MAYOR’S ANNUAL ADDRESS
Monday, December 3rd, 2007
By Mayor Ralph Drew
I want to begin by thanking Belcarra’s Councillors and staff for their continued hard work over the past year. As I proceed through my address, you will see the broad range of issues that demand the attention of Council and staff, and also understand the commitment required by our Councillors given they all have full-time jobs and other demands on their time.
Last year Council was hopeful that work would commence on the Official Community Plan (OCP) amendment process. This project is still pending due to staff focus being diverted by the work associated with other priorities. Regardless, Council has not lost sight of the need to undertake a review of the OCP, and continues to identify this work as a priority albeit a priority second to obtaining infrastructure funding for the potable water system.
In keeping with past practice, my annual address will be a series short status reports on subjects that have occupied Council’s attention during 2007, and that reflect Council’s focus for 2008.
Potable Water Distribution System
In 2005 Council held a vote on the Community Opinion Question which received the assent of 69% of the residents who voted on November 19th, 2005. The message was clear; a majority of Belcarra residents wanted Council to pursue infrastructure funding for a potable water distribution system.
In 2006 Council undertook the Preferred Option Pre-Design Study for the submarine crossing of Indian Arm to the District of North Vancouver (DNV). The very positive findings of the Preferred Option Pre-Design Study were presented to the community, and Council acted on those findings by contracting to have the Environmental Assessment of the submarine crossing alignment completed in early 2007.
In October 2006 the provincial government announced the Canada–British Columbia Municipal Rural Infrastructure Fund, and Council immediately made application for infrastructure funding under this program. Council also made application to the Vancouver Port Authority (VPA) regarding the water main crossing, and has pursued membership in the Greater Vancouver Water District (GVWD). Further, since an accurate survey of all road rights-of-way is prerequisite to engineering design work for a water distribution system, Council also pursued this year to consolidate the remaining portions of un-surveyed road rights-of-way that have not already been surveyed as part of previously installed fire hydrant water main projects.
Now to the question on everyone’s mind, which is the status of Belcarra’s application for infrastructure funding. The good news is that the application is still “alive” in Victoria, and that our MLA, Iain Black, has been working hard on Belcarra’s behalf. Unfortunately, I am not able to provide any further information at this time. Rest assured that the community will be quickly advised of any developments.
Fire Hydrant Water Main System
The 2007 fire season was fairly good from the perspective of the forests. Regardless, we annually must give pause to consider the possibilities faced by communities at the interface with forested areas. For the past 10 years, Council has made fire protection capital expenditures a priority and has spent over $1,250,000 since work commenced on the fire hydrant water main system. The survey and engineering design work on the final section along Marine Avenue and up West Road to the Fire Hall was completed in 2006. The first portion of that extension installed this summer now provides fire hydrant protection to that area of the Woodhaven subdivision. Further work on the final section is planned over the next two or three years. It is a large undertaking, and by applying a long-term perspective and planning for a series of projects constructed over a number of years, Council is achieving the overall objective on a pay-as-you-go basis.
Emergency Preparedness
During 2007 attention focused on communications, and the municipality now has an Industry Canada assigned VHF frequency dedicated to Belcarra public works and its emergency or disaster communications strategies.
Work has also been completed on the installation of radio equipment specific to the Inter-Municipal Emergency Radio System (IMERS). IMERS is a “partnership between local, regional and provincial governments”, being a radio system designed to facilitate communications between lower mainland Emergency Operations Centers (EOCs), and between these EOCs and the Provincial Regional Emergency Operations Center (PREOC) in Surrey.
The system was developed with a handful of participating municipalities, but has grown throughout Metro Vancouver. Its coverage now extends beyond the Metro Vancouver borders opening-up possibilities for new members. The repeater system is maintained by Metro Vancouver while municipalities and other agencies on the system are responsible for their own radio and antenna equipment.
Bedwell Bay Sustainability Plan
In October Council adopted the Bedwell Bay Sustainability Plan as an important mechanism for engaging both the Vancouver Port Authority (VPA) and the Burrard Environmental Review Committee (BERC) in exploring approaches that will meet the needs of our community. The objectives of the Sustainability Plan are to:
Incorporate the defined expectations of the Belcarra community, BERC and VPA;
Prepare a Best Practices Guide to maintain sustainable coexistence of natural and public values;
Utilize VPA support and technical expertise as outlined in the Burrard Environmental Management Action Plan; and
Create a community-based Stewardship Committee that ensures advice and input from VPA, BERC, Council, and the residents of Belcarra.
This initiative enables new wharf development in Bedwell Bay to be evaluated and pursued in a sustainable manner. I urge all Belcarra residents to familiarize themselves with the Bedwell Bay Sustainability Plan and to become informed regarding the changing regulatory environment as it applies to the foreshore and riparian areas.
Treaty Negotiations
Treaty negotiations have been an important issue over the past nine years, and began with Council holding a series of public information meetings in 1999 on subjects such as Belcarra’s Inventory of Interests. Last year I reported that negotiations at the Tsawwassen Treaty Table had been concluded, and the three parties were optimistic that the Final Agreement would be “initialed”. This year I can report that the Tsawwassen Treaty has been ratified by both the Tsawwassen First Nation and the British Columbia Legislature, and has been forwarded to Canada’s Parliament in Ottawa for its ratification. This is a historic milestone for BC’s Lower Mainland and, as previously anticipated, has resulted in increased activity at the Tsleil-Waututh Treaty Table during the past year. There now is potential for a Tsleil-Waututh Treaty within the next two years, and we will closely monitor those developments.
Other Initiatives
Although I have highlighted a number of significant items, there are also other initiatives below the public’s “radar screen” that warrant mention:
Controlled Access To The Waste Facility – For several years Council has not acted on its site safety and security enhancement plan for controlled access to the Belcarra’s waste and recycle facility. Given the new disposal restrictions on banned materials and the municipality’s commitments in support of Metro Vancouver’s ‘Zero Waste’ initiatives that would be compromised by continued unauthorized uses from within and outside our community, Council feels that the time has come to implement gated access to the waste and recycle facility. This project will be pursued during the coming year.
Municipal Truck & Tractor Replacement – The municipal tractor is 27 years old and the municipal truck is 9 years old. It is now time to replace both pieces of equipment, which will be funded from Belcarra’s equipment replacement reserve.
Municipal Hall Renovation Planning – Belcarra’s municipal hall was built in 1985, and has served our community admirably. Several years ago the south end of the building was extended to provide for much-needed storage space. Now it is time to examine a number of other aspects of the building including office and storage space, environmental resiliency and earthquake hardening. It is Council’s intent to pursue a needs assessment and design plan during the coming year.
As is evident from the foregoing, Council and staff have been very busy, and the coming year will be very much the same. As always, I am confident that Council and its committees can meet the challenges and achieve their objectives.
RALPH DREW
MAYOR
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