Ladies and Gentlemen
The
lead story - the decision by Council to sell our MPUC to Newmarket-Tay Power
Distribution.
Some
four years ago Council and the MPUC Board became concerned about the increasing
regulatory and structural changes in the power distribution sector. MPUC being
a very small distribution company was facing increasing risk due to the
inherent limitations in its ability to respond.
Those concerns led to a number of internal and public meetings about
what our options were and what we could do about it.
Last
year Council retained the legal firm BLG to see if there was a sale arrangement
that would put the ratepayers and taxpayers (shareholders of the MPUC) of
Midland in a better long-term service position. In addition to preserving the
financial asset represented by the MPUC the arrangement had to guarantee:
-
Equal
or better service distribution rates (Currently the distribution portion is about
25% of your hydro bill)
-
Equal
or better customer service levels
-
Protection
of all employees and local presence
After
a thorough process, BLG recommended that Newmarket-Tay was clearly the best fit
for our needs. Council agreed. Not only did the sale arrangement meet all of
our requirements but provided familiarity with the firm through the many ties
we already have with the Township of Tay. In short, this is a great arrangement
for Midland and its ratepayers.
At
this point there are a number of legal and technical matters to be cleaned up.
With that done the sale will then go to the Ontario Energy Board who will
review it in its entirety and determine whether the new arrangement is in the
best interests of Midland ratepayers. Assuming they agree with your Council,
the sale should be fully completed in the fall. In the meantime there will be a
number of public meetings to inform you about the sale, get your questions
answered and allow you to meet our new power distributer, Newmarket-Tay. Please
also see the attached Media Release.
*****
Carrying
on with the theme of change, we have two new faces joining the Town’s Senior Leadership Team. After a lengthy
recruitment process, Amanpreet Sidhu
has been selected as Director of
Corporate Services/Solicitor, and Andrew (Andy) Campbell joins the Town as Director of Engineering & Water Wastewater Services. You will have an opportunity to meet these two
gentlemen in the near future.
The
Week Ahead
Monday the 24th sees two Council
meetings. At 6:00 pm is a closed meeting to discuss three items:
-
An update on the Midland Bay Landing contract
situation
-
An update on a property assessment situation
-
Committee appointments
At 7:00 pm it is the April Council meeting, including:
-
Three deputations
o
Economic Development Corporation of North Simcoe
update
o
Heart of Georgian Bay Tourism update
o
Farm Fresh Food Fest update
-
Recommendation for the closure of King Street
on July 22nd for street basketball
-
Likely approval of putting Yonge Street on a
“road diet” – you will notice roadway changes on Yonge Street this summer
-
A lot of information about our Midland
Forward initiative:
o
Recommended Mission, Vision and Values
statements
o
Launch of the Service Delivery Review
o
Action items to meet Council/staff priorities
-
Discussion of a lease agreement with the
Boathouse Eatery
-
Passage of the 2017 budget. Lots of
interesting information in the budget document, including:
o
2017 municipal portion tax rate increase of
3.1%
o
Total Town Full Time Equivalents ( number of staff)
have decreased from 188 to 163 over the last 5 years
Tuesday April 25 starts at 9:00 am at
County Council. Later that day, at 3:15
pm, a publically spirted group of citizens from Tiffin will gather at Tiffin
Pond to plant some trees. You may want to come out and help with the greening
of Midland. We also need your help with
the redesign of the King Street. The Town will be holding a public input
session at the Library from 6:30 pm to 8:00 pm. Then at 7:30 pm at the MCC, you
may wish to join Fred Hacker for a Day in the Life with Maude Barlow. Maude is an acknowledged international leader
in social, environmental, economic and trade justice. Her latest book is Boiling
Point: Government Neglect, Corporate Abuse and Canada's Water Crisis. She
was active in the Stop Site 41 movement.
Onto Friday the 28th and two special
events for you:
-
Feast for Learning at 5:30 pm at the Royal
Canadian Legion in Midland. Your hosts are Bruce and Heather Stanton, who will
be serving up a great roast beef dinner in aid of the Gateway Centre for Learning
-
The Guesthouse inaugural fundraiser is at
7:00 pm at the NSSRC including wine and cheese, a silent auction and dancing to
Homemade Jam. Tickets are on sale at
Ladybug, the Dock Lunch and Guesthouse Shelter.
You may also want to have a chat with Robert Sykes who has just
announced his retirement as CEO of the Guesthouse. Robert has provided
remarkable leadership for the Guesthouse over the last decade – and fair to say
is largely responsible for its transition to its new facility and expanded
service to our community.
Week -
End
Saturday April 29
-
Elmvale Maple Syrup Festival, an all-day
event including the ever popular log sawing contest
-
Quest Art’s evening “Kaleidoscope
of the Arts in the Garden” features a champagne reception, a sit-down dinner
catered by Ciboulette et Cie, a live auction and musical entertainment provided
by Marlon Gibbons and Louis Lefaive. Tickets may be purchased at Scotiabank in
Penetanguishene, Quest Art and online.
Sunday April 30
-
8:30 am its Run for the Chicken (aka the YMCA Huronia Half Marathon) at David
Onley Park at Midland’s waterfront
The
Week After That
On Tuesday May 2nd at 7:30 pm at the MCC
is the 6th event in the "Our Health" series, "Matters of
Memory". The evening explores memory loss and dementia, from personal
experiences to preventative tools and coping mechanisms. Three panelists with very different
backgrounds will tackle this complex topic – a dementia researcher and
international speaker (Arlene Astell), a physician who specializes in internal
medicine and geriatrics (Kevin Young) and a longtime Midland resident, retired
broadcaster and family supporter (John McCullough). Each will share their
knowledge and experiences with memory loss and dementia.
On Wednesday the 3rd you are invited to
attend the Town’s Planning and Development Committee at 7:00 pm. Please see
agenda on the Town website when it has been finalized.
Thursday the 4th it’s A Day in the
Life at MCC at 7:30 pm. Terry
O'Reilly (the Ad Man) is an award winning copy writer for many of the
top brands in the country. He cofounded a creative audio production company
producing radio and TV commercials. He now hosts the CBC radio program Under
the Influence focusing on marketing and advertising.
On Friday May 5th it is all entertainment.
Huronia Players launches its spring program
with Death by Design at the MCC at 8:00 pm. And if gospel music is your forte, you will
want to attend Swing Low also at the MCC at 8:00 pm.
Week -
End
Saturday May 6
-
8:00 am the 4th Midland Scouting Group
hosts its annual soapbox derby on Hugel Avenue from 6th Street to 3rd
Street
-
10:30 am starts the new season at Martyrs’
Shrine. The unveiling of new St. Ignatius Chapel is at 10:30 am with mass at
noon
-
7:30 pm all Johnny Cash fans will want to
attend We Walk the Line, a Johnny Cash Tribute, at the MCC at 7:30 pm
Sunday May 7
-
9:15 am to an11:45 am finish, it’s the Mandarin
Walk for MS at NSSRC. A morning of fundraising, food, entertainment and prizes
Council
Issues Update
OPP
The OPP Costing Committee continues to meet. You can expect
a report with recommendations on policing by early June.
MBL
The current contract will be discussed at the Council
meeting on April 24th. Then likely
a period of review before Council decides where the project goes from here.
MPUC
The sale decision has been made. There will be about a month
of completing the legal schedules with the Share Purchase Agreement. Then it goes to the OEB for their review. Look for a number of public meetings to be
arranged and the topic of what happens with the sale proceeds to be discussed.
*****
You are probably wondering why this edition includes two weeks’
worth of Town activities. The simple answer is that I will be travelling to
Holland this week as part of the Frank Graham Cycle Liberation Tour and will
not be here for next week’s edition.
During World War II, Frank and his fellow Canadian soldiers
liberated much of Holland, including the small town of Markelo. Over the years a tremendous friendship has
grown up between the townsfolk of Markelo and those of Midland and Chatham. Many
visits, back and forth across the Atlantic, have occurred over the decades keeping
the flame of friendship alive.
This is likely to be the last of the major visits since
for the first time, Frank Graham is not up to the journey. I am pleased to be a
part of the tradition that will continue to strengthen our friendship and play
a small role in helping the world recover from the tragedy of war.
Gord McKay
The
Year for Getting It Done - 2017
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