Feature Article - June 12, 2008

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Feature Article - June 12, 2008 Central Frontenac Council – June 9/08By Jeff Green

Central Frontenac Council resolves planning bottleneck

There’s nothing like a muggy summer night, a non-air conditioned hall, and a host of contentious planning matters to make for a pleasant evening for a township council.

All of those elements were in play in Mountain Grove on Monday night as Central Frontenac Council met to discuss a subdivision on Eagle Lake, a controversial “dry dock” on the Bell Line Road, and a retirement home on Road 38 south of Parham.

The first issue on the council agenda was a proposed subdivision on Bridgens Island on Eagle Lake.

As explained by the township planner Glenn Tunnock and a representative from the consulting firm McIntosh Perry, the proposal is an attempt to take a 30-year-old co-operative arrangement between 14 lot owners on the island and give each of the lot owners a deed to their lot.

Of the 14 proposed lots, ten are currently occupied by seasonal dwellings, and the four remaining lots would require setbacks of 40 metres from the high water mark for any building to take place.

The advocates for the subdivision, which will require county approval if it is to proceed, have been aided by an accident of timing.

In the revised Central Frontenac Official Plan, which is on the verge of being approved by the Ontario Ministry of Municipal Affairs, Eagle Lake has been deemed a “highly sensitive Trout Lake”, severely limiting development. However, the subdivision proposal pre-dated the new official plan, and Tunnock said that according to a legal opinion from the township’s solicitor, the township and the county can proceed in this case under the rules in the Official Plan as it stood at the time the application was filed.

Although most of the speakers on the proposal said it is merely an attempt to recognise what is already in existence and would not lead to any further impacts on the lake, there was a single dissenting voice. A woman who lives on the shoreline of Eagle Lake argues that there is much boat traffic and she feared the traffic would increase.

No decision was made on the application, which will continue its bureaucratic path.

BOOMGARDT REZONING: Council finally dispensed with an unusual rezoning application, although the matter will most likely end up before the Ontario Municipal Board.

Mr. Boomgardt was applying for a change in zoning to permit him to build a parking lot and a dock on a piece of property which has 19 metres of frontage on Warren’s Lake. The dock and parking lot are intended for the exclusive use of people who purchase four building lots that Mr. Boomgardt has created out of a 65 acre piece of land that he owns.

Objections were registered by adjacent landowners, who raised a series of technical arguments, and pointed to a report by the fire chief that raised concerns about a three metre wide road that is also planned. They argued that the lake will be endangered for no other reason than to allow Mr. Boomgardt to offer questionable waterfront access to properties that would otherwise be less valuable.

There was much discussion about whether the proposed dock would even reach the water or would only make it to a muddy wetland some distance from the shallow lake.

“The dock will reach the water during certain times of the year,” said Mr. Boomgardt’s consultant.

The zoning was approved in spite of objecting votes by Normand Guntensperger, John Purdon, and an abstention by Gary Smith.

CLOW REZONING - Another zoning matter that has been before council for a time was resolved when Glenn Tunnock recommended a zoning amendment to permit a retirement home expansion by Jennifer Clow of Hinchinbrooke.

Water issues on the site will need to be resolved before a building permit can be issued, and fire regulations will need to be satisfied before an occupancy permit can be issued, but the zoning hurdle has been cleared.

PUBLIC WORKS MATTERS – Public Works Manager John Simcock reported that tenders have been received for the surface treatment of Highway 509, Ardoch Road and Zealand Road. The winning bid came from Smiths Paving at $520,000, which is $2,000 over the budget estimate for the job. Greenwood Paving was the only other bidder at $550,000.

The roadside mowing tender was awarded to Scott’s Snowplowing and Grass Cutting for $13,500.

2ND LAKE ROAD – The washed out Second Lake Road repair is being addressed. A trench box culvert, costed at $63,000, from Anchor Concrete, has been purchased and a crane hired to lower it into place. John Simcock said there needs to be a “three-day weather window” to complete the work.

MOUNTAIN GROVE FIRE HALL NEAR COMPLETION – Simcock reported he has done a walk-through of the new firehall and a few safety concerns are being addressed.

BLEACHER COMING – In response to a question from Councilor Frances Smith, John Simcock said the second bleacher is coming for the Oso ballfield in Sharbot Lake.

“Good,” said Smith, “I’ll know what to say when people call me.”

SAFETY CONCERN OVER BEARS - Finally, Simcock took the opportunity to report that many people have been congregating at the Olden dump during off hours to view the bears that have taken up residence there.

“Many of the bears are female and when their cubs are born the situation will become even more dangerous than it is - and it is already dangerous,” said Simcock.

People are advised to stay away from bears, and never to approach them.

“On some nights, you would think it was a drive–in movie theatre there with the number of cars,” Simcock said.

The matter will also be raised with the Ontario Provincial Police.

Editorial - June 12, 2008

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Editorial - June 12, 2008 A shot across the bow from north FrontenacEditorial by Jeff GreenIt is no surprise the North Frontenac Council is dissatisfied with the County of Frontenac. As far as I can recall North Frontenac has always been unhappy with the County, even when Stan Johnston was the Mayor of North Frontenac.

But to go to the lengths of exploring secession is quite a leap.

First off, there is no reason to expect that the province, which has the ultimate authority over all municipal matters, will ever entertain a proposal for North Frontenac to pull out of the County.

This must be something that North Frontenac Mayor Ron Maguire is aware of. The decision to fund a feasibility study into secession is borne of his extreme frustration with the way County council, and the County itself, is run, and is poised to send as strong a message as Maguire can send that he is not going to County meetings and finding himself isolated as the other three Mayor continue to proceed with projects such as the Integrated Community Sustainability Plan, a County wide planning initiative, etc., while refusing requests for funding to projects that Maguire sees as important to the North, such as broadband, Pine Meadow Nursing Home, and transportation.

In the view of Maguire, and of North Frontenac, the divisions at the County are North-south Divisions, and he does not receive enough support from Central; Frontenac Mayor Janet Gutowski to feel he is anything but isolated.

Mayor Gutowski expresses support privately, but once we go to meetings, she votes with the others,” he said during a special Council meeting at the Plevna Fire hall last week.

North Frontenac is not alone in its dissatisfaction with the County. While none of the other townships have the same uniformity of discontent, and the Mayor’s of the other townships are, at least publicly, supportive, there are Councilors on each Council that accuse County staff of “empire building” at the expense of the local ratepayers.

While many of these Councilors in other townships have little sympathy for North Frontenac, they also dislike the County are not likely to spring to its defence.

That job will be left to the Mayors, and perhaps to senior County staff.

A word to the wise.

North Frontenac ratepayers are no more sympathetic to Frontenac County than are its Councilors, and in Barrie ward, the largest in North Frontenac, Frontenac County does not even run the ambulance and Pine Meadow Nursing home is a major employer.

Many people in Barrie ward never wanted to be part of North Frontenac in the first place, much less Frontenac County.

While Ron Maguire may make no headway with the Province with all this, he could easily lead a ratepayers revolt in his home township.

It could be a mistake for Frontenac County Council and senior staff to ignore this tangible expression of discontent from the north.

Feature Article - June 19, 2008

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Feature Article - June 19, 2008 Revisions to South Frontenac Official Planby Wilma Kenny

Township planner Lindsay Mills introduced a resolution that Council approve in principle the changes to the Official Plan as listed in his report, and that the revised plan be presented at a public open house meeting. Mayor Davison noted that Council had discussed all this in several Committee of the Whole meetings, and warned, "There will be only one round of discussion, so speak wisely."

Councillor Robinson: "Restarting the clock (to allow three more severances per property) was discussed: where’s that in this?"

Mills: "We’re not proposing to restart the clock."

Councilor Davd Hahn said he felt resetting the clock could wait until the next 5-year review.

Councilor John Filion proposed an amendment to add resetting the clock on severances to the proposed changes, which passed with Fillion, York, Hicks, Robinson and Vandewal in favour.

Fillion said he supported development on private lanes not leading to water, and asked that that be added as well.

Lindsay Mills reminded Council that the term ‘back lot development’ referred to only those lots directly across a lane from waterfront lots, and did not mean opening lots further back on the same road. Mills noted that although severances on lanes not leading to water was technically possible, there had been none since he came on staff. Fillion disagreed, saying there had been. Mills that both the Ministry and the Township lawyer advised against off-lane severances.

Fillion: "Wrong. Our lawyer had better get another lawyer." He then read from a report which supported his position, and after being asked by the mayor, said the report was by a consultant he himself had commissioned for personal use.

Stowe said he had received 123 e-mails, only 3 of which supported the idea of allowing back lot development on private lanes.

The motion to add back lot development to the proposed OP revision was defeated, with only York, Fillion and Hicks supporting it.

Date of the Public Open House about the Official Plan has not been set.

Waste Management Plan:

Public Works Manager Mark Segsworth introduced a motion that Council accept the recommendation of the Sustainability Committee that: a) The Waste Management Plan Study be received and that a public consultation process be developed by the Sustainability Committee, and b) Council consider alternatives to the current bag tag system and alternatives to encourage waste reduction and diversion, and c) that early closing of those landfill sites with least capacity, or with environmental concerns, be accepted as an important goal of operating the Township Waste Management System.

Segsworth said he was looking for guidance from council regarding their wishes for the future direction of waste management in the township.

Jim Hicks said the report had been rejected last meeting; why was it being brought forward again? Mayor Davison said the township lawyer had said a change in the motion made it ok to bring back. Stowe said this was too important an issue to be decided in the mayor’s absence, adding that he didn’t understand the contradiction in people who voted against it, although they had said it was the best report they had ever read.

David Hahn said, "We have a choice: do we want to stay with the status quo, with four systems and six landfills, or do we want a unified system, aiming for 50% diversion, keeping the waste in South Frontenac, a higher level of service with central yard and leaf waste composting and central hazardous waste, that will cost the taxpayers less to operate than the present four systems? It’s time to go to the public with information about options and costs."

Bill Robinson said "We’re still area rated, and I’ll do anything to keep it that way. If we go to one colour of bag-tag, much of Bedford and Loughborough’s garbage will go to Portland landfill. I wish we had the opportunity not to do recycling: I’d shoot it down."

John Fillion spoke against the idea of public information meetings about waste disposal: "Why involve the public? This is council’s business to decide: that’s why we were elected."

Ron Vadnewal said “If this is passed tonight, it will go back to Sustainability to summarize the proposals and the costs of the various scenarios, for presentation to the public. It’s the same as having public information meetings about the official plan: Council will still make the final decisions."

Larry York said, "Are we going to do something about these damn bag tags or not?"

The motion passed 6:3, with Robinson and Fillion opposed, and Hicks not voting because "It didn’t do any good to vote last time."

Feature Article - July 24, 2008

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Feature Article - July 24, 2008 Frontenac County CouncilBy Jeff Green

Maguire objects at County CouncilFrontenac County Council had mostly housekeeping matters to deal with at their only scheduled summer meeting and the absence of Central Frontenac Mayor Janet Gutowski meant that there were only three members of Council at the table. But that did not stop North Frontenac Mayor Ron Maguire from raising concerns on various issues.

And he wasted little time getting started.

“I would like to raise a general objection. I don't think things should be added to the agenda at the last minute. I don't think that should be allowed,” he said in reference to some items that were added after the members had received their agenda package. “How can we make decisions when we have no time to digest the information.”

Review of Governance -

Earlier this year, County Warden Jim Vanden Hoek made a commitment at a joint meeting between County Council and councillors from the four Frontenac Townships (North, Central, South, and the Frontenac Islands) that the current governance model of the County will be reviewed during this term.

Currently the Mayors from the four townships make up the Council.

An administrative report by County CAO Liz Savill was presented to Council last week.

It noted that when Ontario municipalities were restructured in 1996, in Frontenac County it brought a “dramatic shift from a council of 29 members” which “reflected a clear desire to ensure that the new corporation conducted its activities in a business-like manner.”

County Council addressed the question of the size of Council in 1993 and opted to retain the current structure. However, the townships did begin bringing their own Chief Administrative Officers (CAO's) to the monthly County Council meetings and a CAO's group was formed to vet various issues.

Savill's report concluded by saying “the effectiveness of the County over the last ten years' should be acknowledged. A number of very significant projects have reached successful conclusions under the direction of the four member council.”

The report recommends that a consultant be hired to review County governance and make recommendations for change.

“I suspect this is a long process that this council needs to deal with by the end of 2009, one year in advance of the next election.” said Warden Vanden Hoek.

“I support the need for the review,” said North Frontenac Mayor Maguire, “but I want to see the terms of reference before the contract is advertised.”

“I'm quite comfortable with what is here. I'm comfortable with staff. To delay would be putting our head in the sand,” said South Frontenac Mayor Gary Davison.

“I'd like to caution our mayors not to wade too aggressively into the terms of reference for this. The potential is to have difficulty if you want everything done at the council table,” said Vanden Hoek. “It can drive the results before you do the work.”

The proposal was approved, and the terms of reference for the review will be brought back to Council in September, before the contract is tendered.

Broadband service gap analysis – Dianna Bratina, the County Manager for Economic Development, proposed to hire Internet Technology consultant Laura Bradley to update information about the availability of broadband internet service in the County. The information is required in order for the County to apply to a $30 million rural broadband program from the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food, and Rural Affairs.

The $8,000 study is to be funded out of Bratina's current budget.

“The deadline for the first intake to the $30 million fund is the day after our next meeting, so I hope to bring the study forward then and have a submission in by the next day,” said Bratina.

“We met with Laura Bradley in North Frontenac,” said Ron Maguire. “As you know, none of North Frontenac is served by broadband. Laura Bradley mentioned to us that applications can be made by townships as well.”

“I have no problem with the County application as long as we are the lead agency. We are also interested in making our own application, because we have partnerships that the County does not have. We don't have any confidence with the county making an application on our behalf. We may go both ways. We can make the September 18th deadline, whereas I'm not sure that the County will reach that unless North Frontenac takes the lead on it.”

“If North Frontenac want to makes its own application as well the County, that's not a problem. But taking the lead on the County application, I'm not sure how that works,” said Warden Vanden Hoek. “In any event, for now we are only talking about a study.”

The $8,000 gap study will go ahead.

Senior Management Salary Review – A report from CAO Liz Savill concerning salary levels for the County Treasurer, Director of Emergency Services, and Chief Administrator positions concluded that the current combined average for the three positions in Frontenac County is $86,244 - $102,431, which is significantly lower than the average of 7 other neighbouring counties from which numbers were available ($92-789 - $109,179)

“From a recruitment and retention perspective, it would be prudent of the County to appropriately adjust this band of senior management team wage structure to be in line with those of the municipalities in our region,” Savill's report said.

It recommended increasing the senior management wage structure by 10%.

“Anything beyond the 3% is a non-starter. I'm not in favour of trying to have our industry go the same way as professional sports,” said Ron Maguire.

“I think we need to give them a raise but I don't think we can do it all at once. I do think we need to do our best to retain the people we have,” said Gary Davison.

“Anyone that is watching municipal government knows that a lot of senior people are reaching retirement and there is a lot of demand. I don't think there are lots of Wayne Gretsky's out there. I think before we close the barn door on this one entirely I would suggest having [Central Frontenac Mayor] Janet Gutowski here. It would be a reasonable step.”

The matter was deferred until September.

Financial services – The Township of Frontenac Islands has lost its Treasurer and has worked out a deal to receive financial services from Frontenac County, on a “full cost recovery basis”.

A motion approving the arrangement was brought forward.

“Can your office handle this,” Mayor Davison asked County Treasurer Marian Vanbruinessen,

“Yes”, said Vanbruinessen.

“I question how serious Frontenac Islands is about their role. If you give up financial services, you give up budgeting, you give up everything. You might as well close up the shop and go home,” said Mayor Maguire.

The motion was approved.

Feature Article - July 24, 2008

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Feature Article - July 24, 2008 North Frontenac CouncilBy Jeff Green

Roger Veale and Arndt Kruger from the Mazinaw Lake Property Owners Association (MPOA) appeared before North Frontenac Council. They had two intentions. The first was to clear up any lingering confusion after they had approached Addington Highlands Council about that township leasing the dock in light of previous statements by North Frontenac County about it “not being in the dock business”.

This was not well received by North Frontenac Council.

“The proposal to involve Addington Highlands Council is dead. It is off the table,” said Roger Veale.

Instead, he said, “we want to propose, with the support of Mississippi Valley Conservation Authority and the Ministry of Natural Resources, that a floating dock extension would be added to the existing dock, parallel to the shore. This is the best solution to an issue that has been difficult. If we do get an extended dock, we will have more efficiency.”

For several years now, the association has been concerned about congestion bearing on the quality of the cottage experience for water access property owners. This situation is especially acute, the association said in a letter to Council, “on long weekends for boaters trying to pick up or drop off family members/visiting guests.”

While Council was generally supportive to the proposal provided the MPOA covers all costs and the townships insurance can cover any extra liability that may be created. However Councillor Fred Perry did introduce one potential pitfall.

“I did some research,” he said, “and the Federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans says a dock can not be more then 538 sq. feet or 50 square metres.

This is something we definitely need to check into,” said Roger Veale, “because our existing dock is larger than that.”

“There seems to be support here,” said mayor Ron Maguire in summing things up. Check into the navigable waters question. We look forward to hearing from you again.

Replacement Councilor appointment delayed – An advertisement for applicants to replace Ward 2 Councilor Wayne Cole carries a deadline of July 16th, and two applications were received at the township office. But Mayor Maguire did not want to proceed with the appointment.

“I would recommend to Council that we extend the deadline for applications for this vacancy to make sure we reach as many qualified applicants as we can. A lot of people have been on vacation. We have sixty days from the time we advertised to fill the position. I believe that we should have a process there as well. An all candidates meeting in front of Council.”

“It's been advertised. We have two applicants. Why not go ahead,” said Councilor Bob Ohlmstead.

“How does it work. Once we've put on a deadline, can we change it,” asked Councillor Lonnie Watkins.

“I checked and it's really wide open. Council can go ahead and appoint someone without even advertising the position at all. It's really up to the individual Council,” said Township Chief Administrative Officer Cheryl Robson.”

It was then pointed out the previous time a Council position had been vacated under Maguire, Wayne Good was the only candidate and he was appointed.

Ron Maguire's proposal carried the day, and the position has been advertised once again and the deadline has been extended. Interested parties should contact the township office.

It was not announced who the two applicants were, but Betty Hunter was on hand at the meeting.

Hunter represented Ward 2 from 2004-2006 and then ran unsuccessfully for Mayor, against Ron Maguire and Bud Clayton, in the most recent election.

She told the News that she had submitted a resume. The name of the other candidate has not been released.

Good News from JEPP – The township has received a total of $14,082.40 in grants for emergency services from the JEPP (Joint Emergency Preparedness Program). The money includes $8,400 towards base radios for the fire department, and $10,000 for a generator to be used at the Emergency Operations Centre at the Clar/Mil Fire Hall. The township will have to contribute another $36,525.32 in order to purchase the equipment.

Bad News from the Clar/Mil Hall -

Recreation Coordinator expressed frustration about the ongoing efforts to control water flow at the exterior of the Clar/Mil Hall. Water has been infiltrating the basement of the building and bringing the threat of mould, leading to the temporary closing of the Plevna Library, located in the Hall, until the problem is sorted out.

Contractors hired to deal with the situation have found an underground spring in the vicinity of the hall which keeps causing problems.

“The bottom line is that every time we do something we find something else to deal with,” said Klatt.

He will bring a full report to the next meeting of Council in August.

Vandalism at United Church Cemetery – It was reported that vandalism has occurred at the Cemetery, which is located across from the Clar Mil Hall in Plevna. Anyone with information or who sees anything in the future is asked to contact the township office.

Feature Article - July 3, 2008

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Feature Article - July 3, 2008 North Frontenac Council – June 26/08By Jeff Green

Maguire frustrated with ministry response over Pine Lake

North Frontenac Mayor Ron Maguire recounted to his Council last week that a long-awaited meeting with Ontario government officials failed to clarify what direction the township should take regarding the proposed Pine Lake development.

Almost exactly two years ago, the Ardoch Algonquin First Nation (AAFN) appropriated the boat launch at Pine Lake, and began clearing it with the intention of establishing a Pow Wow grounds and building a band office.

The AAFN asserted their claim to the land, and said they were planning to pursue the development without seeking any kinds of permits. They also said they would still follow the building code and environmental regulations becaue they agreed with them. “The building code is a good code”, said their spokesperson Bob Lovelace at the time.

An environmental assessment was done, and even though the AAFN has neither asked for nor accepted one, then MNR has issued a land use permit for the development.

North Frontenac Council was looking for guidance, particularly from the Ministy of Municipal Affairs and Housing, as to the township’s own obligations to require a building or entrance permit before the building project begins.

“To get to the short of it,” Maguire told his council after the meeting, “we’re on our own. As far as whether we are going to require building permits or entrance permits or permits of any kind, we’re on our own. As far as whether we wanted to ‘be creative’, as they said, it was made very clear to us that they did not want to deal with this at all.”

Not receiving clarification as to whether the township would be held to the letter of the law by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing left Maguire uneasy. “It was not received very well by us. It wasn’t comforting anyway” he said.

It does help Maguire that there is a lack of clarity as to the legal status of the Ardoch Algonquin First Nation.

“Justice Thomson clearly said that the AAFN does not have legal standing to assert native rights, but on the other side were ministry positions that they would recognise them, admit that they are recognised by other First Nations, and welcome them to the land claims process. It is hard to square all that.”

Council took no position as to how to proceed should construction commence at the site.

Secession from Frontenac County would be “an incredibly uphill climb”

After discussing the Pine Lake issue, Maguire told council that he took advantage of the fact that a senior official from the Minisry of Municpal Affairs and Housing was on the phone, and mentioned North Frontenac’s intention to explore secession from Frontenac County.

“He said it would be an incredibly uphill climb; number one because the legislation that set up amalgamation said no new municipalities would ever be created,” Maguire reported. “Even if it were possible, the hoops that we would have to go through to satisfy the county and the province would be quite formidable.”

The only option that might be entertained, according to Maguire, would be for North Frontenac to join another county. “It would still be quite a protracted process. It’s quite daunting really,” Maguire said.

On the other hand, a manager from the ministry admitted that Frontenac is the only county with “such a small council, only four members, and he said he could see why it is unworkable,” Maguire said.

Maguire suggested that the township stay the course, but hold off on a planned feasibility study until they have had some further meetings.

Big Gull Lake – Twelve property owners who own island lots on Big Gull Lake received permission to access a dock which they have built on Crown land.

Tappin’s Bay – North Frontenac received an email from the clerk of Addington Highlands Township, Jack Pauhl, informing them that the Mazinaw Lake Property Owners Association has asked Addington Highlands to seek a lease from North Frontenac so the association can develop the launch further.

Council was not receptive.

Councilor Fred Perry, who has dealt exensively with Tappin’s Bay, said, “It’s been over a year since anyone from Mazinaw Lake came to see us about this. If they want to do something they should come here and make a proposal, and follow a process, just like the people from Big Gull Lake have done.”

New recycling plans: Council decided that North Frontenac should pay $50 to become part of multi-township initiative, based in Renfrew, towards recycling. The township currently recycles in Belleville, which is further away, although the terrain is flatter.

“Our main goal was to find somebody who would take our plastic bags, Styrofoam and polystyrene,” said Public Works Manager John Ibey.

The Renfew plant does, and Belleville doesn’t.

Wayne Cole resigns from North Frontenac Council

Wayne Cole, who has represented Ward 2 (the former Clarendon and Miller Township) on North Frontenac Council for the past 18 months, resigned abruptly last Tuesday, June 22.

His resignation was announced at a council meeting on Thursday, June 24, and the township is seeking candidates who would like to stand for the position, which will be filled by appointment later this month.

Wayne Cole resigned just one day after participating, along with North Frontenac Mayor Ron Maguire, in a conference call with officials from several provincial ministries on the subject of the pending development of Pow Wow grounds and a band office by the Ardoch Algonquin First Nation.

At the council meeting on Thursday, North Frontenac Mayor Ron Maguire reported that the upshot of the meeting with the province on Monday had been that the township is “on its own” in deciding how to deal with issues around building permits in regard to the development.

The News was unable to contact Wayne Cole over the Canada Day weekend for comment on his resignation, but were informed by township staff that he cited personal reasons for stepping down.

Feature Article - July 10, 2008

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Feature Article - July 10, 2008 South Frontenac Council – July 8, 2008By Wilma Kenny

A Minor Variation or a "Horrible Precedent?"

Councillor David Hahn brought up a recent Committee of Adjustment decision that he said concerned him.

The owners of a shoreline property on Morning Glory Lane in Portland district had been granted a minor variance after they had constructed a deck and an addition without building permits. Hahn noted that the Township planner had advised the variance application be denied, as it did not conform to the official plan or the zoning act, and was neither minor nor appropriate to the lot.

Hahn recommended the Township appeal the decision to the Ontario Municipal Board.

Deputy Mayor Bill Robinson said the Committee of Adjustment had passed the motion 5 to 3, and he felt their decision should not be challenged.

"I disagree," said Councillor Del Stowe, "If we start approving minor variances after construction without permit, we’d be setting a horrible precedent. If we did that, I’d wash my hands of that committee."

Councillor John Fillion sided with Robinson, saying Council had no right to challenge its own committee.

Mayor Davison said the township lawyer had advised that if a committee went against the recommendation of its own planner, they should consult another planner before making a decision.

John Fillion then made a comment about lawyers.

The mayor said he found the committee’s decision unconscionable: he said that the applicants had known to get a renovation permit for inside work, so had no reason not to know a permit would be necessary for the deck and addition.

"How can we defend our official plan, if we allow this?" he asked.

Councilor Ron Vandewal said, “This way, the people who behave legally are the ones who are penalized: the ones who don’t get permits are being allowed to get away with it."

Council voted to appeal the decision: John Fillion, Bill Robinson and Larry York were opposed.

Township Land Acquisitions

Council has agreed to purchase a band of land around the Storrington Centre site for $45,000, on behalf of the Township, and approximately 40 acres adjoining the Loughborough landfill for $100,000, on behalf of Loughborough district.

Fuel Price Escalation Raises Township Expenses

Mileage rates have been increased to $0.49 per kilometer effective July 1, for councillors, staff and contractors using personal vehicles while on township business. Council also agreed to incorporate a fuel price adjustment for payments for the provisions of municipal services under contractual agreement (waste collection, snow clearing, etc), effective April 2008. The amount will be determined by the Ministry of Transportation Fuel Price Adjustment calculations.

Library/Township Building Expansion

Council agreed to establish an Advisory Committee on the Sydenham Library and Administration Building Redevelopment proposal, to be composed of: 4 council members, 3 members of the public, and staff and advisors as required. This committee will review proposals and make recommendations to Council. The CAO will advertise for the three public members.

Poison Ivy in Verona

Deputy Mayor Robinson reported he had been receiving complaints about poison ivy on township property in the village of Verona: Council has agreed to engage a licensed applicator to destroy it. Poison ivy is on the provincial list of noxious weeds, and it is the responsibility of the landowner to get rid of it.

Feature Article - July 10, 2008

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Feature Article - July 10, 2008 Addington Highlands CouncilBy Jeff Green

New cell phone company makes overture in Flinton

OmniGlobe Networks, the company that is slated to bring broadband internet service to rural Frontenac and L&A Counties, is already branching out.

Lynx Mobility, a company that is so new it has not yet been formally launched, is a partnership between OmniGlobe Networks and Naskapi Immun, a corporation based in the Naskapi First Nation which is located in Northern Quebec.

Benoit Fleury from OmniGlobe and Balgovind Pande, a consultant who works for the Naskapi Immun Corporation, made a presentation to a meeting of Addington Highlands Council on Monday, July 7, in which they talked about the possibility of bringing cell phone service to the Cloyne area, perhaps making use of towers being constructed for the OmniGlobe broadband project.

Benoit Fleury said that 7-10% of Canadians do not have access to cellphone service, or roughly 3 million people, and this is the market that Lynx Mobility will be focused on.

“The large cellphone providers, Bell Telus and Rogers, are focused on population densities in the thousands. One of them told me that under the 10,000 threshold point it does not make sense for the incumbents to move into rural areas,” said Benoit Fleury.

This was not news to Addington Highlands Council. A couple of years ago, under former Reeve Ken Hook, council offered a $50,000 incentive to any of the major cell providors to encourage them to construct towers in Northbrook and Cloyne to serve the Highway 41 corridor, to no avail.

“We focus on communities with populations of under 2,000 people,” said Fleury.

“The Naskapi Immun has set up projects in remote locations, and has developed an understanding of how to set up services in remote communities. We also have lots of experience in how to access government funding,” said Balgovind Pande in outlining the expertise that his corporation is bringing to the Lynx Mobility partnership.

Benoit Fleury said that the first thing that must be done if this project is to move forward is to ensure that the towers that OmniGlobe is constructing this summer will be capable of supporting cellular equipment as well as high speed internet equipment.

“We need to move quickly on that,” he said.

Depending on the terrain, a radius of 15-20 km could be served by one tower.

Aside from that issue, Fleury said the next step in the process would be to identify a “priority coverage area, based on demographics, population density and other factors and then we can establish a business model.”

The preference for Lynx mobility would be for a locally based partner to step into the project.

“We call it a franchise model but it really is a partnership model with a local operator. It would provide a business opportunity and perhaps some local employment,” Balgovind Pande said. “But,” he added, “Lynx Mobility could be the operator.”

For a cellphone business to be successful, Benoit Fleury said it would be preferrable to have five or six hundred subscribers. “You can do it with less, but as the numbers drop further it becomes more difficult,” he said.

Ken Hook, who attended the meeting as a member of the AHEAD Committee (Addington Highlands Economic Advisory For Development) asked if it wasn't possible that once the service was up and running, “one of the big cell companies will jump in and decide to provide service, leaving the local business operator hanging,”

“It is a free market economy,” said Balgovind Pande.

“It still won't be the kind of area that will be particularly attractive to the incumbents, who would like greater density,” said Benoit Fleury.

Fleury said it would take 12-15 months to get service up and running if it turns out to be viable.

Reeve Henry Hogg thanked the two men for travelling to Flinton from their office in Montreal, and Council passed a motion appointing Henry Hogg, Ken Hook, and AHEAD committee chair Larry Pealow as contacts.

(In an attempt to receive further information about the OmniGlobe broadband internet offering from new towers in Cloyne, Mountain Grove and Plevna, the News attemtped to contact the company this week, but we were unable to contact the project coordinator. We will continue to seek information about the range and price of the service as well as the time frame for it to come online.)

Petition for ATVs misplaced, says Reeve

Fred Thompson headed a delegation that intended to work at convincing the township to open up the section of Highway 41 from the junction with Hwy. 7 north to Bon Echo Park to ATV use, but Henry Hogg said he was talking to the wrong level of government.

“We have no jurisdiction over Hwy. 41; it is a provincial highway. We can try to find out who you should be talking to at the Ministry of Transportation, but that's all we can do,” Hogg said.

ATVs are legal on Addington Highlands Township roads, ever since a bylaw was passed, in a split vote, by the council of the day in May of 2004.

By provincial law, ATVs are permitted north of Bon Echo on Highway 41, but not on the stretch between Highway 7 and Bon Echo Park.

“I think that is because of traffic counts,” said Hook,” but you would have to check with the province.

The Addington Highlands bylaw also does not apply on Lennox and Addington County roads within the township, such as the Flinton Road, Hogg added.

“You'd have to contact the county in Napanee to change that rule,” said Hogg.

Cloyne dump hours and Skootamatta ratepayers – Deputy Reeve Helen Yanch told council she had an “interesting time” at the Skootamatta Property Owners Association meeting. One of the issues raised was the fact that a Request For Proposal for a development on Sheldrake Lake had been set out after the cottagers had left for the fall last year.

“I told the people at the meeting that I would bring this to the attention of council,” Yanch said, “and I am. I would hope in the future that there is some way we can communicate better with the cottage association on matters like that, it would be a good idea.”

Another issue she heard about were the new dump hours at the Cloyne transfer station, specifically the 1 PM closing on Sundays in the summer.

“I didn't even know the hours had been changed,” Yanch said “and we don't set the hours, the hours were set by North Frontenac Township.”

The Cloyne site is jointly owned by the two townships.

“We pay 50% of the costs,” said Clerk Treasurer Jack Pauhl.

Helen Yanch made a motion that the township contact North Frontenac for clarification.

Feature Article - July 17, 2008

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Feature Article - July 17, 2008 Central Frontenac Council - July 14/08By Jeff Green

Severance getting close after four year wait

Doug Brown has been planning to sever his lot on St. Andrew Lake near Godfrey so that his sister can build a seasonal cottage on the lake, and he can keep his house.

It all seemed like a good idea. The new lot is large enough, and has enough shoreline frontage and required setbacks to satisfy the township’s official plan, so everything seemed in order.

But one bureaucratic hoop led to another, and four years and thousands of planning dollars later, things might just now be rounding into shape - that is, if there aren’t too many snakes nests on the new lot.

One year ago, council gave conditional consent to the severance and a required zoning change, but it turned out that road access was a problem.

Doug Brown’s existing property is split by an old CP Rail line, now owned by Bell Canada. The line is fenced and there is a gate on both sides that Brown uses, under an agreement with Bell, to access his property. It is a long-standing relationship, and as Doug Brown told Central Frontenac council this week, “Bell even replaced the gate a few years ago.”

When applying for the severance, Brown sought and received a letter from Bell Canada, stating “Bell Canada will permit the adjacent landowner to cross from one side of their property to their property on the other side, across the Bell Canada owned lands.”

While this is sufficient for the existing property, the township’s official plan says that any new lot being created requires that the lot has “legal access” to a township road, and Bell’s letter of permission does not constitute legal access.

This week, one year later, council studied a proposal to create a “water access lot”, to be accessed from a property on the north side of the lake.

While this satisfied council, Councilor Bill Snyder pointed out that the agreement to park a car for a boat launch to the new lot is listed in the application as a permanent agreement, and provincial law requires that no such agreements be longer than 21 years. Nonetheless council approved the bylaw on the understanding that a correction can be made in supporting documentation.

So, will Doug Brown’s sister be able to build soon? Not yet. A trained biologist will have to come in to the property to determine if there is any nesting habitat for the Eastern Black Rat Snake, which is listed as a “threatened species” in Ontario.

“If this is the case, there is plenty of room for the building to be moved,” said township planner Glenn Tunnock.

But then the cottage will be located next to a snake’s nest, and black rats are the largest snake in Ontario, growing to be as long as 200 cm (6 ft).

AFAR MAKES PRESENTATION – Bob Taylor, accompanied by Hali Foster, Stella Posthma, and Howard Gibbs, brought information about the AFAR (Adddington Frontenac Area Radio) project, which although based in Northbrook, will likely have Arden and Mountain Grove in its range.

Current plans are for the radio station to be on the air 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, with mostly local programming.

Taylor asked council for a general letter of support to accompany a grant application to the Frontenac Community Futures Development Corporation, and $1,000.

Council agreed to provide the letter, and asked staff for a report on where the $1,000 could be found. Several councillors also bought $10 memberships to the radio station.

FIRE HALL COMPLETED - The long-awaited Olden Fire Hall in Mountain Grove has been completed, Fire Chief Mark Macdonald reported to council.

“The trucks are in, the fire fighters are in, and the training centre will be completed by September, in time for us to do eight or so weeks of live burn training this fall,” said MacDonald.

MacDonald also reported that the radio tower project, in partnership with Utilities Kingston, will be completed soon.

As well, the new first response vehicle has been purchased for location in Piccadilly. The 4 x 4 truck will contain loads of fire gear, including fire retardant foam, to improve fire services in the very south end of the township.

$2,000 FOR PARHAM FAIR – Council agreed to provide a $2,000 grant to the Parham Fair, in line with grants in previous years.

Feature Article - July 17, 2008

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Feature Article - July 17, 2008 South Frontenac Water debatedribbles onBy Jeff Green

At their only scheduled Committee of the Whole meeting this summer, South Frontenac Council had only one issue on their plate, a report by Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) Gord Burns on the subject of how to apportion the construction costs for the Sydenham Water system to the 270 households that are located within the village limits, and a draft bylaw that would allow the township to finally send out the bills.

If Burns’ recommendations were accepted the bylaw could be passed at the next regular council meeting on August 5, and for all intents and purposes the 10-year-old Sydenham water debate, as bitter as it has been, would be over.

Burns’ report began by outlining some of the requests made at a meeting with the Sydenham Safe Water Committee at the end of last month.

The group had argued that since current use of the plant is less than 40% of its capacity, the ratepayers should pay for less of the construction costs.

In line with Ministry of the Environment guidelines, the plant was built so that it can produce 450 litres per day per person in the village, but according to figures that have been collected thus far, only 166 litres per person is being used.

This excess capacity of the plant, so the Safe Water committee argued, would allow the township to promote more development in the vicinity of the plant, and through development fees the new users of the water could pay more of the costs.

The plan that Burns was presenting calls for residents to pay 80% of the net capital costs (after subsidies from the federal and provincial governments and the township) leaving 20% to be covered by development costs on future construction projects.

“I would suggest that I do not believe there is any merit to council agreeing to their request for reduced capital contribution to the system from that which was agreed upon in the original proposal,” Burns wrote.

The Safe Water committee also asked that the offer of loans by the township to Sydenham residents who cannot afford to pay their entire bill at once be made interest free. The bills are slated to average between $6,000 and $8,000 per household,.

“I do not believe it would be reasonable to expect the township to subsidize the capital costs of the plant by providing interest-free loans to property owners in the village,” Burns wrote.

In summing up his report at this week’s meeting, Burns said, “If council would like to entertain these proposals, then in my view that would be a political decision.”

And with that, the political decision-making began.

Two hours later, Burns’ report had been rejected by all but one councilor, and the entire matter will not be sorted out until September, at the earliest.

Loughborough Councilor Alan McPhail spoke first. He jumped on the excess capacity issue and said he did not see why current residents should pay 80% of the outstanding costs (which total $1.64 million) when they are “only likely to use 50% of the water”. He then said he did not see why interest-free loans could not be provided.

“I also can see no reason why a levy of $10 can’t be added to the general levy to help pay for this. I see no reason that this couldn’t be set up for future development of the township.”

Councilor David Hahn spoke next. He said, “This was the biggest project we have undertaken and it has created some problems for us. I would like to address the growth issue. It looks like we can grow by more than we thought. When the system was built it was based on design standards. We now have actual water usage, and this should be considered.”

He then suggested that the matter be deferred, and that CAO Burns come up with a couple of alternative financial scenarios based on the current estimate of 20% potential growth, 50% growth and “something in between.”

Loughborough Councilor Ron Vandewal could contain himself no longer. “The vote was taken to go ahead with this before myself and Gary Davison were elected in Loughborough. When the decisions were being taken, we asked for more money. The township picked up the road costs, and Loughborough picked up the fire costs. Still, we asked for more money. Council said no, no, no … I think the vote has been taken and this council has decided and I do not see any alternative.”

Bedford Councilor Del Stowe said, “If you create a water fund, which is open to anyone who has water problems, that would be ok. I don’t mind contributing to a fund that is available to people from other districts, but otherwise no way”.

“The only way I can support some sort of a fund is if everyone can borrow from this. For water,” agreed Ron Vandewal.

Mayor Davison asked for a vote on deferring the matter, and the vote ended in a 4-4 tie.

Finally a vote was taken on the report itself, and it was defeated, with only Portland Councilor Jim Hicks expressing support (Mayor Davison did not vote). “We’ve had quite a square dance, ladies and gentleman. What now?” Davison asked.

“We need more information from staff,” said David Hahn

Gord Burns said “If council agrees politically to accept a higher proportion of the capacity than was proposed I could prepare that, but if we are setting up a development fund for water, where do I go with that? I hate to be argumentative, but I need a lot more information.”

“Can you give us some options?” Hahn asked.

“It’s not just ‘give us some options.’ If you build a bridge and it’s gong to cost $10 million, you know what you have. This thing … you don’t know how to cost it,” Burns said.

Then he took a breath.

“I’ll try to come up with something”.

Then next Committee of the Whole meeting is scheduled for September 9.

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