Buying Local a focus for Northern Savings program

Northern Savings, the Prince Rupert based Credit Union and financial services company serving the Northwest and Haida Gwaii is seeking the goods and creations of Northwest residents as part of their Local Purchasing initiative.

The focus for the project is to purchase locally produced items for the purpose of giving away as corporate gifts. 

Northern Savings makes use of the goods received as part of their ongoing community initiatives with local charitable groups, as well as through giveaways at trade shows, conferences and other community events.

They also make use of the local purchases internally for awards to members and staff members through the year.

In addition to the purchase of goods that participants will gain, the popular program offers the chance for exposure for participants who can supply their locally made goods for use by Northern Savings, products that are to be considered must have a value of 5 to 50 dollars, be non perishable and easily transportable.

Those selected for the program should be able to produce multiple quantities of their goods and they must be produced or created locally.

Preference for the program will be given to Northern Savings' members. To participate, you must be a resident of Haida Gwaii, the North Coast or the Regional District of Kitimat-Stikine

You can find out more about the program and read the full list of rules and access the application form here.

The deadline for participation in this years intake of applicants is September 30th.

The successful applicants will hear from Northern Savings later this fall.

More notes related to the Commercial sector in the Northwest can be found on our archive page here.

Chamber of Commerce joins chorus of business owners on proposed Fed tax changes

From Prince Rupert and District
Chamber's Facebook page

As Finance Minister Bill Morneau contemplates how best to introduce some proposed tax changes when it comes to Canadian corporations, business owners across the country are working together to push back on some of elements of concern to them when it comes to the Liberal Government plans.

The alarm bells started going off for Canadian business leaders in mid July when the Finance Minister delivered this statement on how to improve the Canadian Tax system, the key take away from his presentation these observations:

"When you have an economy that works for the middle class, you have a country that works for everyone. That's the spirit in which we are asking Canadians for input into how to close loopholes and address tax planning strategies that give unfair tax advantages. Many of the richest Canadians are unfairly exploiting the tax rules designed to help businesses thrive. 

We know that businesses, including small businesses, help grow the Canadian economy. These tax advantages are in place to help these businesses reinvest and grow, find new customers, buy new equipment and hire more people. We want to make sure those rules are used to do just that, and not to give unfair tax advantages to certain – often high-income – individuals."

Finance Minister Bill Morneau
is not exactly in the good books
with Canada's business leaders
this summer
(House of Commons photo)

However, what business leaders heard, wasn't so much a call for tax fairness, as perhaps a call for a tax grab by the Federal government.

Among some of the concerns of note for business owners are how the government plans to scrutinize compensation and apply a higher tax rate on any income considered unreasonable.

Also on their checklist, the federal government's planned approach towards profit investment is raising an alarm for business owners, as are new rules when it comes to capital gains exemptions business owners pass their business on to their children.

In response to the government's plans, 35 business groups from across the country have come together through the Canadian Chamber of Commerce to form the Coalition for Small Business Tax Fairness.

As part of their campaign yesterday they delivered this letter to the Finance Minister, offering up two recommendations for the Federal Government.

The first asking that the Finance Minister take his current proposal off the table, the second seeking meaningful consultation with the business community to address the shortcomings in tax policy without unfairly targeting independent business.

Such has been the backlash to the proposed legislation, that it will be the focus at an upcoming cabinet retreat planned for next week in Kelowna.

A snapshot of some of that backlash can be reviewed below:

Unless they can win over ordinary citizens, Ottawa's proposed tax changes will sting
Draft tax changes put families, partners of deceased business owners in legal limbo: experts
Bill Morneau scrambles to calm nervous Liberal MPs as backlash to his tax proposals intensifies
As 50% of small business fail, Liberals plan to tax them more
Small business owners betrayed by Trudeau
Anger over controversial Liberal tax proposals to be focus of caucus retreat
Inside Ottawa's crackdown on small business tax loopholes
How Bill Morneau found himself at war with small business
Concerns mount over Morneau's proposed tax changes affecting small business
Morneau's tax loophole speech masks reality
Morneau's tax changes provoke a firestorm
Why Morneau wants to tighten rules on private companies
Morneau expects to be hit personally by closing tax loopholes
Morneau's tax changes won't just hurt the 'rich', they will hurt growth
Moneybags Morneau reprimands rich people for having brains

Locally the Prince Rupert and District Chamber of Commerce sent out an alert to its membership earlier this week, making note of the Federal plans and outlining how they hope to see local business owners in the region address their concerns to the Federal Government, as well as local NDP MP Nathan Cullen.

The Chamber's letter writing campaign is designed to have local comments received by the politicians in Ottawa before they head back to work following the Labour Day holiday.

You can learn more about the Canadian Chamber of Commerce initiative here.

Those with an interest in the full text of the proposed regulation can sit down with their accountants, or financial advisers and go over the finer points here

Further background on the brewing controversy in Ottawa can be reviewed over at our political portal D'Arcy McGee, where we keep an eye on the nation's capital with our Ottawa Observations archive.

For more items related to the commercial sector on the North Coast see our archive page here.

New Look website greets new school year at SD52

With the final testing complete and content loaded up for the year ahead, School District 52 has launched its updated website, providing a fresh look to the delivery of information for students, parents, teachers and administrators of the city's public school system.

We first made note of the District's plans for a makeover of their website back in March, as the information department of SD52 started to test out their concepts and designs.

The new online portal was launched earlier this month, just as the 2017-18 school year is about to get underway.  The new portal for education offers a more streamlined visual presentation that the previous one and while much of the information is familiar from the old website, the access to it is less confusing and cluttered than in the past, with clearly defined categories for those seeking out more details on the School District.

From the Home Page you can scroll across six initial links that will then offer up a range of material for your review/

Those six categories include About, Parents, Programs, Schools, Staff and Students

The About category provides an overview on School District functions, Board correspondences and  documentation.

The Parents category lists catchment areas, cross boundary applications, Links and Resources and School supply lists.

In Programs, parents can get more background on Aboriginal Learning initiatives, as well as more information related to Early Learning, English Language Development, French Immersion and the District's Learning Services.

The Schools page, provides links to all of the Districts schools, as well as an explanation of the policies related to school facility rentals and details on School Plans for all facilities in the District.

The Staff page on the website delivers a range of information for teachers and support workers employed by SD52.

The Students Page provides a link to what is called the Digital Classroom, with access to individual pages designed for each of the District's Schools.

The digital classroom is one feature of the new
SD52 website that students will find both educational
and entertaining

Two areas for parents to book mark from the new Site are the News and Media Releases links which will provide North Coast residents with the latest updates on SD52 notes.

Among the first of the new items to be added to the flow of information from SD52 are some Back to School notes related to the District's elementary, middle and secondary schools.

An item of interest for Parents for the upcoming school year is an update related to School supplies for the year. For the 2017-18 school year parents are not required to purchase supplies for students at the elementary level this year.

Middle School students still have a supply list to be purchased, but it is a reduced list for the year ahead.

There is no change to the Secondary School supply requirements from last year.

More on the school supply notification can be found here.

You can begin your exploration of the new site and all that SD52 has to offer from the home page here.

As the new school year approaches, the BC Government has also offered up some background information related to curriculum, educational savings and student initiatives, you can review the notes from the province here.

For more items related to education in the Northwest see our archive page here.

Cannery Road Race won't make it to the finish line this year

The North Coast running scene will have to make do without one high profile race this year, as organizers of the North Pacific Cannery Road Race have announced the cancellation of the event for 2017.

In a post to the Rupert Runners website from last week, the Executive Board of the organization which oversees the local race season announced that the Cannery Road Race would not go forward this year owing to personal and medical reasons with two directors who had to step down from their duties.

The race usually marks the end of the running season in the region, offering up a family friendly event that travels along the scenic Skeena Drive roadway leading to the North Pacific Cannery Historical site.

Of the four major races that are put on each year, the Cannery Road Race, coming as it does at the end of summer has on occasion been the one race that organizers have had difficulties in finding volunteers to help with.

It has been cancelled a few times in the recent past, though not without an impressive effort from organizers to get the race to the start line. Most recently the event had returned to the schedule in 2016 after having been cancelled in 2015 owing to a lack of volunteers to put the race on.

Towards that goal, Rupert Runners hope to get the September race back on track for next year and those with an interest in running can offer up their assistance at the upcoming Annual General Meeting for the Club this December.

The next opportunity for local runners to take to the streets comes up on September 17th with the Annual Terry Fox Run around the city. That event starts at the Northern Savings Credit Union at 1 PM, organizers have a 3k, 4k or 10k route in place for the fundraising run.

You can follow updates from the local running organization through their Facebook page or website.

More background on running in the Northwest can be found on our archive page.

CN hails the Port of Prince Rupert as a success story and model for supply chain development

Much has already been said this week about the impact of the expansion to the Fairview Container Terminal, from the volume of jobs that it provides to the community, to the increase in economic growth that it has generated far beyond the dock at Prince Rupert harbour.

One area that the growing gateway to the world is providing a significant increase for is the awareness and use by shippers of the massive transportation network that CN Rail has created to service the port.

For Canadian National Railway the added capacity at Fairview Terminal means a significant increase for their business and a larger imprint for the national rail road when it comes to transporting goods to and from terminal locations from as far south as New Orleans, to locations across Canada.

CN was a major participant in Tuesday's Grand Opening of the Fairview expansion project and to stress how important the port is to the railways operations CN's President and CEO Luc Jobin called back to the history of the railway in Prince Rupert and outlined how the success created by the Port of Prince Rupert  and DP World is model for how to develop a trade corridor.

"The city of Prince Rupert was built for Canadian trade and the container terminal unlocked so much of the port's untapped potential. 

As one of the fastest growing ports in North America, the Port of Prince Rupert holds a premier place on the global trade map. 

The last decade of supply chain collaboration between the port, terminal operators, CN and other partners has become the model for how to establish and grow a trade corridor." 

Congratulations to the Port of Prince Rupert and DP World, We look forward to continuing our successful partnership as the port evolves and we facilitate the growth of our customers' import and export markets."

The full statement celebrating the opening of the Fairview expansion and ten years of container shipments out of Prince Rupert can be reviewed here.

From those early days of ten years ago, CN's operations have grown impressively at Fairview, expanding its service from a single train a week, to a schedule that today brings more than 15 trains a week into the Fairview container yard.

Such has been the growth of that traffic that Prince Rupert now accounts for 20 percent of CN's intermodal business.

CN also serves the other port facilities at the Port of Prince Rupert with trains arriving and departing from Prince Rupert Grain and Ridley Terminals.

This fall will see increased grain traffic arriving at the south end of Ridley Island at the newly opened Ray-Mont terminal facility which is preparing to receive shipments from the prairie provinces.

Looking a bit to the future, the railway will also be a key element of the now under construction Alta-Gas propane shipment facility, with CN set to deliver propane for export once that terminal complex goes into operation.

More notes related to CN operations across Northwest BC can be reviewed here.

Greyhound to seek end to Northern British Columbia routes

Greyhound files paperwork to end service along Highway
16 and other areas of Northern BC

Travel between northern British Columbia communities could become just a little bit more challenging in the future, as Greyhound Canada seeks to bring to an end its service along the Highway 16 corridor, as well as points north of Prince George.

The inter-city bus line filed the required application with provincial officials on Wednesday, setting in motion a process that will see the Transportation provider for many British Columbia communities pull out for good, should their application be approved.

Five routes in all have been targeted by Greyhound for cessation, three of them running out of the Northern BC hub of Prince George.

Four of the five routes set to be reviewed would all but eliminate bus Greyhound service in Northern British Columbia, with routes between Prince George to Dawson Creek, Prince George to Valemont and a northern route to Whitehorse all on the list

For the Northwest, the Highway 16 corridor run from Prince Rupert to Prince George is on the chopping block and included as part of the filing to the province's BC Transportation Board today.

An inter urban run between Nanaimo and Victoria puts the wrap on the Greyhound hit list for today.

Declining passenger loads  was cited for the decision to seek approval to shut down the lines, with Greyhound advising that ridership on the lines selected has dropped by 50 percent in the last seven years. With competition from publicly subsidized services also noted as a contributing factor to the request.

A statement issued by Stuart Kendrick, vice president of Greyhound Canada made note of the impact the decision will have on communities across the province.

“I know that the proposed route reductions will be a difficult change for affected passengers and communities, and we deeply regret having to issue this filing ...  The situation has come to a head, however, and despite a long-standing series of corrective measures and discussions with regulatory officials, the reality is that we can no longer operate the unsustainable routes, and we are proposing changes that will make other BC routes more viable."

The first indications that the filing was in the offing came late last week.

As we noted on the blog on Friday, word of the prospect of Greyhound abandoning the route were first relayed through a discussion page on one of the local Facebook pages.

The official notice has yet to be posted to the Passenger Transportation Board website which will make the final decision on whether to approve Greyhound's request. What steps that the board will take related to the application will be outlined once the Greyhound request has been posted.

As of this afternoon, neither Transportation Minister Claire Trevena, or North Coast MLA Jennifer Rice had issued a statement on the Greyhound application, outlining what options, if any, may be available from the province.

Today's announcement has resonated across Northern British Columbia with a number of media sources taking note of the filing and outlining how the decision may affect communities across the northern half of the province.


Some of the notes can be reviewed below:

August 30 -- Greyhound applies to cut all northern BC service
August 30 -- 'It's Highway of Tears, man': Northern BC Faces life without Greyhound
August 30 -- Greyhound plans cuts across Northern BC  (video)
August 30 -- Greyhound Canada files application to stop services in Northern BC
August 30 -- Greyhound seeks to cease passenger service along Highway 16 and North of Prince George
August 30 -- Greyhound hopes to put brakes on Northern routes
August 30 -- Greyhound files application to discontinue 5 routes in B.C.
August 30 -- Greyhound Canada applies to stop serving Northern B.C. includes 'Highway of Tears'
August 30 -- Greyhound Canada looking to discontinue four Northern B.C. routes
August 29 -- Greyhound wants out of northern B.C.


More background on transportation along the Highway 16 corridor can be found on our archive page here.

BC Liberals mark February on the calendar for leadership convention

Unless there is a major split between John Horgan and Andrew Weaver popping up over the next few months, the NDP  it seems will  have a clear run to get their governing skills to top gear ... at least until February

The opposition Liberals apparently are not in any great hurry to find a replacement for the now departed Christy Clark, with BC Liberals releasing some of the details to their process of selecting the next leader of the party.

Party President Sharon White, part of the leadership rules committee which includes Rupertite Don Silversides, outlined how it all will work with an information release on Tuesday,  highlighting the plans to make use of a preferential ballot that will allow for members of the party to select their new leader.

What in effect is now a five month job interview for the leadership will come to an end on the weekend of February 2nd to 4th, making use of online and telephone options.

Towards that process the BC Liberals are currently seeking a vendor to provide a secure voting service and auditor to oversee the process.

Former BC Attorney General Geoff Plant will be serving as the Chief Returning Officer to ensure that compliance to the rules is upheld through until the February 4th weekend.

That date may not deliver the best television ratings however for the Liberals, as Global BC's Keith Baldrey made note of through twitter yesterday, there's something else happening that weekend that may just outshine the prospect of a new leader for the BC Liberals.

Football concerns aside, President of the Party Sharon White outlined how the BC Liberals have taken elements from previous leadership contests for the 2018 process and hailed the level of review that Mr. Plant will bring to the five month journey.

“The Leadership 2018 rules are rooted in best practices from our previous leadership race and other contests across Canada, and informed by feedback from our grassroots members throughout the province ... We’re all looking forward to a vibrant contest of ideas that will engage British Columbians and select a leader ready to stand up for BC and decisively win the next election. And there is nobody better to oversee this process with the utmost fairness and transparency than Geoff Plant.”

As the campaign to replace Ms. Clark heats up, the Liberals will be holding party-sponsored debates in a number of British Columbia communities, with Vancouver, Surrey, Prince George, Nanaimo and the Thompson-Okanagan region all listed as debate hosts.

There does not appear to be any plans in motion at the moment that would see the Northwest area play host to any leadership forums.

Any interested candidates for the leadership of the party have until December 29th to file their registration papers.

That date of December 29th also marks the deadline for any interested British Columbians to join the party, or to renew their memberships in order to participate in the vote. The cost of membership for the BC Liberal party is ten dollars for four years or five dollars for those from 14 to 25 years of age.

More notes related to the Leadership campaign ahead can be found here.

With the Legislature set to return to work on September 8th, those Liberal members of the Legislature with an interest in the leadership will be making use of the additional spotlight of opposition to build up their image for party members.

While the elected MLA's on the Liberal side show off their stuff in the Leg, those outside of Victoria with an interest in the position will also begin to launch their campaigns before the end of December.

So far there have been a few Liberals to show some interest in the post, but no major declarations have been made to this point.

You can follow some of the latest notes related to the BC Liberal leadership race from our political portal D'Arcy McGee, we have created a Liberal leadership tracker page there, providing for updates on who may or may not be in the running for the job.

A wider overview of political developments in British Columbia can be found as part of our Victoria Viewpoints feature on that portal.

For items of interest related to the legislature from a Northwest perspective, see our Legislature archive here.

Update: It would seem the prospect of all that chip and dip going to waste at the Liberal's party has given cause for a revised schedule for the Leadership convention!

Now Liberals can enjoy both political football and the four down version on the same weekend!

Prince Rupert curlers to roar into season with twin events in late September

The 2017-18 Curling Season is just over the horizon for the Seal Cove club

The Jim Ciccone Civic Centre isn't the only location to turn on the refrigeration units this month, across town at the Prince Rupert Curling Club in Seal Cove the pebbled ice will soon be host to the return of the curling season, with a pair of events set for September to help build the sport in the city.

The Curling Club is hosting it's first ever Corporate Curling challenge, an opportunity for local businesses and organizations to organize some teams and put their skills to the test in a friendly competition.

Set for September 30th from Noon to 7 PM, the event has space for 16 Teams and will feature 4 end games. For those a little unfamiliar with curling a trainer will be on hand and all equipment for the day long challenge will be provided by the Curling Club.

That same evening, the Seal Cove facility will feature the return of the popular Octobeerfest, celebrating its 4th Anniversary this year.

Scheduled from 7:30 until the late evening hours it offers beginners a chance to learn some of the finer points of the sport and find out what all the buzz is about when it comes the roaring game.

As with the Corporate Challenge, all equipment is provided by the Curling Cub and a trainer will be on hand to help ease you into the art of throwing stones and sweeping the pathway to the button.

To help make the experience both sporting and social, Mucho Gusto catering and some of the products of Prince Rupert's Wheelhouse Brewery will be on hand through the day.

You can register for either event by email at princerupertcurling@gmail.com

You can find more information related to both events from the Prince Rupert Curling Club's Facebook page.

More items related to Curling in the Northwest can be found here.

Curling on the North Coast 2017-18

Our Archive of items and developments on the Curling scene in the Northwest for 2016-17


Prince Rupert Curling Club Facebook page

Archive of notes for 2017-18

March

March 9 -- Roar of the Rocks marks start of 2018 Men's Marine Bonspiel  NCR

October

October 5 -- Friday Night Curling League seeks members  NCR

September

September 30 -- Curling Club hosts season opening tournament

August 

August 30 -- Prince Rupert curlers to roar into season with twin events in late September NCR
August 17 -- Prince Rupert Curling Club plans (video)
August 16 -- Prince Rupert Curling Club looking at ambitious upgrades
August 3 -- Prince Rupert curling club raising money for renovations



Archive of past years

2016-2017
2015-2016
2014-2015
2012-2014

CityWest narrows phone cover options to ten, voting now underway

The photographers of the North Coast have reviewed some of their favourite shots over the last year and for one local photographer potential fame and a chance for exposure in every home in the region is now but a few votes away.

Your chance to have a say when it comes to the next phone book cover for Prince Rupert is now underway, with the North Coast communication company releasing its list of ten potential covers and turning the selection process over to the community.

As we noted earlier this month, CityWest issued the call for contributions and selected the ten that most caught their attention from the volume of photos that CityWest received.

The photos now available for your consideration can be viewed below:

The deadline for voting comes up at midnight on September 4th.

You can cast your vote here.

More notes related to communications across the Northwest can be found on our archive page.

Fairview expansion debut hailed as another step for Prince Rupert's global footprint

Ribbon cutting scissors for everyone! It was a long line assembled to
officially cut the ribbon to celebrate  the Expansion of the Fairview Terminal

The Port of Prince Rupert, DP World and CN threw a party on Tuesday and residents of Prince Rupert and the surrounding area turned out to share in the good news and to perhaps dream a little bit about what may yet be to come.

The tone of the majority of the speeches from Tuesday's Grand Opening of the Fairview Terminal expansion highlighted the significant step forward that Prince Rupert has made in securing its place as a Global shipping hub.

In a ceremony held just before the noon hour, dignitary after dignitary who had assembled from near and far paid tribute to the local work force and their importance in building the reputation of the facility, while also taking note as to how the word of how reliable Prince Rupert continues to spread around the world.

Tuesday's mid day celebration saw the ribbon cut and the applause ring out as the terminal project completion was officially celebrated in front of the strong delegation of visitors made up from the terminals various transportation partners.

Joining in on the days events were politicians from all levels and members of the community who flocked to the west side terminal to take advantage of the chance to explore the finished project.

DP World Group Chairman and CEO, Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem,
hailed the expansion and offered up a theme of growth for the future

DP World Group Chairman and CEO, Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, outlined how the global terminal operator views the Prince Rupert footprint in world trade and offered up an interesting comparison between the North Coast port and the global port operator's home base.

"Prince Rupert is like Dubai ... a place where dreams become reality"

He also indicated the commitment that DP World has made to both Canada and Prince Rupert.

“The expanded container terminal is an economic engine for the city of Prince Rupert and is directly responsible for hundreds of jobs with many others in the local community and beyond benefiting from its operations. We are delighted to mark this occasion today which signals our commitment to Canada and the local community. This is all part of our plans to provide capacity to meet Canada’s Pacific container terminal capacity requirements for decades to come in a cost-effective and environmentally responsible manner.”


In a video presentation that was part of the Port's information flow of Tuesday, the DP World Chair also noted the significance of the volume that Prince Rupert can now handle:

"We just expanded from 750,000 containers to 1.3, the minute you are able to handle over a million in a location and maintain that for a while, that means you have managed to convince people of the viability of the location and there's only one way to go and that's upwards"

The task of providing the overview of where Prince Rupert fits into the global trade system fell to DP World Canada General Manager Maksim Mihic, he took note of many of the advantages that Prince Rupert has to offer and how the work of the local partners has spurred production and delivered impressive growth numbers over the last two years.

“Prince Rupert’s success has been driven by its unparalleled geographical position on the trans-Pacific trade route, its high terminal productivity, and its consistently low dwell times that have sustained despite our significant growth in throughput over the past two years, .. “However, as global trade has grown, so have container vessels. In order to meet the needs of our customers and capitalize on other opportunities, we needed an upgrade. Thankfully, our strong relationships with our expansion project partners, ILWU, the Port of Prince Rupert and CN Rail have resulted in an impressive transformation that will provide reliable and competitive service for our customers.”

Prince Rupert Port President and CEO Don Krusel heralded the role
of both the provincial and federal governments as key to the success
that has been delivered by Fairview Terminal to this point 

Prince Rupert Port Authority President and Chair Don Krusel, who just over ten years ago first put forward the vision of making Prince Rupert a global player in the world of shipping hailed the strengths and partnerships found both between Federal and Provincial partners, as well as the commitment and cooperation among the communities on the North Coast that have been instrumental in the success of the terminal so far.

“We continue to build on our strengths, and ensure that as we grow as a Port we will maintain the velocity and fluidity that got us here,” said Krusel. “This project is a significant addition to Canada’s trade infrastructure, and provides tremendous value to our shippers and many partners. It has become a major contributor to the regional economy, and could not have been realized without collaboration and support of industry, labour, government, First Nations and our local communities.”

First Nations leaders in the region also touched on the growing ties between the Port, it's partners and their communities, expressing a desire to build on those relationships

"We're very pleased with how the container terminal has helped the area grow and benefited Lax Kw'alaams and its members. DP World and the Port have enjoyed a great 10 years of success - and it has also been ours, in terms of enhanced business, training and employment opportunities. We look forward to building on this relationship." - John Helin, Mayor of Lax Kw'alaams

 "The success of Fairview Terminal in the last 10 years has made a significant impact by creating direct and indirect jobs that have allowed our members to remain in the region. As Phase II opens, we congratulate all involved and look forward to continuing to work with DP World and the Prince Rupert Port Authority to create more opportunity for our members and all people on the North Coast." - Harold Leighton, Chief Councillor of Metlakatla

Federal and provincial politicians also had positive reviews for what Prince Rupert has achieved to this point, making note of the employment created across Northern British Columbia as the terminal becomes a major gateway to the world for Canada.

The local political view came from the trio of representatives at the municipal, provincial and federal level,  Prince Rupert Mayor Lee Brain shared some thoughts on Tuesday's celebration through his Facebook page.

NDP MP Nathan Cullen also offered up a short comment through his Facebook page, while MLA Jennifer Rice hailed the expansion with an update to her constituency website.

An open house followed the official opening, with a steady flow of visitors exploring the terminal facility through the afternoon, taking in the range of activities lined up for the public, as well as to explore some of the displays to get a better understanding of port operations.

Rupertites took advantage of a fleet of shuttle buses to travel to and from
Fairview Terminal on Tuesday for the Expansion project grand opening

Visitors to the Fairview site on Tuesday had an opportunity
to learn about the range of activities that make the Port work

With the expanded facility now in operation and receiving and shipping containers, Prince Rupert now vaults to the position of being able to service the second largest volume of shipments in Canada, trailing only Vancouver's container facilities at Deltaport as among the dominant ports in the nation.

DP World and the Port however already has their eyes fixed on the future and even more volume for Fairview, with plans already under consideration for the much larger expansion to the south.

That expansion, if it moves towards development, would change not only the waterfront footprint for the port, but deliver a significant investment and create a large volume of jobs for the entire region.

You can review some of the background to the Fairview Expansion from our blog item from yesterday, which outlined some of the work required to bring the terminal capacity up to the anticipated annual volume of 1.3 million containers for the years ahead.

The three largest investors in the project, DP World, Canadian National and the Prince Rupert Port Authority all offered up news releases to highlight the day's events:

DP World Prince Rupert Announces Completion of Fairview Container Terminal Phase 2 North expansion

CN: Port of Prince Rupert container terminal a model of supply chain collaboration and a true success story

Port of Prince Rupert completes Fairview Terminal expansion

The Grand Opening for the Fairview expansion was newsworthy far beyond the waterfront in Prince Rupert, with the story generating regional, provincial and national headlines.


Port of Prince Rupert unveils expanded terminal, CN's 'strategic gem'
Prince Rupert terminal expansion leads to job growth (video)
Fairview celebration (video)
Port expansion and rural economic development (audio)
Dubai's DP World completes phase 2 North expansion of Canada terminal
Phase 2 of the Fairview container Terminal opens
DP World wagers $200 million on Prince Rupert as global logistics hub
Terminal expansion at Port of Prince Rupert lauded as economic generator
Big Day for Port of Prince Rupert as container facility doubles capacity
Fairview Phase 2 North open for business
'A Hail Mary pass': How the Port of Prince Rupert became a player in the world of global trade
Prince Rupert set for Celebration


More background on Fairview Terminal can be found on our archive page here, background information and items of interest related to the Port of Prince Rupert can be reviewed here.

TRICORP expands economic development options on North Coast

A new program for First Nations residents of the North Coast who have an interest in developing a business in the region has been developed by the Tribal Resource Investment Corporation.

Better known in the community as TRICORP, the organization has introduced the launch of their Aboriginal Business Equity Program.

As part of the roll out of the program, the ABEP  initiative will consider non-repayable contributions to Aboriginal clients for eligible capital and business support.

Those contributions can be put to use in support of a start up of a new business, expansion of an existing one or the acquisition of a viable business in the community.

The program contribution has a maximum financial top end of $99,999 for individuals and incorporated businesses, with up to $250,000 available for community owned businesses, based on a viable business plan and subject to other financing being in place.

As well, Non-repayable contributions for business plans, marketing and other related businesses support services will also be considered.

To learn more of the new program, contact David Parnell at 250-624-3535 or 1-800-665-3201.

Further details related to the range of programs offered by the organization can be reviewed from the TRICORP website. 

The organization's Facebook page also offers up other notes related to their initiatives around the Northwest 

Since becoming a self-sustaining Corporation in 1996, TRICORP has been playing a role in Aboriginal Business development  on the North Coast and beyond,  expanding their foundation in the community through a number of initiatives.

The service that TRICORP serves extends from Haida Gwaii to the west to Burns Lake in the East, southwards to Hartley Bay and as far north as the BC/Yukon border. Such has been the growth of the organization in recent years, that they recently opened offices at Grassy Bay Lane in the Prince Rupert industrial park.

For more items related to the Northwest Business scene see our archive page here.

First Timer's Hockey League ready to drop the puck on 2017-18

Those with limited experience when it comes to hockey haven't been forgotten at the Jim Ciccone Civic Centre, with an opportunity to take to the ice one again this year with the Prince Rupert First Timer's Hockey League.

Organizers of the league hope to be on the ice in the second week of September, with two ice times booked for the year so far, the first on Monday's at 10:45 to 12, followed by ninety minutes on Wednesday's from 10-11:30.

As well, they are looking to see if any further ice time may be available should interest require it.

Registration has been taking place since the middle of this month with Registration Fees of 300 dollars for those taking part in the league's activities. You can sign up for the year ahead at the Prince Rupert Civic Centre.

One change from last year is that no recreation league players will be accepted as part of the First Timer's league, making it truly a league for those who are new to the game, or wish to participate at a less intensive level than some of the other Prince Rupert leagues.

Some past participants have taken to the game and after developing some skills with the First Timers have moved on to the next level of community hockey with either the Recreation league or the Old Timers league.

More background on the league and contact information for the year ahead can be found on the First Timer's Facebook page.

Notes of interest on the range of Adult Hockey options in the community can be found on our archive page here.

Regional District seeks nominations for BC Ferry Authority Board position

A focus on ferry transportation on the North Coast is on the agenda of North Coast Regional District this month, with applications now being received for those with an interest in serving on the Board of the British Columbia Ferry Authority.

The Authority which watches over issues related to the province's Ferry system is in the process of seeking nominations for positions on its Board of Directors, with the new term set to start on April 1st of 2018, the term of office ends on March 31, 2021.

Among the duties of Board representatives is the responsibility for appointing members to the Board of Directors for BC Ferries and for establishing compensation plans for the Directors and certain executives of BC Ferries.

The Authority operates independently of the provincial government.

An information package related to the nomination process has been posted to the BC Ferry Authority website, the items of note for those interested in the Board positions can be reviewed below:

Skills and Experience Profile

Appointment Area Nominations Background information

Nomination Forms

The Ferry Authority is seeking nominations of qualified candidates from the North Coast and North Vancouver Island appointment area, the provincial government will appoint a third candidate for the positions.

Some background on the work of the Authority as part of the BC Ferries overview can be found from the most recent annual report.

The North Coast Regional District, working in collaboration with the Regional Districts of Central Coast, Kitimat-Stikine and Mount Waddington, plan to provide a joint submission of 3 to 5 nominations to fill the one position on the Board.

You can review the notice from the North Coast Regional District from their website here.

Individuals who may be interested in the opportunity are asked to download the nomination form from the Ferry Authority's website and submit it to the North Coast Regional District offices at 14-342 Avenue West in Prince Rupert, directed to the attention of Daniel Fish, the NCRD Corporate officer.

The deadline to submit your nomination form is September 25th at 4PM

More items of interest related to the North Coast Regional District can be found from our archive page.

Fairview Terminal, changing the face of the Prince Rupert Waterfront

It's celebration day for the workers, managers and owners of DP World's Fairview Terminal as the expanding footprint of the container terminal is officially opened today, bringing with it an impressive line up of officials arriving in the city to herald the completion of the highly anticipated industrial project on the Prince rupert waterfront.

Among some of the officials in town for today's event will be Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Group Chairman and CEO of DP Word, Tiemen Meester, the Senior VP and Managing Director for DP's Americas Region, along with Jean-Jacques Ruest, Chief Marketing Officer and Executive VP of Canadian National Railway, in addition to the corporate leaders in town, representatives of the Federal and provincial government will also participate in todays event.

Don Krusel, the President and CEO of the Port of Prince Rupert will be part of the day's official opening, and should have an interesting perspective on the achievement of the expansion and how far the development of the container shipping industry has come for the North Coast in ten short years.

Also participating in today's even will be Harold Leighton, Chief of the Metlakatla Governing Council, John Helin, Mayor of the Lax Kw'alaams Band Council and Glen Edwards, President of ILWU Local 505.

The Grand Opening comes following a two year expansion project first announced by Maher Terminals in March of 2015 and brought to completion by DP World following their purchase of the terminal complex.

With the opening of the Northern segment of the expanded terminal facility the Port of Prince Rupert now becomes the second largest container handling facility in Canada and a gateway to Asia that is now ready to accommodate the largest container vessels in the world.

With its completion, Fairview Terminal has nearly doubled it's container handling capacity from 850,000 containers per year to an anticipated volume of 1.3 million in the future.

As well, new opportunities for shipment out of Prince Rupert have been created by adding a number of expended elements such as refrigeration units and expanded container parking to the growing list of options for shippers using the North Coast.

Among some of the work that took place over the course of two years towards today's Grand opening, the expansion project featured the following:

Dredging and construction of a 155m long and 40m wide piled concrete wharf. 

Reclamation of 3ha of land at the north end of the terminal. 

Modification of the Small Craft Harbours breakwater and float. 

Widening 250m of wharf from the existing northern caisson structure by 20m. 

Addition of 36m to the southern apron structure. 

Construction of mooring dolphin and walkway. 

Excavation/construction of a container park east of the terminal. 

Upgrade of rail capacity and installation of additional rails and cranes on the new wharf extension.

The changing face of the west side of Prince Rupert;
the Fairview Container Port continues to expand its
footprint on Prince Rupert's waterfront
(photo from Port of Prince Rupert photo stream)

The official ceremonies and ribbon cutting event gets underway today at 11 AM with a number of remarks from officials in attendance, the community open house at the facility will take place from 12:30 to 4:30.

Those taking in the day at Fairview will get a chance to have a close up look at the container facility, with interactive activities planned for children to go along with the Community BBQ and musical entertainment that will make for the day's events.

With a large crowd anticipated for the site today,  and limited space available on site, parking could fill up rather quickly at Fairview and with that in mind DP World has organized a shuttle bus service for the day, the route will run between Jim Ciccone Civic Centre and the DP World Terminal from 12:15 to 4:30 today.

You can fine more information related to today's Grand opening from this website page created to celebrate the event.

Those that can't take in today's opening can get updates through the port's Social media options, of Facebook, Twitter and Instagram

Some background on the scope of the expansion project can be reviewed here.

For further notes related to the Fairview Container facility see our archive page here, while items of interest related to the Port of Prince Rupert can be found here.

Writer Wanted! Lax Kw'alaams to launch new community newsletter

Lax Kw'alaams is looking for a writer
for a new information project
for the community

An opportunity to tell the story of the community and share information about and for residents of Lax Kw'alaams is now available; as the First Nation community north of Prince Rupert makes plans to introduce a new information newsletter.

The Lax Kw'alaams Band recently went on the search for a writer for the project, with the newsletter expected to hold eighteen pages of content featuring stories and photos, with the Band to provide the photos from community events and information items.

With interviews and research required as part of the information stream for some of that content, applicants for the project should have some background in journalism. along with some writing skills that would be along the style found in  newspaper feature writing.

Lax Kw'alaams has not to this point outlined how often the new feature will be published and if they plan to offer it both in a print and online format.

Watching over the introduction of the project is Rudy Kelly, who was  appointed interim Band Administrator for Lax Kw'alaams back in June, so far there has been no confirmation as to whether that has been made a permanent position.

Mr. Kelly will no doubt be calling on his days as a journalist with the old Prince Rupert Daily News as he scans the submissions from applicants.

Perhaps filling the role of publisher for the new venture, he will be reviewing the submissions to select who may best capture the themes of Lax Kw'alaams that the Band Council is looking to share in the community.

Those with an interest is submitting a proposal can contact Mr. Kelly at recreation_director@laxband.com

For more items related to developments in Lax Kw'alaams see our archive page here.

For notes related to the expanding ways that information is being shared across the Northwest see our media page.