Courtenay Council Meeting Highlights for February 12

This update covers highlights from the February 12, 2025, Council meeting. If there is something from the meeting that you would like more detail on, view the full agenda on the City of Courtenay’s website at www.courtenay.ca/councilmeetings 

**Please note that links below go to agenda items but do not link to the video for the Council Meeting. To view the full meeting video visit the City of Courtenay’s YouTube Channel**

Announcements

Mayor Wells proclaimed – Comox Valley Cupid Day, February 14, 2025

Delegation

Regional Parks and Trails Strategic Plan
Presentation by Mark Harrison, Manager of Parks and Community Services, Comox Valley Regional District and Kate Evans, LANARC. The strategic plan highlighted goals, objectives and actions for regional parks and trails in the Comox Valley.

Presentation

Business Retention & Expansion (BRE) Program Update
Presentation by Tracey Clarke, Executive Director, Comox Valley Chamber of Commerce. The Business Retention and Expansion (BRE) Program supports long-term business growth in the Comox Valley by identifying key challenges and opportunities for innovation. Through extensive engagement with businesses in Courtenay and Comox, the Chamber of Commerce identified critical concerns and identified research-based, innovative solutions that will be implemented over the next two years.

RCMP Quarterly Report Oct 1 – Dec 31, 2024
Presentation by Inspector Scott Mercer, Officer in Charge, Comox Valley RCMP Detachment. In 2024, calls for service in Courtenay was lowest in five years. The most common types of calls for service in Courtenay were unwanted person, wellbeing check and traffic incident. Calls that increased in 2024 were for alarm and missing person. Visit the link for this item to view the full report.

 

Staff Reports

Liquor License Application No. 2404 – 957 Comox Road
The applicant at 975 Comox Road (Heritage House Pub) requests liquor service for a 172-person capacity pub (the Heritage House Pub) with 136- person capacity inside the pub and a 36-person capacity patio. The patio is intended to be seasonal from April through October. Council recommends that the Liquor and Cannabis Regulation Branch approve this application.

Improving Gender and Menstrual Equity in City Operated Washrooms
Council directed staff to proceed with expansion of the provision of free menstrual products, and updates to equipment and signage in order to improve menstrual and gender equity in City operated washrooms.

External Reports

Comox Valley Recreation Commission re. Draft Amenity Cost Contribution
The commission is working to develop an Amenity Cost Contributions (ACC) program for recreation-specific infrastructure. CVRD staff are seeking regional collaboration and support from municipal councils, as well as the CVRD’s Electoral Areas Services Committee (EASC) to have their staff participate in this initiative. Council directed staff to proceed to collaborate with the CVRD on this initiative.

Internal Reports

Air Quality Update
Council received  this briefing note on Air Quality. Courtenay enjoys good air quality, except during winter nights and times of wildfire smoke. Work to understand the sources of poor air quality, and the options to improve air quality have been underway for many years, and represent a collaboration between numerous organizations and project partners.

Measurements from the provincial air monitoring station indicate that fine particulate matter (also known as PM2.5) is responsible for local air quality issues. Fine particulate matter is a key component of wood smoke and it is small enough to inhale, travel through our bloodstream, and cause a range of health problems.

For more visit: www.courtenay.ca/airquality

Courtenay Fire Department 2024 Annual Report

Council received the Fire Department Annual Report. Over the past year, the department responded to 1,395 calls for service, a slight decrease from the 1,455 responses recorded in 2023. Of the total incidents, 928 occurred west of the Courtenay River and 467 east, maintaining the consistent distribution seen in previous years.

The most frequent type of call was for Open Burning, accounting for 379 incidents. Alarm Activations followed closely with 342 calls. Motor Vehicle Incidents were the third most common, with 164 responses. Ambulance Assists (139 calls) and Public Service requests (116 calls) also constituted a significant portion of the workload.

Downtown Vitalization Local Area Plan Phase 1 Update
Council Received this update on Downtown Vitalization. The City of Courtenay has begun a collaborative process to create a Local Area Plan (LAP) for our downtown and Harmston Park. This plan will set the stage for future growth, partnerships, innovation and connections in this area.

As Courtenay continues to grow, the LAP will outline key actions to:

• Encourage residential and commercial growth that complements our community.
• Bring civic spaces to life with engaging programming and activities.
• Strengthen connections throughout downtown, making it more accessible for everyone.

Info: https://engagecomoxvalley.ca/courtenay-downtown-plan

 

Council Resolutions

Public Substance Use Education and Awareness Event (Councillor Morin)
Council passed this resolution about the pressing need to address the significant impacts of substance use-related harms on our community’s health and wellbeing, exacerbated by the unregulated toxic drug crisis with specific actions outlined.

 

Bylaws

For First, Second and Third Reading:

Fees and Charges Amendment Bylaw No. 3171 (solid waste)
Council passed this amendment for solid waste to add some fees for extra carts for solid waste collection. The basic annual fees for residences will not change in this amendment.

 

For Adoption:

Fees and Charges Amendment Bylaw No. 3167, 2025 (water)
Council adopted these amendments for rates for various services related to water.

Water Service Frontage Tax Amendment Bylaw No. 3168, 2025
Council adopted these amendments to the above bylaw.

Fees and Charges Amendment Bylaw No. 3169, 2025 (sewer)    
Council adopted these amendments for rates for various services related to sewer.

 

The meeting adjourned at 7:00 p.m., the next meeting is Wednesday, February 26 and will be available on the City of Courtenay’s YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/CityofCourtenayBC/streams