North Frontenac Council - May 29

Jeff Green | May 31, 2012

Update on Green Energy Task Force

John Kittle, the chair of the Frontenac County Green Energy Task Force, presented an update of the task force's activities and proposed setting up a similar initiative in North Frontenac at a meeting of North Frontenac Council on Monday, May 28.

“We started up a number of 'streams' to investigate what needed to be done in energy conservation, education, solar energy, micro-hydro, wind power and lobbying for hydro grid access for renewable energy projects in the Frontenacs, “ said Kittle of the county task force. “We also talked about a Frontenac buyers’ club. Some of these 'streams' were successful, and some not so successful."

Among the successes that Kittle mentioned is the municipal solar rooftops program, a project where the county and each of the four townships have committed to building a 10kw MicroFIT project on a township-owned property. Thus far, Frontenac County and Central Frontenac have microFIT programs up and running and North and South Frontenac and Frontenac Islands have projects pending.

Kittle also talked about the ongoing “Wintergreen Initiative”, which was initiated at a workshop at the Wintergreen Centre on Canoe Lake road in South Frontenac.

“As a group we are following a model in which economic development in key sectors is driven by private-public sector committees, with close liaison with municipal government,” said Kittle. The second annual Wintergreen workshop will focus on energy co-operatives.

Kittle also proposed setting up a North Frontenac energy committee, to do a number of things locally, ranging from helping the township comply with provincial regulation 397, which will require that energy conservation measures be instituted for all public buildings in Ontario by next year, to launching a buyers' club in the township for renewable technologies such as solar-powered hot water systems.

Selling off road allowances that contain resources

The township has been considering an application from a landowner to purchase road allowance from the township. These kinds of applications are common, and provided the sale does not affect access to any other property, they are normally done as a matter of course, based on an agreed upon price. Council is facing a more complicated application, a case where the road allowance is also a viable pit, containing a number of grades of gravel. A legal opinion suggested that the township charge $1 per cubic yard of resource available on the property. Some members of council were concerned the price was too low, and others wanted the township to retain the aggregate resources even after selling off the property. The matter was deferred.

New chairs

Council has decided to purchase new chairs for the room they use as a council chamber on the mezzanine of the Clar-Mill fire hall at the municipal complex on Road 509.

After receiving a flyer from Staples, the township decided to buy 9 leather multi-task chairs that normally retail for $248 at a price of $124 apiece, or $1,119 total.

In addition, they will purchase six slightly less expensive chairs, $112 after discount, for delegates to council, township managers and the press. The total cost of the purchases is $1,783. Replacing the old chairs was included in the 2012 budget.

County audit

In his report on the goings on at Frontenac County Council, Councilor John Inglis said that the auditor who reported on county finances, in addition to praising the work of the county treasury department, “commented that the county reserve funds may be higher than necessary”.

One more week for pricing on fire station/ambulance post –

CAO Cheryl Robson reported that the project manager for the ambulance post/fire station at Ompah is planning to open the all-important pricing document from the four contractors who have submitted bids for the project on Monday, June 4. Members of North Frontenac staff are planning to go to the county office for the opening. The matter will then come to North Frontenac Council, with a recommendation from the project manager, probably on June 10. The township has $550,000 available for the project, and if the pricing does not fit in that budget it runs the risk of being scuttled.