Brandon City Council Briefs (February 19)

• City Council received a presentation from Orval Henderson regarding the desired establishment of the Brandon Community Builders organization to build affordable housing for low-income residents in Brandon. Henderson indicated a steering committee is in the early stages of creating the organization, which would take the place of the now-defunct local chapter of Habitat for Humanity. Henderson indicated they have already struck a partnership with the Canadian Mental Health Association Westman Region to do work on one of its buildings on Rosser Avenue, would like to re-establish a “ReStore”, and also wishes to renew the partnership the City had established with the former local chapter of Habitat for Humanity with regards to a previous land donation in the area of Franklin and Percy Streets. Henderson concluded his presentation by indicating that the group would endeavor to be back in front of Council in the Spring with an update.

   

• City Council held public hearings for and subsequently gave final approval to by-laws for the designation of properties at 662-11th Street and 706 Lorne Avenue as municipal heritage sites. As per a report from the Municipal Heritage Advisory Committee, the property at 662-11th Street, owned by Keith Michael Maluga and Susan Angele Marie Lauzon, displays an architecture rich in Italianate features and has a history dating back 119 years. The property at 706 Lorne Avenue, meantime, is owned by Caitlyn Yacucha and is a 2.5 storey home built in 1898 and boasts an impressive array of Queen Anne style building features. The designation of 706 Lorne Avenue also includes a number of the interior features of the building, such as its staircase and veranda door.

   

• City Council received a verbal report from Meadows Ward Councillor Jim McCrae on behalf of the Personnel Committee, which highlighted the recent finalization of a contract with members of the Brandon Police Service. The one-year contract with the Brandon Police Association provides a 4.44 % increase for sworn members, effective Jan.1st, 2013, with a further wage adjustment based on comparator centres as at July 1st, 2013. With this settlement, non-sworn members will receive a 2% wage increase. The settlement also contains general language clarification, clean-up of wording and introduces a short-term, retirement incentive package, which provides an enhanced retirement pay-out for individuals who have attained their “Rule of 80” (their age plus their years of service) with the City of Brandon and wish to retire prior to July 16th, 2013.

   

• City Council received a verbal report from Linden Lanes Ward Councillor Shawn Berry on behalf of the General Museum and Archives Inc. Board of Directors, of which he was recently appointed chair. Berry reported that the Museum and Archives will be showing a collection from the 26th Field Regiment Museum in the next few months and that the board has just completed a five-year strategic plan on how it wants to move forward in the coming years.

   

• City Council considered a request from Victoria Ward Councillor Murray Blight to reconsider the $50,000 grant reduction to Renaissance Brandon, originally passed at the January 12th budget meeting. As part of the extensive debate on the matter, councillors considered a number of factors, including: the reduction in municipal funds would mean a matched reduction of funds by the Provincial government; the indication from Renaissance Brandon that the funding reduction would mean cuts and/or reductions to its established programs in the downtown; what Renaissance Brandon currently has for unallocated funding; how the reduction may or may not affect the City of Brandon’s Roadmap for Growth 2014; and what the replenishment of the funding would do to the proposed tax increase.

   

  Ultimately, Councillors voted to delete the $50,000 reduction from the 2013 budget and restore the originally-budgeted municipal funding for Renaissance Brandon in 2013 of $250,000. However, Council also voted to remove the separate $25,000 which had been added to the budget on Jan. 12th, 2013, that would have allowed the Planning and Building Safety Department begin work on Building Code Equivalency Standards for the downtown and asked City administration to find a further $25,000 reduction within the proposed budget. Therefore, the net proposed municipal mill rate increase for 2013 would remain at 0.98 %.

   

• City Council approved the appointment of Victoria Ward Councillor Murray Blight to the Brandon and Area Planning District and South Centre Ward Councillor Garth Rice Garth Rice to the Keystone Centre Board of Directors. The changes in board appointments reflect a resignation by Rosser Ward Councillor Corey Roberts from the Brandon and Area Planning District Board.

   

• City Council granted approval for City administration to begin preparing a by-law for a Secondary Plan for Southwest Brandon. The area in question encompasses approximately 150 hectares of land in the newly-annexed southwest corner of Brandon. This plan will provide lay out development considerations such as land use, road networks, active transportation/pedestrian connections, infrastructure implications, urban design, and phasing. It’s anticipated the plan could be ready for Council consideration in the fall of 2013.

   

• City Council gave final approval to boundary changes for the Linden Lanes and Meadows wards to reflect land annexation in Brandon’s southwest corner. With the changes, the north limit of the Linden Lanes Ward will return to being the Canadian National Railway (CNR) Right of Way and the east limit returns to being 26th Street. The boundary of the Meadows Ward will now extend west of 34th Street into the Waverly Subdivision between Park Avenue and the CNR Right of Way to the west limit of the City. To reflect the latter boundary change, the Meadows ward will be re-named as the Meadows-Waverly ward.

   

• City Council approved various amendments to Zoning By-law No. 6642 regarding land use and parking regulations within the Downtown Hub. The changes respect the recently-implemented HUB Secondary Plan by regulating land use and parking within The HUB itself. Among the changes are the provision of a minimum of one off-street parking space for each residential dwelling unit constructed in a new building in the HUB’s mixed use zone (but not for an existing buildings) and changes to the HUB bulk and siting requirements.

   

• Council gave second reading to a by-law to re-zone the property at 1406 Lorne Avenue from RLD Residential Low Density Multiple Family Zone to RMD Residential Moderate Density Multiple Family Zone to accommodate the owner, Mun-Yeol Lee, constructing an eight unit, two-storey multiple-family dwelling. Third reading of the by-law is being held in abeyance until a development agreement is in place and pending any further objections.

   

• City Council gave second reading to a by-law to rezone the northern portion of 3000 Richmond Avenue East from DR Development Reserve Zone to MG Industrial General Zone. The owners, Gloria and June Cumming and Janice Bradley, are applying for the re-zoning of the former sand and gravel pit to allow for the building of a building and yard for Tri-Wave Construction. The proposal would also subdivide the subject parcel to the north of the CNR right-of-way while allowing the gravel pit to the south of the right-of-way to remain with the existing owners. Third reading of the by-law will be held in abeyance pending the execution of a development agreement.

   

• City Council gave final approval to a by-law to amend wording relating to terms of office for members of the Planning Commission to allow a Commission member who may come on midterm due to a resignation to apply for a full, 3-year term on the Commission once their partial term expires.

   

• City Council gave first reading to a by-law to rezone property located at 1660 -34th Street from DR Development Reserve Zone to RSF Residential Single Family Zone. The change is being sought by the property’s developer, Waverly Developments Ltd., to allow for the development of 34 single family lots.