Christmas ritual Elementary school raises money for penny drive. PAGE 7 Cell tower Company aims to boost south-end service with new equipment. PAGE 18 Intimate music Choir concert celebrates Christmas with symphony. PAGE 3
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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 13, 2012
www.nanaimobulletin.com
VOL. 24, NO. 97
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Residents face 3.3-per cent tax-rate hike
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CITY COUNCIL gets first look at finances for next year. BY TOBY GORMAN THE NEWS BULLETIN
CHRIS BUSH/THE NEWS BULLETIN
Kim Kriss, left, and Tanice Foulds, group home workers and Hospital Employees Union members, fold coats and blankets donated for people in need at Diana Krall Plaza Wednesday. Community social services workers from Nanaimo Community Living took to charity instead of picketing group homes to make their point with the government that they need wage increases included in a new labour contract.
Charity event staged instead of job action BY CHRIS BUSH
THE NEWS BULLETIN
Instead of picketing group homes, social services workers in Nanaimo opted to back their demand for better wages by giving away coats, blankets and coffee Thursday. The job action happened at Diana Krall Plaza downtown, where Hospital Employees’ Union and Health Sciences Association members gave away clothing, cookies, hot chocolate and coffee to people in need. “We’re taking a different approach,” said Cheryl Colborne, Canadian Union of Public Employees community social services coordinator. “Rather than picketing and going to MLA offices, we’re actually bringing it back out to the street and the public, because this is the work that the members
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do – is work with all those most in need.” The unusual job action was staged from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. with about 20 social services workers at a time rotating through the plaza throughout the day as people came by to pick up free warm winter clothing. Colborne said the members would break from further job action until Jan. 7 and consider further measures if the government does not come back to the bargaining table. The union has been rotating strike action around the province since Oct. 16. “It’s just to say to the government, ‘We’re here. We’re not going away’,” Colborne said. “We’re going to continue job action. We have to. This sector is in desperate and dire need of wage increases and improvements to the collective agreement.” photos@nanaimobulletin.com
The city’s 2013-2017 provisional financial plan arrived on the desks of city council Monday with two notable differences from past years – a one-per cent tax-rate increase built in for all property classes to address asset management for each of the next five years, and budgeting prioritized to match the city’s Corporate Strategic Plan, adopted in July. Brian Clemens, the city’s director of finance, said the one-per cent tax-rate increase bumps the proposed residential tax rate increase to 3.3 per cent, the commercial rate to a 2.6-per cent increase and the major industrial rate to a 16.4per cent rate decrease, but over five years, if approved by council, will generate an additional $14 million to help pay for future replacement and repairs of water mains, sanitary sewer, storm drains, transportation, buildings, parks, vehicles and information technology. “Not doing or delaying an increase means we will always be reacting to asset management costs as they come up instead of being proactive,” said Clemens.
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Until now, asset management has been underfunded in previous budgets, resulting in a shortfall of millions of dollars every year to maintain $2 billion in city assets. “We’re building reserves to assist in replacing or retiring assets when they reach the end of their useful life,” said Clemens. Across the country, municipalities are facing an estimated $123-billion infrastructure funding shortfall. Sewer and water rates are also proposed to increase. To help fund several expensive water projects, including the new $62-million water treatment centre, water user rates will increase an additional 2.5 per cent on top of the five-per cent annual increase already planned and for three years beyond this financial plan, though Clemens said that plan is flexible. The current proposal expects to raise $5.3 million over five years. Sewer rates, which haven’t seen an increase since 1998 – they’ve actually decreased twice since then, amounting to 10 per cent – will increase five per cent for each year of the plan, collecting $3.8 million. Mike Delves, chairman of the Greater Nanaimo Chamber of Commerce, said addressing the city’s future infrastructure needs is a good step. ◆ See ‘CHAMBER’ /4
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