ETA for furniture
Without a firm opening date for the library and cultural centre, the municipality cannot order the furniture it needs for the municipal spaces within it, as there is nowhere to store the furniture in the meantime.
Yvonne McNabb, director of culture and recreation, explained to council Oct. 15 that once the furniture is ordered, it takes about six weeks to arrive.
鈥淚f I was to get all of that, I wouldn鈥檛 have anywhere to put it at this particular point. It would probably take up a good portion of the multipurpose hall and because we don鈥檛 know how long it鈥檚 going to have to sit in a location before the library is open, we鈥檙e kind of looking at that scenario.鈥�
McNabb is now looking into the possibility of ordering the furniture and storing it with the furniture company in either Edmonton or Calgary.
The last reported opening date for the library and cultural centre was late December, early January.
McNabb noted that she has to order the furniture before Dec. 31 in order to pay for it with a grant with that deadline.
鈥淚鈥檓 waiting until the very last day,鈥� she said with a laugh.
Nine-month update from bylaw
In the first nine months of the year, bylaw enforcement has issued 202 more municipal tickets than it did during the same timeframe in 2012.
As of the end of September, the department had issued 623 municipal tickets, compared to 421 last year.
鈥淲e鈥檝e been diligent out there, being visible, being seen by the Jasper community,鈥� said Dave Osborne, licensing and enforcement manager for the municipality.
The number of service calls has also increased by 181 from last year, coming in at a total of 1,817 for the first nine months of the year.
Also up is the number of official letters of complaint. The department has received 38, compared to 26 last year.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 a little up over last year, but our enforcement is up,鈥� said Osborne. 鈥淢ost of these complaints have been generated because [people] aren鈥檛 happy with enforcement. They didn鈥檛 like getting a ticket for parking in a crosswalk; by a fire hydrant. I would answer each complaint by way of email or by official letter and most of the time, they had to pay the ticket.鈥�
The stat that comes in below previous years is the number of domestic pet licenses purchased.
Dog licenses specifically took a hit, with 40 less sold in the first nine months of the year. Licenses are $30 per dog. So far, 226 have been sold in 2013.
That鈥檚 a total revenue of $7,980 for the municipality.
Osborne noted at the end of his presentation that this year his team has put a focus on cleaning up the storage lots and making them more efficient.
鈥淲e had 80 sites in three storage lots and we streamlined so that we鈥檙e now able to take in 115 sites.
鈥淩ight now we have 100 sites occupied. We鈥檒l have the other 15 occupied by the end of the month.鈥�
The cost of a site is $240 per year, plus GST and the cost of a key. The lots have generated $26,500 in revenue so far this year.
Land swap approved
Council unanimously approved the swap of the Nettie Hale walkway for a piece of land between the CN rail line and the parking lot at the corner of Connaught Drive and Hazel Avenue.
Parks Canada asked to acquire the walkway as part of a lot realignment it is negotiating on Patricia Street. The rationale for reclaiming the walkway is that once the realignment has been completed, new housing will likely be developed on Patricia Street, leaving the walkway from Geikie Street to the alley orphaned.
The small sliver of land between two existing homes will likely be offered to the leaseholders on either side.
The land the municipality has gained is more than five times what it gave up, but Peter Waterworth, chief administrative officer, was quick to say, 鈥淚鈥檓 not touting this as a huge win.
鈥淏ut we鈥檙e certainly no worse off.鈥�
The new land, near the CN rail line, could eventually become another entrance to the parking lot or increased parking space.
Old fire hall update
As soon as the roofers are finished at the library and cultural centre, they will move over to the Old Fire Hall.
The municipality made a deal with Parks Canada in April that once the roof is repaired, the heritage building would be returned to Parks, who formerly owned it. The wait was to facilitate the municipality鈥檚 garnering of grant money from the Alberta Heritage Commission.
鈥淲e can鈥檛 guarantee it, but the hope is it will actually be completed by the end of October. So it very well could be completed and the building surrendered as early as November,鈥� said Peter Waterworth, chief administrative officer.
Nicole Veerman
[email protected]
