S TANDARD TERRACE
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VOL. 25 NO. 45
www.terracestandard.com
Wednesday, February 20, 2013
City finalizes deal with Chinese THE City of Terrace has finalized a deal with a Chinese timber company to lease city-owned southside land for the next 10 years. Yaorun Wood Co. Ltd, which had first set up shop in the Burns Lake area to log for export overseas and is now interested in this area, will pay $10,000 a month, or $120,000 annually, to use land on Keith Ave. which was once a log yard for the now-dismantled Skeena Cellulose/Terrace Lumber Company sawmill. The approximately 20 acres is bounded by Kenney to the east, the 5000 Block of
Keith to the south, CN’s rail line to the north and to nearly Blakeburn to the west. The assessment for the leased property is $1,518,000 and it had been listed for sale at $1.5 million. The company will also pay property taxes based on this assessment. “Currently, the raw land is business class and will generate $43,000 per year for the city [in taxes],” said Ron Bowles, director of finance for the City of Terrace, noting that this is a minimum and will increase in the future. The lease amount will also be adjusted annually for increases in the Consumer Price
Index, said Heather Avison, the city’s chief administrative officer. And while Yaorun could request permission from the city for other uses on the property that meet the land’s zoning bylaws, the conditions of the lease are limited, said Avison. “It’s pretty limited use,” she said. “Outdoor logging yard, basically comprised of some storage for raw wood.” “It means $120,000 worth of revenue, for starters, for the lease, plus having taxes paid on the property which we haven’t had for some time,” Avison said of the financial
benefit to the city. Full details of the company’s plans for the land will be released closer to the end of the month, said a spokesperson for Yaorun Wood here in Terrace. Yaorun recently completely harvesting on two timber sale licences – one in the Morice Timber Supply Area (Houston) for 55,304 cubic metres, and another in the Prince George Timber Supply Area for 169,281 cubic metres, according to the Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations.
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Kitselas casting claims vote today NEARLY 300 Kitselas band members are being asked to vote today on a land claims agreement in principle which, if accepted, would form the basis of a treaty between the First Nation and the federal and provincial governments. A small group of Kitselas members has been knocking on doors, phoning voters, organizing informal coffee parties and staging events designed to inform voters about the agreement in principle details. “What we’ve been trying to do is really reach out by every means possible,” says Kitselas communications director Holly Spencer of the task taken on by the sixmember communications team. “It might be regarded as selling the treaty, but a lot of it is just making sure you are informed on what you are voting on.” There’s no question the team members are voting in favour of the agreement in principle but they’re equally careful to say their job is to put information to voters so they can make up their own minds. A simple majority of 50 per cent plus one person is needed to approve of the agreement in principle. “That’s why it’s so important to vote,” says team member Clarisa Spencer of
JOSH MASSEY PHOTO
Mickey Mason and Francis Seymour were at a Kitselas First Nation treaty meeting and celebration Feb. 15, the last large-scale event leading to today’s vote on accepting an agreement in principle leading toward a final treaty. the one vote that would give the agreement majority approval. Questions raised by voters typically concern taxation and how much land is involved. The land issue is critical
to Kitselas acceptance of the agreement in question. Once included as part of a treaty, the land and resources will fully and legally belong to the Kitselas First Nation. “We own it traditionally, but not legally. The treaty
actually secures the land base. All of those lands will be protected,” says Clarisa Spencer. She adds that the Kitselas First Nation stands to have the largest per capita land base under treaty in the
province. Based on the agreement in principle, the Kitselas First Nation is to receive 36,158.7 hectares as part of a final treaty. An additional 250 hectares of crown land is to be transferred immedi-
ately provided today’s vote passes. “We also hear from the people that they are worried about losing their status. Actually, a treaty protects them,” says Clarisa Spencer.
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On stage
Taxing question
Great gymnasts
Caledonia welcomes region’s high schools for northwest drama festival \COMMUNITY A23
Chamber takes city to task over business and residential taxes \NEWS A12
First meet of the year is first competition for several young athletes \SPORTS A33