Council Matters: Rossland City Council Meetings, October 20, 2025
By Sara Golling
A public hearing on zoning. Delving further into the budget … want lower taxes? What services or amenities do you want your community to give up? Come to the Miners Hall on October 27 and let your Council know. Think the City has too many staff? Check out the updated Corporate Workplan report to see what they’re all doing. And, changes are coming for how community group funding is administered.
Present: Mayor Andy Morel and Councillors Lisa Kwiatkowski (remote), Craig Humpherys, Stewart Spooner, Eliza Boyce (remote), Jeff Weaver and Maya Provençal.
Staff: CAO Bryan Teasdale, CFO Mike Kennedy, Executive Assistant Rachel Newton, Deputy Corporate Officer Cynthia Añonuevo, Manager of Public works and Infrastructure Scott Lamont, City Planner Stacey Lightbourne, Manager of Recreation and Events Kristi Calder
PUBLIC HEARING:
Discussion – an application to expand the permitted uses in the Resort Holiday Park zone to include additional commercial activity; in particular, a Nordic Spa that would be open to the general public, not just on-site guests.
No one spoke and the public hearing adjourned.
REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING:
PUBLIC INPUT PERIOD:
None of the three people in the gallery wished to speak.
POLICY REVIEW:
Community Grant Funding Policy:
The amended policy outlines the City’s newly modified approach to funding community groups. The plan is to consolidate and streamline funding, to have one intake date for applications for funding, to avoid using permissive tax exemptions where possible, and to ensure that the total amount of assistance provided to each community group is clear.
Council perused and discussed the policy as presented.
Provençal commented that she wanted to be very clear about the cost implications to the City and to community groups, of removing the library from grant-in-aid funding and adding it as a budget line, and of removing discretionary permissive tax exemptions, then using 3% of tax revenue to support community groups. She wants to ensure that the pot of money for community groups is not diminished.
Spooner raised an issue about a requirement in the draft policy regarding supervision of volunteer labour on capital projects, which was resolved.
A motion to approve the policy CARRIED unanimously.
Reserve and Surplus Policy:
Amendments show current funding of reserves, and the adjusted optimum range for each reserve fund. Some of Rossland’s reserves are well-funded, while others fall short of the designated ‘minimum” amount. Generally, reserves are intended to help the City cover unexpected or emergency expenses, or to “smooth out” the normal spikes and dips in some expenses.
Morel wondered if “surplus” funds from those few reserves that have more funding than deemed necessary, could be transferred to other reserves that are low.
A motion to approve the policy CARRIED.
BYLAWS
2026 Permissive Tax Exemptions Bylaw # 2853:
This bylaw has already received first, second and third readings; it shows that all the permissive tax exemptions granted will expire in 2026. This is in line with the City’s new approach to funding community groups, which will rely less on permissive tax exemptions.
A motion to adopt the bylaw CARRIED unanimously.
Animal Control Bylaw # 2862:
This bylaw is more comprehensive that the previous version, and had already received first, second and third readings. However, following an exchange with livestock owners, a motion to rescind third reading CARRIED unanimously, and a subsequent motion was proposed to amend it by replacing section 11.2 with: “All livestock brought into a Public Place must be kept under control, and must not be subjected to harassment by humans or domestic animals. Bikers, hikers and dogs must yield to horses on the trails as per https://kccts.wildapricot.org/Trail-Etiquette”
The motion on the amendment CARRIED unanimously, as did another motion to give the amended bylaw third reading.
REQUESTS FOR COUNCIL DECISION
2026 – 2030 Five Year Financial Plan Preview – Capital Budget
The preamble to the DRAFT budget in the materials for this meeting summarized the plan as follows:
“The 2026-2030 Five Year Financial plan builds on the key tax revenue assumption 2025-2029 Five Year Financial Plan, which committed to a 10% year over year tax revenue increase, of which 5% is allocated to addressing the City’s infrastructure deficit and 5% toward inflationary pressures and modest service level increases. For 2026, this equates to a forecasted $666K in additional taxation, of which $333 is proposed to be allocated directly to addressing capital investment in tackling the infrastructure deficit.
“The draft plan proposes $10.3M in capital budget for 2026, of which $6.7M will be paid for via grants (or reserves stemming from grants). The attached report provides an overview of capital projects spanning the next five years, informed by recently completed third party engineering estimates.”
Spooner said he is impressed with all the work that’s been done, but acknowledges that “we still have some work to do.” He wondered whether the City should revisit the topic of service levels; he spoke about the light industrial area and the amount of money it will cost to bring the water service to it up to standard; he also wondered whether the cost of maintaining the arena will be worth the six million dollars anticipated over the next ten years. He suggests that “we need to get really clear about our priorities” and referred to the reports that lay out the anticipated future costs of facilities and services.
Boyce expressed appreciation for the information provided and said she agreed with Spooner about the need to prioritize, and added that she thinks the cost of upgrading water service to the light industrial area is just one phase of upgrading water service to other parts of lower Rossland. She also questioned the need for hiring a communications person.
Humpherys questioned the wording of the draft budget that indicates the City will be hiring a part-time communications person.
Kwiatkowski wondered how the City can adjust its plans if some of the funding sources, i.e., grants, do not come through with needed funds.
Weaver thinks it’s good to talk about service levels, and would like to talk to people about the distinction between core services and discretionary spending. He said he thinks the amount allotted to hire a part-time communications person is “chump change” and that the position is necessary. He wants to know when and how the City will discuss service levels.
Provençal said her understanding is that a lot of public concern during the last budget cycle was driven by misinformation and misunderstanding, but very few people show up at Council’s budget discussions, such as tonight’s meeting (only one person remaining in the gallery at this point). She feels that if people were really upset, more people would attend.
Spooner suggested that if Rosslanders “knew more about the hole we’re in” they would be very concerned; he thinks that many people are so overwhelmed by topics that they feel they cannot influence that they “glaze over” when the topics come up.
Weaver would like to see some sort of “digestible Coles Notes” on the consequences of increasing or decreasing service levels in different ways; also what the real cost of increasing debt would be.
Humpherys noted that the City’s debt has decreased, and is not very big compared with many municipalities’ debt levels.
Award of Contract for 2025-2027 Financial Statement Audit Services
A motion to award the contract for Rossland’s external audit requirements to the accounting firm MNP LLP at a total maximum cost of $40,950 for 2025, $42,420 for 2026, and $45,465 for 2027 (excluding GST) CARRIED unanimously.
2025 Columbia Basin Wildfire Resiliency Initiative Grant Application:
A motion to endorse the 2025 CBT Columbia Basin Wildfire Resiliency grant application and to provide grant management for the program CARRIED, with only Boyce opposed. The goals of the program are to reduce the risk and impact of wildfire in the City of Rossland, and to raise awareness of local FireSmart initiatives.
Discussion: Boyce is concerned that some of the FireSmart work may not be effective – she said that taking out the understory is letting more sun and air in and making the area drier, which also contributes to more blowdowns. Stacey acknowledged that she is not an expert, but what is being done is prescribed by the FireSmart experts.
Spooner noted that FireSmarting is an evolving science, and that treatments are being assessed over time as fires occur near FireSmarted areas.
Municipal Cheque Register Report:
A motion to approve the City’s expenditures for the month of September, 2025, CARRIED unanimously.
FOR INFORMATION ONLY:
Third-Quarter (Q3) Report on 2025 Corporate Management Plan:
Residents who wonder what the City is working on, and what stage each project is at, and why the City needs more than four staff (a Rossland senior recently suggested that four staff should be adequate), could find out by examining this report.
Q3 2025 Budget Update:
The regular budget updates explain why there are some discrepancies between the planned – originally budgeted – and the actual spending to date.
Council perused the regular monthly reports:
- Building Permit Report
- Building Permit Inspections by Type
- Step Code Energy Rebates
- Public Works & Water Production Report
- Eye On Water Report
- Bylaw Enforcement & Animal Control Monthly Report
Third-Quarter RCMP Report:
The chart shows the crime statistics for the all the district communities in the third quarter of 2025, as well as for the same period in the previous year.
REQUEST for Rekindle the Spirit of Christmas:
A motion to approve the use of City electrical supply and sidewalks for the Rekindle the Spirit of Christmas Event on December 6th, 2025, CARRIED unanimously.
MEMBER REPORTS (selected highlights only):
Kwiatkowski said that the Rossland Winter Carnival will, be held on January 22 to 26.
Provençal had a meeting with the Follies about their plans for 2026, and hopes to have an agreement to present to Council next month.
Spooner said he had visited Greenwood, where they had arranged to have an outdoor pool repaired for $280,000 (amount quoted subject to correction) which is supposed to make it good for the next 50 years; he suggested Rossland should look into that.
Morel had an RDKB Utilities meeting; he reported that the outflow pipe for the new Pollution Control Centre is being placed much further out into the Columbia River, and deeper than the old one.
He reported that Selkirk College is closing one of its Nelson campuses – the arts college — because of lack of students. He noted that he is looking forward to seeing residents on September 27 at the “world café” event for input on the Five Year Financial Plan.
Morel also expressed sadness that CFO Mike Kennedy will be leaving his position at the end of the month, and wishes him all the best in his future endeavors. He lauded the accomplishments of Justin Brogan (of the City’s finance department), Indea D’aigle and Maya Provençal, the three Rossland recipients of the 30 under 30 award.
THE MEETING RECESSED to an in-camera session for discussion of the acquisition, disposition or expropriation of land or improvements, since Council considers that disclosure could reasonably be expected to harm the interests of the municipality, as provided for in section 90(1)(e) of the Community Charter.
Your reporter packed up and wandered out into the cool dark night (it was only about 7:30 pm) and saw a few brave souls zipping around the skate park. Contemplating Rossland’s issues in the context of the big picture (global politics, climate change, environmental degradation of all types, and so on) brought to mind a Calvin & Hobbes cartoon in which Calvin imagines several major disasters converging on one location and muses “This should be interesting!”
