Council Meeting November 2020

The township of Schreiber council meeting for November continued to be held without any public attendance. COVID 19 cases are on the rise in Northwestern Ontario and it would seem that for the foreseeable future, council meetings will continue to be streamed but the public will not be allowed in to the council chambers. Unfortunately there have been a few technical snags in recent months which have had the effect of not all meetings being streamed. 

After last months debate on whether or not to pass a motion allowing the township to make a donation to the golf course in Terrace Bay, the amount of one thousand dollars was offered.
Moving ahead to the committee of the whole it was discussed as to the merits of replacing the rescue truck of the fire department. Fire marshal Jan Morrison proposed the idea to council and it was agreed to proceed with the replacement. There was not much news in the treasurers report with only a request for a renewal of the contract for a new  printer and a quote for an increase in cost for the auditors. The director of operations report mentioned the need for an assessment of electrical upgrades to the sewer plant.

The economic development report suggested that council look into hiring a consultant to assess community revitalization and to create an investment attraction plan. The hope is that a proper plan might offer guidance into going forward with economic development and future growth. This would be funded by Fed Nor at a cost of sixty thousand dollars. Another concept in the works would be the production of a promotional video highlighting the township of Schreiber. The recreation programmer report was brought in but since the creation of the report there has been concern that the province might be clamping down on recreation facilities due to the increase of COVID 19 cases in the area. It would seem that we are heading into a potential second wave shutdown of municipal services similar to what happened in the spring of this year. The festival committee report highlighted the need for more volunteers to aid in planning future events, including the annual Christmas tree and house decoration contests. 

The bylaw enforcement report led to yet another discussion of how penalties are enforced, including amounts for fines. Some of the restrictions seem to be poorly thought out, for example specifying the number of inches a car can park from a curb but no mention of how much snow is considered a nuisance and what might happen in the event of blowing snow. All these bylaws seem to be a reaction to a perceived liability and might be challenged. The updated wildlife bylaw is so vague as to not include small birds such as hummingbirds but focusses on bears and pigeons. The current wording implies that bird feeders will be outlawed.

Next up was the proposal of an increase to sewage bills to allow for the possibility of the town having to foot the bill for sewer plant upgrades as a matter of compliance. 

A motion to upgrade the live streaming services was rejected as it was felt the current system, which has proven unreliable, would suffice. Finally it was decided to make changes to how the Christmas lights contest would be altered and prizes distributed.