Municipality of the District of Clare
COUNCIL-IN-COMMITTEE MEETING
Wednesday, July 4th, 2018 at 7:00 pm
PRESENT: Council: Warden Ronnie LeBlanc, Councillors, Danny Hill, Hector Thibault, Carl Deveau, Brian Comeau, Eric Pothier and Yvon LeBlanc.
Staff: CAO, Stéphane Cyr; Administrative Assistant to the CAO, Alain Poirier, Director of Finance, Ginette Cheff
Presenter: André Valotaire
ABSENT: Deputy Warden, Nil Doucet
1) Call to order
Warden Ronnie LeBlanc called the meeting to order at 7:00 pm.
2) (a) Approval of the agenda
The CAO asked that the following items be added to the Agenda.
• 8.3 Rural Internet, under “Closed Session”
• 8.4 Doctors Recruitment, under “Closed Session”
Councillor Danny Hill asked that the following items be added to the Agenda.
• 6.5 By-law regarding Subdivision of Property on K Roads, under “New Business”
• 8.5 Land Acquisition, under “Closed Session”
MOVED BY Councillor Hector Thibault and SECONDED BY Councillor Yvon LeBlanc that the proposed agenda be approved with the above noted changes.
MOTION CARRIED
(b) Declaration of conflict of interest
None
3) Presentation
3.1 Mitigation against Power Outages – André Valotaire
Mr. André Valotaire, a former NS Power Inc. (NSPI) employee, addressed Council in his capacity as a private citizen regarding his concerns surrounding the power grid in Digby County and particularly in the Municipality of Clare. More specifically, the current design has no redundancy build into it meaning the region is more susceptible to power outages and/or lengthy restoration times. According to Mr. Valotaire, this is not the case elsewhere in the Province. If not addressed, the potential costs/impacts to both residents and businesses could be significant. From an EMO perspective, the lack of built-in redundancy can reasonably be argued to be a safety concern. As part of his presentation, Mr. Valotaire has proposed a solution to this problem which would involve building an alternate feed atop existing lines from Corberrie to the Saulnierville sub-station, a distance of roughly 16 kilometres. The cost for implementing this solution should be the responsibility of NSPI. Mr. Valotaire is respectfully requesting Council lobby NSPI to implement
this proposed solution. Council will take this request under consideration and thanked Mr. Valotaire for bringing this matter to its attention.
4) Staff reports
4.1 Financial Report – Ginette Cheff, Director of Finance
The Director of Finance provided an overview of the Municipality`s financial position.
(See attached)
5) Business arising from previous meetings
5.1 Funding Request -Yarmouth International Airport Corporation
The CAO has consulted with the other municipal units from whom the Yarmouth International Airport Corporation (YIAC) has also requested funding. Of those identified in the funding application, the Municipality of Shelburne has approved the request, the Municipality of Barrington remains undecided and the Towns of Clark’s Harbour and Shelburne have not yet been approached. It should be noted that the Municipality of Digby has denied a similar request for funding form the YIAC. The proposed assessment-based funding formula would see the Municipality of Clare contribute more than any other of the aforementioned municipal units. The municipalities of Yarmouth County have purposely excluded themselves from this request based on the rational that they already provide operational funding to the YIAC. After much deliberation, Council was unanimous in its decision to not entertain this funding request. The CAO will send a letter to the Acting Manager of the Yarmouth International Airport Corporation outlining Council`s position.
5.2 Capital Investment Plan for 2018-2023
The draft 2018-2023 Capital Investment Plan (CIP) had been presented to Council in June for its consideration. Whereas the CIP must be submitted to the Province by September 2, 2018 and Council doesn’t traditionally meet in August, the goal is to have all additions/revisions made the plan accepted via motion of Council in July. To this end, Council proposed the following additions:
Paving at the Cap St. Mary Lighthouse Park
• Construction of new sidewalks in Saulnierville, to connect the two existing sections of sidewalks
• Construction of new public washrooms/changerooms at Mavilette Beach.
Council passed the following motion to recommend:
PROPOSED BY Councillor Carl Deveau and SECONDED BY Councillor Yvon LeBlanc that the Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare recommend accepting the revised 2018-2023 Capital Investment Plan as discussed on July 4th, 2018.
MOTION CARRIED
5.3 Congrès Mondial acadien
A joint council meeting was held in Tusket on June 5, 2018 with the Municipality of Argyle to discuss the possibility of hosting the “Congrès mondial acadien 2024”. Much discussion was had regarding the potential economic impacts stemming from the event as well as the inherent risks for the host committee and/or region. Ultimately, it was decided that many of the questions could only be answered (and an informed decision made) once the bid document was complete. To that end, it was proposed that the Municipalities of Clare and Argyle each contribute up to $15,000 each for the preparation and submission of said document. Opportunities to secure additional funds from the Province and possibly neighboring municipal units, for the preparation of this document will be pursued.
Council passed the following motion to recommend:
PROPOSED BY Councillor Yvon LeBlanc and SECONDED BY Councillor Danny Hill that the Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare recommend allocating up to $15,000 for the preparation and submission of the bid document to host the “Congrès mondial acadien 2024”
MOTION CARRIED
6) New business
6.1 Loan Guarantee – St. Bernard Fire Department
The St. Bernard Fire Department (SBFD) has been fundraising to pave the parking lot at the new fire hall. To date, they have raised $50,000. The estimated cost to pave the parking lot is $110,000. With the construction of the new fire hall nearing completion, the Department would like to complete the paving prior to moving into the hall. In speaking with their financial institution, the SBFD was advised that they would require a municipal guarantee to secure the required $60,000 term loan. The loan would be amortized over 36 months and having a municipal guarantee would allow the SBFD to secure a preferential rate. Whereas the Municipality owns the property in question and there is an existing precedence for offering loan guarantees, the CAO is recommending signing the loan guarantee in this instance with the caveat that staff develop a policy to guide the Municipality’s actions and state the agreed upon criteria, should future requests for guarantees be made by local fire departments.
Council passed the following motion to recommend:
PROPOSED BY Councillor Danny Hill and SECONDED BY Councillor Carl Deveau that the Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare recommend providing the St. Bernard Fire Department with a loan guarantee not exceeding $60,000, to allow for the timely paving of the parking lot at the new St. Bernard Community Recreational Centre and Fire Hall.
MOTION CARRIED
6.2 Belliveau Motors Golf Tournament
The Belliveau Motors Golf Tournament is the only charity tournament in which the Municipality places a team. This is not to take away from other tournaments but rather because the monies raised from this event go directly to the Clare Health Centre. Any Councillors interested in playing in the tournament are asked to communicate with the CAO as soon as possible.
6.3 Renaming of road – Sunset Lane
The sole owner of the properties along Seaview Lane would like to officially change the name of the road to Sunset Lane. Staff has gone through the established process and ensured compliance with the Municipality`s Road Naming Policy. Council passed the following motion to recommend:
PROPOSED BY Councillor Eric Pothier and SECONDED BY Councillor Yvon LeBlanc that the Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare recommend renaming Seaview Lane as follows:
• In English: Sunset Lane
• In French: Allée du coucher du soleil
MOTION CARRIED
6.4 Letter of appreciation to Delbe Comeau & Mary Guptill
Mr. Delbe Comeau and Mrs. Mary Guptill have donated a 44-acre island on Belliveau Lake to the Nova Scotia Nature Trust. On this island grows sweet pepperbush, which is listed as threatened on Canada’s endangered species list. Councillor Thibault asked that a letter from Council be sent to the couple thanking them for their generous donation.
6.5 By-law / Subdivision on K roads
Councillor Danny Hill mentioned that a request from a resident in his district to subdivide his land has been refused since the land is located on a K road. According to the Planner involved on this file, a new provincial law came into effect in January 2018 which forbids the subdivision of lands along K roads. Again, according to the Planner, the only way to allow for such subdivisions while remaining compliant with the law is for the Municipality of Clare to pass a by-law permitting such subdivisions. At the request of Councillor Hill, the matter has been referred to the By-law Committee for further study.
7) Questions and comments from the public
None
8) Closed Session
PROPOSED BY Councillor Yvon LeBlanc and SECONDED BY Councillor Eric Pothier that Council proceed to closed session.
MOTION CARRIED
Topics discussed:
- 8.1 Dangerous and Unsightly
- 8.2 Human Resources
- 8.3 Rural Internet
- 8.4 Doctor Recruitment
- 8.5 Land Acquisition
PROPOSED BY Councillor Yvon LeBlanc and SECONDED BY Councillor Eric Pothier that Council proceed to the Regular Council Meeting.
MOTION CARRIED
9) Date and time of the next Council-in-Committee Meeting
The next Council-in-Committee Meeting will be held on September 5th, 2018 at 7:00 PM.
10) Adjournment
PROPOSED BY Councillor Yvon LeBlanc to adjourn the meeting at 9:51 PM.
Submitted by
Alain Poirier,
Administrative Assistant of the CAO