Pontiac council report - drinking water for Quyon?
Mo Laidlaw
The council meeting held on 11 August 2009 was attended by about a dozen residents.
Residents’ concerns
Alain Larose, the owner of the apartment building in Quyon that was destroyed by fire in the first week in August, asked questions about the chain of command in the fire department, and questioned the Fire Chief’s ability to speak French. Mayor Eddie McCann explained that the chief communicates well with all firefighters and has passed the required test. Fire captain Serge Laforest is delegated to speak in French to the public at the scene, or the media. “Do firefighters verify their vehicles and equipment?” Larose added. Legal action is expected.
ATV routes
Following last month’s authorization for ATVs to use 5th concession, Pierre Guénette had several suggestions for changes, to avoid injuries to children or pedestrians: find an alternative trail, improve signage, inform the public, ask the ATV club or police force to be on patrol, and reduce the speed limit to 30 km/h.
Council later passed a resolution supporting the Pontiac Quad Club’s request to the Ministry of Transport to allow ATVs to cross: Wolf Lake road at 5th concession, route 148 at Eardley-Masham road, route 148 at 5th concession, and route 148 at Murray road.
Request to pave Cedarvale
Robert Lussier presented a petition asking for Cedarvale road to be asphalted. Earlier petitions were presented in 2005 and 2007. This one was signed by 88% of residents.
For fire fighting in the Cedarvale area, he suggested installing a dry-hydrant on ch. de la Détente or elsewhere, since it isn’t possible to take water from the Ottawa river - this is not safely accessible 12 months of the year.
Access to misinformation?
Rick Knox again requested acknowledgment of his letter of 2 July, which Mr McCann denied seeing at the previous regular meeting (14 July). Mr Knox also asked for answers to the questions in that letter, including whether the proposal that the municipality discussed with Rogers for a cellphone tower, is the same as an earlier proposal for a tower on his property for both cellphones and wireless internet. When Mr Knox insisted he’d like an answer, the mayor and deputy mayor seemed to think he was accusing them of lying. The answer may be that Rogers has changed its mind, after a change of personnel in charge of this project. A discussion ensued as to whether plans that developers have deposited with the municipality are available to the public. Apparently they can be “consulted” but not copied.
Incinerator project
John Keyuk of the firm LMMK Management Group, was given a 6-month mandate as consultant on the incinerator project for $2,500 per month. Political, economic and technical concerns were cited as reasons to need a consultant.
Planning
Council supported the request to subdivide lot 2 872 173 into two lots. (Glen & Harold Nugent, 330, ch. Bradley.) Council also supported the request to subdivide lot 2 683 425 into two lots. (Roger Thérrien, 93, ch. de la Rivière.)
Council supported Georges Whelan’s request to the CPTAQ for part of the farm at 1120 ch. Smith Léonard, to build a single family dwelling on 2.2 hectares. (“Luskville farmer battles for land rights” in 2009/8/12 Pontiac Journal).
Grant to build new Luskville library
The municipality is requesting $440,000 in government grants to build a library in the Luskville area.
Quyon’s drinking water
At a special meeting on 2 July, council agreed to proceed with a water treatment plant for Quyon by a combination of ozonization and filtering through a membrane, as recommended by CIMA+. It will be capable of treating 900 cubic metres a day of water from the Ottawa river, for drinking water. CIMA+ will look after the tendering process as well as authorizations from provincial and federal departments.
Money matters
Bills for $65,074 and fixed expenses of $238,076 for July were approved.