Greg Bishop, a County-based Ontario land surveyor, has warned Dysart et al council against making changes to the township’s official plan (OP) and zoning bylaw to allow certain structures on private property three metres from the water.

Speaking at a July 8 public meeting, Bishop said he’s studied every shoreline on every lake in the municipality during his 30-plus year career, noticing one consistent problem across all waterbodies – erosion.

“I’ve seen shorelines taken away by 20-30 metres… Loon Lake used to have a halfacre island in it. It’s gone,” he said, noting dams installed in the early 1900s as part of the Trent-Severn Waterway have taken a toll, “changing our whole environment.”

The township is seeking feedback on plans to adapt its OP and zoning bylaw, which would open the door for lakefront residents to install any one of a gazebo, shed or sauna overlooking the water providing it’s at least three metres away from shore. Current setbacks are 20-30 metres.

The proposal outlines structures should be restricted to a maximum floor area of 15 sq. metres and three-and-a-half metres tall.

While some members of council have spoken about wanting to lift restrictions on what people are allowed to do with their property, Jim Prince, a member of the Kennisis Lake Cottage Owners’ Association, said he believed the proposal was akin to using “a sledgehammer, trying to fix a small problem.”

Bishop added, “I guarantee you 30 years from now the buildings, should you choose to approve them and if the setback is [three] metres, they’ll be on the water’s edge. They’ll all be non-conforming within five or six years.”

Jeff Iles, Dysart’s director of planning, said amendments would also see decks and patios allowed within the setback providing they’re not attached to the primary residence. Development approvals will be required before any structure can be built, with owners also having to earn a perfect shoreline report score through the municipality’s lake health assessment program. Iles said applications will only be considered for private property.

A public survey available on the municipal website May 15 to June 15 garnered 735 responses, with 56 per cent in favour of the changes, 40 per cent opposed, and four per cent unsure.

“Given how close [those numbers] are, it indicates a need for carefully balanced policy decisions that address both environmental concerns and property flexibility,” Iles said.

The planner said 85 per cent of respondents rate natural shorelines as very or extremely important, while noting opinions were split on whether the proposed changes would impact local waterbodies. “This suggests any change should be backed by environmental science and public education.”

With the mixed response, Iles said staff question whether a change to policies established two decades ago is warranted.

Figureheads from lake and cottage associations on Redstone, Kashagawigamog, Kennisis, Miskwabi, Grace and Percy lakes each submitted comments opposing the amendments. Dale Hawkins, president of the Lake Kashagawigamog Organization (LKO), said she felt the changes would negatively impact water quality and the feel of her lake.

“My family has been here since 1829, one of the things we do appreciate is lake health. The economy is based on that. When I look across the lake, I like… seeing trees. That’s important to me and a lot of people,” Hawkins said, noting 95 per cent of LKO members are very concerned about water quality. “We’re recommending council maintains the status quo.”

Anna Tillman, from the Percy Lake Ratepayers’ Association, said the proposal goes against the primary objective of Dysart’s OP, which is to enhance and preserve the environmental qualities that contribute to the attractiveness of the municipality.

“We do not want our lake to become Lake Muskoka, where boathouses and other structures line the shorelines,” Tillman said.

Only one of 18 people to speak or have comments read at the meeting supported the plan. Council made no comments during the public hearing, with mayor Murray Fearrey saying officials will respond at its July 22 meeting.

Standing beside one of the near centuryold pews inside Lochlin United Church, longtime minister Rev. Harry Morgan wonders where his mother would have sat while attending her first service at the parish more than eight decades earlier

Congregation leader for the past 33 years, Morgan’s ties with the facility run deep. His mother, Edna Hadley, was a regular during the church’s formative years, travelling from nearby Snowdon, where she was a schoolteacher.

“This was the hub of the whole community, that’s one thing my mom would always say,” Morgan told The Highlander in a recent interview. “She had a real connection with this place… it’s fitting that, all these years later, I find myself here.”

Celebrating its centennial this year, the parish has been a Lochlin lynchpin since its dedication on Nov. 22, 1925. The building cost $3,800, about $63,000 in today’s money, though the camaraderie and sense of community created within its walls has been priceless, said Helen Burk, who has been attending for more than 70 years.

She remembers all the pancake breakfasts, strawberry suppers, pig roasts and book sales; the life-lessons learned via the old Canadian Girls in Training group, an alternative to Girl Guides; and what it was like trying to find a seat in the nave for the usual Sunday morning service.

Burk flashes a smile as she recalls how Cecilia Brown would march students from the old schoolhouse on the corner of Lochlin and Gelert roads – now the community centre – to the church to practice Christmas concerts. It was years before she learned that her father, Cecil, served as the church’s Santa Claus for much of her childhood.

“For a long time, this was the place to be in Lochlin. It was the beating heart of the community… but it’s gotten harder over the years. There are no young people [coming here] anymore,” she said.

Today, the congregation is around 15-20 people most weeks, a far cry from the 50-plus who attended services religiously for the first half of the church’s life. Morgan said it’s been a slippery slope for the United Church Canada-wide since about 1967.

He joined the church in 1992, returning to his roots in the Highlands after several years in Quebec. Morgan remembers his first service well.

“The place was full, there were balloons everywhere and I remember looking out into the crowd before speaking and seeing three of my former teachers – Yvonne Newell, Betty Hicks and Gerry Feltham – smiling up at me,” he said. “A special moment, for sure.”

Janice Carr, a parishioner since 1984, was in the crowd that day. She said Morgan has been a “wonderful” leader over the past three decades, guiding the church through some dark days. Forced closures through the COVID-19 pandemic were difficult, she said, though the three years since have been even harder.

While reopening for the usual 10 a.m. in-person Sunday services in 2022, all the extras that once brought the church community so close have fallen by the wayside. There hasn’t been a Sunday school service for youth since 2018, while public events have been a no-go after the Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge district health unit (HKPR) condemned the water supply in 2021.

That could be about to change after the congregation chipped in to pay for a new ultraviolet purification system and fridge, both installed this year.

“We would like to start hosting things again… we hope to have people back here for carolling during Christmas,” Morgan said.

A 100th anniversary celebration will be held on the grounds of the community centre, by the baseball diamond, on July 13. The day will begin with an outdoor service, followed by a community picnic, games, childrens’ crafts and live music by Jody Tilgrim. A gospel singalong begins at 9:45 a.m., with festivities running into the afternoon.

Morgan said the event is an opportunity for the church to re-connect with old friends and, hopefully, make some new ones.

“We’re proud to hit 100 years, because churches are closing left, right and centre now. This is a chance for us to remember what this place has meant to the people of Lochlin,” he said. “Everyone is welcome to attend.

“We’re not sure what’s going to happen next. Finances are always a concern, but the Lord doth provide so far, so we keep carrying on… hopefully for another [100 years].”

This year also marks the 100th anniversary of the United Church of Canada, sparking celebrations across the County. Highland Hills United Church in Minden held a commemorative service June 15, with the parish marking its centennial in January 2026. Haliburton United Church has been active since 1918, when the local Presbyterian and First Methodist churches merged to form the Union Church. It took its current name in 1925.

Knox United Church in Dorset is celebrating its 131st year – it was a Presbyterian parish upon its opening in 1894; while Cardiff & St. Marks – Paudash United Church maintains a Sunday service in Highlands East, following the closure of churches in Gooderham and South Wilberforce in recent years.

Zion United Church in Carnarvon closed in 2019, merging with Highland Hills in Minden, Maple Lake United Church in Stanhope closed in 2022, with Ingoldsby United Church closing in 2023.

Some members of Dysart et al council want to see the township amend its procurement policy, moving away from a digital-only system that manages project bids in one place to one that also accepts paper proposals from County-based companies.

At its June 24 meeting, while discussing results from a tender put out for winter sand screening at Carroll Pit, which drew only one bid, deputy mayor Walt McKechnie said he felt the township’s existing process was “not really fair to local contractors who could put bids in.”

The job was to have someone come into the township-owned Carroll Pit and use municipal materials to prepare sand for winter road maintenance. Public works director Rob Camelon said eight interested parties attended a site meeting earlier this year, but only one company, Francis Thomas Contracting based in Algonquin Highlands, submitted a bid, totalling $344,637 plus HST.

McKechnie flagged the township requiring a bid bond – a financial guarantee from a contractor ensuring they follow through with a project – as one reason for the lack of local interest.

CAO Tamara Wilbee pointed out the lone bidder was a local business, while Camelon said he didn’t hear any comments or concerns from any would-be bidder while the project was open.

Wilbee noted staff are reviewing its procurement policies to look at new ways of attracting interest in municipal projects. Mayor Murray Fearrey suggested allowing certified checks, money orders, or lines of credit as an alternative to bid bonds.

Coun. Barry Boice, who owns Blair Sand & Gravel, said he knows many local companies don’t bother bidding on projects that require bonds.

“Full disclosure, it deterred my company,” he said. “There are a lot of companies in the area more than capable of doing that work, but when we hear the word ‘bond’ it takes things to another level, and we’re not prepared for that.”

Coun. Pat Casey, who owns construction firm Total Site Services, said his company “didn’t bother with it either” because of the bond requirement. He added another layer to the discussion by asking why the township doesn’t allow both electronic and physical bids on tenders.

Wilbee said Dysart has been using its virtual ‘bids and tenders’ software for the past five years, opining it’s the only way to run an open and transparent process. Casey felt that was excluding people who aren’t as computer literate as others.

“If [we’re using] community tax dollars, we should be doing what we can to ensure the money stays in the community and there’s accountability for that,” he said. “If we have to massage those systems, to me, that’s our job.”

Casey pitched turning down the Francis Thomas bid and re-tendering the work, allowing a mix of virtual and physical bids and other modes of security.

Camelon said if the township put out the same tender just because it didn’t like the price, they could be challenged in court. Clerk Mallory Bishop also warned about some councillors potentially being in a conflict of interest.

“I’m not the integrity commissioner, but I would caution council of turning down a bid, re-tendering and then awarding a contract to a company of someone who is on council,” Bishop said.

Camelon was concerned re-tendering wouldn’t leave enough time to complete the work. Under the current bid, sand will be ready for hauling in mid-September.

Through this deal, Casey said he felt the township “could be paying $100,000 in excess of what the job’s really worth.”

Council opted to award the contract to Francis Thomas Contracting.

Boice, Casey and coun. Carm Sawyer circled back on adopting a hybrid system for bidding.

“Go through bids and tenders, but also do it with paper. What is wrong with opening an envelope that says the bid, like it used to be done 15 or 20 years ago? What’s the problem with that?” Boice asked. Wilbee rebutted, “accountability and transparency.”

She said staff are available to assist anyone having issues with the virtual process, while pointing to help guides on the municipal website. Wilbee said staff put out a couple of projects last term that didn’t require bid bonds, saying it didn’t increase interest.

“We got single bids still. We promoted through the Haliburton County Home Builders’ Association, and it didn’t change the outcome,” she said.

Despite that, Dysart will now accept other security options for projects under $500,000, though anything over $500,000 still requires a bid bond, pending legal review.

The County of Haliburton and Minden Hills township have wrapped emergency cleanup efforts following the March ice storm, with full costs to be presented to respective councils in the near future.

Haliburton County was one of the worsthit areas, with an estimated 20 millimetres of ice build-up from March 28-30 downing thousands of trees and power lines across the region. Approximately 85 per cent of County residents were without power for several days, with some properties taking weeks to be brought back online.

Minden Hills declared a state of emergency March 31, which ran until May 5. The County implemented a partial state of emergency March 31 and lifted it May 9.

County CAO Gary Dyke said Ontario’s Ministry of Emergency Preparedness and Response (MEPR) has committed to assisting both the upper-tier and Minden Hills, with each entitled to have up to 75 per cent of incurred costs reimbursed through the province’s emergency cost recovery funding program.

“The County is in the process of submitting our documentation for application for funding with the province. A report regarding the costs incurred by the County and our funding submission to the province will be provided at an upcoming council meeting,” Dyke told The Highlander in a June 27 email.

Minden Hills mayor Bob Carter said the township concluded the official part of its ce storm clean-up June 13. He said there will be two numbers made public – the total cost, and the amount eligible to be recouped.

“We will make our costs available in the near future,” he said. “We have accounting staff who [were] part of every meeting so that we can keep adequate control and accumulate all the expenses related to the emergency separate from normal township business.”

Last month, the province announced it was also launching two one-time financial assistance programs to support communities impacted by the storm.

The municipal ice storm assistance program will help municipalities pay for emergency response and clean-up costs, while the business ice storm assistance fund will help small businesses, farms and not-for-profits pay for costs not covered by private insurance. The programs are taking applications until Oct. 31.

Hydro One is also assisting, offering 50 Ontario communities one-time payments of $10,000 to offset costs. The County and Minden Hills each received payouts.

Dyke said the money won’t be used for any specific item.

“It will help offset the County’s 25 per cent share and/or those costs that are not eligible under the emergency cost recovery funding program,” he said.

Carter said Minden Hills used the money, which arrived while clean-up was occurring, to purchase saws, a portable generator and equipping two municipal trucks with radios.

During the storm, Carter met with Teri French, Hydro One’s executive vice president of safety, operations and customer experience, in Minden. After telling French that provincial money couldn’t be used to purchase assets, he said the township needed for clean-up, Hydro One stepped up – essentially creating its ice storm 2025 recovery grant.

“After seeing the need, Hydro One decided to create a grant to enable municipalities to buy critical equipment,” he said.

In an emailed statement to The Highlander, Hydro One said, “Hydro One cares deeply about Haliburton County and Minden Hills, and the ice storm 2025 recovery grant is a way for us to continue to be a partner as they rebuild. What stood out in their applications was their continued commitment to building on their current emergency response to make sure members of their communities are cared for in times when they need it most.”

The Minden Health Care Auxiliary is reminding people to remember their wallets while out in the community July 11.

The volunteer group is hosting its annual Tag Day fundraiser on Friday, raising money to support programming and source new equipment for the Minden Health Hub. Longtime member Pat Bradley said this is the auxiliary’s biggest single-day fundraiser of the year.

“We don’t have our ER, but there’s great things going on at the hub. The urgent care clinic is helping a lot of people who don’t have family doctors… there’s a lot of services in this building requiring ongoing support,” Bradley said.

Every year, Haliburton Highlands Health Services (HHHS) provides a wish list to the auxiliary outlining things it needs at the Minden site. “We’re able to pick and choose and decide what we want to help with,” Bradley noted.

Last year, the auxiliary invested approximately $30,000 into the facility upgrading its respite room, replacing medical flushers and disinfectors, installing new server cabinets at Hyland Crest, and supporting HHHS’ adult day program. This year, Bradley said they are focusing on funding two new pieces of equipment for the women’s clinic and nutritional software for long-term care.

After raising a record $3,600 through last year’s Tag Day, Monique Perreault, an auxiliary member since 2021, said the group is hoping to eclipse that number. There will be collection spots at Canadian Tire, Tim Hortons, Dollo’s Foodland, Easton’s Valu-Mart, Home Hardware, and Stedman’s Department Store from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., and at Boshkung Social from 11:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

While cash donations are appreciated, people will also be able to give using their credit cards – a new feature this year. E-transfers are also being accepted at mindenhca@ gmail.com.

Bradley noted all funds raised during the event will stay in Minden. The organization has filtered approximately $360,000 to the MacPherson Street site since 2000.

With around 40 members, Perreault and fellow newcomer Baldish Toor said joining the auxiliary has been a great way to meet people and integrate into the community. The group is looking for new blood, to help with Tag Day, operation of the gift shop at the health hub and other fundraisers, such as its ‘wine on wheels’ raffle – running until Oct. 28.

“This is a great way to give back to the community,” Bradley said. “We need to refresh and come up with ways to bring in even more money… because if the [proposed 91-bed] expansion to long-term care is approved, the government will provide the funds for the building, but it’ll be down to us to stock it with the equipment needed.”