User fee and tax increases expected for 2011 in Grand Forks
With a savings of $30,000 each year, Grand Forks City Council voted to stop accepting credit card payments starting in January 2011. This may be an inconvenience for some, but may help lessen the blow of increased taxes coming down the pipe. As part of council’s last public review of the proposed financial plan for 2011 and...
Area E's commitment keeps regional economic development afloat for another year
Tension between directors was put aside last week as the Boundary Economic Development committee (BEDC) went on the road to Greenwood. With Regional Director for Area E, Bill Baird’s announcement that his area will continue to participate with the committee in 2011, they can now set their sights on next year’s work plan. In...
OP/ED: Wanna be premiers shouldn't try to play Santa Claus
B.C. taxpayers are in a grouchy mood these days - so grouchy, in fact, that Gordon Campbell is finished as premier after nine years and five months in office - what amounts to a century in B.C. politics. Now, as the competition kicks off to choose a new premier, grouchy taxpayers need to be watching their wallets closer than...
No easy solution to the Grand Forks rail line problem, report says
With the clock ticking on the abandonment of the Kettle Falls International Railway the City of Grand Forks released their business case study to the public last week. The report, commissioned by the City in September, does not specifically recommend one course of action, but provides extensive information on different...
Attempts to increase funding to art gallery fall flat
City council in Grand Forks is divided over funding for the art gallery. Despite an impassioned request for a renewed commitment of funding, the art gallery came away empty handed from the council meeting on Monday night. Although Councillor Gene Robert put forward a motion to provide an additional $30,000 in funding to the...
Anaconda residents raise fears over contamination from proposed slag project
Residents of Anaconda near the historic slag piles of Greenwood, B.C. are determined to voice their fears over carcinogens that could be released if a new mining proposal moves forward. Although the call for public input on the permit has closed, local Mary Jane Prutton said that the company’s initial presentation did not...
Boundary agriculture plan unveiled
Many of the people who attended the unveiling of the draft agricultural plan for the Boundary region were not convinced that the big picture direction provided by the author of the plan, James Calissi, is enough. The regional agriculture plan was previewed last week as the consultant opened the draft up for feedback from ...
OP/ED: Council needs to get organized
Despite the intrigue of tension and challenge between councillors at the last Grand Forks council meeting, I feel compelled to rant about their process – or rather lack of. No – I am not going to dig into the sudden decision to fund the museum or the lack of referendum on a service agreement of $120,000 but the need to do one...
Grant-in-aid debate ignited conflict between councillors
Amid tense debate and challenges to the chair, Grand Forks City Council managed to distribute over $75,000 in grant-in-aid funding on Monday night. The 25 applications for 2011 funds were reviewed and the decision making process for the requests, totaling over $200,000, was a lengthy one. After voting down a motion by...
Province introduces new surgical wait time website
A new surgical wait times website – the most comprehensive of its kind in Canada – will give patients the tools to make more informed decisions about their surgery waits, while helping to reduce overall wait times, said Minister of Health Services Kevin Falcon. “We’ve been recognized by groups like the Canadian Institute ...
