Feature Article April 10, 2003
LAND O' LAKES NewsWeb HomeFrontenac, the once and future countyby Jeff GreenThe Frontenac Management Board (FMB), which is overseen by a committee made up of the mayors from the three Frontenac townships and the Frontenac Islands, was set up to replace Frontenac County after municipal amalgamation in 1998.
It never seemed to take, however. Phil Leonard, who chairs the FMB, said two weeks ago he has found that whenever I meet people at political meetings they ask me what the FMB is, and I always end up having to talk about how it replaced county council.
At a regular FMB meeting, a motion was brought forward to reinstate the designation of Frontenac County and establish a County Council and a warden in place of the Management Board and a chair. All the Mayors in attendance liked the idea, but the motion itself was deferred so it could be discussed at a scheduled meeting of councillors from all the townships that very night, where it was also well received.
The motion was brought back before council on Wednesday, April 2, at a special meeting of the FMB, where it was approved. A public meeting will be called later this month, and then Frontenac County Council will be reborn and Chair Phil Leonard will be Warden Leonard of Frontenac County.
There was considerable interest expressed by Mayors and councillors that the council be expanded to include the Mayors and a delegate from each of the townships, but FMB Chief Administrative Officer Elisabeth Fulton pointed out that under provincial legislation no changes can be made to the makeup of the board or council unless they are proposed more than one year before a municipal election.
So it will be at least 2006 before a full eight-member county council presides over Frontenac County.
