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District of Barriere Council Meeting dates changed for November

District of Barriere Council and Committee of the Whole meeting highlights Oct. 19

Regular Council Meeting Schedule Change

for November:

Please be advised that the two Regular Council Meetings in November 2015 have been rescheduled and will now take place on Nov. 9, and Nov. 23, 2015. This will also be the date for any required Committee of the Whole meetings as well, should they be required.

Halloween Fireworks:

The concession at the Community Park ball diamonds will be open at 6:30 p.m. with hot chocolate and hot dogs available by donation with the proceeds going to the Barriere First Responders. The Fire Department will set off the fireworks display at 7:30 p.m.

Proposed Zoning Bylaw Amendments:

A sufficient number of small changes, mapping errors and omissions have been compiled by the district since the new Zoning Bylaw 111 was adopted in the fall of 2014 to warrant a comprehensive amendment to that bylaw at this time. Council reviewed the proposed changes and directed staff to compose a draft bylaw for first reading on Nov. 9, 2015. A public hearing would follow at a future meeting. All owners of any property directly in question have been notified of the potential changes, and as per legislation public notice will be advertised.

Barriere Fire Department Boundary Extension:

Council approved a short extension of the Barriere Fire Department coverage boundary.  The new boundary will extend to cover two properties south of the hairpin turn just past Glengrove Subdivision on Agate Bay Road.

Wastewater Project Update:

LNB only has a small number of deficiencies left to fix from the list identified during the walk-a-bout in early September. They still have to complete the final pump test for the force main before substantial completion can be signed off on. Once the pump test is completed successfully, the 55 day clock will start ticking on the release of holdback monies. TRUE Consulting has done a thorough review of what costs are related to the work around deficiencies ($12,000) to ensure we don’t end up paying for those items. This will include associated engineering costs.

The Solar Aquatics Plant structure has now been completed and glazing is being worked on. Although the panels may seem thin and flimsy, they are made of a tough polycarbonate that can withstand a lot of abuse and flexing without damage. The inner and outer panels will sandwich an innovation foam bubble insulation that will provide the insulating factor that appears to be absent when just viewing the panels themselves. Plumbers and electricians have been working inside the building.

Our finance officer has worked closely with TRUE Consulting on final budget figures for the overall project and its subcomponents.  The $6.7 million dollar project is estimated to be over budget when final figures come in by approximately $120,500.00. This includes paying out money for a $142,650 work stoppage last winter. A breakdown of the project costs can be found on line in the agenda package for the Oct. 19 Committee of the Whole meeting at www.barriere.ca.

District Heat Project:

When the biomass boiler was decided upon to heat the Solar Aquatics wastewater plant it was intended that the heat source would also be used in a small district heat system that could service adjacent buildings. The Search & Rescue (SAR) building and the little house that the Chamber of Commerce is considering renovating would be the first ones on this system. The heat loss calculations for these buildings have established the requirement for a 1 ¼” line to the SAR building then dropping to a 1” line to extend this utility to the little house should it go ahead with renovations. Approval is therefore required at this point to expend up to $20,000 in gas tax reserve funds to complete the first stage of this project. It will include purchase and laying of the insulated heat pipe double lines, the appropriate heat exchangers and labor to install the utility. Once these locations start using the heat source they will be billed based on the number of BTUs used for their purposes. This price will be established by council once it is determined what the district’s actual relative costs are to run the boiler. The savings to the users over time compared to other heat sources should be substantial.

Fire Report:

In September the Fire Department had five fire calls. All were minor in nature; one being the fire alarm at the high school set off by a contractor working on the system, and one at the elementary school when they forgot to let the Fire Department know they were having a fire drill.

The weekly practice / training sessions included inspections of the trucks and personal gear, ladder practice involving the deployment of 12 foot and 24 foot ladders, hall maintenance, an inspection of the fall fair grounds for fire prevention, and also some community work washing the bleachers at the fall fair grounds and helping with the Toy Run fundraiser for the Food Bank.

The First Responder Society reported eight incidents in the month of September that were all BC Ambulance call outs.

IDA Pharmacy:

Mayor Smith met with Bruce Clary, Pharmacist at IDA, regarding some changes pertaining to the roles of pharmacy assistants and pharmacy technicians.  He explained that the Ministry of Health is changing the ruling so that a pharmacy assistant can no longer use the online support of Tele-pharmacy when a fully qualified pharmacist is not available on site.  Pharmacy assistants receive on the job training while a pharmacy technician is certified after taking schooling.  The IDA is requesting a letter of support from council as there is concern that if the ruling is not modified small rural areas such as ours will not have any pharmacy available when the pharmacist is away. There are few pharmacy technicians available as this is a fairly new classification and pharmacy assistants have been doing this job, in some cases for many years, without incident.

Communities in Bloom To Recognize Businesses:

The Chamber of Commerce is having a gala on Nov. 14, and will be honouring the Business of the Year at that time.  After discussions with the chamber it is felt that it would be appropriate for the district to give certificates of appreciation to those businesses that made the effort to beautify their landscape, which helped Barriere obtain our five bloom rating from Communities in Bloom.  These certificates will be handed out at the gala.

Medical Clinic Techs Hired:

Bernie Easson from Interior Health, advises that the Barriere Health Centre has managed to hire an x-ray technician to a part time position.  The technician is Jackie Bekkering, starting her orientation on Oct. 19.  The lab at the Health Centre also has a medical lab assistant, Paula Clow, who began work on Sept. 14.  This means our Health Center now has full coverage.