The Skeena Queen Charlotte Regional District released financial statements for 2010 at their monthly meeting last Friday, which includes all the money paid to the Mayors and other community leaders that make up the Regional District board.
In 2010, the regional district paid about $131,000 in the form of cash or other benefits to the 10-member board, with the chairperson and Mayor of Masset, Barry Pages, getting the most at about $16,200.
Each of the members’ expenses such as travel from Haida Gwaii to get to the meetings in Prince Rupert or other Regional District business was also tallied at $23,000 with Sandspit’s representative, Evan Putterill, spending almost $8,000; sometimes four times as much as other board members.
When all the money is added up, in 2010 the Regional District paid all of its employees and board members a total of $836,000, while those same people collectively spent about $131,000 in expenses.
Finally, the statement say that the regional district spent $1.1-million in total on expenses such as supplies, insurance, pensions and grants to different projects.
The board is being very cautious though about considering proposals for projects that could cost the Regional District more money. During the meeting board member and mayor of Prince Rupert, Jack Mussallem, made sure to ask Lou Allison from the Dodge Cove Recreation Society if the regional district by supporting their application for grant money to renovate the Dodge Cove community centre was putting itself in a position where it may need to spend its own money on the project.
The big issue of the night was a discussion on whether or not the Regional District could or even should be telling potential developers that they need to make sure that they provide jobs to local residents when starting new projects.
The debate emerged over a quarry project outside Sandspit
seeking approval for its business plan from the board. It was suggested that the approval should hinge on a promise of environmentally sound operation and jobs for Haida Gwaii residents, but the board does not have the authority to impose conditions like that. A debate erupted whether they should instead “recommend” these things in a separate letter or at all.
“If we were going to go ahead with projects like this, we should make a point of providing employment,” said Putterill.
Eventually a motion was passed allowing for the employment to be recommended to the developers.