The disasters in Japan have affected the entire world, and it really caused a lot of reflection at our house.
My granddaughter was scheduled to leave Nelson Monday, March 14 for a trip to Izushi for a homestay visit. The trip was cancelled before the departure date so we are very thankful.
We hosted three Japanese students this past year and have heard they are all well, although the Onagawa Bay student’s family home was destroyed.
Many citizens of Nelson have been hit by this disaster as we have been hosting and sending students to Japan for almost 20 years so there are lots of family connections.
My wife Lynn and I were with the first city exchange group to visit Japan in 1990. Following our visit we hosted the two sons of the family that we stayed with over the next couple of years, plus numerous other students since then. The fundraising efforts in our city are a great show of our compassion for our friends in Japan.
City council business never slows down. By the time this article is in print, council and staff will have completed two full days of meetings in a workshop to set strategic priorities for the City of Nelson.
This workshop will cover 35 items in an effort to set both short-term (six months) and medium term (two to five years) priorities for the city. The items on the agenda that are very important include the following: downtown/waterfront plan, housing strategy, community energy and climate change.
My former position as director of works for the city highlights some items that are high on the agenda. They are the master plans that cover our utilities. The water master plan has outlined what needs to be completed over the next 10 to 15 years to ensure Nelson a quality water supply.
The sanitary sewer master plan details the necessary upgrades to our treatment plant and collection system. The storm sewer master plan, to be completed in 2011, will outline improvements to complete the separation of our storm and sanitary sewer primarily in the downtown core.
One of the most enjoyable duties of council is being invited to local schools to explain to the students what council is all about. My last visit on February 22 was to the Grade 3 class of the Gordon Sargent program at South Nelson School.
Their letter says: “Thank you so much for visiting our class and telling us about the city council and the Metis. We like the information about water rates, the Metis culture, how the city repairs pipes, Nelson Hydro, the soccer fields and how you became a councillor. Thank you so much for the Nelson pins and books. They are cool and amazing.”
There are definite benefits to this position as a councillor.
Nelson city councillor Bob Adams shares this Wednesday space with his colleagues around the table.