(Thanks to Lynne Forrest for some of this copy but then amended by your webmaster)

If you didn't make it to the meeting last night you missed a very short council meeting. I'll try to set the stage.

They were expecting a crowd, for SilverBack, and for the Public Hearing on a Habitat project in Davis Bay or SilverBack.  The folding doors from the room to the library foyer were open & there were people standing almost to the library doors. There was a model of the SilverBack plan at the front of the council room.

A number of attendees had tried to find out where & when we would be able to view the latest servicing agreements before the Special Council meeting started without any success. Connie said they had to be released by Council.

The agenda stated there would be a period for questions from the public before the council meeting was called to order.   Mayor Reid said very quickly (and not heard clearly by many due to the fact he started before the crowd settled) that there would be no question period and called the Special Council meeting. to order.  He gave no explanation or polite caution;”all would be clear in a minute or something”. This brought a number calls from the audience (some of whom had not heard all of the Mayor’s announcement but just noted the meeting going forward) who had wanted to speak or hear those who had planned to speak. Many thought the handling of this abrupt and unannounced change by the Mayor was very rudely handled.

Mayor Reid started the real meeting by saying that during discussion of Silver Back in an earlier in camera session it was decided to bring the in camera items to the public.  Mike Shanks brought forward the motion to "hold a public workshop" on the servicing agreements for SilverBack.  There was an amendment by Keith Thirkell to add”the attendance of the District's legal staff" to explain the servicing agreements.  This amended motion was PASSED. 

Bill Brown, when asked, indicated the date for this workshop should be in late March so watch for it in the paper. When asked, the Mayor confirmed that there would definitely be public questions and answers at the workshop. When asked, Brown advised the servicing agreements should up on the District's website sometime Thursday, February 28^th.

A very few copies of the agreements were then available with Connie handing them out to the lucky few.