MINUTES

1.

It was moved and seconded

That the minutes of the meeting of the Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services Committee held on Tuesday, March 1^st, 2005, be adopted as circulated.

CARRIED

DELEGATIONS

2.

The Richmond Committee on Disability (RCD), to give a powerpoint presentation of the activities and achievements of the Richmond Committee on Disability (RCD), and provide the Annual Report of the RCD and the Disability Resource Centre.

Mr. Vince Miele, Chair of the Richmond Committee on Disability (RCD), Ms. Frances Clark, Secretary of the RCD and Chair of the Disability Resource Centre (DRC), Ms. Ella Huang, Acting Director of the DRC, and Mr. George Meyer, were present.  Ms. Huang gave a powerpoint presentation on the role that the DRC, a program of the RCD, undertakes in the City.  A copy of the presentation is on file in the City Clerks Office.

Commendations were given to the Richmond Committee on Disability on its 20^th Anniversary and also for its considerable effort on behalf of making the City the most accessible City in Canada.

Discussion then ensued among Committee members and the delegation which included:

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the limited space of the Disability Resource Centre.  Information was provided that space might be allocated in a current project being undertaken to create affordable and assisted living housing in the City Centre, for which a Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation grant had been received.  Mention was made of a similar type project in Steveston that had been well received,  and the support given by the Society running the project to having the DRC attached to a City Centre project.  In addition, the General Manager, Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services, Cathy Volkering Carlile indicated that although staff considered the particular needs of the DRC when City properties became available, no property had become available that would suit those needs. 

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the volunteer program of the DRC, and in particular its inclusion in the process of rehabilitation and disability management;

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the possibility of an increased distribution of the DRC brochure;

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the positive feedback that was received from businesses that had an interest in becoming more accessible as a result of being visited by an accessibility analyst. As a result, an application has been made by the DRC for a summer career placement to actively promote accessibility.

An invitation was extended for the RCD to make a presentation to the Intercultural Committee by its current Council liaison, Cllr. E. Halsey-Brandt.  Cllr. E. Halsey-Brandt also requested that Ms. Huang provide her with statistics on the number of client hours the RCD provides per year.

The Chair thanked the delegation for the presentation and information provided.

COUNCILLOR EVELINA HALSEY-BRANDT

3.

TREE PROTECTION ON PRIVATE PROPERTY
(Report:  April 18/05, File No.: 10-6550-04) (REDMS No.1065337 as attachment)

Designated Speaker:  Cllr. E. Halsey-Brandt

It was moved and seconded

That staff bring forward a bylaw for the protection of trees on private property that would require a permit for the cutting of significant trees.

Prior to the question being called, direction was given that the bylaw: i) should establish criteria for the exempting, saving and cutting of trees; ii) should establish bonds or guarantees for trees that are retained as a condition of rezoning or development.  The period of time for the bond or guarantee to be effective is also to be determined; and, iii) is to be based on a trust system of voluntary compliance, with a set of penalties determined for violations.

Cllr. McNulty spoke about a referral from Planning Committee on April 19^th, 2005 that requested staff provide options on the protection of trees on private property, and he referred to the bylaws that he had obtained from five City’s which he felt did not go far enough in that protection.

As a result of Cllr. McNulty’s comments, Cllr. E. Halsey-Brandt raised a Point of Order and asked whether the motion was being debated.

Cllr. Barnes then asked that the motion be tabled in order that any members of the public present to speak to the issue could do so, and the Chair agreed.

Mr. Doug Louth, 4140 Dallyn Road, distributed, and reviewed, a submission entitled ‘the Eradication of Trees in Richmond’ and a series of photographs, a copy of which are on file in the City Clerks Office.  Mr. Louth said that: i) Council needed to pass a bylaw with teeth; ii) the cost of tree protection should be passed on to the development community; iii) tree replacement should be with mature trees; and, iv) house sizes may need to be reduced to accommodate more landscaping.  Mr. Louth asked that the matter not become a political issue, and that Council maintain fortitude and pass a good bylaw.

Ms. Gloria Hiebert, 8570 Francis Road, spoke in favour of a tree bylaw, with teeth, being developed that included a list of significant trees, because trees were good for the environment and beautified the neighbourhoods.  Ms. Hiebert also spoke about the subdivision of lots that resulted in large houses surrounded by paving and bricks with no room left for large type trees, and what she considered to be a small cost to developers for trees in comparison to the cost of development.

Discussion then ensued among Committee members and staff that included the following:

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whether a new department and/or new staff would be required;

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that Richmond residents should not be charged a fee to the City if a legitimate reason existed to remove a tree;

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a suggestion that a regulation approach as opposed to a preservation approach might be more successful;

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that replacement trees should be equivalent in scale to the trees removed; and,

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that staff should be provided with terms of reference;

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that the felling of a significant Sequoia tree on Francis Road probably would not have been prevented even if a bylaw had been in place.

Cllr. Steves then provided two examples, both on City property, where significant trees had been lost that might have been saved if a bylaw and/or a city arborist had been in place.

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

It was moved and seconded

That staff prepare a document outlining what:

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costs would be involved in support of a Tree Protection Bylaw and where those monies would be allocated from; and,

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if any, implications may arise from the bylaw.

Discussion then ensued as to whether the information would be included in the report bringing the bylaw forward, in response to which the Manager, Policy Planning, Terry Crowe, indicated that it would.

The question on the motion was then called and it was DEFEATED, with Cllrs. Barnes, Dang, E. Halsey-Brandt, S. Halsey-Brandt, and Steves opposed.

Cllrs. E. Halsey-Brandt and Dang left the meeting – 5:40 pm, and did not return.

PARKS, RECREATION AND CULTURAL SERVICES DIVISION

4.

RICHMOND ATHLETIC COMMISSION PROPOSAL

(Report:  April 20/05, File No.:  12-8060-02-01) (REDMS No. 1418012)

It was moved and seconded

That staff prepare a draft Bylaw for an Athletic Commission in Richmond.

CARRIED

5.

STEVESTON COMMUNITY CENTRE FACILITY ASSESSMENT

(Report:  April 8/05, File No.:  06-2050-20-SCC) (REDMS No. 1388609)

The Director of Engineering, Robert Gonzalez, the Manager, Community Recreation Services, Vern Jacques, and the Manager Facility Planning and Construction, David Naysmith, provided the following in response to questions from Committee:

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that the building life would span another 25 years;

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that facility upgrades or cosmetic repairs were not planned at this time;

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the heating units and the roof are being replaced this year which will result in a building in extremely good condition;

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both the older and newer sections of the building would benefit from minor improvements to their interiors;

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that regarding the pool, which was not included in the facility assessment, had recently had sanitary sewer hook up, a water main replacement, and had been relined. 

Mr. Ben Branscombe, president of the Steveston Community Association, indicated that he was concerned about several issues, but that he would prefer to have the Association review the report and offer comment rather than making comment at this time.  The Chair indicated that report could be received for information and the Association’s comments heard at a later date.

Ms. Frances Lorenz provided information on an October 29^th, 2005 fundraising event from which it was hoped that $20,000 would be raised. 

It was moved and seconded

That the report (dated April 8, 2005 from the Director, Recreation and Cultural Services) regarding the Steveston Community Centre Facility Assessment, be received for information.

CARRIED

J

5a.

THOMPSON COMMUNITY CENTRE ASSOCIATION

Cllr. McNulty referred to a letter dated March 23, 2005 from the Thompson Community Centre Association regarding land acquisition. 

It was moved and seconded

That staff review the correspondence dated March 23, 2005 from the Thompson Community Centre Association regarding land acquisition.

Prior to the question being called the General Manager, Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services, Cathy Volkering Carlile, summarized the determinations of staff on the matter, as a result of which no further action was taken on this matter.

5b.

REQUEST FOR SUPPORT - ANNA BLOOMFIELD

Cllr. S. Halsey-Brandt referred to a letter from Anna Bloomfield requesting that the City provide support for several students wanting to attend the Leaders of BC Conference. 

Discussion ensued on the request, during which it was suggested that a policy and criteria for dealing with such requests was required.  It was agreed, however, that, due to the timing involved in the request and because the request was associated with asset development in youth, that funding for four students would come from the Crime Prevention for Social Development area of the Community Safety Division.

6.

MANAGER’S REPORT

The Director of Engineering, Robert Gonzalez, gave advice that a report on City facilities would be forthcoming at the Public Works and Transportation Committee.

Cllr. McNulty left the meeting – 6:10 pm – and did not return.

Cllr. Barnes questioned staff as to whether men’s rugby was being relocated from the RCA Forum.  The Director of Parks – Operations, Dave Semple, said that the men’s rugby had not been relocated, but that junior rugby was relocated to South Arm Park.

Cllr. Barnes asked staff to provide an organization chart of communication that would identify the appropriate contacts for user groups of City facilities.  The Manager, Parks – Programs and Design, Mike Redpath, also advised that the rectangular field user groups were preparing a strategy that would be presented to Council.

The Manager, Parks – Programs and Design, Mike Redpath, also announced that the Richmond Review Sports Awards would be presented in Council Chambers on Thursday, April 28^th; and, that May 28^th was the date for the annual Jimmy Ng Memorial Hockey Tournament in Steveston and also the date of the opening of the new lacrosse box in Richmond.

ADJOURNMENT

It was moved and seconded

That the meeting adjourn (6:20 p.m.).

CARRIED

Certified a true and correct copy of the Minutes of the meeting of the Parks, Recreation & Cultural Services Committee of the Council of the City of Richmond held on Tuesday, April 26^th, 2005.

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Councillor Harold Steves
Chair

Deborah MacLennan
Administrative Assistant