|
The regular City Council meeting
of October 24, 2005 began on a bitter sweet note. Our Corporate
Administrative Officer, Don DeGagne has tendered his letter of
resignation. Don has been the Administrator for more than eight years
and has been a driving force behind many of the exciting initiatives
that have been undertaken over the last number of years. Don has
accepted a CAO position for the District of Summerland. Council and
Staff will miss him but as we all know, change is inevitable and we will
all adapt to whatever comes our way. On behalf of City Council and
Staff, I would like to extend our many thanks to Don and wish him and
his family all the best in their new venture.
Good news for parents of
small children on the lookout for a public washroom when in the downtown
core this winter. The Early Childhood Development Committee has written
a letter to Council requesting that the public washrooms in Grizzly
Plaza remain open year round rather than seasonally. Council unanimously
approved keeping the washrooms open from 7:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. for a
trial period from November 1, 2005 to March 31, 2006.
A number of interested
residents attended an Open House on October 13, 2005 to review the
results of the Affordable Housing Study. The public was invited to
provide feedback on the study; all results will considered by the
Revelstoke Housing Committee prior to making recommendations to Council.
The Federal Government has earmarked new monies to address affordable
housing issues and the Revelstoke Housing Committee is hoping to have
our project shelf-ready when this money is released to the province.
Councillor Singh reported
to Council on the many exciting activities taking place at Okanagan
College. Over the summer, local businesses participated in a survey to
determine training needs. The outcome was very positive and offered the
College an opportunity to touch base with the business community. As
well, the survey provided tangible results as to the type of training
the community needs.
The public had another
opportunity to provide feedback to Council on the Social Economic
Strategy. An Open House was held on Thursday, October 27, 2005 from 7:00
p.m. to 9:00 p.m. at the Revelstoke Community Centre. Attendees were
updated on the progress of various projects over the past year.
Participants were then invited to vote on what projects they would like
the City to be focusing on over the coming year. This is the first year
that both the Social and Economic workshop was held at the same time.
Upon review of the evening’s activities, it was apparent that the issues
identified in the social sector are not being addressed in the same
manner as the economic priorities. This clearly indicates that if we
feel the social priorities are as important as economic priorities,
funds need to be allocated to hire a Social Development Planner to
address the social strategy recommendations. Otherwise we will continue
to struggle with the negative impacts on the overall health of the
community and vulnerable citizens will not have their basic needs met.
Further top priorities include marketing Revelstoke as a “green
community”, developing a comprehensive housing strategy, financial
support for arts/cultural/heritage events and training local people for
the upcoming employment opportunities. I believe people in attendance
appreciated the process and were satisfied with the outcome. A special
thank you to Alan Mason for organizing the workshop.
With the election less
than a month away, community members will be given the opportunity to
hear what is on the minds of the candidates vying for the six positions
on Council. The All Candidates Forum will be held on November 7, 2005 at
7:00 p.m. at the Revelstoke Community Centre. Come out and hear what
each candidate has to say and whether their thoughts represent what you
would like to see happen over the next three years, then on November 19,
2005 come out and exercise your right to vote.
I would also like to take
this opportunity to congratulate Mayor Mark McKee on his acclamation for
another term as the Mayor of our fine City. You have worked hard on our
behalf and for that, we thank you.
Prepared by Councillor Richardson
|
