Originally written for Port Rowan Good News during Noel Haydt’s 2014–2018 term as Ward 1 Councillor. Published here from the original archived document; spelling and wording have been preserved.
Another year is coming to an end and a lot has transpired.
It has definitely been a busy year at council and as we head into the final parts of Norfolk County budgets I hope to see many people out sharing their ideas and any frustrations they may have. As councilors we need the input from our residents.
There are a great numbers of issues from our ward that I hope to have resolved by year end. The lack of water pressure in Booths Harbour, the exorbitant fees that holding and septic tank customers are being subjected to and whether there will be a merger of the St Williams Fire Hall and Port Rowan EMS stations to name a few.
I had the opportunity to attend the Fairground Remembrance Day service on Friday November 10th. Despite the very chilly weather the attendance was large and there was a wonderful service. Thank you for inviting me and to all who attended.
It has been brought to my attention that the CIBC Branch in Port Rowan will be closing its doors. This is a very unfortunate situation. A large number of local residents rely on this branch in town many of those who do not drive or have access to another bank. This will have an effect on local businesses that will need to drive further for their banking needs. Not having a bank in town will force tourists and locals to use ATM’s and they will have access to less cash at an increased cost. I will definitely provide any support needed for another bank or credit union to establish in town. Port Rowan is a growing community and needs more services, not less.
As chairman of the Long Point Region Conservation Authority, I would like to thank Pam Walther-Maybe and Tom Southwick for their service at the LPRCA. Pam carried out her position as the manager of the Backus before accepting the promotion to the Manager Conservation Land Services and is moving onto other endeavors. Mr. Southwick, the Bayham councilor completed his term as an LPRCA board member and was instrumental in helping Norfolk County with our long awaited shoreline protection plan, lakeshore safety strategy and formalizing development policies. His tenacious attitude towards budgeting and monetary performance has helped the LPRCA stop the habit of drawing down reserves and has increased self generated revenue while improving customer’s experiences. Thank you to both of you and best of luck in the future.
I have been receiving calls about a recent letter that was issued to the LPRCA board members and Norfolk County from the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry as reported in the Simcoe Reformer and Norfolk Today. The letter states that ‘…that concerns have been raised regarding certain permits issued by the LPRCA, and more specifically are not consistent with the Provincial Policy Statement, 2014...’.
The letter does not state which permits have raised the concerns so I can only assume that they are referring to the number of shoreline protection applications that we are permitting. As you are aware, Long Point has experienced some serious shoreline erosion this year. It is the mandate of the Conservation Authority to work in partnership with municipalities to protect life and property through the development of programs and services that minimize or prevent the impact of natural disasters such as flooding and erosion.
Section 3.1.2 of the Provincial Policy Statement 2014, states that :
Development and site alteration shall not be permitted within:
(c) areas that would be rendered inaccessible to people and vehicles during times of flooding hazards, erosion hazards and/or dynamic beach hazards, unless it has been demonstrated that the site has safe access appropriate for the nature of the development and the natural hazard;
It has been known since the 1989 Shoreline Management Plan was done that neither Long Point nor Turkey Point had what would be considered safe access / egress. Norfolk County had not moved ahead with an emergency safety strategy in all those years. This had not hampered development until recently when LPRCA staff started to abide by the requirement and refused permits because of it.
In July of this year, Norfolk County council approved the emergency safety strategy and a copy was sent to the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing for their review, comment and approval. Norfolk staff and LPRCA staff worked in conjunction to come up with a solution in approximately five months. During this time, staff at LPRCA also formalized a flood contingency plan that sets out how communication flows between all parties during a flood event and an emergency shoreline protection plan. A resolution was also passed to send a letter to MNRF asking them to review the Shoreline Property Assistance Act to provide further options for landowners to undertake shoreline protection improvements.
The Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing is the agency in charge of the Disaster Recovery Assistance for Ontarians program. This program is designed to help people affected by natural disasters get back on their feet.
The LPRCA and Norfolk County council has the highest regard for people’s safety and I take personal offense to the contrary by both ministries unsubstantiated accusations. There’s a reason why old sayings last as long as they do and the one that comes to my mind in this case is ‘an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure’. Norfolk County staff, council and the LPRCA staff and board have worked very hard to address all of these long outstanding issues with the highest regard for personal safety and property loss. If a serious flood were to occur in Norfolk County, the people affected could apply for the Disaster Recovery Assistance program but I still don’t want to be the councilor who receives the calls in the middle of the night that people were lost and I could have done more to prevent it.
As many of you are aware, the results from the environmental assessment regarding the concession A bridge came to council last week with the recommendation to remove the bridge. This projected was approved in the capital budget for 2013 and just never moved forward. I argued this at council and moved the motion that council does not desire to remove the bridge and that staff prepare a report to consider the option of putting a bridge back in service, which was carried. This means that there will be another report coming to council with potential costs to rebuild the bridge. There has been a petition signed with over 300 names on it to rebuild this structure so many people will be following the outcome.
Don’t forget to get out for the Long Point Lions Bingo and Turkey Raffle on Friday December 1st, doors open at 6:30. The Port Rowan Legion also has a number of events in December including breakfast with Santa on December 3rd, from 9am to 12pm.