Councillor’s Communiqué : January  2006 - Issue # 98

On Tuesday, Dec. 6th, 2005, Draft #2 of the HRM Regional Plan (RP) was tabled with the Regional Council. It is now complete and available for public review and comment. Please refer to the HRM web-site at: www.halifax.ca/regionalplanning/RegionalPlanDraft2.html . RP - Draft #2 is also available on compact disc and in hard-copy. For more information or to request a copy, please call 490-5857. The general public have an opportunity to express their views and concerns to this revised draft planning document. HRM will receive written submissions on RP - Draft #2 until January 31st, 2006. All written submissions must be received by regular mail at the HRM Regional Planning Office: P.O. Box 1749, Halifax, NS, B3J 3A5 or by e-mail to : regplan@halifax.ca In February 2006, HRM Council will receive a report from the Regional Planning Committee in response to all submissions. A copy of all written submissions will be attached to this report. Following review of all submissions to Draft #2, a final RP will be tabled with Council for First Reading and to set a date for the Public Hearing. HRM is now in the final step (Step 8) of Phase 2 (June 2003 to March 2006) of the Regional Planning process. The first draft of the RP was delivered in Spring 2005 and tabled on May 13th. Soon the final phase of public hearings will begin which will lead to the formal adoption of this new HRM Planning Strategy for the next 25 years.

Property owners are encouraged to call and talk to an Assessor at this office, prior to appealing an assessment. Perhaps this approach may answer and clear up some questions that you may have, hopefully avoiding the time and expense of an appeal. If not, you have the right to make a formal appeal, IN WRITING, either by letter or fax or hand-delivered, which must be received by the Assessment Office on time before the deadline (Feb. 6th). E-mail or On-line Appeals are not yet acceptable by Legislation. If you should have any further enquiries about the appeal process, please refer to the Service Nova Scotia Web-Site at: www.gov.ns.ca/snsmr/asmt/ps/process/ .

The NS Dept. of Transportation & Public Works does most of the snow removal and ice control road services in District 3. Our local NS Highway Depot in Chezzetcook is at 827-2544. But for North Preston, Westphal, and all of the subdivision streets in the West & Upper Lawrencetown area, please call HRM Snow and Ice Control at 490-6203 or the HRM Service Call Centre at 490-4000. Drivers can get up-to-date road conditions across Nova Scotia by calling the SNOW-line: 1-800-307-SNOW (7669) or in HRM at 424-3933 or on-line at www.gov.ns.ca/tran and click on the Road & Weather Report Icon Button. The SNOW-line is updated regularly at 7 AM; 1 PM; and 5 PM. or more frequently in case of a major storm event. For on-line info on HRM Ice & Snow Control Service Standards go to: www.halifax.ca/Works/Streets/snow_ice.html Motorists are asked to exercise extreme caution when venturing out onto the roadways. Be safe by having your vehicle properly prepared for this time of year.