Coldstream Sends "Private Fire Hydrant" Issue Back to GVW

But with a request for information that should finally provide the transparency so sadly lacking at Greater Vernon Water.

A quick history that could aptly be called Round And Round We Go.
The "private" fire hydrant at Highlands Golf is taxed annually by the Regional District of North Okanagan.
The tax has ballooned from approximately $225 in 2001 to $470 in 2013.  In 2014 it's $560!
Nobody seems to recognize that even a "private" fire hydrant is part of a community's infrastructure.  Or at least until now.  More info at the "Saga" blog story of August 1st, 2014,  here.

So I sought to donate it.
First to Coldstream's fire hall--and then the municipality directly--an offer by me to donate my ~$13,000 (today's value) asset "private" fire hydrant.  All in an attempt to quell the annual tax gouging by GVW.  Was told that Coldstream doesn't own hydrants within its jurisdiction, so the recommendation was to donate it to Greater Vernon Water, which does (apparently) own North Okanagan's public hydrants.  Their engineer appeared to pull the wool over GVAC directors' eyes by first saying there were 17 private fire hydrant owners--then the same engineer a month later said it was 123, not 17.  Then back to Coldstream because, apparently, GVW does not "own" fire hydrants--they merely provide water to them.
Turns out communities pay GVW a nominal fee just over one hundred dollars annually for each fire hydrant.  That information took almost a year to be "discovered".

Ahem!  Oh, for heaven's sake!

Surprisingly--when looking up a bureaucracy image--GVW wasn't the first hit...

Happy to report--actually bloody ecstatic--that Coldstream Council at their July 28, 2014 meeting was unanimous in its decision to:  (unadopted minutes)

"Report from the Director of Engineering Services dated July 21, 2014,

Barb Mitchell appealed to Council to assist her with by either supporting the

donation of her private fire hydrant to the District or the

Greater Vernon Water Utility of having the annual hydrant fee reduced.

Ms. Mitchell further explained that she had attempted to have this issue resolved with the Greater Vernon Advisory Committee but

that they had indicated they would not accept her offer of donation.

Moved by Besso, seconded by Kiss, that the District's representatives on the

Greater Vernon Advisory Committee be directed to bring forward the Highlands Golf Course fire hydrant issue back to the Greater Vernon Advisory Committee and request that, in the interest of procedural fairness 

 (bold underscore blog author), Greater Vernon Water Utility (GVWU)

review the rates charged for private fire hydrants.

No. REG2014-205 CARRIED"

That then led to the following from the Regional District's Agenda for Greater Vernon Advisory Committee (directors) to peruse at their August 7th, 2014 meeting:

If this "flies" among Directors, there will finally be water rate transparency.

If it "dies", residents--who are concerned about huge increases to their water rates--can blame their area director for waffling under regional district bureaucrats' omnipotence.

Even if residents don't care about fire hydrant "rates".

"That it be recommended to the Board of Directors, staff be directed to

prepare a report to facilitate the discussion of future Greater Vernon Water

Utility rates.  The purpose of the report is to allow the politicians to discuss

the various potential sources of revenue, including taxation, to satisfy the future anticipated needs of the water utility.  The report should include detailed statistics on the present distribution of revenue (2013), including but not limited to: (a) number of connections of each type (breaking out Agricultural, Residential, Industrial, Commercial, Institutional, and other)

(b) present rates charged, and total income received, for each type of customer and service (including fire hydrants). (bold underscore blog author)

(c) detailed maps outlining and differentiating the areas that are and are not

presently serviced by the utility, but are geographically within

the Greater Vernon taxation area;

That the report be brought forward for discussion at either the September 4, 2014 OR earliest

possible Greater Vernon Advisory Committee meeting."

The Regional District brought this on themselves with their lack of transparency.

And gouging.

Have a look at this October 9, 2012 story which proves GVW has no idea--presumably because of a lack of software ability--what the breakdown in taxes among various users is.  Even how much each category uses! 

One word describes that:  outrageous!  

"Bureaucrats need to be accountable to politicians who serve their residents...it's about time in the North Okanagan," offers Kia.

It certainly is, Kia.

Democracy is two wolves and a lamb deciding

 what to have for dinner. Liberty is a well-armed lamb.

 ~Author unknown, commonly misattributed to Benjamin Franklin