October 18, 2017 - Minutes

Date:

Wednesday, October 18, 2017

Place:

Anderson Room
Richmond City Hall

Present:

Councillor Chak Au, Chair
Councillor Harold Steves
Councillor Derek Dang
Councillor Carol Day
Councillor Alexa Loo

Call to Order:

The Chair called the meeting to order at 4:00 p.m.

MINUTES

It was moved and seconded

That the minutes of the meeting of the Public Works and Transportation Committee held on September 20, 2017, be adopted as circulated.

CARRIED

NEXT COMMITTEE MEETING DATE

November 22, 2017, (tentative date) at 4:00 p.m. in the Anderson Room

AGENDA ADDITION

It was moved and seconded

That Traffic Recording Capabilities at Intersections in Richmond be added to the Agenda as Item No. 4A.

CARRIED

PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT DIVISION

1.

TransLink 2018 Capital Program Cost-Share Submissions
(File Ref. No. 01-0154-04/2017-Vol 01) (REDMS No. 5493788 v. 3)

In reply to queries from Committee, Victor Wei, Director, Transportation, provided the following information:

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the River Parkway Project is eligible for various funding sources within TransLink as this project in particular utilizes different modes of transportation;

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staff are reviewing the city’s cycling network and a staff report is forthcoming in 2018;

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staff will examine the possibility of installing bike routes in all major school catchments and provide results in the aforementioned staff report;

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projects submitted for consideration as part of the 2018 TransLink Cost-Share Program are done so with equal priority and TransLink determines which projects receive funding; and

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TransLink’s cost-share budget has increased substantially from last year.

It was moved and seconded

(1)

That the submission of pedestrian, bicycle and transit facility improvement projects for cost-sharing as part of the TransLink 2018 capital cost-share programs as described in the report titled, “TransLink 2018 Capital Program Cost-Share Submissions” dated September 27, 2017 from the Director, Transportation, be endorsed; and

(2)

That, should the above submissions be successful, the Chief Administrative Officer and General Manager, Planning and Development be authorized to execute the funding agreements and the 2018 Capital Plan and the 5-Year Financial Plan (2018-2022) be updated accordingly.

CARRIED

ENGINEERING AND PUBLIC WORKS DIVISION

2.

Richmond's Commitment to Pesticide Use Reduction and Invasive Species Management
(File Ref. No. 10-6125-04-01) (REDMS No. 5559065)

In reply to queries from Committee, Chad Paulin, Manager, Environment, provided the following information: 

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it is not possible to limit the sale of invasive species;

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Community outreach education on invasive species and the effects of pesticide application  has proven successful on the prevention of their use; and

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there a number of different less severe pesticides and environmentally friendly preventative options that can be used to eliminate chafer beetles.

In reply to a query from Committee, Peter Russell, Senior Manager, Sustainability and District Energy, highlighted that staff are developing multimedia tools regarding the use of pesticides to engage property owners.   

Also, Mr. Paulin commented on the growth of Chervil along the West Dike, noting that it is classified as a noxious weed as its germination is uncontrollable.  

It was moved and seconded

That the staff report titled “Richmond’s Commitment to Pesticide Use Reduction and Invasive Species Management” dated September 22, 2017, from the Director, Engineering, be received for information.

CARRIED

3.

2018 Paving Program
(File Ref. No. 10-6050-01) (REDMS No. 5550568)

In reply to queries from Committee Lloyd Bie, Manager, Engineering Planning, advised that (i) low paving contract prices are a result of early tendering of the annual paving contract and low oil prices, and (ii) proposed funding for the Paving Program was similar last year.

John Irving, Director, Engineering, noted that a funding shortfall has been identified in the Paving Program, however, more work has been accomplished this year as a result of low contract . Mr. Irving added that once prices increase, additional funding may be requested to maintain service levels established by Council.

It was moved and seconded

That the staff report titled, “2018 Paving Program,” dated September 18, 2017, from the Director, Engineering be received for information.

CARRIED

4.

Grease Inspector Update 2017
(File Ref. No. 10-6060-03-01) (REDMS No. 5521844 v. 4)

In reply to queries from Committee, Mr. Bie provided the following information:

§   

the cost of the full-time Grease Inspector may be offset by fines; however compliance is often achieved with adequate public education;

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the Grease Inspector’s primary responsibility will be to educate the public  on proper  grease disposal protocols; and

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improper disposal of grease is attributed to lack of knowledge of proper disposal.

In reply to queries from Committee, Mr. Irving that businesses such sas restaurants are required to install grease traps, however the grease clogging arises when kitchen equipment is used incorrectly.

In response to discussion regarding the installation of grease traps for particular businesses, Robert Gonzalez, General Manager, Engineering and Public Works, advised that educating business owners to understand the impact of grease is paramount in implementing proper disposal protocol. He further advised that improper disposal of grease is often done so by home cooks.

It was moved and seconded

That a full-time grease inspector be submitted as part of the 2018 Utility Budgets for Council consideration.

CARRIED

4A.

TRAFFIC RECORDING Capabilities AT INTERSECTIONS IN RICHMOND
(File Ref. No.)

Discussion took place on the potential to install traffic recording cameras at intersections in Richmond. It was noted that this technology is being used in other municipalities and is a valuable tool for crime prevention and traffic incidents

In response to the discussion, Mr. Wei advised that staff did initially review the merit of a traffic monitoring system with recording function and it was determined that traffic recordings would not be of value to the City at the time as its primary purpose was for real time monitoring from the Traffic Management Centre. He noted that, in order to implement such recording technology to the live stream system currently in place, another layer of software and hardware would be required. Mr. Wei then stated that staff have been working with the Richmond RCMP to determine the appropriate scope and costs of providing the necessary equipment displaying the live video feed for RCMP, and a potential joint capital project submission with the Richmond RCMP could be considered as part of the 2018 Capital budget process. Moreover, he spoke to challenges related to retrofitting the current live stream system with recording capabilities and commented on privacy matters which may require some time to resolve. 

Discussion took place and Committee requested that staff provide a memorandum regarding the submission of such equipment in the budget process.

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

That Traffic Recording Capabilities at Intersections be submitted in the 2018 budget process for Council consideration.

The question on the motion was not called as discussion took place and Committee requested that staff provide detailed information alongside the aforementioned staff memo regarding the type of recording equipment being considered in order to provide Council with a range of scope options for budget submission.

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

5.

MANAGER’S REPORT

Update on Flood Management

Tom Stewart, Director, Public Works Operations, commented on the recent surge of precipitation, noting that the City is well equipped to handle such influxes in weather as a result of Council’s support for such equipment.

ADJOURNMENT

It was moved and seconded

That the meeting adjourn (4:49 p.m.).

CARRIED

Certified a true and correct copy of the Minutes of the meeting of the Public Works and Transportation Committee of the Council of the City of Richmond held on Wednesday, October 18, 2017.

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Councillor Chak Au
Chair

Sarah Kurian
Legislative Services Coordinator