2020 Budget discussions
Water, Wastewater and Curbside & Transfer Rates for 2020
At the February 28th Council in Committee Finance & Administration meeting, MV Council set the Water & Wastewater rates for 2020:
- Council approved an increase in Water System rates by 2 percent to $4.68/m3, based on a consumption of 108,000 cubic metres. Minimum usage quarterly increases from $68.95 to $70.20 Treasurer Amanda Hudder recommended transferring $130,000 from the Gas Tax Fund to help offset the Large Capital Project of Water & Wastewater Meter Replacements in 2020. In response to Councillor Peplinski, who objected to applying the Gas Tax Fund to anything other than roads maintenance, Council decided to set the water rate now but review this use of a portion of the Gas Tax Fund when the general budget is discussed.
- Wastewater System rates for 2020 were set at $5.01/m3, being a user rate increase of 4 percent. This is based on a consumption of 108,000 cubic metres.
At the same meeting, the waste rates were also set for 2020. The Curbside Pick-up rate is now $37.63 (up 6 percent from previous) and Transfer Station rate for 2020 is $165.00 (up 6.8 percent from previous). Staff presented a history of the rates since 2015 which showed that in both cases these 2020 rates are lower than they were in 2016.
Council approved the Interim Tax Levy so that staff could send out interim bills on February 28.
2020 budget discussions will resume at 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday, March 10.
March 3 Council in Committee meeting
Preparation for spring freshet
Council heard from Operations Manager Hilary Kutchkoskie and Chief Fire Officer Corwin Quade that the Township has made appropriate preparations and awaits further information regarding expected water levels this spring. Kutchkoskie said MV has four thousand sandbags in stock and sufficient sand. Quade told Council that the supplier has one million sandbags and can deliver to MV within 24 hours. Kutchkoskie said they await the moisture content readings from core samples taken in Algonquin Park. Council commended staff for their preparations.
Road Maintenance Standards & Classification Council reviewed a draft by-law to update the 2005 by-law regarding Township road classification and maintenance standards. Kutchkoskie explained to Council that the schedule includes more roads than the 2005 list, updates the lengths of some roads and the civic address (911) numbers. It reflects traffic as well as speed limits on the roads. Also it incorporates more classes so as to conform with present-day requirements. Kutchkoskie said the new Class 6 replicates the Class 5 standard, and told Council that the schedule lists maintenance agreements with neighbouring municipalities where applicable. It was noted that the new schedule identifies the Township’s liability at an appropriate level and the By-Law allows MV to declare a Significant Weather Event to notify the public if standards cannot be met. The final version of the by-law will come to a future Council meeting.
OCWA reports
Ashley Pilgrim and Scott Stewart of Ontario Clean Water Agency (OCWA) attended to present various reports including the annual reports on the Barry’s Bay Drinking Water System and Barry’s Bay Wastewater System. They also presented the final OCWA quarterly performance report for 2019. Correspondence from OCWA notifying a spill from the Barry’s Bay water tower was discussed.
Wastewater treatment plant litigation
As reported last April by The Current, the Township is involved in litigation about repairs to the wastewater treatment plant and Council discussed the ongoing legal proceedings in camera on March 3rd. The Current was also advised by CAO Klatt that a pre-trial conference is scheduled for March 9th. At the February 28th meeting, the Treasurer confirmed to this reporter that $899.05 had been spent on legal fees during 2019 and that $19,000 was budgeted for 2020.
Municipal511.ca
Council and staff agreed that the community benefits from the Municipal511.ca website which contains updates provided by each municipality as to road conditions and other hazards. Madawaska Valley Operations staff have been updating this system for more than a year and encourage members of the public to familiarize themselves with it and consult it before travelling, especially during adverse weather conditions.
The Current will report separately on other matters including the revised draft Strategic Plan.
