Council chose not to report back on the nature of the closed session held prior to the regular meeting.

Waste Disposal Issues

New Tipping Fees at Portland Council approved the schedule of tipping fees associated with the new weigh scale at the Portland waste site. Segsworth said the goal was to set fees that are in line with neighbouring waste sites, to avoid past problems with Township sites having been used for non-SF waste, because of our lower rates.

Beginning July 1st, rates for garbage will now be prorated from a charge of $110 per metric tonne. All waste entering the site will still have to be sorted to divert as much as possible from the landfill. Tires, grass, ashes, brush (residential), metal and flattened cardboard are all free. The base rate for any
amount of garbage up to 200 kg is $20. Councillor Robinson said he doesn’t think it is fair to charge $20, even for just one tagged bag. Councillor Roberts asked why tires are free.

Public Works Manager Mark Segsworth replied “Because tires generate revenue now.”

Commercial businesses who haul brush to Portland will be charged based on truck size, beginning with $50 for a one-ton. Public works does not anticipate revenues to decrease due to charging by weight instead of load.

Garbage and Recycling Collection Contracts Extended

Segsworth recommended that the township’s present contracts with Larmon and Snider be extended for two years, to Aug 2017, in order to allow time to collect hard statistics about the weight of waste being collected in Portland and Loughborough.

He said that he thinks the Township is being well served by the two contractors and the one township employee who do the current collection. Only Deputy Mayor McDougall spoke in favour of a one-year extension, instead of two. Several agreed that even with more accurate figures, the Township’s rate of recycling still will need to improve.

Perth Road fire hall

Councillor Revill said he wants to see the firehall project move forward, but he feels there needs to be more discussion before any particular design is chosen. There was brief discussion of the interrelation of site (not yet chosen) and design, as well as the question of ‘design build” vs beginning with an architect/consultant. CAO Wayne Orr said the matter would soon be coming back to Council.

Strategic Plan

Council approved their new strategic plan with one main addition: they replaced the phrase “being mindful of the need to achieve greater energy efficiencies” with the more specific “helping address climate change by improving energy efficiency and supporting renewable power generation.”

Shoreline Restoration and Enhancement (?) at the Point

Council approved the shoreline restoration project as presented, with the addition of a contained upland sand area and less  pebble beach area, using pebbles that are as small and smooth as possible.

Deputy Mayor McDougall said, “I’m ok with the shoreline restoration, but I can’t call it enhancement: it doesn’t do much to make the Point park more attractive.”

In informal discussion after the meeting, McDougall said, “We need an overall, longrange plan for making the point a place that the community can be proud of.” He, Councillor Schjerning and Public Works Manager Segsworth agreed that, while shoreline stabilization is urgent, the present piecemeal
approach to upgrading separate bits of the park is not the best way to move forward.

Staff outlines plans to mitigate $255,000 budget pressure

In an effort to mitigate the township's $255,000 budget shortfall that resulted from an oversight in the public works total formula, CAO Jim Zimmerman and treasurer J. Michael McGovern presented council with their six step plan to reclaim the $255,000 error. First they reduced the original $255,000 in the estimated costs for the repair/replacement of the township's fleet of vehicles to $227,000. Changes to the staff salaries resulted in an additional $34,000 in savings and a deferment in securing a loan required for the Fifth Lake Road Road construction project will reap an additional $55,000 savings in interest. A reduction to the estimated Phase 1 costs for the 2015 Environmental Assessments in the municipalities by restricting the proposed assessments to just four sites at a cost of $2,500 each will save an additional $70,000 from the original $80,000 in the budget.

Councilors had trouble agreeing with a $50,000 reduction in the proposed $295,000 gravel budget for 2015. Councilor Brent Cameron wondered if a $50,000 reduction in gravel would meet the townships needs.

CAO Zimmerman responded by saying that day-to-day stock piling of material would help, as would lumping a series of municipal roads into a single contract. He added that though there may be a slight reduction in the level of service to the township as a result, that a reasonable level of service could still be achieved with the reduction. Council passed a motion for staff to proceed with their proposed plans and ordered that staff provide them with a regular monthly status report concerning the matter for the remainder of 2015.

CF Council extends CIP beyond Sharbot Lake

Council unanimously passed a motion to expand the township's Community Improvement Plan to include other hamlets and villages in the township. Originally the plan, which was initiated three years ago, was to include only Sharbot Lake and to date it has attracted just 12 applications. The news should be welcomed by residents and business owners in other villages across the township. A public meeting will be scheduled at a later date to convey the details of the program and the application process.

Kennebec Shores sales building and privy approved

Council approved a motion allowing the owners of the Kennebec Shores development to sign a memorandum of understanding with staff allowing the former to construct a sales building and privy on township land in order to better promote the sale of the lands

Delegations

Anne Prichard, executive director of the Frontenac Community Futures Development Corporation (FCFDC), made an in depth presentation to council outlining the numerous services, programs, loans and grants that are available to local individuals and businesses in the township with the hopes that that council and staff will steer aspiring entrepreneurs their way. The FCFDC aims to encourage economic growth by promoting local businesses and tourism in the area and by promoting and supporting community vibrancy in the township. Mayor Frances Smith congratulated Prichard on her hard work.

Wallbridge Lane Resident appeals to council re back tax concerns

Robert Scrymgeour appealed to council to show him leniency for back taxes and interest he owes on two deeded properties, comprising a total of six parcels of land located on Wallbridge Lane. He cited family illnesses, deaths and his own medical issues, which he said have kept him from clearing up the matter sooner. He also said the MPAC valuations for the properties were ridiculously high. He described one as “swampy” and one as having a dilapidated shack, which he said MPAC described as a cottage.

He offered to pay the township $400 a month in back taxes and interest until he can get the matter settled and before the township reclaims the lands. Rather than accepting payments from Scrymgeour, council passed a motion ordering staff to consider the matter and suggested that he return to council for their next meeting to resolve the matter.

Water levels one metre below average

Councilor Bill MacDonald informed council about information he gleaned at a recent meeting of the Mississippi Valley Conservation Authority, where it was announced that lake levels are well below average for this time of year. “Unless we get rain we could be facing imminent water shortages,” MacDonald said.

Councillor Alan Revill has put on paper a set of proposals that he expressed verbally at a meeting of the South Frontenac Committee of the Whole last month.

The proposal, which when contacted over the phone earlier this week he said was intended to “get some ideas on the table for council to discuss”, envisions building one larger hall for the highest level of training and meeting space. It also calls for two smaller, full service halls, which would also be used for training of crews from across the township. Finally, the third type of hall would be “the most compact.” but would include “the fundamental requirements like m/f washrooms and showers” and would need to be built to post-disaster standards.

Revill wrote that the location of the main hall could be the Village of Sydenham, and would include administrative space where the chief might work from and any other administrative staff that the department takes on over the years.

“The Sydenham location would have the advantage of being located near the township offfice,” Revill said.

The two hub locations could be the Sunbury and Hartington halls, leaving compact halls in the other 6 locations: Bradshaw Road (Bedford), Burridge Road (Bedford), Road 38 – Verona (Portland), Perth Road (Loughborough), Latimer Road (Storrington) and Carrying Place Road (Storrington).

Revill took this exercise on because when the township went to a consultant for a design plan for the Perth Road fire hall late last year, the cost was set at $2.2 million, an amount that was placed in the 2015 township budget but was later pegged back to $1 million.

“If we consider that all of our fire halls are going to need to be replaced over the next ten to fifteen years, and the Perth Road hall is well down the list of halls in terms of call volumes, we could be looking at setting aside $2 million each year for firehalls,” he said.

He said that he is “not opposed to spending money on fire services in order to meet our needs. The costs have gone up and will continue ot go up, as we all realise around the council table, but there are cost implications that we need to consider.”

Members of Council took a tour of fire halls in surrounding townships and found a wide variety. In his report to Council, Revill said he favoured some of the features of the less epxensive fie hall in Mountain Grove to what was found at the more expensive fire hall in Amherstview, for example.

“I found the Amherstivew Hall to be far more than we need,” he said. “The spaces in the bays were excesssive for every purpose ...”

Fire hall construciton costs range from $200 to $300 per square foot, so the square footage of halls is a major issue.

Revill said he looks forward to hearing the views of his fellow councillors on these matters.

Strategic Plan

Consultant Rob Woods presented a draft strategic plan distilled from his meetings with council and staff, and information received from recent public meetings. Woods said the most complex issue was that of growth and development, which requires a clear plan of the types of development that are desirable and where they should be located.

Development needs to acknowledge the importance of agriculture, be sensitive to environmental concerns, and be consistent with “quality rural/small-urban lifestyles,” he said.

Some comments from Council: SF’s “unique identity’ is not fully explained and references to the environment are weak, but acknowledgement of the importance of agriculture is good, and overall the process of creating the plan was positive and well-organized. A full text of the draft is available on the Township website.

Annual Waste Site Reports

Guy LaPorte of Aecon submitted a brief illustrated annual report on the township’s waste disposal sites: his charts showed no increase in recycling over the past three years.

Public Works Manager Mark Segsworth said, “I beg to differ about Mr Laport’s comments in relation to diversion: the recycling numbers are hard numbers, (for they are weighed when they arrive in Kingston), and cannot be directly compared to the landfill numbers which are based on estimates.” Segsworth will bring his report on the present state of waste diversion to the next Council meeting. LaPorte had no comment. Later in the evening, Councillor Sleeth drew on his agricultural experience to comment that he felt parts of the waste site report had been “full of heifer dust.”

Waste Collection Contracts

Contractor Percy Snider was present to answer questions from Council, but none were asked. Segsworth said he had met with both Snider and Larmon, and felt he had a good working relationship with them, and they are providing a good level of service. He said he would be recommending extending their contract for one more year: “We are working toward developing a more consistent program. At present it appears that tendering by weight may not be as fair as tendering by numbers of households after all, as the nature of waste materials is beginning to change: newspaper and glass are being replaced by lighter materials.”

Additional Solar Proposal

Utilia Amaral of SunEdison briefly informed Council of a 205 acre site her company was proposing for a second solar project. It’s located on the Rodney Wallace property at the corner of Alton Road and Road 38, just north of Harrowsmith.

Dog Tags

CAO Orr asked whether Council wished to enforce the sale of dog tags by door to door followup with known dog owners. Given the amount of discussion this question had engendered in previous years, the present Council showed a remarkable lack of interest in further pursuing the sale of dog tags.

Onward with Oregon Orange

In spite of additional cost and difficulties getting tender submissions for specially coloured trucks for the Township fleet, Council agreed to keep the distinctive orange colour.

Sandhill Cemetery

Councillor Sleeth reported a number of concerns about the caretaking of Sandhill Cemetery near Battersea. He said stones had fallen, brush was not removed, and mowing was carelessly done. CAO Orr agreed to follow up with the contractor.

Support for seniors in North Frontenac

At Monday's council meeting in Plevna, Catherine Tysick, a Community Support Manager from North Frontenac Community Services (NFCS) explained to Council the many different services they provide to seniors and physically disabled people who live in the area. Caregiver counselling, foot care, volunteer transportation, and Lifeline - a 24-hour monitoring system - are only some of the services they provide in the Frontenacs.

They also subsidize some housekeeping services for eligible seniors or disabled people. One of the goals of NFCS is to provide support so these people can continue to live in their own homes for as long as possible.

“A lot of the seniors we serve are in their 80's and above...” Tysick told Council. “Oftentimes there is only one pension...we really want to be able to help people stay at home as long as they can and as safely as they can because they want to be here,” she explained. “I've never met anybody who wants to move out of North Frontenac.”

NFCS was operating a Meals On Wheels program in North Frontenac for a long time but haven't been able to provide the service recently due to logistical complications with finding a local supplier, although they are starting up a nutritious frozen meals program that has seen financial support from Meals On Wheels.

“The residents of North Frontenac are very independent...we haven't had enough people that want Meals On Wheels enough to bring it from Sharbot Lake...” Tysick said.

NFCS depends on volunteers for many of their services. They offer transportation for people in need, at a subsidized rate. This can mean driving a senior to a medical appointment or to do grocery shopping.

One of the challenges that the NFCS faces is the small population, and therefore a small demand. Tysick explained that although they are in “very good-standing” with their funders, she worries that in the future the rural population won't be safeguarded against funding cuts because the funding is based on usage.

“We just want to spread the word that the services are available,” Tysick said. “If there are some holes...if there are some needs...there may be some things we can do...to get those needs met for your residents.”

Solar And All That Jazz

Bob Mady, from Jazz Solar, an Ottawa-based solar energy consulting firm, made a presentation to Council on Monday regarding the potential income North Frontenac could be making if they installed solar panels on some of their buildings in the township. The Feed in Tariff (FIT) Program, is designed for projects designated as generating between 10 kilowatts (kW) and 500kW of electricity. There is a program for under-10kW projects called the microFIT. These two programs, once controlled by Ontario Power Authority (OPA), are now controlled by the Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO), the same organization that is in charge of administering the proposed wind turbine farm in North Frontenac and Addington Highlands.

Mady explained how a rooftop 10kW system, which costs approximately $30,000-$34,000 to get up and running, would provide the township with $4600 in annual income for the next 20 years, with the opportunity to profit over $55,000 in the long term. This system, under the microFIT program, provides the client with a protected rate, currently set at 38.4¢/kWh, that is locked in for 20 years. After the 20 year contract runs out, the owner of the system could, theoretically, stop feeding the grid and use the panels to power their building directly, with some additions to their system.

When the microFIT program was first introduced in 2009 the OPA was paying participants 80.2¢/kWh. The rate has dropped steadily, and Mady told Council that this will most likely be the last time the FIT program is offered.

(Note – the township has a micro-fit project in place on the roof of the township office)

Community Grants Policy to Set Deadline and $1000 Limit

Council voted on implementing a community grants policy on Monday. Non-profit community organizations sometimes request funding from the township. This policy would set a cap at $1000 per organization, and would set a deadline of November 30th, in order to be considered for the following year's annual budget.

“I'm gonna be a grinch here and say I don't like this,” Councillor Inglis said. “I think it's too extensive and bureaucratic...it's going to add layers of paperwork,” Inglis voted against the idea but was outnumbered in the vote. “I want to see a very simple set of guidelines...no dollar limits, no follow up reports.”

Corey Klatt, the Manager of Community Development, explained the reasoning behind the change. “It's putting some timelines on it so that we can do this at budget time.” The intention is that it will allow Council to better plan how they budget and allocate grant funds each year as well as better document what allocated grant money is spent on.

Mayor Higgins Gets a Passing Grade on Report Card

Mayor Ron Higgins presented the results of a survey he initiated requesting feedback from Council on his performance in his first quarter as Mayor. Overall the comments were positive, he said, and he himself echoed the main suggestion put forth that he “slow down” and not “expect too much too quickly”.

Presentation to members of Denbigh Abinger, and Ashby Fire department.

The formation of the Denbigh, Abinger and Ashby (DAA) fire department came about as the result of two things. First, in the mid 1960s the township council requested that the Ontario Fire Marshall's Office conduct a fire protection survey for the township. When the survey was completed and provided to the municipality it came with a number of recommendations, mainly that a fire department be set up and what it would need.

At the same time the DAA Centennial Committee was doing fundraising for anniversary projects and the volunteer fire department was one of those projects.

Money was raised to purchase a portable building from a Belleville trucking company and was moved to the township for use as a fire hall and roads department building. More money was raised to buy a truck, and a used milk tanker truck was purchased and refurbished. The township purchased some equipment and other equipment was donated.

It was sometime after 1967 that all of the equipment was finally in place, the volunteers were trained and the department was formally established, with William Scott Senior, who had been a firefighter in Toronto, serving as the first fire chief. The service was entirely made up of volunteers, and a fire phone system was set up so that when the emergency number was dialed it rang in designated homes. The volunteers in those homes each had a list of firefighters to call.

With municipal amalgamation at the beginning of 1998, the service was amalgamated with the Addington Highlands Fire Service. A plaque commemorating all those who served between 1967 and 1997 was commissioned by Addington Highlands Township, and on Monday night, April 20, the plaque and certificates of appreciation were presented to volunteers from those years who were able to attend. A number of the volunteers were on hand in person to receive their certificates, but a larger number were not, as there are many who have died or left the area since being fire department members back in the 1970s and 80s.

“This is just a small token of appreciation for all of the service provided over those 30 years by the Denbigh, Abinger and Ashby Fire department and all its members,” said Reeve Henry Hogg.

After receiving their certificates, the firefighters who were on hand posed for a picture with the commemorative plaque, which will go on permanent display at the Addington Highlands Community Centre in Denbigh.

Notes from Council meeting

Fees waived for community wind power meeting - Paul Isaacs has organized a meeting concerning the NextEra proposed wind farm in Addington Highlands this Saturday (April 25) and he was asking for the use of the Denbigh Hall for free. The meeting will concern itself with creating three lists: a list of benefits from wind turbines, a list of detriments from wind turbines, and a list of questions to ask concerning wind turbines. Council approved the request for waiving the fee.

The idea of holding a public meeting sponsored by the township in ward 1, was also raised at the meeting and council will be considering setting one up. NextEra, as part of their public process, is going to be setting up an information Open House in Denbigh in late May. The Open House will be part of NextEra's push for council support for the project. A motion of support from the local township is one of the elements in the bid that NextEra will be submitting to Ontario Power Generation (OPG). A competitive bidding process is being used by OPG to determine which company they will sign a 20 year contract with for the purchase of 300 megawatts of wind power. As an incentive to Addington Highlands Council, NextEra is offering a $350,000 annual payment for the life of the contract. Those payments are contingent on two things happening: NextEra needs to the be successful bidder, and Addington Highlands Council needs to have supported the bid.

Support for a private members bill -

Sylvia Jones, Progressive Conservative MPP for Dufferin-Caledon, is sponsoring Bill 36, the Respecting Private Property Act, which if enacted will increase the fines for trespass on private property. The bill would establish a minimum fine of $500 for trespassing and would increase the limit for compensation to the landowner to $25,000 from the current limit of $1,000.

Council passed a motion supporting Bill 36.

Water levels low in Mississippi Valley

Councilor Kirby Thompson, who represents AH on the Mississippi Valley Conservation Authority Board, reported that Gord Mountenay, who has been monitoring water levels in the watershed for 35 years, said that the lake levels are at historic lows this spring. The MVCA controls the flow of water within the system by using flow control dams, but the options are limited when water levels are low.

(see "Rain brings some relief from low lake water levels - burn ban conditions")

The regular meeting convened slightly late, due to a closed session with the Township solicitor, re the Johnston Point developer’s appeal to OMB.

Auditor’s Report

In his spoken report to Council, auditor Howard Allan softened what seemed to be a somewhat critical report, describing most of the issues addressed in detail as ‘housekeeping’.

These included comments about adherence to the township's procurement policy. In two cases, the purchase of gravel and an equipment rental contract, more than $25,000 was spent on an item that was 'sole sourced' and the transactoin was not then recorded in the minutes of a council meeting, which Allan said should always happen in the future. He expressed concern over reconciliation of items such as bag tag sales, building permit and development charges and tonnage charges at landfills.

As well, he pointed to long standing un-funded cost of $471,000 for Sydenham that the township is hoping to cover with future development within the village. Allan recommends that since this will likely not be settled within this term of Council, it should be financed in some way as the township looks at water rates and long term capital plans for the water system.

Allan said that, despite the issues he highlighted, over all 2014 had been a good year for the Township; “We believe the financial management at the township is very good: operations are breaking even and revenues are coming in for capital projects.”

However, the province is introducing a new indicator called ‘asset consumption ratio’ which advises a municipality to be setting aside sufficient capital reserves to be able to comfortably address the accumulated amortization of infrastructure as it ages. South Frontenac’s capital reserves for this purpose presently are almost 9% (slightly lower than the previous three years), while 20% is suggested to be a more appropriate figure.

To address this, Allan recommended drawing up a ten-year financial plan, something the township is much closer to having now than ever before. He praised Treasurer Fragnito and CAO Orr for their excellent work. Mayor Vandewal agreed that the Township “has been very well served by its staff.”

Larcon Rezoning Application

Planner Mills recommended rezoning in the southern edge of Harrowsmith, which would combine two applications dealing with the same property: a lot addition which would enlarge an existing industrial lot where a storage business is located, and a severance to create a residential lot with reduced frontage. Pat LaLonde, a resident who lives across the road from the property in question, expressed concern that the expansion of the industrial property would result in the filling of a drainage ditch, and would lower her property value by introducing storage lockers right across the road from her home.

Mills explained that there was a 20 metre setback from the front property line, and emphasized that the Official Plan encouraged industrial development in hamlet areas.

Later in the meeting, Councillor Revill requested the final reading of the rezoning by-law be deferred until the planner had an opportunity to make recommendations about berms or plantings to shield industrial activities on the property. Mills said he would meet with Ms LaLonde to discuss what combination of set-back and berm might allay some of her concerns. The motion was deferred.

Johnston Point

Councillor Sleeth brought back his notice of motion to have an independent peer review of the environmental study on the Johnson Point subdivision, but asked to remove the requirement that the developer cover the cost of this. At Mayor Vandewal’s suggestion, he replaced it with the requirement that if the cost of the peer review came above $3.000 it should come back to Council for approval. The motion passed.

Councillor Sutherland’s information report about Johnson Point which had been distributed to councillors April 14, was included in the Agenda material, to go on record. It includes a county map that chractersizes the entire bay which is next to Johnston Point as a wetland, and quotes section 5-2-10 from the OP which quite clearly requires a Lake Impact Assessment, and makes no mention of trout lakes.

Light from Communication Towers

Councillor Robinson said he had had complaints from Colebrook Road residents about the bright flashes of light from the new tower on Highway 38. Orr said this was outside Township control: these lights are mandated by the Province for aviation safety.

Death and Taxes

Treasurer Fragnito sought Council’s approval to cover the Cemetery 2013 & 14 deficits of $28,427 from Township’s cemetery lot addition reserves. When asked why cemetery rates could not be raised instead of using taxes to subsidize the cemeteries, CAO Orr said the deficit is as high as it is, because sales of burial plots dropped off when the rates were raised two years ago.

“Eventually, people will have to start purchasing plots again, and the situation will begin to rectify itself,” he said. 

Frontenac County is holding meetings at each of the four townships over the spring and summer months. The first of these meetings took place last Wednesday (April 15) at the North Frontenac Council Chamber in the mezzanine of the Plevna Fire Hall.

At the start of the meeting, an in-camera session concerning wages was held, after which in open session, council approved two separate agreements. The first was with CUPE Local 2290. An Interest Arbitration Award report, which is binding on the two parties, settled terms for 2013 and 2014 retroactively. The wage settlements are 1.75% in 2013 and 1.5% for 2014. With the settlement, the parties will be able to begin negotiations for 2015 and beyond.

A negotiated settlement has been reached between the county and CUPE Local 109, which represents the operators of ferry services for Frontenac County. The three-year agreement runs until 2017 and includes wage increases of 1.5% in 2015 and 2016 and 2% in 2017.

No funding for coffee table book on Frontenac County

Orland French and his publishing company, Wallbridge Books of Belleville, produce hard cover books about Eastern Ontario Counties. These include a book on Lennox and Addington that was reviewed in the Frontenac News several years ago, and most recently Wind, Water, Barley and Wine: the Nature of Prince Edward County.

The books include geological and historical information, natural history, aerial photography, and statistical information. They are designed as collectors' items and promotional material for the local counties.

French appeared before Frontenac County Council in March, proposing to produce a book about the County to mark the 150th anniversary. He was seeking a commitment of $70,000, the cost to be split between the county and its four constituent townships.

In return he would produce 2,800 copies for the use of the townships and the county. The books could be sold for $40 to return a profit to the investors in the long run.

The 150th Anniversary Celebration Committee took a look at the proposal and recommended that the county invest.

However, in a staff report, CAO Kelly Pender pointed out that the task of selling the books would be saddled on county staff, who are already busy and would have to take time away from other duties. As well, the potential exists that the selling will not be entirely successful.

His recommendation, which was not taken up by the 150th anniversary committee, was that since “the historical book project as presented by Mr. Orland French requires a prohibitively high initial investment and, given the extremely labour-intensive nature of selling the books, the potential for the County of Frontenac to recover its cost is low, and the project holds relatively low value as a marketing tool for the region, be it resolved that the County of Frontenac not provide financial support for the historical book project as presented by Mr. Orland French.”

Pender also pointed out that the county's procurement policy says that unsolicited proposals for financial investment are not to be considered by the county.

“You can, as a council, suspend your procurement policy and consider this, but that is the policy,” he said.

Councilor John Inglis from North Frontenac said that he thought that, given Mr. French's track record, “there is no problem of credibility. There is certainly room for this. I would propose that we support it to some extent.”

His position was the opposite of Ron Higgins, the Mayor of North Frontenac, who said, “I do not want to support this in any way.”

In the end Higgins' view represented that of the rest of Council, and the proposal to support the book was defeated by a vote of 8-1.

County to look at 68 areas of service delivery with a view towards collaboration

A report from the so-called CAOs group on shared service delivery was presented to Council. The group is made up of the Chief Administrative Officers of the county and its four member townships, who were all on hand at the meeting. Since the meeting took place in North Frontenac, the CAO from Frontenac Islands, Darlene Plumley, had to board a ferry at 6:00 am to make the 10 o'clock start time in Plevna.

The report starts with the premise that two long-held beliefs about the relationship between the townships and the county needs to come to an end.

“Holding to the traditional characterization of upper tiers [counties] as out of touch, or the lower tiers [townships] as not up to the task, only guarantees a limited future for the County,” the report said.

The report identified 68 different items of service delivery, under eight headings: human resources, municipal planning, corporate communications, council co-ordination, finance, economic development, emergency planning, and Information Technology & GIS/mapping.

It suggests that each of the 68 services be analysed according to a matrix where the ease of implementing change is considered as well as the expected cost savings/service improvement. Those areas that are both easy to change and liable to improve service and save money will be pursued first, and others will be pursued later on or left off entirely. While there are a large number of services to be considered, in the short term planning and information technology services are the focus.

“At this time we are looking for support for this process in principle, and we will bring back a further report in the fall," said CAO Pender. “Any item that we identify for change will be brought to council on its own, and the costs and benefits for all involved will be put before Council."

“I think this is definitely a positive venture,” said South Frontenac Mayor Ron Vandewal.

“I certainly welcome this and the role that the CAOs are playing," said South Frontenac Councilor John McDougall.

Parham library branch under siege

The future of the Parham branch of the Kingston Frontenac Public Library (KFPL) is very much in doubt.

Central Frontenac Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) Jim Zimmerman reported to Council on Tuesday, April 14. that he has been contacted by the Limestone District School Board concerning the Parham Library.

“They said that they do not want anything in the way as they try to find a buyer for the Hinchinbrooke school property, so they have offered to sell us the portable where the Parham Library branch is located as long as we move it off the site."

Councilor Jamie Riddell said, “Can we not throw it back at them? My feeling is, we tell them we will move it as soon as they get an offer on the property.”

“They made it quite clear that they have no intention of entertaining something like that,” said Zimmerman. “They want the portable out of there or abandoned by June 1.”

Zimmerman said that he has had a discussion with the executive director of the KFPL, who said that the library has had plans to close the Hinchinbrooke branch dating back a number of years. The township is planning to build a new fire hall in Parham later this year and would like to include a library branch in the new building. Zimmerman indicated that it would be possible to move the portable from its location next to the closed school to a spot nearby, next to the Parham ball field, which has washroom facilities.

“Could we not close the branch temporarily, store the books, and put them in a new branch when the fire hall is built instead of spending thousands to move it?” asked Councilor Bill MacDonald.

Zimmerman indicated that, given that the library board's commitment to the branch is lukewarm at best, closing the branch temporarily may not be a good idea.

“They also said they have no budget for outfitting a branch this year,” Zimmerman said.

Several years ago a consultant's report for the KFPL called for a radical re-thinking of library service in Central and North Frontenac. It called for a 5,000 square foot branch to be built in Sharbot Lake, and the closing of all three other branches in the township.

The report was received but not endorsed by the library board of the day. However it has never completely gone away. Since that time, Central Frontenac Township, which is responsible for the buildings that house library branches within its borders, has indicated repeatedly that they are not inclined to build a large branch in Sharbot Lake, and are committed to keeping all four branches (Arden, Mountain Grove, Parham, and Shabrot Lake) open. In the interim the Library has renovated the inside of the Arden branch, a commitment to its future, but has not done any work on any of the other branches, leaving the future of both the Parham and Mountain Grove branches in doubt.

The KFPL board has also demonstrated its willingness to close branches if it sees that usage is low - even if the host township is opposed to the closure, which is what happened with the Ompah branch in North Frontenac.

As it happens, both of the Frontenac County Citizen representatives to the KFPL board are from Central Frontenac, John Purdon and Anne Peace-Fast. South Frontenac Mayor Ron Vandewal is the Frontenac County Council representative.

It was suggested that the local representatives on the board be brought up to speed about the situation before the KFPL Board meeting, which takes place on April 22. A representative from Central Frontenac may attend as well.

While Council is concerned about what the library board may do, there was outright anger expressed towards the Limestone District School Board.

“It bothers me that we may have to spend $10,000 to move the portable and set it up for six months while the Hinchinbrooke site sits empty. There is no buyer in sight for that property,” said Councilor Brent Cameron.

“The township went out of its way to help the school board build Granite Ridge Education Centre. We even cut the building fees and our building department did everything for them - and this is what we see from them,” said Councilor Jamie Riddell. “I think we should talk to the school board trustee from our area about this.”

The matter was left to township staff to bring back more information about options for moving the portable and keeping the branch open.

Clean Audit

Vicky Leakey from KPMG made her annual visit to Central Frontenac to present the audited financial statements that she has prepared. She brought relatively good news. Thanks to a $1.56 million provincial grant towards reconstruction of the Fifth Lake Road, which joins Central Frontenac and Stone Mills township near Tamworth, the township took in $11 million in 2014.

Meanwhile, expenditures were down marginally and the amount of money in reserve funds was up. The township has about 19% in tax arrears, which is higher than the provincially recommended 15%, but Leakey said that the percentage had been stable at that rate and “given the income levels among residents that number is not a worrisome one. If there was a sudden spike, say to 22%, then I would be more worried,” she said. Reserves are also healthy, she said, giving an overall positive tone to the presentation, which was shorter than in past years.

“I have one question,” said Councilor Bill MacDonald. “Did you do the audit for Mike Duffy?"

“I have to go now,” said Leakey.

Building permit numbers remain up

After the first quarter of 2015, permits for three new residential units have been purchased, up from 0 in 2014 and two in 2013. The total value of construction for 2015 is now at $1.15 million for the year, up from $262,000 last year and $453,000 in 2013.

$3 million tender

Crains' Construction of Maberly has received the largest road construction tender for Central Frontenac since Road 38 was rebuilt in 2004. At a cost of $3,000,829, which was $42,000 under budget, Crains' was the lowest of four bids on the contract to reconstruct Fifth Lake Road.

Consolidated service delivery

Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) Jim Zimmerman made a preliminary report on a comprehensive plan that Frontenac County CAO Kelly Pender presented to a meeting of the CAOs from the four Frontenac Townships and himself earlier in the day. The report, which was to be discussed again on Wednesday at a Frontenac County Council meeting in North Frontenac, provided a grading system for consolidating 68 different services offered within the county.

“The system is designed to determine if combining forces to deliver specific services will be beneficial or detrimental,” said Zimmerman.

While many of the items in the report will be looked at over time, Zimmerman thought that the county was in a hurry over the Information Technology and Global Information Systems departments.

“They have pans to hire three people by the end of the year, so we will have to look at that part of the plan pretty soon,” he said.

Delegations to Council
New Leaf Link (NeLL)
Dr Karin Steiner, Executive Director of NeLL, introduced several participants, parents and volunteers from this nonprofit program which provides continuing education, lifeskills and socialization to adults with developmental disabilities. Steiner pointed out that once these young people have graduated from the school system there are no ongoing program resources for them in South Frontenac outside their homes.
Since 2009, NeLL has provided activities and education two days a week, drawing on support from volunteers,
service clubs, individual donors and participant fees. They would like to be able to have sufficient finances to run three days a week for 34 weeks, and have two week-long summer programs.
At Mayor Vandewal’s request, Steiner agreed to provide Council more concrete numbers concerning program costs.
Solar Farm Proposal
Two representatives from SunEdison returned to discuss their intent to submit an RFP application to the provincial government this September. They are proposing a solar project on the Groenewegen property fronting on Florida Road, south of Harrowsmith, and need to be able to show municipal support. Two main concerns of Council are that the public meeting about the project should be widely advertised, should include a take-home information package, and that a reserve fund needs to be established to cover the cost of decommissioning the project after its projected twenty-year lifespan
Perth Road Fire Hall
CEO Orr reported on behalf of Fire Chief Chesebrough about the recent tours of three neighbouring fire halls, and three primary design points related to equipment bays: how many, how long should they be, and should these bays be drive-through? Opinions varied, but there seemed general agreement that two bays should be sufficient. Some said that while drive-through bays might be safest in theory, some of the firehalls they visited were clogging the drive-throughs with storage items.
Councillor Revill spoke of the importance of taking a longer view of the whole Township’s fire system: perhaps plan for one larger central station which would house administration and provide facilities for training of all township firefighters, with two or three mid-sized stations, their locations determined by call-out history, and the rest of the stations could be smaller, with minimal training facilities. He suggested that storage might be provided less expensively by secondary buildings adjacent to the main firehall.
Revill emphasized that immediate needs are not the same as wish lists, and budget restraints combined with “a lot to do ahead of us” mean that reserves would need to be developed to accompany long-range planning. He also strongly recommended engaging an architect to draw up the final plans for the firehalls.
Planner’s Response re Johnson Point
Planner Lindsay Mills’ response to Councillor Sutherland’s ten questions met a lukewarm response from Council. Sutherland said that although an argument could be made to have no development on Johnson Point it would not be reasonable to do so, and was not what the Loughborough Lake Association had asked for.
“It’s better to move on,” he said, adding that there still needed to be an environmental assessment on the neighbouring wetlands, for even though this was not a trout lake, an EA would be a “reasonable and responsible condition”, which would address the importance of preserving water quality and fish habitat. He suggested establishing a ten-meter buffer zone between the lot boundaries and the wetlands and using the lot on the southwest corner as common property with docking facilities for all residents.
Mills had said there already were docks in the wetlands around the bay: Sutherland countered that these docks may have been the result of bad planning decisions, and should not be held up as standards to follow. Mayor Vandewal said that creating the buffer might not be possible in this case, as it would be changing the rules in the middle of the process: however, it might be a good idea going forward. Councillor Mark Schjerning agreed with Sutherland, saying he would like a lake impact assessment, regardless of how that section of the planning act has been interpreted in the past.
Councillor Ron Sleeth said he’d like a legal opinion on the interpretation of that section (5.2.10) of the planning act, and Sutherland asked whether someone from the MOE or MNR could give Council a definition of “protected wetland”.
Mayor Vandewal said the issue would be coming to next week’s Council meeting for decisions.
Trailers (for sale or rent) … again …
The time period for compliance with the prohibition of the use of trailers on private residential property expires on December 31, 2105. This by-law has been haunting Council ever since it was established ten years ago.
Originally intended as a means of addressing the inequality of trailer residents paying no taxes, but using Township services: roads, waste disposal, fire and emergency, etc, it has been dragged out and extended, largely due to the difficulty of enforcement. A lively discussion offered CAO Orr no clear direction: the question of “what next?” will come to Council next week.
Where Would You Like to Live?
How about on a lane called: Abbey Road; Copperhead Road; Coronation St; Lannister; Mockingjay; Pivo; Bacon; Stark; Tamarak (sic); Warp Dr; Weevil; Gator or Bedbug? (I added the last one: has a nice rhythm. W)
These are some of the 127 possibilities that Planner Mills offered Council for consideration and approval. The final list will be provided to residents of newly developed lanes, to expedite the choice of names. The list is intended to be nonoffensive, and should not duplicate those of neighbouring Townships, or reference any living person.