Nov 6/08 - GALS Conference

Back toHome

Feature Article - November 6, 2008 G.A.L.S. Conference receives provincial health & physical education award 2007 GALS organizing committee from Loughborough PS

The GALS (Girls Active Living and Sport) Conference - the Limestone District School Board’s one-day conference organized by girls, for girls - has been recognized by a provincial health and physical education association as an exemplary program. Recently, the Ontario Physical Health Education Association (OPHEA), honoured Loughborough Public School with the 2008 School Community Award, one of five awards handed out annually to deserving individuals and schools.

OPHEA presented its School Community Award to the young girls of Loughborough Public School for their demonstrated leadership and excellence in successfully bringing together all members of their community to enhance active, healthy living opportunities for children and youth.

The GALS conference was created by students from Loughborough Public School who wanted to address the growing concern of decreased involvement among girls in physical activity and sports at their school, and in their community. Led by two teachers, Erik Vreeken and Mark Sonneman, the one-day interactive conference was developed five years ago to reach, educate and motivate, young girls from across the Limestone District School Board. Since its inaugural conference, more than 2,000 young girls in grades 6 - 8 have participated in this one-day symposium. OPHEA states that the recipient of this award “...has utilized the strengths and resources of their community to successfully create an environment that encourages and supports active, healthy living for children and youth within the school community.”

Dec 4/08 - Rural Broadband Grant

Back toHome

Feature Article - December 4, 2008 Rural Broadband grantBy Jeff Green

Frontenac County will be receiving a grant of $789,078 from the provincial government to help plug high-speed internet gaps in Central and South Frontenac and the Frontenac Islands.

In order to apply for the grant money, the county had set out a request for proposal to find an internet service provider who was willing to provide internet service in areas that had been identified in a study of service gap areas. The study was done for the county by the consulting company Actionable Intelligence, who also helped out with the grant application.

The county is in the process of finalizing a contract with a service provider that they have selected, after which the grant money will be released. It is anticipated that it will be sometime in the spring before new infrastructure will start being installed. Details about the project will likely be forthcoming from the county within the next couple of months.

“One thing that people should understand is that the project will not result in every household in South and Central Frontenac having access to high speed internet,” said Laura Bradley of Actionable Intelligence, “it does not work like that in rural areas.”

In fact, the way provincial mapping works, an area is considered to be served if 75% of the households within it have access to high speed internet.

Nonetheless, receiving the grant money was hailed as an important step in improving the atmosphere for home-based businesses in the county.

“We put forward a collaborative internet strategy which will put Frontenac on a strong communications footing,” said Frontenac County Warden Jim Vanden Hoek. “This news helps us build a digital highway to a significant number of residents and businesses in the county.”

The project does not include North Frontenac Township, but the exclusion was no accident. In her presentation to Frontenac County last summer, Laura Bradley pointed out that the granting program has an upper limit of $1,000,000 per applicant per intake period, and recommended that North Frontenac make a separate application for the February deadline. This would also give more time for North Frontenac to do the groundwork necessary for the granting program.

North Frontenac is in the midst of preparing its grant application, with the assistance of Actionable Intelligence, in the hopes of attaining the same result as its southern neighbours.

The Rural Connections Broadband Program provides funding to help rural municipalities build high-speed Internet projects in their communities. It is administered by the Ontario Ministry of Food, Agriculture, and Rural Affairs, under Minister Leona Dombrowsky.

The program’s goal is to bring broadband access to rural and remote areas currently under-serviced in southern Ontario. “Broadband infrastructure is essential to rural Ontario’s opportunities and prosperity,” said Dombrowsky last week in announcing 15 grants for a total provincial commitment of $8.8 million.

Back to HomeFeature Article - September 3, 2009 Hillier & Ryan Negotiate Community Living StrikeBy Jeff Green

Randy Hillier & Sid Ryan looking a bit glumfaced at their press conference in Perth last Fiday.

Right and left-wing firebrands Randy Hillier and Sid Ryan found themselves working together last week.

The two held a joint press conference in Perth on Friday August 28 to announce that, partly in response to a request from Hillier, CUPE (the Canadian Union of Public Employees) has suspended picket lines at group homes operated by Community Living - Lanark County.

The pickets had been a feature of a bitter 60-day strike by 91 CUPE members against the not-for-profit agency, which delivers supports to intellectually handicapped individuals in Lanark County.

Ryan, the President of CUPE – Ontario, insisted that the end to picketing does not represent a weakening of CUPE's resolve.

“We simply responded to the request of the MPP and others. Our dispute is with Community Living, not with people living in group homes or their families,” he said.

As for Community Living - Lanark, Ryan asked, “Why is it that 99 of 100 associations for Community Living in Ontario are able to live within the budgets they've received, and this one is unable to do so? That's why we've called for an operational review by the province.”

Ryan also said that a bargaining session held a couple of weeks ago was a waste of time. “We sat there for 13 hours and they had nothing to say, nothing to offer,” he said.

The central issue in the strike is the pension issue, Ryan said, and the proposal that the union has made is similar to ones that have been put in place for other Community Living bargaining units that CUPE represents.

CUPE represents about 60% of the Community Living bargaining units, and OPSEU (the Ontario Public Service Employees Union) represents most of the rest.

Randy Hiller said, “An important concern for myself and a lot of other people is that programs are not being delivered in this situation. There are a considerable number of people who are expecting service and the taxpayer is funding programs and those programs are not being made available to them.”

Both Sid Ryan and Randy Hillier have called for an operational review of Community Living – Lanark.

During an interview that was broadcast last week on the Lake 88 Radio station in Perth, Rick Tutt, the Executive Director of Community Living – Lanark, acknowledged that outreach services have been impacted during the strike, while replacement workers have been hired to work in group homes that the association runs.

However, Tutt denied an allegation made by Sid Ryan that Community Living had refused provincial top up salary money for its employees. And a further allegation that replacement workers were costing five times what the unionized employees are normally paid.

Tutt said that the pension plan that CUPE is demanding could cost Community Living more than CUPE is saying it will, and that the association would not be able to remain within budget if it acceded to union demands. In calling for an operational review of the agency, MPP Hillier said that Tutt had not responded to repeated inquiries from his staff, and had not been available to meet. However at the Press conference last Friday, Hillier said he had been able to arrange for a meeting with Tutt in Perth on Monday (August 31st).

“I’m hoping that meeting will give me a better understanding of Community-Living’s position” Hillier said.

As of Tuesday, there have been no public statements by Hillier since his meeting with Rick Tutt.

The joint press conference in Perth on Friday represented an unprecedented marriage of convenience between Sid Ryan and Randy Hillier.

Ryan has run provincially and federally for the NDP, briefly leaving the provincial party in the early '90s because he said it had moved too far to the right under Bob Rae. In addition to his union work, he has been an outspoken advocate for human rights.

Hillier, widely seen as the most right-wing candidate for leader of the provincial Conservative party earlier this year, called for the elimination of the Ontario Human Rights Commission during the leadership contest.

After the press conference, Hillier sloughed off the differences between him and Ryan. “I was a union member myself when I worked for the federal government,” he said.

Sid Ryan said that both Hillier and himself have a reputation for being outspoken, “So in that sense we are fellow travellers.”

Back to HomeFeature Article - June 11, 2009 Surprise Funding for New Sydenham Library Proposalby Wilma Kenny

Almost a week after most other project grants had been announced, South Frontenac learned at noon Tuesday that their application for funding for a new library and fully centralized municipal offices had been approved. Under the Communities component of the Building Canada and Infrastructure Stimulus Fund, the Provincial and the Federal governments will each contribute $726, 667, for a total of almost $1.5 million.

If the Township Council agrees to go ahead with the project as recommended by their library committee, they will contribute a matching third, which could come from the $1.3 million set aside in reserve for upgrades to the municipal buildings.

Sydenham library is by far the most heavily used branch outside Kingston: and at 0.18 sq. ft. per capita of local library space, South Frontenac is far below the recommended guideline of 0.5 sq. ft. per capita, and the KFPL system-wide average of 0.56. Building a new library would have the additional advantage of freeing up space in the present building for more township office space, so the treasury offices could be relocated from Keeley Road to join the other municipal offices.

A Sydenham Library Redevelopment Committee has been working with architects Shoalts and Zabeck to determine feasibility of the site, and develop a budget for the proposed project: it will now have to go to Council for approval to continue. Councilors Fillion and Robinson both expressed their disapproval of the project.

The grant application for the Sydenham Library was done under the auspices of Frontenac County, as was the South Frontenac ambulance application. Including these two projects, South Frontenac alone received in excess of $4 million in federal and provincial grants over the past week.

(Editor’s note – In this era of full disclosure, we might as well reveal that our intrepid South Frontenac Council reporter, Wilma Kenny, is also a member of the Kingston Frontenac Library Board. Not only that, but when Wilma was assigned to take a photo of Scott Reid presenting a check for $2.36 million on Saturday afternoon, she took the opportunity to ask him whether there was any funding program for the new library, which was the only project applied for in Frontenac County that had not received funding. We might never know if it made any difference, but 72 hours later the money arrived - JG

Back to HomeFeature Article - February 26, 2009 North Frontenac Council - By Jeff Green

Gunsinger for Order of Ontario

North Frontenac Councillor Elaine Gunsinger was feeling a bit sheepish about putting a particular individual forward to answer a call from Ontario’s Lieutenant Governor David Onley for nominations to the Order of Ontario. But other members of North Frontenac staff and council assured her she was not contravening any conflict of interest guidelines by proposing that the township nominate Bernice Gunsinger, Elaine’s mother-in-law.

In fact, according to Clerk-Planning co-ordinator Brenda DeFosse, Bernice had been nominated in a previous year, but had not been named to the order at that time.

“There is nothing stopping us from nominating her again,” said Mayor Maguire, “she is certainly a top candidate.”

In the call for nominations, David Onley asked a question, “Do you know someone who deserves recognition for extraordinary achievements, whose superlative contributions have had an impact on their local community, the province, our country or beyond?

Bernice Gunsinger's “impact on the local community” can be measured in many ways after about 70 years of community volunteer efforts. Council is now holding their meetings in a modern, spacious room overlooking a gleaming fire hall, for which over $100,000 was raised by the Ladies Fire Auxiliary, or the “Fire Ladies” as they were known.

Bernice Gunsinger was the first fire lady. She called the first meeting, and got the ball rolling. Just as a building is built one brick at a time, the Fire Ladies raised $100,000 one square at a time, or one cup of coffee at a time. They raised $50 here, $100 there, at community breakfasts and teas over years, banking money slowly over time.

“She started a long, long time before the fire ladies,” Elaine said, “she's been doing the same thing with other groups for decades.”

Township staff will look into preparing the nomination papers, which are due on March 16.

Becoming Elektra ...fied - Frank Roy, from Elektra Observatories, made his first appearance before North Frontenac council. The non-profit organization hopes to build a state-of-the-art astronomical observatory at Mallory Hill, which is located at the western edge of the township on the border with Addington Highlands on the Buckshot Lake Road.

As Roy has stated in presentations to Frontenac County, Lennox and Addington County and to local MPP Randy Hiller and MP Scott Reid, the location was chosen because it has the darkest skies in southern Ontario.

The observatory, which is named the “One Metre Initiative” because of the characteristics of the electronic telescope the group intends to build, would be remotely controlled.

“In order to preserve the darkness of the night sky, which is of critical importance in the observatory, Elektra seeks to have new bylaws enacted,” Frank Roy said. “This will also help in establishing the area as an International Dark Sky Preserve as defined by the International Dark Sky Association.”

So, while Roy is pitching the project as a tourism promotion opportunity for North Frontenac, he is also asking that none of this tourist infrastructure be located in the immediate vicinity of Mallory Hill itself.

There is a precedent for this, according to Roy. At Mont Megantic, in Quebec, a provincial park has been established near an observatory, and $10 million in tourism dollars is generated at that site each year.

There is a potential connection to Bon Echo Park. If 20% per cent of Bon Echo's 200,000 annual visitors came and spent $25 each it would generate $1 million” Roy said. He envisions that a visitors’ centre could be located somewhere on Highway 41.

Steve Smart, owner of Smart's Marina on Mazinaw Lake, was at the meeting and said “I have trouble getting my head around how the visitors’ centre could be that far away from the observatory itself.”

Frank Roy suggested that his focus would be on the observatory but that he would be open to ideas from the townships, the county, the local business communities and even the provincial government to capitalize on the promotional opportunities offered by the project.

“The key in Quebec was the buy-in from the provincial government,” said North Frontenac Deputy Mayor Jim Beam.

Frank Roy will be making a presentation at Addington Highlands Council next week, and is hoping to meet soon with Leona Dombrowsky, the Ontario Minister of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.

He suggested that a steering committee be formed to consider the economic potential of the project from a regional angle, and proposed that a first meeting be held in the coming months, perhaps in Sharbot Lake.

Deputy Mayor Beam volunteered to represent the township to the committee. He has been involved in establishing a township business group in recent months.

“This is like something that has just fallen from the sky; in other words it’s an initiative we couldn't plan any better,” said Mayor Ron Maguire, promising the township’s co-operation in enacting necessary bylaws and working with Roy to develop the project.

The Elektra Observatory now has $26,000 in seed money funding, $14,000 from the Frontenac Community Futures Development Corporation, and $12,000 from the members of its board of directors. It has partnerships with three universities, but must raise $2 million from the philanthropic sector in order to come to fruition.

“We will be operational three years from receiving funding,” Frank Roy said.

Concerns over telephone service – Council received a letter from Catherine Tysick of Northern Frontenac Community Services. The letter expressed a concern that came to Tysick from the agency’s Seniors’ Advisory Committee about interruptions to phone service in the Ompah-Snow Road corridor.

“As you can imagine this is of great concern to seniors who may need to access emergency services but cannot. The frail elderly are particularly at risk,” the letter said.

The township is planning to put in an emergency phone at the ambulance station at Lavant Road, which would be operational when other phones are not, and will consider putting another one in at another location.

“I think we should communicate with Bell,” said Mayor Maguire

Hall rentals for not for profits - Land O'Lakes Community Services has requested that the township waive rental fees for a fundraising supper, and a seniors’ group made a similar request for their Tai Chi classes. Council did not agree to the requests, but the cost to non-profit groups for community halls is only $15 for four hours, and this information will be forwarded to the two organisations. 

Back to HomeFeature Article - February 5, 2009 Frontenac County CouncilBy Jeff Green

County levy increase stands at 4% as budget nears completion.

At the first of two scheduled budget meetings, members of Frontenac County Council worked their way through a portion of the 2009 County budget, which would entail a 4% increase in the County portion of municipal taxes if passed in its current form.

Of that increase, roughly half is due to increased operating costs at the County. The rest comes from a projected decrease in interest earnings from County investments due to a collapse in the global investment climate.

Council deferred debate on the matter of non-union salaries, which at this point are slated to rise by 3% in 2009.

In a report prepared by County staff, the non-unionised pay rates in nearby Counties were listed. Four of them have approved their budgets for 2009, and three of them have approved 3% raises, and the fourth has approved a 2% raise.

County Councillors also deferred discussion of their own salaries until the non-unionised pay rates are finalised.

The budget includes the purchase of a Simulator for the Frontenac Land Ambulance Service. The new piece of equipment will allow paramedics to prepare for the kinds of emergencies that come about rarely in the normal operation of their duties, but require specialised skills. The cost to County ratepayers for the Simulator ($40,000) will be covered by a reserve fund and will not affect the 2009 budget.

The Fairmount Home budget, includes a hefty increase in cost, 13% or $95,000 to County taxpayers.

Mayor Jim Vanden Hoek asked Fairmount Home Administrator Julie Shilllington whether any of the recommendations from a recent study of the long term care facility had been implemented and were reflected in the budget.

Shillington said she would have something for County Council on that in March, but this will only be reflected in future years' budgets.

Final budget meeting will take place on February 11.

Pine Meadow left out again

It was a shortened version of a debate they held last year, with the same result.

On January 28th the four Frontenac County Mayors considered a request from North Frontenac Mayor Ron Maguire to support a renovation project at the Pine Meadow Nursing Home in Northbrook.

The request was for $250,000 over ten years towards the project, which is the same amount that the County of Lennox and Addington (L&A) committed in 2008. Although Pine Meadow is located in L&A, a report last year showed that 60% of its clientele come from Frontenac County.

“This is a very sensitive issue in the north half of Frontenac County,” Maguire said. It is hurtful that residents from NF are throwing a lot of taxpayers money at Fairmont Home, which serves the south part of Frontenac well, and the city of Kingston and others. It seems to me it is only fair, symbolic and fair, that the people who live in the north half of the county are taken seriously and supported by the county, I would like to show that symbolic commitment by including $25,000 per year for 10 years. It is the cost of a photocopier.”

Frontenac Island Mayor Jim Vanden Hoek said he “thinks it is fair to have a discussion in the Frontenacs about support for assisted living but in a broader context than just looking at supporting another long term care facility.”

Warden Janet Gutowski, who supported Ron Maguire's request last year, said “my thinking is along the lines of Mayor Vanden Hoek. “$250,000 is a substantial amount of money.”

Fairmont Home, which is owned by Frontenac County, receives municipal support from the County and the City of Kingston.

The draft 2009 Frontenac County budget includes a contribution of $820,000 in property tax dollars to the Fairmount Home.

A study of the operations of Fairmont Home, completed late last year, praised the level of care at the facility but questioned the high cost of running it.

By provincial regulation, Ontario municipalities are required to own or support at least one municipally run long term care facility. Municipal homes are funded through standardised provincial grants, patient fees, and municipal dollars.

Pine Meadow Home is a non-municipal home. It is owned and operated by Land O'Lakes Community Services, a not-for profit charitable corporation, and is funded entirely through standardised provincial grants and patient fees.

Neither facility is located within the boundaries of Frontenac County.

Back to HomeFeature Article - February 26, 2009 North Frontenac Council - By Jeff Green

Gunsinger for Order of Ontario

North Frontenac Councillor Elaine Gunsinger was feeling a bit sheepish about putting a particular individual forward to answer a call from Ontario’s Lieutenant Governor David Onley for nominations to the Order of Ontario. But other members of North Frontenac staff and council assured her she was not contravening any conflict of interest guidelines by proposing that the township nominate Bernice Gunsinger, Elaine’s mother-in-law.

In fact, according to Clerk-Planning co-ordinator Brenda DeFosse, Bernice had been nominated in a previous year, but had not been named to the order at that time.

“There is nothing stopping us from nominating her again,” said Mayor Maguire, “she is certainly a top candidate.”

In the call for nominations, David Onley asked a question, “Do you know someone who deserves recognition for extraordinary achievements, whose superlative contributions have had an impact on their local community, the province, our country or beyond?

Bernice Gunsinger's “impact on the local community” can be measured in many ways after about 70 years of community volunteer efforts. Council is now holding their meetings in a modern, spacious room overlooking a gleaming fire hall, for which over $100,000 was raised by the Ladies Fire Auxiliary, or the “Fire Ladies” as they were known.

Bernice Gunsinger was the first fire lady. She called the first meeting, and got the ball rolling. Just as a building is built one brick at a time, the Fire Ladies raised $100,000 one square at a time, or one cup of coffee at a time. They raised $50 here, $100 there, at community breakfasts and teas over years, banking money slowly over time.

“She started a long, long time before the fire ladies,” Elaine said, “she's been doing the same thing with other groups for decades.”

Township staff will look into preparing the nomination papers, which are due on March 16.

Becoming Elektra ...fied - Frank Roy, from Elektra Observatories, made his first appearance before North Frontenac council. The non-profit organization hopes to build a state-of-the-art astronomical observatory at Mallory Hill, which is located at the western edge of the township on the border with Addington Highlands on the Buckshot Lake Road.

As Roy has stated in presentations to Frontenac County, Lennox and Addington County and to local MPP Randy Hiller and MP Scott Reid, the location was chosen because it has the darkest skies in southern Ontario.

The observatory, which is named the “One Metre Initiative” because of the characteristics of the electronic telescope the group intends to build, would be remotely controlled.

“In order to preserve the darkness of the night sky, which is of critical importance in the observatory, Elektra seeks to have new bylaws enacted,” Frank Roy said. “This will also help in establishing the area as an International Dark Sky Preserve as defined by the International Dark Sky Association.”

So, while Roy is pitching the project as a tourism promotion opportunity for North Frontenac, he is also asking that none of this tourist infrastructure be located in the immediate vicinity of Mallory Hill itself.

There is a precedent for this, according to Roy. At Mont Megantic, in Quebec, a provincial park has been established near an observatory, and $10 million in tourism dollars is generated at that site each year.

There is a potential connection to Bon Echo Park. If 20% per cent of Bon Echo's 200,000 annual visitors came and spent $25 each it would generate $1 million” Roy said. He envisions that a visitors’ centre could be located somewhere on Highway 41.

Steve Smart, owner of Smart's Marina on Mazinaw Lake, was at the meeting and said “I have trouble getting my head around how the visitors’ centre could be that far away from the observatory itself.”

Frank Roy suggested that his focus would be on the observatory but that he would be open to ideas from the townships, the county, the local business communities and even the provincial government to capitalize on the promotional opportunities offered by the project.

“The key in Quebec was the buy-in from the provincial government,” said North Frontenac Deputy Mayor Jim Beam.

Frank Roy will be making a presentation at Addington Highlands Council next week, and is hoping to meet soon with Leona Dombrowsky, the Ontario Minister of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.

He suggested that a steering committee be formed to consider the economic potential of the project from a regional angle, and proposed that a first meeting be held in the coming months, perhaps in Sharbot Lake.

Deputy Mayor Beam volunteered to represent the township to the committee. He has been involved in establishing a township business group in recent months.

“This is like something that has just fallen from the sky; in other words it’s an initiative we couldn't plan any better,” said Mayor Ron Maguire, promising the township’s co-operation in enacting necessary bylaws and working with Roy to develop the project.

The Elektra Observatory now has $26,000 in seed money funding, $14,000 from the Frontenac Community Futures Development Corporation, and $12,000 from the members of its board of directors. It has partnerships with three universities, but must raise $2 million from the philanthropic sector in order to come to fruition.

“We will be operational three years from receiving funding,” Frank Roy said.

Concerns over telephone service – Council received a letter from Catherine Tysick of Northern Frontenac Community Services. The letter expressed a concern that came to Tysick from the agency’s Seniors’ Advisory Committee about interruptions to phone service in the Ompah-Snow Road corridor.

“As you can imagine this is of great concern to seniors who may need to access emergency services but cannot. The frail elderly are particularly at risk,” the letter said.

The township is planning to put in an emergency phone at the ambulance station at Lavant Road, which would be operational when other phones are not, and will consider putting another one in at another location.

“I think we should communicate with Bell,” said Mayor Maguire

Hall rentals for not for profits - Land O'Lakes Community Services has requested that the township waive rental fees for a fundraising supper, and a seniors’ group made a similar request for their Tai Chi classes. Council did not agree to the requests, but the cost to non-profit groups for community halls is only $15 for four hours, and this information will be forwarded to the two organisations. 

RURAL PHYSICIAN RECRUITMENT: John McDougall, speaking on behalf of the Verona Community Association, described their extensive and creative search for a physician to replace Dr. Dempsey, who will be retiring soon. At present, the association is considering purchasing the local clinic, with the plan of offering it for rent. Although the community is prepared to put up “the lion's share” of the necessary funding, McDougall said he would like to come to council at a later date, to discuss ways the township might become involved in the project. Council offered to write a letter to the provincial government in support of continuing incentive funding for Verona, which will no longer qualify under the revised provincial definitions of underserviced communities.

5-YEAR ROADS PLAN: Public Works Manager Mark Segsworth distributed information relating to the 5-year Road Construction Plan. He emphasised that this is updated regularly as needed: e.g. the recent heavy rains have shown where there are drainage issues to be addressed. Segsworth noted that while roads are continually being upgraded, it is also essential to protect the township's investment in improved roads by regular maintenance. For example, the life of Sydenham Road is being extended by pavement rehabilitation, rather than reconstruction: this spring, the final step of crack-sealing will lead to a much smoother surface. The addition of a paved shoulder has paid off by providing a safer driving surface, without need of frequent grading. Although the gap between township road needs and actual construction is narrowing, Segsworth reminded council that taxation does not support the full roads budget: much has depended on grants from the provincial government and City of Kingston, which may dry up in the next few years. However, continued city funding can be justified, on the grounds that South Frontenac provides accommodation for many Kingston workers, and holiday areas for Kingston residents.

BUILDING PERMIT FEES FOR ALL: Chief Building Inspector Alan Revill brought forward a letter from the Harrowsmith Free Methodist Church asking that a portion of the building inspection fees for their addition be waived, on the grounds that they contribute a range of services to the community. Revill asked for Council's guidance, both in regard to this project, and to the Greek Orthodox summer camp, which is to be constructed near Perth Road this year. Also, he asked whether non-profit or charitable groups' building projects should be exempt. A lively discussion followed: all agreed that every building project had to be inspected at various stages of construction, and the building department's work was expected to be paid for by fees charged, not property taxes; i.e. tax dollars are not intended to subsidize development. Also, the township has a policy of not donating to charitable organizations. The mayor admitted the township had not charged building fees for the Sydenham water plant, but said in future, all local government building projects, such as the library/township offices and the ambulance station, should pay. There was strong agreement that the present policy of no exceptions should continue.

WASTE COLLECTION PROCESS: Mark Segsworth advised council that the RFP proposal document for township-wide waste collection (to begin in September) will be brought to Council at the Feb 9 COW meeting for their consideration. He said that the sustainability committee has had two recent meetings, which have "pretty much covered the full spectrum of perspectives,"  and whatever Council decides, it will be important they support the process they choose. Deputy Mayor Ron Vandewal said that he agreed that they needed to "get this right," keeping it as uncomplicated as possible. Councilor Bill Robinson said he felt the community, non-council members of the sustainability committee didn't know what was going on. Councilor McPhail felt the process was 'going too fast - like a ferris wheel". Councilor  Hahn spoke in defense of the sustainability committee, saying he felt the committee had reached a good deal of consensus in their last meeting. Segsworth said that the staff was presently compiling numbers of seasonal and permanent residents on lanes, to get as accurate as possible picture of the amount of waste from these off-road areas: an enormous task.

SYDENHAM LIBRARY: CAO Orr said that there might be need to call a brief council meeting on Feb 9, to present the final project cost estimates for council's approval. He said the architect was recommending all bidding construction contractors should be pre-qualified: the county disagreed, on the grounds that this would possibly raise the bids. The county was asking council's direction. Council agreed not to ask for pre-qualification.

 

The Ontario Municipal Board (OMB) has confirmed the Official Plan and Zoning Bylaw amendments that were needed for North Frontenac Not-For-Profit Housing to construct a five-unit seniors’ complex off of Clement Road in Central Frontenac Township.

An OMB hearing was held in Sharbot Lake in February. Three appellants, Roy Sepa, Tim Hagel, and Rick Greenstreet, who all live or have interests on Clement Road in the vicinity of the proposed building, had launched a challenge to the zoning approvals for the project that Central Frontenac Council granted last fall.

In his decision, which was released last Thursday, March 18, OMB Commissioner M.C. Denhez said that the board has “not been persuaded of any inadequacy of the [township's] specified conditions for the project, or in the overall thrust of the Official Plan and Zoning Bylaw amendments.”

In the body of his report, Commissioner Denhez addressed a range of concerns that were raised by the appellants, ranging from the rural nature of the property to traffic safety concerns to questions about whether the project conforms to the provincial policy statement. None of these objections held sway with the commissioner.

The ruling did accept the appeals in part, but only on more bureaucratic matters that do not reflect on the viability of the project.

Counsel for the appellants had pointed out that the road frontage figure of 20 metres contemplated by the Zoning Bylaw amendment did not fit with the reality on the ground, so the OMB ruled that the wording be changed to 15 metres. As well, a wording change specifying that “5 dwelling units” will be permitted on the property will replace the original wording that “5 or more” dwelling units will be permitted.

“The appeals are otherwise dismissed. That is the ruling of the board,” concluded Commissioner Denhez at the end of his eight-page decision.

The ruling does not ensure that the project will proceed, however. While the zoning question is settled, the property will need to be surveyed and a site plan agreement with Central Frontenac Township will need to be approved by council.

Then there is the matter of setback from the high water mark on an adjacent wetland. The building and septic system must not encroach within 30 metres of the high water mark. That mark has been estimated but not completely defined by the Mississippi Valley Conservation Authority (MVCA), and a technician from MVCA will be doing a site determine the exact location f the high water mark and the 30 metre setback.

As the OMB report put it, “If professional measurements ultimately make the project un-buildable, it will simply not be built.”

Peggy Hurley, Chair of the Board of Directors of North Frontenac Not-for-Profit Housing, is now confident that the project will go ahead.

She said the OMB ruling is “good news not only for our board because we can now go ahead with this project, but it is good news for seniors in our community. There is a big demand in our community for housing for people who are older and cannot maintain their home but want to remain in the community. This five-unit building will provide a way for them to stay in the area and be near their families. It will also be as environmentally sustainable a building as we can possibly build with the money we have available.”

Roy Sepa does not share Hurley’s enthusiasm for the OMB’s decision, or the location of the project. When contacted by the News, Roy Sepa said he had not yet read through the OMB decision in detail, but that regardless of the outcome of the hearing, “Our position hasn’t changed. It is still the wrong decision to make.”

Sepa characterized the OMB appeal as a “partial success because it pointed out some serious deficiencies in the not-for-profit housing corporation’s strategies.” Nonetheless he says that the group of neighbours who have banded together to oppose the new development will not be giving up the fight.

“We plan to monitor and oppose this over the next six months. We will be opposing it at every single turn.”

This could include becoming active in the municipal election campaign, addressing the matter at council, on the provincial level, and even at the building site itself if and when construction starts.

Sepa that he thinks “the OMB made a major mistake by saying that a rural area is suitable for a seniors’ home, and we will be drawing that to the attention of the premier’s office because we believe the ruling contravenes the provincial policy statement.”

While the ruling acknowledged the concerns, it said that the proposal is not for a “seniors’ home on the model of a high-care nursing facility, but rather for affordable units for occupants who have reached an age threshold and are independent”. For that reason and others the OMB concluded that the project “does not undermine the provincial policy statement” in terms of location.

Mr Sepa said his group would also be considering challenging the OMB ruling in the Ontario Superior Court. His main message was for the Board of North Frontenac Not-For-Profit Housing, which he said should reconsider its decision to build on this particular site. “Instead of creating a rift in the community they should go back to their funder and ask for leave to transfer the funding to a location in the Village of Sharbot Lake.

Jane Drew, the Chief Administrative Office for North Frontenac Not-for-Profit Housing, said, “The fact that we already owned the property on Clement Road was counted in our favour when we sought funding for this project, and in any event the funding commitment that we have received is tied to this project as it has been proposed.

“The Clement Road location was suitable for our funder [which is the city of Kingston] as well as the Township of Central Frontenac, and it has now been endorsed by the Ontario Municipal Board. We look forward to building five affordable housing units for area seniors. It will not satisfy the demand that is out there but it is a start.” 

Editorial by Jeff Green

Just over two years ago, on April 24, 2008, to be exact, the Frontenac News published an article about a cigarette store. The store was selling bags of 200 tax- and duty-free cigarettes for a fraction of the commercial price. The Shabot Obaadjiwan First Nation had opened the store on Highway 7, across from Silver Lake Provincial Park.

The article quoted Shabot Obaadjiwan Chief Doreen Davis as saying that she had met with federal and provincial authorities in January of 2008, and they had no problem with the store being open.

In the same article, RCMP spokesperson Walter Veenstra denied that the meeting had ever taken place, and said, “No one can sell cigarettes in contravention of the excise act. The rules are the same for everyone, even on reserves”. However, Veenstra also said the RCMP was not likely to investigate the smoke shop to find out if taxes were being paid. “The rules are the same, as I said; however, it’s not the mandate of the RCMP to do inspections of stores. Most of our activities deal with the transportation of cigarettes.”

Two years later the cigarette shop at Silver Lake is still open, and a second one, just west of Arden, has also been opened. The Shabot Obaadjiwan also have their offices at that second location.

At the corner of Highway 7 and Road 38 there are two service centers. Both are owned by people who do not claim any Aboriginal heritage and both sell brand name cigarettes at the market price.

If bags of tax-free cigarettes were being sold at either of those stores, the owners would face legal consequences. Of that there can be no doubt.

Everyone knows that there is a double standard at play here. Everyone knows that the law is not being applied in the same way. The general attitude is to ignore it and carry on as if it isn’t happening, even though we all know it contravenes one of the basic tenets of our society, equality before the law.

I do not want to linger on the cigarette issue here, but I should point out that the Algonquins make an argument in support of their decision to sell cut-rate cigarettes. They say that federal and provincial governments are happy to make a profit by taxing cigarette sales throughout the country, so why shouldn’t Algonquins make a profit within Algonquin territory?

Doreen Davis is also a key player in the Algonquin Land Claim process, and the opening of the cigarette stores, in addition to generating revenue, amounted to an assertion of her own community’s rights within the context of that land claim.

It is by no means far-fetched to surmise that the federal and provincial governments are turning a blind eye to the cigarette stores because they do not want to jeopardize the land claim.

In this context, in addition to persistent concerns about hunting and fishing rules, under which Algonquin and non-Algonquins are subject to different sets of rules, the public has every reason to be concerned about what is or is not being negotiated at the land claim table.

There are lots of issues to be explored when discussing any land claim, and this one has some particular issues of its own, particularly because of the sheer amount of land that is encompassed by the claim and because of the inclusion of off-reserve communities that exist outside of the Canadian Indian Act.

These communities are not physical communities, like villages or towns; they are more akin to ethnic communities.

But the exploration of these complex issues is being carried out only by a select few, and the general public can only guess about what is being discussed.

Everyone who is at the negotiation table must adhere to a confidentiality agreement, which is similar to the kind of agreements for media blackouts that occur during labour contract negotiations. But labour contracts negotiations take hours or days to resolve, while land claims take years and years.

Even though information about the negotiations is scarce, there are more and more indications that after 20 years the land claim process is finally on track to produce an agreement in principle within the next year.

Negotiators for the federal and provincial governments have now been holding more frequent meetings with municipal officials and with stakeholder groups such as tourist association and hunting group representatives to apprise them of the progress that has been made during negotiations.

But the public is not invited to these meetings, and people who attend these meetings are asked not to share information with the public by talking to the press.

A meeting will be occurring next Monday that is particularly troubling.

Councilors from all four Frontenac County townships have been invited to receive an update from federal and provincial negotiators. This meeting is being called a private information session, and it was organized by county staff on behalf of the land claim negotiators.

According to Frontenac County Chief Administrative Officer Liz Savill there will be no action taken by the County or any of the townships at the meeting. According the Ontario Municipal Act, however, elected municipal officials are not supposed to meet in private except to discuss specific legal or property matters. There has been no announcement, not even a notice on a township or county website, about this information session.

It might be a quibble, but in my view this meeting places an unfair burden on municipal councilors. How can they represent voters if they cannot share information with those same voters?

Just because next Monday’s meeting will be private, it would be wrong to assume that municipal politicians will be brought up to speed about the meat of the negotiations. They may receive some information that is not available to the public, but not likely any details. I have talked, off the record, to people who have attended some of the other meetings, and they said that not much of substance was revealed.

I believe these meetings have only been closed to the public because of the collective obsession with controlling information that has characterized the current federal and provincial governments, but that might just be my own paranoid view.

To be clear, I support the Algonquin Land Claim in principle. I see the resolution as perhaps the best last hope that Algonquin culture and knowledge can be salvaged for future generations in eastern Ontario, and I think it will bring economic benefits to the region. Opportunity to make a land claim work should be seriously explored by everyone involved.

But there is a serious concern that people at the table could come up with deals that confer benefits, in terms of hunting rights, commercial advantages and other areas, in ways that would be objectionable and perhaps unfair to the general public. There are concerns that it will create different rights for different people, as is the case with the cigarette stores.

Instead of fostering reconciliation the land claim could create divisions in our communities, and the secrecy that has surrounded the process thus far will not make it any easier to sell the eventual deal to the general public.

It is worth noting that several Algonquin communities are opposed to the land claim process, on a variety of grounds, and one of those is the closed nature of the process.

For the record, all public information about the state of the negotiations is posted at aboriginalaffairs.gov.on.ca/english/negotiate/algonquin/algonquin.asp. It’s probably easier to find by using Google. Just put Algonquin Land Claim in the search bar. It’s the first site that comes up.