Just What Was The Plan For Downtown?

By Ben Meisner

If it was the intention of the DBIA to get a downtown business person elected to City Council they have gone about it in the wrong way.

A few weeks ago, following a successful down town rally held to look into the plight of the homeless, DBIA President Shari Green announced that she was throwing her hat in the ring for City Council.

Within hours of officially announcing her candidacy, she appeared before City Council saying that the DBIA was seeking to expand its borders. During that presentation she said in her letter to Council, that, ”Of the efforts we have made we only have two confirmed non-supporters." Council responded by giving three readings to a new by law that would increase the boundaries and expand the area by 123 more businesses.

At a  meeting of  property owners who  oppose the  expansion, the former President of the down town Merchants Association, Kirk Gable, was asked, “Did not the DBIA have the option to renew it’s by law without  the expansion?"   Gable replied, "absolutely”

Gable was then asked,” had they then opted to go with an expansion area it would have changed the whole look at this, would it not?  Meaning instead of having 50% of the property owners through the entire region including the old part, we would be looking at just those in the expansion area, is that right?”

Gables response, "My guess is that it would fail. How many of you would voluntarily agree to raise your taxes if you were the only ones to have it”.

Question, "what has happened now is that there is an appearance there was a deliberate plan to make sure it was going to pass. Because if it stood on its own on the expansion, you just said, it likely would have failed if Parkwood had been included and you said, yes that was part of the discussion."

Kirk Gable, "I’m not sure if that’s true. But there is a bigger chance that it would fail yes."  

The proposed bylaw has already  been given three readings, meaning there won't be any  public hearing for those who are opposed to the plan to make their feelings heard.

City Council, perhaps sensing that there was overwhelming support for the proposed new down town business area,  and being told there was very little opposition, simply went with the flow.

Council also adopted the reverse petition system which put in place a requirement that, ” if 50% of the parcels, representing at least 50% of the assessed value of the land would be required from the entire region including the old area in order for the by law to be rescinded."

Shari Green in her presentation said, "To personally seek out property owners a second time through a property owner led petition takes significantly more resources than we currently have available."

Were all the owners contacted in the first instance is a question that should be asked.

Now was the DBIA aware that anyone trying to put together a reverse petition would face more than an uphill battle with trying to reach the existing business owners?  The DBIA had a list of property owners, but when it came to trying to contact these same business for their thoughts on the proposal, Dirk Loedel was told in an E-Mail from Derputy City Clerk Wendy Nordin (who sits on the board of the DBIA as an ex-officio member) that, "The freedom of information and Protection of Privacy Act prevents me from providing you a list of the names and addresses of all of the owners”.

So anyone trying to mount a petition against the idea would have to go it all alone.  Shari Green, the current President of the DBIA, in her presentation to Council said,” About 20% of our property owners do not reside in Prince George and many are numbered companies making it difficult for our volunteers in our association to seek out written support from each of them”. The DBIA had a manager in place during this period.

The expiry date for the reverse petition is November 18^th, one day after the next council meeting at which those in opposition will have a chance to appear.

Many of those in opposition to the expanded boundaries say they are not opposed to the DBIA, anything but; they want to know where the money will be spent.

In the 2007 budget according to the audited financial statement, $ 42,717.00 was spent on management fees, $17,520.00 on meetings, $44,170.00 on flower baskets and $22,671.00 on the show and shine, for 83.5% of the total expenditures for that year.

It is generally agreed that the Northern Hardware remains the strongest drawing card in the down town. They have been able to survive for 89 years including weathering the storm in the movement of large box retailers and other retail and office space out of the down town core with increased service to the public. They have been faced with increased social agencies, their street turned into pawn shop alley, a street problem and torn up roads. They should be the company that wins the best company of the year every year in this city.

There is an argument to be made on behalf of those people who used to belong to the volunteer downtown association in that less than a dozen belonged on a voluntary basis, with those that contributed paying the freight for those that did not. The my way or the highway approach never works.

In the end City Council trots out a,”let's Fix down town” every three years and then sets about to hammer another nail in the coffin. Conversely the DBIA is trying to place an associate on Council which only exacerbates the feeling that the City of Prince George down town is not the only place that should be considered in a civic election.  

I’m Meisner and that’s one man’s opinion.

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