A new YWCA facility for abused women and their offspring, a pesticide reduction strategy, and clean energy are some of the issues that will be discussed this week at city hall.
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Rick Pusiak |
The women?s and children?s emergency shelter was scheduled to come up for discussion at last night?s (Tuesday?s) planning committee meeting.
The province announced an allocation of $2.8 million in funding for the construction of the shelter in August 2001.
The old and much renovated Genevra House facility is boxed in on Elm Street near the courthouse with limited outdoor recreation space. A site with a neighbourhood atmosphere and privacy has been selected on St. Raphael Street, off Howey Drive. The area needs to be rezoned before construction can begin.
Some residents in the area object to the project. Basically they have a ?not in my back yard? attitude.
YWCA executive director for the Sudbury region, Colette Prevost, said the new building will handle the emergency residential component of the shelter for women and children experiencing violence.
Administration offices with four or five staff members would also be located there, as well as a program to help those with developmental disabilities.
The Genevra House site on Elm may continue to offer programs like non-emergency housing. Discussions are ongoing with community partners to see what will happen to that existing building.
?We don?t have a decision on that yet,? said Prevost. ?What we have to determine is whether we can afford to keep the downtown shelter open.?
Following the presentation to planning committee, the project still needs to be approved by city council Thursday night.
The best case scenario would be tendering of the project in March with site development in April, and a finished building in the fall.
Once complete, the one-floor building would cover about 12,000 square feet, about 4,000 square feet dedicated to office space with the rest set aside for 32 beds for guest accommodation.
City staff recommend the project be approved.
Tonight (Wednesday) members of the city?s priorities committee will vote on a motion to direct staff to develop a pesticide reduction strategy with the goal of eventual elimination of pesticide use on city-owned land.
The recommendation also suggests any pesticide reduction strategy be accompanied by an awareness and education campaign focused on discouraging use of pesticides on private property.
That program would be subject to approval of a minimum of $30,000 in the 2003 budget process for the campaign.
Last June a Supreme Court decision allowed the Town of Hudson, Que., to legally pass a bylaw controlling the use and application of pesticides within the municipality and paved the way for other Canadian municipalities to do the same.
The Canadian Cancer Society, the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment, the Ontario Public Health Association, the Ontario College of Family Physicians, The Registered Nurses Association of Ontario and the Humane Society of Canada have all issued statements calling for at minimum a reduction in synthetic pesticide use.
There are fears of serious threats to human and environmental health.
If councillors approve, Phase 1 of the Sudbury effort would be initiated in January and involve consensus building among city staff responsible for maintenance on various city-owned land.
A technology transfer workshop would also be held early in the new year to allow key maintenance staff from other municipalities to share their experience on pesticide reduction.
Council is expected to go on the record again at its regularly scheduled meeting Thursday night about the need for clean energy.
The elected officials will vote on a motion to request the municipally created EarthCare Sudbury Steering Committee work with the Greater Sudbury Development Corporation to identify new economic strategies and funding opportunities that could be levered by a provincial government initiative called the Policy Framework for Alternative Fuels and Energy.
A report with recommendations would then be made to council.
The city is in the process of developing a community energy plan to reduce the city?s dependence on outside power by 50 per cent through local generation of so-called ?green? energy.
Sudbury also recently approved a partnership agreement with Northland Power Inc. and REPower Wind Corporation to develop a 50-megawatt wind farm.
The motion was put forward by Ward 4 representative Dave Kilgour and Ward 6 councillor Dave Courtemanche.
Also Thursday the elected officials will vote on a motion authored by Mayor Jim Gordon that will set the tone for budget deliberations.
The mayor wants council to direct the chief administrative officer and staff as well as municipal agencies to prepare the 2003 budget using what?s called modified zero based budget principles.
That would include detailed service level options for existing and future cost centres with the view of beginning budget building with no tax hike.
Gordon?s motion states it is the role of elected officials to listen to their constituents.
?What we hear is a resounding call, particularly from our seniors, those of fixed incomes and the business community that Council must be exceedingly prudent in matters of a financial nature,? reads a section of the motion.
The budget is expected to be hammered out by March.
