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Agenda, By-Law, Capital Investment, Fire Department, Infrastructure, parry sound, Strategic Plan, Taxes, Town Council, train
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There are a few items of note on the agenda this week. I’m most interested in 9.2.1.
9.2.1 – Train Whistle Cessation within Parry Sound. Staff is recommending that the Town terminate the investigation of train whistle cessation in the Town. (Note: everyone likes to call them train whistles, but let’s be clear these are air horns. There is nothing about them that is quaint or romantic.) The Town commissioned an extensive report that is included in the full agenda package. The logic behind the recommendation is that the cost of cessation would be on the order of $750,000. But more importantly the recommendation basically says that with the inherent noise of the trains, stopping the air horn blasts would make very little difference in the overall noise. That’s a bit like the health system saying that we won’t treat your hearing loss because you live beside a rail crossing and the difference will be negligible. If you look at the sound plots, which are in beautiful colour and well done, you will see that those who get nailed the most by the air horns, really do get blasted. We are not in that situation at our house but I have empathy for those that are in the path of a 110 db air horn.
On the subject of trains, it has been a few years since CN and CP started routing northbound trains on the CP track and the southbound trains over the CN track. I have never been told the logic for this. The trains approach town on their separate tracks before switching to the designated line. As soon as they leave Parry Sound they get back on their own tracks. My suspicion is that with the ‘oilers’ running crude and LNG from the west the railways would prefer that if there were to be a derailment that it not be over the Seguin River trestle. That would be a real disaster for all concerned. Otherwise the split and assignment of lines makes no sense. It would seem more efficient to run the fully laden southbound trains over the CP Seguin River trestle. There is much less of an incline to climb with these very heavy rail cars. When we have train breakdowns in town it’s always on the southbound CN line that blocks Forest Street. They-just-can’t-get-it-up.
If you have an opinion on this either attend the meeting or speak with/email/write Council. The easy answer for Council is to say ‘we tried’ but it ‘doesn’t work’ given other priorities. (The agenda package this week is large, about 66 MB, but worth looking at.)
4.1 – Jim & Marian Ferris, 143a William Street. Locations suggestions for Georgian Nordic Ski and Canoe Club structures and programming. It’s worth understanding the concerns of these folks. I was as surprised as they were about the proposed location of the structures given past correspondence.
Closed Session
c) a proposed or pending acquisition or disposition of land for municipal or local board purpose, (local board property);
e) litigation or potential litigation, including matters before administrative tribunals, affecting the municipality or local board; (two property matters; zoning compliance matter);
Correspondence
4.1 – Jim & Marian Ferris, 143a William Street. Locations suggestions for Georgian Nordic Ski and Canoe Club structures and programming.
Deputations
5.1 – Ian Fleming, President; Dan DiNicolo, Member, Festival of the Sound Board. Festival of the Sound’s Upcoming 40th Anniversary Season
5.2 – Russell Becker, Community Relations Director, The Gardens. The Gardens – Expansion
Resolutions and Direction to Staff
9.1.1 – 2018 Annual Investment Report. Resolution. That Council accepts the 2018 Annual Investment Report in accordance with the Town’s Investment Policy.
9.2.1 – Train Whistle Cessation within Parry Sound. Direction. That Council direct staff to not proceed any further with train whistle cessation in Parry Sound due to the risks to public safety and potential Town liability, as well as overburdening costs of implementing train whistle cessation.
9.2.2 – Tender – Equipment – 4-wheel drive articulating loader. Resolution. That Council accept the tender from Toromont Cat for a 2019 CAT 918M loader in the amount of $171,195.00, including taxes, delivery, and the trade-in of a 2009 CASE 521 E, this tender being the lowest of four received; and
That Council also accept the tender from Toromont Cat for a weigh scale attachment in the amount of $11,650.30, including taxes and delivery; and That additional funds required to purchase said equipment be taken from the Public Works culvert replacement capital project.
9.3.1 – Pick-up truck Replacement (Fire Department). Resolution. That Council for the Town of Parry Sound award the tender for a 2019 New Model 4X4 1/2 ton Pick up Crew Cab Short Box for the Fire Department to Williamson Chrysler/UBIC Vehicle Solutions Inc. in the amount of $45,263.28 including HST;
And further that the offering of $12,600 for the purchase of the replaced 2007 GMC by Gore Bay Gordon Barry Island Fire Department be accepted.
9.4.1 – WPS Geography Network wins MISA Award. Direction. That the report and presentation be received for information purposes.
9.4.2 – Join the FCM – ICLEI (Local Governments for Sustainability) Partners for ClimateProtection Program. Resolution. That Council hereby adopts the resolution attached as Schedule A, being a resolution prepared by FCM–ICLEI (Local Governments for Sustainability) Partners for Climate Protection Program to:
endorse the Government of Canada’s commitment to the Paris Agreement to limit global temperature increase to below two degrees Celsius and to pursue efforts to limit the global temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius; and commit to reviewing the guidelines on PCP member benefits and responsibilities and then communicate to FCM its participation in the PCP program and its commitment to achieving the milestones set out in the PCP five-milestone framework; and further
That Council hereby appoints Forrest Pengra to oversee implementation of the PCP milestones and be the point of contact for the PCP within the municipality.
By-laws
10.1.1 – By-law to specify claw back percentages for 2019 property taxes. By-law 2019 – 6934. Being a By-law to Specify the “Claw-back Percentages” in Respect of Properties in the Commercial Class for 2019 Taxation Year.
10.1.2 – Strategic Asset Management Policy and regulatory changes. By-law 2019 – 6935. Being a By-law to approve the Strategic Asset Management Policy for the Corporation of the Town of Parry Sound
10.2.1 – StreetScan Agreement for Road Assessment Service. By-law 2019 – 6936. Being a by-law to execute an agreement with StreetScan Canada ULC for a Road Assessment Service.
10.3.1 – Building Permit By-law amendment to include Alternative Solution proposals and Fees. By-law 2019 – 6937. Being a By-law to amend the Building Permit By-law to establish a process for evaluation of Alternative Solution proposals; and amend the Fees By-law to set fees.
10.4.1- MOU – YMCA Simcoe/Muskoka for drop-in recreational programs. By-law 2019 – 6938. Being a bylaw to authorize the execution of a Memorandum of Understanding with Simcoe/Muskoka YMCA for delivery of drop-in recreation programming at the YMCA of Parry Sound.
No comments
June 16, 2019 at 6:17 pm
Joe… I have no problem with $1,000,000 to stop the train air horns. We have an AGM tomorrow night… it’s a bit out of the usual .. but it is my last night as President… tell me what to do to support the termination.
Lynne
June 16, 2019 at 9:31 pm
Call mayor and councillors. It’s a big expense and they need to know that people are in support of the initiative. It would be interesting to look at comprehensive list of investments the Town has made in the past 10 years of this magnitude and see how they compare. A few come to mind:
Stockey Centre – $1.2 million
Bobby Orr Community Centre – $1 million plus for the ice pad replacement
Bobby Orr Community Centre – A couple hundred thousand for the roof.
Bobby Orr Community Centre – $50,000 or so to fix the heating in the bleachers
Extension to Oastler Road Investigation – I think this was about $100,000 and was shelved.
New Ladder Truck – $1.2 million or so
And we were also able to shake cash for the Snowbirds.
We spend money in this Town. The question is the priorities. I support train whistle cessation – my in-laws at one point lived a hundred metres from the track but in a direct line of the CN train as it headed south and crossed Cascade. Terrible, terrible, terrible. And there are well studied health consequences for this type of noise pollution. I think the real issue is liability if somebody wanders along the track and gets smucked the Town might have a financial liability. But we have had too many people killed on the streets of Parry Sound without any real liability.