Inside
◆ FITNESS CHALLENGE - P. 2 ◆ HEALTHY LIBRARY - P. 5
◆ OLD-TIME MURDER - P. 6 ◆ PARK LAND SWAP - P. 7
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WEDNESDAY, August 12, 2015
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VOL. 38 NO. 24 $1.30 inc. GST
Huge rental problem to be tackled
Work is well underway, getting the former fairgrounds ready for Music on the Meadow. The event was formerly held at the Murray Hill Ski Area (pictured above). Photo by Arianne Loranger-Saindon
New home for music festival The Music has been on the Mountain for the past five years; but this year festival-goers will have a change of scenery, with Music on the Meadow taking place from Aug. 21 - 23. The event kicks off on Friday afternoon, and will feature non-stop music on two stages, as well as workshops, acoustic sessions, vendors, artisans, and much more. The festival has taken place at the Murray Ridge Ski Hill since its inception in 2010, but MoM Festival President Lionel Conant said that they’ve outgrown that venue. “They were great to us at Murray Hill,” he says, “and there was a beautiful lodge there we could use, but it’s a ski area, and we needed somewhere flat.” The new site is the old fairground—currently owned by the snowmobile club—to the south of the
Fort, where the festival has leased 80 acres of space in which to spread out. There are plenty of buildings to accommodate everything from a musicians’ area to a massage therapist, plus ample space for those who want to bring a camper, RV, or tent and spend the weekend there. The stage will be in the former arena, and Conant and a team of volunteers are busy getting the stage built and the grounds cleared. “We can’t build a permanent stage,” he says, “but Dale at Northern Interior Forest Products donated a lot of beams that we’re using for the stage base. Bam Bam Trucking got the beams here, Russell Transfer loaned us equipment to unload them, and Newland Enterprises donated a skid steer so we See “Music festival” on p. 9.
The “From Strategy to Action” housing forum held in Fort St. James on July 17 is the first step in addressing the Fort’s huge rental problem, says Deputy Corporate Officer Emily Colombo. “There were presentations from planners across the north, regarding how they are tackling their own housing problems,” she said of the meeting, which was lightly attended. “Our housing strategy was completed in 2014, but nothing has been done since then, because there’s a such a huge spectrum of choices available. Now we have to get things moving forward, and the July meeting was a way to get the ball rolling.” Colombo points out that Fort St. James, along with other northern communities, faces huge challenges when it comes to housing, particularly rentals. “Camp housing has its own problems, and when there’s no camp housing workers come to town to rent. This drives rents up, and prices out the locals.” Since January 2014 Colombo has been maintaining a comprehensive database of what rental properties are available in the Fort, and how many people are seeking rental accommodation and what type. One form is for landlords, and asks questions such as whether or not they allow children or pets, the number of bedrooms, and if the accommodation is furnished or unfurnished. The form for renters asks such things as whether or not they are open to sharing, if they have transportation, and the minimum and maximum rent they’re looking for. See “Housing” on p. 3.
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