Special Council

So good evening, everyone.

The council meetings called to order, and I'd like to acknowledge that we are within the traditional territories of the Esquimalt and Songhees Nations.

This meeting is being held under the auspices of Ministerial Order M192 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the public health officers' orders.

This evening we will hear from the public during the public participation and question period portions of the agenda.

If you wish to provide comments by telephone, dial 778-402-9227 and when prompted, enter conference ID 164-483-89 pound at the appropriate time of the agenda.

I will then ask for your comments.

If you're providing comments through the chat feature, that feature is open during the meeting, and we again ask for your name and address in order to use the chat the chat feature.

This meeting will be recorded by participating in this webcast.

You are consenting to being recorded, and the recording will be available on the town's website for future access.

And so, with that, if I can get a motion to approve the agenda, please.

Okay, thank you.

Moved by Councillor Rogers, seconded by Councillor Lemon.

All in favor, opposed, that's carried.

Mayor's report.

Um, earlier today, our CAO sent out an email to everyone.

It it has the the subject line is COVID 19 resilience infrastructure.

Um, and he's he's just out looking for responses on a grant opportunity.

So if everyone could please make a point of finding that and replying to him before tomorrow morning, that would be great.

And I think we reply often.

Thank you.

And I think it's also worth noting that yesterday was kind of a momentous day for the capital region because quietly our sewage started being treated.

And so for the first time ever, all of you royals sewage is being treated rather than being pumped out and screened.

And and I think it's worth acknowledging that.

There's been an incredible amount of work at the CRD, and um we're we're acting or live 16 days before the deadline, um, and a lot of didn't think we'd ever make the deadline.

So I want to congratulate the CRD and just um make that acknowledgement.

And carrying on, there's no petitions and delegations.

I'm fairly sure there's no one on the line for public participation, but I'll just check with staff.

You're correct, your worship.

We have no uh public callers tonight.

Okay, thank you.

And so we're gonna go right to the staff report, which I'm just trying to get there in the agenda.

Or right to bylaws, which is um 10A.

So did staff wanna give us a brief call's notes on this?

Sure, we can do that.

The um the issue has to do with the uh Victoria Highland Games Association possession of provincial property.

The possession took place earlier this year, and as a result, the supplementary assessment was done in late November.

The end result is that the uh association becomes taxable.

And while the deadline for the twenty twenty-one year has passed for a bylaw exempting the property in twenty twenty-one, we are still proposing that the bylaw include twenty twenty-one so that we can make solicitations with those that have the uh authority to actually exempt the property for the uh upcoming tax year.

The property has been taxed for this year.

The uh the cost to them is roughly twenty thousand dollars and that will be uh dealt with them and us in our near future.

Okay.

Thank you.

Are there any questions from council?

Not a yeah, I do I have a question.

Go ahead.

So um one of my concerns about providing exemptions for nonprofits is that other people will say well you know if you're providing for one why not provide for the other?

And I guess in this case by noting that it always was a provincial property and we're just sort of following on into taxes and related to when it used to be a provincial property, it somehow differentiates between that and all the other good nonprofits we have in town.

And anyways, I think we need to make some sort of differentiation.

Otherwise um this is just as by or just as good a car uh candidate for uh for not for no taxes as any of the other nonprofits.

I I certainly agree we need to have a policy, although I do think this one is in line with the fact that we give both the strawberry veil.

Royal.

I think we do like the the I can't think of their name right now.

I was just there the other day smiling with Christmas stock.

Extreme outreach.

Like I need to delineate it better, but I'm I'm certainly supportive of this historical subject.

So can go ahead.

You're muted.

Oh right.

Um I'm not.

Um which um not for profits are property holders?

Strawberry Vale, but extreme outreach isn't, is it?

Yeah, they own a property in Helmcken Square.

They own it.

Okay.

I I assume they they were they were leasing or renting.

Okay, thank you.

Councillor Rogers.

Yeah um I have no uh no problem with the tax exemption one because it's a heritage site um and uh um these there are are gonna be stewards of of that manner.

Um I would just hope that with us um waiving the taxes that indeed the Highland Society uh with their conference center and so forth will start investing in the uh uh restoration and and maintenance of the building and holding it having it uh open uh so we can start getting the public and shot.

So that's I hope that it's in the reciprocate uh agreement on that.

Yeah, I think that's their plan.

So if there's no more questions, we just need a motion for first, second, and third of bylaw 1064.

You loose by that.

I'll just move receipt of the report.

Sure.

Yeah.

Okay, so receipt of the report is moved by counselor Rogers.

Seconded by Councillor Lemon.

And then move bylaw 10 seconds.

All in favor, sorry.

Opposed, that's carried.

And Councilor Rogers is moving first, second, and third of bylaw 1064.

Second.

Seconded by Councillor Mattson.

All in favor.

Any opposed?

None opposed, that's carried.

Good.

Thank you, Councillor.

And thank you, staff, for getting that on the agenda so quickly.

It was a bit of a panic, but I think it's worthwhile to see if we can exempt them for 2021.

It's still not a slam dunk because the BC Assessment Authority has to cooperate as well.

So we shall see.

There's no new business.

I'm gonna guess once again that there's likely no public on the line for question period.

You would be correct, your worship.

Thank you.

Nobody there.

And then I'll look to Sarah just for uh closed meeting resolution.

Uh thank you, your worship, that there is a need to have a meeting closed to the public.

And persons other than the immediate member members of council, officers, and employees of the town, and those identified under section 91 subsection two of the community charter shall be excluded on the basis of section 90, subsection 1E, land.

Okay.

Moved by counselor rogers, seconded by counselor Lemon.

All in favor.

Opposed.

That's carried.

Now we're we shall go in camera.