Municipality of the District of Clare
REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING
Wednesday, May 15, 2019 at 7:00 pm

PRESENT: Council: Warden Ronnie LeBlanc, Deputy Warden Nil Doucet; Councillors, Carl Deveau, Brian Comeau, Eric Pothier, Hector Thibault and Danny Hill
Staff: CAO Stéphane Cyr, Communications Officer, Amy Paradis and Executive Assistant, Ashley Hanks
Presenters:
ABSENT: Councillor Yvon LeBlanc

1) Call to Order
Warden Ronnie LeBlanc called the meeting to order at 7:00 pm.

Warden Ronnie LeBlanc made the following declaration, following a Pride Flag raising ceremony held at the Municipal office earlier in the evening:

“The year 2019 marks the 50th anniversary of the partial decriminalization of homosexuality in Canada. This week, the Municipality of Clare is among 50 municipalities across Canada to raise the pride flag to honour this anniversary as well as to commemorate the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia on May 17. We at the Municipality of Clare believe in the freedom of every resident, regardless of origin, race, religion or sexual orientation. This event serves to help all citizens to fully grasp the issues faced by the 2SLGBTQ+ community over the years, the successes and the progress made until now, as well as a perspective on the present and the future.”

2) (a) Approval of the Agenda

MOVED BY Councillor Carl Deveau and SECONDED BY Councillor Hector Thibault that the proposed agenda be approved as circulated.
MOTION CARRIED

(b) Declaration of conflict of interest
Warden Ronnie LeBlanc asked for any declarations of conflict of interest.
None declared.

3) Presentations
None.

4) Adoption of Minutes
4.1 April 17, 2019 – Regular Council Meeting

MOVED BY Councillor Danny Hill and SECONDED BY Councillor Carl Deveau that the minutes of April 17, 2019 be accepted as circulated.
MOTION CARRIED

4.2 May 6, 2019 – Council-In-Committee Meeting
Councillor Danny Hill asked that the attendance section of these minutes be corrected to reflect his absence at this meeting.

MOVED BY Deputy Warden Nil Doucet and SECONDED BY Councillor Carl Deveau that the minutes of May 6, 2019 be accepted with the above noted revision.
MOTION CARRIED

5) Business Arising from Previous Meetings
5.1 Richfield Fire department
At a previous meeting of Council, the motion to close the Richfield Fire Department was postponed to allow for a public meeting with the residents of Richfield. Warden Ronnie LeBlanc and Councillor Danny Hill attended the meeting along with members of the Clare Fire Fighters Association, a representative from the Carlton Fire Department (Municipality of Yarmouth) and residents of Richfield. At this meeting, it was agreed that there are not enough firefighters for the Richfield Fire Department to be considered a viable fire department. From there, the idea of the fire station becoming a substation of either Havelock or Hectanooga was put forward for consideration and whether this would add any value to the overall fire service. Both Havelock and Hectanooga agreed to look at this scenario, decide amongst themselves if this is something they wanted to take on and then report back to all parties involved.

5.2 Harbour Authority of Meteghan
The Harbour Authority of Meteghan approached Council last year asking to purchase or lease land in Meteghan to store their lobster cars. The land in question is currently home to a municipal wastewater treatment plant but is large enough to accommodate the Authority’s needs without interfering with plant operations. As part of their request, the Authority has agreed to complete all necessary site improvements to move this proposal forward. Council is unanimous in its support for the Authority and has asked the CAO to pursue lease negotiations regarding the parcel in question.

5.3 Osprey Nest – Meteghan
At the April 3 Council in Committee meeting, Council passed a motion to recommend installing a pole with platform at the Ecoparc in Meteghan. Shortly following this meeting, the CAO was approached by a Nova Scotia Power employee, Mr. Gilles Saulnier, offering to install a platform on an existing pole in the hopes that the osprey would rebuild their nest on said pole. This would be done on Mr. Saulnier’s personal time (at no cost to the Municipality), with permission of Nova Scotia Power and in accordance with Department of Natural Resources standards. The work has since been completed and both parc neighbors and community residents monitoring the situation are eagerly awaiting the return of the osprey. Council thanked Mr. Saulnier for his time and effort in relocating the nest. Whereas a motion to recommend had previously been made, Council passed the following motion:

MOVED BY Councillor Danny Hill and SECONDED BY Councillor Carl Deveau that the
Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare install a pole with platform at the Ecoparc in Meteghan to house an existing osprey nest.
MOTION CARRIED

6) Warden’s Activity Report – Warden Ronnie LeBlanc
The Warden provided a summary of the meetings and events the he attended since the last Council meeting.

April 23 – Attended the Board of Directors meeting of the Harborside Lodge in Yarmouth.

April 25 – Attended a meeting of the CMA 2024 Evaluation Committee at the Cuisine Robicheau.

April 25 – Attended the launch of the Clare Health Centre Foundation at Université Sainte-Anne.

April 29 – Attended a meeting with Mainland Telecom to discuss the internet project.

April 30 – Attended the Board of Directors meeting for Université Sainte-Anne.

May 2 – Attended a public meeting at the Richfield Fire Department to discuss the closure of the Department.

May 7 – Attended a meeting of the Société édifice Sainte-Marie Committee.

May 9 – Attended a meeting with Evan Nemeth of the WREN to discuss their rural internet project.

7) Official Statements from Members of Council
Councillor Carl Deveau would like to congratulate Paul-Émile Comeau and Glenda Doucet-Boudreau on receiving l’Ordre de la Pléiade and asked that a letter of congratulations be sent to each them on behalf of Council.

Councillor Eric Pothier passed along his condolences on behalf of Council to the Hectanooga Fire Department and community following the passing of Fred Muise. Mr. Muise was the Fire Chief of the Hectanooga Fire Department for 30 years.

8) Correspondence
8.1 Letter – Shannon Bennett, Executive Director, Nova Scotia Department of Municipal Affairs
The CAO read a letter from Shannon Bennett, Executive Director, Nova Scotia Department of Municipal Affairs. (See attached)

8.2 Letter – Honorable Lloyd Hines, Minister, Nova Scotia Department of Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal
The CAO read a letter from the Honorable Lloyd Hines, Minister, Nova Scotia Department of Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal. (See attached)

8.3 Invitation – Vernon Belliveau, Lieutenant, Saint Bernard Fire Department
The CAO read a letter from Vernon Belliveau, Lieutenant, Saint Bernard Fire Department. (See attached)

9) CAO Report – Chief Administrative Officer - Stéphane Cyr
The CAO presented his report for the month of May 2019. (See attached)

10) Committee Reports
10.1 Building Permits – Councillor Danny Hill
Councillor Danny Hill read the building permits report for the month of April 2019.

April 2019
Year      Permits     Construction Value      Year to Date
2018     13               $ 365,620                     $ 710,980
2019     20               $ 2,514,300                  $ 2,601,880

11) New Business
11.1 Motion to Award Tender – Mowing of the grounds at the Cape Saint Mary Lighthouse Park
An invitational tender was issued for the mowing of the grounds at the Cape Saint Mary Lighthouse Park. Two bids were received.

MOVED BY Councillor Eric Pothier and SECONDED BY Councillor Danny Hill that the Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare award the tender for the mowing of the grounds at the Cape Saint Mary Lighthouse Park to Robert J. Deveau in the amount of $2,608.70 plus HST.
MOTION CARRIED

12) In Camera Session

PROPOSED BY Deputy Warden Nil Doucet SECONDED BY Councillor Eric Pothier that Council proceed to an in-camera session.
MOTION CARRIED

Topics Discussed
12.1 Rural Internet
12.2 Former Saint-Albert Elementary School

PROPOSED BY Deputy Warden Nil Doucet and SECONDED BY Councillor Eric Pothier that Council proceed to the Regular Council Meeting.
MOTION CARRIED

14) Date and time of the next Regular Council Meeting
The next Regular Council Meeting will be held on June 19, 2019 at 7:00 pm.

15) Adjournment
MOVED BY Deputy Warden Nil Doucet to adjourn the meeting at 8:25 pm.

Submitted by:
Ashley Hanks,
Executive Assistant