COMMENT: Tight lips tank trust
Following the city’s overzealous and incorrect use of the Freedom of Information and Privacy Protection Act (FIPPA) to withhold letters that are clearly in the public’s interest and do not “unfairly” harm anyone’s reputation, I am left wondering what, exactly, remains in the five redacted lines in Coun. Kathy Moore’s letter...
"Serious ethical issues" swept under carpet by mayor and former CAO, but dust monster rears its ugly head
A recently declassified letter from the city auditor supports Laurie Charlton's sleuthing that fingered former building inspector Jason Ward for awarding more than $185,000 in arena upgrades to his own company—violating his contract with the city—without putting the projects out to tender—violating the city's purchasing policy....
DemocracySTORM: Let's Budge the Budget, Rossland!
A community-wide budget brainstorm the likes of which the world has never seen is about to sweep this little mountain town—and we want YOU to join us for the ride.We have three simple questions and all we need is a couple minutes of your time to jot down your thoughts. You know the thoughts, the ones that always get your...
ANALYSIS: The bare bones of Rossland's budget
We've prepared a short summary of the 2012 budget the city used this year to aid participants in our DemocracySTORM—an exciting interactive poll that is quick to complete. We heartily encourage everyone with an interest in Rossland's welfare to participate. These numbers come from the 2012-2016 financial plan approved by...
SD20 puts RSS back on the chopping block for this coming fall
School District No. 20 (SD20) released three packages of "background information" on Monday to prepare the public for a series of upcoming forums in SD20's 2012-2013 facilities review. Of particular interest to Rossland is the backgrounder for the Greater Trail area (available here) in which SD20 staff make the case for...
Coun. Moore and Mayor Granstrom hash out the grey zone of council confidentiality
A special report on "Open Meetings" issued by the BC ombudsperson in September spurred Coun. Kathy Moore to raise a number of problems at Monday's regular meeting with the way she feels council has historically handled in camera (closed) meetings. "It's really good, it's worth reading," Moore said about the report, Open...
You decide: Does social media make us lonely?
According to a recent IPSOS poll “nearly one-half of online Canadians (45%) are now visiting a social networking site at least once a week, and 30% visit daily”; source: http://www.ipsos-na.com/news-polls/pressrelease.aspx?id=5286. But what is regular use of social media doing for us? Are we more connected and thus happier? ...
The eye of the needle
In Mark's gospel we hear the story of a rich man catching up with Jesus. “I’ve lived faithfully and followed the commandments,” he says. “What more must I do to inherit eternal life?” On hearing Jesus' prescription (give away everything to the poor and follow me) he leaves in despair. He cannot untangle himself from the...
The Blue Eyes Brook ponds: A wildlife bonus or a water source hazard?
A four year old water license application has resurfaced as BC’s Water Stewardship Division sought to clean out its files, but as Rossland maintains its objection to the application in the absence of an engineer's report, the landowners question the city's motivation. A small tributary called the Blue Eyes Brook runs south ...
Binding arbitration on sewer service begins between Trail, Rossland, and Warfield
An arbitrator has been selected by BC's Intergovernmental Relations and Planning Division (IRP) to resolve the sanitary sewage dispute that has been dragging on for years between Rossland, Trail, and Warfield over the fair sharing of costs for the existing service—the bulk of the disagreement, however, is between Rossland and...
