Changes in Economic Development in North Frontenac

At their council meeting last week, (Friday, September 12) North Frontenac Council received a report from the Economic Development Task Force (EDTF) that will change the way the new EDTF operates, should it be reconstituted after a new council comes into office later this fall.

The task force has had a role in managing numerous events in the township, including: Winterfest, Summerfest, the township-wide mural project, a national trades-person breakfast, and the Community Improvement Plan.

In a report to Council, the task force indicated that all but one of these programs are all well established and are already run by the Community Development Department under the direction of Manager for Community Development, Brooke Ross, so eliminating the task forces role will not have an impact on their success.

The exception to this is Winterfest, which the task force recommended be eliminated.

“For the past four years, the EDTF has worked to develop and deliver Winterfest as a community winter event. Despite continued efforts to improve and promote the event, attendance has remained limited and the event has not experienced the same level of participation or growth as other Township initiatives (i.e. SummerFest, Mural Project, Festival of Stars, etc.).”

The task force recommended diverting the funding from Winterfest to Summerfest, which has been more successful.

In considering the recommendations, the fund formerly allocated to Winterfest became an issue.

Councilor Wayne Good said, “enough money is already spent on Summerfest, so the excess Winterfest money should go back to fund other needs in the township.”

Good also said he is concerned that by putting more responsibility on Brooke Ross, Council will soon be faced with a request for more staffing in her department.

“I have seen this happen many times before,” he said.

Brooke Ross was asked to comment.

She said, and this was also included in the report itself, that “Staff is already operating these programs so there is no change. If anything, this will save time preparing reports to the task force on what we are doing.”

Chief Administrative Officer Cory Klatt said that there had been a part-time Economic Development Officer working on a number of initiatives, “but that position was eliminated by Council, and that has limited Staff activities in economic development.”

Mayor Lichty said that Summerfest originally had a $10,000 budget, and they asked for $15,000 and we gave them $12,500. I think that is enough.”

Councillor Roy Huetl said that it is still important to explore a winter event.

“Summerfest is great, but our businesses are already very busy in the summer. Something to promote the township in the slow season is still needed.”

The proposal to allocate the Winterfest money to Summerfest was pulled from the motion before Council. The Winterfest cancellation remained, with no mention of the money previously allocated to it, and the motion was approved.

Millennial Quilt on Permanent Display

A quilt hanging controversy has weaved its way into the Clar-Mil Hall, leading Council to take a stand. Based on a report from Brooke Ross, Council decided that there be only two quilt hangers at the hall, and that the Millennial Quilt, which was donated by the ‘Fire Ladies’ and has been hanging in the Clar-Mil Hall continually since 2000, will remain on permanent display. A second quilt location, established in 2017 when the Loon quilt was hung, will remain in that location for now, and quilts can be hung in that spot on rotation at the discretion of the Plevna Craft Club.

Thus ended a local controversy, after the Craft Club replaced the Millennial Quilt with a new quilt for a short time, sparking complaints to the township.

Public Comment – Election Edition

At the end of council meetings in this current term, the opportunity for public comment on matters discussed at each specific meeting has been taken up regularly. With the election campaign now underway, two candidates appeared before Council last week.

The first was Kelly Willis, a candidate for mayor. Willis addressed Council as part of the public forum earlier this summer to express her concerns about which pieces of correspondence were included in the council agenda. Council members receive a large amount of correspondence. While these documents are listed in the council agenda package that is available to the public, only those that are earmarked for discussion are included as attachments.

Willis argued that this is a disservice to the public, limiting access to relevant information. She made the same point at this meeting, leading to a short confrontation with Mayor Lichty, who is running for re-election. Lichty said this issue had been dealt with the last time Willis appeared, and that Willis should only address matters before Council at the current meeting itself.

Willis disagreed, saying that by being on the list, the documents are part of this meeting. She continued to ask about documents listed, including the Alto newsletter and others.

Thanking Council

The second member of the public to address council was Rob Lesperance, a candidate for council in Ward 2. Lesperance thanked each member of council for their service, by name, and talked briefly about the different contributions each of them has made.