Below is a summary of key items discussed at the Municipality of Port Hope Council and Committee of the Whole Meetings held on Tuesday, March 16, 2021. The agendas and staff reports are available on the Council Portal. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this meeting was held electronically via video conference.
Service Line Warranties of Canada Agreement
Staff provided an update to Council on the Municipality’s agreement with Service Line Warranties of Canada (SLWC). The agreement expires in August 2021 and staff advised that the agreement will not be extended.
SLWC offers insurance protection to property owners for maintenance of the buried water and sewer lines that run from the public (main) connection to the exterior of their homes. In 2018, the Municipality executed an agreement with SLWC by By-law 62/2018. The agreement stipulated that the Municipality endorsed SLWC and allowed SLWC to use the Municipality’s name and logo on letterhead, advertising, billing, and marketing materials.
The agreement has caused confusion among residents since its inception and the Municipality has decided, based on feedback from residents, not to extend the agreement.
SLWC may continue to offer insurance protection to residents but may not include the Municipality’s logo or name on any of its materials when the agreement expires in August 2021.
No impact to current customers is expected.
Leisure Services Master Plan
Council adopted the 2021 Leisure Services Master Plan, in principle, for the Municipality of Port Hope.
The 2021 Leisure Services Master Plan provides a resource and guidelines to the Municipality to further enhance parks, recreation, and culture opportunities and initiatives to consider over the course of a 10-year period.
The Plan will require ongoing review and further research related to the recommendations included as well as a bi-annual review by the Parks, Recreation and Culture Advisory Committee and staff with corresponding status reports and recommendations to Council.
Tree Planting and Protection Policy
Council adopted the amended Municipality of Port Hope Tree Planting and Protection Policy.
The Tree Planting and Protection policy is intended to guide decisions of Municipal staff in the planting, protection, maintenance, and removal of trees located on Municipal property in urban and rural areas and to support activities related to the implementation of the recommendations specified in the Municipal Forest Master Plan.
The policy does not apply to municipal trees that form part of the Port Hope Area Initiative (PHAI) project.
The recently approved Environmental Advisory Committee (comprised in part of the former Tree Advisory Committee) also reviewed the Policy and provided a Tree Replacement Formula to be incorporated into the existing Tree Planting and Protection Policy. The formula calculates the number of replacement trees for those that are removed / destroyed on municipal properties.
Committee of the Whole
The following are highlights from the Committee of the Whole Meeting:
Delegation: Stash & Co Recreational Cannabis Store
Representatives from Stash & Co Recreational Cannabis Store provided a delegation to Council to share the details of the new store that is scheduled to open on Toronto Road this spring.
2020 Tax Adjustments
Council was provided a staff report identifying the 2020 tax adjustments. The report outlines the omit/supplementary billings, cancellations, reductions and/or write-offs, all of which are in accordance with the Municipal Act.
This year, the net property tax adjustments are unfavorable in the amount of $99,670 as compared to the 2020 budget. The reasons for this are outlined in the fulsome staff report. The Municipality anticipates and budgets for these situations during the annual budget process and reports annually the amounts actually incurred.
Minutes and video recordings
Meeting minutes will be available pending approval at the next Council meeting on Tuesday, April 6, 2021, at which point they will become the official record of the meeting.
Recordings of the March 16, 2021 Council and Committee of the Whole meetings are available on the Council page.
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