Joint South Frontenac COW-Council Meeting April 11

Wilma Kenny | Apr 19, 2023

Proposed Update to Council Procedure By-law

What would usually be a COW meeting was opened as a Council meeting. Currently, Council meets on the first and third Tuesday of each month, and Committee of the Whole (COW) on the second. COW meetings provide a time for Council members to hold longer, less formal discussions of issues, but no decisions are finalized. Formal motions can only be made, seconded and voted on at Council meetings.

Amendments to this schedule are being proposed and if approved, would replace the COW meeting with a Council meeting, with the option of a COW portion included, if necessary. Also a proposed change to delegations would limit the number of (two speaker) delegations to a maximum of three per meeting. Other sections lay out the parameters and procedures of delegations.

The intent of these changes is to deal with business more efficiently and make decisions in a timely manner. Mayor Vandewal said that this would permit non-controversial, “common sense applications’ to be fast-tracked, but the option will still remain to slow things down to address concerns.

Also, the opportunity for anyone attending the meeting To either virtually or in person ask a “question of clarity’ at the end of the meeting will be removed, and the public will be directed to email any queries to the clerk’s office.

These proposed changes will be brought to a public meeting on May 16.

After a brief discussion about changing the time of Council meetings to 6 or 6:30, Mayor Vandewal said “Why not leave the time as it is for now; any change should be made before an election, so candidates will know (if there’s an earlier meeting time), and be able to plan for it.” Councillor Pegrum was assured that staff have the option to shift their working hours when there are night meetings.

Roof fabric replacement on Keeley and Storrington sand domes

Council approved these projects be awarded to Barrett’s Farm and Family Centre who are the Contractor of Record that provides installation and service to maintain warranty of Calhoun design dome structures. Both domes will be replaced with white Elite FR fabric; budget for these projects has been included in approved Capital projects.

Noise By-law Amendments

The Noise By-law was amended to include a new section making the property owner accountable not only for their own actions but also the actions of guests or tenants utilizing their property. The property owner will be fined an ‘Administrative Monetary Penalty’ which, if unpaid, will be applied to their tax bill. The amendment also includes an outline of a formal application process for a Noise By-law Exemptions request. Mayor Vandewal noted: “Now our noise by-law has teeth, this may address a lot of concerns. And the bylaw officer is not a bouncer; after 11 at night this will become an OPP matter.”

From last week’s Council:

Councillor Morey expressed concern that the Township seemed to have the habit of always accepting cash in lieu of parkland, when approving a subdivision. Mayor Vandewal said that in the past, parks didn’t seem so necessary in a rural area, ‘but I think that conversation is beginning to change; another concern was that the Township would inherit the park, if it wasn’t maintained to good standards.” He added that where a subdivision is near existing parks, the Township needed to be sure that there were access routes from nearby subdivisions. Morey said “As more land becomes developed, we may come to regret losing the opportunity for additional parkland.” CAO Fragnito reminded Council that one of the recommendations of the Recreation Master Plan is to coordinate Public Services and Development.

Frontenac Farmers Market Kickoff

Council designated the Frontenac Farmers Market Kickoff Event (May 19, 3:00-7:00 in Centennial Park, Harrowsmith) as a municipally significant in support of the Special Events Permit Application to the Alcohol & Gaming Commission of Ontario. As a part of the permitting process, the event host must notify all local emergency services of the event. They must also have security (paid or volunteer) at the event to mitigate risks associated with alcohol consumption. All vendors serving alcohol must have their Ontario Smart Serve Licence and follow the provincial and federal regulations.

A feature at the market kickoff will be the craft beer garden. Organizers are working toward contracting local and regional based craft beer businesses to join the event, giving first right of refusal to Frontenac based businesses.