Highlands East council approved of a 2019 draft budget which would see the municipal residential tax rate rise 3.56 per cent.

Council passed the budget at a March 12 council meeting.The $5.9 million draft budget features increased spending for capital projects across all departments totalling $1.9 million, $475,507 more than 2018.

“It’s an ambitious year,” chief administrative officer and treasurer Shannon Hunter said during a March 5 budget meeting. “Every department has major projects happening in 2019 if this budget is
approved.”

The largest capital projects are in the roads department, with $615,000 allotted to rehabilitating Dyno Road and $544,207 for the second phase of road work at the Cardiff townsite. Other new expenses include $55,000 for this year’s building renovations, $50,000 for a facilities review, and $28,000 for an organizational review.

Councillors spoke positively of the budget and the number of included projects.

“I’m sure all of us would prefer to see the tax rate lower,” Coun. Suzanne Partridge said. “But I don’t think there’s anything to add on this budget besides the projects we’ve already agreed upon. So, I’m comfortable.”

Deputy mayor Cec Ryall agreed and complimented staff’s work.

“We try to keep the taxation dollars down to zero, we’re going to cut off our nose to spite our face. We’re going to pay for it somewhere,” Ryall said. “Everything you pay hurts but I think the value is there and I think we’re getting great value for our money. I think our taxpayers are getting great value.”

The budget highlights also indicate staffing changes, including a full-time bylaw enforcement officer, a new septic inspector and increased hours for the part-time economic development co-ordinator.

Hunter credited a high assessment growth of 4.16 per cent as helping to lower the tax increase.

The municipality is also drawing from reserves this year. Hunter said if all proposed projects are complete by the end of the year, the reserves will decrease from $4.263 million to $3.267 million.

“A lot of projects we’re working on this year, it’s amazing,” Mayor Dave Burton said March 5. “You guys still have time to look at (the budget) but I’m quite content with it.”

The tax percentage increase represents $16 per $100,000 assessment.

Haliburton Ribfest and Dysart et al have reached a resolution over the money the event provides the municipality, according to event organizers.

Coun. Larry Clarke reported on Ribfest negotiations at the Feb. 26 council meeting. The Events and Programming Committee recommended approving the event to proceed Aug. 9-11 at Head Lake Park.

One of the points of negotiation is the amount the event donates to the municipality. In 2018, RibFest donated $2,500 to the community skate park.

“The park is a very valuable asset for this community,” Clarke said. “We still see it as not being a profit centre, but we’d like to see some money recovered from some of the events there so we could improve that facility.”

Ribfest organizer Ricky Brooks said in negotiations since the council meeting, the sides have agreed on a donation to a local charity to be limited to 10 per cent of gate receipts.

“When we promote Haliburton Ribfest, we are actually marketing Haliburton,” Brooks said. “We’re not asking for any funds and so in exchange, we’re asking the town not to place any mandatory financial fees.”

Mayor Andrea Roberts said the municipality does not have a bylaw or fee structure in place for the park.

“So a donation to a local charity is still a generous offer,” she said.

Coun. Walt McKechnie said given the park’s value, there should be more charged for groups to use it.

“You don’t get anything for nothing,” he said.

McKechnie also said as the committee pressed the issue, Brooks said he might have to pull Ribfest out of Haliburton.

Brooks said there is a misconception about how much money the event pulls in as food vendors keep their sales, separate from the event.

“People thinking we’re making lots of money when in fact, we are basically trying to make sure we cover our costs,” he said.

He further said the event did have a new location lined up. But after further negotiating, Brooks said he is happy.

“We’re going to continue the success of Haliburton Ribfest into its second year. We do not want to relocate.”

Clarke said pushing further on cost recovery with events will require more work on a fee bylaw first, which would not be complete for the 2019 Ribfest.

“We were pushing him,” he said. “But the reality is we have to have a fee bylaw in place.”

The County of Haliburton has decided not to proceed with a new, expansive transportation system this year.

Council opted not to include funding for the service in its 2019 budget. Instead, council put a $50,000 placeholder for further work on the file and directed staff to explore a request for proposals on the system.

Warden Liz Danielsen said although a lot of hard work has been put into transportation, council remains concerned.

“There remain some true unknowns and concerns about how it will work in a large geographic area with pockets of low transportation,” Danielsen said. “Given the unknowns and the need for sustainability in other areas, we could not move forward.”

Consultant IBI Group presented an implementation plan for a booked, shared ride service to council Jan. 23. The annual cost of the service was estimated at $162,000. However, that assumes the province provides the maximum gas tax contribution of $141,654, which would require the county to invest long-term in the system.

Coun. Andrea Roberts has said the actual costs of the system could be greater than projected.

“While we all appreciate the amount of work and volunteer work that’s gone into this project is enormous,” Roberts said at a Dysart council meeting. “There are just so many unknowns … it’s not a pilot project. You have to go all in and we just don’t fully understand the costs.”

IBI Group recommended a service to run primarily around Minden and Haliburton, with some trips in Dorset and Wilberforce through Gooderham.

Rural Transportation Options (RTO) member Lisa Tolentino said the advocacy group would not want the county to proceed with a transportation system if it would fail.

“I’m glad they decided not to go do something haphazardly. I know RTO wants to make sure what is done is done properly,” she said. “What we’re pleased about is another $50,000 has been put aside. That transportation is being kept on the agenda.”

Danielsen said no decision has been made on whether to continue funding the county’s transportation taskforce, whose term finishes March 31.

Tolentino, who also serves on the taskforce, said she hopes the $50,000 is put towards a group with local expertise to work towards answering the questions the county still has. She also said transportation has to be framed as an investment given how it acts as a barrier to things such as employment.

“There is a cost to not putting something on the road,” she said. “We can’t afford to not do it.”

“I feel the county council members have come a long way, as have all of us over the last 10 years,” Tolentino further said. “Booked, shared ride is a very viable option in the county and now we just need to fill in the gaps.”

The County of Haliburton has a new integrity commissioner to enforce codes of conduct and help council and local board members navigate ethics.

The county approved a draft agreement to make Harold Elston its commissioner Feb. 27. Elston will also be shared with the county’s lower-tier municipalities.

Elston said he has been practising municipal law for 31 years, including as an integrity commissioner in other municipalities, and looks forward to the work.

“I have seen many issues from all different sorts of angles and perspectives, so I think it helps me understand where people are coming from,” he said.

The province made the integrity commissioner role mandatory as of March 1. The role was expanded to include public education and investigations into the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act. He is also to investigate alleged breaches of the new codes of conduct passed by area municipal councils. Any person, including council members and the public, can bring a code of conduct complaint forward.

Elston said people considering this should review the code of conduct and ensure their issues fall within it and the commissioner’s jurisdiction. An optional informal resolution should also be explored, Elston said.

“Sometimes, the informal route is best … just to approach them directly and sometimes, people don’t even realize they’ve offended somebody or they’ve caused some concern,” Elston said. “Before launching a formal complaint, make sure that it’s something you can’t just resolve yourself.”

But if someone chooses to proceed with a formal complaint, Elston said to write it and be as detailed as possible. “They need to outline the dates, the times, the place,” Elston said.

“Be prepared for me to vet the complaint, show it to the responding member of council and then be prepared to spend some time talking with me and sort of working through it. They should understand that it is a process and it is my job to make sure it’s fair.”

However, Elston said in his experience, serious complaints requiring full investigations are rare. Elston said his duty to provide advice upon request to councillors about ethics and conflicts of interest will help prevent those complaints.

“We can talk about it and I can provide them a written opinion,” he said. “The result will be there are fewer complaints because councillors have a chance to talk it out with somebody beforehand.”

The county has allotted $25,000 for Elston’s services within its 2019 budget.

“I was very honoured to be appointed as the integrity commissioner. I’m just looking forward to working with the people of Haliburton,” Elston said.

Haliburton centenarian Doris Roberts has no secrets for her longevity.

“I have a good sense of humour and I think that’s probably the biggest thing that has kept me going,” Roberts said. “I’ve just always eaten healthy. Just plain good luck, I think.”

The eldest resident of Haliburton’s Parklane Apartments, Roberts celebrated her 100th birthday surrounded by dozens of friends and family Feb. 23.

Roberts, who’s always been a homemaker, said she appreciated her birthday visitors.

“I’m quite honoured to think that everybody’s making such an effort to come and see me.”

Family across generations gathered to celebrate the occasion. Roberts’ daughter, Patricia Allen, as well as many of her grandchildren and great-grandchildren attended.

Granddaughter Katharine Leaman said Roberts is someone who doesn’t pull any punches but always speaks to family with humour and lots of love.

“She’s as real as they get. She’s her own woman,” Leaman said. “She’s always reminded me of the fairy godmother in Cinderella … she’s had quite a life, she’s quite a character and she’s a big part of the family.”

Allen said her mother has always been generous. She noted her mother’s wish to have donations for the food bank in lieu of cards or gifts for her birthday. Allen added her mother has been her biggest supporter.

“I personally cannot imagine what it would be like to lose her,” Allen said. “She’s just always been there.”

Debra Wenge, an extended family member, called Roberts an inspiration.

“That life is pretty special and when you can go on like this at 100 years, pretty much have your mind with you, just a real inspiration,” Wenge said.

Roberts said she is working through her third bout with cancer. She added there has been “nothing spectacular” about her life, but it’s been a good one.

“You can either be glum or you can be happy,” Roberts said. “I choose to be happy. I’m very grateful to everybody that’s making such an effort to make my day so special.”

The County of Haliburton council finalized its 2019 draft budget Feb. 25 with an expected 5.72 per cent residential tax rate increase for the year.

Council unanimously approved the draft budget at a special meeting according to Dysart et al Mayor Andrea Roberts.

County warden Liz Danielsen said the increase is a result of cost of living increases, losses in funding and a gradual increase to reserve levels established by upper levels of government.

“I’m very pleased with the results of our discussions today,” she said in an email. “Council looked very carefully at some of the outstanding items and while they were very difficult decisions, we were unanimous in the direction we ultimately decided to take.”

Danielsen also noted a number of projects as raising the budget, including $226,000 for flood plain mapping, $121,000 in increased winter maintenance costs and $54,000 towards low-income housing development in Minden Hills.

Roberts spoke to the county budget at her council’s meeting Feb. 26. She said rural municipalities are challenged to hold tax rates given a small commercial tax base compared to urban centres.

“They’re able to hold the line on the residential individual property and make it on the commercial real estate,” Roberts said. “That’s a challenge we have here.”

Danielsen said there was also some discussion about the county’s governance structure and next steps will be considered in the coming months.

“At this point there are no small number of areas within which we already partner in purchasing and providing service to the county and there are many more opportunities for us to share, hopefully creating a ‘made in Haliburton’ solution to governance and streamlining service,” she said.

Some $75,000 has also been allotted for the creation of a contract position for physician recruitment, Danielsen said. However, economic development will not be immediately included in the role as council initially directed. A staff report said time is needed to make an operating framework for an economic development position.

“In the interim, council has agreed the physician recruitment position be created on a part-time basis to ensure that work begins as soon as possible,” Danielsen said.

The budget also includes an additional $40,000 to begin a climate mitigation and adaptation plan, according to a staff report. Another $50,000 has been allotted to implement, review and enforce new shoreline preservation in the county.

Firefighters controlled a blaze which destroyed a Minden Hills home on Gelert Road Feb. 20.

At approximately 2 p.m., the Minden Hills Fire Department responded, according to fire chief Mike Bekking. Upon arrival, crews found a single-story residential structure fully ablaze, he said.

“Crews were able to contain the fire to the structure, saving the nearby garage from damage,” Bekking said.

There were no injuries, with nobody at home when the fire started. The home was considered a complete loss.

He added the cause of the fire is undetermined.

“There’s just too much loss there for us to determine the cause of the fire,” he said.

OPP, EMS, Dysart firefighters and county roads workers also assisted at the scene. He said the response was very effective, with firefighters overcoming difficulties getting a close water source, eventually relying on a nearby pond.

“They worked from 2 p.m. and didn’t leave there until approximately 8 p.m.,” Bekking said. “They worked hard for a long time.”

Bekking emphasized the importance of preventative fire safety measures “Smoke alarm, CO (carbon monoxide) detectors, they’re your first line of defense in a fire like that,” he said. “Fire prevention is always the key for our area.”