Voter protest Groups unhappy with federal government’s elections act. Page 25 Fights found MMA fighter Rachael Swatez returns to the cage. Page B1 Jazz niche Erika Phillips Quartet performs at Acme Food Co. Page 3
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VOL. 25, NO. 103
Mayor aiming to unite Island on 911 service
I
CiTy sigNs on to RCMP contract with one-year exit clause to help find more cost-effective option. By Tamara Cunningham THe NewS BULLeTiN
CHRIS BUSH/THe NewS BUlleTIN
Paving paradise
Janette Briere, left, and Judy Forbister raise protest signs in front of a tree harvester being loaded on a flatbed trailer on Turner Road Tuesday. The women were with a group of about 12 people protesting at the site this week against development through the Nelson Woods and Oliver Woods, which they said will include a road cut through a wetland area.
Study will help city better understand mine network By Tamara Cunningham THe NewS BULLeTiN
A study of Nanaimo’s abandoned coal mines is a “baby step” toward understanding the stability of underground tunnels, according to the city’s acting manager of engineering. Nanaimo city council unanimously agreed Monday to engage a team of consultants to map areas of the city’s abandoned mines that could collapse into sinkholes. The municipality will
OF DEALONTH! M THE
also ask the B.C. Ministry of Energy and Mines to partner on better understanding risks of underground tunnels by providing funding or access to technical experts. The work, estimated to cost $50,000, has never been undertaken by the City of Nanaimo before, says Poul Rosen, the city’s acting manager of engineering. Consultants will look at all the mines honeycombed beneath the city and determine where there’s a potential
for sinkholes to develop. The information is expected to help the city’s engineering department determine high priority areas for “subsidence risk,” whether or not there should be concern for utility work over some mines and identify areas Nanaimo city council could potentially do further fieldwork. “This study is a first step in potentially what could be a longer program,” he said. See ‘CITY’ /5
Nanaimo’s mayor is looking into the possibility of uniting Island municipalities under a single 911 partnership, with a vision to see the city become the call centre for Vancouver Island. Mayor John Ruttan sees the potential to maintain a local service and find cost savings by getting Island communities to buy into a consolidated 911 service based out of Nanaimo. It’s an option the city hasn’t yet pursued, but with a status quo system and one-year exit clause from a contract with the RCMP, Ruttan says there’s now a chance to investigate the possibility of a larger partnership. The move comes on the heels of a decision by Nanaimo city council in February to sign a five-year memorandum of understanding with the RCMP to manage its central Island 911 service. The decision, made in a closed meeting, will cost the city $335,250 a year – an 18-per cent increase over 2013 to help pay for administrative costs and an additional staff person. There is also the potential for the RCMP to charge up to $500,000 to Nanaimo and its two partners, the Cowichan Valley Regional District and Nanaimo Regional District, to upgrade its system in the future. The alternative was to go with Vancouverbased E-Comm, a company that provides service to places like Metro Vancouver and the Sunshine Coast Regional District. It would have cost the city $126,000 a year, but council members were concerned about the loss of geographic knowledge and keeping jobs local. See ‘RUTTAN’ /4
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