Castlegar city council approved a plan for a pilot project that will allow up to seven residential properties within city limits to keep bee hives. The project will last for 18 months beginning March 1.
A maximum of four colonies per parcel will be allowed. There is a lengthy list of guidelines for participants including minimum lot size, compliance with the BC Animal Health Act, possession of a Ministry of Agriculture bee keeper identification number, rules regarding placement of hives and installation of electric fencing.
Building Permits up by over $11 million
Year end building permits were valued at $23,269,716. This is significantly up from the 2015 total of $12,173,953.
Break down by category:
- Single Family $3,090,000
- Residential alterations $1,816,644
- New commercial $800,000
- Commercial alterations $3,282,169
- New institutional $13,800,000
- Institutional alterations $356,000
- Other $120,902
Pedestrian Bridge
A delegation representing the Downtown Business Group made a plea to council to help fund a feasibility study that will look at building a pedestrian bridge across the river from Selkirk College to Zuckerberg Island.
The group is proposing that building a bridge from the college to downtown Castlegar will help revitalize the downtown with financial and cultural benefits. They also think it would help students to better access affordable housing, provide an additional emergency exit route from the school and allow Selkirk to offer evening and weekend courses because access to bus transit would not be necessary.
The study will cost about $40,000. Columbia Basin Trust has committed to providing $20,000. The group asked the city for $10,000 and will be seeking the remaining amount from various sources including the regional district and Selkirk College.
The Downtown Business Group has already been working with COWI Consulting and TRUE Consulting from Trail. Both companies were involved in the construction of Trail's new pedestrian bridge.
Some councillors expressed concerns about preserving the heritage aspects of Zuckerberg Island and asked that consideration of those issues be included in the study. Council voted to send the proposal the the finance committee for consideration.
Business Licenses
Year end business license reports for 2016 are in and are slightly higher than than the previous year. A total of 679 licenses brought in $79,057 in fees. This is up by 5 licenses and $345.
Electric Vehicle Charger
Castlegar has been approved by the Community Energy Association (CEA) to receive two electric vehicle charging stations. The CEA is working with municipalities throughout 2017 to install EV charging stations throughout the Kootenay region. The project will be funded by the CEA. The Castlegar Visitor Centre has been slated as the best site for installation, but a site inspector and field inspector will be out in February to make a final determination.