New business association gets mixed reviews in Dunbar
A new business improvement association for Dunbar is not being welcomed by some local merchants.
Brent Hawkins, who runs Dunbar Vacuums Ltd. near West 19th Avenue, believes the property tax levy he`ll have to pay into the BIA to fund banners, flower pots, power washing and advertising is "an absolute waste of money."
Housing prices in the North nearly doubled between 2003 and 2007. However, the North remains the most affordable place to live in B.C.
On Wednesday the B.C. Northern Real Estate Board released a report on housing affordability in Northern B.C.
An average family would have to spend 31.7 per cent of its pre-tax income on home ownership, compared to the provincial average of 68.5 per cent, board executive director Dorothy Friesen said.
Rick Decap was planning to spend big money on a retrofit for his store.
The owner of McCleaners Drycleaning in the Sydney Plaza on the North Shore was going to spend up to $250,000 on improvements and equipment to expand his business.
"Business is good there," Decap said.
But he may put those plans on hold because the city is considering putting a transit exchange in front of his and a number of other businesses on Sydney Avenue.
The flurry of new-home construction in the Comox Valley slowed somewhat last month.
In the Courtenay census agglomeration, which is essentially the Comox Valley, 36 new homes were started in March, 20 below the level recorded last March and 21 less than the number started in February, according to the Canada Housing and Mortgage Corporation (CMHC).
The International Monetary Fund thinks it is. The IMF recently released a report that evaluated housing prices and mortgage debt in 17 countries and its findings should interest many Canadians. Out of the 17 countries only Canada and Austria had homes that were considered undervalued based on current trends in personal income, demographics and interest rates.
The owner of a Saanich business-machines company figures he has lost several thousand dollars worth of merchandise in a weekend fire -- money he won`t get back because his insurance lapsed.
"Oh, my God, have I ever been affected. I`m a family man with four kids under eight," Denis Hedji, owner of Island Business Machine Services, said yesterday. "I didn`t have insurance because I thought I`ll stretch it a couple of months."
Victoria ranks second overall among 154 metropolitan Canadian cities as the best place to live, according a survey published in the May issue of MoneySense magazine.
The survey looked at water and air quality, housing, household income, discretionary income, new cars, unemployment, the percentage of people who walk or bicycle to work, population growth and crime.
Park board approves plans for eatery near English Bay bath house
VANCOUVER - The Vancouver park board has approved plans to begin public consultations on a new design concept for a privately built and operated English Bay concession and restaurant.
The plans were presented by Mark Ostry, of Vancouver-based Acton Ostry Architects, at the park board meeting Monday night.
In the fall of 2005, B.C. securities regulators cranked up the heat on Vancouver brokerage firms that were acting as conduits for illicit stock transactions.
The B.C. Securities Commission had just completed a marathon hearing into allegations that U.S. promoters had used Pacific International Securities to manipulate the shares of U.S. over-the-counter stocks and launder the proceeds.
The chance of another flood striking may be back to normal, but River Road will remain raised to act as a form of flood protection until the spring runoff is over, city council was told Monday night. Asked about the possibility of flooding this spring, city manager Derek Bates said the provincial environment ministry is forecasting a "neutral" chance of the Nechako or the Fraser breaking their banks.
Alarmed at staggering costs and fed up with what they say is regional indifference to their concerns, Colwood and Langford want to explore their own options for sewage treatment.
Colwood has budgeted $40,000 for its own consultant`s study into treatment options. Langford Mayor Stew Young said he`s had discussions with Colwood Mayor Jody Twa and will recommend his council participate.
Massive Colwood development will proceed as market dictates
It could be a year before a shovel turns ground on the mammoth Colwood Corners redevelopment project, says developer Les Bjola, president of Turner Lane Developments.
The $1-billion plus remake over the next 20 years will see the underperforming strip mall replaced with as many as 12 highrises of up to 29 storeys for condos, office, commercial and hotel space.
Campbell River mill machine shutdown hits 145 workers
CAMPBELL RIVER -- The news many in Campbell River have feared for months came yesterday with the announcement that No. 1 Paper Machine at Catalyst Paper`s Elk Falls Mill will stay down indefinitely.
Union leaders fear the bad news won`t end there. The company said roughly 145 hourly and staff positions will be affected as the company adjusts to rising input costs and a relentless fibre shortage made worse by recent sawmill closures.
Dear Condo Smarts: My boyfriend and I have been looking around for an older affordable condo that will be our first purchase. We`ve had several potential units and properties inspected and have reviewed the minutes of meetings and reports on several buildings.
Everyone we talk to says these are great buildings and a good time to buy, but one issue we don`t understand is how much money is supposed to be in the contingency reserve fund for a building. One strata had no money in its reserve and rationalized it because everyone was happier with special levies, and another building had almost $2 million in its reserve as it was planning for future repairs.
Annual top livable cities` list enrages B.C. islanders
VANCOUVER -There is anger up Vancouver Island, and seething resentment. The bucolic, Pacific paradise has been slighted by some folks back east, and not for the first time, either.
Ken McRae will no longer ignore the annual slap in the face. "This time, I`m going to do something about it," he snaps.
Mr. McRae is Mayor of Port Alberni, a forestry and fisheries hub that sits at the end of a long inlet, halfway up the island. For the third year running, his city has been given the stick by MoneySense magazine, a Toronto-based investment and lifestyle publication that annually ranks Canadian communities with populations of at least 100,000.
City dwellers shrugging off rural Island`s forest-industry woes
I`m a B.C. boy, which means I went straight from high school to the mill. Didn`t even wait for the grad ceremony, just bought some steel-toed boots and hopped a float plane for Ocean Falls.
The mill is gone now. So, in all but name, is Ocean Falls. Ditto for many of the grunt jobs -- green chain in the sawmill, rollbucker on the paper machines, chokerman in the woods -- that were once a rite of passage in this province, even for those just passing through the forest industry en route to somewhere else.
Waterfalls of sawdust pouring out of the backs of trucks are a beautiful sight to Saanich farmer Rob Galey.
"It`s raining wood," said a relieved Galey at the family farm on Blenkinsop Road. This week, he managed to obtain one of the most coveted of materials these days -- sawdust, once only seen as a waste product. "We`ve got a whole year`s worth now."
Richmond businesses near the Olympic oval and the new Canada Line are being priced out of the area because of skyrocketing property values.
"These poor guys are suffering 100-, 200- and 300-per-cent property tax increases," Coun. Rob Howard, chairman of the city`s finance committee, said yesterday.
Airport authority considers sale of its global subsidiary
Vancouver International Airport Authority is close to selling a substantial interest in its global airport management subsidiary -- YVR Airport Services -- to an undisclosed third party for cash.
Notice of the potential sale is contained in a brief note near the end of the airport authority`s 2007 financial statements.
If a transaction goes ahead, YVRAS`s capital will be "substantially changed," the airport authority states in the note.
