Council welcomes new fire chief; new roof for Crystal Palace among council business

By Sharon Harrison
The regular council meeting held Tuesday evening had a long and varied agenda of miscellaneous items, but it began on a joyful note that included a ceremony outside Shire Hall just prior to the meeting, and inside.

Mayor Steve Ferguson said the ceremony is one that used to take place in Prince Edward County to recognize the appointment of a new fire chief, and has now been revived by Chief Administrative Officer Adam Goheen.

Patrick Howe, Fire Chief

Inside Shire Hall, Goheen shared a few words to formally congratulate Patrick Howe on his promotion to the rank of Fire Chief of the Prince Edward Fire and Rescue service.

With more than a decade of progressive experience to fire and rescue, Chief Howe brings “a strong combination of strategic leadership, local knowledge and deep commitment to the community”, said Goheen, adding that alongside the broader County staff complement, members of the emergency services are very much part of the family.

“That camaraderie provides us with strength and support to carry out the acts of bravery and community service our residents and visitors depend on at their time of need. It also means we have each other’s back and keep each other safe,” he said. “We must also acknowledge that the commitment to the community service extends to the families and loved ones who support each of our fire fighters.”

Howe’s family (Kelsey, Lana, Nate and Austin) were then invited to fix the epaulets on the fire chief’s jacket, “in recognition of his responsibility in carrying out his duties, not only to the community, but to the broader fire and rescue family”.

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Other items addressed at the meeting included awarding a tender for the Crystal Palace roof replacement, and approval for the re-construction of the Elm Street laneway tender. Councillor Chris Braney put forward a resolution to explore the feasibility of a vacant commercial storefront tax. These three items are expanded below.

Also, councillor John Hirsch was appointed as the municipal board observer for the Prince Edward Fitness and Aquatic Centre. It is a new position (to run until the end of this term of council) which satisfies a condition that allows the provision of additional funding ($80,000) as previously agreed by council.

Elm Street laneway re-construction
A tender was awarded to Cobourg Development Services Ltd. in the amount of $250,149 (plus taxes) for the re-construction of the Elm Street laneway. Twelve bids were received ranging from $250,149 to $419,470, with staff opting to proceed with the lowest bid.

The project, along the 70-metre Elm Street laneway (between Paul Street and Prince Edward Collegiate Institute), will include full road reconstruction, curb and gutter works, storm sewer replacement and sanitary sewer replacement, and installation of an asphalt walkway.

Council also approved the use of additional funds totalling $125,000 for this project, with $100,000 to come from the reserve for roads construction-urban, and $25,000 from the water and wastewater capital reserve.

Manager of engineering David MacPherson explained the overspend from the original budget was revealed during the detailed design due to additional work being needed, especially the storm system, as well as increasing accessible sidewalks.

“It also speaks to the scale of the project itself; this is a very small project whereas we get advantages of having lower pricing when we have more linear to do. So, for a contractor to come in and do a very small job, they could bid that a bit higher than they would in a longer job,” MacPherson explained.

Crystal Palace roof replacement
The tender to replace the roof of the Crystal Palace was awarded to Semple Gooder Roofing Corporation whose bid came in at $447,659 (plus taxes). The property is located at 375 Main Street within the Picton Fairgrounds.

“… Council approved the use of Vic West True Nature shingles, which resulted in a reduction of overall project costs and allowed the approved capital budget for this work to be reduced to $500,000,“ stated Mark Gilbert, supervisor of community facilities. “This material was previously utilized for the Old Boys’ Entrance roofing project and demonstrated considerable cost efficiencies when compared to alternative materials.”

Gilbert noted that the municipality invited 22 pre-qualified suppliers under the OECM Roofing Contractor Services Agreement to submit proposals for the Crystal Palace roof replacement Project, with only one bid received. (OECM is a provincially-recognized collaborative purchasing organization that conducts competitive procurement in compliance with applicable trade agreements on behalf of public-sector entities).

Councillor David Harrison said he was “shocked” how only one bidder came through (out of 22), where he asked if there was a reason for that.

“I believe what happened was a lot of them looked at cedar shake shingles, and we don’t install them, and moved on. I don’t believe there was a lot of reading of the quote once they saw cedar shakes in the tender, they just skipped by it,” shared Gilbert.

Vacant commercial storefront tax
A resolution brought forward by councillor Chris Braney to explore the feasibility of a vacant commercial storefront tax was approved by council. Braney cited how the “numerous long-term vacant commercial storefronts which detracts from the character of the community, reduces pedestrian traffic, discourages business investment, and negatively impacts the viability of surrounding small businesses”.

Staff will bring back a report exploring the feasibility of implementing a vacant commercial storefront tax, including an analysis of the necessary provincial legislative changes required, recommendations for stakeholder consultation, and to concurrently explore potential enforceable mechanisms available under current legislation.

“The issue for the business community in some of the hamlets and towns that we have are the vacancy of storefronts and what that does to a business area,” expressed Braney. “Some of these storefronts have been vacant, not just for a month or two, but for years.”

Land speculation is creating dead-zones in communities, expressed councillor Kate MacNaughton, who said it applies to commercial areas as well. She said she would also like to see a report eventually from staff on vacant home taxes.

“No one likes to go into a small town and see boarded-up buildings,” added councillor Sam Grosso, “and I would think that some of these landlords are waiting for a bigger lease to come in, or a higher rent.”

Braney said after talking to members of the business community and landlords about implementing a tax, “all of them were very favourable about it; everybody wants to put their best foot forward at the business community, not just in our main areas, but in our towns and hamlets”.

“I think we are seeing some really great resurgency; Consecon is really coming along, to be like the next it-town in Prince Edward County,” he said.

Full details of the items discussed at the May 12 council meeting, including reports, can be found on the corresponding agenda on the County’s website, along the meeting recording.