A familiar face took on an unfamiliar role at the Village of Canal Flats’ council meeting on August 10th.
Councillor Paul Marcil was Mayor Marcil for the evening, filling in for Ute Juras. Marcil presided over an agenda that included policing, bathrooms, water and rinks.
To start the meeting, RCMP Staff Sgt. Marko Shehovac gave his quarterly RCMP report, during which he said crime in the valley had gone up from the year before. Between January and June of last year, the RCMP were called for service 43 times in Canal Flats. During the same period this year, the RCMP were called 56 times. When looking at the full valley, the numbers swell from 631 calls for service between January and June last year to 815 this year.
“I talked to a lot of business people and they said these are some of the busiest weekends we have ever had,” Shehovac said, adding that the extra calls for service were proportional to the added number of visitors in the area.
While talking about crime specific to Canal Flats, Shehovac detailed the seizure of four large marijuana plants from a resident who had been growing the plants on his front porch, crudely disguised with flowers.
“He was making it very obvious to kids and anyone else around,” Shehovac said. “It is up to Canal Flats to press charges.”
A gift from the government
Council voted on a motion to accept an $85,000 grant, which was recently announced by Kootenay-Columbia MP David Wilks as part of the Canada 150 Infrastructure Program.
“We got a phone call from our MP saying he would bring us a present,” Marcil said, adding the grant would go towards upgrades to Tilley Memorial Park.
In addition, Columbia Basin Trust has offered the village $50,000 to further fund the upgrades, leaving council with only $50,000 worth of tax dollars to pay. Chief administrative office Brian Woodward said he is in the process of looking for more grants to further subsidize the project.
“Who is going to put forward the timeline for what, where and when?” Councillor Marie Delorme asked. “There are a lot of details to figure out.”
Woodward explained the project would have to be finished by March 2018. In addition, he agreed with Delorme’s suggestion that there should be a committee of the whole meeting to discuss precise plans for park’s upgrades. Upgrades could involve washrooms, docks, parking and play facilities, among other elements of the park.
Council unanimously agreed to accept the funding.
So clean you can taste it
Residents in the Eagle’s Nest area will soon have their water cut off for ten days so the new merged water supply can be disinfected.
“After the Labour Day long weekend, notices will go out to Eagle’s Nest and we will start the final touches,” Marcil said. “We will supply water for things like drinking and showering.”
In response to a question from Delorme asking if ten days was the extreme, or if it could take a shorter amount of time, Marcil say the full period of time would be necessary to have chemical tests sent between Canal Flats and Calgary.
It will cost how much?
Council voted on a motion to reject the application from NAPP Enterprises Ltd. to demolish the curling rink. The company proposed a $42,430 fee to do the work, which would be far more expensive than the village was looking for when it put out advertisements in July.
“I consulted with my husband because we took down a building in the past and we both agreed this contract is excessive,” Delorme said.
The village received three inquiries from the ad and only one formal proposal. Council unanimously voted to reject the proposal, leaving two options for the project: re-advertise or do it themselves. Council will explore the options at a later date.
