Since you may have some time these days, take a trip back in time with the Prince Rupert Library

The Prince Rupert Library remains CLOSED during this time
of the COVID pandemic, but Prince Rupert residents can still
take advantage of what it has to offer the community

The April Update from the Prince Rupert Library provides for a look at how residents of the region can still connect with the Library which remains closed to the public during these times of COVID.

Among the themes reviewed from this months newsletter have been a heads up on the range of Ebooks and Elearning opportunities available through the Library website.

Library patrons can also check out the Facebook group Have You Read created by Librarian Lou Allison, where fellow readers share some of their favourite books and make recommendations for something that you may find interesting.

You can also learn more about the many online borrowing options available through the Prince Rupert Library with links towards the BC Library to Go program and a wealth of eBooks, audiobooks and much more for computers, tablets and celphones.

The Library also reminds users that the book bins remain locked during the COVID related closure, with patrons asked to hold their materials at home until the Library reopens, adding that any outstanding fines accrued during this period will be waived.

One area of local note worth checking out is the online archive that the Library hosts featuring the historical review of the Prince Rupert Daily News, a project that has so far seen editions up to June of 1954 saved for the ages in digital form.

The collection project is noted as a shared courtesy of Black Press.

The Prince Rupert Library hosts an archive of past editions of the
Prince Rupert Daily News up to 1954 so far, above the news of the day
100 years ago today, April 21, 1920

The project provides a fascinating glance into the past of the community and offers a timely and valuable reminder that all things do pass as time marches forward.

The full April Update can be viewed here.

You can learn more about what the Prince Rupert Library is up to during this COVID period of closure from their website and Facebook page.

More notes on community items of note can be found here.

While Prince Rupert City Council remains in hibernation; Terrace residents to get Budget update this week

It's been almost a month since members of Prince Rupert City Council have gathered in a public session, their last appearance a virtual one, providing for the delivery of the short lived State of Local emergency on March 23rd.

A dramatic move proposing some fairly draconian measures and one which was subsequently quashed by the Province when the Premier introduced a provincial order of his own.

A move by the Provincial Government that didn't sit too well with Prince Rupert Mayor Lee Brain at the time.

And since then, it seems that the Mayor and Council have taken that as a cue to take some time away from public duties.

Taking  the theme of physical distancing as a sign for suspension of public duties, all while shovelling off a range of items towards the local MLA"s office in late March, for the most part remaining silent on much of everything civic related.

"Unfortunately any community issues moving forward regarding housing, childcare, homelessness, etc are to be sent to Jennifer Rice's office as her and her team are now in control. You can forward your concerns to Jennifer Rice by calling 250-624-7734 or e-mailing jennifer.rice.mla@leg.bc.ca." -- Mayor Lee Brain following the suspension of a Local State of Emergency on March 26th

That apparent shift away from a public focus, has left as the only conduit of civic information that of the Mayor's Facebook page.

An enterprise which has covered a range of material of late, as well as to deliver much in the way of pats on the back for the Mayor from his faithful followers.

Though few of his entries in recent weeks seem related to actually running the City.

Such has been the Council's desire for physical distancing, that they eliminated the first of the two scheduled Council sessions for April, that of the one set for the 6th, citing a lack of business as the reason for the scuppered session.

The second session for April seemingly appears set to take place this coming Monday, dependent on late developments or cancellation of course.

Down the road however, the City of Terrace has been working through a range of civic issues this month, including a revision of their budget planning in the wake of COVID-19.

The Council membership in Terrace managed to not only find enough work to keep themselves busy, but also to find a work around the need to continue on with governance in these times of COVID.

The Terrace council returned to their duties after their own cancelled session of late March; the Terrace officials hosting their regular City Council session on April 14th hosting a hybrid of a physical and virtual council meeting.

The first run of the new model, offering up some indication that a bit of work on fine tuning the process may be required moving forward.



Now that they're back into the swing of things, Terrace Council will move forward with their public engagement process on the Budget with a special session on Thursday hosting  a livestream broadcast,

With Terrace council members noting for the public how they have been reviewing the 2020 provisional budget to adjust for losses in revenues as well as to provide reductions to both operational costs and capital budgets to provide some relief where they can.

Council has a lot to consider given the global changes that have occurred since we first announced our budget 2020 plans last December. They will be reviewing the budget with staff for finalization and approval.

They continue with their regular routine of public sessions with another meeting on the 27th.

As we noted last week, the financial concerns have loomed large for many municipal governments in the province, with many taking action, often updating their residents on their plans and how they impact on the community.

Though as we noted at the time, the City of Prince Rupert has not had anything to share with its residents on those themes at all.

Hopefully, the members of City Council in Prince Rupert have been active on those files during this extended public absence. With plans to share some thoughts with the public on how the City of Prince Rupert plans to address the challenging times for municipal governance in these times of COVID and ongoing economic uncertainty.

The next public session, as mentioned previous is set for this coming Monday, April 27th, with a little luck, Prince Rupert residents may see their council members come out of hibernation for a few minutes to return to the democratic process.

A collective that is ready to share some comments and maybe even ask some questions on our behalf when they get together, if they get together that is.

For more notes on past Council themes see our archive page here.

City continues on with Landfill project with call for bids for aerators

Things may be slowing down a bit when it comes to non-essential public works projects, however the ongoing project towards expansion of the Ridley Island landfill site continues on, with the City of Prince Rupert seeking bids towards some equipment for the location on the outskirts of the city.

In a Request for Proposals placed last week with BC Bid, the City is on the search for four Triton Surface Aerators for the site, destined for use in the lagoon portion of the landfill area.

The process makes for a circulation to reduce the amount of chemicals needed to treat a body of water by providing oxygen that the bacteria needs to function properly.

An example of a version of an Aerator system from Newterra industries

The timeline for the bid process would see the successful  bidder provide delivery by August of this year.

Among the services to be provided from the successful bid:


Supply and deliver four (4) TR15 Triton Surface Aerators or equivalent 
Commissioning Services 
Prepare and Provide Operation and Maintenance Manual 
Prepare and Provide List of Spare Parts and Special Tools

The City is using the services of Sperling Hansen Associates to receive enquiries notices and too make responses towards the bid process.

The deadline to submit bids is 2 PM on May 5th.

For more notes related to past Requests for Proposals and successful bids see our archive page here.

SD52 updates parents/students on Continuity of Learning in Prince Rupert

While the times may be challenging, officials at SD52 are making progress towards the Continuity of Learning process now in place in the Prince Rupert School District.

And while it's not the traditional approach towards delivering on education, in some very unusual times, the School District is working towards providing for some semblance of normalcy in the lives for students across the various grade levels.

In an update from SD52 Superintendent Irene Lapierre last week, the top school official reinforced the four guiding principles that the Minister of Education has put in place towards the path forward:

Featured on the list were:

Maintain a healthy and safe environment for all students, families and all employees

Provide services to support children of essential workers

Support vulnerable students who may need special assistance

Provide continuity of education opportunities for all students

Towards the final point, Ms. LaPierre outlined how educational opportunities are now available on line and staff have created learning packages unique to each school site.

As well, the Superintendent observed as to how staff were quite excited to hear their student's voices and how the students were excited to be reunited with their teachers.

The technology department has also been busy during this period, preparing a range of devices for use at home, the learning tools are now available to students from their individual schools.

The work ahead includes supporting those students who may require additional support accessing the continuity of education resources and staff continue to work towards delivering an equity of learning for all students.

The full letter can be reviewed here.

Making use of a full range of social media options, the School District has also provided for a copy of the Most Frequently Asked Questions that the Minister of Education has received towards the path ahead for Continuity of Learning.

Posting that list of Q and A's through their Instagram feed.

During the Daily COVID Update from Dr. Bonnie Henry and Health Minister Adrian Dix, a glimpse at what the future for education in the province may be like was provided. 

With a range of options to be explored in the weeks ahead including a mix of in class instruction for some of the lower grade students and the expansion of technology for education in the future even beyond these days of the Pandemic situation.

You can review those themes from the Question and Answer portion of the Monday information session, which you can view here (approximately 35 minute mark).

You can also access more resources on the current learning programs in Prince Rupert and area from the Rupert Schools twitter feed as well as the SD52 website.

For more notes related to Education in the Northwest see our archive page here.

COVID update observes on five new deaths in BC, with increased cases for Northern Health; Province also expands health care service plans for Indigenous and rural areas

It being Monday, there was two sets of data reviewed from the weekend when it comes to the daily COVID-19 update, the first from the reporting period through April 19, made note of 29 new cases, for a total of 1,676 cases in British Columbia.

In the last 24 hours, BC recorded a further 23 new cases, for a total of 1,699 cases in British Columbia.

The newest review represents 52 new cases since those which were  reported on Saturday.

700 are in the Vancouver Coastal Health region, 705 are in the Fraser Health region, 102 are in the Island Health region, 153 are in the Interior Health region and 39 are in the Northern Health region, the latter a jump of five since Saturday.

Five more families in British Columbia, are in mourning today, with word of the passing of five COVID related patients in the last 48 hours.

 “We are saddened to report five new COVID-19 related deaths, three in the first reporting period and two since yesterday, for a total of 86 deaths in British Columbia. We offer our condolences to everyone who has lost their loved ones." 

As well, there was a new case reported from a long term care facility in the province,  the new outbreak at the Chartwell Willow long-term care facility in the last day.

In total, 20 long-term care and assisted-living facilities, and one acute-care unit have active outbreaks.

Outbreaks have been declared over at six facilities, in addition to the provincial Okanagan Correctional Centre.

 “There are now 75 cases of COVID-19 associated with the Mission Institution federal correctional centre. Fraser Health officials continue to work with Correction Services Canada to manage this outbreak."

The Monday update also put some focus on concerns over new cases in Alberta that could have an impact on British Columbia, as well as to reinforce their guidance on work camp operations in BC.

“We have also seen a number of new cases of COVID-19 in B.C. related to the Kearl Lake project near Fort McMurray, Alberta. Anyone who was at the site from March to present is ordered by the provincial health officer to immediately self-isolate for 14 days and contact your primary care provider, 811 or local public-health teams. 

The guidance we have in place for work camps clearly outlines how to safely operate, and what should be done in the event of a positive case of COVID-19. It is important that employers and workers continue to follow these guidelines to stay safe."

It was also noted today that 1,039 people who had tested positive for COVID-19 have recovered and no longer require isolation.

Of the total COVID-19 cases, 104 individuals are currently hospitalized, 49 of those are in intensive care and the remaining people with COVID-19 are recovering at home in self-isolation.

You can review the full COVID-19 statement from Monday here.

Some new health measures were put in place for Indigenous communities and rural areas of the province, introduced earlier today as well.

With Premier Horgan and Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation Minister Scott Fraser relaying some of the additional resources that will be provided.

“People living in rural, remote and Indigenous communities have unique challenges in accessing the health care they need. This new collaborative framework will bring immediate relief to these communities, including a commitment to moving patients to the critical care they need at a moment’s notice. This will help our work to stop the spread of COVID-19, while supporting better health outcomes into the future.” -- Premier John Horgan

Among some of the actions to be delivered on by the province include:

Improved medical transportation options to larger centres, including flight and ambulance; 

Housing options for people looking to self-isolate near their families while remaining in their home communities; 

New and faster COVID-19 testing technology; culturally safe contact tracing that respects privacy in small communities; 

Access to Virtual Doctor of the Day, a program that connects First Nations members and their families in remote communities to a doctor or nurse practitioner using videoconferencing; 

Options for accommodation near larger centres with more medical services

Increased mental-health supports in communities.

Local leadership will determine how the services will operate in their communities.

Additional ambulatory services are included as part of the program, with and an additional 55 ground ambulances to be located in the province, with six more for the Northern Health region, though it was not specified where they will be based.

An expansion of air assets haas also been included as part of the program.

More on those measures can be found here, while video of the Monday afternoon outline is available here.

The BC Centre for Disease control has some valuable Coronavirus notes related to COVID-19 you can explore that information here.

You can learn more about the outbreak from both the Province and the Federal government from the links below:

Federal Government site

British Columbia Government site

The World Health Organization website also offers up the latest advisories on the global situation.

More from  Northern Health can be reviewed here 

You can review our archive of past statements and local information here.

Local governments and organizations have also provided for increased awareness of COVID-19 issues, the string of statements that came quickly at the end of the week can be reviewed here.

For notes from across Canada and British Columbia we have been archiving the latest items through our political portal Darcy McGee

Ottawa Observations

Victoria Viewpoints

Northern Savings Credit Union's Election results released

Mimmo Ciccone
has been elected
to the Board at
Northern Savings

It's been an unusual election period for Prince Rupert based Northern Savings Credit Union; with the timeline of weighing your options and making your decisions one that for the most part took place in a virtual setting over a physical one.

Still, the election date was fixed for early April and today, Northern Savings released the names of those who found success at the ballot box, such as the ballot box was ...

As we noted in mid March, Northern Savings outlined the nature of the online voting process, while the actual balloting got underway on March 27th.

Elected to three year terms following the results of the April 8th vote were:

Prince Rupert District - Mimmo Ciccone 
Terrace District - Rodney Cox 
Director At Large - Sylvan Daugert

In Prince Rupert, the margin of victory for Mr. Ciccone over Mr. Tony Briglio was 9 votes in the Director vote.

It was double dose of disappointment for Mr. Briglio in the Director at Large vote, with Syvlan Augert topping him by 12 votes

A much wider margin for Rodney Cox was found in Terrace with the next closes candidate 38 votes behind.

The full account of the voting totals can be found below:

Further notes available on the Northern Savings Facebook page.

For more notes of interest on the region's commercial sector see our archive page here.

Chamber of Commerce Small Business Conference call project to feature Northern Savings Mark Mastroianni as part of today's session

The Prince Rupert and District Chamber is working to keep
local business owners connected during these uncertain times

The latest COVID Conference call hosted by the Prince Rupert and District Chamber of Commerce is set for this afternoon from 3 to 4, streaming through the Zoom platform.

The ongoing project from the Chamber is bringing members together to share information, learn about options and hear more on programs and such that are available to the Business community during these quite unusual times.

Today's guest comes from the financial sector, with Mark Mastroianni, the Business Service Regional Manager for Northern Savings Credit Union, who will be able to help those on the conference call navigate some of the key financial issues for this period.

Today's conference call is the second to last from the original schedule, which so far only goes to the 27th of April.

You can learn more about how the project and how to participate here.

For further information on the project contact Anthony at the Chamber of Commerce at 1-778-281-3348.

Last week Chamber President, Michell Boomars MacNeil provided for an update towards the ongoing collaboration process in place in the region.

I am proud as a Rupertite to witness the many in our community who are stepping up to assist our local businesses with support and initiatives. We thank everyone who is doing their part, from sharing of storefront hours, business shout outs, financial resources and sometimes to just listen. The Prince Rupert & District Chamber has worked hard to create partnerships amongst all levels of business and government, and now these collaborations are imperative and a cohesive approach is essential. The perseverance of all through this crisis is truly a community initiative.

Ms. Boomars-MacNeil also made note of some of the work that the Chamber has taken on during the course of the local pandemic response.

The Chamber has committees that plan and execute on strategies built to support our local commerce activities. I invite individuals who wish to assist during this continuity and recovery planning phase to reach out to us to join a committee. Communications, Strategic Initiatives, Events and Policy committees meet regularly and never has there been a more critical time to share information, knowledge and resources. For other entities out there who also support the development of local commerce and economics we also invite you to contact the Chamber so that we can collaborate and share resources. Many hands make light work and these partnerships are vital to the continuation of business that will be forever changed as a result of this crisis.

You can review more of her notes from the Chamber Facebook page.

For more notes related to the Business sector in the Northwest see our archive page here.