The District of Houston is renewing a lease with the local Royal Canadian Army Cadet Corps to use the community hall.
And the District of Houston council has also agreed to provide a grant to the cadet corps which covers the difference between the discounted hourly rental rate being charged and the lease price.
The cadets are to lease the hall for 2.5 hours one day a week between September and May for a total of 95 hours.
At the discounted rate of of $25 an hour, that works out to $2,375 and, to follow past practice of providing a grant worth 75 per cent of that cost, the grant this time comes to $1,781 for each year of the lease. That means the cadets will be paying an annual fee of $594.
Discounted rental rates are provided for in a District bylaw.
“The previous lease expired on Aug. 31, 2020 and the new lease will be similar in duration and provisions,” wrote leisure services director Cassie Henrickson in a memo .
“There have not been any problems or conflicts resulting from their regular use and staff are hopeful that the same working relationship will continue.”
The cadets are also renting a room in the basement of the hall for storage and office use at $1 a year beginning Nov. 9, 2022 and expiring on May 31, 2025.
9th Ave. deficiencies being corrected
Pavement cracks are to be repaired and non-thriving plants are to be replaced along the new 9th St. revitalization project.
“Staff, in partnership with our project manager has identified these deficiencies that are the responsibility of the contractor,” District of Houston chief administrative officer Michael Dewar noted in a memo to council.
“The contractor has agreed to correct many of these deficiencies under the project warranty obligations.”
The 9th St. work was undertaken by local subsidiaries of a larger company called Terus.
District of Houston chief administrative officer Michael Dewar said a complete report is being prepared for the new council.
“The warranty will expire this year, which is why we are claiming the issues at this time,” he said.
“We will have more information when the report goes back. We just wanted to let council know as this was the last regular meeting for this council term.”
Grant wanted for fire department
The Houston Volunteer Fire Department is applying for $30,000 to provide specialized training and to purchase additional equipment.
The grant money would come from a Union of B.C. Municipalities program which provides up to $30,000 for volunteer departments.
Information indicated the money would be used to provide training for emergency scene management. The equipment wanted was not listed.
Arena floor needs repairing
A grant from the Northern Development Initiative Trust could reduce the amount of money the District would have to provide by itself to repair the Claude Parism Memorial Arena’s ice surface floor.
“The concrete slab underneath the ice surface along the west side of the arena has been cracked and requires repairs,” said leisure services director Cassie Henrickson in a briefing note to chief administrative officer Michael Dewar.
“After years of wear, the state of the concrete is creating a safety hazard as the stability of the arena boards is decreasing.”
A specific project cost is not yet available as the west end of the arena boards will need to be removed to fully assess the scope of the concrete repairs that are required, Henrickson added.
But a very preliminary estimate of $135,000 has been prepared leading to a grant application of up to $100,000 to the Northern Development Initiative Trust program which provides up to 70 per cent of a project’s costs.
“Receiving a grant would lessen the District’s contribution to the project,” Henrickson said.
The project is already included in the District’s current five-year financial plan.