Residents inquire about City, Hydro’s draft agreement

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — Last night, the City unveiled the details of their preliminary agreement with BC Hydro regarding the impact Site C will have on their community, and how they can offset the effects. The meeting took place at the Kids Arena Fieldhouse.

“We needed to ensure we were being proactive and looking to promote and protect our community, because this project is just seven kilometres from our downtown,” said Mayor of Fort St. John, Lori Ackerman, who hosted the meeting and answered questions from inquisitive residents.

She says the City engaged in conversation with businesses, agencies, and communities across the region to gauge their thoughts about Site C.

Council identified 11 draft objectives in 2011, launching the Let’s Talk Site C draft objectives in the summer of 2012. In response to those outlined objectives, the City and BC Hydro based their agreements around those requests from the community.

In talks with the community, economic opportunities, enhancement to regional transportation, housing for workers within both work camps and the community, and costs not being the burden of taxpayers were just some of the highlighted objectives for community members.

In the five years since the City first set the principles of their ideal agreement, Fort St. John is now steps away from making a legally-binding agreement with BC Hydro.

“Anyone who remembers what happened in the past with previous dams, and the promises that were made … we were not going to spend this kind of time and effort on something that was not going to be legally binding,” said Mayor Ackerman.

BC Hydro has committed to providing $1 million per year to the City during construction, increased by 3.5 per cent each year. If construction continues beyond eight years, BC Hydro will pay the amount of the last year, plus, 3.5 per cent, for each succeeding year.

A Site C Regional Legacy fund would also be established, to provide the City with approximately $125 million dollars over the next 70 years, following the completion of Site C as it starts to operate.

Other contributions from the crown corporation include $100,000 per year for eight years to assist non-profits, $250,000 to local non-profits that provide emergency/transitional funding — including the recent $200,00 donation to the Salvation Army, and donations of $25,000 to both Skys Place and to Meaope Transition House for Women — and $75,000 this year to support local charities.

BC Hydro also promised to provide funding for an extra police officer to work for the Fort St. John detachment. In the agreement, it is also outlined that the power utility would regularly monitor traffic volumes. ‘If traffic volumes increase and require mitigation, BC Hydro will discuss the needs with the City and Peace River Regional District,’ an information booklet given to citizens read.

They will also track contractor/employee use of charter flights, and provide a summary to the Airport Society.

50 units of rental accommodations will be constructed, and 10 of those will be affordable housing immediately, while Hydro will use the other 40. However, once the project is complete, the remaining housing will go towards non-profits for more affordable housing. BC Hydro is entering an agreement to achieve this.

“It’s important for us to ensure that our disenfranchised citizens, and our vulnerable population, are looked after during this time — and that they are not squeezed out of housing,” said Mayor Ackerman. She said the City thought there were some interest proponents who might have been interested in building the units, but had no land.

“So does the city have to supply land for that?” asked a resident.

“Nope, we don’t have to,” she answered.

Another resident asked about local hiring, and if there was a guaranteed percentage that Peace River Hydro Partners would reach for local domestic workers. Mayor Ackerman said they can’t guarantee a certain amount of local workers, but reinforced their mandate to hire local workers first.

Charlie Lake resident Jim Little also asked about road maintenance on 271 Road, which he says BC Hydro promised to have completed prior to rock hauling. Little, on the board of directors for the North Peace Rod & Gun Club, says a member of the club was killed on that road a number of years ago — stressing his concerns about it remaining undone now.

When there was a lull in questions, Mayor Ackerman appealed to Arthur Hadland for a response. Hadland, a former PRRD board director and outspoken opponent to the Site C project, was arrested last month at a protest for obstructing traffic into the opening of BC Hydro’s construction site.

“What I see here is that Hydro is demonstrating a lack of social commitment to the whole Peace Region,” said Hadland, calling the power utility a ‘corporate monster.’

Regarding our growing city and boundaries, if the City decides it wants to expand its boundaries, BC Hydro will fully support the application to include the 96 hectares of land at 85 Avenue. BC Hydro will also provide $50,000 to develop a site master plan to the local government responsible for the land at the end of the project.

The City has also confirmed it will have the ability to access its rights to reservoir water as a potential source of domestic water, should the need for it ever become apparent. Monitoring of the City’s water system has already started, and will carry on to be monitored for quality and quantity at BC Hydro’s expense.

In regard to project review, BC Hydro has committed to creating a committee of high level officials and community leaders to meet not less than twice a year. A Site C Community Agreement Monitoring Committee made up of senior executives from both BC Hydro and the City.

They will also provide funding for consultation costs, and provide workers with an airport shuttle service — as well as shuttle services to leisure services. To support the health and wellness of the workers backing the project, tickets for use at recreation facilities in Fort St. John have also been included — totalling about $423,000 from BC Hydro.

Also in the draft agreement, BC Hydro is going to explore the possibility of becoming a partner of an Energy Innovation Centre.

When asked about Treaty 8 First Nations among the agreements, Mayor Ackerman clarified that the City doesn’t know what their agreements are, and they have requested their privacy — so she did not comment on it.

“Each First Nations community would have negotiated something specific to their community.”

Another public meeting will be held tonight, at 6:30 p.m., in Council Chambers.