| Mar 01, 2012


North Frontenac Council is taking the slow route to their 2012 budget.

They have already held two day-long budget sessions, and might actually see a draft budget by the middle of March. Meanwhile they have received detailed reports from department heads about the needs that are out there, and have been giving direction back to those department heads.

The have also carried out a strategic planning initiative and have been working on a long-term capital plan for the township as well.

While it is still anyone’s guess what the tax implications of all this planning will be in 2012, Council did approve a set of strategic initiatives this past week, indicating what kinds of initiatives residents can look for from the township in the coming years.

Along with some standard elements such as improving communication and public education about township activities, and promoting economic development, a few new projects were identified as a sub-heading of long term planning.

Among the four projects that were identified, one is the fire hall/ambulance base in Ompah which is now being actively pursued by Frontenac County. It is slated to be built this year if the costing comes in within the $550,000 upper limit the township has set for their portion of costs.

A second long-term project, which Mayor Clayton characterized as a 10-year plan, is a new “Municipal Multi-Purpose Complex" - starting with a municipal office and council chamber.

While this project is still in the visioning stage, one potential location has already been identified, a five-acre lot that houses the township helipad on Road 506 between Ardoch and Fernleigh.

A third project is one that has been talked about in the recent past and is something that would eventually turn a profit – a solar microFIt project, something that might also be located at the helipad site.

The fourth project is a war memorial, which Mayor Clayton said he would like to see completed in time for Remembrance Day in 2013.

The final plank in the strategic directions document is the promotion of Green Energy.

“Under the category of promoting green energy, we are lending money to people to put solar-assist hot water heaters in their houses as the kind of thing the township might get into to help people put in appliances that are efficient and which will bring energy savings over time. The City of Ottawa is looking at this and we have directed our staff to look at it as well,” said Mayor Clayton.

Other items at North Frontenac Council

Phone booth for Snow Road – Council received a letter from a resident requesting that they commission a pay phone to be located next to the mail boxes at the Snow Road Community Hall as a public service. With sporadic cell phone service in that area, it might prove useful to help stranded motorists facing mechanical difficulties or inclement weather. The cost of such a service would be $200 up front and $60 per month.

The council members in attendance, only a minimum quorum of 4, were split on the issue, with some saying it would be a useful service, and others saying it would set a precedent, and phone booths could be requested at a number of very remote locations within the township. In the end a decision was deferred until the next meeting when more councilors are expected to attend.

Request from LOLCS – Land O’Lakes Community Services sent a letter to Council requesting a contribution of $1,500 in the 2012 township budget to help the agency provide services to seniors in ward 1 of the township, which falls within the service catchment area of the Northbrook-based agency. The letter, written by LOLCS Director of Programs Susan Andrew Allen, points out that the money, which has been granted to the agency each of the last two years, is used to subsidize fee for service programs for 47 North Frontenac residents, including meals on wheels and transportation services. The request was referred to budget deliberations.

Discussion of Frontenac County Budget – In briefing members of Council about the ongoing Frontenac County budget deliberations, Mayor Clayton said, “I sense there as a bit more push back from members of Council over the budget this year, frustration over the depth of information that has been provided. We receive a single page of number for programs such as ambulance service and Fairmount Home, which each have a $10 million budget. As we all know the devil is in the details in this sort of thing and if you don’t know the details you can’t find the devil.”

Clayton said he plans to contact the county treasurer before the resumption of county budget deliberations on March 13 to request some of the detailed background financial information.

Clayton said he expects some lively debate on the expenditure of Federal Gas tax funds at the county level this year, and that he would like to address ballooning administrative costs at the county.

“Even though the tax increase for county ratepayers in the budget is minimal I note that the administrative budget has increased by 140% over the last 7 years. As members of county council we are stewards for money spent by City of Kingston residents and the provincial government as well as our own ratepayers. We should provide effective oversight,” Clayton concluded.

 

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