News & Media

Ladysmith Council Notebook for October 5, 2021

Ladysmith, October 8, 2021– Ladysmith Council met for an in-person meeting on Tuesday, October 5, 2021 with an OCP amendment, rezoning and housing agreement bylaws for 1260 Churchill Place and the Stocking Lake Dam remediation among the agenda highlights.

Ladysmith Council last met in person back in March 2020 and has held all of its meetings virtually during the Provincial State of Emergency, under Ministerial Order M192.

The meeting opened with Mayor Stone proclaiming October 18-24, 2021 as Waste Reduction Week in the Town of Ladysmith. The Town is committed to conserving resources, protecting the environment and educating the community to reduce the human-caused impacts on our planet.

Next, Council approved the required OCP amendment, rezoning and housing agreement bylaws for 1260 Churchill Place to permit the item to proceed to a public hearing.

Council previously approved the purchase of the property to permit an emergency access route during construction of the 4th Avenue culvert.

With the completion of the culvert, Council directed staff in June 2021 to prepare the property for sale by bringing forward a proposal to rezone the property for a mix of multi-family and single-family use, dedicate the low-lying riparian areas as park and dedicate the road connection from Churchill Place to McKinley Road.

The housing agreement and covenant scheme as recommended to Council will require a future developer to build an affordable housing unit that will be sold to qualifying purchasers at less than market value, in perpetuity.

Moving on, Council approved recommendations from the Committee of the Whole meeting held on September 28, 2021 and directed staff to:

-       Amend the Waterworks Regulations Bylaw to include a new step rate for water consumption greater than 200m3 for single family dwellings for the quarters April to June and July to September;

-       Amend the Council Procedure Bylaw to allow for some housekeeping changes, no meeting in first week of January, one in August electronic meetings when required in the future.

-       Consult with Stz’uminus First Nation and report back to Council regarding the potential for both the inclusion of the Hul'qumi'inum name on the Transfer Beach sign and a Coast Salish Welcome Figure at Transfer Beach.

Council then directed staff to amend the 2021-2025 Financial Plan to increase the budget for phase 1 of the ongoing waterfront remediation. This will accelerate the project and over the long term and reduce overall project costs.

The Town is completing a detailed site investigation of the waterfront uplands and received $168,400 through the Federation of Canadian Municipalities Green Municipal Fund to help offset the costs. 

Council then considered two separate agenda items concerning Stocking Lake.

First, Council amended the Financial Plan to increase the budget for the Stocking Lake meter valve construction project.

The project involves the installation of a meter at the valve building located just downstream of the Stocking Lake Dam. The installation of the water meter will help better detect leaks along the water supply main. In addition to the meter, a pressure transducer will also be installed at the valve building which will enable remote lake level reading.

The construction budget for the project was $176,000 and the low bid received was $189,903, which required Council to increase the budget.

Next, Council directed that the consultant for the Stocking Lake Dam remediation complete the preliminary design as outlined in the scope of work for the project. The proposal is to construct a new dam roughly 30 metres downstream of the existing structure.

Council also directed staff to investigate funding opportunities that may be available to facilitate the next phase of the project, design and construction.

Lastly, Council voted to cancel the Regular Meeting of Council scheduled for November 2, and schedule a Special Meeting of Council and Public Hearing on the same day to be held electronically and starting at 6 pm.  Due to space limitations at City Hall,  the electronic format will better accommodate all members of the public who wish to be heard.