City council retracts opposition to pool taxation bylaw

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — The City of Fort St. John has made a U-turn on an amendment bylaw dictating who pays for the North Peace Leisure Pool. 

During the November 10th meeting, the City of Fort St. John Council reviewed an alternative resolution proposed by Councillor Trevor Bolin regarding the Peace River Regional District’s North Peace Leisure Pool Service Boundary Amendment Bylaw. 

The new resolution for the amendment stands in stark contrast to the one approved by council on October 16th, and provides the PRRD with the city’s approval instead. 

The bylaw, which was passed by the Peace River Regional District (PRRD) board of directors on October 27th, details more than 800 properties to be exempt from taxation towards the North Peace Leisure Pool in Fort St. John on 100th Street.

The city initially spoke out against the bylaw during the October 16th meeting, when Lilia Hansen, mayor and PRRD director for Fort St. John, voted against it.

“[The pool] is something that helps us attract and retain professionals, whether they’re coming to our hospitals or clinics, perhaps to come to a garage or shop,” Hansen had stated in the meeting. 

“Fort St. John is a more attractive community because we have the leisure pool.”

Several days later, during the City of Fort St. John council’s October 27th council meeting, the council voted against providing its support for the bylaw, expressing concern and dissatisfaction with it. 

Councillor Sarah MacDougall stated it would “shift the tax burden to others,” and likened paying for the pool to paying for a hospital to be built in Dawson Creek. 

“This is part of our tax contribution to a good community, things like promoting a healthier population,” MacDougall had stated. 

Then, during the November 10th meeting, Bolin proposed an alternative resolution to the one passed in October, stating the city’s approval of the amendment bylaw passed by the PRRD.

Also included in the resolution was a suggestion to the regional district. Bolin stated the council’s confusion regarding the bylaw when it was first presented was due to a mistaken belief that 848 new properties were being exempt from paying taxes towards the pool.

The last time this bylaw was passed by the regional district was in October 2023. According to the minutes for that meeting, 786 properties assessed at approximately $319.28 million were excluded – meaning a total of 62 new properties are being added in the 2025 amendment.

The bylaw is currently awaiting official approval from the City of Fort St. John, PRRD Electoral Area B and Electoral Area C. Once approval is received from these three participants in the bylaw, it can be submitted to the province’s Ministry of Housing and Municipal Affairs for statutory approval.