2016 was not without its challenges, says Kimberley Mayor Don McCormick, but it was also marked by many successes.
“Generally, I think 2016 built on the success of 2015. For the community, it was a relatively good year,” he said. “I think people are pleased with the progress.”
McCormick points to the new retail in the Platzl.
“These new entrepreneurs have produced amazing results. There’s a vibrancy in the Platzl we haven’t seen in recent years.
“The City’s role is only to facilitate and create the kind of environment that allows entrepreneurs to do their own thing. We want to make it as easy as possible for businesses to be successful. We are working hard on reducing red tape. We’ve made good progress and there’s more to come.”
2016 was also a year that saw two huge projects completed — the Mark Creek flume rehab and the Gerry Sorensen Way rebuild.
Gerry Sorensen Way was completed on budget and phase II of the flume did go over, but not in any way as much as phase I. McCormick says he is glad to have the flume project behind him, but says the look of downtown Kimberley has been much improved.
Building reports continued their strength from the year before.
“We have quietly gone about a whole lot of construction,” McCormick said. “We have $11 million in building permits up to December. That’s the most since 2007. And it’s not just one big thing. In Invermere, they had a big increase, but $8 million of that was a new community centre. In Kimberley, it’s just a whole lot of individual projects. It’s pretty awesome and not a one off.”
McCormick was also pleased to see the union contract with city employees settled in 2016 despite the difficulties.
“The labour contract was a major event last year. As challenging as it was for both the union and the city, the outcome was affordable for the city and the employees got a reasonable deal. It’s a pretty good four year contract. It’s important to work with the union over the next three years to make sure we are prepared for the next contract.”
Also notable this year were two major staff additions; Jim Hendricks as CFO and Dawn Attorp as Corporate Officer.
“They bring a wealth of new experience and great assets to the management team,” he said.
McCormick says a key concept to remember is that the Mayor doesn’t run the day to day operations of the city — that’s the CAO’s job.
It’s the Mayor’s job to take the long range view and as such, McCormick has been working on the asset management strategy, finding available land for industrial development, lobbying for watershed issues and the Cranbrook Kimberley Development Initiative.
“My focus is new revenue. Scott’s (Sommerville CAO) is financial accountability and customer service.
“One thing that is really important is controlling tax increases. The whole concept of the Municipal Revenue Index is in its third year now. We are feeling more confident that we can predict what the increase will be each year. That’s what taxpayers want.
Overall, McCormick says he would classify it as a good year.
“There are lots of positive things to work on for 2017. The challenge is balancing services with the need for infrastructure renewal and a reasonable level of taxation. I’m confident we have the team and the plan in place to make more headway.
“Not everyone is happy about all things, but that never happens,” he said.