City Council Timeline: Monday, February 10, 2020

The start of a new month made for another short meeting
for Prince Rupert City Council

Prince Rupert's City Councillors doubled the amount of time from the January 13th effort that they put in at the office and still they managed to be out of their public session within 16 minutes on Monday night

With few items on the agenda other than approving a variance and giving the OK to some letter of support writing, the night moved pretty quickly.

Something which allowed them to return to their suspended Closed session from earlier in the night, a meeting which they seemingly required more time to wrap up.

As part of their quarter hour of public civic governance, the Council members also offered up about six minutes on some notes of interest for them.

With  a few of the Councillors exploring a number of topics and then providing the Mayor with an opportunity to recount his recent week long trip to Prince George as part of a Resources forum in that city.

Some background on the work of Council on the evening and the various Regular Agenda elements for the February 10th Council session can be explored here.

Council also hosted a Closed Session earlier in the evening, the details as to why they required the doors to be closed for the 5PM meeting (which carried on after the Regular session) can be reviewed here.

Further information from our overview and placement in the video archive can be found below, with the permanent record of the minutes added as they are posted to the city website.

In attendance Monday, February 10, 2020

Mayor Lee Brain -- Present 
Councillor Nick Adey --  Present 
Councillor Barry Cunningham --  Present 
Councillor Blair Mirau -- Present 
Councillor Reid Skelton-Morven --  Present 
Councillor Wade Niesh -- Present
Councillor Gurvinder Randhawa --   Present 


Video Archive for Monday, February 10, 2020



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Regular Council Session

(0:00 -- 1:15 )   Regular City Council Session for Monday, February 10, 2020  -- Mayor Brain called the Regular Council Session to order, with Council adopting the agenda and past minutes of previous minutes. 

( 1:15 -- 4:00 )  Report from the City Planner -- Re Development Variance Permit for property on 8th Avenue East -- With Councillor Adey stepping out of the chamber for the duration of the report, 
(the reason for which was something not explained by the Mayor) City Planner Zeno Krekic provided for the overview of the plans of the property owner.

Councillor Skelton-Morven inquired as to the nature of the variance request and if there had been any opposition from the neighbours.  

Councillor Niesh asked for clarification on any encroachment issues related to an adjoining lane.

Council then voted to send the application to Public notification.

Councillor Adey then returned to the Chamber.

( 4:00 -- 5:00 ) Action required to move forward with an Active Transportation Plan -- Mayor Brain issued a call for a motion towards development of an Active Transportation Plan. The only discussion related to that call, coming from Councillor Adey who observed that he believed that the case for such a plan was well made by the presenters at the January 27th Council session.

Council then voted to approve the motion to begin the process of development of an Active Transportation Plan for Prince Rupert.


Correspondences for Action

( 5:00 - 9:30  ) Request for a Letters of Support-- Mayor Brain introduced seven requests on the evening, which included requests for letters of support towards applications to the Port of Prince Rupert Community Investment Fund, towards that Council reviewed and approved :

Letter of Support for North Coast Regional District 

Letter of Support for Fellowship Baptist Church and Preschool

Letter of support for Friendship House

Council also reviewed and approved a request for a letter of Support for the Gitga'at First Nation as part of their application for funding from Northern Development Initiative Trust.

Council also reviewed and approved a letter of support for Transition Prince Rupert towards their mural project.

Council also reviewed and approved a letter of support added by the Mayor for the North Coast Community Services Society towards a Child Development Centre.

Council also reviewed and approved a letter of support for the Prince Rupert Gymnastics Association towards their warehouse development plans.

In our preview of Monday, we had noted how many of the deadlines for the letters in question had expired last week and  towards that theme Councillor Adey sought out some clarification on the process, taking note that most of the deadlines had passed on Friday for the requested letters.

In reply, Mayor Brain noted that the groups had contacted the city prior to the deadline, but that the city's schedule did not call for a session until after that date had passed. He observed that it was probably OK that it came after fact with  the letters still to be provided as they would be included as part of the information provided to the Port.

He also noted that the City is looking to remind community groups and organizations to plan a bit further ahead on their applications plans to seek out the city's letters of support in enough time to be included as part of an earlier Council agenda for consideration.

Councillor Mirau called attention to the need for additional information that will be required in the letter of support for the Gitga'at First Nation.

Reports from Council

( 9:30 --  16:02 ) Mayor Brain led off the Council members in the talking points, providing some background on his recent trip to Prince George, noting for Council that he and other members of the Resource Benefits Alliance had met with Premier John Horgan. He reviewed some of their past exchanges with the Premier, observing how the Premier continues to support the initiative and would like to see it move forward.

Towards that Mr. Brain added that as a member of the steering committee they would be engaging the province further with hopes to be able to report back positive news at the end of this year towards the project which is now in its sixth year.

He highlighted the various areas that the additional funding could be used towards should the RBA find success in their initiative, wrapping up his report he noted that they were very positive meetings in Prince George.

Councillor Randhawa outlined some concerns that he has heard from residents of the community towards any measures in place towards having health check ups conducted on visiting crew members of visiting ships in port. He wondered if the City has any plans to contact the Port or Northern Health on the issue. The Mayor observed that they would follow up with Northern Health on the topic.

Councillor Cunningham took note of the recent announcement of a new President and CEO for Central Mountain Air, inquiring if the city's Airport Manager would be getting in touch with him to see if there is any interest in the airline extending their service to Prince Rupert.

In response the Mayor outlined how the Airport Manager is actively involved in a variety of initiatives to expand service to the airport and how the Board has been actively working to expand service to the city. Mr. Brain noted that now that the city has made some improvements and are trying to improve the link he is sure that they are actively working and are on top of that.

Councillor Adey made note of the week of All Native Basketball in Prince Rupert and anticipated a positive and fun week from the tournament, adding how he believes it would be another huge success for Prince Rupert and the First Nations.

Councillor Sketlon Morven followed up on that theme, noting how he and the Mayor had attended the Opening Ceremonies and he applauded all of those involved in putting the tournament and how it's been an honour to host the event for 61 years.

Councillor Cunningham also spoke to the Tournament and a potential parking crunch this coming Saturday, noting how the Prince Rupert Rampage will also be hosting their first playoff match up with Hazelton on that night. With Mr. Cunningham suggesting that the crowds consider public transit or walking to the venue, as parking will be tight.

Mayor Brain had one final item for review on the night, calling attention to the start of the process towards the City's Official Plan review, alerting the city's residents of an online survey that is currently underway.

He provided a bit of background on how the Official Community Plan will serve towards development of the city's vision for the future of the community.

With no other concerns of note on other topics, the Mayor brought the evening to a close, calling Council to re-adjurn to their Closed session of earlier in the night which had yet to be concluded.

You can access the City Council Session Archive here,  where a number of items regarding the council session, including links to local media coverage, can also be found.

As always, our Council Timeline is only a reflection of our observations from the Council session of the night. Be sure to consult with the official minutes from the City, when posted to their website for further review.

Official Minutes of the Regular Council Session from February 10, 2020 (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 February 24, which will a Committee of the Whole Session, that providing opportunity for the public to comment on issues of note or concern to them.

To return to the most recent blog posting of the day, click here.

Two for the Honour Roll tonight at ANBT Hall of Fame Induction

Two more names will be added tonight to the list of legends that are already members of the All Native Basketball Hall of Fame.

That as the tournament participants, organizers and fans pause later this evening to celebrate the achievements of Mitch Martin and Marven Morgan, both familiar names from tournament years of the past.

Mr. Martin was a stand out player on many a Bella Bella team over the years, while Marven Morgan took to the court for both Prince Rupert and Gitwinksihlkw during his days of competition at the annual event.

The two honourees for the evening were announced last fall as the Selection Committee reviewed the list of potential names that would make for the Hall of Fame Journey for this years ceremony.

Tonight's celebration starts at 7:30 in the Russell Gamble Gymnasium.

If you can't make it down to the Jim Ciccone Civic Centre, CFNR will be live streaming the events as part of their third night of broadcasting out of Prince Rupert.

For more notes on this 61st edition of the Tournament see our archive page here.

To return to the most recent blog posting of the day, click here.

CN Rail obtains court order in quest to reopen rail lines at protest sites

A rail blockade near Hazelton is one of two major incidents that CN Rail
has gone to the courts on towards clearing the rails 

CN Rail issued a statement on Tuesday outlining some of the impact to its operations that have been realized as protesters in solidarity against the Coastal GasLink pipeline in the Wet'suwet'en territory have set up blockades on rail lines  in  number of locations across Canada.

The two of current concern for the railway are located at Belleville Ontario and near Hazelton in Northwest British Columbia, the latter having effectively shut down rail shipments to the Port of Prince Rupert.

CN President and CEO JJ Ruest outlined the cascading effect that the shut down of the rail service
has had across Canada including the operations into Prince Rupert.

CN Rail President and CEO
JJ Ruest

“Intermodal containers carrying perishable goods including food and consumer items, Canadian grain, deicing fluid at airports, construction materials, propane to Quebec and Atlantic Canada, natural resources creating rural jobs across Canada such as lumber, aluminum, coal and propane; all of these commodities are already impacted and will see their movements even more diminished. Factories and mines will be soon faced with very difficult decisions. 

The Port of Prince Rupert is effectively already shutdown. The Ports of Montreal and Halifax are also already feeling the impact of these blockades which will have a trickledown effect on consumer goods in the next few weeks,”

Rail movements are few and far
between on the Prince Rupert
waterfront today

The CN CEO also released details on the court injunction that the railway has obtained and what the process towards moving forward on it will be.

“We have obtained court injunctions for both locations and we are working with local enforcement agencies to enforce the orders. We have also engaged with customers, industry associations as well as officials in Ottawa and across Canada to explain to them the consequences and material impact that shutting down the railroad will have on their constituents,”

CN noted in their media release that unless the blockades are removed CN will be forced to shut down significant parts of its Cross Canada network.

The full statement from CN can be reviewed here.

Earlier today, Shaun Stevenson the CEO and President of the Port of Prince Rupert provided an update on how the rail blockade has impacted on Port Operations, noting that there have been no trains servicing the Port since Saturday, with a number of Terminals on the waterfront having now shut dow their operations.

For more items of note related to CN see our archive page here.

To return to the most recent blog posting of the day, click here.

Junior Boys claim Northwest Zones, with Provincial Tournament their next destination

The Junior Boys Rainmakers claimed the Regional Zones
title in play this weekend at CHSS
(photo from CHSS twitter feed)

It's been a busy weekend for Basketball in Prince Rupert, with the launch of the All Native Tournament taking place on Sunday and High School ball on the sports menu Friday and Saturday.

Over at the Charles Hays Gym, it was time to make space for another Northwest Zones banner, as Kevin Sawka's Junior Boys claimed another regional title in a double elimination tournament which wrapped on on Saturday.

The Prince Rupert Boulevard campus was the host venue for the tournament with teams from Terrace, Smithers and Hazelton in town for the chance to represent the Northwest at Provincials.

The Rainmaker Scoreboard looked as follows:

Round One -- CHSS 78 Hazelton 25
Semi-Final -- CHSS 64  Smithers 24
Final -- CHSS 51 Smithers 36

The Junior Boys will now make their preparations for the trip to Langley later this month, the Provincial Junior Championship is set for February 22 to 25  at the Langley Events Centre.

The Senior Boys Rainmakers were also in action over the weekend, winning both match ups of a home and home series with the Caledonia Kermodes.

The Senior Makers claimed the Friday night victory at CHSS by a score of 89-55 , Saturday they topped the Kermodes again at the Cal Gym taking the win 55-30.

Up next for the Senior Boys will be DP Todd from Prince George who come to town for games on Friday and Saturday.

For more notes on Rainmaker sports see our archive page here.

To return to the most recent blog posting of the day, click here.

Mayor Brain appointed to Climate Solutions Council

Mayor Lee Brain has been appointed to a position with the province's Climate Solutions Council, joining eighteen other British Columbians to support a steady and committed approach to climate action that will look for ways to drive down emissions, increase economic opportunities and improve community resilience.

George Heyman, the Minister of Environment and Climate Change announced the new Council, part of the province's commitment towards Clean BC initiatives.

With the Minister making note of how the independent Council will continue on with the advisory role of the previous council, which completed its mandate in 2019.

“As part of our commitment to action and accountability on climate change, this new group of independent advisors will strengthen our CleanBC plan to build a cleaner future and improve peoples’ lives here in B.C. .

Their extensive experience and perspectives will help us expand and improve on the significant actions taking place through CleanBC, while supporting B.C. businesses as they reduce their carbon footprint and keeping daily life more affordable for the rest of us.”

In addition to the mayor, among those  who were announced to their positions by the Minister today were:

You can review all of their biographies here.

Co-Chair  Giroux-Schmidt highlighted the work ahead for the council and the opportunities available to it to effect change.

“As British Columbians, we have an incredible opportunity ahead of us as the world moves towards a clean economy and begins to address climate change. I look forward to working with my new council colleagues to help build on the success of CleanBC and monitor progress as the plan develops over time.”

Mr. Brain made note of his new position through his Facebook portal on Monday, observing how he hopes to bring some of the climate solutions to the Prince Rupert 2030 plan.

Some of the Climate Solution Council's past work can be explored below:

October 2019 -- Climate Solutions and Clean Growth Advisory council: Final Report

October 2015 -- Climate Leadership Team Recommendations to Government

Some of Mayor Brain's previous work on climate related themes have included past membership as part of the BC Mayor's Climate Control Council, as well as his own Sustainable City 2030 project of June 2018

The Prince Rupert Mayor did not indicate in his Facebook posting as to how much time would be required of his new duties and whether the new workload would impact on his efforts at City Hall.

You can review the full roll out announcement from the Provincial Government here.

Additional information on the Clean BC initiative can be explored here.

For more items of note on Council Discussion themes see our archive page here.


To return to the most recent blog posting of the day, click here.

MLA Rice finds a fence to straddle

North Coast MLA Jennifer Rice released her first comments on the Wet'suwet'en dispute on Monday, the notes a bit of a mumble jumble of contradictory themes and positioning statements that really don't suggest any kind of opinion, other than the impression that she probably wishes the whole situation would just go away.

In the short Facebook post, Ms. Rice notes that politicians have no control over police operational moves.

Though politicians can of course formulate policy and approvals for projects that in this instance, have put in motion the need for such operational moves following the issuance of a court injunction.

That is the case when it comes to the ongoing issues on the Morice West Forest Service Road over the last month and the opposition that has been found for the Coastal GasLink pipeline.

A project which has been endorsed by the British Columbia government of which Ms. Rice is a member of.

The MLA observes how she agrees with both the elected Haisla Chief Crystal Smith on job creation which in this case will come through LNG development; while also standing with the hereditary chief Na'moks in the Wetsuweten territory in opposition to development that does not fit with his community's values.

A foot in both camps, a position of substance for neither.

In her notes, the MLA invokes the vision of removals of residents off land by gunpoint, and calls to themes of the of past of residential schools and other traumatizing events for Indigenous people, mixing past and present situations together.

All of that was listed off, while she also tied her tapestry together with a call for further work towards decolonization of the laws in British Columbia.

Though in a video from Global TV of the final arrests of Monday, there do not appear to be any weapons drawn as the arrests were effected, leaving the reader to wonder if Ms. Rice has anything further to share on that theme.

The MLA's statement of Monday did not indicate if she agreed with her boss, Premier John Horgan who last month outlined how rule of law was prominent in the court order enforcement plans that were issued at the start of January, declaring at the time that the pipeline will be built.

For that matter her commentary makes no actual mention of any her own leader's statements, or the moves put in motion by her own party.

Nor does she take note of the string of agreements from other Indigenous peoples in support of the pipeline in question, particularly those that live and work in the area currently at the centre of the dispute.

Thus we guess, she doesn't need to provide any actual defence of, or opposition to, the path that the government has followed.

Most of all, she has had little to say during the period of time that led up to the enforcement order of Friday, which continued through the weekend.

Her range of information portals on vacation for the most part, other than a hopeful thought for the work of former MP Nathan Cullen who was part of the Wiggus table, an effort that in the end did not find any success.

As the events continued to evolve over the last six weeks, her information streams were mostly silent while the tensions were building and residents were seeking some guidance from their elected official.

Her lack of commentary on the issue of a pipeline in 2020, is  quite the change from her strong stance as an Opposition MLA of 2016, that when she was signing the Lelu Island Delcaration with MP  Cullen and MLA Doug Donaldson, the latter  now the current forests minister in BC.

That document clearly outlined her opposition to the concept of the then Pacific Northwest LNG terminal in Port Edward and firmly placed her at the forefront of the discussion in the Northwest.

The past efforts from the two Northern MLA's is one that Vancouver Sun journalist Vaughn Palmer picked up on in his column of Monday, which in effect calls out the NDP for contributing to  the current political crisis which it now seems to unable to resolve.

The Legislature is set to resume its work today with protesters having set up camp on the Legislature grounds and blocking its doors.

As they look to return to their duties, the MLA's will either attempt to walk in those front doors and wade through a growing congregation of Wet'suwet'en supporters on the front steps, or they'll find some other way into the building.

At some point there may even be some discussion on the topic in the Legislature, if and when that time comes, the MLA's that live in the ridings of the Northwest and represent the residents in each of them will have a chance to join in on the debate.

Those living on the North Coast and beyond for that matter, will be listening with interest to see if perhaps a little more clarity to the jumbled message of Monday from their MLA will be delivered in the public forum of the Legislature chamber.

Or if a lack of any meaningful contribution to the discussion will instead serve as the MLA's official view.

You can review the last six weeks of the events of the Wet'suwet'en through the archive page we have created that tracks many of the Northwest notes.

As well you can explore the issues further through our political portal D'Arcy McGee and our Victoria Viewpoints archive.

For notes on the North Coast Riding and Ms Rice's representation in Victoria see our archive page here.

To return to the most recent blog posting of the day, click here.

Hazelton rail blockade impacting on Port of Prince Rupert operations

A blockade of the CN Rail main line near Hazelton is having an echo effect across Northwestern British Columbia and the loudest echo and largest impact is being found on the Prince Rupert waterfront.

Speaking with CBC Radio's Carolina de Ryk on Daybreak North this morning, Shaun Stevenson the President and CEO of the Port of Prince Rupert outlined how the blockade of the rail line in support of the Wet'suwet'en dispute has meant that no trains have come in or out of the facilities of the Port since Saturday afternoon.

Trucks continue to transit between the DP World container port
and various terminals around the city, but with no new rail shipments
coming into the port those volumes will decline

Stevenson noted that with dozens of trains idled,  that the economic vitality of Northern BC is being impacted due to the stoppage of passage.

He added that the Port is attempting to keep things moving when it comes to terminals and ships, but as the supply of incoming product dwindles, many of the terminal locations on the waterfront have already ceased operations.

"The unintended consequences is that it has severely impacted on the operations of the Port of Prince Rupert, and we're very concerned about our ability to operate and offer the service that is quite frankly contributed to our growth and success as a port" -- Port of Prince Rupert CEO and President Shaun Stevenson speaking on CBC Radio's Daybreak North host Carolina de Ryk on Tuesday morning

The President and CEO observed that the cargo that comes through Prince Rupert is discretionary and  has a choice as to where those ships can go.

With the potential for vessels to be redirected to Vancouver or US ports something that the Port is concerned about, Mr. Stevenson also made note how the success of the Northwest port is its ability to move goods efficiently through the corridor, which in the case of Prince Rupert is by rail.

He also expressed concerns that the reputational damage is much more impactful than even the lost shifts that we're seeing as a result of the rail service being impaired.

When it comes to the employment levels that are feeling the bite of the blockade, Mr. Stevenson highlighted that 6,000 workers across Northern BC rely on the Port and its rail connection for their employment, with 3,600 direct jobs found in Prince Rupert and the northwest corridor alone.

He made note that the Port is hopeful of a peaceful resolution to the Wet'suwet'en issues, but observed how the Port does not have anything to do with the Coastal GasLink project that is at the heart of the protests and blockades.

The testimony to the current lack of movement of goods through the Port can be viewed in the Prince Rupert Harbour where vessels remain at anchor up and down the coastline.

In addition to those vessels currently tied up at local terminals, the Port's daily ships movements listings currently has eighteen vessels listed as at anchorage with another fourteen vessels listed as pending.

The interview is available on the CBC Daybreak North website here.

For more notes related to the Port of Prince Rupert and the terminals that are on the Prince Rupert waterfront see our archive page here.

To return to the most recent blog posting of the day, click here.