Council Info - November 8, 2023

The following is a summary of major discussion items presented at Council on November 8, 2023. Please refer to the website for the complete and official records of the meeting including consent agenda items, motions of Council, communications, detailed reports, and attachments.

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• Council meeting

• Committee of Adjustment

Minor Variance Application

Applicant: Ahmed Harb, 27 Red Cedar Dr. S

Planning Report: A-2023-032

The Bruce County Planner explained the report and recommendation. Any comments received from Agencies and the Public received by the time of writing the report are in the written report.

• Decision sheet

The Committee of Adjustment approved the Minor Variance A-2023-032 for Ahmad Harb for the property described as 27 Red Cedar Drive South to permit the reconstruction of an existing single detached dwelling with a front yard setback of 1.58 m, a lot coverage of 25%, and relief from the EP Zone provisions to permit the installation of a Class 4 residential septic system subject to the conditions on the decision sheet.

Applicant: Tim & Vanje Watson, 3 Lois Street (Tiverton)

Planning Report: A-2023-043

The Bruce County Planner explained the report and recommendation. Any comments received from Agencies and the Public received by the time of writing the report are in the written report.

• Decision sheet

The Committee of Adjustment approved the Minor Variance A-2023-043 for Tim and Vanje Watson for the property described as 3 Lois Street, to permit an accessory structure in the front / exterior yard with a reduced side yard setback of 5.8 metres on the subject lands, subject to the conditions on the decision sheet.

Council Meeting

Applicant: Breymark Homes - Maple Street, Tiverton

Planning Report: S-2023-004 and Z-2023-023

The Bruce County Planner explained the report and recommendation. Any comments received from Agencies and the Public received by the time of writing the report are in the written report.

At the public meeting, Council heard presentations from the Applicant and the Public and Council had the opportunity to ask questions and seek clarification.

No decision was rendered at this time. Council will consider the application at a future meeting.

Delegations and Presentations

Stephen Rouse, Airport Update

Stephen Rouse, Airport Manager for the Kincardine Airport, provided an update on the airport.  

Matters for Discussion and Direction

Staff Reports

Draft Plan of Subdivision S-2022-004 and Zoning By-law Amendment Z-2022-054 (Fast Holdings Ltd.)

The applicant is proposing to develop 8.55 ha of land in Tiverton into a new 88 residential unit subdivision comprising of:

• 26 single detached dwelling lots;
• 22 semi-detached dwelling lots;
• 40 townhouse dwelling lots;
• 1 open space block;
• 1 stormwater management block;
• 1 stormwater conveyance block;
• 2 temporary road / future development blocks;
• 1 lot addition; and
• An internal road network with three accesses to Maple Street. 

Council sent notice to the County of Bruce Approval Authority, to approve Draft Plan of Subdivision S-2022-004 by Fast Holdings Ltd. in accordance with the Draft Plan and Conditions of Draft Approval.

Council approved Zoning By-law Amendment Z-2022-054 by Fast Holdings Ltd. and resolved that no further notice is necessary with respect to the minor change in the proposed Zoning By-law Amendment in accordance with the provisions of Section 34(17) of the Planning Act.

IT Services Agreement, -2023-31

In 2022, the Municipal Innovation Council (MIC) initiated a Joint IT Business Analysis Review, engaging GHD Digital to support the review and develop an IT strategy. The MIC’s member municipalities identified that improving IT service delivery was a key area that needed to be explored further and recognized an opportunity to benefit from an IT shared services model.

The Municipality of Kincardine currently has one employee dedicated to IT. There is a need to increase our IT human resources in order to better protect the Municipality from security risk, as well as to simply keep up with day to day demands on IT including help desk and troubleshooting, procurement, application support, etc. The Municipality has seen significant expansion in the number of applications and IT systems being deployed across the organization, and the current IT staffing is unsustainable.

In an effort to mitigate this risk, Municipal and County staff have explored the idea of an IT Services Agreement that was first introduced in the Joint IT Business Analysis Review. After several months of discussion and investigation into this model, an agreement has been drafted and is attached for Council’s consideration.

Council approved the attached IT Services Agreement with the County of Bruce; and further that the Base Cost of $100,000 be included in the draft 2024 budget.

2023 Budget Amendment Dredging, Parks Facilities-2023-19

As part of the 2023 budget deliberations, Council approved $150,000 for the purposes of dredging the Kincardine Marina. With an extended approval process through the Department of Fisheries and Oceans due to fish habitant, dredging could not occur in 2023 as originally anticipated. Since that time, further investigation has revealed that the costs have increased significantly due to further investigation of the degree of silt that has accumulated within the Marina basin.

Council approved a budget amendment of an additional $167,505 for the purposes of dredging the Kincardine Marina, for a total project cost of $317,505 and that, the project will  be funded from the Marina Reserve Fund 69 ($74,000), Kincardine Yacht Club financial contribution of ($85,000) and through the 2024 Marina Operating Budget ($158,505).

Budget Amendment Fuel Tanks, Parks Facilities-2023-20 

The existing gas and diesel, below-ground fuel tanks are 33 years of age. Life expectancy on fuel tanks is less than 30 years due to risk perspective. Due to unexpected insurance requirements, the tanks are required to be replaced prior to the 2024 boating season to ensure compliancy and insurance coverage.

Council approved a 2023 budget amendment in the amount of $328,000 for the removal and installation of above-ground fuel tanks located at the Kincardine Marinathat will  be funded through any balance remaining in the Marina RF 69 such that this fund in is depleted entirely (estimated at $150,000); and that the estimated unfunded portion remaining of ($178,000) be funded by a repayment of the annual Marina profits until the amount is repaid in full (estimated at 3 - 4 years payback).

Expansion of the Kincardine Water Supply System and Treatment Plant Schedule ‘C’ EA Update, Environmental Services-2023-43 

This report provides a summary of the Expansion of the Kincardine Water Supply System and Treatment Plant Schedule C Municipal Class Environmental Assessment to date, and identifies the next steps required for moving forward with the issuance Notice of Environmental Study Report (ESR) to start the 30-day public review period.

Council directed staff to issue the Notice of Expansion of the Kincardine Water Supply System and Treatment Plant Schedule C Municipal Class Environmental Assessment Environmental Study Report (ESR) for public review.

Roach Mutual Agreement Drain, Environmental Services-2023-38

In 2020, a request was made under Section 2 of the Drainage Act and requested to the Municipality for consideration. This request was forwarded to the Drainage Superintendent for review and determination of boundaries and watershed area. This process indicated four private property owners who would benefit from the drainage works, and the Municipality of Kincardine as well. The process of starting a Mutual Agreement Drain commenced which concluded in October 2023.

Council accepted the Mutual Agreement Drain (MAD) report as provided and passed a By-law to authorize the Agreement.

The Use and Installation of Community Safety Zones and Traffic Calming Implementation Policy, Operations-2023-25

The Municipality of Kincardine receives several requests each year to install Community Safety Zones and Traffic Calming measures in neighbourhoods. Unfortunately, the Municipality is unable to accommodate all the requests within current resources, nor are all locations suitable for community safety zones and/or traffic calming. Staff are proposing that Council support a standardized approach to addressing community safety zones and traffic calming requests submitted for review.

The Use and Installation of Community Safety Zones outlines how they are selected for review and outlines the implementation process and characteristics of selected segments of roadway where they are designated.

The proposed Traffic Calming Implementation Policy details the Municipality’s:

• Process for receiving, evaluating, and responding to traffic calming requests;
• Evaluation methodology for determining if traffic calming is appropriate for a given street;
• List of applicable traffic calming measures

Council deferred making a decision on this motion for four weeks.  This report will come back to Council for consideration at that time.

Traffic and Parking By-Law Amendment, Operations-2023-24

Staff are recommending updates to the existing Traffic and Parking By-law to confirm the following;

• Dates for maintenance of dedicated bike lanes, including Huron Terrace- Broadway to Saratoga, Queen St- Durham Market S to Bruce Ave, Bruce Ave- Princes to Park St. for May 1 to October 31.
• Identify that where the lane of a road has been designated for the use of bicycles, no person shall park, stand or stop in the bike lane along the marked roadway.
• Confirm that mobility scooters are not permitted on dedicated, marked bike lanes.
• Identification of no parking in the following areas: at guard rails on Farrell Drive, at Greenfield Energy; at the circle located at the dead-end of Hunter Street; at the South end of Birchwood Ave; at Alma/Jordan no parking for a portion of the year (winter months); at Huron Terrace and Gary Street by townhouses; and at Mahood-Johnston along both sides from the Fire Hall to Bruce Ave.
• Confirm accessible parking on Queen Street be updated to reflect the changes after Queen Street construction.
• Additional crossovers on Bruce Avenue, at Princes Street and also Park Street to be included.
• Confirm speed on residential roads to be reduced to 40 kilometers per hour, with exceptions, which include: Albert Street, Broadway Street, Farrell Drive, Kuhener Street, Kincardine Ave, Lorne Beach Road, Queen Street, Scotts Point Road, Sutton Street, Upper Lorne Beach Road. Victoria Street to be reduced to 30 kilometers per hour. Institute Road to be reduced to 20 kilometers per hour.
• Addition of Stop sign at the intersection of Lambton and Saugeen Streets.
• Removal of the drop off zone on Queen in front of the Art’s Centre; as reconstruction has converted this area into parallel parking.
• Addition of a drop off zone along River Lane by the high school on the west side.

Council passed the amendments as set out in Report Operations-2023-34 to the Traffic and Parking By-law No. 2019-165 as amended to remove that mobility scooters are not permitted on dedicated, marked bike lanes This portion will be brought back to a future meeting after consultation with the Accessibility Advisory Committee.

Notice of Motion - Prior to the Meeting

Moved by: Mike Hinchberger

Seconded by: Doug Kennedy

Whereas the Integrated Strategy 2.0 contains Focus Area C: Enhancing quality of life; and

Whereas this focus area includes Strategic Objective 9: Enhance the experience at the lakefront; and

Whereas this focus area also includes Strategic Objective 8: Create vibrant parks, green space, recreation facilities and programs for residents or visitors of all ages and abilities; and

Whereas this strategic objective includes Action 8.5: Enhance pedestrian and cycling amenities to improve active and safe transportation networks;

Whereas it is recognized that the value of having active transportation networks extends to all seasons; and

Whereas the completion of Project 9165 Durham St/Lambton St/Saugeen St (Parent) resulted in the construction of a multi-use asphalt surface running parallel to Saugeen Street on the West side of the roadway between Durham Street and Lambton Street, and there being no other sidewalk for pedestrian travel along this section of Saugeen Street; and

Whereas there is also a multi-use asphalt surface running in a North-South direction through an unopened road allowance between Dunsmoor and MacPherson Parks, connecting Lambton Street and Harbour Street; and

Whereas many pedestrians use these routes in all seasons in an active transportation capacity, for reasons that include the enjoyment of the experience at the lakefront; and 

Council directed Staff to consider these two (2) sections of asphalt surface to be sidewalks during the period of NOV15 – APR 15 annually; and included in the municipal winter maintenance program for sidewalks during this period of time.

Consent Agenda

Items listed under the Consent Agenda are considered routine and are enacted in one motion as a Matter Arising. The exception to this rule is that a Council member or the Chief Administrative Officer may request one or more items to be removed from the consent agenda for separate discussion and action.

Administrative Motions

Statistical and Information Reports

Recommendation: Receive and file statistical reports.

Finance Statement of Operations - to 10/30/23

Finance Capital Variance Report - To 10/30/23

Water Testing Program, Environmental Services-2023-42

Environmental Services Compliance Report September and October 2023, Environmental Services-2023-40

The intent of this report is to inform Council of any compliance related issues and general information from the Environmental Services Department for the months of September and October 2023.

Integrity Commissioner Service Proposal, Legislative Services-2023-25

The Municipality of Kincardine appointed the firm of Aird & Berlis LLP as the Municipality’s Integrity Commissioner. This appointment expires on December 31, 2023. This is a background report on the Request for Proposal process to appoint an Integrity Commissioner for 2024-2026.

Closed Meeting

Mayor Craig reported that a closed session had been held and the Closed minutes of the October 25, 2023 meeting were approved, and council held discussions for the purpose of a trade secret or scientific, technical, commercial or financial information that belongs to the Municipality or Local Board and has monetary value or potential monetary value, (Integrity Commissioner) and personal matters about an identifiable individual (Physician Recruitment Update).

Staff were directed to place a by-law on the open meeting agenda at the November 22, 2023 meeting to consideration the appointment of an Integrity Commissioner.

Direction was provided to staff in the closed session regarding physician recruitment agreements. Staff were directed to place a by-law on the open meeting agenda for consideration of a new physician recruitment agreement.

Council considered and approved the Dr. Pamela Gill Physician Recruitment Agreement By-law.