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It’s Official – there is a fellowship of the pig and it lives in Central Frontenac

They are not likely to chase a strip of bacon over the edge of a cliff into a fiery abyss, but that does not mean they are not committed to their quest.

It all started way, way back … well back in 2012. Michael McKenzie of Seed to Sausage held a party on Victoria Day weekend to mark the opening of a summer outlet for his fresh and dried sausage factory on Road 38, halfway between Tichborne 0and Sharbot Lake. He called the event the “Day of the Pig” and that first year a lot of people showed up, many of them from Toronto and Ottawa. You could tell the ones from Toronto from the black, tapered skinny jeans and ball caps that the men were wearing. The Ottawa attendees were cooler than the locals, but not by as much.

It got bigger each year, and eventually McKenzie decided to transform it from a party to a food festival and it was held at the Sharbot Lake beach, with support from the District 3 Rec Committee, in 2017. That was the only year when weather was a factor, but even with an entry fee of $20, a pretty good crowd attended.

Seed to Sausage then entered into some major retail ventures in the Greater Toronto Area and McKenzie decided not to run the festival at the beach in 2018, and almost canceled the Day of the Pig entirely, but ended up holding a stripped-down version at Seed to Sausage this past May. He told some friends that he was thinking of calling it quits, not because he did not enjoy the event but because he did not have enough time available to pull it together.

Those friends decided that the Day of The Pig was too well established and had too much potential as a local food event and a tourism draw for a community like Central Frontenac to let go of, so they began to meet. A new location, a plan of attack, and a set of responsibilities emerged over a couple of meetings, and the Fellowship of the Pig was born. Slowly, word slipped out about the fellowship, but they have remained a mystery until they emerged this week, in an unlikely place.

On the agenda of the final Central Frontenac council a meeting of the decade, at the tail end of the agenda package, item 16, under ‘Oher business’ it says: “Day of the Pig – that council receive the information and presentation from Councillor Heese regarding the Day of the Pig event.”

Councilllor Heese, it turns out, is a member of the formerly secretive fellowship.

And on page 142 of the agenda package there is a letter which reveals all of the members and something about their plans and how the township fits in.

“The members are Mike McKenzie (Seed to Sausage), Brian Wilson (Orbital Talent Inc.), Rob Moore (Cardinal Café), Ken Fisher (Sharbot Lake Business Group) and Victor Heese (Township Councillor). This group, informally called the Fellowship of the Pig, has met 3 times to begin planning for next year’s event (meeting notes included). Although it is still early in the planning process, we envision the upgraded Day of the Pig to be a Food and Beverage event with various artisanal food, beer, wine and distilled beverage vendors displaying their products. There would also be demonstrations by well known chefs, a pig roasting contest, and entertainment for all ages throughout the day.”

The group is seeking that council make the Day of the Pig a Central Frontenac event, and “appoint the group as a township committee either as a committee of council or a sub-committee of the Central Frontenac Rec Committee.”

This would set the stage for the township to provide various “in-kind” donations to the Day of the Pig, such as inclusion in the township insurance policy, free use of the Parham Fairgrounds, and access to other resources such as “fencing, barricades, tables and chairs, etc.”

The township is not expected to provide any financial support and the Day of the Pig is to be run as a not-for-profit event, although it will include vendors, including Seed to Sausage, who will sell their product as part of it.

Council decided to take on the Day of the Pig as a committee of council, using the precedent of the Frontenac Heritage Festival as a model for how to set up the relationship.

Published in CENTRAL FRONTENAC

AFTER 20 years of playing together as Madison Violet, Lisa MacIsaac and Brenley MacEachern have it down. In particular, they have the harmonies down.

They’re up there with Simon & Garfunkel, Lennon & McCartney, Crosby, Stills & Nash.

And that started right from the beginning.

“Lisa auditioned for my band (Zoebliss) one night in Toronto,” MacEachern said. “She was only playing fiddle at that time.

“So, she came over to my place and I put some guitar and vocals on a looper.

“I went upstairs to get us a drink and I heard this incredible harmony to my tracks.

“It was her.”

That band broke up but as a duo they’ve continued on through nine albums, numerous awards and nominations and a constant touring schedule. They just returned from three weeks in Germany and stopped in to The Crossing Pub in Sharbot Lake Friday night. This was their third or fourth time in town, Nobody seems to remember.

But nobody that was there Friday night will forget those harmonies.

It might be surprising that their music is so folk-oriented given that both have Maritime music roots.

Yes, MacIsaac is Ashley MacIsaac’s sister but she is not Natalie MacMaster’s cousin.

“Natalie lived maybe five houses down and we did go to the same school,” MacIsaac said. “Route 19 was full of fiddlers and we all learned from Stan Chapman.”

MacEachern was born in Montreal and grew up in Kincardine, ON. But her father is from Craigmore, NS.

“Mom can’t sing to save her soul but my father is the singer in the family,” she said.

MacIsaac said that while she grew up on Maritime music and Scottish fiddle tunes (as well as an admitted affinity for the song The Cat Came Back), “I wanted something different so I moved away when I was 19.”

Landing in Toronto, she fell in with the folk scene there and just sort of grew into it naturally.

“When you play a lot of folk festivals, you pick up a lot of things,” she said.

Curiously, one festival they’ve never played is Blue Skies, but they’d like to.

“I’ve heard it’s a lot of fun,” MacIsaac said.

They’d fit right in.

While there were a couple of tables of locals Friday night, most of the audience seemed to be from Ottawa, Brockville, or just elsewhere, opting to spend the night at the Inn after taking in the show.

Clearly, the audience was full of fans and the evening turned into bit of live by request as the girls seemed only too happy to oblige said requests.

In fact, in a crowd-pleasing twist, they even ventured into the audience, saving their (arguably) biggest tune, Crying, for an encore before finishing up with 99 Red Balloons.

Hell, they even covered The Stones earlier on in the evening (Wild Horses).

Published in CENTRAL FRONTENAC

Good news for alumni and/or anyone who’d like a keepsake of the old Sharbot Lake Public School.

Andy Dillon, manager of development services/CBO, told Central Frontenac Council at its regular meeting Tuesday evening at Oso Hall in Sharbot Lake that he’s having a number of bricks delivered to the Township offices which will be made available to the public at no cost.

“We don’t want people going on-site to pick up a souvenir as it could be dangerous,” he said. “But it will be one (brick) to a customer.

“That’s so they don’t think they can come and get a bunch of bricks to build something,” he said with a grin.

Dillon said that while there have been some trucks and equipment on-site, the work being done is all on the inside.

“We don’t expect the actual demolition of the building to begin until sometime in January,” he said.

Coun. Bill MacDonald asked where the material that’s being demolished was going, wondering if it would be added to the Oso or Olden sites.

“I don’t really know,” Dillon said. “But it’s somewhere out of Central Frontenac.”

Building values up.

Coun. Bill MacDonald was also curious as to the increase in construction value being more than a million dollars more in 2019 than 2018 ($10,965,340 vs $9,561,283) despite there being one less building permit issued (seven vs eight).

“That would probably be because the average value of homes being built is about $350,000,” said Andy Dillon, CBO.

“That’s good for taxes,” said Mayor Frances Smith.

Dewey elected Deputy Mayor for 2020

Council elected District 1 Coun. Tom Dewey as Deputy Mayor for 2020, replacing Coun. Victor Heese.

Tanker pulled off the road

With tanker 441 out of Station 4 Parham in such bad shape and due to be replaced in 2020, Fire Chief Jamie Riddell told Council he is taking it out of service as of Dec. 4.

“To go a number of months without a tanker in Parham does not sit well with me,” said Coun. Nicki Gowdy.

Riddell said that tankers from Mountain Grove and Sharbot Lake will respond to all fire calls in the 400 and 600 Zones and a tanker from South Frontenac’s Verona station will respond to all confirmed fires in Zone CF6-601.

“I’ve spoken with the the fire chief in South Frontenac and they’re willing to extend the mutual aid agreement in this way until our new tanker arrives,” Riddell said.

“The fire hall in Verona is closer to Piccadilly than Parham is anyway,” said Mayor Frances Smith.

Published in CENTRAL FRONTENAC

While Central Frontenac Council is all behind plans for economic development, spending $75,000 on studies didn’t seem to sit too well with councillors at the regular meeting of Council Tuesday in Sharbot Lake.

Council was discussing a report from Dep. Clerk Cindy Deachman on a recent meeting of the Central Frontenac Economic Development Committee with Megan Rueckwald and Alison Vandervelde from Frontenac County’s Planning and Economic Development Departments regarding the Official Plan process and economic development in general.

“The committee has identified some key opportunities relating to the official plan process and the revitalization of village streets to promote economic development within the Township,” the report said. “The committee recognizes that the road reconstruction project and seniors housing projects are in progress and it is not the intention of the committee to hold up these projects until a secondary plan process is completed. The committee is confident that these projects will be planned in such a way as to allow for maximum flexibility for any future developments contemplated as a result of a secondary plan.”

The report said that the committee believes that prioritizing the plan for 2020 would put the planning framework in place for future projects and opportunities that present themselves so that future development maximizes the hamlet’s economic development potential as a hub.

“We do know that there are talks about Hwy. 7 and about the revitalization of Elizabeth Street in Sharbot Lake,” said Coun. Brent Cameron. “But we are the economic development committee for the entire Township.

“There are lessons to be learned for Mountain Grove and Parham.”

The report said that Reuckwald noted the recent planning process in Marysville was anticipated to cost about $75,000 and that aspect drew fire from Coun. Tom Dewey.

“I don’t think it’s necessary to spend that,” Dewey said.

“I agree,” said Cameron. “There’s enough of a knowledge base on Council and these committees to shape this up.”

“My concern is that we get the Official Plan and Zoning Bylaw done and I don’t know that the County has the staff to do more,” said Mayor Frances Smith.

“We’ll have to watch the Marysville document carefully,” said Dep. Mayor Victor Heese. “There will be differences between Sharbot Lake and Marysville but $75,000?”

Humane Society expensive

Central Frontenac may be looking elsewhere for pound services following a contract renewal offer from the Kingston Humane Society that would end up costing the Township $5,292. In 2017 the same contract cost $1,980, $2,128.63 in 2018 and $2,412.80 to date in 2019.

“We should go back and renegotiate,” said Coun Tom Dewey.

“We reached out to them to explain the increases but they didn’t get back to us,” said Dep. Clerk Cindy Deachman.

“Maybe we should be looking at Lanark or Lennox & Addington,” said Mayor Frances Smith. “I think we went with Kingston because our former bylaw officer lived near there and could deliver dogs to the pound on his way home.

“It might be cheaper to pay mileage to Napanee.”

Council deferred a decision to allow staff to investigate further.

Six foot monuments?

A request to remove a restriction of four feet height in favour of six feet for monuments in Central Frontenac cemeteries was denied.

“Six feet is awfully tall,” said Mayor Frances Smith. “If there’s a strong wind or if someone wants to push it over, it would be easier.”

“We do have some existing monuments taller than four feet but they’re old and there was only the one request,” said Clerk-Administrator Cathy MacMunn.

$400 for Christmas Dinner

Council agreed to donate $400 to the Christmas Dinner Fund held by the Food Bank on Christmas Day at St. James Major Hall.

“They have $300 and they need $1,200,” said Clerk-Administrator Cathy MacMunn.

The dinner was originally the brainchild of former Frontenac News Publisher Jule Koch-Brison.

Published in CENTRAL FRONTENAC

Author Jean Rae Baxter introduced participants from the fall sessions of Telling Your Story: the Seniors’ Writing Workshop Series Tuesday afternoon at St. Andrews Church Hall in Sharbot Lake.

The series is part of an ongoing program put on by the Kingston Frontenac Public Library that consisted of five sessions as well as a polishing session in which the aspiring writers wrote memoirs.

“A memoir is not the story of a life,” said instructor Jean Rae Baxter, who has written several historical fiction pieces for young readers as well as murder mysteries. “It is a story from a life.

“It’s usually a significant story from that life and can be anywhere from four to 4,000 pages. It’s usually around 400 pages.”

Tuesday’s stories weren’t that long but were, in Baxter’s words “something you yourself have lived.”

First up was Bhawani Nadarajah, who is originally from Sri Lanka but has lived in many places as her father worked for the UN.

She told her story of going to school in Somalia with her siblings for six years in the ’70s.

“My brother was very protective of his little sisters,” she said. “If anybody tried to bully us, they usually went home with a bloody nose.”

Mary de Bassecourt wrote about growing up on a farm in Upstate New York during the ’50s and ’60s with several entertaining anecdotes including how she would disappear in tears to her room whenever the family sold a puppy. Baxter praised her story for being not only a personal recollection but also an account of days gone by and how a way of life is probably gone forever.

Peter de Bassecourt’s story was also entertaining. It was about being one of the younger guys who was allowed to join the older 16- and 17-year-olds on a trip to Mount Loupgarou north of Montreal. That in itself wasn’t all that special but the fact that they went in a beat-up old pickup truck with no brakes was quite humourous.

The final story was probably the most poignant.

Karen Bryson was a flight attendant in 2001 when the 9/11 attacks happened.

She began by talking about how airport security was quite lax when she began in the business, even to the point of managing to sneak about the Concorde while it was parked on the tarmac in Barbados.

Things changed though and her account of what it was like being in the air when the attacks on the World Trade Centre happened and what happened when her crew was forced to land in Winnipeg for three days might make a good movie of the week.

Published in CENTRAL FRONTENAC

Central Frontenac Council received and adopted a business case study for seniors housing on the site of the former Sharbot Lake Public School at its regular meeting Tuesday evening at Oso Hall in Sharbot Lake.

Ken Foulds of SHS Consulting and Re/ Fact Consulting presented Council with a report that would pave the way for 10 units of seniors housing, all on a single floor with larger halls and doorways, that would come in at a capital cost of about $2.8 million with annual operating costs of about $89,000 per year.

The 10 units would be set up as two fiveunit pods to take advantage of regulations that require additional septic and/or well requirements for buildings of six units or more.

Each unit would contain one two-bedroom unit and four one-bedroom units. Foulds said that reflects the feedback of 118 online surveys received.

“The concept is viable,” he said. “The site is obviously larger than what would be needed for those two pods and there is existing septic and well that may be useable.”

He said half of the one-bedroom units would be at Acceptable Market Rate (AMR, currently $832/month) and half at 80 per cent of AMR (currently $665/month). Two bedroom units would be at the AMR of $1,144).

Several assumptions were made in the study such as a property value of $250,000 (after the existing school building is demolished), funding from the Ontario Investment in Affordable Housing program at $150,000 per unit for 50 per cent of the units, a waiver of municipal development fees ($27,800) and a County equity infusion of $330,000 plus $100,000 from the Township.

“Operations would be managed by an experienced local housing provider (Central Frontenac Housing Corporation, which manages the existing senior’s housing units on Clement Road),” he said.

He said the next steps include making the actual decision to move forward, confirming governance/oversight/management, determining usability of existing site services, securing initial funding commitments and beginning pre-development project planning activities.

“We have our starting point,” said Mayor Frances Smith.

Report on Thomson’s Cut

Multi-Use Cultural Centre Steering Committee Chair Gary Giller gave Council a presentation on the completion of Thomson Cut improvements completed this summer including a pedestrian walkway and nine streetlights.

“It’s an important greenbelt between Railway Heritage Park and Oso Beach,” Giller said.

Giller said it’s also important to maintain the greenbelt in the event that an actual railway station come to Sharbot Lake in the future.

“That’s a discussion for another day,” said Mayor Frances Smith.

Elizabeth Street Project

Council authorized staff to undertake a review of Elizabeth Street titles before the anticipated renovations planned for 2020.

“The immediate concern is understanding the extent/location of our road allowance and confirming we have clear title to those sections where we need to undertake rehabilitation,” Public Works Manager Tyson Myers said in his report. “Part of Elizabeth Street is shown in the 1894 village plan, however the northern section has not been surveyed.

“We are in the process of reviewing existing R-plans of neighbouring properties so that boundaries can be located on the ground.

“Furthermore, it would appear that Elizabeth Street has been realigned over the last century and it is unclear if legal titles were updated to reflect what is now on the ground.”

Myers said that while there will be some surveying done as part of the consultant work, it won’t be for legal title. Any title surveying won’t be part of the grant program and therefore the Township will be responsible for costs.

“And it needs to be done sooner rather than later,” he said.

Alton Road

‘Alton Road,’ as the road allowance between Concession 5 and 6 in Hinchinbrooke is commonly known, has had the common law right of of passage restricted on it due to a bridge on it needing repair.

It is not a road within the Township’s current road network and is not recognized in the Township Road Naming Bylaw, Public Works Manager Tyson Myers told Council.

Coun. Victor Heese asked if the bridge should be removed to reduce Township liability but Myers replied: “In the short term, we’ve put up ‘use at your own risk’ but if somebody wants to go back there, they’ll find a way, even if it’s putting up their own bridge.

Published in CENTRAL FRONTENAC

In her address to the North Frontenac Little Theatre’s 40 years celebration Friday night in Tichborne, Nina Jenkins posed the question.

“I wonder if the group who got together for Alice in Wonderland ever dreamed it would still be going 40 years later.”

“No,” said John Pariselli, a charter member who acted as president and artistic director for the company’s first two years.

“We got together with some creative people and the original plan was to do one production (Alice in Wonderland),” he said.

But Pariselli had been involved in acting in one way or another since he was 8 years old. In fact, he was on live radio for three years in Toronto when he was 10 in the CKEY production Peter and the Dwarf (“I was Peter,” he said).

But, continued to approach life in an artistic fashion, including a long teaching career.

“Teaching is inspiring creativity in kids,” he said.

So, small wonder he’d be involved in “about half” of the 68 shows NFLT has produced over the years, as actor, director, whatever was needed.

“Acting is an opportunity to take on another person’s persona,” he said. “To delve into that person’s psyche.

“Directing is helping other people do that.”

“No,” was also the way current president Pam Giroux responded.

“I saw an ad in the North Frontenac News and thought ‘that’s for me,’” she said. “I was a young mom of 35, had a two-year-old and three other boys and I wanted a creative outlet.

“I played Alice and had the most lines.”

All of her four sons have been in NFLT productions and one, Cam, even went on to win best actor in the Sears Drama Festival. Her husband, Marcel, has served as producer.

Even so, it was “an opportunity to get out of the house and leave the kids with Marcel,” she said. “I am certainly proud to have been a part of all this.

“And now, we want some new blood — that’s what keeps it fresh.”

“Who would have thunk it?” said Brian Robertson, who has “done every job there is to do in this theatre company.”

Robertson said he thought the company has managed to continue this long is because “it captured the imagination of the city folk who ended up here but also the locals as well.

“It’s been a place of refuge, home, family.”

Jenkins echoed those sentiments.

“It’s the many talented volunteers, the hours,” she said. “Lighting, programs, stages, it’s impossible to estimate how many hours it takes.

“For some, acting is their thing. For others, it’s being behind the scenes.

“All the jobs are important — whatever job they do is important.”

Published in CENTRAL FRONTENAC

“I’ve never had an information report defeated before, I guess it’s non-information,” Mayor Frances Smith said at Central Frontenac Council’s regular meeting Tuesday night at Oso Hall in Sharbot Lake.

The report in question came from Fire Chief and Director of Emergency Services Greg Robinson.

Staff department heads in all townships regularly give monthly reports and they’re almost exclusively rubber-stamped by councils.

But not this time.

Councilor Brent Cameron asked for a recorded vote on the resolution to accept the report. He, along with Councilors Nicki Gowdy, Cindy Kelsey, Sherry Whan and Elwin Burke voted against accepting the report.

Before the vote, Gowdy asked Robinson about training sessions.

“Do you see a buy-in from firefighters and attendance at these sessions?” she asked.

“It’s definitely a work in progress but comments I’ve had are that training is improved,” Robinson said.

Cameron took issue with what he called “a lack of statistics” in Robinson’s report.

“I understand the broader issues with technology (the department’s ‘Firehouse’ reporting software has been an ongoing issue),” Cameron said. “But I’d like to see even the stuff you would input to Firehouse.

“For example, recruitment numbers.”

“We have found a major tech issue,” Robinson said. “I have good 2018 stats now (and) I fully believe we will have stats for the next Council meeting.”

“So the next fire report will have numbers in it?” said Cameron.

“It will,” said Robinson.

The rejection of the report comes in the context of continuing controversy over an incident that took place on July 27 and 28, when the township owned pickup truck that is used by Fire Chief Robinson’s was reported stolen in Prince Edward County. (Under the terms of his contract, Robinson uses the truck for personal as well as township business)

The truck was subsequently located in Sharbot Lake after having been damaged in a hatchet attack by a man from Perth. It had been returned to the township office parking lot by the as yet unidentified truck thief. The hatchet incident led to an extensive police operation in Sharbot Lake on Sunday afternoon on July 28, involving the OPP canine and Emergency Response Units with helicopter support. A man from Perth, who has still not been identified by police, has been charged with vandalism and assault in the case. The OPP have not released any information regarding the theft itself.

An unofficial petition on Change.org asking for Robinson’s resignation on the grounds that he has lost the confidence of the public has garnered 105 signatures.

The council meeting was attended by 15 or 20 people who were interested in seeing if council would address the controversy. Aside from the unprecedented rejection of the chief’s monthly report to council, there was nothing related to the chief or the fire department on the agenda for the open council meeting.

A closed meeting regarding “personal matters about an identifiable individual, including municipal or local board employees pursuant to S. 239(2) (b) of the Municipal Act of Ontario” followed the open council meeting. In addition to members of council, Clerk/Administrator Cathy MacMunn and Fire Chief Robinson remained for the in camera meeting, Council rose from the in camera meeting without taking any action.

Other items from Central Frontenac Council

The boat dock at Oso Beach in Sharbot Lake is to be dismantled and moved to Eagle Lake.

In his report to Council, manager of developmental services Andy Dillon said: “Waterlines from the lake supplying the bathrooms have been severed four times this year from motor boats. There are also neighbours’ waterlines near the dock that have also been severed.

“The swim program at Eagle Lake could make better use of the sections to tie their buoys to and divert boats away from the swimming area.”

He said existing staff can complete the work.

Store coming to Arden

Council held a public meeting on a proposal that would make it possible for a convenience store, gas bar and take-out restaurant to open up north of Arden,

There is no decision made at public meetings but for the project to go through a rezoning to General Commercial from Rural has been the subject of an application that came before council.

Proponent Derek Matson said the proposed location is on Arden Road, just across from Price Road.

“At the Kennebec Lake Association meeting, there were people applauding the proposal so I think there’s interest,” said Mayor Frances Smith.

Interim Public Works Manager plans to pulverizes roads

Interim Public Works Manager Steve Keeley, a retired public works manager in Tay Valley and Huntsville who was recently signed to a three-month contract, said he plans to pulverize Henderson Road (Baker Valley to Bordenwood) and Price Road in conjunction with the pulverizing of Crow Lake Road.

“Price Road is really bad and I think we should pulverize it all,” he said. “The same could be said for Henderson.

This would mean the roads would become essentially gravel roads until such time as they can be re-surfaced but, he said the pulverizing would provide a good base once those projects can be undertaken and would provide a more drivable surface in the meantime.

He said the Arden Road project from the hamlet to Pit Road is on hold.

“I’m not sure it’s in good enough shape for micro-surfacing,” he said.

He said they plan to do some paving repair on Road 509 and have a paving company coming in to make recommendations.

Published in CENTRAL FRONTENAC

Central Frontenac Township kicked off the first of three open houses on the revisiting of its Official Plan (mandated by Provincial Law) last week in Sharbot Lake with an information session on Waterfront Development Policies. Subsequent open houses on Settlement Areas and Growth Management and Rural Areas and Agriculture are planned on following Wednesdays.

About 50 people including staff and four members of Central Frontenac Council.

“This is a complete overhaul of the Official Plan,” said Frontenac County Manager of Community Planning Megan Rueckwald, who also serves as Central Frontenac’s planner. “It will be more comprehensive and not just for waterfront areas.”

One proposal is to reduce the minimum lot size to 2 acres (0.8 hectares) from the current 2.47 acres (1 hectare).

“But there will be other measures introduced to deal with character and density along the waterfronts,” she said. “For example, there is work on backlanes and a 30-metre setback has been solidified.

“Also there are new policies to govern lot coverage within 60 metres (200 feet) of the high water mark.”

As well, there are specific sections to govern the Garrison Shores development and the fish culture station at White Lake.

Rueckwald said they plan to bring a report to a Council meeting in September summarizing the feedback they receive.

However, she said there is a new Provincial Policy Statement expected in October and any final changes to the Official Plan will likely wait until it comes out, in order to be consistent with the PPS and Frontenac County Official Plan.

So, there’s still plenty of time to have your say.

The third and final open house is scheduled for Aug. 28 at 6 p.m. in Sharbot Lake’s Oso Hall.

Or you can contact Rueckwald directly at 613-548-9400 ext. 351 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Published in CENTRAL FRONTENAC

The Sharbot Lake Property Owners Association is in its 46th year of operations, President Ken Waller said as he opened Saturday’s meeting at the Sharbot Lake Legion.

“We started in 1973,” he said. “And this has been one of our busiest years.”

Waller noted last September’s microburst that spread trees all over Shibley Road and Polar Bear Lane, the ongoing water testing program, four new loon nesting platforms (one of which loons actually nested on), as well as 33 entries in the annual photo contest.

Vice-president Guy McLeod gave an update on the new “data loggers” in operation to aid in the collection of information in and around the lake.

“The loggers collect the data and it gets downloaded to my computer,” he said. “One day, at nine feet down, it was 80 degrees.

Environmental issues coordinator Barbara Fradkin reported that the loon count this year is at 30, with 11 chicks, two of which were in the west basin.

“They (the loons) turned down all of our (nesting) platforms except for one,” she said.

Mayor Frances Smith addressed a number of Township issues on the minds of association members.

“We’re looking for fire department recruits,” she said. “Especially if they are under age 64 and available during the day.”

She noted that there are open houses Aug. 4, 14 and 21 regarding the revision of the Township Official Plan.

She said septic reinspection has already begun on Eagle Lake and Crow Lake.

“The cost is $100, payable to the Township,” she said.

On recycling, Smith said: “Used to be we got a reasonable price for it. Now we have to pay to get it hauled away.”

She urged residents to use the library, support the Farmers Market and go to the Parham Fair.

Firefighter Ryan Conboy gave a talk on the importance of smoke alarms and keeping them up to date.

He expressed disappointment at the “lack of compliance” evident during the department’s recent door-to-door campaign.

“The chief is seriously considering issuing some fines to get the message across,” he said, noting that’s law for every building to have smoke alarms on every floor. Carbon monoxide sensors are mandatory on each floor of any building that has a combustion system burning either fossil fuels or wood and if there is an attached garage.

The winners of the photo contest were: 1st — Helen VandeSande; 2nd — Bryan Hay; 3rd — Guy McLeod

Published in CENTRAL FRONTENAC
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