Application will be made to have summer students working in City of Powell River’s day camp program but the mayor would like to see young people maintaining vegetation.
At the Thursday, January 15, committee of the whole meeting, the committee heard an outline for a local application for federal summer student funding.
Ray Boogaards, director of parks, recreation and culture, said for summer 2014, city staff had applied for two students through the Canada Summer Students Program to work in the summer day camp program.
“It was very successful,” he said. “For 2015, staff again applied, this time for four students. We are hoping to expand that program to preschool. We did have a preschool component to it last year but it will be slightly expanded with the additional summer students.
“This program does not pay for the full hourly rate. It pays for $5.25 for each hour worked.”
Mayor Dave Formosa asked if the federal grant for 2015 had been received. Boogaards said he was still awaiting approval.
Boogaards said staff had looked at a number of areas of city operation where this funding could apply and believe the summer camp program is extremely important.
“With limited funding through the federal government we just went for one of these grants to give it a better chance.”
Formosa said a huge pet peeve of his is why the city can’t hire students to weed and cut grass. He said he thinks it has something to do with the city’s union work.
“Why can’t we get students grants and put them in the gardening place to weed gardens, cut grass and weed eat, keeping everything beautiful in the summer when people are here?
“With all of the environmental issues and all the work we are doing on the waterfront, the environmental regulations make you put in more gardens. I know we try to keep them low maintenance. I’ve received numerous emails after we made a beautiful waterfront and people are saying we are not keeping them up. Why don’t we get students?”
Boogaards said in evaluating the prospective areas, the feeling was that day camps are a higher priority, and that’s where the application should go, but he recognizes the mayor’s concerns.
