Prior to COVID it was one of the most popular programs put in place by the Prince Rupert and District Chamber of Commerce, "Rising Stars" a project that has helped to spawn a number of business initiatives in the region.
The program makes a comeback this year, part of a partnership for the Chamber with Coast Mountain College, now preparing to once again partner fledgling entrepreneurs with Mentors.
At this point of the relaunch, the Chamber and College are in the midst of recruiting mentors, if you would like to become involved with the program contact Roman Brochu or Kristi Farrell at the Chamber offices on Third Avenue West.
The Prince Rupert and District Chamber of Commerce offices are in the Capital Mall Building in downtown Prince Rupert
The Prince Rupert and District Chamber of Commerce has had their annual changing of the guard, with a new Board installed last month, with the official swearing in ceremony of April was conducted by Prince Rupert Mayor Herb Pond
Moving up a notch to serve as President for this coming term is Matthew Kloepper.
Joining Mr. Kloepper on the Board are Vice-President Kristi Farrell, Treasurer Eric Campbell and Past President, Daphne Thomson
Serving as Directors this year are: Andy Enns, Hannah Philippson-Madill, Shivali and Amy Lashek
The organziation has two of their Business after Business events coming up, the first this Thursday on May 4th at the Lester Centre. The June gathering takes place on June 22nd at OV Hotel and Lounge.
More on the Thursday session at the Lester Centre from 4:30-8:00 PM is available below:
Of note for the membership for the next few months, the Chamber has suspended their Luncheon sessions until September, with the organization seeking out a new location for their monthly noon hour get togethers .
An opportunity to hear of the last year of Chamber business and help set the course for 2023 and beyond comes up next week, when the Prince Rupert and District host their Annual General Meeting next week.
The session takes place Tuesday March 7th at the Crest Hotel from 11:45 AM to 1 PM.
The Main Sponsor for the speakers period and guest speaker for the event is Rodrigo Curvo from RayMont Logistics, the theme for the conversation will be interest rates and how they impact on business.
The Chamber is also hosting its Voting for President and Vice President this month.
The Chamber of Commerce is wrapping up 2022 with Greetings to the community and a call out for members
It's the season of Holiday message making and for the Prince Rupert and District Chamber of Commerce along with some best wishes, comes a bit of a recruiting pitch, with the Chamber putting out the call for new Directors.
The Chamber's President Daphne Thomson provided the 2022 Holiday Greeting on behalf of the advocates for the local Business community, noting of some of their work in the past year along with an invitation to explore their recently relaunched website.
Follow the latest developments from the Prince Rupert and District Chamber of Commerce through their Social Media page or the website here.
A new Board member and a refreshed website among the notes from the Prince Rupert and District Chamber of Commerce
The Prince Rupert Chamber of Commerce has added to the Board of Directors announcing yesterday the appointment of Kristi Farrell as the latest member of the Chamber's collective.
As part of the introduction to the new Board member, the Chamber of Commerce observed on her work as a local entrepreneur, owner of Opa Sushi, as well as her background in economic development, having spoken in the past on themes of job creation and worker retention.
That element of her resume comes from a report that she, Chris Armstrong and Karen Sawatzky presented to Prince Rupert City Council back in May of 2018.
Ms. Farrell joins the existing board of President Daphne Thomson, Matthew Kloepper, Eric Campbell and Hannah Madill in charting the future this year for the Chamber of Commerce.
A quick reference guide to the Commercial sector of the North Coast economy, items of note on store openings and closings, planned developments, commercial taxation and such.
Below are some links to Business resources on the North Coast
One of the major themes from a business study presented to Prince Rupert City Council on Monday night was the impact that housing is having when it comes to those employees making minimum or just above minimum wages in the community.
But as the discussion moved forward, the topic of a lack of affordable housing was raised again and again through much of the forty minute discussion between members of the business group and the city's Council members, calling attention to the ongoing need for affordable housing that has been heard for much of this council's four year mandate to this point.
"City Council also has approved 315 market housing units, actual market housing developments, like the planned Condo on the waterfront next to the Casino, a variety of other developments, so we've essentially green-lighted every development that's come to the community and some are underway now"
Some of the housing highlights that made for Mayor Lee Brain's Hays 2.0 presentation in April
The number of 315 housing approvals makes for an impressive number of potential projects, but as anyone who has wandered around the city might note, it's a number that is nowhere near in the process of being added to the housing stock of the community.
So far, the only real movement on the housing front has come with an approval of a Seniors living facility in the old Neptune building which has yet to open, and the development of a number of high end residences on Van Arsdol.
Also on the list is the near completion of a triplex that will be overlooking Prince Rupert harbour on First Avenue West and a property that would appear to be a bit beyond the kind of housing stock that those on minimum wage might require.
In the case of the Neptune project, with the City approving the building for Seniors use, something that is required, they also eliminated a number of what had been affordable housing units for those looking towards the lower end of the pricing spectrum.
One other development approved by this Council was the renovation of the old Baptist church on India Avenue, which was turned into a number of Executive residences, a price point most likely out of reach for those making the minimum wage or just above it.
Of the many other housing proposals approved by Council however, none have yet to break ground with the downtown condo project, a project proposed for Prince Rupert Boulevard and an extensive housing development off of Park Avenue still very much more of a proposal than an active construction site.
During the course of the discussion of the Armstrong/Farrell/Sawatzky report at Monday night's council session, Councillor Wade Niesh offered up a few observations on the housing situation in town.
"We don't have developers knocking on our door because its so challenging to build here ... if you could get cheaper housing , I think you could probably gain a lot more people too ... cheaper housing would solve a lot of the problem, but unfortunately the people that want to build this, they don't want to lose money when they want to build. So maybe we have to start looking at almost like camp sort of options where people can come from other areas and have a place to get started." "I think that it's not any fault of anyone, we've lost a lot of housing, we've had apartments burn down ... so we've lost hundreds of units ... those were cheaper to rent, that's probably where we have to focus on"
So the question for Council members perhaps to turn their attention towards is, why with so many housing approvals granted, has the stock of the city's housing remained in such a tight condition?
One project that did seem to offer up some hope for those looking for more affordable housing was the Kanata School land proposal, which would have seen a number of apartment blocks created on the site of the old school.
The sale of the land would also have provided the School District with close to a one million dollar payment for the purchase, something that they had hoped to reinvent in District facilities.
However, the fate of that development has become a long running irritant for the School District which has often expressed its frustration with the City on the issue.
The Kanata school development plans were taken off the table this year, leaving a large tract of land that could have provided for affordable housing still empty
That project appeared to go off the rails when Council and the developer could not agree on the addition of a number of amenities to the neighbourhood, the main thrust of those discussions took place back in March of 2016, when the zoning issue made for a lengthy discussion by Council as to how they wished to see the Kanata land developed.
During the back and forth between the City and the School District on that land issue, Councillor Mirau weighed into the debate with a note for his Facebook page on March 6th noting again the progress that the city has made when it comes to housing approvals.
However, with little to show in the way of actual units constructed for people to move into, Council members may want to review some of their past work if they're looking for some answers when it comes to why there is such a housing crunch in the community and how that lack of affordable housing continues to impact on the local economy.
Council members are correct when they note that they can't force builders to actually get to work and put a shovel in the ground, as well as to how there are other factors that can slow down that pace of construction.
But when they zone the majority of the available land for what are in the most part high end projects, or make the prospect of development so unworkable through their requirements of those builders that they walk away from their plans; then it isn't rally all that hard to see how the pace of housing development has stalled and the problems for those in the most need of housing continue to grow.
You can review the ebb and flow of our housing prospects from our Housing archive page, which features a look at the housing situation on a year to year basis.
Three members of Prince Rupert's business community delivered a report for City Council that identified a number of challenges facing those in the City's business sector.
The lure of high paying Port and Industrial jobs in Prince Rupert is wreaking a bit of havoc in operations and planning for the city's small business sector, creating somewhat of a crisis situation for the city's business owners.
That appears to be the main take away from a fairly extensive survey by three members of the Business Community, who presented their findings to Council on Monday evening.
The trio which included Chris Armstrong, Kristi Farrell and Karen Sawatzky recently completed their Masters of Business Administration program with Simon Fraser University and as part of their studies they compiled a report into employee retention and hiring concerns from the business sector.
Their presentation and the follow up discussion accounted for a good portion of Monday's Council session, lasting some forty minutes over the course of the near ninety minute council meeting.
The themes provided an interesting glimpse into the state of the local economy for small business operators, with the quest for employees proving to be a challenge as the local work force explores the higher paying positions in the industrial field.
Something which even some of the small business owners themselves have explored, with closing storefronts a testimony to some of that labour migration.
The nature of that uneven workforce has created a worker gap with the group identifying five areas where the impact has been felt the greatest.
From their report they have determined that the five areas in the most need for employees are the Retail Sector, Accommodation/Food, Transportation/Warehouse, Health/Social Assistance and Technical professions.
The twin impacts of higher paying industrial jobs and a population decline seem to be making for a perfect storm for the small business sector in the community.
As part of their review of the regions economic profile they determined that Prince Rupert and Port Edward continued to find a decline in population and along with that decline a rather startling statistic when it comes the local labour pool, with their findings making note that 32 per cent were not currently part of the labour force.
They also observed however, that Hyper economic growth in the community is providing for a growing economy, as seen from the hiring plans of DP World and other industrial options.
From their data, among all the areas of concern, it was the identification of that 32 percent that was not engaged in the labour force that most caught the attention of City Council members.
That number was an item of much interest for Councillor Joy Thorkelson who made note that there was a large pool of workers looking for employment with the recent closure of the Canadian Fish Cannery operations a few years back.
"I was just wondering, we just lost 600 jobs at the cannery two years ago, so I can hardly see that there's a real shortage of labour, they didn't all run away, and what I'm wondering is if really what the problem is that at minimum wage people can't find a place to stay"
Ms. Thorkelson also called attention to the city's high unemployment rates and social assistance numbers and how there may be other issues at play when it comes to the small business challenges.
"We have one of the highest unemployment rates in British Columbia, and we certainly have the highest or second highest rate welfare and unemployment insurance, and again I"m just wondering if there are other issues that Small business needs to deal with. And some of those are, trying to work together to schedule people so that they can meet a schedule. I know of quite a few of our ex members have had to work at two or three jobs and have had to quit some jobs because employers want them at the same and don't want them at the same time. So maybe employers can work together to make an attractive package for workers."
That theme of wages and housing issues would make for further commentary from City Council members, with Councillors Cunningham, Niesh and Thorkelson all observing as to how housing issues could be one of the elements that most need to be addressed.
Ms. Farrell had noted in her review of the situation in town, that she and her husband had invested in housing stock in the community to provide for housing for those employees that may need accommodation, something which Councillor Cunningham commended and suggested was an approach that other business owners may want to address.
Councillor Niesh offered up a range of thoughts on the housing issues in the community and how it adds to the issue and needs to be looked at for a solution.
"We don't have developers knocking on our door because its so challenging to build here ... if you could get cheaper housing , I think you could probably gain a lot more people too ... cheaper housing would solve a lot of the problem, but unfortunately the people that want to build this, they don't want to lose money when they want to build. So maybe we have to start looking at almost like camp sort of options where people can come from other areas and have a place to get started." "I think that it's not any fault of anyone, we've lost a lot of housing, we've had apartments burn down ... so we've lost hundreds of units ... those were cheaper to rent, that's probably where we have to focus on"
Councillor Cunningham also picked up on Councillor Thorkelson's thoughts on the need for Small Business owners to better co-ordinate their scheduling and employee demands, with Mr. Cunningham noting that better planning and more challenging job opportunities might be of some assistance towards employee hiring and retention.
One theme introduced by Councillor Randhawa seemed to gain a mixed reaction, with the Councillor's observation that one approach and solution to the situation may be to bring in foreign workers to fill some of the vacancies.
That was a topic that Ms. Farrell noted was under study, with an immigration consultant set to arrive in town to discuss that avenue with local business owners, though she also noted that the topic of introducing foreign workers is a controversial one at times.
Councillor Thorkelson also had some thoughts on that theme, noting how it didn't make for much sense to bring in a volume of workers from out of town to the community to work at minimum wage jobs if there is nowhere for them to live.
When it comes to what the trio would like to see come from their report, they asked for an Action Task Force to be formed, to create a collaborative business/community approach and for Council to acknowledge that there is a labour shortage crisis specific to the service sector and to investigate how to reduce employee and resident turnover rates.
Councillor Blair Mirau noted that many of their concerns meshed with the work of the City's Small Business Advisory Council and outlined how they would be meeting in a workshop setting where many of the same issues will be reviewed.
Presentations to Prince Rupert Council, made for the bulk of the near ninety minute Council session on Monday night, as Council heard an update on a new addition for the Cow Bay Marina, as well as the results of a study from some members of business community, who presented their findings on the theme of employee hiring and retention in the city.
The Cow Bay Marina update made note of the new kayak float now in place for use by the community, while the Business study provided for a range of material for discussion related to the concerns of the small business sector when it comes to holding on to employees, as well as themes on housing issues and the lure of larger employers with higher salaries to offer.
Ms. Corinne Bomben, the City's Chief Financial Officer delivered the 2017 Financial Statements to council, providing a short synopsis of some of the items of note.
Council reviewed two requests for action, one of which explored the issue of Transportation in the region, with Council reviewing a request for support from Nathan Cullen in his quest to bring the Greyhound route abandonment issue to the Federal government for some form of action.
Some Board appointments made at a Closed Session of Council in April were also released, with the evening wrapping up with a number of questions from Councillor Cunningham on plans for a community garden on Overlook as well as what plans, if any, the City has for a Spring clean up around town.
Some background on the items of note on the evening and the various Agenda elements for the May 14th Council session can be reviewed here.
Council also met in a closed session earlier in the day, the notice closing that meeting to the public 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 minutes added as they are posted to the city website.
In attendance May14, 2018
Mayor Lee Brain -- Present
Councillor Barry Cunningham-- Present
Councillor Blair Mirau -- Present
Councillor Wade Niesh -- Present
Councillor Gurvinder Randhawa-- Present
Councillor Joy Thorkelson -- Present (participated by phone)
Councillor Nelson Kinney passed away on March 24th
Video Archive for May 14, 2018
(0:00 -- 1:00) City Council Minutes and Agenda review -- Mayor Brain reviewed the list of minutes and agenda items to be noted by Council members, with Council then approving the Agenda, while the past minutes of previous council meetings were adopted.
( 1:00 -- 12:00 ) Presentation from Robin Beattie, Manager Cow Bay Marina -- The Cow Bay Marina Manager shared news of a new addition to the Waterfront facility, providing an update on the work that has taken place on a kayak dock located at the end of the Marina Finger Dock.
As part of the presentation, Mr. Beattie shared a drone video of the location, to provide Council members with a look at the dock and where it is placed.
As for the Kayak Dock, the facility manager observed how the opening of the latest public space and how it adds another element to the Waterfront access to the community, praising the leadership of Mayor and council to continue to work towards that goal of public access.
He also offered up an update on the progress of the Marina Development, now into its third phase through funding from Northern Development Initiative Trust, with access stairs and a ramp to be installed to make the float easier for residents to make use of.
Council members offered up a number of questions related to the new addition, with Councillor Randhawa inquiring as to who may use the float and what kind of insurance coverage is in place for the float.
Mr. Beattie noted that there is a two hour limit for those making use of the dock and that the insurance for the facility, including the new float was part of the Municipal bylaw process, He did add that like any public facility, it is on the user themselves.
Councillor Randhawa also asked about forecast for the upcoming boating season, on that theme the Manager observed that he did not have a lot of specifics to share, but did note that spaces for July were filling up fast and that the Marina is looking like it is going to do better than it did last year.
Councillor Cunningham, observed that he thinks the addition was a great thing for the dock, then called attention to the two large outrigger vessels that have been in place on the float for an extended period of time, asking for some background to that situation.
The Facility Manager noted that they belonged to a Community group called the Prince Rupert Outrigger Society which has made arrangements to leave the vessels there, as they provide a service of providing trips for the community through their Society.
In a follow up question, Mr. Cunningham asked if anyone else could store their kayaks or other vessels on that float location, he was advised that there is no storage space available, adding that when people tie up, they will be required to take them to shore, or take them to their vehicles.
Mayor Brain noted that the facility isn't officially open to the public yet, with Mr. Beattie outlining that it is being used, but that he tries to keep users off the dock or at least counsel them to use caution when using it as there is a gap that is required to cross over to the float.
Mr Cunningham inquired as to if there were charges for users, and if the Catamaran club was paying for its use of the float. In reply, Mr. Beattie observed that there is no charge for anyone to use the float, and that the Catamaran Society was not paying anything to him for their extended use of the floats as they were providing a public service similar to the Dragon Boat Society, doing a lot of stuff for the community.
That provided an opportunity for Councillor Cunningham to inquire if the Dragon Boat Society could store their vessels on the float, he was advised that the Dragon Boats did not use the float for their storage.
To bring the presentation to an end, the Mayor noted that the project was an awesome addition to the waterfront.
( 12:00 -- 53:30 ) Presentation from Kristi Farrell, Chris Armstrong and Karen Sawatzky on Employment hiring and retention issues in Prince Rupert -- The group of local business representatives who recently completed their Masters of Business Administration Program at Simon Fraser University provided some background to their final report with Council.
The theme of their study was that Prince Rupert was currently in the midst of a labour shortage, with the Port, CN and Ridley Island to name a few of the local industrial employers having hired a large volume of workers, many of those that had worked in the service industry had moved up to the better paying positions, providing for a local labour shortage and the closure of local businesses owing to lack of employees or better opportunities for the owners themselves.
Ms. Farrell called upon her experience as a business owner and property developer over fifteen years to highlight the concerns that she has found from the labour shortage, while Ms. Sawatzky provided some background from her viewpoint at the local branch of TD Canada Trust, offering her observations on the challenges that the institution has had with recruitment and retention issues.
From their review of the regions economic profile they determined that Prince Rupert and Port Edward continued to find a decline in population and along with that decline a rather startling statistic when it comes the local labour pool, with their findings making note that 32 per cent were not currently part of the labour force.
They also noted however, that Hyper economic growth in the community is providing for a growing economy, as seen from the hiring plans of DP World and other industrial options.
From their report they have determined that the five areas in the most need for employees are the Retail Sector, Accommodation/Food, Transportation/Warehouse, Health/Social Assistance and Technical professions.
Other concerns for workers is the high cost of housing in Prince Rupert and that has had an impact on those with low to middle skill jobs. The result of that is that many are taking on second or third jobs, or moving on to the Industrial sector where pay is higher.
Employee retention and staff burnout is one of the key findings from their review of employers, as well as an ability for employees to take on different roles in their organization.
The group called for an Action Task Force to be formed on the topic, a collaborative approach from the community and business, as well as an acknowledgement by the City that the labour shortage is here and very specific to the service sector.
As for a focus the call on bringing more people to the community specific to the current needs, they also suggested that Council should also include the need for Service sector workers as part of their larger recruitment initiatives.
The also indicated a hope that their study would be included as part of the City's information streams in the community.
Council members offered up a number of observations and questions, Councillor Niesh started off the process by noting the tough situation that the business sector is in, as they try to find solutions to their employment issues.
Councillor Randhawa inquired about the prospect of bringing in foreign workers to the community as a potential solution to the issue. Ms. Farrell noted that it is an option, adding she is bringing in an immigration consultant to explore those avenues, but added that it is a controversial topic.
Mr. Randhawa also noted that making use of NWCC and Hecate Strait could also be options to helping to train for the positions that are in question.
Councillor Thorkelson noted that the Fish cannery had recently lost 600 workers and wondered how there could be a labour shortage with that pool of local workers available, observing that part of the problem is related to the minimum wages that are paid and the impact that may have on how those workers can find places to live.
Ms. Farrell noted that with many workers having two or three jobs, it is sometimes hard to make timetables work, noting that the real concern for local business is the lack of bodies in the community to fill the jobs.
Councillor Thorkelson then noted that Prince Rupert has one of the highest unemployment rates in the province, as well as a high number of residents on welfare and wondered if the issue wasn't something the small business sector needs to deal with, suggesting that they should work together to create an attractive package and to combine schedules to provide the balance required to hold multiple jobs.
She also questioned the wisdom of bringing in a number of out of town workers to work at minimum wage jobs considering the current housing problems in the community,
Another theme Councillor Thorkelson explored was if their research had explored similar issues in places like Dawson Creek and Fort St. John and how they approached the issue.
Ms. Farrell recounted some of their findings from Fort McMurray, Alberta where training opportunities and potential for advancement have helped towards keeping employees.
For Councillor Thorkelson the question remained on how best to have employers get together to try not to compete for employees but to better schedule the large pool for their use, observing that with such a high unemployment rate in the city there must be a way to attract them to the business sector.
The group noted that through their research they have considered an option to have a local Human Resources consultancy group locate in Prince Rupert to act as a consultant to small business to address concerns and career opportunities. As well as to have a business work as a recruitment office to help ease that burden.
Councillor Mirau offered up his perspective on where the City was at with the topic, making note of the Small Business Advisory Council that the City hosts and how the issues that the three were bringing to the city were issues that they were aware of, offering up a timeline of some of the city's initiatives towards business and economic development planning.
He also made note of their desire to see more collaboration and how that is also a theme the Business Council had explored with local business operators both large and small and how the city has a key role to play to make sure that they are aware with what's happening on the ground.
He inquired as to the statistic of 32 percent not participating in the labour pool and if that high a result was along the same line of a provincial average, the group did not have that information handy for him but did offer to explore it further and get back to him.
Councillor Cunningham as well picked up on the 32 percent mark, and suggested that was the target group that the small business community should be looking towards, rather than to look to bring more workers out of town, suggesting that making the job less of a dead end job and something more attractive that would lead to retainment.
Councillor Niesh turned to the Housing issues and noted that it is continuing to provide for challenges, noting that developers were not knocking on the city's doors to build in the community, adding that if the City could develop cheaper housing some of the issues could be solved, offering up the potential of a camp like situation for workers to get started and established in the community.
Ms. Farell observed that she and her husband have invested in housing to ensure that their employees had a place to live, noting that in some instances there is a need to become more involved in all aspects of their employees lives.
Councillor Cunningham noted that a study as to how Whistler, Banff and Jasper have worked to resolve their housing and staffing issues for the service sector might be an approach for the City to follow. He also observed that the City has a role to play in promoting Prince Rupert as a place to live.
The Mayor's contribution to the discussion was to observe that their work could be integrated to the regional approach to employee attraction and made note of the new civic website related to economic development and employee attraction. He suggested that they connect with Paul Venditelli at the Economic Development office to follow up on their work.
( 53:30 -- 1:01:00 ) Reports from the Chief Financial Officer -- Ms. Corinne Bomben provided the results of the City's Financial Statements for 2017, reviewing a range of the city's spending plans on infrastructure and capital purchases projects, as well as debt levels on outstanding loans.
She also outlined some of the facets of the City's arrangement with Legacy Corp.
Councillors Cunningham and Mirau expressed their thanks for the Finance offices efforts in challenging times for the City, as well as to inquire about some elements of the Operations and range of funds that the city has in place.
Ms Bombens second report was an overview of the March Variance Report, detailing some of the elements related to Operating and Utility revenues and expenses which were all on track for this time of the year, and that Capital projects are just beginning.
Council moved to accept the reports.
( 1:01:00 -- 1:10:00 ) Correspondences for Action
Letter from Child Find BC requesting that May be proclaimed Missing Children's Month -- Council passed the resolution with no discussion
Letter from MP Nathan Cullen Regarding Passenger Transportation across Northern British Columbia -- A request from the MP seeking Council's support for a call to bring the issue of passenger transportation to the Federal Government for further discussion.
The topic provided for a an expanded discussion on the topic, with Councillor Randhawa asking that they add on the issue of VIA Rail service and it's poor performance levels to the letter for consideration.
Councillor Mirau inquired as to whether the Friendship House bus option in operation received any federal funding for their twice a week connection with Terrace, the Mayor noted that it does receive some form of federal funding, though it is also being run as a social enterprise, looking to switch it to a user fee model later on.
Mayor Brain also observed over his engagement on the issue with the Province through frequent conference calls with other Mayors, advising that the province is looking at other solutions towards the Highway 16 transportation issues.
Councillor Thorkelson urged caution on the issue, noting that the City needs to pressure the province on the issue, noting that she doesn't believe it is good to just shuttle people across the region by shuttle buses, calling instead for a larger more continuous service such as what Greyhound had provided in the past.
The Mayor advised that he could not speak further to what the Provincial plans may be at this time, adding that it will be up to the province to make any announcement as to their plans.
Mayor Brain further observed that they all agreed that they have sorted out the short term links between each of the communities, the conversation now turns to a consistent continuous transportation for the north.
Councillor Cunningham returned to the theme of VIA Rail and noted that it is getting worse all the time and that makes things very difficult for passengers, adding that the City should make sure its views are known.
On the theme of the bus services in the region, he observed that when the City opted out of the highway 16 Transportation plan of shuttle buses, that the Friendship House was offering transportation options and one of their options is to use Greyhound that will no longer be available.
Mayor Brain noted that when the City chose not to participate in the provincial led service, it was because they did not want to duplicate local services in place, advising how the Friendship House service mimics what would have been the same kind of schedule as the provincial plan.
He further expanded on the services offered by Transition House, and acknowledged that the Greyhound ticket option is about to be removed for Transition House leaving just Ferry or Rail as the transportation options available, with the goal now to figure out as a team what the longer game is going to be as far as continuous service, adding that technically that its a provincial responsibility.
Councillor Niesh called attention to the inequity between how the province handles transportation needs in the north and rural areas as compared to the larger cities and noted that the city needs to remind the province that it's not all about the Lower mainland, but about us too. Calling for transit services that are not put on the back of the community.
To bring the discussion to a close, the Mayor noted that the main thrust of Mr. Cullen's letter was to bring the Federal government into the discussion owing to the Highway's infamy as the Highway of Tears.
The City letter will give Nathan Cullen the mandate to raise the issues of bus and rail transportation with the Federal government.
Councillor Cunningham had one final question on the Transition House service asking if their 24 hour phone line was still in operation.
The Mayor advised it was and that the good news is that someone is always available to pick someone up at any time to take them to a safe place until proper transportation is out of town, reducing the option of hitch hiking.
He also explored how the City is addressing the issue of transportation, noting how as a council they were in support of the Transition House options and those being offered by Friendship House. With the next step for Council to work together on the continuous line with the province set to expand on that plan in the next few weeks.
( 1:12:00 -- 1:14:00 ) Announcements from Closed Meetings related to Board appointments -- Rory Mandryk the City's Corporate Administrator outlined the result of a Council discussion from the closed meeting of April 23rd , announcing the following appointments:
The Advisory Board on aviation and the Prince Rupert Airport will see three appointments to a two year term in place, with Ms.Gloria Rendell, Mr. Kelly Sawchuk and Mr. Knut Bjorndal all returning to the Prince Rupert Airport Authority Board.
Ms. Rosa Miller was appointed to the Small Business Advisory Council for a two year term.
The Recreation Department board saw six appointments announced.
Appointed to the Board are Ms. Joy Sundin, Ms. Sheri Pringle, Mr. Bruce Watkinson, Mr. Ralph Weick, Ms. Joyce Charlton and Ms. Anna-Marie Prohaska.
Council has also named Councillor Wade Niesh as the Chair of the Prince Rupert Recreation Commission Board.
( 1:14:00 to 1:20:00 ) Reports, Questions and Inquires from Council
Councillor Cunningham led off the reports period, asking about the city's policy on Community Gardens, noting how residents of Overlook are exploring one for their area. The Mayor observed that their initiative is being discussed with the City's Operations manager. He added that the concept of community gardens is something that they could explore through the Sustainable Cities 2030 initiative that Council is working towards. For the moment that is on an as it comes along process. Councillor Cunningham noted his full support for the project and how it adds to the community and brings residents together.
His second question for Council was related to the Mayor's Hays 2.0 presentation and what the strategy for Cleaning up the City may be, noting that people have asked him what the Mayor's strategy actually is and when it will begin to take shape.
The Mayor noted that it's part of a five year plan for a community clean which will be part of a report that is being worked on at the moment, with the plan has not yet been fully solidified. He observed that it will explore how to approach clean up issues such as derelict autos and properties and the costs associated with a clean up. He did suggest that it will be more of a five year process rather than doing it all at one time.
Mayor Brain also advised that the City has been exploring the idea of using two lots, one on each side of the city to use for storage of trailer and boat storage opportunities for residents to help take some of those items off the roads.
He expects that the report will come out shortly hopefully before the year ends.
Councillor Cunningham inquired if that then means that in the meantime nothing is going to be done at the moment when it comes to a clean up around the city, with the Mayor advising that wasn't the case noting that volunteer groups are constantly doing clean ups around the city, Mr. Brain further observed that he would prefer to see a phased strategy to make sure that they address the top priorities, adding that he hoped to do something this year but isn't sure when they might be able to move forward on the clean up plans.
Councillor Cunningham's final question was related to a derelict house on India and asked if Staff had a chance to look into it, he was advised by staff that would have to follow up on that question as there were some people away at the moment.
Councillor Randhawa inquired as to the McKay Street Park project and when the park may be opened for use by the children of the neighbourhood. Mayor Brain explained that his understanding was that the foundation of the park requires a bit more work and that inspections still need to be conducted. Noting that as it was a volunteer effort the City needs to ensure that it is up to code. He advised that it's a process that he hopes to have the park opened up soon.
With that as the final note on the night, Council brought their first session for May to a close.
You can access the City Council Review for May 14th here, where a number of items regarding the council session, including links to local media coverage, if any, can 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 from May 14, 2018 (not available yet)
In addition to the city's official minutes, the City's Video archive provides a helpful record of the events from each public council session.
Council members next meet on Monday, May 28.
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