There’s been considerable movement in resolving the conflict over Greater Vernon governance. Vernon and Coldstream
councils, as well as the Area B and C directors, unanimously endorsed a plan Thursday that could iron out concerns over the North Okanagan Regional District recently removing full delegated authority from the Greater Vernon Services Commission. “The venue we created with all the stakeholders together was a good one,” said 
Jerry Oglow, NORD chairman. The meeting got off to a shaky start as both Vernon and Coldstream councils made demands, but consensus was found after Oglow listened to concerns and put forward a proposal. The primary source of contention was some politicians insisting that while GVSC may not need full delegated authority again, it should be able to handle some issues to allow for an efficient system and to take pressure off the regional district. “Let us look after our budget. This is a big item financially and politically,” said Wayne Lippert, Vernon mayor. Currently, all 
power has been removed from GVSC, and as a committee, it can only make recommendations to the NORD board. As part of his proposal Thursday, Oglow asked administration from Vernon, Coldstream and the regional district to establish a bylaw that clarifies what activities GVSC can pursue without going to NORD. “Let’s keep it simple,” said Oglow, who wants to have the matter resolved within the next month. But it must still be determined how much authority GVSC will have. Stan Field, Area C director,
wants to ensure there is tight control and NORD remains in charge. “I will not put my hand up for full delegated authority because it’s so hard to understand,” he said. Cliff Kanester, Area B director, also reminded those around the table that the GVSC is an arm of NORD. “Some people on GVSC thought they were independent of the regional district and some are still sitting here,” he said. Part of the conflict over the past year has also revolved around whether GVSC staff act on their own under a manager or if they report to NORD’s administrator. Oglow has recommended that a stand-alone 
general manager not be hired for GVSC, but those duties be provided by Brian Reardon, NORD’s administrator. “I can’t find a better way of improving communications between both bodies than by having the same guy to deal with,” said Oglow. Emotions flared briefly as Lippert accused NORD administration of dictating what work would be done by GVSC’s economic development officer. “He was a GVSC employee
and he was being pulled away from that. Our taxpayers would come back to us and say, ‘What’s going on? He’s supposed to be with us,’” said Lippert. Those comments didn’t go over well with Oglow, who pointed out that all NORD jurisdictions have made establishment of a regional economic development function a priority. “I can’t get my head around this us and them — that it’s GVSC staff.
I have 17 other committees and they don’t think of us and them,” said Oglow. “The sooner we get off this, our staff and not our staff, the better we’ll all be.” Barry Beardsell, a Vernon councillor, urged that the details of Oglow’s proposal be provided to GVSC staff because of the uncertainty the conflict has created. “They’ve been hanging out to dry and they need some comfort,” he said. The other component of Oglow’s proposal deals with who will be appointed to GVSC. Coldstream had recommended that the same group of politicians sit on both GVSC and NORD to avoid a breakdown in communications. However, Vernon demanded that different individuals sit at each board table. Oglow made it clear that he will respect both municipalities. “If Coldstream wants consistency, it’s got it. If Vernon wants to share the workload, it’s got it,” he said. Vernon officials expressed concern that having the same three council members on NORD and GVSC would create 
considerable time pressure for them. “I’m not comfortable with three members of my council having all that responsibility,” said Coun. Buffy Baumbrough. Based on a 
committee structure with no delegated authority, Coldstream council asked that there be consistency among who sits on both boards. “When there’s a different group of people at NORD than at GVSC, there’s a lot of confusion,” said Gary Corner, Coldstream mayor. “I want to make this simple so when there’s a decision at GVSC and it goes to NORD, it happens.” Joint meetings between Vernon and Coldstream councils and the two electoral areas are rare, but there were calls Thursday for them to become more regular. “It’s a really good way of sorting things out,” said Field.____________________________________________
Jan 05 2007 EDITORIAL http://www.vernonmorningstar.com/
At times Thursday it appeared like Greater Vernon politicians were just spinning
wheels over the governance issue and absolutely nothing would be achieved. Some tired, entrenched views resurfaced and demands from both Vernon and Coldstream over committee appointments almost had the joint meeting over before it got under way. But the outcome ultimately remained positive thanks to the leadership shown by Jerry Oglow, North Okanagan Regional District chairman. Perhaps it’s because he’s a neutral third party from outside of Greater Vernon or it’s because of the skills he’s developed over a long political career, but Oglow was able to bring together diverse views and find some common ground. While some expected little out of Thursday’s meeting, Oglow was able to pull off unanimous approval for a plan he hopes will resolve the rift between NORD and the Greater Vernon Services Commission once and for all. While Oglow deserves credit, so do the politicians from Vernon, Coldstream and Areas B and C. Despite outstanding concerns, they all raised their hands to proceed together in finding a common resolution. Perhaps this gathering should have been held before NORD took the heavy-handed approach of removing GVSC’s authority, especially since Oglow’s proposal calls for some power to be restored. However, hindsight is wonderful thing and all that matters now is that the bureaucratic wrangling comes to an end and that all of our elected officials put the same time and energy into services that truly impact residents.
At times Thursday it appeared like Greater Vernon politicians were just spinning
wheels over the governance issue and absolutely nothing would be achieved. Some tired, entrenched views resurfaced and demands from both Vernon and Coldstream over committee appointments almost had the joint meeting over before it got under way. But the outcome ultimately remained positive thanks to the leadership shown by Jerry Oglow, North Okanagan Regional District chairman. Perhaps it’s because he’s a neutral third party from outside of Greater Vernon or it’s because of the skills he’s developed over a long political career, but Oglow was able to bring together diverse views and find some common ground. While some expected little out of Thursday’s meeting, Oglow was able to pull off unanimous approval for a plan he hopes will resolve the rift between NORD and the Greater Vernon Services Commission once and for all. While Oglow deserves credit, so do the politicians from Vernon, Coldstream and Areas B and C. Despite outstanding concerns, they all raised their hands to proceed together in finding a common resolution. Perhaps this gathering should have been held before NORD took the heavy-handed approach of removing GVSC’s authority, especially since Oglow’s proposal calls for some power to be restored. However, hindsight is wonderful thing and all that matters now is that the bureaucratic wrangling comes to an end and that all of our elected officials put the same time and energy into services that truly impact residents. 
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