I said it before and I’ll say it again.
Attending a local council meeting can be a marathon of eye-glazing procedural this-and-that, and it can be a real challenge to whatever you drink for coffee, as no level of caffeine can fully protect you from the head-nodding minutiae these affairs can showcase. That said, there is absolutely no substitute for attending in person.
And then being present with your attention.
Continue reading “RENFREW TOWN COUNCIL MEETING: SCOUTING REPORT”
Initially, I had no reason to be suspicious of anything, nor am I suggesting that there would be anything to be suspicious about.
I was simply asking a question, a question I felt entitled to ask, one that would be of some interest to people who pay their property taxes in Renfrew, Ontario.
It’s like standard journalism, the kind that existed before we were left with empty shells purporting to cover “news” at a local level. The kind of stuff that goes beyond the old “cat stuck in tree” slosh. Something that’s maybe more than a short paragraph in length.
But this isn’t about local journalism, that would be a whole other story in its own right. This is about a simple request for information that has been met with opposition, deflection, institutional ambiguity, and just good-old-fashioned bewilderment. It’s like they have no idea how to respond.
So they won’t.
Continue reading “MA-TE-WAY LEASE INFORMATION REQUEST MET WITH SILENCE”
“It doesn’t matter what it costs, it’s gotta be done.”
I have to circle back to a comment made by Renfrew councillor Andrew Dick in the most recent council meeting of October 22, 2024. It concerned the lighting available at Renfrew’s Ma-Te-Way ballfields.
The councillor was reflecting a certain frustration with the lighting situation at Ma-Te-Way, particularly in the face of a Parks and Recreation report that indicated that all underground electrical infrastructure outside at Ma-Te-Way was in a condition of complete failure and degradation. So much so that contractors have advised that the lights dependant upon the proper functioning of that infrastructure not be turned on until the failed aspects of it be replaced.
Council voted to proceed with an engineering study by engineering consultants JP2G that would culminate in recommendations as to how to proceed. The only problem with that, and of particular concern to Councillor Dick, was the fact that the engineering review wouldn’t be completed until well after the 2025 baseball season had concluded. In other words, no lights in 2025.
Continue reading ““IT DOESN’T MATTER WHAT IT COSTS, IT’S GOTTA BE DONE.””
It’s the morning after an election win for five candidates who have successfully been selected as councillors for the Town of Renfrew. Four of them are new to this, Councillors Dick, Cybulski, Legris, and McDonald. The fifth, Councillor McWhirter, has served on council in the past, but this morning I’m describing here must still feel pretty good for him too.
There’s nothing quite as exhilarating as standing for office, or any other election-based position, and coming out the other end of it on top. There’s a bit of a high attached to it. And excitement. Perhaps even a little bit of anxiety now that you’ve gone and put your name out there, and then won. You’re happy, people are happy for you, your family is super happy, and proud on top of that. It’s a cool experience.
Continue reading “NEW COUNCIL FINDS SPOILED SANDWICH IN THE FRIDGE”
Acting Director Eckford briefs council on a staff recommendation to apply for a matching grant from the province to update local parks, both low-fee and no-fee, as they’ve not received any attention in many years and are in need of updating.
Updates would include improvements to picnic tables through replacement as well as designating at least one table/park as an accessibility table, with either a paved or stone-based pathway leading to that table, again for accessibility. Other improvements would involve obtaining new trash receptacles to replace the aging fleet of trash cans currently in place. And finally, updated signage with the latest town branding to replace the existing signage.
As indicated, the province will match what the town puts up itself and assume 50% of the financial cost of improvements. In the case of these local parks, Mr. Eckford recommends $150,000 to be the sweet spot for the town, as that would yield a total of $300,000 for the project after the government matches the town investment.
Councillor Dick asked how the money would be spent if the grant application were to be successful. In other words, who gets a say in how this money is to be spent.
Mr. Eckford indicated that there was every possibility of having council weigh-in on how and where the funds would be directed, but stressed that the money would have to be directed towards the goals stated in the application for the grant. And so, if accessibility were to be the foundation of the grant, it would also have to be the foundation of how the money is spent. In other words, you have to remain within the spirit and confines of the grant application.
Councillor Legris noted that such grants also have the potential to have the government assume 70% of the project cost in special circumstances. Is this something the town staff would consider, or perhaps have already considered?
Mr. Eckford indicated that, based on Renfrew’s population, a case could be made that Renfrew does fall within the defined “special circumstances,” but that to make that application, the content of the proposal would be put under far closer scrutiny, putting it’s approval at risk if the province deemed it not to meet the threshold for the 70% government share.
COMMENTARY
Not much to comment on here, really. It does appear to be a cost-efficient way to upgrade parts of the parks and recreation mandate at a minimal cost, what with the province throwing in half of the money. For $150,000, we get $300,000 worth of punch to direct towards improvements at these public parks that have, unfortunately, been neglected for a period of time. The grant would allow for improvements that bring those parks up to, or closer to, accessibility standards.
Going after the “special circumstances” grant may be risky, in that the application may be turned down under the closer scrutiny process, and applying for it in the first place may negate the possibility of applying for the 50% grant. In other words, I’m not sure if you could apply for both simultaneously. It may well be one or the other, and if that’s the case, it’s probably the more judicious move to apply for the 50% match than the higher one. Sure you can get lucky, and I’m sure staff would have no problem presenting their case, but still, it just might be that the lesser amount represents the greater chance of approval. A bird in hand is worth two in the bush, as granny used to say.
THE LIGHTS AT MA-TE-WAY: JP2G ENGINEERING STUDY
SEGMENT 1:
The Committee of the Whole will look at a proposal by engineering and planning consultants JP2G to provide a detailed site investigation and prepare a report with recommendations and cost estimates to replace existing lighting at the Ma-Te-Way complex, and delay any work until 2025.
ACTING-DIRECTOR ECKFORD
Council directed staff in a September meeting to investigate the underground power lines and boxes that provided power for lighting for three ball fields, Tye, Seeley, and Rusheleau. Local electricians attended Ma-Te-Way as part of this inspection, and tested the lines, concluding that the majority of those lines were in need of repair or replacement.
The department recommends having JP2G totally re-design how electricity and lighting can be better provided, efficiently and cost-effectively, for users of the various facilities contained within the park.
One of the local electricians provided some possible solutions and provided estimates for those solutions, ranging from $121,000 to $171,000 before HST. In light of these figures, it was felt that it would be a reasonable move to hire JP2G to do the proposed investigation leading to a redesIgn for a shade under $4000, and that this would be a good first step.
That JP2G project would be undertaken four weeks upon the awarding of the contract, but would conclude too late in the season for any action to be taken on its recommendations this year. That pushes any actual work into the 2025 season. That would mean that “some field usage” would be impacted in the spring. A facility usage report showed that field usage from May 1, 2024 to September 30, 2024 saw only 87.5 hours of usage after 8 PM. The department would recommend a “phased-in” approach to any work, with work being done on Tye first, followed by Rusheleau, followed by Seeley, and then the toboggan hill last. If this were to be the case, a solar-based lighting system would need to be implemented to provide light for the toboggan hill until spring 2025.
Continue reading “THE LIGHTS AT MA-TE-WAY”
KEY TERMS
APPENDIX: A document attached to a larger document or publication that contains material-in-depth in support of the broader document. Additional information related to the topic. (plural / appendices)
CHANGE ORDER: A change in the terms of a contract that has already started to be implemented. Changes contained in an order may impact the scope of the project, the cost of the project, or both. In short, something came up that was unforeseen after the contract work started that made the terms of the contract untenable for one or both of the parties involved. A change order will reflect the new reality of the project, and the new cost.
MOBILIZATION: The gathering of the people and materials necessary to begin and complete a task. Ideally with a construction project, mobilization occurs once, at the beginning. Projects extending over two calendar years require additional mobilization, one at the beginning in Year 1, and another to start again in Year 2. Mobilization of human and material resources costs money. The need to duplicate it costs even more money.
KEY PEOPLE: Andrea Bishop
Ms. Bishop is listed on the town’s website as the Manager of Engineering and Asset Management. Yet the others present at the meeting refer to her as Acting Director, but no indication of Acting Director of what. It may be the she has taken on the position of Eric Withers, who I believe no longer serves with the town. If that’s the case, Ms. Bishop would be the Acting-Director of Development, Environment and Infrastructure / Deputy CAO, which admittedly, is a pretty impressive title. I just wouldn’t want to have to stitch it onto a staff hoody because I’d likely need both sides, front and back. Or two hoodies.
I’m not sure entirely what her title may be, but I do hope to get it right so that the title accurately reflects the position held by Ms. Bishop. So apologies in advance if I get it wrong.
APPENDICES A TO D: Active construction projects in the Town of Renfrew
Continue reading “PART 2: THE APPENDICES”
I feel I need to respond to this.
The Renfrew and Area Connections Centre is closing, effective Friday. The fellow issuing the statement on behalf of Renfrew OPP, Inspector Marc Hemmerick, used the word “pause” in an emailed statement given to Renfrew’s myFM radio. I have to crib the statement from their online site because, well, Inspector Hemmerick obviously doesn’t feel I’m worth responding to, having failed to return my call placed last week with the detachment seeking comment on this very topic
“As of Friday the 1 of November 2024, at 4 p.m., the Renfrew Detachment of the OPP will be pausing our participation at the Renfrew and Area Connections Center while the Detachment, OPP’s Grant Support Team and the Town of Renfrew determine what are the next best steps forward for the grant and the community activities it supports.”
That grant money being referred to was good until March 1, 2025.
This smells of sophistry to me. I’m sorry, but it does. And regardless of the Bright White Shirt — batteries not included — saying “pause,” I hear “close permanently” instead. I may be wrong, but I don’t think I am. Time will settle that argument, but in the passing of that time, and amidst a vacuum of information, a vulnerable local population will be set adrift, and it will done with eyes wide-open by all appearances.
The Inspector, the interim detachment commander, cited changes to The Police Services Act and The Community Safety Policing Act as the rationale behind the closing. As per Renfrew spokesperson Hannah MacMillan, “due to the restructuring of the OPP Detachment Board in Ontario municipalities, the town does hold the funding/grant for the Connection Centre now. “
Not bad for a place that “suggested” they had nothing to do with it outside of providing in-kind facilities for the Centre.
Continue reading “OPP DROP BOMB ON CONNECTIONS CENTRE. DID COUNCIL KNOW?”
PART 1: BUDGET VERSUS ACTUAL
Budgets are part and parcel of an effort, by individuals and organized groups, to map out in advance a plan for their money. Having one, or conversely not having one, can be the difference between getting ahead, getting by, or falling behind.
So they’re important.
But a budget is only as good as the follow-up examination and evaluation that comes from comparing your stated budget with the actual movement of money in and out for the same period of time defined in the document.
So it is for the folks who toil as part of Renfrew’s Town Council, whether they be elected officials or members of the administrative staff. Budgets in the municipal sense are set out for six-month periods, and are assessed immediately following the conclusion of those six-months.
Hence the term BUDGET VERSUS ACTUAL. It simply means that the comparison described above is taking place in an open Committee of the Whole.
Continue reading “RENFREW TOWN COUNCIL: BUDGET VS ACTUAL”
I don’t know how many folks tune into municipal council meetings, either live or taped, on the town’s YouTube channel. I do know, if the last meeting was a fair indicator, how many attend the session in-person. Or rather, how few.
I would completely understand why John and Jane Citizen would feel inclined to find something, anything else to do rather than to take in two-plus hours of paint-scraping minutiae that can be the norm in any gathering of local democracy, both here and elsewhere. I feel bad for the primary participants, both political and administrative, who would have to further endure a closed meeting taking place after the open one, if that were to be the case.
Before moving forward, those opening paragraphs are in no way a criticism of the people or the process. Democracy can be a messy beast, and often it’s in that very minutiae where the key truths lay, those little golden nuggets of information that allow them, the primary participants, and us, the adoring public, to fully understand an issue, good or bad, up or down, left or right.
As well, the very nature of Renfrew Town Council is dramatically different from the norm, in that four of the six town staff participants are new to their roles, all having the prefix “acting” in front of their formal titles. Add this to the fact that all four town councillors present at the meeting are first-term representatives, with only the mayor being an incumbent, just not as mayor. Two others, a reeve and another councillor, have varying degrees of experience, but weren’t there.
It’s only fair to say that all of these people, new, acting, re-purposed, and absent, have a pretty lousy job in front of them, especially given what they inherited from the previous administration, political and staff. These folks were given the most challenging hand I believe I’ve ever seen at any level of government, a hand with absolutely no face-cards and completely devoid of trump. A hand that, had they had a chance to get a quick peek at it in advance, might reasonably have led them to stay off the ballot and let somebody else deal with it all. I, for one, am glad they’re there. It’s been a tough ride, and likely not to get any smoother. I fully appreciate their efforts.
Continue reading “SERIES TO ILLUMINATE THE ISSUES, PROCEDURES, AND “MINUTIAE” OF A TOWN COUNCIL MEETING.”
NEWSMAGRENFREW 