Council Meeting Minutes - February 25, 2002

City Clerk J. Richard McKenna

That:

the minutes of the Regular Council Meeting held on Monday, February 11^th, 2002; and

the minutes of the Regular Council Meeting for Public Hearings held on Monday, February 18^th, 2002,

CARRIED

Mary Keen, President, and Don Gordon, Treasurer, representing the Friends of the Archives, provided information on the introduction of a new computer program to add archival maps to the web. She indicated that to assist the program, the Friends of the Archives purchased specialized map cabinets to protect and preserve the City's archival map collection.

Mr. Gordon spoke briefly, thanking City Archivist Lynne Waller and Ms. Keen, as Chair, for their efforts. With a letter presented to the Mayor, Ms. Keen, on behalf of the Friends of the Archives, then turned over ownership of the cabinets to the City Archives.

Cheryl Rehm-Latiff, Chair, of the Richmond Family Court Committee, introduced those members of the Committee who were in attendance this evening. She then reviewed, and along with Judy Assoon, responded to questions on the Committees 2001 Annual Report, a copy of which is on file in the City Clerks Office.

That the 2001 Richmond Family Court Committee Annual Report be received with thanks, and that the appreciation of Council be expressed to Barry Freeman and Mumtaz Virani on their retirement from the Committee.

CARRIED

That Council resolve into Committee of the Whole to hear delegations on agenda items (7:29 p.m.).

CARRIED

Mr. Vince Miele, of 4691 Cabot Drive, Chair of the Richmond Committee on Disability, addressed Council on the funding request of the Committee for the Disability Resource Centre and the Richmond Therapeutic Equestrian Society. A copy of Mr. Mieles submission is on file in the City Clerks Office.

Mr. James Sullivan, 7457 Moffatt Road, provided information on the programs and services offered at the Disability Resource Centre to the disabled. Mr. Sullivan also spoke about a partnership being entered into between the Richmond Committee on Disability and Tourism Richmond which could result in millions of dollars of disposable income coming to the City. He expressed concern about the treatment of the disabled and asked that the disabled community be given a fair share of "the City's wealth".

Ms. Frances Clark, 8160 Railway Avenue, spoke about the $31,000 which had been requested for the Richmond Therapeutic Equestrian Society. She expressed concern about (i) the amount of the grants received by the Richmond Committee on Disability; and (ii) the apparent lack of support for Richmond's people with disabilities. Ms. Clark urged Council to give the disabled the opportunity to achieve the leadership roles for which they might be destined, by supporting the programs offered by the Richmond Therapeutic Equestrian Society.

Ms. Karen Mitten, of 1860 Cruikshank Drive, speaking on behalf of her disabled daughter Darlene, who is a member of the Richmond Therapeutic Equestrian Society, spoke about the opportunities which the Society offered to the many participants, and to her daughter in particular, through their programs and fund-raising efforts.

Mrs. Corisande Percival-Smith, of 5760 Granville Avenue, commented on the budgets approved for (i) the Tall Ships event, (ii) the Group Home Task Force; and (iii) the 2010 Whistler/Vancouver Olympic Winter Games bid process. She also spoke about the City's grant budget and its policies and the awarding of grants as operating funds. Also addressed by Mrs. Percival-Smith were (i) anticipated increases in water and sewer utility rates, school taxes and other potential taxation from such agencies as TransLink; and (ii) potential areas for cost reductions. She urged Council to review the proposed budget to consider all other aspects of potential taxation increases.

Mr. Elvyn Wittensleger, of 10631 Hollymount Drive, expressed concern about the proposed increase in property taxes. He questioned the rationale for contributing funding to the 2010 Olympic Winter Games bid. Mr. Wittensleger spoke about giving residents the option of determining for themselves whether they wanted certain programs, such as the "Blue Box" program, and the role which he felt Council should be playing in managing the affairs of the City. He suggested that residents would be satisfied with the provision of basic services only, rather than paying increased taxes to for luxury items.

Mr. Bob Ransford, 5071 Steveston Highway, spoke about the concerns which many taxpayers had about the current and future economic situation in Richmond and British Columbia. He suggested that Council should re-examine line by line, the service levels and programs currently offered by the City to determine if the levels and services being provided were appropriate.

Sharon Schnurr, #116 7240 Lindsay Road, expressed agreement with the statements made by the previous speakers about the proposed budget and property tax increase.

Ms. Annie McKitrick, representing the Richmond Community Services Advisory Council (RCSAC), expressed support for (i) the creation of the new committee, and (ii) allowing the RCSAC to work with staff on the mandate for this committee. She urged Council to support the General Purposes Committee recommendation.

Item No. 21 Richmond Community Cycling Committee Proposed 2002 Initiatives

Mr. Larry Pamer, of 4351 Tucker Avenue, representing the Richmond Cycling Committee, spoke about the investment of the community and the City in the provision of cycling routes in Richmond.

Ms. Pat Broz, 10371 Caithcart Road, representing the Richmond District Parent Association and a member of the Traffic Safety Advisory Committee, spoke about the "Keep Our Future Safe" campaign, and displayed the yellow plastic lawn signs which would be distributed to elementary schools participating in this campaign.

CARRIED

APPOINTMENT OF CITY REPRESENTATIVE TO THE VANCOUVER INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT AUTHORITY (YVRAA) ENVIRONMENTAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE
(File No.: 0153-04)

R02/4-5

It was moved and seconded

That Paul Schaap be appointed as the City representative and James Collins as alternate City representative to the Vancouver International Airport Authority (YVRAA) Environmental Advisory Committee.

CARRIED

APPOINTMENTS TO THE STEVESTON ADVISORY TASK FORCE ON PARKING
(File No.: 0100-20-SPAR1-01)

R02/4-6

It was moved and seconded

That the Terms of Reference for the Steveston Advisory Task Force on Parking, (as described in the report dated February 7^th, 2002, from the Manager, Transportation Planning), be approved.

That staff work with the above Steveston Advisory Task Force on Parking to develop a parking strategy for the Steveston Village area, including the feasibility of implementing pay parking in the area, and report to Council on the recommendations of the Task Force.

CARRIED

That the minutes of the Community Safety Committee meeting held on Tuesday, February 12^th, 2002, be received for information.

CARRIED

That the RCMP incrementally re-initiate the Auxiliary Constable Program.

That the Mayor and City Clerk be authorized to sign an agreement with the Provincial government to give effect to this program.

CARRIED

That the minutes of the General Purposes Committee meeting held on Thursday, February 14^th, 2002, and on Monday, February 18^th, 2002, be received for information.

CARRIED

That the order of the Council Agenda be varied to deal with Item No. 15, Use of Casino Gaming Revenue to Reduce Property Taxes, at this time.

CARRIED

use of casino gaming revenue to reduce property taxes
(Report: Feb. 15/02, File No.: 0970-01) (REDMS No. 635513, 160969)

That $1.0 million from the 2002 Casino Gaming Revenue be allocated to offset substantial policing costs incurred by the City and to reduce the impact on the municipal tax requisition for 2002, on the understanding that it will be a one-time contribution.

DEFEATED

OPPOSED: Mayor Brodie
Cllr. Barnes
Greenhill
E. Halsey-Brandt
S. Halsey-Brandt

That the 2002 Operating Budget be increased by 5.28% over the 2001 levels;

(a)

That $1,700,000 from the balance of the Gaming Reserve be applied as a revenue source to the budget with $1,000,000 being applied to a Capital Infrastructure and Facilities Statutory Reserve, and

(b)

That the balance of $700,000 be applied to offset the 2002 Operating Costs;

That the Capital Infrastructure and Facilities Statutory Reserve be shown as a separate line on the 2002 tax notice;

That at a minimum, the 2002 tax notice identify the cost of protective services and if possible, identify fire and police operational costs as separate line items;

That each General Manager review with their appropriate Committee of Council, departmental programs and service levels prior to the start of the 2003 budget review process;

That staff prepare a detailed public relations process to educate the public on the 2002 budget costs, programs and service levels;

That staff use this 2002 operating budget as the basis for the 5 year Financial Plan; and

That staff commence the public presentation process of the 5 Year Financial Plan before the end of February 2002.

The question on Resolution No. R02/4-12 was not called, as the following amendments were introduced:

That Resolution No. R02/4-12 be amended by adding the following as Part (9), "That $200,000 be included in the 2002 Operating Budget to accommodate various unforeseen funding requests during the year, and that the source of funding be the 2002 Casino Gaming Revenue Account."

CARRIED

That Part (5) of Resolution No. R02/4-12 be amended by deleting the words "prior to the start of the 2003 budget review process", and by substituting the following, "commencing immediately".

CARRIED

OPPOSED: Cllr. Greenhill

The question on Resolution No. R02/4-12, as amended by Resolution Nos. R02/4-13 and R02/4-14, was not called, as the following referral motion was introduced:

That Parts (1) to (4) and Parts (6) to (9) inclusive of Resolution No. R02/4-12 be referred to staff for further review.

The question on Resolution No. R02/4-15 was not called, as staff were directed to:

undertake a further analysis as to possible areas of reduction for the budget, whether it be service or non-service levels;

review the additional items added to the budget for 2002, such as the purchase of computers and other equipment, to determine if these items were necessary;

review the service levels which could be provided, based on a 1%, 2% or 3% reduction from the proposed 5.28% increase; and

review service programs to determine if there were City programs which should or should not be continued.

The question on Resolution No. R02/4-15 was then called, and it was CARRIED with Cllr. Barnes opposed.

The question on Part (5) of Resolution No. R02/4-12, as amended by Resolution No. R02/4-14, was then called, and it was CARRIED.

That Part (2) of Resolution No. R02/1-18 (adopted on January 14^th, 2002), to add the balance of the Minoru parking lots as an additional site to the pay-parking inventory (Phase I activities), be rescinded.

CARRIED

That no further action be taken to introduce pay parking into public parks or public recreational areas without first holding a public meeting to give the residents of Richmond an opportunity to have their opinion heard.

DEFEATED

OPPOSED: Mayor Brodie
Cllr. Barnes
Howard
Kumagai
McNulty

That the Council Meeting proceed beyond 11:00 p.m. (10:58 p.m.)

CARRIED

PROPOSED RICHMOND INTERCULTURAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE
(Report: Feb. 7/02, File No.: 0100-20-RIADI-01) (REDMS No. 619980, 623865, 619990, 611960, 628256, 641284, 639544)

That (as outlined in the report dated February 7^th, 2002, from the Manager, Policy Planning):

the Terms of Reference for the Richmond Intercultural Advisory Committee (RIAC) (as amended by the Committee) be adopted;

staff advertise for RIAC nominations;

the 2002 RIAC Work Program be approved; and

Councillor Linda Barnes be appointed to the RIAC.

CARRIED

ImportATION of Contaminated Soils to Richmond
(Report: February 14/02, File No.: 6175-06) (REDMS No. 625515, 615551, 619080, 644692)

staff implement Options 1, 2 and 4 (as presented in the report dated February 14, 2002 from the Manager of Environmental and Emergency Programs) regarding the lobbying of the Provincial Government, the lobbying of the Federal Government, and the making of a request to the site operator; and

a press release of this decision be made immediately, for the benefit of concerned City residents; and

That the report (dated February 14th, 2002, from the General Manager, Community Safety), regarding the import of contaminated soil to Richmond, be referred to staff:

for review and comment by the Advisory Committee on the Environment (ACE) as quickly as possible; and that ACE also comment on the current Provincial regulations dealing with the import of contaminated soil and how these regulations compare with the City's former Prohibition of Certain Fill Materials Bylaw No. 5712;

for a further report from the City Solicitor on "Option 5 Zoning Bylaw";

for further information on the feasibility of prohibiting all importing and exporting of contaminated soil; and

on how and when a public forum on the issue of contaminated soil could be held, and the structure under which this forum would be conducted.

The question on Resolution No. R02/4-4-20 was not called, as staff were directed, with reference to the proposed public forum, to ensure that information would be available which explained the use of the term "dioxins" and the level of toxicity of the contaminated soil proposed for shipment to Richmond.

The question on Resolution No. R02/4-4-20 was then called, and it was CARRIED.

That the 2002 to 2006 Capital Plan (attached to the report dated February 12^th, 2002, from the General Manager, Finance & Corporate Services and the Chair, Land and Capital Team), be adopted for inclusion in the 2002 Five Year Financial Plan (2002 to 2006) Bylaw; and

That staff be authorized to commence construction of the 2002 projects.

CARRIED

use of casino gaming revenue to reduce property taxes
(Report: Feb. 15/02, File No.: 0970-01) (REDMS No. 635513, 160969)

That the minutes of the Planning Committee meeting held on Tuesday, February 19^th, 2002, be received for information.

CARRIED

That Bylaw Regulation No. 7230, which consolidates and modernizes the existing Building Bylaw (adopted in 1998); the existing Gas Fitting Bylaw (adopted in 1966); and the existing Plumbing Bylaw (adopted in 1974), into a single comprehensive piece of legislation, be introduced and given, first second and third readings.

CARRIED

That Bylaw No. 7327, for the rezoning of 10631 Bridgeport Road from "Single-Family Housing District, Subdivision Area D (R1/D)" to "Single-Family Housing District, Subdivision Area B (R1/B)", be introduced and given first reading.

CARRIED

ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON THE ENVIRONMENT (ACE) 2001 ANNUAL REPORT AND 2002 WORK PROGRAM
(Report: Jan. 31/02, File No.: 0100-20-ACEN1-01) (REDMS No. 619875, 559286, 577376)

That the Advisory Committee on the Environments 2002 work program (as outlined in the report dated February 7^th, 2002, from the Manager, Policy Planning), be approved, subject to the City's budget review process.

CARRIED

That the minutes of the Public Works & Transportation Committee meeting held on Wednesday, February 20^th, 2002, be received for information.

CARRIED

RICHMOND COMMUNITY CYCLING COMMITTEE PROPOSED 2002 INITIATIVES
(Report: Jan. 22/02, File No.: 0100-20-RCYC1) (REDMS No. 589173)

That the proposed 2002 initiatives of the Richmond Community Cycling Committee regarding cycling education and awareness, (as described in the report dated January 22^nd, 2002, from the Director, Transportation), be endorsed.

That staff report to Council on the outcome of the proposed 2002 initiatives for the Richmond Community Cycling Committee.

CARRIED

THE FEDERATION OF CANADIAN MUNICIPALITIES RESOLUTION TO REQUIRE ACTION FROM THE GOVERNMENT OF CANADA REGARDING CRTC JURISDICTION
(Report: Feb. 6/02, File No.: 0060-20-FCMU1-01) (REDMS No. 571794)

That the following resolution be adopted and forwarded to the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) for debate at the next National Board of Directors meeting:

"WHEREAS the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) approved at their 1999 annual conference and adopted at the May 2001 conference the "Occupancy and Use of Municipal Rights-of-Ways" document.

WHEREAS the document contains five principles intended to guide the relationships between municipal governments and parties that occupy and use municipal rights-of-ways.

WHEREAS the FCM encourages municipalities to practice these principles.

WHEREAS on March 1999, Ledcor Industries Limited filed a Part VII application-requesting relief under the Telecommunications Act sections 43 and 61(2) naming the City of Vancouver as respondent.

WHEREAS on January 2001 the "Ledcor/Vancouver Construction, operation and maintenance of transmission lines in Vancouver" Decision CRTC 2001-23 was implemented.

WHEREAS this decision did not support the five principles as adopted by the FCM.

WHEREAS the Federation of Canadian Municipalities has filed an appeal on "Decision CRTC 2001-23" with the Federal Court of Appeal.

WHEREAS AT&T Canada has recently applied to the CRTC to have portions of an existing access agreement, with the City of Toronto, that conflict with CRTC Decision 2001-23 removed from their agreement.

WHEREAS the CRTC has published "Public Notice CRTC 2001-99" which seeks submissions on the question of what circumstances, if any, would justify an intervention by the CRTC to alter the terms and conditions of an existing property access contract between a carrier and a municipality.

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the FCM urge the Federal Government to confirm that the CRTC has no authority to alter the terms of existing contracts between a carrier and a municipality on access to municipal rights-of-ways.

CARRIED

That the 2002 Traffic Safety Awareness Week (March 4-8, 2002) activities initiated by the Richmond District Parents Association, sponsored by ICBC, the Autoplan Broker RoadSense Team and the Richmond School Board with the participation of the Way to Go! School Program, be supported, and that staff involvement be endorsed, as part of the City's on-going traffic safety education strategy.

That the period March 4-8, 2002 be proclaimed as "Traffic Safety Awareness Week."

CARRIED

SUBMISSION TO TRANSLINK 2002 MUNICIPAL BICYCLE INFRASTRUCTURE PROGRAM EXTENSION OF WILLIAMS ROAD BICYCLE ROUTE TO WEST DYKE
(Report: Feb. 7/02, File No.: 6360-16) (REDMS No. 610071)

That the proposed project to extend the Williams Road bicycle route from No. 1 Road to the west dyke, (as described in the report dated February 7^th, 2002, from the Director, Transportation), be endorsed for submission to TransLinks 2002 Municipal Bicycle Infrastructure Program at an estimated City cost of $210,000.

That the source of funding for the City's share of the above project cost, if approved by TransLink for cost-sharing, be the 2002 Major Capital Works Program for Bike Lane Improvements.

CARRIED

That the minutes and the Chairs report for the meeting held on February 13^th, 2002, be received for information.

That the recommendations of the Panel to authorize the issuance of Development Variance Permits for the properties at:

7100 Granville Avenue (DV 01-197911); and

1600 Savage Road (DV 01-198616),

be endorsed, and the Permits so issued.

CARRIED

CARRIED

Ms. Marnie Hewlett RN, spoke on Bill 29 - "The Health Services Improvement Act" and the impact which this bill could have on the provision of health services to Richmond. A copy of the material provided by Ms. Hewlett is on file in the City Clerks Office.

CARRIED

Ms. Sharon Schnurr, #116 7240 Lindsay Road, spoke on a number of issues, including (i) the inability of the owners of large trucks to park their vehicles in residential areas; (ii) noise pollution caused by garbage collection trucks; and (iii) the money being spent by the City to apprehend drug dealers. A copy of Ms. Schnurrs submission is on file in the City Clerks Office.

CARRIED

That Zoning & Development Bylaw No. 5300, Amendment Bylaw No. 7087 (13020 No. 2 Road, RZ 99-163044) be adopted.

CARRIED

OPPOSED: Cllr. Barnes

That Zoning & Development Bylaw No. 5300, Amendment Bylaw No. 7295 (10531 Williams Road, RZ 01-194842) be adopted.

CARRIED

CARRIED

Certified a true and correct copy of the Minutes of the Regular Meeting of the Council of the City of Richmond held on Monday, February 25^th, 2002.