Municipality of the District of Clare
COUNCIL-IN-COMMITTEE MEETING
Wednesday, October 4th, 2017 at 7:00 pm
PRESENT: Council: Warden Ronnie LeBlanc, Deputy Warden Nil Doucet, Councillors, Danny Hill, Hector Thibault, Brian Comeau, Eric Pothier and Yvon LeBlanc.
Staff: CAO, Stéphane Cyr; Administrative Assistant to the CAO, Alain Poirier; Director of Finance, Ginette Cheff.
Public: Digby-Clare CBDC, Rose Madden; Clare Fire Fighter Training Committee, Yvon Thibodeau
ABSENT: Councillor Carl Deveau
1) Call to order
Warden Ronnie LeBlanc called the meeting to order at 7:00 pm.
2) (a) Approval of the agenda
The Warden asked that the following items be added to the agenda.
- 8.3 Contract, under “Closed Session”
- 8.4 Fiber Optics, under “Closed Session”
- 6.4 UNSM
- 6.5 Joint Session of Council – Municipality of Digby
MOVED BY Councillor Danny Hill and SECONDED BY Councillor Yvon LeBlanc that the proposed agenda be approved with the above noted additions.
MOTION CARRIED
(b) Declaration of conflict of interest
Warden Ronnie LeBlanc asked for any declarations of conflict of interest.
The Deputy Warden declared himself in a conflict of interest with item 5.1.
The Warden declared himself in a conflict of interest with item 6.1.
3) Presentations
3.1 Digby-Clare CBDC – Rose Madden
Bilingual Development Officer for the Digby-Clare CBDC, Rose Madden presented an overview of the services provided to prospective entrepreneurs and small business owners by the Digby-Clare CBDC. (See attached)
3.2 Clare Fire Fighter Training Committee – Yvon Thibodeau
Mr. Yvon Thibodeau presented a request to Council on behalf of the Clare Fire Fighter Training Committee for an additional $10,000 in training funds. The Municipality currently provides a training allocation of $5,000 per year for the fire service. The additional funds will be used primarily to bring in quality speakers throughout the year and as part of their annual member appreciation banquet. Council thanked the Committee for their excellent work and indicated they would consider their request.
4) Staff reports
4.1 Financial Report – Ginette Cheff, Director of Finance
The Director of Finance provided an update on the Municipality`s financial position. (See attached)
5) Business arising from previous meetings
5.1 Funding Request – Upper Clements Parks Society
The CAO explained that this item was first presented to Council at the September 6th, Council-in-Committee meeting, as a result of staff receiving an invoice for $2,000 from the UCP for the purchase and installation of bilingual signage. However, since no official funding request was received, Council chose to differ the issue. A complete funding request has since been received from the UCP and recommended by staff for consideration under the Municipality’s Grants to Organizations program. Council passed the following motion to recommend:
PROPOSED BY Councillor Yvon LeBlanc and SECONDED BY Councillor Hector Thibault that Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare recommend awarding a grant of $2,000 to the Upper Clements Park Society for the purchase and installation of bilingual signage.
MOTION CARRIED
5.2 By-law Committee Recommendation – Major Point Rd.
After many discussions / meetings with representatives of Major Point Road regarding the possible takeover of said road by the Municipality, the Chair of the By-law Committee, Counsellor Brian Comeau, stated that the Committee is recommending that Council not amend By-law 29, Improvement and Takeover of Private Roads. The Deputy Warden inquired if this meant the Committee was recommending the Municipality not take over the road in question. This was not the case. Rather, the Committee is recommending that any such takeover respect the current by-law, specifically as it relates to construction standards and amortization periods. Council passed the following motion to recommend
PROPOSED BY Councillor Hector Thibault and SECONDED BY Councillor Danny Hill that the Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare recommend accepting the By-Law Committee’s recommendation regarding By-Law 29, the Improvement and Takeover of Private Roads.
MOTION CARRIED
5.3 Little Brook Fire Station - Safety Issue
Councillor Danny Hill mentioned that the air filling station currently housed at the Little Brook Fire Department is no longer functioning properly and poses a safety risk to fire fighters when in use. The unit is owned by the Clare Fire Fighters Association (CFFA) and is used by most of the Municipality’s fire departments. As such, the CFFA is requesting the Municipality purchase a new air filling station in the amount of $7,935 plus HST, using the funds generated from the area rate for capital purchases. Council passed the following motion to recommend:
PROPOSED BY Councillor Brian Comeau and SECONDED BY Councillor Yvon LeBlanc that the Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare recommend purchasing a new air filling station for the Clare Fire Fighters Association in the amount of $7,935.00 plus HST.
MOTION CARRIED
6) New business
6.1 Funding Request – CDÉNÉ
The CAO discussed the funding request from the CDÉNÉ for the development of a heritage and cultural tourism circuit of the Acadian regions of Nova Scotia. This is part of a larger initiative being put forward by “le Réseau des villes francophones et francophiles des Amériques’’ and will eventually be linked to a larger circuit promoting francophone heritage and culture from cities and municipalities across North America. Given its provincial, economic development mandate, the CDÉNÉ was chosen to lead the Nova Scotia portion of this project. Municipal staff has reviewed the funding request and believes the project has merit. The amount requested from the Municipality is $2,500. A similar amount has already been approved by both Argyle and Chéticamp. Council passed the following motion to recommend:
PROPOSED BY Councillor Eric Pothier and SECONDED BY Councillor Hector Thibault that the Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare recommend approving the CDÉNÉ’s funding request in the amount of $2,500 towards the development of a heritage and cultural tourism circuit of the Acadian regions of Nova Scotia which will eventually be linked to a larger circuit promoting francophone heritage and culture from cities and municipalities across North America.
MOTION CARRIED
6.2 Road Naming – Weaver Lane
The CAO mentioned that the Municipality has received a request for the naming of a private road. Staff has followed the established process for naming a road and the chosen name, Weaver Lane, is compliant with the Municipality’s road naming policy. Council passed the following motion to recommend:
PROPOSED BY Deputy Warden Nil Doucet and SECONDED BY Councillor Yvon LeBlanc that the Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare recommend that the road on property PID (Property Identification Number) 30008536 be officially named as
follows:
- English: Weaver Lane
- French: Allée Weaver.
MOTION CARRIED
6.3 Proclamation Request – Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness
The CAO mentioned that the Municipality has received a proclamation request from the Gardens of Grace to recognize October 15th as Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Day and/or light up any municipal landmarks in either pink or blue on the evening of October 15th as part of the International Wave of Light. While Council certainly recognizes the importance of pregnancy and infant loss awareness and applauds the Gardens of Grace for its advocacy efforts on this subject, its current practice is to not make proclamations. That said, staff will consider the possibility of lighting up the Municipal Building in either blue or pink.
6.4 UNSM
The CDÉNÉ will once again be hosting a networking session for francophone Councillors at this year’s UNSM Fall Conference. Deputy Warden, Nil Doucet, Councillor Yvon LeBlanc and CAO, Stéphane Cyr will be attending both the conference and the session.
6.5 Joint Session
A joint session of Council between the Municipalities of Digby and Clare has been scheduled for October 16th at the municipal building in Digby. The focus of the meeting will be on the recent trade mission to China.
7) Questions and comments from the public
None.
8) Closed Session
PROPOSED BY Deputy Warden Nil Doucet and SECONDED BY Councillor Yvon LeBlanc that Council proceed to an In-Camera Session.
MOTION CARRIED
Topics discussed:
- 8.1 Ecoparc
- 8.2 Personnel
- 8.3 Contract
PROPOSED BY Deputy Warden Nil Doucet and SECONDED BY Councillor Yvon LeBlanc that Council proceed to the Regular Council Meeting.
MOTION CARRIED
PROPOSED BY Councillor Eric Pothier and SECONDED BY Councillor Hector Thibault that Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare recommend giving authority to the CAO to oversee and authorize the sale of assets of the now defunct Comeau Lumber Ltd.
MOTION CARRIED
9) Date and time of next Council-in-Committee Meeting
The next Council-in-Committee Meeting will be held on November 1st, 2017 at 7:00 PM.
10) Adjournment
PROPOSED BY Deputy Warden Nil Doucet to adjourn the meeting at 9:36 PM.