December 28, 2023 amherstburg2

Year end review 2023

Well, council’s first full year has drawn to a close. That means it’s time to do a year end review of council’s performance! Just to help bring back the memories (nightmares?, I reread ALL of the 2023 blogs and wow! I laughed, I cried and I laughed and cried some more. I tried to pick a few highlights…..the good, the bad and the ugly….So here they are in no particular order. And I’ll only say this once…..don’t read this blog! You know who you are. Or if you don’t, you should. 🙂

The 2023 Budget

The initial budget presentation was made in January 2023 with a proposed tax increase of 4.23%. Council debated the budget, almost ad nauseam and the tax increase was eventually whittled down to 3%. Sadly, even though that ended up being the lowest tax rate increase in Windsor/Essex County, nobody seemed to appreciate it. Council used some reserve money in the 2023 budget to help bring the tax rate down…..And now we are looking at a 2024 tax rate increase of 7.13% and a report that we are the third lowest in the area for reserves……This is not good news folks. Do we really want to win a race to the bottom?

Open Air Weekends

Open Air, where the streets are alive with fun all summer long! Open Air, a wildly successful and award winning event, continued to fight for its life in 2023. It started at the budget debate…..The CORE, a group of local businesses offered $20,000 to enhance programming during Open Air. The delegations were generally treated very poorly by a few members of council. Then, a report was requested to provide council with various configurations possible for Open Air 2023 (time changes, footprint etc.). The request for this report passed in a 4-3 vote but not in the way you may have expected…..in favour of this full report with options for Open Air were Councillors Allaire, Courtney and Pouget and Mayor Prue. So, ultimately, this meant that the Open Air debate raged on and on and on most of the year in 2023. To say that council beat that dead horse….well…..

The March 13th 2023 meeting brought the Open Air back to the forefront since the report with options was ready. Those that don’t seem to like Open Air, spoke. Sadly, it was not a very respectful meeting…..there was yelling and heckling from the gallery. One resident yelled the F word twice. (And yes, this can be heard on the recording even though he was not near the microphone….) Ironically, that same night, it was announced that Open Air had won an award! Top 100 event was awarded to Open Air by the Festivals and Events Ontario. Open Air actually ranked as the number one destination in the top 100 destinations by the FEO. Congratulations Amherstburg! Overall though it was a sad and stressful night and certainly seemed to put the spotlight on poor human behaviour. The rules of order were waived and all order flew out the window. Fast. I can still remember that meeting quite vividly.

So, again, because some don’t like Open Air, it was time to compromise about Open Air. Those that love it have compromised every single year. After the first year, the compromise was to change the hours to Friday night set up and take down, then Saturday night set up and take down Sunday night. (This allowed for car traffic during the day on Saturday). The next year, the compromise was to reduce the footprint and the hours were returned to the full Friday night to Sunday night again. And again, in 2023 yet another compromise. Open Air was reduced from 20 weekends to 14 weekends. And ironically, each year it was those that like Open Air that compromised and those that didn’t like Open Air still weren’t happy. Open Air for 14 weeks passed in a 4-3 vote with Councillors Crain, McArthur, Deputy Mayor Gibb and Mayor Prue voting in favour. The other three members of council opposed Open Air. (Remember that at election time folks.)

Will the 2024 budget debate bring more ideas for “compromise” about Open Air? I think the use of “compromise” is just a veiled way for some members of council to try to dismantle a very successful event that people love for a few that don’t like it…..but that’s my opinion.

But the discussion about Open Air was far from over….in August, Councillor Allaire wanted a survey for the residents about Open Air…..the rest of council agreed to it (save Councillor Crain who felt that there had already been multiple surveys about Open Air – and I agree with him)…..so yet another survey about Open Air was prepared and administered in late September/early October for the residents. And, no surprise, once again…..when the results came back….survey says…..WE LOVE OPEN AIR ! Interesting to note…..549 people responded to the Open Air Survey…..That is probably the most, by far, that I have ever seen respond to an Amherstburg survey. Usually, surveys may hit around 200 responses. Well, the survey results spoke loud and clear! We love Open Air! Will this award-winning event have to fight for its life AGAIN in 2024? Will any members of council vote against Open Air AGAIN in 2024? I’ll be watching at budget time…..and I hope that all of you that love Open Air will be watching too! 😉

With the onset of Open Air and a vibrant downtown, this has brought a breath of fresh air and new development into our downtown core. We have already been enjoying several new, refurbished buildings with new stores (River Bookshop, Evelyn’s Candy Store, the Panaterria, White Woods Home and others….) and now there are several more coming! Murray Street is being resurrected and redeveloped into the “Anchor District”. The buildings are being restored, with new businesses to come! Dalhousie Street is seeing some businesses remodeling and the same thing on Richmond Street too! And this is WONDERFUL! As time moves forward, so must we!

Duffy’s

Also in March, at the same Open Air meeting, council approved to proceed and to budget for the development of the old Duffy’s property. They got the ball rolling as we waited for Ministry approvals through most of 2023. In October, council passed a motion to get the shoreline work done! And then the great news is, just before the end of 2023 the official announcement came! They are starting the shoreline work now and preparing the land to extend the Navy Yard Park. This is just phase 1 and there are more things coming in the future, if council wants to spend the money…..I think future phases will include a transient marina and the idea of a stage or amphitheater has been debated. But those will be further down the road, since well, they cost a lot of money! So, let’s appreciate that FINALLY the park will be extended and the shoreline work will be done to accommodate a marina in the future! This is great news for Amherstburg!

For those that are excited to finally see Duffy’s starting to be developed, here is the link to the long term plan for the property : https://www.amherstburg.ca/en/town-hall/RiverfrontProject.aspx?fbclid=IwAR0Lrss2rVANGwByHaUMZofOZ3B5rz4XSe59FBkXW9Nng2gmBBDjq7ipifY

Still Standing

In March, the CBC show Still Standing spent five full and intense days in Amherstburg! They were here filming our beautiful town, getting a sense of who we are, where we’ve come from and how we are moving into the future…..how we’ve had some hard times in Amherstburg, but we are “Still standing”. The crews were seen all over town for several days. Some locals were able to meet the star, Jonny Harris. Bagpipes in the Burg, which normally performs Friday nights at Open Air, put on a huge parade for the show in March. It was epic! Our community came together and boy did we shine! Amherstburg was the town featured in the September 26th season debut and we should be sooooo proud! Still Standing showcased our town and managed to grasp a piece of how great we are in a short 21 minute episode. The show is now available on CBC Gem if anybody missed it and wants to see it! Hats off Amherstburg! We rock! This show put Amherstburg on the map nationally and even internationally since the show is now available around the globe.

Libro Bike Trails

An organized and proactive group delegated to council to create bike trails at the Libro Centre for phase 1. They had to raise $35,000 and provide the volunteer hours to build the trails. Council approved that the town would move some dirt (so a negligible cost to the taxpayers). Well, the Windsor-Essex County Bike Community raised the money and the trails became a reality in 2023! In fact, the group was so successful that they delegated to council again at the end of 2023 to start planning for phase 2 of the bike trails for spring 2024! This was a great Amherstburg highlight! And ironically, it was an organized group of people that got it done. I believe that it had little to do with council. And administration did all of the behind the scenes work with the group in terms of legal agreements etc. But definitely a good news 2023 story for Amherstburg! I guess we’ll let council take some credit for this one. 🙂

The Boblo Ferry

February 13th 2023 saw the first of several lengthy discussions about the Boblo Island Ferry. Council had summoned Amico to come before them to explain what happened to the ferry service during Christmas of 2022. If you recall, the south western Ontario region was hit with a huge winter storm during Christmas of 2022 and due to that storm portions of the 401 were closed, flights were canceled and water levels were affected so badly here that the ferry could not safely cross the Detroit River. This presentation highlighted that transportation to and from the island is the responsibility of the developer and not the town. The presentation to council that fateful February night lasted an hour and 40 minutes. Little did I know that the ferry would come back for discussion several times in 2023…..Here is the link to the presentation about Boblo from February 2023. It is quite informative. https://pub-amherstburg.escribemeetings.com/filestream.ashx?DocumentId=10136

In May 2023, Ms Prince was back in front of council about the south end development agreement for Boblo Island. There were a few amendments required. But what was immediately brought up for discussion by Councillor Pouget? The Ferry Service….since Mayor Prue had a conflict, Deputy Mayor Gibb was chairing the meeting and had to ask Councillor Pouget to stay on topic about the development agreement….

But the Boblo Ferry issue still wasn’t over….not by a long shot….In November some Boblo residents delegated to council since the ferry had been out of service for two weeks at the end of October. It seems that the backup ferry was also out of service but had been approved for emergency use only if required. A good chunk of the meeting that fateful November night was listening to delegations about the ferry, delegations that went past the 5 minute time allotment. The Boblo Ferry seemed to occupy much of council’s time in 2023. Ironically, the Boblo Ferry is NOT council’s responsibility, yet it seems they put more time and effort into discussing the ferry than many things that ARE their responsibility (like the procedural bylaw? LOL)…..And then, as if that was not enough, in December, Councillor Pouget wanted the Boblo Ferry added to the agenda for January 2024 so that it could be discussed some more. That motion failed. But I have no doubt that the Boblo Ferry will be back for discussion in 2024 at some point…..hopefully it can be a one and done in 2024, but that’s probably unlikely. As much as the ferry goes back and forth, back and forth across the river….it seems that some members of council want to keep discussing it, back and forth, back and forth….

Council dynamics, 4-3 votes and passing the gavel

This new term of council brought back a few politicians and brought in some new faces. It was interesting to watch the dynamics. Mayor Prue spoke of wanting to create consensus on council when he was first elected. Well, we have anything but that. Right out of the gate, during the budget 2023 deliberations, there were multiple 3-3 votes and Mayor Prue had to break the tie. Well, the 3-3 votes continued throughout 2023 and the Mayor became a tie-breaker, not a consensus-builder. Mayor Prue also took on a new way of doing things and “passing the gavel” each time he spoke or had a question for staff. I had never seen such a practice before with former Mayor DiCarlo or former Mayor Hurst. And, none of my readers had either. I looked it up and this is what I found : https://jurassicparliament.com/pass-the-gavel/?fbclid=IwAR3Khxl0maqVI0JBv2BMkQrD2h3TuB9IseH4-IVpVwvzGpD2H7woA0QTQ2Y

After reading that, it seems that it’s not quite just a simple “I’ll pass the gavel” and “I’ll take the gavel back”…..from what I can see, once the gavel is passed, it’s gone until the item is dispensed of (i.e. voted on). As well, I believe the chair is supposed to remain neutral during the meeting and not to influence the discussion. But, I doubt any of this matters, I’m sure the gavel will continue to get passed around like a hot potato into 2024 and beyond….Frankly, I think it causes far more confusion than it’s worth….Much like the ferry that goes back and forth, so does the gavel I guess….

At an April meeting, during debate about a development of the old Anderdon Tavern Property, Councillor Pouget challenged the chair of the meeting (Mayor Prue). So much for consensus. It was a pretty tense exchange.

At the October 23rd meeting, Councillor Crain had expressed disagreement with the way a motion of Councillor Pouget’s was written. Councillor Pouget seemed to get quite upset with him and told him “Don’t give me that face”. The Mayor didn’t allow Councillor Crain to defend himself and the whole thing came off as well, confrontational and out of order really. I know many readers went back to watch that meeting. I think that it was too bad that Councillor Pouget wasn’t more respectful. Members of council are allowed to disagree with motions. Then, at another meeting, later in November, council had to elect an interim chair for an item, since the chair had a conflict on said item. Usually not a big deal…..but Councillor Pouget voted against Councillor Crain being the interim chair for that one single item. It seemed very odd to me, the whole thing…..I don’t understand this dynamic at all and it seems quite out of line to me…..I guess if one member of council can’t just marginally tolerate another, how in the world will there ever be consensus? LOL!

As I read through all of the blogs of 2023, if I counted correctly, Councillor Courtney attended eight meetings via Zoom and was absent for two meetings in 2023 I believe. There has been a lot of discussion out on the streets about the many zoom appearances for meetings…..Will 2024 bring more of the same? Is someone really engaged if they can just phone it in? Often?

This new term of council also brought a few new faces to the table. Councillor Crain has never been on council before and was elected to council with the most votes. Councillor Allaire has also never been on council before and was elected with the third most votes. Deputy Mayor Gibb has never been on council before and won the Deputy Mayor’s race by a healthy margin. Councillor McArthur was newly elected in 2018 to council and was re-elected (second place position in 2022, first place in 2018) this term. Councillor Courtney was also newly elected in 2018 and was re-elected (fourth place position again) this term. Councillor Pouget was on a few prior councils and was on the 2014-2018 term of council that I watched. She lost her bid for the Deputy Mayor’s chair in 2018 by a mere four votes. Councillor Pouget was reelected to council this term and placed fifth for number of votes. And Mayor Prue was a councillor during the 2018 term and was elected Mayor by a very healthy margin this term in 2022. Did you know he was in the legislature before? 😉

New Fire Hall

In April, council was presented with some options regarding our fire halls. It seems that the current fire halls are old, outdated and can not adequately fit the size of modern fire trucks. There was a looonnnnng debate…..Eventually a motion was made to build a new fire hall at the Libro, which will replace the current Sandwich Street fire hall. Then later, build a new fire hall in Anderdon (on the same property) and eventually, possibly close the fire hall in Malden. It was made very clear to us by the fire chief that we need a new fire hall, the current ones are inadequate. Well, eventually, it went to a vote and it was 4-3….in favour Councillors Crain and McArthur, Deputy Mayor Gibb, Mayor Prue. Opposed to a new fire hall : Councillors Allaire, Courtney and Pouget. (Another example of “consensus” I guess…) I can see that some work has begun at the Libro to start construction of the new fire hall. I believe it will be ready sometime in 2025, so we should be able to watch its construction in 2024. I’m glad that we will be getting a new, modern building for our fire services. That’s a win for all of us I think (even if it did cost a good chunk of change…..is fire services something we really want to cheap out on?)

New boutique hotel proposed for Dalhousie Street

Everybody in Amherstburg has been saying for years that Amherstburg needs a hotel. Well, one was proposed for Dalhousie Street, next door to the Salmoni Building. And even though everybody in Amherstburg had been saying for years that Amherstburg needs a hotel, well, it seems that some don’t want it there. They want it anywhere, other than there LOL. Anyway, there was a beautiful boutique hotel proposed, with some retail space on the main floor and a small restaurant…..council did ultimately approve the development in a 4-3 vote, since it did meet all of the planning criteria. (In favour : Councillors Crain and McArthur, Deputy Mayor Gibb, Mayor Prue…..opposed to the hotel : Councillors Allaire, Courtney and Pouget…..just another example of consensus I guess….) The Fire Chief provided a comprehensive report about the development and how it met planning and safety requirements. I believe however, that the issue is now before the Ontario Land Tribunal, as some of the neighbours oppose the development. I guess 2024 will bring the answer of is the boutique hotel to be or not to be….that is the question.

New Procedural Bylaw

In August, council unanimously passed their new procedural bylaw. We had a consensus! Among some significant changes, agendas are now publicly available ten days before the meeting. This allows ample time for those that wish to delegate to an agenda item to submit their request to delegate. If I recall, Mayor Prue had said during his campaign that he wanted agendas to come out 10 days in advance, and here it was. This new bylaw was definitely tighter than the previous one in terms of waiving the rules of order. It now takes a unanimous vote to waive the rules of order. As I sat and reread ALL of the blogs leading up to this August meeting in 2023, it was pretty obvious that waiving the rules of order generally shoves order out the window and creates hectic, unorganized meetings. So this was it. The new procedural bylaw was on the agenda. I read it. I blogged about it. I provided the link to the proposed bylaw in my pre-meeting blog. When it came before council, not a question was asked, not a comment was made and it passed unanimously. Here is the link to the bylaw for those that are interested https://pub-amherstburg.escribemeetings.com/filestream.ashx?DocumentId=12024

But the consensus was short lived….A few months later…..Councillor Pouget wanted council to reconsider this bylaw that they had adopted unanimously….It didn’t fly though. In November, two residents delegated about reconsidering the procedural bylaw. One resident was in favour of reconsideration and the other was against. Council debated but ultimately in a 3-2 vote, the procedural bylaw stands as written. (Opposed to changing the procedural bylaw : Councillors Crain and McArthur, Deputy Mayor Gibb….in favour of changing the procedural bylaw : Councillors Pouget and Courtney…..absent from that meeting, Mayor Prue and Councillor Allaire) Personally, I think it’s a good thing. I’ve been watching meetings for nine years now and since the new procedural bylaw has been in place, the meetings have been generally much smoother than in the past. Even compared to earlier in 2023 with this council, the meetings were often quite chaotic or unruly through the winter and spring of 2023…..the new procedural bylaw has allowed staff and council to be much more prepared for what items will be discussed and frankly, it is much more transparent for us, the members of the public too.

Belle Vue Expression of Interest

The previous council had made a motion that companies could submit expressions of interest to the town regarding Belle Vue. Part of the criteria was a full restoration of the house. This new council were the ones to receive the expressions of interest. At a long meeting in October, ONE expression of interest had made the cut. Only three were received. The one proponent that was the ONLY successful candidate for the Expression of Interest was proposing a 42 Million dollar investment of their money to restore the manor, add a boutique hotel, add a pavilion area, a pool and 52 semi-detached homes that would be historical-looking. Bear in mind, that the house will take AT LEAST $10 to $15 Million to restore…..and the proponent has to dump their money into the house to restore it…..so they would need the rest of the development to make their money back and eventually, make money overall. The only successful proponent was the Amico and Loop family. They presented their proposal to council. They were grilled like they were in court by some members of council. Some members of council feel that the town should retain ownership of the house…..we’ve owned it since 2017 and other than the roof, which was replaced with grant money and some funds that were raised, the house is even more in disrepair than it was almost 7 years ago….can we afford to continue to own this building? Does the property have any value if it is a requirement to fix the house at a cost of $15 Million dollars?…..just some thoughts…Anyway, the motion did pass for the process to move to the next steps….an independent third party will go through the proposal and the financial viability of Amico and the Loop families to see if this project can be a go…..so we will wait and see what happens in 2024…..if anything at all….I’m not too hopeful on this one since some members of council seem to think they’re in the driver’s seat on this “negotiation”…..I think we could end up stuck with the house for endless more years and no money to fix it……I think there is supposed to be public consultation in 2024 about Belle Vue and if the public has an appetite to retain ownership of the house or not…..so much like the Open Air survey, I guess the people will speak to this. Maybe this will require seven or eight surveys too? What if the survey results come back with results that council doesn’t like? Just request more surveys I guess? LOL!

December 11th, the last meeting of 2023

At the end of November, Mayor Prue fell and broke his hip. He was absent from the November 27th meeting so Deputy Mayor Gibb chaired the meeting. Mayor Prue was back for the Budget presentation meeting on December 4th and chaired that meeting from Zoom. That meeting consisted of one item, the budget presentation. However, the next regular meeting was scheduled for December 11th and it consisted of a full, regular agenda. Mayor Prue chose to again chair the meeting via zoom. This time, that choice created an evening of chaos. The wrong councillors were being named regularly for seconding motions, for having a hand raised, or not…..councillors had to just turn their microphones on and start talking…..people in the gallery were laughing, out of sheer shock of how unorderly the meeting was going….this went on all evening. The meeting was quite chaotic. Ironically, when I was reading back the old blogs, the early meetings of 2023 were chaotic as well….so maybe it wasn’t so unusual that 2023 would end in the same way that it began? Maybe it was just 2023 coming full circle? I don’t know…..

Well, there it is folks! I chose some highlights and lowlights to relive together from 2023! There were others but I tried to keep it concise! Reading back through the blogs sure brought back some memories…..including some painful ones LOL! If there is anything I didn’t mention, that you don’t want to be forgotten, be sure to comment! Then, we can all relive it together once again! LOL We are one quarter into this new council’s term…..it’s been a bumpy 2023, but here’s hoping for a smooth sailing 2024! A girl can hope right? My wish for 2024….smooth, efficient, orderly meetings that move the business of the town forward….what are the odds? The new procedural bylaw can afford us that….if it’s strictly adhered to I guess….

Happy New Year Amherstburg! May 2024 be filled with happiness, health, family and friends! (At Open Air LOL)

December 12, 2023 amherstburg2

Monday December 11th Regular town council meeting

Well, I’m just going to say it. Monday night’s meeting was a gong show. I have attended almost every single council meeting for nine years and I have never seen one like this one! Mayor Prue chaired the meeting via Zoom. Members of council had to interject to speak. When they raised their hands, the Mayor said they were too small on his screen and he couldn’t see. One member of council would raise their hand to second a motion and Mayor Prue would name somebody that hadn’t raised their hand as the seconder. It happened continuously throughout the meeting. People were looking around and laughing. At one point I heard one member of council tell another to just turn their microphone on and start talking. It actually got to the point, maybe a little over halfway through the meeting, the councillors would refer to themselves in the third person when they spoke. Unbelievable.

For fun, maybe later, I’ll count how many times I wrote “chaos” in my notes during this meeting.

Oh and just so I don’t forget, don’t read this blog if it’s going to upset you or make you think about me all week.

Anyway, here we go with the summary.

Here is the link to the revised agenda with the video https://pub-amherstburg.escribemeetings.com/Meeting.aspx?Id=3eabe880-8202-4a12-9f53-eac4efb3e0b7&Agenda=Merged&lang=English

And for those that prefer PDF https://calendar.amherstburg.ca/council/Detail/2023-12-11-1800-Regular-Council-Meeting/6ecd5241-ef58-4aa0-8449-b0d2015e0493

***Mayor Prue was on zoom and chaired the meeting**

***Councillor Courtney was on zoom and appeared to be at work**

First, council met at 5:00 in-camera to discuss :

SPECIAL IN-CAMERA MEETING

That Council move into an In-Camera Meeting of Council pursuant to Section 239 of the Municipal Act, 2001, as amended for the following reasons:

Item A – Legal Advice Regarding Committee

Section 239(2)(b) – Personal matters about an identifiable individual, including municipal or local board employees.
Section 239(2)(f) – Advice that is subject to solicitor-client privilege, including communications necessary for that purpose.

Item B – Committee Membership and Vacancies

Section 239(2) (b) – personal matters about an identifiable individual, including municipal or local board employees;

The regular meeting started just after 6:00. The Clerk had to notify the Mayor, who was on zoom, that everybody was ready to begin the meeting….

There was a revised agenda that included one delegation.

DELEGATIONS

Delegation: Item 11.3 Windsor Essex Community (WEBC) Libro Centre Mountain Bike Trail Proposal Phase 2 – James Braakman

Mr Braakman addressed council and had a slide presentation prepared. He explained how WEBC came about for the development and improvement of the bike trails at the Libro. He said that the feedback they’ve received has been outstanding. Mr Braakman went on to say that the new bike trails were used by hundreds this summer and that they are a massive success. He also noted that for phase one, WEBC raised $33,000 in donations in about 6 weeks and organized volunteers to build the trails in 3 months time. He also noted that Flow Cafe and Bikes (a new business on Dalhousie Street) was a direct result of the trails. Mr Braakman then spoke about phase 2 and that it would add 3 – 4 kilometers of trails at an intermediate level. Again, phase two would be done completely by volunteers and would be completed in the summer of 2024. He mentioned that again, WEBC would just be requesting the town’s help to move some dirt with their dump truck, similar work that the town had done in phase one. He explained that $15,000 would be required to build phase two but that WEBC would raise the funds. He said that their next steps would be that council approve phase two pending WEBC raise the money and then they can begin construction of phase two of the trails.

And the chaos began again. Mayor Prue could not see who was raising their hands to speak…

Councillor Crain wondered if there would be more phases in the future after phase 2. Mr Braakman said that eventually there would be a phase 3 in the future. Councillor Courtney wondered if the group foresaw any problems raising the $15,000. Mr Braakman said he felt confident they would be able to raise the money. (Side note….light bulb moment for me….does Councillor Courtney have an update for us if any money has been raised for a new track at Centennial Park? I think he was the councillor that was spearheading that?) Councillor McArthur spoke about how he loved that WEBC weren’t just building trails, they were building a sense of community. He noted how they are engaging with youth and he loved getting all of the emails in support of the expansion of the trails. Councillor McArthur even noted how there were youth present at the meeting and involved and made a joke that they probably weren’t there about the roof report. (LOL! True….nobody was there about the roof report ! LOL)

The delegation was received and the item about the trails was brought forward.

Windsor Essex Bike Community (WEBC) Libro Centre Mountain Bike Trail Proposal Phase 2

Councillor Pouget expressed her support for the project and made the motion for the staff recommendation :

It is recommended that:

1. Council AUTHORIZE the conditional approval to proceed with Phase 2 of the Windsor Essex Bike Community (WEBC) Libro Centre Mountain Bike Tail Project at the Libro Centre subject to a due diligence process ensuring conformity with the design criteria and initiatives outlined in the current and future phases of the Libro Centre Master Plan, with an understanding that the proposed concept may be subject to change; this is to permit WEBC to raise funds needed to complete Phase 2 of the project.

2. Council DIRECT Administration to diligently proceed with the planning, design and execution of Phase 2 of the Libro Centre Mountain Bike Trail Project in partnership with WEBC; ensuring compliance with relevant regulations through a thorough evaluation and planning process,

3. Council DELEGATE authority to the Chief Administrative Officer and Clerk to negotiate, sign and execute any modifications to the existing Land Stewardship Agreement and/or any such agreement, declarations or approvals required for the implementation of Phase 2 of the Libro Centre Mountain Bike Trail Project, satisfactory in form to the Chief Financial Officer, in technical content to the Director of Parks, Facilities, Recreation and Culture, and in legal content to the Chief Administrative Officer. This is with an understanding that the proposed concept may be subject to change.

Councillor Courtney asked about the dirt pile. Administration confirmed that it is surplus soil. Councillor Courtney felt that there were some conflicts in the report about space requirements and if the trails would need to be moved for any reason. Ms Baillargeon, Director of Parks said that it was a dirt trail and it’s not a problem if it needs to be moved 10 or 15 feet. It would also be WEBC’s expense to move the trails if needed. Councillor Courtney then went on about the importance of planning but I was too busy shaking my head because Councillor Courtney voted AGAINST the Libro Master Plan during his last term of council. (Here is the blog about the Libro Master Plan that was cast aside by the previous council in January 2021….and for the record, the Libro Master Plan was not tied to the grant funding the the town later tried to get, it was a plan for the Libro Centre in order to plan out where to place amenities and then plan for funding them. Here’s the blog https://amherstburg2.wordpress.com/2021/01/27/monday-january-25th-regular-town-council-meeting/ if you’re interested.)

The motion was carried unanimously.

2023 Third Quarter (Q3) Variance as at September 30th, 2023

It looks like the third quarter variance report is ready. It is noted in the report that 2023 was the first full operating year since the pandemic. The report outlines various departments’ surpluses and deficits.

Again, more chaos about who had questions about the report. Mayor Prue told council not to be bashful and just speak out. (Yeah….how orderly…..just speak out….) Councillor Pouget asked a question and ultimately the report was received.

Basketball and Volleyball Courts

In October, council directed administration to prepare a report with costing for basketball and volleyball courts to be included in the 2025 budget. Well, the report is in and there are a few options. The prices provided seem to be generic and not site-specific, which could impact the costs.

Here are the four options, from the report, for council to consider :

The following costs are estimates based on best practices and include a 15% contingency to account for potential price increases as well as basic site amenities:

1. A full sized premier Basketball court complete with 10’ high fencing and a full colour acrylic surface coating; $400,000

2. A full sized Basketball court without a fencing and basic black and white line work only (no colour coating); $150,000

3. A ½ Basketball court without fence, with full acrylic colour surface coating; $95,000

4. A ½ Basketball court without fence, with only basic white lines (no colour coating); $85,000

5. A Sand Volleyball court constructed with Hutchinson granite volleyball sand or approved equal and spectator seating; $50,000

The costs noted do not include operational costs, maintenance costs or lifecycle costs associated with such an amenity.

I had said in my pre-meeting blog that I’d have to wait to see what council would decide to do. Well, they decided to do nothing. Absolutely nothing.

Deputy Mayor Gibb asked to confirm that this report was separate from the basketball court that was included in the 2024 budget for Pat Thrasher Park. Ms Baillargeon said that was correct, there was no correlation between this report and the basketball court in the 2024 budget for Pat Thrasher Park. Councillor Courtney felt that it was good information in the report about the price points. He felt that the basketball courts near the OLD arena worked well but noted that the pickleball courts were going to be at the Libro (the NEW arena). Anyway, he made a motion to receive the report and felt it was premature to do anything else. And the motion carried. So, no basketball courts being added to the 2025 budget…..simply received the report. (And another side note, the old basketball courts worked well with the OLD arena because the OLD arena was the anchor of an old park….now the NEW arena is the new anchor of a new park area….so I’ll go out on a limb and suggest that IF council had budgeted for this item for 2025, probably better to put those NEW basketball courts with the NEW arena….funny how things work together….but it doesn’t matter, council did nothing with the report, so no basketball courts folks….not sure how popular basketball is, so I’m not sure how many of my readers will be disappointed about this?)

Roof Inspections and Roof Replacements

It seems that in the 2023 Capital budget, Council approved the Roof inspection and repair program. It appears that 25 town-owned buildings were inspected and the roofs were evaluated to determine their condition and their life expectancy.

Based on the inspections, it seems that the Public Works building’s roof is in need of immediate replacement. It seems that during intense rain that water is running down the walls in various areas of the building.

Here is the recommendation about the Public Works building’s roof.

It is recommended that:

1. Council RE-DIRECT and APPROVE the use of capital funds in the amount of $70,000 from the 2023 Capital project FAC-006-23 Roof Inspections and Repair to replace the roof at the Public Works Building located at 512 Sandwich Street (Public Works Main Yard) and;

2. Council RE-DIRECT and APPROVE the use of $12,300 from the 2022 Capital paper budget issue paper BLD-005-22 Roof Replacement HUB which is not required at this time in order to facilitate roof replacement at the Public Works Building located at 512 Sandwich Street (Public Works Main Yard) and;

3. Council AUTHORIZE and DIRECT Administration to secure the necessary contractors through a Request for Quote (RFQ) or Group Purchasing Organization (GPO), as determined by Finance to complete the necessary work to facilitate the roof replacement for the above noted project, provided bids are within the approved budget and;

4. Council DELEGATE authority to the Chief Administrative Officer to award and issue purchase orders and or sign and execute any agreements as may be required to execute the scope of work at 512 Sandwich Street, satisfactory in form for technical content to the Director of Parks, Facilities, Recreation, and Culture, and in financial content to the Chief Financial Officer or delegates.

Councillor Courtney felt that he could have gone around and taken pictures of all of the roofs with caulking missing and other issues. (That struck me as a pretty demeaning comment….especially considering that Councillor Courtney often attends council meetings via zoom, I haven’t seen him in person in chambers for a while it seems like….he must be very busy, so how would he have so much time to go and climb on the roofs of all of the town-owned buildings? I dunno….?)

Deputy Mayor Gibb asked about the list of many minor repairs that were required. Mr Fasen, Manager of Facilities, explained that they were working through the smaller repairs in-house. He also mentioned to Councillor Courtney that this was a summary report but there is a full report with structural testing and other evaluations that were done. (I guess I wasn’t the only one that found Councillor Courtney’s flippant comment somewhat demeaning or condescending….) Councillor Pouget was concerned about the roof leaking in the Public Works building and wondered why repairs weren’t done beforehand. Ms Baillargeon said that continuous repairs had been done but that it could no longer be patched.

The motion (as noted above) was made and seconded. And it carried. (And the wrong seconder was named by the Mayor, but whatevs….it was par for the course tonight….)

Street Bay at the Foot of Richmond Street

Back in June, there was an unregistered delegation that asked some questions about the small parking bay at the intersection of Richmond Street and Dalhousie Street. (in front of the clock at the Navy Yard Park). Since that time, administration now has a full report about the two “parking spots” in question. It seems that administration even reached out to the engineer of record on this project and they confirmed that the street bay was intended for a loading zone and dropping off/pick up point for visitors to the Kings Navy Yard Park.

Council is being presented with three options :

The following are options for Council’s considerations:

1. Continue use as a loading zone area – Administration has identified issues with daytime deliveries in the downtown core. Delivery trucks are parking in lanes of traffic causing unsafe conditions and unnecessary congestion. An amendment to the Town’s Traffic By-Law would need to come back to Council to reflect this exemption.

2. Remove the drop curb and install barrier curb to remove the bay – Administration has obtained quotes to remove the drop curb and install barrier curb to raise the area to match the existing sidewalk grades. The cost of removing the street bay is estimated to be approximately $80,000.

3. Re-instate parking in the street bay – Council may direct staff to reinstate parking in the street bay at the foot of Richmond Street. The parking would be restricted to two (2) hour parking as per the remainder of the downtown street parking, In addition, the parking signs should be augmented with line marking designating parking spots. An amendment to the Town’s Traffic By-Law would need to come back to Council to reflect this exemption.

And more chaos….Mayor Prue was looking for a motion….Councillor McArthur had to interject that there were options and that a motion had to be made for one of the options….

Councillor Courtney spoke first. He felt that the obvious option was to close off the curb area for loading and unloading but that he did not want to pay $80,000 to do it. He felt that the T intersection creates confusion with an area there for loading and unloading. He asked administration if a few big planters could be placed in the area rather than removing the curb. Ms Baillargeon said that administration could entertain the idea if that were the wish of council. Councillor Courtney said that he would listen to the other members of council and then make a motion later.

Councillor Pouget asked about option #1 and keeping the area as a loading/unloading zone. She asked if it remained a loading zone if places like Seasons could use the area to drop off people with accessibility issues. Mr Chaimberlain, Manager of Fleet, said that was the original premise of the area to provide a drop off area for people visiting Kings Navy Yard Park.

Councillor McArthur noted that the original purpose for the loading/unloading area was confirmed by the original developer.

Councillor Crain asked administration about the language of amending the bylaw that was included in the recommendations. Someone from administration said that the bylaw would need to be updated regarding changes in signage but that the bylaw is updated annually.

Councillor Allaire felt that she liked the idea of removing the curb area and closing it off. She felt that it seems “silly” to have multiple areas for drop off for the park since the area is closed during Open Air. She felt that it would take increased bylaw time to verify the area. She felt that trucks couldn’t use the area since there were always cars parked there.

Councillor McArthur then made a motion for option #1 to leave the area as a loading zone. Councillor Crain seconded it. There was some chaos….hands raised, people speaking over top of others….Councillor Courtney wanted to speak since he had said earlier that he wanted to make a motion. But it was too late. Councillor McArthur said that the area had always been used for unloading and that it was good for trucks and the businesses. He also noted that the town could step up enforcement and use the money from fines for other things for the town.

Councillor Courtney felt that he could not support that. He felt that it was a risky area and there were also crosswalks at the intersection. He felt that stepping up enforcement in the area would be a waste of resources.

Deputy Mayor Gibb felt that he did not want to spend money to make our congested downtown even more congested. He felt that trucks parked in the loading zone were a lot better than trucks parked in the middle of the street to unload their goods.

There was more chaos over who got to speak next….

Councillor Crain felt that he could support the area to remain as a loading zone. He felt that it was riskier to have trucks unloading in the middle of lanes of traffic rather than in the unloading zone. He also felt that $80,000 was a lot to spend on an issue that is not an issue. (Ironically, this area was never an issue, until the boutique hotel got approved…..then suddenly it was an urgent issue….I’m sure that’s just a coincidence….a strange Amherstburg coincidence….)

Councillor Allaire then spoke that she could not support the motion. She noted that there were always cars parked there and not trucks. (Then, a person sitting at the back of the gallery started talking, LOUDLY, with the person sitting beside him….and I missed the rest of Councillor Allaire’s questions and comments…..Such rude and disrespectful behaviour by this person for the rest of us that were trying to listen….)

Councillor Pouget asked about any traffic violations or accidents in the area. But it seems such information was not requested from the police. Councillor Allaire asked if a full size semi truck could fit in the area. Mr Chaimberlain said he hadn’t measured the area but would think that a full size semi truck could not fit there.

Someone asked the Clerk to read the motion. 1. Continue use as a loading zone area – Administration has identified issues with daytime deliveries in the downtown core. Delivery trucks are parking in lanes of traffic causing unsafe conditions and unnecessary congestion. An amendment to the Town’s Traffic By-Law would need to come back to Council to reflect this exemption.

It went to a vote…..Mayor Prue couldn’t see who had their hands up, he thought it was 3-2 but it was actually 4-2….he couldn’t see who the fourth person was….Even though it wasn’t a recorded vote, the members of council had to keep their hands up and declare their vote to the Mayor….

In favour : Councillors Crain, McArthur, Pouget and Deputy Mayor Gibb

Opposed : Councillors Allaire and Courtney

So, the area will remain as a loading / unloading zone. If any of my readers tend to use the area for parking, beware, increased enforcement will be out….so if you don’t want to get a fine, don’t park there…..

2023 Tar and Chip Program Over-Expenditure

It seems that the Tar and Chip program has gone a little bit over budget. From the report : “The contract that was awarded had estimated 470 tonnes of asphalt padding that would be required to level out the wheel ruts, depressions and seal over cracking on the roads. Through contract administration, the contractor advised that additional asphalt padding would be required to complete the level course prior to laying the tar and chip surface. In the end, the asphalt padding required an additional 107.1 tonnes of asphalt which resulted in a $26,775 over-expenditure. The total cost of the project is now $236,371 including net HST which still falls within the capital budget originally approved by Council.”

Councillor Courtney had a lot of questions about this item. Councillors Crain and McArthur had a couple of questions. Ultimately, it was explained that sometimes a road is in worse condition than anticipated, although this rarely occurs. Ms Giofu, Director of Engineering said that administration anticipates the materials required and it is not common for the company to need more materials than anticipated. However, in this case it did happen. It seems that administration approved the overage in order to allow the company to complete the job. It appears that administration monitors the project and the company doing the repairs must advise administration ahead of time if they will need more materials. Ms Giofu said that the job was inspected and confirmed and that while technically there is money in their budget to cover the overage, the tender went over budget therefore needs council approval.

Finally, Councillor Allaire noted that this problem does not happen often but that administration had done their due diligence, so she made the motion to approve the expense. Deputy Mayor Gibb seconded it and the motion carried.

Several other items were carried with little discussion so I’m going to save myself some time and keystrokes and not type up the summary. As always, anyone is welcome to watch the video if you need the full play by play for each item.

2023 Special Events Approval – Part Thirteen

And more events coming to Amherstburg! I love events!

It is recommended that:

1. The following events BE APPROVED: a. Woofa~Roo Pet Fest – June 22nd & 23rd, 2024

2. An exemption from table number 3-1(2) of Noise By-law #2001-43, as amended with respect to the operation of any electronic device or group of connected electronic devices incorporating one or more loudspeakers to allow for music BE GRANTED for the following events:

a. Woofa~Roo Pet Fest – June 22nd & 23rd, 2024 from 0900hrs till 1730hrs

3. The Special Events Resource Team BE DIRECTED to confirm that the requirements identified by the Committee are met prior to the event

Deputy Mayor Gibb mentioned that last year there was confusion from the organizer about putting up signs to advertise this event. He wondered if the proponent was aware for this year, what the time lines were regarding signs. Administration said that yes, the proponent is aware and that there is a new sign bylaw coming forward in 2024 for council consideration. (YAY!!! Best news of the night! The 2014-2018 term of council put forth a very restrictive sign bylaw that has had consequences ever since…..I’m glad to hear it’s being recommended to amend it…)

Anyway, the motion was made and carried. Woofa-Roo is approved! (Nobody voted against it like they did the True Fest….hmmmm…..)

The meeting continued. The chaos continued. Members of council had to start referring to themselves in the third person because the Mayor could not see them and there was a lag or something with the internet. It got to the point that members of council were just turning on their microphones and speaking VERY loudly to explain who was making the motion and who was seconding the motion. Chairing a meeting from zoom, when everybody else is present in person was proving to be quite a debacle. I’ve never seen anything like it. It was a real gong show. The Mayor still “passed the gavel” several times during the meeting….it was even stranger because I am guessing the gavel was sitting in town hall, yet the Mayor was sitting at home. The gavel was floating the entire evening….

UNFINISHED BUSINESS

Councillor Allaire mentioned that the Accessibility Committee was supposed to meet in December to discuss Open Air. She wondered if a date had been picked.

Councillor McArthur spoke since he is the council representative on that committee. It seems that the meeting already happened last Thursday, December 7th 2023. He mentioned that the chair and vice-chair were not present at the meeting and he was nominated to chair the meeting. It seems that there were some problems with the audio recording of the meeting so Councillor McArthur offered a summary to council (and us). He said that a recommendation had been passed by the committee to heavily promote the accessible parking spaces available during Open Air, provide a map showing where the spaces are and to increase enforcement to ensure that they are being used only by those with a permit. He also noted that it was made clear by administration that there are more accessible parking spots available during Open Air than at other times in the downtown core.

NEW BUSINESS

And the part of the meeting that made things even more chaotic….

Councillor Courtney started by saying he didn’t want to bring something up, then he did. He had a grocery list of questions about some ice problems at the arena during an Admirals game. There was much back and forth between Councillor Courtney and the Facilities Manager. Am I going to type it all up? No.

Councillor Pouget made a motion to direct administration and the Parks and Recreation Committee to create a beautification plan for around the Centennial Park signage at the corner of Richmond and Victoria St. (Personally, it seems strange to be so focused on beautifying a sign when the old park sits dilapidated and vacant, but that’s just me….I hope they don’t spend too much money on that….) Again, more confusion, people speaking, not much order, nobody seemed to know what was going on….and finally the motion carried. Looks like something will come back to council about this.

Then…..wait for it…..Councillor Pouget made another motion to direct administration to prepare any information regarding the Boblo Ferry and the continuous breakdowns for the next meeting. Councillor Allaire seconded it. For possibly the first time Monday night, I agreed with Councillor Courtney…..Councillor Courtney felt that council had already heard from the Boblo residents at the last meeting and wondered why more delegations would be required. Councillor Pouget said that council is waiting on a response from their lawyer about the issue and had asked the result to be made public once the CAO reviewed it. Councillor Courtney said he was confused with where this was going…..(yes, I think we all were….) CAO Critchley said that she did not have an update as of yet and a meeting was scheduled for next Monday but she wasn’t sure what kind of information she may have after the meeting. She mentioned that it could be in-camera information but that she couldn’t presuppose the information. Councillor Pouget asked about the barge certifications and the CAO said that information, once received would likely be public but again she couldn’t presuppose without seeing the information first. Mayor Prue then passed the gavel….(the flying imaginary gavel but I digress….) and explained why he feels he doesn’t have a conflict of interest about Boblo, since all residents pay fees to the Amherstburg Ferry Company. Mayor Prue felt that a great deal was going on. He said that the second ferry has not left its berth and no action has been taken about the second ferry. He also felt that there were some issues with the larger ferry. Mayor Prue felt that the town needs to know what actions the Amherstburg Ferry Corporation has undertaken for the needs of the town. He felt that he would support the motion to have the ferry issue brought back and explained. (So much for remaining an impartial chair of the meeting I guess…..)

Councillor Courtney said that he was opposed to bringing the ferry issue back to council since at this point it is still unknown if there will be anything to share. He felt thankful the CAO Critchley is also a lawyer and that she will bring information forth when it is available.

Councillor Crain asked that the motion be reread. He said that the town is working behind the scenes and needs to let the meeting happen and that it could be brought forth as new business at the next meeting if there were to be any information.

Councillor Pouget pressed on that the reason she wanted it on the agenda was so that the residents could speak to the ferry issue at the next meeting. Councillor Courtney spoke again and asked why council would allow residents to delegate again on this same item since they just delegated at the last meeting. He felt that they have their own fight and that council does not need to hear from delegates, again, from Boblo Island. (Spot on, Councillor Courtney, spot on….they just had their chance to delegate two weeks ago, time to move on….)

Deputy Mayor Gibb agreed that the item could be brought forth but only when more information was available. He felt that if further information was available for the next meeting, the CAO could add it to the agenda. Otherwise, he noted it could potentially be in-camera information, there was no way to know at the moment.

Mayor Prue asked the CAO if she could put the item on the agenda. She replied that she could IF the information was to be public information.

At this point, a resident had approached the podium…..the Mayor could not see him, since he was on Zoom, so Councillor Pouget had to interject and let him know that Mr Green was requesting to speak and she wanted to waive the rules of order. Mayor Prue said that Councillor Pouget already had a motion on the floor and that would have to be dealt with first, unless she wanted to withdraw it.

Councillor Pouget said she wanted a vote on her motion about a report about the ferry for the next meeting…..So they voted…..only Councillor Pouget was in favour, the rest opposed the motion.

Then Councillor Pouget made a motion to waive the rules of order to allow a person from the gallery to speak. Mayor Prue started talking about how it had to be unanimous but the Clerk had to remind him that a seconder to the motion had not been secured. Councillor Courtney seconded the motion and said he would entertain it and that it couldn’t hurt. Councillor Crain said that he would oppose the motion. Mayor Prue said since it wouldn’t be unanimous, it was the end of the matter. Personally, I think if there is a motion on the floor, it should be voted on. I was very interested to see which members of council were going to vote to waive the rules and allow their own procedural bylaw to be cast aside.

Councillor Allaire said that a lot of residents online are asking for a pool. She wondered if the public could be made aware of the costs, similar to earlier in the meeting, when costs for a basketball court were publicized. She asked if the Director of Parks and Recreation could prepare a report with costs to build and maintain a pool. The Director agreed to prepare something.

Deputy Mayor Gibb said that at the last County Council meeting, the Deputy Mayor of LaSalle had given him some compostable organic bags. He asked that our Deputy Mayor show the bags and explain them a bit at the next meeting of Amherstburg Council. The Deputy Mayor explained the bags and said he would leave them on the counter if anyone was interested.

Mayor Prue then thanked town staff and council for their kindness during his recovery from breaking his hip. He thanked Councillor Pouget for attending County Council in his place. He thanked the staff for keeping him informed of what is going on while he is at home recuperating. Mayor Prue also thanked “all of you tonight” for bearing with him. He explained that it is very difficult to sit for any length of time and that it is quite painful. He wished everyone a Merry Christmas. (It seemed to me that the Mayor was anxious for the meeting to end….I can understand that feeling to say the least….)

Councillor Pouget then spoke again and thanked Deputy Mayor Gibb for bringing the compostable bags. She felt that if people in high rises in Toronto could use them, then so could we. She then made a motion for the full cheque registry for October and November to be on the next agenda. Councillor Allaire seconded it.

And the speed on the Merry go Round just doubled…..

Councillor Pouget felt that council was not informed that the October and November cheque registry wouldn’t be supplied publicly. The Clerk had to double check the motion made at the last meeting. He then said it would require a motion of reconsideration since this motion contradicts the motion passed at the last meeting. Mayor Prue asked if Councillor Pouget had been on the prevailing side at the last meeting, otherwise she couldn’t make a motion for reconsideration…..she was not…..

Mayor Prue asked for the vote results and the Clerk found them. It was a recorded vote and the motion to abolish the public cheque register had passed 4-1, with Councillor Pouget being the lone vote of opposition.

Mayor Prue said that it would require two of the four that voted for the motion to make a motion for reconsideration. Nobody did. So Councillor Pouget’s motion was a no-go.

Councillor Courtney felt that council is still privy to the information and that council are the eyes and ears of the people. He felt that everyone has moved forward (well, perhaps everyone but one person?) and that the residents can put their trust in council to review the cheque registry. Councillor Pouget replied that it states in Sharepoint that council can not share the information with the residents. Mayor Prue cut off the debate.

And next thing you know, there was a motion to adjourn at 8:18 PM.

I have sat through hundreds of meetings…..I’m afraid to count how many…..I’ve seen some real doozies but I don’t think I have ever seen chaos like I did last night….I’m not sure who thought that chairing a meeting from Zoom when everybody else is present in person was a good idea…..If that ever happens again, I hope that Mayor Prue can be shown how to make the screen bigger so that he can properly see the members of council in chambers…..and have two screens to be able to manage it all properly. Just a couple of ideas….but when the wrong people are being named as making motions and seconders, that’s problematic…..and when they have to start interjecting and speaking loudly into the microphones using the third person…..it got pretty ridiculous….I’ll leave it at that.

Well, this council’s first full year just wrapped up….so I’ll be back some time after Christmas with a year in review. I’ll bring forth some highlights and lowlights from this first year of council. I’m sure this final meeting of 2023 will be part of it! LOL If anyone has anything that jumps to mind that they’d like me to cover, be sure to comment, or send me a message. I’ll see what I can do. I like to keep it to around 10 items.

Merry Christmas Amherstburg! Have a wonderful holiday! I’ll see you in a few weeks with a year end review of 2023 for this new council!

December 6, 2023 amherstburg2

In preparation for Monday December 11th Regular town council meeting

The agenda for the December 11th meeting came out ten days in advance, as per the new procedural bylaw. This gives me plenty of time to take a read through it. Considering the budget was presented on December 4th, I didn’t rush to get through this 497 page agenda.

Here’s the link to the full agenda in PDF format https://calendar.amherstburg.ca/council/Detail/2023-12-11-1800-Regular-Council-Meeting/e92b5358-70bb-4ba7-97ea-b0cb015d2b6e

And here it is in the electronic format with each item individualized https://pub-amherstburg.escribemeetings.com/Meeting.aspx?Id=3eabe880-8202-4a12-9f53-eac4efb3e0b7&Agenda=Agenda&lang=English

Here are some of the highlights from the agenda.

2024 Interim Tax Levy Bylaw 2023-110

This year, the budget will not be debated until January, so the tax rate won’t be set and approved until February. However, tax bills are sent out with due dates of end of February and end of April. So, it looks like any changes to the tax rate won’t be reflected until the final tax notice which is issued later in the year, once the final tax levy is determined. It also appears that this bylaw accounts for properties that are assessed mid-year in order to go back and charge the difference in taxes. Here is the recommendation :

RECOMMENDATION:

1. It is recommended that: By-law 2023-110, being a By-law to provide for an interim tax levy in default BE TAKEN as having been read three times and passed and the Mayor and Clerk be authorized to sign the same thereto

2023 Third Quarter (Q3) Variance as at September 30th, 2023

I’ll just pull out a few things that I found interesting in the report :

“The CAO budget centre is projecting a deficit of $30,691 mainly due to professional fees associated with Ontario Land Tribunal appeals.”
“The Police budget is projecting a surplus of $32,052 resulting from legal fees, and a slight increase in POA revenue.”
“The Licencing & Enforcement budget centre shows a projected surplus of $45,325 due to a forecasted increase in revenue related to the new contract with The Township of Pelee and the receipt of a provincial grant.”
“The Libro Centre budget centre is projected to have a $58,711 deficit based on a realized revenue projection which is lower than the budget.”

I think this is pretty informative from the Risk Analysis portion of the report : “In considering this particular report, it is important to note that not all revenues and expenditures occur evenly throughout the year. As a result, the forecast may be significantly different from the actual to date extrapolated for the balance of the year. Projections will be refined as the year progresses and updated variance reports are provided quarterly for Council. This report projects a deficit in the year end actual and will require a transfer from rate stabilization reserve to balance the budget and represents 0.4% of the total budget. Administration will continue to monitor this variance as there is little room for adjustment. In-year council decisions affecting reserves balances and continued inflation limit the Town’s ability to react to unexpected events funded by year-end surplus.”

Basically, dipping into reserves throughout the year, even if it’s only a “small” amount each time, has long term effects…..continuous small amounts add up to larger amounts….

It is recommended the council receive the report. I hope they read it carefully.

2024 User Fees By-law

The 2024 user fee chart has been prepared. Some fees have increased, some fees have decreased and some fees have been eliminated. If you’re interested in reading through all of the various fees, here is the link : https://pub-amherstburg.escribemeetings.com/filestream.ashx?DocumentId=13317

It is recommended that the 2024 user fee bylaw be approved.