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For earlier materials see Table of Contents

November 29th

Another look at Council

So how much do we ‘Grant’?

Council preparing Budgets but we only hear the Grant proposals and not the Departmental reports (unlike Terrace)

 

And 3 year comparison of Grants etc

 

Plus does a Municipality have legal authority over remedying ‘Facades’ as a nuisance??

 

Council not ‘open’ enough?

Here is why they say they are meeting in-camera--- I would guess they are doing 2011 Budget --- which would involve some reporting and discussion of what accomplished in 2010 etc

 

Contrast with the Terrace City Council – who is doing it all in open meetings

 

They have agreed to keep 2011 tax increase to 2% and now have to work out the details --- in public for the most part

http://www.terrace.ca/documents/council-agendas/2010-11-22-Agenda(2).pdf

 

Here is another example – what would be the equivalent of our Civic Center, Recreation and Parks --- etc

You’ll never see this kind of openness in Mussallem/ Howie run Council

 

 

So how much does City pay to keep golf course amenity?

This will take some more research --- Are any of the Golf course staff still on City Payroll? Does City pay any (all?) of the utility expenses etc (City presumably still owns the Pro shop etc)

 

 

One way of approaching the question is to look at previous Audits ands ‘Statements of Financial Information’ (SOFI)

Using 2009 looks like City paid about 85T to keep golf course running --- not counting the Tax Exemption --- together makes about 150T$

 

 

 

Look at 2008

The 2% hotel tax (which is used for publicizing PR etc was higher in 2008 than 2009 by about 17T$ --- note too that about 20T$ more ‘given’ in Community Grants in 2009

 

2007

I suspect ‘we’ paid Chambers Rent in 2007 – just not included here (perhaps less that 25T for the Visitors Information Center rental)

And note how Grants shot up in 2008 by approximate 160T%

 

And here is from notes to 2009 SOFI --- note how management increased salaries about 60% of all the Unionized increases --- When there is little oversight by Council ‘you give yourself the big $$?)

 

 

The legislature did not intend, in enacting s. 74 of the Community Charter, to allow municipalities to declare almost anything to be a nuisance.  The legislative intent, however, was to allow municipalities to deem something to be a nuisance if it was so dilapidated or unclean as to be offensive to the community. ...  Further, Council also had jurisdiction under s. 73 of the Community Charter, which allowed it to impose the remedial action requirement due to safety issues and failure to comply with bylaws (reference to follow)

So this becomes more and more interesting

A nuisance is well defined in Common Law --- but municipalities must be circumspect when applying the concept --- and especially when they enforce remedial action --- here is an excerpt form a recent Supreme Court case involving Castlegar

More later

Community Charter on Nuisances ---- a façade may be unsightly – but is not therefore a nuisance

 

 

 

Division 12 of Community Charter — Remedial Action Requirements Council may impose remedial action requirements---72  (1) A council may impose remedial action requirements in relation to (a) matters or things referred to in section 73 [hazardous conditions],(b) matters or things referred to in section 74 [declared nuisances],

4  (1) A council may declare that any of the following is a nuisance and may impose a remedial action requirement in relation to the declared nuisance:(a) a building or other structure, an erection of any kind, or a similar matter or thing

(but not a façade)

 

 

 

See my earlier with links on that page

Whistle Blowing

As mentioned in Gordon Howie Report To Council – the chronic question of CN Trains blowing their whistles (as required) now will have a report by Consultant delivered November 30th to Council ---- Some community members worry that the ‘remedy’ is to keep trains altogether out of the CN Fairview lands along our waterfront  --- thus potentially limiting ability to store container cars etc ---- See the Ports report in their current newsletter

 

We See

Zellers has put in tar to make the exit to Parking lot ‘safer’ for elderly people in walkers etc ---- as one Employee commented --- Rupert is built on ‘hog fuel’ and occasionally it sags and needs repairs --- good job people – and may save a lawsuit someday too

 

 

 

 

 

Created by LG on Feb 1, 2006

Last updated on Monday, November 29, 2010