1. Welcome to the Squamish Nation Traditional Territory Ha7lh en skwalwn Kwis tl'iknumut tl'a Skwxwuu7mesh Uxwumixw

Transcription

1 DISTRICT OF SQUAMISH Minutes of the Meeting of the Committee of the Whole held Tuesday, December 1, 2015 at 1:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers, Second Ave, Squamish, BC. IN ATTENDANCE: ABSENT: ADVISORY IN ATTENDANCE: Mayor Patricia Heintzman Councillor Blackman-Wulff (arrived at 1:04 pm) Councillor Susan Chapelle Councillor Peter Kent Councillor Doug Race Councillor Ted Prior Councillor Karen Elliott Linda Glenday, Acting CAO Robin Arthurs, GM Corporate Services Rick Farina, Manager of Bylaw and Animal Control Charlene Pawluk, Manager of Legislative Services Terry Murray, Legislative Assistant Joanne Greenlees, GM Financial Services Christine Mathews, Financial Planning Manager Rod MacLeod, Director of Engineering Dora Gunn, Sustainability Coordinator Bob Smith, Operations Director Mayor Heintzman called the meeting to order at 1:01 p.m. 1. Welcome to the Squamish Nation Traditional Territory Ha7lh en skwalwn Kwis tl'iknumut tl'a Skwxwuu7mesh Uxwumixw 2. ADOPTION OF AGENDA Meeting Agenda. moved by Councillor Race, seconded by Councillor Kent, THAT Council adopt the December 1, 2015 Committee of the Whole 3. DELEGATIONS (i) Re: Great Wolf Lodge T. Munro, Real Estate Development Consultant, and K. Simmonds, General Manager of Great Wolf Lodge in Niagara, Ontario were in attendance to discuss the plan for a Great Wolf Lodge in Squamish. Discussion included: Centennial Way and Highway 99 is the proposed site location for the development Current site involves three property owners Provincial, Municipal and one parcel is owned by Great Wolf Lodge Review of the Great Wolf Lodge experience including rides, waterpark, restaurants, bowling, and spa Review of the other Great Wolf Lodge locations including the other Canadian site in Niagara Falls as well as the US sites Niagara Falls location has 670 year round employees - 30% full time, 70% part time Project Green Wolf - energy and water conservation including environmental stewardship and educational programs Fundraising done by Great Wolf Lodge for local charities and giving back to the community including supporting local groups and teams was reviewed

2 P a g e 2 Minutes for the Committee of the Whole Meeting December 1, 2015 $150 million total investment planned for Squamish Economic benefit and employment opportunities for Squamish Site Conceptual Plan was reviewed Collaboration is needed between developer and the District of Squamish Questions and comments from the Committee included: Has Great Wolf Lodge considered any other sites for their development? o Yes, however Squamish is the primary focus What is the estimated water consumption for the water park? o Research already done, will come back with data How many rooms are planned for the lodge? o 400 rooms Green design in construction of the lodge would be beneficial What are the types of jobs provided by the lodge? o Life guards, supervisors, room attendants, chefs, and many more Why is highway frontage being considered and is it a necessity to be visible from the highway? o Preferable to have highway access Is a traffic study being planned? o Very dispersed egress and ingress times, some counts have already been done, traffic does not appear to be an issue at this location Concerns regarding maintaining cycling routes near site Discussion regarding transportation/transit to and from the site Importance of housing considerations Clarification was requested regarding educational programs provided by Great Wolf Lodge o Educations programs provided by the resort were reviewed Proximity of the Lodge to the Squamish Valley Music Festival are there any concerns from the developer regarding the proximity of the development to the music festival? o No concerns Zoning clarification was requested by the Committee o OCP amendment would be required o Three different zones on the site would need to be amended o Road closures would need to happen Right of first refusal discussion Discussion regarding property value of the proposed site. 4. BUSINESS moved by Councillor Blackman-Wulff, seconded by Councillor Race, RECOMMENDATION: THAT Council direct staff to enter into a conversation with Great Wolfe Lodge regarding next steps; AND THAT staff assist the Great Wolfe Lodge developers in conversations with the Province regarding the purchase of crown land and the possible sale of District land.

3 P a g e 3 Minutes for the Committee of the Whole Meeting December 1, 2015 (i) Bylaw Dispute Adjudication System R. Arthurs, GM Corporate Services and R. Farina, Bylaw and Animal Control Manager were in attendance to review the Bylaw Dispute Adjudication System for Council. Discussion included: Background of the Bylaw Dispute Adjudication System was reviewed, including past strategies regarding bylaw offences: o Seek voluntary compliance o Issue a traffic offence notice o Initiate formal court proceedings The goal is to create a simple, fair and cost effective system for dealing with minor bylaw infractions which promotes timely resolution of bylaw enforcement disputes 8 month pilot program is planned Screening Officer is the gate keeper to the adjudication system and has the authority to cancel the notice based on certain criteria Questions and Comments from the Committee included: What happens if people dispute tickets after adjudication? o Appear by telephone or video in North Vancouver Mayor Heintzman left the meeting at 2:02 p.m. and Acting Mayor Race assumed the chair. Will any violations ever go to Provincial Court? o No, Adjudicator decision is final but the process could be challenged What is the staff impact to this implementation? o Initially there will be an impact but it is expected to decrease in time What is the revenue potential? o Currently there is little capacity currently to collect on tickets. This system will change that Funding clarification regarding adjudication was requested by the Committee o Funding is already in place. moved by Councillor Chapelle, seconded by Councillor Kent, RECOMMENDATION: THAT the District of Squamish Council endorse the concept of a local Bylaw Dispute Adjudication System and authorizes the Manager of Bylaw Enforcement and Animal Control to commence with implementation for the District of Squamish; AND THAT the District of Squamish Council authorizes the Mayor and Corporate Officer to execute the North Shore Bylaw Notice Dispute Adjudication Registry Agreement. Meeting recessed at 2:09 pm Meeting resumed at 2:22 with all of Council in attendance except Councillor Elliott and Mayor Heintzman as well as staff as before the break. (ii) 2016 Budget Workshop BMX Funding Update J. Greenlees gave an update regarding BMX s previous request for a new starting gate and

4 P a g e 4 Minutes for the Committee of the Whole Meeting December 1, 2015 track realignment. Discussion included: Funding options include the Canadian Hydro Developers community amenity fund and a grant in the amount of $35,000 (District to act as an intermediary) Legalities of receiving funds was discussed Commitment letter would be required, to be executed by the Corporate Officer and the Mayor. Mayor Heintzman returned to the meeting at 2:30 p.m. and resumed the chair. moved by Councillor Chapelle, seconded by Councillor Race, RECOMMENDATION: THAT the District of Squamish provide a community enhancement grant to Squamish BMX in the amount of $40,000 for the New Start Gate and Track Improvements Project; to be funded from the Canadian Hydro Developers Community Amenity Fund; AND that the District of Squamish accept grant funding from Whistler Blackcomb Foundation in the amount of $35,000 as Sponsor for Squamish BMX Racing Association; AND that the Mayor and Corporate Officer be authorized to sign the Whistler Blackcomb Foundation Grant Recipient Letter of Agreement (substantially in the form of the attached); AND further that the Mayor and Corporate Officer be authorized to offer and obtain a letter of agreement from the Squamish BMX in a form acceptable to the CAO, as a condition of funding from the District of Squamish and acting as Sponsor with respect to the Whistler Blackcomb Foundation Grant. C. Mathews, Financial Planning Manager was in attendance to continue with the Budget 2016 Workshop. Discussion included: Utility Fund Operating Budget Updated Council Strategic Plan was distributed Adequate user fee revenue to sustain existing service levels and renew existing infrastructure Accumulated surplus of the water, sewer and solid waste fund was reviewed Discussion about transferring excess accumulated surplus to other operating reserve account Estimated capital reserves was summarized for the Committee. Targets are being reached Highlights of the reconciliations from the 2015 budget and contribution to reserves Existing service labour changes include inflation and step changes, benefit changes, transfer to other funds, recoveries, casual, callout, acting and sick pay premium and allowances Service level changes for organics and growth, landfill contract adjustments, landfill closure costs, maintenance, waste reduction, leachate, utilities and insurance Discussion regarding increased cost of waste diversion

5 P a g e 5 Minutes for the Committee of the Whole Meeting December 1, 2015 Water and sewer service level changes include benchmarking, Eaglewind subdivision maintenance and water conservation program Water and sewer special projects include watermain testing, cross connection control test bench, inspection and repairs, sewer use bylaw, waste water treatment plant odour characterization study and sanitary sewer master plan Question to staff: are targets being met? o Yes, utility funds are properly set up, well planned and well thought out Request to better communicate the successes of the utility funds to the public Staff to prepare the three utility bylaws to come back to Council in mid-december with a water increase of 4% and 2% for sewer utility Current rates for utilities were reviewed Solid Waste service level changes: o Enhanced organics collection reduced from $140K to $90K, landfill gas assessment $10K and zero waste strategy -$60K Public consultation regarding solid waste organics was reviewed 47% very happy, 30% somewhat happy but most are not interested in weekly collection at cost and the barriers to using organics for food scraps were discussed Discussion regarding garburators and the problems they pose Suggestion to look at the diversion rate of other communities who have a successful and mature organics collection program Solid waste fees were reviewed differentiating between small medium and large totes and potential for changing fee structure based on tote volume comparisons Landfill vertical expansion proposal options and impact on fees Request to add a wood waste conversation to an upcoming Agenda in January not part of budget discussions Staff suggest fee option including zero waste strategy but not to include enhanced organics Committee suggestion that the District provide enhanced organics collection without increasing fees for 2016 and revisit in 2017 (pilot project); o Staff suggested that accumulated surplus or reserves could be used but that option isn t advised Discussion regarding backyard composting Suggestion to explore the possibility of smaller compost bins o Staff advised on the bin size decision, including that they must be large enough to be picked up and strong enough to have bear locks installed. The administrative cost of giving people a choice was discussed Mayor Heintzman opened the meeting to questions and comments from the public: Chris Pettingill asked how the proposed 4% increase to water rates compares to inflation. He advised that the Inflation average has been lower and that it is difficult for people to go beyond inflation. o Comments regarding totes could have a smaller compost bin if there was the ability to put out extra compost bags from time to time o The water rate includes inflation plus a water growth projection o Split truck suggestion weight of the truck requires more trips to the landfill and other municipalities have gone back to non-split

6 P a g e 6 Minutes for the Committee of the Whole Meeting December 1, 2015 moved by Councillor Race, seconded by Councillor Blackman-Wulff, RECOMMENDATION: THAT bylaws be drafted that reflect water rate increases of 4% and sewer increase of 2%; AND THAT staff bring back fee options for solid waste including zero waste strategy and enhanced organics. 5. TERMINATION Meeting terminated at 4:30 p.m. moved by Councillor Race, seconded by Councillor Kent, THAT the meeting be terminated. Patricia Heintzman, Mayor CERTIFIED CORRECT: Robin Arthurs, GM Corporate Services