City council is formalizing plans that will give elected officials authority to declare animals dangerous and decide whether they should be euthanized.
At their meeting Tuesday, council approved initial reading of a bylaw amendment. It calls for the mayor to appoint a panel of three councillors that has the final say on controversial matters involving pets.
Mark Kolt, chief administrative officer, said there are two scenarios in which issues would go to the panel: if the city’s animal licence inspector determines the matter to be controversial, or if a matter involves an animal bite and a panel decision is requested by either the animal’s owner or the complainant.
The bylaw amendment gives two examples of issues the panel would deal with: a decision to declare an animal dangerous, meaning owners have to meet certain criteria in owning the animal, or an order to euthanize an animal.
Under the current bylaw, the unelected animal licence inspector alone makes such decisions. Council re-examined that policy after Angela Simpson, the victim of a dog attack, asked the city for more clarity around its animal-control policy.
The amended bylaw must pass two more readings to become law. This is expected to happen at council’s May 1 meeting.
Shop options
Council has delayed a decision on whether to let Lord’s Bounty Food Bank move into the former hobby shop, as the space could potentially be sought for another purpose.
Mayor Cal Huntley said the city wants to wait for the completion of a feasibility study on Flin Flon’s proposed North Central Canada Centre of Arts and Environment (NCCCAE).
He said there is a thought that if a new facility is unavailable for the NCCCAE, existing buildings would be considered.
“So we don’t want to tie up anything that could impact that,” Huntley said.
He said the city is trying to find an alternate location for the food bank, which is looking for a new home and has asked to rent the former hobby shop in the lower level of the Community Hall.
Asked whether those alternatives include other city-owned facilities, Huntley said: “We’re looking at other options and I’ll keep it broad enough so that it’s not just that. We’re hopeful and pretty confident we’ll come up with something.”
The NCCCAE feasibility study is expected to wrap up sometime this spring.
Vending machine
Council will consider whether the Whitney Forum is the right place for a vending machine that dispenses novelty items.
Council reviewed a letter from Kent Bottrell seeking permission to place the machine at the arena. This would require the city to donate about one square foot of space.
Bottrell said he would empty cash from the machine once a month on commission, with some of the remaining proceeds going to the Missing Children Society of Canada.
He said Whitney Forum management has given its blessing, but he wanted to be clear with the City of Flin Flon before placing the machine.
Council had no comment on the request, referring it to the committee level for further review.
Shop local
Coun. Ken Pawlachuk encouraged residents to support local businesses with both their words and their dollars.
He said some businesses in Flin Flon are doing well while others are “not struggling, but they’re concerned.”
“I would just like to encourage locals to start thinking about, when you’re shopping outside [the community], to maybe start spending that money locally,” Pawlachuk said.
“We should encourage our businesses. We do encourage them, but we should encourage them more, because like I said, some of them are doing well but some of the other ones are just almost day-by-day [in how] they’re operating.”
He further suggested residents tell Flin Flon business owners that they are appreciated “because you know what, it’s easy for someone to move out of here.”
PC positions
Huntley said it’s not clear whether the new PC government will support the city on two key objectives.
Council wants the right to implement a base property tax and gain greater say over how provincial dollars allotted for Flin Flon are spent.
Asked about the PC Party’s stance, Huntley said that prior to the election none of the parties definitively stated they would permit a base tax for properties.
In terms of how provincial dollars are spent, he said an ongoing Association of Manitoba Municipalities (AMM) lobby campaign addresses this issue. He said the PCs were open to the concept.
The Reminder asked Huntley about the matters in anticipation of a PC victory Tuesday. The party went on to form the strongest majority government in Manitoba history.
