PRESENT: Council: Warden Ronnie LeBlanc, Deputy Warden Nil Doucet; Councillors, Hector Thibault, Danny Hill, Brian Comeau, Carl Deveau, Eric Pothier and Yvon LeBlanc
Staff: CAO Stéphane Cyr, Communications Officer Rachel Amirault
Public:
ABSENT: Administrative Assistant to the CAO Alain Poirier
1) Call to Order
Warden Ronnie LeBlanc called the Council Meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.
2) (a) Approval of the Agenda
The Warden asked that the agenda be approved as presented.
MOVED BY Councillor Danny Hill and SECONDED BY Councillor Yvon LeBlanc that the proposed agenda be approved.
MOTION CARRIED
(b) Declaration of conflict of interest
None declared.
3) Presentations
None.
4) Adoption of the Minutes from Previous Council Meetings
4.1 November 15th, 2017: Regular Council Meeting
MOVED BY Councillor Hector Thibault and SECONDED BY Councillor Danny Hill that the Minutes of November 15th, 2017 be accepted as circulated.
MOTION CARRIED
4.2 November 29th, 2017: Special Session of Council
MOVED BY Councillor Danny Hill and SECONDED BY Councillor Carl Deveau that the Minutes of November 29th, 2017 be accepted as circulated.
MOTION CARRIED
4.3 December 6th, 2017: Council-in-Committee Meeting
MOVED BY Deputy Warden Nil Doucet and SECONDED BY Councillor Yvon LeBlanc that the Minutes of December 6th, 2017 be accepted as circulated
MOTION CARRIED
5) Business Arising from Previous Meetings
None
6) Warden’s Activity Report – Warden Ronnie LeBlanc
The Warden provided a summary of the meetings and events he attended since the last Council meeting.
November 18, 2017 Attended the AGM of the Festival acadien de Clare at the Municipal Building in Little Brook
November 21, 2017 Participated in a meeting of the Harbouside Lodge Board of Directors in Yarmouth
November 24, 2017 Participated in a meeting of the « Comité d’accueil pour les nouveaux arrivées ». This project is overseen by the CDÉNÉ. A presentation from this committee was scheduled for this evening but was postponed at the last minute given that the project lead has recently resigned to pursue other opportunities.
November 24, 2017 Attended a reception organized by the YMCA of Yarmouth and Digby in partnership with the Board of Directors of the Western Counties Regional Library. Councillor Carl Deveau was also present. This event served as an information session for temporary foreign workers of Riverside Lobster International Ltd.
November 25, 2017 Attended the Firefighters Banquet for the Little Brook Fire Department.
December 20, 2017 Conducted an interview with the Digby Courrier for the 2017 Year in Review. Municipal projects such as the Cultural Hub and the Cape Saint Mary Lighthouse were highlighted, as well as future projects including the Saint Bernard Fire Hall and Rural Internet.
7) Official Statements from Members of Council
The Warden asked Councillors to include, as part of their official statements, events and meetings in which they took part.
Councillor Carl Deveau mentioned, as per the Warden’s report, that he attended the Reception event held by the Western Counties Regional Library. Councillor Deveau also congratulated both the Clare District High School Senior ‘A’ Boys Volleyball Team Division 3 and the Clare District High School Senior ‘A’ girls Volleyball Team Division 2 for winning provincials.
Councillor Hector Thibault mentioned that Edithe Thibodeau will be celebrating her 103rd birthday tomorrow and that he will be presenting her with a certificate on behalf of the Municipality.
Councillor Eric Pothier assisted with the candle light dinner at the Villa acadienne. He enjoyed the event and wished to thank all those involved.
8) Correspondence
8.1 Letter from Clare Community Health Board – Co-President, Shawna Comeau
The CAO read a letter from the Clare Community Health Board. (See attached)
8.2 Letter from Western Counties Regional Library – Manager of French Services, Doris Ponce
The CAO read a letter from the Western Counties Regional Library. (See attached)
8.3 Letter from Minister of Municipal Affairs – The Honourable Derek Mombourquette
The CAO read a letter from the Minister of Municipal Affairs. (See attached)
8.4 Letter from Clare Digby Minor Hockey Association – Treasurer, Jeremy Sanford
The CAO read a letter from the Clare Digby Minor Hockey Association requesting $1,000 for the purchase of foam dividers. (See attached)
The Warden asked for the Council’s thoughts on this request. Councillor Carl Deveau mentioned the possibility of this request being considered under the Municipality’s Grants to Organizations Program.
Deputy Warden Nil Doucet expressed his support for this Association and considered the request to be very reasonable. He also mentioned that the requested equipment may be of benefit to the Municipality’s Recreation Department. Council passed the following motion:
MOVED BY Deputy Warden Nil Doucet and SECONDED BY Councillor Danny Hill that the Municipality of the District of Clare approve funding in the amount of $1,000 for the purchase of foam dividers for the Clare Digby Minor Hockey Association.
MOTION CARRIED
9) CAO Report – Chief Administrative Officer - Stéphane Cyr
(See attached)
10) Committee Reports
10.1 Building Permits Report: Councillor Danny Hill
Councillor Danny Hill read the building permits report for the month of November.
November
Year Permits Construction Value
2016: 14 $355,060
2017: 15 $556,479
11) New Business
11.1 Motion to Amend By-Law No. 1 – A By-Law Respecting Interpretation, 1st reading
Councillor Brian Comeau explained that the proposed amendment to the Interpretation By-Law has been put forward by the By-law Committee in order to add definitions not already included in the by-law. Doing so strengthens the by-law, provides more clarity and is in keeping with other municipal units and model by-laws proposed by the UNSM.
MOVED BY Councillor Danny Hill and SECONDED BY Councillor Hector Thibault that Council of the Municipality of the District of Clare read By-Law No. 1 Amendment No. 01-01-2017, a By-Law Respecting Interpretation and that the By-Law be read for the first time by Title only.
MOTION CARRIED
11.2 Motion to Amend By-Law No. 9 – A By-Law Respecting Noise, 1st reading
Earlier this year, the proposed amendment to By-Law No. 9 was presented for first reading. Following a number of questions / concerns from members of the public, it was sent back to the By-Law Committee for further review. In an effort to address these concerns, the By-Law Committee is proposing additional revisions to the by-law. Councillor Comeau presented the proposed changes. Council passed the following motion:
MOVED BY Councillor Brian Comeau and SECONDED BY Councillor Carl Deveau that Council of the Municipality of the District of Clare read By-Law No. 9 Amendment No. 09-01-2017, a By-Law Respecting Noise and that the By-Law be read for the first time by Title only.
MOTION CARRIED
11.3 Motion to contribute to the ADC Pilot Project
MOVED BY Councillor Hector Thibault and SECONDED BY Councillor Yvon LeBlanc that Council of the Municipality of the District of Clare contribute $6,000 to the ADC Pilot Project, contingent upon confirmation of balance of funding.
MOTION CARRIED
The Warden mentioned that during the mission to China, friendship agreements were signed. This project attempts to leverage those friendship agreements and Canada’s designation as a tourism destination.
11.4 Motion to apply for funding to hire a staff resource to aid with the ADC Pilot Project
Although beneficial to the ADC Pilot Project, the CAO explained that the proposed hiring of a staff resource will also serve to facilitate and develop new opportunities in the private sector by among things, eliminating the language barrier which currently exists between many local businesses and the Chinese marketplace.
MOVED BY Councillor Danny Hill and SECONDED BY Deputy Warden Nil Doucet that Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare apply to ACOA for funding to hire a staff resource for 52 weeks, fluent in both English and Mandarin, to aid with the ADC Pilot Project and other related initiatives focusing on private sector development.
MOTION CARRIED
11.5 Motion to amend the name of Cape Saint Mary’s Road
MOVED BY Councillor Yvon LeBlanc and SECONDED BY Councillor Eric Pothier that Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare amend the name of “Cape Saint Mary’s Road” to “Cape Saint Mary Road”.
MOTION CARRIED
11.6 Motion to approve up to an additional $30,000 for the Cultural Hub Project
MOVED BY Councillor Carl Deveau and SECONDED BY Councillor Yvon LeBlanc that Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare approve up to an additional $30,000 towards the Cultural Hub project, contingent upon matching funding from ACOA.
MOTION CARRIED
11.7 Motion to authorize the CAO to commence an assessment regarding the Meteghan sidewalk
MOVED BY Councillor Eric Pothier and SECONDED BY Councillor Hector Thibault that Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare authorize the CAO to commence an assessment and issue a request for proposal for the repair of sidewalks in Meteghan.
MOTION CARRIED
11.8 Motion to name a road – Rocky Shore Road
MOVED BY Councillor Brian Comeau and SECONDED BY Councillor Eric Pothier that Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare officially name the road shared by the properties PID (Property Identification Number) 30059406, 30059455, 30059331, 30059356, 30059304, 30059315, 30059299, 30059323 and 30208094 as follows:
- In English: Rocky Shore Road
- In French: Chemin de la Côte rocheuse
MOTION CARRIED
12) In Camera Session
PROPOSED BY Deputy Warden Nil Doucet and SECONDED BY Councillor Yvon LeBlanc that Council proceed to an In-Camera Session
- 12.1 Cape Saint Mary Lighthouse Park
PROPOSED BY Deputy Warden Nil Doucet and SECONDED BY Councillor Yvon LeBlanc that Council proceed to the Regular Council meeting
13) Date and time of the next Regular Council Meeting
The next Regular Council Meeting will be held on January 17th, 2018 at 7:00 pm.
14) Adjournment
MOVED BY Deputy Warden Nil Doucet to adjourn the meeting at 8:33 pm.