Taxes

Kincardine TimesBy Liz Dadson

Despite facing a six-per-cent increase in its own levy, Huron-Kinloss council has approved the draft 2010 budget for the Saugeen Valley Conservation Authority (SVCA).

At the council meeting Monday night (Jan. 18), there was little discussion. However, at the Jan. 11 committee meeting, councillor Anne Eadie explained that the overall SVCA budget increase was only two per cent. The general levy increase was 1.48 per cent which equals $19,327. … continue reading »

By Liz Dadson

The announcement of the 2010 allocations through the Ontario Municipal Partnership Fund brought good news for Huron-Kinloss council.

The township stood to lose $647,500 in provincial grants next year, but treasurer Jodi MacArthur said Monday night (Dec. 21) that the province has implemented transitional assistance to ensure municipalities receive at least 80 per cent of their 2009 allocations… continue reading »

Mitch Twolan:

We have serious concerns about the direction this project is taking. There is a short term road-flooding problem in a few defined areas and the project as described seems to be beyond what is needed and may not be environmentally and fiscally responsible.

Short-circuiting the natural drainage process with its slow but effective filtration through the sandy soil between the road and the lake can only introduce more pollutants and debris into the lake water. Small filters in the drainage pipeline cannot hope to duplicate the effectivness of slow seepage through the ground, and will require on-going maintenance. At the very least, a full environmental assessment should be made, although it is always difficult to predict the full impact of interrupting natural processes: the larger the change, the greater the potential problems.

The last estimated cost we heard for this project was $300,000 (and this was before the addition of the filters). As huge as this number seems, it is unlikely that a project of this magnitude could be brought in for this amount. Also, the on-going cost for maintaining the pipe and filters cannot be ignored.

Installing the pipeline under the gravel will require prolonged and major inconvenience on a road that is so narrow that it is difficult for two cars to pass under normal conditions. ( As an aside, it is difficult to envision how the drains will allow the flood water to get from the top of the road to the pipe without bringing in significant amounts of gravel.) Digging the pipe trench could disrupt roots and kill roadside trees along the way. This could also mean digging on private property where it directly meets the road in some areas. … continue reading »

First of all, on behalf of the Board of Directors of WRAFT, I want to apologize for the recent lack of communication from the organisation We have been busy implementing the association of WRAFT and FOCA and ensuring that the takeover of administrative responsibilities has gone smoothly.

While WRAFT and FOCA remain two separate legal entities, FOCA and specifically FOCA’s Executive Director Terry Rees is now the spokesman and administrative head of WRAFT. Terry can be reached at trees@foca.on.ca or by telephone at 705-749-3622 or on his cell at 705-927-4455. Bob Topp has retired as WRAFT’s Executive Director but remains as a Director of WRAFT and continues to follow WRAFT matters closely. Bob may be reached at bobtopp1@gmail.com or by telephone at 416-929-9885 and during the summer at 705 732 2094. Bob is also Chair of CAPTR-_the Coalition After Property Tax Reform. Mail for CAPTR should be addressed to Bob at 84 Poplar Plains Cres. Toronto M4V 1E8. WRAFT maintains its own budget and separate Board of Directors while paying a service fee to FOCA for administrative services.… continue reading »