Podunk Below the Masthead (Tuesday, June 22, 2010)

Regional District decisions jump to the front page, yet more changes for School District 52 and a look at the job ahead for Rudy Kelly, as he takes on his new role with the City of Prince Rupert, some of the items of interest from the Tuesday news files.

Daily News, front page, headline story
SQCRD HAS SET A CAP ON COMMENTS -- Sometimes the news just arrives in the mail, Jean Martin's recent letter to the editor regarding the latest developments at Regional District seems to have set the agenda for Tuesday's Daily News headline. As we outlined on the blog on Monday, Ms. Martin's letter expressed her concerns over the accountability of the lesser known branch of local government, a concern which has translated into a front page peice about Regional District's policy shift on public comment.

Rudy Kelly's arrival at the Civic Centre as the new Director of Recreation and Community Services for the City of Prince Rupert receives a favourable review from the pages of the Daily News.

The weekend success of the Relay for Life is featured on page five, while participation levels were down from last year, the amount of money brought in from this year's relay topped 2009 figures as Rupertites pledged or donated $76,021.36.

The sports section features a preview of next big event on the golf calendar as this weekend's Vic Marion Seniors Open preapres for tee off.

(Daily News Archives for Tuesday, June 22, 2010)

SQCRD has set a cap on comments 
New local talent at the Civic Centre 
A role model in Prince Rupert
UBCIC feels last minute HST consultations too little, too late 
Air Canada is still in the air

The Northern View
Haida Gwaii becomes official as Queen Charlotte Islands returned to the Crown -- Details of the official return of the name Haida Gwaii to islands once known as Queen Charlotte (see article here)

The Northern View
Tax gap between businesses and residents widens -- A look at a CFIB survey outlining the growing tax burden between business and residential tax bills (see article here)

The Northern View
More School District changes set -- With more departures from School District 52 administration the roster for September changes once again (see article here)

The Northern View 
MP welcomes audit -- The NDP MP for Skeena - Bulkley Valley welcomes the news that Auditor General Sheila Fraser is set to conduct an audit on MP's expenses (see article here)

The Northern View 
Relay for Life tops 2009 in funds raised and participation -- The thirteenth edition of the Relay for Life finds great success from its weekend activities (see article here)

CFTK TV 7 News
More staffing changes at SD 52 -- School District 52 sees yet more change as departures and shifting responsibilities once again make the news (see article here)

CFTK TV 7 News
Smoke from wildfires burning in the northwest now visible -- A number of forest fires burning in the Northwest are becoming more noticeable with travel to the east (see article here)

CBC News Northern BC, Daybreak North
Daybreak North is only posting selected items on their website now. 

The most recently posted items can be found on the archive page for Daybreak North click here

Daily News, front page, headline story
SQCRD has set a cap on comments
By George T. Baker
Staff Writer
Prince Rupert Daily News
Tuesday, June 22, 2010 

There was no discussion amongst Board members. The motion was passed unanimously. 

The Skeena-Queen Charlotte Regional District Board doesn’t want comments from the public during Board meetings.

The board has clamped down on comments regarding SQCRD business because they said there was nothing to determine the level of public involvement at the once per month meeting.

But they’ve also limited the amount of questions the public may ask at a board meeting, reminiscent of what is found at School District 52’s School Board meetings.

The SQCRD passed a motion to create a policy that will limit questioners to two questions per board meeting and eliminate any comments from the public.

 “There was discussion at the board level and we found that we didn’t have a policy around [public question period]” explained SQCRD Chair Barry Pages.

According to the new board policy, “questions must be truly questions and not statements or opinions by the questioner, as this is not a platform for debate.”

Debate will now be limited to Board members. Media representatives will not likely be much affected by the new policy, as the board chair “may be available after the meeting for media interviews.”

But the new limits on public conversation with the Board have raised some eyebrows amongst those who have attended the meetings in the past.

Over the past couple of months, the SQCRD board has faced harsh commentary from the public gallery in the boardroom.

Issues over the new hours at the recycling depot, the desperate condition of the annual budget, and pay for the Acting Chief Administrative Officer have been lighting rods for public input – some of it unsolicited.

While the board did not justify the move during the meeting, they did say they were within their rights to do so.

When asked about whether it infringed on the Canadian Constitution, Helen Koning, the Acting CAO, said that the SQCRD did not even have to hold a public question period at all.

 “There is nothing out there that suggests the Board must have a question period from the public,” said Koning. 

However, David Eby of the BC Civil Liberties Association said that this might not be the case.

Eby said that there is plenty of past practice that says that the board can limit the amount of time allotted to the public for question period and the amount of questions that might be asked during that period. However, he said that the decision to block public commentary would be hard pressed to pass a constitutional challenge.

The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms cites freedom of thought, belief, opinion, and expression, including freedom of the press and other media as a fundamental right.

Eby said if you shut down commentary you could be infringing on that basic right.

 “It is perfectly reasonable and there are ample examples across Canada of city councils and regional councils that limit the amount of time that people have to comment and have questions. It also reasonable to ask for people to focus on the agenda items rather than commenting on some unrelated matter,’ said Eby.

 “However, to prescribe to people that they can’t provide feedback to elected officials in the form a comment and can only ask questions for clarification goes a little bit far. You need some rules to keep the meeting on time and to ensure that it does not go on all night, but telling people that they cannot provide feedback to their elected officials seems like it would implicate some free speech rights.” 

Eby said that what concerned him the most was that some of this is spawning from heated debates in the boardroom.

 “That’s what democracy is all about. Democracy is all about people having an opinion and sharing that opinion even if it may be offensive or disagreeable to another person.

 Eby said that this is especially the case for elected officials who have signed up for the job to hear the opinions of the public.

 “It seems unusual that elected officials would create rules that would limit their exposure to critical comment.”

 At the May Board meeting, Vice Chair and Prince Rupert Mayor Jack Mussallem apologized for offending long time volunteer and resident Jean Martin. Martin had been upset that the Board was reducing hours at the recycling depot to save money and criticized the Board for making the decision to reduce those hours. Even though it would appear that the new policy would place limits on comments, it isn’t clear how strongly the new policy will be enforced.

 Within minutes of the policy passing into bylaw, resident Larry Golden made a comment about the Statement of Financial Information advising the board that director’s cell phone bill information has not been provided in the SOFI. Golden is known for his commentary-spliced questions. He was not asked to leave.

The new SQCRD public question procedures policy reads as such:

 1. The Public Question Period will commence before the adjournment of the regular Board meeting.

 2. The purpose of the Public Question Period is for the public to ask single questions of the Board

 3. No more than 2 separate questions per questioner will be allowed. The Chair can request that any additional questions be forwarded to the Board in writing and may be answered in a timely manner.

 4. Each individual question shall be limited to two minutes and the maximum time allotted for this agenda item shall be ten minutes.

 5. Questions must pertain to the Regional District, Budgets, Board Priorities or Agenda Business

 6. Questions must be truly question and not statements or opinions by the questioner, as this is not a platform for debate

 7. The board chair may be available after the meeting for media interviews

A costly place to hang your hat

Problems with last years Skeena Queen Charlotte Regional District budget are coming home to roost for residents of the Queen Charlottes.

Operating costs for the recycling centre and landfill on the Islands didn't match up with the budgeted amount, so in order to recoup those costs and make sure that they don't repeat them this year, some residents of the Charlottes will be seeing their taxes increase.

Of all the communities on the Charlottes Masset and Port Clements will see the largest of increases, with the tax bill request for Masset going up $9,311 overall in that community, while Port Clements will be asked for an additional $1,906.

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Most others will stay the same or decrease slightly, Prince Rupert in the meantime will see a reduction on the amount of money requested by SQCRD, with a $107,918 decrease from the last bill received.

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In addition to the recylcing burden, there are other costs associated with living on the Charlottes that are becoming irritants to the people that live there, especially the proposed carbon tax, which an isolated area such as the Charlottes is particularly concerned about.

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The Daily News featured details on the Regional District financials with two stories in Wednesday's paper.

Recycling drives up the cost of living on Islands
By Leanne Ritchie
The Daily News
Wednesday, April 02, 2008

Pages one and five

The Skeena-Queen Charlotte Regional District (SQCRD) will be asking most of its taxpayers to pay the same taxes or less than they did last year, with the exception of Port Clements and Masset.

John Holland, Skeena-Queen Charlotte Regional District administrator, presented the regional district's budget on Friday, and explained that the tax increase for those two communities comes in part from the need to cover the cost of the Queen Charlotte Islands landfill and in part because of an increase in assessed values in land.

Last year, the district overran the cost of operating the Queen Charlotte Islands landfill and recycling centre by $267,851. In short, they budgeted for $684,574 and spent $889,345 on the operation.

This year, they not only need to recoup some of those funds, but also plan not to have a shortfall this year.

"We miscalculated by a couple of thousand miles on that," said Tony Briglio, director for Prince Rupert.

"Last year, we had problems with the budget and we are paying for it this year. We do bear responsibility for it," said Des Nobels, director for Area A.

Specifically, recycling on the islands costs a significant amount and does not generate revenue, which it does on the mainland, but directors agreed people feel strongly that they want that service.

The district will, however, be looking at how it can reduce the cost associated with shipping recyclable materials through B.C. Ferries, which is currently $25,000.

"In order to maintain status quo, what would recover the money within the next three years, we would go back to fees of $22 and raise tax requisitions," said Carol Kulesha, Queen Charlotte.
The amount of revenue the SQCRD plans to generate for landfill and recycling operations has risen from $580,713 to $830,610 in 2008 and $102,077 will go to paying down the cost overrun from last year.

In order to do this, they will be increasing the monthly cost of garbage service on the islands by $4 per month, from $18 to $22, as well as no longer allowing people to opt out from garbage service when they are off island for several months at a time.

The amount is the SQCRD is asking from Skidegate and Old Massett First Nations for more to cover the cost of the landfill. Skidegate's bill is increasing from $57,762 to $93,450 and Old Massett from $55.050 to $76,560.

"At the moment, the only word I have had is that Skidegate does not like the increase," said Holland.

Overall, the SQCRD will be asking taxpayers for $882,722 in taxes, down from $1,001,494 in 2007.

In Masset, the tax requisition has increased from $47,628 in 2007 to $56,939 in 2008, an increase of $9,311, while in Port Clements, the tax requisition has increased from $21,660 to $23,566, an increase of $1,906 in 2008. Everyone else's drops or stays the same, with the largest decrease coming for Prince Rupert, whose requisition went down from $424,881 to $316,963, a decrease of $107,918.

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Islands residents fuming at expensive carbon tax
By Leanne Ritchie
The Daily News
Wednesday, April 02, 2008

Page 3

The province's 2.4 cent carbon tax is going to end up costing big dollars for residents of the Queen Charlotte Islands, says the Mayor of Masset.

Barry Pages has written Finance Minister Carole Taylor, pointing out the many flaws of setting up such a tax when areas like the Islands do not have access to electricity.

Taylor has been widely quoted as saying the province designed the new carbon-neutral tax because: "we believe we are giving back to people, whether you are in the North or in an urban centre, more dollars than, in fact, this tax will cost."

Pages said his council finds that difficult to imagine.

"As an isolated northern community, Masset has very limited options for reducing dependence on fossil fuels with no access to the mainland electrical grid or natural gas system. Homes and business have two choices for heat - oil and electricity, however all of our electricity is diesel-generated in the first place, so there is no environmental benefit and no cost benefit to switching to electricity," he said.

Oil already costs more on the islands, as does almost every commodity, because of shipping prices. Currently, the price of oil in Masset is $1.13 while in Prince Rupert it is $1.05.

"The proposed carbon tax will mean a direct increase to home heating costs of at least $55 a year and will rise to over $165 by 2012. Those costs do not take into consideration the compounding effect that will result from increased transportation costs to get the heating oil to the islands," he said.

"There is nothing that comes to these islands that will not be impacted by this carbon tax and that impact will be compounded several times over before products reach their final consumer."
For example, milk in Masset is currently $6.69 per gallon, up from $3.99 in Prince Rupert. With the new carbon tax, this cost differential will only increase.

In addition, the municipality will be forced to pass on the increased costs to community and user groups that use local facilities, punishing senior and youth groups.

"With oil heat, our only practical option, a carbon tax will increase our operating costs over $2,400 in the first year and more than $7,400 by 2012 ... " said Pages.

The carbon tax will hit islanders in every thing they do, even impacting the cost of accessing basic medical services off-island. Hence, they have some serious doubts when Taylor says this tax will actually put money back in their pockets.

"It is difficult to imagine ... " he said.

"We fear that continuing to add new taxes will further broaden the gulf between small isolated communities and the rest of the province and may lead us even closer to the collapse of small towns and their pioneering spirit which has been the mainstay of this province for the past 150 years."

Recycling advocate takes Regional District to task over accountability

Jean Martin, one of Prince Rupert's most passionate advocates for recycling in the city has addressed some concerns over the accountability of Skeena Queen Charlotte Regional District to local taxpayers.

In a letter to the editor in Monday's Daily News, Ms. Martin outlines her disappointment at the policy for public comment that Regional District recently employed on Friday, as the board conducted proceedings over the debate over recycling centre options and the subsequent reduction in service to the community.

Her impression of the state of local debate when it comes to Regional District is that for the most part the concerns of those citizens with any opinions on the issues is for the most part disregarded, with locally elected members on the board not conveying those concerns voiced by taxpayers.

In a closing shot that will resonate with a good number of residents that are concerned about the mysterious ways of the Regional District system, she advises residents to check their property tax notice, especially the portion of which is dedicated to Regional District, a dedicated  financial contribution that she suggests is made without a voice in policy or operation.

It's the kind of talking point that could make for an uncomfortable feeling around the SQCRD discussion table, as local residents continue to seek out a bit more information about a level of government that seems to court controversy on a regular basis.

It's a level of government that few Rupertites seem to know much about,  and one that more than a few residents feel isn't particularly accountable to the taxpayer at the moment.

The full text of her letter can be found below.

Letter to the Editor
Prince Rupert Daily News 
Monday June 21, 2010
Page 4

SQCRD out of control... 


To the Editor, 


The Skeena Queen Charlotte Regional District Board is out of control and unaccountable to taxpayers.


For example, item 8.3 in the agenda for board meeting, Friday, June 18th. To quote, this policy is presented to fill the immediate need of the board for procedure in guiding the public question period.


Also in item 8.3, the public question period, will be limited to brief questions only and will commence at the end of the meeting after motions have been presented and the agenda is completed.


I have noted that our elected members on this board are not conveying the concerns voiced by our taxpayers with regard to reductions in service at Regional Recycling. 


Now, with adoption of item 8.3 on Friday June 18th public opinion will be totally disregarded. 


Check your property tax notice re: the amount you contribute to the local Regional District without a voice in policy or operations. -


Jean Martin


Most recently on the blog we tapped into a recent Queen Charlotte Islands Observer article, which took a look at some of the issues of the SQCRD, which continues to face financial concerns as it tries to come to terms with its budgetary challenges.

Podunk Below the Masthead (Tuesday, June 29,2010)

Enbridge fails to sway Haida Gwaii to the cause of tanker traffic, Telus hangs up the phone on long distance plans in the city and the Ministry of Transportation puts an eye on Haida Gwaii traffic, some of the items of interest from Tuesday.

Daily News, front page, headline story
HAIDA GWAII UNITED AGAINST - CITY AND DISTRICT ON THE FENCE-- Haida Gwaii officials have come out against the Enbridge Corporation's Northern Gateway plans, turning attention towards the City of Prince Rupert and Regional District to make their inclinations known to the public.

Telus turns off the long distance switch on July 20th, as the communications company brings an end to its long distance plans for the region on that date, for the most part turning the long distance competition over to City owned CityWest.

The Daily News continues on with its series of items on the soon to be implemented HST regimen in British Columbia

The Sports section features a review of recent KISL action from around the city's diamonds

(Daily News archive for Tuesday, June 29, 2010)

Haida Gwaii united against - City and District on the fence 
Telus ceasing long distance in Rupert
Baptist church ministers build relationships
Photography - a unique experience
HST - It's all about the money

The Northern View
Ministry of Transportation adds Haida Gwaii cameras to drivebc.ca website -- Folks on Haida Gwaii may be getting the feeling that someone is watching as the Ministry of Highways adds the Islands to its Highway camera inventory (see article here)

The Northern View 
CFO discusses City employee pay increases -- The City's Financial Officer Dan Rodin, outlines some of the background on recent staff salary disclosures (see article here)

The Northern View
Liberal leader backs tanker ban, reaction comes swiftly -- Federal Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff puts his party on the side of an oil tanker moratorium on the North Coast and Haida Gwaii (see article here)

The Northern View
UNBC, Northern Health sign MOU-- Northern Health and UNBC continue to develop links and programs to enhance health care in Northern British Columbia (see article here)

CFTK TV 7 News
School is officially out in Prince Rupert-- Another school year comes to an end for SD 52 (see article here) (Sahar Nassimdoost provided this report for TV 7)

CBC News Northern BC Daybreak North
Daybreak North is only posting selected items on their website now.

The most recently posted items can be found on the archive page for Daybreak North click here 

Daily News, front page, headline story
Haida Gwaii united against - City and District on the fence 
By George T. Baker 
Staff Writer 
Prince Rupert Daily News
Tuesday, June 29, 2010


Enbridge’s Northern Gateway and any proposed oil tanker traffic along the North Coast has officially received the thumbs down from municipalities on Haida Gwaii.

After protocol meetings with the Council of the Haida Nation and community members from Sandspit in the south of the archipelago to Masset in the north, municipal leaders have said “no” to tanker traffic.

It has put the ball in the court of the east side of Hecate Strait, where Prince Rupert council and the District of Port Edward council have yet to take a position on the proposed project and tanker traffic in general.

Mayor Carol Kulesha of the Village of Queen Charlotte said the discussion during the protocol meetings showed a united opposition to the Northern Gateway project and oil tankers.

“I think people are very concerned and they can see what is happening with the Gulf of Mexico. That has increased the anxiety about what the Islands have to lose in all of this,” said Kulesha.

Kulesha added that while she didn’t expect a resolution to go forward from the island communities asking the SQCRD board to support their official position, she did say they would be putting forward motions at September’s Union of British Columbian Municipalities annual meeting.

She hoped the Board would support those motions.

Enbridge has been trying to convince residents of the north that their pipeline will be safe and that super-sized oil tanker traffic will be adequate for the North Coast waters. In fact, they have argued that by allowing them to operate, they will increase safety on the coast.

However, they appear to be losing the public relations fight with environmentalists and Coastal First Nations, who oppose the project on several grounds, not the least of which they say is the liability they would take on if they approved of the project.

North Gateway Alliance Chair Colin Kinsley said one of the reasons that proponents for the project have fallen behind in the PR game is because the company has been focused on spending money and time on passing through the regulatory process.

 “Our hands were kind of tied from talking about all the things, so we talked in general about jobs and couldn’t even talk about what the tax benefits would be. We have had three weeks to do a few things and we are also waiting for the Joint Review Panel [to take] their 60 days to look at our submission,” said Kinsley.

The former Prince George Mayor said in the meantime the Gulf of Mexico spill has increased awareness about the oil industry.

 “There are people who are in opposition jumping on board about that sort of thing. What our job will be going forward is to make sure the public is informed about the steps that Enrbridge is prepared to take to make this the safest infrastructure project of its type ever,” said Kinsley.

Another reason proponents haven’t come out swinging against opponents is that before the submission had been handed in, anything Enbridge said regarding the project would have to be in the environmental assessment documents.

Kinsley added that he expected a more rigorous PR battle from Northern Gateway supporter now that the application has been filed. But the Haida Gwaii municipality position has also placed the region’s politics in an awkward position. 

The effect of political opposition from the islands is that half the Skeena-Queen Charlotte Regional District has taken a position on the tankers, while half have not.

Enbridge has sent delegates to meet both with City Council and the Regional District board. During the council meeting last week, Enbridge representatives Michelle Perret and Kevin Brown faced some difficult questions regarding the project, especially from councillor Joy Thorkelson, who has already voiced her personal opposition to the project.

When Enbridge visited the Regional District, they faced few questions about the project, but Port Clements Mayor Corey Delves said, during that meeting, that one of the ironies about the opposition to the project was that Haida Gwaii was barging lots of fuel across the Strait each week.

But Delves’ community also now officially opposes the project. Yet, no formal position from either of the mainland councils or the SQCRD has been announced.

“There hasn’t been any discussion since and there was no real discussion then,” said Area ‘A’ director Des Nobels about the Enbridge meeting with SQCRD board members.

“I would suggest the reason the islands have moved so quickly [in comparison to the mainland communities] is that there is absolutely no benefit to them and all the risk.”

Nobels also represents conservation group T. Buck Suzuki, and said that, as a rep for that group, the news that the municipalities had taken such a position was welcomed. He’d like to see the North Coast mainland communities follow suit.

“I think it is time for communities to begin to have a very sound and rational discussion around the issue. I think there are a lot of people who are opposed to the issue. And as such, we can no longer sit on the fence.”

Podunk Below the Masthead (Tuesday, March 16, 2010)

A shiny red truck drives around town, Hawkair finds a new corporate home and Regional District has budget woes, some of the highlights of the Tuesday news cycle.

Daily News, front page, headline story
PRINCE RUPERT HAS A NEW FIRETRUCK  - AND WHAT A BEAUTY SHE IS! -- The city's shiny new Fire ride  arrives in town, and with guest appearances around the city quickly becomes the talk of the town, the Daily dedicates its top half front page to the arrival

A review of the SQCRD budget proposals is outlined, with the first talking point the prospective budget deficit that would be illegal  under the Local Government Act, a problem that the members of Regional District will have to try and balance while still attempting to provide good governance for the region.

The Daily News catches up with the developments from the BC Hydro power call of last week, sharp eyed blog readers would have learned of the power call results from our blog post of  early Saturday morning. In Tuesday's Daily News George T. Baker takes a look at some of the successful bids, a couple of local ones that haven't made the first cut and some of the backlash against the need for these kinds of projects in the first place.

(Archive for Daily News Articles for March 16, 2010 )

Prince Rupert has a new fire truck - and what a beauty she is!
SQCRD proposed budget is out 
First Round for Clean Power call approved
Classroom on Haida Gwaii
Highway of Tears sign update

The Northern View
Charges laid against officer responsible for steering Queen of the North -- An update from the Northern View's wire services on the charges entered in a provincial courtroom on Tuesday in the sinking of the BC Ferry Queen of the North in March of 2006 (see article here)

The Northern View
RCMP seeking more suspects in assault case-- The weekly Crime report gets a review in the Northern View (see article here)

The Northern View
Regional budget will see a overall balance by 2014 -- A look at the budget plans of Skeena Queen Charlotte Regional District (see article here)

The Northern View
NaiKun not in first set of Hydro contracts -- The Northern View outlines its examination of last weeks Power Call decisions from BC Hydro, which saw some local power projects left off of the first round of successful applicants (see article here)

The Northern View
Anti-Hitchhiking sign no longer planned -- After over a year and a half of discussion and at times attempted fund raising, the City of Prince Rupert is apparently moving away from the prospect of a billboard to warn of the dangers of hitchhiking (see article here)

CFTK TV 7 News
Central Mountain Buys Hawkair-- Some details on the Tuesday announcement that Smithers based Central Mountain Airways has purchased Hawkair (see article here)

CFTK TV 7 News
Hazelton's Hockeyville Bid Falls Short -- There will be no Northwest repeat in the Hockeyville competition, as Hazelton's Bid didn't make the western cut, as the Northwest Community came up short behind Cranbrook and Yellowknife (see article here)

CBC News British Columbia, Daybreak North
No updates to the CBC website have been made since March 5th

The most recently posted items archive for Daybreak North can be found here

Daily News, front page, headline story

Prince Rupert has a new firetruck - and what a beauty she is! 
By Monica Lamb-Yorski 
The Daily News
Tuesday, March 16, 2010

It has arrived. Prince Rupert’s new fire truck rolled into town Sunday afternoon after a trip up the coast from Port Hardy aboard the B.C. Ferries vessel Northern Adventure.

Sporting a new motto: The Few Dedicated to the Many and a new logo, that has a ladder and a hydrant and includes the City of Prince Rupert’s logo, the truck has been named “Ladder 6”.

There is also a Canadian Flag in the front grill and a “Support Our Troops” ribbon on one of the side windows.

 “We started the process of acquiring a new truck over a year ago” said Fire Chief Dave McKenzie. In late September 2009, he travelled to Appleton, Wisconsin after Pierce Manufacturing won the contract to build the truck.

 “I went there once Pierce had done the first draft of the drawings and options,” explained McKenzie.

 In February he went back, accompanied by the City’s mechanic Anthony Holowachuk. The two spent two days doing road tests and operating the ladder.

 “There were no major flaws,” recalled McKenzie. “We had to decide on the location of accessories and asked if the strap for the ladder could be relocated.”

From Appleton the truck was driven to Wholesale Fire and Rescue Ltd. in Calgary where small equipment, such as chains and flashlights, were added.

 “They did a final test on the pumps and anything else to make sure everything was okay,” McKenzie said.

 Last week the truck left Calgary for the trip to Port Hardy and was delivered to Prince Rupert Fire & Rescue Station on Sunday by Derrick Harvey, representative from WFR for B.C. and Alberta.

 “I could drive up to 98 km an hour, that’s what she’s governed at,” said Harvey. The carwash was being dismantled in Port Hardy so the crew on the ferry actually washed the truck, Harvey added.

 Next week an instructor will be coming in from Pierce to teach the crew, but while he was here Harvey got them started Monday afternoon behind the Lester Centre of the Arts.

 The price tag for the new truck was $626,000 U.S.

It has a 75-ft ladder, a 
pumper, water tank, fire hose, aerial device and ground ladders.

Perhaps what they really need is a cat herder

Considering the nature of the member municipalities in wandering off in their own direction and with their own interests, the latest Chief Administrative Officer may be inclined to keep a shepherds staff close at hand.

The new CAO of the Regional District has settled nicely into his new offices having been on the job for a little over a month now. John Holland provided a thumb nail sketch of his duties for the Daily News last week, a brief outline of what he will be doing and what he hopes to achieve at the regional level of government in the North West.

The SQCRD has been a rather trouble plagued institution of late, finding itself in the headlines for personnel matters and large sum buyouts for a former employee who was terminated without cause.

Holland takes over from Tana Lee Hesse who left her interim post at Regional District to take on duties for Mayor Herb Pond at City Hall. She had taken over at Regional District after the very messy and very public termination of Janet Beil earlier in the year.

Holland most recently served as the CAO of Stewart and is looking forward to the challenges of his step up, judging by the varying interests of the member municipalities of the regional district; and the degree of suspicion around the place we would suspect that challenges will be coming his way.

NEW CAO TAKES REIGNS AT SQCRD
John Holland arrives from the city of Stewart
By Christian Webber
The Daily News
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
Page three

The Skeena-Queen Charlotte Regional District’s new Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) said his new job is a lot of work, but he likes living in Prince Rupert.

Formerly the CAO for the city of Stewart, John Holland has been in his new position since July 16.

He moved to Prince Rupert after a Canada-wide search by the local regional district office to find a new administrator.

Holland has an MBA and a lot of experience in municipal government. He had experience in Nunavut and the North West Territories working for municipal government.

He has also worked quite a bit with smaller First Nations communities.

After working for four years in Stewart, he said it was time to take a step up and it was time for a change.

Holland relieved Tana Lee Hesse from here interim position as CAO.

The district began seekng a new CAO after the board terminated former administrator Janet Beil without cause.

Holland said he expects the new position will be more of a challenge. Stewart was just one municipality and the regional district, encompasses many municipalities and areas, said Holland.

The ten member board includes five municipalities and five regional areas. It encompasses an area of 19,933 square kilometers, a land mass larger than some European countries.

“It’s broader in scope that the other, which is just one municipality,” said Holland.

Holland will be working on projects on the Queen Charlotte Islands and the Prince Rupert area.

He said among his responsibilities are controlling the financial situation of the district, working with the board and trying to execute plans and managing the day-to-day operations of the regional district.

As for living conditions, he said that compared with Stewart, there is a lot more activity here – more restaurants, hotels and people.

“I like the city, it is picking up and it’s nice place to live,” said Holland.

Holland said he is just starting to develop his plans and he isn’t a position to comment on the district’s future priorities.

Right now, he just needs to become familiar with what is going on and what the board’s priorities are.
However, he did say he “would like to see the district operating more efficiently and effectively.”

They followed the money at Regional District

The Daily News updated its coverage of the happenings at Skeena-Queen Charlotte Regional District on Thursday, a governmental group which has taken on a rather unaccustomed high profile of late in the local community.

The Daily picks up the story from a recent examination of the finances at the office, an examination that has determined that there was no fraudulent activities conducted there and therefore no need for a costly forensic audit to be conducted.

Those decisions and a look at the inside workings of the financial side of the Regional District appeared in Thursday’s paper.

FRAUD RULED OUT IN PROBE OF BOOKS
By Leanne Ritchie
The Daily News
Thursday, July 5, 2007
Page one

Despite the suspicions of some local politicians, there was no fraudulent activity or reckless spending at the Skeena-Queen Charlotte Regional District (SQRD) in the past three years, according to expert auditors.

Hence, there’s no need to spend thousands of dollars on a forensic audit.

The board hired BDO Dunwoody to look at the district’s finances earlier this year because some district directors felt things “things were not right.”

“We did not find any indication of fraudulent activity or reckless spending,” said Bill Cox, BDO Dunwoody, in his recent report to the SQCRD.

The 2007 SQCRD budget was rushed through earlier this year. District staff were left scrambling because of the board’s decision to terminate its administrator Janet Beil, without cause. (Beil will be paid $123,924 in severance plus benefits until September 20, 2008.)

However, directors questioned the budget numbers and the only area of the budget the board could agree on was that they needed to hire someone to conduct a forensic audit.

Cox, who spent two days going over the books with computer auditing software and interviewing staff, disagreed. Instead, he made numerous recommendations to improve accounting procedures and plan for the future, including telling directors it was time to start playing nice.

“Discussions and lively debate on issues is healthy during board meetings. However, it is important that once a decision is democratically made that all members of the board work to implement it as effectively as possible,” said Cox.

The auditor also put to bed an issue that has been causing consternation at the board level for several months – who should have cheque-signing authority.

Earlier this year, three board members challenged the minutes of a meeting that were written up by board chair Barry Pages, alleging he had altered the minutes to change who controls the taxpayers’ money.

The meting minutes were originally taken by Beil, who was then terminated, and the notes written up by Pages.

Ian Hetman (Rural Graham Island), Karl Bergman (Oona River), and Des Nobels (Dodge Cove. Port Simpson) said Pages had altered a motion that when monies need to be spent “the administrator seek signatures of the chair and vice-chair prior to other signing authorities.”

Previously, four directors including the chair, vice-chair Tony Briglio, two directors Christine MacKenzie and Des Nobels as well as the administrator could all act as signatories for financial transactions.

This motion meant the four directors and administrator were no longer to be equal but that the signatures of the chair and vice chair would be preferred if they were available.

However, the other six board members disagreed, supporting Pages and the new process made it official.

Cox, however, recommended a totally different method where as many board members as possible be included in a rotation of cheque signing duties. This way, each board members has the opportunity to review expenses at some point during the year.

The Big Fish doesn't always get to rule the tank

He may be the mayor of the largest municipality in the Skeena Queen Charlotte Regional District, but when the votes came in, Mayor Mussallem was on the outside as Barry Pages was once again selected as the chair of the regional district, his second term in that office.

Pages was elected to return to his post at the December 19th meeting, which saw both Mussallem and Area A representative Des Nobels come up short when the voting was done.

All three candidates for the position made their presentations to the Regional District forum, but Mussallem's quest to have his past experience and Prince Rupert's geographic location work in his favour didn't quite come to pass.

The full report on the activities at the December 19 meeting could be found in the New Year's Eve edition of the Daily News.

Mussallem edged out in race for district role
By George T. Baker
The Daily News
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Pages one and two

Barry Pages was voted in for a second term as chair for the regional district during the organization's first meeting of the new term on Dec. 19.

The Skeena-Queen Charlotte Regional District's initial meeting of the new session was like many government bodies after an election, with a mixture of the old and new.

The most significant parcel of news from the meeting was the naming of the new chair and vice-chair.

Three candidates were nominated, with two being mayors. Masset Mayor Barry Pages along with Prince Rupert Mayor Jack Mussallem were placed in front of the board, both having sat in the chair's role before, along with Area ‘A’ representative Des Nobels who threw his hat in the ring. All three made their case for the seat.

"In the three years I have been chair, the regional district has come a long way and I would like to keep it going," said Pages.

Mussallem reiterated his 19 years of local government experience, part of that, of course, sitting as the regional district chair. He also made his case based on geography, believing the short distance between city hall and the district office would make things easier for representation.

"We need a regional chair who can be here when senior levels of government visit, making it easier to meet face-to-face.

"It is expected that the chair will always be around for meetings," said Mussallem.

In the end, board members voted in narrowly in favour of Pages, giving him four votes to the three handed to both Mussallem and Nobels.

Mussallem was then voted in as vice-chair in vote over Nobels.

As for replacing former Prince Rupert city councillor Tony Briglio in the chair of the Northwest Regional Hospital District board, Pages was also given the nod over new SQCRD member Nelson Kinney, who was then acclaimed as the vice-chair.

The SQCRD will next meet on Jan. 16.

Podunk Below the Masthead, Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Prince Rupert's EI numbers hold steady, a resignation at Regional District and the RCMP make an arrest in a child pornography case in Glen Vowell, some of the items of note from Tuesday's news files.

The Northern View
Lester Centre of the Arts gets support for renovations-- Renovation time for the city's home for the Arts as the Lester Centre is in line for a new roof (see article here)

The Northern View
EI numbers steady in latest Stats Canada update-- Prince Rupert's Employment statistics hold steady in the latest release from Statistics Canada (see article here)

The Northern View
Cruise passengers weigh in on Rupert as season ends-- With the cruise season at its end for another year, the Northern View takes a look back at some of the reviews from those that have visited the city. As we've outlined on our blog through the year, some of the comments on cruise critic point towards a bit of work for the local industry in the off season (see article here)

The Northern View
SQCRD administrator resigns-- It was a short term of employment for John Farrell as the Deputy Administrator at the SQCRD tendered his resignation from regional government (see article here)

The Northern View
 Schools pilot project for fibber optics-- CityWest installs a new network for School District 52 taking advantage of the fibre network around the city to deliver faster internet connections (see article here)

The Northern View
Prince Rupert man sentenced for grow-op in Salmon Arm-- It's one year in jail for a Prince Rupert man after his conviction in a Salmon Arm grow op investigation (see article here)

The Northern View
Council talks fish-- Port Ed Mayor Dave MacDonald led the discussion in the District's council chambers, as council members talked over the recent Cohen Commission stopover in Prince Rupert (see article here)

The Northern View
CN to start whistling near cannery-- CN will soon blow their whistles upon approach to the North Pacific Cannery in Port Edward, as part of a move towards safer access to the historical site (see article here)

CFTK TV 7
Gitanmaax Man Gets Life Sentence For 2nd Degree Murder -- Life in prison is the sentence for at Gitanmaax man convicted of second degree murder from a July 2008 incident in the community (see article here)

CFTK TV 7
Child Pornography Warrant Executed in Glen Vowell-- Some background on a child pornography case in the Hazelton's region (see article here)

CFTK TV 7
Terrace RCMP seek help in break and enter -- An early morning break in at a Terrace gas station back in August has the Terrace RCMP seeking assistance from the public (see article here)

Terrace Standard
Woman arrested for allegedly distributing child porn -- The combined efforts of a number of  RCMP detachments resulted in the arrest of Glen Vowell woman earlier this month to face charges on allegedly distributing child pornography (see article here)

Terrace Standard
Food bank braces for record demand -- As Terrace's Churches Food Bank volunteers prepare to open their doors for the fall and winter season, there is anticipation that there may be a record demand of their services (see article here)


CBC News Northern BC Daybreak North
Daybreak North is only posting selected items on their website now. 

The most recently posted items can be found on the archive page for Daybreak North click here

Mayor Mussallem, always the Regional District bridesmaid, never the bride

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For the second year in a row, Mayor Jack Mussallem has been thwarted in his bid to claim the Skeena-Queen Charlotte Regional District chair. Once again coming up on the short end of the vote to Barry Pages of Masset.

Mr. Pages was re-elected by a majority of the various regional directors to the position last month, with Mayor Mussallem once again having to settle for the title of Vice-Chair, a spot he gained by acclamation.

With ten directors on the voting rolls, there clearly was not enough sentiment among Regional District members to have the urban representative of group take on the top position, owing perhaps to the rivalry between the urban and rural aspects of the wide ranging district make up.

The website for SQCRD seems to be in dire need of a makeover, with some rather outdated material listed as the current feed, including such items as the listing of former Mayor Herb Pond and Councillor Tony Briglio as directors.

If nothing else however, it does show the make up of the regional district and just how hard it would be for the Mayor of Prince Rupert to gain the chair of the gathering, that despite the fact that Prince Rupert by far makes up the bulk of the population in the Regional District census area.

That's a crunching of numbers that does tend to aggravate people in Prince Rupert from time to time, with the burden of providing some funding for yet another layer of Bureaucracy that may not necessarily have the city's agenda in sync with their own.

Some of the details from that last session can be found from the Queen Charlotte Islands Observer website, which offered up this review of proceedings from the most recent Regional District meeting.

Included in that review besides the voting, was the introduction of a new treasurer for the Regional government body, as well as the the possibility of a name change for the organization to reflect the province's move towards using Haida Gwaii as the identity of the Islands from now on.

Day one of a new council begins with an interesting split

As they gathered in session on Monday evening, it was the new kids on the block zooming by some of the older hands as the first official decision of the new Prince Rupert Council came to pass.

On a pair of key appointments to the Skeena Queen Charlotte Regional District, the names of Mayor Jack Mussallem and Councillor Nelson Kinney were put into nomination by new addition to council Anna Ashley, with a second nomination provided by newcomer Gina Garon.

It was a move that left one city councilor, Joy Thorkelson wondering if block voting was soon to be a featured attraction at Prince Rupert city council, both Thorkelson and Sheila Gordon-Payne both had expressed their hopes that they would be considered for the positions, but with business taken care of swiftly there was little time to make their case we suspect.

The new Mayor Jack Mussallem said that he didn’t believe that there was any organized block of votes on the issue, the results however provided for an interesting split on council on the first issue of the brave new world they’ve entered.

Of the seven votes cast, three in the negative on the motion were from the established councilors Thorkelson, Bedard and Gordon-Payne, providing an indication perhaps that there may be some fence mending on the horizon.

It provides for the first bit of controversy for the new session of council, not one of earth shattering prospects, but still suspicions from day one could build quickly unless the Mayor and all councilors make sure that they are providing for equal consideration on appointments and other key issues that may come up.

It will be with interest that we watch how our new group of six work together and if these same alliances, whether planned or by happenstance come to pass again.

The Daily news provided some details on the first night of the new council in Tuesday’s paper.

New Council rolls up its sleeves
Councillors hold their first council meeting since Nov. 14 polling
By George T. Baker
The Daily News
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Pages one and five

With a new mayor and two new councillors, some people might have expected a week or two of easing-in time before there were any fireworks around the council table.

But one meeting into the new council's term and it was clear that this group of councillors will not be holding back on sharing their opinions about how the city should be run.

Mayor Jack Mussallem sat in his new post Monday along with the diverse group of councillors that included four returnees - Sheila Gordon-Payne, Joy Thorkelson, Kathy Bedard and Nelson Kinney - and two rookies, Anna Ashley and Gina Garon.

The newly minted council was still warm when the first big decision was before them - choosing who should represent the city at the Skeena-Queen Charlotte Regional District meetings.

Wasting no time, Ashley motioned to have both Mussallem and Kinney named to the regional representative posts with Bedard and Garon named as alternates. Her motion was seconded by Garon, which had one councillor questioning how the vote unfolded.

"I am glad to be back but I hope that council does not end up in block votes as it appeared it did tonight," said Thorkelson after the motion was carried.

Both Thorkelson and Gordon-Payne said they had both hoped to be considered for the posts, which Thorkelson .claimed was not a patronage position but an important city council responsibility.

The new councillors and the new mayor all voted for the motion. Kinney voted for the motion as well, leaving the other returnees feeling left out.

Returning councilors Bedard, Gordon-Payne and Thorkelson all voted against the motion.

"The SQCRD sets the direction for the region and is an extremely important organization. And it looked like it was pre-determined to cut both me and Sheila out," said Thorkelson.

But Mussallem said he was not aware of any block vote.

"Nobody who was sitting here knew what was going to happen or how it was going to be voted," said Mussallem.

"I see this as an opportunity to bring my experience and knowledge to the region," said Mussallem.

"Next year, with council's approval, it will be other members of council who will have the opportunity," said Mussallem.

City manager Gord Howie swore in all six councillors, while former mayor Herb Pond along with former councillor Tony Briglio were on hand to take in the formalities.

Podunk Below the Masthead (Tuesday, April 27, 2010)

The travel vaccination clinic returns to the city, questions arise over Regional District's budget requests and vandalism and violence in the down town area once again are brought to city council's attention, some of the items of the Tuesday news listings.

Daily News, front page, headline story
TRAVEL VACCINATION CLINIC TO REOPEN ON THE NORTH COAST THIS MAY -- Local residents can once again receive travel medicine and vaccinations in Prince Rupert, when the Travel Medicine and Vaccination centre opens up an office on May 5th in the McBride Street Primary Care Medical Clinic. The travel services will be provided every Wednesday evening from 5:30 to 9 PM. The travel clinic was last located in Prince Rupert in the fall of 2009 but was cut due to Northern Health's restraint program, travellers then had to make the trek to Prince George or Vancouver to receive their inoculations and consultations.

Skeena Queen Charlotte Regional District's budget requests will hit local taxpayers in the pocket book as the Regional Government seeks an increase of 26 percent, looking for a total increase in funding from Prince Rupert of close to 100,000 dollars. Local residents and former employees of the District attended the most recent R D meeting and questioned Mayor Mussallem about a variety of cost related issues surrounding the District's plans, the bulk of which involve staffing requirements recently implemented by the District.

The Daily outlines a tribute to former City of Prince Rupert employee Bob Thompson, as we outlined on the blog in early April, Thompson along with a number of other city employees have taken retirement or left the city's employment this month, the Daily providing a biography of Mr. Thompson's service to the city in the Tuesday edition.

The Sports section reviews last weeks Milk Run at Charles Hays Secondary School.

(Daily News Archive for Tuesday, April 27,2010)

Travel vaccination clinic to reopen on the North Coast this May SQCRD budget comes under fire
Thompson tackles retirement
Outfitter caught wearing the goat horns
Abuse victims addressed in local production

The Northern View
Retailer, city council discuss 'violence and vandalism' in downtown Prince Rupert -- Prince Rupert's vandalims and random violence downtown was addressed at the most recent city council session as a local retailer outlined his frustrations with the situation (see article here)

The Northern View
Ridley says funding formula must change -- Ridley Terminals reviews its financials from 2009 and expresses its belief that the funding formula in place over financial matters needs to be changed to better reflect the Terminals requirements (see article here)

The Northern View
Local featured in employment success book -- Two local residents are profiled in a new book called RESPECT, a 30 page project which tells the stories of people with developmental disabilities who are in the workforce and includes the stories of Jamie Alexander of Prince Rupert and Harmit Atwal of Terrace. (see story here)

The Northern View 
MP meets with Alaskan senators -- Nathan Cullen's trip to Washington provided him the opportunity to discuss issues of concern between BC and Alaska as he met with Alaskan Senate and Congressional representatives (see article here)

The Northern View
City to host 2011 NCLGA meeting -- The City will once again call on volunteers to help it host an upcoming meeting, as the City confirms it will be hosting the 2011 North Central Local Government Association convention next May. The convention will bring 200 to 300 visitors to the city for three day (see article here)

The Northern View
BC Annual gets underway Sunday -- The Lester Centre is once again home to a key BC dance competition as the BC Annual is set to get underway on May 2nd for a week of competition. (see article here)

CFTK TV 7
No items of concern to Prince Rupert were posted on the CFTK website on Tuesday

CBC News British Columbia, Daybreak North
No new items were posted to the Daybreak North website on Tuesday

Daybreak North is only posting selected items on their website now. The most recently posted items can be found on the archive page for Daybreak North click here 

Daily News, front page, headline story

Travel vaccination clinic to reopen on the North Coast this May 
By Monica Lamb-Yorski 
Staff Writer 
Prince Rupert Daily News
Tuesday, April 27, 2010

After going without for almost half a year, locals will now have access to travel medicine and vaccines, when a Travel Medicine & Vaccination Centre (TMVC) opens an office in Prince Rupert on May 5.

The clinic will be located at 501 McBride Street in the new Primary Care Medical Clinic. The office will initially be open on Wednesday evenings from 5:30 to 9:00 pm, but will expand as demand warrants, possibly to Saturdays. 

“We are excited about bringing back a dedicated full service travel clinic to Prince Rupert after a number of months since the closure of the public health travel clinic” said TMVC’s manager Ray Christopherson in a press release. 

“TMVC is the largest medical organization in B.C. specializing in providing vaccinations for travellers and for occupational purposes. We have 21 offices located throughout British Columbia. All offices are Public Health Agency of Canada designated Yellow Fever Vaccination Centres.”

Nurse practitioner Toby Hilton will be leading the vaccine clinic and will be available to provide vaccinations, prescriptions for travel diseases such as malaria and traveller’s diarrhea, and travel advice.

Hilton worked at a travel clinic in the fall of 2009 and has also done travel consulting with public health.

 “I really enjoyed it because I’ve travelled a lot and I enjoy talking to people about their trips,” Hilton told the Daily News. “Most recently I was in Vietnam and Cambodia and have volunteered in orphanages in India, Bolivia and Guatemala.”

According to Hilton, Northern Health Authority closed its travel vaccine service in November due to economic restraints. “It was considered a non-essential service. There are other health authorities that have cut back theirs as well,” she explained.

Previously, travellers could visit a public health nurse for vaccinations, but since November, people have had to travel to Vancouver or Prince George to have a consultation and travel shots.

“Some people book appointments with their family doctor for advice and some vaccines can be ordered in, but doctors are not licensed to give some vaccines, such as yellow fever. Someone in Prince Rupert going to Africa needs the yellow fever vaccine and they need it ten days before they leave,” Hilton said, adding that the lack of travel vaccines locally has been in inconvenience for travelers in the Northwest.

Travel vaccines are a specialized field and having someone that has access to updated databases and the latest information for travel to different countries is essential.

 “TMVC is looking at opening a clinic in Smithers and eventually Terrace, but not yet, so we’re the closest right now,” Hilton added.

The clinic will stock a complete range of travel and occupational health related vaccinations including the new Shingles vaccine. It will also offer a selection of travel health accessories such as mosquito nets, repellents, first aid kits and water purification products.

 “We are committed to providing business and pleasure travellers with the highest level of service and expertise,” added Christopherson.

Hilton said unfortunately there are people who are not aware of what they need until they are ready to leave for a trip. 

“Then they learn they have to delay their trip by a couple of weeks and that ends up costing more money.” 

Appointments can be made by calling 1-888-288-8682. You can also visit the web site at www.tmvc.com

Regional District goes Island hopping this weekend

The process of Regional Government moves to the Queen Charlottes this weekend, as the October meeting of the Skeena Queen Charlotte Regional District takes place Friday night at the Howard Phillips community hall in Masset, the meeting is scheduled for a 7 pm start.

Board members will then spend the next two days attending a board development workshop on Saturday and Sunday.

With five directors of SQCRD hailing from the Charlottes, it is hoped that this is just the beginning of an increase in meetings taking place away from Prince Rupert.

The Queen Charlotte islands Observer featured details of the weekend gathering on its website today.

Regional district meets Friday in Masset
Queen Charlotte Islands Observer

Monday, October 15, 2007

The Skeena-Queen Charlotte regional district will be holding its October meeting in Masset, and chair Barry Pages says more meetings may be held on the islands in the future. The regional district meetings are usually held once a month in Prince Rupert.

Mr. Pages said that with five of the 10 directors from the Charlottes, it's actually just as convenient to hold the meetings here. "We're hoping to have more meetings on the islands," he said.

The board will hold its regular public meeting this Friday night (Oct. 19) at the Howard Phillips community hall starting at 7 pm. Directors will then be attending a "board development" workshop in Masset on Saturday and Sunday, Mr. Pages said.

Pull out the air miles cards, its municipal travel season!

Travelling on the public dime is always a controversial topic, basically a no win situation for politicians, who are damned if they do and damned if they don’t when it comes to heading off to other locales both mundane and exotic.

Since the days of Pete Lester and his many trips to Asia, through to the more recent expeditionary missions taken by Herb Pond, travel is the one item of the municipal budget that can quickly get the citizens talking and wondering.

With the UBCM convention all set to go for later this month, Mayor Jack Mussallem is making his list of key items to discuss with his provincial counterparts both municipal and provincial when they all gather in Vancouver. Taking time to examine the upcoming political gathering for the Daily News he pointed to issues such as the Tsimshian Access project, health care and BC Ferries as some areas he would like to chat about.

The Mayor, is taking along members of the City’s senior administration staff with him as both the City Manager Gord Howie and Corporate Administrator Robert Grodecki will be accompanying the Mayor as he makes the annual pilgrimage in quest of better governance.

Not know yet is how many of the city’s councillors will be getting boarding passes for the trip, in past years most if not all of the city’s elected officials have gone for the four day field trip on the workings of government, each with a list of contacts and issues to bring up with assorted provincial cabinet ministers.

This year, Regional District will also be taking to the road, with a full complement of officials from the SQCRD making the journey.

And the travel budget will get a bit more of a workout in the near future, at Tuesday night’s Council meeting, it was announced that Prince Rupert was about to join in on a new twinning project with cities in China and Japan.

Newly installed Economic Development Officer Nellie Cheng is working out the details on the hands across the ocean plans, an initiative with the Port of Prince Rupert that will be used to take advantage of provincial government twinning funds (providing we assume they too don't get called back in this new era of austerity), with the finishing touches to put on a “preliminary trip” that will set the table for those twinning projects. (See pages 9-11 of City council agenda from September 8)

No word on how many, or which of our elected officials or administrative staff will be the lucky ones to get in some international travel in the near future.

And the road trips continue on, there may be some travel for a representative or representatives of council in October, when a conference on making cities livable for children takes place in Langley, (pages 33-44 of council agenda) five of the six members of council in attendance on Tuesday voted in favour of the motion to send someone down south, with only councillor Gordon Payne apparently expressing hesitations on the plan. (see council voting record for September 8).

So as we move fully into fall and winter, there may be more than a few opportunities for our elected (and administrative) officials to take to the road.

Lets hope that the city puts all those air miles to good use in the near future, here’s the online version of the Air Miles catalogue, we don’t see any place where we can redeem them for property tax credits or reductions on any upcoming bills, or for deals on loads of blacktop for road repairs, so perhaps we can submit our suggestions to the city as to where we could reinvest those valuable miles…

To the well, to the well, to the well once more!

Prince Rupert residents must be wondering if their local politicians will ever stop coming up to them asking for even more money than they already provide.

Skeena Queen Charlotte Regional District is seeking more money from a shrinking taxpayer base, after approving a five year financial plan at a rather combative Friday meeting.

The plan was approved despite the uncertainties expressed by three of the district councilors, who questioned some of the financial figures that were being used to develop the plan.

The heated meeting included an interjection from Prince Rupert Mayor Herb Pond, who was participating in the Friday evening meeting by teleconference. Pond expressed his outrage at the questioning of the accuracy of the figures by declaring those accusations are baseless and spurious allegations.

The Daily News featured a review of the Friday night fireworks and a bit of background on the controversial issues in the Wednesday paper.



SOME DIRECTORS QUESTION DISTRICT'S NEW BUDGET
The Daily News
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
Page Three

The Skeena-Queen Charlotte Regional District will spend an additional $243,000 in 2007 terminating its administrator/planner and hiring new staff — and it looks like it will be asking tax payers to foot the bill.

At Friday night’s meeting, SQCRD board members approved a five-year financial plan that sees the budget balloon from $587,964 in 2006 to a projected $831,757 in 2007.

“We have kept this budget equal to last year with no increases except in areas of administrative cost going up,” said Tony Briglio, director for the city of Prince Rupert and vice chair.

Projected audit and legal expenses are expected to increase $87,000 in 2007 (up from $13,067 to $100,000,) plus an increase in salaries of $100,000 due to the termination of Beil who was doing three jobs (from $196,145 in 2006 to $300,000) with staff benefits also doubling (from $26,000 to $54,000.)

The amount of money it will be requisitioning from member municipalities — including Prince Rupert, Port Edward, Masset, Port Clements and the village of Queen Charlotte — is up from $180,000 to $266,978. These municipalities in turn will be asking their taxpayers to foot this bill.

Other oddities in the budget included an anticipated $244,000 grant in lieu of taxes listed in the 2007 budget that did not exist in 2006 that was used to balance the numbers.

Three directors refused to support the budget. They were Des Nobels, Ian Hetman and Karl Bergman.

“I tried and tried and tried to understand this budget and I can’t see anyone being comfortable with this,” said Karl Bergman.

“There are nothing but questions.”

Nobels said he believes the budget will increase taxes for his constituents, yet they were not able to have comment on it.

The draft budget was passed out to members of the public in attendance at the meeting just prior to the public comment period.

He added that he believes the budget will eat into the district’s reserves. In the past, he said, the district has passed balanced budgets that either maintained or lowered the requisition from taxpayers. However, in this year’s budget that is not the case.

Janet Beil, former administrator planner at the Skeena Queen Charlotte Regional District, took a look at the figures during that period and described them as “totally inaccurate”.

After pointing out what she believed were glaring inaccuracies between 2006 and 2007 figures, she questioned how they could do this to the taxpayers.

“I am just wondering how small municipalities are going to pay for this budget, especially municipalities that have lost assessment value,” she said.

However Carol Kulesha, representing the Village of Queen Charlotte, said they were following the provincial process and had only had a very short time to put together the budget.
“Is everything perfect? No. Things are difficult when you are in the midst of revamping things. Nevertheless, we have followed the process of the ministry,” said Kulesha. She added that the numbers are based on those provided to them by auditors. The regional district will be having auditors do an even more in depth analysis in the coming year.

Allegations that the figures were inaccurate seemed to infuriate director Herb Pond, city of Prince Rupert, who participated in the meeting by teleconference.

“These are baseless and spurious allegations. They are not identifying any single truth but laying general statements to which they have never once in our process, which has been extensive, objected,” said Pond.

“The broad statements that cast aspersions on the best work that could be done under the circumstances should be stopped.”

At this point, chair Barry Pages ended the conversation and the budget was adopted with the three members opposed.