The Union of British Columbia Municipalities (UBCM) convention which ran from Sept. 26 to 30 in Victoria allowed elected municipal officials from all over BC the opportunity to network with B.C. cabinet ministers, attend workshops and pass policy resolutions. The mayor and city council from Salmon Arm were optimistic their meetings with ministers would bring some of council’s goals closer to fruition. They also received information on new development in an number of important areas.
Health
Mayor Nancy Cooper met with Interior Health regarding the way some of their policies relate to Salmon Arm. Hospital discharge policies, in particular, came up in discussion. This follows the death of 70-year-old Christopher Allbury in May. Allbury, who suffered from dementia, went missing after being dropped off at the McGuire Lodge care home at 1:30 a.m. following his discharge from the hospital. He was later found dead.
“What could they have done? Could they have waited until 8 a.m. could they have called and left a message so the people on the receiving end at the home would have known, because then they could’ve started the search so much earlier. My feeling was that they would be looking at it so I was very pleased,” Cooper said.
Marijuana
Several councillors noted the discussion of what to do in the face of the approaching marijuana legalization was divided between municipalities which plan to have regulation, zoning and licensing in place before legalization is completed and those who planned to wait for the Canada-wide legislation to be formalized before proceeding.
“The sharing of information from other communities on the subject of marijuana was helpful,” said Coun. Kevin Flynn.
Coun. Ken Jamieson advocated for public consultation on the subject before Salmon Arm makes decisions on zoning and other issues.
Airport
Coun. Alan Harrison said he felt optimistic about receiving a grant to improve Salmon Arm’s airport following a meeting with Minister of Transportation and infrastructure Todd Stone.
Harrison said grant money will be sought to improve the airport’s fuelling system, which does not have a card lock and also the taxiway. Harrison said the lack of a card lock at the fuelling system causes planes flying late at night and early in the morning to bypass the airport because they cannot refuel when there are no staff present and the current configuration of the taxiway prevents the development of hangars.
“If you’re a pilot that’s a big issue, there’s no hangar space up there,” he said.
Harrison said the grant application for the fuelling system will be for $300,000 with a $75,000 contribution from the Shuswap Regional Airport and a $520,000 grant for the taxiway to be matched by the airport.
Agribusiness
Jamieson said the workshop he attended on new agribusiness regulations was helpful. The new regulations allows those who own properties on the Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR) to host wedding and other events with certain restrictions.
“There are tools for the municipalities to monitor (the events on the ALR). It’s not all in the hands of the Agricultural Land Commission to regulate and to make sure the rules are followed,” he said.
Jamieson said it was ultimately up to the municipality how much they want to work to enforce the ALC regulations and Salmon Arm council would have to decide how active a role it would take.
Cooper added the possibility of dredging near the Salmon Arm wharf and improving the breakwater also came up in discussion with Thomson.
Cultural plan
Coun. Louise Wallace Richmond led a presentation to Minister of Community, Sport and Cultural Development Peter Fassbender seeking funds to develop a cultural master plan for Salmon Arm. She said developing a strong cultural scene will be important for attracting people who work in the creative and technology sectors.
“Our ask was for the ministry of cultural development to match the funding we could raise for our own plan that we could then use it as pilot project to blueprint for other small cities,” she said
Wallace Richmond said a vibrant cultural scene will also help attract young families to the area. She provided the example of Kelowna whose technology and creative sector has generated a $1.3 billion economic impact since 2013 and also attracted many young people to the area.