Lakefield Herald Special Report

Curbside garbage removal contract approved in North Kawartha

by Doug Hutton

North Kawartha Council approved the contract with BFI Canada for the removal of recyclables and garbage during its January 22 meeting.

Mayor Jim Whelan asked about the use of the service during the winter months. He said he has received calls about the truck travelling on private roads when there are no residents there in the winter.

Deputy Mayor Barry Rand also asked if there were possible savings that could be gained by reducing the off-season service.

Consideration was given to altering the schedule to pick up containers one week and fibres the next, or eliminating the off-season service entirely.

Council concluded that there was no viable solution that would not confuse residents and create complaints and left the procedure unchanged.

Mount Julian Wharf

The Township has been approached by Randy Hinton, Captain of the Kawartha Spirit cruise boat, who is interested in discussing an agreement for the use of the Mount Julian wharf.

Mr. Hinton has operated Fenelon Falls cruises for over 23 years and is considering moving the cruise boat to Mount Julian.

Council felt that this is an economic benefit to the community and instructed staff to prepare an agreement for council’s review.

Zoning Bylaw

Council discussed some of the changes made to the Comprehensive Zoning Bylaw following the public meeting in November. Chief Building Inspector and Bylaw Enforcement Official Tim Powell said that the suggestions had been evaluated and many had been incorporated into the current version. A few of the issues were discussed in detail:

(a) Boathouses over water: Mr. Powell stated that the Township’s views had not changed. The Township’s view is that it has no jurisdiction over the water therefore boathouses built over the water should be the responsibility of other agencies.

He said that prior to the 1996 downsizing of the provincial government, there were requirements for provincial permits for many types of projects. After the downsizing, the permits were not required.

Mr. Powell said that he thought that the Township “should not touch the boathouse issue”. He also added that there is pending litigation on the matter that “we’ll have to have due regard for.”

(b) NORKLA, and a couple of others, proposed that the minimum lakefront lot width be increased from 150 feet to 200 feet. Mr. Powell said that the county is “pretty well split” on the issue.

He advised council that if the decision is made to change the limit to 200 feet, another public hearing will have to be held.

Deputy Mayor Barry Rand said that he was not concerned about a delay that would arise from making the change to 200 feet, but he said that “this issue was talked about pretty significantly…as part of the original draft. I don’t think that there is new information here that would justify taking another look at this through the public process.”

Council decided to recognize the 150 foot width in the draft document.

(c) The 30 metre setback, in the county’s official plan was recognized. Mayor Jim Whelan asked Mr. Powell about Havelock-Belmont-Methuen which made a change to their OP that allows for a different setback depending on the date a lot was created.

Mr. Powell said that he is aware of this, but he is also aware that HBM approved the change before the county ever saw the document. The county’s OP states that the minimum setback is 30 metres, however, Mr. Powell said that there is the option of a landowner to seek approval of a “non-conforming status” when warranted.

(d) There was a suggestion to implement a vegetation zone. Mr. Powell stated that if this is implemented, a tree-cutting policy has to be put in place or site plan controls have to be placed on every property.

He said that council has considered this since 1994, but “there’s never been any consistency on how the Township would deal with this effectively”.

The draft document is on the Township’s website (www.northkawartha.on.ca) under Building, Planning By-Law Enforcement, Planning Information and Applications.

Council agreed to review the entire document again, advise those who have made submissions, and to hear a deposition from NORKLA. The draft plan will be discussed again at the first meeting in March.

Community Planning Committee

Councillor Carolyn Amyotte reported on the activities of the Community Planning Committee. The committee is recommending that council pass a bylaw approving the use of ATVs on Township roads.

Council had received a staff report in July on the matter, but wanted an ATV club to be formed first.

Councillor Arnie Brown said that the ATVs are being used anyway and is “all for the use of ATV’s”.

Ms. Amyotte suggested that a bylaw could be passed for a year to monitor its impact.

Deputy Mayor Barry Rand said that he would like to see a by-law passed as long as it indemnifies the Township from any possible liabilities. Council asked staff to prepare a draft by-law for consideration at a future meeting.

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