Municipality of the District of Clare
REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING
Wednesday, May 17th, 2017 at 7:00 pm
PRESENT: Council: Warden Ronnie LeBlanc, Deputy Warden Nil Doucet; Councillors, Hector Thibault, Danny Hill, Brian Comeau, Carl Deveau and Yvon LeBlanc
Staff: CAO Stéphane Cyr, Administrative Assistant to the CAO Alain Poirier
Public:
ABSENT: Councillor Eric Pothier
1) Call to Order
Warden Ronnie LeBlanc called the Council Meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.
2) (a) Approval of the Agenda
MOVED BY Councillor Hector Thibault and SECONDED BY Councillor Danny Hill that the proposed agenda be approved as presented.
MOTION CARRIED
(b) Declaration of conflict of interest
Warden Ronnie LeBlanc asked for any declarations of conflict of interest.
None declared.
3) Presentations
None
4) Adoption of the Minutes from Previous Council Meetings
4.1 April 19th, 2017: Regular Council Meeting
MOVED BY Councillor Danny Hill and SECONDED BY Councillor Carl Deveau that the minutes of April 19th, 2017 be accepted as circulated.
MOTION CARRIED
4.2 May 3rd, 2017: Council-in-Committee Meeting
Warden Ronnie LeBlanc mentioned that item 6.9 referenced the Department of Acadians Affairs in error as having asked him to sit on a proposed tourism committee. In actuality, this request was put forward by the Réseau des villes francophones and francophiles d’Amérique.
MOVED BY Deputy Warden Nil Doucet and SECONDED BY Councillor Yvon LeBlanc that the Minutes of May 3rd, 2017 be accepted with the above-noted correction.
MOTION CARRIED
5) Business Arising from Previous Meetings
No items
6) Warden’s Activity Report – Warden Ronnie LeBlanc
The Warden provided a summary of the meetings and events he attended since the last Council meeting.
April 22nd Attended the Clare Firefighters Association’s Banquet.
April 27th Attended a Board of Director’s meeting at Université Sainte-Anne.
Attended an announcement by MLA Colin Fraser at Université Sainte-Anne. The federal government will invest $440,000 in the Louis R. Comeau Library. Université Sainte-Anne will match the amount.
Attended the Volunteer Banquet at the Clare Veteran`s Centre.
7) Official Statements from Members of Council
None
8) Correspondence
None
9) Presentation of 2017-2018 Municipal Budget and Motions to Adopt.
The CAO presented the 2017-2018 Municipal Budget to Council. (
See attached)
Council passed the following motions in order to adopt the 2017-2018 Municipal Budget.
9.1 Municipal Tax Rate: MOTION
PROPOSED BY Councillor Danny Hill and SECONDED BY Councillor Carl Deveau that the municipal tax rates for the Municipality of the District of Clare, for 2017-2018, be as follows:
- $1.04 per $100.00 of assessment as the Residential Taxe Rate (the same rate as the last three years), and;
- $2.07 per $100.00 of assessment as the Commercial Tax Rate (the same rate as the last three years).
MOTION CARRIED
9.2 Sewer Service Charges: MOTION
PROPOSED BY Councillor Hector Thibault and SECONDED BY Councillor Yvon LeBlanc that the municipal sewer service charges for 2017-2018 be as follows:
Meteghan $175.00 per Unit
Meteghan Centre $200.00 per Unit
Meteghan River $200.00 per Unit
Church Point $175.00 per Unit
Belliveau Cove $200.00 per Unit
MOTION CARRIED
9.3 Street Light Rates: MOTION
PROPOSED BY Councillor Danny Hill and SECONDED BY Deputy Warden Nil Doucet that the Street Light Rates for 2017-2018 be as follows:
Highway 1 and Patrice Road – Church Point $ 52.26
Highway 1- Little Brook and Comeauville $ 31.61
Highway 1 – Saulnierville $ 46.75
Highway 1 – Meteghan River $ 49.36
Placide Comeau Road – Meteghan River $ 62.33
Highway 1 and Peter Dugas Road – Meteghan $ 31.16
John Thibodeau Road – Meteghan Centre $ 817.74 (1 user)
Highway 1 – Saint-Bernard and Belliveau Cove $ 17.24
MOTION CARRIED
9.4 Due Date and Interest Rate Commencement Date: MOTION
PROPOSED BY Councillor Yvon LeBlanc and SECONDED BY Councillor Brian Comeau that the due date for payment of municipal tax be July 31st, 2017 and the interest rate be
- 1½ % per month, as it was last year, beginning on August 1st, 2017.
MOTION CARRIED
9.5 2017-2018 Municipal Budget: MOTION
PROPOSED BY Deputy Warden Nil Doucet and SECONDED BY Councillor Carl Deveau that the 2017-2018 municipal budget for the Municipality of the District of Clare be approved as presented on Wednesday, May 17th, 2017.
MOTION CARRIED
Warden Ronnie LeBlanc congratulated the CAO, staff and Council for presenting a balanced budget with no increase to the municipal tax rates for a third consecutive year.
10) CAO Report – Chief Administrative Officer - Stéphane Cyr
The CAO read his report for the month of May 2017. (See attached)
11) Committee Reports
11.1 Building Permits Report: Councillor Danny Hill
Councillor Danny Hill read the building permits report for the month of April.
April
Year Permits Construction Value
2016 19 $2,638,104
2017 23 $520,504
11.2 Police Advisory Committee: Deputy Warden Nil Doucet
Deputy Warden Nil Doucet read his report for the May 1st, 2017 Police Advisory Meeting. (See attached)
11.3 Villa Acadienne: Councillor Brian Comeau
Councillor Brian Comeau read his report for the April 25th, 2017 Villa Acadienne meeting.
(See attached)
12) New Business
12.1 Motion to appoint Gary Sullivan as a Development Officer
In light of Arnold Comeau’s retirement, the CAO mentioned that a motion was required to appoint Gary Sullivan as a Development Officer for the Municipality of Clare.
PROPOSED BY Councillor Hector Thibault and SECONDED BY Councillor Yvon LeBlanc that the Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare appoint Gary Sullivan as a Development Officer for the Municipality of Clare.
MOTION CARRIED
12.2 Motion to appoint a member of the community on the Audit Committee.
PROPOSED BY Councillor Yvon LeBlanc and SECONDED BY Councillor Carl Deveau that the Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare appoint a member of the community to the Audit Committee.
MOTION CARRIED
12.3 Motion to sponsor High C’s in Digby Choral Festival
PROPOSED BY Deputy Warden Nil Doucet and SECONDED BY Councillor Danny Hill that the Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare sponsor the High C’s in Digby Choral Festival in commemoration of their 10th anniversary in the amount of $500.
MOTION CARRIED
13) In Camera Session
None
14) Date and time of the next Regular Council Meeting
The next Regular Council Meeting will be held on June 21st, 2017 at 7:00 pm.
15) Adjournment
MOVED BY Deputy Warden Nil Doucet to adjourn the meeting at 8.21 pm.