Monday July 29th Special town council meeting

So, there’s good news and there’s bad news…..I’m the kind of person that likes the bad news first, then the good news…..

The bad news is…..it looked like a storm was rolling in around 4:40 when I left for the meeting, so I left my seat cushion at home. I didn’t want to risk getting caught in a downpour and that it would get soaking wet. I figured there were only 3 (I think) items on the agenda, so the meeting couldn’t last more than an hour right? WRONG! It lasted 2 hours and 20 minutes……

The good news is…..Mayor DiCarlo was there! I was very happy to see him back and see our entire council of 7 members in attendance. I hope he continues to feel better!

The planning portion of the meeting started at 5:00.

Shipping Containers Housekeeping Zoning By-law Amendment

It seems that shipping containers are being used regularly throughout various parts of Amherstburg as storage. Council is in the beginning process of creating a bylaw to deal with these shipping containers.

The motion was made :

“Pending Council consideration of written and oral comments received at this
public meeting, Zoning By-law 2019-072, being a by-law to regulate shipping
containers, BE CONSIDERED at a future regular Council meeting.”

One resident in the audience spoke and asked several questions. It seems her concerns stem from a nearby property. She was asking how many containers the town is considering allowing. She understood that the town would allow 2 containers for residences outside of town (rural areas and concession) and no containers would be allowed in the town core (the developed, residential area or the commercial area).

CAO Miceli confirmed that the maximum containers in the agricultural area would be limited to 2 but that no time limit had been established. He said that this proposed bylaw was a result of discussions with the resident that happened sometime before or during the election season. The resident questioned how this would affect permanent structures and the CAO said that building permits and footings etc would be required in those circumstances. There were several questions and clarifications back and forth. It seems that her neighbour has several of these containers and/or structures, but I’m not certain how many. The resident seemed to feel that no shipping containers should be allowed at all so she did ask council to not allow any containers at all for the new bylaw.  A couple of councillors asked a few questions, but ultimately the motion carried to bring the bylaw forth at a public meeting. The residents concerns are now part of the public record and considered feedback for council going forward. Council will debate this new proposed bylaw at a future date.

This part happened relatively quickly. I think it was done by about 5:20, so to adhere to procedure, council adjourned the planning meeting and then called to order a special meeting.

Cannabis Retail Nuisance By-law

This part of the meeting went on and on and on…..I will summarize it as briefly as I can. Fortunately, there were several members of the media at the meeting, so there should be a lot of good articles about this coming out in the next few days.

It seems that any municipality that opted-in for cannabis retail locations are at a point in time where a store is a real possibility. The town’s bylaws need updating to be prepared for this new reality and that is exactly what this Cannabis Retail Nuisance by-law is meant to do, allow the town to be prepared for if/when a cannabis retail store locates in Amherstburg. Councillor Prue had several questions about the legalities of some of the sections of the bylaw, since cannabis sales are governed by higher levels of government. It seems that Leamington has already enacted a similar bylaw. Mr Galvin, Director of Planning, Development and Legislative Services felt that with this being a brand new thing, that there is uncertainty of what is happening. He said that administration is trying to protect the town from the unknown. He explained that bars and licensed establishments had been around for quite a while, but this is new territory.

Ms Rubli, Manager, Licensing and Enforcement said that there will only be 50 licenses in Ontario and that should one open in Amherstburg, the number of people coming to Amherstburg to go to the store, could potentially create a nuisance.

A large portion of the bylaw were things that seem fairly standard, for example, no loitering, hours of operation, what they would be allowed to sell etc. The CAO explained that, at the moment, the nearest locations are in London. He used statistics to point out that based on census data, the town of Amherstburg would now have approximately 2,083 cannabis users. Should Amherstburg get a store, but no other surrounding municipality, there could potentially be 100,000 people coming to Amherstburg since it would be the nearest retail location.

Councillor Prue started to pull sections of the bylaw out and questioned them one by one. He seemed to focus on these 3 items :

4.1.12 Operate without providing a Traffic Study satisfactory to the Town;
4.1.13 Operate without Site Plan Approval from the Town; addressing
concerns related to adequate on-site parking facilities and
appropriate site design;
4.1.14 Operate without sufficient on-site parking in accordance with Town
By-laws and Polices.

He seemed to feel that a traffic study is not required for other businesses, so why should it be for this one? The CAO pointed out that this was being prudent based on the possible number of people who could come to Amherstburg to visit the store. The CAO said if they didn’t want the owner to have to provide a traffic study, that council could strike it. There was much more back and forth about the sections regarding parking also. Councillor Courtney wondered if this bylaw could be a deterrent for a new business. The CAO pointed out that parking was a concern about the new hotel. Council had discussed parking downtown at length in regards to the hotel. With the potential number of people coming to Amherstburg for this store, he felt that including parking regulations in the bylaw would be prudent.

Councillor Prue asked for the 3 items above, 4.1.12, 4.1.13 and 4.a.14 to be separated from the motion. The motion had already been made to approve the bylaw as is. Deputy Mayor Meloche said he was not okay with the amendment (he had made the motion and Councillor Simone had seconded it). Councillor McArthur felt that administration had done their job and taken a conservative approach as they should. He felt that at some point the province will relax their rules and allow more than 75 stores.

The motion was on the floor to approve the bylaw as is. It went to a recorded vote :

Support : councillor Courtney and Deputy Mayor Meloche

Opposed : Councillor McArthur

When it was Councillor Prue’s turn to vote, he felt that the 3 items should be severed as he had requested. He wanted the Mayor to make a ruling. He felt that they should be removed even if the mover of the motion wasn’t okay with it.

There was a lengthy pause as everyone started scrolling through procedure and rules on their laptops. A 5 minute recess was called.

So, there I was, really truly kicking myself that I had left my seat cushion at home.

Finally council resumed. Deputy Mayor Meloche had made a compromise with Councillor Prue. 4.1.12 Operate without providing a Traffic Study satisfactory to the Town stayed. And only 4.1.13 and 4.1.14 were removed.

Then the motion passed unanimously. So the bylaw will be in place, just less those 2 portions.

Boblo Island Fire Protection

Those high water levels are causing issues lately in so many ways. It seems that boarding the ferry to bring the fire trucks to Boblo has become very difficult if not impossible without causing delay or damage to the trucks, due to the high water levels. The plan put in place by the previous council needs to be changed to deal with the ever increasing water levels and how the trucks would access the island if needed.

Council was being presented with 3 options. Here is a summary of the option that was recommended to council :

Option 1:

It seems that we have an older model fire truck that could be stationed on the island permanently. However, a structure would have to be built to protect it from the elements. The idea behind this is that as older vehicles are replaced, the replaced unit would then go to the island for the rest of it’s serviceable time. Since an older vehicle would be getting placed on the island, it would need weekly maintenance and running the apparatus to ensure it’s ready when needed.  Estimated cost is $52,000.

Councillor Simone made the motion to proceed with this and Deputy Mayor Meloche seconded.

And then the questions began……………Councillor Prue had a copy of the development agreement for the island and was concerned that some items were still not completed. Fire Chief Montone pointed out that this report was simply to address the fire fighting issues for Boblo Island. Councillor Prue then proceeded to ask many more questions.

Councillor Courtney asked about when the first homes were developed on the island and was told it had been about 20 years. He wondered if the services offered over the past 20 years had been adequate. Chief Montone pointed out that in 2017 the previous council was made aware that they could not provide an adequate level of service to the island and a short term plan was put into place. There is also a long term plan in place and the town is transitioning to that to provide services. There was then a very, very lengthy back and forth between Chief Montone and Councillor Courtney.  Councillor Courtney wondered if the residents of Boblo want an increased level of service, if there could be a way that they pay extra taxes for the services. It seems that Councillor Courtney may want to go the route of an area specific levy for the Boblo Island residents for the fire services. The CAO said that if council wants to do that, they’d need to give administration direction for this. (For any Boblo Island residents reading this, no direction was given tonight about this……for now….?? hmmmm)

I was starting to get tired and uncomfortable. It was 6:52 PM……and the discussion seemed like it may never end.

After more discussion, council opened the floor for members of the public to speak. Mrs Pouget addressed council. She felt that she had understood that the developer would pay for the shelter for the truck. It seems that there had been some previous in-camera meetings about this issue?  The Clerk found the old motions and it seems the acquisition was discussed in-camera with nothing further to report and that direction was provided in the closed session. Chief Montone read some portions from the public report from 2017.

Mr Amlin also addressed council but that was more so about the EMS services to Boblo Island.

So, all this to say, that after more lengthy discussion, the motion carried. The older truck will go to the island and a structure will be built. The structure will be able to be moved and/or re-purposed for the future.

It was 7:20 and council was going to go in-camera to discuss :

SPECIAL IN-CAMERA COUNCIL MEETING
That Council move into an In-Camera Meeting of Council directly following Special
session pursuant to Section 239 of the Municipal Act, 2001, as amended for the
following reason:
Item A – Development Update – Section 239(2)(c) – A proposed or pending
acquisition or disposition of land by the municipality or local board.

And that was that. I left. I hope their in-camera meeting didn’t last as long as this “short” 3 item meeting…….oh boy! The next meeting is in 2 weeks. See you then! 🙂

 

In preparation for Monday July 29th special town council meeting

There’s a planning meeting scheduled for Monday at 5:00 and an in-camera meeting too. I generally don’t attend planning meetings (they’re often boring in my opinion) but there are a few other items added to the agenda. I’m not sure if I’ll attend Monday night or not. I’ll wait and see how I feel on Monday at 4:40 LOL.

Here are the items up for discussion :

Shipping Containers Housekeeping Zoning By-law Amendment

It seems that shipping containers are being used regularly throughout various parts of Amherstburg as storage. It looks like there is an older bylaw that may need amending to deal with this issue. It appears that administration will be compiling public input for council to take into consideration in the future and then use it to update the bylaw.

From the conclusion of the report :

“It is recommended that a strong and clear regulatory approach be taken toward
prohibiting the permanent placement of shipping containers as storage units in all areas
of the Town other than Industrial Zones and Agricultural Zones. This would not impose
an undue hardship on homeowners or businesses who wish to use shipping containers
for storage on their properties, as there are many other alternative storage structures
available, such as storage sheds, detached garages, etc., which are better suited for
residential neighbourhoods and commercial areas. The need for maintaining the
aesthetic character of these areas outweighs the benefit of using shipping containers for
storage purposes. In addition, across municipalities, it appears that there is no desire to
permit storage containers other than in industrial and agricultural areas. ”

Cannabis Retail Nuisance By-law

It seems that any municipality that opted-in for cannabis retail locations are at a point in time where a store is a real possibility. The town’s bylaws need updating to be prepared for this new reality.

From the report :

“As stated above, the Cannabis Licence Act leaves little control to municipalities to
govern cannabis retail stores. The municipality cannot regulate where the stores are
located other than distance setbacks from schools, nor can the Town control the
number of stores located in the Town except that they must be located in zones that
allow for retail stores.
Since cannabis legalization in October 2018, the Ontario government has
acknowledged a supply and demand issue for cannabis. On December 13th, 2018 the
Minister of Finance and Attorney General’s office Announced changes to the licensing
process for recreational retail cannabis stores in Ontario. It was announced that due to
severe cannabis supply shortages across the country which is failing to meet consumer
demand that retail cannabis stores will open in phases.”

“The legislation and regulations permitting the sale and consumption of Medical
cannabis and Non-Medical cannabis do not regulate certain matters of public interest in
relation to health, safety, comfort or convenience. Administration is recommending
adoption of the Cannabis Retail Nuisance By-law to regulate any possible nuisances
resulting from cannabis retail sales within the municipality.”

Boblo Island Fire Protection

Those high water levels are causing issues lately in so many ways. It seems that boarding the ferry to bring the fire trucks to Boblo has become very difficult if not impossible without causing delay or damage to the trucks, due to the high water levels. The plan put in place by the previous council needs to be changed to deal with the ever increasing water levels and how the trucks would access the island if needed.

Council is being presented with 3 options. Here’s a brief summary of each :

Option 1:

It seems that we have an older model fire truck that could be stationed on the island permanently. However, a structure would have to be built to protect it from the elements. The idea behind this is that as older vehicles are replaced, the replaced unit would then go to the island for the rest of it’s serviceable time. Since an older vehicle would be getting placed on the island, it would need weekly maintenance and running the apparatus to ensure it’s ready when needed.  Estimated cost is $52,000.

Option 2:

This option involves the purchase of a cargo van. This is a more expensive option. Estimated cost is $95,000.

Option 3:

This option involves purchasing a trailer that would be towed to the scene of a fire. Also a more expensive option. Estimated cost is $95,000

Administration is recommending option 1 but ultimately it is up to council to decide which option to go with……or they’re always free to come up with another option, if they have one.

Then, council will go in-camera to discuss:

SPECIAL IN-CAMERA COUNCIL MEETING
That Council move into an In-Camera Meeting of Council directly following Special
session pursuant to Section 239 of the Municipal Act, 2001, as amended for the
following reason:
Item A – Development Update – Section 239(2)(c) – A proposed or pending
acquisition or disposition of land by the municipality or local board.

****Side note ****

I just read on social media that Councillor Courtney told a resident that council is looking at having open mic type meetings for residents to ask questions to council about the AAP group and any other concerns. This struck me, since I was at the last meeting right up until the end and I didn’t hear a word of this in the public meeting, during “new business” or during any other time of the meeting. Hmmmm…..I’ll have to ask around for more information on this idea.

Monday July 15th Regular town council meeting

Well, if you’re looking for excitement, you can stop reading now LOL. Tonight’s meeting lasted about 2 hours and while there were a few items of interest, for the most part, the meeting was kind of, well, boring.

**Mayor DiCarlo was absent tonight**

Council first met at 4:00, in-camera, to discuss the following :

SPECIAL IN-CAMERA COUNCIL MEETING
That Council move into an In-Camera Meeting of Council at 4:00 p.m. pursuant to Section
239 of the Municipal Act, 2001, as amended, for the following reasons:
Item A – Section 239(2)(b) – Personal matters about an identifiable individual, including
municipal or local board employees; Section 239(2)(d) – Labour relations or employee
negotiations; and, Section 239(2)(f) – Advice that is subject to solicitor-client privilege,
including communications.
Item B – Section 239(2)(b) – Personal matters about an identifiable individual, including
municipal or local board employees.
Item C – Section 239(2)(c) – A proposed or pending acquisition or disposition of land by the municipality or local board.

Then, on the supplementary agenda, there were two more in-camera items added :

Item D – Section 239(2)(c) – A proposed or pending acquisition or disposition
of land by the municipality or local board.
Item E – Section 239(2)(f) – Advice that is subject to solicitor-client privilege,
including communications necessary for that purpose; and, Section 239(2)(h) –
Information explicitly supplied in confidence to the municipality or local board by
Canada, a province or territory or a Crown agency of any of them.

There was a planning meeting scheduled for 5:00. When I arrived around 5:45, council was still in-camera. It seems they had met in-camera at 4:00, stopped at 5:00 for the planning meeting, then returned in-camera for a while, until close to 6:00, time for the regular meeting.

The regular meeting started very shortly after 6:00.

RECOGNITIONS
Certificate Presentation to Ron Meloche, Assistant Deputy Fire Chief, for Achieving
the “Fire Officer Level IV” Requirements (NFPA 1021 Standard)

Fire Chief Montone addressed the gallery regarding Deputy Chief Meloche’s achievement. Chief Montone explained that this certificate program entailed 4 levels and that the town and the firefighting members must be jointly engaged for succession planning. Mr Meloche is the very first officer to achieve “Fire Officer Level IV” certification. Congratulations!!!! This was met with a big round of applause.

2018 Year End Reporting: Audited Consolidated Financial Statements, Building
Services Annual Statement and Amended Development Charge Reserve Funds
Statement 

2018 Year- End Financial Ratios and Indicators

These two items were combined together since the auditor from KPMG was present to address council about the audit process. I will sum it up real quick!!! We got 5 out of 5 stars for our financial audit! Things are looking good!

I didn’t catch the auditors name, I believe it was Cynthia from KPMG that addressed council. She said that the audit was conducted and they had met with the Audit Advisory Committee last week. KPMG received full cooperation from town management during the course of the audit. She explained that some of the Canadian audit standards have changed and that the report is structured a bit differently than in past years. They looked for significant or unusual transactions, journal entries, cash handling, accounts payable, accounts receivable, payroll, processes……you name it, they looked at it I guess.

Kudos to administration for a clean audit! Excellent news for our town.

External Audit Services – Terms of Engagement and Scope of Services 2019-2023
Year Ends

Once again, another financial report that is required as per the Municipal Act. Again, all seems to be heading in the right direction! It looks like a RFP will be going out to hire a an external audit agent as must be done every 5 years. The current auditing body (KPMG) is now finished their obligation and it looks like the town must hire a new and different auditing agent to keep an eye on our affairs. This seems to be a requirement of the Municipal Act.

Councillor Simone added a third point to the recommendation (I did not catch quite what it was…..sorry.) Points one and two were to receive and approve the terms of engagement and scope of external audit services. After Councillor Simone added the third point, Mr Rousseau, the Treasurer replied about the 4th quarter results. It seems that it specified the audit when administration recommended not to accept the Audit Advisory Committee recommendation to perform additional procedures. He felt it may not be the best value for the money. Councillor Prue felt that the 3 citizen members of the committee are auditors and spoke passionately about this step and felt it would be a benefit to the town. Councillor McArthur clarified that this step is simply to get costing, which it is, so it all carried. We will get costs for a new auditor and costs for the third point that I did not catch. LOL I guess I’ll look for it when the costing comes back.

2018 Year End (Q4) Budget to Actual Summaries and Transfers

And more financial good news for Amherstburg! The Treasurer has given council a 4th quarter report regarding our financials. There are some recommendations in the report, since some areas experienced a surplus, while others experienced a deficit. However, big picture, the surpluses balanced out the deficits and once again, our future looks bright! Administration and the previous council worked hard to set things right, I hope and think that our current council will do the same. The report breaks it all down by department, with columns and columns of numbers.

Councillor Courtney had several questions for clarification. He noted the departmental deficits (what about the surpluses?). Anyway, he asked about the $200,000 of debt service for Belle Vue. The Treasurer explained that they purchased Belle Vue with a 5 year mortgage of 0%. They pay $200,000 per year and that the money is spent in operations and funded through operations instead of capital. Basically, it’s accounted for and done.

Councillor Courtney then questioned the money from the park land sale for the high school and how some was used to off-set the purchase of St. Bernard. (I think? I take my notes by hand and it was getting complicated….) He asked about the parkland reserves and was directed to page 71 of the report (probably the one with the columns of numbers that I didn’t read……but I’m not paid to read the reports……)

Councillor Courtney then questioned the $117,000 in legal costs for the police contract. The Treasurer explained that it was all Amherstburg Police Service Board approved legal expenses. Councillor Courtney wondered if it was to fine-tune the contract. It was explained that it was not, that it was all for APSB legal matters.

Texas Road Reconstruction (Thomas Road to 3rd Concession) – Tender Results

Texas Road, from Thomas Road to the 3rd Concession needs to be redone. This road is considered 1st in line in the Roads Needs Study and the price is in. This carried with no discussion.

Dangerous Dog Appeal Committee

This looks to be in relation to a bylaw from 2009. I will explain this the best I can. Basically, if a dog bites somebody or harms them, there can be an order to have the dog muzzled or put down. The dog owner has the right to appeal this order for the muzzling or the euthanasia. As it stands, council would hear the appeal. Administration was recommending that 3 lay people be appointed to hear these appeals instead of council.

This issue got a lot of discussion.

Councillor Prue felt that this issue was foreign to him and had never heard of this in other towns. Ms Rubli, Manager of Licensing explained that the Municipal Act allows the dog owner to appeal. Councillor Prue wanted to know which other towns had a committee for this. It seems that Kingsville, Leamington, Essex, Toronto and others have some type of committee, whether it’s partially council and lay people or it’s entirely lay people. Councillor Prue wondered what the benefit is of 3 people hearing an appeal. Ms Rubli explained that this situation is a quasi-judicial process and that it’s similar to court. I.E. The public aren’t notified of a private matter. If council were to hear it, there would need to be an agenda and notice given.

Councillor Renaud spoke that it’s a benefit to have lay people on the committee and can get people with specific knowledge on the issue. He cited the example of the Audit Advisory Committee (the one that was highly touted by council above) as example of a committee of lay people with specific knowledge. He explained that the Property Standards Committee is a similar structure and that residents have less bias and are better suited to judge their peers.

Councillor McArthur concurred and liked the idea of the hearing being heard by a jury of peers rather than council. He also pointed out that council would ultimately chose the 3 representatives.

Councillor Prue was still having difficulties with the concept. It finally went to a recorded vote to have 3 lay members appointed to a Dangerous Dog Appeal Committee.

Support : Councillors Courtney, McArthur, Renaud, Simone and Deputy Mayor Meloche

Opposed : Councillor Prue

So, if you’re a dog lover and expert, keep your eyes peeled for an advertisement and put your name in for this! (For those who read my pre-meeting blog, you will know why I’m not putting my name in for this…….I’m a cat person.)

Amending Development Agreement for 6000 County Road 20 – Ure’s Country
Kitchen

The previous council had approved a mini golf course to be constructed at Ure’s Country Kitchen. It looks like they’re looking to make a small change about the bathroom reconfiguration and that needs council’s approval. This passed with no discussion.

Committee Resignation – Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee

It looks like there was a resignation from the Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee. Councillor Courtney made a motion to appoint Diane Pouget to the Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee to replace the other member. This was seconded by Councillor Prue.

It went to a recorded vote :

Support : Councillors Courtney, McArthur, Prue and Simone.

Opposed : Councillor Renaud, Deputy Mayor Meloche.

Town Council Meetings – Webcasting Options

As you may be aware, other municipalities are starting to webcast their meetings. Council had inquired about some estimates to provide such services. These are estimates only…..there are 3 options. (For full details of the 3 options, please read my pre-meeting blog.) Basically, option 1 is the cheapest but uses social media of you tube to live stream, where as option 2 is a little bit more money and uses eScribe servers and town resources. Option 3 is the Cadillac option with all the bells and whistles (and more money).

Councillor Simone wondered about the time-frame and if the money would be available in the 2020 budget. The Clerks explained that council could pre-commit the money for the 2020 budget in order to allow time to purchase the needed equipment. Councillor Simone felt that council should pre-commit for option 2 and that she had no concerns. Councillor McArthur seconded the motion for discussion.

Councillor McArthur agreed with live streaming and liked the added benefit for option #2 of linking it to the agenda. He also felt that we don’t necessarily need the 3rd option with all the bells and whistles.

There were some questions and some back and forth on the issue, more about timing and costs, but ultimately this carried. We will be getting live streaming! Hopefully sooner rather than later! Could that be my retirement on the horizon? hmmmmmm…….

Cannabis Production Facilities Zoning By-law Amendment

This information report also garnered a lot of discussion. Mr Parks, a local farmer, addressed council. He wondered why council was delving into what a farmer can produce or harvest. Councillor McArthur said that he wants to attract people here to Amherstburg and wants the ground rules to be laid down and wants to promote it. He doesn’t want 500 people coming to council complaining about the smell or light pollution.

The CAO explained that this would not be restricting the farmer, that cannabis would be overseen by Health Canada. This item on the agenda was regarding a production facility only (not growing cannabis).

Then this carried.

New Business

There were a whole bunch of items brought up during new business. I will very briefly touch on them.

Councillor Courtney felt that the new Amherstburg Community Foundation had been cleared up but he had one concern. It seems they’re using the town hall’s address and Councillor Courtney felt that that ties them to the town. The CAO will follow up.

Councillor Courtney talked about speed reduction on the waterway. There was a lot of discussion about this. Ultimately there was a motion made to get a report about setting a speed limit on the Detroit River.

Councillor Simone wondered if there was any way that the Clerk could add more description to the in-camera matters. The Clerk explained that it’s council’s purview, however, council is aware that the Integrity Commissioner is against adding more information, but that it’s up to council. There was much discussion. Councillor McArthur agreed but also realized that it can’t be done in every case. For example, property matters, sometimes the property could be named if possible but other times that would not be possible since it could affect the town’s interests. The motion carried, to add more detail where possible. (I am kind of happy to see this change…..we’ll see how it plays out.)

Councillor Prue discussed some issues with traffic on the 5th Concession. He pointed out that ALL businesses are still in operation during the construction.

Councillor Prue also discussed Boblo Island. It was clarified that all roads on Boblo are municipal roads.

Councillor Prue then went on to discuss Boblo Island development and wondered when lights and sidewalks and other amenities would be installed. There was much discussion. It seems to go back to the previous owner’s bankruptcy and Councillor Prue said he would provide some documentation to the CAO.

Councillor Simone asked Mr Roberts, Director of Parks and Recreation to clarify why the fireworks were cancelled and why there seemed not to be a contingency plan. This is a long one…..hold on…..Mr Roberts explained that the land where the fireworks are held is private property. It has all the required set backs etc. but it’s a low lying piece of property. In 2018, the fireworks were nearly compromised but they provided built up platforms on the property so that show was able to go on. He said when they were working on contingency plans leading up to this year’s celebration, the main qualifier was not compromising the size of our firework display. They looked for a site on Boblo with no luck. An owner offered his dock and that the town could build platforms on his dock. They looked at the possibility of barges, but most are currently very busy with shoreline protection and bridge work and were therefore unavailable. They were offered a barge for $5,000 but it was not sea worthy. Up until the week before the show, it seemed that all had been located to build up the site, but the water level rose just too much and the winds changed, which made things more difficult.

For next year, the town has engaged a barge operator, but he has to be booked in advance. It is quite an operation to load, manoeuvre and unload the barge and the money budgeted will be higher than previous years. (hint hint……get ready……you want fireworks no matter what? it will cost extra…..personally I’m okay with that…..I was disappointed the show had to be cancelled but it was certainly understandable when you can actually see how high the water is!) Next year, we will still have a high level display but from a barge rather than the piece of land, that now sits underwater.

Councillor Simone asked about a watermain on Richmond Street. It’s being looked into.

Report out from in-camera meetings

The Clerk then reported out on the above items from the in-camera meetings. Items A and B had nothing further to report. Item C had a very long motion about a property between concession 1 and 2 be stopped up and closed with a draft plan and merge parcels of land…..etc. (possibly one of the longest motions I’ve ever heard, I didn’t catch it all, not even close). It carried. Item D had a motion about the CAO negotiating and finalizing a 5 year lease and that carried too. Then council went back in-camera to discuss item E.

So, there it is……all wrapped up……next meeting isn’t until August 12th. Woo hoo! A whole month off! Enjoy the summer! See you in a month!

In preparation for Monday July 15th Regular town council meeting

Well, I’m back and getting ready for the only council meeting for the month of July. It doesn’t seem to have much of interest, but here are the highlights as I see ’em. There is a one page supplementary agenda and the regular agenda is 321 pages. Not too bad. I’ve seen worse.

First, council will meet in-camera at 4:00 to discuss :

SPECIAL IN-CAMERA COUNCIL MEETING
That Council move into an In-Camera Meeting of Council at 4:00 p.m. pursuant to Section
239 of the Municipal Act, 2001, as amended, for the following reasons:
Item A – Section 239(2)(b) – Personal matters about an identifiable individual, including
municipal or local board employees; Section 239(2)(d) – Labour relations or employee
negotiations; and, Section 239(2)(f) – Advice that is subject to solicitor-client privilege,
including communications.
Item B – Section 239(2)(b) – Personal matters about an identifiable individual, including
municipal or local board employees.
Item C – Section 239(2)(c) – A proposed or pending acquisition or disposition of land by the municipality or local board.

Then, on the supplementary agenda, there were two more in-camera items added :

Item D – Section 239(2)(c) – A proposed or pending acquisition or disposition
of land by the municipality or local board.
Item E – Section 239(2)(f) – Advice that is subject to solicitor-client privilege,
including communications necessary for that purpose; and, Section 239(2)(h) –
Information explicitly supplied in confidence to the municipality or local board by
Canada, a province or territory or a Crown agency of any of them.

Looks like there may be a lot of interesting in-camera discussion. Hmmmmmm…..

It looks like council has a planning meeting at 5:00. I can’t see how the 5 items will all be discussed before 5:00, but who knows? Or maybe they’ll just go back in-camera after the regular meeting and split up the items?

The regular meeting is set to start at 6:00.

RECOGNITIONS
Certificate Presentation to Ron Meloche, Assistant Deputy Fire Chief, for Achieving
the “Fire Officer Level IV” Requirements (NFPA 1021 Standard)

It looks like Mr Meloche will be recognized for achieving some new credentials in firefighting services. Congratulations!

2018 Year End Reporting: Audited Consolidated Financial Statements, Building
Services Annual Statement and Amended Development Charge Reserve Funds
Statement 

There are several financial reports coming before council on Monday night and they all appear to be good news! This particular report is extremely lengthy and includes pages and pages of columns and columns of numbers. It seems to be about the reserve funds, giving council the audit findings and the financial statements. Great news! The ship is heading in the right direction! Remember 5 short years ago when we barely had any money in reserves? Well, now things are looking much brighter for our financial situation in Amherstburg! I think administration and the previous council deserve credit for this turn around and I hope that the new council continues to keep things moving in the right direction.

External Audit Services – Terms of Engagement and Scope of Services 2019-2023
Year Ends

Once again, another financial report that is required per the Municipal Act. Again, all seems to be heading in the right direction! It looks like a RFP will be going out to hire a an external audit agent as must be done every 5 years. The current auditing body (KPMG) is now finished their obligation and it looks like the town must hire a new and different auditing agent to keep an eye on our affairs. This seems to be a requirement of the Municipal Act, so I’m sure this should be smooth sailing.

2018 Year End (Q4) Budget to Actual Summaries and Transfers

And more financial good news for Amherstburg! The Treasurer has given council a 4th quarter report regarding our financials. There are some recommendations in the report, since some areas experienced a surplus, while others experienced a deficit. However, big picture, the surpluses balanced out the deficits and once again, our future looks bright! Administration and the previous council worked hard to set things right, I hope and think that our current council will do the same. The report breaks it all down by department, with columns and columns of numbers. I’m just giving you the big picture here. Looking good!

Texas Road Reconstruction (Thomas Road to 3rd Concession) – Tender Results

I had thought that I wouldn’t have to hear about Texas Road anymore at council meetings but it seems I will…LOL. Now, Texas Road, from Thomas Road to the 3rd Concession needs to be redone. This road is considered 1st in line in the Roads Needs Study and the price is in. I would guess that this will fly through. It even looks like the price quoted came in a little bit under the budgeted allotment.

Dangerous Dog Appeal Committee

This looks to be in relation to a bylaw from 2009. It seems that council will be looking for 3 lay people to join a dangerous dog appeal committee. I’m a cat person, so this does not interest me. Perhaps it interests you? It seems that, at the moment, it is up to council to make decisions regarding dangerous dog appeals. However, it looks like other municipalities have created committees with members at large, to alleviate the possible perception of bias by council should a decision be required about a specific dog.

Amending Development Agreement for 6000 County Road 20 – Ure’s Country
Kitchen
I was surprised to see this still on the docket. I remember hearing about this a few years ago. The previous council had approved a mini golf course to be at Ure’s Country Kitchen. It looks like they’re looking to make a small change about the bathroom reconfiguration and that needs council’s approval. I would guess that this will sail through.

Committee Resignation – Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee

It looks like there was a resignation from the Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee. Council may need to advertise the position in order to fill it. So, if dogs aren’t your thing, maybe Parks and Recreation is? I’m not sure if the position will be advertised or if they will chose another name from the list when they originally formed the committee.

INFORMATION REPORTS

Council receives many reports that are for “information only”. They can question the report, comment on it or simply receive it, as recommended. I found a couple of them of interest, so I’ll offer up a bit of commentary but I’m not sure if council will or not.

2018 Year- End Financial Ratios and Indicators

Another lengthy financial report with columns of numbers. Looks like Monday night will be all about the money LOL.

2019 First Quarter Operating Variance as at March 31, 2019

More good financial news in here! Things are looking good so far. A possible overage of $20,000 is projected for year-end. Excellent news! However, it is early and things can change. Hopefully nothing significant will happen and we can stay the course.

Cannabis Production Facilities Zoning By-law Amendment

With the changes to federal legislation regarding cannabis, it seems that our old municipal bylaws no longer line up with the new laws. It looks like some change may be needed. It also appears that there will be some public consultation coming our way on this issue.

Cheque Listing for the Month of June 2019

The previous council used to approve all of the accounts payable of the town for a while. Once that process seemed to become inefficient, a report of the accounts payable used to be issued to the previous council for “information purposes” only.  It seemed to continue with the new council, then suddenly, a few months ago, this report stopped appearing on the agenda.

I was kind of happy to see this report make a reappearance. For those who have followed my blog for a while, you’d remember that I used to read through this, total up the legal fees and anything else of interest. I’m not sure if I will continue to total up the legal fees, since the reason I used to do so, doesn’t seem to happen anymore. For those who may recall, our previous council was frequently requesting legal opinions on many, many items in their first 2 years. Then it seemed to slow down. I think I’ll just scan through the cheque listing and see if anything catches my attention.

I see that we paid the Integrity Commissioner $5,190 from December 1 2018 to June 15 2019. We also paid ERCA $800 for some permits. I see that a few people took advantage of the back valve and/or sump pump overflow subsidies. That’s good to see!

Other than those things, nothing jumped out at me.

Town Council Meetings – Webcasting Options

As you may be aware, other municipalities are starting to webcast their meetings. Council had inquired about some estimates to provide such services. These are estimates only…..there are 3 options. I think some of our Councillors had mentioned looking into this service if they were elected. I find the idea to be a great one. It could allow me to retire from blogging??

Pulled these from the report :

“Option 1 – In-house service requires:

• floor space in Council Chambers (approx. 35 sq ft for equipment and equipment
  operators)
• 3rd party equipment operators to operate camera and webcast.
• No option for closed captioning *this does not meet AODA requirements
• Utilizes free services (Facebook or YouTube)
• Not indexed to agenda
• Videos will be archived using social media services
• Staff resourcing demands may diminish current service levels provided by
  Administration

Option 2 – eScribe estimate includes:

• all equipment and resources required to record, stream, and produce the meeting.
• video can be viewed live and archived from eScribe’s servers through an embedded link from the Town’s website;
• all other processing and storage requirements are handled through eScribes’s servers
• camera feed is manually changed by a staff member attending the meeting

This service relies on a Town-provided audio feed as well as a quality internet
connection; both of which should be accommodated with the Town’s current production equipment.
The estimates provided are based on 3-5 municipalities contracting the same service
within the County of Essex. At the time of this report, the Town of Tecumseh and the
County of Essex were also negotiating a contract for services.

Option 3 – Swagit estimate includes:

• all equipment and resources required to record, stream, and produce the meeting
  including 1 HD PTZ cameras
• production (including camera panning, zooming, and operation) handled remotely by Swagit.
• video can be viewed live and archived from Swagit’s servers through an embedded
  link from the Town’s website;
• all other processing and storage requirements are handled through Swagit’s servers.

This service relies on a Town-provided audio feed as well as a quality internet
connection; both of which should be accommodated with the Town’s current in production equipment.
Swagit offers enhanced services, including speech-to-text document and sound search
to search for spoken word. These services would increase the contract cost
significantly and would be well beyond the service level provided for municipal council
webcasting in Ontario at this time.”

Personally, I’m not a fan of option 1 at all. I don’t think the live streaming should be affiliated with an external social media site. I think the data should belong to and be managed by the town. While option 1 is cheaper, I think it could easily become a nightmare of accessibility issues for people that want to watch the meetings.

The estimates, in total for year 1 (2019 excluding HST) are :

Option 1 : $16,760

Option 2 :$23,725

Option 3 :$40,650

Even though this is simply an information report, I hope that council will discuss it and provide administration with further recommendations to explore this idea. I think live streaming the meetings is a great idea!

So, there it is folks. Overall, not much of huge excitement coming up for Monday night but some good news all around. See you Monday night!