Council update email from Oct 28, 2007
Hello everyone: Welcome to my first "email update". I promise not to bombard you with these -- every two or three weeks would be about right, I think. Just a reminder that these emails are very much my personal point of view, and do not in any way pretend to be the official word of Council or the Town of Banff. Here are a few quick items of interest ... I'd love to hear your opinions on any of these.
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PARKADE CONCEPT DESIGN COMING SOONÂ According to Council's long-term agenda, a concept for the proposed second parkade could be before Council as soon as November 13.Â
I have a few questions about this parkade: 1. Do we really need it?Â
Parking is a multi-faceted issue.  First, it is an issue of way-finding. If you have a situation in which I can almost always find parking within a block of my destination, but visitors cannot, then you have a way-finding issue. Â
Next, it is an issue of balancing needs and demand. It is unreasonable to expect that everyone will be able to find a parking spot within a block of his/her destination on July 1 -- but what about a normal summer day? This summer, I watched the spaces indicator on the parkade every time I passed it. I saw it under 50 stalls of availability four times, and I'm told that the
Bear Street
parkade before we decide to build another parkade?Â
2. Can we afford it? I haven't seen a cost estimate yet, but the most recent figure that I heard was around $9 million. Can we afford to pay this in order to provide a "free" service? 3. Will we be happy with the location? As I understand it, the proposed location is in the 200 Block of Beaver, in the general area of the parking lot next to the recycling bins.  Let's look at the surroundings.ÂFirst, Beaver Street -- just one block off our main drag, but still determinedly residential. Across Beaver Street, the most intact "historic district" in town, with a line of significant historic homes. Next door, a spectacular fire hall building -- a combination historic building and sympathetic addition. Behind the site, across the alley, a new downtown park, the most delightful feature of which is its open view.  Picture a parkade in the middle. Will we be happy with that choice? --------------------------------------------
BANFF AVENUEUPDATEÂ
The latest report at council was that Banff Avenue should re-open to traffic in mid-November. Next spring, there will be a bit of work to do on landscaping installation and a final lift of asphalt. With good weather, the project should be complete before things get really busy. Won't it be great to see those trees go in along Banff Avenue?
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COMMITTEE APPOINTMENTSÂ
I thought you might be interested to know what committees the town is represented on, and who serves on which committee, so I've attached the appointments for this year.  Personally, I'd like to see a few more Town committees to review proposals and to generate good ideas for Council to consider. What do you think? Would it be a good idea to re-institute a Finance Committee to review financial forecasts and other money issues, or a Protective Services Committee to work on community policing and bylaw enforcement issues? An alternative approach that has been suggested is to just have project-based committees, like the one that worked on the Community Plan.
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COUNCIL VERY BUSY FOR THE NEXT FEW WEEKS It's time for the preparation of the 2008 budget. We have a two-day strategic planning retreat this Monday and Tuesday, and many budget meetings between November 26 and mid-December. These meetings are open to the public -- I'll be sure to let you know exact dates as they get closer.
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Thanks for your interest in my council updates! Remember, you can always unsubscribe if you want -- just send me an email to let me know. All the best until next time -- Leslie