Spring News 2009


Well it looks like another blustery winter is finally behind us and I am certain everyone is thinking about another summer season at the cottage. The ice on the lake was pretty well gone by April 18th a couple of days earlier than last year.

Our CAO/Clerk Earl Evans left us on April 3rd to pursue the Deputy Clerk's position for the City of Brampton. Earl contributed much to the organization and we were sorry to see him leave. However, on an interim basis we have an Acting CAO/Clerk until a permanent replacement can be found.

At our Council meeting on April 22nd we approved the Municipality's 2009 budget, resulting in a 0.5% increase. Council feels that this is a good budget and recognizes the current economic times.

We did a reorganization of the Fire Department and have hired a new Fire Chief (Don Hindle). Don brings considerable administrative experience to the Magnetawan Fire Department. His appointment was effective April 8th. Don was 10 years with the Township of McKellar Fire Department and had progressed from Firefighter to Deputy Fire Chief and later to Fire Chief.

We submitted a proposal for infrastructure funding to the Federal Government, which was accepted, to redo South Sparks Street from the new bridge to South Street. This will involve new drainage (which will eliminate the deep ditch), curbing, sidewalks, street lighting and a new paved surface. Construction of this project will start around the 15th of August to minimize the inconvenience during the summer and we are hoping to have it completed by the end of October.

A new landfill site costs millions of dollars to develop and our current sites will not last forever, therefore we must be more conscientious in our recycling efforts to extend the life of our current sites.

To this end, the Chapman and Croft landfills will be reengineered to reinforce our recycling efforts. The Chapman site will be completed by June 15th and the Croft site will be completed in 2010. New landfill cards will be issued and must be presented to the landfill gate attendant for entry. New bins will be installed and you will no longer be able to throw your household waste over the edge. It will be placed in a bin and transferred by the landfill attendant to an appropriate area in the landfill. A letter detailing the changes and your new Landfill Card will be sent to you in May of this year. We are hoping to have a public meeting on May 30th to discuss the Sparks street improvement and the changes at the landfill sites.

Once again this year, we will be celebrating Canada Day at the Centennial Park on Wednesday July 1st. The Recreation Committee will be providing refreshments, games and entertainment from 1:00pm to 4:00pm hope you can attend.

The Magnetawan Central School is up for review this year and we made a presentation to representatives of the Ministry of Education and Training during the Good Roads and ROMA conference in Toronto in February. Our presentation covered the importance of retaining schools in rural areas and how they contribute to the sustainability of rural towns and communities . In addition, there will be a 60th anniversary celebration of Magnetawan Central School on September 26, 2009.

We joined a group of southern Ontario communities along with Armour, Ryerson and the Village of Burk's Falls who are rallying the Ontario Government to develop a strategy for rural hospitals in Ontario. This is being done in an effort to support the retention of the Burk's Falls Health Centre, the services that they offer and to reinstate those services that they have discontinued, such as after hours emergency treatment . The rally took place on April 29th in Toronto.

Please remember to ensure that you have a working smoke detector in your home or cottage.

Thank you for your continued support and my best wishes for a safe and enjoyable season at the lake.



Yours sincerely,

Dick Smith

Mayor

Municipality of Magnetawan Newsletter