Editorial - August 28, 2008

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Editorial - August 28, 2008 A cowardly councilEditorial by Jeff Green

Sitting on council is a thankless job, and members of North Frontenac Council deserve credit for the hours they put in at council and committee meetings. They are a hard-working bunch.

But they botched the job when it came to selecting a replacement councilor for Wayne Cole.

Even though councils are free to select replacement councilors in any way they see fit, the process should be reasonable and fair to all involved.

The first mistake came in July, when two people expressed interest in the position and it was decided there were not enough candidates.

Why are two candidates not enough? In each of the last two occasions when a council seat had been vacated, only one candidate came forward, and that person was sworn in with little muss or fuss. Ron Maguire was the mayor on both of those occasions.

The decision to re-advertise the vacancy was an insult to the two people who applied in the first instance.

Then, once the four candidates were found, and after they were interviewed in public by members of council, a kind of reverse voting system was chosen.

Instead of choosing their favourite candidate, councilors were asked to decide if each candidate was a suitable choice, and when a majority could not agree that a single candidate was suitable, that can't be seen as anything but an insult to the four people.

If that weren’t bad enough, a second vote was taken and again not one of the four people was considered acceptable by a majority of council.

At the end of all that, picking a name from a hat was a merciful end to a seriously flawed process.

Bernice Gunsinger, as well as Betty Hunter, Gleva Lemke, and Jim Bacon, deserve credit for putting their names forward to serve on council. They did not deserve the shabby treatment they received.

We wish Bernice Gunsinger well as Ward 2 councilor. She has already shown some perseverance in sitting through the election process.

Feature Article - August 28, 2008

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Feature Article - August 28, 2008 New infrastructure money from OntarioBy Jeff Green

First it was MOVE Ontario, then it was provincial gas tax, and now it is something called Creating Jobs, Building Ontario.

They all add up to the same thing, money from the Province of Ontario that is transferred to municipalities to be used for infrastructure investments.

The McGuinty Liberals announced a one-time investment of $1.15 billion to an appreciative audience of municipal officials at the annual Association of Municipalities of Ontario meeting in Ottawa on August 25.

While large municipalities received the lion’s share of the money (Toronto - $238 million, Ottawa - $77 million) there was money allocated to all municipalities in the province, on a per capita basis.

Among local townships, Addington Highlands will receive $113,182, Central Frontenac $219,393, North Frontenac $89,667, South Frontenac $858,381, Tay Valley $383,132, and Lanark Highlands $352,259.

At the county or “upper tier” level, Frontenac County will receive almost $1.3 million, Lanark County $1,5 million and Lennox and Addington just over $2 million.

“It is a fantastic windfall for all the districts,” said South Frontenac Mayor Gary Davison. “The government has been grabbing our money for years and it’s good to see them recognise we need some of it back for infrastructure. We won’t have to look too far to come up with projects for the money. We have to rebuild the Loughborough Bridge next year and that alone will cost over $1 million.”

Details about what the funds can be used for are still sketchy, but Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing Jim Watson suggested that decisions about how the money should be used would be left up to the municipalities. “Municipal leaders now have the ability to choose their next infrastructure project, and to move that project forward,” Watson said.

The documentation that accompanied the funding announcement said the decision regarding how much of the funding should go to upper-tier municipalities and how much to the lower tier was based on the amount of capital expenditures made by the different municipalities between 2001 and 2005.

Frontenac County does not own or maintain any of what is normally considered municipal infrastructure, such as bridges, roads or water treatment plants, and Ministry of Finance officials could not explain why the $1.3 million was allocated to the county.

However, according to County Treasurer Marion Vanbruinessen, the renovation of the Fairmount Home, a project that cost close to $15 million, took place between 2001 and 2005. “The province considers the Fairmount rebuild as a capital infrastructure project even though we allocated it under the heading of long-term care,” Vanbruinessen told the News.

The last time the province gave out across the board infrastructure grant, county council decided to pass the money over to the townships.

At the time, North Frontenac Mayor Ron Maguire managed to convince his colleagues on council that the money should be dispersed on the basis of the amount of tax assessment in each township, rather than population.

North Frontenac traditionally loses out when permanent population is used as the basis for funding because of the high percentage of seasonal residents (80%) that make up its population.

The matter will likely be fodder for a debate at Frontenac County Council in the fall.

Feature Article - August 28, 2008

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Feature Article - August 28, 2008 North Frontenac Council -Aug 21/08By Jeff Green & Julie Druker

Council Position Filled

“I was the least likely candidate and I was chosen out of a hat.”

That's what Elaine Gunsinger said as she was being sworn in as councillor for Ward 2 in North Frontenac, replacing Wayne Cole. Cole resigned earlier this summer.

The unlikely outcome came about after a process that extended over two council meetings and two sets of votes, all leading to an eventual impasse, before four names were put into a hat and Gunsinger's was pulled out.

At the time of the July meeting of North Frontenac Council, two people had put their names forward for the position.

At that time Mayor Maguire said he was not satisfied with the response, and suggested that a second call for nominations take place, and that a process be struck for a quasi-election to take place at the August council meeting.

At this meeting Gleva Lemke and Betty Hunter were nominated by members of council, and Mayor Maguire then asked if he could nominate as well. No one expressed concerns, and Maguire then nominated Jim Bacon and Elaine Gunsinger. Betty Hunter and Gleva Lemke are both former members of council, Lemke having served 18 years and Hunter three. Betty Hunter ran for mayor in 2006, and lost out to Ron Maguire. Gleva Lemke, who lives in ward 1, did not run.

The process that council agreed upon on this occasion was to have a question and answer period, followed by a call for nominations, and then a vote.

The voting process was unusual. Rather than having one vote apiece, each councillor had the opportunity to vote for each candidate, and at the end the candidate with the most number of votes was to win. The catch was that the winning candidate needed to receive majority support, at least 4 of the 6 members of council needed to vote for them.

In the first round of voting, Betty Hunter received three votes, Gleva Lemke received three votes, Elaine Gunsinger received two votes, and Jim Bacon received one vote.

Since none of the candidates received four votes, a second round of voting was held, with all four candidates remaining on the ballot. This time each of them was supported by three members of council.

Then, in accordance with the rules council had agreed to, the names were put into a hat and Elaine Gunsinger’s was chosen.

Council rejects Tappin’s Bay dock proposal

Saying that the proponents, the Mazinaw Lake Property Owners’ Association (MPOA), have greatly increased the size of the project, North Frontenac Council has poured cold water on a proposal to increase the size of the public dock at Tappins Bay on Mazinaw Lake.

One month earlier, pending approval from the Federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans and provided liability insurance is secured, Council had given tentative approval to a proposal by the MPOA to put in a floating extension on the existing 10 x 62 ft. dock so that it can accommodate more boats.

The existing dock straddles the shore, where the water is quite shallow, and the proposal was to attach a dock that juts out into the water.

The MPOA presented a proposal to the Mississippi Valley Conservation Authority, which acts on behalf of the Federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans, and a copy of the proposal was sent to the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR).

The MNR had no problem with the proposal, and Mississippi Valley said there would be no impact on fish habitat, provided certain conditions were met, the main one being that the dock not be put in until June 1 each year, and be removed before October 31.

The township’s insurance company suggested that MPOA purchase insurance and said the township’s insurance costs would not be affected unless there is a claim.

However, when Council saw the actual proposal that MPOA had sent to the regulatory agencies, they were displeased.

“The scope has changed; it is different from what we saw,” said Mayor Ron Maguire.

The original proposal was for a single extension, but the current proposal calls for an L-shaped extension, made up of two 10x12 ft. pieces and a 10x26 ft. piece. The preferred option that was presented to Mississippi Valley called for the two 10x12 ft. pieces to be attached at one end of the existing dock and extend at a 90 degree angle into the bay, and the 10x26 ft. piece to be attached at the end of the second piece to run parallel to the shore in deeper water 24 feet from shore.

“I think we should revise our original resolution on this,” said Councilor Fred Perry. “The pitch was for one dock only, and they pay for insurance. They should continue to look for solutions to their docking problems”.

`We need to send them a letter to let them know we are annoyed that the scope has changed and they sought approval from the agencies before showing us the changes. They need to approach us first,” said Mayor Maguire.

Council voted to rescind motion #358-08, which had said Council “is in favour of the Mazinaw Property Owner's Association adding an addition to the existing municipal dock at the Tappins Bay Dock” under certain conditions.

Council has also decided that before approving any future docking proposal from MPOA, they will require that the association take out their own liability insurance.

Clar-Mill Hall woes continue

When you look for trouble you often find it. Corey Klatt, the Recreation Coordinator for North Frontenac Township, certainly found that out last month when he engaged an engineer to try to get to the bottom of the seemingly endless water-related problems at the Clarendon and Miller Hall in Plevna.

The hall used to house the Plevna branch of the Kingston Frontenac Public Library, until the library pulled out a year ago last spring because of a mould problem. Since then the township has taken several steps but water problems have persisted.

At their July 17 meeting, council directed Klatt to prepare a complete report regarding required repairs to the hall and library.

He engaged Tom Kara, a structural engineer from Totten Sims Hubicki, to look at the building. Kara recommended a new roof, heating and ventilation upgades, work on the basement, site grading and foundation damp proofing, repairs to interior finishes, and repairs to the library. The total cost of the repairs was $95,000.

At first glance, council did not see how this could be done this year, since it is not an amount that is in the budget for hall repairs.

“I'd like to see when we hit budget time in the fall, we consider a new hall and maybe combine our needs for new municipal space. Maybe we can put some repairs into it for the winter,” said Mayor Ron Maguire.

Council decided to do minor repairs to keep the hall functional until funds can be raised for a new hall.

Reverse Osmosis rejected – In their 2008 budget, North Frontenac Council put aside $14,000 to be spent on a reverse osmosis water system at the municipal office/public works garage and fire hall site because of high salt and mineral content in the water.

Corey Klatt contacted four contractors and three of them refused to quote on the job. In the words of one of them, “The water is basically untreatable and there would be no guarantee with any of our systems.”

A fourth company quoted a price of $16,000 with an annual maintenance fee of $1,000.

Citing the response of three of the contractors, Klatt did not recommend proceeding with a treatment, and council took his advice.

Frontenac Development Fund – Council received a request for comment from Frontenac County Warden Jim Vanden Hoek on an outline for how a proposed county-wide development fund would work, and what kinds of projects it could fund.

Mayor Maguire said he is “not interested in taking part in his [Vanden Hoek's] vision of the Frontenac Development fund at all” and council agreed.

Land Claim negotiations set to start again – Mayor Maguire has received a letter from Michael Johnson, of the Municipal Advisory Committee to the Algonquin Land Claim. The letter said that the Algonquins have confirmed they are ready to return to the negotiating table and an agreement in principle could be reached in two years.

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.

Aug 14/08 - CF Council

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Feature Article - August 14, 2008 Central Frontenac Council -Aug 11/08By Jeff Green

Central Frontenac Council held their only August meeting this week at the Kennebec Recreation Centre in Arden, and about 20 Arden residents showed up to watch.

Councillors defy Mayor to send message to County Council.

At their Aug 11 meeting, Central Frontenac Council passed a motion requesting that federal gas tax money which has been received by the county to fund sustainable infrastructure improvements, be divided up among the four “lower tier” municipalities in the county.

The townships themselves have received gas tax money, and the total amount the four townships have received is identical to the amount the county has received.

The gas tax funding agreement is a five-year arrangement which runs until 2010. Over the life of the arrangement, it will transfer a total of $2 million to Frontenac County. As well, based on population, Central Frontenac will receive $370,000, South Frontenac $1.37 million, North Frontenac $146,000 and Frontenac Islands $133,000.

The Central Frontenac Council motion calls for the county money to be divvied up in the same manner and transferred to the four municipalities.

The motion came about as the result of repeated questions by Councillor Gary Smith about the county’s plans for the money. “I've looked at the information coming from the county, and what I see is that everything the county is talking about refers to process. The county continues to sit on half of the gas tax money, and all it is concerned with is process. They are developing a screening process, but that screening process would not be necessary if the county decided to download its portion of the money,” he said.

The gas tax rebate for municipalities came about after years of lobbying, and is earmarked for sustainable infrastructure. Frontenac County is one of a few counties in Ontario that do not maintain any roads, bridges, or water systems.

Three other Ontario counties have downloaded their share of gas tax money to the township councils. Among these is Hastings County.

However, as Mayor Gutowski pointed out, all of the counties that transfer their gas tax money to their constituent townships do so under provisions in their Official Plans, and Frontenac County does not have an Official Plan.

“The county is in the midst of developing its Integrated Community Sustainablity Plan, or ICSP, which will include a process that is fair and equitable, and if we don't have such an appropriate process in place, we risk losing gas tax funding in future years,” Gutowski said. “The county needs to get through this process and then if we in Central Frontenac have a project that is viable, such as a salt dome that needs to be built, we will be able to apply for funding. Why should we limit ourselves to a fixed amount of money, when perhaps we will have a project that could gain greater dollars?” she asked.

Several months ago, Central Frontenac Council passed a motion asking Frontenac County Council to freeze the integrated community sustainability planning process. One of the concerns that was expressed was that the ICSP would open up gas tax funding to individuals and community groups that have projects they would like to pursue, leaving the township with no support for its infrastructure needs.

Council also passed a motion this past spring asking for money from Frontenac County’s gas tax reserves to build a salt dome at the Olden garage site on Highway 7.

“I'm reiterating my concerns today because our mayor has not acted on either of those motions. The crux of the problem is the inability of the mayors that sit on county council to take this on,” Gary Smith said.

Councilor Norm Guntensperger made a motion that the county gas tax money “be dispersed to the townships on the same proportion as the 50% that the townships already receive, to be used on sustainable projects. “

The motion won the support of every councilor.

Mayor Gutowski called the vote but did not raise her hand. “On some points we have to agree to disagree,” she said.

The meeting featured an extensive report from Public Works Manager John Simcock, which updated council on a series of public works projects.Simcock first informed council that four grader operators are scheduled to undergo a training course, at a cost of $800 each, with the money coming from the public works budget.

Councilor Bill Snyder wanted to know if any part-time, seasonal employees were being sent for training. “I do have a problem with sending people who aren’t full-time, who might take the training and find a job somewhere else,” he said.

“I think if people are employed with us, they are employed with us, and they should get the training if they show the capacity and desire for it,” said Councilor Frances Smith.

“The reason I've brought this up is that I've seen graders broken,” said Bill Snyder. “I've been here a long time. I believe in fairness, that's the bottom line, and I’ve seen people come in the back door. I can't say everything I think because this is a public meeting.”

Pesticides for poison ivy? Not yet – John Simcock said that he has two outstanding work orders to spray herbicides on some poison oak and poison ivy infestations near public beaches in the township.

“There is information about the triggering of Parkinson's disease with the use of herbicides and we also do not have anyone with the right classification to do the work. We are looking at hiring a contractor, so I'm coming to council for direction,” he said.

After a short debate about the merits and dangers of applying herbicides, Mayor Gutowski said “I sense that the majority of council would like to see signage where there are infestations this year, and do futher research next year.”

Gravel woes – John Simcock told council that he plans to put out a tender for $220,000, to tender out gravel crushing from the township’s own pits in September. $160,000 for the project will come from savings that are being realised through “re-profiling” some of the roads projects that are being completed this summer, and $60,000 from the gravel the township has received but will not be using.

“I would use the stuff we have if I could,” said Simcock.

Further deliberations on the gravel issue were conducted in an in camera session.

Vehicles to be scrapped – Four township vehicles, which Simcock said contain boxes with holes in them, bad transmissions, etc. are to be taken off the road.

Road washout costs rise – The cost of repairing the 2nd Depot Lake Road washout has ballooned to over $214,000. The manager of the Quinte Conservation Authority has informed the township that he is prepared to submit a request to the MNR for grant assistance in the hopes of receiving a grant for half of the cost, which would cut the township’s cost to $107,000.

Request denied – John Simcock said the public works department has been gathering up old scrap metal from township works yards and quarries and selling it. $5,000 has been raised thus far and John Simcock said “we will raise $20,000 when we are through with this.”

He proposed that, in a gesture of support between township departments, a portion of the projected $20,000 be used to purchase a 2006 Kawasaki 4x4 for just under $10,000, to be used by township fire crews in fighting fires in remote and brush locations.

Simcock said that Fire Chief Mark MacDonald said “he thought it would be a great idea” and Deputy Chief Bill Young was in attendance at the meeting in support of the request.

“I think it's a good idea,” said Frances Smith.

“I think we should take our time on this,” said John Purdon, “it might be shared by all crews now but the next step is we might have requests for one of these in every hall.”

“I just think it is not important at all,” said Bill Snyder, “It's just a play toy.”“It's a nice gesture, it's nice that Deputy Chief Young came, but frankly I think our Fire Chief needs to be running his own department,” said Norman Guntensperger.

“My feeling is there is no consensus,” concluded Mayor Gutowski.

Pay attention to Beaver Dams – Flooding from beaver dams has been a problem in the township this year, and a major flooding problem has occurred on the Boundary Road with South Frontenac. since it is a shared road, Simcock has been talking to South Frontenac works manager Mark Segsworth about it.

“They are having lots of problems with beaver dams this summer as well, more than normal,” Simcock said.

He then said the township would appreciate hearing from property owners about beaver dams on their property so the township can work on removing them, as they can cause dangerous flooding on township roads. The township’s phone number is 613-279-2935.

Feature Article - August 7, 2008

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Feature Article - August 7, 2008 Sydenham Residents Gain Concession on Water Levy

At the July 15 Committee of the Whole meeting, Council had rejected CAO Gord Burns’ proposal to pass Sydenham water levy bylaw, which was accompanied by a schedule of payment for all of he affected properties in the village. Costs were slated to average between $6,000 and $8,000 for most households, depending on their road frontage and other factors.

See South Frontenac Water Debate Dribbles On

At the time, Council was divided over whether the plant was overbuilt or not, and debated whether current residents should pay for water that they are unlikely to use, instead of charging those costs to new developments that could spring upon the edges of the village over the next 20 years.

As requested, Burns submitted a second report, outlining three options and asking council’s direction.

His first option reiterated his earlier recommendation that there was "no significant justification for the township absorbing additional costs for the added capacity of the plant." In support, he said the Ministry of the Environment "is certain that once more people are hooked into the system and people become more comfortable with the use of the system (the volume of water use) will climb." Burns noted that if present use should rise, council could not claw back an adjustment, if one were made.

The second, more political option would be for the township to pick up the additional capacity costs, based on an estimation by the engineering firm Tottenham Sims Hubiki that if the plant had been designed for half the present capacity, the cost saving would amount to approximately $775,000. The residents’ share of this would be $258,000. Should council decide to support this option, Burns, though not in agreement, would recommend that the township delete $258,000 from the total capital costs being charged to residents, pay that amount out of reserves, and recover it through future development.

His third option addressed a development fund created by adding a levy to property taxes throughout the township. Such a fund could become available to assist all township residents with drinking water issues. However, Burns said that the development and administration of such a fund would be complicated, time-consuming and expensive in terms of staffing required.

There was general agreement that setting up a development fund was a separate issue from the question of whether or not Sydenham residents were being asked to fund the capital costs of a water plant with up to 50% excess capacity.

Councillor Hahn said he found the argument that the plant had an overlarge capacity persuasive, and questioned who should fairly pay for the excess capacity: the present residents, or new development as it accesses the water system? Robinson agreed, saying, "If [residents] are only using 33% [of the plant’s capacity], the long and the short of it is that they’re being overcharged and it’s our job to help them."

A motion was made by David Hahn, seconded by Councilor John Fillion, to accept Burns’ report, with option #2 being the preferred one It passed 5 to 4, supported by Fillion, Robinson, McPhail, Hahn and York.

The impact of this decision on individual Sydenham ratepayers will be calculated in the coming weeks and a new levy bylaw will be prepared.

Feature Article - August 7, 2008

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Feature Article - August 7, 2008 South Frontenac Township Council Aug 5, 2008By Wilma Kenny

BEDFORD BLOW-UP: An already edgy South Frontenac Council meeting erupted into disarray when council defeated a motion to "not withdraw from the Automatic Aid Agreement with Rideau Lakes Township to service a portion of Bedford District."

Fifteen Bedford residents stormed to their feet when this happened, ignoring Mayor Gary Davison’s reminder that this was not a public meeting. They demanded that their concerns be heard, either immediately or at a public meeting. Their unofficial spokesperson, Marty Humphrey, asked what had become of a petition with 150 signatures demanding that the agreement be maintained, and insisted that at no time had council held an open meeting so residents could express their concerns to all councilors.

The issue of concern is that at present the Rideau Lakes fire department has an agreement to respond to South Frontenac’s emergency calls along that portion of Bedford Road closest to Westport.

The arrangement is unusual, in that it amounts to a purchase of service, whereby the fire hall in Westport is the first responder for calls in a portion of Bedford, and South Frontenac pays a fee each year of a few thousand dollars.

The agreement differs from standard mutual aid agreements where fire departments along municipal borders help each other out for free.

Council had discussed withdrawing from the agreement at a Comiteee of the Whole meeting in June but at Councilor Hahn’s recommendation, the issue was referred to the fire marshall and the township fire committee for further discussion.

In his notes to council, CAO Burns stated that the Committee of the Whole had recommended that council not withdraw from the agreement at this time.

However, on Tuesday night, Councilors Hahn, McPhail, and Stowe, and Mayor Robinson voted not to withdraw from the agreement while Councilors Fillion, Hicks, York and Deputy Mayor Robinson voted "no; they voted not to not withdraw. Councilor Ron Vandewal abstained, as he had been on the fire committee and in these kinds of votes an abstention is equivalent to a no vote.

Councilor Hahn vociferously questioned the legality of reducing a service on what he interpreted as a tie vote on a negative option and he asked that the township seek their solicitor’s opinion on the wording of the motion.

Bedford Councillor Del Stowe noted that Bedford’s complement of firefighters is low: down from 30 to only 13. Councilor Ron Vandewal said that the Bedford firefighters have complained to him about never having any firefighting to do.

Mayor Davison assured the Bedford residents that council would revisit the issue at a Committee of the Whole meeting, though he could not promise a public meeting. He said that the present agreement will remain in place for several months yet. The Bedford residents thanked their two representatives and expressed their unhappiness with the rest of council before leaving the meeting.

PROPOSED WASTE MANAGEMENT PLAN

Public Works Manager Mark Segsworth brought a proposal that council approve the Sustainability Committee’s recommendation to "accept the Public Information Program (developed by Totten Sims Hubicki), with the inclusion of the $2.00/bag household garbage user pay charge and the remaining costs funded from the general tax rate effective September 1, 2009 for presentation to the public."

In support of this, Segsworth stated: "We have an inconsistent program: six active waste sites are too many for a township this size, blue box requirements vary from district to district, and Bedford’s waste disposal leaves much to be desired. South Frontenac is managing solid waste in four different ways. A standardized system would be in the township’s best interests."

He noted that a user-pay system could finance up to half of the waste disposal system, thus reducing taxes, while also providing a strong incentive to divert more solid waste by recycling.

Councilor John Fillion said "I wasn’t at the last committee meeting: you see what happens when the cat’s away." Fillion disagrees with the user-pay system, and he outlined a scenario whereby ditches would be filling with garbage, farm dumps would re-open, and seasonal residents would not be contributing their share to the costs of running the township.

Councilor Ron Vandewal noted that the Sustainability Committee’s vote on bag tags had not been close and Fillion’s opposition would not have changed the outcome.

Deputy Mayor Bill Robinson expressed concerns that a more amalgamated waste management program might mean the rest of the township would use the Portland waste site, and Portland might lose their hard-earned reserves.

Mayor Davison commented, "Last week you seemed very willing to pump water out of Sydenham, but this week you’re not willing to share waste disposal resources."

Mark Segsworth assured Robinson that this was a 20-year plan, which would be brought into effect in stages.

David Hahn said this was a big report that addressed complex issues. He noted that the Sustainability Committee had three engineers on it, and a community member who worked for Kingston Area Recycling, as well as council and community representatives.

The motion to accept the proposal passed, supported by Hahn, McPhail, Stowe, Vandewal and Davison.

Public information centres will be :

Bedford District Community Hall (Glendower)- 9:00 am Saturday, August 23Storrington Centre, Sunbury - 7:00 pm, Tuesday Sept 9Lions Hall, Verona -7:00 pm Wed, Sept 10Town Hall, Sydenham - 7:00 pm, Sept 11

Coyote kills up, housing starts down

Eight coyote kills of cattle were recorded in July, at a total cost of just over $3,000 to the province. Construction starts in the township have been somewhat lower for the first half of 2008, compared to last year. There is no indication this latter fact is in any way connected to coyote predation.

Library Advisory Committee

Council established a committee to advise on plans for a new library and enlarged municipal office space. Public representatives are: Stephanie Hook, Steve Lapp, John McDougall and Wilma Kenny; Council representatives are: Fillion, Vandewal, Hahn and Robinson.

Township employees praised for excellent work

Lorrie Ann Lane of Verona wrote to thank Assistant Clerk Angela Maddox "for going above and beyond the call of duty" to assist in finding a temporary replacement for crossing guard at Prince Charles School during a time of family illness. "Residents should know there are still good people in the world we live in."

Ron Maguire, Mayor of North Frontenac, thanked the mayor and council for sharing South Frontenac’s Chief Building Officer, Alan Revill, on a part-time temporary basis, until a replacement could be found. "We could not have been better cared for. Courteous, knowledgeable and professional, he has provided guidance and assistance to every one of us here in North Frontenac."

Sept 11, 2008 - CF Council

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Feature Article - September 11, 2008 Central Frontenac Council -Sept 8/08By Jule Koch Brison

CF Railway Museum gets new life from Council

Garry Giller, representing the board of directors of the Central Frontenac Railway Museum Committee, came to council seeking renewed support for the project, and left elated by what he received.

The committee was formed almost eight years ago to build a museum to house Gary Cooke’s extensive collection of railway memorabilia. The original plan was to build a replica of the old Sharbot Lake railway station. Over the years, the committee has come to believe that a museum by itself would not be viable unless it were combined with a multi-use building that could also meet the township’s need for more administrative space, house the library, and serve as a heritage/cultural centre.

In Giller’s submission to council, he wrote that if council were to withdraw its support, the committee would abandon the idea of building and continue to pursue the concept of a “Living Museum”, where parts of the collection are displayed in different locations.

Councilor Harvey said, “It all comes down to money. We’ll have staff working out of trailers, what’s our priority?”

The railway group has raised $10,000 and is prepared to do more fundraising, but would be unable to maintain a building. Council agreed that any building would have to be owned by the township.

Two issues that council addressed were the survey and acquisition of the original station site, which is a small triangle of land, and collaborating with the committee in building a multi-use building.

Councilor Bob Harvey told Giller that the county has undertaken a project with four other counties to purchase the old K&P line. “We’ve purchased it; we’ve paid the money but we have no deed for it yet.” He said that part of the original station site may be within the line, but “It would cost more to survey it [the line] than we paid for it”.

Gary Giller informed council that he has consulted with a surveyor, Dan Cormier, who “said that for $5,000 he could get it straightened out”.

Council had set aside $10,000 in their 2008 budget to pay for a survey for the railway museum project, so the $5,000 falls well within ght budget.

The other question is whether the township could acquire the site from CP Rail. Councilor Frances Smith pointed out that the ownership of the site is the fundamental issue that needs to be settled, “If the site’s not available we’ll look elsewhere,” she said. She then brought forward a motion to contact CP Rail to ascertain whether they would be willing to sever the site from the larger purchase. The motion passed unanimously.

Councilor Gary Smith said, “We should also examine the feasibility of a multi-use building in conjunction with the railway committee; it wouldn’t cost us anything except staff time”. He brought forward a motion to that effect, which passed with one dissenting vote, that of Councilor Harvey.

Mayor Janet Gutowski told Giller that his presentation was timely, in that the municipality is examining its own needs for space.

GIFT FOR DUCHENE Mayor Gutowski presented outgoing acting CAO John Duchene with a handmade canoe paddle. She said that after the new council was elected they had lost staff, and it was a “steep learning curve”. She said that Duchene had ensured that council “wasn’t up a creek without one of these”.

SPEED LIMIT SIGN: Ernest Barr brought a request that the township put up a speed limit sign on the Long Lake Road before the Mountain Grove sign. He said there used to be a sign there. Council agreed to his request and referred it to the Public Works Manager.

BROWN’S APPLICATION: Township Planner Glen Tunnock reported on several matters to council.

Tunnock recommended that a zoning bylaw to allow Doug Brown to sever a lot on St. Andrew Lake near Godfrey so that his sister can build a cottage, be adopted. The new lot would be a “water access lot”, to be accessed from a property on the north side of the lake. Councilor Bill Snyder objected on the basis that a permanent agreement to park a car for a boat launch to the new lot is illegal. Glen Tunnock replied, “I’m not a solicitor and can’t say whether it’s illegal; solicitors for both parties have looked at the agreement.” Council passed the bylaw.

BRIDGEN’S ISLAND: A bylaw to permit new development on 14 lots within a proposed plan of subdivision on Bridgen’s Island on Eagle Lake was tabled pending further advice from the planning department. The proposal is an attempt to take a 30-year-old co-operative arrangement between 14 lot owners on the island and give each of the lot owners a deed to their lot.

Since the applications were filed, Eagle Lake has been deemed a “highly sensitive trout lake”, severely limiting development. The township’s solicitor has indicated that the old rules would apply, but the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing has stated that “…The creation of more than 10 lots would not meet the intent of the Township’s new Official Plan Policy”. Tunnock told council, “It would be imprudent to proceed with the zoning amendment. Nobody wants to go to the OMB [Ontario Municipal Board]. Hearings are expensive”.

Councilor John Purdon asked about the status of the application at the county level and was informed that it is stalled there as well.

ZONING BYLAW HARMONIZATION: Tunnock also reported on a public meeting that was held to investigate harmonizing zoning by-laws for waterfront development for six municipalities: Tay Valley, Drummond/North Elmsley, Lanark Highlands, Rideau Lakes, and South and Central Frontenac. The intent is to have municipalities adopt common planning regulatory approaches so that lakes that straddle two or more municipal boundaries are treated consistently. Tunnock said that Central Frontenac has higher standards than the other municipalities, and that council isn’t obliged to harmonize. Mayor Gutowski commented, “It’s excellent that municipalities are talking to their neighbours”.

COMPREHENSIVE ZONING BYLAW UPDATE: Since the township’s Official Plan has been updated, Tunnock urged Council to update its Comprehensive Zoning Bylaw within the next six months “so as not to have two documents out of sync for too long”. Public workshops and open houses would be held, but Councilor Frances Smith objected, saying “This is an aggressive schedule – we don’t want to be rushed.. I don’t like public open houses in December”.

Councilor Gary Smith suggested that the open houses be held before the public workshops so “If issues are grating on people’s minds they could bring them forward. We could get input early.”

OMB HEARINGS: No date has yet been set for a hearing on an issue that is presently before the OMB – a proposal by 1000 Islands Concrete to build a facility on Highway 7. The proposal had been approved by the township and the province but an individual appealed the decision to the OMB. Hearings on another issue before the OMB, the Garrison Lake subdivision, is set for Sept. 29 & 30.PUBLIC WORKS UPDATE: Mayor Gutowski and Councilor Gary Smith both complimented Public Works manager John Simcock on the Zealand and Second Depot Lake Roads, saying they have received many favourable comments about the work.

Gary Smith asked Simcock about letters to the editor in the Frontenac News complaining about damage to vehicles from tarring and chipping on Hwy 509. He said that speed limit signs were put up but they were stolen.

Simcock said that four trucks that are “beyond repairing” will be retired. Councilor Snyder pointed out that those trucks have sanders and asked how the roads would be kept up with four fewer sanders. Simcock indicated that the work would be done more efficiently and they would be able to reduce routes, also reducing wear and tear on the equipment. He said that taxpayers would not be waiting for service.

Simcock will be presenting a full roads plan later, which he said would give a better understanding of how the roads will be serviced.

Simcock mentioned that township employee Terry Goodenough is seriously ill and council expressed their support and concern for Terry and his family.

Councilor Snyder also asked about the grading of the roads in his vicinity and Simcock said they had been graded that day. Simcock said the problem is that the roads need more material and the correct mix of material. “Once they’re loaded properly you won’t have to grade every 20 days,” he said. Snyder said that there’s not enough material for all the roads. Simcock replied that that is true, but they would concentrate first on getting the primary roads in shape.

He invited the councilors to “put on hard hats and come down to the pit – what you’ll see is not what you’re used to.”

FIRE CHIEF UPDATE: Council agreed to support an application brought forward by Fire Chief Mark MacDonald to the Frontenac Community Futures Development Corporation for a $3,915 grant to erect a communications tower at the Piccadilly Fire Station. The fire department has a 96 ft tower that it is not using, and which it is contributing to the project.

ATV PURCHASE DENIED AGAIN: Mark MacDonald again raised the issue of the purchase of an ATV that would be used by both the roads and fire departments. The purchase was denied at the August 11 council meeting. Mayor Gutowski said that council was wondering why the request hadn’t come from the fire department. MacDonald said it was a joint venture between the public works and fire departments, which have been raising money for the purchase of the ATV through collecting and selling scrap metal. $12,000 has been raised so far. MacDonald said that it’s the firefighters who have been volunteering and driving the metal to Kimco to be sold.

He said that the packs that firefighters have to carry into inaccessible areas weigh 70 lbs. and the ATV would lessen the possibility of heart attacks. “It isn’t a toy”, he said in reference to a comment that Councilor Bill Snyder had made at the Aug. 11 meeting about the ATV.

Councilor John Purdon asked if the firefighters use their personal ATVs and if that would be more efficient than buying one ATV. Macdonald replied that borrowed equipment can be faulty and told of an incident where the brakes had failed on an ATV that was borrowed from a farmer. He said the ATV would be kept at the Mountain Grove station, just like the Jaws of Life are kept at Sharbot Lake and there would not be pressure to buy one for each department.

Councilor Frances Smith made a motion that council reconsider the purchase of the ATV, but Councilor Gary Smith said that if the fire department needs an ATV it should be included in the budget. He made a motion that the purchase should be deferred to budget time, which nullified Frances Smith’s motion. Mayor Gutowski said, “There’s no consensus here.”

Mark MacDonald gave council a heads-up that he’s been approached by Canadian Helicopters about an emergency helipad being built behind the Arden station.

Central Frontenac Looks North for New CAOby Jeff Green

As early as next week, Central Frontenac Township will have new leadership in place.

At their meeting on Monday, Council approved a bylaw appointing Mark Hall as Chief Administrative Officer (CAO).

According to Central Frontenac Mayor Janet Gutowski, Mark Hall is expected to take up his post at the beginning of next week.

Mark Hall’s most recent posting was as the CAO of the

Town of Moosonee. Previously he worked in the far north, as public works manager in Iqaluit, Nunavut, a position he left in October of 2007 to take on the CAO role in Moosonee.

In the 1990s, before moving north, Mark Hall worked for years in Kanata, where he was the deputy clerk with responsibility for bylaw enforcement.

Mr. Hall currently resides in Almonte.

The appointment of Mark Hall fills a void that was created when interim CAO John Duchene resigned his position at the end of August.

John Duchene took on the position in January of 2007, replacing Heather Fox, who was on a medical leave. His three-month contract was extended several times and he remained on the job for a total of 18 months. Duchene informed Council in June that he was leaving his position. A three-month search culminated in a series of interviews by a committee mad up of councillors and staff.

A second interview phase, with two candidates, took place on Wednesday, September 3, and the committee then recommended that Council offer the position to Mark Hall.

“This is good news for the township,” said Mayor Janet Gutowski. “We now have permanent people filling the Public Works and CAO positions for the first time since the election in 2006.

Gutowski said that Mark Hall originally hails from Northern Ireland, where he was a law enforcement officer.

Sept 11, 2008 - Editorial: Let Firefighters have ATV

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Editorial - September 11, 2008 Memo to Central Frontenac Council: let firefighters have ATVEditorial by Jule Koch Brison

Last month Central Frontenac Council rebuffed their public works manager, John Simcock. He asked if money that had been raised through a staff initiative to pick up and sell scrap metal that had been lying around works yards and in ditches around the township for years could be used to buy a 4x4 for use by the fire department.

The scrap metal reclamation has been a joint project of the public works and fire departments and represents the kind of cross department cooperation that you would think the township Council would want to encourage. Simcock was told by Council that it should be the fire chief who asked for equipment for his own department.

So, this month, Fire Chief Mark MacDonald came to Council and asked if this extra money could be used to buy a used 4x4, which is being held by a dealer who would like to sell it to a volunteer fire department, where it will be used for the public good.

Council couldn’t agree. Some thought it shouldn’t be purchased because it isn’t in the budget.

That’s the point; it doesn’t have to be in the budget because the money was raised by the staff; it will not cost the taxpayers any money.

Some wondered if the vehicle is needed. The Fire Chief and the Public Works Manager both said the vehicle would be an asset. Since when does Council know more than their senior managers about the operations of public works and the fire service?

This is not a difficult thing. The staff raised the money. They want to spend it making the township safer. Council should wake up, and approve the purchase at their next meeting, before they insult the public works and fire departments any further.

Sept 18/08 - AH Council

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Feature Article - September 18, 2008 Addington Highlands Council –Sept 15, 2008By Jule Koch Brison

A plan by Fritz and Ursula Nussberger to build apartments on the back of an office that they are constructing to house Land O’ Lakes Community Services (LOLCS) will require an amendment to both Addington Highlands’ Official Plan and its Comprehensive Zoning Bylaw.

The Nussbergers brought their plan to council on Monday night (Sept. 15). The lot on which they intend to build is zoned commercial (C1) which precludes residential use. As well, Addington Highlands has no provision for multi-residential zoning.

The Nussbergers said that LOLCS cannot afford the square footage that they originally requested, so the office building has been made smaller, and they “would like to add apartments to the back of the office space to take full advantage of the property”.

They pointed out that there is a building in Northbrook, the Douglas Building, which is also zoned C1 but has 5 apartments, and which has been exempted from the Official Plan.

The Nussbergers were informed by Township Clerk Jack Pauhl that the Douglas Building was given an exemption because it was built before the Official Plan was adopted. He told the Nussbergers that to build the apartments they must first apply for an amendment to the Official Plan and Zoning Bylaw, and after consultation with the township’s planner, a public meeting would have to be held. Pauhl said that if there are no appeals, the process might be completed by the end of October,

The Nussbergers said they had started to build the day before the meeting and that LOLCS requires the building to be completed by April 1.

Reeve Henry Hogg commented, “They’ve [LOLCS] known for two and a half years that they have to move and all of a sudden it’s a mad rush.”

Ursula Nussberger asked if they could go ahead with the office space and Jack Pauhl said there might be an issue with the fire escape – a second door might be needed. Other than that, if the building inspector approves it, the Nussbergers can go ahead with the office part of the building.

ADDINGTON ROAD 5: Erroll and Mary Ruth attended the meeting to seek help from council in stopping the erosion and flooding of their road. Erroll Ruth said, “If something isn’t done now we won’t be able to get into our house”. He said that the erosion is being worsened by ATV traffic and asked that the township shore up the road with large stones and with crushed stone.

Addington Road 5 is an un-maintained township road, and council has received other requests from property owners to fix un-maintained roads. Reeve Hogg said to the Ruths, “We could go look at it but there’s no point if we’re not going to do anything about it”.

Deputy Reeve Helen Yanch suggested that council should hold a special meeting to decide what to do about all the un-maintained roads. “If we do something for them [the Ruths] we’ll have to do it for all”.

Council will meet to discuss the issue on Sept. 23 and will inform the Ruths of their decision afterwards.

POLICING ISSUES IN DENBIGH: Yvonne Rosien came to council to discuss policing issues in the Denbigh area.

She had written a letter to council describing a lack of police response to calls. She said that her husband’s truck was stolen and six vehicles ransacked in one night, and that three people had called the police but “they chose not to come in.” She also described another incident where “a fellow was brandishing a chainsaw and threatening to burn everybody down and they chose not to come in again… They felt it wasn’t worth it to come all the way to Denbigh; they dropped the ball”.

She said she had spoken to an officer, whom she did not name, who told her that because Addington Highlands had chosen not to renew their contract with the OPP, but were on a pay-per-use agreement, they did not need to patrol the area.

Reeve Hogg replied emphatically that that wasn’t true. He said, “We’re paying our fair share; we pay policing costs”. He asked for the name of the officer.

Yvonne Rosien did not name the officer, but said that after she wrote the letter she had a positive meeting with Detachment Commander Pat Finnegan and other OPP officers, and now felt that what she had been told by the one officer wasn’t true.

Councilor Janice Kerr concurred, saying that the police presence had been strong at Countryfest, which was held on the weekend. Kerr said, “They’ve made a good start …There were five officers at the dance; it was almost overkill”.

Rosien said that over the years there had been incidents and problems but people “turned their backs; they didn’t report them”.

Denbigh residents have now had their own policing meeting, and have established a sort of Neighborhood Watch. “We’re taking back the town; we’re not going to let them scare people,” said Rosien

Another Denbigh resident, who was also in attendance at the council meeting, interjected, “People are scared, though”.

DENBIGH WASTE SITE: The Ministry of Environment (MoE) is asking for more tests to be done before it approves an expansion of the Denbigh waste site. Reeve Hogg said, “The costs will go up and there’s no guarantee, but I guess we don’t have any choice”. Council agreed to comply with the new test requirements.