Year: 2012

“This is only a small sacrifice,” said David Lapier, who last week had the moustache he has had since puberty shaved off in support of Dare to Flash A ‘Stache, a campaign focused on raising funds for the Winchester District Memorial Hospital Foundation and Ottawa Regional Cancer Centre to aid in the fight against prostate cancer. “I am happy I can do something as small as this to help such an important cause,” said Lapier, who has more than doubled his fund raising goal of $500. “If anyone out there still wants to donate, that would be wonderful,” he said (www.flashastache.ca). Lapier had his ‘stache shaved off Friday afternoon at Bo’s Barber Shop in Morrisburg by Bo Gale.

South Dundas mayor Steven Byvelds surpassed his fund raising goal of $1,000 over the weekend, so Monday morning he had his ‘stache shaved by Krista Boyce at Krista’s Hair Salon in Morrisburg. Byvelds said that a large portion of the funds raised in his name were thanks to the efforts of Deputy Mayor Jim Locke who called on his Lions Club friends for their support. “I want to say thanks to those who have supported this excellent cause,” said Byvelds, who also suggested that those still wanting to make a donation can do so a the aforementioned web site. He will also continue to accept cash or cheque donations personally by contacting him directly.

[…]

Both the Matilda and Williamsburg waste disposal sites have a limited lifespan, and South Dundas township officials want the residents of South Dundas to do what they can to prolong the life of these waste disposal sites.

One way to prolong the lifespan of the waste disposal sites is to reduce the weekly two bag limit down to one bag weekly, but South Dundas council is not willing to take that step …yet.

At the October 31 special meeting, council spoke at length about the need for the public to be educated on the use of the sites and the impact misuse will have on the community.

Presently, South Dundas pays almost $40,000 a month for garbage and recycling pickup. Officials warn that amount could easily double, or more, when South Dundas no longer has access to its own waste disposal sites and that day could come within the next few years.

Based on the current deposition rate, the anticipated date the Matilda waste disposal site will reach full capacity is 2015, and the Williamsburg site will reach full capacity in 2017. 

“We as residents need to do our share for the environment,” said South Dundas mayor Steven Byvelds. He believes if each resident improves their own waste management they will easily reduce their waste to about one bag weekly, which is where the municipality wants to set the limit within the next few years.

The province of Ontario sets the recycling target at about 60 percent of waste being diverted from landfill, but South Dundas is far from that, diverting less than 20 percent from landfill through its recycling programs. 

Council and staff agreed that a concentrated public education campaign is needed to promote recycling in South Dundas.

As part of a review of the municipality’s garbage bylaw, staff proposed eliminating cash transactions from taking place at the waste disposal sites through the implementation of a voucher system, however council was not happy with the proposed changes. Council opted to keep the sites operating, as is, with a cash system. 

Other discussions at the October 31 meeting will likely result in a couple of changes to the existing garbage policy.

Residents will no longer be allowed to take two bags of household waste to the dump each week for free. The practice was put in place for those who happened to miss their roadside garbage pick up day. With the new policy, that will no longer be an option. Those wanting to take those bags to landfill can expect to pay.

Council asked staff to investigate the possibility of allowing those with documented medical incontinence issues to exceed the existing two bag limit.

Staff is also putting together a new fee schedule that will eliminate the separate rate category for farm waste. Farm waste will be treated as commercial waste.

[…]

 A large portion of the Morrisburg Industrial Park is in danger of being designated a provincially significant wetland, and if that happens the Counties planning department is working to ensure that the designation doesn’t hinder South Dundas’ growth potential.

County Planner Michael Otis discussed the issue with South Dundas council at the October 31 special meeting. 

“Obviously, we want South Dundas council’s input and support for our proposals,” Otis told council.

“This wetland issue has being going on for some time,” said Otis, explaining that the province has the clout to make the designation which will definitely hinder development to about 140 hectares of the Morrisburg Industrial Park. 

“They reviewed 10 drafts of the County official plan and not once did they indicate it was a wetland,” said Otis. 

However, now in this five year review of the official plan, they now have another opportunity to make the wetland designation.

The Counties will ask the province, if the provincially significant wetland designation is made, that the province allow an equal amount of land in a new location to be designated as an employment district in the official plan.

If the trade off occurs, the new employment district will be at the west end of Morrisburg, on the north side of County Road 2, west of the communications tower.

“This is a defendable type of solution,” said Otis.

Otis also explained that along with this request to the province, they will also ask that about 136 hectares of land south of County Road 2 in the same area be earmarked for residential growth in South Dundas. 

This would be in lieu of previous efforts to designate many smaller areas such as Brinston and Stampville for settlement growth. The province prefers that residential growth be slated for areas that the municipality would be willing to fully service such as this one at Morrisburg which borders on fully serviced land.

“This is a really good trade off that is workable,” commented South Dundas mayor Steven Byvelds.

“Hopefully the province will be amenable to it,” said Otis.

South Dundas will pass a resolution supporting this Counties proposal at their next meeting.

These new designations would have no immediate impact on the lands which are privately owned. 

What they represent is a theoretical change in thinking about how and where growth should occur within the Counties and specifically within South Dundas.

For development to occur, at the municipal level, the lands would need to be re-zoned and likely fully serviced. That is only likely to occur, if and when an application for development is presented.

Byvelds was especially supportive of the proposal presented to South Dundas council last week because at the Counties council meeting he saw a proposal that would have seen a similar type of trade off. However, the trade would have involved neighbouring South Stormont gaining the employment district designated land that South Dundas was losing. 

“That I could not have supported,” Byvelds told The Leader. Otis said that proposal was taken off the table because it wasn’t fair for one municipality to benefit from the other’s misfortune.

[…]

The first major review of South Dundas’ personnel policy since amalgamation, 14 years ago, has revealed a number of quirks that council is planning to change.

“I’ve never been anywhere else that I’ve gotten paid to go to a council meeting,” said Steve McDonald, South Dundas’ chief administrative officer at a special council meeting. McDonald’s career in municipal administration spans 30 years.

The day-long session, held October 31, gave council the opportunity to conduct a lengthy, line-by-line review of this and other policies.

Once council approves a bylaw change to the existing policy, the practice of paying managers to attend council meetings will come to an end in South Dundas.

When the new policy comes into effect, township heads of department will, instead of receiving $100 per meeting attended, be entitled to time in lieu.

Changes to the policy will also formalize the now informal system, require proper documentation and put a limit on the amount of time in lieu that can be accumulated and used in one year.

Another 14 year practice, fairly unique to South Dundas, is to pay more for overtime on Sundays than Saturdays. Currently, overtime on Saturdays is paid at the standard time and a half, but on Sundays the rate is double time.

When South Dundas councillor Jim Graham asked why Sundays are treated differently than Saturdays, the only answer was, “That’s the way it has always been done.”

“That doesn’t mean it’s right,” said Graham, who suggested that practices like this one that are fairly unique should be backed up with some documentation to explain why.

“While most of this policy is fairly standard,” said CAO McDonald, “some things in it are unique.” His only explanation of these quirks, that were put into place long before he arrived in South Dundas, was that they likely represent what municipal officials of the day decided to include, representing the ‘best of’ the four policies of the former municipalities.

“Some of these policies are still here, but that doesn’t mean they can’t be changed,” said McDonald.

When proposed changes come into effect staff will only receive a day off for Remembrance Day if it falls on a weekday. 

The practice of January 2 being considered a holiday will be gone. Instead staff will be granted a floating holiday to use at their discretion. 

The floating holiday was a concession to show council’s appreciation of staff their efforts to keep the township office open between Christmas and New Year’s. Most municipal offices shut down for the entire week.

South Dundas councillor Evonne Delegarde suggested eliminating the two half days off that staff get on New Year’s Eve and Christmas Eve, however the remainder of council did not agree.

The Township of South Dundas has 30 full time staffers, including nine department heads (managers), five part time employees and 15 seasonal employees.

[…]