Bear Street Shared Street project revised
More parking and seasonal changes were added to the Bear Street Shared Street design based on feedback from the public. Council approved several changes to the project following a review of the input received at three public feedback sessions in February and March, and public input at two council meetings. These include:
- Revising the design to include four to eight on-street, short-term loading stalls year-round
- Developing a seasonal approach which removes sidewalk café seating and a limited number of bike racks between fall and spring and re-allocates this space to on-street, short-term loading
- Adding six stalls as accessible parking in the Bear Street surface lot, in addition to the two new on-street accessible parking stalls, and changing a number of stalls in the parking lot to short-term (1 hour) parking for access to professional / medical services
Council also directed administration to return with a briefing on snow and ice management to address the unique design of Bear Street.
The Bear Street Shared Street project is an extension of the Woonerff summer trial, which aims pedestrianize the 200 block of Bear Street. Council supported Option 2, which was has the diamond shaped pattern on the road. Construction for this project is scheduled for 2020. This summer, the temporary platforms for public and patio seating will be installed in May-June.
Cascade greenhouse moving locations
The community greenhouse on the roof of the Cascade Shops parkade is moving to town-owned land. The new owners of Cascade Shops have asked the Banff Greenhouse Gardening Society to move the structure by the end of April, and the community group asked for council support in finding a new location so it could still be used for gardening this summer. Council voted to host the 20-plot greenhouse in The Fenlands Banff Recreation Centre overflow lot, and committed $4,000 for materials/water services as well as reassembly assistance. A location at The Fenlands will be inspected for suitability. If it does not meet requirements, council approved a “Plan B” location on the roof of the Bear Street parkade. The greenhouse has been located on the roof of Cascade Shops since 2013. A third community greenhouse was erected this spring, in time for additional plots for the community.
2018 Financial Statements
Council received a briefing on the 2018 Town of Banff Operating Financial Statements. The total net surplus in 2018 was $7.6 million. This consists of $5.5 million in amortization expense and a total net addition to restricted reserves of $13.1 million. Council had set targets in the operating budget for wages and benefits savings of $26K and training savings of $4K. At the end of the year, there were wage and benefit savings of $402K, and $69K of savings were identified in Training, Travel and Meals. The year-end unrestricted surplus for 2018 was $410,731. Council allocated this surplus to the Budget Stabilization Reserve ($179,976) and the General Capital reserve ($230,755).