A long day for South Frontenac Staff and Council

Wilma Kenny | Nov 08, 2019

About ten years or so ago, a member of Council was heard saying, “What’s the use of making a five-year plan when we have no idea what will happen five years from now?” South Frontenac has come a long way since then…

Council met Tuesday morning to review and fine-tune their draft strategic plan. Crudely put, a strategic plan is a management tool used to help an organization make the best use of its resources by spelling out where it wants to go and how it will get there.

The plan is based on over 200 survey responses from residents and input from Council members and staff. CAO Neil Carbone began with a straight-through reading, starting with a revised Vision Statement: “Natural, vibrant and growing — a progressive leader.”

The Mission Statement that follows says this can be achieved by: 1) A unified approach, striving for equity among our residents and our communities; 2)Setting exemplary service and infrastructure standards that the community can be  proud of; 3) Managing our operations and assets in a financially sustainable manner; 4) Planning for the future, being proactive and having the capacity to adapt to change; 5) Engaging and collaborating with citizens and partners; 6) Preserving and leveraging the community’s natural assets, history and rural lifestyle.

The list of underlying values and proposed priority areas that followed led to lively discussion: what’s meant by ‘South Frontenac taking a leadership role’? (“Are we trying to take over?” asked Mayor Vandewal); ways in which development and environmental protection could coexist; the difference between the words ‘growth’ and ‘growing’…etc. Councillors’ comments were thoughtful and the discussion was good-spirited but as noon approached, CAO Carbone wound things down, saying “there’s always a risk of wordsmithing something to death.”

Councilors’ comments were thoughtful and the discussion was good-spirited but as noon approached, CAO Carbone wound things down, saying “there’s always a risk of wordsmithing something to death.”

Next steps are for staff to develop action items for each priority, followed by bringing a completed strategy to Council for approval in early 2020. The final Strategic Plan will then be published, and reviewed annually. (The full text of the current draft can be read on the township website.)

Regular Council Meeting

Tuesday evening, Council began at 6pm with a closed session, which resulted in approving an updated salary grid for non-union staff: “We appreciate our staff and their work,” said Mayor Vandewal.

Delegations for 2020 Budget

Frontenac OPP Staff Sergeant Sharron Brown and David Townsend of Southern Frontenac Community Services presented a request for funding assistance with the popular SALT (South Frontenac Seniors and Law Enforcement Together) program. Largely managed by volunteers, SALT provides educational programs twice a month to rural and/or isolated seniors, along with a hot lunch. Topics have included: frauds and scams, seniors and driving, fall prevention, cannabis legislation: this month will feature wills and power of attorney, on Nov 15 (Sydenham) and Nov 27 (Verona). Interested seniors should contact SFCS to register, free of charge.

Bob Clinton and Robert Charest came on behalf of Frontenac Rides, asking for help with publicity in a national biking magazine, and printing maps of local trails; “Frontenac is a black area on the cyclists’ maps.”

They said that their approaches to Frontenac County have been ignored. Mayor Vandewal said he would look into bringing their request to the County, as it concerns more than one township.

Karl Hammer, accompanied by a roomful of supporters, asked for financial help to build a Stockport (pronounced ‘shtock-sport’) facility in South Frontenac. He made a case for the sport (which issomewhat similar to curling), its inclusiveness, history and popularity in the area, and said that a Stockport court could have multiple uses.

Hammer wasn’t able to provide any details about the costs of building a three or four-lane court, other than quoting an overall estimate of $100,000. He said the group was willing to contribute through fundraising.

Mayor Vandewal said Council needed detailed construction information, with quotes, and is already far along in setting the 2020 budget. He added that once Council had more details it might be possible to lower the cost by providing in-kind work to prepare the court area, as long as public works could fit it into their off-season.

“We’re not saying no, but we need more information, hard numbers,” said Vandewal.

Property Donation

On October 21, 2019, the Township was contacted by the family of Mr. Glenn Snook regarding the owner’s desire to donate a portion of his land located at 4817 Bedford Road, (intersection of Bedford and Clearwater roads) to the Township. Mr. Snook has since passed away but his family remains committed to fulfilling his wish of donating the land to the Township. Councillor Sutherland noted that the property might provide a couple of much-needed parking spots for access to the Cataraqui trail. Council directed staff to formalize the transaction and will send a letter of thanks to the Snook family.

Budget Review

Council is meeting Thursday morning as a Committee of the Whole to review the 2020 budget. The initial draft carries an increase of 2.54% in the total levy to ratepayers, which results in a 2% increase in township taxes for the average ratepayer according to township officials.

(Update – the budget review took place on Thursday morning Minor changes were made to the budget document, which will be updated with updated financial information before coming back to Council for approval in December … more to follow)