Those people in well-run, viable businesses measure their programs and projects on an on-going basis to see whether they are successful and worth maintaining or even growing.

If this MoU is more than just decoration, and has some meaningful objectives which are selected to benefit all parts equitably, then can those of us in the peanut gallery have some idea of
1. what those objectives are
2. how they will be measured over time
3. what the baseline is as we start off into this new venture so that we can compare annually of how we are doing so that we are sure we are getting equity from the MoU

"unimagined opportunities"

I think it would be best to start imagining some of them and creating a strategy to pull those that appear to be viable into the fold.

More than just crossing fingers will be needed to make the most of the opportunities.

We still do not have a proper, modern, environmentally sound heavy industrial area in this community. Anyone who thinks we do, would not know one if they saw it.

The impact of the Prince Rupert-Prince George-Edmonton Mou, will be about the same as the impact of the connection between Vancouver-Kamloops-Edmonton. Keeping in mind that Vancouver ships and receives in excess of 1.5 Million containers per year, along with Millions of tons of other products such as Wheat, Coal, Sulphur, Potash, Pulp, Paper, Lumber, etc; and has huge Distribution Centres like Edmonton.

Even though there is all this activity between Vancouver and Edmonton, there is very little or no spin off for the City of Kamloops. What makes anyone think that Prince George will benefit from a Prince Rupert-Pr George-Edmonton Connection:???

Although I am very skeptical, I sure hope this "inland port" concept pans out, and results in a lot of jobs for Prince George.

I would appreciate it if someone would expain to me what the best case scenario might look like for this inland port concept.

I see today even David Dodge the Governor of the Bank of Canada expressed concerns about the deteriorating housing market in the United States, and the consequences it may have for the Canadian economy. The following paragraphs are from a Canadian Press news article.


U.S. housing troubles could affect Canadian economy: Bank of Canada governor




NEW YORK, Mar 29, 2007 (The Canadian Press via COMTEX) -- The troubles in the U.S. housing sector triggered by a plunge in the market for so-called subprime loans could delay recovery and have "huge consequences" for Canada's economy, says Bank of Canada governor David Dodge.

"Everybody else in the world looks at housing and says that doesn't have much consequence for demand for us. But of course for Canada it's exactly the opposite - it has huge consequences," the central bank governor said Thursday after a speech to the Americas Society and the Council of Americas.

A slew of U.S. banks and firms that lend to subprime borrowers - consumers with higher credit risks - have run into trouble as rising interest rates and falling home prices increased the number of loan delinquencies and foreclosures.

There are worries that it might spill over into the general housing market and lead to a further weakening of the U.S. homebuilding sector, a buyer of billions of dollars worth of Canadian lumber and other materials.

"Even though there is all this activity between Vancouver and Edmonton, there is very little or no spin off for the City of Kamloops."

Other than rail traffic. I was there once more just recently and ended up staying close to the river and tracks. The number of trains there compared to here appeared to be considerable.

I remember sitting in an outdoor restaurant there last year as well. The trains which were passing just a bit more than as block away were disturbing us several times each hour.

Thats exactly right Owl what makes it even more interesting is that the trains that you see from the restaurant are only CP Rail trains, you have a similiar number of CN Trains doing the same thing on the other side of the River. So you only saw half the action.

These trains run 24/7 all year inbound and outbound, with everything you can think of including Automobiles from the East going West, and Automobiles from Asia going East. There is a huge amount of business to and from Vancouver, however it has little of no effect on Kamloops, and the business to and from Prince Rupert will have little or no effect of Prince George

Unless the CN decides to include Prince George in their expansion plans. Let's wait and see. I don't expect CN to make any announcements until their labour problems have been overcome.

One wonders why the Federal Government just put a hold on their Airport Runway funding plans? If the CN doesn't include PG, why spend the money on the runway? Chester

Insofar as the Inland Port goes I would think that one should be cautious as to what spin offs will be available to Prince George. There will be no spin offs in regards to the Containers coming from Asia as the Port People in Prince Rupert are on record stating that 98% of these inbound containers will go directly onto rail cars and will be shipped to the US Midwest.

I think that what we will find in Prince George is not an Inland Port in the true sense of the meaning, but a container reload facility. What this could or would entail would be containers taken from Prince George by truck to Mackenzie, or Quesnel and loaded with pulp and returned to Prince George for loading on trains to Prince Rupert. Containers loaded at Prince George with Pulp and Paper, and lumber and sent by rail to Prince Rupert, with a few other containers from other shippers.

This business is presenlty sent to Vancouver by Rail or Truck and loaded into containers in Vancouver so it will be the same business going in a different direction with very little if any increase in jobs in the area, as there will be some loss of jobs if the business no longer goes to Vancouver. Other than Pulp, Paper, and other forest products, there is very little manufactured in this area that would go to Asia for export.

One has to try and separate the hype from the facts. As an example the people in charge of the Airport Expansion have been saying from the get go that they wanted the expansion to be complete at the same time or before the Containers started moving out of Prince Rupert. None of us could figure out what the connection was.

Here is a quote from Jim Blake after hearing that the $11 Million from the Federal Government was on hold and would have to be reviewed, which will delay the expansion plans by 3 months.

**The plan had been to see the runway extended to 10,000 feet by the end of the year to coincide with the planned completion with a cargo handling terminal in Prince Rupert, and to lengthen it to 1,400 feet by next year.** **We're disappointed its been delayed by two or three months but it has no real impact**.

So we are now told that although there has been much hype about having the runway completed to coincide with the Container Handling Facility in Prince Rupert,that now that this is not going to happen it doesnt matter because it has no real impact.

One must keep in mind that the Prince George Regional Airport is owned by the Federal Government and is leased to the Prince George Airport Authority for a 60 year period with provisions to extend the lease. Futhermore the Airport Authority board of directors were appointed by the Federal, Provincial, Regional, and Municipal Governments.

At the end of the day the Airport is owned by the Federal Government and we now have a situation where the Feds are giving $11 Million to the Aiport Authority to extend a runway that is owned by the Feds. Rather strange when you think about it.

Now"""" In addition to the Prince George Aiport Authority there are 25 other Airport Authoritys in Canada, also owned by the Feds. Maybe they have come to the conclusion that if they give $11 Million to Prince George they will have to give a similiar amount to the other Authoritys, and therefore are having second thoughts. Who knows?

No jet lag for hizzoner between Rupert and Redmonton. Hope for the best for our town. Maybe dumb luck will make us successful. It sure ain't been leadership and selling. Forever the optimist, eh? We will be number two when Rupert is under twenty feet of water thirty years from now. If I believe what I hear on the CBC advertising a global warming seminar. Gonna buy scuba gear and maybe some cheap real estate there.