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Update on Keremeos Village Council

Keremeos council business for the regular meeting held on August 18

Fred Steele, President of the BC Fruit Growers Association, and Glen Lucas, General Manager, provided the village with a municipal update on the tree fruit industry at the regular meeting of council on August 18.

Council also received a memo from the Ombudsperson and letters from the British Columbia Automobile Association, the Ministry of Sport and Cultural Development and Minister of Agriculture. Council also received a letter of thanks from Cystic Fibrosis Canada for the village’s hospitality during the CF GearUp4CF biking event in July.

Council took a look at Similkameen Country’s quarterly report. Councillor Arlene Arlow commented on statistics that indicated few visitors remained in the valley for more than a day.

Chief Administrative Officer Laurie Taylor presented council with an update on current village issues. The village is picking up the cost of a dumpster placed near the transient camping area east of the village because the regional district claimed it had no mechanism for funding the container.

The village is having a successful year collecting taxes, with seven properties delinquent. Fourteen properties are in arrears and 65 have only current taxes outstanding.

Taylor also noted the present status of the new village reservoir. The facility should be in operation by the end of the month.

Council was also presented with a public works and maintenance report. It was  noted that work on the upgrades to Victory Hall washrooms was now complete.

Council was also provided second quarter bylaw enforcement and building inspection reports.

A request by a citizen for a four way stop  at the corner of Fourth Street and Sixth Avenue was denied by council, who felt the four way stop already located one block to the east was sufficient to slow traffic on the street. Residents in the vicinity of the intersection were opposed by a factor of two to one.

The village’s good neighbour bylaw was finally adopted at the August 18 meeting, after a lengthy consultative process.