REPORT ON COUNCILDecember 13, 2004Committee of the Whole Meeting: 9:05 a.m. – 5:57 p.m.Regular Evening Meeting: 7:03 p.m. – 8:07 p.m.All Members of Council present. Councillor Maurice absent from 10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
CONFIDENTIAL / CLOSED SESSION: 4:09 p.m. – 5:56 p.m.
3RD YEAR OF SEPTIC RE-INSPECTION PROGRAM: Rex Meadley & Bill Goodale of C.C. Tatham & Associates Ltd. provided statistics on the 3 years of the Township-wide re-inspection program:2,458 re-inspections have been completed, i.e. all systems in the shore area of Tiny from the Township Line north to the 11th Concession Road. Follow-up work was required on 617 systems. This work has not yet been done on 381 systems. 645 of the total required no re-inspection, as they were less than 10 years old. Among the 319 follow-ups required as a result of this year’s inspections, 93 had possible root intrusions into the bed, 91 had a structure or a driveway over the bed, 62 required more information from the resident, 36 had unsafe tank conditions, 13 needed to have the septic tank or the leaching bed replaced, and 9 (!) had outhouses in poor condition. Several other problems affected 3 or fewer properties. Problems identified in the 2003 re-inspection program that have still not been addressed must have arranged for a permit and a contract with a licensed installer for the necessary work by May 31, 2005.
STRATEGIC PRIORITIES: On the recommendation of Ruth Coursey (CAO/Clerk), Council decided to hire a consultant to conduct a 1-2 day session to help Council and Staff identify priorities.
SITE 41 PEER REVIEW: Dixon Hydrogeology Limited was employed by Council to assess whether the County of Simcoe has responded adequately to problems that peer reviews have identified in the design of the Site 41 dump site. In sum, Dixon’s opinion is “that the implications, potential impacts and the ability to safely design, commission and operate the proposed landfill site have not been adequately documented in a manner that is suitable to recommend to proceed.” Dixon is concerned about the integrity of the liner, about the volume of leachate and the ability of the Midland sewage plant to treat it, about the staging of the project, and about impacts on MacDonald Creek.
ORAL SUBMISSION BY BOB BUCHKOWSKY: Former Councillor Bob Buchkowsky presented a submission in opposition to that given on September 13 by the Federation of Tiny Township Shoreline Associations. In it he – opposed signage which would indicate the extent of Township owned shore property- opposed boundary definition of such properties – opposed the idea that parking should be considered in relation to the amount of useable beach that is actually in Township ownership. In his view: “This makes absolutely NO sense where Tiny residents and their guests have historically used the full extent of the beach and not confined themselves to the municipally owned road allowance/beach area.”- argued that parking spaces in the Five Major Shoreline Parks should be OPEN and available for anyone to use on a first come-first served basis. – supported the introduction of metered parking at the 5 major shoreline parks- did not support the idea that neighbourhoods adjacent to recently purchased or acquired beaches should be consulted about the management of such beaches [a requirement of Tiny’s Official Plan]. He declared: “The position of the previous Council was quite clear…. STATUS QUO and NO changes to historical beach use as a result of acquiring additional Township owned beach property.” [Capitals as in the submission.]
CORRIE HAMLIN MEMORIAL COMMUNITY VOLUNTEER AWARD: This year the award went to Lionel Gignac of Lafontaine, who served as a volunteer with the Lafontaine Parks and Recreation Association for 10 years, as an executive member of the North Simcoe Hospital Alliance Board during the merger of the hospitals in Penetang & Midland, as a volunteer with Festival du Loup and with the Councils of both St. Patrick’s and Ste. Croix Churches.
