Saturday, August 18, 2012

Victoria terminates Local Fire Agreement with City of WL

On July 23rd of this year - Hon. Ida Chong (BC Minister of Community Services) wrote to the City of Williams Lake advising of the Province's intention to terminate the "Local Service Area" agreement for Fire Services for those residents living in the CRD Rural Fringe Area not currently protected by a local Fire Department.  A copy of this letter was sent to the Cariboo RD Board and MLA Donna Barnett

Read the letter here

With the loss of this grant (in 2010, grant was worth $641,141 to the City of Williams Lake and the City budgeted $600,000 for this grant in 2012).  It is fair to suggest that Councillors and Mayor Cook will have asked City Staff, as WL Council is beginning their 2013 Budget process, to show what $600,000 out of the Fire Department's budget would look like

The City of Williams Lake and the Cariboo Regional District will have until Thursday, October 4th to successful negotiate a new arrangement for Fire Services for CRD Rural Fringe residents.  After that - the CRD will have to quickly make alternate arrangements including the holding of a public meeting in mid-to-late October to explain short and long term options for fire services to affected residents in addition to seek Board approval for a new Function and giving the necessary readings to the Function Establishment Bylaw at the Oct 4th CRD Board Meeting.  Janis Bell (CAO - Cariboo Regional District) will inform the CRD Board on Friday that if negotiations fail - there is the potential for no fire services to some or all of the rural fringe areas in the short term (as of Jan 1st, 2013)

Meanwhile - WL City Council will agree, on Tuesday, to form a 5 person negotiating team on its' behalf of 3 Councillors and 2 Staff members.  Councillors Laurie Walters, Geoff Bourdon and Sue Zacharias will be the Councillors on the negotating team.  The staff members to be designated are likely to be Brian Carruthers (City of WL CAO) and Pat Higgins (City of WL Finance Director).  Mr Carruthers because of his negotiating experience with previous parties, in his former role as Director/General Manager of Community Services and Ms. Higgins because WL City Councillors will need advice on what financial arrangement(s) will work for the City.  WL City Council also received the July 23rd letter at its' August 7th In-Camera Meeting.  See the In-Camera resolution from the In-Camera Aug 7th WL City Council meeting coming forward Tuesday here

One aspect of the resolution that concerns me, both as a City of WL resident and as Chair of the CRD's Area 'D' Advisory Planning Committee is:

and further, that the working committee recognize Council’s previous recommendations with respect to the provision of services for rural fringe fire protection

It seems to me that this is nothing short of "gunpoint negotiations" and local political history shows that this type of negotiating tactic does not work with other parties.  Back in 2003 - former Quesnel Mayor Nate Bello tried this on the CRD Board of the day and it lead to years of bad relationships.  I would have hoped WL Council would try and keep an very open mind to successfully negotiate an arrangement for Fire Services that meets the needs of those requiring Fire Services on the rural fringe areas outside Williams Lake

The negotiating timelines would be as follow (assuming no negotiating on weekends and starts Monday - if they haven't started already)

Week of Aug 20-24
Week of Aug 27-31
Week of Sept 4-7
Weeks of Sept 10-21
Week of Oct 1st - 3rd

That leaves 28 "business" days to come to a new Fire Services arrangement between the Cariboo RD and the City of Williams Lake else the CRD would have move expeditiously on a "Plan B"

But let's be clear - this is something Victoria has been warning about for quite a while (since 2010) and WL City Councillor SPS Rathor has mentioned many times before and no one has done anything about it before now.  The last such "Local Service Area" agreement is in the Two Mile Flat area in Quesnel and I expect Victoria to terminate that agreement as well in the not too distant future

Best of luck to both parties to negotiate a new arrangement but based on previous statements from the City of WL and CRD on Rural Fire Protection -- I wouldn't hold my breath on a new agreement prior to October 4th

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