Catégorie : Tribune-Express (Hawkesbury)

« I’m going to work for all the citizens of Hawkesbury (for) free, » Valérie stated in an email summary to EAP of her camnpaign platform.

The local businesswoman stated that if she is elected to council she sign back over to the municipality the monthly stipend that each councillor receives during their term in office. If the municipality will not allow her to do so, she priomised that she would then donate the money to the Hawkesbury Central Food Bank.

This is the second time that Valérie has sought a seat on council. She campaigned during the 2018 municipal election on a platform that emphasized economic development and providing more employment opportunities for local youth so that they would not have to leave the community to find jobs. She also campaigned on taking advantage of Hawkesbury’s Franco-Ontarian heritage as part of its tourism promotion, and providing more support for downtown revitalization.

During the time between the 2018 municipal election and now, Valérie has been occupied with plans for cleaning up the Main Street site in the downtown core that was the location for two residentials owned by her family. The buildings were destroyed as a result of a major fire December 6 and 7 2021. The Valérie family plans to rebuild on the site, creating a low-income apartment complex.

Valérie’s campaign platform for this year’s municipal elections in Hawkesbury includes a promise to « throw out the red tape and bring out the red carpert » for private sector investment in the municipality. That includes a proposal to review and improve municipal bylaws « especially for the builders » to encourage more housing developments in the town. Valérie also wants to « allow builders to hire professionals such as architects and civil engineers to stamp, sign and approve each building built and guarantee for the security and safety and avoid to deal with mix ups between incompetent municipal inspectyors and top professionals. »

« There is good work that can be done at the local level, » said Riden during an interview.

The former federal Green Party candidate for Glengarry-Prescott-Russell noted that the May long weekend windstorm that raged across Eastern Ontario this year created many problems for municipalities through damaged power lines, fallen trees blocking local roads, and damaging both residential and some municipal buildings. Riden would like to see the next council work with township administration on developing a climate protection plan that would include investing in local infrastructure improvements that would strengthen municipal buildings and also provide greater protection for utilities against future extreme weather conditions.

He would also like the municipality to review the present forest cover situation for the township with the goal of increasing the amount of greenspace.

Riden also wants to make sure East Hawkesbury Township has an affordable housing plan. He noted that the municipality may not be feeling any pressure yet for affordable housing but it should start planning for the future.

« One of the biggest things I want to do, » said Riden, « is find out what (senior government) grants and programs exist that could help the township achieve its goals. »

One thing that pleases Riden about this year`s municipal election in East Hawkesbury is the number of candidates vying for one of the seats on township council.

« It`s a good sign to see, » he said, « and I hope to see a good voter turnout. »

Council reviewed an administration report on the status of the OPP contract with the town. The current two-year contract ends the end of this December.

Based on administration review of policing needs, council accepted a recommendation for a new two-year contract that begins in January. The contract cost for 2023 will be $2,942,797, which Finance Director Philippe Timbers noted in his report is about $40,000 less than the 2022 police services bill for the town.

Details of the cost for the 2024 term of the contract won’t be available to the finance department until next September when it is included in the 2024 preliminary budget draft.

The Cougars won 6-1 against the Metcalfe Jets on Saturday, and 5-0 against the St-Isidore Eagles on Sunday, placing them even on points in second place with South-Grenville Rangers and 2 points behind Gatineau Hull-Volant with a game in hand.

“It’s a good start, said head coach Franky Dopelhammer, but we didn’t play against the teams in front of us or near our position yet, so it’s still hard to situate where we stand.”

Dopelhammer says it will be easier to know where the team stands by the end of November, after playing both Gatineau and South-Grenville.

« A lot of people tell me the municipality needs to be more progressive, » said Walker, commenting on results of his door-to-door campaigning.

Walker seeks to retain his position as one of two councillors for Ward 2. He noted that his past four years as a first-time rookie councillor were a learning experience about how the municipality functions. Now he wants to put that experience to use as part of the new council after the October municipal election.

« I see a lot of changes that could be made, » he said, « how we could make the municipality more useful to the people. »

Part of the progressive change Walker wants to see during the new four years includes closer cooperation and teamwork both among members of the new council and between council and municipal staff. One issue that needs addressing, he noted, is the municipal landfill.

« There are many issues there, » he said, including better management of the site, and construction of « a proper road » around the site to provide a better buffer zone between the landfill and surrounding neighbhourhoods.

Walker also noted that there are three former wells at the landfill site that need to be repaired and then capped for proper decommissioning. Proper marking of the old well sites is also necessary to prevent any future damage to them from landfill operations and prevent any risk to the area groundwater system.

« When I’m going door to door, people also say the biggest thing they want is their (neighbourhood) road improved, » said Walkerk. « There is no reason we should not have a long-term plan for our roads. »

Walker promised to lobby for creation of five-year and 10-year plans for Alfred-Plantagenet’s network of roads if he is reelected. He noted that other municipalities have long-term plans for scheduling road improvements and the township should have one also.

Walker noted that the township now has a forest cover bylaw that will help protect local wetlands. He would like to see that bylaw revised and expanded to apply to the entire municipality as part of Alfred-Plantagenet’s environmental planning.

He also wants to see the present user rates system for the township’s water and sewer system reviewed and revised. « It should all be equalized, » he said, adding that Alfred ratepayers have the lowest water fees in the township while Plantagenet ratepayers have the highest, with ratepayers in Wendover, Treadwell, Lefaivre and other villages falling in between.

On October 7, Ottawa Tourism announced support for 55 tourism businesses and organizations to recover from the pandemic and prepare for future growth. The Tourism Relief Fund delivered $5.5 million from the Government of Canada, which Ottawa Tourism then distributed to each business to help them welcome back visitors, recover from the pandemic, and create jobs.

“The Canadian tourism sector continues to be one of the most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic,” stated Randy Boissonnault, tourism minister and associate finance minister. “We will work with businesses and organizations through these challenging times, ensuring they get support to innovate in their products and services as well as to grow and thrive, all while keeping safety as the top priority. The Tourism Relief Fund helps businesses adapt to welcome back guests safely. It also feeds into a broader strategy to help the sector recover from the pandemic and build an economy that works for everyone. The Canadian economy will not fully recover until our tourism sector recovers.”

The Commission de la zone d’amélioration commerciale de Hawkesbury received $100,000 to develop a project celebrating Hawkesbury’s francophone and bilingual heritage, including revitalization, local historical and anecdotal signage, and integrating local art downtown.

The Hawkesbury Chamber of Commerce received $100,000 for the redevelopment of the Place des Pionniers Park to include an outdoor bistro-style dining space and tourism welcome plaza.

Green Beaver received $100,000 to create a new visitor experience to draw visitors into Hawkesbury, including a cheese tasting and storytelling exhibit to highlight the region’s rich heritage and unique bilingual culture.

The Association canadienne-française de l’Ontario de Prescott et Russell received $100,000 to revitalize the Parc de la Confédération’s on Chenail Island. It will include a gazebo structure with illumination and animation.

The Township of Alfred and Plantagenet received $100,000 to create a better visitor experience by upgrading and retrofitting marina infrastructure, including adding washrooms and building a walking trail system along the Ottawa River.

Beau’s Brewery in Vankleek Hill received $100,000 to redevelop its warehouse into a tasting room and event space to host tours highlighting products of local drink producers.

The Vankleek Hill Vineyard received $100,000 to upgrade its facilities, including expanding its indoor tasting space, constructing a yurt glamping experience, and building gender-neutral bathrooms to allow for operation year-round.

Popsilos in Vankleek Hill received $100,000 to create new silo artwork and repair existing artwork that has degraded over time.

The Vankleek Hill Business and Merchant Association received $100,000 to modernize and relocate its tourism information centre to a new, permanent location, and to create self-guided historic tours of the village.

The Windsor Tavern in Vankleek Hill received $75,000 to renovate a heritage building with energy-efficient upgrades, as well as expand its live music space for improved performances.

The St-Albert Fromagerie received $100,000 to upgrade and renovate the observation floor, adding a virtual tour of the factory’s story and production processes.

The Prescott and Russell Recreational Trail Corporation received $100,000 to implement bicycle and e-bike rental services along the trail.

Hammond Hill received $93,500 to construct a lake, a beach hut, gazebos, seating areas, and trails throughout the property.

The township is seeking a firm to provide a variety of branding services to develop a brand image for the municipality as a promising place for businesses, visitors and residents. The service would include a new municipal identity, brand value development, market research, positioning and logo development, associated graphic standards, and recommendations for branding from initial launch and full transition to a new brand.

« It’s our 25th anniversary of amalgamation in 2023, so we thought it was a good time to take advantage of that, » said Zoé Fortin-Larocque, township communications specialist and the person in charge of the rebranding project. « We want to have a new logo, a new brand image. »

The goal of the rebranding project is to bring the population closer to the different neighbourhoods of Champlain Township.

« We find that the division between the neighborhoods is quite obvious, » said Fortin-Larocque. « We’d really like to stop people thinking that way, that it doesn’t distinguish them. »

Bids are due at the township office by 3 p.m. Oct. 13. Work on the project is expected to begin in November. The project is separated into three phases. The first phase is submission of an implementation plan with timelines for transitioning from one brand to another.

The second phase will be the development of five logos in different colors and styles. The submitted logos will then be shown to the public for voting. The two logos with the most votes will be presented to the board and administration for final decision.

The third and final phase will be the creation of a marketing plan to attract new residents, especially young families, as well as new businesses.

« We know that our population is aging, » said Fortin-Larocque. « Eventually, we’ll have to start working on that to try to put Champlain Township on the map. »

The legislation prohibits the import, possession, transport, propagation, lease, trade, buying, and sale of Eurasian wild boar and their hybrids in the province as of January 1, 2022. However, existing wild boar owners could demand an exemption until January 1 2024. This transition period was made to limit impacts on individuals and business who may be directly affected by the amendment.

Trillium Meadows

“It’s a big loss for me.” said Hans Lindenmann. “I was so mad that I could have loaded it all up, the boars and the deers too, and I could have quit. These two years are going to be sad years because you see your life’s work go down and down.”

Hans and Marianne Lindenmann immigrated from Switzerland in 1998. They owned and operated Trillium Meadows Red Deer and Wild Boar Farm for 23 years.

The farm was at first a deer farm only, but after a year, the Lindenmanns decided to add wild boars to their operation.

Trillum Meadows currently has around 60 boars and 200 deer. The farm averaged 80 boars for the past few years, but Lindenmann explain he is obligated to start decreasing the number of boars he owns already.

“What am I going to do with 60 dead boars?” said Lindenmann. “You can’t freeze pork meat for a year and I don’t have a market to sell 60 wild boars. It’s why you need two years time to stop doing it.”

The province is compensating boar farmers with $200 per head, but according to Lindenmann, this is not enough.

“I have to change my complete brand, » he said, « and that cost hundreds or even thousands of dollars and they’re not giving us anything for that.”

Lindenmann will also lose a large part of his customer base. He typically sells his specialty meat to individual restaurants and at farmers markets. Trillium Meadows will be replacing the wild hogs with another breed of heritage pigs, such as red wattle hogs, to compensate for the loss of the boars.

“It’s not going to be the same, that’s for sure,” said Lindenmann. “It’s not as dark as the boar meat but it’s going to be really good pork meat.”

Ontario regulation

The amendment to the Ontario Species Act was passed in October 2021 to prevent wild pigs from establishing themselves in provincial woodlands and other areas. Wild hogs released in the wild were able to survive Canada’s winter climate and have reproduce in the Prairies.

“Wild pigs can destroy native ecosystems through trampling, wallowing, and rooting behaviours.” states Ontario’s strategy to address the threat of invasive wild pigs. “They prey on and compete with native wildlife for food and habitat and can impact water quality. In many areas, damages to the agricultural industry have been devastating.”

The Ontario government also lists the spread and transmission of disease as one of its reason for amending the act.

Lindenmann believes the provincial government could have chosen an alternative method, like fencing laws, to prevent the risk of wild boars becoming an invasive species. He said none of his boars ever escaped because of secure fencing. The fence for boars at Trillium Meadows extends one foot underground, and has an electrified partition on the inside.

On the eighth Orange Shirt Day and the second annual Day of Truth and Reconciliation September 30, the Catholic District School Board of Eastern Ontario (CDSBEO) started students on building awareness and understanding of Canadian history through First Nations, Métis, and Inuit perspectives.

“While reconciliation calls us to teach our students about the traumatic history of Indigenous colonization, we wanted to reassure parents that such learning would be age-appropriate and sensitive to the individual needs of our students,” said Indigenous Consultant Melissa Mader-Tardif. “Grade specific resources and professional development opportunities were also distributed to teachers.”

Students across the board made posters, videos, and murals to honour the commemoration, and teachers held class discussions and did readings of Indigenous literature. Staff and students were invited to wear orange shirts to show their commitment, and high school students listened to the stories of Elders from the local Akwesasne community.

“We appreciate you being here today to share all of these initiatives and student learning, facilitated by the work being done by your department, and through our board partnerships. Thank you so much for an outstanding presentation,” said Vice-Chair Sue Wilson.

The Cougars made the trip to Chesterville and District Arena on Saturday night in a 5-2 defeat against North Dundas Rockets. “We didn’t play the style of hockey we want to play, but we came back on played the way we want on Sunday” said Cougars head coach Franky Dopelhamer.

Cougars came back on Sunday night for their home opener event at Robert Hartley Sports Complex in a 5-3 win against Morrisburg Lions. On his second game for the team after arriving from Gatineau Flames Junior AAA team, Desjardins scored one goal and assisted two.

Cougars gave free entry to all spectators for their home opener, hoping to attract fans to their temporary home for the 2022-2023 season as the Vankleek Hill Arena is in renovation.

The Cougars host the Metcalfe Jets this Saturday night at the Robert Hartley Sports Complex, then go on the road to St-Isidore to face off against les Aigles.