POLICY REPORT
ENVIRONMENT
Date: February 20, 1996
Dept. File No.2122-18
TO: Vancouver City Council
FROM: General Manager of Engineering Services
SUBJECT: Keep Greater Vancouver Spectacular
RECOMMENDATION
A. THAT Vancouver City Council officially support the 1996 Keep
Greater Vancouver Spectacular clean-up event.
IF COUNCIL SUPPORTS A, THE GENERAL MANAGER RECOMMENDS B AND C:
B. THAT the General Manager of Engineering Services be authorized
to spend approximately $40,000 for services for the 1996 Keep
Greater Vancouver Spectacular event, source of funding to be
the Solid Waste Capital Reserve.
C. THAT the General Manager of Engineering Services be authorized
to further support the participation of residential blocks in
the 1996 Keep Greater Vancouver Spectacular event by paying
the $25 per block registration fee on behalf of residents, up
to a maximum of $5,000, source of funding to be the Solid
Waste Capital Reserve.
CONSIDERATION
D. THAT the General Manager of Engineering Services be authorized
to pay the production and installation costs of the 1996 Keep
Greater Vancouver Spectacular event banners on Cambie Street
from 12th to 6th Avenues plus the installation costs of the
banners on the Cambie and Burrard Bridges, at a total cost to
the City of approximately $11,000, source of funding to be the
Solid Waste Capital Reserve.
GENERAL MANAGER'S COMMENTS
The General Manager RECOMMENDS approval of A. If Council approves
A, then the General Manager RECOMMENDS B and C. Item D is
submitted for Council's CONSIDERATION but has not been recommended
because it is promotional and not directly related to litter pick-
up or cleaning activities. Approval of C and D would constitute
grants to Tourism Vancouver.
COUNCIL POLICY
Awarding of grants requires 8 affirmative votes on Council.
PURPOSE
The purpose of this report is to seek Council's official support for the
1996 Keep Greater Vancouver Spectacular event and for funding for
certain aspects of the event.
BACKGROUND
In late 1995, the Mayor, Tourism Vancouver, and City staff discussed the
idea of a community-based clean-up event in Vancouver. Such an event
would acknowledge the ongoing efforts of the City and residents in
keeping Vancouver spectacular while promoting an increased community
stewardship for all public spaces in the City.
Business Improvement Associations (BIAs) and resident groups expressed
interest in promoting clean streets and sidewalks. The Downtown
Vancouver BIA supports the concept of its members taking greater
responsibility for blocks of street in which they do business.
Keep Greater Vancouver Spectacular is modelled after Clean Up the World,
an annual international clean-up event. This is the first time this
event will be undertaken in Vancouver. Tourism Vancouver hopes to
expand the event region-wide next year.
DISCUSSION
Existing Services
Engineering Services' annual operating budget provides a wide range of
programs to maintain the cleanliness of the City, including street and
sidewalk cleaning, leaf, litter, and garbage collection, and a host of
recycling services and 3R's education.
For example, there are over 1,400 km of City streets that are cleaned
each year. Crews collect litter from Downtown streets and sidewalks 365
days a year. In 1995, crews collected 16,500 tonnes of Blue Box
recyclables and 80,000 tonnes of garbage from single family homes, and
4,500 tonnes of leaves from streets and residences. Engineering Services
held 10 community clean-ups.
The Event
Keep Greater Vancouver Spectacular will involve volunteers from business
and residential communities in the clean-up of their streets, sidewalks,
lanes, and boulevards, and possibly their parks and shorelines. The
event will occur city-wide from April 1 to 30, except Downtown, which
will occur from May 4 to 10.
Keep Greater Vancouver Spectacular has been organized using the
Integrated Service Team (IST) Areas. Engineering Services is using its
IST reps as "Area Captains" to identify and work with community leaders
(see Appendix "A"). Other Departments will be involved at the IST
level, particularly the Park Board in those neighbourhoods that wish to
include parks in their clean-ups. The Burrard Inlet Environmental
Action Program will coordinate shoreline clean-ups.
Tourism Vancouver's Conceptual Plan for the event is attached as
Appendix "B". The highlights of the event are as follows:
1.Free Clean-Up Month (April) for residents to dispose of up to
500kg of garbage at the Vancouver Landfill at no charge.
2.Residential Litter will be picked up by volunteers, bagged, and
collected at no charge on regular collection days by City crews.
Each residential block participating will receive 25 bags, 12 pairs
of gloves, and 25 special, time-limited garbage stickers from the
City for this purpose.
3.Commercial Litter will be collected by volunteers, bagged, and
placed in existing commercial garbage dumpsters with prior approval
of owners. Each commercial block participating will receive 50
bags and 25 pairs of gloves.
4.Public Realm Inventory Sheets will be filled out by volunteers
and submitted to the City. The sheets will record maintenance
items such as burnt out street lights, large abandoned waste
(fridges, cars), missing traffic or parking signs, graffiti on
public property, etc.
5.Recyclables may be separated by volunteers using blue boxes on
loan from the City and taken to one of seven existing City
Recycling Depots.
6.Education of the public with respect to reducing, reusing, and
recycling waste, and how to fight litter, abandoned waste, posted
bills, graffiti, and vandalism will be accomplished through the How
To Guide, promotional material, the provincial Recycling Hotline
and the City's Anti-Graffiti and Recycling hotlines and other staff
assistance.
Volunteers will also be able to augment their clean-ups with the
following special services:
7.Large-Scale Residential Clean-Ups in areas where volunteers
want to collect more than just litter will be facilitated by the
provision of large bins by the City. These clean-ups will be
provided year-round at the convenience of the volunteers and will
not be limited to event times.
8.Graffiti Removal on Private Property may be done by volunteers
with prior permission of owners. The City will provide education
and the Paint Care Association will provide reused paint for this
purpose.
9.Commercial Street Cleanings will be provided to merchant groups
who organize volunteers to keep cars from parking on signed
streets.
Funding
The 1996 Keep Greater Vancouver Spectacular event activities will be
accommodated, to the extent possible, within the approved 1996 operating
budget. However, the event reflects a higher level of service which
will cost approximately $40,000 beyond the approved 1996 operating
budget, as detailed in Appendix "C".
Because 1996 is the event's inaugural year, we recommend that the
additional $40,000 be allocated from the Solid Waste Capital Reserve.
However, the Reserve may not be an appropriate funding source should
this become an annual event. The operating budget would have to be
increased in subsequent years to accommodate this event.
Participation Fees
Tourism Vancouver intends to charge a participation fee of $75 per
commercial block and $25 per residential block participating. The fees
will be used by Tourism Vancouver to offset its costs of promotion and
supplies, such as gloves, bags, and How To Guides for volunteers.
Initial feedback from business groups indicates that the commercial
block participation fee is acceptable as the event carries a significant
benefit for participating businesses. However, there have been concerns
raised by our IST reps and some community leaders with respect to the
residential participation fee. Many residents do not feel they should
have to pay a fee to volunteer to clean-up their neighbourhoods.
Tourism Vancouver has projected that it would collect a revenue of
$5,000 in fees from 200 residential blocks. We recommend the City
support the participation of residential blocks by paying, on behalf of
residents, the registration fee, up to a maximum of $5,000 for 200
blocks, the source of funding to be the Solid Waste Capital Reserve.
This is in addition to the $40,000 required for increased operating
costs, and would bring the City's total contribution to the event to
$45,000.
This recommendation constitutes a $5,000 grant to Tourism Vancouver and
requires 8 affirmative votes on Council.
Banner Costs
As part of the promotion of the event, Tourism Vancouver will be
installing promotion banners on Cambie Street from 12th to 6th Avenues
and on the Cambie and Burrard Street Bridges.
Tourism Vancouver has requested the City pay the costs to produce the
banners for Cambie Street from 12th to 6th Avenues, which is estimated
to be $4,500, while Tourism Vancouver would pay the costs to produce the
Cambie and Burrard Bridge banners. Tourism Vancouver has also asked
that the City pay the costs to install all the banners, which is
estimated to be $6,500, bringing the total request to $11,000.
Council is presented with the option of approving the total banner
funding request of $11,000 from the Solid Waste Capital Reserve. If
approved, this would bring the City's total contribution to the event to
$56,000.
This has not been recommended because the banners are strictly
promotional and are not directly related to litter pick-up or cleaning
activities. This request for funding constitutes an $11,000 grant to
Tourism Vancouver and requires 8 affirmative votes on Council.
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