Cottonwood Market: 126K later and - nothing much!

This connects with:

Market(ing)
7 Aug, 2017

The Cottonwood Bombshell - A Dud!
20 Jun, 2017

Is there a Market for this?
26 Oct, 2016

82.600 Dollars (So Far)
20 Apr, 2016

Downmarket
26 Mar, 2016

Altogether these posts have had 610 visitors by now - clearly there has been concern! And particularly should be as a send-off for this Council: what with their disregard for common-sense-accountability throughout the Market project.

And their unwillingness to openly question CAO Kevin Cormack's role in it.

This Council will be remembered for bobble-heading from one poor decision to the next with Hall St Phase 1 & 2 - but chiefly the Cottonwood Market fiasco. 

  
Since
Nothing is left of the $122.600 approved by Council for a Cottonwood Market redo since Nov. '15.

Therefore - work on whatever - mostly behind closed doors and promised to the public only in bits of time and stuff by Cormack - the City's bottom-line - (for) now has come to a full stop.

With $82.600 of the total from Nelson taxpayers: it's time to be clearly informed by City Hall of what has and hasn't happened down there.
Mostly hasn't!

Low points along the path:
This rundown is meant to be as easily digestible as possible - more detail and chronological order can be found in the posts listed above.

1.
While dismantling the old Market structures is only contemplated - Cormack orders their sudden demolition. To everyone's surprise and dismay of many - including Council's.

2.
Council approves $12.600 for a general redo-pre-plan plan to be put together by Cover Architecture - chosen how?
An expensive elementary to-do list, really, as it turns out to be.

3.
Then they approve $30.000 for a design-or-something: sufficiently vague to give Council pause for thought. It doesn't though, nothing ever does from here on - during the new Market's evolution - to make them take a stand as a unit with 
"No more of this foolishness!!!"

4.
Before any design actually materializes - Cormack initiates an infrastructure grid of spectacular disconnect to what? reality, placed in the general vicinity of a possible market-building or something somewhere. 
The source of funding - and to whom? - is never made public; it ultimately comes out of the Council-approved market-pot-of-gold: to substantially contribute to the whole project later running out of money. 

5.
Council allocates an obscene $40.000 to the Cottonwood Market project - almost 1/3 of the CBT's total grant-giving to Nelsonites' arts/culture for that year. 
A project of dubious origin, vision and leadership.

The public finds-out about this only from the list of all grant-recipients in the Star - but not what this windfall is to buy.

Clearly - the CBT needs to narrow parameters for its funding-disbursement. Ideally now: in time for the new Council. Limiting the amount to be granted to a single applicant/organization: with that making more funding available to more across-the-spectrum deserving.
Strictly binding Council as conduit to CBT-determined rules!

6.
It is never communicated to the public who has been in charge of the Market's arrested development since David Reid - EcoSociety/Market poster-boy - unceremoniously quits running both.
Presumably it's been Kevin Cormack's divided attention since.

7.
A design for the new Market materializes. Cover Architecture talent doesn't identify with basic needs of vendors/customers: shelter for them, produce and general merchandise. Reasoning for this design - and defensive posturing against prompt criticism of it - is only self-serving.

8.
Eventually the design is quietly nixed at City Hall - when, why, how and by whom never made public. 
Neither is the amount paid for it to Cover Architecture.

9.
Then - after a longish period of silence around the Market - comes a (second) band-shell nobody expects, nobody needs. After a first band-shell died ages ago as part of the general Market-design's rejection.

A non-specific-design design yet - asked for by whom? from - be still, poor heart!: Cover Architecture.
Non-specific-design design: because Council is asked to give approval to this new version on-spec! And does! The emperor's new clothes!

Once there actually is a complete design - again the architects don't identify basic needs: here acoustics + shelter. Their proposal is crippled, lopsided enough to make anyone's eyes - and music-lover's ears - bleed. There is little shelter for performers and equipment: with wind, dust, rain blowing right through it.

The rejected Market design and again this band-shell are vanity-projects: self-absorbed and unrealistic.

10.
A $40.000 request for it is up for approval-or-not before Council, July '17. Minutes before the decision is to be handed-down - Cover Architecture - now turning promoter - makes another sales-pitch - usually not allowed! so why here?: possible weddings in the band-shell, barbecues and all kinds of weekly performances forever.
In the dirt.
Council laps it up and promptly approves the funding unanimously, without any discussion whatsoever. Clearly - this is for/a show: the decision prompted already earlier in the backroom.

With the band-shell plan locked-in and its funding approved one year ago - this project is to be in place by summer '18 - now! - as is the new toilet promised - once again! - by Cormack: but still neither is and obviously won't be.

Absolutely nothing has been made public on the future of band-shell, toilet and Market as such since one year ago!

11.
So the question here - similar to that about every other Market-funding approval (or non!) - should be: what happened to the band-shell's $40.000?

Transparency!

Now
A probable explanation: Reid's departure proves crucial within this process - dragged-out over several years by now - because his ego on its own was to bring-in outside funding for the Market's redo. This approach not questioned by Council. 
So - with reality kicking-in - it's been like paying one credit-card with another since.
122.600 bucks worth - thanks to our naively compliant Council.

A.
Strictly for Market funding received/spent on what when and to possibly verify the above figures - it's

Colin McClure, CFO
cmcclure@nelson.ca

B.
For detailed info on the current state of Cottonwood Market development - Council doesn't have a clue; Councillor Dailly even calling the above figures untrue, although approved by his Council - your go-to guy is

Kevin Cormack, CAO
kcormack@nelson.ca

The only one - but good luck with that!

C.
For info on how the Columbia Basin Trust (CBT) supervises - if at all - Council making annual grant-decisions:

Aimee Ambrosone, Director - Delivery of Benefits
aambrosone@cbt.org

D.
The EcoSociety's on-the-ground

Jesse Woodward, Markets & Events Director
jesse@ecosociety.ca

Saturday
There is no band-shell - just an oval concrete platform in front of where it had been intended, with a tree growing out of its largish bald-earth-center. The whole closed-off haphazardly with City-barricades.

So the Market - with its performance-space - is in its old place, just minus the wooden shelters.

And the toilet-facilities are as the toilet-facilities were.

There has been no landscaping: a dust-bowl, possibly unbearable on hot days as we had before the smoke. And surely a sea of mud when the rains return.

Inventory of what the redevelopment-process has created over almost 3 years:
An irrelevant concrete oval
An irrelevant infrastructure 
The painted toilet-door

There seem to be fewer vendors, definitely fewer customers than in the past.  Since this market clearly will never be more than it is now: why bother going - with the more easily, comfortably accessible Wednesday market selling the same stuff downtown.

So you may want to return your goodwill and ask for a refund!



Image Credit:
pluggedingolf.com


City Council
nelsoncouncil@nelson.ca

Deb Kozak, Mayor
dkozak@nelson.ca

Pam Mierau, Development Services
pmierau@nelson.ca

Cover Architecture
info@coverac.ca