SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
City council is mulling whether to approve developer Les Rocher's application to build six new rental cabins on Bretzlaff Drive.
This area of Old Town is currently being considered for a 'cabin village' put forward by developer Les Rocher. If approved, six new rental cabins will form the village. A number of old
buildings will either be relocated or demolished. - Robin Grant/NNSL photo |
In April, the developer applied for a permit that could result in a number of old buildings being relocated or demolished.
Julian Morse, chair of the city's heritage committee, expressed reservations about what the development could mean for Old Town during a Municipal Services Committee meeting on Monday.
"We're introducing a bunch of dwellings here that don't appear in the design to have parking taken into account," he said.
"I do realize they are small - you could almost go as far to call them tiny homes and perhaps the idea is that parking wouldn't be included - but it is a potential concern."
Senior administrative officer Sheila Bassi-Kellett confirmed parking had been considered in the plan, with small spaces reserved directly in front of the cabins. Traffic had been taken into account, she said.
"We certainly want to ensure that roads aren't blocked with parked vehicles when it comes to emergency vehicle access," she told the committee.
Morse added that relocating or demolishing old buildings could detract from the unique heritage character that makes Old Town a popular tourist destination.
"This is what people come here to see when they are coming as tourists," he said. "Let's ensure that we keep this neighbourhood looking like it always has."
Council is expected to vote on this issue in the coming weeks.
Litter, litter everywhere
The city is moving forward with its anti-litter incentives as part of its project to revitalize downtown.
Senior administrative officer Sheila Bassi-Kellett listed the incentives as handing out green kits with garbage bags, bag tags and gloves; offering local businesses a chance to buy cigarette butt containers at a lower cost; initiating a program similar to the adopt-a-street concept; highlighting anti-litter role models; and starting a positive rewards initiative.
While Coun. Adrian Bell said leading by example is good, he expressed skepticism about whether it will result in business owners taking responsibility for cleaning their property.
"It can be a little bit disheartening as a volunteer picking garbage downtown to clean up year after year the same lots and never see those landowners take up the gauntlet themselves and take over that work," he said. "There have to be other mechanisms in place to make sure that, for those who don't get the message, we have means of requiring them to clean up their garbage."
A problem with the city's Click & Fix Yk, he added, is that it doesn't always result in litter that is reported being picked up. Something needs to change, he said.
Bassi-Kellett said the city will not stop enforcing by-laws and taking action against property owners who refuse to clean their property after implementing these incentives.
She added that Click & Fix Yk has recently been updated, making it more effective at tracking and monitoring when issues are flagged and dealt with.
"It's going to help us enormously in terms of tracking closure on issues when they are reported," she said.
Council talks contracts in secret
The Municipal services committee is in favour of awarding two contracts worth a total of $2.3 million after an in-camera session Monday.
According to city spokesperson Nalini Naidoo, Mayor Mark Heyck received a request from coun. Niels Konge for committee to discuss these items behind closed doors as "contractual legal matters."
The first is a $1.7-million contract with Ryfan Electric Ltd. that will pay for a pellet heating system to be installed in the Multiplex, Fieldhouse, fire hall, city maintenance garage and a city warehouse. Council originally budgeted $2.1 million for the project. The city estimates the annual gross savings from the pellet boiler to be $140,000 to $160,000 with those savings increasing if fuel prices rise and if a carbon tax is implemented in 2018.
Committee is also in favour of awarding a $647,000 contract to LSI NWT Transport Ltd. for the phase 4 expansion of the centralized compost facility at the dump. The work, which consists of laying gravel and synthetic liners, is the final stage of the project. According to city documents, it will "allow the city sufficient composting capacity for the foreseeable future."
The city approved $700,000 in spending for the project in the 2017 budgets. Both contracts will be going to council for a vote in the coming weeks.
