Municipality of Port Hope Council Meeting - April 21, 2020
For Immediate Release
Wednesday, April 22, 2020 - Port Hope, ON
Below is a summary of key items discussed at the Municipality of Port Hope regular Council Meeting held on Tuesday, April 21, 2020. The full agenda and staff reports are available on the Council Portal. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this meeting was held electronically via video conference.
Land use restrictions
Council authorized the closure of all lands and parks under ownership of the Municipality that border the Ganaraska River, effective April 22 until May 12, 2020, in an effort to limit group gatherings as it relates to the opening of the trout fishing season. This closure includes all greenspaces and trails from Molson Street South to Lake Ontario and prevents access to the River through municipal properties.
In addition, the Ganaraska Region Conservation Authority (GRCA) owns a significant number of properties along this stretch of the River. A meeting of the GRCA Board was held on Thursday, April 16, 2020 and the Board supported this initiative.
Failure to comply with this restriction of the land use can result in a fine of $150, per By-law 54/2017 section 3 (a). This information is being communicated to the public through various communication tools including online, through social media and via signage posted along the River and at the community entry locations along the 401 corridor.
Suspension of parking and transit fees
Council authorized an amendment to the Prescribed Fees and Charges By-law 81/2019 that includes the exemption of some Municipal parking and transit fees.
The amendment includes the waiving of fees associated with Transit that was communicated to the public on March 19, 2020 and the fees associated with Parking that was communicated to the public on March 25, 2020.
Transit fees suspensions include daily tickets and monthly passes as well as fees for the shuttle to Cobourg. The suspension to the parking fees includes all parking meter fees, and the Mill Street launch / Mill Street parking lots (note that the boat launch is currently closed to the public).
The By-law amendment formalizes the temporary suspension of certain parking and transit fees until the Provincial Declaration of Emergency is lifted or Council provides direction to begin imposing the fees again, as normal operations are phased in.
Animal Control By-Law
Council authorized By-Law 20/2020, a By-law for the regulation, registration, keeping and licensing of dogs, prohibiting the running at large of dogs and prohibiting cruelty to domestic animals, and repeals By-law 18/2014. In February 2020, a draft of this By-law was posted as a community consultation to receive public feedback on the proposed changes.
GIS Service Agreement
Council approved the appointment of Northumberland County as the Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Services Provider. This will help to meet the GIS needs of the Municipality by providing efficient and effective operations and substantially enhance our mapping, spatial data and analysis capabilities for the entire organization.
This initiative supports the Corporate Efficiencies priority in the Port Hope Strategic Plan by establishing a new service delivery partner, which will support the recently approved Asset Management/GIS coordinator position and further enhance asset management planning, optimize service delivery and attain efficiencies through technological advancement.
Minutes from this meeting will be available pending approval at the next Council meeting on Tuesday, May 5, 2020, at which point they will become the official record of the meeting.
Recordings of the April 21, 2020 Regular Council meeting and Committee of the Whole meeting will be available at porthope.ca/council-communications.
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