REPORT ON COUNCIL
January 9 and 30, 2017
Committee of the Whole Meeting January 9: 9 a.m. – 2:01 p.m.; January 30: 9:02 a.m. – 4:32:
Regular Meeting January 30: 6 p.m. – 6:40 p.m.
Mayor George Cornell, Deputy Mayor Steffen Walma, Councillors Cindy Hastings, Richard Hinton and Gibb Wishart all present on January 30. Councillor Hastings absent on January 30 (attending the Rural Ontario Municipal Association Conference in Toronto.
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
- Carnaval d’Hiver – Saturday, February 11, 11 am-2 pm, Perkinsfield Park
- Township Seniors Symposium – March 24, 11 am-2 pm, Tiny Township Community Centre
- 2017 Town Hall Meeting Dates – Saturday, May 27, 10 am – noon, Wyebridge Community Centre and Thursday, September 14, 7-9 pm, Tiny Township Community Centre
STAFF CHANGES:
Sue Walton, who had been taking appropriate training for some time, has been appointed Clerk for the Township of Tiny, effective January 1, 2017. The Township’s Chief Administrative Officer, Doug Luker, has been appointed Deputy Clerk.
COUNCIL REPRESENTATION ON COMMITTEE OF ADJUSTMENT:
Councillor Cindy Hastings has been appointed to the Committee of Adjustment for a second year.
MUNICIPAL HERITAGE REGISTER EXPANDS:
Seven more properties have been added to the Register:
– Pioneer Home (built 1940) at 347 Balm Beach Road West
– Lafontaine House (built 1850) at 348 Rue Lafontaine Road West
– House and two sheds (built 1900) at 843 Concession 18 West
– House and two sheds (house built 1920, sheds in 1900) at 1745 Golflink Road
– House (built 1890) at 567 Concession 17 West
– House (built 1880, renovated 1993) at 777 Concession 18 West
– House (constructed 1910, renovated, on farm worked since 1905) at 830 Concession 18 West
SUPPORT FOR TINY MARSH BIOBLITZ:
Council agreed to sponsor the Tiny Marsh BioBlitz on June 24, 2017 with $300 that is to be applied to the cost of the event.
BUDGET:
Council approved and adopted the 2017 Budget. The draft budget deliberations took place on November 21 and December 5 and 19, 2016 and are available on tiny.ca: see Council Live Stream. The average assessment increase in 2016 (for 2017) is 3.09%. While there is a decrease in the Operating Budget, there is a net capital budget increase of $859.5k from the 2016 budget and a gross capital spending increase of $l,937.1k. To fund this increase, Council decided to add 2% to the municipal tax rate from 2016 and to draw down reserves by 9.94%. Nonetheless, Tiny has one of the lowest Simcoe County Lower Tier Taxes per $100,000. County and School Board rates (roughly two thirds of the tax bill) are not yet available.
There will be an article about the 2017 budget in the Spring/Summer Tiny Cottager.
MAJOR BEACH PARKS AND WAYFINDING SIGNAGE:
As wayfinding signage probably won’t be installed prior to the fall season, Council directed that temporary wayfinding signage be placed at Balm Beach to direct beach goers to other municipal beaches if Balm is at capacity.
POLICING:
Following a recommendation by the Policing Governance Task Force, Council decided to move from a Section 5.1 to a Section 10 Contract arrangement for a 5 year period; the new arrangement allows the township to establish a five member Police Service Board.
COMPARATIVE BUILDING PERMIT ACTIVITY 2015/2016:
2016 saw much more building in Tiny than 2015. Total Construction Value in 2015 was $24,944,000 while in 2016 it rose to $46,940,000.
MANAGEMENT OF KITCHING LANE ACCESS:
Council directed that signage be installed at Kitching Lane indicating “’No Stopping’ and extent of public property signs at 16 Kitching Lane and an additional property delineation sign at the end of the existing rail.”
UPCOMING CHANGES TO HAULED SEWAGE DISPOSAL SITE APPROVAL PROCESS:
In a letter the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change informed the township of new regulations regarding hauled sewage site Environmental Compliance Approvals. Both proposals and decisions regarding new hauled sewage sites and renewals of an ECA for an existing site are to be published on the Environmental Bill of Rights Registry. There is to be a 45 Day public comment period, after which the MOECC will make a decision about the application. A decision notice will then be published on the EBR Registry.
Also, beginning December 2016, the MOECC will post a list of all hauled sewage disposal sites in the province that have a District issued ECA. Eventually, the MOECC plans to post copies of all District issued ECAs on the Ministry’s Access Environment web site, which can be found at: http://www.accessenvironment.ene.gov.on.ca/AEWeb/ae/GoSearch.action
TINY BOG WETLAND RE-EVALUATION:
According to a letter from the Ministry of Natural Resources, when the Tiny Bog Wetland east of Wildman Sideroad in Concession 4 W was evaluated in 1984, it was determined to be of non-provincial status. The Severn Sound Environmental Association recently re-evaluated the Wetland using current standards that place greater emphasis on hydrological and special features. The Ministry of Natural Resources has accepted the re-evaluation. As a result the wetland is now classified as being of provincial significance.
MAJOR SITE PLAN AMENDMENT UNDER THE AGGREGATE RESOURCES ACT:
In a letter, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry informed the township that it has consented to various amendments related to the Beamish gravel pit (Lots 79 & 80, Concession 1 WPR) including: increasing the final depth of extraction, providing relief of fencing requirements, reducing the southern setback, permitting the importation of asphalt, aggregate and topsoil/fill for transfer or processing, permitting a wash plant and wash pond on-site and three other major changes.
