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Submitted by Councillor Christopher Johnston
I am seeing a really positive and
upbeat feeling in town, over the last several months in particular. From
my vantage point, I see lots of activity in the real estate market and a
number of people moving into town. Many of the people arriving are
younger (although that may just be my perspective), and have real
enthusiasm for Revelstoke and its future.
We are also seeing new businesses getting
going, there should be a couple of new ones or rejuvenated ones in the
next little while, plus existing businesses looking to move up a step.
At the Council meeting on February 23, 2004, Council approved six
separate development related applications. This is a sign of people’s
belief in Revelstoke. For those reading this who have an idea for
something that they want to do, don’t assume that the answer from the
City will be no. It may not be yes the very first time in exactly the
way it is presented, but it is the City’s philosophy to encourage and
work with citizens to bring their plans and ideas to reality. Not all of
the six applications considered by Council were approved exactly as they
were initially presented, but the applicants working with City staff
achieved what they were looking for.
When we speak of development you can’t over
emphasize the significance of the Mount Mackenzie project. I remind you
to take a look at the Master Plan at City Hall or on the City’s website
(here). As the Mayor noted in
the last report, this development will have a major impact on
Revelstoke. This development affects all areas of the City’s workings,
public works (police protection, water, sewer, etc.) planning and land
development, parks designs, trails, economic, finance, social,
environmental and recreation. The City is engaging experts to act on our
behalf to ensure that while working with the developers, our concerns
and interests are addressed and attended to. The firm of Dayton & Knight
(who were involved with the water treatment plant), have been hired to
review the Master Plan on water, sewage and traffic issues and another
firm will be reviewing and reporting on socio economic impacts,
integration of the resort base plan into the community and coordinating
with other professionals to facilitate the provision of a comprehensive
report on all elements of the Master Plan for submission to Council.
The Aquatic Centre is progressing well
after a slight delay at the outset with no glitches or surprises to
date. The exterior design has been essentially finalized and I feel the
Centre will become a major City landmark. There will be an open house on
March 11, 2004 with respect to parking/traffic solutions around the
Community Centre (here). If
you have any ideas or concerns, please try to attend the open house.
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