Oct 2/08 - One more hurdle for Garrison Shores

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Feature Article - October 2, 2008 One more hurdle for Garrison ShoresBy Jeff Green

The Garrison Shores waterfront development was put together 20 years ago, and trying to bring it into compliance with current municipal regulations has proven to be a difficult task for Central Frontenac Council.

In fact it has been on Council’s to-do list since the township was formed in 1998, but it took until earlier this year for the township to find a solution, which involved a zoning bylaw amendment and an amendment to the township’s official plan.

Garrison Lake is a small lake, located west of Arden, in the former township of Kennebec. At one time the Garrison Shores development was salted to include 96 small lots, but now includes 35 occupied properties and a few vacant lots. These lots have been in a legal limbo until a solution was reached this past Spring.

The solution did not satisfy at least one landholder that is part of the ill-fated development. Jeff Dubois appealed council’s amendments to the Ontario Municipal Board.

On the eve of the date for a full-blown hearing, however, Dubois reached agreements with both the township and the Garrison Shores Property Owners Association, and withdrew his appeals.

One of Dubois’ major concerns has been the fact that the shoreline of the lake, which was originally to be common lands jointly held by all the landowners, is to be conveyed to the 17 properties in the development that are closest to the lake.

Dubois said that, during 11th hour negotiations before the hearing, “Garrison Shores (through their solicitor Geoffrey Cantello)agreed to register a restrictive covenant on title which would serve to prevent any sort of shoreline development on those units (lots) whose boundaries now extend to the lake.”

The restrictive covenant will enshrine an 8 metre vegetative buffer around the lake.

“Although I still believe that shoreline preservation is best ensured by not conveying private ownership of the shoreline,” Dubois told the News, “the restrictive covenant represents a compromise that stipulates the types of activities which are not permitted.”

A second change was made, this time by the township, which will now prohibit swimming pools in the development.

The two changes have cleared the way for Dubois to withdraw his objections, but they do not represent the end of the line for him.

Property owners at Garrison Shores have never had deeds to their properties, which have been in legal limbo for over 20 years. They will now wait until a plan of condominium is submitted for approval to the County of Frontenac.

Susan Beckel, Deputy Clerk of Frontenac County, said that once an application is received it will be sent to various agencies and bodies for comment, and referred to the county’s own planning consultant. A public meeting will be held as well, likely in Central Frontenac.

Jeff Dubois said that he would not be giving up his contention that the waterfront should not be conveyed to individual landowners, and he will raise that at the public meeting.

“While it might appear to some observers that the interests of the environment have been championedthrough this settlement,” he said, “the bitter reality is that the settlement may provide for more in the form of redress than in the form of prevention when it comes to preserving the shoreline.

“I've always looked at the shoreline like playing hockey.... it's better to protect the shoreline from the onset than figure out ways of repairing it later. Likewise it's always better to strap on your helmet before you lace up the skates than take six stitches in the head. A patched up shoreline is what you get when you play without a helmet.”

The plan of condominium, once approved, will also be subject to a possible appeal to the Ontario Municipal Board.

Feature Article - August 21, 2008

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Feature Article - August 21, 2008 South Frontenac CouncilBy Wilma Kenny

South Frontenac proposes ‘Restarting the Clock" on severances

Two highly controversial issues are buried among the more usual “housekeeping” changes South Frontenac Council is proposing for their Official Plan 5-year update, due this year. Severances on private lanes, and “restarting the clock” in regard to the number of residential severances permitted from a parcel of land have both been hotly debated at recent Committee of the Whole meetings.

"Starting the Clock Over" means that as of the date of adoption of the OP 2008 Review, three more residential severances would be permitted from any property large enough. ( A non-waterfront lot must be 2 acres/.8 ha, with 250'/76 m frontage on a maintained public road.) At present, a landowner wishing to sever more than three lots can do so only by plan of subdivision. After a close vote, Council has chosen to support restarting the clock: Deputy Mayor Robinson and Councillors Fillion, Hicks, Vandewal and York are in favour.

Township Planner Lindsay Mills has strongly recommended against restarting the clock, on the grounds that it goes against the basic goals and objectives of the Official Plan which states: "Residential development will be carefully planned to reduce land use conflicts, provide long-term protection of the environment and minimize the municipal servicing costs." Some of the recommended ways of achieving these goals are: to place environmental concerns ahead of residential growth; to protect the established rural character of the township from uncontrolled strip development; residential development should primarily occur (in established hamlets or) by registered plan of subdivision

The complete Official Plan is available on the township’s website, or at the municipal offices in Sydenham. Mills estimates there have been 60 new rural lots severed in the last five years that could be further subdivided, if the clock is restarted.

Council has been less willing to support back lot development, with only Fillion, Hicks and York opposed to the recommendation that : "on existing lanes that do not lead to water, severances will not be permitted and no new such lanes will be permitted."

Changes to official plans are not made hastily or without full consideration of public opinion. On August 13, the township held an open house to provide information about the proposed OP changes. Council will discuss any comments received as a result of the open house, at their Committee of the Whole (probably Sept 09: the agenda is not yet available), and set the date for a statutory public meeting to receive formal comments from the public. After that, Council will make their final vote on the changes at one of their regular meetings. Their recommendations will then go to the Ministry of Municipal Affairs for provincial approval.

Editorial by Jeff Green

MP Scott Reid and MPP Randy Hillier have done something that no one else seems to have been able to do – they have created unanimity on Lanark Highlands Council over, of all things, water.

They did so by sending out a questionnaire asking whether the ratepayers would like to see a water plant built in the Village of Lanark, or would prefer support for a continued well and septic-based water system. The price tags for the two options are vastly different, and the issue itself has been festering for years and years.

What has brought about municipal agreement, even though the local council is as split on the issue as ever, is outrage over the incursion of federal and provincial politicians into a municipal matter.

Hillier and Reid were recently rebuked by Lanark County Council over their questionnaire/referendum.

The council approved a motion directing the county warden to send a letter to Ontario Conservative Party leader Tim Hudack and to Prime Minister Stephen Harper, as well as the Association of Municipalities of Ontario.

The letter complained about “the direct intrusion of their party’s elected members in an issue which is clearly a municipal responsibility.”

While this issue has gained notoriety in Lanark County political circles, another related issue could become a major issue in the run up to the 2010 municipal election.

The Ontario Landowners Association announced recently that it is planning to run candidates in next year’s municipal election throughout Lanark County, which would be something new for municipal politics in Eastern Ontario.

The Ontario Landowners are an offshoot of the Lanark Landowners Association, which was founded by none other than Randy Hillier. It came about as the result of a rural caucus that then rookie MP Scott Reid held at his home in Carleton Place.

Notwithstanding these connections, the Landowners have always been a political entity. They have made a name for themselves as an advocacy group in response to government.

When Randy Hillier resigned from the Landowners and ran for the Ontario Conservatives, he did have another option. If his candidacy had not been accepted by the Conservatives, there was a very really possibility that an Ontario Landowners Party could have been formed, with potentially devastating implications for the Conservatives.

Hillier was accepted by the Conservatives, and the Landowners remain an advocacy group, but putting together a slate of candidates would make them some sort of municipal party, which is something that has never been seen in this part of the province.

Although municipal politicians are often party members of one of the mainline parties, they run and serve on municipal councils as independent ratepayers.

If the Landowners can run candidates, other political parties might follow.

Municipal councils are often full of disagreements and disputes, and water treatment plants have been a prime example in a rural setting of how difficult it can be to move forward, as in the case of the Village of Lanark, and recently, the hamlet of Sydenham.

But compared to Queen's Park or Parliament Hill, there is a refreshing openness to municipal debate, openness that is brought about because the politicians are elected on an independent basis. They have no one to answer to. They are free to agree or disagree with each other, and are not beholden to a party leader or leader's office.

Adding party ideology, from the right-wing, left-wing or libertarian quarters, would be a detriment to municipal decision making

Reid and Hillier's interventions into the Lanark water and sewer issue pale in comparison to that possibility. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Back to HomeFeature Article - October 1, 2009 Central Frontenac Council, Sep. 29/09By Jeff Green

McIntosh Perry wants to develop Baker Valley property 

The engineering and development company McIntosh Perry has purchased the Baker Valley property that runs from Highway 7 to Kennebec Lake near Arden, with plans to develop cottage lots on the one mile of shoreline.

The company sent a letter to Central Frontenac introducing the project to Central Frontenac Council. The letter says a purchase agreement for the 200-acre property has been reached and is in “a period of due diligence to determine the viability of development.”

The company has been in touch with township staff and is planning a meeting with the Kennebec Lake Association. It is anticipated that a lengthy planning process, including an Official Plan amendment and a plan of subdivision, will be required.

“I’m pleased that we have a heads up,” said Mayor Janet Gutowski, “Let’s do this and do it right. That’s what’s important, doing this correctly.

Seniors’ housing project headed for OMB

The North Frontenac Not-for-Profit Housing Corporation was granted $2,700 from the township in compensation for planning fees that have been levied for a zoning bylaw amendment, an Official Plan amendment, and a severance application that were necessary for the corporation to construct a five-unit seniors’ complex that is planned for Clement Road near Sharbot Lake.

In debating the matter, Councilor John Purdon said some of the fees would never have had to be levied but for a historic oversight on the township’s part. “In terms of zoning I believe that is something that should have been taken care of years ago for the four-plex that already exists on the site. Theoretically the OP amendment and the zoning would not have been required if we had done the work when the four-plex was built,” he said

“I think that council and staff missed something when we were doing our Official Plan, and that part is our fault and not the applicant’s,” said Councilor Frances Smith.

The decision to grant back the $2,700 charged in fees came about as the housing corporation, and the township, have learned that the severance that was granted by the township for the project has been appealed to the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB).

Township CAO John Duchene told Council that another appeal to the municipal board is expected if and when the Ministry of Municipal Affairs approves an Official Plan amendment, which council passed for the same project. That approval is not expected until mid-October at the earliest.

“The history with the OMB is that they only want to hold one hearing, so they will wait to schedule one until after the Official Plan Amendment is finalised.”

As far as covering the costs associated with the OMB hearing, Frances Smith said, “I think they will have to pay those costs themselves. We should cut them loose after this.”

“Even though it is the township’s decision that is being appealed to the OMB, the applicant [North Frontenac Not-For-Profit Housing] signed an indemnification agreement saying they would cover all costs related to our decision, as all applicants do,” said CAO Duchene.

New committees struck

Council will be changing the way they do their business. Starting on October 13, meetings will be held on the second and fourth Tuesday of the month at the Oso Hall in Sharbot Lake at 7:00 pm.

At 4:00 pm on the meeting days, committee meetings will be held to allow for fuller debate and for more complete staff interaction with council on issues. The 4:00 pm meetings will be divided up into four areas, each of which will be chaired by a different member of council.

Councilor Bob Harvey will chair discussions regarding Planning and Building; Councilor Jeff Matson will chair Public Works/Waste Management; Fire and Emergency Services will be chaired by Councilor John Purdon, and Corporate and Financial Services by current Deputy Mayor Gary Smith.

County governance – Mayor Gutowski relinquished the chair to Frances Smith for a debate on county governance. The debate was short-lived, however, because a proposal to ignore a request to answer seven questions by the county and instead reiterate Central Frontenac Council’s support for a county council with nine votes, three for South Frontenac and two for each of the other townships, proved very popular.

Mayor Gutowski, who in her role as warden has overseen the debate at the county, voiced her support for the nine-member proposal. “I support this resolution; I think it’s quite appropriate,” she said.

Whether the county will effectively address the county composition issue in time for a new structure to be adopted for the municipal election next November, is still unclear

A statement that Mayor Gutowski made to the Whig Standard alludes to her own indecision about where the debate will go at the county level. "I think [county governance] is really up in the air.” She is quoted as saying. “The issue is not going to go away; we have to be thinking longer term rather than making rash decisions on emotion. It might not be bad if it takes another four years [to resolve] because someone will likely have to live with it for the next 20 years at least."

Gas tax money – Central Frontenac has received $18,473 as their share of $119,000 in county gas tax money that has been divvied up by the lower-tier townships. The money will go towards overruns on a salt dome project that is already underway.

“The only issue that I see is that the salt dome is costing $250,000 and we are getting $18,000, but it helps a bit,” said Frances Smith. 

Back to HomeLetters - October 16, 2009Letters: October 16

Patriot Missiles in North Frontenac, Dave Winney

Hydro debt? Ina Hunt-Turner

Patriot Missiles in North Frontenac

Dear Mr. Maguire

I need to express a small beef that I have with respect to the new garbage recycling/bagging requirements in North Frontenac. Just before I do, though, I also have an interesting proposal for council.

Now that North Frontenac has officially become the largest employer North of 7, it’s a matter of time before taxpayers are asked to fund a new municipal building to accommodate all these permanent and temporary employees and consultants. As respectful taxpayers, we will do so, proudly and maybe even willingly. I only ask that you set aside a small office for myself and my neighbour, Roger. My proposal follows and our CVs will be sent under separate cover!

First though, I am a retired military engineer with years of experience in mine warfare in some rather exotic parts of the world. Roger is also a retired military man and was an air traffic controller, and arguably, may even have some skills in air weapons systems. Our proposal deals with the protection of our Kashwakamak landfill site. The more prestigious landfill site at 506 recently had an electric fence installed to keep the bears away. We need a similar setup at the Kash site but unfortunately the fence theory does nothing to rid the area of bears (something to do with the eau de dump fragrance) so the bears just continue to patrol the perimeter and every now and then they still breech the fence - not to mention the raccoons that continue to infiltrate as do the turkey vultures. This is where Roger and I come in!!

We propose a secondary line of defense consisting of anti-personnel mines (seeded randomly just inside the fence) and a patriot missile system for those damn turkey vultures. Now, Roger won’t get all the vultures with the Patriot missiles, but he’ll certainly scare them enough to make them patrol the perimeter with the bears. A small problem here: some of the year-round residents (taxpayers) have taken to picking up bags of garbage, left on the side of the road by a handful of inconsiderate transient cottagers, and these taxpayers, myself included, with good intentions, walk the garbage into the dump to prevent raccoons from doing what they do best which is make a mess. Well, unfortunately, some of these folks are going to be lost to my AP mines; however, I consider this to be acceptable collateral damage. Saves them from a $5000 fine anyway.

Roger doesn’t need to be a full time employee; he’ll be temporary (particularly if he walks to work through my minefield) but I’ll be either full-time or a consultant. Your choice! We’re retired and don’t need much money; you can even pay us by giving us complementary clear plastic garbage bags which brings me to my main topic.

Who was the rocket scientist that came up with the plan to (initially, without notice) switch to clear plastic bags for garbage and recycle? Council has, in effect, made a decision that carries with it financial and logistical consequences for every taxpayer with virtually no plan to offset these consequences. During these recessionary times homeowners and more so business owners (such as myself) do what we can to reduce costs. We all shop at big box stores to purchase materials in bulk at reduced prices. I personally, have boxes of green plastic bags in various quantities of 100 to 500 depending on sizes. What do I do with them? Council initially wanted to implement the clear plastic fiasco immediately, but after ducking the resulting rotten tomato onslaught, they postponed for about three months. O.K! You saved me the cost of 12 bags. Businesses, such as Marble Lake Lodge, had invested in a completely new containerized system to better handle their waste and now you tell them they can’t use it! For Pete’s sake, assess consequences before you make decisions and, if necessary, develop plans to offset those consequences.

Don’t think I’m going to leave the door open here for some bright star amongst your horde of employees to respond that the environmental impact of ignoring recycling is the biggest consequence of all. We taxpayers are intensely engaged in doing what we can to protect and preserve our environment. We, not council, organize and fund activities such as regular neighbourhood road cleanups to pick up waste left by seasonal tourists who have decided that it is too onerous to comply with the tedious protocols for delivering waste to the landfills. Many of us take it upon ourselves to lecture people who simply throw their rubbish beside the roads with no consideration for the environment or those of us who live here. Just this week, I personally offered up a physical exchange of divergent opinions with three young cretans who felt justified in throwing trash in my parking lot and urinating against the LCBO wall, in the centre of Northbrook, in broad daylight. Do not try to lecture me on protecting the environment and my community. I’m good to go!

What do I propose as a plan to offset all the above? Naturally, I have a few suggestions! 1) Phase your plan in over a longer period of time. 2) Make better use of consultations with businesses, such as Marble Lake Lodge, to develop solutions acceptable to both parties. 3) Establish an exchange system with the simple taxpayer to trade normal green garbage bags for clear plastic bags for a one year period.

Once again, here comes that bright star at the municipal office who asks “what will we do with all the green plastic bags?” Most taxpayers will tell you they don’t care what you do with them although I suspect some will have some specific ideas of their own. Once again, I naturally have a suggestion. Apparently if these bags are cut into pieces, one can use them to apply a painting technique on walls to produce a very rich, faux leather look. If it’s not too much trouble, I’d like to see that look applied to the walls of the office that Roger and I will occupy in our new municipal building!!!

Remember! We’re all in this together.

Respectfully,

Dave Winney Kashwakamak Lake

See North Frontenac Councils' response

Hydro debt?

Am I the only one who feels this way? It happens every time that I get my hydro bill; I am told how much I am paying for a debt that is not of my making. I have always paid my hydro bill and I try to live within my means so it really is not my debt. However, aside from that, when are we ever going to get an account of how much of the debt is actually getting paid? Any normal and legal business would have a barometer showing how close we are to achieving our goal but the hydro does not seem to feel that they have to give an account of themselves.

Ina Hunt-Turner

Back to HomeFeature Article - September 3, 2009 Frontenac County gets the nod from AMOBy Jeff Green

For several years members of Frontenac County Council have lamented the lack of profile the county has on a provincial, even regional basis.

The county actually disappeared as an entity in 1998 and was replaced by a management board, but was resurrected several years later and has been trying to emerge from the shadow of its larger neighbours such as Leeds and Grenville, Lanark and the City of Kingston ever since.

And the efforts have now paid off, at least in terms of Frontenac County’s relationship with the Association of Municipalities of Ontario, the umbrella organisation for large and small municipalities in the province.

Aside from its role as a lobbying organisation, AMO has been contracted by the federal and provincial governments to oversee granting programs for municipalities, including the Federal Gas Tax Transfer and economic stimulus funding.

Two weeks ago, on August 18, federal Minister of State, Gordon O’Connor and Peter Hume, President of the Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO), presented Frontenac County with an AMO Federal Gas Tax Award for the Integrated Community Sustainability Plan, citing the county’s extensive public consultation process.

“The beauty of this plan is that it brought all five of Frontenac’s municipal governments together for the very first time to collaborate on sustainability needs,” said Peter Hume, AMO President. “It considered everything from the health of local trails and waterways, to the long-term viability of local business and attracting new investment.”

Last week, senior county council member Jim Vanden Hoek (Mayor of Frontenac Islands Township) was named to the AMO Board as a member of the county caucus and to the executive committee of the organisation.

This is the culmination of efforts that Vanden Hoek has made over the past couple of years, with the express intent of raising Frontenac County’s profile within the province and in Eastern Ontario.

“AMO’s Board of Directors benefits from membership from across the province, reflecting the diversity of Ontario’s municipal governments,” said AMO President Peter Hume in announcing Vanden Hoek’s appointment. ■

Back to HomeFeature Article - September 10, 2009 LOLTA’s reach expandsBy Jeff Green

In preparing for the third biennial VISION awards ceremony at the end of this month, staff at the Land O'Lakes Tourist Association (LOLTA) were looking at some of the organisation’s history, and it turns out it was founded a long time ago.

In 1943 a meeting was held at Salmond’s resort on Mississagagon Lake, which led to the formation of an association. Sixty-six years have brought a lot of changes, but Salmond's resort is still going strong under the name of Lancaster's and the Land O'Lakes Tourist Association is in a period of growth.

LOLTA has expanded its territory in recent years from its base on the Canadian Shield to include all of Frontenac and L&A Counties as well as the village of Tweed.

Municipal support and its role in managing a series of marketing programs under the provincial Rural Economic Development (RED) banner have enabled LOLTA to maintain and staff an office with a manager (now Ken Hook) and an administrator (Joanne Cuddy).

Ken Hook, who started working for LOLTA this past May, was familiar with the organisation as a business owner and a municipal politician in Addington Highlands, but until he took on the manager's job he did not know the full reach of LOLTA's marketing initiatives.

“I didn’t know that our maps and guides are available all over the province and into the United States, I didn’t know how many trade shows we go to. I always thought the reach was more regional, but we have guides in Kenora, Alberta, all over the place,” he said.

One of the goals that LOLTA has set for itself is increased membership.

“We would like to increase our membership by 50 members per year over the next two years,” Hook said. “We've sold 21 memberships since May so we are on the right track.”

LOLTA has about 200 members now, and a large proportion of them come from the association's heartland of Central and North Frontenac and Addington Highlands. There are also new members coming on from the southern regions, including Wolfe Island.

“We just had our first winery join, from Adolphustown, and a few others could be joining as well,” Ken Hook said. “The way I look at it we have to demonstrate that the membership fee ($165) will bring in at least that amount of cash value to a business, and hopefully a lot more.”

Some benefits to membership are obvious, the opportunity to be on the map and guide, for example, but there are others as well. LOLTA has negotiated a discount price for its members from Moneris for credit card transactions, and for members that have made investments in accessibility, there is now a 40% rebate program for marketing initiatives, including all forms of advertising and signage.

Looking forward, the increasing global opportunities that are offered by the LOLTA website will be explored.

“Over the next year we will be looking increasingly at Europe,” said Ken Hook, “and the website is the important piece there.”

The European market has become more relevant with the coming of new passport regulations. “Only 30% of Americans have passports,” Hooks said, “so it pays to look to Europe.”

An online reservation system, incorporated into a revamped LOLTA website (travellandolakes.ca) that will be available to all member businesses could be coming over the next year. It will be invaluable in attracting European tourists and others to the region.

In the immediate future the VISION awards are a focus for LOLTA’s staff and directors. The public has an opportunity to nominate businesses that have “shown innovation, expansion and extraordinary determination to grow in rural communities”.

Winners will be named from each of the nine member municipalities of the association (including South, Central and North Frontenac and Addington Highlands) and there will also be an overall winner.

For details, go to travellandolakes.ca to download a nomination form. 

Back to HomeFeature Article - September 10, 2009 North Frontenac wants out of Frontenac CountyBy Jeff Green

It has been no secret that North Frontenac Council is unhappy with the way Frontenac County is run, and this week council followed through on its promise to write to the province about its grievances.

The letter, addressed to Premier McGuinty and copied to the ministers of Municipal and Rural Affairs, was written in order to advise the premier of the township's “express wish to seek secession from the County and to gain approval and legislation to function as a single tier municipality.”

The township proposes to hold a referendum on the matter during the 2010 municipal election.

Currently North Frontenac and Frontenac County share municipal responsibilities in what is called a 'lower tier- upper tier’ arrangement. North Frontenac delivers the bulk of municipal services (road maintenance, waste management, municipal halls, financial services, land use planning and building services, and others) whereas Frontenac County is responsible for land ambulance, long-term care, and relations with senior levels of government, including the City of Kingston, which provides social services to the county. In the area of land use planning, there is some shared responsibility between the township and the county, with the county having responsibility for subdivision and condominium approvals.

In the letter to McGuinty, North Frontenac Mayor Ron Maguire made reference to remarks he delivered at the conclusion of his year-long term as Frontenac County warden in November of 2007. “I publicly expressed my growing fears about a 'north-south' split in the County, especially on matters of policy attitude and future direction, and cautioned that this situation should not be left to fester. Unfortunately the situation did deteriorate ...”

North Frontenac’s long list of grievances include: “long term care facilities, transportation and access to services, broadband, ambulance, subdivision planning and control, operational planning, county sustainability, minimal or token aboriginal consultation, governance, 'urban' arrogance, lack of appreciation and respect for rural matters.”

These grievances are detailed in a 5-page appendix, which is included with the letter.

In asking for leave to seek independence from Frontenac County, the letter also speaks to North Frontenac's own administrative strengths: “We are immensely proud of our accounting and financial control systems, our management regime; our proud, loyal and experienced staff; our planning expertise; our contractors; our leading waste management initiatives; our enterprising volunteers and citizenry; and our promising future.”

Frontenac County Warden Janet Gutowski had just read the letter when she was contacted by the News on Tuesday evening for comment.

“As far as I can see, Frontenac County is not going to be called upon to respond to the letter. I do agree that North Frontenac has some challenges but I don’t agree with the accuracy of some of the details in the letter. I think it was written with a fair bit of emotion.”

Gutowski said she hopes the letter will not make it more difficult for county council to move forward in the coming months. “My issue is, how do we go forward from here? I don’t find this helpful, but I think the emotions need to be taken out of the equation. I’m not interested in political posturing. We were all elected to work in the interest of the citizens and I will work with all the partners toward that end.” 

Back to HomeFeature Article - August 20, 2009 North Frontenac Council - Aug 13/09By Jeff Green

Ambulance base location for North Frontenac – numbers pointing south

An ambulance base located in the Ardoch Road/Road 509 vicinity would be located closer to the bulk of ambulance demand than the current location at the township garage near Ompah, Frontenac County Ambulance Manager Paul Charbonneau told North Frontenac Council last week.

Charbonneau presented an update to North Frontenac Council after a consultant’s report called for two options. The first is “a relocation of the Ompah ambulance to a location in the vicinity of the intersection of Ardoch Road and Road 509” because it would have better access to major roads, such as Highway 7, and would be able to respond more rapidly to calls in the eastern portion of North Frontenac and the northern portion of Central Frontenac.

The second alternative put forward by the IBI group, the consultants who did the report, would be to reconstruct the current location so the ambulance could be located indoors.

North Frontenac Township has rejected the IBI report, saying it did not take into account specific realities in North Frontenac, particularly the seasonal fluctuations in population. They also pointed out that the junction of Road 509 and Ardoch Road is located in Central Frontenac, which would leave North Frontenac with no ambulance within its borders.

“The report said ‘in the vicinity’ of those two roads, not necessarily at the corner,” Charbonneau told council, raising the possibility that the base could be located a bit to the north or east of the corner, within North Frontenac’s boundaries.

Charbonneau continued by outlining the work his staff has done since the IBI report was delivered in the late spring. “We use three criteria to evaluate ambulance locations” he said, “drive time and distance mapping, maximum capture of emergency call volume, and past and future growth development. At this point we have information about the first two criteria.”

What the information shows, using 2007 and 2008 data, is that an ambulance located at Ardoch Road/Road 509 would have been within a 30-minute drive (a standard for rural ambulance response that was established in 2000) of 347 calls per year. The current station was within 30 minutes of 101 calls, and a proposed location at a township-owned property in Ompah itself would have been within a 30-minute drive of 99 calls.

“But all of the information is not in,” said Charbonneau, “I am working with your township staff to get information about past and future growth. Until that information is in, we won’t come to any conclusions. When we did the same thing in South Frontenac, we ended up changing the location of the base, from Road 38 to the Sydenham area.”

“A lot of people around here don’t bother with the ambulance; they just drive to the hospital,” said Councilor Lonnie Watkins.

“I don’t dispute that,” said Charbonneau. “I used to work in northern Ontario and I’m familiar with rural independence. But we have no way of counting non-calls. What we want people to know is that ambulance service is not just a drive to the hospital. Paramedics are health professionals; they bring drugs and oxygen with them.”

“One of the other considerations, is that we have a fantastic EFR (Emergency First Response) team within our fire department. They arrive within 18 minutes,” said Deputy Mayor Jim Beam.

Councilor Fred Perry asked if there has been a decision about the future of the Denbigh and Northbrook bases, which are located in Lennox and Addington but provide service to the western part of North Frontenac.

“We are basing all of our decisions on the assumption that Denbigh will stay in place,” Charbonneau said.

A final decision on the location of an ambulance base to serve the northern part of the township is due this fall. “We hope to have funds for a new base construction in the budget for 2010,” Charbonneau said. 

Canonto Lodge on Norcan Lake – Part of a subdivision proposal for Norcan Lake was approved, allowing for the creation of five new lots, but the second part of the application, which includes 13 additional non-waterfront lots, was deferred until the township is able to receive assurance that agreements with the Township of Greater Madawaska to provide fire and emergency and waste management services can be extended to the new lots.

Norcan Lake is not accessible by road to the rest of North Frontenac Township, and municipal services are provided by agreement with Greater Madawaska Township in Renfrew County.

In the vote to approve the subdivision agreement, there were two dissenting votes, by Councilors Wayne Good and Fred Perry from Barrie ward.

Letter to Municipal Affairs almost ready – A draft letter to the Ministry of Municipal Affairs, which outlines the township’s grievances against Frontenac County, has been prepared. When it is finalized, the township will be sending it to the Minister of Municipal Affairs as well as MPP Randy Hillier. It will also likely be released to the public.

Trash Compactor – CAO Cheryl Robson reported that Public Works Manager John Ibey is exploring an option that may be cheaper than the compactor that council has approved for purchase. One way or another, she said, a compactor will be in place shortly, at a cost within the approved budget.

Application for community space – township staff has been assured that municipalities can apply to a federal stimulus fund for community spaces. The grant program, which has a minimum value of $750,000 and a maximum of $15 million, could help the township fund the public space portion of a proposed multi-use township office, community center and library complex that is being contemplated for a piece of land on Buckshot Lake Road near Plevna, which was formerly the site of a Ministry of Natural Resources office. Township staff has been working on the application with Jewell Engineering.

Council approved sending in the application.

MNR and AAFNA – CAO Robson reported that the Ministry of Natural Resources had no information about the land clearing that has been done recently by the Ardoch Algonquin First Nation at the Pine Lake boat launch site. 

Back to HomeFeature Article - July 2, 2009 North Frontenac CouncilBy Jeff Green

Ompah fire hall still on the radar, department assured

Members of the Ompah fire crew had an opportunity to meet with North Frontenac Council on June 25 to talk about the township’s on-again off-again plans to build a new fire hall in Ompah.

It's been almost three years since Mayor Maguire was re-elected, and during the election campaign Maguire, along with all the other candidates, promised to build a new hall in Ompah during the current term of office.

A piece of land in Ompah has been purchased, and money has been put aside to build a hall in recent budget years, but with the township facing shortfalls, only $25,000 was put in the 2009 budget.

Mayor Ron Maguire outlined for the fire crew members how other infrastructure needs in Ompah are slowing down the project.

A report on ambulance needs in rural Frontenac County was recently presented to Frontenac County Council. One recommendation in particular concerns Maguire, that the base located near Ompah be replaced with a base at Hwy. 509 and Ardoch Road in Central Frontenac.

“As a council we rejected the ambulance report,” said Maguire. “We didn't want to see the North Frontenac station go anywhere. We then came up with the possibility of combining a new fire hall with a new ambulance base, and there could be money available to help build. The ambulance report said it costs $750,000 to build a base. That amount of money would go far if combined with building a fire hall.”

Maguire said that the ambulance situation, and others, “led us to believe we can't make a decision this year, which is why we cut some of the contribution towards the fire hall from our budget. But it remains a priority.”

The only dissenting voice on council came from Councillor Wayne Good, who said, “A new fire hall in Ompah is not a priority for me, I look at all the fire halls since we are one township. I look at the halls in Plevna and Snow Road as much as Ompah. If they can do the job so be it.”

The site of the current fire hall, which has been slowly sinking, also houses a community hall and the Ompah library, and the future of those municipal services will need to be considered as well.

While the chances of having a new hall in place before the next municipal election in 16 months are not great, the fire crews came out of the meeting feeling that council is indeed committed to moving forward.

“Our first question was, 'Is the hall still a priority?” said Deputy Fire Chief Steve Dunham, “and you've answered yes to that.”

Dunham also pointed out that the Ompah crew raises over $20,000 each year for equipment, and that they have been looking at plans for fire halls for a few years and have found some relatively cheap alternatives.

“We've done about everything we can do,” he said.

One of the crew members suggested moving forward by developing plans for a building that includes space for a self-contained ambulance base with separate kitchen and shower facilities and a separate entrance.

“If the ambulance falls through, we stick to the fire hall,” he said.

Council and the crew agreed to keep working on the fire hall, and to keep working together through Fire Chief Steve Riddell. 

North Frontenac to write to Municipal Affairs about County

The dispute between North Frontenac Council and Frontenac County took another turn last week, when North Frontenac Council decided to write a letter to the Ontario Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing (MMAH) outlining their grievances.

MMAH is the ministry that oversees municipalities in Ontario.

The issue that has galvanized North Frontenac into action is the makeup of county council, but as Mayor Maguire pointed out last week at a meeting of North Frontenac Council, “The list is long and goes back several years.”

Two weeks ago North Frontenac Deputy Mayor Jim Beam resigned from the County Trails committee over his perception that the committee was being bypassed by county staff in the preparation of a county trails master plan. Then representatives from Central Frontenac and Frontenac Islands also resigned.

Beam told council that he “did have a call from the warden, discussing the issues. I told her the wedge that's been driven is almost beyond repair. She said she would put a resolution on the table on county governance, recommending a council composition of eight, with a weighted vote for South Frontenac, at the county meeting on July 22. I'd like to hold off until then.”

Mayor Maguire did not express much optimism that county governance would be resolved on July 22. “I suppose there is always hope,” he said “but I don’t see the warden getting support from the other two mayors, and she always votes with them anyway. If this thing comes forward in July and it fizzles, it’s pretty well dead.”

For Maguire, the governance debacle is the latest in a string of disappointments with the county. “We’ve seen this over long-term care, over the transportation issue, and we may well see it again before the ambulance issue is resolved. When you add governance and the fact that the trails committee has become a fiasco, it’s time we took some action,” he said.

Council passed the following motion: “Be it resolved the Council of the Township of North Frontenac instructs the Mayor and CAO to lodge a formal complaint with the Minister / Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing by a formal letter of complaint with respect to Council’s ongoing frustration with major issues with the County of Frontenac that directly affect the Township of North Frontenac”.

“This way we can get our grievances on file with MMAH as a first step,” said Deputy Mayor Beam. “In the meantime we can proceed with the County in July before taking any further action.”

Kaladar-Barrie agreement – Plans to re-do the Kaladar–Barrie fire agreement hit a snag when Addington Highlands, North Frontenac’s partner for the fire service, revealed they had not put the necessary funds, $3,000, in their 2009 budget.

North Frontenac wants to get it done, and decided to fund the entire cost by dipping into a reserve fund. They will be asking Addington Highlands to reimburse them for the cost in 2010.

Trillium application – The township will apply to the Trillium Foundation for new boards for the Clar-Mill hockey rink.

River Road water – On the advice of their solicitor, the township will erect a metal sign cautioning the public that the water at the spring at the side of River Road, north of the Ardoch Road, has not been treated.