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Just to be clear. The first week for amnesty loads at Central Frontenac landfills doesn’t mean said landfills will be open during the entire week, Council heard during its regular meeting Tuesday evening at Oso Hall in Sharbot Lake.

Coun. Tom Dewey told Council some of his constituents found the dates listed for the first of three weeks for amnesty loads in 2019 confusing, asking if the Monday May 20 to Sunday May 26 listing meant that the Olden site would be open all those days.

Acting Public Works Manager David Armstrong replied that the regular hours for both Olden and Oso sites would still be in effect.

“And the Monday, May 20 is a statutory holiday (Victoria Day), so both sites will be closed.

The hours of operation for Olden are Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from 8 a.m. to noon and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.

The hours of operation for the Oso site are Mondays (except May 20, Victoria Day), Fridays and Saturdays from 8 a.m. to noon and Tuesdays and Sundays from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.

Large items and construction waste that are part of an amnesty load are only accepted at Olden and Township staff ask that residents “make their best effort” to take amnesty loads to Olden.

There will be two more amnesty weeks in 2019 — July 153 to July 21 and Aug. 26 to Sept. 1. Regular landfill site hours will apply then also.

An amnesty load is a single load of household refuse at no charge (up to a $40 limit).

CF to switch to KARC for recycling, a “more responsible” option

Armstrong also asked Council for and received permission to negotiate an agreement with the City of Kingston to ship recycled items from Central Frontenac waste sites to the Kingston Area Recycling Centre.

Armstrong said for the past four years, Central has had an agreement with HGC Management Inc. in Belleville but “having seen both operations, I believe Kingston is more responsible.”

He said operating expenses would increase by about $8,000 per year by switching to KARC but there will be savings in staff time and fuel given that Kingston is closer to our waste sites and Central Frontenac would be eligible for a 2.6 per cent share of any revenues from recyclable sales.

He said by switching to KARC, it would free up 268.5 staff hours to be used on other maintenance activities and save nearly 6,000 litres of fuel.

He said the $8,000 is already accounted for in the 2019 operating budget.

Stairs contract, already underway, gets approved

Andy Dillon, manager of development services/chief building official, recommended Council accept the bid from Jones Contracting and Building Services for the stairs at Oso Hall in the amount of $30,850 plus HST. Work actually began May 10 but since it was under $50,000, the Mayor and Clerk-Administrator were authorized to sign a contract.

“There was some urgency so that the hall could be used,” said Mayor Frances Smith.

Dillon said the work is expected to be completed “by the end of the month” and will include four light standards and an extended landing “so a ramp can be built along the side of the building ensuring that everyone will be able to use the front door.”

$250 for fishing derby toilet needs

Council agreed to kick in up to $250 for a portable toilet at the government docks June 15 for a fishing tournament being put on by B.T. Productions.

Representing B.T., Kirk Chabot said the tournament will be smaller than last year’s, with about 60 participants.

Council also gave B.T. permission to hold a car show at Oso Beach Aug. 25.

A third request, to hold a canteen on Canada Day from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. was withdrawn.

Published in CENTRAL FRONTENAC

After flirting with the idea of constructing a new Frontenac County Administrative building, Frontenac County Council is being asked to look once again at renovating its current building.

A little over a year ago, after considering its long-term office space needs for over two years, Frontenac County was approached by the Cataraqui Region Conservation Authority about a shared accommodation solution. The idea of a brand new building was raised, and late last spring the idea gained more traction when South Frontenac Township expressed interest in a three-way partnership.

This led the county’s Administrative Building Design Task Force to look at the feasibility and cost estimates surrounding a new building for the three partners, located somewhere in South Frontenac, perhaps in Sydenham in order to save on water costs.

This process carried on through the fall of 2018, into the beginning of the new term of municipal council.

At a meeting in April, South Frontenac Mayor Ron Vandewal informed both the county and the conservation authority that South Frontenac Council had rejected the idea of a new building at their own meeting in early April.

In response, the task force decided to look again at using either the current Cataraqui Conservation Authority near Hwy. 401 or the current Frontenac County/Fairmount home site in Glenburnie for a joint office space.

“The lowest cost option would be to use the existing county site as all infrastructure and servicing is already in place,” said a report to Council prepared by Clerk Janette Amini and Chief Administrative Officer Kelly Pender.

Accordingly, the report recommends spending $10,000, to be taken from a provincial grant earmarked for modernisation, to look at renovating the existing county offices for use by the two entities.

If approved this week, the money will go towards, architectural analysis of the current county building, preliminary plans to meet partner needs, options for potential configuration of common areas, implications for parking, water & similar services; and initial budget-level estimates for comparison with a stand-alone option.

Strategic Plan to be presented

At that same meeting, Council will consider a draft strategic plan that was developed in association with 80/20 Consulting.

The previous plan, prepared in 2014, has become known for identifying four “wildly important goals” for Frontenac County. This new plan, by contrast, talks about three strategic priorities for this term of council.

Although the plan was prepared before the provincial government’s recent budget, which is already having an impact on municipal budgets, it is written with a sense of caution and a focus on maintaining programs and services that are already in place.

Here are the strategic priorities: 1 - Get behind plans that build community resilience and vitality in times of growth and change, 2 - Explore new funding sources and invest in critical long-term infrastructure using sound judgement, and 3 - Champion and coordinate collaborative efforts with partners to resolve complex problems otherwise beyond the reach of individual mandates and jurisdictions.

Within these priorities is everything from enhancing broadband coverage, securing the future of Fairmount Home, promoting economic development and improving planning processes across the county.

Published in FRONTENAC COUNTY

It’s probably fair to say the most controversial aspect of North Frontenac’s new Zoning Bylaw has been the inclusion of the Palmerston Lake ANSI (Area of Natural or Scientific Interest).

To that end, Mayor Ron Higgins has been corresponding with the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry (MNRF) trying to get to the bottom of why it was established in the first place.

ANSIs in Ontario come in three flavours — Provincial, Regional and Proposed. In the Frontenac County Official Plan, Provincial and Regional ANSIs are recognized, including the Palmerston Lake one.

In a report to Council, Higgins wrote: “The MNRF has advised the Palmerston Lake ANSI is regional; however, the issue is that the current Council and staff has not been able to acquire the historical information and supporting documentation from MNRF to adequately address the concerns of our residents and the Township itself.

“Provincially and Regional significant ANSIs are treated the same in the County Official Plan, whereas MNRF does not have the same restrictions for regionally as Provincially designated ANSIs.”

Higgins went on to say “this issue is a concern for our Township and residents as many wee unaware of the Palmerston Lake ANSI designations due to the omission of this requirement in past Official Plans and residents stating they were never involved in any consultations by MNRF at the time (other ANSIs were shown on the 2003 Official Plan).”

“They (MNRF) haven’t provided their justification for designating,” said Coun. Vern Hermer.

“I suggest we delay the procedures until the MNRF responds,” said Coun. John Inglis.

“There are other aspects of the bylaw people need,” said Higgins.

“Perhaps some amendment where ANSIs can be revisited,” said Coun. Fred Fowler.

“At the public meeting, the ANSIs will be on the map,” said Clerk-Planning Manager Tara Mieske. “But, it’s a draft.

“If, after the public meeting, Council decides to take the out, they can.”

Higgins said he’d work with the County to get its Official Plan amended.

Township to rescind firearms bylaw

Mayor Ron Higgins said he’d received two complaints concerning the discharge of firearms in the Township and so the Township’s firearms bylaw was on the table at Friday’s regular meeting in Plevna, complete with a series of amendments.

However, there didn’t seem to be much support for the way things were worded.

“It’s too encompassing, too broad a brush,” said Coun. Gerry Martin. “This is going to prevent people from hunting ducks on Malcolm Lake.

“We’re up here in hill country (and) we’re hillbillies.”

Coun. Fred Fowler, himself a retired police officer, said that any complaints should be investigated by OPP officers and perhaps the noise bylaw applied.

“If there are charges to be laid, they’ll lay them,” he said.

CAO Cheryl Robson agreed.

“Why do we even have this bylaw?” she said. “It’s all covered under the Criminal Code, the Hunting Regulations or it’s just not our jurisdiction.”

“I recommend we rescind the whole bylaw,” said Coun. Vern Hermer.

And that’s just what they decided to do.

Council asked staff to bring back a bylaw rescinding the firearms bylaw next meeting.

Good Roads report

Public Works Manager Darwyn Sproule’s trip to the Good Roads Conference was informative, he told Council.

“The age of the ‘expert’ is declining,” he said. “There is so much information available.”

But, with all the advancements in electronic communication and information, there is a bit of a downside, he said.

“Complaints are now easier to make,” he said. “And, with email, they can be made faster, which means people can complain while they’re still angry whereas in the past, they had to take time to write a letter, giving them an opportunity to calm down.”

Published in NORTH FRONTENAC
Wednesday, 08 May 2019 16:14

AH tax levy increases by 5.6 per cent

Addington Highlands Township passed its 2019 budget at its regular meeting in Flinton Tuesday afternoon and the net result is that it will be asking its ratepayers for $2,937,616.22, in taxes an increase of 5.6 per cent over 2018’s 42,781,829.30.

Reeve Henry Hogg was quick to point out that the increase in the tax rate was 1.8 per cent.

Total expenditures for 2019 are expected to be $6,262,871.91 (as opposed to $5,574,53.37 in 2018).

Operating revenues are expected to be $1,451,499.57 ($1,021,850.07 in 2018) and its Ontario Municipal Partnership Fund allocation is up slightly to $2,053,400 from $2,040,300 in 2018.

One thing that didn’t get added to this year’s budget is the additional expenses accrued due to spring flooding, said Hogg.

“We decided not to amend the budget,” he said.

Clerk-Treasurer Christine Reed said that if expenses from flooding turn out to be more than $79,000, they’ll submit a disaster assistance application to the province. Another option is to take funds from reserves to pay for flooding.

“We’ll have to see if, at the end of the year Brett’s (Road & Waster Management Supervisor Reavie) budget is over that,” she said. “But we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”

“If it isn’t flooded out,” said Hogg.

False alarm
Some recent fire calls were false alarms, Fire Chief Casey Cuddy told Council in response to a question from Reeve Henry Hogg.

“Next one they’ll be getting an invoice,” said Cuddy. “(And) we won’t be waiting around for an hour for a keyholder to show up.”

They can provide us with one or we’re going through the door.

“There’s something wrong with their system.”

“Five trucks sitting there for an hour is some pretty expensive equipment,” said Hogg.

Cuddy also said they’re will be changes proposed to the wildfire bylaw to cover things like flying lanterns.

Washouts
Road and Waste Supervisor’s comment on how busy his crews were with washouts: “There might have been a few guys got to have some time off on Easter Weekend.”

That prompted Dep. Reeve Tony Fritsch to move for an ad in the newspaper thanking the crews for their efforts above and beyond the call of duty.

Palliative Care program
Compassionate Care Program Co-ordinator Matt Walker has been making the rounds of local Councils (he was at North Frontenac last Friday) explaining the services his organization offers in the way of palliative care including visits from volunteers, consultation, bereavement counselling and equipment lending.

But, he said the number 1 thing he hears in his job is the need for affordable transportation.

To that end, Walker said he’s working on a plan whereby a bus could be used to travel the main roads to Kingston, Napanee and Belleville while the existing volunteer network could be used to ferry patients to the bus line.

Published in ADDINGTON HIGHLANDS

Brenda Crawford and Pam Redden came to Council on behalf of the Harrowsmith Beautification Committee with a proposal for improving the landscape of the new village traffic light section, along with other community upgrades. Crawford assured Council that none of the additions, and the list is impressive, would cost the Township money. The Public Works and Building departments will, however, have to review and approve the projects, which include a (fully accessible) gazebo with a cement base, placement of stones and possibly a fence, several benches, installation of recently-commissioned metal poppies and removal of dead tree and brush. She also listed a bench for the children's play area at Centennial park, and a flagpole on Road 38 near Alton Road, in memory of Roy Leonard. All the work and materials for the items and improvements have been donated by individuals and businesses in the community. All donations will be recognized by (locally designed and also donated) plaques.

Mayor Vandewal asked that the flagpole be located where a local resident could take responsibility for raising and lowering it as appropriate, and complimented Crawford for her energy and considerable skill at fundraising. Council unanimously agreed. Crawford noted that the Beautification Committee and Harrowsmith S&A were looking toward working in cooperation to continue making Harrowsmith an attractive and comfortable community in which to live.

Staff Changes and Additions
Council formalized Christopher Beeg’s appointment as Building Inspector: Beeg is an experienced carpenter, has worked in the building supply area, and as a site supervisor for Guildcrest Homes overseeing construction of new factory built homes.

Interviews for the position of Township CAO are slated to take place within a week.

Strategic Planning
Faced with competing demands to: enhance services, reduce costs and protect the environment, Council plans to seek public input to help with choosing priorities. CAO Orr brought the chosen timeline and a proposal for an online survey to be used as a framework for discussion at open houses in each of the districts later this summer. Councillor Ruttan expressed concern that there needed to be more focus on values, rather than a list of concrete actions. Mayor Vandewal noted that this was not meant to replace the updating of the Official Plan, which would be a major part of Council’s task in the coming year, and would include an in-depth review of the Township’s goals and values, again with public input. This StratPlan is to more to guide the Township’s current day-to-day work, within the budget that has been set out for 2019.

Dates for the district Open Houses (at which the new CAO will be introduced to the public) are: Thursday August 01 Bedford; Wednesday Aug 7 - Storrington; Tuesday Aug 13 - Portland, and Tuesday Aug 20 - Loughborough.

Women’s Institute Week Proclaimed
Council proclaimed the week of June 17 to June 22 to be Women’s Institute Week in South Frontenac. This year is the Sydenham Women’s Institute’s centennial: there will be a special celebration on Saturday June 22, at Grace Hall. Over the past hundred years, this group has made important and lasting contributions to Sydenham and its surrounding community. More info on this later!

Regional Roads
Council reviewed proposals by the County for finding a way to access funding through the County for regional Roads, particularly the former Provincial Highway 38, which was downloaded to the individual Townships at the time of amalgamation. At that time, the County had dissolved into a management committee, so there was no way, once the County re-formed, for it to access any funding support for the shared highway, now known as Road 38. Currently, South Frontenac’s road system is in good condition, but the other three Townships have smaller populations, and need more money than they have been able to raise for road maintenance and repair.

Of the five proposed options, South Frontenac Council cautiously preferred the third: to take a regional approach, with contracted engineering, and limited County involvement. They voted to endorse it, on the condition that any business plan for this option would require unanimous consent from all four Townships.

Waste Management in Frontenac County: Options
In response to a county report of waste management, Councilor Sutherland noted that while recycling depends heavily on provincial policy, diversion of organic waste from our landfill sites lies well within South Frontenac’s reach. Because half of the current Township waste stream is composed of organics, diversion could considerably extend the life of our landfill sites. As well as composting, either locally or centrally, Sutherland listed other creative approaches: the upcoming Repair Cafes (May 26 in Bellrock, June in Perth Road); roadside or landfill swaps, etc.)

The report was referred to the Public Services Committee for recommendations.

Published in SOUTH FRONTENAC
Wednesday, 01 May 2019 11:25

New Playground for NAEC 

On Friday, April 26, 2019, students and staff at North Addington Education Centre gathered around for the unveiling of the new playground, donated and installed by The Township of North Frontenac. Principal Bonham-Carter as he gave a speech expressing NAEC's gratitude towards everyone that helped make it happen, especially the Parent Council and Mrs Salmond (the former principal), joined by Mayor Ron Higgins and Deputy Mayor Fred Perry. Once the ribbon to the playground was cut, students of all ages surrounded the structure with excitement. Caitlyn, a grade five student at NAEC exclaimed, "I love it! This is so awesome and I am really excited to play on it!"

Corey Klatt, Manager of Community Development at North Frontenac explained in an interview how the project all started. The Township was originally planning to install a new playground in Cloyne at the Ball Diamond and Tennis Court facility, but when the council heard that NAEC did not have one at the school for younger students, they arranged to install one there instead. "It was discussed that a playground would be well used at the school and well maintained," he said. As a closing remark when asked how he felt about the success of the project, Mr. Klatt said, "It felt excellent to see the students so excited about the playground today and we are pleased that everyone will be able to enjoy it for years to come."

The playground is a big hit among the students and staff of NAEC, and the generosity of The Township of North Frontenac is greatly appreciated by all.

Published in NORTH FRONTENAC
Wednesday, 01 May 2019 11:25

Coworking in Frontenac County

Vandeross consulting (Ella Vanderburg and Katie Ross) is a new consulting company with a focus on helping small businesses in Kingston and Frontenac County.

They were approached recently by an organisation called Rural by Purpose to see if they wanted to participate in a pilot project that is focused on something that is normally associated with urban environments, freelance workers needing office space.

“We thought this idea was interesting, and approached Richard Allen to see if Frontenac County would like to participate in this, and when he said yes, we decided to give it a go,” said Katie Ross in a phone interview this week.

The local version of the project is called Coworking in Frontenac, and the week of May 6-10 is the target week for the project. During that week, participating Frontenac County businesses will be opening their doors and providing space for freelancers to work out of some unused space within their offices.

Vanderburg and Ross brought the coworking challenge concept to the April meeting of Frontenac County Council and have been helping find suitable locations over the last couple of weeks.

“So far we have found there are more people looking for places to set up than there are locations, and it looks like the main thing that freelancers in Frontenac County are looking for is reliable Internet service which many don’t have at home.”

An important aspect of coworking week, and one of the major goals of Rural on Purpose, which was co-founded by Belleville based Mary Doyle, is to retain and attract younger workers to rural communities. In blogs posted on the Rural on Purpose site, Doyle makes it clear that she believes it is only through retention and in-migration of youth that rural communities will survive. In one case, at the end of an entry, she talks directly to millennials, saying, “Do you want to create new ways of doing business? What support do you need from us?”

According to a media release from Frontenac County, the majority of the workforce is predicted to be freelance within a decade, and seventy-four percent of millennials are currently freelancing. Global coworking spaces are projected to grow from 14,411 in 2017 to just over 30,000 in 2022.

"More and more we find that people are working from their homes, so it has become important to let remote workers and entrepreneurs know they have places to connect in our communities. The Coworking Takeover Challenge is a great way to start thinking about how we can be freelance friendly," said Richard Allen, Manager of Economic Development at the County of Frontenac.

So far, a number of locations have committed to having space available for the coworking week, including the township office in Frontenac Islands, the Frontenac County office, Rural Frontenac Community Services offices in Sydenham and both of their Sharbot Lake locations, and Holiday Country Manor in Battersea.

Information about locations is available at coworkfrontenac.com by clicking on participating vendors. Further down the page, there is an option for both freelancers and potential hosts to register. The site also includes a voluntary survey.

“A major goal of the pilot is to identify the need for coworking within the four municipalities. Our goal is to bring together existing business with those working in isolation and providing access to resources such as reliable internet services, networking opportunities and business support,” said Ella Vanderburg.

“As we have gotten into it, we are seeing that we might need to extend the week to a couple of weeks to get the word out and get a true sense of the potential in Frontenac County. That will also give us time to locate more vendors throughout the county,” said Katie Ross. “We think the demand is there.”

Ross and Vanderburg will be monitoring the pilot to see how it is progressing, just as they are establishing their own permanent headquarters on Sydenham Road.

For further information, go to coworkfrontenac.com, or call /email Vandeross at 613-777-2200, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Published in FRONTENAC COUNTY

“We are making excellent progress, people are starting from a more informed place,” said Maureen Bostock, spokesperson for the Lanark County Neighbours for Truth and Reconciliation.

Bostock was commenting on feedback garnered from the organization’s booth at last weekend’s Festival of the Maples in Perth where they shared a booth with indigenous maple syrup producer Richard Lalande and Mark Marsolais-Nahwegahbow, founder of Birch Bark Coffee Co.

“We were pleased to have Mark there as his company raises funds for water systems in First Nations communities and he made several contacts to sell coffee with local outlets,” she said. “We were pleased to introduce him to our community.”

One of the things the Lanark County Neighbours for Truth and Reconciliation are particularly interested in is the history of First Nations as it pertains to this area. In particular, there is the instance of Chief Pierre Shawinipinessi, who was born in 1790at Lac des Deux Montagnes, a mission set up by the Sulpice missionaries at what is now known as Kanesatake. In 1837, purchases made by Shawinipinessi started showing up in the log book kept by Benjamin Tett, a magistrate and business person who operated a mill store near Bob’s Lake.

Shawinipinessi settled on an island in the Long Bay area of Bobs Lake’s (Lot 31, Concession 9) Eastern Basin. Other Algonquin people started arriving at the north end of Bobs Lake and on July 17, 1842, Chief Shawinipinessi petitioned in Canada West for a land tract of 2,000 acres straddling the Townships of Oso, Bedford and South Sherbrooke. He argued that a land tract for agricultural purposes would enable his people to sustain themselves given the depletion of game from hunting and loss of habitat due to logging and forestry.

On March 21, 1844, an Order in Council from the government of the Province of Canada approved the application for 2,000 avres to be set aside under a license of occupation in Bedford, Oso and South Sherbrooke.

However, logging activities (timber cutting, shanty building and trespass) continued on the tract, resulting in ongoing conflict similar to that in other logging –related incursions across unceded Algonquin territory. Shawinipinessi wrote a number of letters complaining to the Department of Indian Affairs trying to convince the government to intercede with loggers and trespassers on their behalf.

Although the government did intervene, confiscating timber harvested from the tract, proceeds were retained “as part of the hereditary revenues of the Crown,” rather than being used for the benefit of the indigenous group whose land had been trespassed upon at the discretion of the Lieutenant-Governor of the Province.

Efforts by Shawinipinessi and other chiefs on the Bedford, Oso, and South Sherbrooke tracts to retain rights to the timber and even build a mill continued unsuccessfully for many years and many had moved away by 1851.

Shawinipinessi himself moved to the Piwakanagan community (as evidenced by the census of 1881 and 1882) where he lived with his daughter until his death at the age of 101.

The land that was once the Bedford tract is now the site of cottages on Bobs Lake and little remains in the area to remind visitors of its history as an Algonquin community.

However, Bostock and her organization are working to change that.

“What we’re really focusing on is permanent installations for First Nations History,” she said. “A proposal for a plaque and monument similar to others depicting exploration has been submitted to the (Tay Valley) township and a location will be determined when approved by the Heritage committee.

“It’s so gratifying to see people are becoming aware (and) reconciliation is the single-most important issue for Canada.”

Published in Lanark County

23 girls from Sydenham High School and Granite Ridge attended a day-long “Women Write” event at GREC on April 29.

The day started with a journaling presentation and workshop with Carol Pepper, a local artist, writer and educator, and Rosemary Pratt, a teacher at GREC. Students learned about the benefits of journaling, and different ways to journal as a means of expression. They also made journals and took them away.

This was followed by two successful women entrepreneurs and performers, Emily Fennell Taylor and Ky-Lee Hanson, two highly successful women working in the local arts communities.

Emily Fennell Taylor (also known as Miss Emily) led a session on songwriting, and shared her own experiences working in the music industry. She also offered advice to girls wanting to pursue songwriting and/or music as a hobby or profession.

Ky-Lee Hanson, is an award-winning non-fiction writer and the owner of Golden Brick Road Publishing House. Golden Brick Road Publishing House publishes work by women only. Ms. Hanson offered tips for writing successful non-fiction books and encouraged girls to pursue a variety of diverse careers in the publishing field (including graphic art, editing and distribution, for example). She also handed out and signed copies of one of her recent books, “Dear Time, Are You on My Side?”.

Emily Fennell Taylor and Ky-Lee Hanson wanted to inspire young women to pursue careers in traditionally male-dominated fields, such as music and publishing. Due to the challenges they faced, they want to show young women that achieving their dreams is possible, while giving back to the community.

Emily Fennell Taylor is from Prince Edward County, and has had a 20-year musical career, including opening for, and collaborating with, The Tragically Hip.

Ms. Hanson founded her publishing company after having difficulty finding a publisher for her own work. Golden Brick Road Publishing House’s mission is “to focus on women’s leadership and empowerment” and “develop content that effects positive social change.”

This event was part of an on-going Artist in Residence program in local schools, coordinated by Kristin Stevens and funded in part by the Limestone District School Board (currently funded by AIREE Grants from the Ministry) with additional support from Live Wire, Blue Skies, and GREC Parent Council. The purpose is to promote The Arts and Indigenous culture to students in both Elementary and Secondary schools in Limestone District School Board, and overcome gender bias in career paths.

Published in SOUTH FRONTENAC

Gale Chevalier will take over as Chief of Frontenac Paramedics on July 1st.

She shouldn’t have any difficulty fitting in, however, since she will be heading a service where she has spent her entire 25-year career as a paramedic.

She began working as a Primary Care Paramedic at Hotel Dieu Hospital Regional EMS in Kingston in 1994 and progressed to Advanced Care Paramedic in 1997. In 2004, after the Frontenac Paramedic Services took over the Hotel Dieu operation, she became the Operations Supervisor with the new service, and advanced to Supervisor of Quality Assurance and Training in 2009. She became the Deputy Chief of Performance Standards since November 2010 and Deputy Chief of Operations in April last year.

She also serves as the Acting Chief while Chief Paul Charbonneau was off on a leave of absence in late 2018 and early 2019. In February, Charbonneau returned from leave and announced his intention to retire, and the job was posted widely.

According to a Frontenac county media release, Chevalier “was the unanimous selection of the recruitment panel in a highly competitive field of candidates.”

With his replacement named, Paul Charbonneau is set to retire on July 1.

“I’m very excited and honoured to become the next Chief at Frontenac Paramedics, and I’m looking forward to leading a great team of professionals, and an organisation where I’ve spent my entire career,” said Chevalier. “I want to make sure we remain an employer of choice and continue to be leaders in the industry.”

The announcement of her appointment came one day after the news came out that the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care for Ontario intends the reduce the number of ambulance services in the province from 59 to just 10.

The potential impacts of the changes that the ministry is planning were not lost on her when she very briefly addressed Frontenac Council on Wednesday afternoon.

“It is an interesting time to take this on,” she said with a bit of wry smile when introduced to Council as the next chief, “but we will continue to provide the best service we can and we’ll see what changes come about.”

Out-going Chief Charbonneau reported to Council about what he had learned in the roughly 36 preceding hours since he found out about the Ministry’s unexpected plans.

“They said they will be consulting with the Paramedic Service providers, but it will be a quick turnaround for consultation, maybe a week or two, then we expect they will set up some sort of request for proposal process, similar to what they have done in other parts of the health care system,” he said.

“We have always been pro-active at Frontenac Paramedic Services, when it came to community Paramedicine or to addressing mental health issues among Paramedics, and we intend to be pro-active in this case.”

Charbonneau also said that when it was announced in the provincial budget that dispatch services were going to be rationalised into 10 dispatch centres it was widely applauded by Chiefs of Paramedic Services across the Province as a way to improve service.

“That was something the we had been asking for, but we never talked to them about cutting the number of providers. For our service, … It’s one of those cases where we need to decide if we want to drive the bus, be on the bus, or wait at a bus stop hoping to be picked up.”

Charbonneau said he will keep Council informed about decisions they may have to make “over the next 72 days and 2 hours before I retire, not that I’m counting the days.”

Published in FRONTENAC COUNTY
Page 9 of 162
With the participation of the Government of Canada