Council Highlights - October 15, 2019

Citizens' Minute with Council

Residents are welcome to speak to Council about issues, events, celebrations or concerns during Minute with Council. At the beginning of each regular Council Meeting, Mayor Michaels opens the floor to the public to speak and share with Council members, administration and meeting observers.

Amber Lavalle
Lavalle shared thoughts regarding affordable housing, and low income supports in the community such as the food bank.

Delegations

Presentations are required to be arranged through the Executive Assistant, so that presenters can be sure time is set aside for their presentations on the Council agenda. Find out more about how to be a delegation by following this link.

1. ASH Home for Fine Arts Society of Hinton - Presented by Hanna Siermachesky & Denise Boutin (Budget 2020)

FInd the presentation in our agenda package, available here.

2. FRMA Recreation Program Summary - Presented by Aaron Jones (Budget 2020)

FInd the presentation in our agenda package, available here.

3. Hinton Mountain Bike Association - Presented by Suzanne Stevenson and Julie Duval (Budget 2020)

FInd the presentation in our agenda package, available here.

4. Hinton & District Chamber of Commerce Visitor Service Agreement - Presented by Natalie Charlton and Melissa Williamson

FInd the presentation in our agenda package, available here.

5. 2019 Citizen Satisfaction Survey - Presented by Marina Gilson, Ipsos

FInd the presentation in our agenda package, available here.

Public Hearings

In some instances, Council is required to conduct public hearings regarding land use bylaws, rezoning, etc., or on any other matter council deems appropriate.

The were no public hearings.

Action Items

1. Citizen Satisfaction Survey Results
The Citizen Satisfaction Survey is conducted every three years, with 2019 as the Town's third time working with Ipsos. Ipsos is a global market and opinion research specialist that uses methodology and resources not easily available or achievable for municipalities. The survey is conducted through a random sampling of the community, with results weighted to reflect Hinton's demographics and population. The results are considered accurate to within +/- 5.6 percentage points, 19 times out of 20 of what they would be if the entire population of the Town had been polled. It was moved that Council accept the Citizen Satisfaction Survey Results for information. This motion carried.

2. Hinton Timberwolves' User Fee Reduction Request
On September 10, 2019 Dino Buttazzoni, co-owner of the Hinton Timberwolves addressed a letter to Town Council requesting to lower their rental fees to “… the same price the Junior A team (read: Wildcats) paid last year” (Attachment 1).

The user fee reduction requested by the Timberwolves is essentially threefold:

To re-categorize the Timberwolves (and therefore lower any associated fees) from an adult user group (which is established by policy and reflected in the current Timberwolves agreement) to a youth user group for team practices only;
To apply the 2018/2019 rates instead of the 2019/2020 rates that were approved by Council and are currently in effect; and
To apply an additional 50% discount to the Youth Non-Prime Rate for team practices based on what was awarded to the previous team by Council for the 2018/2019 season only.

At the October 8, 2019 Standing Committee Meeting, Council received a Delegation Presentation from the Timberwolves and a Direction Request Report from Administration. The Committee’s consensus recommendation has been brought forward in this Request for Decision Report (see Standing Committee Recommendation noted above). The options analysis (Attachment 2) has been enhanced from the original Direction Request Report to identify the impacts of the Committee’s recommendation and provide comparable information for Council’s decision. It was moved that Council approve the Standing Committee’s recommendation to amend the Hinton Timberwolves’ Junior A Hockey Team Facility Use Agreement to incorporate a reduced hourly rental rate for Adult Non-Prime Arena Use by 75% for the 2019/2020 season and 50% for the 2020/2021 season as determined by the Committee. This motion carried.

3. Fire Services Agreement Between Town of Hinton and Yellowhead County
This issue is before Council to serve as an option to remedy the challenges between both parties regarding amount and type of capital equipment purchased through the current agreement, as well as increased operating costs over the years, and changes in service levels. The current agreement supports the Town of Hinton’s operating budget through an annual contribution, as well as 50% of capital equipment purchases. The Town and County have been working together over the last few years to come to an agreement that is amicable to both parties. Moving to an agreement that requires Yellowhead County to contribute a yearly fee of $350,000 to the Town of Hinton will support Town provided fire services in Yellowhead County, and will no longer see Yellowhead County contribute to capital purchases of equipment. This new agreement will take effect January 1, 2020, and will be reviewed by both parties after 5 years. It was moved that Council approve the Fire Services Agreement as prepared by the Town of Hinton and Yellowhead County. This motion carried.

In Camera

In-camera is a legal term meaning in private; When a Council goes in-camera, it means the Council meeting is closed to the public. In general terms, the exceptions include matters where disclosures could be harmful to personal privacy, individual or public safety, law enforcement, intergovernmental relations, or economic or other interests; reveal confidential evaluations, local public body confidence, or advice from officials; or disclose information that is subject to legal privilege.

There were no motions coming out of in camera.

Administrative Inquiries

If Councillors have queries they would like to submit to admin, this will be the time at which they do. This is in accordance with Council's procedural bylaw.

There were no inquiries.

Notice of Motion

If Councillors have motions they wish to lodge, this will be the time at which they do. This is in accordance with Council's procedural bylaw.

There were no notices.

Information Items

Councillor Jo-Ann Race: Councillor Race reported having attended the previous weeks meeting with the Hinton Chamber of Commerce, as well as a BSN meeting at which Evergreens Foundation presented, saying much was learnt at both.

Councillor Dewly Nelson: Councillor Nelson reported having attended the Chamber meeting, as well as a Beaver Boardwalk Committee Meeting and a Community Futures West Yellowhead meeting. Nelson then detailed attendance at the Friendship Centres Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls event, and having volunteered at the Rotary's Oktoberfest. Nelson concluded by encouraging residents to vote.

Councillor Albert Ostashek: Councillor Ostashek also spoke to the Beaver Boardwalk Committee meeting, saying public communications are forthcoming. Ostashek then extended a thank you to the management of the Hinton Chamber of Commerce for having attended the previous weeks meeting.

Councillor Trevor Haas: Councilor Haas reported happiness with the library presentation the previous week. Haas then reported not having had any meetings, and excitement for the Chamber Gala.

Councillor Tyler Waugh: Councillor Waugh reported also having attended the Chamber meeting, and then thanked Mayor Michaels for filling in at a CFWY the previous week. Waugh then expressed excitement for the coming Town Hall.

Councillor Ryan Maguhn: Councillor Maguhn reported having attended Oktoberfest, and then went on to discuss the missed Golf Society meeting, saying that more information from that meeting would be shared to Council shortly.

Mayor Marcel Michaels: Mayor Michaels reported having attended Oktoberfest, and looking forward to the Chamber Gala, then speaking to the importance and significance of community gatherings and thanking the work of volunteers in making these events happen. Mayor Michaels concluded by speaking to the Evergreens Hinton Seniors Housing project, saying the Colliers build recommendations of Scott Builders and Cumberland Sutherland's $30,000,000 build for 100 units had been selected. First move ins to the new facility are anticipated to be March 2021.

CAO Martin Taylor: CAO Taylor reported also having attended Octoberfest, thanking the Rotary and other volunteers for making the event happen. Taylor then spoke to the Town Hall, and Chamber Gala, saying there is excitement for both this week. Taylor concluded by saying staff are engaged in budget, amongst other tasks.

Town of Hinton Newsflash

Hinton Town Hall and 60 Minutes with Council

The Town of Hinton Strategic Services Division is currently working on community engagement, following Council's direction, surrounding the Town Strategic Plan and 2020 Budget Cycle. To ensure we have the input of our stakeholders in recreation, seniors interests, and community members at large, we've built a variety of input methods to ensure that 24/7 anyone can share their thoughts and be represented in our governance. Please review the variety of methods listed in this week's Civicsend, and engage in whatever way is conveniant to you, here.

Council Video Recordings

As some residents may have noticed, we have recently experienced difficulties with our streaming video provider online. The service provider has changed the accepted methods of posting, which has made all older videos in the inventory non-functioning. These non-functioning videos will removed from the inventory for the time being, however, administration is investigating ways of making a larger library available for residents to access online. In the interim, a new format has been selected, and new recordings are being posted as before; however, the new format is slightly larger, and so less videos will be accessible online than in years past. Recordings of the videos are also available on DVDs at the Hinton Municipal Library, which can be checked out and viewed on either computers or DVD players, or by contacting the Town of Hinton should those DVD recordings not be available.

The Town of Hinton is on Facebook!

As over 1800 people have already figured out - The Town of Hinton now has a corporate Facebook page! This new service adds another resource to the communications toolbelt, and will house information on many different areas; some days, you’ll see information on bylaws, others recreation programs, others information about council decisions or highlights from Council meetings. We will, however, endeavour to ensure that we are sharing content relevant to the widest possible audience. Like us today by clicking here!

You can view the entire agenda package here.

The next Regular Council meeting will be held November 05, 2019, at 4pm
in the Council Chambers.