank you card from the Lester Centre (Chris Armstrong): Re Mamma Mia (see pages 35-36 of Agenda)

Ministry of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness Community News  (see pages of 37 - 44 Agenda)

Invitation to Review and Comment on the NCRD Draft 2 Solid Waste Management Plan and Attend a Council  (see pages of 45 - 46 Agenda)

Resolution submitted to the 2023 UBCM Convention from the City of Prince George  (see page 47 of Agenda)

Letter of Support from the North Coast Regional District : Re Prince Rupert Port Authority's Community Investment Fund for public recycling bins in Port Edward.   (see page 48 of Agenda)

Recommendation

Council will be asked that all items of the Consent Agreementt be accepted and filed 

Staff Reports

Report from the Director of Development Services: Prince Rupert Transportation Plan   -- Council will receive a  report  recommending approval of the plan and to provide direction to Staff (see pages 49 - 235  of Agenda)

Report from the Corporate Administrator: Remedial Action Order for 741 - 3rd Avenue West  -- Council will receive a  report  recommending that Council direct staff to  proceed with a Remedial Action Order for the building at 741-3rd West, with the cost towards its removal be placed on the property taxes for the property.  Council will be asked to also approve the removal of the bus and vehicle on that property, with the cost of removal added to the taxes on the property  (see pages 236 - 237 -  of Agenda)

Report from the Corporate Administrator: Remedial Action Order for 1112 & 1133 Second Avenue West    -- Council will receive a  report  recommending that Council direct staff to  proceed with a Remedial Action Order for building removal located at 1122 & 1133 2nd Avenue West. The costs of removal placed on the property taxes for the said property; As well it will be recommended that Council direct staff to provide notice to the property owner in accordance with Section 77 of the Community Charter.   (see pages 238 - 239 of Agenda)

Business Arising

Council Round Table and Public Question Period -- Council members will have opportunity to raise items of interest or concern for consideration.

Adjournment -- The Mayor will bring the session to a close. 

The live broadcast of the City Council Session can be found here, a video archive of the past sessions of Council is available from the City's YouTube archive.

Further notes related to the July 24th session can be reviewed from our Council Archive page.  

Our archive of all of the City Council sessions for 2023 is available here.

Cross posted from the North Coast Review.

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2024 brings Refit time for Digby Island Ferry, as City of Prince Rupert puts out call for proposals


The city's marine transportation link between the Downtown core and the Digby Island Airport is up for a refit, with the City seeking out proposals for the work through the BC Bid program.

The call for proposals was posted to the provincial site on Wednesday, seeking submissions for Structural and Mechanical Repairs and Regular Maintenance for the Digby Island Ferry.

Towards that work the City has listed seven key elements for the upcoming refit, with the work to take place in May of 2024.


The 214 tonne vessel was built at the Vancouver Shipyard and commissioned for service in January of 1970. The vessel has had many refits during its 53 years of daily service to and from Digby Island.

The City's Corporate Administrator, Rosa Miller is the contact person for enquiries related to the Call for Proposals. 

The Closing Date for the Call for proposals is August 31st at 2PM

The Scope of Services section of the Proposals request includes aa range of additional work to be done on the vessel as part of the refit program.

You can explore the details to the work ahead from the BC Bid website.

A review of some of the city's other Calls for Bids and Proposals can be reviewed here.
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Northern Health outlines opportunities with Health Care Assistant training program

Northern Health is looking to fill some of the staffing gaps across the northwest with a training program hosted by Coast Mountain College, with registration now underway for the fall session.

The Health Care Assistant Program is the initiative, and as Northern Health explains it. offers students the opportunity to receive paid education and on the job training towards becoming a registered Health Care assistant.

Some background on what the program is about and where it can take you in a health care career is outlined below:


The full overview of the initiative is available here.

Learn more about the program and how to register by contacting Northern Health at hcap@northernhealth.ca

Coast Mountain College has further information available towards the program, which you can review here.

The next intake for the program is now underway, the program set to start on September 18 2023 and runs until May 31, 2024 ,it is being offered at the Terrace, Smithers and Prince Rupert Campus locations.

More notes on Health Care across the Northwest can be reviewed here.

A look at Coast Mountain College themes is available from our archive here.

Cross posted from the North Coast Review. 

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Northwest survey seeks feedback on childcare needs across region

The topic of Child Care and how to improve on the options for Prince Rupert and area residents is once again of some note, that with a new survey currently underway to learn more about the challenges and what parents and guardians are looking for when it comes to they child care needs.

The heads up for the current survey was offered up by the Prince Rupert and District Chamber of Commerce through a recent social media shout out. 

The Chamber's message one that noted of the success of local programs at Conrad Elementary and Pineridge, as well as to how participation in the survey will help to provide guidance on how to address current child care shortages.

The short survey, which only features eighteen questions, seeks out the status of parents current day care plans and what they would like to see provided in the community in the future, as well as to make note of a potential community round table in the future to discuss those themes.

You can take the survey here.

The City of Prince Rupert recently moved forward to relax zoning requirements when it comes to the development of Child Care facilities 

A  Child Care Review presentation from 2020 highlighted some of the challenges facing families in Prince Rupert if finding child care.

More notes related to education can be reviewed here, community themes can be explored from our archive page here.

Cross posted from the North Coast Review. 

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ILWU Caucus to review latest tentative deal, consider taking it to membership

DP World Container Terminal at Fairview 
(image from PRPA)

** See further updates at bottom of page**

The mercurial events of the BC Port Strike may soon finally find some closure,. 

That coming out of the latest development that of review of a tentative deal, the second attempt for such, for the International Longhshore and Warehouse Umiom Caucus, which will do that today in what has been described as an emergency contact caucus.

Depending on that review, the contract proposal could be forwarded to the membership over the weekend.

The word of the plan of action came from a statement from a local in the Vancouver area on Thursday.


The latest twist to what has become a national transportation crisis on the waterfront came after the ILWU rescinded its second 72 hour strike notice, the announcement of the tentative deal review came following that move.

Neither the ILWU national office, or the British Columbian Marine Employers Association have issued a comment related to the current state of negotiations.

The Federal Government as well has not released any statements related to the return of the agreement for the review of the ILWU caucus. Earlier this week, the Prime Minister had called a session of the Incident Response Group, which is used only towards concerning situations.

As of yet, the Prime Minister has not shared what decisions, if any, that body had come up with towards the labour dispute.

There have also been no details to come out yet towards what, if any changes were made towards version 2 from the original agreement which was reached one week ago.

Port workers returned to their jobs following a ruling from the Canada Industrial Relations Board earlier this week that declared their walkout an illegal one.

Update: 1 PM Friday -- ILWU Caucus prepares to send contract for review of membership on Monday morning. ILWU advisory followed by a short statement from the BCMEA




Some of the past notes along the road to the latest announcement can be explored from our archive page.

Cross posted from the North Coast Review.




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Thursday, July 20, 2023

City of Prince Rupert issues BOIL WATER notice



The City of Prince Rupert, acting under the guidance of Northern Health has issued what they are describing as a Short Term BOIL WATER Notice,  the city noting that it is related to the impact of construction  on the city's water supply main entering the reservoir.

The statement from the city offers  a timeline of 72  hours  towards the length of the Boil Water Notice adding that  the city will notify residents as soon as it is lifted. 


The work in the Crestview area resumed last week after the city received the necceassry parts towards their work in that area of the city.

Follow the City's Social Media Stream for further updates on the Boil Order Notice.

More notes related to the City's infrastructure can be explored here.

Cross posted from the North Coast Review.

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PREDC's Paul Venditelli's recent journey to Texas hopes to round up some interest in Watson Island Hydrogen plans

Prince Rupert EDO official Paul Venditelli (right) at a recent Convention
towards Hydrogen energy development  in Houston Texas 
(image from PREDC FB)

The City's Economic Development Officer Paul Venditelli has updated Prince Rupert residents on his recent trip to Texas, the PREDC Official was in Houston in late June for The Hydrogen Technology Conference and Expo in the energy capital of America.

The City's economic development officer promoting the North Coast for future green energy development as part of Canadian Trade delegation.

Mr. Venditelli offered up a look at his focus for the trip as part of his social media post on the PREDC page, the accounts also include some photos of the Texas visit.

Our focus and the focus of the conference was around low carbon hydrogen production, as well as the transportation and infrastructure needed to service this sector - with the intent to commercialize hydrogen as a mainstream provider of clean, renewable energy. In Houston, we had a packed schedule raising awareness of the amazing work and potential on the North Coast and Northern BC in support of a low carbon fuels space. 

A new hydrogen project, especially one on Watson Island, will not only bring jobs to the community, but also lease and tax revenues that can be reinvested in our community. That’s a win-win for Prince Rupert, and we're excited to continue to explore and promote future opportunities for Prince Rupert's green energy sector! -- PREDC Officer Paul Venditelli on the focus for the trip to Houston in June

Will Hydrogen join Liquid Propane as an export from Watson Island?
The City of Prince Rupert continues to court hydrogen investors towards
development of infrastructure on the industrial site
(Image from PREDC FB)

The work in Houston is not the first mention of plans for Hydrogen related development for the city's Watson Island site, last fall outgoing Mayor Lee Brain shared some enthusiasm for an agreement with a company called Patterson Energy towards development of what was described as a "World Class Green Hydrogen Facility".

That announcement noted of the memorandum of agreement for the City of Prince Rupert, Lax Kw'alaams, Metlakatla and the city's Prince Rupert Legacy Inc. mechanism which all signed on to the memorandum with Pattern Energy towards the development of local renewable energy.

Few details were released at the time towards a timeline for construction, what the facility would look like or the coast towards development of it.

Since that information release of November 4th, 2022 , there have not been any further updates on the progress towards the initiative and the topic has not been one for discussion at City Council sessions.



Watson Island is not the only location on the North Coast that may see Hydrogen energy development, Trigon Pacific Terminals and Alta Gas also have plans for development of the resource, that through their Berth 2 Beyond Carbon project.

That project already has seen investment from the Federal Government towards development, the Berth 2 Beyond Carbon project is part of Trigon's Diversification strategy.

There have not been many updates or announcements of late when it comes to new industry for the city's newest industrial site, for some past notes on Watson Island see our archive page here.

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