Pontiac council report - councillor running for mayor’s seat
Mo Laidlaw
Councillor Garry Dagenais will fight the current mayor, Eddie McCann, for the post of mayor of Pontiac during the municipal elections on the 1st November. Mayor McCann wants to continue for a further four years. There are now six wards instead of seven in Pontiac, and boundaries of all except Ward 2 (Quyon) have changed. Prospective candidates for mayor and councillor have until 2 October to submit their names.
Councillors Jean Amyotte (ward 6), Lawrence Tracey (1), Harold McKenny (2), Raymond Gougeon (4), and former councillor Roger Larose (1), all said they’d be running, while Brian Middlemiss is waiting to announce his decision, and Jim Coyle is undecided. There will be no regular council meeting in October as the election campaign will be on.
The council meeting held on 8 September 2009 was attended by about a dozen residents. Jean-Claude Carisse asked about “airport” signs on River road. Mayor McCann explained that these signs were put up by André Durocher, who is developing a subdivision for owners of small airplanes.
Planning - Communication tower
Council voted to support Videotron’s request to the CPTAQ to install a telecommunication tower on Jochen Braun’s property on Braun road. Videotron will allow the fire department and police as well as Pioneer Wireless (local high-speed internet provider), to install their antennas on the tower at no cost. Industry Canada allows the municipality to exempt Videotron from a public consultation. Council approved this by 5 votes to 3.
Kris Belsher’s request to the CPTAQ to build a house on farmland at 1592 ch Hammond was supported by council.
Money matters
Bills for $93,092 and fixed expenses of $320,468 for August were approved.
Other amounts approved:
R.H. Nugent is granted the 3-year snow-removal contracts for sectors B and C for $249,738 and $223,604 respectively, the lowest bids received.
Tenders are sought for paving, up to a total of $31,600.
The director of public works may proceed with digging ditches, replacing culverts, and adding gravel to Cedarvale road, up to a maximum of $12,000.
Fondex Shermont is given the job of third-party expert to shut down the dump for $2,793.
Architect Pierre Morimanno will prepare final plans and specifications for the extension of the town hall for $125 an hour up to a maximum of $6,000.
The 1973 Ford tanker truck is sold to Raymond Bélisle for $1,700, an earlier larger offer having lapsed.
A desktop computer costing up to $1000 will be bought for the fire department, to be installed in a municipal building.
$500 to celebrate St-Dominique church’s 125th anniversary.
$200 for the “2009 Collines adventure” expedition, part of the MRC des Collines “Place aux jeunes” program.
Other matters
Council requests the minister of Employment to appoint an arbitrator to decide working conditions, as the municipality’s negotiations with workers on a new collective agreement are deadlocked.
Tenders are requested for an ecocentre to be installed in the municipality.
The bylaw on peace and order is modified to include restrictions on weapons, to comply with MRC des Collines requirements.