It was noted the two regular council meetings in November 2015 were rescheduled to take place on Nov. 9 and Nov. 23, 2015. These dates are also provided for any required Committee of the Whole meetings as well, should they be required.
Halloween:
Special thanks to volunteer firefighters Todd English and Noel Nicolier for heading up the on-site fireworks team. Also thanks to AG Foods and Canada Bread who supplied 12 dozen hot dogs and buns with the leftovers going to the Food Bank. The total raised for the Barriere First Responders was $230.85.
Wastewater Project Update:
Collection System - Lift station commissioning did not go as intended on Tuesday and was postponed until Thursday, Nov. 5. LNB had not cleaned the stations and did not have appropriate equipment to do so at that time. LNB completed the cleaning of the stations on Nov. 4, and the lift stations have now been commissioned with no deficiencies remaining. They are ready for automatic operation.
The electrical works have been inspected and everything is acceptable from an electrical perspective. A final inspection of all civil components associated with the stations has been completed and no deficiencies were found with the installed works.
All previously identified deficiencies have been inspected and all have been successfully completed with exception of the two asphalt issues on Yard Road in front of the Station House. TRUE is presently working to acquire a correction schedule from LNB on those last two items.
The generator will be commissioned on Nov. 18, which is the earliest date that the supplier could be in attendance. TRUE/UES time associated with having to make two trips will be deducted from final LNB progress draw.
Septage Receiving Station (SRS) - There are a couple of automatic control valve seating issues that were noticed in the SRS building – likely a result of the system basically sitting idle for the last several months/year without operation. These are scheduled to be fixed prior to the final testing.
Rapid Infiltration Basins (RIBs) - As mentioned previously, there was a concern that the RIBs may have been damaged by compaction of the adjacent soils by heavy equipment during the rehabilitation of the surrounding area. A three-week pump test was conducted and fortunately it appears the RIBs have not incurred any damage.
Solar Aquatics Wastewater Plant - Continuous progress is being made on completing the glazing, installation of pumps and Argus Control Panels, sealing of the door in the surge blending tank, pouring of a footing and base for the biomass chimney, confirming the arrival of the boiler unit from Fink, and acquiring phone and internet lines from Telus. We are coming to the end of the remaining funds budgeted for this portion of the wastewater project. Once these have been depleted the contractor will be responsible for completion of the project without invoicing the district for any further amounts unless they are approved by council. The district has held back 10 per cent ($200,000) of the cost of the construction portion of this design build project.
Proposed Building Regulations and Fee Changes Bylaws:
A review has been conducted of the current TNRD Building Bylaw 2066, 2005 which we have been using in the District of Barriere since incorporation. The TNRD has since updated and amended their Bylaw.
The 2012 BC Building Code was heavily augmented in December 2014 with new requirements for energy efficiency and ventilation. The proposed DOB Building Bylaw refers to this newer Building Code as the guiding document.
The TNRD has raised their fees and the proposed amendment to the Fees & Charges Bylaw, matches those changes to align with the Regional District’s fee schedule. If council approves, this will be the first fee increase for the department in 20 years.
The proposed DOB Building Bylaw has several Barriere specific requirements in the Prohibitions section (i.e. snow clips on metal roofing, insulated skirting for mobile homes, PVC pipe and gable vents) as well as some definitions (i.e. “cupola”) not addressed in the BC Building Code. It also now refers to the new 2014 DOB Zoning Bylaw No. 111, as well as requires a DOB utility services inspection for the connection of new construction to the water and wastewater system where applicable.
Council has requested more information from our building inspector regarding costs associated with the changes and clarification on some of the wording. The revisions will be presented at the Nov. 23, Committee of the Whole meeting.
Regional Labour
Market Study:
The results of this study have been released and can be found at: http://venturekamloops.com/vk-kamloops-labour-market-study/.
It is projected that in the region there will be a need for 30-35,000 new hires over the next ten years. According to BC Stats there are currently 966 unemployed individuals in the northern part of the region. 32.2 per cent of the projected new hires in the north will be as a result of vacancies, 27.6 per cent from retirements, 30.3 per cent from other forms of attrition, and 9.9 per cent from employer projected growth. In the region, in demand occupations will include:
• Tradespersons (5,239 openings),
• Business, finance and administrative workers (4,284),
• Healthcare workers and professionals (2,499),
• Hospitality and tourism workers (1,128).
Business Licenses:
Letters have been sent to all businesses that are in Barriere or come in to Barriere to do business with the district regarding procurement of a business license for 2016.
Fire Department Report:
In October 2015 the department had three Fire Calls:
Armor Mountain Trailer Park- Trailer was empty, landlord let the department in to check Unit - appeared to be a faulty detector.
Alarm at Yellowhead Pioneer Residence-found nothing (false alarm) advised supervisor.
Burnt toast at the Pioneer Residence
In October there were also five practice/training sessions:
- E3 pumps training, E3 hydrant tag and pump review at Esso hydrant
- Open house Fire Protection Week
- General hall and truck maintenance
- Hydrant tagging –E2 & E3
- Pack practice for self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA)
The First Responder Society reported seven incidents in the month of October as per their report included in the council information package for information.
1995 Water Tanker:
The TNRD has approached the district to see if the district may be interested in selling the old water tanker to them for use in Ashcroft. Council has agreed to the proposal.
Little Fort Volunteer Fire Department Association (LFVFDA):
The District of Barriere Volunteer Fire Department has agreed to provide support training services to the LFVFDA at currently established rates.
Mayor’s Business:
The mayor has been busy attending a number of meetings in October. A Community Consultant Group meeting brought forward concerns about the speeding on Barriere Town Road (the 30 km zone by the district office). Since then Garth Pelkey made borders for the 30 km signs in order to make the signs more obvious. ICBC does have some programs available such as “Speed Watch” where volunteers are trained by ICBC and will monitor a speed board and report to the RCMP; ICBC will also arrange to have their engineer come to the community for a tour and will highlight areas of concern and may assist with signage, etc. These are options the district will explore. Corporal Mancini spoke about two incidents that happened in Fadear Park. He emphasized there is no danger to the public and the park is perfectly safe. Unfortunately, the two incidents that occurred have been rumored to the point that some of the public believe there have been several incidents, which is not true.
The Chamber of Commerce monthly board meeting included discussion about Passport to Holiday Shopping, the Nov. 14 gala, and the possibility of the Chamber taking over the “little house” [small old house next to firehall] if the quotations for repairs are within budget. Marie Downing expects to have quotes before the next meeting.
In addition to the regular TNRD board meetings, the Policy Review Committee for the TNRD brought forward a policy around directors who cancel going to a conference (such as UBCM) after the cancellation date which leads to the TNRD losing money.
The policy recommends that the director be personally responsible for the cost unless there is a valid reason such as illness or a family emergency.
The mayor is also chair of the TNRD Emergency Management and Protective Services Committee where the Red Cross did a presentation regarding partnering with the TNRD to assist with the ESS (Emergency Support Services).
Emergency Management British Columbia conducted a winter hazard meeting at McArthur Park. Senior meteorologist, Lisa Caldwell, presented a forecast of the winter weather with the El Nino effect. In our area the temperature is expected to be one to two degrees above normal with snowfall concentrations in the higher elevations with less accumulation at the mid-level. Other presentations included: Fire season 2015, landslide information, and the importance of the recovery phase in a disaster.
The work that Simpcw First Nation is accomplishing at the Dunn Creek Hatchery was showcased during Coho Days, hosted by Simpcw.