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Tuesday, April 30, 2019 | Your community newspaper since 1916

CITIZEN PHOTO BY JAMES DOYLE

Citizenship award Selen Alpay poses for a photo with wife of 36 years, Anita, on Saturday morning after Alpay was presented with the Medal of Good Citizenship during a ceremony at the Ramada.

Lawyer reviewing WorkSafeBC City’s reserve followups to sawmill explosions accounts running low, staff report says Mark NIELSEN Citizen staff

Mark NIELSEN Citizen staff mnielsen@pgcitizen.ca The city’s reserve funds totaled less than half in 2018 of where they stood two years previously, according to a staff report to council’s finance and audit committee. Amounting to $61 million in 2016, they had declined to $26.1 million by the end of last year. A drop in the endowment reserve played the biggest role. In 2016, it stood at $23.7 million, then dropped to slightly less than $5 million before rising to $8.3 million in 2018. The reserve is the source for the $12.6-million parkade to be constructed as part of the Park House condominium project. The endowment fund is used to “provide long-term funding for projects that have no other viable source” as well as interim funding for general projects awaiting debt proceeds. The water utility reserve was also a major factor, falling from $13.6 million in 2016 to a deficit of $942,089 two years later due largely to a $9.5-million upgrade of water service to the Hart. Likewise, the sewer utility reserve fell from $5.5 million in 2017 to $780,824 to pay for installation of a new sewer main downtown. However, the taxpayer may not have to foot much of the bill if council opts to replenish reserves. For one thing, city can rely on about $8.4 million annually from other sources. Revenue from the federal excise tax on gasoline accounts for $3.2 million and a portion of the property tax levy dedicated specifically to general infrastructure contributes $2.55 million. As well, $2.4 million in provincial gaming funds goes into the capital expenditure reserve, which also gets another $250,000 a year from other sources such as interest earned on the endowment fund.

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In 2016, it stood at $23.7 million, then dropped to slightly less than $5 million before rising to $8.3 million in 2018.

Added to that, the city recently received boosts of $8.1 million from the provincial government and an additional $3.2 million from the federal government to spend on capital projects. And in late 2021, it’s expected the city will get a $25 million boost when the 17-year lease-in, lease-out agreement with FortisBC is wrapped up. Committee chair Garth Frizzell said the reserves are necessary to deal with unforeseen expenses and pointed to the snow control reserve as an example. From $2.6 million in 2017, it stood at zero in 2018, prompting council to raise the property tax levy for that service by $1.5 million and push it up to $8.5 million a year. The hope is that will be enough to restore the reserve to the tune of $2.1 million. “You can’t predict whether this year is going to be a great year and we can accumulate a surplus or if it’s going to be a terrible year and we spend it down to zero,” Frizzell said. “Every day that they’re out there it’s about a quarter of a million dollars, so it doesn’t take many snowfalls to burn through the entire year’s budget.” In 2018, the city relied on reserves for about 65 per cent of its spending on capital projects, while debt and grants each accounted for less than 20 per cent. The full report is posted with this story at www.pgcitizen.ca.

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A Vancouver lawyer has been contracted by the provincial government to assess how well WorkSafeBC has taken up recommendations to improve worker safety in the wake of the fatal explosions at two northern B.C. sawmills in early 2012. Lisa Helps will also provide advice on potential legislative changes, the Ministry of Labour said in a statement issued this month. Coroner’s inquests were conducted into the deaths of four workers – Robert Luggi, 45, Carl Charlie, 42, Glenn Roche, 46, and Alan Little, 43. Luggi and Charlie died in the Jan. 20, 2012, Babine Forest Products sawmill explosion near Burns Lake while Roche and Little died as the result of the April 24, 2012, Lakeland Mills explosion in Prince George. Juries in both inquests produced a series of recommendations, as did the authors of two

reports, John Dyble and Gord Macatee. Helps will also seek input from relevant stakeholders and staff in WorkSafeBC and the ministries of attorney general, public safety and solicitor general, and labour. She will also invite workers affected by the explosions, and their families, to share their perspectives on the issues under review, the ministry said. Helps is to deliver a report of her own with recommendations to Attorney General David Eby by mid-July. After review, he is to make public any recommendations related to improving processes or legislation. The United Steelworkers District 3 president Stephen Hunt welcomed the move and said the union looks forward to participating fully in the process. The USW was shut out of the original investigation, he added. The USW pulled its lawyer from the coroner’s inquest into the Lakeland disaster over concern it

would not be able to hold WorkSafeBC accountable for what it called a bungled handling of the investigation. The union also called for a public inquiry. Among the outcomes Hunt would like to see from Helps’ review is improved enforcement of the so-called Westray Law that would see employers found guilty of criminal negligence in the deaths of employees sent to jail. He said the RCMP’s investigation was limited to determining whether bombs were the sources of the explosions and left it at that. “We also want the RCMP properly trained, so that they do know what their job is in the case of an occupational death or an injury causing serious bodily harm – that’s what the Criminal Code says,” Hunt said on Monday. “And they can’t pick and choose what parts of the Criminal Code they enforce or erroneously not enforce.”

Northern FanCon hosting pair of free film fests Frank PEEBLES Citizen staff fpeebles@pgcitizen.ca Northern FanCon has a galaxy of activities inside its walls. Some of the favourite activities at the north’s one and only fan expo is buying the photo opportunities and autographs with the celebrity guests, the vendors selling products of all pop-culture description, the cosplayers dazzling the audience in their elaborate costumes, but there are more things to do and marvel at than three days can cover. One of the new features this year is not one but two film festivals to enjoy. Both are free to see, as long as you are in the FanCon room. The first is the Indie Filmfest that runs Friday evening. The schedule is: • 6 p.m. Bonepicker, Testimony: The Jessie Hamilton Story by Newman & Wright Theatre Company (42:39)

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Busy weekend in P.G. LOCAL 5

See page 2 for more details and short-term forecasts

www.pgcitizen.ca

• 6:48 p.m. Tiger by Starlane Films (19.38) • 7:13 p.m. Come Down, the music video by Jer Breaks (3:40) • 7:22 p.m. Black & Blue: A Blue’s Clues Story by Matchstick Men Media (16:31) Warning: contains explicit language • 7:44 p.m. The Wayside Runner by Picaroon Pictures (6:57) • 7:56 p.m. The Logging Road by Daniel Stark (10:16) • 8:12 p.m. Final Breath by Kim Feragen (10:21) • 8:28 p.m. Cold Hands by Eric Bizzarri (16.14) “We are pleased to present our very own celebration of emerging and established filmmakers,” said Norm Coyne of UNLTD Media, the organizers of this Prince George Citizen presentation. That’s not the only internal film fest to enjoy, however. Saturday and Sunday have some horror and suspense flicks that trace to a single master. — see DOLLAR BABY, page 3

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