No preview available
HomeMy WebLinkAboutSPAC 2008-05-07 Minutes.pdf) District of Maple Ridge SOCIAL PLANNING ADVISORY COMMITTEE REGULAR MEETING The Minutes of the Regular Meeting of the Social Planning Advisory Committee, held in the Blaney Room at Maple Ridge Municipal Hall, 11995 Haney Place, Road, Maple Ridge, British Columbia, on Wednesday, May 7, 2008 at 7:00 p.m. COMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT Councillor Judy Dueck Councillor Linda King Kim Macey, Chair Cheryl Ashlie Paul Livingstone Andy Libbiter Ross Dunning Inspector Wakely Bob Masey Tom Meier Candace Gordon Gordon Hall STAFF MEMBERS PRESENT Sue Wheeler Shawn Matthewson Tracy Camire REGRETS/ABSENTS Caroline Wilkins Lyn Taylor-Scott Kathy Chiu Betty Levens Vicki Kipps Connie Schmid Ian Brooks Gwen Champagne GUEST Rhonda 0'Grady 1. Called to Order and Introductions Council Liaison Council Liaison Community at Large School District No. 42, School Trustee Community at Large Fraser Health Community at Large RCMP Business Improvement Association Business Improvement Association Ridge Meadows Child, Youth & Family Network Maple Ridge/Pitt Meadows Youth Council Director, Community Services Community Services Committee Clerk Ministry of Children and Family Development Ridge Meadows Association for Community Living Mountain View Community Church and The Caring Place Ridge Meadows Seniors Society Ridge Meadows Child, Youth & Family Network Ridge Meadows Seniors Society Community at Large Community Living BC Volunteer Coordinator of the lnteragency Network The Chair called the meeting to order at 7:02 p.m. 2. Adoption of the Agenda ROS-15 Motion was moved and seconded That the Agenda for May 7, 2008 be adopted with the following additions; Social Planning Advisory Committee Regular Minutes Page 1 of8 Social Planning Advisory Committee Regular Meeting Minutes May 7, 2008 5.2 Alouette Home Start Supportive Housing Project Update -delete 7.5 Letter from Laurie Greschke RE: Housing for adults with disabilities -addition CARRIED 3. Minutes of the Social Planning Advisory Committee Regular Meeting ROS-16 Motion was moved and seconded That the Minutes of the Social Planning Advisory Committee April 2, 2008 Regular Meeting be adopted CARRIED 4. Delegations and Presentations 4.1 Rhonda O'Grady -Vancouver Coordinator of the lnteragency Network Shawn Matthewson introduced Rhonda O'Grady, Vancouver Coordinator of the lnteragency Network. Rhonda O'Grady gave a presentation on the Maple Ridge, Pitt Meadows Volunteer Network and the history of how it was created. Ms. O'Grady advised the Committee that this network's mandate is to support the development of each organizations' volunteer program, to share information, and develop opportunities for joint training and access to resources. Rhonda O'Grady reviewed the many benefits that the network has been able to provide to local organizations that work with volunteers. She also shared that funding sustainability is a key issue for this network and that they are currently researching potential grants and funding sources. Additional and sustainable funding would enable them to secure a permanent location for their network. Ms. O'Grady also advised that in order to become a member agency an organization needs to have an interest in developing a volunteer program and this network would act as a support network to any organization. 5. Unfinished and New Business 5.1 CSPN BC-Traction for Community Action: The Second Conference on Community Social Planning in BC -Confirmation of Attendees Sue Wheeler advised the Committee that the three staff liaisons will be attending this conference and gave the Committee details on how to register for this conference along with the deadline of May 9th. Ross Dunning and Gordon Hall volunteered to partake in this conference. 5.2 Alouette Home Start Supportive Housing Project -Update (Letter to Council attached) - no report on progress as Council is still considering the request. 5.3 National Action Plan on Housing and Homelessness Request for Endorsement-Request from Council for Recommendation Social Planning Advisory Committee Regular Minutes Page 2 ofB ) -• Social Planning Advisory Committee Regular Meeting Minutes May 7, 2008 Sue Wheeler advised the Committee that this item was forwarded as a request from Council for the Committee's comments and recommendation. Council received a request from the Metro Vancouver Board encouraging Council to review the National Action Plan on Housing and Homelessness, which was prepared by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM), and urging them to consider endorsement of the recommendations. The Metro Vancouver Board endorsed the recommendations with a comment that the proposed targets for the number of affordable housing units and transitional and supportive housing units should be considered as minimum targets and requested that FCM review the targets annually, or as new information becomes available. The Metro Vancouver Board staff report was reviewed. The report reviews the five priority areas and compares and analyzes the alignment of the recommendations to the Metro Vancouver Affordable Housing Strategy which was previously endorsed by both the Social Planning Advisory Committee and Council. ROS-16 Motion was moved and seconded 5.4 That the Social Planning Advisory Committee endorses the recommendations set out in the Federation of Canadian Municipalities report titled "Sustaining the Momentum: Recommendations for a National Action Plan on Housing and Homelessness" with the comment that the proposed targets for the number of affordable housing units and transitional and supportive housing units should be considered as minimum targets and that FCM be requested to review the targets annually or as new information becomes available; and that a request be forwarded to Council to endorse the report with the outlined comments and forward a letter of support. Economic Security Project Request for Endorsement -Request from Council for Recommendation CARRIED Shawn Matthewson reviewed the "Barriers at Work" report with the Committee and advised that what is apparent with people living with disabilities is a need for a combination of employment income and disability insurance in order to survive. Ros-16 Motion was moved and seconded That the Social Planning Advisory Committee table this issue until more background information can be provided to the Committee CARRIED 5.5 Municipal Advisory Committee Accessibility Awards Nominations Kim Macey advised the Committee that the Maple Ridge/Pitt Meadows Municipal Advisory Committee on Accessibility Issues (MACAI) will be holding their Accessibility Awards in Council Chambers on June 26th between 6:30 -7:30 p.m. and the deadline for nominations is June 14th_ Social Planning Advisory Committee Regular Minutes Page 3 of 8 Social Planning Advisory Committee Regular Meeting Minutes May 7, 2008 Ms. Macey asked the Committee if there are any nominations they would like to send forward to MACAI. The Committee discussed possible nominees to receive an accessibility award. R0S-16 Motion was moved and seconded That the Social Planning Advisory Committee nominate the School District No. 42 maintenance department for their Customer Service and Samuel Robertson Technical School for making their new field accessible for Leisure and Recreation Services CARRIED 5.6 Request for Working Group members for preparation for Meetings with MP and MLA 's Sue Wheeler advised the Committee that they are looking for volunteers for a sub- committee to determine the issues that the Committee would like to discuss with the MP and MLA's. Jim Wakely, Ross Dunning, Paul Livingstone volunteered to be on this sub- committee. A meeting of this group will be held in mid-June. 5. 7 Celebrating Solutions Workshop Dates Sue Wheeler advised the Committee that the current work plan includes a project for SPAC to work with the community to gather the success stories resulting from the community collaborative processes and develop a medium for sharing those stories with the community. Last fall the Committee chose the two main focus topics for the first Celebrating Solutions processes. The first two topics will be "Youth" and "Homelessness" solutions that have developed through collaborative efforts in our communities. There will be two separate workshops; the youth workshop will be held on Thursday, May 29th between 12:00 noon and 2:00 p.m. and the homelessness workshop will be held on Wednesday, June 11th between 10 a.m. and 12:00 p.m. Invitations will be sent out to all of the networks. The Committee was advised that the targeted timeline is that stories will be developed over the summer and rolled out to the media in the fall. 6. COMMITTEE REPORTS 6.1 Spirit of Community Awards Shawn Matthewson advised the Committee that the Spirit of Community Awards will be presented on the July 1st Canada Day celebrations and is looking for nominations. Ms. Matthewson also advised that the ad will be in the newspaper next week and the deadline for nominations is June 20th. ACTION ITEM: Shawn Matthewson to send the criteria to the BIA Shawn Matthewson also advised the committee that there will be a good neighbour award and reviewed the criteria with the Committee. Social Planning Advisory Committee Regular Minutes Page 4 of 8 ) " Social Planning Advisory Committee Regular Meeting Minutes May 7, 2008 6.2 Child, Youth and Family Network Updates Candace Gordon advised the Committee that CYFN has recently hired their coordinator, Jessie Hill. At last count there were 80 members representing the social services, health and education sectors. Candace Gordon advised the Committee that the CYFN had a meeting yesterday with the United Way to start talking about the middle years and there will be an ongoing table formed for the middle years (age 6 -10 yrs old) to work on collaboration and networking. Ms. Gordon also advised the Committee that there was a Food Security workshop and the report has been completed and there was a recommendation that a community roundtable be formed with key people meeting on a more regular basis. Candace Gordon advised the Committee that the next CYFN orientation will be held on Tuesday, June 3rd between 12:30 -1:30 p.m. and this is an opportunity to come and see how the network works together. 6.3 School Community Connections Update Sue Wheeler advised the Committee that the School Community Connections is currently going through three processes (sub-committees): ► Neighbourhood engagement (to determine needs of the neighbourhood) ► Site requirement (physical changes to the school to accommodate the services) ► Integration of services to respond to community needs (conducting a process designed to lead the community of service providers through a learning process regarding how to work together towards integration of services to meet community needs) Sue Wheeler reviewed the funding that has been provided for this project. The goal is for the physical changes to the schools to take place over the summer months. 6.4 Building Community Solutions Update Sue Wheeler advised the Committee that Building Community Solutions has received $25,000 from United Way to fund hiring a Coordinator for the next year. The contract opportunity will be posted in the near future. The committee has currently received 6 GEED grant applications as more people are finding out about this funding -$100 grants designed to assist neighbourhoods in connecting and strengthening their neighbourhoods. Sue Wheeler advised the Committee that the two pilot neighbourhoods (Mountainview and Westridge-Laityview area) got together to talk about how they can work together; education training pieces and events they could do together. One exciting initiative they are working on includes hosting a hockey day in Canada and sending out challenges to other neighbourhoods. Social Planning Advisory Committee Regular Minutes Page 5 ofB Social Planning Advisory Committee Regular Meeting Minutes May 7, 2008 Glenwood School Garden hired a volunteer coordinator to assist with encouraging and promoting the neighbourhood involvement in the garden. He will also be working with the children and teachers. Haney Farmer's Market participated in Earth Day this past weekend and had a great turn out. Saturday, May 10th is their opening celebrations at 11am in Memorial Peace Park. 6.3 Round Table Judy Dueck Judy Dueck advised the Committee that the youth action park "The School Yard" will have its Grand Opening on Saturday, May 10th Cheryl Ashlie Cheryl Ashlie advised the Committee that she has been reviewing the government report on Kindergarten and the phasing in of junior kindergarten for 3 and 4 yr old children. Ms. Ashlie also advised that the graduation is just around the corner and over 1/3 of graduates will receive some sort of school award. Ms. Ashlie also advised the Committee that she is looking for 660 pedometers to be donated to the District for their schools to encourage the youth to get more active. Ross Dunning Ross Dunning advised the Committee that he has been working with the Volleyball teams within the Province and Canada and the local teams did really well at nationals. Mr. Dunning also advised that he has signed over $20,000 in bursary cheques for the basketball commission. Bob Masey Bob Masey advised the Committee that he is happy to be here and would like more information on what SPAC is along with their mandate. Sue Wheeler advised that she will meet with the BIA members to do an orientation in regards to what SPAC is and their initiatives. Tom Mier Tom Mier advised the Committee that the BIA is moving their office to where Dr. Sherman Olsen's office used to be on 224th Street and will be part of 4 non-profit organizations within that office. Betty Levens Betty Levens advised the Committee that the kids from the Glenwood Garden gave an incredible presentation on the work that has been done. She was very impressed with both their presentation and with the garden at the school and what they were able to accomplish. Betty Levens also invited anyone who hasn't seen the Ridge Meadows Seniors Centre to come by for a visit anytime. Inspector Wakely Inspector Wakely followed up on the skate park and advised there have been no problems from a policing perspective to date. Inspector Wakely updated the committee on the work being done on the downtown survival sex trade noting that things have Social Planning Advisory Committee Regular Minutes Page 6 of8 j Social Planning Advisory Committee Regular Meeting Minutes May 7, 2008 improved and credit goes to Marika Sandrelli at Fraser Health. There are plans to have the RCMP work closer with the Opening Doors Network Team, a sub-committee made up of front line staff that work with youth with addiction issues. The RCMP has finished strategic planning for 2008/2009; the top priorities are organized crime, youth at risk, community visibility and traffic. Inspector Wakely will be meeting with the Maple Ridge Times to get this information out to the public. Inspector Wakely reviewed the 2010 Road Safety Initiatives with the Committee. Gordon Hall Gordon Hall advised the Committee that today is the last day of youth week which celebrated youth across BC and there were a number of successful events. Shawn Matthewson Shawn Matthewson advised the Committee that the Parks and Leisure Services brochure will come out this Saturday and Youth Services are offering a lot of new program opportunities; ½ summer day camp for preschoolers; summer leadership programs and training; and a new Active Kids Club at Maple Ridge Elementary School. Ms. Matthewson also advised that the Early Childhood Development Committee received 12 funding applications from various community organizations for the disbursement of approximately $190,000 funding for Early Learning initiatives. Sue Wheeler Sue Wheeler advised that CYFN met with the new school district team called the "Keeping kids in School " (KKIS) team (group of principals) a couple of weeks ago and did an informational presentation on the CYFN network. Michelle Schmidt has been representing the KKIS team at many of the network table and is doing amazing work. A presentation was also made to the secondary school principals, additional presentations will be made to the elementary school principals, counsellors etc. Ms. Wheeler also advised that the Youth Action Park is having their opening this Saturday. The park has been very well used, reflecting the need to provide children and youth with the facilities that they are interested in, in order to encourage and inspire them to be active. Ms. Wheeler also advised that the parent's comments have been that the etiquette that is shown by the skate boarders has been great and provides the community with a great positive example of the youth of our community. 7. CORRESPONDENCE 7.1 Fraser Valley Homelessness Count -Preliminary results 7.2 Vancouver Civil Society Groups to Launch United Nations Human Rights Complaint 7.3 Letter of Support responding to Katzie First Nation Request for funding for Indian Residential School Health Support Program 7.4 Living on Welfare in BC -An Economic Security Project Report (Link to Executive Summary) 7.5 Letter from Laurie Greschke RE: Housing for adults with disabilities pensions Social Planning Advisory Committee Regular Minutes Page 7 ofB Social Planning Advisory Committee Regular Meeting Minutes May 7, 2008 8. Next Meeting The next regular meeting of the Social Planning Advisory Committee is scheduled to be on Wednesday, June 4, 2008 at 7:00 p.m. in the Blaney Room, Maple Ridge Municipal Hall. Upon no further discussion coming from the Committee members, the meeting was adjourned. The Regular Meeting adjourned at 9:07 p.m. Chairperson /tc Social Planning Advisory Committee Regular Minutes Page 8 of 8