City of Powell River Council has voted to dissolve Powell River Power Development Corporation.
At the June 6 city council meeting, deputy corporate officer Jessica Lefort said during council’s January budget deliberations, staff was directed, as one of council’s cost-cutting measures, to dissolve the corporation.
“Staff began the process of doing that with legal,” said Lefort. “The corporation should be dissolved in the next four to six weeks.”
Councillor George Doubt asked how much the final audit was.
Lefort said the 2024 audit hasn’t been completed. She said audit fees in past have been around the $2,600, so that is what would be expected.
Councillor Jim Palm said the power development corporation had been created for a partnership with Tla’amin Nation for power generation. He asked if there was partnership with Tla’amin in the corporation. Lefort said she did not believe there was partnership in the corporation.
“The city is the sole shareholder for this corporation,” said Lefort.
Council unanimously voted to dissolve the corporation.
According to a staff report, the corporation was established by the city to act as a 50 per cent shareholder in the Freda Creek Community Hydro Partnership to pursue a run-of-river project at Freda Creek with Tla’amin. Since pre-feasibility work was completed on the project in 2012, there has been no activity because the provincial government and BC Hydro have chosen to focus on other hydro generation projects, the report stated.
Council has held onto the dormant corporation in case it needed an on-the-shelf corporation for some purpose, but the city has so far not needed the corporation. The staff report stated that there are annual audit and legal costs to maintain the corporation.
Audit costs are approximately $2,600 for the corporation and legal fees are approximately $300 annual, the report stated.
To complete the dissolution, legal fees will amount to approximately $800, according to the staff report.
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