| Aug 25, 2011


Decision on Ompah ambulance base delayed again

A motion that would have kick-started the long-delayed Ompah ambulance base/fire hall project was deferred by Frontenac County Council last Wednesday, August 17.

The motion, which was proposed by North Frontenac township county representative John Inglis, included a significant amount of detail about how the cost sharing for the project between Frontenac County and North Frontenac Council would roll out. Central to the proposal is a 50/50 cost sharing split between the township and the county, which differs from the 60/40 split that had been on the table previously.

“The 50/50 split is justified by the fact that even though the fire hall is to be 2,500 square feet and the ambulance base 1,500, the fire hall is basically a shell and the ambulance base will be fully finished,” said John Inglis.

The detailed division of costs in the proposal for items such as water, hydro and repairs caused at least one county council member a lot of concern.

“I'm an elected representative,” said Central Frontenac Mayor Janet Gutowski, “and this reads like a contract. I’m uncomfortable even calling for a vote on this motion without directing staff to review the terms and conditions in this. I move we defer this.”

Warden Gary Davison said he is still concerned about what he called a “build it as you go” attitude he attributes to North Frontenac.

“If Paul [Chief of the Frontenac Paramedic Services, Paul Charbonneau] said he was ordering an ambulance, I would expect he had done his research and was ordering a vehicle that lived up to all the specs that we require. I'm nervous about this, I don't know where it is going to go. Honestly, what kind of product are we talking about?” Davison said.

“We are talking about a design-build project that will have to meet post-disaster standards, not some tin shack attached to an ambulance base,” said North Frontenac Mayor Bud Clayton. “We are here today to ask for an ambulance base in the North. Not only to ask but to plead and beg you. The population demands we do something about this, so we need to put a service in place. The key word is ‘service’.”

Frontenac Islands Mayor Dennis Doyle said, “This certainly isn't a straightforward initiative. I've driven that area and the Ompah location is only 6-7 minutes from where the ambulance is located right now, sitting in a parking lot. I want to talk to the fact that the previous county council made the decision to proceed with this location, and it's a slippery slope if a new council starts to second guess every decision that a previous council has made. I think the people up there expect and deserve an ambulance service. If it costs $300,000 each for the County and the township, it looks pretty reasonable to me. I don't think we need to defer this. Let's put it to a vote now. Are we going to build this facility or not?”

Janet Gutowski weighed in one more time.

“Earlier I restricted my comments to why the motion should be deferred but if everyone is talking about the project itself, I must point out that I'm not in favour of an Ompah base, if that is what we are talking about. The numbers don't support it,” she said.

John Purdon, councilor from Central Frontenac, said he was in favour of an Ompah base and said he thinks it makes sense to combine the base with a fire hall because it will save money.

“But I have a problem with going forward without joint agreement on costs, and we need more information from staff before we can come to an agreement,” he said.

“The sticking point for me is the perception that the Parham base would move to Sharbot Lake. I believe this is a life or death matter for people in the Portland, Hinchinbrooke and Bedford Districts,” said Councilor John McDougall from South Frontenac. “I cannot support moving this ambulance base to the North.”

The original motion about the location of a northern ambulance base, which was passed by county council in February of 2010, called for a base in Ompah to be built as soon as possible, and for the closing of the Parham base and relocation of that service to a location in the Sharbot Lake area within 5 years.

The present motion to defer the proposal from John Inglis until the September 2011 council meeting was passed in a 5-4 recorded vote.

Warden Garry Davison, who carries two votes as mayor of South Frontenac, said that before casting his votes in favour of deferral, he “would like to see what the building will look like”.

“I'm a bit optimistic,” said North Frontenac Mayor Bud Clayton after the meeting, “I think the concept of a 50/50 cost split, with the county spending no more than $300,000, did not get rejected. That to me was the key sticking point. We are already looking at next spring now, but I think it can happen.”

Indeed when looking at the voting patterns in the various votes on the ambulance base issue that have taken place this year, it is clear there is a meeting of the minds on the ambulance base between North Frontenac and Frontenac Islands. While there are two council members, Janet Gutowski and John McDougall who oppose the plan, Warden Davison and Councilor John Purdon have both expressed support, although they are waiting for assurances that have not yet been forthcoming.

If either one of them can achieve a comfort level with the project, a Request For Proposal for a design-build ambulance base/fire hall in Ompah for $600,000 could be forthcoming as early as next month.

It still remains to be seen, however, if such a building, constructed to ambulance base and post disaster, fire hall standards, can really be built for $600,000.

Frontenac County Official Plan

At the August 17 Frontenac County Council meeting, Michael Elms from the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing (MMAH) gave a presentation that outlined some of the advantages to the county that would come from adopting a county-wide Official Plan in addition to the Official Plans that each of the townships already has in place.

The county plan would have to be broad enough so that the variations in the township plans could be accommodated, and would have to be consistent with the Provincial Policy Statement, which underpins all municipal rules and regulations. However, once a county plan is in place, planning decisions on a local level would only need to be confirmed by County Council, and would not need to be considered by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs. Only changes and updates to the county plan would require approval by the ministry. This would eliminate some delays and could also give the townships greater freedom to make decisions based on their own goals.

Elms showed a map of Eastern Ontario, which showed that most counties in the region either have a plan in place or are working on one. In one case, Peterborough County, an Official Plan has been in place for 15 years and the Ministry of Municipal Affairs is on the point of pulling right out of the planning process,

Even changes to the Peterborough County Official Plan will now be done without requiring approval by MMAH.

Central Frontenac Mayor Janet Gutowski said she would like the county to move forward with a plan in the near future.

“I think the way it is now is certainly challenging for economic opportunities because of the time frames that come from waiting for ministry approval. If we have an Official Plan it will be county council driving the bus - that’s us, all politicians elected in our own townships. I think it would be county council in control, not ‘the county’ as some kind of bureaucratic entity.”

 

Support local
independant journalism by becoming a patron of the Frontenac News.