Schreiber Council Invites Public to Attend Budget Bylaw Meeting.

A public meeting was scheduled as part of this week’s council meeting in Schreiber. The meeting was meant to update residents on the intention to pass a budget bylaw, essentially a yearly bylaw that allows the council to introduce its budget and receive feedback from residents. No one attended. 

The meeting started with the usual land acknowledgement and moved into an approval of the agenda. The meeting was reconvened to the public forum and a quick explanation was given to the intent of the bylaw. Mayor Mullins then reopened the regular meeting. There were no delegations present and no questions for the question period. The meeting then moved on to adopt the minutes of the previous meeting and then went on to discuss business arising from those minutes during the Committee of the Whole section. A report regarding excluded budget expenses was received.

A motion to approve the Application for the Inclusive Community grant to enable easier access to municipal buildings was carried.

Support for a resolution to a call to action for accessible communities was carried and all debit orders and accounts for payment were approved and ratified. It was suggested that credit card receipts provide more information.

The bylaw to set Tax Ratios for the 2024 year was brought forward and carried. The municipal operations expense report was presented and is part of the budget for the 2024 season.

A bylaw to establish residential taxation rates for this budget was also carried out after a short discussion which included a levy increase that was approved at the previous meeting. The Mayor asked the treasurer if she might know what an average tax bill would look like based on the average cost of houses in Schreiber. 

A bylaw to establish and maintain the waste management system in town was discussed. The bylaw pertains to the new collection system which will have to be implemented in July of this year. This bylaw includes recommendations for commercial collection fees and outlines procedures for residents. 

An agreement between the township and Northern Computers was presented. Northern Computers will be responsible for the new security and server updates to the town's computer systems and includes a maintenance aspect. The contract will include all municipal buildings including the library. Councillor McGrath had excused himself from that discussion to avoid a conflict of interest as his son is the head tech for Northern Computers.

The next item on the agenda was the approval of payment for a contract to Dykstra Knight Roofing for repairs at the municipal complex and the water treatment plant. Execution of a separate agreement was also enacted for work on the arena.

A bylaw to approve the contract to Extreme Exterior Finishing for repairs to the roof at the medical centre was approved. The majority of work will be carried out on a weekend to avoid disruption to the operation of the medical centre.

The agreement between the township and Clow Darling Limited was also approved. This is a maintenance agreement that is renewed annually for HVAC services.

The Committee of the Whole portion was next. The treasurer's report included transfers to the Recreation Committee and council expenses and remuneration. 

The director of operations report gave an update to council on ongoing projects. Waste disposal for commercial clients centred around access to the new service schedule. Water treatment plant issues were also discussed including work on the water clarifier. The operating hours for the splash pad were discussed to minimize water use when fewer people are using the facility. Water quality in general was also discussed centred around problems and regulations. 

Next was the discussion of the pickleball court proposal. Pickle Ball has become more popular and the current court can not supply the demand for players. More courts at the arena have been proposed but there is concern over the correct way to paint the courts without affecting the floors. A fee for non-seniors will also be established.

The contract to maintain and water the hanging plants was awarded.

The Rec programmer report focussed on the upcoming July 1st and Heritage Days events. The clerk then summarized the budget expenses for the Heritage Day events. Both events take place in July so a lot of work goes into the planning. Council voted to accept the plan and the recreation department will proceed with organizing both events.

Under Communications, a brief discussion took place regarding new vacancies in the Collingwood housing complex. 

NOSH has also requested support for their upcoming marathon event.

Unfinished Business focussed on confirming the delegation and short-listing the ministries the council wishes to address at the upcoming AMO conference.

The attention then turned to drafting a policy to deal with Social Media usage and implementation.

Finally, the council spent some time discussing this year's upcoming Christmas Social.

The meeting then adjourned with the next meeting scheduled for June 11th.