News

The township of South Dundas has declared the 397.31 acres of land opposite the Williamsburg Disposal Site on County Road 8, more commonly know as Church Road, as surplus land.

At the March 20th council meeting, Clerk Brenda Brunt recommended that the land be declared surplus and subsequently sold. 

The property is currently zoned as Rural Special Exception 22 & 27 as well as Wetlands and, according to Brunt, the Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) has set out a list of conditions that must be met before the land can be sold. 

The most notable condition is a “species at risk” inventory which is expected to take between three to six months to complete.

Discussion arose in response to the cost of the inventory and how council might recoup the cost while waiting for a buyer. Brunt estimated the cost to be around $10,000 and, as Chief Administrative Officer Stephen McDonald pointed out, “any sensible buyer is going to want to see that before they agree to buy.”

As for possible MNR restrictions on the land, Brunt said, “they’re hoping they won’t clear it for farmland.”

“The other concern is there’s an allowance for a possible building,” said Mayor Steven Byvelds. He wanted assurance that should the buyer erect a building on the land, they do so on Mackenzie Road, rather than on “old Fifth Concession” which is not maintained.

[…]

A by-law was passed at the March 20th South Dundas council meeting to accept the operational and capital budget plan for 2012.

During the discussion, Treasurer Shannon Geraghty introduced council to the possibility of sending out information sheets to taxpayers.

Geraghty informed council that it is a “double-sided document, something we’ll probably send out in the tax bills to show tax payers their money isn’t being spent foolishly.”

Mayor  Steven Byvelds said, “it certainly is a lot more information than we’ve put out in the past.”

Deputy-Mayor Jim Locke added, “that’s good. The more information, the better.”

“I think,” said Councillor Jim Graham, “it’s certainly a step forward on communicating with ratepayers on where their dollars are spent.”

Members of council were given copies of the proposed document to consider and comment on before distribution. 

If all goes well, it looks like, according to Byvelds, that the information sheet will be included with the final tax bill at the end of May.

[…]

“Sixty people who live and work in Dundas County gathered at the Christian Reformed Church in Williamsburg on November 18, 2011, to map out some strategies and concrete steps to make our communities more resilient in the face of increasing poverty, and to create a sustainable future for all of us in Dundas County.”

This is the first paragraph in a report made by representatives of the House of Lazarus Community Outreach Mission Linking Hands Project, initiators of the forum.

As a result of the forum, six working groups were set up, each with a coordinator and a first meeting date.

On March 20th, the working group for “Access to Basic Health Care Needs,” coordinated by Lynn Richards, met in Winchester. 

Invited speaker, Muriel Milne, secretary for the United Senior Citizens of Ontario, talked about the advocacy work her organization is involved in, specifically on access to basic health care.

Going forward, this working group plans to show the film “Poor No More.” In addition, they intend to continue gathering information on where Dundas County might have gaps in terms of access to basic health care needs.

On March 22nd, the working group for “Community Connectivity,” coordinated by Cathy Ashby, took place in Morrisburg.

They discussed business from their last meeting, refined their Terms of Reference, and made plans going forward.

Discussion revolved around information databases in terms of what’s out there now and what still needs to be done. The group discussed creating a new ‘database’ versus working with what is currently out there.

The group was keen to promote “211”. According to their website at www.211ontario.ca, “211 is a three-digit phone number and website that provides information and referral to community and social services in Ontario.”

 Going forward, the group hopes to work with the two municipalities, North and South Dundas, to link both “211” and the Linking Hands website to the township websites. 

In addition, they’re hoping to have the online community calendar for each township website refined and updated with information for residents.

A follow-up meeting was set for mid-May following the Homelessness Maze event in Iroquois on May 9th.

The “Strategies for Increasing Participation in Physical Activities” working group, coordinated by Lynn Richards met for a second time on March 27th in Williamsburg where they heard from the developers of the South Dundas Charter for Active Living, Stephanie Caissie of the Eastern Ontario Health Unit and Ben Macpherson, Recreation Program Coordinator for South Dundas.

The “Access to Transportation” working group, coordinated by Nanda Wubs, met initially on February 24th where they welcomed Robert Dupuis and Harry Gow, both of whom had experience creating and running non-profit transportation services for rural communities.

Following the meeting, Wubs said the group’s next step is to “continue investigating other models of transportation networks, send out a survey to agencies to determine current transportation ‘stock’ and to the community to do a transportation needs assessment.” 

The two remaining working groups will meet in May. 

The “Access to Safe, Nutritious, Primarily Local Food” group, coordinated by Dana Kittle, will hold their meeting on May 11th at the South Nation Conservation Authority in Finch. 

The “Economic and Entrepreneurial Development and Training” group, coordinated by Ed DiZazza, will also meet in May, but at the South Mountain Library Resource Centre. 

The group is currently working on a website for the project. The address is www.linkinghandsdundas.ca. 

[…]

Media Release

On Palm Sunday, April 1st, you are invited to attend a Harmony Church Celebration service at Timothy Christian School in Williamsburg at 10:30 a.m. 

What is Not new: Harmony Community Church is an evangelical church that has been serving the Lord in Dundas County since 1885. 

What is New: We will be hosting three Sunday morning celebration services at Timothy Christian School on the first Sunday for the months of April, May and June.

Our plan is to offer a satellite service in South Dundas (Williamsburg) that will be a complete sample of Harmony Church’s style of worship and preaching simultaneously with our North Dundas location on Ormond Road.

The purpose is fourfold:

•First, to give our existing South Dundas families an opportunity to worship closer to home and thereby “bring Harmony home” to their family, friends and community. This will save them time and gas by having a local celebration and increasing opportunities for them to get to know each other better. Sometimes “smaller is better” and the larger Sunday service doesn’t always allow you to get to know people as well. We have so much musical and preaching talent that it takes more than one service to allow people to use their God given gifts.

•Second, to re-enforce the message that the “Church” is not a building with an address but it is the people of God wherever they may meet.

•Third, to proclaim the Full Gospel of Jesus Christ as Saviour, Healer and coming King in South Dundas thus giving opportunities for those who have heard of Harmony but find distance an obstacle to be able to “come and see what we are about”.

•Fourth, because we just like to worship God all over the place.

For more information, call 613-774-5170 or visit the website at www.harmony-church.org.

[…]

The issue of who will operate the Iroquois Beach Canteen this summer was raised at the March 20th South Dundas council meeting.

Clerk Brenda Brunt recommended “that council authorize the Iroquois-Matilda Lions Club to operate the Iroquois Beach Canteen for 2012.”

According to Brunt, the Lions Club has already received approval for a provincial grant to hire student workers. 

“It’s the same idea as last year, they’ll keep it clean,” she said.

The recommendation was accepted and Mayor Steven Byvelds closed the deal, saying, “we wish them good luck.”

[…]

Welcome to Care Close to Home – written by the people who are at the heart of Winchester District Memorial Hospital (WDMH). This ‘inside view’ is designed to help our communities get to know the WDMH team – in their own words. This month, we hear from Cindy Kerkhof – a member of the Pharmacy team.

I was born at WDMH and have lived in Winchester all my life. I have worked as a Pharmacy Technician in the community for last 31 years, with the last nine at WDMH.

I have a passion for WDMH and our patients. I love helping people and making a positive difference in someone’s life.  I include this philosophy in all my pharmaceutical tasks right down to smiling to the patients and making them feel special and appreciated. My main goal when I start each and every day is patient safety. In fact, in January, I received my designation from the Ontario College of Pharmacists as a Registered Pharmacy Technician after two years of study.

As a Registered Pharmacy Technician, my days are busy and fast paced. The tasks include filling prescriptions for the patients. This is not a task that I take lightly.  There are a number of checks to consider: Do I have the correct patient? Are there any allergies? Are there any interactions? Is this the correct dose? Do I have the correct drug? Is the patient on similar therapy?  I work closely with our pharmacists to ensure accuracy and timeliness for everything we dispense. Medication safety is key in all my daily functions.

The same attention to detail goes into preparing chemotherapy and the safe management of cytotoxic drugs.  I also make other medications such as intravenous mixtures, syringes, and eye drops. 

Over the years, I have taught many students. This is one of my favorite tasks. I teach them to take pride in their profession and tell them to make every product as if they were making it for a loved one. 

As a professional at WDMH, I am grateful to help each and every patient and hope to make a difference in their lives.  It gives me the opportunity to provide care that is important to me.

[…]

Legion Branch 370 News by Shelley Cumberland

Wasn’t that a beautiful summer? Just kidding… but I think we got spoiled…

A few upcoming events that you will want to know about:

Ambush will be taking to the stage on Saturday, April 14th from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. at the IL (Iroquois Legion). Tickets are available at Mustards, the Hair Studio and the Branch, $15 per person advanced sales.

Breakfast with the Easter Bunny will be held at the IL, this weekend, Sunday, April 1st from 8 a.m. to 12 noon. There will be live bunnies, face painting, a colouring contest and guessing contest, crafts and lots of fun. Cost is $4 per child ages 5-12 years, and $6 each for children over 12, and adults. This event is sponsored by the Iroquois & District Business Group, Branch 370 Iroquois Legion and the Branch 370 Ladies Auxiliary.

Steak barbecues are set to resume, with the first planned for April 21st. Look for the barbecues on the third Saturday of every month until the cold weather arrives in the fall. Cost is $14 for steak and all the trimmings. 

Hot lunch this coming Friday is cabbage roll casserole, with pineapple upside down cake for dessert.

Next wing night will be Friday, April 13th. After this, wing nights will be held the first Friday of  each month.

Cheers

 Thought of the week: A perfect summer day is when the sun is shining, the breeze is blowing, the birds are singing, and the lawn mower is broken. James Dent 

[…]

Since elected in 2004, I have heard from many constituents of SD & SG concerned with those who abuse our fair and generous immigration system. People reacted very strongly to ships showing up on Canada’s shores with 400-500 supposed refugees aboard. Many of my colleagues reported receiving the same feedback from Canadians across the country. That is why I am happy to report that the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, Jason Kenney, listened to concerned citizens and introduced the Protecting Canada’s Immigration System Act, to crack down on this abuse. 

This legislation will restore integrity to our asylum system by making Canada’s refugee determination process faster and fairer, resulting in faster protection for legitimate refugees and faster removal for bogus claimants. Further, it will put a stop to foreign criminals, human smugglers, and bogus refugees abusing our generous immigration system and receiving lucrative taxpayer-funded healthcare and social benefits.  

There have been many stories in the news reporting on bogus refugees, serious criminals and those who have committed crimes against humanity exploiting Canada’s generosity and taking advantage of our refugee system. This type of abuse means that legitimate refugees have to wait in line while resources are used on these bogus claims. These bogus refugees aren’t actually fleeing from persecution, but seek to take advantage of Canada’s refugee system to receive our taxpayer-funded healthcare, welfare and other benefits. As soon as they land in Canada, they are eligible for many taxpayer-funded benefits and can receive these until their bogus claims are thrown out. This legislation aims to fix this problem.

I believe this legislation will give overworked immigration officials the tools they require to protect legitimate refugees and get them the help they need while at the same time, quickly removing claimants that abuse our generosity. 

 

Guy Lauzon 

Member of Parliament

Stormont-Dundas-South Glengarry

[…]

Changes were made to the South Dundas 2012 budget since The Leader’s March 14th report.

Following is a list of pertinent points from the completed budget which is expected to be passed by council at the March 20th meeting which took place after press time.

According to Treasurer Shannon Geraghty, the “final 2012 budget represents a 5.37 per cent or $253,611.08 increase in municipal levy in comparison to 2011.”

“Operating expenses in comparison to 2011 have increased 0.90 per cent or $79,005, whereas revenue increased by 5.61 per cent or $292,292 mainly due to unfinanced capital outlay transfers along with an increase in interest revenue on outstanding tax arrears.”

“The capital in comparison from 2011 has increased in 2012 by $466,899 or 39.22 per cent,” he continued. 

“Capital projects included in the 2012 final budget:

•Micro Surface 16.5 kilometres of roads which include Flagg Road, Broken Second Road, Salmon & Grace Road, and Pleasant Valley Road;

•3.0 kilometres of partial reconstruction of Savings Street;

•Winchester District Memorial Hospital Pledge;

•Playground equipment at Coyle Drive, Winchester Springs and Rowan Drive;

•$500,000 allocated to the Fleet Replacement Program;

•Dispatch services and equipment for the fire department;

•SCBA Compressor Block;

•Emergency generator for all fire stations; and,

•Phase two of Parlow Road construction which includes base only.”

Geraghty continued, “the total levy requirements for 2011 resulted in an amount of $4,721,453 for the township whereas the 2012 final budget requirements presented to council represent an amount of $4,975,065.”

“The residential tax rate for the township will decrease by 1.49 per cent, as a result of the final year of assessment phase-in.”

“The average 2012 assessment of $156,634 equates to a 2011 average assessment of $149,040.” 

“A residential property with the average assessment change from 2011 to 2012 of 5.06 per cent will pay 50 cents more per week or a total of $25.87 in township taxes in 2012.” 

“Township has maintained an overall good financial position with healthy reserves and insignificant debt,” he concluded, the “majority is being paid by benefitting landowners.”

[…]

At the March 6th South Dundas council meeting, Don Lewis, Planning and Enforcement Manager, presented council with SAI Engineering’s three options for the relocation of the Broken Second Drain in Iroquois. 

Lewis recommended council choose option two whereby the west section of the drain would be relocated along the south side of County Road 2, costing approximately $20,800.

Mayor Steven  Byvelds said, “I disagree with your report. I would go with option three. It would save a lot of work, save a lot of construction, and save a lot of maintenance down the road.”

In the end, after some deliberation, council chose not to follow Lewis’s recommendation, but instead went with the least expensive option whereby the ditch will be relocated perpendicular  to County Road 2. The cost estimate for this option is $1,600.

[…]