Long Read. Get comfortable.
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Municipality of the District of DigbyMunicipal Council MinutesAugust 23, 2010Culloden, Nova Scotia1Call to OrderThe Council meeting was called to order with Warden Thurberin the chair at 6:02 p.m. AttendanceCouncillors present: Jim Thurber, Warden Jimmy MacAlpine, Deputy Warden Linda Gregory, Councillor Randall Amero, Councillor Maritza Adams, CouncillorStaff present: Linda Fraser, Chief Administrative Officer Gordon Wilson, Deputy Chief Administrative Officer Cora Lee Bremner, Executive SecretaryPrayerWarden Thurber welcomed everyone to the meeting and asked everyone to pause to seek guidance for the meeting. Warden Thurber thanked everyone for coming and read theMunicipality’s mission statement. IntroductionsWarden Thurber asked Council and staff to introducethemselves before the meeting began.AgendaMOVED and seconded that the agenda be approved ascirculated.MOTION CARRIEDPresentationsJonathan McClelland –West Nova Agro Commodities Ltd.MOVED and seconded that Mr. Jonathan McClelland fromWest Nova Agro Commodities Ltd. come before Council to make a presentation.MOTION CARRIEDMr. McClelland came before Council to make a presentationregarding a grass pellet and briquette plant businessdevelopment proposal. West Nova Agro Commodities Ltd. hasa priority to develop new agricultural opportunities in WesternNova Scotia. Their proposed plan is to produce grass pellets forinstitutional, industrial and residential markets as well as grassbriquettes/fire logs for the residential market. They arecurrently looking for anchor customers. This is a goodopportunity for anyone looking at new construction. Theirrequest to the Municipality is a letter of support for their projectas well as follow-up meetings with West Nova AgroCommodities Ltd. and ADEDA to review heating needs andopportunities to collaborate on fuel supply. There was aquestion and answer period following the presentation. Farmersare very interested in their proposal and they have had a goodresponse from residents who would like to have guaranteedprices for their fuel. It is unsure whether a regular pellet stovewill work with this fuel. They would have to be individuallytested. Furnaces range from $4,000 to $8,000. They wouldneed approximately 2,000 customers to make the project viableor 20 industrial customers. Warden Thurber thanked Mr.
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Municipality of the District of DigbyMunicipal Council MinutesAugust 23, 2010Culloden, Nova Scotia2McClelland for the presentation and advised that this would bediscussed at a future meeting.Dana Morin – FundyTidal Inc.MOVED and seconded that Mr. Dana Morin from FundyTidal come before Council to make a presentation.MOTION CARRIEDMr. Morin came before Council to make a presentationregarding the renewable energy resources that are available inDigby County. He spoke specifically on tidal energydevelopment in this region as well as the development of asustainable community plan. An information session is being planned for Tuesday, August, 24, 2010 at 5:30 to 8:30 pm to bring the stakeholders from the community, government,industry and academia together to discuss tidal development inNova Scotia, but more specifically, Digby County. A question and answer period followed the presentation. Council inquiredon what the return would be on the investment to the project.They had a percentage to 20 to 25 in mind, but there has beennothing settled on. Warden Thurber thanked him for thepresentation.MinutesJune 29, 2010 It was noted that under New Business #4, it should beclarified that the cost estimate for streetlights was for theMunicipality of Digby. It was noted that under New Business #2, it should beclarified that Council’s resolution being sent regarding anadditional paid holiday was to be sent to the UNSM.MOVED and seconded that the minutes from the Council ofJune 29, 2010 be approved as amended.MOTION CARRIEDBusiness Arising from MinutesDigby Neck FireDepartment – Jaws of Life There was an inquiry whether a response had been receivedto the letter sent to the Digby Neck Fire Departmentrequesting a meeting to discuss their request for funding for Jaws of Life. There has been no response for a meeting.#1 OrganizationalReview – Ramp Up Consulting ProposalMOVED and seconded that Council accept the proposalfrom Ramp Up Consulting to conduct the OrganizationalReview.MOTION CARRIEDOld BusinessWarden ThurberNo Old Business.Deputy Warden MacAlpineNo Old Business.
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Municipality of the District of DigbyMunicipal Council MinutesAugust 23, 2010Culloden, Nova Scotia3Councillor GregoryWildlife Park – Upper Clements Councillor Gregory asked Deputy Warden MacAlpinewhether he was able to find out about where the animalswent from the Wildlife Park in Upper Clements. DeputyWarden MacAlpine was unable to attend the last meeting to find out, but will make a call to find out and email Councilwith the answer.Councillor AmeroNo Old Business.Councillor AdamsNo Old Business.New Business#1 Association of MunicipalAdministrators –MunicipalSponsorshipMOVED and seconded to sponsor the Association ofMunicipal Administrators in the amount of $1,000 for the2010 Fall Convention. The CAO noted that the members of Council will be invitedto the AMA banquet on Thursday, October 7, 2010.MOTION CARRIED#2 Deputy Warden MacAlpine –Crosswalks on Highway 303 Deputy Warden MacAlpine was present at the publicmeeting when the Province met with the communityregarding the plans for Highway 303. The communityvoiced their concerns with school buses dropping kids offon a three lane highway. The community would like to seecrosswalks be put along that stretch of highway. It wassuggested to forward these concerns to the Department ofTransportation as well as contacting the school board to seewhere the bus stops are located along Highway 303. MOVED and seconded that a letter be sent to the Ministerof the Department of Transportation and InfrastructureRenewal requesting a meeting to discuss concerns regardingthe construction of a third land on Hwy 303. Copy to be sentto Harold (Jr) Theriault, MLA. MOTION CARRIEDMoved and seconded that the Tri-County Regional SchoolBoard be contacted regarding Council concerns forstudents crossing Highway 303 once the third lane has beeninstalled and advising them of the community’s wishes forcrosswalks being installed on that section of highway. A list of the bus stops along Highway 303 should be requested. It was mentioned that there are some obvious areas that it ishard for pedestrians to cross at the present time. It was also noted that the bus has a stop sign that goes outfor traffic to stop so that the children can cross the highway. MOTION CARRIED
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Municipality of the District of DigbyMunicipal Council MinutesAugust 23, 2010Culloden, Nova Scotia4#3 TLC AnimalShelter – FundingRequest - $12,000 A letter was received from TLC Animal Shelter requesting$12,000 from the Municipality to help fund a full timeposition to run the shelter, as the people who had beenvolunteering their time to do so are no longer able to do this. Both Linda Chalmers and Chris Murdock were at themeeting and answered questions of Council. They noted that the shelter works to help people who can no longer keep their pets. It they are unable to house them, they willfind a foster home. They also noted that they do take anumber of dogs from the Municipal dog catcher. Ten dogsis the maximum they can take. They currently have fortycats. The municipality does not do annual grants. Organizationshave to apply annually. The CAO noted that there may be$4,000 to $5,000 left in the grants to communityorganizations budget for the year. It was agreed to checkwith other Municipal units to see how they handle thesetypes of requests.MOVED and seconded that Council ask staff to investigateother municipal units to find out their procedures on howthey deal with similar requests and also to review the budget to see if there is any way this request could beaccommodated. This request will be discussed at the next Council meeting. It was requested by Councillor Amero to meet prior to thenext Council meeting to see what the long term implicationswill be on the budget if the request was granted.MOTION CARRIED#4 Councillor RandallAmero –Transportation Study –NS Transit Research Incentive Program(TRIP) Councillor Amero wanted to make Council aware of theNova Scotia Transit Research Incentive Program (TRIP)which is willing to fund up to 75% of a transport study up to $50,000. It is the idea of this group to have a study done on the bestmodes of transportation.MOVED and seconded that Council instruct staff to talk to bordering Municipal units (Digby, Clare and Annapolis)about partnering on this transportation study to see if they are interested in cost-sharing and also have staff prepare anapplication for the program.MOTION CARRIED#5 Councillor LindaGregory – Tax Reduction for PropertyDamage Councillor Gregory informed Council that AAN# 01076817 located at 3067, Highway 217 in Roxville burned down inthe spring. The Assessment Office will not reassess thisproperty until next year. The owner of the property islooking to obtain a tax exemption on this property. The CAO advised that in order for the taxes to be reduced,Property Valuation Services Corporation would have to reassess the property so that the Municipality has a figure to go by to adjust the taxes.
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Municipality of the District of DigbyMunicipal Council MinutesAugust 23, 2010Culloden, Nova Scotia5 The individual will supply a letter requesting that this bedone. It was noted that the adjustment would only be made to thecurrent year taxes.MOVED and seconded that Property Valuation ServicesCorporation be contacted for the reassessment of property#01076817 that has been destroyed by fire.MOTION CARRIED#6 UNSM – Capped Assessment ProgramBriefing Session –September 9, 2010 There is a capped assessment program briefing session being put on by UNSM on September 9, 2010. Both theCAO and Deputy Warden MacAlpine are planning toattend. There is an RSVP that needs to be sent.#7 Weymouth WaterfrontDevelopmentCommittee – Tax Exemption Request The Weymouth Waterfront Development Committee islooking for a tax exemption for AAN# 09268561 and09268588. The assessment is commercial which typicallyis not permitted for a tax exemption. MOVED and seconded that the tax exemption bylaw beamended to add AAN# 09268561 and 09268588. The Weymouth Waterfront Committee is currentlyreviewing possibilities for the old Weymouth Library building. It was noted that this exemption will only apply if it is for anon-profit organization.MOTION CARRIED#8 Deputy Warden MacAlpine – Highway303 Third LaneConstruction Deputy Warden MacAlpine attended the public sessionregarding the third lane construction to Highway 303. Themajority of residents were not in favor of the third lane. Hementioned that some residents think that Municipal Councilis responsible for getting this construction done. It was suggested that an article be placed in the Coastlinenewsletter outlining what the Municipality of Digby isresponsible for. Residents would like another access into Digby. It wassuggested that signage be placed on the highway stating that there are two exits to Digby, and use the Cross Road inMarshalltown as the second exit.MOVED and seconded that a letter be sent to the Ministerof the Department of Transportation and InfrastructureRenewal requesting a meeting to discuss suggestions for analternate route into Digby. Copy to be sent to Harold (Jr)Theriault, MLA. MOTION CARRIED#9 Emera UtilityServices – Orderly &Peaceful Exemption Emera Utility Services is requesting a 10 day exemptionfrom the Orderly and Peaceful Conduct bylaw for thepurpose of crane work for the erection of wind turbines.Lloyd Reid, Project Manager was present at the meeting to
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Municipality of the District of DigbyMunicipal Council MinutesAugust 23, 2010Culloden, Nova Scotia6answer any questions Council may have. The request is for10 consecutive days. Mr. Reid is positive that there will notbe much noise associated with the project and it should notwake anyone. The question was asked whether visitors are permitted at thework sites. Mr. Reid stated that they do allow visitors andif someone is interested they can phone him or Nova ScotiaPower to schedule a visit.Councillor Gregory hasrequested a visit on the first night they work through thenight.MOVED and seconded to approve the following resolution:BE IT RESOLVED THAT pursuant to the authority contained in section 14 of the ORDERLY AND PEACEFULCONDUCT BYLAW, the Council of the Municipality of theDistrict of Digby hereby grants a 10 day exemption to Emera Utility Service under said bylaw effective August 24, 2010, at 7:00 pm ending September 3, 2010 at 6:59 pm. forthe purpose of crane work for the erection of wind turbines.(See attached)MOTION CARRIED Council requested a report upon completion of the projectwhich would include the number of employees hired for theproject and number of rooms booked at localaccommodations. Mr. Reid stated that he will provide thisrecord upon completion of the project.#10 Councillor Gregory - Point Prim –Repairs and Maintenance Councillor Gregory has been approached about a couplerepairs that could be made to make Point Prim look better.The sign is very hard to read and could use painting and thefence needs repairing. Mr. Gordon Wilson, who is part of the non-profitorganization, Friends of Point Prim, has agreed to take theseconcerns back to the group to see what they could do. If necessary, he will bring the matter back to the Municipality.#11 Councillor Gregory - Litter on Exits Councillor Gregory advised Council that as the branches arebeing cut away at the exits on the highway, it is exposing alarge amount of litter. She suggested no littering signs onthe walls of the exits. It was agreed that this matter could be also expressed at themeeting that Council is looking to set up with the Ministerof Transportation.MOVED and seconded that a letter be sent to the Ministerof the Department of Transportation and InfrastructureRenewal requesting a meeting to discuss concerns regardinglitter at the ramps into Digby. Copy to be sent to Harold(Jr) Theriault, MLA. MOTION CARRIED
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Municipality of the District of DigbyMunicipal Council MinutesAugust 23, 2010Culloden, Nova Scotia7Moved and seconded that a letter be sent to Harold (Jr)Theriault, MLA, copied to the Minister of Tourism andCulture regarding the litter at the ramps into Digby and thedifficulty that community groups have in organizing cleanups along provincial highways. MOTION CARRIEDAdministrationRequest for decision/directionRe-appointment of Glenn Dunn as Citizen Representative on ADEDA BoardMOVED and seconded that Mr. Glenn Dunn be re-electedas Citizen Representative on the ADEDA Board.MOTION CARRIEDAppointment of Hiltz& Seamone as ProjectManager for Administration BuildingMOVED and seconded that Council appoint Hiltz andSeamone as Project Manager for the AdministrationBuilding Renovations.MOTION CARRIEDCAO Report The CAO report for June 29, 2010 was included in themeeting package.PayablesMOVED and seconded that the payables in the amount of$660,589.77 for the month of June 2010 be approved aspresented.MOTION CARRIEDFinancial Report The financial report for June 30, 2010 was included in themeeting package.MOVED and seconded that the financial report for June 30, 2010 be approved as presented.MOTION CARRIEDCouncil CommitteesCommittee of theWholeNILBylaw & PolicyReviewMOVED and seconded that Council approve the 5 yearcapital budget for 2010-2015. MOTION CARRIEDAdvisory Committees#1 REMOManagement PlanningCommittee There has been no REMO meeting since Council last met.
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Municipality of the District of DigbyMunicipal Council MinutesAugust 23, 2010Culloden, Nova Scotia8#2 Heritage AdvisoryCommittee There has been no Heritage Advisory Committee meetingsince Council last met.#3 Planning AdvisoryCommittee There has been no Planning Advisory Committee meetingsince the last report.#4 Police AdvisoryCommittee The Police Advisory Committee meeting for July has been postponed until new citizen members are appointed.Advertisements have been placed in local papers for thesecond time and close on September 1, 2010. There arethree positions available and one application has beenreceived to date.#5 Tri CountyHousing Authority A Tri-County Housing Authority report was circulated onMay 25, 2010.Regional / Joint Committees#1 Airport WorkingGroup The Airport Working Group’s minutes for May 5, 2010, aswell as the unapproved minutes for July 21, 2010 wereincluded in the meeting package. The Airport will be hosting an event to unveil their newname scheduled for August 21, 2010. There were seven oreight planes that flew in from outside of Digby. There werethree parachuters that came and landed in the field. Also, approximately 2,000 liters of fuel was sold. There has been no Airport Working Group meeting sincethe last Council report.#2 Annapolis Digby EconomicDevelopment Agency The ADEDA Managing Director’s Report for July 2010was included in the meeting package. There was no ADEDA board meeting in July. The nextmeeting is scheduled for August 26, 2010. Warden Thurberis unable to attend the August 26 meeting. CouncillorAmero will attend in his place.#3 Digby AnnapolisDevelopment Corp The DADC has not met since the last report.#4 Digby AreaLearning Association There has been no Digby Area Learning Associationmeeting since the last report. A new executive director has been hired. The constructionof the addition to Learning Grove is coming along well.The Tartan Classic annual tournament was held and fundswere raised for DALA The next meeting should be held in September.#5 Digby AreaTourism Association DATA has not met since the last Council meeting.#6 Digby AreaRecreation Committee The DARC minutes for May 19, 2010 were included in themeeting package. Also included in the meeting packagewere the Recreation Manager Report, Facility Supervisor Report, Active Living Coordinator Report and the AquaticReport for the months of June and July. The next meetingis scheduled for September.
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Municipality of the District of DigbyMunicipal Council MinutesAugust 23, 2010Culloden, Nova Scotia9 DARC is trying to get people to participate in voting for Digby as being the best fishing community. The winner of this contest will receive a $50,000 community grant.#7 Digby Harbour Port Association There was no Digby Harbour Port Association meetingsince the last report.#8 Digby LibraryCommittee The Digby Library Committee has not met since the lastreport.#9 Fundyweb Broadband The Fundyweb Broadband has not met since the last report.#10 IndustrialCommission The Industrial Commission has not met since the last report.#11 Kings TransitAuthority The Kings Transit Authority June minutes, July GeneralManager Report and the June Ridership Report wereincluded in the meeting package. There has been no Kings Transit Authority meeting sincethe last report.#12 Senior SafetyCommittee The Senior Safety Committee has not met over the summer. There have been two seniors days held.#13 Tideview Terrace There has been no Tideview Terrace meeting since the lastCouncil report. Warden Thurber will be unable to attendthe next meeting.#14 Waste Check Waste Check has sent out a report from the sessions they had with the groups in the community. The Board has notmet to discuss it yet. #15 Western CountiesRegional Library The Western Counties Regional Library meeting minutesfrom May 2010 were included in the meeting package. TheAnnual General meeting was held on July 8, 2010. The grand opening of the Weymouth Library is a highlightof the year. The Executive Director, Trudy Amirault, isgoing to retire in December.Council would like torecognize her years of service upon her retirement.Council ReportsWarden Thurber Warden Thurber gave an oral presentation to Counciloutlining the various meetings he has attended during thepast month. Warden Thurber gave notice of his intent to retire as ofWednesday, August 25, 2010.MOVED and seconded that the resignation of WardenThurber as of August 25, 2010 be accepted with regret. MOTION CARRIEDDeputy WardenMacAlpine Deputy Warden MacAlpine gave an oral presentation toCouncil outlining the various meetings he has attendedduring the past month.
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Municipality of the District of DigbyMunicipal Council MinutesAugust 23, 2010Culloden, Nova Scotia10Resident Concern -Fish Waste Deputy Warden MacAlpine brought up an additional itemfor new business that was missed at the beginning of themeeting. Deputy Warden MacAlpine has had residents express theirconcern with the fish waste that comes out of the back oftrucks. It makes the road slippery and makes the area havea foul smell. It was agreed to bring this item to theDepartment of Transportation.Councillor Gregory Councillor Gregory gave an oral presentation to Counciloutlining the various meetings she has attended during thepast month.Councillor Amero Councillor Amero gave an oral presentation to Counciloutlining the various meetings he has attended during thepast month.Councillor Adams Councillor Adams gave an oral presentation to Counciloutlining the various meetings she has attended during thepast month.Election – District 4 Council set October 23, 2010 for an election for District 4. They also decided to use the voters list that was used in the2008 election.MOVED and seconded that a special election be held onOctober 23, 2010 and that the 2008 voters list be used forthis election. Council appoints Marsha Lewis as ReturningOfficer for this election.MOTION CARRIED Deputy Warden MacAlpine will attend meetings in theWarden’s place unless there are other Council membersalready attending the particular meeting. Warden Thurber thanked everyone for the years spentworking together and noted that he is leaving theMunicipality in capable hands.Comments from thegallery The meeting was opened up to the gallery for questions.There were no questions.AdjournmentMOVED and seconded that the meeting adjourn at 8:59PM. MOTION CARRIED____________________________________________________________WARDENCLERK
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Municipality of the District of DigbyMunicipal Council MinutesAugust 23, 2010Culloden, Nova Scotia11BE IT RESOLVED THAT pursuant to the authority contained in section 72 of the MunicipalGovernment Act, the Council of the Municipality of the District of Digby hereby adopts theStatement of Estimates in the amount of $ 6,660,805 as presented for the fiscal year endingMarch 31, 2011.FURTHER BE IT RESOLVED that a commercial rate pursuant to section 72 (6) (a) of theMunicipal Government Act be established at $1.85 per $100 of assessment, a residential andresource rate pursuant to section 72 (6) (b) of the Municipal Government Act be established at$1.30 per 100 of assessment.AND FURTHER BE IT RESOLVED that the following area rates pursuant to section 75 (2) beestablished for the provision of fire protection, street lighting and sidewalk maintenance.Sidewalk MaintenanceCodesConway SidewalkCM4.5 cents per $100 of assessmentMount PleasantMM4.5 cents per $100 of assessmentStreet lightingWeymouth Falls Light Rate1010.00 cents per $100 of assessmentBear River Light Rate0111.00 cents per $100 of assessmentDigby Neck Light Rate0311.00 cents per $100 of assessmentBarton Light Rate0511.00 cents per $100 of assessment Culloden Light Rate079.50 cents per $100 of assessment Smith’s Cove Light Rate088.00 cents per $100 of assessmentWeymouth North0910.00 cents per $100 of assessmentFire ProtectionDigby Neck Fire District15.0 cents per $100 of assessmentSmiths’ Cove Fire District26.0 cents per $100 of assessmentFreeport Fire District35.0 cents per $100 of assessmentTiverton Fire District45.0 cents per $100 of assessmentWestport Fire District55.0 cents per $100 of assessmentBarton/Brighton Fire District65.0 cents per $100 of assessmentPlympton Fire District75.0 cents per $100 of assessmentWeymouth Fire District810.0 cents per $100 of assessmentBear River Fire District95.0 cents per $100 of assessmentDigby Fire District105.0 cents per $100 of assessmentSouthville/Danvers Fire District 1115.0 cents per $100 of assessmentFURTHER BE IT RESOLVED that the Municipality will bill and collect on behalf of theCommissioners for the Village of Weymouth, Village of Tiverton, Village of Freeport and theVillage of Westport an amount as determined by each Commission at duly convened meetings.Pursuant to the authority granted by the Municipal Government Act and Policy # 2001 MunicipalTax Collection, the Municipal Council hereby sets the interest rate on overdue taxes at the rate of 16 percent per annum, and an interest rate of 10 percent per annum be established foroverpayment on taxes due to assessment appeals.This is to certify that the foregoing is a true copy of a resolution adopting the tax rates forthe Municipality of the District of Digby passed the 29thday of June, 2010.______________________________________Linda FraserChief Administrative OfficerMunicipal Clerk
Sunday, September 26, 2010
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