By Andrea Arnold
The March 8, 2022 McBride Council meeting was called to order at 7:00pm by Mayor Gene Runtz.
RCMP Update
Corporal Colin Bissell, RCMP presented crime statistics to Council for information purposes. The numbers he provided in the presentation were in direct comparison to the statistics he presented at a meeting six months ago on September 20, 2021.
- Sexual Violations increased from 0 to 2
- Assault increased from 3 to 4
- Break and Enter decreased from 6 to 5
- Fraud increased from 5 to 7
- Mischief decreased from 20 to 10
- Controlled Drugs decreased from 4 to 1
Gigglin’ Grizzly RV Park Development
Chris and Linda Fry, Stacks Ventures Inc, presented the development plan for Gigglin’ Grizzly RV Park. Linda expressed urgency and frustration regarding the process as they work to use the space around the existing pub as an RV park. They would like to break ground and get the area ready to use for this year, but in order to do that, they need the go-ahead from Council. At this time, there are some permit and bylaw hurdles that need to be overcome. Linda requested a decision by mid March.
Ancient Forest/Chun T’oh Whudujut Park Management Plan
Council discussed a motion to rescind two motions from the January 11, 2022 meeting. One to BC Parks expressing dissatisfaction after not being included in the creation of the Ancient Forest/Chun T’oh Whudujut Park Management Plan, and the other to the Lheidli T’enneh expressing interest in working with them on the plan as we share a backyard. After much discussion, Council, with a 4-1 vote (Councillor Hruby opposed), moved to send the letter to the Lheidli T’enneh as planned, but not the letter to BC Parks. CAO Tupy suggested an in-person meeting with representatives from BC Parks Wednesday afternoon as they planned to travel through McBride following a presentation to Valemount Council. Pending their acceptance of the invitation, a meeting was scheduled for 1:00pm Wednesday March 9.
North Central Local Government Association Convention registration
Council directed Administration to register Councillors Smith, Green and Frederick, and staff member CAO Tupy– for the NCLGA AGM & Convention being held on May 3rd-6th, 2022 at the Pomeroy Hotel & Conference Centre in Fort St. John. The Councillors will all attend the first day. The deadline for registration is April 14, 2022, so there is still opportunity for other members to register.
Deputy Mayor appointment
Council appointed Councillor Smith to the position of Deputy Mayor effective March 8-November 6, 2022.
Pioneer Days requests
Mayor Runtz is actively involved in the Elks so he removed himself from the room for the following series of motions:
Council approved the following requests from Kathy Molendyk on behalf of the McBride Elks #247 regarding Pioneer Days, to be held June 3rd-5th, 2022.
- Beer garden endorsement
- Temporary street closures of Main street and Holdway street from 1st to 2nd avenue from 6:00pm Friday June 3 – 9:00pm Sunday June 5, 2022.
- Village owned barricades to be used for the street closures
- A portable outhouse at the south west end of Bill Clark Memorial Park in adherence to Village of McBride Policy AD-15 Portable/Temporary toilets.
- Administration to perform an assessment of Bill Clark Memorial Park and form a plan to ensure the playing field and bleachers are in safe condition in time for Pioneer Days, and write a letter to the Elks informing them of the conditions so they can plan accordingly.
- A$250 Grant-in-Aid to help cover insurance costs, prizes for the parade, logger’s events or additional equipment for the food booth.
Bylaws, Permits and Policies
Council gave Water Amendment Bylaw 807, 2022 – increase of $25/ year, Fees and Charges Bylaw No. 805, 2022, and Solid Waste Collection Bylaw No 806, 2022 – increase of $20/year, and, first and second reading.
Council appointed CFO Salt as Chief Election Officer and CAO Tupy as the Deputy Chief Election Officer for the 2022 Municipal Election Year. Further, Council approved remuneration of $1500 to the Chief Election Officer and, following an amended motion, $1000 to the Deputy Chief Election Officer. CFO Salt and CAO Tupy were sworn in with an Oath of Office.
In-Camera
Council moved to an in-camera meeting for consideration of matters per Section 90 (1) of the Community Charter related to (c) labour relations or other employee relations; and (k) negotiations and related discussions respecting the proposed provision of a municipal service that are at their preliminary stages and that in the view of the council, could reasonably be expected to harm the interests of the municipality if they were held in public.
The public portion adjourned at 8:33pm
