Addington Highlands Council - September 1
Addington Highlands Council has decided to extend winter maintenance to a road they have only seasonably maintained for over two decades, in order to make it easier for a new build to take place at that location.
The last .85 km of the Wilson Heights Road will need to be brought up to the standard of a year round maintained road in order for this extension to take place. The cost estimate for the work, which was prepared by Roads and Waste Supervisor Brett Reavie, is over $36,700.
Reavie came to that figure by using the same template that he uses when costing out road work done by the township and billed to Lennox and Addington (L&A) County for work on county roads,
However, in arguing in favour of taking on year-round maintenance on the road, Deputy Reeve Ken Hook said that the first $30,000 in Reavie’s estimate, is for township road crew labour and equipment costs.
“Those aren’t really added costs for us since we own the equipment and the crews are being paid already. It just means they will be working on this road instead of other roads for those hours,” said Hook.
Hook said the added costs for gravel ($5,156) and the rental for a Packer ($1,575) which total $6,640, are the incremental cost to township taxpayers for the project.
The applicant seeking to build a new house, was asked if he would contribute anything to that cost, and he said he could provide a maximum of $5,000. Hook then included a 50/50 cost share for the incremental costs in the motion that he made to extend year-round maintenance to Wilson Road.
Councillor Kirby Thompson said that his only concern with Hook’s proposal was that it set a precedent for future applicants.
Nonetheless, Hook’s motion was carried.
The applicant had been hindered in his goal of building a house, because in order for his project to be approved by the Committee of Adjustment, he was required to bring his road up to the year round maintained road standard himself and commit to maintaining it. This would be a costly enterprise that also required him to obtain liability insurance to work on township owned roads, which most insurers are reluctant to provide.
With this change, he can go back to the Committee of Adjustment to re-address his application, and that provision will no longer apply.
Before Council voted in favour of the motion, Councillor Leveille asked Chief Administrator Christine Reed if township staff could put together a policy procedure to handle matters like this.
Reed clarified the situation for Leveille.
“There is a procedure in place, and to be clear, what is happening here is that Council is over-riding that procedure, in this case,” she said.
Hydro for Flinton Community Garden
Council received a new staff report from Chief Building Official/Facilities Manager David Twiddy regarding a request from the Flinton Community Garden for a power receptacle at the garden shed. The power is needed to power a small pump to allow hoses to use water from collection tanks, behind the shed, to water the raised beds where vegetables are grown for community use. Currently, volunteers use watering cans to water the gardens, which is an impediment for seniors and those with mobility issues.
The plan that was being discussed last month was to bring a 60 amp power service to the shed, which community volunteers said was much more than they required. Aside from powering a pump, they were hoping to have enough power for LED lights, and to power a small amp for musicians, at the occasional events being planned for the space.
In his report, Twiddy provided a cost of $4,500 to bring power to the shed, but said he’d look into potential savings for a smaller service than the 60 amps.
Councillor Leveille said it would be worth exploring a solar power option, using panels, a solar generator and batteries to ensure an adequate supply at all times, which he said might be considerably cheaper.
Twiddy was instructed by Council to explore both options, in consultation with the group running the garden, and come back to Council with a final cost.
More Pine Meadow Roofing Woes
Mary Kelly, the Chair of the Board of Land O’Lakes Community, the not for profit agency that owns the Pine Meadow Nursing Home, came to Council earlier this year asking for a grant to cover the building permit fees for an emergency roofing job that cost $220,000. She was back this week with another request. In completing the roofing work, the contractor found some serious flaws in the installation of a previous shingle roofing job, which had affixed shingles to particle board instead of plywood. In order to repair the rotting chip board and bring the entire roof of the home to standard, the cost is over $250,000, depleting the Pine Meadow reserve funds.
Kelly asked once again for Council for a grant to cover about $5,000 in permit fees.
“This is the only senior’s home that we have,” said Councillor Kirby Thompson, “we need to support it”.
Council agreed to cover the fees.
Bridge Street Culvert
Brett Reavie brought the engineering report that is the basis of the tender for the replacement of the culvert on Bridge Street in Denbigh, looking for Council’s approval to go to tender on the project. Reeve Tony Fritsch pointed out some errors in the drawings, and Reavie said he will confirm the details with Jewel Engineering, who created them, but will still be able to proceed with the tender. He is hoping the project can be completed before the end of the year.
Trunk or Treat
Council agreed to permit Trunk or Treat to set up in the parking lot (or covered rink if it rains) of the Flinton Rec Centre on October 31st, a Saturday this year. The township is also waiving all fees and passed an exemption to the noise bylaw for the duration of the event, which runs from 5:30pm - 7:30pm.
“Preserving the Harvest” Skills Event
Council agreed to waive the rental fee for the use of the kitchen at the Flinton Rec. Centre for an event about putting food by, using produce from the community garden, sponsored by Connections Adult Learning. The event will take place in late Septembe
