December 19, 2018 - Minutes

Date:

Wednesday, December 19, 2018

Place:

Anderson Room
Richmond City Hall

Present:

Councillor Chak Au, Chair
Councillor Linda McPhail, Vice-Chair
Councillor Kelly Greene
Councillor Alexa Loo
Councillor Michael Wolfe (entered at 4:01 p.m.)
Mayor Malcolm Brodie

Also Present:

Councillor Carol Day
Councillor Bill McNulty
Councillor Harold Steves

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 November 21, 2018, be adopted as circulated.

CARRIED

NEXT COMMITTEE MEETING DATE

January 23, 2019, (tentative date) at 4:00 p.m. in the Anderson Room

PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT DIVISION

1.

TransLink Policy for Provision of Washrooms on Transit
(File Ref. No. 01-0154-04) (REDMS No. 6032168 v. 3)

Councillor Wolfe entered the meeting (4:01 p.m.).

In response to questions from Committee, Sonali Hingorani, Transportation Engineer commented that TransLink has not yet identified which specific Sky Train stations will include facilities, just the criteria to identify key locations to maximize coverage and capture as many customers as possible. Ms. Hingorani further remarked that the next phase will include identifying locations for washroom facilities along the transit network based on TransLink’s criteria along with an implementation strategy in 2019 and staff will provide input and feedback regarding the needs of Richmond at this stage.

Discussion took place on advocating to TransLink for the inclusion of washrooms at key Richmond transit locations and as a result, the following motion was introduced:

It was moved and seconded

(1)

That the report titled “TransLink Policy for Provision of Washrooms on Transit” dated December 7, 2018 from the Director, Transportation, be received for information; and

(2)

That a letter be sent to Translink encouraging the provision of washrooms at all Canada Line stations as well as the new Richmond-Brighouse bus mall.

CARRIED

ENGINEERING AND PUBLIC WORKS DIVISION

2.

2019 Submission to the Disaster Mitigation and Adaptation Fund - Richmond Flood Protection Program
(File Ref. No. 10-6060-05-01) (REDMS No. 6037901 v. 7)

It was moved and seconded

(1)

That the submission to the Disaster Mitigation and Adaptation Fund  ̶  Richmond Flood Protection Program requesting funding for up to 40% of the project cost, for a total of $13,780,000, to upgrade 2.6 kilometers of dike and five pump stations be endorsed;

(2)

That the Chief Administrative Officer and General Manager, Engineering and Public Works be authorized to enter into funding agreements with the Government of Canada for the above mentioned project should it be approved for funding by the Government of Canada;

(3)

That, should the above mentioned project be approved for funding by the Government of Canada, the Consolidated 5 Year Financial Plan (2019-2023) be updated accordingly; and

(4)

That copies of the submission be sent to Richmond Members of Parliament.

The question on the motion was not called as discussion took place on forwarding the submission to local federal representatives.

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

3.

Street Lighting Conversion Plan Status Update
(File Ref. No. 10-6125-05-01) (REDMS No. 6022368 v. 15)

In response to queries from Committee, Levi Higgs, Corporate Energy Manager advised that (i) a capital request for $430,000 has been submitted for phase 3 and approximately $460,000 will be requested for phase 4 in 2020, (ii) staff can provide updates regarding electricity cost savings from the conversion to Committee as available, (iii) phases 1 and 2 included all arterial roads identified in the northwest and southwest areas of the City, done on a quadrant by quadrant basis and phase 3 is centered around the City Centre and Cambie areas, and (iv) light pollution is addressed by staff on a case by case basis for any issues noted by residents.

It was moved and seconded

That the staff report titled “Street Lighting Conversion Plan Status Update” from the Director, Engineering dated November 16, 2018, be received for information.

CARRIED

4.

Dike Master Plan - Phases 3 and 5
(File Ref. No. 10-6060-01) (REDMS No. 5939748 v. 11)

In response to questions from Committee, Beata Ng, Acting Manager, Engineering Planning, remarked that the implementation of the Dike Master Plan is dependent on sea level rise and staff will continue to observe the rate and make adjustments accordingly. Ms. Ng further advised that superdikes have been implemented in Richmond including at the Richmond Olympic Oval and Imperial Landing in Steveston, and noted that this generally makes future dike development easier as the development is built up to where the dike is built. In response to further questions from Committee, Ms. Ng commented that the open houses are planned for mid to late January 2019, with the final report anticipated in March 2019.

It was moved and seconded

That the public and key external stakeholders be consulted as identified in the staff report titled “Dike Master Plan – Phases 3 and 5” from the Director, Engineering, dated November 30, 2018.

CARRIED

5.

MANAGER’S REPORT

(i)

Recent Heavy Rainfalls

John Irving, Director, Engineering, and Tom Stewart, Director, Public Works Operations provided an update to Committee regarding the recent heavy rainfalls and extreme weather events and noted that extreme events are becoming more frequent with climate change and that the system performed well in response. They further commented that the pump stations were operating at a higher capacity than normal, 80-90% on the north side of Richmond.

In response to questions from Committee, Mr. Irving remarked that new residential developments are required to build higher to mitigate flooding and owners of older properties can improve drainage by connecting to the storm drainage system and creating additional barriers. Mr. Stewart, in response to further queries, noted that staff continually monitor and accumulate data to ensure that the City is proactive in its approach to pump station monitoring and that staff are able to respond to any issues that may arise during major events or address any component failures. Mr. Stewart further commented that approximately 100 calls were received regarding localized flooding.

(ii)

FortisBC Update

Mr. Irving provided an update regarding the disruption to the FortisBC natural gas supply from the rupture of the Enbridge pipeline and advised that with recent warm weather, Enbridge is back up to 85% capacity with adequate storage for customers over the next couple of months.

ADJOURNMENT

It was moved and seconded

That the meeting adjourn (4:29 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, December 19, 2018.

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Councillor Chak Au
Chair

Amanda Welby
Legislative Services Coordinator