Province says no to emergency funding request - 

Addington Highlands Reeve Henry Hogg said it came as no surprise when the township’s request for provincial funding to cover some of the costs of clearing trees from roads after the Boxing Day ice storm was rejected. “I didn’t appreciate when they told us that we should have cut our trees in the first place,” Hogg said.

Roads Superintendent Royce Rosenblath agreed with Hogg’s assessment, adding, “It’s like telling someone that if you kept your house sandbagged all the time you wouldn’t be flooded. You can’t really protect yourself against mother nature.”

Rosenblath also pointed out that the Ministry of Natural Resources would find that a lot of work will be required to open up their forestry roads in the spring as the result of the storm.

The township has been able to keep a crew on the brushing job throughout the last month or so because of the easy winter.

Denbigh waste site – A design and operation plan has been completed for an expanded Denbigh waste site and an application for a certificate of approval is ready to go in to the Ministry of the Environment.

The only outstanding issue is a piece of land that the township is considering for purchase, which was discussed at an in-camera session following the public council meeting.

“But whether it is resolved or not the application can still go in,” said Reeve Hogg.

The Denbigh site will remain closed until the ministry can consider the application. In the meantime, Denbigh residents will keep using the Vennachar waste site.

Funding for Canada Day – The township agreed to support an application for $1,400 for the Denbigh Recreation Committee to support Canada Day fireworks and other costs.

Fire prevention pamphlet – Council approved putting a fire prevention pamphlet in with the interim tax bills that will be going out shortly. 

Saying that the current council does not “deal with any of the issues that are necessary and important”, Logan Murray has begun his campaign for mayor of Central Frontenac.

A flyer outlining his background and future plans was sent out in the mail last week, and Murray said he plans to get out campaigning in the coming weeks and to hold public meetings later in the spring and summer.

Municipal elections are scheduled for October 25, and while would-be politicians tend to make use of summer events to meet and greet potential voters, campaigns rarely heat up until after Labour Day.

But Murray, who put in his nomination on January 2, said he “plans to communicate with people more” during the campaign and after, if he is elected.

This is his second run for mayor of Central Frontenac. He tried to be the first mayor of Central Frontenac in 1997, and has served one term as councilor from Kennebec ward (2004 – 2006). He ran again for Council in 2006, but was defeated by a handful of votes.

Rather than running for council again, Murray said he is running for mayor because he found he had little influence on council decisions when he sat on council.

“Basically I've always been ignored on council. I got a roads committee going for a short time during the last term, but then it was killed by the mayor and some of the other councilors.”

Roads have always been a prime concern for Murray. “I've always been against the position of Public Works Manager. What we really need is a working roads superintendent, with a roads committee to give political direction ... I've always said that the best way to promote economic development in this township is to put people in houses, and the biggest impediment to doing that is bad roads. People need to know they can get out to work,” he said.

Murray is also critical of the way the township has handled the school closure issue. He thinks that the township should be pushing hard for all of the schools to remain open, and argues that the school buildings should be turned into multi-use facilities.

“The schools should be used for recreational purposes, as outreach medical clinics, and more, but the township needs to take the lead to make this happen because the province and the school board aren't going to,” he said.

Other concerns he expresses are about public access to council, which he says was promised but not delivered by the incumbent, Mayor Janet Gutowski, who intends to run again. He is also incensed that council has moved all its meetings to Sharbot Lake, eliminating the practice of rotating meetings between Sharbot Lake and Mountain Grove.

“I found it unbelievably insulting that they moved all the meetings to Sharbot Lake without making any announcement. I think it's because people came to meetings in Mountain Grove and they don't come out to the meetings in Sharbot Lake,” he said.

Murray would also like to see the influence of Frontenac County curtailed, and gas tax rebates that the county has received transferred to the local municipalities for road and bridge maintenance. 

Bret Colman, the honorable Monique Smith, Sally Colman and Beth Pointer, executive director of Camping Ontario. Photo courtesy of Bret and Sally Colman

This weekend on Saturday Feb.13 from 10am-2pm the Frontenac Stewardship Council and Frontenac Stewardship Foundation will be holding their first Family Panfish Fishing Derby at the Desert Lake Resort near Verona and the event is entirely free of charge. Prizes will be awarded; there will be a free BBQ, hot beverages, free skating and a bonfire with marshmallows for roasting. It’s an excellent opportunity for new anglers and there will be free fishing gear on hand for those without. Because the event coincides with the MNR’s “Family Fishing Weekend” no fishing licenses are required.

To ensure that enough food is prepared, interested participants are encouraged to pre-register by contacting Cam McCauley of the Frontenac Stewardship Council at (613) 531-5714 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or with Bret Colman of Desert Lake Resort at (613) 374-2196.

The event promises to be fun for the whole family and participants are encouraged to dress warmly and to bring something to sit on.

Cam McCauley, coordinator of the Frontenac Stewardship Council (FSC), is thrilled to be able to offer this free first time event, which was made possible through a grant from the Ontario Stewardship Fund. He says the purpose of the event is to “raise awareness and to promote fisheries and angling in Frontenac County.”

Bret Colman, co-owner and operator of the resort, is also a council member of the FSC and he and his wife Sally offered the resort as a location for the event. Bret explained, “We really want to show people that the fun on the lake does not have to end once the ice freezes. We are also hoping to get more youth involved in fishing and angling.”

Bret and Sally purchased the 36-year-old resort from Sally’s parents years ago. The resort was presented with the 2009 Ontario Campground of the Year Award by the Ontario Private Campground Association in November. The Colmans believe it is their diverse recreation program for children and teenagers in particular that helped them to win the award.

A tough budget, in an election year to boot South Frontenac Council met an hour earlier than usual in order to discuss the 2010 budget, managing to review Environmental Services and Roads.

CAO Wayne Orr outlined the challenge facing Council: "This draft budget has been drawn up following Council's instructions [to keep taxes at an absolute minimum]. We are making the budget palatable this year by significantly drawing down our reserves."

As an example, he noted that the Township had to come up with $1.2 million as its share in order to receive $2.4 million in Government grants for capital expenditures on infrastructure (roads, bridges and library.)

In addition to draining township reserves without replacing the money, the draft budget calls for a 4% increase in the levy to ratepayers, which would bringit to $10.5 million.

Public Works Manager Mark Segsworth said he is concerned that reliance on road reserves may sacrifice future years at the expense of this year. Segsworth said the Township's greatest asset was itsroad system.

"What about its staff?"  interjected treasurer Bracken, bringing a moment's relief to an otherwise tense evening.

Segsworth said it's essential to continue to invest in roads if they are to hold their value, and there is little likelihood of receiving much in the way of grants in the coming years.

"At this rate, there will be no more road reserves left in a few more years. And it's 'penny wise, pound foolish,' if we don't maintain our road assets."

Both he and Wayne Orr placed the same dilemma before Council: increase taxes or cut services.

Deputy Mayor Vandewal said, "We have to at least try to stay where we are: we can't go backward." 

"We'll have to cut services," thundered Robinson, declaring he had no confidence in five-year roads plans.

Councilor David Hahn noted that this year's harder to predict, as it is the township's first amalgamated budget. He also commented that new development, although it means a broader tax base, also means more wear on roads and demands for services. Several councillors seemed ready to refer many budgetary issues as to next year's (new) council.

Budget deliberations will continue at the next Council meeting, March 2nd.

In relation to waste management, Mark Segsworth reviewed Council's earlier agreement with the Sustainability Committee's recommendation that waste disposal costs which are for the public good, should be moved into the general tax base, while collection services which provide individual benefit, would be a separate set charge of $85. per household.

Because Bedford won't have collection until September, their portion of the collection service charge for Jan-Aug will go toward building up their (greatly depleted) reserves for landfill closure.

Verona Medical Clinic

John McDougall, speaking on behalf of the Verona and district Health Services Committee, outlined their plan to purchase the Verona Clinic, with the intent of leasing it back to the new doctors. He asked whether Council would consider underwriting $200,000 as a bond, which the Verona Community Association would repay with interest through fundraising. All agreed that the legal details of such an arrangement would have to be clarified, but council was very supportive of the project in principle, and agreed to discuss it further.

Development issues in Sydenham area -

Three delegates spoke of their concerns about a proposed development at the corner of Rutledge and Sydenham Roads (Moon's Corners). At issue was the third reading of a by-law to rezone some of the property belonging to S. Gordon from Rural to Special Rural Commercial, which would allow the establishment of a gas station and the potential for a listed range of other commercial activities.

Fran Willes noted that there was a lot more development proposed for the Rutledge Road area and said she and her husband were concerned that there had been inadequate research done on water resources, and the general environmental sensitivity due to proximity to lake and wetlands. She alsomentioned that this is within an UNESCO biosphere area.

Peter Svendsen was concerned about increased water run-off and drainage problems caused by development of a low-lying area, and asked if construction blasting would affect local wells. He also asked whether locating retail outlets just outside the village was a good overall plan for the district.

A third neighbour, Jack Springer, had asked for a draw-down test on either his well, or one on the Willes' property, and wondered why such a test had been agreed to, then cancelled. He also spoke of the potential negative impact on the businesses in the core area of Sydenham.

Deputy Mayor Ron Vandewal reported that he had checked with the OMB, and it was quite clear that council could not rule on issues of business competition: it was up to the business owners themselves to prove that a change would be destructive to their businesses.

Township Planner Lindsay Mills said he had just received a petition from Sydenham merchants expressing concern that the Gordon application would create a duplication of the businesses that exist in the village. He said there had been a number of studies, peer-reviewed, that were all positive. All state that the proposed use of the property can work, with certain caveats: that the storm water design should be reviewed, a site-plan developed, and the design of the gas station should be monitored.

Currently, the Public Works Manager is doing a review of the increasing development on Rutledge Road. Reminding council that a carefully developed site plan can address most of the residents' concerns, he passed out copies of Section 41 of the planning act, which lists the things that a site plan can control: locations of buildings, facilities, traffic access,ground cover, storage of garbage, snow ploughing, etc. Mills recommended Council approve the zone change.

Council was reluctant to do so. Councilor Jim Hicks said water run-off had not been sufficiently addressed. Councilor Bill Robinson said things were moving too fast, that he didn't like being handed last-minute information by Mills.

Ron Vandewal said he found it hard to support, as it stands, that he wants to see the MOE's report, and well draw downs as promised. Also, in regard to traffic, he asked who would pay for traffic lights, if it were later found they are needed. He also noted that the drawings for Phase 5 do not agree with Phase 1 drawings.

Councilors Alan McPhail and David Hahn both worried that this was only the beginning of what had the potential to become a very large development, one that should not be initiated until council has revised the official plan to include policies for the development of Sydenham village. Why, for instance, encourage development outside the area that could be easily serviced by the Sydenham water system? Both spoke in favour of a larger plan for the future of Sydenham, before doing piecemeal development in the area.

Councilor Larry York said there were too many maybes, not enough facts, the proposal demanded "too much, too fast."

Councilor Del Stowe asked why the township would wait for an applicant to get this far, and then hold them off. "Why aren't we ever proactive?" he asked.

Ron Vandewal felt the present plan was too broad, citing a history of poorly enforced site plans. He asked for something in writing from the Ministry of the Environment regarding the potential impact of a gas station upstream from the lake.

Mr. Clarke, the developer's representative, said that draw down tests on a well on the property and a well directly across the road both showed an adequate supply of water. The other neighboring wells could not be tested, under current MOE regulations, for two of them were not cased to the surface of the ground, and the third was not currently in use.

He said qualified engineers had said storm water and traffic could be satisfactorily controlled. He also said it is not the developer's intent to draw business from Sydenham, but to enhance the area.

In the end, Council deferred the third reading of the zone change by-law until March 2, pending further information from the MoE and the Cataraqui Conservation Authority.

Building permits -

Councilor Hicks raised the issue of building permits, saying he wants to see a township policy about them. Mayor Davison said building permits were governed by the building code act, and that the township has no policy re exemptions, therefore there are no exemptions.Councilor Robinson said he felt it was unfair that the township had just turned down a request for exemption, yet the township itself doesn't pay building fees. He listed the Sydenham water plant and the upcoming library and ambulance buildings.

CAO Wayne Orr replied that council had made it quite clear there were to be no further exemptions, including the township. (Note: at the last meeting of the library development committee, of which Councilor Robinson is a member, the architect had been directed to include building permit fees in the budget. Councilor Robinson was unable to be present for much of that meeting, so may not have known this.)

Budget debates to begin -

CAO Orr presented a preliminary budget summary for the first amalgamated township budget. Debate will begin next week at the Committee of the Whole meeting, and is expected to continue at the Feb 16 Council meeting, with the final revision coming for approval on March 2nd. All these meetings are open to the public, and should be lively, as Council's present directive of a 1 to 2% tax increase presents challenges that may be possible to meet only by reduction in services across the township, or serious draw downs of the reserves

Why is the County sitting on all that gas tax money?

Mayor Davison responded to this query by Councilor Del Stowe by saying that County Council was struggling with this question, and hoped to have some answers soon.

Closing of Prison farms

Councilor Ron Vandewal suggested the township forward their letter of concern to Vic Toews, the new Minister of Public Safety, sending copies to the Prime Minister and MP Scott Reid. A letter on file from the previous minister, Peter VanLoan, is not encouraging, and gives no acknowledgment to the value of learning transferable work skills in a farm setting.

Bid accepted for Louborough Lake Bridge construction

Clearwater Structures of Ajax has been chosen to build the Louborough Lake bridge. The winning bid was $1.376 million, which is much lower than the price estimate on the project. The estimate was $1.8 million. Of the nine bids that were submitted, there was wide range of pricing, ranging to over $1.9 million.

Public Works Manager Mark Segsworth said he is not familiar with the bidder, but the tenders were peer reviewed by Jewell Engineering, which recommended Clearwater, based not only on the fact that they were the lowest bidder by over $150,000, but also on Jewell’s experience with Clearwater on numerous projects. Construction is expected to begin in the spring and the new branch should be ready for occupancy by the fall. 

Central Frontenac budget

Central Frontenac Council had their first chance to go over budget numbers this week, when Public Works Manager Mike Richardson spent three hours going over some of the numbers in the public works budget, which could run over $6 million this year if it is not cut back.

Although the projected spending is only about $100,000 higher than last year, the township will be receiving less grant money this year, and based on the numbers currently before Council, Central Frontenac ratepayers would be on the hook for $700,000 more in taxes in 2010 for the public works department alone.

With Treasurer Judy Gray on vacation, and some of the reserve funds and other details not being available, Council did not concern itself with making any immediate cuts to the spending estimates that Mike Richardson presented to them.

One of the first items that Richardson presented was an inventory of all roads equipment owned by the township and a 20-year plan to keep the stock of equipment in good repair, based on estimates about how long different pieces of equipment are likely to last.

The projected costs for 2010 is $400,000 for a new tandem truck ($280,000) and new brusher ($120,000).

“If you don't let me replace that equipment this year, you save $400,000. But two years from now I will be asking you for a million dollars. I'm saying we have to find a way to put this $400,000 in to keep your budget on an even keel. But if you want to keep the fleet you need in order to provide the level of service you provide now, the money will have to be spent sometime.”

The possibility of spreading payment for vehicles over time was briefly discussed, but the projected costs in future years would then have to be raised.

“I really appreciate seeing all this laid out in front of us like this,” said Councilor Bob Harvey of Richardson's detailed report.”

Richardson moved on to talk about road and bridge projects.

Bridges on Brock Road and Crow Lake road are slated to be replaced by culverts at a cost of about $300,000 each, and one on Wagarville Road needs repairs, also at an estimated cost of $300,000. Richardson plans to use the budgets of 2010 and 2011 for the three projects.

In terms of road work, the current list includes work on Wagner Road, Arden Road, Elizabeth Street, Mary Moore Road, Westgate Road, Gordon Crescent, Crow Lake Road, Cannon Road, Olden Park Road, Wemp Road, Arena Boundary and 2nd Depot Lakes roads.

Council did not seek any cuts to the budget at this time.

There were two items that generated some discussion.

One had to do with revenue. The budget includes $100,000 in revenue under the heading “County transfer (e.g. gas tax $ ...)”

“Does someone here know something I don't know?” asked Mayor Janet Gutowski. “The county budget is not finalised and no decisions have been made about transfers.”

“That money was plugged in based on the belief that there may be an opportunity to make application for the county for projects that we may identify and the county might support. They have identified some priorities. The money is there and we as a municipality should maybe go after some dollars,” said Township Chief Administrative Officer John Duchene.

“I believe the other mayors at the county feel as I do that we can see some direct benefit for some kind of substantive money moving from the county to the townships,” said Mayor Gutowski.

“What does all this mean?” asked Councilor Philip Smith. “Is the money real or should we stroke it off the budget?”

“I think it's a realistic target to shoot for. I'm not prepared to give up on it,” answered Gutowski.

The second contentious issue surfaced near the end of the meeting when Councilor Bill Snyder pointed out that a road preservation plan called for Oak Flats road to be surface treated in 2009, “and here it is 2010 and it's slipped off the budget entirely. It makes me sick to see the way things are put in and taken out of the budget.”

“I have that road listed for 2011 on the plan that I have seen,” said Mike Richardson.

Councilor Jeff Matson, who was chairing the meeting, then intervened. “Mike was not here in 2008 and 2009; he is only bringing information forward that he has seen”.

Sharbot Lake Petrocan redevelopment - Council approved a site plan for an upgrade to Bob Basra's Petro-Canada station, which will include new pumps and a canopy. A site plan agreement was needed because of required changes to drainage at the western edge of the property where there is a culvert that runs under Highway 7.

How long-standing? – Councilor Bob Harvey noted that the Ministry of Municipal Affairs has a long-standing service program that honours members of Council who have served 25 years. “Frances [Smith] and I have been here a long time, maybe too long, and we don't know how long. Could somebody check to see how long we've been on Council; maybe we're eligible.”

Deputy Clerk Cathy MacMunn said she would check into it.

Rogers Tower – Council agreed to sign a letter accepting a new cell phone tower at Highway 7 and Blueberry Road near the border with Lennox and Addington County.

Railway Museum – Council received a letter and sketch outlining the work that the Central Frontenac Railway Heritage Society has been doing at the site of the former rail station, which is located across from the township office.

Councilors Norm Guntensperger and Gary Smith expressed concerns over some of the activities of society members, particularly regarding the use of fill, and potential liability to the township from some of the artefacts that are being gathered at the site, particularly in light of the intention to move a caboose onto the railway tracks that have been constructed there.

Councillor Bob Harvey said the only thing that concerns him is the culvert that runs under the track. “The whole drainage issue needs engineering before anything is done,” he said.

Councilor Gary Smith said the arrangement between the township and the Railway Society is “too much of a loosy goosey arrangement. I think we should get something in writing before we go any further.”

Councilor Frances Smith said, “I think they have done what we've asked them to do, and we should trust them.”

“I agree with Frances Smith. Everything has been great. They've cleaned everything up at the site. I had one problem with them over fill by the culvert, but they straightened that up,” said Bob Harvey.

Council agreed to receive the report from the Railway Heritage Society, and to set up a meeting between the CAO, the Public Works Manager, Councilor Harvey, and the railway society to talk about drainage at the site.

Sydenham Library

Architect Ray Zaback of Shoalts and Zaback presented a report to a meeting of South Frontenac Council on Tuesday night (February 9) on behalf of the Library Development Committee. He said that the cost estimates for construction of the Sydenham Library had been brought into line by deleting the formal LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification. The building will still be constructed to LEED specifications, but Zaback assured Council there was “no practical benefit to achieving the certification”.

Without the extra administration and consultation fees required to achieve LEED, the revised construction budget is $1,800,000, which includes radiant heating and a metal roof.

Following their scheduled Committee of the Whole meeting, Council convened a brief meeting toconsider the resolution that they recommend to Frontenac County Council that the library construction project should be put out to tender.

Included in the motion was the agreement that this project would be required to pay the full $18,000 (1% of total construction cost) building permit fee. Recent discussions led by Councilors Bill Robinson and Jim Hicks have led to Council agreeing that the township will pay for its own building permits from now on.

However, because last fall when the original funding was applied for, this cost had not been included, Council agreed, as part of the motion, to be prepared to cover the building permit fee from reserves, if it would otherwise run the project over budget. Councilor Robinson requested recorded vote, and voted against the resolution, which passed.

The Sydenham Library project will be 2/3 funded by a federal/provincial infrastructure grant

The tender for the library is now ready for release, having been approved by South Frontenac County. Formal approval from Frontenac County will come on February 17. The project will follow LEED (Leadership in Energy Efficient Design) guidelines but in order to cut costs it will not be subject to the expense of formal LEED certification.

South Frontenac Township will take out an $18,000 building permit for the project. If the permit costs do not fit within the project budget, the money will be taken from township reserve funds. Two-thirds of construction costs are being covered by federal/provincial grant money.

Recreation Master Plan: Michael Howe, Chair of the Recreation Committee, presented a five-year recreation plan for the township. He noted that the report came under three main headings: facilities and maintenance; swim and day camp programs, and communication and volunteerism. The plan's recommendations come from the needs identified by the community during an intensive series of meetings and consultations.

Howe said that communication and volunteer coordination were essential to developing and maintaining strong recreation programs. One key recommendation of the plan is that the township create a part-time position for a recreation coordinator, who could provide follow-through and communication between various township groups, as well as publicizing programs, collating data, and seeking out grant money. Mayor Gary Davison thanked Howe and Wes Garrod, another member of the committee, and their committee members for their work in producing such a comprehensive report.

SUBDIVISION ISSUES: A representative of FoTenn Consultants introduced two subdivision proposals that were in early stages. He asked whether one, near Inverary, could be allowed to have lots with reduced frontage, in order to accommodate a larger number of severances. The general consensus seemed to be that, unless there was a specific reason for a reduced frontage, this would not be encouraged. A second subdivision is proposed along Georgia Lane, off Rutledge Road, east of Sydenham. The development of half of an 83-acre lot is being planned, with 11 severances ranging from 2.6 to 5.7 acres.

Necessary studies are in process, and there were no questions raised at this time.

WASTE COLLECTION RFP: Public Works Manager Mark Segsworth reported that his staff was compiling the numbers of seasonal and permanent residents on private lanes. He said the task has proven much larger than anticipated, but is going well, and will provide much more accurate information to go in the solid waste collection RFP. He expects the RFP will be ready to go out by the end of March. There followed a brief flurry of bag tag talk.

BUDGET DISCUSSION: In introducing the budget discussion, CAO Wayne Orr said the preliminary 2010 budget, which is the township’s first amalgamated budget, reflects an overall increase over last year of 4.12%. Some of the smaller departments were discussed. The heavier areas such as roads, capital projects, environmental services, etc. will be reviewed next week at Council on Feb.16, beginning early, at 6pm.

Terry Murphy from Quinte Conservation updated council on various ongoing conservation programs, namely the watershed report cards that will be made for every water course in the Quinte watersheds, and which will be monitored year to year.

Reeve Henry Hogg asked what was happening with the drainage problem with the waterworks in Kaladar. Murphy said that his staff is working with the landowners to come up with a sensible plan to correct the drainage there.

Deputy Reeve Helen Yanch asked if it is the right of Quinte Conservation to ensure that the water keeps flowing and Murphy explained that the issue is somewhat complicated but that private landowners are supposed to get permits before they do any work redirecting water. Hogg was concerned that some landowners are not aware that they need permits before taking matters into their hands.

Regarding the Flinton dam, a $30,000 study started last year was undertaken to assess the structure and includes plans to ensure its safety. Quinte Conservation put out a request for private proposals for those interested in looking into producing hydro from the dam. After reviewing several proposals, an individual from the area has been granted authorization to begin work on producing hydro at the site. No contracts have been signed yet. Murphy estimated that the dam would be able to produce 100kw of green power, enough to supply 10-15 local residences. Quinte Conservation will also be encouraging other private individuals to look at other dams in their area from which to produce more green hydro.

The QC budget for 2010 is the same as last year. Murphy reported that a school program called Streams of Dreams has been a great success and will continue running in area schools.

Helen Yanch then asked if Quinte Conservation would be doing septic inspections. Murphy answered that there are fewer inspectors but that municipalities are welcome to use those they do have.

POLICING REPORT: OPP Inspector Pat Finnegan presented to council the Police Services Board report for November and December 2009.

Constables Pam Cote, Helen Lamonte and Craig Kelso were recognized for their compassion in three separate incidents in the area this past year.

Total calls for service were down in the months of November and December in 2009. Break and enter clearance rates were down to 15.72%. Robbery clearance rates were lower than other averages in Addington Highlands at 33.33%, but Cst. Finnegan pointed out that those numbers would soon change since a number of arrests have been made and others will soon be made.

An in-house training session in domestic violence was carried out for 22 OPP officers. The six-month-long Project Castleford Drug Investigation was concluded on December 8, 2009 and resulted in the arrests of 38 individuals. Finnegan also hopes to see the OPP’s D.A.R.E. program take place in local area schools.

LOLCS REQUEST: Bud Clayton of the Land O’Lakes Community Service (LOLCS) updated council on their ongoing programs, including transportation for seniors, Christmas hamper program, Meals On Wheels, prevention of violence against women, and protective services for physically and mentally challenged individuals. He then requested that in their upcoming budget deliberations, Council consider putting aside $1 per household in Addington Highlands, approximately $2400, for the LOLCS. Council passed a motion to consider the proposal at budget time.

GARDEN CLUB GRANT: Council passed a motion to grant $500 to the Land O'Lakes Garden Club.

HYDRO TO WORK WITH TOWNSHIP CLEARING ROADS: Roads manager Royce Rosenblath reported that his meetings with Hydro One were successful and that Hydro One has agreed to assist with brushing on Ashby Lake and other roads. Hydro One will be cutting all the injured trees around the hydro lines, saving the municipality from a dangerous task, and the municipality will assist with the brushing and clean up. Rosenblath reported that roads are in good condition now since the weather has been moderate of late.

Frontenac County Council had been planning to finalise its 2010 budget this week, but Frontenac Islands Mayor Jim Vanden Hoek threw a bit of a spanner into the works.

While the overall tax levy number as prepared by county staff was within an acceptable range at 1.94% over the 2009 levels, Vanden Hoek noted that spending was up about 15% and said the county was taking advantage of almost $800,000 in savings this year that came about because the Province of Ontario has taken on municipal costs for the Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP).

“I'd like to move that the $793,814 as identified in our budget document as savings from the ODSP upload be identified as a direct transfer to the townships,” Vanden Hoek said.

North Frontenac Mayor Ron Maguire quickly seconded the motion, saying, “I think the optics of it would be very good. It'd be nice to point to a place in the budget where the upload occurred and say we transferred that money to the townships to be put directly to municipal infrastructure needs.”

Central Frontenac Mayor Janet Gutowski said she could not support the motion. “I think the move is drawing too straight a line from the ODSP upload to infrastructure spending. We made a decision last year to keep the tax levy down by transferring money from reserves, with this download in mind.”

Gutowski was referring to $354,000 that was taken from a “stabilization reserve” in 2009 to keep the tax increase to a minimum, and is slated to be repaid to that reserve fund in 2010.

South Frontenac Mayor, and 2010 County Warden, Gary Davison said, “I'm struggling in my own mind figuring this out. If we take that money out of the budget, how would we fill the gap? What is the implication to the budget?”

“It would make the tax increase 11.3%,” said County Treasurer Marian Vanbruinessen.

“That's my point,” said Mayor Vanden Hoek. “If we go through the budget in detail faced with an 11.3% increase in the levy, we will worry a lot more about some of those $25,000 and $35,000 expenditures that we might not let go if we are only facing a 2% increase.”

Warden Davison said he was wary of Vanden Hoek's approach, saying it would mean taking the entire budget apart. “To me if we want to trim the budget, why don’t we just go through the budget and trim it?” he asked.

Vanden Hoek then offered to defer his motion, and Council began going through the budget.

A $25,000 item for new tables and a sound system in the multi-purpose room that is used as a council chamber was scrapped, and a recommended expense of $69,000 in training for county staff was trimmed to $40,000.

Council did approve a grant of $80,000 to the Rural Routes Transportation program for 2010.

Other issues did not get resolved. For a couple of years money has been set aside for repairs to the entrance way to the county offices, which are located in an old house attached to Fairmount Home. Although the home was renovated a few years ago, the old house is in need of attention. Staff would like to see the repairs completed this year, but council will look at it once again before deciding how much to put towards it.

Another area of concern to several members of council was four projects under the heading of “sustainability planning”. Although these projects are to be funded by a federal gas tax transfer and would not affect local taxes, Warden Davison said he would like to see some of the gas tax money go to the local townships for local infrastructure.

These issues were left for another meeting.

As the meeting was nearing an end, Mayor Vanden Hoek said he would agree to lowering the number in his direct transfer motion from $793,814 to $437,245 to account for the $354,000 that is slated to be returned to the stabilisation reserve fund.

By press time, no other date had been set for a further county budget meeting.

Council hears from Frank Roy on 1 Metre Initiative

Frank Roy made a short presentation recapping his One Metre Initiative proposal for the largest telescope in Canada, which he hopes to build under the dark skies of Mallory Hill, on Buckshot Lake Road near the historic village of Vennachar.

Tourism is slated to provide 90% of the revenue needed to build and keep the proposed world-class observatory operating, while use of the digitally controlled telescope from the astronomy programs at the University of Western Ontario, Queen's University, the University of Montreal and others would cover the remaining 10%.

Roy is seeking $5 million in investment, with which he says he can build the one metre telescope, a second 0.7 metre telescope that will also be remotely controlled, and used by amateur astronomers and others, as well as a smaller telescope and observation deck for use by tourists who travel to the site. A visitors’ centre is also planned, which is slated to include material about the telescope, high definition images captured by it, and other programming.

Roy said he only needs about $1.25 in up-front investment, and the rest can be covered off in loans from the Business Development Bank of Canada.

Ken Hook from the Land O'Lakes Tourist Association also attended the presentation at the invitation of Mayor Ron Maguire. “I am a believer that if you build it they will come,” Hook said. “If this gets built it would change the marketing that our association does. Until now we have been focusing on the sporting market - fishing and camping and outdoor recreation, but this would open up our marketing. I think it's a great concept. It’s something we would promote.”

Frank Roy is seeking a contribution from the township towards a $25,000 market feasibility study that needs to be done in order for him to attract investors.

“I'm bullish about this. I think you know that,” Mayor Maguire said to Frank Roy.

Deputy Mayor Jim Beam has expressed concerns about the project. “I don't see this as a public/private partnership. I see this as private investors asking ratepayers to subsidize their project. I fully support this, but I'm not sure where it is going,” Beam said.

“How much money are you putting in?” he asked Roy.

“About $25,000 and a lot of sweat equity,” Roy said.

“How much have you got committed to this from investors?” Beam further asked.

Roy said that the feasibility study was necessary before investors would commit. “But I have been talking to several investors from the United States who are interested, extremely interested,” he said.

Frank Roy said he will send council a copy of the 70-page business plan he has prepared.

“We are just starting our budget deliberations,” said Mayor Ron Maguire. “We might want to make a donation towards a market study. You've acquitted yourself well to the questions we've brought to you.”

COST OF CAMPING PERMITS FROZEN - A routine request by Recreation Co-ordinator Cory Klatt to open up the Frontenac Parklands online reservation system for the season got caught up in the township’s budget debate.

“Given that council agreed to increase wages by 3% this year at our budget meeting, I think we should raise all fees 3%,” said Jim Beam.

“It think that's a wonderful point,” said Cory Klatt. “The only thing is that I think people are just now getting used to paying the fees, and use has been going up. I would be concerned about raising fees at this point. I think we are still in just too delicate a stage to be increasing fees.”

Councilor Lonnie Watkins said, “Let's leave it as is, raise the number of users, and then see what happens in a year or so.”

Councilor Bob Olmstead agreed with Jim Beam's logic.

“If wages are up, service fees should go up,” he said.

In the end the program was renewed with no fee increase.

MAGUIRE OPPOSES LOCAL MONEY FOR PINE MEADOW - Mayor Maguire reported that his motion at Frontenac County Council in favour of a contribution of $25,000 per year for ten years towards upgrades at the Pine Meadow Nursing Home had been defeated.

“Some of the reasons were incredulous to me, but there you have it,” he said. “I was particularly disappointed by the stance taken by Mayor Gutowski this time around, but it's been taffy pull all along at the county anyway.”

Maguire took note of a suggestion that the local municipalities might consider supporting nursing homes. “I hate that,” he said, “Social services are a county responsibility. If we start paying those costs at the township level we would put ourselves into a pretty tight corner. Council might want to act differently, which is fine, but that's my position.”

BEAM WANTS MORE HOURS FOR OMPAH LIBRARY: Deputy Mayor Jim Beam said he had been contacted by people in Ompah who were upset that when the Plevna library re-opens, the hours at the Ompah library will be reduced to four a week, less than the six hours per week it had been open when the Plevna library was last in operation.

“I would like it on record that Ompah should be open for at least six hours a week,” Beam said.