When council passed the first three readings of the 2011 budget on Tuesday night, one city councillor took issue with the City’s spending habits.
Coun. Sheila Gordon-Payne, who voted against the budget, said she was continuing to “raise the red flag” over counting on money coming from the Watson Island pulp mill. She said money from the pulp mill has not come into municipal coffers, but the City is spending as if it has come in.
Coun. Gordon-Payne also said it’s a risky decision to spend money the City doesn’t have, and predicted that the City will one day have to raise taxes just to live within its means.
In an interview after the meeting, Mayor Jack Mussallem said he understood Coun. Gordon-Payne’s concerns, but he argued the City is going through a period of growth and opportunity.
“We can get beyond it after this year,” said Mussallem. “It’s a reasonable way to proceed at this time. I wouldn’t do it continuously year after year after year, and I think that’s her point. But at this time, going forward, we have cash flow that we can do that.”
Mussallem also said the sale of the pulp mill would help pay down the “extraordinary” debt load the city is under.
The City took the property at Watson Island after the previous owner, Sun Wave Forest Products, didn’t pay its taxes. In February 2010, SunWave filed a lawsuit against the City, claiming the City set unrealistic timetables for the removal of its property. Sun Wave also claimed the City was barring it from accessing its property on Watson Island.
On top of those legal costs were the maintenance fees for the property. After the City took over ownership of the mill in December 2009, it had to pay to maintain the property. According to the draft budget, those costs came to over $1 million in 2010.
The draft budget also states the City will actually be increasing its budgeted expenditures for Watson to $1.225 million for 2011 to “begin compliance with Ministry of Environment direction as well as some provision being made for cost of impending lawsuits.”
In September last year, a joint venture – comprising Metlakatla, Lax Kw’alaams and the Prince Rupert Port Authority – signed an exclusivity agreement by the City to do its due diligence in consideration of buying the mill. In return, the joint venture would pay most of the maintenance costs. At this point, it’s still not known whether the joint venture will buy the property.
The City’s next court date with Sun Wave is June 15, and another one is scheduled for June 22. Mussallem said there probably won’t be news of a sale of the mill until after those dates.
This year’s budget also sets aside $118,000 from its accumulated surplus to fund the net cost of holding Watson Island. The budget states the balance of the surplus on Dec. 31, 2010 was $2.5 million.
~Written by Chris Armstrong. Muskeg News
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Details released about historic signing
Port discusses elements of Coast Tsimshian deal
Posted on April 27th, 2011 by MuskegPress in News
A month after the minister of transportation visited Prince Rupert to herald a new deal between the government and the Coast Tsimshian, the Port Authority discussed some details of the plan at the monthly Chamber of Commerce luncheon.
On April 27, Andrew Mayer, the vice president of commercial & regulatory affairs with the Port, fleshed out some of the features of the deal, which he officially called the “Phase I, Phase II & Terminal 2 Settlement Agreement.”
Mayer said the deal will last 40 years and include the following terms:
•Transfer of federal & provincial Crown lands, located next to Fairview Terminal, to the Coast Tsimshian;
•“Economic development payments” from the federal government to the Coast Tsimshian. Mayer said this “substantial amount of money” is intended to be used by the Coast Tsimshian to train its members;
•Financial payments from the Port to the Coast Tsimshian for Phase I and Phase II work.;
•Contracting opportunities. In some cases, the Coast Tsimshian will have the ability to bid on a contract first – they must then demonstrate they have the necessary qualifications to complete the work, and the bid must be shown to be competitive. Mayer also said the qualifications and experience of any joint venture working with the Coast Tsimshian will also be taken into account;
•The ability for the Coast Tsimshian to be the sole source of contracting opportunities for major projects, such as Ridley Island Road and the rail utility corridor;
•50 jobs targeted to the Coast Tsimshian for Phase II;
•150 “operations jobs” over a 10-year period;
•Cash payments from the Port Authority for Phase I. In essence, the Coast Tsimshian would receive payments per container once the number of containers shipped reaches a certain threshold;
•After Phase II is built, the Coast Tsimshian will receive a cash settlement payable in one of the following scenarios: over 15 years, or lump-sum, or on a 20-foot container basis.
In promoting the deal, Mayer said it benefitted not only the Port, but also Prince Rupert as a whole. He said the agreement will lead to improved opportunities for the Coast Tsimshian, jobs & profits will remain in Rupert, and there will be improved marketability of the Port.
Mayer also pointed out that while all parties have agreed to these terms, the agreement has not actually been signed yet. He said the signing was delayed by the federal election, and predicted the ink would be on the paper shortly after May 2.
Most of the terms of the agreement had been distributed by the Port in a backgrounder handed out on March 14, when then-minister of transportation Chuck Strahl made the official announcement. While Mayer gave a more in-depth examination of the details, there are still many unknowns, such as the exact dollar figures for the cash settlements, when Coast Tsimshian members would start seeing jobs, and how much training the jobs would require.
In an interview after the luncheon, Mayer told Muskeg News the parties in the agreement will likely discuss the release of further information after the execution of the final agreement.
When Strahl made the announcement last month, Garry Reece & Harold Leighton, the chief councillors at Lax Kw’alaams and Metlakatla (which comprise the Coast Tsimshian), praised the agreement in front of about 50 people gathered for the announcement.
“This deal brings us certainty that we can do business in partnership with our neighbours,” said Leighton in his remarks to the audience last month.
~Written by Chris Armstrong Muskeg News
Posted on April 27th, 2011 by MuskegPress in News
A month after the minister of transportation visited Prince Rupert to herald a new deal between the government and the Coast Tsimshian, the Port Authority discussed some details of the plan at the monthly Chamber of Commerce luncheon.
On April 27, Andrew Mayer, the vice president of commercial & regulatory affairs with the Port, fleshed out some of the features of the deal, which he officially called the “Phase I, Phase II & Terminal 2 Settlement Agreement.”
Mayer said the deal will last 40 years and include the following terms:
•Transfer of federal & provincial Crown lands, located next to Fairview Terminal, to the Coast Tsimshian;
•“Economic development payments” from the federal government to the Coast Tsimshian. Mayer said this “substantial amount of money” is intended to be used by the Coast Tsimshian to train its members;
•Financial payments from the Port to the Coast Tsimshian for Phase I and Phase II work.;
•Contracting opportunities. In some cases, the Coast Tsimshian will have the ability to bid on a contract first – they must then demonstrate they have the necessary qualifications to complete the work, and the bid must be shown to be competitive. Mayer also said the qualifications and experience of any joint venture working with the Coast Tsimshian will also be taken into account;
•The ability for the Coast Tsimshian to be the sole source of contracting opportunities for major projects, such as Ridley Island Road and the rail utility corridor;
•50 jobs targeted to the Coast Tsimshian for Phase II;
•150 “operations jobs” over a 10-year period;
•Cash payments from the Port Authority for Phase I. In essence, the Coast Tsimshian would receive payments per container once the number of containers shipped reaches a certain threshold;
•After Phase II is built, the Coast Tsimshian will receive a cash settlement payable in one of the following scenarios: over 15 years, or lump-sum, or on a 20-foot container basis.
In promoting the deal, Mayer said it benefitted not only the Port, but also Prince Rupert as a whole. He said the agreement will lead to improved opportunities for the Coast Tsimshian, jobs & profits will remain in Rupert, and there will be improved marketability of the Port.
Mayer also pointed out that while all parties have agreed to these terms, the agreement has not actually been signed yet. He said the signing was delayed by the federal election, and predicted the ink would be on the paper shortly after May 2.
Most of the terms of the agreement had been distributed by the Port in a backgrounder handed out on March 14, when then-minister of transportation Chuck Strahl made the official announcement. While Mayer gave a more in-depth examination of the details, there are still many unknowns, such as the exact dollar figures for the cash settlements, when Coast Tsimshian members would start seeing jobs, and how much training the jobs would require.
In an interview after the luncheon, Mayer told Muskeg News the parties in the agreement will likely discuss the release of further information after the execution of the final agreement.
When Strahl made the announcement last month, Garry Reece & Harold Leighton, the chief councillors at Lax Kw’alaams and Metlakatla (which comprise the Coast Tsimshian), praised the agreement in front of about 50 people gathered for the announcement.
“This deal brings us certainty that we can do business in partnership with our neighbours,” said Leighton in his remarks to the audience last month.
~Written by Chris Armstrong Muskeg News
More activity flows through Prince Rupert Port
You are here: Home » News » Container port to see two more ships per week
Container port to see two more ships per week
Posted on April 18th, 2011 by MuskegPress in News
Although some details still need to ironed out, Fairview Terminal will see four container ships visiting each week, starting in May. That’s an increase from the two ships that currently make Prince Rupert a port-of-call each week.
Shaun Stevenson, the vice president of marketing & business development at the Prince Rupert Port Authority, said both COSCO and Hanjin are adding Prince Rupert to their Pacific shipping services.
COSCO (China Ocean Shipping Company) is planning to add Prince Rupert to its “South China Express” service, said Stevenson. He added this will see Rupert as the last port-of-call, after Long Beach, and before the ship heads west across the Pacific.
“We’re hopeful that’s going to be a real opportunity for exports for Prince Rupert,” said Stevenson.
Hanjin Shipping will also be sending a ship to Rupert as part of its Pacific Northwest Express Service. According to Hanjin’s website, its ships will arrive in Prince Rupert on Saturdays from Busan, South Korea. On Sundays, the ship will depart Rupert south for Seattle, Portland & Vancouver before heading back west to Busan.
In both cases, the new calls have their own distinct characteristics. Stevenson said the new COSCO call is unique in that it’s the last port-of-call before heading back west, and the Hanjin call provides a greater reach into the Korean market.
Stevenson also said there are some details that still need to be worked out, such as the exact date for the first calls, how large the vessels will be, and how much volume will be shipped through Fairview. Still, he said the addition of the two extra ships will help Fairview Terminal. “Certainly it’s going to contribute to a lot of growth, even in this calendar year,” he said.
The two new ships will also be visiting Fairview during a period of increasing capacity. In its year-end report on 2010 numbers, the Port Authority said 340,000 TEUs were shipped through Fairview last year, putting the terminal at almost 50 per cent capacity.
At this point, Stevenson said it’s difficult to determine how much volume will be increased with the two new ships. He said any expansion of the terminal will only happen after an ongoing environmental assessment is complete, which is expected by mid-2012. He said expansion plans are under review by the Port, CN Rail, and Maher, the operator of Fairview. The decision on when to expand will be a commercial decision by Maher, said Stevenson.
A press release sent out by the City celebrating the arrival of the two ships said “the increased activity will allow for an increase in shipment of back haul products to Asia.”
~Written by Chris Armstrong Muskeg News
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Container port to see two more ships per week
Posted on April 18th, 2011 by MuskegPress in News
Although some details still need to ironed out, Fairview Terminal will see four container ships visiting each week, starting in May. That’s an increase from the two ships that currently make Prince Rupert a port-of-call each week.
Shaun Stevenson, the vice president of marketing & business development at the Prince Rupert Port Authority, said both COSCO and Hanjin are adding Prince Rupert to their Pacific shipping services.
COSCO (China Ocean Shipping Company) is planning to add Prince Rupert to its “South China Express” service, said Stevenson. He added this will see Rupert as the last port-of-call, after Long Beach, and before the ship heads west across the Pacific.
“We’re hopeful that’s going to be a real opportunity for exports for Prince Rupert,” said Stevenson.
Hanjin Shipping will also be sending a ship to Rupert as part of its Pacific Northwest Express Service. According to Hanjin’s website, its ships will arrive in Prince Rupert on Saturdays from Busan, South Korea. On Sundays, the ship will depart Rupert south for Seattle, Portland & Vancouver before heading back west to Busan.
In both cases, the new calls have their own distinct characteristics. Stevenson said the new COSCO call is unique in that it’s the last port-of-call before heading back west, and the Hanjin call provides a greater reach into the Korean market.
Stevenson also said there are some details that still need to be worked out, such as the exact date for the first calls, how large the vessels will be, and how much volume will be shipped through Fairview. Still, he said the addition of the two extra ships will help Fairview Terminal. “Certainly it’s going to contribute to a lot of growth, even in this calendar year,” he said.
The two new ships will also be visiting Fairview during a period of increasing capacity. In its year-end report on 2010 numbers, the Port Authority said 340,000 TEUs were shipped through Fairview last year, putting the terminal at almost 50 per cent capacity.
At this point, Stevenson said it’s difficult to determine how much volume will be increased with the two new ships. He said any expansion of the terminal will only happen after an ongoing environmental assessment is complete, which is expected by mid-2012. He said expansion plans are under review by the Port, CN Rail, and Maher, the operator of Fairview. The decision on when to expand will be a commercial decision by Maher, said Stevenson.
A press release sent out by the City celebrating the arrival of the two ships said “the increased activity will allow for an increase in shipment of back haul products to Asia.”
~Written by Chris Armstrong Muskeg News
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