A long meeting with a not a lot of agenda items. A lot of time spent on a few major issues:
We began the meeting by receiving public input on a liquor license application for the new Moose Lodge location at the North Shore Community / Seniors Centre on Cottonwood Ave. Council does not ultimately decide yay or nay on such applications, but is required to express support or non support to the provincial government who ultimately make the call. We received many letters but no consensus. Concerns were raised about a lack of parking, and an increase in noise. Representatives of the Kamloops Christian School next to the proposed location expressed concern about negative effects of a liquor outlet in close proximity to so many young people. Ultimately, the Moose reps seemed were quite convincing that they would be very responsible in the operation of their bar. The 78 year old gentleman who spoke, Mr Buckley Lord, quipped that he was probably one of the younger members of the lodge. In the end, your Council unanimously supported this application.
The second major issue before council today was the residential outdoor cooking fire ban - passed in October 2007. I have talked about the backlash this bylaw has created before. Today, Ms Donna Kirkland hammered Council in the delegation section of the meeting. September Weir took a bit softer approach in the public inquiry section. Both had the same message - repeal the bylaw. Ralph Adams, from the local Ministry of Environment office, expressed strong support for the bylaw. Many others have written, called, and stopped to say that they also support the bylaw. In the end, although many do not agree, I am very glad Council unanimously supported those who suffer, sometimes in silence, from bad air quality and nuisance smoke in the valley. We did reaffirm that the we are moving to deal further with air quality in the valley (next stop: wood stoves?). We also resolved to clarify the process of applying for a community event permit that will still allow outdoor cooking fires.
We also agreed to ask city hall's Safer City committee to look further into road safety issues outside the Brigadoon townhouse development on Pacific Way,
We approved a resolution that will, from here forward, allow the Mayor of Kamloops to access the city staff benefits package.
Comments