After taking a break the week of August 22, RMWB Council has called a special meeting for August 30 on a day there would normally be no meeting because it’s the fifth Tuesday of the month.
The plan is to allow council to deal with some new recommendations from committees and administration.
Tax Relief
Council will debate the Wood Buffalo Recovery Committee’s recommendations for tax relief for all residents affected by the fire that, if approved, would see one month of relief for all residents.
In addition, there would be relief for those who lost their homes by charging them taxes only on the value of their lot for the rest of 2016 or until they either move into a new home or sell the lot. These homeowners will be charged for the value of a lot only in 2017 regardless because taxes for 2017 are assessed based on the value of the property in July of 2016.
The recommendation would also see relief for the people of Abasand, Beacon Hill and Waterways who have been prevented from returning home. The WBRC recommends the municipality cancel their taxes for every extra day that homeowners were prevented from going home because of the orders from the chief medical officer of health, whether they are allowed to return August 31 as part of Phase 1 or have to wait for a later date.
The WBRC is also recommending the RMWB ask the province to waive the education tax part of the property tax bill for the same considerations as the municipal relief and to ask the province to cover the costs of providing this relief, which is estimated to be about $2,356,000.
Conditional Development Permits
Council will also consider a recommendation from administration that they repeal the by-law that is preventing development in Abasand and Beacon Hill now that some re-entry is being allowed.
At the end of June council voted to place conditions on the development permit process to prevent building within Abasand, Beacon Hill, and Waterways while there were concerns for safety because of the order from the Chief Medical Officer of Health.
The permits would be issued but on the condition that no building would begin until the area was deemed safe, that way people could still apply to rebuild and would be able to begin the work as soon as the green-light was given, rather than seeing an influx of applications when development was allowed.
Removing these conditions would allow the process to continue normally and contractors could simply continue applying for development permits without the conditions attached to them.
On Thursday the RMWB said more than 1,200 demolition permits had been approved and 10 rebuild permits issued and should this by-law be repealed on Tuesday it would allow rebuilding to extend into the communities of Abasand and Beacon Hill.
Redevelopment will still be restricted in Waterways until a solution is approved for a flood mitigation plan between the province and the RMWB.
Economic Recovery Plan
A status update on the economic recovery plan that was already presented to the Wood Buffalo Recovery Committee will be brought before council to provide the latest on what’s being done to support small business recovery post-wildfire.
Keith Smith, Acting Director of Economic Development, gave the update and said the current status of the plan is at the end of Phase 1 and the beginnings of Phase 2.
Phase 1, Immediate Business Response, has five priorities:
- Priority A: Wood Buffalo Business Hotline
- Priority B: Emergency Relief for Businesses
- Priority C: Back to Business Resource Centre
- Priority D: Business Recovery Expositions
- Priority E: Refining Phase 2 Plan
Smith explained the Wood Buffalo Business Hotline (1-855-RMWB-BIZ) has received 13,732 between May 30 and August 13 and completed 4,128 business surveys.
As of August 13, 13, 3,469 businesses have qualified for $1,000 in emergency relief funding and 2,664 received it. 429 businesses turned down the funds in order to ensure those in more dire circumstances got the help they needed.
The Back to Business Resource Centre is fully operational in the Hardin Street Building and offers resources, office space, meeting rooms, internet access, printing services and more to help businesses get back to being fully operational. There are also specialists advising businesses on their next course of action and an on-site Insurance Bureau of Canada representative helping businesses with their insurance claims.
As of August 13, 168 businesses have accessed the Back to Business Resource Centre.
The YMM Home Show that took place August 20 and had 150 registered businesses was the first of two Business Recovery Expositions planned for the region with the second tentatively scheduled for October with an option to coincide with Small Business Week.
Phase 2 will include the following five priorities:
- Priority A: Small Business Financial Aid
- Priority B: Economic Impact Assessment Post-Wildfire
- Priority C: Wood Buffalo Economic Development Strategy
- Priority D: Continued Response & Recovery Activities
- Priority E: Phase 3 Plan Refinement
Smith said the Small Business Financial Aid is already under way thanks to the collaborative effort of the RMWB, Alberta and Canada Governments and the Canadian Red Cross. The RMWB contributed $15 million to the program which will be rolling out in September.
The economic impact assessment will be a “snapshot” of the post-wildfire economic situation and will be an important input for the Wood Buffalo Economic Development Strategy.
The Wood Buffalo Economic Development Strategy will be a developed because a new economic development strategy is needed to guide our activities in the post-wildfire environment. Smith said a new strategy is critical to the success of long-term recovery.
The Economic Development Department will continue to work on implementing the Plan and being responsive to needs of businesses in the region.
Amalgamation Review
On Monday, August 22, a special joint session of two council committees voted to recommend that council approve a review of the 1995 amalgamation agreement following a meeting yesterday with representatives for a coalition of rural residents.
Jeffrey O’Donnell, the CEO of the Conklin Resource and Development Advisory Committee, spoke on behalf of the coalition on Monday evening, arguing there are several areas of the agreement which require an update, including the ways businesses and residents are taxed, how many council representatives there are for each community, and the way that spending is decided upon for rural communities.
The rural residents have expressed serious concerns that rural areas are not being treated fairly under the agreement and are not being adequately represented a the municipal level.
They argue the intent of the agreement was to enhance the prosperity for the entire region but that has not played out, especially considering there are areas in the rural communities that still don’t have water and sewer services.
If council approves a review it could look at rural representation on council, taxation and spending, core services, committee make-up and other elements of how the rural areas are governed at a municipal level.
The rural residents want the review paid for by the RMWB and the province and asked that it be conducted by an objective third party.
All members of the two committees present at the joint meeting voted in favour of recommending the review to council.
