At the regular meeting of Greenwood city council on Aug. 11, Ed Smith made a presentation on behalf of the ballpark committee. He delivered a three page report outlining costs and timelines for completion of the concession stand and the rejuvenation of the park itself.
A meeting will be held at 4 p.m. on Monday, Aug. 18 so that council and the ballpark committee can discuss the report and make plans for the rest of the project, which must be completed by next spring. Staff will prepare a financial statement detailing the amount of funding left for the project. Staff was also directed to develop policy and procedures on the use of the concession building and washrooms.
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Council has received a proposal from the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure (MOTI) that the intersection at North Government and Hwy 3 be closed with barricades and signage. The closure is suggested because of safety concerns, as traffic travelling south on Hwy 3 must negotiate a corner at the intersection and the route is not clearly seen on dark and rainy nights.
Councillor Lee Cudworth said that council had identified other intersections (such as the Washington Street Bridge, Louisa Street and Copper Street intersection) more deserving of top priority than this one.
Mayor Nipper Kettle explained that he and Administrator Robin Dalziel had met with ministry reps and were told that this project was chosen at this time because it is relatively inexpensive, requiring nothing more than barricades and signs. They were told the other areas are still on the government’s list of potential future projects.
City staff was directed to conduct a survey of the residents affected by the intersection closure to determine their opinion and to research the procedures to close a road.
During question period at the end of the meeting Robert Smith spoke from the gallery, saying he lives in the area and was once on the ambulance crew and that he knows firsthand that the intersection should be closed.
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Kettle reported on numerous meetings he’d attended over the past month including:
a meeting on July 16 with Interior Health and regional directors to discuss the collective health care needs of the entire Boundary; on July 22, signing of the papers for the Job Creation Program grant. This will employ recipients of Employment Insurance on a beatification project that has input from several community volunteers.
He also attended a meeting with MOTI representatives to discuss speed-reader boards.
Kettle also said he’d talked to Regional District of Kootenay Boundary CAO John MacLean and Area E Director Bill Baird and it was agreed that with the upcoming election, this is not the right time to deal with the Anaconda water upgrade. They will try to get a meeting with provincial officials at the UBCM convention to inform them of the report that has been done on the water system.
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Kettle reported that a doctor from Grand Forks has expressed an interest in serving patients at the Greenwood Clinic on a two day- per-week basis beginning in December. He will tour the clinic later this week.
The mayor said Interior Health continues to work on finding a replacement for Dr. Ajaero who will leave his practice at the clinics in Greenwood and Rock Creek at the end of the month.
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Under his report, the administrator told council that all of the tires have been removed from the former demolition derby grounds.
Dalziel did warn council that the city hall boiler upgrade “is not proceeding as directly as I would have liked.” He said he has not received any quotes but he is working with the inspector, a mechanical engineer and a couple of boilermakers in order to determine the next steps for the city. He said he hopes to have a definite plan for council in September.
Council heard that should the project be pushed back to the colder weather the city has the option of hiring a contractor from the Lower Mainland with a mobile boiler that could hook up to the city hall heating system while the maintenance is done.
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The mayor left the room as council had the revitalization bylaw back on the table. The proposed bylaw would apply to commercial properties fronting on Hwy 3 including the building that Kettle owns.
The Times had incorrectly reported in the July 24 issue that it was up for final adoption at the July 14 meeting; however, it had only been before council for discussion in July, not adoption.
Dalziel brought the bylaw back to council with a report on the questions that had been laid out in July and, once again, it was for discussion not adoption.
Councillors Lang, Ashton and Cudworth voted unanimously to direct staff to draft a bylaw for adoption that would have no expiry date and that would apply to new construction as well as upgrading existing buildings.
The draft bylaw and supporting documents will be sent to BC Assessment for review.