By John Francis
The Municipality of Northern Bruce Peninsula’s June 10 Council Meeting moved quickly through the Agenda. Council approved the closure of Main Street in Lion’s Head on October 6 for the “Bruce Peninsula Lighthouse Gravel Gran Fondo” cycling event. Council decided to include B&Bs in their study of short-term accommodations (STAs). The full minutes of the June 10 meeting will appear in the next issue of this newspaper.
When Mayor Milt McIver asked if anyone had “Other Business” the meeting began in earnest. Deputy Mayor Debbie Myles had two items she wished to discuss.
The first pertained to Council’s decision at the previous meeting to support private landowners’ applications to operate solar power installations under the Feed-In Tariff (FIT) program. (On May 27, Deputy Mayor Myles had asked for recorded votes and voted against both motions.) On June 10, she explained that she felt there were a number of unanswered questions and that Council did not have nearly enough information to make a decision (see her letter on Page 5 of this newspaper). She did not want to bring the matter back before Council, but wanted to point out that there were questions that should have been answered. Councillor Megan Myles stated that each member of Council needs to decide what level of information they require in order to feel comfortable. Councillor Smokey Golden stressed that the applications had a strict time line imposed under the (now cancelled) FIT program. Deputy Mayor Myles insisted that Council should not rush into things.
The Deputy Mayor’s second item pertained to an issue brought before Council on March 25. On that date Council received a Staff Report suggesting that the municipality cease renting a municipal property known as “the MNR house” because the property is expected to cost more to repair than it generates in rent. Deputy Mayor Myles stated that Council was “blindsided” by the Staff Report on the issue and has heard nothing since. The tenant has been in limbo for two-and-a-half months and still no report. The Deputy Mayor stated that she has complained repeatedly — and to no avail — about inadequate staff reports. She felt that a lawyer should be present or at least on conference call when the decision is made. Councillor Golden agreed that it puts the tenants in an uncomfortable position. Councillor Jamie Mielhausen wondered how much it would cost to have a lawyer attend to discuss this issue. Councillor Megan Myles asked what budget it would come from. Mayor McIver noted that past councils have dealt with this issue and this property at great length. The Deputy Mayor considered that irrelevant and stated that the new Council was blindsided by an inadequate report. Councillor Megan Myles put forward a very different perspective. She felt “confident in our ability to ask for new information when we need it”. Staff have to estimate how much detail to include. Councillor Myles supported staff’s decisions as to what to include/exclude rather than wasting unnecessary time to give exhaustive detail that would be entirely redundant. “When I’m not content with a staff report, I ask.”
The Staff Report/Legal Opinion concerning the MNR house is included in the Agenda for the June 24 Council Meeting.
Also under Other Business, Councillor Golden wondered when the stone wall in front of Tobermory Library will be finished; it’s a bit of a safety hazard, she pointed out. Councillor Myles wondered when the trees would be trimmed at the “scenic lookout” on the Tobermory boardwalk.
Councillor Golden asked for a rule of thumb on whether a concern should be taken to a department head for action or brought to Council for a decision. Mayor McIver offered a simple answer: always copy the CAO on any communication with a department head and if it requires a budget, bring it to Council.
