Blog Watching: Week ending April 16, 2017

A glimmer of better times for Watson Island made for the main theme for news this week on the North Coast.

As the City of Prince Rupert offered up a few notes on their discussions with an Alberta based energy company, the conversation related to plans for a proposed propane terminal, a story which overshadowed all others on the week.

Other areas that found some strong readership for our list of five included the latest community fund announcement from the Prince Rupert Port Authority, a spring migration for some of the region's media members and a set date in place for the North Coast election debate in Prince Rupert.

Our Blog Watching list wraps up with a look at the city's final decision on taxation for this year, with Council moving forward the last of the 2017 Budget provisions for 2017.

Our top story however, takes us out to Watson Island where the City's Legacy Fund mechanism was used to sign a letter of intent for an export propane terminal with Pembina Pipelines.

Pembina makes plans for propane shipment terminal at Watson Island --  The story of Watson Island gained a new chapter this week, with the industrial site on the outskirts of the city now the potential destination for a propane export terminal. With Pembina pipelines investigating their options for a portion of the old pulp mill site. The prospects for the future made for a fair bit of interest at this week's Prince Rupert Council session as well.   (posted April 11, 2017)

That article was followed by:

Port's Community Investment fund gives financial lift to local gymnasts -- Local gymnasts had a reason to do some flips this week, with the announcement of 60,000 dollars in matching fund from the Prince Rupert Port Authority for equipment for the Prince Rupert Gymnastics Association. (posted April 10, 2017)

The makings of a media migration on the North Coast? --Journalists with the local newspaper and television station made their plans for departure for the North Coast, with a number of job opportunities now available for aspiring reporters. Our original item focused on the opportunities with the Northern View, while a follow up item on Wednesday took note of the vacancy with TV7.    (posted April 10, 2017)

North Coast election debate now set for late April -- The three declared candidates for the North Coast seat in the legislature will be put through their debating paces on April 24th when the Prince Rupert Chamber of Commerce hosts the Prince Rupert electoral forum at the Lester Centre.  (posted April 11, 2017)

Council says No to 2.25% mill rate increase tied to snow removal concerns; returns to 1.5% plan -- Despite some concern from the city's financial office that the cupboard on snow removal could be quite bare by November, City Council rolled the dice with Mother Nature and declined the request to increase this years mill rate request to top up the Snow budget. Returning to the original plan of a 1.5% increase this year. (posted April 13, 2017)


You can find our weekly Blog watching featured posted every Sunday morning by 9AM, a handy way to catch up to the week that was, at a leisurely weekend pace.

You can also review the full listings of the week just past from our Blog Archive index page found on the right hand side of the page.

For those looking for updates to items as they are posted to the blog, don't forget about our email alert access.

A daily review of the latest items on the blog can be delivered to your email in box, simply by entering your email address into the information bar, items posted to the blog will be delivered to your e-mail account each day.

You can find the link to that feature on the upper, right hand side of the blog. It can be found underneath the Follow the North Coast Review by Email indicator.

Our archive of weekly Blog Watching can be found here

Real Estate Tracker, week ending July 17, 2016

Our weekly review of the listings of the local real estate agents, tracking those properties which appear to be driving the local price structure for the North Coast.

Every Monday, we look over the listing prices of the past seven days and outline the Top 10 asking prices in the area, providing a snap shot as to where the Real Estate market may be trending on a week to week basis.

The listings below are purely for information purposes, for further background on the properties recorded, see our links page for access to the individual real estate listings.

The Archive for our weekly review can be found here.

Our list of the top ten priced homes for the week ending July 17 is below:

Prince Rupert Real Estate East
July 17 2016

Prince Rupert Real Estate West
July 17 2016

There is a change at the top of the listings to be found this week, with a property on Van Arsdol removed from the inventory of available properties in the city.

That departure, moves much of the previous listings from last week up one spot and opens a position at the bottom of the list for a new entry.

A home on Summit claims the number ten spot on the week. With the change to the book ends of our list of ten, we find a shift for the low end of the ranking of ten to the 422,500 dollar mark, while the top end of the weeks listings is now based at $575,000.

The balance of properties from east to west shifts remains the same, with seven properties now found on the west side of the city and three properties listed from the east side of the city's McBride Street dividing line.

Below find our findings as of the Week ending July 17, 2016

2085 Graham Avenue                   $575,000  --  Remax
1724 Graham Avenue                   $545,000  --  Royal Lepage
1311-13 Sloan Avenue                  $529,000 -- Remax
1229 Conrad Street                       $495,000  -- Remax
333 11th Avenue East                   $485,000 -- Royal Lepage
1125 Summit Avenue                   $469,900  --  Remax
1735 Graham Avenue                   $469,000  --  Remax
112 Raven Place                           $444,900  --  Remax
100 Alpine Drive                          $439,900  --  Remax
905 Summit Avenue                     $422,500  --  Remax

For more items related to Real Estate see our archive page here.

For background on Housing issues in the region see our past items here.

Real Estate Tracker, Week ending May 29, 2016

Our weekly review of the listings of the local real estate agents, tracking those properties which appear to be driving the local price structure for the North Coast.

Every Monday, we look over the listing prices of the past seven days and outline the Top 10 asking prices in the area, providing a snap shot as to where the Real Estate market may be trending on a week to week basis.

The listings below are purely for information purposes, for further background on the properties recorded, see our links page for access to the individual real estate listings.

The Archive for our weekly review can be found here.

Our list of the top ten priced homes for the week ending May 29 is below:

Prince Rupert Real Estate
East Side May 29, 2016

Prince Rupert Real Estate
West Side May 29, 2016

There were no changes to the top end listings for North Coast real estate over the last seven days, the list of ten homes featuring the same line up for the most part that has been common over the last few months.

The ask price for the returning properties remains marked to the 449,900 dollar mark at its low point, with the top end listed at 639,000 dollars.

The balance of properties from east to west remains the same as it was last week.

Two properties are found east of McBride, while the remaining eight properties from this weeks listings are on the west side of the city, the majority of them in the Graham Avenue area. It also marks a clean sweep of listings for the Remax office in town for the week, with all ten of our top end findings coming from the website of the real estate company.

Below find our findings as of the Week ending May 29, 2016

160 Van Arsdol Street                  $639,900   -- Remax
2040 Graham Avenue                   $579,000  -- Remax
2085 Graham Avenue                   $575,000 --  Remax
2070 Atlin Avenue                        $570,000 --  Remax
1229 Conrad Street                       $495,000  -- Remax
1125 Summit Avenue                   $469,900  --  Remax
1735 Graham Avenue                   $469,000  --  Remax
144 Gull Crescent                         $464,500  --  Remax
100 Alpine Drive                          $449,900  --  Remax
1101 Borden Street                       $449,000  --  Remax

For more items related to Real Estate see our archive page here.

For background on Housing issues in the region see our past items here.

Blog Watching, Week ending May 15, 2016

The latest twist in the Lelu Island story dominated our news flow on the week, as our item relaying the details of a trip to the United Nations by opponents to the proposed LNG development .

The Port of Prince Rupert found itself in the U.S. spotlight this week, as KING 5 dispatched a team to the region to review the success of the Fairview Container Terminal and the concerns in Seattle/Tacoma that Prince Rupert operation is providing for.

Our mid week item related to Fundraising efforts in the community to raise awareness and funds for Prince Rupert's local Syrian Relief organization found a wide audience this week.

Mining proved to be a key issue on the week, as the State of Alaska keeps an eye on the flow of information and discussion on the province's Mining sector and the level of oversight that the province has in place for the industry.

Education also proved to be a popular topic this week, as our item exploring the changes in administration for September found a wide audience.

However, the top item of the week takes a look at a trip to New York for a delegation of First Nations leaders that are in opposition to the proposed Pacific NorthWest LNG terminal at Lelu Island.

Efforts to stop Lelu Island LNG terminal reach the United Nations --  First Nations leaders and members in the Northwest looking to stop the development of an LNG Terminal at Lelu Island took their case to the United Nations this week.   (posted May 12, 2016)

That article was followed by:

Seattle-Tacoma put eyes on Port of Prince Rupert -- The success of the Fairview Container port in Prince Rupert once again is on the radar of terminal operators in Washington State, with KING 5 Television arriving in the area to provide for a two part report . (posted May 10, 2016)

Saturday fundraiser to benefit Syrian Relief efforts and Fort McMurray Fire victims -- A Saturday afternoon event in Prince Rupert offered up treats, entertainment and an opportunity to help (posted May 12, 2016)

Alaska raises its concerns over BC mining oversight --  With the British Columbia Legislature debating and discussing the issue of mine safety in recent weeks, officials north in Alaska kept a watchful eye on events and offered up their own concerns.  ( posted May 11, 2016)

School District 52 makes a number of appointments for 2016-17 school year --  As the current school year draws to a close, officials at SD52 are making plans and announcing changes to personnell at a number of local schools (posted May 12, 2016)

You can find our Blog watching featured posted every Sunday morning by 9AM, a handy way to catch up to the week that was, at a leisurely weekend pace.

You can also review the full listings of the week just past from our Blog Archive index page found on the right hand side of the page.

For those looking for updates to items as they are posted to the blog, don't forget about our email alert access.

A daily review of the latest items on the blog can be delivered to your email in box, simply by entering your email address into the information bar, items posted to the blog will be delivered to your e-mail account each day.

You can find the link to that feature on the upper, right hand side of the blog. Underneath the Follow the North Coast Review by Email indicator.

Our archive of weekly Blog Watching can be found here

Blog Watching, week ending March 13, 2016

With the comment period for the proposed LNG development at Lelu Island coming to an end on Friday, it's not a surprise that the majority of the most read items of the week involved LNG issues.

An announcement to herald additional funding by the Province for the Tsimshian Roundtable initiative captured the most attention this week, followed an item exploring the themes from a Financial Post article that suggested that the majority investor Petronas is prepared to walk away from the Pacific NorthWest LNG project unless momentum for it is found soon.

Basketball broke up the flow of the LNG stories, as our archive page for news from the Provincial AAA Tournament in Langley found a large audience this week, with readers seeking more information on the fate of the Charles Hays Rainmakers at Provincials.

LNG returned to the archive of top five items with a look at a letter of opposition to the CEAA report on Lelu Island as over 130 scientists and Academics shared their concerns over the recently completed review.

And a fascinating one hour interview with the Province's Aboriginal Relations Minister on Shaw Community Televisions Voice of BC made for much interest as we reviewed some of the key items of relevance to the Northwest.

However, the top item of the week looks at the recent funding announcement between the Province and the Tsimshian First Nation and what it means for the coastal communities of the North Coast.

Province of British Columbia commits 9 million towards Tsimshian Roundtable initiative -- A major announcement between the Provincial government and the Tsimshian First Nation this week provided for funding for a number of areas of the Tsimshian Roundtable program, which delivers training and socio-economic options for the members of the First Nation (posted March 8, 2016)

That article was followed by:

Financial Post article on Lelu Island LNG terminal ultimatum creates a Monday tempest -- An article in the financial pages of the Financial Post generated much discussion this week over the fate of the proposed LNG terminal at Lelu Island (posted March 7, 2016)

AAA Senior Boys Provincial Tournament Results -- Basketball provides a break from the domination of the LNG files, as readers checked in regularly to chart the progress of the Charles Hays Rainmakers at the Provincial Tournament in Langley (posted March 8, 2016)

Scientists send letter to Environment Minister urging rejection of Pacific NorthWest LNG report -- With the deadline for comments approaching for the CEAA Review of the Lelu Island LNG proposal, a number of scientists and academics with concerns related to the proposal sent a letter to Catherine McKenna the Federal Minister for the Environment, calling for her to reject the report on the project ( posted March 9, 2016)

Cabinet Minister John Rustad speaks on Tsimshian agreement, Lelu Island project and other First Nations issues -- The Minister responsible for Aboriginal Relations appeared as a guest on the Shaw Community Television program Voice of the People on Thursday evening, providing an overview on a range of items, many of them of wide interest to the Northwest (posted March 11, 2016)

You can find our Blog watching featured posted every Sunday morning by 9AM, a handy way to catch up to the week that was, at a leisurely weekend pace.

You can also review the full listings of the week just past from our Blog Archive index page found on the right hand side of the page.

For those looking for updates to items as they are posted to the blog, don't forget about our email alert access.

A daily review of the latest items on the blog can be delivered to your email in box, simply by entering your email address into the information bar, items posted to the blog will be delivered to your e-mail account each day.

You can find the link to that feature on the upper, right hand side of the blog. Underneath the Follow the North Coast Review by Email indicator.

Our archive of weekly Blog Watching can be found here

Blog Watching, week ending February 21, 2016

Water issues at some local schools, a few notes on local Basketball, an RCMP file and a visit from the Navy all dominated our news flow of the last seven days.

The delivery of a letter to parents by SD52 and Northern Health outlining some concerns over the state of the water supply at four local schools made for a story that took over the news cycle towards the end of the week in the city. A review which which went beyond Prince Rupert and found its way into the proceedings at the British Columbia Legislature by weeks end.

Basketball is always a safe bet to attract some interest on the local scene and this week two items caught the interest of our readers, with our recap of the ANBT finals and a look ahead to the High School zones picture making for much traffic to the blog.

Rounding out the five most read items of the week, our notes on a Police incident of last weekend and a visit from the Royal Canadian Navy found an interested audience as the week came to an end.

However, the top item of the week comes from School District 52 and its notes on issues related to the water at four local schools.

School District 52 sends out advisory to parents over elevated lead levels in water at four local schools - Some surprising developments out of the School District office of the week found parents and guardians hearing of concerns on water quality at four local schools. An issue that became the focus of a good portion of the discussion in the Legislature later in the week  (posted February 16, 2016)

That article was followed by:

An ANBT Three-peat and a long overdue return to the Champions List  -- Our look at last weekend's Championship Saturday at the All Native Basketball Tournament proved to be a popular item this week (posted February 14, 2016 )

Two Rainmaker Squads hit the road this weekend to seek out a zones title  --  Basketball proved to be a popular theme through the week with our look at the weekend zones for the CHSS Junior Boys and Senior Girls, while our notes on the Sr Boys preparations for next weekends AAA Zones also found a large readership ( posted February 18, 2016)

Suspicious package brings Vancouver based Explosives Unit to Prince Rupert  - We still haven't heard much background on the incident since last Sunday, but the discovery of suspicious package in the downtown area last weekend made for much interest this week.  (posted  February 16, 2016 )

Royal Canadian Navy makes port call on Prince Rupert  --  The arrival of HCMS Whitehorse in port generated some buzz in the city this week, with a number of residents taking advantage of an Open House hosted at the ship tied up at the New Cow Bay Marina facility  (posted February 16, 2016 )

You can find our Blog watching featured posted every Sunday morning by 9AM, a handy way to catch up to the week that was, at a leisurely weekend pace.

You can also review the full listings of the week just past from our Blog Archive index page found on the right hand side of the page.

For those looking for updates to items as they are posted to the blog, don't forget about our email alert access.

A daily review of the latest items on the blog can be delivered to your email in box, simply by entering your email address into the information bar, items posted to the blog will be delivered to your e-mail account each day.

You can find the link to that feature on the upper, right hand side of the blog. Underneath the Follow the North Coast Review by Email indicator.

Our archive of weekly Blog Watching can be found here

Blog Watching, Week ending February 14, 2016

Basketball, City Council and LNG ambitions for the most part captured the most interest from our listings for the last seven days.

Not surprisingly, with the week long focus on the All Native Basketball Tournament at the Jim Ciccone Civic Centre, our Results page and archive of news items received much attention this week.

When it came to non-basketball related items, two items related to some of the discussions from Tuesday's Prince Rupert City council session found a wide audience.

Rounding out the five most read items of the week, our notes on the British Columbia Government's Speech from the Throne and the release of the Draft report from the CEAA regarding the Pacific NorthWest LNG project also attracted a large number of views through the week.

However, the top item of the week comes from the 2016 edition of the ANBT, with significant numbers of readers checking in daily at our results and news pages.

57th All Native Basketball Tournament Results page - Readers regularly returned to our Results page to check out the latest scores from the Civic Centre complex this week, while a large number also found the News Archive of some interest through the last seven days as well.   (posted February 8, 2016)

That article was followed by:

Recreation Fees discussion provides for heated exchange in Council chamber -- The introduction of a five year program and increased fees to go with it for the Recreation Centre provided for a fairly vigorous discussion on Tuesday evening, highlighting some growing splits around the council chamber  (posted February 12, 2016 )

British Columbia Government holds to LNG ambitions, sets positioning points for year ahead --  The Spring session for the British Columbia Legislature began this week, with Premier Clark's Liberal Government outlining some of their plan for the year ahead through the Speech from the Throne. ( posted February 10, 2016)

Fish and Fish habitat fine, but GHG Emissions among concerns from CEAA Draft Report on Pacific NorthWest LNG proposal - The much anticipated Environmental review of the proposed Pacific NorthWest LNG project was delivered this week, setting in motion one final thirty day comment period before the report his handed over to the Federal Cabinet.  (posted  February 11, 2016 )

Small Business Committee plans remain stalled, with a workshop the next stage to find momentum --  The second attempt by Prince Rupert Councillor Blair Mirau to move forward with his plans for a Small Business Committee ran into a few snags, as Councillor Joy Thorkelson outlined a number of concerns with the proposed committee structure.  (posted February 12, 2016 )

You can find our Blog watching featured posted every Sunday morning by 9AM, a handy way to catch up to the week that was, at a leisurely weekend pace.

You can also review the full listings of the week just past from our Blog Archive index page found on the right hand side of the page.

For those looking for updates to items as they are posted to the blog, don't forget about our email alert access.

A daily review of the latest items on the blog can be delivered to your email in box, simply by entering your email address into the information bar, items posted to the blog will be delivered to your e-mail account each day.

You can find the link to that feature on the upper, right hand side of the blog. Underneath the Follow the North Coast Review by Email indicator.

Our archive of weekly Blog Watching can be found here

Real Estate Tracker, week ending February 7, 2016

Our weekly review of the listings of the local real estate agents, tracking those properties which appear to be driving the local price structure for the North Coast.

Every Monday, we look over the listing prices of the past seven days and outline the Top 10 asking prices in the area, providing a snap shot as to where the Real Estate market may be trending on a week to week basis.

The listings below are purely for information purposes, for further background on the properties recorded, see our links page for access to the individual real estate listings.

The Archive for our weekly review can be found here.

Our list of the top ten priced homes for the week ending February 7th is below:

Prince Rupert Real Estate
West Side February 7, 2016

Prince Rupert Real Estate
East Side February 7, 2016

There was a bit of fine tuning to the listings this week, but no major changes other than one west side property entering and another leaving the list of ten for the week just passed.

The high end is now marked by a property on Van Arsdol which claims the top position, with a property listing on Alpine once again holding down the final spot for the week.

As for pricing, while much of the asking prices remained the same,  though there have been some slight adjustments for some of the properties, while the bottom end of our list holds at the 459,500 dollar mark once again this week.

As for the geography of the market this week, the west side of the city dominates once again this week, with seven of the ten listings found west of McBride, the majority of those in the Graham Avenue area of the city.

Below find our findings as of the Week ending February 7, 2016

160 Van Arsdol Street                  $649,900   -- Remax
2040 Graham Avenue                   $595,000  -- Royal Lepage
333 - 11th Avenue East                $575,000  --  Royal Lepage
2085 Graham Avenue                   $550,000 --  Remax
1724 Graham Avenue                   $545,000  -- Royal Lepage
1253 Conrad Street                       $497,000  --  Remax
210 Heron Road                            $489,000  --  Royal Lepage
1125 Summit Avenue                   $469,900  --  Remax
1735 Graham Avenue                   $469,000  --  Remax
100 Alpine Drive                          $459,500 --   Remax


For more items related to Real Estate see our archive page here.

For background on Housing issues in the region see our past items here.

Blog Watching, week ending January 31, 2016

Themes related to LNG development, consultation with First Nations and new environmental guidelines and their impact on potential development all dominated the weekly reading list.

Of our list of five of top reads on the week, only one non LNG related item broke through to claim a spot on our list, a review of how the Board for SD52 is seeking out some feedback from the community on their budget process this year.

The LNG stories however were the ones that found the largest number of readers, with the highest level of interest give to the recent Salmon Nation Summit and the declaration that came from it, as well as the response from the Tsimshian First Nations related to a lack of consultation when it came to that final document.

As for the LNG industry itself, two items claimed some attention on the week, with  our  look at LNG Minister Rich Coleman and his optimism when it comes to the Pacific NorthWest LNG CEAA process, as well as a review as to how some new guidelines on the EA process may require Pacific NorthWest LNG to provide more data on potential green house gas emissions.

The Top five items on the week wrap up with the current online survey being conducted by the School District, which is asking residents of the region to offer up some thoughts on education in the District and where cost savings might be found as hey head into their Budget Discussions for 2016.

However, the top item of the week returned to Lelu Island, and the disappointment of the Tsimshian First Nation related to the release of the Lelu Island Declaration, which the Tsimshian note was drafted and signed without any consultation with them.

Tsimshian Nations take issue with lack of consultation on Lelu Island Declaration -- A signed document that was released at the end of the Salmon Nation Summit in Prince Rupert last weekend has raised concerns with some local First Nations, with officials showing their displeasure at the lack of consultation with them on the Lelu Island Declaration.  (posted January 25, 2016)

That article was followed by:

Salmon Nation Summit ends with signing of Lelu Island Declaration -- Two days of discussion on themes related to Lelu Island came to an end with the signing of the Lelu Island Declaration, where a number of First Nations, environmentalists and regional politicians declared that no LNG development should take place on the Island.  (posted January 25, 2016 )

LNG Minister Coleman anticipates CEAA draft report on Pacific NorthWest LNG --  The province's minister in charge of LNG development is holding out optimism that the CEAA process related to Pacific NorthWest LNG project will be delivering a report very shortly.( January 27, 2016)

Pacific NorthWest LNG project may get caught up in new Federal Government mandate on climate analysis -- Depending on what kind of science that Pacific NorthWest LNG has already provide on it's proposed LNG terminal for Lelu Island,  the company may be required to provide more data to meet new guidelines on Green House Gas Emissions.  Those new guidelines can be reviewed here. (posted  January 26, 2016 )

School District 52 launches survey on proposed budget cuts -- With the prospect of $1,000,000 in cuts to the SD52 budget ahead, the School District is turning to the public for some guidance on issues related to the city's school system.  (posted January 29, 2016 )

You can find our Blog watching featured posted every Sunday morning by 9AM, a handy way to catch up to the week that was, at a leisurely weekend pace.

You can also review the full listings of the week just past from our Blog Archive index page found on the right hand side of the page.

For those looking for updates to items as they are posted to the blog, don't forget about our email alert access.

A daily review of the latest items on the blog can be delivered to your email in box, simply by entering your email address into the information bar, items posted to the blog will be delivered to your e-mail account each day.

You can find the link to that feature on the upper, right hand side of the blog. Underneath the Follow the North Coast Review by Email indicator.

Our archive of weekly Blog Watching  can be found here.

City Council Session, Monday, January 25, 2016

Our archive of items from the session can be found below.

Regular Session of Council for January 25, 2016

Home page and archive of sessions can be found here.

Live Broadcast of session can be found here

North Coast Review - Preview of Regular Session for January 25, 2016

Agenda for the Committee of the Whole Session for January 25, 2015

Agenda for the Regular Session of Council for January 25, 2016

Notice of Special Closed Session of Council for 5 PM on January 25, 2016


Info to Council 


Attendance

Mayor Lee Brain -- Present
Councillor Barry Cunningham --Present
Councillor Nelson Kinney --Present
Councillor Blair Mirau --Present
Councillor Wade Niesh --Present
Councillor Gulvinder Randhawa -- Present
Councillor Joy Thorkelson -- Present

Minutes of Regular Session of Council, January 25, 2016

Video Recording of January 25, 2016

North Coast Review, City Council Timeline, January 25, 2016


North Coast Review Items for the January 25, 2016 Session of Council 

Those Big Box themes start to percolate at City Council
Drake Crescent housing proposal to go to Public Hearing in late February
Plans in motion to move forward with School District 52 by-election
Councillor Mirau's Small Business Advisory Committee Terms sent back to the writer's workshop
Council looks to bring many aspects of Major Projects and other planning together with new Committee
Mayor Brain's 2030 Sustainable City Select Committee gets approval, but not without spirited discussion on its purpose 
Questions on funding issues point to need for easier access to Civic information
Library cuts the main focus for public comment period of Monday's Council session
Council pulls west side road closure bylaw from Agenda consideration 
Council to hear report on issues related to Wine stores in Grocery stores in Prince Rupert
Proposed Housing Development for Drake Crescent on the Agenda for tonight's Council Session
Council to receive Terms of References for Committees planned for 2016


Media items from other sources for the January 25th Council session can be found in our Discussion Points from City Council feature