THE MAYOR'S CITY UPDATE
A t our club meeting on October 14, 2010, Port Coquitlam Mayor, Greg Moore gave us a City Update.
In a range of issues, the Mayor discussed first off, the
City's waste management program. The new "green box" program has been
successful in diverting significant kitchen waste from the landfill. He
stressed a need to keep recycling simple.
He went on to talk about the importance of supporting arts in the community and drew attention to murals being done in the underpass on Shaughnessy Street. Art makes the community more enjoyable.
To get the community more involved a new Facebook page has been created spurring active on-line discussions of local issues, such as the local strategic plan and so on. Communications is important and city meetings have been held in local centres like the Wilson Senior Centre where our meetings are held. The city wants to make it easier for people to come and contribute to discussions like the city budget and the budgeting process.
Last year a Core Services Review where certain operations are closely detailed and all budget items area scrutinized was implemented. More of these Core Services Reviews will be conducted on different City operations over the coming years. A 10 year corporate strategic plan, titled Vision 2020 which will look at every financial decision will be prepared with much community input.
The Mayor expressed his pleasure at the City receiving an award from UBCM, Union of BC Municipalities for POCO's Community Outreach Program.
Land use is always a hot topic. A new highrise is in the works for the corner of Lions Way and Shaughnessy. At the Dominion Triangle, east of Costco, a WalMart will be opened next June, along with smaller box stores and 300,000 sq ft of smaller retailer space. 600 residential units will be there as well as some light industrial.
The goal is to have a 5 to ten minute commute because then life is better. Presently 82% of the city's population leaves POCO to work elsewhere.
Homelessness, another important issue, takes priority at City Hall. The City is part of Vancouver's goal to end chronic homelessness by 2015. It costs $524 per unit per month to house a homeless person in the TriCities area. The City through the Homes for Good Society has developed a program, along with the local Optimists support this program. A new "Dollar A Day" campaign will be implemented to help raise funds.
For more information you can find the Mayor's Report at www.portcoquitlam.ca