Dear
Citizens, Spring, 2014
Establish
Training Centre in Greenstone $3.5 M
FedNor Minister Greg
Rickford and Ontario Northern Development and Mines Minister Michael Gravelle
were in Greenstone this week to announce $3.5 million in funding to help address
regional labour needs and realize employment opportunities.
The Government of Canada
and the Ontario Government will each invest $1,750,000 to enable the Geraldton
Community Forest (GCF) to build a regional skills training centre at the
Greenstone airport. The facility, which will serve as a hub for regional labour
force training opportunities, will house 10 training rooms, a series of meeting
rooms, a computer lab and offices. GCF is a not-for-profit organization whose
goals include creating employment opportunities that support the local
economy.
Identified as a regional
priority, this strategic initiative is expected to create or retain 27 jobs, as
well as another 30 construction jobs.
“Given our relative proximity to the Ring
of Fire, this facility will help us meet the labour force needs right here in
our own region while accommodating external training program providers.
Ultimately, by enhancing the skills of area residents, it will make it easier
for businesses to establish or expand their operations and create jobs in this
region.”
Of interest to the residents of Nakina who receive or have ideas on the
matter of the removal of windrows, I stated at Council on January 20th that the
input received on any proposed changes or considerations in the current windrow policy, need to be
considered and either adopted, amended or rejected BEFORE the motions come back
to Council. Therefore, the request made by the Nakina seniors to have influence
in how the two motions will be dealt with, is still possible at least by
influencing the Nakina ward councillor. As I have stated before in public
meetings where there has been discussion on this service, I will support the
continuation of this service. I will remain open to ways in which we can
improve the service to qualified seniors and also consider incorporating the
suggestions received through the deputations but I will not simply support the
elimination of this service to qualified residents.
This time of year reflects the many aspects of preparing the Municipal budget including reviewing
levels of services provided including the operation of day cares and arenas,
snow removal including the review of windrow clearing for seniors, capital
purchases of equipment, road and bridge repairs to name a few. Currently
serving as Chair of the Finance and Administration committee, we will be
meeting over the next few weeks to review the existing policy on council
remuneration, outstanding taxes, water / sewer billing model, OPP policing
costs, and fiscal sustainability planning. The number of meetings increases
during budget discussions as members of council will be included in daytime
meetings with Municipal staff on the necessary planning. This past year,
Council met 49 times which does not include the ad hoc, sub committee meetings
or workshops / conferences. I continue to serve on the Admin. & Finance and
IT committees as well representing Greenstone on The Thunder Bay District
health Unit. Last week at the Health Unit Annual General Meeting, I accepted a
nomination to serve on the Executive of The TBDHU.
The Ontario Provincial
Police are proposing a new billing model for charging municipalities for
policing services, starting in 2015; the current billing model is a deployment
model, in which cost recovery is based on percentage of detachment workload,
actual detachment staffing levels, wages and benefits, and a cost recovery
component for other expenditures, which model has been in place for over 15
years. The OPP have advised that 73% of their costs are fixed (i.e. base costs)
and 27% are variable;
The actual specifics of the
cost for calls for service have not been released or calculated, the OPP have
estimated that the average cost per household in Ontario for policing services,
including both the base cost and the calls for service, would be approximately
$369.00;
This model would see the OPP
costs for the Municipality of Greenstone increase 52% for the
3036 households in the municipality, from $306.00 per household
under the current funding model to $575.00 for the average total cost per
household. This new funding model proposal is fundamentally flawed, unfair
and unequitable. Mayor Beaulieu and I will join with many other municipalities
to lobby the Ministers and Premier at OGRA in February to oppose this
deployment model.
Greenstone has requested meetings with the following Ministries at the OGRA Conference:
Aboriginal Affairs (Cooperative Development with Matawa
First Nations for Ring of Fire)
Energy (Priority Transmission Line to Ring
of Fire East of Lake Nipigon)
Natural Resources (Greenstone Sawmills &
Caramat/Manitouwadge Road
Northern Development and Mines (Greenstone Sawmills
& Transmission Line to Ring of Fire East of Lake Nipigon)
The 2nd Grow
Greenstone Expo is on March 17th and 18th Details
can be found at:
http://www.growgreenstoneexpo.com/
Andy MacFarlane, formerly from Greenstone and a teacher and hockey coach from Whale
Cove, Hockey Nunavut, joined Council via Skype last Monday. The interest of his
idea and support has drawn National attention and a stir of support from within
Greeenstone to bring his hockey team from
Nunuvat to Greenstone for a series of hockey games during the week of March
17th. Below are several links pointing to the publicity received to date. Way
to go ANDY!!!
City TV Breakfast television
https://www.facebook.com/groups/182596075270746/
Happiness in Hockey
(Facebook)
Businesses in Greenstone are kicking in with free
hockey bags, sweaters, jackets, accommodation and tickets to see the Winnipeg
Jets. Almost $22,000 has been raised to date.
After years of ‘pushing, pulling and tugging’ we have brought a Tourism Co-ordinator, Saidie Gross to
our team. Sadie has hit the ground running addressing a new and desperately
needed “Signage program” and an overarching “Greenstone Tourism Strategy.”
I am feeling good about our new
website municipal incorporating a business relationship with iCompass using
Civicweb and Agenda Notes to improve the way we can manage, archive and use our
agenda and supporting documents in one App. I’ve enjoyed bringing my IT
interest to the table of discussions which have brought about some significant
changes in the past three years where new hardware acquisitions have allowed us
to do our jobs better and more efficiently.
The Nakina Restaurant opportunity is still front and center in our
attempts to find a restauranteur at:
http://www.investingreenstone.ca/ Have
spoken with some parties, but no deal yet.
I continue to post periodic news items and information on Facebook which is searchable
under ‘Greenstone Matters’ for the past year as well on my blog located at: http://jay-- daiter.blogspot.com/ Posting here provides more exposure to issues
/ interests related to the Nakina Ward and all of Greenstone and invites
feedback from a broad readership.
Regards & Stay Warm,
Jay Daiter,
Nakina
Ward Councillor,
Municipality
of Greenstone
