With City Manager Robert Long absent, the bulk of the information flow from staff came from the City's Financial Officer Corinne Bomben and the City Administrator Rory Mandryk,
Prior to the Monday night public session, Council continued on with the common theme of the last year that of the "closed session" of Council. With Council sitting in a closed session, earlier in the evening.
The timeline of the Regular public council the proceedings can be found in red below, tied in with the City Council video and audio feeds archived below.
Further information such as minutes and permanent placement in the audio and video archives can be found below as they are posted to the city Website.
In Attendance January 20, 2014
Mayor Jack Mussallem-- Present
Councillor Anna Ashley-- Present
Councillor Judy Carlick-Pearson-- Present
Councillor Barry Cunningham-- Present
Councillor Gina Garon-- Present
Councillor Nelson Kinney-- Present
Councillor Joy Thorkelson-- Absent
Video Archive for January 20, 2014
Monday was a Committee of the Whole night and with that, the opportunity for the public to ask questions of Council on items of concern. However, on this evening, no one from the public came forward with questions or concerns for Council.
From there, the Mayor moved on to the Regular Council agenda of the night.
( 0:00--3:00) The Mayor opened the Monday session with the usual adoption of past minutes and agenda items.
Reports and Recommendations
(4:30:30-- 5:00:00 ) Report from the Corporate Administrator on appointments to the Regional Hospital Board and Regional District -- Mr. Mandryk provided some background of his report and the recommendations that came from it.
Council adopted the Report and recommendations
( 5:00:00--6:00:00 ) Report from the Corporate Administrator regarding the North Central Government Resolutions and Convention -- Mr. Mandryk outlined background on the upcoming session planned in Fort St. John for May and reminded Council members if they wished to submit any resolutions for it, to bring them forward quickly.
Council adopted the Report and Recommendations
Councillor Ashley asked a question on what Council may wish to bring forward as a resolution regarding tax matters and BC Ferries issues
(6:00:30--8:00:30 ) Report from the Deputy Corporate Administrator on Lease arrangements with the Prince Rupert City and Regional Archives-- Ms. Bomben outlined the details of the lease between the City and the Archives
The Report and motion was adopted by Council.
By-Laws
Council then moved on to four By-Laws for consideration on the evening.
(8:00:--9:30) Cemetery Fees and Charges Amendment Bylaw 3338-2014 -- The Mayor outlined the nature of the By-Law.
The By-law was adopted
Councillor Ashley provided an overview as to the requirements for the increases to the cost.
( 9:30-- 11:00:) Water Regulation and Rates Byalw 3339-2014-- The Mayor provided the background on the second bylaw consideration
The motion was adopted
Councillor Garon provided her overview on why the need for increases at this time.
(11:00-12:00) Sewer Regulation and Rates Bylaw 3340-2014-- The Mayor reviewed the background on this particular Bylaw provision
The motion was adopted
( 12:00--25:00 ) Solid Waste Amendment Bylaw 3341-2014 -- The Mayor reviewed the particulars on this particular bylaw.
The motion was adopted
Councillor Garon expressed her concerns over this bylaw and recounted her concerns over the amount of items that are being taken to the landfill site and suggested that council requires a new bylaw to reduce the amount of items going into landfill that should be going to recycling.
Councillor Kinney echoed many of Councillor Garon's thoughts on the topic.
The Mayor reviewed the timeline for the 24 hour a day recycling option at the Recyling centre and at that time suggested Council consider a new bylaw regarding dumping at the landfill site.
Councillor Ashley joined in on the conversation finding agreement with many of the previous points and suggested an update on policies for the landfill site and that Council provide staff with a heads up to prepare planning properly.
Councillor Cunningham outlined some of his observations on recycling and the hours of operation that are currently in place at the Kaien Road facility. The Mayor provided some background for Councillor Cunningham on the history of the recycling centre and the hours that they are in operation.
Council voted to approve the Bylaw, with Councillor Garon opposed to the motion.
Councillor Carlick-Pearson expressed concerns over bins for recycling for the public to purchase, she provided a motion to have staff investigate the prospect of selling bins to the public at the Recycling Centre.
Councillor Cunningham asked what the nature of the bins would be, for residents to take to the recycling centre or did she have a home pick up service in mind.
Councillor Ashley provide her own motion on the theme, asking that staff review the landfill policy and consult with the Solid Waste Management Committee to ensure that they collaborate with them to revise the policy within 60 days of the Recycling Depot Station becoming open 24 hours.
Councillor Garon brought up her concerns over the need for education for the public of what the Recycling Centre accepts, which could reduce the amount of volume that goes into the landfill site. She also called for more and larger bins at the landfill site to assist in recycling.
Councillor Ashley advised that the Prince Rupert members were outvoted at Regional District in the bid to expand the hours of operation at the Recycling Centre.
With the motions passed, the Mayor asked that Ms. Bomben make note of Council's wishes on the theme.
(25:00--33:30) Bylaw to create a Recreation Commission Bylaw 3342 -- A recommendation to introduce the bylaw and give first, second and third reading to it. The Mayor called on Mr. Mandryk to outline the background to the proposed bylaw. He outlined the need for a mechanism to look after the Recreation facilities in the community and would allow for regular content to be developed and discussed with council. It would call for three members of council and four members of the public.
Councillor Ashley asked to put an amendment to it, she asked for six members of the public be installed on the commission as opposed to the requested four. Believing that they would be accessing a larger group of expertise for recreational issues.
The Mayor advised that as he believes it, the procedure is to pass the Bylaw first and then put in place the amendment, there was some discussion on that procedure and in which direction Council wished to proceed with.
Councillor Ashley made her motion a second time with the amendment in place, the motion with the amendment was then successfully passed.
Council then passed the new Bylaw proposal.
Councillor Ashley then reviewed some of her thoughts on the benefits that the bylaw may bring to the city in the way of community engagement on recreation topics and issues.
Councillor Carlick-Pearson echoed many of Councillor Ashley's thoughts on the topic.
(33:30--35:00) City Managers Report-- Ms. Bomben provided the report on behalf of the City Manager who was absent on the night. She touched on a number of items such as the Duncan Rd project and Hays Creek Sewer Project has received an 1 year extension . The city continues to discuss the recycling depot project with regional district and the Engineering department has worked with the Rotary Club on signage of the Park Avenue Pullout.
A new bench has been placed at the bus stop at the Hospital working with Northern Health, phase two of the water strategic plan continues and issues related to completing an RFP for the water supply and access road to the damn project.
The City is preparing an RFP for upcoming pool renovations and development services is preparing the final notice for business licences for 2014. The Finance Department is working on Budgeting issues, with a timeline introduction planned for February 25th.
Corporate Administration is working on outdated contracts, with an RFP planned for Airport transportation.
Public Works is 30 percent complete on the 17th Street project, with wall construction blocks purchased for work around town.
Reports, Questions and Inquiries
( 35:00--43:00 ) Councillor Ashley asked if the City had received any reply from CN regarding the issues that Council has over waterfront issues. She was advised that CN plans to attend Council in March
She also raised more issues of concern from the public regarding the Pinnacle Pellet. Among the concerns, there is no local number or office for residents to contact with complaints about issues surrounding the Pellet Plant Terminal. Other complaints included, reports of occasional chemical smells in the area, with Councillor Ashley asking about monitoring of the site area.
More concerns over noise issues from the terminal operation.
She suggested that the concerns are beyond the Water Street area and involve residents of Graham and Atlin as well.
The Mayor outlined how he has asked staff to forward to Pinnacle emails that Council has received on issues of the plant.
Councillor Kinney recounted some of the discussions regarding the plant in its planning phase.
Councillor Cunningham suggested that Pinnacle advertise their phone number for complaints if one exists, he then outlined some of the discussions he recently had with officials at the Port Authority.
Advising that he believes they wish to sit down with Council and begin a dialogue on the topic of Pinnacle Pellet and other waterfront issues.
With that Council provided a motion to have staff set up a meeting between Council and the Port.
Councillor Ashley echoed many of the thoughts of Councillor Cunningham, stating that she believed she had recommended that at the last council session.
The Mayor provided a short list of topics for staff to set up discussions with the Port.
(43:00--50:00 )Councillor Carlick-Pearson outlined concerns that the public have relayed to her regarding Highway maintenance along Highway 16 to points east. She put forward a motion to have Staff arrange a meeting with Highway maintenance companies regarding those concerns.
Councillor Ashley offered her agreement to that topic, but advised that Council had not voted on the Port Authority meeting. With that business taken care of, Council voted to approve the resolution on a meeting with Highway maintenance officials and Transportation officials.
For the record, Councillor Ashley outlined some of her personal observations on the nature of road maintenance over the last few months, expressing her concern over the lack of attention to the roads by maintenance providers in the Terrace region. She also reviewed that the Kasiks highway camera has not been operation for a number of weeks now and that is something that the Ministry of Transportation should address.
Added to the motion was the instruction to staff to seek out feedback from trucking companies in the region as to their perceptions of road conditions in the region.
(50:00--56:00) Councillor Carlick-Pearson added another concern to the discussion list, that of truck traffic in the downtown core of the city and potential dangers to pedestrians particularly on the 2nd Avenue West stretch towards the container port.
Councillor Cunningham provided his own observations on the topic about dangerous traffic practices by truck drivers in the city. He called for better traffic enforcement from the RCMP to try and curtail some of the practices on the road.
Councillor Carlick-Pearson followed up that by calling on pedestrians to be more aware of traffic situations in the city and be cautious when crossing the streets.
Councillor Garon offered up her thoughts on the topic and some of the improper practices she's seen from pedestrians in the city.
Councillor Cunningham also provided his thoughts on the nature of pedestrians and their inattention to the flow of traffic.
Councillor Ashley also called attention to the new traffic signal that has been installed at 9th Avenue and McBride.
(56:00--1:00:00) Councillor Garon also suggested that a request be made for a traffic signal to be placed on McBride at Safeway (1st Street). Councillor Ashley also suggested that Council ask that reflective paint and markers be used at cross walk locations in the city.
Councillor Cunningham suggested that improving lighting in the crosswalk areas would probably be better than reflective paint and markers. He also believes that pedestrians need to dress more appropriately for the dark conditions that Prince Rupert has.
The amendment for reflective paint was not accepted, with Council instead passing the motion on the request for a traffic light at 2nd Avenue and 1st Street.
The motion then passed
(1:00:00- ) Councillor Cunningham had a question regarding the Seniors Centre Parking Lot and the difficulty of parking in the area, owing to potholes. The Mayor advised that the potholes were to be filled and a redesign of the parking lot was planned for 2014.
( 1:00:00--1:00:02) The Mayor's Report
The Mayor participated in a 2014 Strategic Planning workshop with other council members and senior staff.
The Prince Rupert Airport has announced an increase in passengers of 3.79 percent for 2013.
The Mayor participated in a meeting with representatives of Burnco Rock Limited Products, who have purchased property and plan to establish a business to provide rock and aggregate, concrete and asphalt services to the community.
Attended the new office opening of Smith Harbour Towage, they provide ship docking services to Prince Rupert harbour.
And with that review, the Monday session of council came to an end.
You can access the City Council Review page for January 20th here, where a number of items regarding the council session, including media coverage of it can be found.
As always, consult with the official minutes from the City, when posted to the website for further review.
Minutes Regular Council Session from January 20th, 2014
Minutes from Committee of the Whole Session from January 20, 2014
( 35:00--43:00 ) Councillor Ashley asked if the City had received any reply from CN regarding the issues that Council has over waterfront issues. She was advised that CN plans to attend Council in March
She also raised more issues of concern from the public regarding the Pinnacle Pellet. Among the concerns, there is no local number or office for residents to contact with complaints about issues surrounding the Pellet Plant Terminal. Other complaints included, reports of occasional chemical smells in the area, with Councillor Ashley asking about monitoring of the site area.
More concerns over noise issues from the terminal operation.
She suggested that the concerns are beyond the Water Street area and involve residents of Graham and Atlin as well.
The Mayor outlined how he has asked staff to forward to Pinnacle emails that Council has received on issues of the plant.
Councillor Kinney recounted some of the discussions regarding the plant in its planning phase.
Councillor Cunningham suggested that Pinnacle advertise their phone number for complaints if one exists, he then outlined some of the discussions he recently had with officials at the Port Authority.
Advising that he believes they wish to sit down with Council and begin a dialogue on the topic of Pinnacle Pellet and other waterfront issues.
With that Council provided a motion to have staff set up a meeting between Council and the Port.
Councillor Ashley echoed many of the thoughts of Councillor Cunningham, stating that she believed she had recommended that at the last council session.
The Mayor provided a short list of topics for staff to set up discussions with the Port.
(43:00--50:00 )Councillor Carlick-Pearson outlined concerns that the public have relayed to her regarding Highway maintenance along Highway 16 to points east. She put forward a motion to have Staff arrange a meeting with Highway maintenance companies regarding those concerns.
Councillor Ashley offered her agreement to that topic, but advised that Council had not voted on the Port Authority meeting. With that business taken care of, Council voted to approve the resolution on a meeting with Highway maintenance officials and Transportation officials.
For the record, Councillor Ashley outlined some of her personal observations on the nature of road maintenance over the last few months, expressing her concern over the lack of attention to the roads by maintenance providers in the Terrace region. She also reviewed that the Kasiks highway camera has not been operation for a number of weeks now and that is something that the Ministry of Transportation should address.
Added to the motion was the instruction to staff to seek out feedback from trucking companies in the region as to their perceptions of road conditions in the region.
(50:00--56:00) Councillor Carlick-Pearson added another concern to the discussion list, that of truck traffic in the downtown core of the city and potential dangers to pedestrians particularly on the 2nd Avenue West stretch towards the container port.
Councillor Cunningham provided his own observations on the topic about dangerous traffic practices by truck drivers in the city. He called for better traffic enforcement from the RCMP to try and curtail some of the practices on the road.
Councillor Carlick-Pearson followed up that by calling on pedestrians to be more aware of traffic situations in the city and be cautious when crossing the streets.
Councillor Garon offered up her thoughts on the topic and some of the improper practices she's seen from pedestrians in the city.
Councillor Cunningham also provided his thoughts on the nature of pedestrians and their inattention to the flow of traffic.
Councillor Ashley also called attention to the new traffic signal that has been installed at 9th Avenue and McBride.
(56:00--1:00:00) Councillor Garon also suggested that a request be made for a traffic signal to be placed on McBride at Safeway (1st Street). Councillor Ashley also suggested that Council ask that reflective paint and markers be used at cross walk locations in the city.
Councillor Cunningham suggested that improving lighting in the crosswalk areas would probably be better than reflective paint and markers. He also believes that pedestrians need to dress more appropriately for the dark conditions that Prince Rupert has.
The amendment for reflective paint was not accepted, with Council instead passing the motion on the request for a traffic light at 2nd Avenue and 1st Street.
The motion then passed
(1:00:00- ) Councillor Cunningham had a question regarding the Seniors Centre Parking Lot and the difficulty of parking in the area, owing to potholes. The Mayor advised that the potholes were to be filled and a redesign of the parking lot was planned for 2014.
( 1:00:00--1:00:02) The Mayor's Report
The Mayor participated in a 2014 Strategic Planning workshop with other council members and senior staff.
The Prince Rupert Airport has announced an increase in passengers of 3.79 percent for 2013.
The Mayor participated in a meeting with representatives of Burnco Rock Limited Products, who have purchased property and plan to establish a business to provide rock and aggregate, concrete and asphalt services to the community.
Attended the new office opening of Smith Harbour Towage, they provide ship docking services to Prince Rupert harbour.
And with that review, the Monday session of council came to an end.
You can access the City Council Review page for January 20th here, where a number of items regarding the council session, including media coverage of it can be found.
As always, consult with the official minutes from the City, when posted to the website for further review.
Minutes Regular Council Session from January 20th, 2014
Minutes from Committee of the Whole Session from January 20, 2014
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