Cariboo Regional District residents in the North Cariboo will be asked to help fund the Quesnel Regional Airport.
A motion to go to referendum in the fall passed unanimously at last night’s North Cariboo Joint Committee meeting.
Darron Campbell, the CRD’s Manager of Community Services, says it would establish a new tax-based North Cariboo Airport function…
“So we have agreed with the City of Quesnel on those terms of a contribution of 66 thousand dollars annually towards the operating costs of the airport. We arrived at this figure, it’s the proportionate assessed values within the City of Quesnel and all of the surrounding electoral areas of A,B,C and I based on the total assessed value.”
Campbell says capital is not included in the agreement at this time…
“But we envision that it could be considered on a case by case basis and we may have the opportunity to provide funding support through leveraging of grants or through some of our own internal funds like Community Works Funds.”
Another condition being contemplated is the creation of an advisory committee that would have representation from the City, the Regional District and airport stakeholders, to help guide some of the long term strategic planning for development of the airport.
That is something that CRD Area A Director Ted Armstrong likes…
“With exception of Vancouver airport, the two most successful regional airports in the province are Kelowna and Terrace, and they both have advisory groups.”
The Cariboo Regional District as a whole has already passed this resolution based on a recommendation from the northern Directors.
Mayor Bob Simpson expressed his gratitude to the northern Directors for taking this step, saying that this would make it a truly “regional” airport.