Politics
Springwater Township Fights for a Doctor
Submitted by Matt Garwood
August 22, 2024 – Earlier this week members of Springwater Council and Staff attended the Association of Municipalities of Ontario Conference and met with the Ontario Ministry of Health to advocate on behalf of Springwater residents regarding the lack of access to primary care close to home. Additionally, they met with the Ontario Medical Association to discuss the impact of physician shortages on our community.
Pittman ‘actively working’ to reopen OPP satellite in Penetang
By: Derek Howard, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Source: MidlandToday.ca
Aug 19, 2024 – A visit by the OPP to Penetanguishene council provided an insight into the community safety and policing act, crime statistics, and an active effort to re-open the Penetanguishene walk-in office.
Southern Georgian Bay OPP detachment commander Inspector Todd Pittman provided a verbal presentation regarding the Community Safety and Policing Act consultation at the recent regular council meeting.
The intent was to highlight three key priorities on the existing detachment action plan and ask for comments, regarding: crime prevention; policing roadways, waterways and trails; and community well-being
“The first key priority that we have is on addressing and preventing crime in our policing area while maintaining investigative excellence,” said Pittman.
“Really, that’s about building those relationships with our victim services, looking at targeting intimate partner violence.”
He noted that two positions were implemented but not yet filled to combat the epidemic of intimate partner violence.
Through various working partnerships ranging from Crown attorneys, local shelters, youth wellness hubs and more, Pittman described the various means which the OPP engaged with the community. Additionally, the community street crimes unit engaged in drug crimes as well as property crimes.
“If I’m not mistaken, there was a warrant executed (recently) in the town of Penetanguishene resulting in a recovered stolen BMW that we now have in our hands, being processed by our forensic identification team,” said Pittman.
Pittman added that the mental health response team would be rebranded as MCCRT (Mobile Crisis Rapid Response Team), with his aim to increase the number officers from one to two due to the “quite high” mental health occurrences in Penetanguishene compared to other communities.
The second priority listed by Pittman involved roadways, waterways, trails, and the year-round focus on policing those.
He reminded council that the Southern Georgian Bay OPP was “one of the fortunate detachments with a full-time marine unit”, and that he could be looking at the detachment obtaining all-terrain vehicles for increased patrol for communities with related bylaws.
“We’ll continue to do our RIDE initiatives, focus patrols on high-traffic complaint areas,” Pittman added. “We do directed foot patrols as well, just on areas where we have increased drug use and things like that.”
The third key priority was on community well being, and partnerships within the detachment stakeholder communities. “That’s engaging these in being a part of the committees,” Pittman said, “the discussion, and really looking for a whole-of-community approach to community well being is a big focus for us.
“It’s important, I think, to hear from our business what’s happening in our streets, what they’re seeing, and to get the pulse of the community.”
With the core presentation addressed, Pittman included a brief summary of crime statistics he had on hand for Penetanguishene.
Motor vehicle collisions of personal injuries, fatalities, and property damage, were down 29.5 per cent from 2022 to date; speeding charges in Penetanguishene were up 86.2 per cent; seatbelt charges were up 200 per cent; and Pittman stated that he was happy to see that impaired charges were down 31.6 per cent.
Violent crimes included one homicide in 2023, with other serious violent crime of attempted murder, sexual assault, assault, firearms offenses, and robberies down 47 per cent from 2022 to date, “which is a very good thing”.
“Our property crimes – so that’s arsons, break and enters, theft over, theft under $5,000 as a threshold, possession of stolen goods – even though we just did recover a BMW yesterday, we are still down 32.5 per cent which is a good thing,” said Pittman.
“It’s not the enforcement, it’s the amount of calls for service and issues for those things are going down, which is great for our overall community safety and well being.”
Drug crime saw a 20 per cent overall decrease, while clearance rates were at 63.9 per cent overall. Property crimes, “often the most difficult one to solve”, said Pittman, were below the provincial average sitting at 17 per cent.
“We brought in last year, and we’re still pushing it, trying to get things like the CamSAFE initiative, trying to get people comfortable with coming and reporting these crimes to police and identifying the people responsible.”
Regarding mental health calls, 112 were reported in 2023 while 2022 saw 95; Pittman offered that the to-date number of 78 currently meant that “we’re probably going to be up around that 100-plus mark again this year, just showing that mental health is on the rise in our communities and we need a response.”
Coun. Doug Leroux shared that speeding was the biggest complaint in the town from what residents had told him, and Pittman acknowledged that traffic complaints were “the number one complaint in the entire province.” His plan was to dedicate more officers to speed enforcement.
Addressing a previous comment by Coun. George Vadeboncoeur about deployed resources in the future, Pittman explained that he had since consulted regarding a staffing deployment model as the way to gain future staff. He specifically noted the Penetanguishene OPP satellite office which had closed its doors in 2022.
“We ended up closing the office when we lost one of our detachment administrative clerks, because then we had nobody to work the front desk. We still do have officers going in and utilizing the office, however,” said Pittman.
Of interest right now, we’re actually getting more staff,” Pittman added. “We had three new staff start this week, and we’re getting another five by February, so we’re actually overstaffed a little bit in the office.
“One of the overstaffs that I would like, and I’m actively working on, is another detachment administrative clerk. If I can get that clerk, then we will reopen the Penetanguishene office for walk-in service from the detachment, and that’s something I’m working on.”
Meetings of Penetanguishene council are held on the second Wednesday of each month, and can be watched live on Rogers TV cable 53 when available, or on the Rogers TV website.
Archives of council meetings are located on the Town of Penetanguishene YouTube channel.
Here’s what North Simcoe residents pay for when councils go to AMO
By: Derek Howard, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Source: MidlandToday.ca
Aug 19, 2024 – What better way to celebrate the 125th anniversary of the Association of Municipalities of Ontario, than to have taxpayer dollars advocate for pressing issues in their respective communities?
The annual conference begins next week in Ottawa, and many of the 444 represented municipalities have been preparing to attend with delegations in mind.
As each would need to submit a request for an opportunity to have a 10-minute, one-on-one with provincial politicians, choosing which topic to speak about and with whom would be unique for every municipality to agree upon within their own ranks.
MidlandToday reached out to North Simcoe’s municipalities to see what they would be seeking to accomplish at the conference, how much it would cost their ratepayers, and why it was an important function which would benefit their residents.
MIDLAND
Of seven requested delegations, CAO Rhonda Bunn stated that five had received confirmation.
Those were in regards to: a $42-million grant application to the Housing-Enabling Water System Fund (Ministry of Infrastructure); support for the cruise industry (Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Gaming); the Ontario Municipal Partnership Fund and a change to Municipal Accommodation Tax legislation (both with the Ministry of Finance); and a shortage of qualified building inspectors within the province (Ministry of Colleges and Universities).
“Delegations hosted at AMO are an excellent opportunity for municipal staff and elected officials to meet face-to-face with provincial leaders and ministry staff,” said Bunn, adding that the delegation requests “highlight some of the challenges faced by small urban municipalities such as ours.”
Costwise, Bunn cited that Mayor Bill Gordon would be attending as a Simcoe County council member under their fee expense (which means taxpayers would be paying for his stay through the county rather than municipality), while the remaining six council members and two senior staff members also scheduled the full conference to attend; early bird registration and three nights of conference hotel accommodations for roughly $1,700 per person calculated to $13,600 total.
“The town takes advantage of ‘early bird’ rates by registering early in the year to keep our costs low,” Bunn shared.
Gordon said that out of all the conference opportunities available to municipal leaders and senior staff each year, if you only had the budget or desire to attend one, it would be the AMO.
“The costs are trivial when compared to the value received by networking with virtually every peer municipality in the Province over three days,” he said.
More focused events and conferences provided similar value, said Gordon, but not to the widespread opportunity of AMO.
“Participation in these yearly events, even if only at the AMO, keeps a municipality connected to their associations and their executive, their peers and provides valuable direction for the following years. It is also the forum to elect new members to the AMO board and opportunities to connect directly with every Provincial minister and their staff,” stated Gordon who, as per a recent council meeting, had received unanimous approval from Midland council to run for a position on the AMO board of directors.
“We are lucky to have such a close relationship with our MPP/Minister Dunlop in Simcoe North but that doesn’t replace the need to network and connect with other ministers at the conference,” Gordon added.
Regarding the Ministry of Infrastructure delegation, Gordon hoped that residents would wish him luck.
“I am up against 443 other municipalities,” said Gordon, “but we have a solid business case and an excellent presentation lined up for each of the delegations, especially this one. I will be selling our town hard to the ministers we meet with and looking for the help we need to help us support growth. Our water/wastewater system expansion is staggeringly expensive, and without winning some significant Provincial funding the costs will be borne by the local ratepayers.”
PENETANGUISHENE
Mayor Doug Rawson said that three delegations had been accepted for the week.
“We’re meeting with the Solicitor General regarding the Central North Correctional Centre and the funding disparity between us and the province,” said Rawson. “We’re also meeting with the Minister of Finance regarding heads-and-beds regarding Waypoint and the superjail; first time we’ve delegated that in some time so we’re looking forward to that. And we’re meeting with the Ministry of Seniors and Accessibility regarding regulatory framework for long-term care institutions.”
Value was the key reward, said Rawson on what Penetanguishene residents were paying for.
At an expense of approximately $2,000 each for the full complement of seven council members and CAO, Rawson cited previous years where AMO delegations had produced results.
“Last year we delegated (Ojibwa Landing at 111 Robert Street West) at AMO, talking about how long it’s been going through the approval process, and we’re almost right across the finish line. Quickly after delegation last year, the ministers were able to put a little more pressure on the department level, we were able to get that across the line quicker. We’ve had some positive traction regarding CNCC; there’s no check in the mail but this is about building partnerships and relationships, and bringing our agenda forward.
“On top of the delegation piece, there’s also lots of learning,” Rawson added. “Every member of council will be going to learning sessions… networking with other municipalities. I think it’s hard to measure, but it delivers tremendous value back to our council and our community at large.”
TINY TOWNSHIP
Deputy CAO and corporate services director Haley Leblond said that two delegations were requested and accepted to speak about septage management and the development of settlement areas.
“All residences, farms and businesses in Tiny are on a septic system,” stated Leblond. “Given the vast size of the township (roughly 344 square kilometres), underground wastewater treatment infrastructure to connect homes is extremely expensive and not feasible to install.”
Leblond noted that while septage could be spread on ministry-approved fields during winter, resident options were limited.
“Previously, septage from Tiny was able to be hauled to the Town of Midland’s wastewater treatment centre, but this is no longer an option. The discussion with the Minister of Infrastructure will explore the septage challenges currently experienced by the township and others in North Simcoe, and the potential for provincial assistance in investment into alternatives to field applications.”
As for development of settlement areas (through the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing), Leblond explained that the township had been advocating for changes and expansions for years, contending that the current fixed settlement boundaries by the county and the province were non-reflective of activity seen through increased building permit activity and a demand for housing and employment lands in Tiny.
“The township is supportive of proposed new policy directions in a consolidated provincial policy document that will provide more flexibility for settlement area boundaries,” said Leblond. “Discussions with the Ministry will explore the expansion of the township settlement areas in smart and sustainable ways.”
The importance of AMO attendance, according to Leblond, was due to the venue being the “largest annual gathering for local and provincial elected officials to meet, share ideas and solutions to common issues, and learn about emerging trends and upcoming changes that may impact our community”.
“Registration and accommodation for Mayor Dave Evans and Deputy Mayor Sean Miskimins is covered by the County of Simcoe. The expense for the other members of council attending is registration of $860 and hotel of $909.” As AMO was the primary advocate organization for municipalities, Leblond said it was imperative for the township to be part of the conversations.
