MINUTES

1.

It was moved and seconded

That the minutes of the meeting of the General Purposes Committee held on Monday, December 4, 2006, be adopted as circulated.

CARRIED

ENGINEERING & PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT

2.

REMEDIATION ACCESS AGREEMENTS
(Report: Dec. 7/06, File No.: 01-0172-01 XR 03-1000-00-Vol 01) (REDMS No. 2034866)

It was moved and seconded

That the General Manager, Engineering & Public Works be authorized to execute Remediation Access Agreements.

CARRIED

3.

Local Area Services Program Construction – 3440 to 3640 Regent Street and 11333 2nd Avenue - Bylaw No. 8173
(Report: Dec. 4/06, File No.: 12-8060-20-8173) (REDMS No. 2042249, 2042683, 1915745)

It was moved and seconded

(1)

That the Local Area Services Program for Basic Ditch Elimination on 3440 to 3640 Regent Street and 11333 2nd Avenue be adopted in accordance with Section 211 and 212 of the Community Charter; and

(2)

That Bylaw No. 8173 which authorizes local area services construction at 3440 to 3640 Regent Street and 11333 2nd Avenue be introduced and given first, second and third readings.

CARRIED

4.

COMMUNITY USES AT 6931 GRANVILLE AVENUE
(Report: Dec. 4/06, File No.: 06-2050-20-GRANI) (REDMS No. 2050622)

(Councillor Linda Barnes entered the meeting at 4:09 p.m. during the following discussion.)

Discussion took place among Committee members and the Director, Engineering, Robert Gonzalez and Project Manager Mary Brunet on:

·

the plan for 32 City employees, from Community Bylaws and Fire Prevention, to be re-located to 6931 Granville Avenue and to occupy 5,680 square feet of the building;

·

the remaining 4,590 square feet on the east side of the building which could be leased to a tenant;

·

that staff has spoken to community groups that have made requests and that have expressed interest in using space in the building, but an evaluation process of the requests has not been undertaken;

·

the evaluation criteria of the requests that would include the ability of the community group to make meeting space available to other organizations, the ability of the group to pay for upgrades, and the groups specific needs;

·

the estimated cost of renovation to the east side of the building which could be up to $350,000, and would typically be the responsibility of a future tenant.

Vince Miele, Board Chair, Francis Clark, Board Member, and Ella Huang, Executive Director of the Disability Resource Centre (DRC) came forward to address Committee and advised that:

·

in 2001 the DRC had approached the City to request space;

·

the DRC’s client base has expanded over the years and the organization has outgrown the 1,866 square feet it currently occupies;

·

the DRC must expand their premises in order to maintain the quality of the services it provides to the over 300 people per week who come to the Centre;

·

the DRC has the ability to pay rent, to raise funds for renovations, or to repay a loan to the City, should that arrangement be made;

·

letters supporting the DRC’s request for space at 6931 Granville Avenue have been received (these are on file in the City Clerk’s Office).

Suzanne Haines, General Manager and Diane Cousar, Board Chair of Gateway Theatre addressed the Committee and advised that:

·

the success and expansion of the theatre’s programmes has prompted the theatre to actively seek additional space for: general storage, storage of costumes, office space for production and stage management staff, and space for designers;

·

the theatre has 20 year’s worth of costumes and, if the theatre secures better storage space for this collection, the community would be able to access this resource;

Discussion took place regarding:

·

the future vacancy of the Richmond Family Place building, and its adaptability for use by Gateway Theatre;

·

it was suggested that the Family Place building could be modified to accommodate storage of the theatre’s costumes.

It was moved and seconded

That:

(1)

the report (dated December 4^th, 2006, from the Director, Engineering) regarding Community Uses at 6931 Granville Avenue, be received for information; and

(2)

that staff work with representatives of the Disability Resource Centre regarding their need for the balance of the floor space not used by the City at 6931 Granville Avenue, and include an analysis of finances, various costs and space requirements.

The question on the motion was not called as discussion regarding DRC’s interest in the space continued. The discussion included the following points:

·

it was suggested that discussion with DRC should take place soon and that a resolution to their expressed interest in the property be arrived at quickly;

·

the DRC and the City could work as partners to meet any renovation costs;

·

the City would benefit from having an inventory of other sites in other buildings with empty space where community groups could be accommodated for programming and other needs;

·

the Committee directed City Planning staff, when speaking with developers to learn of space that might be available in City centre developments as well as the need for providing space for community groups;

The question on the motion was then called and it was CARRIED.

Discussion continued regarding how the Richmond Family Place building could be used to accommodate both office space and storage space.

With regard to the idea of creating an inventory of empty space, the inventory could include both City-owned space and space in other buildings that would be suitable for the needs of community groups.

It was moved and seconded

That:

(i)

staff submit a report on the condition of, and recommendations for, potential uses of the Richmond Family Place building; and

(ii)

staff create an inventory of available City-owned sites in the City Centre that is available for use by community organizations.

The question on the motion was not called as the Committee continued to discuss the specifics of the future uses of the Richmond Family Place building.

It was suggested that when staff explore the idea of potential uses of the Richmond Family Place building, they speak with the two community groups mentioned in the report regarding Community Uses at 6931 Granville Avenue who expressed the need for storage space.

As a result of the discussion, the motion was amended to read:

That:

(i)

staff submit a report detailing the condition of the Richmond Family Place building, including the safety of the building, and recommending potential uses of the building, including whether it could be used for storage purposes only, or if it could be used for both storage space and office space;

(ii)

staff create an inventory that includes City-owned space, and space owned by others in the City Centre, that is available for use by community organizations.

The question on the motion was then called and it was CARRIED.

ADJOURNMENT

It was moved and seconded

That the meeting adjourn (5:10 p.m.).

CARRIED

Certified a true and correct copy of the Minutes of the meeting of the General Purposes Committee of the Council of the City of Richmond held on Monday, December 18, 2006.

_________________________________

_________________________________

Mayor Malcolm D. Brodie
Chair

Sheila Johnston
Committee Clerk