Feature article, May 26, 2005

Feature article May 26, 2005

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Algonquin Negotiation Representative Election results confirmed

by Jeff Green

We are now getting underway with preparations which will lead to the negotiation of the land claim, said Robert Potts, the principal negotiator for the Algonquin Land Claim, as the announcement was made that Negotiation Representatives from nine communities have been confirmed.

Four candidates were acclaimed and five polls were held. Chief Electoral Officer Bob Johnson said that 3917 people were eligible to vote in the five communities, and 1650 votes were cast (42%). A total of 47 ballots were rejected for various reasons.

The participation by the Algonquin People and by the electors in those elections that were contested exceeded our most optimistic expectations, said Robert Potts.

There were three protests filed after the election took place, but according to Gary George, Communications Director for the Algonquin Land Claim, after carefully considering those protests and the written submissions from the parties, Mr. Johnson [The Chief Electoral Officer] rejected each of them.

Candidate Melinda Turcotte of Sharbot Lake submitted a complaint against the election of Doreen Davis, and candidate Lynn Gehl of Greater Golden Lake submitted a complaint against the election of Patrick Glassford.

The main thrust of both complaints was that the winning candidates, Ms. Davis and Mr. Glassford, misrepresented themselves as candidates for Nation Representative rather than Negotiation Representative. This, in the context of an election that was intended, according to Melinda Turcottes official complaint, to distinguish between political Algonquin Nation Tribal Council (ANTC) Chief positions and non-political Algonquin Negotiation Representative positions. She cited sections 21 and 22 of the protocol agreement that established the election.

In his response to Melinda Turcotes official protest, Chief Electoral Officer Johnson wrote that It was conceivable or even was anticipated that some confusion might arise from Algonquin Nation Tribal Council (ANTC) Chiefs running for the position of Algonquin Negotiation Representative.

Both Doreen Davis and Patrick Glassford are ANTC chiefs.

However, Johnson wrote that three factors mitigated against this confusion: the original election announcement made it clear the poll was for Negotiation Representative alone; the candidate forum in Sharbot Lake was moderated by Robert Potts, who made it clear to all who attended what was being voted for; and mail-in ballots made it abundantly clear what the purpose of the election was. Johnson also said that the number of people potentially confused by the process would not have affected the outcome of the election as there was such a substantial difference in the number of votes cast for Doreen Davis and yourself. Doreen Davis received 280 votes to Melinda Turcottes 60. The protest was disallowed.

In the case of Lynn Gehl, Johnson wrote that one of the names on her list of 10 supporting signatures, Carol-Anne Maidment, is not on the list of electors for Greater Golden Lake. Accordingly, wrote Johnson, the requirements of section 8 of the Electoral rules have not been met and your protest is disallowed.

The nine Negotiation Representatives from off-reserve communities will now join with the seven members of the Council from the Pikwakanagan Reserve to prepare for negotiations with the Province of Ontario and the Government of Canada.

Feature article,May 12, 2005

Feature article May 12, 2005

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Acrimony, official complaints, as Algonquins elect Negotiation Representatives

by Jeff Green

Doreen Davis has been easily elected as Algonquin Negotiation Representative to the Land Claims Process for those registered Algonquins who identify Sharbot Lake as their community. On Monday after the votes were counted in Pembroke, it was announced that Davis had defeated her opponent Melinda Turcotte in a vote of 280 to 60.

Complete election results are available at http://www.blaney.com/files/algonquin/Election%20Results%20Postings.pdf

In an entirely separate process, Davis was also elected last fall as Chief of the Sharbot Mishigama Algonquin First Nation under the rubric of the Algonquin Nation Tribal Council (ANTC).

With this latest election, five of the nine positions for off-reserve non-status Algonquins at the Land Claims table will be held by members of the ANTC executive, and four will be held by independent community representatives. The seven members of the Council of the Pikwakanagan First Nation of Golden Lake will also be at the negotiating table.

There has been at least one official complaint levied about this latest election. It alleges that Patrick Glassford of Greater Golden Lake confounded the Algonquin Negotiation election by confusing his role as ANTC chief with that of candidate for Algonquin Negotiation Representative. The complaint further alleges that two other candidates, Richard Zohr of Bonnechere, and Doreen Davis of Sharbot Lake, have done the same thing.

In order to understand all this, a bit of history is necessary. The Algonquin National Tribal Council, established a few years ago as a political body to represent the interests of member communities, has become controversial for the Council of Pikwakanagan and certain other off-reserve Algonquins. The reasons for this are many. The hunting agreements entered into by the ANTC and the Ministry of Natural Resources have been challenged, as has the political structure of the organization. Two communities within the Land Claim territory, contain competing Council structures, one affiliated with the ANTC and one opposed to the ANTC.

For this reason Algonquin Chief Negotiator Robert Potts set up what he called a non-political Algonquin Negotiation Representative Process, to come up with popularly elected individuals with the sole task of representing their electors, (groups of 125 or more individuals who have agreed to align themselves with a particular community).

Both the Pikwakanagan Council and the leadership of the ANTC signed on to this process. The registration process was completed earlier this winter, and it confirmed over 5,000 individuals of verified Algonquin descent as electors, affiliated with nine different communities. When it came down to holding an election, six of the ANTC chiefs sought the positions.

Of those six, two were acclaimed, and three of the other four were easily elected last week. But it is the conduct of these three campaigns, those of Richard Zohr, Patrick Glassford, and Doreen Davis that has led to complaints, both official and unofficial.

In all three cases, campaign literature used the phrase Algonquin Nation Representative in place of Algonquin Negotiation Representative, a distinction that may seem subtle to outsiders, but to opponents signals an attempt to confound voters.

When questioned about this prior to official complaints being lodged, Robert Potts told the News that he considered these wording changes as mistakes. (The word Nation was also mistakenly used in place of the word Negotiation in an article, Elections Rejuvenate Land Claim, published April 28, 2005, in the Frontenac News).

However, as Lynn Gehl, who has launched a formal appeal, has stated, in one case the information from the official Algonquin Negotiation Representative website was copied directly by Patrick Glassford into his Greater Golden Lake First Nation website, with the only change being that of the word Negotiation to Nation.

As well, anothercandidate who lost out to Richard Zohr, David Laronde, said in a circulated email message that the website of Richard Zohr was altered on May 6, with the word Nation being changed to Negotiation. Further he asserted that it was his understanding that this was done under instructions from Robert Potts office in response to complaints from people from Pikwakanagan.

The complaints extend beyond the words Nation and Negotiation to the various aspects of the election process.

While it is up to the election team, headed by Bob Johnson, to adjudicate any complaints, a cursory look at the campaign literature of Richard Zohr, Patrick Glassford and Doreen Davis does reveal a certain defiance in regards to the current process. All three consider themselves legitimate leaders, with the ANTC being a legitimate body, and their literature reflects that.

Patrick Glassford wrote that he strongly disagrees with those that are saying the two positions [chief and land claims negotiator] are or should be separate. I believe this would inevitably divide us. I firmly believe it is in our collective best interests to send a strong chief with the political authority to do the job.

At the conclusion of his literature he made a commitment, tying his candidacy for negotiator firmly to his authority as an ANTC chief.

If the community should choose not to support the Chief, I promise a graceful exit of my leadership. Now is the time to support your Chief!

Whether the complaints are successful or not, Paul Lamothe, the acclaimed Negotiation Representative from Ottawa community, an outspoken critic of the ANTC, has said his community is considering whether they should carry on with the negotiations or not.

Lamothe was not able to lodge a formal complaint about the election process because he was acclaimed, but has said he will look closely at how the complaints are dealt with, and will report back to his community.

Paul Lamothe claims that at an election meeting in Pembroke, Robert Potts said that all nine communities must be party to any agreement. If one community leaves the table, the process is finished, he said Paul Lamothe told the News this week.

For his part, Robert Potts told the News he considers that the election was a fair and honest attempt to come up with democratically elected representatives to conduct land claims negotiations within an admittedly tight time frame.

This is only the beginning. The representatives will be expected to consult, consult, consult, with their communities as we go along. Any final agreement will be subject to some sort of ratification process as well. The elections are not the end of community involvement.

Robert Potts is planning to convene a meeting of negotiation representatives shortly, intending to resume negotiations with the federal and provincial governments in September.

Before getting to those negotiations, he will have to overcome defiance from all sides of the table he has been painstakingly populating over the past 18 months

(The above article was edited after a similar article was printed in the Frontenac News. The original article contained errors of attribution which were corrected for posting on newsweb.ca)

Feature article, June 30, 2005

Feature article June 30, 2005

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Central Frontenac chooses Road 38 again for COMRIF

by Jeff Green

It was dvu all over again at Central Frontenac Council.

When it came time to decide which project to apply to the Canada Ontario Municipal Rural Infrastructure Program (COMRIF) for 2/3 funding last December, the majority of Council supported seeking funding for multi-million dollar repairs to Road 38.

Opposition to the proposal came from Councillor Bill Guigue, who argues that a $70,000 repair that was done last year will make the road safe for another six or seven years, and Councillor Logan Murray, who argues that the townships economic prospects would be greatly enhanced by hard topping some other arterial roads within the township that are currently gravel roads.

When a decision about intake 2 came to Council this week, the same arguments were made. Logan Murray said that rather than trying to fund repairs to Road 38, Council should insist that the province take back ownership of the road which a township like Central Frontenac will never be able to maintain on our tax base.

Most of the rest of Council disagreed. If Road 38 was our number one priority six months ago, how could that change? asked Mayor Bill MacDonald.

We would look foolish if, after complaining about being bypassed over Road 38 in the last round, we suddenly sent in a different application, said Councillor Frances Smith.

In the end Council approved applying for funding repairs to Road 38, by a vote of 7-2, with Logan Murray and Bill Guigue being the opposing votes.

Feature article, July 7, 2005

Feature article July 7, 2005

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Addington Highlands nixes policing contract

by Jeff Green

Addington Highlands has been considering their options regarding policing for some time, and this week Council decided it was time to terminate the policing contract that has been in place with the OPP. The OPP will continue to provide policing services to Addington Highlands nonetheless; only from now on they will be using the so-called status quo policing system.

In status quo policing a certain level of service is provided by the OPP, and the township is billed for whatever service is being provided. Under contact policing the level of service is determined by the terms of the contract.

According to figures obtained by township clerk Jack Pauhl, North Frontenac Township (which is of a comparable size to AH) paid approximately $200,000 each year for policing between 2003-2005, while the contract for Addington Highlands this year is estimated at $719,000.

We dont expect any difference in service under status quo policing, said Reeve Ken Hook, and with changes in provincial transfers to municipalities for policing, it looks like policing will be funded more and more through property taxes in the future.

The move by Addington Highlands Council makes it the first jurisdiction in Lennox and Addington County to use status quo policing. Status quo policing has been in place in North and Central Frontenac as well as in Hastings County since policing was downloaded by the province several years ago.

Earlier this year, a task force of North Frontenac Council considered moving from status quo to a policing contract, but concluded that costs would rise.

Chief Building Officers hours increased Wayne Kivell, who took over as Chief Building Officer about six weeks ago, reported to Council that he is unable to catch up on the backlog of building inspection work required of him in the two days he was contracted to work for the township. Council responded by doubling his hours. He will now be working from Monday to Thursday and he will still be spending most of his time on the road, dealing with inspections and his duties as bylaw officer. Wayne Kivell is available in the township office in Flinton on Tuesday and Thursday mornings between 8:30 and 10 am, or by appointment.

Letter sent in response to complaint The township has responded to complaints about the state of certain lawns in Cloyne Village. The complaints had proposed that a yard sale bylaw be enacted, but this cannot take place until the township enacts its comprehensive zoning bylaw, which is currently under development. Nonetheless, it was determined that the lawns in question do contravene the existing yard bylaw of the township. A letter has been sent, giving the property owners 14 days to make a clean up, after which the matter will go to the bylaw officer for enforcement.

Fire grant Several months ago the township received a $50,000 grant, which they are free to use as they wish in order to improve the fire service. This week it was decided that $16,500 will go to Denbigh for increased training and unbudgeted equipment, and $33,500 will go to the Northbrook station. Fire Chief Casey Cuddy said that as much money as possible will be spent on training, but that with the work schedules of the volunteer fire fighters, they are not always available to take weekend training courses.

Among the possible equipment purchases are an air bag for safely lifting cars off of people, and a thermal imaging camera, which would be used to find hot spots at a fire site after the fire has been subdued, improving the departments ability to determine if a fire is completely out, and potentially mitigating against property damage.

Deputy fire Chief named On the recommendation of Fire Chief Casey Cuddy, the new Deputy fire Chief for Denbigh is Jon Pauhl, replacing Ken Berendt who has resigned.

Letters, June 30, 2005

Letters June 30, 2005

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Thank You

Thank you for supporting the Sharbot Lake Public School 75th Anniversary Celebrations. Your timely articles helped to spread the word and helped to make the day very successful. We appreciate Jocelyne Steeves informative articles.

Sincerely,

Ann Walsh

This is my opinion based on my experience and research.

Canaries, Frogs and Other Creatures

Many of the products we use on a daily basis contain harmful chemicals. We accept this fact and circumstance. Scientists determine a level of each chemical that, they say, is safe for the average person under normal conditions of use. This is generally done with 50L tests on white rats and the results extrapolated to the human being. Testing is seldom done on humans. These tests are generally financed by the manufacturer of the said products.

It is the people suffering from Multiple Chemical Sensitivities (MCS) or Environmental Illness (EI) who react negatively to the small levels of toxins in products, usually a confusing array of different things from soaps to carpets to insecticides. The varied reactions are those reactions that anyone would get at a higher dosage because, remember, the chemicals in question are toxic or poisonous ones. This doesn't mean all chemicals.

EI is also called Multiple Chemical Sensitivities (MCS) because the reactions occur to more than one chemical. And here's the scary part: no one has studied the effects of how all these toxic chemicals interact in the "Environment" or in our bodies. It is as if each person has a personal limit to their "toxic load" before illnesses such as EI or even cancer strikes.

Do we really know the cause of cancer? Take lung cancer, for example. Based on my personal experience, I doubt that it is ONLY caused by cigarette smoke. For me, cigarette smoke rates about a 2 (on a scale of 10) in severity of reaction compared to some colognes that rate a 7 and one particular body deodorant used by young people (not mentioning brand names) that rates a 20!

The sensitive individuals who are affected and made very ill by toxic chemicals are like the proverbial canary in the mines. Coalminers used to take a caged canary down into the mines. They knew they were in danger when the canary stopped singing and that their own demise was imminent when the canary keeled over and died. There was no particular odor to detect but the quality of air was deadly. My friends, I am your canary.

I also feel like a caged bird because this illness confines me to my house a lot of the time. Shopping is a nightmare because of fumes like formaldehyde "gassing off" new things. I don't dare go to concerts or clubs for fear the toxic chemically-based perfumes, deodorants, soaps and shampoos will knock me out or give me an instantaneous blinding migraine. I am not able to go out to work because of workplace chemicals, anything from inks and glues to paints to chlorine bleach used in restaurants, etc.

It is important to note here that this is not about odours per se but about toxic chemical odours. Efforts to ban fragrances in public places miss the point. We must all stop using so many poisons on our bodies. Manufacturers must stop adding so many poisons to their products.

There is another story about frogs. Throw a frog into a pot of boiling water and he will try to leap out. Put a frog into a pot of cool water and he will stay there as you heat it up and cook him just the same. I fear we are like that frog sitting unaware as the atmosphere "heats" up with deadly pollution and we take no notice until it is too late.

Twenty years ago, people such as myself were dismissed as psychiatric cases. Today, the weight of evidence is growing and this view is disproven.

Unfortunately, many people still do not want to believe any of what I am saying here. Sometimes their stubborn denial is insurmountable, even dangerous, yet the problem is growing. If you are interested in learning more about this illness, try a search on the internet. Next time, given the opportunity, I will discuss the day-to-day struggles of a person living with mcs/ei.

Jennifer Tsun McDonalds Corners, ON

June 22,2005

Re: Tappins Bay Dock

With respect to your article in the Frontenac News on June 16, 2005 regarding council wanting out of the dock business, I as a Mazinaw Lake property owner have an opinion of my own on this matter. The Tappins Bay boat launch and dock is the only public access to the Mazinaw Lake.

If the statement made by Councillor Dave Smith is correct, that this launch is a money pit, then perhaps the North Frontenac council would be willing to make public the apparently extravagant amount of dollars it spends to maintain it.

Also, Mr. Smith's remarks with regards to cottage owners going back to the Ministry of Natural Resources: maybe he should consider who is the beneficiary of all of the tax revenues received from cottage owners. Is it the Ministry of Natural Resources? No, I don't think so.

Mr. Bud Clayton's remark, if they don't want it, I suggest we pull it down, sounds more like it was uttered by an angry child whose allowance had just been taken away, rather than by an elected official of North Frontenac.

Without a public boat launch, property values with water access only will decrease, and I have to wonder how much out taxes will decrease along with it. In the last year they have substantially increased. How Ironic!

It would be interesting to see North Frontenac's response if all Mazinaw cottage owners decided to withhold paying their tax bill for a two year period, then begin paying only one year at a time.

Lets assume for a second that the Mazinaw Property Owners Association purchased the launch, should a gate be installed and keys be issued only to cottage owners? How much police presence would be required to prevent almost certain vandalism?

Where is our police presence more relevant, on our highways or protecting a gate? Both I might add are at taxpayers expense.

Officer Cheryl Robinson believes it should be left up to the Insurance Company to decide the fate. I think she knows as well as every other person who pays insurance premiums that the Insurance Companies look after themselves and their profits, and have little interest in public opinions about Tappins Bay.

It maybe in the best interest of North Frontenac council to give some more thought to this issue before making any rash decisions. Just one more thought: I wonder if any members of North Frontenac council own a water access cottage on the Mazinaw Lake? Ritchie Arney Mazinaw Cottage Owner

Snow Road history

I am writing you in regard to an article written by David Brison on March 30, 1999, Down Memory Lane, A tribute to the life of Hilda Geddes. According to the article Hilda wrote five books in reference to Snow Road. Would anyone be able to tell me how to obtain copies of these books?

My father was born in the same area as Hilda Geddes, Snow Road, and I am currently researching the family history. My father is Michael Amell (born 1935 at Snow Road) one of 9 children to David Amell (born 1890 at Snow Road) and Mary Spotton. My father and his brothers and sisters attended the SS 8 Dalhousie School also known as the Gemmill Schoolhouse. The school was located on the farm (Amell farm which was purchased from the Gemmills). Some of the nearby farms were the Paul family, Wilson family, and the Shank family. I am looking for any pictures, articles and friends and stories of the Amell family to create a family tree / scrapbook full of great memories.

Any help or information would be greatly appreciated.

Kim Amell

4530 45 St., Sylvan Lake, AB, T4S 1L2

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.; 403-887-2063; Fax 403-887-2399

Re: Scott Reids Referendum

Three cheers for Scott Reid, MP for Lanark, Frontenac, Lennox and Addington, who is giving a voice to his constituents.

Canada is supposed to be a representative democracy, yet most of our MPs are so cowed by the party line that we, the voters, are ignored. Thus it is incredibly refreshing and reassuring to hear that at least one MP is conducting his own constituency referendum on a critical national issue - the Same Sex Marriage Bill - and he is living up to one of his own

Election promises by so doing.Scott Reid is setting a high and admirable standard for electedrepresentatives, and he is demonstrating how representative democracy should function. Betty English Napanee

Letter to the Editor

Re: Response to mystery bugs/June 23, 2005 issue.

Re: Mystery bugs

In response to Marilyn Meeks' question of her mystery bugs, I am able to answer your question.

We have invested in a large number of fruit trees and perennials on our property and have suffered a lot of damage by these mystery bugs. In only a few short hours these bugs seemed to be eating everything in site. We tried every homemade recipe and organic recipe we could with no success in eliminating these pests. Because fruit trees are tender and there product is edible we wanted to be careful of what we were using. However we quickly acknowledged that the bugs were winning the battle.

My Nephew is a graduate of Kemptville Agricultural College and he suggested we take a bug sample of these pests to the College for identification. The college contacted Agriculture Canada and the bugs have been identified as a European Rose Chaffer. They have a three-week breeding cycle in June. As anyone that was hit by them this year knows, in three weeks they do an enormous amount of damage and will eliminate any fruit crop you have in that amount of time.

We were informed if you choose to eliminate this pest you will have to purchase products that have one of these three chemicals included in them: Methoxychor, permethrin, or carbaryl.

We have also been informed that the sample of Rose Chaffer's will be sent to a laboratory in Sault Ste. Marie for further examination and testing. We have been promised another return call if any more information is found at that time. - Angela Deline

Four seasons and still waiting

On April 9, I held a public tour of my property to show the damage done by Graphite Mountain Inc. What does it take to get some action from the Ministry of Northern Development and Mines? Numerous phone calls, letters back and forth did result in something. Soon after the tour, an inspection of my property was made by three representatives of MNDM and the owner of Graphite Mountain Inc. I was promised that the trenches would be filled in as soon as the half load restrictions were removed. Then I was told that the contractor wouldnt be able to start the work for a couple of weeks. I realize that my concern for safety is being ignored. And Im still waiting for some action

It looks like I am going to spend another season without being able to enjoy the use of my property on Merkley Road off the Narrows Lock Road between Perth and Westport. As of June 26, nothing has been done to clean up the mess of deep trenches. I have decided to hold another tour on the afternoon of July 9 between 1:00 and 3:00. Mineral exploration has been going on in this area for over 20 years and shows no sign of ending. This is an excellent opportunity for you to see what types of damage is done in the name of mineral exploration and to see how rural landowners are treated in this province.

Ill be waiting

Marty Cadieux

Feature article, June 30, 2005

Feature article June 30, 2005

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NF Budget almost finalised

A public meeting has been set for July 6, at which time North Frontenac Council intends to pass the 2005 budget estimates. After months of deliberations, the process of budgeting began last November, and culminated in several all-day meetings within the past month. Mayor Maguire said that Council had to find about $500,000 in savings to bring in a budget with a minimal increase. In the end, the increase in the tax rate will be limited to a little under 2.5%. Most of that increase came about as a result of an increase in County taxes. Township operations will account for an increase of less than 1% in the tax rate.

The road construction budget is among areas where the budget has been trimmed.

I think that we have reduced the number of road projects we have budgeted for in half over the past two years, Maguire said. This might not mean less road construction is done in 2005, however. Ron Maguire explained that two years ago the road construction budget was based on projects the road crews hoped to get completed, but many of them never were done because time and worker hours ran out.

We dont want to collect taxation for things we arent going to get to, said Maguire, so now we are only budgeting for projects that will likely get done.

Council will now take a break from budget deliberations, but only for the summer. They will begin considering the 2006 budget in September. Maguire hopes to have a draft budget in place by the end of the year, and hopes to have a multi-year budgeting process in place by next spring.

Feature article, July 7, 2005

Feature article July 7, 2005

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South Frontenac Township Council meeting - July 5

by Wilma Kenny

Mitchell Creek area resident Barbara Heins asked Council what contingency plans they had, if they were unable to get the Mitchell Creek bridge reconstructed before winter. If the existing bridge was unfit for winter use, could it be declared an emergency, in which case the township might be able to return to one of their original options, a Bailey Bridge? Councillors made no response.

Council approved an official plan amendment that recognized the Sydenham Woods Frontenac Associations property on Sydenham Lake as a condominium development. This would make it easier for future buyers of the 12 homes on leased land to obtain mortgages on the houses. No new development is being proposed as part of this process.

Council approved the request by the North Frontenac Arena Expansion Committee to proceed with fundraising, on the understanding that it was not authorizing either tendering or contracting construction of the project. At Committee of the Whole, Councillor Smith had expressed concern that construction not be permitted to begin until Council was assured that adequate funds had been raised.

The Sydenham Water Committee had recommended that the costs of constructing the water line from the property line to the homeowners basement and of well abandonment (up to $1,200) should be part of the expenses eligible for capital construction loans from the township. However, since this work would be done on private property, a separate by-law is needed, which would establish this part of the loan as a collateral mortgage against the property, thus providing a means for the township to recover the loan, if payments are defaulted. There would also be an administration fee of $250 for each loan. This was passed without comment.

Feature article, July 7, 2005

Feature article July 7, 2005

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Sydenham Water Meeting: an Angry Evening with Few Answers

by Wilma Kenny

In the first public meeting on the Sydenham water issue in two years, over 100 angry residents confronted representatives of council, township staff, project engineering and construction. With the treatment plant under construction, heavy machinery in the streets, and the water tower rising above the village, many questions remain unanswered. Most of those in the hall said they felt they had been dragged into a poorly planned project they neither wanted nor needed, one they feared would cost them dearly.

Questions included: What are the criteria for exemptions? Not decided, yet. Mayor Lake said one possibility is that anyone for whom the total initial cost is more than $25,000 might be exempt from bringing the line from the street to their home, if they could prove they had potable water. But they would still have to pay their assessed portion of the capital costs (based on frontage), as well as an ongoing basic monthly fee toward upkeep and replacement reserve for the system.

Is hook-up mandatory? That is, if one brings the pipes from the street to the house, installs a meter, and pays the basic monthly fee, must they actually connect their household to the community system? Many residents, who have good wells, dont want to be forced to use chlorinated lake water. Although originally assured they wouldnt have to, this is apparently now undecided.

Will all residents be required to pay for a building permit, so the municipal inspector can review their installation? An affirmative answer brought a roar of amazement and anger from the crowd, causing the mayor to agree to look into it.

Questions were raised about the eventual cost of the project: the present budget has had all but 2% of the contingency funds removed. Mayor Lake said that if anyone knew where additional government funding might be found, he would go after it at once, and promised the municipality would not spend any more than they had to. Villagers learned that an annual replacement reserve of $63,000 would be added to the monthly costs of running the water system.

Residents finally received a work schedule giving the order in which the streets are being torn up for the water main installation. The rest of the questions will have to wait. They must be discussed by the water committee, then sent as recommendations to Council, before Council will vote on them. The next water committee meeting, which though not a public meeting is open to the public, will be at the township hall Monday, July 18, at 10 am.

On a more positive note: Water Aid!

Plan to be in Sydenham at the SHS auditorium on Saturday August 20, for Water Aid, a concert and dance to remember. Determined to make the best of a difficult situation, Sydenham residents are planning a community fundraiser to help the lower income people of Sydenham keep their homes. Headlined by Dan Aykroyd, the evening will feature the groups Colonel Angus and Donkey Punch. The latter band, from Ottawa, serves up a crowd-pleasing mixture of rock/funk with a strong beat and bluesy undertones. The committee welcomes volunteers: phone Cathy Waugh at 376-3474 if you can lend a hand.

Feature article, June 30, 2005

Feature article June 30, 2005

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Dock task force formedTappins Bay issue returns to Council by Jeff Green

North Frontenac Councillor Will Cybulski was intent on doing some damage control at Council last week, after reaction to a debate about the Tappins Bay dock at the previous meeting led to a deluge of emails and phone calls.

As several audience members, all users of the Tappins Bay dock, looked on, Cybulski assured them that the dock is not slated for closure, at least not on my watch.

An emailed response from the townships insurer to a question about liability insurance for township-owned docks was presented. The insurance company representative wrote that the municipal general liability coverage automatically extends to cover all premises owned or leased by the township, including dock facilities. The letter also said that docks must meet or exceed Ministry specifications, and [be] inspected and maintained appropriately. No one on the township staff or Council is familiar with ministry specifications, and staff will be looking further into the matter.

A delegation from the township went to look at the Tappins Bay dock and launch and found them to be in pretty good repair, so it was not envisioned that much township resources will be required to bring the facility to ministry standards once those are determined.

The same cannot be said for the Canonto Dock, which is in need of immediate repairs.

It was last year that the Mazinaw Lake Property Owners Association requested that the Tappins Bay dock be enlarged and the number of parking spaces be increased.

While Council seems to be reassuring Mazinaw Lake residents that the dock will not be closed, there is little to indicate they are in favour of enhancing service at the site.

Councillor Cybulski said, I think if we make the dock larger, we will only make problems there worse. The dock and launch are intended to provide access to waterbound properties on Mazinaw Lake, but Cybulski says there are people who use it for parking, both for boats and for vehicles.

Other councillors pointed out once again how making investments at Tappins Bay would lead residents on other lakes in the township to demand docks on their own lakes.

There are 33 residents sitting at Mackie Lake, for example, said Councillor Bud Clayton, How are they going to respond if we spend 5 cents on a dock at Mazinaw Lake?

A policy on docks and a strategic plan for the future should be part of a multi-year capital management plan for the township, said Mayor Ron Maguire. Council came to the conclusion that staff should determine what needs to be done to the docks it owns in order to maintain insurability. At the same time they decided to form a Task Force on Docks, which will consult with all those with an interest in public docks within the township. The Task Force is to report back by the end of summer. Fred Perry, attending his third meeting as a Councillor, will be getting his feet wet as a Councillor by chairing the task force.

Ompah Fire Station receives gift John Hawe, the deputy fire chief at the Ompah station, appeared before Council bringing a list of expenditures the Ompah crew would like to make with a gift of $36,000 that they have received from the disbanded Ompah Snowmobile Club. The crew would like to use the money to buy a fire boat and other equipment designed to improve their capacity to provide water and ice rescue services.

Since the Fire department is a department of the township, the township will own the equipment, and Hawe was seeking approval from Council before making the purchases.

Deputy Mayor Gleva Lemke said, This is a very generous gift to the township. We would never have been able to budget for this.

The purchase of a boat and ice rescue equipment caused some concern for Council, however, both because of potential training costs and liability. We have 21 people signed up to do ice rescue training, and Billy Young from Sharbot Lake has offered to do the training for minimal cost, John Hawe assured them.

Hawe was invited to attend a Fire and Emergency Services Committee meeting on July 14 to discuss the matters further. Council could approve the boat purchase at their July meeting, which is slated for July 21.

Ohlmanns Mountain - Councillor Bud Clayton has completed a questionnaire from the Ministry of Natural Resources concerning renaming Gorrs Mountain. Until 1968, the mountain had been named for the Ohlmann family, who were the original settlers on the mountain. Council decided to send the completed questionnaire in to the MNR, a further step in changing the name of the mountain back to Ohlmanns Mountain.

Dianna Bratina Frontenac County Economic Development Manager Dianna Bratina appeared before Council asking for approval of a plan to name her the contact person for an application for an underserved area designation for the County of Frontenac in terms of medical services. Following the lead of the townships to the South, Council approved the proposal.

While she was there, Bratina also informed Council that she had been made aware that a joint application from North Frontenac and Addington Highlands to the Provincial Green Enabling fund, which was prepared last September with the assistance of former County Economic Development Manager Karen Fisher, will likely come through in the near future. The application was for partial funding for a feasibility study into a small solid waste incineration system for the two townships.

Bratina offered to prepare a draft request for proposal document to hire a consulting firm to do the study. Council accepted the offer.

Where will the new Firehall be located? Council has set aside $125,000 in their 2005 budget for the construction of a new Fire Hall, but no decision has been made as to location. When they last discussed the issue, the possibility of keeping the Clar/Mil Firehall at the existing site was discussed, Mayor Maguire told the News.

A major problem with the existing site is a lack of water.

We need to do something about the water no matter what, said Maguire, because our township office is located there, so the public works staff will be looking at improving the existing well, or drilling a new one.

The idea that is being floated is to turn the existing Firehall space into administrative space, and put up a prefabricated Firehall somewhere else on the property.

A majority of Council seems to be in favour of keeping the Firehall on the same lot, said Maguire.

The proposal, favoured by Fire Chief Cor Bakelaar and other members of the now retired Firehall task force, was to use the former MNR site on Buckshot Lake road for a Firehall and training facility.

That proposal is not dead, said Maguire, but we are looking again at the existing site.

Maguire expects that $200,000 will be put into the 2006 budget for Firehall construction.

We all accept and agree that we have to do something. The status quo is unacceptable, Maguire concluded.

Feature article, June 23, 2005

Feature article June 23, 2005

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Mitchell Creek Bridge: Clear Water, Muddy Issues(other notes from Council)

by Wilma Kenny

South Frontenac Council met on short notice this week with Al Robertson, of Fisheries & Oceans Canada to discuss the required navigational clearances of the Mitchell Creek bridge replacement. Robertson confirmed that a clearance envelope of 1.5m vertical by 2m horizontal remained the minimum requirement. He added that normal requirement for a waterway this size was at least 2m vertically above high water with a 6m horizontal clearance, and that an exception had been made after inspecting the creek and considering the environmental concerns expressed by opponents of the structure.

Robertsons department had not asked that the bridge be changed from a single lane structure to a double: he assumed that this had been specified by the engineers for pedestrian and vehicle safety. He said Council has the option of working with Transport Canada to establish boating restrictions concerning speed, etc in the creek.

At the regular Council meeting, Ross Sutherland questioned whether Council could meet bridge construction deadlines (Ministry of Fisheries requires work be completed by October1,) and asked what back-up plans were in place. Although the project can be tendered, no contract can be signed until the environmental assessments are complete, and that process has been slowed by a number of requests for an individual environmental assessment. Several councilors confirmed that if the bridge is not rebuilt before winter, all heavy vehicles, including school busses, emergency vehicles, etc, will have to be rerouted.

Underserviced Area Program of Ministry of Health

Council agreed to support Frontenac Countys request to apply to have the County designated an underserviced area. This may lead to establishing programs to recruit more doctors.

Complaints Procedure

Council moved to adopt a policy requiring all complaints concerning infractions of the Zoning By-law or property standard to be signed and delivered to the Township office. The name of the complainant would not be released to the person who is the object of the complaint, unless required by the courts.

Sydenham Water

The Township water committee has proposed that exemptions be made available to residents for whom the total cost to implement the water system to their property would exceed $25,000. Exempted property owners would still be required to pay the capital costs based on frontage, as well as an annual water rate.

A public meeting concerning the water program will be held at Loughborough Public School, Thursday, June 30, at 7pm. Following this meeting, the committee will make a recommendation to Council for a final decision on exemption criteria.