January 30, 2023 - Minutes

Place:

Council Chambers
Richmond City Hall

Present:

Mayor Malcolm D. Brodie
Councillor Chak Au
Councillor Carol Day
Councillor Laura Gillanders
Councillor Kash Heed
Councillor Andy Hobbs
Councillor Alexa Loo
Councillor Bill McNulty
Councillor Michael Wolfe

Corporate Officer – Claudia Jesson

Call to Order:

Mayor Brodie called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.

RES NO.

ITEM

MINUTES

R23/2-1

1.

It was moved and seconded

That:

(1)

the minutes of the Regular Council meeting held on January 16, 2023, be adopted as circulated; and

(2)

the minutes of the Regular Council meeting for Public Hearings held on January 23, 2023, be adopted as circulated.

CARRIED

AGENDA ADDITIONS & DELETIONS

R23/2-2

It was moved and seconded

That page CNCL 6 of the Council Agenda be amended to reflect that Item 12 be changed to Item 13 and that Bylaw No. 10429 note opposition at 1^st/2^nd/3^rd Readings by Councillor Au.

CARRIED

COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE

R23/2-3

2.

It was moved and seconded

That Council resolve into Committee of the Whole to hear delegations on agenda items (7:01 p.m.).

CARRIED

3.

Delegations from the floor on Agenda items – None.

R23/2-4

4.

It was moved and seconded

That Committee rise and report (7:02 p.m.).

CARRIED

CONSENT AGENDA

R23/2-5

5.

It was moved and seconded

That Items No. 6 through No. 12 be adopted by general consent.

CARRIED

6.

COMMITTEE MINUTES

That the minutes of:

(1)

the Community Safety Committee meeting held on January 17, 2023;

(2)

the General Purposes Committee meeting held on January 23, 2023;

(3)

the Planning Committee meeting held on January 24, 2023;and

(4)

the Public Works and Transportation Committee meeting held on January 25, 2023; 

be received for information.

ADOPTED ON CONSENT

7.

RICHMOND SENIORS ADVISORY COMMITTEE 2022 ANNUAL REPORT AND 2023 WORK PROGRAM

(File Ref. No. 01-0100-30-SADV1-01) (REDMS No. 7079916, 7081349, 7031569)

That the staff report titled “Richmond Seniors Advisory Committee 2022 Annual Report and 2023 Work Program,” dated December 8, 2022, from the Director, Community Social Development, be approved.

ADOPTED ON CONSENT

8.

RICHMOND ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON THE ENVIRONMENT 2022 ANNUAL REPORT AND 2023 WORK PROGRAM

(File Ref. No. 01-0100-30-ACEN1-01) (REDMS No. 7084758)

(1)

That the Richmond Advisory Committee on the Environment 2022 Annual Report, as presented in the staff report titled “Richmond Advisory Committee on the Environment 2022 Annual Report and 2023 Work Program”, dated December 13, 2022 from the Director of Policy Planning, be received for information; and

(2)

That the Richmond Advisory Committee on the Environment 2023 Work Program, as presented in the staff report titled “Richmond Advisory Committee on the Environment 2022 Annual Report and 2023 Work Program”, dated December 13, 2022 from the Director of Policy Planning, be approved.

ADOPTED ON CONSENT

9.

APPLICATION TO THE BLOOMBERG INITIATIVE FOR CYCLING INFRASTRUCTURE GRANT

(File Ref. No. 03-1080-01) (REDMS No. 7102388)

(1)

That the submission for cost-sharing to the Bloomberg Initiative for Cycling Infrastructure Grant Program as described in the staff report titled “Application to The Bloomberg Initiative for Cycling Infrastructure Grant”, dated January 9, 2023, from the Director, Transportation be endorsed;

(2)

A letter of support from the City be included in the grant application;

(3)

That, should the above application be successful, the Chief Administrative Officer and the General Manager, Planning and Development, be authorized on behalf of the City to execute the funding agreement; and

(4)

That the Consolidated 5 Year Financial Plan (2023-2027) be amended accordingly.

ADOPTED ON CONSENT

10.

PROPOSED AMENDMENTS TO TRAFFIC BYLAW NO. 5870 TO REMOVE 60 KM/H SPEED ZONES

(File Ref. No. 12-8060-20-010434) (REDMS No. 7065443)

(1)

That Traffic Bylaw No. 5870, Amendment Bylaw No. 10434, as described in the staff report titled “Proposed Amendments to Traffic Bylaw No. 5870 to Remove 60 km/h Speed Zones”, be given first, second and third readings; and

(2)

A letter be sent to the Province of British Columbia to implement additional automated speed enforcement programs in Richmond.

ADOPTED ON CONSENT

Direction to staff to ensure public communication on the amended speed zones was noted.

11.

AMENDMENTS TO THE RECYCLING REGULATION AND RECYCLE BC PROGRAM

(File Ref. No. 10-6370-01) (REDMS No. 7088640)

That the expanded scope of items to be accepted in the City’s recycling programs, as outlined in Attachment 1 of the staff report dated December 19, 2022, titled “Amendments to the Recycling Regulation and Recycle BC Program, from the Director Public Works Operations, be endorsed.

ADOPTED ON CONSENT

12.

PROGRESS UPDATE ON BUILDING BENCHMARK BC PROGRAM

(File Ref. No. 10-6125-07-02) (REDMS No. 7087345))

(1)

That a letter be sent to the Provincial government to request  assistance to promote the Building Benchmark BC Program; and

(2)

That staff examine options to increase awareness of the Building Benchmark BC Program to appropriate building owners and occupiers and report back.

ADOPTED ON CONSENT

CONSIDERATION OF MATTERS REMOVED FROM THE CONSENT AGENDA

NON-CONSENT AGENDA ITEM

GENERAL PURPOSES COMMITTEE

Mayor Malcolm D. Brodie, Chair

13.

SOIL OR FILL USE APPLICATION FOR THE PROPERTY AT 8251 NO. 5 ROAD (GARCHA)

(File Ref. No. 12-8080-12-01) (REDMS No. 6990060)

R23/2-6

It was moved and seconded

That the ‘Soil or Fill Use’ application, submitted by Harbinder (Harry) Garcha (Applicant), proposing to retain soil for the purpose of improving the agricultural capability of the property located at 8251 No. 5 Road, be authorized for referral to the Agricultural Land Commission (ALC) for the ALC to review and determine the merits of the proposal from an agricultural perspective as the Applicant has satisfied all of the City’s current reporting requirements.

The question on the motion was not called as discussion ensued with respect to (i) bylaw enforcement options, (ii) the soil deposit application process, (iii) the timeline and quality of the unauthorized fill, and (iv) the viability of the farm.

In response to queries from Council staff noted (i) ongoing proactive patrols in the fall of 2021 uncovered the unauthorized fill by the property owner, triggering a stop work order, (ii) a letter of notice was issued by the ALC in May, 2022, (iii) the property owner was advised of the process to achieve compliance and (iv) no fines were issued, the initial intention would be to have a removal order.

The Regular Council meeting was recessed at 7:53 p.m. and a Special (Closed) Council meeting was called to order.

The Regular Council meeting reconvened at 8:13 p.m.

As a result of the discussion, the following referral motion was introduced:

R23/2-7

It was moved and seconded

That the report titled “Soil or Fill Use Application for the Property at 8251 No. 5 Road (Garcha)”, dated December 20, 2022, from the Director, Community Bylaws and Licencing, be referred back to staff to consider the matter of court action and report back.

The question on the referral motion was not called as a brief discussion ensued with regards to (i) the viability of the soil (ii) noted support of the farm, and (iii) soil inspections, policies and public communication regarding agricultural land.

The question on the referral motion was then called and it was DEFEATED with Mayor Brodie and Cllrs. Au, Heed, Hobbs, Loo and McNulty opposed.

The question on the main motion was then called and it was CARRIED with Cllrs. Day, Gillanders and Wolfe opposed.

As a result of further discussion regarding the Soil or Fill Use Application process, the following referral motion was introduced:

R23/2-8

It was moved and seconded

That the matter of Soil or Fill Use Application process be referred to staff to review and recommend strategies to better advise the agricultural community regarding the requirements for Agricultural Land Commission and City of Richmond approval when filling soil on their agricultural property, and provide comments and advice regarding the procedures and options for enforcement of the soil bylaw rules.

CARRIED

PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENTS AND EVENTS

BYLAWS FOR ADOPTION

R23/2-9

It was moved and seconded

That the Consolidated 5 Year Financial Plan (2023-2027) Bylaw No. 10429 be adopted.

CARRIED

R23/2-10

It was moved and seconded

That Richmond Zoning Bylaw No. 8500, Amendment Bylaw No. 10369 (7420/7440 Langton Road, RZ 21-927633) be adopted.

CARRIED

ADJOURNMENT

R23/2-11

It was moved and seconded

That the meeting adjourn (8:31 p.m.).

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, January 30, 2023.

_________________________________

_________________________________

Mayor (Malcolm D. Brodie)

Corporate Officer (Claudia Jesson)