ACN 59: Citizens Upset that Ashcroft Slough is Off Limits

Council Meetings last night in Ashcroft included both a committee of the Whole meeting, as well as the standard council meeting. The COTW meeting consisted of a delegation presented by Urban Development. The presentation lasted for just over half an hour and touched on a couple different topics including: the roles and responsibilities of the local subdivision bylaw, who the key players of the by law are and particular levels of service provided.

The main meeting started promptly at 7pm, and started with its own delegation, which was presented by two members of Interior Health. They provided an update on the past years overall heat related incidents. After some technical issues involving the phone, the presentation went on without a hitch. Mayor Roden citied that, due to COVID19, the things that were on Ashcroft's list of things to do to beat the heat were not implemented the way they should have been .. but that it is always important because Ashcroft is located in a desert and heat can pose quite an obstacle.

The meeting then pushed on into public input time. During the last council meeting, the council decided not to help the recently formed Slough Society in anyway (financially, with a letter of support, with access to village resources and grant opportunities) at night Local citizen Jim Duncan took to the podium, and had a little verbal exchange with Mayor Barbara Roden.

The Cache Creek Council Meeting had their council meeting last night as well. One of the major discussions of note was at the end. Mayor Talarico had a strong aversion to a lift, his problem was put aside for now as the CAO had already filled out an application for a grant opportunity for that very item. Mayor Talarico stated that these lifts are expensive and have ongoing costs, where other options might be more practical.

The Christmas hamper campaign is going to look a little different this year: Faced with a very different donation landscape this year, the Community Resource Society’s (CRS) Christmas Hamper Committee has come up with a novel idea to ensure they are once again able to provide hampers to individuals and families throughout the area -- a tradition that is now more than 20 years old. A large part of what goes into the hampers is food items donated by community members at various locations. This year, because of concerns around COVID-19, food donations are potentially problematic, particularly large bags of items such as oatmeal, rice, and flour, which are usually broken down by volunteers into smaller portions. In order to ensure that the hampers are still full, the CRS will be working with local businesses to collect cash donations between Nov. 12 and Dec. 15, in order to purchase the items that they need. The idea is that several local businesses will allow customers to add a donation (in an amount of their choosing) to their bill, to be included in the final total. Chris Webster, CRS treasurer, says that the idea came out of a conversation between Ashcroft Safety Mart manager Victor Paulos and Christmas Hamper Committee chair Esther Lang.

New orders mandate mask wearing in all indoor public and retail settings — like grocery stores and coffee shops. Masks are also mandatory in workplace areas like shared work spaces, kitchens, and elevators. New public health orders state that there can be no social gatherings at residences in BC with anyone outside your household. That means: No gathering with anyone other than the people you live with. People who live alone cannot host gatherings, but can continue to see one or two of the same members of their core pandemic bubble at home.

By order of the Provincial Health Officer, all group spin classes, hot yoga and high intensity interval training (HIIT) are suspended indefinitely. All other group indoor physical activities are temporarily suspended. Updated public health guidance for these activities will be available by November 30. Businesses will need to update their COVID-19 safety plans to comply with the new guidance and post it publicly before resuming these activities. Temporarily suspended group indoor activities include dance studios, martial arts, yoga, pilates, strength and conditioning and cheerleading.

Gymnastics Businesses that close due to COVID-19 restrictions may be eligible for up to 90% in rent support and a wage subsidy from the Federal Government.

COVID-19 update -- 1,933 new cases since we last reported on Friday, for a total of 27,407 cases in BC. From Nov. 20 to 21, we had 713 new cases. From Nov. 21 to 22, we had 626 new cases and in the last 24 hours, we have had a further 594 new cases. “There have been 17 new COVID-19 related deaths, for a total of 348 deaths in British Columbia. We offer our condolences to everyone who has lost their loved ones during the COVID-19 pandemic.