Catégorie : Autres – Others

“It’s always welcome news,” said Mayor Guy Desjardins during council’s review of the information at its September 9 committee of the whole session. “It’s a big investment for us. I know a lot of municipalities would like to have something like this.”

The Rockland Reinforcement Project would see about 4.5 kilometres of four-inch steel main installed across Clarence-Rockland from Enbridge’s existing main line at either the Poupart Road/Laurier Street site or at the Baseline Road/Joanisse Road point. This new secondary natural gas line would connect to a new delivery station on St-Jean Street south of Docteur Corbeil Boulevard.

The new secondary main line, when complete, would help maintain delivery pressure of Clarence-Rockland’s existing natural gas supply. To get Ontario Energy Board (EAB) approval for the project, the company first needs to complete an environmental study process (ESP) on its proposal.

Enbridge has hired Stantec Consulting Ltd. to do the ESP and have it finished in November so that the company can file a project application with the OEB. The goal is to have OEB approval so construction on the pipeline and station can begin in spring 2023.

The ESP requires public consultation. Because of the COVID-19 situation Enbridge is hosting a virtual open house to get comments, concerns, and general feedback on the two proposed routes.

The virtual open house is from September 14 to September 28 at 5 p.m., at www.enbridgegas.com/about-us. Participants can click on “Projects” to get to the Rockland Reinforcement Project open house site.

Anyone who cannot take part in the virtual open house can contact the Rockland Reinforcement Project Team at 613-738-6058 or email their comments to RocklandEA@stantec.com.

Thanks to the inspiration and support of his grandfather, Sebastien, the 14-year-old Innu athlete will have his chance to live his dream and get back for his second year at the Canadian International Hockey Academy (CIHA).

Together, grandfather and grandson spent the weeks of August and the first week of September walking and sometimes running along the Trans-Labrador Highway that connects Churchill Falls to the Happy Valley-Goose Bay region of Labrador where the Benuen’s hometown of Sheshatshiu is located.

The goal of the 330-kilometre trek was to raise $50,000 to cover tuition and expenses for Aries so he could go back to Rockland for his second year of studies and training at the CIHA. At the end of their journey, late in the evening September 8, grandfather and grandson had raised $75,000. That amount has since risen past the $77,000 mark as of September 15 on the GoFundMe page set up for the fundraiser.

Aries Benuen has been passionate about hockey since he was a child, living with his grandparents. The family moved to Happy Valley-Goose Bay so Aries could play in a better hockey program. Grandfather Sebastien even decided to move the family over to Québec to give his grandson a chance to play AAA hockey in that province. That was before Aries Benuen was accepted for his first year at CIHA.

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit the economy of Newfoundland and Labrador, Sebastien Benuen, a small business owner, saw his business suffer like many others. But he wanted to help keep his grandson’s hockey dream alive and that resulted in the idea for their odyssey along the Trans-Labrador Highway to raise money for Aries’ second year at CIHA.

Their mission had the blessing and support of the Innu Nation, and now that it is over, the only thing left for Aries Benuen to do is rest up and get ready to go to Rockland when the academy opens up again for hockey students.

Le Jardin Pollinateur est le tout dernier projet de la Maison Tucker. «Le but est simplement d’attirer les pollinisateurs comme les abeilles, les papillons, les colibris et autres, a expliqué Marie Veilleux, directrice générale du centre d’éducation écologique de la Maison Tucker, au sujet de cette nouveauté.

Le projet a été mis sur pied grâce à une subvention de 10 000 dollars du Fonds TD des amis de l’environnement. Mme Veilleux a fait remarquer que le jardin est conçu pour être convivial pour les visiteurs, avec des allées en brique qui serpentent dans et autour du site. Mais la principale fonction de ce jardin de 600 pieds carrés est d’ordre pratique.

Police had a traffic check stop on Alma Street in Rockland on September 5 and pulled over one vehicle at 1:45 a.m. The driver failed the roadside screening device test and was taken to the detachment for a Breathalyzer test.

The Breathalyzer test resulted in charges of impaired driving and driving with a blood-alcohol level exceeding 80 milligrams.

About 17 hours later an early-evening traffic complaint on Laporte Street in Rockland resulted in another arrest for suspected drunk driving.

Following results of a Breathalyzer test, police charged the driver with impaired driving and driving with a blood-alcohol level exceeding 80 milligrams.

In both cases the drivers had their licences suspended for 90 days and their vehicles impounded for seven days. Their cases are now scheduled for a future session of provincial court in L’Orignal.

«Nous devons faire un effort, en tant que municipalité, pour maintenir ces couts (budgétaires) bas pour nos résidents», a déclaré le conseiller Samuel Cardalli lors de la rencontre plénière du conseil du 9 septembre.

Le conseiller du quartier 1 a noté que la pandémie COVID-19 a occasionné des difficultés financières cette année, tant pour les propriétaires que pour les entreprises. Il a suggéré que le conseil et le personnel devraient essayer de maintenir toute augmentation du taux d’imposition municipal entre 2 et 2,5 %.

Un premier rapport de l’administration sur la situation budgétaire a fait remarquer qu’au cours des cinq dernières années, l’augmentation du taux d’imposition municipal pour Clarence-Rockland a été en moyenne de 2,64 %. Tous les départements ont passé en revue leurs besoins et leurs priorités et, si tous ces éléments étaient confirmés pour le budget 2021, le taux d’imposition devrait augmenter de près de 6 %.

Le rapport note que l’administration tente toujours de confirmer un certain nombre de subventions fédérales et provinciales que la municipalité a reçues au cours des années passées. Cela affecterait également l’augmentation finale du taux de l’impôt foncier pour le budget 2021.

Les membres du conseil ont voté à six contre quatre pour limiter à 2% toute augmentation du taux d’imposition pour 2021. Le personnel de la ville va maintenant examiner tous ses rapports budgétaires pour trouver des moyens de réduire les dépenses pour le rapport budgétaire préliminaire d’octobre. La consultation publique sur les priorités budgétaires aura lieu le 19 octobre, l’examen approfondi du projet de budget par le conseil étant prévu pour novembre. L’approbation finale du budget est prévue pour le 7 décembre.

The paving for the tennis courts at Jean-Paul Charlebois Park in Saint-Bernardin is cracked with weeds and grass growing tall and undisturbed because nobody has played games there all year thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic. The park hasn’t had many people there for awhile either because of the pandemic though now it is open again to residents so long as they follow pandemic public health protocols.

Future plans for the popular community park were part of a recent report from Recreation Director Carol Ann Scott to The Nation council. The main items in the report were the tennis courts and the picnic shelter.

The picnic shelter has begun to show its age. In 2017 the department got a quote of $20,000 for the cost to repair the shelter and with inflation now the cost could be more than $25,000.

Scott noted that the shelter has seen occasional use over the past few years “but its location is not ideal.” She recommended that the shelter be demolished and the municipality do a review next year of the entire layout and design of the community park, with input from residents and user groups.

The aim of the review would be developing a priority list for future park development projects, including designing and building a new picnic shelter at another site within the park area. The review would also have recommendations for financing new park projects, including possible partnerships between the municipality and local community groups and service clubs.

The tennis courts continue to be a popular feature of the park but the playing surface needs rebuilding. Scott’s report noted the rock base below the court pavement is not good and the clay subsoil is part of the reason for the pavement heaving and cracking.

She recommended rebuilding the west court surface next spring, along with new fencing and other features. The east court surface cannot be repaired because of the subsurface ground condition.

The new, smaller tennis court area would be suitable for both tennis and pickleball and cost one-third the price of trying to redo the surface of the original double-court setup.

Council approved Scott’s recommendations for decommissioning the old picnic shelter and for rehabilitating the tennis court. The 2021 municipal budget discussion will include funds for the tennis court work and also money to cover tent rentals for community activities in the park next year that would have used the picnic shelter.

Council also approved doing a review next year of the needs for Jean-Paul Charlebois Park and for the parks and recreation department to work with a local committee on project priorities for the park and fundraising for those projects. 

The Vankleek Hill Business and Merchant Association (VKHBMA) received a provincial grant through the Digital Main Street Ontario program to set up a Digital Service Squad (DSS). The $10,000 grant comes through the Federal Development Ontario program, and will cover the costs for the DSS to help local small businesses in the village and surrounding area make better use of digital technology for their operations.

The DSS will meet with local business owners, at no cost to them, to assess their current online presence, and help improve it through a variety of methods, including developing a Google My Business profile, advice on how to improve their social media presence, and providing support for a basic website and e-commerce setup.

The DSS will also help businesses that may qualify for a $2500 Digital Transformation grant. That includes an online assessment, online training modules, and development of a digital transformation plan for their operation.

Business owners interested in the DSS program can contact the VKHBMA for more information.

The Prescott and Russell Entrepreneurship Centre (PREC) is bringing back its Starter Company Plus (SCP) program to help small- and medium-sized businesses in the region. The SCP provides financial assistance, advice, and also training and mentoring service for local business owners.

“Over the past few years, we have witnessed the startup and growth of many great businesses with the help of this program,” stated Lisa Langevin. PREC project officer. The program becomes active in October but interested individuals can contact the PREC now to get information and file applications for help.

The goal of the program is to help start new small- and medium-sized businesses in the region, help existing ones to grow, or assist individuals who want to buy an existing business that is available for purchase. The PREC also partner with business coaches from the Ministry of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade, to provide virtual seminars that offer advice and other business development tools, including developing a business plan, to local entrepreneurs.

The current pandemic situation has resulted in changes to the SCP program compared to last year. This year the local program can offer grants up to $2500 to a maximum of 13 applicants. The money is available to new or current owners or small- or medium-sized businesses and can go towards equipment purchases, website development, or other expenses related to either starting or expanding a business.

“The PREC always tries to adjust to the needs of the entrepreneurial community,” stated Langevin, “and this is the case with this program this year. Our vision is to lead entrepreneurs in economic recovery.”

The South Nation Conservation Authority (SNC) continues its local hunting opportunity program this autumn. Permit cost for hunting in selected areas of the South Nation River watershed region under SNC control is $100 for watershed residents. Hunters applying for their SNC permits must also have a valid provincial hunting permit and also provide proof of liability insurance. The permit fees help support land management work and also the annual SNC Youth Hunt Apprenticeship program.

The SNC owns and manages more than 13,000 acres of community forest, wetlands and grasslands within the 4,441-square-kilometre watershed region. More than 8500 acres of SNC-controlled lands are made available for seasonal hunting of deer, moose, rabbit, various upland game species, and waterfowl, provided all hunter safety procedures, bag limits, and public/private property courtesies are observed.

Hunting is not allowed in SNC public conservation areas where there are managed trail systems. During hunting season, residents using SNC lands for other recreational pursuits are advised to use the mapping tool at the SNC website at www.nation.on.ca to determine what areas of the watershed are open for hunting.

Both hunters and non-hunters are asked to report any suspected illegal hunting or poaching incidents to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry tip line at 1-877-847-7667.

All schools in Ontario were shut down in spring during the early weeks of the pandemic as part of the provincial public health state of emergency. Over the summer the Ministry of Education developed new health safety guidelines for both schools and daycares to allow their reopening in September.

Both the regional health units and the school districts consulted each other on reopening plans for local schools under the new guidelines, including increase sanitization and infection control routines. Part of those discussions included plans to assign public health nurses to a number of schools in each district, with responsibility both for monitoring student and staff health, and also assessing whether or not an actual case of COVID-19 had developed, along with doing follow-up checks with schools and families on any confirmed cases..

“Our priority is to make the school year as safe as possible for everyone,” stated Dr. Paul Roumeliotis, EOHU chief medical officer. “With the return to in-person classes, it’s possible that we may see some cases of COVID-19 at our local schools. However, parents should be assured that plans are in place to quickly identify cases and their contacts, along with infection prevention measures that will help protect students and minimize spread of the virus in schools.”

EOHU officials will work with school districts on any confirmed COVID-19 case to determine the range of exposure and trace all contacts with an infected person and also make sure an infected person goes into self-isolation. That also includes notifying families as soon as possible about the situation and providing information and advice to all parents and children who may have been exposed to the disease.

Information on and response to any confirmed outbreaks will be posted on the EOHU and school or school district websites. The EOHU investigation of suspected cases will also determine if class cancellation or school closure is necessary as part of the outbreak control measures.

“We understand that timely and transparent communication is important both for helping to alleviate worry, and for keeping our students as healthy as possible,” stated Dr. Roumeliotis, adding that residents should also avoid gossiping about suspected infection cases, whether in person or through social media. “It’s important to remember that children’s privacy needs to be respected. Our kids deserve kindness and compassion, not to be stigmatized.”

As autumn approaches, the chance of ordinary head colds or cases of influenza will also increase. These viral diseases have symptoms in common with COVID-19.

“We’re urging every to remain vigilant for possible COVID-19 symptoms, and to stay home if they are ill or experiencing symptoms,” stated Dr. Roumeliotis. “However, we are also cautioning against jumping to conclusions that all respiratory symptoms or absences from school are related to COVID-19, since, in many cases, symptoms may be due to other causes.”

Parents of students can get more information from the EOHU website at www.eohu.ca/coronavirus.