Police budget, yard maintenance penalties, and more: Nelson City Council November 4, 2013
By Bill Metcalfe
The following is a summary of activity at the regular meeting of Nelson City Council on November 4, 2013.
Nelson police budget
The Nelson Police department appeared before council to present its proposed budget for 2014. Police chief Wayne Holland and police board chair Mike McIndoe told council that the police department’s proportional share of the city’s budget expenditures has remained about the same for the past 30 years and is lower than in a number of B.C. communities with similar populations.
The police department did not request an increase for 2014 but did ask for a 5-year business plan that would enhance services over the longer term.
The budget will be worked out as a part of the city’s overall 2014 budget deliberations in the coming months. Nelson is one of twelve municipalities in B.C. that has its own police force, funded entirely by local taxes.
Park penalty
Council adopted a change to its Parks Bylaw to allow bylaw officers to levy a fine of $100 to $2000 for a variety of prohibitions already in the bylaw including littering, alcohol, and vandalism.
Property maintenance penalty
Council adopted a change to its Property Maintenance Bylaw to allow bylaw officers to levy a fine of $250 to $500 for a variety of prohibitions already in the bylaw including accumulations of garbage, spreading of noxious weeds, graffiti, and unsightly or unhealthy premises.
Habitat for Humanity
Council agreed to a change in a 2002 arrangement with Habitat for Humanity that required the group to give the city any proceeds exceeding $20,000 from the sale of Lot 3 on Slocan Street, which had originally been donated to the group by the city. Because of drastically increased house prices since then, Habitat for Humanity asked council earlier this year to relax the $20,000 requirement.
Council agreed to the following changed agreement:
“That 15% of the sale proceeds be placed in the City of Nelson Affordable Housing Fund; and that Habitat for Humanity agrees to spend the balance of the sale proceeds on the provision of affordable housing in Nelson, including the ReNew it program.”
Habitat for Humanity is a registered society under the Society Act of BC whose “sole purpose is to provide housing for persons whose income is below the poverty line”.
Cultural ambassador and creative city
Councillor Donna Macdonald said the Cultural Development Committee has received several nominations for the annual cultural ambassador award, which for this year will be given to someone working in the area of film and video.
She also announced that Nelson has been shortlisted to be a host of the Creative City Summit in the upcoming years.
Climate change
Councillor Deb Kozak reported that two scientists from AlpS, a scientific institute in Austria, will be visiting Nelson later this month. The group will be funding climate change research in the area as described in a previous story in The Nelson Daily.
