Mayor To Hold News Conference On China Trip

Tuesday, February 06, 2007 05:45 AM

Prince George Mayor Colin Kinsley arrived back in the city just a few short hours before last night's council meeting, following an eight-day trip to China...

But the Mayor was not yet willing to disclose what, if any, PG opportunities were secured during the junket, saying a news conference would be held at city hall either later today or tomorrow.

Kinsley and Events Prince George Sports Manager, Virginia Sprangers, were invited to attend the Asian Winter Games - the city was the only North American community to receive an invitation. And, in a news release put out following his departure, Kinsley said, “Prince George will have unprecedented access to Asia's top sport officials as we promote Prince George as a place to train, compete and live.” Among the meetings arranged were get-togethers with officials from the 2008 Beijing Olympic Organizing Committee and the Asian Games Organizing Committee.

Both Kinsley and Sprangers were in council chambers last night. Sprangers was there to receive council's support on a bid to host the 2011 Western Canada Summer Games (click here for story). But the Mayor was keeping "mum" on details of the China trip, saying, after almost 24-hours of travelling, some time was needed to prepare a report.

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Posted on Tuesday, February 06, 2007 05:45 AM in News by Michelle Cyr-Whiting

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Comments

Posted by: lunarguy on February 6 2007 6:27 AM

Well from what I hear the air in PG is much better than most cities in China so the athletes will think they are in good air ! Hopefully they don't consult any one in Vancouver about training facilities , I mean they wouldn't dare use Google would they ?

Posted by: realitycheck on February 6 2007 10:13 AM

We have excellent winter training facilities here...very comparable with anywhere else close to Vancouver. You really think; a) They will get access to training facilities in Vancouver/Whistler with the # of teams vying for use? b) want to pay huge dollars for accomodations, drive around in that insane traffic and live in Vancouver with all the distractions while they are supposed to be training.
And best of all you're right...our air will not be an issue for Chinese athletes used to much worse....maybe we're on to something there?!?!?!?

Posted by: owl on February 6 2007 10:42 AM

We also have great Chinese restaurants.

... and our weather in January is great ... sometimes rain, sometimes snow ...

Posted by: trueblue2 on February 6 2007 12:19 PM

Rain or shine we have the CN Centre, the Colliseum, the Aquatic Centre, and soon the Northern Sport Centre.

What someone with this city needs to start doing immediately is measuring the potential return on these sorts of projects. i.e., how much $$$ did this trip and all of the activities surrounding it, (including salaries) cost? How many athletes could potentially be accommodated here? How much eocnomic impact, in $$$, would each athlete generate.

In other words, if it costs more to pursue these athletes than can be realized in return, the activity should be questioned.

The same applies for these GAMES that are going to cost $$$ - not just the ones already scheduled for Van but those which we are bidding on here in PG.

Posted by: Harbinger on February 6 2007 3:37 PM

Maybe hizzoner will announce that he got another invite to China again later this year. Could happen.

Posted by: charles on February 6 2007 7:14 PM

It's hard to guess whether or not Mayor Kinsley will be running in the next election. He seems to enjoy being in front of the television cameras and toying with the electorate and media.

Does anyone know what kind of a pension a retiring or "defeated at the polls" mayor (in Prince George) receives?

Posted by: Palopu on February 6 2007 7:36 PM

Dont forget that we have the 2008 Olympics coming up in Bejing China, no doubt the Mayor will want to attend that, we also have the World Winter Cities Association for Mayors conference in Nuuk, Greenland in 2008. Mayor Kinsley is on the Executive Board of the WWCAM, so one would expect that he will be on his way to Greenland.

In addition he has arranged for the WWCAM to be hosted in Prince George in 2010, this conference will end about one week prior to the start of the 2010 Olympics in Whistler.

There are only 20 Cities in the world that are members of the WWCAM, and there are only two in North America. One is Anchorage Alaska, and the other is Prince George BC.

I suspect that the Mayor will run in the 2008 elections so that he can host this conference in 2010 and then head on down to Whistler for the Olympics. This would be has **Grande Finale**

All he needs to accomplish these things is for us to re-elect him in 2008. Why would he retire when he draws a salary of $83,000.00 per year plus perks?

Posted by: charles on February 6 2007 8:49 PM

Palopu, you make a good case as to why Mayor Kinsley would want to run in the next election. There are a lot of potential "fringe benefits" to being Mayor of Prince George. However this has to be weighed against running in the next election and losing. This must be a tremendous blow to one's ego. My guess is Mayor Kinsley will be spending a few dollars to survey voter sentiment just before the next election, before he makes up his mind whether or not to run.

Hopefully someone like Tom Stedman chooses to run for Mayor in the next election. It seems to me we need someone who shows some respect for taxpayers' hard earned dollars here in Prince George.

Posted by: owl on February 6 2007 9:04 PM

By the fall of 2008 we will have a new industrial park almost completed with one new mill in the park, a ring road under construction, a bridge widening under construction, an expanded runway with the second extension almost complete, an air cargo firm building with an application in to City Hall to build a new air cargo storage/handling facility for their operations, a police station under construction, a completed gaming centre downtown, a Coast Inn expansion under construction, an expansion of the Days Inn, Chapters coming to town, a referendum for a performing arts centre to be built in a PPP arrangement, a new Duchess Park into the ground for completion in 2009, a new homeless shelter under completion ...... and on and on ....

plus increasing rail noise, air pollution, property crime, increasing homeless ... etc. etc.

so, the climate will be right for a re-election of the current slate of Council ...

The tough election year will more likely be the election of 2011 ....

Posted by: owl on February 6 2007 9:05 PM

Tom who?

Posted by: Palopu on February 6 2007 9:07 PM

Is Tom Steadman still in Prince George?? Most of these guys leave for sunnier climes as soon as they retire.

Posted by: Longnecks1 on February 6 2007 10:38 PM

Steadman...the guy that was going to sue the city for not giving him lights at his Canadian Tire Store on Central...This the same guy....Cry's like a baby when he doesn't get his way

Posted by: Harbinger on February 6 2007 11:27 PM

Good ol' Tom is in Ontario. probably happy as a clam with fresh air. Maybe hizzoner, if he loses the next election, if he runs, can probably qualify as a journeyman travel agent. With his familiarity and all. Could happen.

Posted by: Marty on February 7 2007 8:59 AM

I eagerly await kinsleys report on what pub there had the best nachos, and coldest beers on tap.

Posted by: diplomat on February 7 2007 11:34 AM

"By the fall of 2008 we will have a new industrial park almost completed with one new mill in the park,..."

We will still have oodles of cracks and potholes, narrow or no sidewalks...

"There are a lot of potential "fringe benefits" to being Mayor of Prince George."

Like 'frequent flyer points' and 'Airmiles'
piling up for the next flight...

And a new wood fired generating station DOWNTOWN to pollute the airshed even more.