On Tuesday night, council had the opportunity and the freedom to speak about the fire protection agreement, now that the lawsuit against the city has been dropped.
As a strong supporter of the original five-year agreement based on total assessment, I am not willing to risk losing the revenue and the partnership with the CRD.
This is too big an item not to, and the stakes are high. Council’s finance committee has been tasked with finding options to make up the $150,000 loss in revenue from fire protection this year.
Should the city no longer provide the service in 2014, it will cost the city approximately $720,000 in lost revenue.
We need to focus on moving forward. Council unanimously passed a resolution to send a letter to the CRD to let them know we still want to provide the service to rural fringe residents, and to set up a meeting to discuss fire protection services beyond this year.
The city has a highly trained professional fire department capable of providing top-notch fire protection service.
I believe any agreement should reflect the cost of providing that service. We don’t want to give it away, but we do want to work with the CRD to find a fair price.
A big congratulations to our Stampeders hockey team on winning the Coy Cup for the second time in five years. Good luck to our Bantam and Midget rep Timberwolves competing at provincials in Kelowna.
We have incredible athletes and teams here who do the whole community proud.
Spring break is an opportunity to spend time with your children and families, and the Cariboo Chilcotin Conservation Society and Taseko Mines are sponsoring free swims at the pool on Friday and Saturday afternoons.
On a personal note, my husband and I are enjoying sleepovers this week with our grandchildren.
The morning cuddles are a great way to start the day!
Kerry Cook is the mayor of Williams Lake.