Mayor's Update on the Hotel another study

After deadlines being extended twice already for a development permit and engineering plans, plus an additional extension on the naming of the hotel. Tomorrow is the deadline does anyone anticipate that there will be announcement within the next 36 hours? will there be another extension?. Or are we being led down the garden path once again (Quebec Manufacturer).

The Mayor has tossed around many dates and time frames on this issue and numerous others I was just reminded yesterday about the Rivers Run properties by the end of March. That is the problem when you build up people's expectations you should never be upset if they get frustrated when you don't deliver. 

On the right hand side is a poll on this issue feel free to vote I am trying a different type of poll has the google one's were not working very well.    

Update: The Mayor on his moment with Randy this morning mentioned that Best Western are conducting their own mini-feasibility study that will be done by June 17. Strange months back the Mayor was gloating about how fast this process was proceeding due to the fact that the Municipality had hired a consultant to put together a feasibility study included with the original tender package.
Obviously based on the comments from the Mayor this morning there appears to be a need to re address those original numbers. Or this could just be a stalling tactic because Medican does not have an investor yet.  

Note: Seldom I do this but I am going to high light a comment that was made last night, somebody obviously did their home work. 

Maybe Best Western noticed that the study included in the RFP is bogus.

It says we have heli-skiing, whitewater rafting, windsurfing, heli-touring and paragliding.

It mentions the Bingay coal project (suspended), Devon ("due to the age of its plant,it is in need of regular upgrading. In the future, this in turn should require the periodic services of out of town contracters ..."), pipeline, drilling and forestry companies.

And "Rum Runner days and Thunder in the Valley .. attract several thousands of tourists".

It says we have "Highway 3, the weather accessible ... highway" but then it says "Having hotels in close proximity ... is favourable ... because of poor road conditions which often result in the Crowsnest Pass during the winter season."

Demolition of Centre ahead of schedule

It appears the Crowsnest centre is going to be demolished, one corner at a time.  

From what I was told nobody was hurt. We should all be thank full for that.

Ratepayers letter to Municipal Affairs + Russell Farmer

Crowsnest Pass Ratepayers Association


General Delivery
Hillcrest Mines, Alberta - TOK lCO

May 24, 2013

Tim Morrison, Chief of Staff Department of Municipal Affairs Chris Hutchison, Principal Russell Farmer & Associates Consulting Ltd.


Dear Mr. Morrison and Mr. Hutchison,

Regarding our petition, we did not petition the Minister to remove our sitting Council because our hope was the Municipal Review itself would be enough to bring about better governance. Unfortunately, with the review well under way, it is now clear our hopes have been misplaced.

Our Council and administration keep behaving as if the petition never took place and the concerns of the petitioners are all but ignored. The Municipal Newsletter, copy included,has been used to tell us to, more or less, be quiet while important work is being done.

It appears our sitting Council, and the administration, are of the opinion that the problems in which they find themselves with the voters are mainly due to poor communication. The petitioners, on the other hand, strongly feel that the real problems are not due to poor communication. We are convinced, now more than ever, the real problem is poor municipal governance.

While change is always difficult, change should not be used as an excuse for poor governance. If, as the municipal newsletter claims, our council is developing a policy driven governance,then the proper policies, first and foremost, must be applied to Council work. It appears to us our Council is prepared to bend, or stretch, policies when it comes to its own behaviour.

The criticism most often heard on the street is still about the lack of open debate in council. Decisions were, and are, made without the ratepayers understanding the rationale for these decisions.

Now we learn our Council has been having Secret Meetings, they have conducted these meetings under the name of Administrative Meetings for more than two years. They feel it is alright to have secret meetings and the Privacy Act is the legislation used to support this belief.

There is no provision in our current Procedural By-Law for having secret meetings of the Municipal Council, without minutes taken, and with a quorum of councillors present. There is also no record of a motion being passed to have such Secret Meetings. Using the Privacy Act to justify such secret meetings appears to be taking the Act into an area where it was never meant to go.

A Municipal Council Meeting, with a quorum present, is not a 11Cabinet" or a 11Caucus" or designated committee, or a few public officials debating policy in a relaxed environment.

Our Municipal Council is also our legislative body and it is having Secret Meetings (with a quorum present) outside our Procedural By-Law. This appears to be much the same as if the Alberta Legislature, with a majority of the MLAs present, were having secret meetings at the legislature without anyone keeping minutes. No one would tolerate such behaviour at the Provincial level and the same can be said when it comes down to municipal governance.

Changing the name of the meeting from Administrative Meeting to a CAO Report half way through a Provincial Municipal Audit,with the hope to legitimize these meetings, does not change anything. In fact, if it were not so serious, it would almost be comical.

We feel these Secret Meetings are a serious breach of municipal protocols. The knowledge these meetings taking place also helps us understand why we have witnessed so little debate in open forum. While the CAO claims "he seeks no input, direction nor do we develop strategy," he offers no records to back his claims. If no records are kept, imagination wanders. This is not good governance within a public body.

It is also unfortunate our CAO used the name of George Cuff to legitimize the format of these meetings once questions were raised. We are not sure that a respected and experienced municipal expert like Mr. Cuff would have supported such format if he was given, what looks to us, the full context of how these meetings seem to have come about and how these meetings appear to have been held.

These Secret Meetings involving the quorum of council and the lack oftransparency in the decision making process is at the root of our governance problem.

There are many examples of decisions and actions taking place without a transparent council debate and a proper council resolution. A few examples which underline the problem are:

• Municipal review of our electrical system with a possibility of future sale of our municipal assets to Fortis Alberta. The community has been aware such a review has been taking place. When we contacted our CAO about the review, he acknowledged the review. When we asked him if there was a Council debate and resolution to such effect, he replied that it was not necessary because it is in the Strategic Plan. The Strategic Plan is not there to replace processes which normally take place in the administration of a municipality. The Strategic Plan is also very clear about the need for transparency.

• Our community has also been aware that the municipality hired consultants to conduct a forensic audit of our former fire department. While such audits are sometimes required, it is not a common occurrence in a community of our size. These types of audits are very expensive if done right and costs and benefits should be debated. We have enquired of our CAO whether an audit of this type is being undertaken and whether there was a council resolution to that effect. Our CAO replied to us that while such an audit may not be common, there was no council resolution because it was within his administrative purview to order such an audit on his own. It appears that only one part of the municipal operations was singled out for this audit. In the end,we may be faced with expensive and unproductive legal costs. Only a proper debate can bring out both sides to a story.

• Since there was no visible debate on fire department restructuring, we feel that Edmonton may have not been presented with a clear picture of our former fire department. We don't know what was presented, but is not hard to paint an organization in a negative light if enough effort is put into the task. A couple of examples which may have been used were the storage of fireworks in a building constructed for that purpose behind the fire hall or the presence of alcoholic beverages at the fire hall. The alcoholic beverages were kept under lock and key and were mostly leftover from the many charity fund raisers in which the firemen were involved with. Since the liquor store will not take back open case or open bottles, that liquor was being held for future charity events. One can use these two examples to paint a good picture of the fire hall or to paint a bad picture of the fire hall; it all depends on who needs the picture.

• We don't know who called the police about the fireworks being stored in a purpose built building behind the fire hall, but it is clear to the community that the removal of the fireworks could have been affected in a more mature manner by everyone involved. After all, these fireworks were purchased through the joint effort of the municipality and the fire department and were stored on municipal premises with the full knowledge of municipal authorities.

The current forensic audit of the fire department can be viewed through the same lens as the calling of the RCMP to the Fireworks storage building. When an organization as large as our municipality finds problems in only one area of its operations, it seems to us the question should always be asked whether other areas of operations are also a contributing factor to these problems. This is why escalating such issues into the legal arena usually ends up costing a lot of money for legal work.

• We have a recorded instance, as described by Councillor Andrew Saje in his report (attached) where the council discussed something in camera and then subsequently, when they came out of camera, instructed the CAO to take action without an appropriate motion taking place. One can only imagine that the hiring of Calder Batman from Edmonton to give advice on public relations and crisis communications was something that someone wanted to keep off the record; this is really not how things should be done in a small community such as ours. When the news finally came out, the whole affair appeared to us as an unnecessary public relations disaster. Excuses were given why there was no resolution to hire the company, but since there was no budget for this kind of thing, we feel a resolution should have been taken. A policy should not be avoided just because it is inconvenient and appears easy to avoid.

There were many different reasons which led to the petition and we feel our council has failed to address our main concern, which from day one, was a very apparent lack of transparency in council's decision making process. We would like to thank the Minister for granting us the Municipal Inspection. It is still our hope that the review process will allow all of us an opportunity for reflection and, ultimately, lead to better Municipal Governance in the Crowsnest Pass.

Sincerely,

William Kovach, Petitioner's Representative

Cc: Myron Thompson
George Cuff
Pass Herald
Pass Promoter
Municipality of CNP council
Lethbridge Herald

Crowsnest Pass Entrance Signs, Money well spent?

Well folks what you have below is the drawings for your new community entrance signs. 

This will cost us $200,000 for the two signs one in the East and one in the West. The politicians will argue that this is being paid for out of grant funding (MSI Capital) which is true but keep in mind that the community receives MSI funding from the province for both their capital and operational budgets. If the money is spent on a project like this then it obviously means that it is not being spent on some other project. 

There is never enough money available to pay for every project so then the question becomes is this project a priority? which would then make it the best use for those grant dollars. Are we has a community getting the best value for those grant dollars, would this be the public's choice for our communities gateway sign age?

Breaking News: MD of Ranchlands responds to Annexation request

Below is the MD of Ranchlands response to the Municipality of Crowsnest Pass on the issue of annexation.

Below that response is my opinion of what they are saying.   

M.D. of Ranchland responds to Annexation Proposal

M.D. of Ranchland Open letter to the Community 

On March 22, 2013, the Council of the Municipality of Crowsnest Pass (MCP) approached the M.D. of Ranchland with a proposal for MCP to annex all that portion of Ranchland that lies to the south and west of the Oldman River.  Such an annexation would result in the loss of one-third of the M.D. of Ranchland.

The catalyst for this annexation proposal is the renewed interest in coal deposits stretching from the Grassy Mountain area by Riversdale Resources, and up the Forestry Trunk Road by Elan Coal Ltd.  The type of mining involved is large scale, open-pit mining for metallurgical coal destined for the Asian market.

If such an annexation were to occur, the MCP is also requiring that Ranchland transfer $200,000 per year for five years to the MCP to cover the cost of servicing the proposed annexation area prior to any new potential tax revenue being realized.  The MCP proposes that Ranchland raise its mill rate on linear, commercial, and machinery & equipment to pay for this transfer of funds.  In other words, tax the Ranchland ratepayers to subsidise the MCP.

It is the considered opinion of the M.D. of Ranchland Council that this annexation should not proceed.  We believe that our first duty is to act in the best interest of all the taxpayers in our Municipal District whether residential, farmland, commercial or industrial. This proposal does not fit within our mandate as a responsible Council.

Mining in the area is currently in an exploratory phase.  Mineral rights are bought and sold frequently. Proposed resource developments do not always come to fruition.  It is a complex process to prove reserves, find capital, confirm contracts with customers, obtain regulatory approval and construct the facility.  If a mine does not come to fruition that would leave MCP in a dire situation as the annexed area would become a revenue drain as tax revenue for the area will not cover the cost of servicing.

If any proposed coal mining venture does proceed then, as the immediate service center, not only will such economic development benefit the MCP, but Ranchland would be open to discuss revenue sharing with neighbouring communities, including the MCP, to ensure that all benefit.

With Respect,

The Council of the Municipal District of Ranchland No. 66

My opinion: The Crowsnest Pass made a request for one third of the MD in addition they requested that the MD provide $200,000 a year for five years to service that land. CNP proposes that the MD raise their tax rates to cover this cost. I wonder how our residents would feel about us paying more taxes to enable a neighbour to take away one third of our municipality. They mention this interest coming about due to Riversdale and Elan Coal looking at coal deposits, Elan as been sniffing around for at least three to four years anybody hear of them?

The second to last paragraph makes a lot of sense they are telling us to consider that it takes a long time to bring a mine to fruition, not the two to three years that some people have been trying to sell around here. At the end of the letter they talk about being open to discussing revenue sharing down the road with the neighbour communities, very smart on their part remember in my previous post I stated the letter would  be written for both the benefit of the local residents and municipal affairs in Edmonton

MD of Ranchlands and annexation

At the last Council meeting CAO Myron Thompson reported that the MD of Ranchlands council were meeting the same day (May 7) and that he was hopeful that they would respond to our municipality's request for further discussions on the issues of either amalgamation or annexation.
Having had some interaction with the CAO and council of Ranchlands during my terms on council I expect that in the not too distant future possibly as early as next week it appears they will lay out their position.

My fellow blogger John Prince has the following post available @. http://blog.johnprince.ca/2013/05/news-tip-what-goes-around-comes-around.html

If the speculation proves to be true that they are taking out advertising in the local papers both here and in Nanton, that advertising may appear at first to be directed towards the residents of the Crowsnest Pass and the MD of Ranchlands.
Keep in mind the real audience is in Edmonton at municipal affairs our local politicians can make the case all they want about inequalities of linear tax bases but at the end of the day a decision will be made by the Minister of Municipal affairs.
Bottom line, will we be seeing Ranchlands tax base has our financial saviour anywhere in the next few years? Call me negative call me what you want the answer is No.
Edmonton will not make this process easy for us and neither will Ranchlands, give me one good reason why they would, and don't think for a second that every MD in the province isn't watching this. We all know how much sway the rural areas have amongst the provincial conservative party.
Will our Mayor try to spin this into it's now critical to keep myself and those other six fellows I spend Tuesday nights with in power to finish of the process of annexing Ranchlands?  
 

Silly season officially begins.......

In another distinguished example of making friends 101, after a couple of absences the latest Mayor's Corner is out. We the residents of the Crowsnest Pass have now been blessed with an addition to our vocabulary of the word "CAVE'rs". We owe his worship a ton of gratitude for en-lighting us.   Mayor's Corner

This has been a different Spring. Let us hope summer is a little more predictable. We are however, entering another season which is very unpredictable. It usually starts about this time and ends immediately after the October election. Government bureaucrats often refer to it as “the silly season” that is, when politicians begin to appear everywhere making all kinds of promises (usually outlandish) and begin to pay close attention to people, groups and organizations they had previously ignored. Like other species on this planet they often resort to “eating their own” that is, their political colleagues. Most will resort to self-aggrandizement speaking at great length at any opportunity to confirm their concern and prowess regarding community affairs as well as their grasp of municipal governance. Human nature is indeed fascinating. I gave our Council a “heads up” about the silly season a few months ago advising them that people in the Pass could sniff out such antics in short order. I leave it to the reader to assess if any of your local politicians or “wannabees” fall victim to “the silly season”. I don’t think this Council has to come up with a show of new promises – it’s all there in the Strategic Plan, a plan that can be adjusted on an ongoing basis depending on context and timing. No doubt we will be treated in the upcoming months to the overtures and exhortations of has-beens, want to be’s, regressives (back to the good old days) and progressives of various sorts. I am sure we will have a slate of candidates fuelled by our local CAVE’rs as well. There are those who would suggest we are in a “political mess”. Not so. We are in a period of “change” which was what you demanded and what your Council is delivering. Decades of a no-change, beg the government for funding, drive business away through the lack of a policy-driven municipal government, is all falling by the wayside and to some this is uncomfortable.  Such “change” will ultimately benefit the majority of people in our community: the seniors, the young, the business people, the newcomers, and the “little guy” on the street. Unfortunately our traditional “old boys clubs”, and others simply don’t understand it and continue to maintain their sense of entitlement and backroom control of our future. Enough of politics and on to other topics. Last week I kept my promise and announced on the radio, as soon as I knew, that our new hotel will be a Best Western. Final approval should be given between the 13th to 18th of this month. If it is not approved by the Best Western Board of Governors we will move to the Holiday Inn group. Regardless things are on time and we should see demolition activity late this summer. The Riversdale group is still flying in groups of investors and the company should be “going public” in the next few months. We are awaiting the arrival of its first administrator from Seattle once his work visa etc. is processed. As recommended in the Mayor’s Task Force on the Economy, and then in our Strategic Plan, an Economic Development officer has been hired. I wanted to see this person hired early last year however many issues transpired and we were unable to get it done. Regardless she will begin her duties towards the end of the month. A press release will provide accurate details. However she is originally from Southern Alberta, a graduate of the University of Lethbridge, has extensive experience and was looking for an opportunity to “come home”.  My thanks to our Economic Development Committee for their patience over the past several months. Your patience will be rewarded. This is the last person to be hired in our restructured administrative team, a team of well trained professionals who work for our betterment. I previously indicated we needed to change “the way we do business” and this team, now complete, will continue to do just that. Good things will come of this. There is a hustle and bustle in the Pass we have not seen for some time: new people, new construction, new businesses opened and soon to be opened, inquiries regarding a second hotel, inquiries over a truck stop, interest in a large development in Coleman. It’s taken many months but it’s starting to happen. “You can’t create a future by clinging to the past.” *CAVE’rs – “citizens against virtually everything” entitlement – the state of being entitled, the right to guaranteed benefits under a government program. NOTE: Check out the story in this week's Promoter by Joni MacFarlane CAO briefing meetings defended http://www.crowsnestpasspromoter.com/2013/05/15/cao-briefing-meetings-defended

Forensic Audit in the Crowsnest Pass

Have not got all the details yet but a number of sources have told me that the Municipality is having a Forensic Audit conducted on the previous Fire Departments.

In a week when the powers to be let it slip that the CAO is meeting with Council behind closed doors on a regular basis to provide council with an update on relevant issues. (Can you picture all of council sitting quietly while the CAO recites from a piece of paper not one word of debate, discussion or resolutions coming forth) why not just do what the Cuff report recommended and hold two G+P meeting a month then Council and Admin could actually discuss the issues instead of  having one way communications with the CAO.

Now back to the audit we all know several things:

The election is only five months away, we know most of the present council will be running in the election, we also know that so far out of the three big promises for the community. Quebec manufacturer, Coal mine, Best Western hotel, the first failed the second is years away best case scenario, and the hotel as had deadlines extended twice already, even an optimist would have a hard time believing that the centre site will be cleared by August 30.

Next look at what this council has done over the last three years:

Built a large and expensive administration, wrote more unpopular laws than a Central American dictator, put in place CPO's, hired more consultants than IBM, jacked up Franchise Fees 300 per cent, the debacle with the Fire Departments, and the failure to listen to the public which led to 2500 people signing a petition in 18 days.

So here we are on May 11, this council needs a diversion to make everybody forget about their reign of terror, what will an audit produce? Who knows but I for one am convinced that the timing is indeed by design.

Will this act of desperation make the voters forget come October? Only they can answer that question.

Medican and much more (Including CAO raise)

First of all Kudo's on the new sound system in the council chambers I never realized how bad the sound was in there until I actually sat in the public gallery.

Attended council meeting last night (May 7) lots of issues but I know the one most pressing for most of my readers was the Medican development of the Old Hospital site and those previously spoken about timelines, some were for the end of March and some for the end of April, the CAO informed us last night that they all been extended to May 31.

Municipal Office will start opening at lunch hour beginning June 1

CAO is still in the recruiting process for the new Economic Development Officer

The CPO position being advertised is not a new position the original position was only a temporary position which they are now turning into a permanent position.

The municipality is still working on reaching an agreement with the SPCA.

The new Sports and Recreation committee had it's first meeting.

A new contract with CNP waste was awarded to pick up our garbage for the next two years.

Sale of the Bellevue Seniors hall, a motion was brought forth by Councilor Mitchell to enter into negotiations with the Bellevue Seniors to sell them the hall.
During the discussion on this issue Councilor Londsbury gave a speech about how well the communities of Bellevue and Hillcrest have worked together over the years,  maybe the seniors there should consider carrying on that spirit of co-operation with the Coleman Seniors and look at the option of sharing their facility.

Particular Interest during the council member reports several of the councilors mentioned that they had attended a CAO briefing. Later in the meeting Joni from the Promoter asked what is a "CAO briefing" the  CAO's answer was a regular held meeting with council that talks about management or planning issues with no minutes kept or resolutions passed. (Sounds some what like a G+P meeting) and not accessible to the public or the media.      

The following motion was passed on Tuesday night when council came out of camera:

M#6874-13: Councillor Gallant moved that the Chief Administrative Officer’s contract salary be adjusted according to the terms of his contract.

Now is the time to speak up....Property Assessments and Municipal Inspections.

Property Assessments

I'm sure by now almost everybody has received their Property Assessments if your fine with what you received no problem. But if your not, do a little research call some of the local realtor's ask if the values of properties similar to yours have gone up or down. Look around you we have a number of situations in the Crowsnest Pass where people have seen a reduction on their assessed values due to where they live, plus if your living next door to an eye sore that will affect your values. If you feel your  concerns are valid contact the Municipality 562-8833 and ask to speak to the Assessor. (Glen Snelgrove who I have found over the years to be very reasonable to talk to.) I have spoke to so many people over the years that may have had a valid concern but they did not call, remember just because you call does not mean you will be in the appeal process, Mr Snelgrove usually resolves 95% of these issues prior to an appeal.  

Municipal Inspection

The Inspection is still ongoing it's not to late to speak up, if you wish to add your comments or concerns pick up the phone and call Cell: 403-966-7259 or  email @ russ@rfconsulting.ca

We have heard this story before......

This morning all excited knowing that the deadline of April 30 had pasted and that according to the agreement between Medican and the municipality that the developer was supposed to announce the name of the hotel chain by that date.

So there I sat with the new municipal flag hanging over my fire place, and my pin of multi coloured triangles attached to my pyjamas top. I patiently sat in front of my radio this morning waiting for the Mayor to take his first opportunity since April 30 to bask in the announcement of the hotel coming to the old hospital site. There was much speculation that it would be a Best Western, has one of the comment's pointed out on my previous post, when you read the articles from the Okotoks paper, Medican, Group Vachon and Best Western seem like a natural fit.

I was so disappointed when the Mayor said the Board of Governors for Best Western are meeting next week to make a decision, (maybe the contract said April 30 2014? check below) which is really strange because about a month a go at a previous council meeting the public was told that the Board of Governors were meeting on April 8-11th.

Back to the radio the Mayor states that there are concerns coming from Sparwood because a Best Western was announced there quite a while back, (see Best Western update below, those two year deadlines are going to be difficult to make).

But the Mayor did come to the rescue with more positive news if Best Western does not come through then we have the Holiday Inn waiting in the back ground, hopefully their Board of Governors will not take too long to get together.

Word on the street is there is a third choice, the famous family ran Dick's hostel and discount water slides are taking a look at the site. (The head of the family Mr Dick suggests that he could get all the Dicks together for a meeting to make a decision, very quickly)

On a serious note folks does this not sound like the script from the Quebec Manufacturer saga except every where the words "Quebec Manufacturer" were used previously you now insert "Hotel Board of Governors" I will pee myself the first time I hear at a council meeting, "I'm sure these Board of Governors are running up lot's of Air Miles flying back and forth to the Pass"       

Medican and Municipality of CNP Contract available at http://transparencycnp.shawwebspace.ca/blog/posts/2/5/


Sparwood Update on Best Western site Feb 2012

 http://www.sparwood.ca/government/news/announcements/best-western-hotel-development

Electrical system in the Crowsnest Pass

In the last few months there has been lots of talk about the Electrical System in the Crowsnest Pass.

The municipality owns about half of the electrical system in the municipality and it generates a lot of money for the municipality each year. Knowing that some people may see the opportunity for a one time big cash pay out.

 I would strongly suggest that politicians, administrators, and residents recognize that the electrical system is a great asset for the residents of the Crowsnest Pass. That subsidizes our tax rates on an annual basis according to the municipalities own financial statements the electrical  system generated the following amounts of cash over the last three years.

2010 $447,070   2011 $443,247   2012 $482,144 to replace that income you would have to increase taxes  approximately 8%. 

Best Western, New hotel in the Crowsnest Pass

I was just asked several questions about the hotel deal regarding the contract with Medican and the timelines laid out in the agreement and what repercussions are involved if the timelines are not followed.

You can see the contract for yourself by going to the following address: http://transparencycnp.shawwebspace.ca/blog/posts/2/5/

Included in the contract are the following conditions on page 7 of the agreement:

 1 (a) Be satisfied with the zoning of the lands and the Municipality of Crowsnest Pass new land use bylaw, on or before Febuary 15,2013
    (b) Completion of final engineering design on or before on March 29,2013
    (c) Apply for and or obtain a development permit respecting the development, on or before March 29,2013
    (d) Securing an agreement with a hotel chain for the development, on or before April 30, 2013
    (e) Obtain a council resolution approving the waive of off-site levies for the development, on or before April 30,2013.

Conditions B and C were extended for an additional thirty days with approval of the municipality, Condition D did that take place? I have not heard anything there is nothing that has been released by the municipality yet.

The agreement also states under section 13 that the clearing of the land including demolition of all the present structures shall take place on or before August 30,2013.

My opinion, there is a council meeting next week (May 7) I expect Bruce will want to receive the maximum exposure on this issue. He will release an announcement in the next couple of days which will allow him to walk in to council next week a hero. He will announce that an agreement has been reached between Medican and Hotel chain ?????? prior to April 30th. Which could not have been achieved without the massive support, guidance, direction and positive thoughts from Council and Administration.

If this does not happen can these deadlines be extended? of course the purchaser requests an extension then the municipality can either agree to the request or let the agreement die, the political repercussions of the latter? not good just months before an election.