Audio/Visual gremlins wreaked a bit of havoc for much of Monday's Prince Rupert City Council Session, with audio drop outs and sporadic video interruptions making for a hard to follow near sixty minute review of civic business on the night.
For the first five or so minutes, those viewing Monday evening were eavesdropping on the work of Corporate Administrator Rosa Miller as she navigated the opening moments of the sessions.
The archived You Tube version now however simply features the City of Prince Rupert logo, followed shortly by faint audio that arrived around five minutes into the night that provided the more muted than usual narrative of the city's business on the evening.
As for what was decipherable from the night, Council commented on a report from the City's Financial Officer related to the Audited Financial Statements for this year, as well they received a request for a letter of support for an entrance project for the Museum of Northern BC.
The prospect of an invitation for officials from Northern Health to speak at an upcoming Council Session provided for some extensive discussion, while the final approvals for the Official Community Plan and accompanying Tax Bylaws also generated some lengthy conversation.
The Council Comments period brought the night to a close.
As the council continues to met at a distance owing to the COVID pandemic, the Public hearing and Public Council session was streamed live through the use of a Zoom conference.
Some background on the work of Council for the night can be reviewed from the Regular Agenda Package for the May 10th session.
Council also hosted a Closed meeting, marking the seventh such session which has been closed to the public for 2021.
The details related to the reasons for the in camera 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 council minutes added as they are posted to the city website.
In attendance Monday, May 10, 2021
Mayor Lee Brain -- Present by Zoom
Councillor Nick Adey -- Present by Zoom
Councillor Barry Cunningham -- Present by Zoom
Councillor Blair Mirau -- Present by Zoom
Councillor Reid Skelton-Morven -- Present by Zoom
Councillor Wade Niesh -- Present by Zoom
Councillor Gurvinder Randhawa -- Present by Zoom
Video Archive for Monday, May 10, 2021
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( 0:00 - 1:30 ) Regular City Council Session for Monday, May 10, 2021 -- Mayor Lee Brain called the session to order, adopting past minutes and the Agenda for the session underway, with one change to the document, that the addition of a segment to discuss Northern Health issues, as well as a change in the order towards consideration of the Official Community Plan and accompanying Tax Bylaw.
( 1:30 -- 11:30 ) Budget Presentation Report from the Chief Financial Officer on Audited Financial Statements -- Ms. Corinne Bomben provided some of the highlight notes from the work of auditors Carlyle Shepherd and Company.
Though her actual presentation to Council is lost to the Digital universe as part of Monday's ongoing technical difficulties.
Following the presentation, many of the Council members spoke to the work of City staff and thanked them for they efforts. Of those participants that could be heard, Councillor Mirau noted of the planning and execution that city staff had provided for in this years budget preparation.
Councillor Niesh noted of the ability to keep taxes down and the receipt of provincial funding to work through the pandemic period, most which is being directed towards the airport.
Councillor Cunningham also paid his tributes, highlighting the planning towards asset management, he also noted of the turnaround of Watson Island and pointed towards the work of staff to achieve the city's success over the last six to seven years.
Councillor Randhawa also offered his thanks to civic staff.
For his comments, the Mayor echoed many of the same commentary as heard previous, rolling through a range of the work that the city is doing to address a number of civic concerns and initiatives.
He also spoke to Council's desire to leave the community in a better situation than when they came to office and offered his personal thanks to Ms. Bomben for her work.
( 11:30 -- 13:30 ) Verbal Report from the Corporate Administrator -- Ms. Rosa Miller outlined the nature of a request for a letter of support from the Museum of Northern British Columbia which is looking to build a new entranceway to their First Avenue West location. Councillor Mirau asked to some of the wording of the request related to a donation in kind, while Councillor Adey offered his support to the initiative and noted how it would add to the visual of the building in the downtown area.
( 13:30 -- 24:00 ) Discussion on plans to invite representatives from Northern Health to discuss local health concerns in Prince Rupert -- Mayor Brain outlined his desire to have Council invite representatives to an upcoming Committee of the Whole session to discuss health care matters and concerns from the community, noting it would serve as a follow up to their plans of last council session to create a Health Committee in the community. The Mayor sought out some suggestions from the council membership as to who should be invited, with Councillor Cunningham noting that the local administrator should be the first, then offering up a number of other health officials in the Northwest region who could be asked to attend.
Councillor Adey spoke of the concern over the potential loss of specialists in the region and if any officials could be invited to discuss that issue of note in the region. Councillor Cunningham provided a thumbnail sketch of how the policies and decisions are made in the Northwest region and what topics they could address at any session.
Councillor Niesh suggested that those attending be prepared to provide a ten year goal plan for the council to hear and how they plan to move forward on health care in the community as it grows.
Councillor Cunningham picked up on that theme, noting how the epicentre of growth in the northwest is going to be Prince Rupert and how it's important that the community have the medical support in place to address that growth.
He also noted how Prince Rupert currently is noted as third on the list for hospital replacement, which he estimates would be at least fifteen years into the future at the earliest.
Councillor Adey asked when the proposed dialogue would take place, with the Mayor observing that it should in short order with council to reach out with the invitation, with Mr. Brain making note of a presentation from Health officials at the recent virtual NCLGA session and how many of the issues that were discussed at that gathering would be similar to what Prince Rupert is facing.
Councillor Cunningham also stressed the need to get the proposed Health Committee initiative underway and outlined how it would be of use for the community in speaking to the issues of concern here.
Towards the plans for the Committee of the Whole session, the Mayor observed that they would get busy on Tuesday with the invites.
( 24:00 -- 47:00 ) Official Community Plan and Bylaw discussion -- Prior to final adoption of the two documents, the Council members had one final review of their work on community planning, with Councillors Cunningham and Randhawa expressing hesitancy towards adopting the OCP at this time, pointing to a number of concerns that they have related to the zoning elements of the documents.
Councillor Cunningham reprised some of his previous concerns over parking requirements in the downtown area and how if the city is trying to attract people to live in the downtown area that could be a significant issue towards development.
Rob Buchan, one of the city's contract planners from iPlan provided a few comments related to the issue, noting once again of the need for the City to develop a parking strategy that would help to deal with parking related concerns related to any upcoming development.
Councillor Randhawa raised his concerns over the fate of a proposed development on Park Avenue and how the OCP provisions could impact on that investment in the community, with the Councillor looking to have it exempt from the new plan.
Mr. Buchan noted that to make any kind of a change to the zoning would require the council to host another Public Hearing, the city's contract planner noting that he has been working with the applicant that Mr. Randhawa had spoken of, but to this point there was nothing new to review on the progress of their proposal.
Councillor Niesh spoke to the issue, first thanking the team from iPlan and City staff towards the development of the OCP and adding that while he might agree with Councillor Randhawa on the unfortunate timing of the Park avenue plans, he believes that the city needs to move forward on its Official Community Plan. The Councillor stating that he did not support any idea of having to host another Public hearing on the topic.
He also observed that the Park Avenue proponents could apply for a rezoning application should they wish to move forward.
Councillor Cunningham also had concerns over the densification prospects of the new OCP noting of two potential areas where it could be controversial, the first that of an area along Graham Avenue and another in the Crestview/Parker Drive area where the city owns land for potential development.
While he praised the work on the OCP, he still wanted to make note of his areas of concern.
Councillors Mirau and Adey spoke in favour of moving forward with the Official Community Plan and accompanying bylaws, with Mr. Mirau noting that the city has conducted an extensive process towards the development of the initiatives, with a number of proposals awaiting some kind of finality to the process.
Both noted that stopping it for just a few issues of concern was not something that they would want to entertain and how having come this far, they should move forward with it and allow for some of the other developments to come forward.
Councillor Randhawa had one more go towards his themes on the night, with the Mayor noting that if they were to make such significant change as desired then the entire OCP process would have to return to a Public Hearing and face further delays in implementation.
The Mayor noted of the OCP work as a very complete document that while not 100 percent perfect sets the foundation for the future. Mr Brain made note of the efforts of council as a fantastic job and reflective of the community's views and values, recounting how he viewed the range of community engagement on the process hosted by the City. Towards an end to the conversation the mayor observed that Council has the mandate to move forward.
After the discussion had been exhausted and the Mayor had thanked all those who participated in the OCP process, Council voted 4-2 in favour of adoption of the OCP, with Councillors Cunningham and Randhawa voting in opposition to the motion.
The same vote count was recorded towards the Zoning bylaw motion as well.
( 47:00 -- 58:00 ) Questions, Comments, Reports or Inquiries from Council
Councillor Adey made note of an announcement from Skeena-Bulkley Valley MP Taylor Bachrach that hearings would soon be taking place related to rail safety across Canada, with the Councillor observing that it should be a topic of interest to the City of Prince Rupert.
He suggested that the City try to learn more about the hearings so the city could spread word of the initiative; as well he sought some feedback on how the City may wish to approach any involvement in the hearings process.
Mr. Adey also noted how its a rare opportunity for consultation that the community should take part in, especially considering the expansion of port facilities in the area and the increase in rail traffic that would bring.
Mayor Brain outlined that the city could certainly be part of any information sharing program and how he has been in discussion with the MP on the issue, noting how the MP has expressed a plan to host a Town Hall on rail safety.
Mr. Brain did note that the city has zero jurisdiction or authority over the railway and how it was a federal matter, but recognized that the city has a role to play as an advocate for the community, he also spoke to how the issue is one of concern along the CN main line and how he agreed with Councillor Adey that a collaborative approach with those communities could be the approach to take.
The Mayor also relayed how the MP would be taking the lead towards a community response and how the city could be of some common assistance to his work.
As for a local lead in the community approach, the Mayor observed and for the most part nominated Councillor Adey as a good choice for the Prince Rupert contribution.
Councillor Cunningham hailed the notice of this being National Nurses Week and how the health care workers of the region deserve the recognition of the community.
He also took note of a recent funding award for Prince Rupert Tourism and asked Councillor Mirau if he could shed some light on what the money will be used for. On his part the Councillor stated that he was not in a position to comment on it at the moment, but hinted that it would be a pretty exciting project once it is announced.
Councillor Cunningham also observed that some of the funding had been allocated for trail development and he asked if Tourism Prince Rupert had any plans to try to access any of that. Mr. Mirau noted of the current staffing situation at the tourism office and how Tourism Prince Rupert has been active in seeking out funding for a range of projects and funding access.
Councillor Cunningham also outlined some concerns over the condition of some of the paving work from last year and asked if there was a way to have the contractor from a year ago address those issues.
Mayor Brain noted that they would be following up with warranty work, recounting of the poor weather last year that may have impacted on the some of the areas of the project.
Mr. Brain also made note of the City's Road Paving plan for 2021, which was a topic of interest for Councillor Randhawa who inquired about where the work would take place this year; the Mayor observed of the recent bid package submitted to BC Bid which details the work that the city has planned for the summer paving season.
Councillor Skelton Morven offered his condolences to those who have suffered loss in the community, particularly during this time of COVID and noted of the supports that are in place in the community.
And with that the May 10th session came to one end.
You can access our archive of the City Council Session 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 fromMay 10, 2021
(not available yet)
The next City Council session will take place on Monday, May 31, 2021
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