Reopening civic facilities
After having to close multiple facilities in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, the City is now on the verge of re-opening almost all of those facilities. During last night’s meeting, City Council approved the reopening of all City arenas and approved the reopening of the Prince George Conference & Civic Centre following the completion of Northern Health Authority’s Covid-19 vaccination clinic.
In addition, Council approved the resumption of normal Aquatics programming and services at the Prince George Aquatic Centre later this fall.
The reopening of these facilities will be subject to Public Health Orders and funded by the Provincial Restart Grant. Only the Four Seasons Leisure Pool will remain closed. It was permanently closed earlier this year by Council as construction continues on its replacement.
Safe Streets Bylaw paused
Council voted to delay voting on the final approval of a Safe Streets Bylaw, which addresses behaviour on streets and sidewalks such as aggressive panhandling, loitering, littering, sidewalk obstruction, graffiti, open drug use, needle disposal, as well as the creation of structures, temporary shelters, and campfires on streets and sidewalks. The Bylaw passed first three readings at the June 14 Council meeting, and was due for final reading last night. This Bylaw will now be considered by Council for final reading on August 30, providing some time for additional consultation.
2020 annual reports
There is perhaps no better single resource that presents the “state of Prince George” than the City’s Annual Report. It provides information about Council’s focus areas, administrative priorities for the current year, some highlights from the previous year, and financial information such as the audited financial statements and listing of tax exemptions. There are also various measures of City functions, services, and infrastructure.
Prior to approving the City’s 2020 Annual Report last night, Council also received annual report presentations from representatives of the Northern Sport Centre, Tourism Prince George, and the Prince George Public Library. Council also received the Public Bodies Report, also known as the Statements of Financial Information.
The Annual Report is available on the City website www.princegeorge.ca/annualreport.
Re-zoning requests
Council approved the first two readings for a zoning amendment at 1330-1380 Foothills Boulevard to allow for the construction of three apartment buildings. Currently, the subject property already has two apartment buildings with a total of 72 units. The proposal would add an additional 169 units for a total of 241 units within five apartment buildings on the property.
Council also approved the first two readings of a zoning amendment that would allow for the development of a microbrewery at 1733 Nicholson Street. As part of the proposed amendment, the applicant would like to provide a lounge area for patrons to sample and purchase liquor.
Next, public hearings will be held as part of the development process for both proposals.
The full agenda for the Council meeting with links to all of the reports is available on the City website.