Regional District paydays put Mayor Lee Brain into the $100,000 club for 2015

The City of Prince Rupert was not the only local government body that was required to present its Statement of Financial Information last week, a process delivered to Council at a Special meeting called for last Wednesday at 5 PM.

Skeena-Queen Charlotte Regional District also has posted its Statement of Information for 2015 to its website the table of payment included in the Agenda package for their June 17th meeting..

Among the listings of the financial are the compensation levels for three members of Prince Rupert City Council who were the recipients of some salary top ups top ups to go along with their Prince Rupert pay packages.

Sixteen representatives serve as members of the Regional District, either as Elected officials or alternate members of the Board of Directors for the often overlooked level of government.

Skeena Queen Charlotee Regional District covers a vast part of the geography of the region stretching from the North Coast across to Haida Gwaii.

When it comes to compensation levels for their work SQCRD Chairman Barry Pages receives the highest remuneration at Regional District, with the SOFI report listing his Salary at $20,088 and expenses listed at $13,733

As for the Prince Rupert contingent that worked on Regional District files through 2015, three members are listed in the 2015 SOFI report.

Prince Rupert Councillor Nelson Kinney received remuneration of $14,484 for his work as member of the SQCRD regional Board, claiming $112 for his expenses with that body.

Councillor Blair Mirau as an alternate member of the Board received $170 in remuneration while his expenses were listed at  $688

Mayor Lee Brain is listed as having received remuneration of $12,918, with expenses of 20 dollars in the last year.

That additional $12,000 propels the Mayor over the $100,000 dollar mark when you combine the amount of $96,000 in salary and expenses listed as part of the Prince Rupert SOFI and the financial disclosure from regional district.

Those are numbers that make the Prince Rupert Mayor far and away the highest compensated elected official on the municipal scene across the Northwest.

The jump in salary for Mr. Brain in 2015 came as City council voted to shift his position from that of a Part time one, to that of Full time status last year.

A look at the comparisons for some of the communities of the Northwest can be found below, all would also receive some form of compensation for their Regional District duties:

Kitimat
Statement of Financial Information
Mayor Phil Germouth
Municipal Salary $30,267.96  Expenses $15,134.35
Regional District (not posted yet)

Smithers
Statement of Financial Information
Mayor Taylor Bacharach
Municipal Salary $20,646 Expenses $9,953
Regional District (not posted yet)

Terrace's information is proving a little harder to find through its website, with no SOFI listed in the index of the city's website as of yet for that community.

However using some numbers forecast for 2015 found in the Terrace Standard from 2014, an estimate of Mayor Carole Leclerc's salary gives us an idea as to what her range may be. Terrace has in the past considered making the Mayor's position a full time one and it's a theme that frequently gains attention and some discussion in that community.

Like the City of Terrace website, the Kitimat-Stikine Regional District portal does not appear at this point to have provided a final document on SOFI.

Terrace 
Statement of Information (not posted to website yet)
Mayor Carole Leclerc
Municipal Salary  -- $34,500 (plus expense listings)
Regional District -- (not posted yet)


A little further down the highway finds the remuneration level found for the top job in Prince Rupert closing in on the salary levels of much larger communities around the province, a glimpse at some of those figures can be found below:

Prince George
Statement of Financial Information
Mayor Lyn Hall
Municipal Salary $99,502.50  Expenses $6,392

Kamloops
Statement of Financial Information
Mayor Peter Milobar
Municipal Salary $99,483.40  Expenses $5,401.10

Kelowna
Statement of Information
Mayor Colin Basran
Municipal Salary $93,971  Expenses  $20,874

Nanaimo
Statement of Information
Mayor William McKay
Municipal Salary $95,097.56   Expenses $28,302.37

Victoria
Statement of Information
Mayor Lisa Helps
Municipal Salary $100,897.64  Expenses $7,841

Providing counsel to City Council is also a rewarding calling in Prince Rupert, with City Manager Mr. Long among the top earners among the unelected officials with the City and holding his own compared to those in similar positions across the province..

With the SOFI declaration from last week outlining his salary at $254,797 in remuneration/taxable benefits and $26,846 in expenses. Those levels match up well with the pay listed from 2015 for other top civic executives around the province.

Some of those on the list below, have since moved on to other positions in other communities.

Kitimat -- Warren Waycheshen CAO -- $177,713.86
Smithers -- Deborah Sargent CAO -- $128,184
Terrace -- Heather Avison CAO -- (listings not posted yet)
Prince George -- Kathleen Soltis  $223,415.51
Kelowna -- Ron Mattiussi  $285,413
Kamloops  -- David Trawin CAO -- $266,395.90
Victoria -- Jason Johnson  $235,072.10
Nanaimo -- Edward Swabey $240,716.24

Politicians and civic officials can compare their pay stubs in late September, when all will gather at the annual UBCM convention. Taking a look at the results from this years financial overview, it would appear that Prince Rupert probably can pick up the tab on the first round at the opening night social.

You can follow developments on the municipal scene from our Archive page found here.

Real Estate Tracker, week ending July 3, 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 3 is below:

Prince Rupert Real Estate West
July 3 2016

Prince Rupert Real Estate East
July 3 2016

The holiday weekend made for a familiar one when it comes to the listings around the North Coast, with no new entries added to our list of ten for the week.

The lack of movement over the last seven days keeps the benchmarks at the same level for the list this week with 439,000 dollar marking the low end, with the top end of the weeks listings is still listed at 639,000 dollars.

The balance of properties from east to west shifts as well, with six properties found on the west side of the city and four properties listed from the east side of the city's McBride Street dividing line.

Below find our findings as of the Week ending July 3, 2016

160 Van Arsdol Street                  $639,900   -- Remax
2085 Graham Avenue                   $575,000  --  Remax
1724 Graham Avenue                   $545,000  --  Royal Lepage
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
1528 7th Avenue East                   $439,000  --  Royal Lepage

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 July 3, 2016

Some progress towards a decision on one Northwest LNG project dominated the news cycle on the week, as the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency announced that it had restarted the process of evaluation for Pacific NorthWest LNG's Lelu Island project, with the federal government anticipated to render a decision in mid to late September.

City Council developments took three of the five top items on the blog this week, leading off that flow of news  was the release of the City's Salary and Expense listings as part of the annual Statement of Financial Information.

That document also provided another popular story for review on the week, with a look at the list of payments to local and out of town suppliers for services and supplies on city work.

Item number three on the week found Council securing some attention with its plans to commemorate parkland behind Westview School, with the land to be dedicated in memory of long time North Coast resident Odd Eidsvik who passed away one year ago.

The final notable item from the list of five is from the city's crime blotter, with the local RCMP detachment the scene of the crime after a vandalism spree strikes the detachment parking lot.

The top story of the week however, returns to the theme of British Columbia's much discussed LNG Terminal development ambitions and indications that the final laps may be in sight for Petronas./Pacific NorthWest LNG.

CEAA restarts clock on Pacific NorthWest LNG project, destined for a late September deadline -- What appears to be the home stretch for a decision on the proposed LNG terminal at Lelu island is now underway with September set to be decision time by the Federal Government.  (posted June 28, 2016)

That article was followed by:

Salary and Expenses on the rise from Prince Rupert's SOFI review -- The City of Prince Rupert releases its Statement of Financial Information, tracking compensation and expenses in 2015  (posted June 21, 2016)

Suppliers reap $28 million as City increases spending in 2015 -- The City's financial review also provided background on public spending for last year (posted June 30, 2016)

Prince Rupert RCMP detachment hit by vandalism spree -- A brazen display of vandalism struck close to the city's RCMP detachment  ( posted June 27, 2016)

Council looks to commemorate Odd Eidsvik's life with parkland designation -- Prince Rupert Council moves ahead with plans to name the parkland area behind Westview School in memory of former Councillor and civic leader Odd Eidsvik  (posted June 27, 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

Prince Rupert hosts a Party in the Park to celebrate Canada's 149th

Cloudy skies, but No Rain for those taking in the Canada Day celebrations
at Mariner's Park on Friday

As it should be on anyone's birthday, the weather Gods cooperated with the rain of the morning clearing out just in time for the launch of Prince Rupert's 4 hour daytime celebration of Canada's Birthday at Mariner's Park.

The sun peeked through the clouds for much of the four hours, while Rupertites and visitors to the North Coast enjoyed some of the birthday cake on hand for the day and participated in the many events scheduled from Noon until four.

Should the weather continue to cooperate for organizers, the Canada Day Fireworks Display will take place tonight at 11:15 with the best vantage point for viewing once again Mariner's Park.

Below some snapshots of a day in the park (click to enlarge), an afternoon full of red and white and a large amount of delight as part of the the North Coast's popular Canada Day celebrations.

There were a number of attractions and events for those at Mariner's to take in

One of the rest areas at Mariner's Park for those needing a break

Food options continue to grow on the North Coast, this one offering
the delicacies of Newfoundland at Mariner's Park Friday

Some familiar tastes were available including Prince Rupert
famed kebobs were available along the food corridor at Mariner's

Member of the Prince Rupert Detachment of the RCMP in Red Serge made
for a popular photo backdrop for many at Friday's Canada Day celebrations

City of Prince Rupert to pursue two grant opportunities for transportation and Tsunami risk assessment

City Council members heard some background information on Wednesday related to two Grant Opportunities that City staff hope to pursue, with infrastructure money for the Fairview Dock of the Airport Ferry and funding for planning for disasters available and welcoming applications.

At a special council session of Council on Wednesday, the City's Director of Operations Richard Pucci outlined the main focus of a Grant application under the federal governments Canada 150 Fund program.

Mr. Pucci explained for Council the need for repair for the Fairview Bay side of the Airport Ferry system, noting how the current dock pontoons require daily monitoring due to their age and the extreme environment in which they are located. Noting that they are an essential piece of the transportation infrastructure and in dire need of replacement.

If the City is successful with its request for funding, the money provided by the program would be put towards reducing the cost to local taxpayers for the work that is required.

Councillor Thorkelson had a few questions related to the application, first asking what other kinds of projects were available and why they chose the Airport Ferry work for the grant bid.

She was advised that it has been on the radar for a number of years and how the airport ferry is an important part of the transportation infrastructure system and how it has been put off owing to cost.

The City's Financial officer observed that the proposed project was also part of the Capital Budget and with the funding announcement the city will be applying for the funding to cover it.

Council voted to approve that grant request.

The City's Corporate Administrator also took advantage of Wednesday's council session to provide his overview of another grant opportunity this one funded by the Provincial and Federal governments for mitigation work towards natural disasters.

Mr. Rory Mandryk noted that the city could apply for a grant opportunity hosted by Emergency Management BC to access up to $450,000 for the first phase of the work to involve extensive risk assessments for a possible tsunami event. The program features four phases related to the steps involved in the process.

The cost of stage one would be accessed by the grant funding received by the program, no direct funding will be required by the city, it is anticipated that if successful in its grant award  that it will speak to additional grant funding being provided for the following three stages.

City Staff asked for guidance from Council as to whether to seek out the grant opportunity available.

Councillor Thorkelson raised a number of questions related to the proposed application, asking to the total cost of the work, noting that she has concerns when it comes to applying for funding but if the City doesn't have the amount in its budget to apply for matching funding they have to take it from other areas.

Mr. Mandryk noted that there is no need for matching funding for this proposal, that it is provided by the Federal and provincial governments, the Mayor adding that it is a fully paid grant.

Councillor Cunningham asked if the nature of the first stage of the risk assessment would be part of city staff's regular work or how it was planned to handle such an involved process and how much time would need to be allocated.

Mr. Mandryk explained that the assessment process would fall to the Fire Chief and Deputy Fire Chief and that city staff would be working in an advisory capacity. He also noted that consultants would be brought in to conduct the actual work related to the assessment project.

Councillor Thorkelson returned to the different stages of the project, asking what kind of commitment the City would have following the first stage. Mr. Mandryk observed that to follow that up with the further stages the City would have to apply for further funding opportunities.

Councillor Cunningham observed that after the risk assessment was complete the City would have a better understanding of how much further planning would be required.

Council voted to approve the motion to seek out the Funding from the program.

City staff will now prepare their applications and submit them to the two different funding programs, no timeline for consideration was provided as part of Wednesday's Council session.

More background on the twin opportunities can be found on the City Council Agenda for June 30.

You can examine the two proposals for funding through the City's Video Archive page.

The Fairview Dock funding opportunity is reviewed at just before the one minute mark, while the Tsunami preparation funding opportunity is explained at the 6 minute thirty second mark.



For more items related to City Council infrastructure concerns see our archive page here.

Further background on City Council discussions can be found on our Council Archive page.

Port Community Fund to lend hand to recreation facilities for Metlakatla

The folks across the harbour in Metlakatla have been celebrating some new facilities over the last few days, with the Prince Rupert Port Authority Community Investment Fund providing some of the cash to help see two health and recreation initiatives come to realization.

The two projects included the construction of a new multi-use sports field for the community, as well as the creation of a skateboard park that is adjacent to the existing recreation centre.

The Port's Investment fund provided a total of $125,000 to the two projects.

The construction of the new field for Metlaktla provided for more than a few challenges for the local government during the construction phase. With rock and muskeg removal making for an influence on the costs and making the project an initiative that cost over 500,000 dollars.

Metlakatla's Chief Councillor Harlod Leighton took note of how the Port and the community are an example of working towards a shared vision.

“These facilities demonstrate Metlakatla’s commitment to investing in an improved quality of life for people living in the community,” ... “The Port of Prince Rupert’s contribution to this project is an example of how port operations directly benefit local communities, and demonstrates how we are working together towards a shared vision of success.”

The two projects which were part of Metlakatla's  Healthy Lifestyle Initiative now allow both Metlakatla residents and those from other areas of the North Coast a few more options when it comes to recreation activities.

Port President and CEO noted the welcoming nature of the community and what it has to offer.

“We’ve always found ourselves warmly welcomed in Metlakatla, and we encourage residents of Prince Rupert, Port Edward and other North Coast communities to experience what this vibrant village has to offer,” ...  “We’re humbled to see the collective impact of our thriving trade gateway expressed through opportunities to modernize and beautify neighbouring communities.”

A new skateboard park had its Grand Opening
on Thursday and is now in use in Metlakatla

Metlakatla now boasts of top end sports field for use by both the local community
and those from around the region
( all photos courtesy of PRPA information release)

The Metlakatla government notes that there is a Ferry Service that operates several times a day between Prince Rupert and the community, with the recreation facilities open to any member of the public as long as the visitors comply with the same laws and regulations that govern the community.

The community celebrated the Grand Opening of the Skateboard park on June 29th

More background on the recent funding can be found from this information release.

Further items of interest from Metlakatla can be found on our archive page.

City Council Timeline for Special Session of June 29, 2016

For the most part, it appears that Wednesday's very short Special Session of Council was called mainly to approve the City's Statement of Financial Information.

A task that is required  under the British Columbia Financial Act.of Council before the deadline of June 30th.

The eleven minute meeting held at 5 PM on Wednesday took care of that requirement with little in the way of a council review, while Council also  received a report on the Variances from the City's financial officer.

Since they were there anyways, Council was asked to give the go ahead to pursue a couple of grant applications that City staff have put forward for consideration.

All items one imagines  that could have been taken care of at Monday's 34 minute Regular Council meeting, but for whatever reason were not added to that Agenda for consideration at that time.

For some background on the evening's items of note, the Agenda for the Regular Council session for June 29, 2016 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 June 29, 2016

Mayor Lee Brain-- Present 
Councillor Barry Cunningham-- Present 
Councillor Blair Mirau -- Present
Councillor Wade Niesh -- Present
Councillor Nelson Kinney--  Present
Councillor Gurvinder Randhawa--  Present (by phone)
Councillor Joy Thorkelson -- Present

Video Archive for June 29, 2016





(0:00--0:30)  Special Regular Council Session for Monday, June 29, 2016  -- The Mayor reviewed past minutes and the current agenda for the evening. 

Reports to Council

( 0:30--3:30 ) Report from the Director of Operations regarding the Canada 150 grant  --  Mr. Pucci outlined the nature of a request for a Grant application to the Canada 150 grant, which would seek to access funding for the Airport Ferry Ramp pontoon rehabilitation project. His background information reviewed how the City needs to replace the pontoons to the dock on the Fairview side of the Airport Ferry system.

Councillor Thorkelson had a few questions related to the application, first asking what other kinds of projects were available and why they chose the Airport Ferry work for the grant bid. She was advised that it has been on the radar for a number of years and how the airport ferry is an important part of the transportation infrastructure system and how it has been put off owing to cost.

The City's Financial officer observed that the proposed project was also part of the Capital Budget and with the funding announcement the city will be applying for the funding to cover it.

Council voted to approve the motion to seek the funding.

( 3:30 --5:30 ) Report from the City Financial Officer providing a variance report  -- Ms. Bomben outlined the nature of the findings from the Variance Report covering a period up to an including May. Her key observations included a review of the level of usage of the ferry to the Prince Rupert airport which has declined with the departure of Hawkair, though she does note that Air Canada recently started a third flight to the city. 

As well, she noted that the Cow Bay Marina is now fully operational and will be contributing to the city's revenue sources. Most departments are on budget this year, with Capital purchases and work underway and taking place through the summer.

Councillor Randhawa offered up one question related to the Cow Bay Marina asking as to the level of interest being found in the new facility, Ms. Bomben noted that the interest has been steady, with the Marina manager reporting that the facility is full and many people are calling to make reservations.

Council voted to receive the report.

( 5:30 -- 6:30 ) Report from the City Financial Officer providing a review of the Statement of Financial Information for 2015  -- Ms. Bomben outlined some brief background to the Statement of Financial Information, adding that much of the information from the SOFI is available in the Annual Financial Statement. She noted that by its approval Council will have fulfilled the requirements of the British Columbia Financial Act.  

No members of Council had any questions related to the document or any of its findings.

Council voted to approve the Statement of Financial Information

You can review the full document from the Council Agenda for the evening starting at page 9. 

Our background pieces related to the SOFI information can be reviewed below:

June 30 -- Suppliers reap $28 million as City increases spending in 2015
June 30 -- Final numbers for 2015 show $1.3 million in Community Grants distributed by the City
June 29 -- Salary and Expenses on the rise from Prince Rupert's 2015 SOFI review

( 6:30 --11:00 ) Report from the Corporate Administrator providing a review of a proposed Grant Application towards the National Disaster Mitigation Program   --  Mr. Mandryk noted that the city could apply for a grant opportunity hosted by Emergency Management BC to access up to $450,000 for the first phase of the work to involve extensive risk assessments for a possible tsunami event. The program features four phases related to the steps involved in the process.

The cost of stage one would be accessed by the grant funding received by the program, no direct funding will be required by the city, it is anticipated that if successful in its grant award  that it will speak to additional grant funding being provided for the following three stages.

City Staff asked for guidance from Council as to whether to seek out the grant opportunity available.

Councillor Thorkelson raised a number of questions related to the proposed application, asking to the total cost of the work, noting that she has concerns when it comes to applying for funding but if the City doesn't have the amount in its budget to apply for matching funding they have to take it from other areas.

Mr. Mandryk noted that there is no need for matching funding for this proposal, that it is provided by the Federal and provincial governments, the Mayor adding that it is a fully paid grant.

Councillor Cunningham asked if the nature of the first stage of the risk assessment would be part of city staff's regular work or how it was planned to handle such an involved process and how much time would need to be allocated.

Mr. Mandryk explained that the assessment process would fall to the Fire Chief and Deputy Fire Chief and that city staff would be working in an advisory capacity. He also noted that consultants would be brought in to conduct the actual work related to the assessment project.

Councillor Thorkelson returned to the different stages of the project, asking what kind of commitment the City would have following the first stage. Mr. Mandryk observed that to follow that up with the further stages the City would have to apply for further funding opportunities.

Councillor Cunningham observed that after the risk assessment was complete the City would have a better understanding of how much further planning would be required.

Council voted to approve the motion to seek out the Funding from the program.

(11:00--11:30  ) Reports, Questions and Inquires from Council

With No comments or questions from the Council members, the meeting was then adjourned.

You can access the City Council Review for the Special Session 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.

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.

Official Minutes of the Regular Council Session from June 29th, 2016 (not available yet)

Council members now return to their summer schedule for Regular Council sessions, featuring only one session per month for July, August and September, the next scheduled Council session takes place on July 25th.