A year of firsts in the year that was in Nelson: Kozak
By Timothy Schafer
Call it a year of firsts.
The city of Nelson welcomed its first female mayor in 2015 — one of many highlights of the year that was 2015 in the heritage city. And on Monday night at the City of Nelson’s annual reception at the Prestige Lakeside Inn — a year-in-review of the municipal milieu — Mayor Deb Kozak gave a Nelson version of the greatest hits of 2015.
Kozak’s ascension to power as the first female mayor was rivaled by the legal appearance of canines for the first time in over 30 years on Baker Street. The new city council overturned the draconian bylaw and began to allow people to freely walk their four-legged family members in the downtown core.
The year also saw the renewal of Hall Street, “which turned out to be a bit of an archeological adventure,” said Kozak, as the city gave a facelift to the only downtown-to-waterfront connecting street.
The first phase of the $4-million project was all done with reserves and grants, with no increase in taxation, she noted. The final touches of the next phase are in the works, and it coincided with the construction of Nelson Commons, which saw the city’s first crane to grace Nelson’s skyline on many years.
The coming year will finally see the revitalization of the city’s Civic Theatre, said Kozak, with much planning left to come before work begins.
She pointed to the move of the Nelson and District Chamber of Commerce to the restored CP Rail station as one of the major highlights of the year, a project which has taken years to realize.
“It is a cause for celebration to see this become a reality,” she said, noting the entire Railtown district in which the station resided was on the radar for revitalization as well, with public input being sought for the vision.
Kozak said there is to be construction at Cottonwood Park in the new year — in the wake of demolition of the 40-year-old structures in the park — with a new community market space projected to ready for spring.
Kozak was most impressed by the building boom the city enjoyed in 2015 — with the rail station, Nelson Commons and Shambhala’s Savoy Hotel project heading the list — as well as noting that Nelson Hydro recently met its pre-sales goal for solar panels in the solar garden project and it will move ahead.
“It’s nice to not have all of your (energy) eggs in one basket and to meet the future head on,” said Kozak.
The year also saw the City of Nelson institute the first stage four water restrictions in its history. As a result, the city set a goal of reducing domestic water usage by 20 per cent across the board.
“And I’m happy to announce we are halfway there; we have already reduced usage by 10 per cent,” she said.
Cultural ambassador named
Ian Johnston was named as the city’s 2016 cultural ambassador, replacing Bessie Wapp.
Johnston is a multi-media visual artist that has shown around the world.
The cultural ambassador is expected to promote and represent the city on their travels through art, increasing the visibility and cultural reputation of the city.
Heritage award
Cartolina’s Fiona Richards and Doug Jones won for their work in restoring a turn-of-the century Baker Street building and creating their new retail store.
Sustainability leadership awards
High school student Amelia Martzke won the individual award on the merit of her work with the Keep the Beat music festival, as well as organizing a “mock vote” of the federal election at L.V. Rogers Secondary School that saw over 400 young people turn out to cast a vote.
In the non-profit sector the Seniors Economic Environmental Development Society (SEEDS) took home the honours for 2015, while in the business sector Uphill Bakery took the award for 2015.
Volunteers recognized
Neloson Rocha was given a certificate of appreciation for his six years of service on the Advisory Planning Commission, while Mike Lazier was awarded for his eight years of service on the Nelson Public Library board.
25-year service awards
The city also handed out long-service awards to those employees who have served for over 25 years with the municipality.
Those included: Frances Long (director of corporate services); Ken Simon (storekeeper II); Frank Arabia (utilities lead hand); Brian Jones (gardener III); Lee Taylor (customer service representative); and Joe Capriglione (Nelson Hydro).
