Mayor Wayne Wright is optimistic that 2013 will be a banner year for the Royal City.
The City of New Westminster has many initiatives on the go in 2013 but transportation planning, fine-tuning of Westminster Pier Park and construction of the Anvil Centre will be at the forefront.
"The year of 2012 was to put things in place," Wright said. "The year 2013 is to get things finished."
Westminster Pier Park opened on New Westminster's waterfront in June 2012, but work on improved access via an overpass at Fourth Street will be done in 2013. Planning for the Timber Wharf section of the park is underway and work on that section of Westminster Pier Park will take place this year.
Wright said discussions are taking place about the potential to accommodate the Navy at port facilities on the waterfront, but that will depend on other factors such as finances.
Not far away from the park, construction of the new Anvil Centre and office tower contin-
ues at the corner of Columbia and Eighth streets.
"It's one of our biggest challenges to make sure we get that built on time, on budget, and to have an office purchaser in place," Wright said. "We said we will sell that building. That is what we are working toward."
After the Uptown Property Group withdrew from the project, the City of New Westminster chose to continue building the office tower atop the Anvil Centre. Wright is "optimistic" the city will find a purchaser for the office space this year and believes that residents will see the project as being the "best in the history of the city" in the years to come.
"We have to have the best person or company that we can," he said of the potential partner for the building. "It is not a fire sale."
Some residents have voiced concerns about the city's decision to borrow up to $59 million to build the office tower and have questioned the financial impact that would have on local taxpayers.
On the financial front, work is underway on the New Westminster's 2013 financial plan. In late 2012, city council approved utility rate increases that took effect Jan. 1, 2013: 3.5 per cent for water;
9.4 per cent for sewer; 4.5 per cent for solid waste; and a 1.44 per cent increase for electrical that takes effect April 1.
Regionally, transit fares increased on Jan. 1 and tolls on the Port Mann Bridge will rise on March 1. British Columbians are also being hit by increased Medical Service Plan premiums this year.
"We are very aware of that. We all pay the same, we are
paying too," Wright said of increases on various fronts. "When you talk to a senior or an elderly couple in New Westminster on a fixed income, they are stretching it. You have to be aware of that. Our hands are tied with some of those increases."
In 2012, city council approved a 1.91 per cent property tax increase, which was the lowest increase in the city in 11 years.
City council has since approved a 1.75 per cent wage increase for its CUPE employees, but Wright doesn't anticipate that will impact this year's budget. He said the retirement of city administrator Paul Daminato in January and the decision not to renew the eco-
nomic development manager's contract have given the city an opportunity to "reevaluate" the city's staffing situation.
"Those two (positions) create changes," he said.
Wright said members of the senior management team can fill the administrator's role for the time being, so council doesn't have to be hasty in making a decision about a new administrator.
"We are not rushing it," he said. "We don't have to."
Dealing with the potential traffic impact of the Port Mann Bridge on New Westminster roads is also among the city's top priorities for 2013. Because of the tolls in place on the Port Mann Bridge, the city fears motorists will opt to take the Pattullo Bridge, as it remains a free crossing of the Fraser River.
Wright said the City of New Westminster, as well as TransLink and the provincial government, will be monitoring the situation as it not only impacts the city but the regional road system. He said early indications are that the number of people using the Pattullo Bridge as an alternate route is higher than anticipated - and that's before the full rate for the Port Mann Bridge toll takes effect.
"We want accurate information, we want accurate numbers," he said. "We will be following that."
In 2013, staff will continue work on updating the city's master transportation plan.
That work is also considering various options for the Pattullo Bridge, which TransLink is proposing to replace with a new crossing.
