Rossland City Council Meetings, April 4, 2022
By Sara Golling
Rossland City Council Meetings, April 4, 2022
CIP grant allocations; the civic election is coming in October; Third Avenue project awarded; Curling Club angst; more tax talk; TransRockies race coming to town; Affordable Housing Society seeks treasurer; and – apply for a $500 grant for your community project!
Present: Mayor Kathy Moore and Councillors Chris Bowman, Janice Nightingale, Andy Morel, Stewart Spooner, Terry Miller and Dirk Lewis. Staff: CAO Bryan Teasdale, CFO Mike Kennedy, Manager of Operations Scott Lamont, Manager of Recreation and Events Kristi Calder, and Deputy Corporate Officer Cynthia Año Nuevo.
PUBLIC HEARING:
Council invited public input on the application for rezoning of the property at 1936 Planer Crescent, to R1-Infill, to permit the property to be subdivided. No one spoke, and the Public Hearing was adjourned by 6:01 pm.
REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING:
Public Input Period: No one spoke.
Delegation:
Lisa Henderson of the Gold Fever Follies had been scheduled to explain a request from the Follies to delay their payment of rent to the City for the use of the Miners Union Hall for the summer season until autumn, but the matter was settled without her having to appear. A motion to allow the delay in payment CARRIED unanimously. Spooner reiterated his preference for clarity about the value to the community of organizations funded by the City.
Council then adopted the minutes of previous meetings, including the Committee of the Whole meeting held on March 29, when Council decided what amounts to recommend for which community organizations for CIP grant funding. For those interested, a chart showing those amounts is appended at the bottom of this report.
Bylaw:
A motion to give the Five Year Financial Plan Bylaw # 2785 first and second readings CARRIED unanimously, after discussion of tax rates and property assessments.
The Municipal Election is coming in October:
A motion to appoint Cynthia Anonuevo as Chief Election Officer for the 2022 general local elections with power to appoint other election officials as required for the administration and conduct of the 2022 general local election CARRIED unanimously.
A further motion to appoint Kristi Calder as Deputy Chief Election Officer for the 2022 general local election also CARRIED unanimously.
Third Avenue Infrastructure Improvements Project Tender Review and Award:
A motion to approve the tender submission from Kays Road Contracting Ltd. in the amount of $1,517,595.61 (inclusive of applicable taxes) to complete the Third Avenue Infrastructure Improvements Project CARRIED. The project will improve water pipes and sewage pipes, and will add storm drains. Morel commented that it was good to see three tenders submitted.
Curling Club Agreement:
Council discussed different options for charging the Rossland Curling Club for the use of the curling lanes. Spooner suggested going with Option 2, a 5% increase over the previous amount, plus annual increases of 2%; Nightingale preferred Option 3, a one-time increase of 30% with annual increases of 2% — she objected to having no financial statements from the Curling Club and compared that to the group applying for $640 and supplying a full financial statement. Zak Nixon of the Curling Club commented that the Club doesn’t receive funds from the City, but manages a City facility. The City is working toward a Recreation Master Plan and Morel noted that this agreement is being put in place before the Master Plan is completed, and a more gradual approach to changing the agreement would be better.
Nightingale moved that the City go with Option 3, a 5-year agreement, starting at $28,899 for the 2022-2023 season and increasing after that by the annual CPI increase. Her motion CARRIED after more discussion.
Nixon stated that the Club cannot afford that increase, and left the hall.
COVID Community Support Fund Applications:
Five organizations applied for funding in the most recent intake: Red Mountain Racers asked for $5000, Scouts Canada asked for $3000, Trail Little League (via Rossland Arena Society) asked for $5000, West Kootenay Minor Lacrosse Association asked for $1,192, and West Kootenay Timberwolves Lacrosse Association asked for $640.
After discussion, Council passed a motion to give the Red Mountain Racers the amount requested. Spooner opposed the Scouts Canada application, but the rest of Council approved the requested grant to the Scouts. The application from Trail Little League FAILED, but the applications from Kootenay Minor Lacrosse and the Kootenay Timberwolves Lacrosse Associations were both successful.
2022 Municipal Tax Rate Distribution:
Council discussed the distribution of tax among the different classes of property, and Nightingale moved that, to support the proposed budget for 2022, to distribute any additional tax burden at a rate of 3% for residential properties ( Class1 ) and 4% for all other property classes other than Class 2, Utilities, which are legislatively defined.
The motion CARRIED unanimously.
Update: Communication and Events Liaison Position
Manager of Recreation and Events Kristi Calder provided information about the new position and the work being done.
Report: 2021 Recreation and Culture Cost Recovery
Calder also presented a report detailing the costs of operating Rossland’s recreational facilities and cultural events, and the usage of each, for Council’s information.
TransRockies Inc. Singletrack 6 Event Request, 2022:
Council unanimously approved the request to run a portion of this mountain bike race event through Rossland and to close portions of Dunn Crescent, Nevada Street, Victoria Avenue, Union Avenue and Spokane Street from 8:00 am to 8:10 am on Saturday, September 10th; and to use the Centennial Field on Saturday morning, but Council will require the organization to pay the regular fee of $100.80 for using the field; and to use RossGlen Park as the race finish.
Council noted that the event takes place on the same weekend as Golden City Days, the Fall Fair, and Huck’n’berries (for which different spellings can be found).
Phoenix Neighbourhood Small Grant Program:
A motion to approve Rossland's participation in the Phoenix Neighborhood Small Grants program in the role as a qualified donee CARRIED.
The program is summarized at this link, which also contains links to further information on the program and how to apply for a grant of $500 to fund implementaion of an idea that will make a positive contribution to the community.
Members’ Reports (selected highlights only):
Spooner attended the preliminary Mine Development Review meeting about the West High Yield application for a permit for the magnesium claim in Record Ridge. There will eventually be a public input period, when the community will have an opportunity to respond regarding West High Yield’s expected impacts on the community and the environment.
Morel, our RDKB director, talked about environmental liability insurance, and about organics composting and the cost of critter-proof bins, looking toward the time when curbside organics pick-up begins; he anticipates that the organics will be transported to Salmo for composting.
Nightingale reported that the Lower Columbia Affordable Housing Society is seeking a new board member with a solid financial background, to shadow, learn from, and eventually replace their current Treasurer, who oversees the work of the Financial Administrator, liaises with the auditor, and creates and manages budgets.
Moore suggested that the City could recognize a “Citizen of the Year” who would not need to be a volunteer, in addition to the “Community Contributor” award for volunteers. Council agreed that this could be done on an ad hoc basis, not necessarily every year. Moore noted that she is on the executive committee for planning the upcoming AKBLG convention.
The meeting adjourned, and your reporter strolled home — in daylight! – feeling old and tired while contemplating the amount of work to be done in the garden to prepare for planting, and the apparent overpopulation (from a gardener’s perspective) of voracious pocket gophers waiting to chomp their way through crops like potatoes, carrots, beets, endive, radicchio, garlic, and anything else they can sink their large, prominent yellow incisors into. Note: pocket gophers are often erroneously referred to by some locals as “moles” but no moles live in or even near Rossland. Pocket gophers eat mostly plant roots and stems, while moles eat mostly worms and insects.
Appendix: CIP Grant recommendations (screenshots from the CoW minutes of March 29, 2022)
