It’s been almost a week since the All Candidates Forum, and my impressions haven’t changed upon reflection. I didn’t listen to the broadcast again – haven’t had time, we’ve had a few sick people in the house, myself included – but after hearing the two mayoral candidates on Issues & Answers this morning, I’m sure my first impressions were correct.
At the forum, Jim Eglinski came armed with facts, figures and statistics. Admittedly, being the incumbent Mayor, he has ready access to these, but if I can get the City’s financial statements off the internet, the same facts and figures should be available to everyone. Bruce Lantz, the challenger, did not have any figures or stats at his finger tips.
When asked, Eglinski was able to tell the public how much residential taxpayers would have to pay annually for the Enerplex – about $40 I believe the tax increase would be. Businesses, of course would be more and he had general figures on that. Basically, the larger the business, the bigger the bill. He said the new Fire Hall must go ahead, for the safety of the community and to keep everyone’s insurance rates lower. If we do not have adequate fire protection, the insurance companies will charge people higher rates for their fire insurance. Who wants that?
Conversely, Lantz simply said if he become mayor, he will advocate a freeze on ALL capital spending for 6 months in order to assess it. He was also not in favour of a new Fire Hall, stating that it was not a critical situation … how would he feel if it was his house that caught on fire? I’d say it’s critical – as a voter, I believe fire protection is extremely important and always a critical issue.
Lantz also advocated a 0% tax increase. Okay, as a tax-payer, that sounds good to me too. However, because Premier Gordon Campbell has ordered a freeze on building assessments throughout the Province (in light of the world financial crisis), our assessments won’t be going up, and therefore our taxes won’t either. At least that’s my understanding. If there’s someone reading this who is more informed on this matter, please feel free to comment. I admit I don’t quite get how the City’s mill rate and the building assessments work together to come up with the taxes we have to pay.
Lantz also discussed the downtown revitalization project. He called for turning the empty office spaces above downtown businesses into apartments, stating that the building owners can’t rent that office space out for $300 a month, so it would be better to turn it into housing. Which would also address some of the City’s housing shortage.
However, I heard this suggestion from Councillor Larry Evans over a month before Bruce Lantz mentioned it at the Forum. It’s not a new idea.
Back to the taxes. When the City was faced with many angry business people, following the announcement that business taxes would increase by 42%, they worked with the businesses (in three separate meetings, I believe) to find an alternate solution. The taxes did increase, quite a bit, but not the 42% originally proposed.
Now, Lantz said on the radio this morning (Issues & Answers on energeticcity.ca) that the remaining 20% would be added onto the 2009 taxes. Eglinski, who as Mayor, was presumably present at all 3 of these meetings, said that was news to him.
So, is someone making up these figures, or someone else asleep during these meetings? I think this information is probably available to anyone who asks . . . and I certainly don’t recall reading anything in the newspapers (either the Alaska Highway News or the Northeast News) about this. Therefore, it is news to me too.
But you be the judge. Listen to the interviews on www.energeticcity.ca on the Issues & Answers page, and the Municipal Election page and make your decisions. Don’t just take my word for it.
Please, however, get out and vote on Saturday, November 15 . . . that’s 5 days from now. You don’t have to vote for all 6 councillor positions, and you need only to vote for one mayoral candidate. I didn’t vote for 6 people last time – there were some I didn’t think deserved to get elected. No doubt it will be the same this time.
Thanks again for reading – and don’t forget to VOTE!!
Monday, November 10, 2008
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Analysis Part II - After the Candidates Forum
My first impressions, following last night’s forum (without listening to the broadcast again on energeticcity.ca), was that some candidates are definitely more memorable than others, and not necessarily in a good way.
Looking back, it seemed that Don Irwin, Bruce Christensen, Josh Wilson and Warren Mears didn’t have a lot to say. Perhaps this is because they are not as outspoken as some of the others? By and large, the incumbent councillors (Larry Evans, Karen Simpson, Lori Ackerman, Dan Davies, Don Irwin, and Bruce Christensen), feel that council has done a good job in the past three years, and they would like to continue working for the community in their current capacities. All agree that services in the City need to be improved, including police, fire department, as well as infrastructure and handicapped accessibility.
Some of the new candidates, were extremely outspoken in their opinions of what they feel the current council has done wrong. The addition of one or two of these voices will certainly shake things up during council meetings, but I wonder if that’s really good. It’s been said, that Don Irwin is the lone voice of dissent in council meetings – not having attended any, I cannot say whether this is true, but certainly at the forum last night, he was quiet and most notably calm in expressing his opinions.
Not so, for Theresa Mucci-Rodgers, who quite clearly, has some issues with the City and present council. Just from listening to the broadcast last night, not going over it again yet today, her main issue is land. And what the City should do with it. And where the City should get it, in order to build the new fire hall. While I agree with some of what she said, namely that we shouldn’t spend $3 million for a chunk of land, the rest of her speeches struck me as nothing more than angry tirades.
Larry Evans, also had a bit to say on the construction of a new fire hall – as he was a fire-fighter in this city for years, and later, fire chief, I tend to put a lot of stock in his opinion on this matter. He says we need a new fire hall. Okay. But where? No one has mentioned the piece of land directly behind the current fire hall, which the city must own. The fire dept stores some of its stuff there, and has practiced putting out vehicle fires there in years past. What is wrong with using this piece of land to build a new fire hall, and possibily incorporating the current fire hall, by upgrading it in the same manner as the (much older) City Hall? Nobody either asked this question, or addressed the possibility. It seems to be a given, that a new, large, piece of virgin land in the City is required. Bollocks.
Larry also seems to be a big proponent of issues important to Seniors. Makes sense to me, we’re all going to be old one day. He wants to turn the old hospital (when the new one is built) into a centre for Seniors, some place where they can see their doctors, get care and take the pressure off the regular hospital. Currently, a number of Seniors spend months in the hospital, waiting for spaces in area Care Homes, after it becomes clear that they can no longer remain in their own homes, for whatever reasons. I think Larry is onto something there.
As far as the rest of the new candidates go, Trevor Bolin has jumped on the “I was born and raised here and I love FSJ” bandwagon, created by Dan Davies and Larry Evans. Certainly, I’m not disputing that fact, but we’re not going to vote for a guy just because he was born here. He seems to be a committed partisan of businesses, big and small, which is understandable, given his day-job as a real estate agent. He didn’t rant and rave, but then again, he didn’t really seem to take a stand on any major issues. Except he was in favour of lower taxes. Everyone, the world over, is in favour of lower taxes. I've never met, or heard of anyone who wants to pay MORE taxes . . . have you?
Connie Wowchuck, from some anonymous town in Saskatchewan – I don’t recall her saying where she was from originally (perhaps the kids were fighting and I missed it?) – didn’t take a stand on any issues at the forum either. My impression was that she talked about what she did in Sask., how hard she worked and how good she was. Who cares? What is it about FSJ that makes her want to run for council, and where does she stand on the issues the voters are concerned about?
Now we come to the mayoral candidates. Which I think I’ll put in a different post, since they had the most questions directed to them.
Looking back, it seemed that Don Irwin, Bruce Christensen, Josh Wilson and Warren Mears didn’t have a lot to say. Perhaps this is because they are not as outspoken as some of the others? By and large, the incumbent councillors (Larry Evans, Karen Simpson, Lori Ackerman, Dan Davies, Don Irwin, and Bruce Christensen), feel that council has done a good job in the past three years, and they would like to continue working for the community in their current capacities. All agree that services in the City need to be improved, including police, fire department, as well as infrastructure and handicapped accessibility.
Some of the new candidates, were extremely outspoken in their opinions of what they feel the current council has done wrong. The addition of one or two of these voices will certainly shake things up during council meetings, but I wonder if that’s really good. It’s been said, that Don Irwin is the lone voice of dissent in council meetings – not having attended any, I cannot say whether this is true, but certainly at the forum last night, he was quiet and most notably calm in expressing his opinions.
Not so, for Theresa Mucci-Rodgers, who quite clearly, has some issues with the City and present council. Just from listening to the broadcast last night, not going over it again yet today, her main issue is land. And what the City should do with it. And where the City should get it, in order to build the new fire hall. While I agree with some of what she said, namely that we shouldn’t spend $3 million for a chunk of land, the rest of her speeches struck me as nothing more than angry tirades.
Larry Evans, also had a bit to say on the construction of a new fire hall – as he was a fire-fighter in this city for years, and later, fire chief, I tend to put a lot of stock in his opinion on this matter. He says we need a new fire hall. Okay. But where? No one has mentioned the piece of land directly behind the current fire hall, which the city must own. The fire dept stores some of its stuff there, and has practiced putting out vehicle fires there in years past. What is wrong with using this piece of land to build a new fire hall, and possibily incorporating the current fire hall, by upgrading it in the same manner as the (much older) City Hall? Nobody either asked this question, or addressed the possibility. It seems to be a given, that a new, large, piece of virgin land in the City is required. Bollocks.
Larry also seems to be a big proponent of issues important to Seniors. Makes sense to me, we’re all going to be old one day. He wants to turn the old hospital (when the new one is built) into a centre for Seniors, some place where they can see their doctors, get care and take the pressure off the regular hospital. Currently, a number of Seniors spend months in the hospital, waiting for spaces in area Care Homes, after it becomes clear that they can no longer remain in their own homes, for whatever reasons. I think Larry is onto something there.
As far as the rest of the new candidates go, Trevor Bolin has jumped on the “I was born and raised here and I love FSJ” bandwagon, created by Dan Davies and Larry Evans. Certainly, I’m not disputing that fact, but we’re not going to vote for a guy just because he was born here. He seems to be a committed partisan of businesses, big and small, which is understandable, given his day-job as a real estate agent. He didn’t rant and rave, but then again, he didn’t really seem to take a stand on any major issues. Except he was in favour of lower taxes. Everyone, the world over, is in favour of lower taxes. I've never met, or heard of anyone who wants to pay MORE taxes . . . have you?
Connie Wowchuck, from some anonymous town in Saskatchewan – I don’t recall her saying where she was from originally (perhaps the kids were fighting and I missed it?) – didn’t take a stand on any issues at the forum either. My impression was that she talked about what she did in Sask., how hard she worked and how good she was. Who cares? What is it about FSJ that makes her want to run for council, and where does she stand on the issues the voters are concerned about?
Now we come to the mayoral candidates. Which I think I’ll put in a different post, since they had the most questions directed to them.
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Here we go - Political Analysis Part I
First off, sorry for the long hiatus - I was reading the City's financial statements from 2004-2007, which are all available on line at fortstjohn.ca/, also preparations for Halloween got in the way.
It was a bit of hard slog, financial statements always are. But what I learned was this: Despite what many people in the community have said about the current council spending money hand over fist, I found that's not exactly correct. Spending has increased over the past few years, yes, but most of it makes perfect sense and its fairly easy to see where all the money has gone. And this is coming from someone who is not at all good at number-crunching. Thankfully, my spouse studied accounting at university and was able to clarify some points for me!
Note that I said "most" of the spending. The big change in the city's financial status came following the referendum on borrowing to build the Enerplex. That's when the City's spending jumped by $9 million. Prior to this, the City was essentially debt-free - an admirable goal Mayor Steve Thorlakson and council had been working towards for several years.
The referendum question was:
Are you in favour of the City of Fort St. John borrowing up to $15,000,000.00 to construct the Enerplex?
Now, here's my problem with this. It passed, which is technically fair and democratic. Yes, we need more ice. BUT of the 13,045 registered voters at the time of the referendum, only 1,669 voted. That's a mere 12.79% - hardly a good turn out. It seemed, then and now, like they were trying to put a rush on it. But it's well-known that there is a shortage of ice in the city. So another skating surface of some description is required.
Maybe you don't think so, and that's fine. Back in 1972, when the original Rec Centre was built, people thought that was unnecessary and a waste of money too. No doubt, there will always be people who are against spending money. That's fine too. Obviously, I'm unhappy with the fact that the referendum passed with only a 13% turnout. The other thing is, one of our great claims to fame, as a city, was that we had one of the few outdoor Olympic sized speed skating ovals in the Province. And we've sent several speed skaters to the Olympics, who have trained on this ice. Plus, it was great for recreational skating too. Now, our outdoor oval is a construction site (although it does reappear in winter at the Bert Bowes track), and there are limited opportunities for recreational outdoor skating. Doubtless, we're going to have to pay through the nose to skate indoors at the Enerplex.
So, that's my rant and analysis for the day. Not very analytical, I know, but still. Tonight is the all-candidates forum at the Northern Grand Hotel (aka Pioneer Inn). So that should be interesting. I'm interested to hear the candidates views. Most of those who have websites haven't updated them recently, so more information would be welcome at this point in the campaign.
Be informed, and get out to the forum!! I'm going to try to make it!! Thanks for reading.
It was a bit of hard slog, financial statements always are. But what I learned was this: Despite what many people in the community have said about the current council spending money hand over fist, I found that's not exactly correct. Spending has increased over the past few years, yes, but most of it makes perfect sense and its fairly easy to see where all the money has gone. And this is coming from someone who is not at all good at number-crunching. Thankfully, my spouse studied accounting at university and was able to clarify some points for me!
Note that I said "most" of the spending. The big change in the city's financial status came following the referendum on borrowing to build the Enerplex. That's when the City's spending jumped by $9 million. Prior to this, the City was essentially debt-free - an admirable goal Mayor Steve Thorlakson and council had been working towards for several years.
The referendum question was:
Are you in favour of the City of Fort St. John borrowing up to $15,000,000.00 to construct the Enerplex?
Now, here's my problem with this. It passed, which is technically fair and democratic. Yes, we need more ice. BUT of the 13,045 registered voters at the time of the referendum, only 1,669 voted. That's a mere 12.79% - hardly a good turn out. It seemed, then and now, like they were trying to put a rush on it. But it's well-known that there is a shortage of ice in the city. So another skating surface of some description is required.
Maybe you don't think so, and that's fine. Back in 1972, when the original Rec Centre was built, people thought that was unnecessary and a waste of money too. No doubt, there will always be people who are against spending money. That's fine too. Obviously, I'm unhappy with the fact that the referendum passed with only a 13% turnout. The other thing is, one of our great claims to fame, as a city, was that we had one of the few outdoor Olympic sized speed skating ovals in the Province. And we've sent several speed skaters to the Olympics, who have trained on this ice. Plus, it was great for recreational skating too. Now, our outdoor oval is a construction site (although it does reappear in winter at the Bert Bowes track), and there are limited opportunities for recreational outdoor skating. Doubtless, we're going to have to pay through the nose to skate indoors at the Enerplex.
So, that's my rant and analysis for the day. Not very analytical, I know, but still. Tonight is the all-candidates forum at the Northern Grand Hotel (aka Pioneer Inn). So that should be interesting. I'm interested to hear the candidates views. Most of those who have websites haven't updated them recently, so more information would be welcome at this point in the campaign.
Be informed, and get out to the forum!! I'm going to try to make it!! Thanks for reading.
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Political analysis on hold for today
My analysis of municipal politics in FSJ is on hold for today - I'm looking for some information, and I still have a book to write.
So, I'm working on getting Chapter 8 back into the computer, and then it's off into the wilds of Chapter 9 and beyond!! Eight chapters down, only around 30 more to go!! Yay.
In putting it back into the computer, I changed/edited things a bit, and hopefully made it more exciting, I think I've set it up for an interesting twist later on. We'll see how it turns out.
Meanwhile, Ch. 8 awaits . . .
Thanks for reading!!
So, I'm working on getting Chapter 8 back into the computer, and then it's off into the wilds of Chapter 9 and beyond!! Eight chapters down, only around 30 more to go!! Yay.
In putting it back into the computer, I changed/edited things a bit, and hopefully made it more exciting, I think I've set it up for an interesting twist later on. We'll see how it turns out.
Meanwhile, Ch. 8 awaits . . .
Thanks for reading!!
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
The Energetic City - Fort St. John, BC
In the 206 years since development first began in the community now known as Fort St. John, British Columbia, phenomenal changes have taken place, many of them in the last 20 years. Founded as a trading post in 1794, Fort St. John grew with the gold rush and with the construction of the Alaska Highway, and continued that growth with the help of discovery of the natural resources of oil and natural gas, development of a forest industry and the continued growth of agriculture in the North Peace region.
“Looking back over the last 15 years that I’ve been involved in local government, there have been some phenomenal changes and improvements,” said Fort St. John Mayor Steve Thorlakson. In 1986, when Thorlakson was first elected to council, the city was bankrupt. “We had more liabilities than assets, taxes were increasing, and vacancies were running at 30-40 per cent.”
“Since that time we have made some huge progress in getting our own house in order — all of the property the city took back in tax sales has been sold, almost all of it has either been developed or is in the process of being developed,” said Thorlakson. For the last three years the city has had over $25 million in building permits a year, which he says is “quite astounding”, when you think of the amount of construction that has taken place in the past couple of years. Fort St. John’s construction increase has put the city on a par with Prince George, a city which is close to five times the size of Fort St. John.
ENERGY —
The nature and character of the oil patch has changed dramatically, said Thorlakson. “It used to be that about 65-70 per cent of our oil patch activity was exploration-driven. At this point in time, it’s more like 40 per cent exploration, and 60 per cent production-driven. Production is considerably steadier, more stable and more consistent — the type of economy we have today is totally different from that of 15 years ago. The booms and busts of the past, I think, are unlikely to repeat themselves.”
The petroleum industry in the North Peace is a driving force in both the local and provincial economy, with revenues from this area supplying the provincial government with much-needed funds in times when the economy of the rest of British Columbia is not faring as well as in the North. As the hub of the industry in British Columbia, and the gateway to the vast resources of northern British Columbia and beyond, Fort St. John is also home to a large service sector. Companies located in Fort St. John provide everything from road building and equipment hauling services, to well-testing, pipeline construction and drilling to a wide variety of companies from across Canada and the United States which come to the North Peace to seek out new reserves and to produce proven wells.
Construction of the Alliance Pipeline continued throughout the winter, and will deliver 37.5 million cubic metres of natural gas per day through 24-inch and 42-inch pipelines to consumers in Chicago, upon completion. Currently, the winter construction of this project is finished for the 1999-2000 season, with work expected to resume in May, when the pipeline will be completed from Mile 73 of the Alaska Highway, through to Taylor, BC. In January 2000, the reconstruction and expansion of the Solex Gas Liquids Extraction Plant in Taylor was completed and the plant is once again fully operational.
The provincial government created the Oil and Gas Commission in September 1998, and since that time it has succeeded in streamlining the applications process for oil and gas companies, as well as providing opportunities for First Nations to be involved in the industry, through consultation and employment, and acting as a source of information for all stakeholders in the industry.
As a result of this streamlined process and higher natural gas prices, in January and February 2000, a new record was set in the petroleum industry when, according to figures supplied by the Oil and Gas Commission, there were 130 rigs operating in British Columbia. The previous record was 98 rigs operating in 1980.
FORESTRY —
The forest industry too, has seen many changes in the past few years. There has been a significant amount of development in the industry over the last 15 years, said Thorlakson, but what may be more apparent is the promise of the future of the industry.
“We have a value-added manufacturer right in town, we are anxiously awaiting the announcement of Louisiana-Pacific and Slocan proposals. The potential there is absolutely staggering — LP alone was talking in the neighborhood of $280 million, creating 475 direct jobs, and 1200 indirect jobs which could trigger a population increase of an additional 3,000 - 4,000 people, over and above our normal rate of growth, which is about 2.5 - 3 per cent,” he said.
Because of the potential population growth, the LP and Slocan proposals could trigger housing starts like the city has never seen, said Thorlakson. For years the city had 20 housing starts per year, and in the last few years, the city has seen 130 – 140 housing starts a year — a figure which places Fort St. John well ahead of Prince George. When construction of the Slocan and Louisiana-Pacific plants begins, this will put the city’s construction value into the “mega-millions”, said Thorlakson.
Of the forestry companies currently operating in the North Peace, Canfor has two lumber mills, located near the airport and in Taylor. The Fort St. John mills produces approximately 168 million board feet of lumber each year, while the Taylor mill produces 73 million board feet of lumber.
The Fibreco Pulp mill in Taylor, which is owned by Slocan Forest Products, produces approximately 240,000 tonnes annually of bleached chemi-thermo mechanical pulp ranging from high brightness tissue and towelling grades to low brightness newsprint grades of paper, made from northern softwood woodchips.
AGRICULTURE —
Agriculture too, has seen many changes in the past 20 years, Thorlakson said. “Twenty years ago we were mainly a grain and seed economy in the North Peace, livestock was a major industry, but not nearly as significant as it is now. The cattle ranchers have been having some tremendously good years. At this point in time, there is more cattle in the Peace Country than there is in the Cariboo, which used to be regarded as the cattle country of BC.”
The North Peace, said Thorlakson, has among the lowest debt per farm and the lowest number of farm failures in the entire country. “There are lots of prospects as well, and many specialty things going on — everything from ostriches to lily bulbs, llamas and bison are being raised very successfully here. Agriculture continues to be a growth industry.”
The majority of the province’s grains are grown in the BC Peace, including canola, barley, oats and wheat, and at the same time, a world-class grass seed industry is emerging, competing on a level-playing field with grass seed growers in the United States.
Cattle ranching has grown by leaps and bounds over the past two decades, with some very large operations having between 15,000 and 20,000 head of cattle. Each year approximately 60,000 calves from the BC Peace find their way to cattle auctions.
Sheep farming too, is a fast growing facet of BC Peace agriculture, with the number of sheep sold at the annual sheep auction in Dawson Creek growing each year, and setting records five years in a row. In 1999, the auction introduced video, whereby producers can show and sell their sheep without having to make the long trek to Dawson Creek to sell their produce. They then deliver the sheep directly to the purchaser.
DEVELOPMENT —
All sectors of the economy in the North Peace are growing at a solid, steady pace, said Thorlakson. While energy continues to be the facet of the economy which has gained the most attention, it is not the only area which is growing.
With that growth comes new development, and the city has received proposals and expressions of interest from a variety of businesses and companies which are interested in making investments in Fort St. John. In addition to the potential forest industry expansions proposed by Slocan Forest Products and Louisiana-Pacific, the Murray GM group has purchased a piece of land on 100 Ave. near the Alaska Highway to build a new car dealership, with an estimated value of $16 million. A Pizza Hut and Taco Bell facility will soon be completed, and a multiplex movie theatre is planned for the former Safeway location in the Totem Mall. Recently, Safeway completed construction of British Columbia’s largest supermarket in Fort St. John, something Thorlakson says they would not likely do on idle speculation. They must have faith in the long term stability of the community to construct such a project, he said.
“All development in the city has to be landscaped,” said Thorlakson. “The residents of this community are entitled to have a high quality of life, and we must have high standards to provide that quality of life.”
Although the city is insisting on high standards for projects which are constructed in Fort St. John, this doesn’t mean the community is not business-friendly. “People from all over are looking at Fort St. John as a place to do business, and we will work with them.”
City manager Colin Griffith says the city’s arms are wide open to accommodate any business that wants to invest in the community. “We will do anything we can to facilitate their needs and get them involved in the community,” said Griffith. “The increase in oil and gas activity means we will have to continue to upgrade the city infrastructure, to handle the existing population and the expected growth.”
FUTURE —
Over the past few years, the city has worked to re-position itself to make Fort St. John much more attractive and competitive than in the past. Thorlakson says that by creating a strategic plan in cooperation with the Chamber of Commerce to change the city’s self-image, they have dramatically improved the sense of pride and confidence in the community, through the use of a new slogan — The Energetic City — city beautification campaigns and the hosting of Oil and Gas Week.
Under the guidance of City Manager Colin Griffith, the city has moved away from “micro-management”, said Thorlakson, and into broader policy making, goal setting and looking toward the future. “The outcome of that was a whole range of policies to put the city on a very sound financial footing, to substantially ease the burden on our taxpayers, and to enhance the quality of life in the community.”
As proof of their commitment, the city has not increased taxes for seven consecutive years. This has yielded approximately $12 million in savings, particularly to the business community. The city has a policy to not take on any long-term debt in its general fund account — apart from the recently completed water system and the sewer improvement project currently under way, Thorlakson says the city will be debt free in five years.
The next phase, Thorlakson says, is to make sure the city is as competitive as possible with Grande Prairie for the energy service industry. Much of this industry is still run out of Grande Prairie, yet more and more of the industry is moving into the region north of Fort St. John to Fort Nelson and the Fort Liard area. “It makes an awful lot of sense for that to based out of Fort St. John, not Grande Prairie.”
“We’re competitive now — and that’s taking everything into consideration, including PST (according to a government competitiveness study). With that, we think we’re going to see a lot more development, and we’ve got to be positioned so we can handle it,” said Thorlakson. “We need to remain focussed on making sure we’re trying to correct some long-standing problems, and that the city we hand over to our children is one that will be on a proper footing, be fairly financed, and provide the best quality of life to everyone possible.”
“I don’t think it’s exaggerating to say that we could very well be the size and have the cosmopolitan nature of Grande Prairie within 15 years,” said Thorlakson. “Our economy is one of the most diverse in the province,” Thorlakson said, based on figures gathered by the provincial government. “If we have a serious downturn in one sector, it will cause serious problems to individuals and businesses. We’re in a situation where, because we have that diversification, we are much better positioned for the future.”
This article (written by me) was originally published in the May/June 2000 issue of NorthWest Business Magazine.
“Looking back over the last 15 years that I’ve been involved in local government, there have been some phenomenal changes and improvements,” said Fort St. John Mayor Steve Thorlakson. In 1986, when Thorlakson was first elected to council, the city was bankrupt. “We had more liabilities than assets, taxes were increasing, and vacancies were running at 30-40 per cent.”
“Since that time we have made some huge progress in getting our own house in order — all of the property the city took back in tax sales has been sold, almost all of it has either been developed or is in the process of being developed,” said Thorlakson. For the last three years the city has had over $25 million in building permits a year, which he says is “quite astounding”, when you think of the amount of construction that has taken place in the past couple of years. Fort St. John’s construction increase has put the city on a par with Prince George, a city which is close to five times the size of Fort St. John.
ENERGY —
The nature and character of the oil patch has changed dramatically, said Thorlakson. “It used to be that about 65-70 per cent of our oil patch activity was exploration-driven. At this point in time, it’s more like 40 per cent exploration, and 60 per cent production-driven. Production is considerably steadier, more stable and more consistent — the type of economy we have today is totally different from that of 15 years ago. The booms and busts of the past, I think, are unlikely to repeat themselves.”
The petroleum industry in the North Peace is a driving force in both the local and provincial economy, with revenues from this area supplying the provincial government with much-needed funds in times when the economy of the rest of British Columbia is not faring as well as in the North. As the hub of the industry in British Columbia, and the gateway to the vast resources of northern British Columbia and beyond, Fort St. John is also home to a large service sector. Companies located in Fort St. John provide everything from road building and equipment hauling services, to well-testing, pipeline construction and drilling to a wide variety of companies from across Canada and the United States which come to the North Peace to seek out new reserves and to produce proven wells.
Construction of the Alliance Pipeline continued throughout the winter, and will deliver 37.5 million cubic metres of natural gas per day through 24-inch and 42-inch pipelines to consumers in Chicago, upon completion. Currently, the winter construction of this project is finished for the 1999-2000 season, with work expected to resume in May, when the pipeline will be completed from Mile 73 of the Alaska Highway, through to Taylor, BC. In January 2000, the reconstruction and expansion of the Solex Gas Liquids Extraction Plant in Taylor was completed and the plant is once again fully operational.
The provincial government created the Oil and Gas Commission in September 1998, and since that time it has succeeded in streamlining the applications process for oil and gas companies, as well as providing opportunities for First Nations to be involved in the industry, through consultation and employment, and acting as a source of information for all stakeholders in the industry.
As a result of this streamlined process and higher natural gas prices, in January and February 2000, a new record was set in the petroleum industry when, according to figures supplied by the Oil and Gas Commission, there were 130 rigs operating in British Columbia. The previous record was 98 rigs operating in 1980.
FORESTRY —
The forest industry too, has seen many changes in the past few years. There has been a significant amount of development in the industry over the last 15 years, said Thorlakson, but what may be more apparent is the promise of the future of the industry.
“We have a value-added manufacturer right in town, we are anxiously awaiting the announcement of Louisiana-Pacific and Slocan proposals. The potential there is absolutely staggering — LP alone was talking in the neighborhood of $280 million, creating 475 direct jobs, and 1200 indirect jobs which could trigger a population increase of an additional 3,000 - 4,000 people, over and above our normal rate of growth, which is about 2.5 - 3 per cent,” he said.
Because of the potential population growth, the LP and Slocan proposals could trigger housing starts like the city has never seen, said Thorlakson. For years the city had 20 housing starts per year, and in the last few years, the city has seen 130 – 140 housing starts a year — a figure which places Fort St. John well ahead of Prince George. When construction of the Slocan and Louisiana-Pacific plants begins, this will put the city’s construction value into the “mega-millions”, said Thorlakson.
Of the forestry companies currently operating in the North Peace, Canfor has two lumber mills, located near the airport and in Taylor. The Fort St. John mills produces approximately 168 million board feet of lumber each year, while the Taylor mill produces 73 million board feet of lumber.
The Fibreco Pulp mill in Taylor, which is owned by Slocan Forest Products, produces approximately 240,000 tonnes annually of bleached chemi-thermo mechanical pulp ranging from high brightness tissue and towelling grades to low brightness newsprint grades of paper, made from northern softwood woodchips.
AGRICULTURE —
Agriculture too, has seen many changes in the past 20 years, Thorlakson said. “Twenty years ago we were mainly a grain and seed economy in the North Peace, livestock was a major industry, but not nearly as significant as it is now. The cattle ranchers have been having some tremendously good years. At this point in time, there is more cattle in the Peace Country than there is in the Cariboo, which used to be regarded as the cattle country of BC.”
The North Peace, said Thorlakson, has among the lowest debt per farm and the lowest number of farm failures in the entire country. “There are lots of prospects as well, and many specialty things going on — everything from ostriches to lily bulbs, llamas and bison are being raised very successfully here. Agriculture continues to be a growth industry.”
The majority of the province’s grains are grown in the BC Peace, including canola, barley, oats and wheat, and at the same time, a world-class grass seed industry is emerging, competing on a level-playing field with grass seed growers in the United States.
Cattle ranching has grown by leaps and bounds over the past two decades, with some very large operations having between 15,000 and 20,000 head of cattle. Each year approximately 60,000 calves from the BC Peace find their way to cattle auctions.
Sheep farming too, is a fast growing facet of BC Peace agriculture, with the number of sheep sold at the annual sheep auction in Dawson Creek growing each year, and setting records five years in a row. In 1999, the auction introduced video, whereby producers can show and sell their sheep without having to make the long trek to Dawson Creek to sell their produce. They then deliver the sheep directly to the purchaser.
DEVELOPMENT —
All sectors of the economy in the North Peace are growing at a solid, steady pace, said Thorlakson. While energy continues to be the facet of the economy which has gained the most attention, it is not the only area which is growing.
With that growth comes new development, and the city has received proposals and expressions of interest from a variety of businesses and companies which are interested in making investments in Fort St. John. In addition to the potential forest industry expansions proposed by Slocan Forest Products and Louisiana-Pacific, the Murray GM group has purchased a piece of land on 100 Ave. near the Alaska Highway to build a new car dealership, with an estimated value of $16 million. A Pizza Hut and Taco Bell facility will soon be completed, and a multiplex movie theatre is planned for the former Safeway location in the Totem Mall. Recently, Safeway completed construction of British Columbia’s largest supermarket in Fort St. John, something Thorlakson says they would not likely do on idle speculation. They must have faith in the long term stability of the community to construct such a project, he said.
“All development in the city has to be landscaped,” said Thorlakson. “The residents of this community are entitled to have a high quality of life, and we must have high standards to provide that quality of life.”
Although the city is insisting on high standards for projects which are constructed in Fort St. John, this doesn’t mean the community is not business-friendly. “People from all over are looking at Fort St. John as a place to do business, and we will work with them.”
City manager Colin Griffith says the city’s arms are wide open to accommodate any business that wants to invest in the community. “We will do anything we can to facilitate their needs and get them involved in the community,” said Griffith. “The increase in oil and gas activity means we will have to continue to upgrade the city infrastructure, to handle the existing population and the expected growth.”
FUTURE —
Over the past few years, the city has worked to re-position itself to make Fort St. John much more attractive and competitive than in the past. Thorlakson says that by creating a strategic plan in cooperation with the Chamber of Commerce to change the city’s self-image, they have dramatically improved the sense of pride and confidence in the community, through the use of a new slogan — The Energetic City — city beautification campaigns and the hosting of Oil and Gas Week.
Under the guidance of City Manager Colin Griffith, the city has moved away from “micro-management”, said Thorlakson, and into broader policy making, goal setting and looking toward the future. “The outcome of that was a whole range of policies to put the city on a very sound financial footing, to substantially ease the burden on our taxpayers, and to enhance the quality of life in the community.”
As proof of their commitment, the city has not increased taxes for seven consecutive years. This has yielded approximately $12 million in savings, particularly to the business community. The city has a policy to not take on any long-term debt in its general fund account — apart from the recently completed water system and the sewer improvement project currently under way, Thorlakson says the city will be debt free in five years.
The next phase, Thorlakson says, is to make sure the city is as competitive as possible with Grande Prairie for the energy service industry. Much of this industry is still run out of Grande Prairie, yet more and more of the industry is moving into the region north of Fort St. John to Fort Nelson and the Fort Liard area. “It makes an awful lot of sense for that to based out of Fort St. John, not Grande Prairie.”
“We’re competitive now — and that’s taking everything into consideration, including PST (according to a government competitiveness study). With that, we think we’re going to see a lot more development, and we’ve got to be positioned so we can handle it,” said Thorlakson. “We need to remain focussed on making sure we’re trying to correct some long-standing problems, and that the city we hand over to our children is one that will be on a proper footing, be fairly financed, and provide the best quality of life to everyone possible.”
“I don’t think it’s exaggerating to say that we could very well be the size and have the cosmopolitan nature of Grande Prairie within 15 years,” said Thorlakson. “Our economy is one of the most diverse in the province,” Thorlakson said, based on figures gathered by the provincial government. “If we have a serious downturn in one sector, it will cause serious problems to individuals and businesses. We’re in a situation where, because we have that diversification, we are much better positioned for the future.”
This article (written by me) was originally published in the May/June 2000 issue of NorthWest Business Magazine.
Succumbing to Election Fever!!
That's right, I've succumbed to election fever - Fort St. John's municipal election, that is. I realized yesterday, that I've been disgustingly UN-informed for the past few years . . . an inexcusable situation for me, since I used to be in the media and knew everything that was going on at City Hall. Okay, I've been busy at home, having and raising our children, and I was boycotting the Alaska Highway News for awhile because, they, in my opinion, couldn't write a coherent sentence or get the facts right if their lives depended on it - but those people have either been tuned in, or left the paper in the last year.
So, I now have no-one to blame for my ignorance, except myself. A situation I propose to rectify. Immediately.
Before I start pontificating on what the current city council has done wrong, or right, let me start by saying that I don't believe any ONE person is responsible for the things that have gone on in the past three years. After-all, there are 7 people on council (6 councillors and a mayor), and they all have a vote. And I don't think that any of the people on council are bad people. Obviously, some collective un-wise decisions have been made, but I don't think they were made maliciously. Some of the councillors, and indeed, the mayor, I know personally, and they're all good people. As are some of those running for election, other than the incumbents. I don't know them all, obviously, Fort St. John is a much bigger city than it used to be.
Join me in my battle against political ignorance, as I analyse what they've done, what they shouldn't have done and what all the candidates propose to do differently - if they think change is needed. This analysis will start at the beginning in 2000, when I wrote an article on Fort St. John, for the community focus section of Northwest Business Magazine.
Thanks for reading!
So, I now have no-one to blame for my ignorance, except myself. A situation I propose to rectify. Immediately.
Before I start pontificating on what the current city council has done wrong, or right, let me start by saying that I don't believe any ONE person is responsible for the things that have gone on in the past three years. After-all, there are 7 people on council (6 councillors and a mayor), and they all have a vote. And I don't think that any of the people on council are bad people. Obviously, some collective un-wise decisions have been made, but I don't think they were made maliciously. Some of the councillors, and indeed, the mayor, I know personally, and they're all good people. As are some of those running for election, other than the incumbents. I don't know them all, obviously, Fort St. John is a much bigger city than it used to be.
Join me in my battle against political ignorance, as I analyse what they've done, what they shouldn't have done and what all the candidates propose to do differently - if they think change is needed. This analysis will start at the beginning in 2000, when I wrote an article on Fort St. John, for the community focus section of Northwest Business Magazine.
Thanks for reading!
Friday, October 17, 2008
WooHoo!! I got another hit!!
Thank God the manuscript of Cold Cuts was not obliterated for all time when my USB stick/drive bit the dust. I got an email today from Second Story Press, requesting to see the entire manuscript, based on the five chapters I sent out to them in March.
Yeah, it took a long time, and I was beginning to think perhaps they didn't like it . . . but since Second Story is a small press, apparently the editors read the submissions on their own time. Which is cool, I'd rather have waited a long time for a positive reply than get rejected right off the bat.
So, I'm firing up the printer today and spitting out the 300 or so pages that is Cold Cuts, and heading off to the friendly Canada Post office.
In other news, I started putting Dead of Winter back into the computer yesterday, and although I've only managed to get one chapter written - thanks to endless interruptions from the kiddos - it's good to have an un-gobble-dee-gooked (yes, this isn't proper English, I know) copy to work on again.
But now, on to Chapter Two . . . while printing out Cold Cuts . . . good thing I can have two windows open at once, and the new printer collates the pages for me!!
Cross your fingers for me please, that Cold Cuts, and RCMP Constable Sherry Maddison have finally found themselves a home.
Yeah, it took a long time, and I was beginning to think perhaps they didn't like it . . . but since Second Story is a small press, apparently the editors read the submissions on their own time. Which is cool, I'd rather have waited a long time for a positive reply than get rejected right off the bat.
So, I'm firing up the printer today and spitting out the 300 or so pages that is Cold Cuts, and heading off to the friendly Canada Post office.
In other news, I started putting Dead of Winter back into the computer yesterday, and although I've only managed to get one chapter written - thanks to endless interruptions from the kiddos - it's good to have an un-gobble-dee-gooked (yes, this isn't proper English, I know) copy to work on again.
But now, on to Chapter Two . . . while printing out Cold Cuts . . . good thing I can have two windows open at once, and the new printer collates the pages for me!!
Cross your fingers for me please, that Cold Cuts, and RCMP Constable Sherry Maddison have finally found themselves a home.
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