Central Frontenac Council - Feb 7/13

Jeff Green | Feb 07, 2013

CF Budget target set

After listening for two days as department heads went through their budget requests, Central Frontenac Council has asked the interim CAO Cathy MacMunn and Treasurer Michael McGovern to make some cuts to the proposed budget and bring the document back to council. The target that council set was for the overall budget, including education and county rates, to stay within a 2.5% tax rate increase. With the average property seeing an increase in assessment of 2.73% this year, that would mean the average Central Frontenac ratepayer would end up with an increase of over 5% in their 2013 property tax bill.

Township planner to pay price for budget shortfall

Central Frontenac has employed the services of Tunnock Consulting ever since the township came into existence in 1998. The township pays Glenn Tunnock a small retainer of $2,500 each year so that he will handle all planning work that comes forward from local residents and developers for zoning bylaw and official plan amendments, site plan agreements, etc. The fees charged to applicants cover Tunnock's fee for completing the work. Glenn Tunnock has also written the township’s Official Plan and Comprehensive Zoning bylaw and the updates to those documents as well, and he charges the township for that work.

With an official plan review scheduled for this year, Council is now reconsidering their relationship with Tunnock.

As council was going over the budget for planning in their 2013 budget, Mayor Gutowski said, “There is a way to save money here. There is $16,000 in the budget to pay Glenn Tunnock for an Official Plan Review. If we switch to the County for planning services, there will be no charge for the review.”

Council's interest was piqued.

“Could we just have the County do the Official Plan Review, and leave everything else as it is?” asked Councilor Norm Guntensperger.

“I'm not sure that we can pick and choose,” said Gutowski. “The offer to do all of our work for free was part of an offer to take over the entire service.”

“I move that we have staff investigate having the county do our planning, so we can cut $16,000 from our budget,” said Guntensperger.

The motion was carried, setting the stage for a change.

The Frontenac County Planning department already provides service for the Township of Frontenac Islands and has an open offer to take on the work from North Frontenac Township, which also uses the services of Tunnock Consulting.

Frontenac County has two planners on staff, and their salaries are covered through county-wide taxation.

South Frontenac Township, which saw $30 million in new construction activity in 2012, has its own in-house planning department.