8th Regular Meeting of 2009 - May 11

Trying to Shift Taxes from the Wealthy to the Poor, and Feeling Fine about La Colle Falls


ABSENTEES: Councillors Darcy Gervais and Fred Matheson.

BACKGROUND DOCUMENTS: 223 pages

PUBLIC GALLERY: Paul van Pul, Brian Clavier, Jayne Remenda, and 5 others.

START: 7:02 PM


Public Hearing: to convert the vacant building at 515-28th St East into 65 condominium units


- Brian Clavier spoke in favour of the conversion, but requested council approve it with less than the 112 required parking spaces. He said the added requirement for 47 more than the current 65 spaces devotes too much land to parking, and takes away green space. He suggested adding only 3 handicapped and 18 visitor spaces, for a total of 86 spaces. He also referred to the March 2 letter from the developer, which states that it is impossbile to add 47 stalls to the existing site (even though an April 21 drawing submitted by the developer shows 112 spaces on that site).

- Councillor Swystun said the full amount of extra parking was needed, because owners of these condominium properties will have 2 vehicles per household [apparently, life in Prince Albert requires everyone to have their own vehicle when they reach the age of 16 . . . .]

- Councillor Atkinson said the occupants have transit access at their front door, and, while the parking spaces may be filled, he [unrealistically] hopes the building's residents will use public transit.

- THE VOTE: 7 - 0, to approve the conversion with 112 parking spaces [creating a new-and-improved parking lot that is twice as large as the building's foot print]



Oil that Dust! (Who cares what it does to the groundwater.)

[A report from the Streets Manager shows that there are no streets to be oiled this year in Nordale, and only three in Hazeldell, due to those areas' receipt of asphalt millings from repaving done in 2006.
Thirty-three of the 40 roads to be oiled are in the East Flat and West Flat areas.
The Streets Manager wrote that more time is needed to study alternatives to the oil currently used, and he will provide council with a report on this in 2010.]

- Brian Clavier spoke to this issue, complaining that information about alternatives was collected in 2004, when he asked then-Councillor Lindberg about alternatives to using oil to suppress road dust. He said a report was presented to council, but it appears that it has been lost. He was not happy about the delay until 2010 to present alternatives to council, noting that Prince Albert dust is not that different from dust in Lethbridge, Brandon, or any number of cities in the US midwest, so their research and practices would be relevant [and readily available].

- Councillor Atkinson said these streets would ultimately be paved.

- City Manager Cotterill said there was $500,000 for paving projects this year. He indicated a new process for street oiling might be available this year, since he was going to Saskatoon shortly and would look into this. He also asserted that the use of some chemicals has "been banned by the provinces."

- [former City Engineer] Councillor Swystun insisted that previously-oiled streets cannot have some chemicals applied to them. If the oiling rates are high enough, he maintained, some people will opt for pavement.

- Councillor Ring said that a "21st century" paving program is needed [to satisfy our thoughtless insistence on an automobile-dependent culture?], and that "we don't allow unpaved developments now."

- Councillor Zurakowski asked about the time line for the street oiling program.

- Public Works Director Colin Innes said he would come back to council with this information after the oiling bylaw was passed.

- THE VOTE: 7 - 0, to refer the street oiling bylaw to the bylaws section of the meeting.


La Colle Falls Archeological Dig Promoted

[This infamous failed hydro project near the spot where the North Saskatchewan River joins the South Saskatchewan was a municipal financial millstone from 1906 until the city retired the debt in 1965. The useless-except-for-the-negative-historical-lesson expense is regularly trotted out as the reason why a huge chunk of the city's infrastrucuture is long overdue for replacement and/or upgrade. Of course, it would help if the overwhelming majority of residential, business, and industrial developments since 1965 did NOT focus exclusively on the city's fringes, thereby magnifying deficiencies in infrastructure maintenance and replacement.]

- Paul van Pul addressed council with respect to support for his proposed archeological dig at the site. He said it should be a national and provincial historic site.

- Councillor Swystun said that information about the project was sent to the Provincial Archives in the 1960s.

- Mayor Scarrow asked if Mr. van Pul could provide details about his needs for council's May 25 meeting.

- Councillor Swystun was supportive, but noted the city's 2009 budget was set, and that the city could look at funding the project in 2010.

- Councillor Dionne asked for a further report, in two weeks, complete with costs. [The report was presented four weeks later, on June 10, but costs were not provided in it - see pages 15-25 of the document at http://www.citypa.ca/Portals/0/PDF2/Council_Agenda/2009/2009%2006%2010%20-%20Order%20of%20Business/Agenda%20-%20Pages%201%20-%20209.pdf]



If You Can't Attend a 7 AM Meeting on 24-hours' Notice, Obviously, We Didn't Want You There!

- Continuing the three-year-old tradition of holding important meetings with little notice [actually, a small ad did appear in the Saturday, April 25 edition of the Prince Albert Daily Herald], at hours loved by chirpy little birds, roosters, and golfers, the city issued a Media Release on April 27 about a land development forum at 7 AM on April 28 in City Council chambers. [I kid you not: read it on page 11 of http://www.citypa.ca/Portals/0/PDF2/Council_Agenda/2009/2009%2005%2011%20-%20Order%20of%20Business/Agenda%20-%20Pages%201%20-%20175.pdf ]


Clean Air - Sort of . . . for One Day . . . .

[The city supports Clean Air Day - June 3, this year - by providing free transit service for one day, and contributing four monthly bus passes and a Good Food Box as prizes for draws during "Environment Week." Total cost to the city for this anemic dalliance is $900.

NOTE: this gesture is historically grounded, and has nothing to do with a municipal Green Plan, or any city program, policy, directive, or bylaw that might "clean" the local air on a wider, more permanent basis.]

- Councillor Dionne [who commutes to his workplaces (in PA and Saskatoon) in a truck] challenged his colleagues to leave their vehicles at home, and bus, bike, or walk to work.

- Councillor Williams [who commutes to work all over Alberta and Saskatchewan in a truck] said he couldn't take up the challenge because it's a long way to Estevan [566 kilometers], to which Dionne responded "STC [the provincial bus company] goes there."


National Council of Women Conference Funding

- a request to approve $4200 in funding for the June 4-7, 2009 National Council of Women Conference was approved. The conference organizers expect 300-350 people to attend, and an economic spinoff to the city of $75,000 to $100,000 [see page 49. By way of comparison, when the golf course asked for $45,823 for its 100th anniversary events and to support the Canadian Men's Mid-Amateur Championship, the 3000 visitors to the city were generously forecast to inject $3.7 million into the local economy - about 3.7 times as much as women's conference attendees - see page 15 of the 58-page golfing submision to council's "public budget consultation" on March 26, 2009].


Mill Rate Factors and Tax Tools - Stick it to the Poor?

[A report on base tax, minimum tax, and the impacts of these on property owners in the city was presented to council by the Director of Financial Services. Council has looked at this issue in depth twice before in the past five years: the former councillor for ward 5, Frank Harris, was a vocal advocate of using such tax tools. The report recommended NOT implementing a base tax or minimum tax.]

- Councillor Zurakowski asked about the cost of providing basic city services to a home [there are about 9300 single-family residences in the city].

- Financial Services Director Joe Day said about $615 per property for police, and $280 for fire protection [though neither amount accounts for providing these services to city-owned facilities, provincial and federal government properties, or businesses in the city, never mind the costs to the city rung up providing these services at automobile accidents]. Day said the lowest property tax paid in the city was $105; 760 properties paid less than $500 in 2009 property tax; and 40 city properties paid less than $200.

- Councillor Ring voiced the view that this report was "as clear as (he'd) seen this issue presented." He supported rejecting these taxes - for this year.

- Councillor Atkinson [echoing the comments he has made on this topic in previous years] said the biggest changes from basic and minimum taxes would be on the smallest properties, and the taxes on expensive properties would go down. People living in "modest homes," he said, are usually living on fixed incomes. He "will continue to vote against taxing them more."

- Councillor Dionne said the new fire hall should be in the West Flat, given the number of calls from that area. [Showing a lack of comprehension of the fire and police services provided to businesses and government-owned properties], he maintained tax should be based on services supplied to a property. Although he doesn't want to "tax the poor any more," he wants "to be fair."

- Councillor Zurakowski also asserted he had no interest in taxing the poor any more, but was prepared to "have a conversation on this."

- THE VOTE: 5 in favour, 1 opposed (Councillor Zurakowski), 1 abstention - to receive and file the report.


8:10 PM


$pending the $poils from Gambling

[In April 2009 the Northern Lights (Casino) Community Development Corporation announced a $250,000 annual contribution to the city's finances, to be given to the city for each of five years; $50,000 is to be allocated to the Thanksgiving weekend pow wow at the Art Hauser Centre and the golf tournament at Cooke municipal golf course.]

- City Manager Cotterill wanted to set aside this year's money, and combine it with the 2010 contribution before allocating it.

- Councillor Dionne, reviewing the list of proposed uses for the 2009 money, said lots were maintenance items. He supports the replacement of garbage receptacles downtown.

- Councillor Swystun wanted explanations for some of the items, such as "rejuvenation" of the Dent's ball park area. Cotterill replied that Dent's was not used as a ball park, and could be a residential area [restricted to single family homes, if what's happening to the Prince Charles school grounds is indicative].

- Councillor Atkinson said the money could be used for the community clubs (which was part of the original intention), such as pouring floors for the outdoor rinks, which would provide a base for skateboarding and make ice-making easier.

- Mayor Scarrow intoned that this was a "thought piece," not a "list piece."


Old Guys Need Benefits Too

[This item was added to the agenda at the last minute, so the public had no information about it at the time of the meeting. The report from the Committee of the Whole, meeting in camera earlier in the day, recommended extending benefits to city employees beyond the current age of 70, to age 75. Except for a handful of casual employees, who are unlikelyt to benefit from the policy change because they simply don't work enough hours, 70-year-old Mayor Scarrow is the only person currently affected by this policy. Citing a conflict of interest, he left the room before the item was addressed.]

- Councillor Dionne moved to change the termination age for benefits from the city from 70 to 75. He said this would conform to the provincial Human Rights Act [he meant sections 15 and 16 of the Saskatchewan Human Rights Code - http://www.qp.gov.sk.ca/documents/English/Statutes/Statutes/S24-1.pdf ]

8:21 PM

The Mayor Attended/Was Fed and Feted at . . . .

- Mayor Scarrow forgot his list [again, thankfully], but nevertheless had 42 events in the last month worth mentioning - 27 in the previous two weeks alone. He noted that, while it was hard to keep "a positive upper chin" a few weeks ago, when litter was everywhere, this changed thanks to Jayne Remenda and the other people involved in the annual cleanup of the downtown. He also attended the PAGC urban employers recognition luncheon, where the City and 50 other businesses were recognized.


Inquiries - Pavement, Patience, and Updates

- Councillor Atkinson asked about fixing the cracks in the pavement of the 400 block on 7th Street East.
- Councillor Ring thanked staff for the new stop sign on 15th Avenue East.
- Mayor Scarrow asked drivers to try and stay away from 24th Street West, from 6th to 8th avenue: the closure of 28th Street has increased hospital-bound traffic on 24th [and the residents' patience has worn thin]. The closed street is expected to be open by late autumn.
-Councillor Zurakowski asked for a Rotary Trail update for the West Hill area [no building this year] and announced a West Hill flood protection plan update meeting.


How Does This Work Again ??

- The approval of Bylaw No. 13 of 2009, a bylaw to establish mill rate factors, was delayed momentarily: Councillor Zurakowski voted against 1st and 2nd reading, then against giving leave to read the bylaw a third time. [See above: he was opposed to making the poor pay more tax, but clearly willing to have a conversation about how much more they shouldn't pay . . . .] He changed his vote on the leave-granting motion when he realized that the lack of unanimous approval of that motion would delay 3rd reading of the bylaw until the next council meeting.

- Mayor Scarrow was similarly confused by the 1st-reading-2nd-reading-granting-leave-3rd-reading sequence for passing bylaws: he lost track of council's whereabouts in the process on the new version of bylaw #7.


And Thanks for All That (Unpublished) Work

- Mayor Scarrow thanked administration for contributing "upwards of 700 pages" to council members' binders for the meeting [although the public is only able to access 223 of those].

END 8:39 PM

7th Regular Meeting of 2009 - April 27

Whenever I miss a regular council meeting, I watch the Shaw Cable recording. This happened for the April 27, 2009 meeting. So the notes here reflect a reading of the background documents and what Shaw Cable 10 viewers would have seen.

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Telecom Towers - NIMBY! Golf - IEBY*!
(*In Everyone's Back Yard)

ABSENTEES: None

BACKGROUND DOCUMENTS: 210 pages


Pecuniary Interest Forms

"Pecuniary" must be one of those words that's really fun to pronounce (though it's not on my list), since this plea is now a permanenet fixture of the agenda. To wit, for the fifteenth consecutive meeting, the Mayor requested that members of council submit forms detailing their financial interests in the city that might affect their actions as municipal councillors.

[Note that this item is not included in council's procedure bylaw - specifically, Bylaw #10 of 2005, as amended by Bylaw #23 of 2008 and Bylaw #32 of 2006. In addition, re-read the comments I posted on February 25, 2009, under "Submission of Pecuniary Interest Forms."]



Telecom Towers Start to Sprout

Apparently, I'm not the only person opposed to Bylaw Number 5 of 2009, which permits telecommunications towers up to 140 feet high at every school in the city [see the posting for the 5th Regular Meeting of 2009, held on March 23]. The unsightliness of these metal monstrosities was evident in a letter from Nicholas Cowie, who opposes a 50-foot tower being erected at Princess Margaret School, 351-13th Avenue East [in Ward 4, represented by Councillor Williams - see pages 91 and 92 of http://www.citypa.ca/Portals/0/PDF2/Council_Agenda/2009/2009%2004%2027%20-%20Order%20of%20Business/Agenda%20-%20Pages%201%20-%20159.pdf ]. This tower was supposed to have been installed by March 30, 2009.

- Councillor Williams said this tower is across the street from his house, and he is opposed to its construction. Several of his neighbours have contacted him about their opposition to the tower. He wants the city to meet with the school board to resolve the issue.

- Councillor Dionne asked if there was going to be a tower erected at each of the Sask. Rivers School District schools [had he read the meeting documents, he would have known the answer to this question . . . .]

- Economi c Development and Planning Director Joan Corneil answered - "No."

- Councillor Atkinson wondered whether the Roman Catholic Separate School District would be next to propose new telecommunications towers. He asked if there was other technology that could perform the same function, or alternatives to a 50-foot tower.

- Councillor Ring said only Princess Margaret School was at issue; he received just one letter opposing this tower's construction.

- Councillor Williams noted that there must be a way around the "line-of-sight" issue. (The tower is 15 feet taller than the trees in the area.) He was annoyed that the school board had already poured the concrete for the base of the tower, stating that this presumptuous action assumed that council's approval was a "slam dunk."

- Director Corneil [redundantly] pointed to pages 86-87 of the documents - one tower was being requested.

- Councillors Swystun and Zurakowski said they would support postponing consideration of this issue. Councillor Dionne made such a motion. Swystun asked if this was a postponement to allow review of all other schools, or other technologies. Mayor Scarrow said "both."

- Councillor Atkinson concluded that the tower would eventually need to be higher, after the neighbouring trees grew.

- THE VOTE: 8 - 0, to postpone consideration of the request.


Tap, Tap, Tapping for Dollars . . . .

[TAP Communications of Saskatoon submitted a proposal for marketing, re-branding, and signage for the PA Transit System, the cost estimated at $24,000 to $41,000 - see pages 58 to 79.]

- Mayor Scarrow asked if tenders had been called for this work.

- Capital Projects and Planning Manager Scott Golding replied, "No, this was a direct request" to TAP. Apparently, "our own (transit) consultant had difficulty finding bus stops" [the signs for which are very small - hence, are easily lost in the visual clutter generated by "No Parking" and "No Stopping" signs.]

- Councillor Atkinson pointed to a glaring absence from the report, saying "ridership numbers are pertinent." [There is no information whatsoever about bus ridership in Prince Albert in the report.] He hasn't seen those numbers, which should be used as "a benchmark."

- Manager Golding replied that ridership was "largely unchanged" in the past few years. Atkinson asked if there was a report to that effect.

- Councillor Swystun asked if the contract could be approved without tendering the work.

- Mayor Scarrow commented that there was no rush involved, a further report could be requested, and the cost needs to be tied down.

- Councillor Matheson asked [given that a grant from the federal government would be used to pay the contractor] whether the federal government required the work to be tendered.

- Councillor Atkinson ended the discussion by saying that mandatory bus passes, similar to what U of S students have in Saskatoon, would be more valuable to the transit system than new signage.


(NO) Smoke on the Water

[Kinsmen water park allows smoking in some areas of the facility.]

- Mayor Scarrow said the water park should be fully non-smoking, and that ball diamonds need a longer look with respect to this issue.

- Councillor Zurakowski said the bleachers and spectator areas should all be non-smoking, noting the city's bylaws "are reflective of society."

- Councillor Dionne said that enforcement of non-smoking areas would be "easier than you think."


Golf in Prime Ministers Park (Temporarily?)

[The Kiwanis Club asked to have their week-long 'Million Dollar Hole-in-One Fundraiser' in Prime Ministers Park from June 25 to 28 - although golf is not allowed in city parks, there was no explanation presented for why the Glenmor Grain property could no longer be used, and there are multiple locations outside the city where the Club could safely have such an event.

To be fair, Cooke golf course should reciprocate by permitting a charity "Poker Rally on Skates" on its putting greens next winter.]

- Mayor Scarrow said the layout at the park [there's a map on page 137] was "very appropriate." He took a look at the site, calling it ideal, and said the event was well-managed [but gave no indication how the city would prevent golfers from using the site on a regular basis AFTER June 28 . . . .] He said the other site [Glenmor, used for the past 5 years] was "not conducive to their goals" [What, making money? Providing a pretty location for whacking golfs balls from a tee? Or having golfers take over city parks?]

- Councillor Swystun said the site was used 7 or 8 years ago, and Councillor Williams, who has participated in this event in the past, said "danger is not a worry."


Mayor & Councillors Attended/Feted/Were Fed At

- Councillor Matheson had "a couple of things I was privileged to take part of" [sic] - presentation of a cheque for over $6000 to the PA Council for the Arts, the District Planning Commission open house, and the Community-Futures-sponsored YBEX awards.
- [predictably, champion golfer ] Councillor Ring remarked on the opening of the golf course's 100th season, with all 18 greens being "pristine"
- [confirming the special place the golf course represents for city council] Councillor Zurakowski noted the new restaurant at the golf club, Metric, was now open.
- Mayor Scarrow mentioned his attendance at the Saskatchewan Fire Chiefs Convention. Because he had forgotten his calendar at his desk, he was unable to recite the rest of the events he attended. Councillor Dionne [among others] was pleased to hear this.


Inquiries: Poor Grading & Excessive Speed

- Councillor Dionne noted that the grading job done on Cloverdale Road had left the road surface in worse shape than before the grading.
- Councillor Ring asked if something could be done about speeding traffic on 12th Avenue East, north of the intersection with Marquis Road [he did not suggest speed bumps - as Councillor Dionne has in the past, for Riverside Drive. Both councillors should take a look at the (highly appropriate) speed bumps installed in May 2009 near Gordon Denny School in Air Ronge.]


Public Forum

- Steve Lawrence was unable to attend.
- Rick Chloss spoke in favour of a green industrial park, from which nuclear would have to be excluded. In explaining why nuclear-power-related industry was not "green," he referred to an essay on the language of politics by George Orwell. Germany, he noted, has more people employed in the renewable energy industry than in car manufacturing.


And thanks (to all and sundry) . . . .

- Mayor Scarrow thanked administration, Councillor Gervais (who was ill) for his presence, the media, and "all those who made presentations."