Bobs your uncle
102650 
Moccasin Flats fire destroys trailer
PrinceGeorgeCitizen
53$50,000?Those shacks were put together with bubble gum & baling wire $50 would be a more accurate estimate unless the fire department costs were included or maybe they tallied up the value of the stolen merchandise inside the shack Will be interesting to see how long after the big move to the Atco trailers before there is a major blaze
1- Bobs your uncle
Crime, vagancy prompts Fortis BC to leave downtown core
PrinceGeorgeCitizen 48Another nail in the coffin of the corpse known as downtown Prince George100 people that will no longer work downtown and likely shopping in surrounding business and eating at restaurants for lunch and after workBut by all means City of Prince George add a Bear Smart guy to the city's bloated payroll instead of an RCMP member that could be used exclusively in the CBD . I'm sure there will be a huge parade when the City of Prince George becomes Bear Smart certified. Has Carrier Sekani Family Services applied to the city to be granted a tax exemption yet or will they apply to have the property declared reserve land meaning no property tax and the city will have no say in future uses for the building and land?
3- Bobs your uncle
Structure fire at Prince George's Moccasin Flats
PrinceGeorgeCitizen 49Yet another fire. The person responsible is going to get a serious finger wag and a loud TSK TSK from the new downtown enforcement team. The city must condemn all these shacks until a more fireproof material such as gyprock is used for interior walls & ceiling. Plywood or OSB do not cut itBC Housing better have a plan to install sprinklers before they move these folks into the Atco slum or there will be fatalities.They are also starting to move people into the North Star so the fire department will have another potential major disaster on their hands. Should build a new fire hall in the area to protect the North Star, Chateau Atco & Knight's Inn. Right beside city hall would be a perfect location!
1- Bobs your uncle
Carrier Lumber president backs First Nation plea to restore local forest policy decision making
PrinceGeorgeCitizen 46If the massive clear cut that the McLeod Lake band did when they were given a license to harvest timber is any indication of First Nation forest stewardship policy then it's a hard no to give them more input on harvesting decisions
1- Bobs your uncle
Prince George council endorses federal application for addition to L'heidli T'enneh reserve lands
PrinceGeorgeCitizen 38The loss off taxes IMO is the least of the worries. There is already quite a few first nation properties that the city grants tax exemptions to. For example the PG Native Friendship Center has a number of properties, that get a $140k tax holiday every yearOf more concern is that if this becomes reserve land the city would have no say on what is developed on this land in the future. Case in point- on the lower mainland a band decided to erect some large video billboards beside a major bridge. The city had concerns about how the distraction would cause accidents and snarl traffic but as they would be built on reserve land their hands were tiedThat being said what would stop the Lheidli T’enneh from deciding that the conference center did not generate enough revenue so demolished the old theatre and built a huge casino in its place with adjoining parkade?I don't know if there are other regulations that could stop this, but the city would have no say in the matter
2- Bobs your uncle
Skakun opposed to counter-petition for pool refurbishment
PrinceGeorgeCitizen 39So Coun Skakun wants to see more info on the cost of a new pool does he?His time would be better spent demanding answers from the department head responsible for maintaining city buildings on why a 25 year old pool was allowed to get in such a poor state that the cost to bring it back to an acceptable standard is $22 millionOur house is 35 years old and I'm sure that we would be questioning if it is a tear down if we followed the city's lead when it comes to building maintenanceInstead we replaced the shingles when it was time and didn't wait until the roof leaked for years rotting the plywood and trusses and filling the attic and living space with black moldSimilar story with windows, doors and painted surfaces. When work needed doing it got done!The money spent on the house over the years is a small fraction of what it would cost to rebuild and the home is every bit as livable as move in day. This is a model for the city to aspire to.
- Bobs your uncle
Patrol to clamp down on fire starters downtown
PrinceGeorgeCitizen 37"setting or maintaining a fire in a deliberately destructive manner"HELLO! That is called arson and should be charged as such!Enough with the kid glove treatment. Downtown will keep getting worse and worse if stricter action is not taken. Bylaw fines and charges that result in a small fine or a day or two in jail are laughable and those laughing the hardest are the zombies that wonder the streets of the CBD after dark
- Bobs your uncle
City launching survey to gauge if voters willing to pay for Aquatic Centre repairs
PrinceGeorgeCitizen 37The Aquatic Center is just the latest city owned building that where the most basic building maintenance is ignored year after year until it becomes a crisis. They say it shuts for a month for maintenance but that is pool specific and does nothing to address defects in the building itselfThe city has $33 million cash on hand from the Fortis lease deal. Use $22M of that to bring the Aquatic Center up to snuff and use the remainder to start properly maintaining other city owned buildingsLastly the city must beef up the annual maintenance budget above the $500k set aside for "emergency repairs"The city spends 100s of thousands/year on consultants to do building assessments and then do ZERO followup on the recommendations WE paid forEvery homeowner knows that if they wait until their shingles are all curled up & the roof is now leaking it will be much more expensive to set things right than if they had done repairs in a timely manner.
- Bobs your uncle
Prince George firefighters deal with another fire at Moccasin Flats
PrinceGeorgeCitizen 34Groundhog day without Bill Murray
1- Bobs your uncle
Moccasin Flats fire causes $2K damage
PrinceGeorgeCitizen 32The city needs to go into Moccasin Flats with some heavy equipment and remove every single structure that were built without proper permits and definitely not up to the BC building code. This would include any old motor homes or campers that have ended up down thereOr will they wait until there is a Gustafson funeral pyre?
2- Bobs your uncle
Another fire at Moccasin Flats
PrinceGeorgeCitizen 32Attending the fire was the Moccasin Flats Fire Department. The MFFD is fully funded by the taxpayers of Prince George. The department is hiring in anticipation of a massive increase in calls once the Atco slum becomes occupied
1- Bobs your uncle
Another tiny home destroyed by fire at Moccasin Flats
PrinceGeorgeCitizen 32If these shacks keep going up in smoke at this rate Canfor will be able to reopen Polar sawmillSo not all bad news I guess
1- Bobs your uncle
Province unveils plan for $1.579 billion patient care tower at UHNBC
PrinceGeorgeCitizen 28That will immediately be put on the back burner after the election
4- Bobs your uncle
Skakun opposed to counter-petition for pool refurbishment
PrinceGeorgeCitizen 30Remember this is the second AAP to drop in our lap in recent months.The window has just closed on an AAP that allows the city to borrow millions of dollars mainly on mobile equipment.Why is this being snuck in the back door via an AAP? This is an expected expense that should have been included in the annual budget process.If it was budgeted for would have hiked the yearly tax increase by another percent or two raising the ire of the taxpayer and rightly soVery little city debt is being retired in the next decade and they keep piling up more and moreA major overhaul in upper city administration staff (mis-managers)is long overdue!
- Bobs your uncle
Prince George council endorses federal application for addition to L'heidli T'enneh reserve lands
PrinceGeorgeCitizen 24While on the subject of permissive tax exceptions can someone please explain the justification for the PG Golf & Curling Club receiving a $210k tax holiday year after year?Or Senior Baseball getting $40kOr the tennis club getting $29k?All the way down to the Amateur Radio Club getting $250 The grand total is $2 million lost to the city coffers every year from tax exemptions! That is 1/16 of a parkade debacle EVERY YEAR!Fine for kids activities but at some point the adult groups should be told sorry you might have to raise green fees a few bucks or raise baseball tournament fees but the city can no longer subsidize you. The adults could also do fund raising to cover the shortfall much like the kids you see selling chocolate bars by the checkouts of local storesAnd don't even get me started on the churches!
5- Bobs your uncle
Prince George woman narrowly escapes after transport trailer hits bridge
PrinceGeorgeCitizen 29The government has increased the penalties for companies whose drivers run into bridges & overpasses. This does not even come close to covering the cost of damage to these structures. The company itself should be held liable for all costs. One company in the lower mainland had SIX overpass strikes in two years. Their permit to operate in BC was pulled but they are suing to get it back In addition the superintendent of motor vehicles should make the driver ineligible to have a class 1 license for a year or five. If they knew they could lose their job they might pull out a tape measure and make sure they are not over height before setting off
- Bobs your uncle
Province unveils plan for $1.579 billion patient care tower at UHNBC
PrinceGeorgeCitizen 26Construction to begin in the FALL of 2026. Pouring concrete foundations is always best done in the winter months....eye roll
1- Bobs your uncle
Councillors push for update to downtown bathroom situation
PrinceGeorgeCitizen 23A couple of members of council finally show some urgency about something, like they REALLY gotta go.Is it about the toilet bowl the downtown core has become with merchants and utilities like Fortis fleeing in droves? The rampant theft, break-ins and arson they had to deal with before throwing in the towel?Nope! Potties are top of mind.The washrooms in the library would provide a road map of where this is headed. They became shooting galleries with people passed out and staff afraid to intervene. Got so bad that last time I was there there were two big security men patrolling the building. Families will avoid them, the fact they have to be monitored screams that they are not safe "transitional housing projects are said to be improving washroom access" Ya think? Washroom access is core to housing of any kind. Atco village, shelters, drop-in & friendship centers, should be providing bathroom access without the city grants/manpower. Q.E.D
3- Bobs your uncle
Budget town hall highlights growing problem of worn-out city infrastructure
PrinceGeorgeCitizen 24Article states the 2/3 of city spending is on people so that would be the most obvious place to look for savingsOff the top of my head I can think of three positions that should be cutThe province gave the city a grant to cover the wages for a couple of outreach workers to help deal with the homeless & drug addicted in the downtown core. When the grant ended the city put these people on their payroll. Why? It is a provincial responsibility and they should pick up the tabThe city has floated the idea of adding a person so the city can obtain Bear Smart status. Again why? If the city is pleading poverty on one hand how can this be justified?So $300k/year savings in wages & benefits without even breaking a sweat Each dep't head should have to justify each & every person that reports to them. Bet the workforce could be reduced by 5% and nobody would notice any difference-make that the goal that each dep't must meetThe ONE THING that has grown is city payroll
1- Bobs your uncle
Heavy police presence on Cuddie Crescent in Prince George
PrinceGeorgeCitizen 23Kidding aside couldn't recall ever driving down that street so checked it out on Google Street View. The images are from July 2024.The place that was raided was part of a four-plex and it certainly is a blight on the block with garbage and junk piled up in front of three of the placesBylaw could be used to remind residents of problem properties they are on the radar by dropping by and asking them to clean up. The only rub is that bylaw is occupied 24/7 down at Moccasin Flats and areaCity could also send a letter to the property landlord demanding it be brought up to standards. I"m sure the neighbours would appreciate it
2- Bobs your uncle
