Attendees:
John Sankey: Jerry Beausoleil has requested that approval of the April minutes be postponed.
Motion: To postpone approval of the April minutes. Moved by Peter Brimacombe, seconded by Christine Johnson, approved.
Nicole Espenant: Presented the Councillor's Report. The tower is a key part of the Airport Parkway Pedestrian Bridge. The contractor has agreed to tear it down and rebuild it because the concrete was deficient. There will be no additional expense to the City. The last item of the Report included a note about the City's new Smoke-Free Regulations.
Peter Brimacombe: Bars and restaurants have outdoor patios where people can be served and smoke. Smokers don't bother him.
Christine Johnson: She was at Chapters and noticed that men were in the parking lot smoking because they couldn't sit at the outside tables. The new regulations seem heavy-handed. What authority does the City have to impose these regulations?
John Sankey: Health and safety are the responsibility of the municipalities so the City does have the authority. In his experience smoking regulations tend to be heavy-handed. In the federal building in which he worked, a smoking room was forbidden despite the provision of an effective exhaust fan.
Marilyn Koch: She expressed sympathy for the new regulations. She hates to see parents smoking in a car with children.
Christine Johnson: She led a clean-up of the area around Sawmill Creek north of Hunt Club near Tucson's Restaurant. Six people filled up 25 bags of garbage which the City then collected. They really made a dent. Sawmill Creek south of Hunt Club is a designated park called [paradoxically] North Sawmill Creek. The area north of Hunt Club should be also designated as a park.
John Sankey: He and Marilyn Koch attended the Planning Summit put on by the City.
Marilyn Koch: The Mayor Jim Watson introduced the Summit. He spoke of certainty and the need to clarify what is allowed and what is not allowed. There were two speakers: Pamela Blais in the morning and Jeffery Tumlin in the afternoon.
John Sankey: He sent an e-mail to Mayor Jim Watson: "For me, the planning summit was a unique and exceptionally productive day. I especially commend the work of the staff to whom you entrusted the day's organization - it was flawlessly done."
Christine Johnson: She has worked with the Riverview Park Community. She is now retired and wants to add value by working with children, families and seniors. She was a school principal and would like to build better relations with the schools. She asked about a community newspaper.
John Sankey: There used to be a Hunt Club Community Newspaper which became The News and then EMC.
Next meeting: Monday, June 4 at 19:00