winter closures of city parks, particularly Lakeview Park where the gates are locked and inaccessible;
having more staff hired to oversee development applications and how much would the city be spending on those positions, as well as if development cost charges will be reviewed so developers “pay their fair share;”
if the planning department would be sufficiently staffed to undertake a review of the Official Community Plan (OCP);
if the Coldstream and Regional District of North Okanagan (RDNO) Areas B and C would be contributing to the Active Living Centre (ALC);
whether the items like the Ogopogo sculpture at Polson Park would be saved and reinstalled following the planned work on the creek;
if the transportation department would be suitably staffed so services don’t decline and that there be better communication with the public
addressing a shortage of parking, particularly since the Cultural Centre is set to take up a large footprint of an existing lot
residential sewer rates rising to pay for the brewery’s digestor
broken irrigation pipe being paid for by taxpayers who won’t have access to the service
ensuring Coldstream pays its share for sewer services
making sure citizens, especially seniors, are well informed of evacuation practices during a natural disaster, and working with partner organizations to make sure they are taken care of if such an event arises.

Tucker’s comments were accepted for information, with council not addressing any of the points at the time.

Also during the morning session of Monday’s meeting, Jeff Moore took to the podium to address concerns with the lack of public information on financing loans acquired through referendums, specifically around the arenas at Kal Tire Place, the Performing Arts Centre, Greater Vernon Athletics Park, the Cultural Centre and the Active Living Centre.

The Vernon resident stated these projects are beneficial to residents and visitors, but there should be transparency on the payment process so taxpayers know how much is still owed and when a project is paid off.

Moore said he searched online for referendum financials, as well as reviewed the consolidated report on the budget, but was unable to find any specifics on how the loans were being repaid.

“So, my question, how does a citizen find out where we collectively stand financially with the multiple referendums we have sanctioned over the past decades?” Moore asked.

“Is there some other document with Vernon’s Finance and Development departments been released that tells us where we stand with these loans to build the referendum-generated facilities? Only then, when we have the information that we need, will we be able to knowingly vote for any future referendums, and to celebrate final payment on a particular project.”

He added there was no information provided as to why property taxes would not be reduced after the loans were repaid, and while he acknowledged these additional facilities would require maintenance and upkeep, those costs should be shown in the budget each year.

To Moore’s inquiry, Mayor Victor Cumming stated the Kal Tire Place arena and Performing Arts Centre loans have been completely repaid, and that the others were jointly funded with Coldstream and Areas B and C through the RDNO Greater Vernon Advisory Committee.

He noted the Athletics Park and Kal Tire North projects were within the repayment stages.

However, Cumming acknowledged that if someone could not find the information, then that should be corrected.

“These things should be fairly easy to find and should come up quickly, and we should be able to direct people who are trying to find this basic information because we know exactly how it’s being paid down, we know how much has been paid over the years, and that comes up in our Greater Vernon Advisory Committee budget,” Cumming said.

“But obviously it’s not easy to find. You went looking for it and were unable to find it, so I think that’s a job we need to ask of the four of us who sit on the Regional District Board, and I think we’ll take that as a mandate to make sure it’s easy to find.”

In the afternoon session, the floor was opened once again for public input.

Rob Fraser, a Vernon resident, took the opportunity to voice concern with “the trajectory of taxes,” stating rates have been rising annually and expects that trend to continue with the Active Living Centre loan repayments.

He also had issue with the proposed budget comparing 2024 expenditures with “actuals” of 2023 and not what was adopted at the last budget deliberations; and that the city was being fiscally rigourous and deemed too many proposals brought before council as “must do.”

Fraser added the city would likely be accepting public input on the budget process between May 1st and 26th, 2024, and as he and many others won’t receive tax notices until the 27th, he urged the city keep that public input process open until July 1st to coincide with when taxes are do.

“I guarantee participation in that survey will increase, and it will increase particularly if you include a note that says specifically ‘We want your feedback,'” Fraser said.

Council accepted the input as information.

Tucker also brought forward more topics at the afternoon session.

a city drainage pipe spilling on Okanagan Landing Rd. south of Paddlewheel Park, creating an icy hazard in the winter months
further the sewer connections at Predator Ridge so further expansions do not result in septic tank use
investigate the integrity of MacKay reservoir as it has resulted in e-coli runoff into the drinking water of Bolter’s Creek since 2010
the need to have more covered bus stops, particularly in the downtown core and those that are more highly used
consider having the RCMP’s office open over the weekend for people to have easier access to criminal record checks, submitting non-urgent reports, and other services
investing in maintaining existing parks and their amenities such as the Giroux cabin and the Polson flower-clock

Again, Tucker’s submissions were accepted for information without any discussion from council at the time.

Patti Bridal, Chief Administrative Officer for the City of Vernon, stated a few of the concerns raised by the public were matters the city had already committed to addressing, though did not specify which. She noted that the rest of the comments were meant to be considered as information by Council during the budget process.

by Liam Verster

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