Latest / North Shore News / October 11th, 2024

Transcript

October 11th, 2024 · North Shore News

• 0:00
  Welcome to North Shore News and Interviews on Amherst Island Radio.
• 0:12
  Each week we keep you updated on newsworthy events, happenings, and conversations that
• 0:18
  we've had with people in the local community and beyond.
• 0:26
  With the new 2024 Provincial Planning Statement coming into effect October 20th, Loyalist
• 0:31
  Township Council noted concerns at their meeting this week.
• 0:34
  Originally the item was part of the meeting's consent agenda.
• 0:37
  However, at the meeting, Councillor Lorna Willis asked for the item to be extracted
• 0:41
  for Council's consideration.
• 0:42
  It's quite a document, it's quick to understand, and it changes to the provincial policy statement
• 0:47
  early morning.
• 0:48
  So, I'm hoping that staff can present it and it's going to change this.
• 0:55
  Changes that remain a concern for staff include flexible settlement area boundary expansions
• 0:59
  and no longer requiring comprehensive reviews in regards to settlement area changes and
• 1:04
  employment area conversions at the municipal level.
• 1:08
  Development Services Manager Andrea Furnas explained some of the changes in the 2024
• 1:13
  Provincial Planning Statement.
• 1:14
  This settlement area has been boundary expansions, it's a significant change.
• 1:18
  The one thing that's happening is there were a lot of requirements in the previous Provincial
• 1:26
  Policy Statement that required certain things to be done during a reasonable comprehensive
• 1:29
  review.
• 1:30
  So, essentially this review will be due during artificial land comprehensive review.
• 1:34
  So, planning for doing a review of your population's employment forecasts, when determining where
• 1:41
  settlement boundaries are, and you have to justify that for this very specific criteria
• 1:46
  on how to adjust to justify it if you were to expand a boundary, it could only be done
• 1:51
  during a comprehensive review.
• 1:52
  This has been changed now where municipalities could do it at any time.
• 1:57
  In their reports, staff noted their opinion that the 2020 Provincial Planning Statement
• 2:01
  criteria should have remained a requirement.
• 2:03
  Willis describes her concerns.
• 2:05
  I'm concerned that private applications can go in so that my worry is that developers
• 2:11
  are going to be deciding how they go just as and how they go back and how they go down
• 2:16
  to the US.
• 2:17
  I'm just thinking with the US secondary planning that we've identified lands that would be
• 2:22
  developed for the future.
• 2:25
  Bernice describes the likelihood of what would happen if someone brought forth an application
• 2:30
  they didn't agree with.
• 2:31
  We know that even today without this, if someone wanted to make an application for the rest
• 2:36
  of the lands, we would have to be able to consider it, does not mean that we have to support
• 2:41
  it.
• 2:42
  It does not make sense in terms of infrastructure expansion and all the other pieces that we
• 2:46
  consider for planning in regards to the actual settlement area boundaries.
• 2:50
  These would be our pure rural lands that are outside of the line.
• 2:56
  So if someone came forward and submitted that application, we would have to accept it and
• 3:01
  review it and bring it up for council.
• 3:03
  But I can say my recommendation would be that we not support that because I can confirm
• 3:10
  we have sufficient lands to play well throughout the 20-year mark.
• 3:15
  Bernice explains changes impacting the township regarding employment in the new provincial
• 3:19
  planning statement.
• 3:20
  Employment is probably one of the more significant changes that's happened in a similar to the
• 3:27
  settlement area boundaries converting in like the employment land.
• 3:31
  We have identified in artificial land specific employment areas that we have a number of
• 3:35
  protections in them through the provincial planning statement.
• 3:38
  We could only convert employment lands to another land use only during an official planning
• 3:44
  comprehensive review, which is no longer required.
• 3:47
  And again, we can now consider those at any time.
• 3:50
  Applicants can also come forward and make applications to do those conversions at any
• 3:54
  time as well.
• 3:55
  Furnace notes the opportunity the province gives municipalities to have their input.
• 3:59
  Those are the biggest ones that I would say that impact us.
• 4:04
  The province is finishing up a conversation on what it needs to be transition provisions.
• 4:10
  So they consider that municipalities can give comments on certain files that they may have
• 4:15
  ongoing.
• 4:16
  So applications, planning applications, but they are following the Ontario language
• 4:20
  regal, but how would we be consistent with the QPS or almost ready to go for recommendation
• 4:25
  and now support it.
• 4:27
  So we generally try not to prevent those applications from continuing.
• 4:33
  So they're, you know, we should move some transition provisions.
• 4:37
  Furnace describes the next steps for the township going forward.
• 4:40
  And they can say that the county limits in Huntington.
• 4:43
  They're currently doing a new strategy right now.
• 4:45
  So they're officially pulled off on it because they were waiting for this provincial planning
• 4:49
  statement to come forward.
• 4:51
  That will now be, they will now have their plan consistent with it.
• 4:55
  Because then when we do our official plan review, which is set for 2026, we will then
• 5:00
  be consistent with regards to being consistent with the county as well as the new provincial
• 5:05
  plan to say that.
• 5:06
  For Amherst Island Radio and the local journalism initiative, I'm Ted Evans.
• 5:11
  This is North Shore News.
• 5:22
  The township will be applying to the Community Sport and Recreation Infrastructure Fund to
• 5:27
  help complete the W.J. Henderson Recreation Center renewal project.
• 5:31
  Staff recommended making an application under stream one for the ice pad, boards and glass
• 5:36
  with the total estimated cost of approximately $1.5 million.
• 5:39
  They also recommended applying under stream two for the renewal project in its entirety.
• 5:45
  Director of Corporate Services Strategy and Innovation at Loyalist Township Jenna Campbell
• 5:50
  explains the possibility of being funded for both streams.
• 5:53
  If we are to apply to both streams as is recommended
• 5:57
  and were successful under both streams,
• 6:01
  we would need to decline the stream one funding
• 6:04
  and accept the stream two funding only.
• 6:06
  Campbell notes how all work included would still be funded.
• 6:09
  Staff have reached out to staff from the solvents and understand that
• 6:14
  since these streams are reviewed independent from one another,
• 6:18
  the work that is contemplated under stream one,
• 6:22
  which is the lower cost program, is included in the stream two project as
• 6:26
  it's presented. We'll put another way that's had boards and
• 6:30
  glass that are contemplated under the stream one project are included in the
• 6:35
  15.8 million dollar work plan identified
• 6:38
  with stream two application. The focus of the fund is to foster
• 6:42
  healthier and more active lifestyles for families and to make sport more
• 6:46
  accessible. Stream one of the program is focused on extending the lifespan of
• 6:49
  existing facilities, maximizing the use of existing
• 6:52
  facilities, and improving health and safety, accessibility, and
• 6:56
  environmental standards of facilities. Under stream two the program looks to
• 7:00
  help more communities across the province host local, national, and
• 7:03
  international sporting events and competitions. Staff noted that the
• 7:06
  renewal project aligns well with the objectives in stream two,
• 7:09
  as upgrades could see the potential for investment and economic growth.
• 7:13
  Campbell explains why applying to both streams made sense for staff.
• 7:17
  It would be a reduction of about 1.5 million dollars from
• 7:20
  the ask under stream two. It's just the question of what's likely to be
• 7:28
  successful. The project on the whole level aligns very well to the objectives of
• 7:33
  the stream two program, which include, you know,
• 7:39
  things like competition, ready facilities, accessibility, like a number of
• 7:44
  things that the project really focuses in on for the stream two application. So
• 7:49
  I wouldn't want to remove it from stream two and then
• 7:53
  not success one stream one, and with that potential funding associated with that
• 7:57
  work. According to their report, staff estimates that by April 1st, 2025, 32% of
• 8:03
  project costs will be unspent, representing 15.8 million dollars
• 8:07
  of the total $49.5 million project. The Community Sport and Recreation
• 8:12
  Infrastructure Fund would fund 50% of eligible project costs up to
• 8:17
  $10 million per project. For Amherst Island Radio and the
• 8:21
  Local Journalism Initiative, I'm Ted Evans. This is North Shore News.
• 8:27
  Loyalist Township Council agreed to apply to round two of the Housing Enabling Water Systems Fund
• 8:41
  in the coming weeks. The funding will help with peak flow equalization and
• 8:45
  headworks upgrades at the Amherst View Water Pollution Control Plant.
• 8:49
  The township's application to round one of the program was unsuccessful.
• 8:53
  Director of Corporate Services Strategy and Innovation at Loyalist Township Jenna Campbell
• 8:58
  notes their application will be focused on the same project.
• 9:01
  Although we were unsuccessful in the first round of application,
• 9:05
  staff recommends submitting the same project to round two because the project
• 9:08
  best aligns to the objectives of the program. So that project is the Amherst View
• 9:13
  Water Pollution Control Plant, peak flow equalization and headworks updates,
• 9:18
  which has a budget of $4.3 million.
• 9:20
  Councillor Paul Proderick mentions the importance of provincial funding.
• 9:31
  Mayor Jim Hagedorn describes the work taken on by staff to make the application.
• 9:45
  While going ahead with the application to round two of the Housing Enabling Water Systems Fund,
• 9:49
  Council decided to not go ahead with an application to round two of the Green and Inclusive
• 9:53
  Community Buildings Program. With the township having secured $16.5 million in funding for the
• 9:59
  W.J. Henderson Recreation Center Renewal Project under the first round of this program, Campbell
• 10:04
  noted that approval of additional funding is unlikely.
• 10:06
  This is a second round of that same funding program. It's a very involved application
• 10:14
  process that includes energy modeling and a whole bunch of other things. And so staff's
• 10:20
  recommendation is not that we don't have something that might align to the program objectives, but
• 10:26
  I don't work not likely to be successful a second time. And so spend that much time on this very
• 10:35
  involved application is probably not our central. Campbell went on to explain there were no major
• 10:41
  changes in round two of the program. The objectives of the program have not changed
• 10:45
  and the work plan for the project have not changed. We just still feel that it's the project that
• 10:52
  has elements to the program of everything that we have that's in the budget. And I
• 10:58
  wasn't another project that that felt like it really aligned with the program objectives.
• 11:03
  For Amherst Island Radio and the Local Journalism Initiative, I'm Ted Evans. This is North Shore News.
• 11:18
  I'm Sarah Birch with Kingsness News and here are the top headlines that you need to know.
• 11:22
  On Wednesday night, the OPP received calls from several motorists regarding a single
• 11:25
  vehicle collision that occurred on the off-ramp from Highway 401 coming on to Montreal Street.
• 11:31
  The vehicle failed to make the turn and struck a guardrail and then blocked off the ramp completely.
• 11:35
  As a result of the investigation, police found that 30-year-old George Van Lueven was impaired
• 11:40
  and she was arrested and charged. The City of Kingston has unveiled its plan for the future use
• 11:45
  of the extended care property at 309 Queen Mary Road. A 287-page report recommends transforming
• 11:51
  the nursing home into a shared care model with a mix of transitional housing, primary health care
• 11:55
  services, and community meeting spaces. To arrest by the Kingston Police Downtown Foot
• 12:00
  Patrol officers this week have resulted in the seizure of a significant amount of street drugs
• 12:04
  and weapons. A 32-year-old Kingston individual and a 67-year-old individual from Kingston were
• 12:10
  transported to Kingston Police Headquarters and held for bail hearings. At the last Gananakwe
• 12:14
  Council meeting, Mayor John Betos discussed his motion to hold a planning information and public
• 12:19
  input session to discuss the town's physician incentive planning. The session will be held at
• 12:23
  the Lue Jeffries Gananakwe and TLTI Recreation Center on Tuesday, October 29th. To help you plan
• 12:29
  your next apple or pumpkin picking trip, Kingstonists has gathered details on nearby farms and orchards
• 12:34
  so pack up the kids and plan a fall outing. For a full list of locations visit kinksanists.com
• 12:40
  and while you're there make sure you use my code CERB2024 for 10% off.
• 12:46
  This has been North Shore News and Interviews. If you have an idea for a story or want to create
• 12:53
  stories for the show, consider joining our 100% volunteer team. Contact Amherst Island Radio for
• 13:00
  more details.