Council approves addition to Flinton Township Office

Craig Bakay | Sep 06, 2019

Addington Highlands Council approved the plans for an addition to the Township Office/Community Hall in Flinton at its regular meeting Tuesday in Flinton.

The addition, which will be located directly in front of the current main entrance, includes office space for the CAO/Clerk-Treasurer, Roads and Waste Management Supervisor, Deputy Clerk, Deputy Treasurer, and Reeve. It also includes a meeting room and new Council Chambers (currently Council meets on the lower floor which at one time was designated for playing cards). The design also includes a barrier-free lift for accessibility.

CAO/Clerk-Treasurer Christine Reed drew Council’s attention to a revised blueprint for the lower level, which now includes a new fire exit.

“The architect pointed out a deficiency in that there is too big a distance to the fire exit (at the end by the current Council meeting room),” she said. “The front is not a fire rated exit.

“That’s probably a $5,000 touch.”

“So, it will probably go to tender pretty soon,” said Reeve Henry Hogg. “But we’re probably not going to get it done this fall.”

Coun. David Miles asked how to respond to constituents who questioned the need for a new building.

“I’ve heard comments like ‘what do you need a new building for?’” Miles said. “I wonder if it would be important to have a consistent answer.”

“It’s mainly room,” said Hogg, after joking that it wasn’t just to keep up with North Frontenac Township, who recently opened its new building. “(But), we’ve never really been forgiven for taking over the card room for Council meetings.”

Reed confirmed that space was a pressing need for staff but also that accessibility was an issue and an addition was the best way to address both issues.

“We presented Council with three options to address the space issue,” Reed said. “The addition seemed to be the best solution to address the accessibility issue as well.”

Twitter, Facebook

After staff received feedback from its members, Council approved a social media policy and will become active on Facebook and Twitter.

“The next step is to adopt it by bylaw at the next meeting,” said CAO/Clerk-Treasurer Christine Reed. “I researched six municipalities and amalgamated what I thought were the best parts of each.”

Dep. Reeve Tony Fritsch said it will take time to develop guidelines based on experience.

“It’s probably a fine line between a political discussion you’re having with someone and township policy,” he said.

Burn complaints by-law

Fire Chief Casey Cuddy’s new Burn Complaints policy was accepted by Council.

From now on, “all complainants should be advised to complete a Township of Addington Highlands Bylaw Enforcement Formal Complaint Form,” the policy says.

It also says that complainants can call the fire information line and leave a message giving location of the fire, time and call back number at any time of day. If the fires are regular or continue happening, the complainant should call back and leave a message each time the fire is happening.

“The day I was working on this policy, someone stopped in to the office to complain about their neighbour,” Cuddy said. “I told them they should stop in at the office and fill out a complaint form.

“They said ‘oh, I’m not doing that.’”