A Royal Canadian Legion request, a finance report, a fire and emergency services report and a planning report were some of the issues discussed at the March 2 Guelph-Eramosa Township council meeting.
Legion donation
Council approved for staff to place a $275 business card advertisement in the coming Royal Canadian Legion Ontario Command produced Military Service Recognition Book. The book will offer biographies of present and past troops and veterans from throughout Ontario.
“The thing about these things are, if they’re not done they’re not done,” Mayor Chris White said.
“You’ve got one or two generations and it’s over because you can’t find any family that’s got the pictures or any of the history.”
Councillor Corey Woods suggested offering Guelph-Eramosa’s Remembering the Fallen book, containing information about veterans in the township, to the legion.
“It’s the bigger broader cost,” White said. “The fact that they were on this particular cenotaph, these folks went out and fought in these wars and now someone’s trying to get the history, how can you not support that?”
Finance department report
Finance director, Linda Cheyne, presented the 2014 statement of council remuneration at the meeting. Last year White received a total of $29,579 in pay while Councillor David Wolk received $15,719 and Woods received $14,218. Councillors Louise Marshall and Mark Bouwmeester entered office in December with Marshall receiving $670 and Bouwmeester receiving $595 in pay.
All of council, past and present, attended every meeting other than former councillor John Scott, who missed the May 5, June 16 and July 14 meetings.
Fire, emergency services
In January, the Rockwood Fire Station responses were up four calls from January 2014.
This January, the department responded to a total of 18 calls and in the same month last year it had 14 calls.
This information goes against the overall trend showing a reduction of emergency calls. In 2014, there was a total of just 157 calls to the department, while in 2010, there were 256; a decrease in almost 100 calls in four years.
Planning report
The owner of 31 Bedford Road, Wayne Morrison, has applied for another three-year temporary use bylaw to allow him to run an automobile repair shop at his house. The shop has been operating since 1991 and at that time council approved a three-year temporary use bylaw. However, the shop continued running without renewal after the bylaw expired.
The application is complete, said Kelsey Lang, township planning associate, at the meeting, and council approved it to be circulated to the appropriate people within the township.
Morrison did not experience complaints; the renewal was brought to the township’s attention because it was flagged on the computer, Woods explained.
“It’s a nice property, nice building, well maintained,” Woods said. “Being on council I’ve never heard a complaint lodged with myself. I don’t see why this would be a problem.”
Bouwmeester asked for clarification about if the property is being taxed as rural residential. Staff will be looking into that and reporting back to council.
