Addition to the new Iroquois waste water treatment plant

“We’ve talked about being open and fair so much that we thought we should go back and look at our procurement policy,” said Clerk Brenda Brunt at the March 6th South Dundas council meeting.

Brunt presented council with a recommendation to amend the procurement policy in an effort to “change some of the wording to ensure it was an open, fair, and transparent process.” 

Council agreed. Councillor Archie Mellan said, “I think it’s a very good document.”

The submitted report stated that seven “principles will be upheld to ensure the process is objective, accountable and fair.”

The principles are as follows: 

• “The underlying concept of procurement shall be to obtain the best quality of goods or services at the lowest possible price;

• The process shall be fair and the policies shall apply equally to all bidders;

• Procurement decisions shall be made in an unbiased manner without influence of personal preferences, prejudices or interpretations;

• Purchasing ethics, or moral principles or code, shall be respected and followed by personnel who are responsible for buying goods or services;

• There shall be clarity and disclosure in arriving at procurement decisions;

• Environmentally friendly procurement shall be encouraged, as will group purchasing across departments, with other municipalities and/or organizations, when beneficial and practical;

• The lowest or any tender shall not necessarily be accepted due to non-compliance with criteria set in the tender document.”

[…]

With spring well underway, the grass is growing and South Dundas is ready with a brand new mower.

South Dundas council approved the purchase of a new roadside mower for the public works department during the May 1st council meeting in Williamsburg.

Hugh Garlough, manager of public works for the township, recommended council accept a quote, the lowest, from B&G Loughlin Tractors Inc. at a cost of $8,640 plus HST. The amount is less than the allotted budget of $15,000.

As for the actual mower being purchased, council had several questions surrounding its quality and durability.

According to Garlough, the Berti, model number TA/S200, is a “flail mower with outside gear box with hammer flails.”

He told council that he “talked to one of the local Matilda farmers who has it and he’s happy with it.”

Mayor Steven Byvelds pointed out that the United Counties of Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry use that same mower.

“They’ve had good luck,” he said.

In addition to B&G Loughlin Tractors Inc., quotes were also received from Green Tech Ag & Turf Inc, Reis Equipment, Dan R Equipment, and Weagant Farm Supplies Limited.

[…]

“The truth is, if you come to South Dundas you’re going to want to come back every year because it’s such a welcoming place to come to,” said Stormont, Dundas and South Glengarry MP Guy Lauzon.

Lauzon was one of several people invited to the official opening of the 2nd annual Galop-Canal Bluegrass Festival on June 15th at the Iroquois Locks.

According to organizing committee member Geraldine Fitzsimmons, this year’s festival, lasting from Friday, June 15th through Sunday, June 17th, saw a definite increase in guests.

“Gate admission was up from last year, which tells me that more people came,” she said.

In addition, there were 93 campers on site to enjoy the sunny weather and bluegrass music, also an increase from last year’s number.

“There were not a lot of local people,” said Fitzsimmons, who is hoping that next year the organizing committee is able to find ways to entice more locals to attend the weekend-long event.

As for those who did show up, “they all just loved it. Everybody really loves our community.”

Fitzsimmons pointed out that several of the campers had taken trips into Iroquois to go shopping. 

Several of these people, she explained, had never been to South Dundas before or had been here during last year’s festival and liked it so much that they decided to return.

This year’s event saw a few changes from last year, including the addition of local vendors on-site. 

The Ottawa Bluegrass Association and the Morrisburg and District Lions Club donated the use of tents to provide guests with a little shade while the Riverside Heights Snowmobile Association donated the use of some chairs for those who needed them.

Like last year, the Iroquois Matilda Lions Club hosted an on-site barbecue.

While this year was filled with “growing pains,” Fitzsimmons and the Bluegrass Festival’s organizing committee are taking note of what worked and what didn’t so that they can make next year’s event even better.

Members of the organizing committee include Fitzsimmons, Mike Anderson, Doris Clary, Dick Cropp, Barb and Jerry Gurnhill, Sharon and Dick Piche, Paul and Ruth Robertson as well as a representative from the Iroquois Matilda Lions Club.

The Bluegrass Festival is a major fundraiser for the Galop Canal Revitalization Project whose goal is to restore the Galop Canal, bringing life back to the Iroquois waterfront. The project is also an attempt to protect and preserve the history of the area.

[…]