| Nov 14, 2018


Even though the quote for renovations to Piccadilly Hall came in about $1,900 over the budgeted amount of $34,000, Central Frontenac Council voted to go ahead with the project at its regular meeting Tuesday night at Oso Hall in Sharbot Lake.

And it also agreed to kick in an additional $1,600 to have the heaters rewired so they can be operated from a wall-mounted control at the recommendation of acting Chief Building Official Alan Revill.

Revill told Council that the lowest bid came from Wemp & Smith at $35,898 to strip out lathe & plaster, replace windows, replace deteriorated framing, reinsulate walls and apply new drywall and trim. The other bid, from Men in White Designed Interiors, was $46,095.40.

Revill said he has worked with Wemp & Smith many times in the past.

Revill said that, during the tender process, it was noted that an electrician would be required to disconnect the electric baseboard heaters prior to removing the wall surfaces and as such, he recommended that this would be a good opportunity to improve the heating system as well.

“Those heaters are currently controlled by individual unit thermostats located on the baseboard at the floor level,” Revill said. “So there is often uneven heating and there are risks that a unit may be accidentally left on.

“The CBO is recommending to have an electrician from our vendor of record list rewire the heating units to be controlled by wall-mounted thermostats (which will be) much easier to control heating of the building and more convenient for users.”

Used truck on order
Council approved purchasing a used single-axle 5-ton plow truck along with two additional sanding units and other miscellaneous items to take on the 40 additional kilometers of roads the Public Works department will be responsible for clearing this winter after the Township decided not to tender out two areas.

Works garage renovation ‘fell through the3 cracks”

In 2018, $80,000 was budgeted to renovate two public works garages but the work was not begun this year.

Dep. Mayor Tom Dewey said he’d support the move but was disappointed and surprised that the renovations “fell through the cracks.

“I feel it’s important for employee moral to have a decent lunchroom and kitchen,” he said.

“That will be in the budget for next year,” said Mayor Frances Smith.

Selling tanker
Council approved declaring a tanker from the Arden station surplus and being sold. Dep. Fire Chief Jamie Riddell said Arden still has one large tanker and a smaller one which should be sufficient.

“The big thing is cost,” said Mayor Frances Smith. “It’s reached the point do I fix it or not.”

New shed for Mountain Grove rink
Council approved $6,000 for the purchase of an 8’ X 14’ storage shed (with insulation, lights and heat) for the District 2 (Olden) rink in Mountain Grove.

The District 2 rec committee had been using the old fire building to store equipment but the fire department has said it also needs the building for storage.

Dep. Mayor Tom Dewey said he’d received an email from the treasurer saying that the money would likely come out of the year-end budget surplus.

“It’s always been understood that it would be part of the rec committee’s budget but at any rate, they won’t be asked to fundraise for it,” said Mayor Frances Smith.

Road 38 to close for parade
Council approved closing Road 38 from Elizabeth Street north to Elizabeth Street South Dec. 1 for its annual Santa Claus Parade.

Fire Chief Greg Robinson expressed some concern over liability in the case of an emergency with respect to response time.

“I’ve been doing these parades for 30 years and there’s never been an emergency,” said Mayor Frances Smith. “Although I’m not saying it couldn’t happen.”

Coun. Bill MacDonald expressed similar sentiments.

Smith said the annual Tichborne to Parham Santa Claus Parade will be replaced this year by a children’s party at the fire hall, likely Dec. 2.

Road 38 will be closed through Sharbot Lake from about 1 p.m. to 1:20 p.m.

Construction value to flirt with $10 million mark

With construction value for the year to date at $9,020,226, acting CBO Alan Revill described as a “robust” year in building activity. This compares with $7,991,860 through

the first ten months of 2017 and $7,386,759 through the first ten months of 2016.

“This includes single family units and things like garages and decks,” Revill said.

Permit fees are also up to $126,857, bringing the building department closer to breaking even.

“This shows good growth over three years and is a positive thing for the community,” said Dep. Mayor Tom Dewey.

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