Departmental Update - Parks, Corporate Services

BACKGROUND

This report provides the Community Advisory Committee with a comprehensive update on the current activities of the Parks, Recreation and Facilities, Corporate Services, and Economic Development, Events, and Communications departments.

Parks, Recreation and Facilities

• The Parks, Recreation and Facilities department is comprised of six full-time staff: Director of Parks, Recreation and Facilities, Senior Parks Technologist, Parks and Landscape Design Technologist, Parks Planning Coordinator, Parks Administrative Coordinator and Parks Facilities Coordinator. Additionally, the department is currently in the process of hiring a full-time Parks Technician, bringing the total number of staff to seven.
• As a result of recently adding Facilities to the scope of the Parks department, existing responsibilities are being evaluated and distributed to increase internal efficiency (i.e. designated Facilities role independent from general parks operations).
• While the Senior Parks Technologist, Parks Technician and Parks Facilities Coordinator are primarily field-based and responsible for day-to-day operations, the Parks and Landscape Design Technologist oversees development reviews related to boulevards and frontages for the entire City as well as parks design and layout. The Parks Planning Coordinator and Parks Administrative Coordinator deal with bylaw and policy development, assist with writing and administrating contracts and RFP’s as well as general administration for the department.
• As Facilities management has been added to the Parks and Recreation scope, the department has been overseeing the renovation of the recently acquired third-floor office space at City Hall.
• Staff are busy responding to a number of service requests from the community. The areas with the most concerns continue to be graffiti, invasive species, and dry/long grass that could pose a fire hazard during this dry weather.
• The department has held a number of successful community engagement events over the last year, including the Parks and Recreation Open House, Jeanine Drive Park Open House and Langford Earth Day. Staff are continuously engaging with the community via email, phone calls and surveys regarding upcoming projects such as playground and park improvements as well as new park construction.
• Staff are busy providing logistic supports for events at Starlight Stadium, including Pacific FC games, Bacon, Beer and Bourbon Festival, Langford Beer Festival, SoberFest, and Brewery and the Beast. Starlight Stadium will also be host to the 2023 Rugby Americas North Sevens, a regional qualifier for Olympic Games Paris 2024 on August 19-20.
• Staff have a number of park projects underway. Playground replacements will be made at both Fashoda and Windman parks in the fall. Playground equipment has been ordered and a civil works RFP will be issued shortly for the construction of Lone Oak Park (formerly known as Jeanine Park) which will also be completed in the fall. Improvements have also been made to Centennial Park, where Langford Fastball will be hosting the U19 Girls Softball Nationals from August 1-6.
• The Jordie Lunn Clubhouse construction is well underway and anticipated to be completed by the fall. Staff are working on preparing lease agreements to bring to Council for approval for a food and beverage operator and a bicycle rental/repair shop in the building.
• Staff are continuously reviewing policies and bylaws for continuity and to ensure best practices and that Council direction are being reflected in these documents. Staff recently reviewed and amended Subdivision and Development Bylaw No. 1000 and are currently reviewing the Municipal Parks Bylaw No. 177.
• RC Strategies is completing an assessment of current and future park, trails and recreation needs in Langford. The results of this assessment will provide direction for future parks and recreation planning purposes. Staff have been coordinating the data collection from a variety of facility programmers, user groups and stakeholders and other government agencies, such as the CRD. Staff have also been providing RC Strategies with comments made from the general public as to desired amenities in their community.

Corporate Services

• The Corporate Services department is comprised of Human Resources, Legislative Services, Records Management, Contract and Agreements Administration, Bylaw Services, and Police Services.
• Human Resources (HR) coordinates all staff recruitment, corporate training, health and safety, and all policies and procedures related thereto. We currently have an HR Manager and an HR Assistant. Since January 1, 2023, there have been a total of 38 vacancies which have been posted. These include vacancies due to turnover, internal candidates being promoted, and new positions added in the 2023 budget. Of those 38 vacancies, 20 have been filled with internal candidates, 15 with external candidates and 3 remain unfilled at this time.
• In 2023, the HR department implemented a new Respectful Workplace Policy, taking place of the existing Bullying & Harassment policy. This is an important policy for the City, highlighting our commitment to providing a safe, healthy, and respectful environment for all our employees, volunteers, and the public. As part of this policy 119 employees have successfully completed a “Respectful Workplace: Preventing Harassment and Violence” training program.
• In addition, Human Resources is also working on updating and creating policies, both regulatory and operational. They are also responsible for ensuring we have trained first aid attendants on site during business hours and that the training is up to date.
• Legislative Services and Records Management coordinates all Council and Committee agendas and minutes, tracks all bylaws, processes all Freedom of Information requests, and ensures all City records are properly digitized. Due to a substantial increase in the number of FOI requests over the last 3 years, in 2022 the department was reorganized to have one person fully dedicated to responding to these requests.
• The FOI coordinator ensures all employees receive proper training with respect to Freedom of Information, collection and disclosure of personal information and what is a privacy breach.
• Contracts and Agreements manages all the City’s current contracts, ensuring all deadlines are met, and making other departments aware of obligations. We also coordinate all new contracts, either drafting them in house or coordinating with external legal counsel.
• The department is comprised of seven people, Deputy Director of Corporate Services, Manager of Contracts and Agreements, two Legislative Services Coordinators, one Records Coordinator, one Records Assistant, and one Freedom of Information Coordinator.
• Bylaw Services is responsible for enforcing all municipal bylaws, including responding to complaints from the public. A full summary of Bylaw Services was provided at the previous meeting.
• Police Services provides all administrative support to the RCMP at the Westshore Detachment with the exception of the Watch Clerks and court Liaison Officers who are provided by Colwood. Langford has a total of 23 full-time employees at the Westshore RCMP with a pool of casual employees to cover vacation and other absences. This group of employees provide a variety of administrative and technical support to the RCMP members, ensuring that members are able to focus their efforts and skills on front line police work. The municipal employees are the first point of contact for members of the public attending in person at the detachment. They perform finger printing services, police information checks and support the community policing unit.

Economic Development, Events, and Communications

• The department has three full-time and one part-time staff that handles tourism, economic development, events, and external communications. A full-time communications assistant has been hired and will start late August focusing on social media, communications, and providing much needed administrative support for the department.
• Staff are busy implementing the five-year tourism strategy. Focusing on attracting more events and meetings to the City as well as leisure and corporate individual travel. The summer mobile Visitor Services information centre van is operating, staffed by three Belmont High School summer students, funded by Canada Summer Jobs (federal grant program). The van travels to local parks, events, and markets providing information and trip planning support to both visitors and residents.
• Staff continue to hear from a range of businesses representing a wide range of sectors looking for space to move their business or expand to in Langford. Staff provide individual assistance to find the right space and connects investors with property owners or leasing agents based on needs. Multiple economic development projects are in progress including more detailed content for the website, exploring small business workshops, networking opportunities, and updating the business license database.
• Staff have been very busy promoting, coordinating, and assisting events across Langford including Starlight Stadium, Langford Station, and Veterans Memorial Park. In addition to long standing events, staff continue to hear from event planners across the Region looking to bring their event to Langford. Staff are working closely with these groups to find dates and venues that will meet their needs. Change-Makers Gathering Festival and Canada Day (both City events) were a great success. The next City events are the Show and Shine followed by the Food Truck Festival, Treat Street, and the Light Up/Winter Festival.
• The City will be launching City Facebook and Linked In pages this August in addition to the new public engagement program Let’s Chat Langford.

OPTIONS

Option 1

THAT the Community Advisory Committee receives the report for information.

SUBMITTED BY

Marie Watmough, Deputy Director of Corporate Services

Concurrence:
Donna Petrie, Senior Manager of Business Development and Events

Concurrence:
Yari Nielsen, Director of Parks, Recreation and Facilities

Concurrence:
Matthew Baldwin, MCIP, RPP, Director of Planning and Subdivision

Concurrence:
Katelyn Balzer, P.Eng., Director of Engineering and Public Works

Concurrence:
Michael Dillabaugh, CPA, CA, Director of Finance

Concurrence:
Darren Kiedyk, Chief Administrative Officer