Some Fort St. James residents want a skate park in the community.
A delegation presented to council on Oct. 22 during the regular public meeting, asking that Fort St. James get a new skate park.
READ MORE: Photos: Vanderhoof’s skateboard park now open
Council discussed the topic later on in the council meeting, CAO Melany Helmer said, adding they spoke about the importance of the location and that council wants to see more done, before council would get involved in it.
“They said they support the concept and they want to be kept in the loop. And they directed staff to send any letters of support for any grant applications that might be useful for them to get some funding,” she said.
Meanwhile, here are some other items discussed during the regular public meeting
Extension of the state of local financial crisis
Mayor Bev Playfair has extended the financial crisis in the district until November 14, 2019. The financial crisis was caused due to the closure of a sawmill.
Tax Sale
A tax sale happens once a year in September.
At the end of September, 575 Douglas Avenue was sold in a Tax Sale to Scott Schielke for $6,000.
Owners have one year to redeem their properties.
Coastal GasLink
The camp for Coastal GasLink is a little closer to Vanderhoof than Fort St. James as it was planned behind the Vanderhoof airport. Recently the Agricultural Land Commission rejected the application for building a work camp there as it is on Agricultural Land Reserves.
CAO Melany Helmer says there will be a camp but the location is under discussion.
There is a job fair in Vanderhoof hosted by Coastal GasLink on Nov. 13.
Highway 16 transit
There were discussions around finding a fair funding model to either have transit that goes to Vanderhoof or through Vanderhoof to PG.
Fort St. James contributes to the regional district’s transit service, even though there is no transit service here, says Helmer.
She said it would be good to have a service in Fort St. James but council has to take into consideration the amount tax payers will have to pay for the service and whether it will be affordable during the current economy.
There are two services run by the regional district currently — one from Burns Lake to PG and then Burns Lake to Smithers.
The third leg, Fort St. James to Vanderhoof or PG, is the model under discussion.
Aman Parhar
Editor, Vanderhoof Omineca Express
aman.parhar@ominecaexpress.com
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