The District of Houston is continuing its business relationship with Blue Sky Contracting through a contract to maintain Steelhead Park.
This contract was effective as of April 8 and runs until Oct. 31, 2028.
The annual cost comes to $70,709.12 which, with GST, then totals at $74,244.58.
Blue Sky’s previous long-term contract with the District ran out in the spring of 2023 and was replaced with a one-year one while the District evaluated its Steelhead Park maintenance objectives. All told, Blue Sky has been Steelhead Park’s maintenance provider for 19 years.
Supplementary information accompanying Blue Sky’s tender, estimated that anywhere from $2,300 to $4,700 a year has been spent on flowers alone. Annual shrub replacement costs were estimated at $600 a year.
Terms of the contract include operation of the automatic irrigation system, litter control, flower bed maintenance, keeping lawns in good condition, caring for trees and shrubs, maintaining the playground and daily cleaning and disinfecting of washrooms.
Fire department officers receive increase
Officers with the Houston Volunteer Fire Department are receiving a remuneration increase of 4.2 per cent retroactive to Jan. 1, 2024.
Thereafter there will be an annual increase each Jan. 1 tied to the previous year’s November provincial consumer price index. But the increase will not rise above three per cent.
Officers within the fire department assist the full time fire chief with a variety to duties to help ensure the department and its volunteers operate at the highest rate in their service to the community.
There is one deputy fire chief, two captains and three lieutenants, all of whom who receive a regular monthly stipend regardless of how many calls are handled each month.
As of Jan. 4, 2924 the annual rate for the deputy increased to $5,514.26, up from $5,202 while the captain rate went from $3,951 a year to $4,116.94 a year. The lieutenant rate rose from $1,575 to $1,641.15 a year.
The last pay rates were sent in 2012.
As of April, the department had 29 members, just one shy of its preferred complement of 30 people, reports fire chief Jim Daigneault.
“The general requirements are very basic — to be in general good health, wanting to help and support your community, and willing to commit the time required to do the training required to meet training standards for a fire fighter,” said Daigneault.
The department is always taking applications.
There are regular training sessions with the base hours for training in the area of 120 hours.
Tax payment delay approved
Those paying property taxes won’t be penalized for making paymentss after the traditional date of July 4, 2024.
For the second year in a row, the District of Houston council has passed a bylaw extending the date to make property tax payments without imposing a penalty to Oct. 31, 2024.
Thereafter a 10 per cent penalty will be applied to any amount still owing.
This is the second year the council has extended the deadline to Oct. 31 and just like last year, the decision has everything to do with the closure of the Canfor sawmill.
Extending the deadline provides property tax owners with more time and flexibility to make payments, council members decided.
This is not the first time council has changed the tax payment date from the traditional beginning of July.
In 2022, council had set the tax collection deadline to July 31 for the 2022 tax year only with the intention of te deadline reverting to the beginning of July for the 2023 tax year.
But when Canfor announced it was closing its sawmill in mid-2023, council then extended the deadline to Oct. 31, 2023.