***Deputy Mayor DiPasquale was absent tonight.*** There were about 25 people in the gallery, which was a good thing.
I’m going to try something a little different tonight. I’m going to try to blog and tell the happenings like a story. Why? Because tonight’s meeting was like a novel….a never-ending novel filled with drama, laughter and tears…..mostly drama, but, well….
Request to Offset Development Charges for 182 Pickering Drive – Steve Newman and John Lajoy, South Pointe Apartments
Mr. Newman is a builder and developer who will be building a geared-to-income apartment building at 182 Pickering. He was tall, dark and handsome. He kindly explained to council that there are approximately 520 qualified people waiting for housing in Amherstburg. (They represent about 15% of the total in the Windsor/Essex County area of people in need of affordable housing.) He was asking council to offset the development charges, in which case they could offer improvements over and above the building code requirements. The improvements would be aimed at energy reduction, in which case, will save the new residents money on their energy bills. The building is currently in the design phase, therefore, now is the time to incorporate LED lights, a backup generator, heat pumps, extra insulation etc. Basically, he was asking for the grant in order to offset other expenses to provide extras and savings in the long term. (Now, if this were a short story, I would close it out with council happily rejoiced, clapped and danced and gave him the grant, but this is no short story……) As per the usual order of things, Councillor Pouget opened with the first question. She was concerned because council had already deferred the development charges for 18 months. CAO Miceli explained that his would be innovative and show leadership on council’s part to engage in this initiative for development in Amherstburg. Councillor Pouget was concerned that there was no breakdown of costs on behalf of the developer, in terms of how he would spend this money should they give him any. Councillor Meloche joined the dance and round and round we went. Again, Mr. Newman explained the concept that they are in the planning phase and need to plan now if there are to be heat pumps and other environmental upgrades. (Usually, Councillor Pouget and Councillor Fryer are all about the environment, but they didn’t seem too into it, now that it would cost some money in the short term.) Councillor Fryer wanted a new development agreement to incorporate this grant. Councillor Lavigne jumped into the square dance with concerns that other developers could come forward and ask for grants. After more back and forth, CAO Miceli and Mr. Galvin explained that the municipal act allows for this grant and that it fits the terms of this specific project. Mr. Newman had to explain that this type of development (building for geared-to-income residents) is not the same as a regular development and that the return is small. I think some on council thought he was a big, bad wolf trying to make a hefty profit on tax payer’s backs. Finally, after 50 minutes of dancing and jumping, council passed a motion for administration to bring back a report and a new development agreement. (So, really, this story isn’t over yet, just sayin’.) It was now 6:50PM.
Sign By-law Rules and Restrictions-Carl Gibb, Fundraising Chair, Rotary Ribfest Committee
Mr. Gibb, also tall, dark and handsome, spoke on behalf of the Rotary Ribfest Committee. They want to be able to put up signs to promote the annual Rib Fest that they host each July. Basically, the Rotary Club is opposed to the new sign by-law as they feel it is too restrictive. He explained that the RibFest has never had any problems and they have signs that cost them a lot of money that they now can not use. They are able to put their signs up in every other municipality, including Windsor, yet can not put them up in our own town where the event is taking place. He explained that the Rotary Club brings tourism and dollars to our community and that this by-law is too restrictive. (If this were a short story, council would have apologised, hugged and worked with the Rotary Club, but it’s no short story….) Councillor Meloche expressed his agreement with Mr. Gibb and he agreed that 2 weeks is not a sufficient amount of time to advertise with their signs. He realises that the organisations put a year’s worth of effort into these events and should be allowed more time to advertise. (This is good, right? ….well, hold on to your hats….) Councillor Meloche then started reading from a prepared document citing the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and how this by-law infringes on freedom of expression and it inhibits the ability to participate in the community. (As a blogger, I’m all about freedom of speech, however, I’m not into a 10-minute dissertation about it……most of the others weren’t either. Mayor DiCarlo tried more than once to stop the speech, but to no avail…..it went on and on and on…..) Councillor Pouget then expressed her opposition to the request. (No surprise there…., here I’m trying to write a story, yet there was nothing unexpected or shocking that had happened…..yet….) Councillor Pouget felt that council would be setting a precedent if they agreed to let Rotary Club put their signs up 28 days ahead of time. She said the Community in Bloom judges cited our sign pollution. (Do the Community in Bloom judges pay taxes in Amherstburg? Do they organise events? …..Maybe we could compromise and plant flowers around the signs??) Councillor Pouget and Councillor Lavigne both mentioned that our legal department supported this by-law. Mr. Galvin quickly jumped in and weighed in about how it was a delicate issue. Then administration said that this by-law had been in place since 2006 and only the portable signs were “banned” last year. (“banned” is my words, not theirs…..run out of town, shamed, shunned, taboo, illegalised….is that a word?) Councillor Fryer then said that it seems that council was getting into a “pissing match” with organisations and the Rotary Club. (“pissing match” were his words, not mine…..Maybe I’ll bring a thesaurus to the next meeting…..just an idea…..) Councillor Meloche then returned with another document to read to us that came from the Supreme Court of Canada. (No lie, people, no lie…..) Mayor DiCarlo then cut him off (I’m really not sure what I may have done if he hadn’t) and said it was a political statement and that he will not accept political statements, nor terms like “pissing match” in his meeting. So, finally, there was a motion to receive the delegation and it passed. Councillor Meloche then made a motion to allow the Rotary Club to put up their signs for 28 days as per their request. Nobody seconded the motion, so it was over. Personally, I was shocked and angry. I couldn’t believe that council wouldn’t waive the rules to help out this organisation that runs a fantastic fund raising event every single year. They run the event in an area that council approves of and on council’s terms. This council has waived rules willy nilly all over the place, yet would not do it this time and for a charity! Why do our community event organisers and volunteers have to suffer so that we can win a Communities in Bloom award? (From what I’ve heard, you simply have to pay the money, participate and you win an award…..so what does it really matter?) I could see the disappointment on the event organisers faces. Quite simply, I felt badly for them. They came, they presented, they fought a noble fight but they could not conquer the beast. (Part of story writing…..the beast is a metaphor for council…..just in case anybody is reading more into that than they ought to…..) It was now 7:15, about 25 minutes for this issue…..
Preservation of Nature Habitat – Greg Nemeth
Before Mr Nemeth began, Mayor DiCarlo reminded him he had 5 minutes to speak to council. The Mayor said he had received many complaints from residents that the meetings are too long. (Here’s my official complaint : THE MEETINGS ARE TOO LONG!) Mr. Nemeth stuffed a bunch of papers into an envelope and said he needed 10 minutes. Mayor DiCarlo pointed out that council had heard Mr Nemeth before regarding Big Creek, however, Mr Nemeth felt he had new information to share. The Mayor reminded him that he had been provided more than 10 minutes in the past. Mr Nemeth pointed out that the previous two delegations that just finished had received more time. (My, my, my…..this back and forth had probably eaten up 5 minutes…..) Mr. Nemeth started speaking about the wet lands and the eco-system at Big Creek. He expressed that we now have fridges and freezers to keep our food, but it all comes originally from nature. He had a big board that he put up with pictures of various plants and animals and explained what lives in the Big Creek area. Mayor DiCarlo explained to him that the town does not have jurisdiction over this property. Mr Nemeth felt that if town council made a recommendation that the province would listen. (Some on council who seem to enjoy the power may agree, but we all laughed and laughed knowing full well the province wouldn’t really care what a municipality recommends….) Finally, the CAO summed it up and asked Mr Nemeth if he was looking for the town to either purchase or expropriate the land. The CAO kept saying he needs council to give him direction. (Hint, hint councillors…..make a motion and make this go away, if only temporarily, I guess….) Councillor Fryer clarified that ERCA, the Ministry of the Environment, the Ministry of Natural Ressources and the town would all need to be involved together to purchase this land and to make it a park to protect it. (Now there’s a complicated foursome….) The CAO offered to take a walk with Mr Nemeth in the Big Creek area because he has an idea. So, Council made a motion for the CAO to take a walk in Big Creek with Mr Nemeth and they all lived happily ever after. (I’m not 100% sure what the motion was, but a walk was part of it in order to prepare a report…..and if this were a scary story, only one person would return from the walk…..and it would happen at night, during a storm….) It was now 7:40……do the math, 5 minutes became 25 minutes…..
Appeal to the Ontario Municipal Board and Scheduled Hearing regarding a request for Minor Variance A/22/16 – Lisa Stiles, 16 Laird Ave N
Council needed to approve an expense of $4500 for legal fees as a neighbour dispute will be going to the OMB. Councillor Fryer questioned why we would hire legal if we have Mr. Galvin (a lawyer) on staff. The CAO explained that Mr. Galvin may attend but that he is not a litigator, but Mr. Posliff is. The CAO explained that legal fees are down approximately $40,000 from 2015 to 2016. Councillor Fryer expressed concern with legal fees that he sees in the payable reports. (Aw,…..could Councillor Fryer be a reader of my blog? 😉 ). Councillor Fryer asked if we were defending the Committee of Adjustment or just observing. Mr. Galvin explained that the town attends all OMB hearings. Well, then the flood gates opened and the People’s Court was now in session……Council was about to play judge, jury and prosecutor to this case. Councillor Pouget was concerned why the town would be attending as a “courtesy”. She felt the town must defend it’s position and was not pleased with a statement the applicant made in their claim that it was a “vocal vindictive neighbour that poisoned the process”. Councillor Pouget said this person had gone through the proper process and that the town had to defend it’s employees. She also felt we had to go in and defend the Committee of Adjustment, council and staff. (It was hard to focus and see that this was whole situation was about a deck that was built too high and not some type of major crime….) Mr. Galvin cautioned council that the OMB will decide and that council should not be going into matters now, that the decision rests with the OMB. He said it was protocol to report to council, however, he was cautioning council not to go into the matter. (His caution fell on deaf ears…..there was evidence to be heard, judgement to be made, gavel pounding to do, sentencing to decide on!!!….oh the drama…..) Councillor Courtney then began asking questions about the 4 tests that have to be done in order for an adjustment to pass. Also, she questioned ERCA’s commentary on the issue. Mr. Galvin, once again, told council it’s not up to them to litigate and he cautioned them again that it is up to the OMB to decide, not for council to go into the specifics of the file. (What? How could council pass judgement on this neighbour dispute? Who will regulate their actions? What will we do? Council had to defer to a more powerful body? The horror….) Finally, the Mayor explained that this was on the agenda simply to approve the funds or not for a lawyer to attend the OMB hearing. The CAO said this was protocol and that council had asked for this report. He said he had never seen anything like it in his career, except here in Amherstburg. (Welcome to Amherstburg Mr. Miceli, where we over analyse the mundane….because we can…..but won’t help a local charity trying to raise money.) Finally, the drama came to an end and the $4500 was approved for a lawyer. It was now 8:00PM.
Council needed a break, so they took a 10 minute recess. I stayed put. No bathroom break for me…..learned my lesson the hard way last year….if I venture off alone, I get threatened with lawsuits…..always stay with a group LOL.
Council Committee Appointments – Parks Advisory Committee and Recreation and Culture Advisory Committee
It appears Councillor Fryer resigned his seat on the Recreation and Culture Advisory Committee on October 5, 2015. It appears that Councillor Courtney resigned from the Parks Advisory Committee on February 14th , 2017. The Parks Advisory Committee can continue with only one member of council, however, the Recreation and Culture Advisory Committee requires 2 councillors. Councillor Meloche said he already sits on 4 committees and one external committee and felt his plate is full. The other councillors didn’t say a word. Nobody was tripping over each other to step up. Ultimately the Mayor is an ex-officio (not sure if I got that term right) and technically sits on all committees. Ultimately, council decided to allow Councillor Pouget to sit alone on the Parks Advisory Committee and not replace Councillor Courtney. As for the Recreation and Culture Advisory Committee, council deferred the decision to the next meeting and the Mayor will attend the upcoming meeting for this committee. I can’t help but wonder how many committees each member of council sits on? It would be only fair that it’s relatively equally divided, don’t you think? They all earn the same wage……
There were a few other small items that were discussed, but I’ll skip for fear of boring you all to death with this story…..There was no happy ending, no prince charming or riding off into the sunset, just a promise to be able to do it all again in a couple of weeks….
The meeting wrapped up around 9:00, to go in-camera to discuss:
SPECIAL IN-CAMERA MEETING
- ITEM A – Proposed Property Acquisition – Section 239(2)(c) –A proposed or pending acquisition or disposition of land by the municipality or local board.
- ITEM B – Lease Agreement – Section 239(2)(c) –A proposed or pending acquisition or disposition of land by the municipality or local board.
As for Councillor of the week……I’m going to give it to Councillor Meloche. At least, he tried to help the Rotary Club and seems to appreciate the hard work this and many other volunteer organisations do for the betterment of our community. It’s not always just about the trees, the flowers and Communities in Bloom…..
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