by Goat Staff
Mayor Owen Torgerson, councillors Hollie Blanchette, Donnie MacLean and Pete Pearson met April 9, 2019 for their regular council meeting. Chief Administrative Officer Wayne Robinson, Planner Megan Vicente, Economic Development Officer Silvio Gislimberti and Director of Finance Lori McNee were the staff present.
Public Hearing to amend R2 zoning
A public hearing was held to amend the R2 Zone by adding Bed and Breakfast as a permitted accessory use, update minimum lot size to the Bed and Breakfast regulations, update the Short Term Vacation Rental definition and the permitted use sections in all zones where it is allowed. There were no written or verbal comments for Bylaw 796.
Public Comments
Eugene Jamin and Monique Jamin spoke in favour of the variance to Three Ranges Brewery to allow expansion without requiring more parking spaces. Rashmi Narayan addressed Scooters Pizza’s concerns about signage to bring customers to their restaurant on Main Street, by installing a bigger sign closer to the entrance to invite people into town. She suggested business owners could contribute to the sign.
Presentation from BC Timber Sales
Timber Sales manager from Prince George Len Stratton showed a video and gave an update on their work in the Robson Valley. He said they have focused on East Canoe in the past 10 years. Since losing the Hugh Allen drainage due to fire last year, they are working on alternate plans. Another area of focus is to address the spruce bark beetle infected areas. Developing plans for the West Canoe will take place after 5 years.
Brewery Seeks to Expand Patio
Michael Lewis of Three Ranges Brewing Company sought a variance to expand his patio to have an additional 28 seats for good weather conditions. He is unable to develop the lot at the back in order to reserve it for future expansion of his production facility. Michael noted the $1500 per parking stall penalty for not providing” spaces. He is installing a second bike rack. Pearson had concerns about the already limited parking on 5th Avenue. MacLean said with the planned Pizza place and the brewery, people stay longer and impact grocery shoppers.Blanchette said she wanted to support local business. Pearson asked to explore the parking issue by creating a 2-hr limit to parking on 5th Avenue. Council moved to allow the patio expansion and waive the fees in lieu of creating parking. Blanchette also moved staff to initiate a discussion on the parking issue separate from the Brewery’s expansion.
Valemount Youth Soccer – Request to waive fee to rent playing fields
Council waived the fee for renting the sports field for Valemount Youth Soccer for the months of May and June in 2019.
Appointments to Valemount Community Forest and Valemount Industrial Park
Council recommended appointing Ainslie Jackman, Gordon Carson, Gerry Piper, Vern Mickelson, John McGuire, Peter Reimer and Ray Mikolash to the board of the Valemount Community Forest LP and Valemount Industrial Park LP companies.
Play-Space Revitalization
Council supported Hope Norum’s request to nominate Valemount for the BCAA Play Here contest. This would allow Valemount to compete for $100,000 to revitalize the playground.
Signage Bylaw Review
Scooters Pizza requested council review the signage bylaw so that it can put up additional signage downtown, along hwy frontage in front of A&W, on the fencing of the old high school on 5th Avenue or other locations the town may find suitable. Blanchette suggested reinstituting the sign committee to review the bylaw and also accommodate home based businesses. Torgerson asked that the Valemount Chamber and Tourism Valemount look at the signage issue first.
Amendment to Three Ranges Brewing Company Ltd.’s liquor license
Council approved to have staff gather public input and prepare a template for Council’s comments at the Regular Council Meeting of May 14, 2019.
Resort Municipality Initiative Program
Council approve the RMI Resort Development Strategy 2019-2021 prepared by Gislimberti in collaboration with Tourism Valemount and local organizations. The strategy includes eight tourism infrastructure projects for a total of $446,149 and four events for a total of $101,000 of anticipated spending over a three-year term.
Sole Sourcing of Two Contracts
Council authorized staff to sole source the contract of sewer line cleaning and CCTV Inspections to Northern Lites Technology Ltd and to sole source the contract for the SCADA upgrades to Wel Engineering Ltd. Council explained that these were specific services needed and these companies had worked with the village before.
B&B and Short Term Rental Zoning Bylaw 796, 2019
Council gave third reading to this bylaw to amend the R2 Zone by adding Bed and Breakfast as a permitted accessory use.
Obsolete Bylaws Repeal Bylaw No. 797, 2019
Council adopted Obsolete Bylaws Repeal Bylaw No. 797, 2019 to repeal four bylaws between 1978 and 1997 that have become outdated or invalid due to changes in legislation or adoption of subsequent bylaws.
Five Year Financial Plan Bylaw 798, 2019
Council gave third reading to this bylaw.
Emergency Program Regulatory Bylaw 800, 2019
Council adopted this bylaw to update to Emergency Management of BC’s framework, which was amended to delegate limited expenditure approvals to the Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) Director.
Village of Valemount 2019 Tax Rate Bylaw No. 802, 2019.
Council gave first second and third reading to this Bylaw.
Council Reports
Blanchette attended meetings of Robson Valley Community Services and the Housing Committee as well as the Volunteer Appreciation night. Pearson attended the AGM for the Valemount Historic Society. MacLean attended the AGM of the Valemount Entertainment Society. Torgerson attended the Volunteer Awards night and meetings for Columbia Basin Regional Broadband Committee, LDM Stakeholder Engagement and Regional District of Fraser-Fort George. He got an update from Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure staff that the highway corridor study will be ready soon.
In-Camera Item
There was one in-camera item related to labour or other employee relations.
