Monthly Archives: October 2010

Skate park delay shouldn’t be a surprise

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Councillor Deb Kozak says she’s disappointed a report on the latest location for an outdoor skate park in Nelson has been delayed, stalling the whole process, but I hope she isn’t surprised. If council wants to see positive action on the skate park they need to commit to a location they have control over, not setting it on someone else’s land.

Click on the image for a PDF showing land ownership in Nelson's downtown. The document comes from material presented to the public during the Thursday, Oct. 14 workshop on the Sustainable Waterfront and Downtown Master Plan.

The report had to come from Regional District of Central Kootenay (RDCK) staff because the proposed location is on RDCK property, one of the few areas in Nelson’s city limits that is actually owned by the regional district.

Click on the image to the right for an excerpt from one of the documents presented to the public at the Thursday, Oct. 14 Sustainable Waterfront and Downtown Master Plan. The PDF shows, in orange, the area owned by the RDCK.

This isn’t a criticism of RDCK staff. They have their own political masters to answer to, the rural directors that are elected by the rural residents surrounding the city. While Mayor John Dooley is also one of those directors, he is one voice.

I haven’t heard much from the rural directors about the pressing need for a skate park in Nelson and so it’s no surprise RDCK staff didn’t make the report a priority.

If the city wants to see movement on this project, they should have picked an area that they have direct control over. By recommending the skate park go on RDCK property (beside the Nelson and District Community Complex) they handed off responsibility for the project.

A history of delays for skate park

For the long-suffering proponents of the skate park, this must be déjà vu all over again.

It is for me.

While working at another media outlet in Nelson (the Express) I remember writing a story about the city picking a location for the controversial skate park. “Skaters get park” the headline trumpeted back in April 2008. That was when it seemed the park was going to go down by the lakeside soccer fields. Then various groups spoke out against the location, the Nelson Soccer Association leading the charge, followed by residents in the nearby neighbourhood.

As it became obvious that location wasn’t going to work I started hearing from people that this has happened before. So I leafed through the newspaper archives and found a story about the skate park from several years earlier. It was 2006 and the headline, written by my predecessor, proclaimed “Skaters get park.”

What do you think of the latest delay on Nelson’s skate park?

Chris Shepherd

Chris Shepherd is editor of The Nelson Post.
He can be reached at news@inthekoots.net.

Kozak disappointed skate park delayed

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Photo source: Amin Choc, Flickr, Creative Commons.

Councillor Deb Kozak says she’s disappointed to hear a report on the outdoor skate park fell by the wayside amid a busy summer for Regional District of Central Kootenay staff.

Bernie Van Hooft, the outgoing recreation manager (he’s leaving on Friday, Oct. 29), says so many things happened for Regional District of Central Kootenay (RDCK) staff the report, due this week, didn’t get done.

“We were trying for that deadline, but we just had so many things going on within recreation services that it hasn’t been able to be completed,” he says.

Source: Nelson Star.

Coun. Kozak, whose portfolio includes youth and recreation, says that the process to finalize the location for the skate park has stalled without the report. In October 2009, the City of Nelson’s committee tasked with finding a location decided an area beside the Nelson and District Community Complex parking lot would be the best solution. That committee included members of the regional district’s recreation staff.

That land is owned by the regional district and a report on just how the skate park would fit in was expected by the end of this month. Part of the report was whether the park should be a service of the RDCK, in which case the board of directors would have to get involved in the discussion as well.

See the original story at the Nelson Star.

Go here for an editorial on this issue.

Chance to win some cash for the skate park

While the bureaucratic process drags along, residents have a chance to bring in some free money for the skate park.

The outdoor skate park has made the the short list for the Aviva Community Fund competition. By voting at the competition website, Nelson residents can push the skate park to the semi-finals. Voting has begun and is open until Friday, Nov. 5.

African caravan comes to Nelson

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PRESS RELEASE from Grans to Grans Nelson

  • What: AfriGrand Caravan
  • When: Sunday, Oct. 31, 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.
  • Where: The Capitol Theatre, 421 Victoria St.

Tsabile and Thandeka are the grandmother-granddaughter team visiting Nelson this weekend. Photo by Alexis MacDonald from the Stephen Lewis Foundation.

Grans to Grans Nelson fundraises for the Stephen Lewis Foundation who in turn sponsor over 300 projects in Sub-Saharan Africa to help grandmothers deal with the HIV/AIDS pandemic that continues to devastate the continent.

There is a Caravan of African grandmothers and granddaughters crossing Canada to bring awareness of the devastation to Canadians. The AfriGrand Caravan will create a forum for these women to tell their stories and share their strategies, challenges and triumphs in dealing with the ravages of AIDS. It will also offer Canadians the opportunity to be inspired by these stories and to join the movement.

They will visit 40 communities along the way, including Nelson. The tour has a blog of their experience so far including their first sign of snow (the scrapings from an ice rink) in Sudbury, Ontario. The tour pulled over to give the visitors from Africa a chance to build a snowman and pelt each other with snowballs.

Results from waterfront workshop online

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Mayor John Dooley talks with residents about the city's waterfront and downtown master plan at the Thursday, Oct. 14 evening public workshop. Photo by Chris Shepherd

A city park at Red Sands Beach. A continuous shoreline trail open to the public. Strong civic spaces at the CP station. These area few of the “key observations” taken from a recent public workshop on the impending downtown and waterfront master plan.

Those observations are among 12 points highlighted in a summary from the Thursday, Oct. 14 meetings where members of the public voiced their opinions on what features they want included in the Sustainable Waterfront and Downtown Master Plan.

There were actually two meetings that day. The first, in the morning, was among a list of invited members of the public and the second, that evening, was open to anyone who cared to show up.

Click on the above image for a PDF of the concept maps created at the morning workshop on Oct. 14.

Some attendees at the evening workshop asked to know who exactly was part of the morning workshop. The morning workshop members were asked to define the key planning goals for the area as well as create a map to depict their vision for waterfront and downtown. Those maps and planning goals were included in the evening workshop and some members of public felt those morning participants were given an unfair influence over the proceedings. (Click on the image to the right to see the maps.)

When asked to provide a list of who was part of the morning workshop, the consultant hired to run the process making the master plan said that information would be available with the online summary.

Morning workshop attendees

It is, sort of.

The list provided has no names of people and only a few names of specific groups. Those invited to the morning workshop included members of city council; the Nelson and District Chamber of Commerce, Advisory Planning Commission, Community Heritage Commission, Community Cultural Commission, the West Kootenay EcoSociety, Nelson Business Association, Nelson Cares Society, Nelson Rotary, the CPR, Community Futures, Nelson Electric Tramway Society, the Nelson Airport.

The invite list also included representatives from recreation, development industry, architects, real estate, major retail, hoteliers, sustainability working groups, arts, culture and youth.

The feedback from the first workshop will be used to create more refined concepts and will again be presented at another workshop, tentatively scheduled for Thursday, Nov. 25.

In an interview with The Nelson Post at the Oct. 14 workshop, Dave Wahn, the city’s senior planner, said the maps created by the morning workshop were not set in stone.

“These are not where we’re going,” Wahn said, pointing to the maps. “They’re to get people talking. What’s good? What’s bad?

“What have we missed? That’s what tonight is for.”

12 key observations

The entire list of key observations were:

  • Encourage development of vacant Downtown lands, especially along Baker Street;
  • Encourage more mixed-use residential projects throughout Downtown;
  • Intensify development in the Baker Street South area (Railway Street / Government Street area);
  • Intensify development on the Waterfront adjacent to Downtown with a mixture of residential, commercial and industrial.
  • Maintain sight lines from Downtown to the water;
  • Continue to protect recognized heritage buildings; however, allow flexibility of design style in both the Downtown and Waterfront for new development, provided it meets key design standards primarily for height and pedestrian friendliness;
  • Ensure the water’s edge remains public with a continuous shoreline trail that is accessible to all;
  • Revitalize Cottonwood Creek, including a pedestrian/bike path and possible City park at mouth;
  • Create a new City park at Red Sands beach and the grove of trees immediately adjacent;
  • Explore additional vehicular and pedestrian connections between Downtown and the Waterfront;
  • Explore opportunities for the streetcar to service more of the Waterfront and possibly Downtown; and
  • Create strong civic spaces at the CP Station, the Front Street / Hall Street intersection, and one or two of the key intersections on Baker Street.

Do you think the 12 points listed above capture the key points from the community?

View Results

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    news@inthekoots.net

    Journey to Nepal

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    PRESS RELEASE from Slocan Valley Recreation

    • What: Multimedia presentation about travels through Nepal
    • When: Tuesday, Nov. 9, 6:30 p.m.
    • Where: Winlaw Elementary School, 5604 Winlaw Bridge Rd.

    The O'Neill and Doell families in Nepal. Photo submitted.

    In the spring of 2010, two families,the O’Neills from Winlaw and the Doells from Rossland, went on a journey of connection to Nepal. These families each have teenage children who were born in Nepal, one of the poorest countries in the world. The purpose of their two month journey was to reconnect their children with their birth families and with the communities of their birth.

    Two of the children were born in the Kathmandu area, one in the remote Tsum Valley, and one in the more well-known and travelled Solu Khumbu (Everest) area.

    Slocan Valley Recreation is pleased to host Journey to Nepal, the first of a series of presentations around the region where these two families will offer a inspiring multimedia presentation of their travels.

    Through research, the O’Neills discovered that the Tsum Valley was in a general position of need, suffering from drought, catastrophic crop failure and political tension. They organized donations of care packages, first aid supplies, clothing and food to be taken up to the Tsum with them.

    It took seven days of trekking to reach their destination. Similarly, the Doells organized warm hats for school children at the Sir Edmund Hillary School, and medical supplies for a hospital in the Everest region, where they trekked for many days. Both families trekked to these two areas at the same time, and took many amazing photos.

    As well as the presentation there will be items from Nepal on display and some will be available for purchase.

    Admission will be by donation and the funds raised from the evening will be going towards the Tsum Valley Community in Nepal.

    For more information contact Slocan Valley Recreation at (250) 226-0008.

    An evening of humility, laughter and F-bombs

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    Shayne Koyczan. Photo by Chris Shepherd.

    Editor’s note: There’s some strong language in this review that may not be appropriate for younger readers.

    Shane Koyczan is a paradoxical presence on the stage.

    The award-winning spoken word artist performed at the opening ceremonies for the 2010 Olympics so one would think the sold out crowd at the Capitol Theatre on Saturday night shouldn’t have intimidated him the way it seemed to.

    He was humble to the extreme, at times almost painfully shy, yet when he performed his voice took on a cadence and a rhythm a hip hop artist would admire, his hands moving to emphasize the words, his arm stretching out to embrace the friend he spoke about and his voice rising to a shout as his passion took hold.

    That he was putting his whole being into the performance could not be denied. After some performances he would turn away from the audience to blow his nose and wipe his eyes. He’s not a man to hold back.

    Listening to Shane perform elicits chills at times. His pieces speak about the yearning, awkwardness and love everyone has felt at one time or another. He spoke about the challenges of his youth and everyone’s youth.

    One can’t reproduce the experience of Shane’s show. The written word hints at the simple wisdom but leaves out the earnest emotion and feeling Shane puts into every syllable.

    “If you can’t see something beautiful about yourself, get a better mirror,” he told us.

    Love features strongly in his performance. What stuck in my mind was his piece about time spent with a girlfriend, Shane speaking about his attention spent on her bellybutton. ‘That’s not an erogenous zone,’ she told him. ‘But this is where you began,’ he answered, explaining why he felt the modest dimple in her stomach worthy of his focus.

    Short Story Long. Photo by Chris Shepherd.

    Joining him on stage was the trio Short Story Long. The upright bass (Stefan), guitar (Maiya Robbie) and keyboard (Liv) accompanied him at times, providing an added layer of rhythm and vocals, at other times leaving us alone with Shane’s voice.

    There was love between Shane and band, who encouraged him at moments of doubt and played two songs while Koyczan took a break off stage.

    Koyczan’s performance was accentuated by his vulnerability. He admitted to the audience that he had a panic attack a few weeks ago and that being in front of us was a challenge for him. The humility only made the audience love him more and the laughter (Koyzcan is a funny man as well as thoughtful one) and applause was genuine and emphatic.

    Koyczan may be humble and a little shy, but that didn’t stop him from swearing and conjuring up disturbing images at times. When talking about someone who upset him his threat to gouge out their eyes and make anal beads with them “to show you what kind of shit you’re getting into” won’t be forgotten easily.

    It was obvious the raw words and images didn’t play well with some of the more conservative members of the audience who appeared uncomfortable at times with Shane’s words and emotion.

    They were in the minority, to be sure, and the audience was quick to jump to their feet at the end of the show, one of the fastest standing ovations I’ve seen at the Capitol.

    news@inthekoots.net

    Shane also took time to let the audience know about Nelson’s own spoken word scene. The Nelson Poetry Slam meets every second Sunday of the month. The next meeting is Sunday, Nov. 14 at the Cocoa-Nut Lounge, 116 Vernon St. Sign up is at 6:30 p.m. and the competition starts at 7 p.m.

    Flu shots arrive next week

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    PRESS RELEASE submitted by Interior Health

    Photo source: USACE Europe District, Flickr, Creative Commons.

    This year’s vaccine contains three different flu strains, one of which is the pandemic strain (H1N1) that circulated last year. Influenza (flu) shots are free for those 65 or older, people with chronic health conditions, or other at risk groups, including young children and pregnant women. Flu clinics start around the Interior this week.

    “The flu shot is a safe, effective way to reduce your chances of getting influenza and reduce the severity of your symptoms if you do get it,” says Dr. Rob Parker, Medical Health Officer for Interior Health. “The vaccine is 70 to 90 per cent effective in preventing influenza in healthy children and adults. If you aren’t eligible for the free clinics, it is a good idea to check with your pharmacist or doctor to find out about getting vaccinated.”

    Influenza is highly contagious and is the leading cause of preventable death due to infectious disease in Canada, killing thousands of Canadians every year and hospitalizing thousands more. It spreads easily from person to person by coughing, sneezing or talking.  Seniors, infants under two and people with chronic illness are most at risk from complications that can result from the flu.

    “Getting a flu shot protects you and those around you – at home, school, work and in the community,” adds Dr. Parker. “People can spread the influenza virus before they show symptoms, which is why it is so important for people to be vigilant about washing their hands throughout the day and immediately after sneezing, coughing or before and after visiting daycares, hospitals or healthcare facilities. It is also important to stay home if you are feeling sick.”

    Tens of thousands of British Columbians are eligible for free flu shots including:

    • People 65 years and older and their caregivers/household contacts
    • Children and adults with chronic health conditions and their household contacts
    • Children and adolescents (6 months to 18 years) with conditions treated for long periods of time with Acetylsalicylic acid and their household contacts
    • Adults who are very obese
    • Aboriginal people
    • Healthy children age 6-23 months
    • Household contacts and caregivers of infants age 0-23 months
    • Pregnant women who will be in their third trimester during influenza season and their household contacts.
    • Residents of nursing homes and other chronic care facilities
    • Healthcare and other care providers in facilities and community settings who are capable of transmitting influenza to those at high risk of influenza complications
    • People who work with live poultry and/or swine.
    • Individuals who provide care or service in potential outbreak settings that house high risk persons (e.g., crew on ships)

    To find the flu clinic in your area simply visit www.interiorhealth.ca and click on the Flu Locator button, or call your local public health office (look under Interior Health in the blue pages of your phone book for your local health unit). Information is also available at www.immunizebc.ca.

    CT scanner won’t be moved, says hospital foundation

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    A special agreement between the Kootenay Lake Hospital Foundation and Interior Health assures the new CT Scanner at Kootenay Lake Hospital cannot be removed from the facility. Photo source: joncallas, Flickr, Creative Commons.

    The CT scanner is safe.

    That’s the message coming from the Kootenay Lake Hospital Foundation (KLHF) in the aftermath of the very public dispute over the attempted removal of an ultrasound machine from Castlegar by Interior Health (IH).

    Earlier this month the IH announced plans to remove the only ultrasound machine from Castlegar and District Hospital and ship it to Trail where it would replace one of three there.

    But massive public outcry and protests from Castlegar and area residents caused the health authority to cancel its plans and seek other solutions to the situation.

    Those developments raised concerns in Nelson where a year-long community fundraising effort collected $1.5 million to buy a CT scanner.

    Nelson’s CT scanner and Castlegar’s ultrasound situations differ because Castlegar’s machine was purchased with taxpayer money from the Kootenay Boundary Regional Hospital District and the CT Scanner will be paid for through donations to the KLHF.

    The IH has standing agreements with all hospital foundations in the region around removal of equipment purchased by the foundations, but has a written memorandum of understanding with the KLHF around equipment in Nelson, says IH spokesman, Karl Hardt.

    “The IH commitment to foundations and auxiliaries is that we won’t move or relocate any piece of equipment they have funded before the end of its useful life, without the permission of the funding foundation or auxiliary,” Hardt says. “I’m not aware of other written agreements with foundation or what prompted the specific one with Nelson. Regardless of the memorandum (with KLHF) we would follow the above.”

    Long time KLHF board member, Brian May said the agreement was born out of the community’s mistrust of the IH over a swath of health care cuts early in the decade.

    “Back in 2003 the Nelson area was reeling from cuts and there was a lot of concern in the public for the safety of (hospital) equipment in the community,” May recalled. “So we asked the IH to sign an agreement. A lot of it was to assure the public that we had some control over the equipment we purchase.”

    May said the foundation spends between $200,000 and $300,000 on equipment for KLH each year, and to date, including the CT scanner, has spent almost $6 million on equipment of various kinds.

    He added that the equipment becomes the property of the health authority after it is purchased, but the on-paper agreement between the two bodies keeps it from being removed from the hospital.

    May said the standard agreement between the IH and hospital boards is more of a “handshake” agreement and Nelson residents wanted a greater level of assurance their equipment wouldn’t be removed.

    And he noted that so far it has worked well.

    “Only one thing has been transferred so far,” May says. “That was only for a couple months and we got to monitor it; then it came back.”

    He said it’s also highly unlikely the IH would ever consider trying to take the CT scanner from Kootenay Lake Hospital.

    “That would never, ever happen,” May said. “The IH doesn’t make decisions to put CT scanners in a community on a whim. It’s all built into the whole operating scenario.”

    Representatives of the Castlegar and District Hospital Foundation were not available for comment, but have said they are seeking a similar memorandum of understanding from IH.

    colin@inthekoots.net

    Grohman residents ask for dock space in Nelson

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    Ken Plautz, Lindsey Langford and their daughter, Lumay, stand near the location they'd like to see a dock for Grohman residents. Photo by Chris Shepherd.

    From December first to the middle of April, the residents of Grohman have only one way to get to Nelson: by boat. Until recently, this wasn’t a problem for the community, but increasing numbers of boats on the water have made boat parking a problem and representatives from the community have asked the city to consider setting aside room for a dock in the future.

    Ken Plautz is president of the Grohman Creek Docking Society and at the city’s workshop on the waterfront and downtown master plan he asked the city to keep the Grohman community in mind as they moved ahead with their deliberations.

    Plautz suggests that if the dump moves – a likely development – and if the City of Nelson puts in a park, then room could be made for a dock for Grohman residents.

    Plautz says his initial thought is Grohman residents – there are 40 year-round residents and 65 total when summer residents are included – would donate a dock with room for 20 boats.

    “I would not expect the taxpayers of Nelson to foot a dock that would service the residents of the regional district,” says Plautz. “That would be ridiculous. We’re not asking for that.”

    Maintenance for the dock is up for discussion. Plautz has started talking with his regional director, Ron Mickel, about possible solutions for that question.

    Grohman residents currently park their boats either at the city wharf or the Launch Club docks, but space is limited at both and in the summer, they have often been full. Grohman residents have been ticketed for parking too long at the city wharf.

    Click here for a map of the existing docking sites and the location Grohman residents would like to use.

    Starting around 2006 the docks and West Arm have become busier, says Lindsey Langford, Plautz’s wife, says. Grohman residents started having trouble finding a spot to dock their boats in the summers and at times docked at the seaplane dock, despite knowing they weren’t supposed to.

    This photo, taken on Dec. 19, 2008, shows how icy the docks can become in the winter. Photo by Lindsey Langford.

    Traveling by boat is the only option in the winter as the Grohman Creek Road is closed. Langford says travel in the winter can be hazardous, especially when there is a strong north wind blowing down the West Arm.

    Spray driven by the wind has iced up the docks in the past to such a degree they had to wear crampons (spiked attachments for their boots) to make get from their boat to the shore.

    The location for the new dock is deep and sheltered from the wind. It would also make for a considerably shorter trip for Grohman residents.

    news@inthekoots.net

    Changes planned for Cottonwood Falls Park

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    Editor’s note: This story is a preview of items on the agenda for the Monday, Oct. 18 committee of the whole meeting in Nelson. Watch this website for a live blog of the meeting, starting at 7 p.m.

    At tonight’s committee of the whole, councillors will hear presentations on a host of issues including:

    • The B.C. Senior Games (coming to the Kootenays next year);
    • Plans to revitalize Cottonwood Falls Park
    • A review of logging in the region
    • Plans to replace the wharf at Lakeside Park;
    • A commemorative plaque for the Chinese community and;
    • Tree proposals for Lions Park.

    Committee of the whole meetings are usually for information only and few binding decisions are made at these meetings.

    The agenda can be downloaded here.

    Along with the scheduled presentations, the meeting makes time for any member of the community to address council on matters that relate to Nelson on the whole.

    3a) B.C. Senior Games Update

    Castlegar, Trail and Nelson will jointly host the B.C. Senior Games from Tuesday, Aug. 16 to Saturday, Aug. 20 in 2011. Bill Reid, vice president of the organizing executive, will let council know about how plans are going for the provincial competition for British Columbians aged 55 and up.

    According to documents submitted ahead of time, planners expect to have 3,000 competitors at the games.

    Nelson will host bridge, cribbage, cycling, ice hockey (split with Trail), table tennis, mountain bike racing, dragon boat, one-act plays and soccer (split with Castlegar). Approximately 932 participants will go to the Nelson events, organizers predict.

    3b) Cottonwood Falls Park revitalization

    A few angles of a model showing the new look planned for Cottonwood Falls Park. Photo taken from the Oct. 18 agenda.

    Councillor Kim Charlesworth and Thomas Loh, a local architect, will present information on plans to revitalize the park at the west-end of Baker Street.

    According to documents included in the agenda, the goal of the revitalization is to “develop a cohesive overall vision for the entire Cottonwood Falls Park in conjunction with the farmers’ market.

    The project includes seeing to the aging structure there already, developing a stage for performers and developing parking and access.

    The overall strategy is to build a new market shelter and stage and look for ideas for events and site amenities for small, local festivals.

    3c) Kootenay Lake Timber Supply

    Dale Anderson, a stewardship officer from the Nelson office of the Ministry of Forests and Range, will talk about recent changes to the allowable annual cut for the Kootenay Lake Timber Supply Area.

    According to an accompanying press release, there has been a six per cent decrease in the amount of timber the province wants cut in the area, due in part because of a new community forest and woodlot agreements in the area, as well a provincial mountain caribou recovery strategy.

    3d) Lakeside Rotary Park Wharf

    The Nelson Rotary will present their plans to replace the wharf at Lakeside Rotary Park.

    The wharf was installed in 1994 and is due for replacement, according to documents from the Rotary.

    According to a letter from the Nelson Rotary Club, they expect the wharf to cost $75,000.

    The letter goes on to say that, based on previous discussions, the club understands the City of Nelson will be able to contribute $25,000.

    The letter also says the club will raise $25,000 and look to the Columbia Basin Trust and RDCK for the remaining money.

    3e) The Chinatown Plaque Project

    Claus Lao Schunke, a member of the Chinese-Canadian Historial Society of B.C. will explain a project he has in mind to put in a plaque to recognize the contribution made by Nelson’s Chinese community to work in railroad building, market gardening, mining and the service sector.

    Schunke proposes a plaque at the north-west corner of Hall and Vernon Street. Schunke writes the contribution of the Chinese community to Nelson has been largely overlooked and that by creating a plaque, the city could take a step towards fixing this.

    Schunke proposes a budget of $3,000 for a rock monument. Schunke suggests the City of Nelson would cover the costs for the monument.

    3f) Tree Proposals for Lions Park

    Al Friend, of the Lions Club of Nelson, will present a proposal for the trees at Lions Park.

    According to documents included in the agenda, the trees that line Delbruck and Falls streets have “reached beyond their natural maturity and need to be replaced.”

    The club is proposing a phased replacement of the trees over five to eight years.

    The plan is to stagger the replacement to minimize the impact on how the park is shaded.