Post Notes for the Council Meeting of December 5, 2011

Mayor Wayne Stetski takes his oath of office

Councillors Bob Whetham, Gerry Warner, Denise Pallesen, Angus Davis, Sharon Cross and Diana J. Scott take their oaths of office

Chief Electoral Officer Leanne Jensen officiated the swearing in ceremony for Mayor Stetski and Councillors

Chief Casimer, David Walker and Nevada Joseph gave a Ktunaxa blessing.

Dr. Ron Foubister gave the invocation.

Administration Update

As reported in the Advance Notes.
The complete update can be read at:
https://cranbrook.civicweb.net/Documents/DocumentList.aspx?ID=1828

Correspondence
Permissive Tax Exemption for the Cranbrook Golf Club – referred to administration for review and report to the first regular meeting in January 2012
It was mentioned that the membership in the club has dropped from well over 1000 to around 500 and the club has some challenges financially.

New Business

All Committee appointments of Councillors were adopted and can be viewed at:
https://cranbrook.civicweb.net/Documents/DocumentList.aspx?ID=1839


Bylaws
First Second and Third readings were given to Waterworks Amendment Bylaw 3734, Sewer Rates Amendment Bylaw 3735 and Sewer Frontage Tax Amendment Bylaw 3736.
https://cranbrook.civicweb.net/Documents/DocumentList.aspx?ID=1846
All these bylaws determine an increase in rates for these services.  To view the new rates go the link above.
Councillor Cross asked whether residents who are not hooked up to city services must pay these rates.  Response from administration stated that frontage tax must be paid if services run in front of the property even if they are not hooked up.  Utility fees are not paid if the services are not hooked up.
Councillor Warner commented he did not realise some water metering exists in the city. 

Mayor and Councillor Inaugural Reports followed.

Old or Young?

In one of the comments recently someone made mention of the fact that we at CLC referred to Cranbrook as being adolescent.  If you have lived in parts of the world where cities take on the patina of a thousand years, Cranbrook does appear to be very young but whether referring to cities or people - it is all relative.  Bill Tapia at over 100 hundred years old died yesterday and as CBC played this piece of his today, we could not resist either - and remember Cranbrook is only a very few years older than Bill Tapia.  Is that young or old?  Age is also somewhat a matter of opinion!

Here he is at close to 100 playing 'Young at Heart'

Advance City Council Meeting Notes- Dec. 5

The location of this Council meeting is the Alexandra Hall at the Railway Museum 6:00pm The Public is invited both to the inaugural meeting of this new council and to the following reception.

7.1 Administration Updates

Slaterville Community Plan will be presented on Dec 14 at an Open House at the Manual Training Centre between 7pm-9pm. A questionnaire will be handed out to get feedback on the proposal.

Johnny Reid is coming to Cranbrook. He will be playing at the Rec Plex. Reid has won several Junos and Canadian Country Music Awards.

The library will be holding a Christmas Open House on Dec 9 between 10am to 6pm. Readings, poetry, carols along with refreshments will be served. The event is open to the public. Please drop by.

Correspondence

9.1 Highlights of the RDEK board meeting of Nov 4
9.2 Proposed operations of the Rocky Mountain Trench Society in the vicinity of the City of Cranbrook
9..4 A letter from the RDEK advising the City of Cranbrook of its appointments of Directors to the Regional District (the City of Cranbrook is allowed 2 Directors)
9.5 A letter from the RDEK re: Ktunaxa Kinbasket Treaty Advisory Committee appointments
9.6 Cranbrook Golf Course asking permissive property tax exception for 2 years. As the City of Cranbrook has allowed 2 golf courses to be build in the city limits within the last few years this has created increased competition for the Cranbrook Golf Course. Their membership has fallen steadily since the 1980's.
9.8 Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada requesting a Proclamation

New Business

12.1-12.3 Council Meeting Dates, Acting Mayor Appointments, and Appointment of Councillors to City Committees.

12.5 Approving construction permit to expand the PlayPen Dog and Cat boarding facility.

13.1 Recommendation to increase the water and sewer rates from $17 to $18 and $16 to $17 respectively

Martin and Jones take the Cups

Congratulations to all those involved in the Canada Cup of Curling held in Cranbrook over the last few days. It was curling at its finest.



Photos Stewart Wilson and Jenny Humphrey.






 

Not Curling?...........

Both the Kimberley Ski Hill and Kimberley Cross Country Ski Trails are open and reports are great.  We have not heard about South Star Trails yet but you could head up in elevation and strap on the snowshoes.
Nothing posted as yet on the blog:
http://www.southstartrails.blogspot.com/

Citizens for a Livable Cranbrook Society Continues its Work

After a meeting last week,Citizens for a Livable Cranbrook members agreed that the work of the society will continue, unchanged. Members have been asked frequently since the municipal election whether the society will continue in its current capacity. The organisation is to all intents and purposes a rate-payers association, terminology that many may be more familiar with and its work will certainly not go away. The society is fortunate to have a core group of dedicated individuals who work constantly and voluntarily to research and provide educational opportunities concerning topics relevant to citizens of this community. CLCS has members who attend Council meetings regularly and this blog is one source of concise reporting on those meetings. We offer our comment when we see a need to do so.  We welcome yours also.

We look forward to continuing our volunteer work, putting the taxpayers of the community first and following the mandate set out in our mission and vision statement located at the top of this blog. Membership information is available to the right of this post and we look forward to our first public event sometime in the spring.

As well as the continued use of comments on daily postings, we are now inviting letters from the public. Letters must be signed with the name and phone number of the author although we will only publish the name. Letters will be posted under a special ‘letter tab.’

Community Forest this Week

Looking north to the Purcells

Sagebrush dusted with snow - looking east

Forest Biomass ― Helping Fuel Canada's Renewable Energy Future

Recently' biomass' has been a popular buzz word used in conjunction with 'economy'.  Our local municipality has been exploring the potential for a biomass energy project potentially in partnership overseas and for the making of wood pellets for example.

It is important to remember that the Skookumchuck power plant uses forest-based biomass, including sawmill residue, logging debris and other residual wood to generate electricity and has been since 1997 when an agreement was signed with BC Hydro. Under the original agreement, BC Hydro has been purchasing up to 123 gigawatt hours of power annually from the Skookumchuck power plant.


This news release has high hopes for the forest industry in this regard.
From Canada NewsWire

OTTAWA, Oct. 6, 2011 /CNW/ - The President and CEO of the Forest Products Association of Canada (FPAC), Avrim Lazar, says that with the right government support the Canadian forest industry could produce enough clean renewable energy to replace nine nuclear reactors.

He was appearing today before the Senate Standing Committee on Energy, the Environment and Natural Resources as part of its study of the current and future state of Canada's energy system and its goals of defining a Canadian Sustainable Energy Strategy.

According to the Canadian Industrial Energy End-Use Data and Analysis Centre, biomass ranks second after large hydroelectric facilities in producing renewable energy in Canada, and also creates almost three times as much energy as wind. The forest industry now generates enough electricity to power Vancouver or the entire Maritime provinces or replace the output of three nuclear reactors.

"We could easily triple our clean energy output using waste products from our mills," says Lazar. "Already we are self-generating about two thirds of our energy needs and about a half dozen of our mills are now net exporters of energy to provincial grids. Further developing this significant source of green energy needs to be a larger part of governments' energy development plans"

The Pulp and Paper Green Transformation Program (PPGTP) is already helping Canadian pulp and paper mills increase their production of renewable energy, and when the program is fully completed, will mean an extra 2.1 million MWH/year, enough to power nearly 174,000 homes.

"We need to keep that momentum going," says Lazar. "Governments have an important role to play to further help mills accelerate their transformation and add on the production of bio-fuels, bio-chemicals and other bio-products to their existing product mix. Recognizing the role that the Canadian forest industry plays in greening the energy supply chain is a critical component of any clean energy strategy."

Lazar told the Senate that this would be good not just for the environment and Canada's energy future, but also good for the economy and jobs.

FPAC provides a voice for Canada's wood, pulp, and paper producers nationally and internationally in government, trade, and environmental affairs. The $57-billion-a-year forest products industry represents 2% of Canada's GDP and is one of Canada's largest employers operating in hundreds of communities and providing 240,000 direct jobs across the country.

For further information:

Susan Murray

Executive Director, Public Relations

Forest Products Association of Canada

smurray@fpac.ca 613-563-1441 x313

A Public Invitation

An Invitation from Mayor Elect Wayne Stetski

Monday, December 5 at 6:00 PM marks a new era in Cranbrook with the swearing in of the new Mayor and Councillors. Please join with us for the celebration in the Royal Alexander Hall of the Railway Museum on Van Horne Street (Hwy 3). Following the swearing in ceremony there will be a short Council meeting followed by a reception where you can meet your new representatives while enjoying some punch. A beautiful and historic location and you're invited to be a part of Cranbrook's history.

Canada Cup of Curling

It was an exciting Thursday night at the Canada Cup of Curling being held at the Rec Plex. Some of the top curlers in the world are taking part in this tournament. Howard, Martin, Stoughton, Jones, Koe, Kleibrink are all names that those familiar with curling will recognize. Winners of the Scotties, Brier, Olympic Gold Medalists, World Champions are all playing here in Cranbrook. However a win here means more than money,  it is the first qualifying tounament for the Canadian Olympic Trials. Last night there was a thrilling game between Kevin Martin and Glen Howard which came down to a final rock perfectly thrown by Martin to defeat Howard. There are still tickets available for most draws so come out and see the worlds best right here in Cranbrook.
To read more go here http://www.curling.ca/2011/12/02/cranbrook-showdown-looms/