CBPOA - March General Meeting Minutes

 

Crescent Beach Property Owners’ Association

Wednesday, March 3, 2021 General Meeting Minutes

Directors present: Jim, Liz, Henri, Bob, Bruce, Rona.

Held via Zoom with approximately 50 members and Councillor Annis present.

 

1.     Call to order at 7:30 PM.

2.     Presentation on Crescent Beach Whistle Cessation by City of Surrey Engineer Ken Karunaratne

·       Background:

                                                    i.     Rail crossings are federally regulated

                                                   ii.     Transport Canada requires whistles when approaching rail crossings

                                                 iii.     Surrey has worked with BNSF for many years on whistle cessation

                                                 iv.     To achieve whistle cessation, BNSF requires pedestrian fencing to control trespassing

                                                   v.     Fencing could be on Surrey Right of Way (ROW) or BNSF ROW

·       Transport Canada Requirements

                                                    i.     Residents contact City to request Whistle Cessation (completed)

                                                   ii.     City contact rail company (completed)

                                                 iii.     City hire independent safety consultant to assess safety at rail crossing

(completed)

                                                 iv.     Both City and BNSF assess and agree the crossing meets requirements (this is where we are now)

                                                   v.     Council passes a resolution, with a copy to BNSF, with a waiting period of 30 days (not completed)

·       Work Completed So Far

                                                    i.     There have been many joint discussions

                                                   ii.     An independent safety consultant has completed a safety study

                                                 iii.     Fencing will be required on both sides of the railway

                                                 iv.     The City has agreed to bear 100% of the costs (estimated at $425,000), although some funding may be available from Transport Canada

                                                   v.     The City consulted with Semiahmoo First Nation who would prefer the fence be constructed on an earth berm to preserve archeological artifacts

·       Current Status

                                                    i.     The City of Surrey received a lease agreement from BNSF in 2020

                                                   ii.     The City could not agree to some clauses in the agreement; ie some clauses require indemnification by the City or special insurance

                                                 iii.     A revised agreement was sent to BNSF in September 2020, and the City is waiting to hear back from BNSF

·       Next Steps

                                                    i.     Continue to negotiate with BNSF, with the possibility that the City could leverage other BNSF projects with this project

                                                   ii.     A second option is to explore the possibility of constructing fencing on City ROW; this would require some additional work as there are major utility lines underground which could conflict with the alignment of the fencing, and such a location would impact existing parking, pedestrian and vehicle traffic. This would also require neighbourhood engagement.

 

3.     Adoption of January, 2021 General Meeting Minutes, as circulated. Proposer Henri, Seconder, Rona, carried.

4.     Matters arising from the minutes: none

5.     Directors’ Reports

·       Treasurer: No changes since last meeting, approximately $56,000 in the accounts, our only income is from memberships. Moved by Liz, seconded by Bruce, all in favour

·       Membership: Membership responsibilities have fully passed from Bruce to Henri, 401 members at this time, Henri is learning to manage the data.

6.     Unfinished Business – from a motion in January, 2020:  “Moved by Jim Carter, seconded by Laura Thibeault: that CBPOA fund the installation of AEDs at Save Stations.  Motion will be tabled to members in the draft minutes, Vote to be take on the next open meeting.” The vote was called at this meeting, and the motion was carried.

7.     Correspondence and Updates

a.     Save Station Project: as mentioned at previous meetings, CBPOA is contributing funds for two Save Stations (which will house an AED, Naloxone and First Aid equipment) to be constructed in the Crescent Beach area in the near future.  CBPOA will encourage training and familiarization with this equipment.

b.     Church Property: All Saints Community Church has raised enough money to purchase the property either through loans or gifts. Further paperwork is being submitted to fulfill all the conditions of the mortgage/loans, and it is anticipated that they will own the building on April 2, 2021.  Fundraising will continue during the year as $1.8 million is still needed to cover loans.

8.     Working Group Reports

·       Blackie Spit Working Group: (Ron Sorensen)

                                                    i.     The boardwalk to extend a pedestrian walkway around the parking lot is complete. There are two current problems: 1) the entrances to the boardwalk are not accessible (wheelchairs, strollers, those who can’t step up several feet) and there is no budget for any additional work, and 2) the boardwalk was initially closed by the Surrey Emergency Operations Center (EOC) to ensure social distancing, however it is currently being used without social distancing. Surrey Parks will investigate the situation.

                                                   ii.     Parking and Gate Locking on Blackie Spit: The CBPOA membership approved a motion that Surrey Parks reinstate the Blackie Spit Gate closing times to coincide with dusk. Neil Aven, Parks Manager, City of Surrey has stated that they intend to keep to the current extended hours. Surrey Parks Department will monitor complaints to see if there are any documented negative impacts.  If residents observe or experience problems they should call and report same to the Surrey Parks Department, Bylaws Department and RCMP so they have documented records of any issues.

·       Transportation and Traffic Calming Working Group: (Rona Tepper) - Laura Thibeault and Leanne Mason have stepped down as co-chairs from this working group; Family Day Weekend was not too busy at the beach so extra traffic management was not needed.

·       Website Research and Development Working Group: (Henri Wendel) – The CBPOA website is a work in progress

·       Crescent Beach Building Zone Working Group: (Henri Wendel, Bob Dhaliwal, Jim Carter) – the group has come to the conclusion that, since the new zoning was passed by Council in April, 2020, residents will have to choose between building new homes within the new zoning regulations, or renovating existing homes.  This group will disband. The City of Surrey will send out a survey to Crescent Beach property owners; suggestions or questions about zoning can be sent directly to Keith Broersma.

9.     New Business:

·       Dirt sifting at the sewage pumping station`: Janet Hammond asked for an overview of the excavation and sifting that is taking place on Crescent Road at the marina turn-off.  Since this facility is a Metro Vancouver Sewage Treatment pumping station, the CBPOA Secretary will contact Metro Vancouver to ask for information on the results of the dirt sifting and any more information available about the project.

 

10.  Motion to adjourn at 8:54. Moved by Gail, Seconded by Bruce, carried.

 

Useful phone numbers

Surrey Parks Department       604-501-5050

Bylaws and Animal Control    604-591-4370

Parking                                    604-591-4352

RCMP Non-Emergency           604-599-0502

 

Next meeting: Wednesday May 5, 2021 at 7:30.