Reeve David Jaggard began the meeting by welcoming new clerk-administrator T. Silvio Berti to the meeting and thanked him for agreeing to serve the township. Mr. Berti read his declaration of office later in the meeting and thanked municipal office staff members Barb Deforge and Barbara Grigg for their behind-the-scenes efforts.
Cemetery delegation
Tehkummah resident and former councillor Paul Bowerman spoke to council to ask if the township had access to its cemeteries in Michael’s Bay and South Baymouth. He said the township had failed to recognize burial sites and that he felt ignored after making previous delegations to council.
Mr. Bowerman cited Borden number BjHm-02 as being the collection of artifacts from the Michael’s Bay townsite that are held in a Sudbury warehouse on behalf of the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport.
Mr. Berti said the burial sites were within the property that was seized by the federal government and that the municipality did not have any control over the sites.
Councillor Michael McKenzie said if there were any obligations for the township for its burial sites, these duties should be exercised. Township staff were directed to investigate Mr. Bowerman’s concerns and follow up.
Fees and charges bylaw revision
Council voted to set the township mileage rate at $0.58 per kilometre to bring it in line with the government standard. The previous mileage rate of 45 cents had not been changed in well over a decade.
Fire chief’s report
Fire Chief Jeff Wilson said the new fire truck had finished its required work and would be reaching the Island later that week, to be put in service right away. He informed council that he would request dry hydrants be installed on the 10th Sideroad which could draw water from the natural waterway if needed in an emergency, rather than having to run hoses into the wetland.
He also requested a letter from the township to Central Manitoulin for the latter municipality to give its old fill station and cascade cylinders to Tehkummah so it could fill its own bottles.
Road rehab project update
WSP Global, an engineering consultancy firm, is under contract to design the roadway upgrades and rehabilitation. The contract was from 2017 and was paused until the funding came through earlier this year. The price for the preliminary design phase has increased but includes the addition of dry hydrants and a full-time contracted inspector to have the designing engineers supervise the construction.
WSP will be designing the project to required specifications and is working with K. Smart Associates for the drainage project. WSP will be the on-site supervisor and will tender the project, with council to decide on a bidder, and WSP to monitor the work on an ongoing basis.
Mr. Berti has asked WSP to tender the project into segmented portions for the respective spans of road that are part of the overall project so that the township has more flexibility to adapt to the amount of funding it receives. Bidders will tender for the whole project. Designs should be finished over the winter so tenders can be sent out by late winter to early spring and work should start after the frost thaws.
Councillor McKenzie noted that WSP is estimating inspections and administration to cost between six- and seven-thousand dollars per week and Mr. Berti said they would be billing based on the work completed; that figure was just an estimated average.
The project, if all goes to plan, should be completed next season.
Recreation grant
Council discussed possibilities for applying for funding for a project in the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Plan (ICIP) community, culture and recreation stream. This would be for a recreational or cultural facility to be built, with grants covering roughly 73 percent of the costs. The deadline was in a month.
Council discussed ideas for an outdoor rink pad with a roof and seating or improving a building in John Budd Park that could have a kitchen area and a screened-in seating zone for activities such as showing movies and public events. It is one of few outdoor places in Tehkummah that can be licenced to serve alcohol.
Council resolved to explore the possibility of applying for the concrete pad recreation facility with a roof and electrical access.
At a special council meeting on October 23, council decided to not proceed with the application because completed, engineered plans could not be arranged by the deadline. However, the township will begin to prepare those documents for a future intake.
Dog bylaw committee
Council voted to form an ad-hoc committee to provide recommendations to council for the revision of the current animal control bylaw, numbered 2008-19. The committee will consist of Reeve Jaggard, Councillors McKenzie and Eric Russell, animal control officer Paul Methner and ratepayer Mary Balfe, who had raised a complaint about a dog and was willing to join the committee.
The committee will be looking at examples of what other municipalities have enacted with respect to dogs and identifying what policies would be good to bring into Tehkummah.
Rogers tower lease extension
The township signed to extend the lease with Rogers Wireless for two consecutive five-year terms at a rate increase of either 10 percent or the increase in the Ontario consumer price index during that term, whichever is greater. The monthly rate was $650 and will be raised to $715 for the current five-year term.
Library flooring
Mr. Berti said there was no funding available to deal with the asbestos floor tiles because the work was considered cosmetic, even though the municipality might consider it a safety item. The total cost of the library flooring would be $11,865 including HST. The cost of the book store flooring replacement combined with the library flooring would be roughly $14,000 and the cost for the post office flooring would be $4,181. This includes the sealant, the flooring material and all of the moving required to get access to the floor.
Council resolved to, pending approval by the library board, cover 50 percent of the cost for both of the library rooms and 100 percent of the cost for the post office. The post office will get rubber sheet flooring in the public entrance to prevent water from seeping between the tiles which would cause damage over time.
This is the last asbestos flooring that needs replacement on municipal property.
Island-wide planning
The councillors expressed their interest in taking part in shaping the upcoming Island-wide community safety and wellness plan. The Police Services Act requires municipalities to have plans in place by January 1, 2021, so council directed staff to contact the chief of Manitoulin-Sudbury District Services Board paramedic services to see if they could be included in the plan.
Fifth Concession extension
Tehkummah will be taking no action to make any improvements or extend the year-round maintained portion of the 5th Concession road allowance, because there was no evidence of historical maintenance done by the township. The decision not to maintain the right of way was recommended by the roads superintendent. Councillor Russell voted against the motion.
Phragmites update
Manitoulin Phragmites Project co-ordinator Judith Jones informed the township that she and her team did not get to applying herbicide because it was too late in the year to be effective. They will return in the spring to the properties after ensuring that council is still in favour of the project.
Deferred items
The Little Schoolhouse Museum roofing replacement was put on pause pending more accurate cost estimates.
Ontario Clean Water Agency (OCWA) contract negotiations are ongoing.
The draft library service agreement within the township was set to go to the library board for approval on the evening after council.
