News

Shamrocks and leprechauns and plenty of wearin’ o’ the green were evident at the annual St. Patrick’s Day tea and bazaar organized by the St. Mary’s and St. Cecilia’s Catholic Women’s League. 

The popular event was held at the Morrisburg Legion on Saturday, March 17, with close to 40 volunteers coming out to help.

Perfect spring weather brought many people out to enjoy shopping  as well as a home made lunch.

“We had plenty of baked goods for sale,” said CWL president Trudi McGinn, “as well as jams, jellies, candies and crafts for people to enjoy. Our plants table was popular with all this spring weather. We also offered many door prizes for visitors.”

The tea and bazaar, which has been around for well over 30 years, is a major fund raiser for the two parishes. 

“The money we bring in goes to lots of different things,” McGinn explained. 

“We support three higher education bursaries for local students. We also supply flowers to both our churches. Area charities like the Christmas Exchange are assisted by the CWL. The funds also help to support a family in India.”

Also on hand for the bazaar were members of the Knights of Columbus, who were offering raffle tickets on new vehicles in order to raise funds for the Arthritis Society.

Last year over 300 people came out to the bazaar, and organizers were hoping for a good crowd in 2012.

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At the February 29 meeting of the Golden Gears Car Club, an election was held to install the officers and directors of the newly revived car lovers organization. Deputy mayor of South Dundas, Jim Locke, was on hand to swear in the duly elected board and to outline for all club members the duties associated with each position. From the left are Jim Locke, Brian Erratt, 1st vice president, Henry Swank, president, Jim Millard, secretary, Ken Hasson, treasurer, Wayne Barkley, past president, Stephane Aube, director, Jeff Beaupre, membership chairman and Garry Tracey, director. Absent from the photo is Gaby Swank, public relations and communications chair person. The next general Meeting of the Golden Gears is Thursday, March 29, at 7:30 p.m. at the Iroquois Legion. New members are very welcome.

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The Morrisburg & District Lions Club recently inducted two members, a husband and wife team, at a general meeting of the club. Pictured above, l-r, are Lion Mae Pederson (sponsor for both new members), new Lion Jim Martin, new Lion Viviane Martin and Morrisburg & District Lions Club president Bob Bechard.

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On March 15th, Pastor Norine Gullons along with a few congregants met with Terry Triskle, vice-chair of the Dundas County Food Bank board, and Donna Quesnel, administrator for the food  bank. They were celebrating the recent $2,000 Synod Antipoverty Grant received by the food bank from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada, Eastern Synod as part of their Compassionate Justice initiative. The grant was issued to the food bank for their Newborn Necessities project for which the objective is “to meet the needs of those with young children coming to the food bank for emergency assistance by providing them with formula, baby food, and diapers.” According to Quesnel,  the Synod Antipoverty Grants received over the past five years have become pivotal to meeting babies’ needs locally.” Last year, in addition to the grant, the South Dundas Lutheran Fundraising concert raised approximately $450 for the food bank.

The Dundas County Food Bank is currently in need of the following: canned fruit and vegetables, canned pasta and pasta sauce, cereals and peanut butter, brown beans and kidney beans, canned tomatoes, Kraft Dinner, fruit cups, pudding cups, and bars of soap. Also needed: empty baby food jars, small jars, and juice bottles.

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During budget deliberations, South Dundas council learned that this year, 2012, marks the completion of a pledge commitment to the Winchester District Memorial Hospital (WDMH).

The final pledge installment of $70,000 will be paid to WDMH this year, thus ending 10 years of payments. With this year’s payment, South Dundas will have fulfilled its pledge of $700,000.

Treasurer Shannon Geraghty confirmed that 2012 is also the final year of a four year agreement with three doctors who have been practicing in South Dundas.

“The Township offered an incentive to new doctors coming to South Dundas in the form of $10,000 per year for four years with a return of service agreement between the doctor and the township.”

“Council reviews the need for the program on an annual basis as part of budget discussions,” he added.

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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.

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The Dundas Seed, Forage & Agricultural Show was held on March 9th at Matilda Hall in Dixon’s Corners. Exhibitors and visitors filled the hall from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Francis Henderson of Terrdale Farms won this year’s top spot, the Premier Exhibitor. His daughter, Tracy Porteous, accepted the award on his behalf. Kelly Fawcett-Mathers, a representative for  TD Canada Trust, sponsor of the award, presented the award to Porteous. The second award, Reserve Premier Exhibitor, and the third award, Premier Forage Exhibitor, both went to Ian and Tracy Porteous of Ayrporte Farm. 

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The Morrisburg High School will retain its architectural character and, at the same time, it will be home to new-age enhancements.

Once South Dundas council made the decision to ‘recycle’ the old Morrisburg High School  building, things quickly got underway and Colbourne & Kembel Architects Inc. were hired in the fall of 2011 to draw up plans for the project.

In terms of a timeline for the project, on March 8th, Chief Administrative Officer Stephen McDonald reported that “a tentative schedule is to have drawings complete by April 20th with the tender period commencing thereafter and running until June 5th. A recommendation will be made to council in June. The timeline to complete the renovations will be part of the tenders.”

The plan for the building is to keep as much of the original structure as possible, thus protecting a bit of South Dundas heritage.

At the same time, changes are being made inside and out to make the building safer, more user-friendly, and perhaps a bit more stylish.

As for the interior, according to McDonald, “the lower level (gym) is being filled in order to construct the main level that will house the medical clinic.”

“The main level currently exists on the north and south sides of the lower level. The main level will be extended across the existing gym to connect the existing north and south entrances.”

“The township offices are located on the second floor. Council chambers and municipal programming space is planned for the third floor.”

As for getting from the first floor to the third floor, McDonald has confirmed that “yes, an elevator is included in the plan. The brick portion in the centre  is the elevator.”

As for exterior additions, “the glass and spandrel panels (shown in the picture) are an addition,” he said.

The main front entrance of the Morrisburg Collegiate Institute will not actually be used as such when plans are completed. According to McDonald, “the existing entrance fronting on Ottawa Street is being maintained as an architectural feature to maintain the facade of the original building. The doors will be replaced by windows.”

The main entrance to the ‘new’ building will instead be located “under the canopy north of the elevator tower. This entrance will provide access to the entire building.”

Parking for the Institute will remain similar to what currently exists. “We plan on providing 75 parking spaces, mainly by utilizing existing asphalt areas. The existing parking area in front of the clinic and behind the high school will be utilized and the area that housed the outdoor rink will be used.”

The subject of what to call the new building came up during the March 5th, South Dundas budget meeting. It is most often referred to as simply ‘the old high school’ and, sometimes, by its original name, the Morrisburg Collegiate Institute. 

On March 8th, McDonald confirmed that the subject of building names hadn’t come up before the meeting and, at this point, there hasn’t been any indication, discussion, or decision made on what the building’s official name might be going forward.

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After two full days of deliberations, March 5th and March 12th, the South Dundas 2012 budget is now complete.

At the first meeting on March 5th, Mayor Steven Byvelds began by reminding council that “it’s still tough times out there.”

Chief Administrative Officer Stephen McDonald said, “our budget process is evolving every year. The municipality is in a good financial position with a healthy reserve.”

As for the 2012 budget, “it’s really a no-frills budget. There’s really nothing in this budget that’s not needed. The capital budget is up. That’s where most of the increase is located.”

According to Treasurer Shannon Geraghty, there is a 3.5 per cent increase, dollar for dollar, over last year’s budget. This year’s budget is $4,886,565 whereas last year, in 2011, the budget was $4,721,453.

In terms of money allocated for capital projects, last year council spent $1,190,214 on capital projects. This year, the budget for capital projects has increased to $1,657,113 with the bulk being taken up by the roads department ($1,532,361) and the fire department ($225,855).

The tax rate for South Dundas has gone down by 3.24 per cent.

This doesn’t mean that South Dundas resident’s taxes are going down by 3.24 per cent, however. Each home’s taxes are based on the MPAC (Municipal Propertay Assessment Corporation) as well as the combination of tax rates from three sources: South Dundas township; United Counties of Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry, and the school board.

Geraghty explained that “right now we’re looking at tax rates decreasing, but people will be paying more because their assessments (MPAC) are increasing.”

There is a 5.06 per cent average increase on assessments due to MPAC’s four-year phase in. If an individual’s assessment is over that percentage, they could see an increase. If their assessment is below that percentage, they could see a decrease.

According to Geraghty, last year’s average assessment was $149,090, which equated to $739.90 in taxes for the municipal portion of the tax bill. 

Following the same format this year, adding in the 5.06 per cent assessment increase, the average assessment for 2012 could be $156,634, which would equate to $752.15 in municipal taxes.

The Counties of SD&G council will meet for budget discussions again on  March 19th.

The South Dundas budget will be officially passed at the upcoming March 20th council meeting.

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On March 2nd, the St. Lawrence Parks Commission (SLPC) announced they would be taking back control of Farran Park in Ingleside from the township of South Stormont when the lease expires at the end of the month.

On March 9th, South Stormont Mayor Bryan McGillis told The Leader the decision came as a surprise and a disappointment. “Residents have expressed disappointment too,” he added. 

“St. Lawrence told us last week that they were going to take over the park,” said McGillis. “We were upset, but there’s nothing we could have done about it.”

“We’ve done everything we could. Nobody can say we didn’t try.”

McGillis referred to several attempts at reaching an affordable lease agreement with SLPC who, as McGillis pointed out, has a new procurement policy that doesn’t allow for long-term leases. “There wasn’t much in the way of negotiations,” he said.

A feeling of loss for the township is palpable when speaking with McGillis. “There’s an untapped resource here,” lamented McGillis. “The potential that we’re losing out on is significant.”

“There’s a lot of upset local residents that use the park. They felt it was more intimate with our own municipality running this park.”

During the March 9th discussion, disappointment remained at the forefront for McGillis. However, he also recognized the need for cooperation between South Stormont and SLPC saying, “their door is open and ours is too.”

“They assured us everything is going to run the status quo. Hopefully they’ll hire the same people.”

“They have a lot of ideas,” he continued. “Hopefully they’ll come to the conclusion of doing what they’ve said.”

And, “hopefully it works out in the long run for the betterment of the community.”

South Stormont has been responsible for the operation of Farran Park since July of 1990. As reported in the October 10, 1990 edition of The Leader, the park had been closed by SLPC due to “cost-cutting measures.”

Following a July invitation for bids on five of their parks, SLPC granted a long-term lease for Farran Park to South Stormont. 

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