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Serving the Mapleton Community
Community News Volume 44 Issue 31
Drayton, Ontario
1 Year GIC - 2.05% 3 Year GIC - 2.80% 5 Year GIC - 3.05% Daily Interest 1.75%
Friday, August 5, 2011
New Bell tower should improve local cell phone, internet service by Chris Daponte MAPLETON TWP. - The township is in favour of erecting a Bell Mobility tower north of Alma to help improve cell phone and internet service for those living in and around the village. At its last meeting in July council agreed to the Bell proposal for a tower on private property north of Alma, near the corner of 14th Line and Sideroad 21 (Simpson Street East). Clerk Patty Sinnamon reported that no major concerns about the 45 metre tower were received from various commenting parties, including Hydro One, R.J. Burnside and Associates, the Grand River Conservation Authority and Mapleton officials.
Bell Mobility spokesperson Karen Balbaa explained the company has entered into a lease agreement with the landowner at 7154 14th Line. It has also submitted a site plan application and notified nearby landowners through the Wellington Advertiser. She said only one resident submitted any questions about the proposal, which she expects will “fill the coverage gap” that currently exists in the area, including between Alma and Elora. “This site is intended to provide in-building service to the residences of Alma and surrounding area,” Balbaa said in her report. “It will also improve coverage along County Roads 7 and 17 and surrounding roads in the area.
“It will also provide capacity relief for the sites Bell currently operates, which cover Arthur, Fergus and Elora.” When asked by council, Finance Director Mike Givens explained the private landowner will be assessed for having commercial infrastructure on their property, but that money is likely recovered by the owner through a section in the lease agreement with Bell. Unfortunately, Givens said, the township does not receive any building fees for the structure because Industry Canada is in charge of the permit process for communications towers. Council approved a resolution stating the township “concurs with the proposal” by Bell Mobility.
County-wide fire ban lifted by Chris Daponte WELLINGTON CTY. - Nine days after issuing a county-wide fire ban, officials have called off the prohibition. Originally fire officials had stated “a significant amount of rainfall” was required to lift the ban, but there was only several millimetres of precipitation in the time between July 20 and
29.
A press release received from the office of county fire coordinator Brad Patton stated, “If dry conditions become a concern in the future, another outdoor fire ban may be required. “If you have any questions, please contact your local fire department.”
The ban, effective in all seven lower tier municipalities in Wellington County, had applied to all open air fires, defined as any outdoor fires including bonfires, campfires, burn barrels, outdoor fireplaces and chimneys or others. The only exceptions to the ban were cooking fires, from Continued on page 2
Curry: Residents hardly ever informed of complaint resolutions by Chris Daponte MAPLETON TWP. - When it comes to complaints filed by residents, often the perception is township staff has done nothing to address the alleged problem. That was the message councillors Mike Downey and Jim Curry brought to Mapleton staff members recently. On July 19 Downey started the council discussion by asking how the township handles complaints lodged with officials at the municipal office. He wondered how those grievances were passed on or resolved.
Clerk Patty Sinnamon said complaints are sent to the appropriate department head who is required to fill out a form explaining how they addressed the complaint. Curry said part of the problem is the perception of those filing the complaints. Often, he explained, the complainant never gets informed that anything has been done, so they understandably assume nothing has been done. They then bring the complaint to councillors, who don’t know anything about the issue. Public Works Director
Larry Lynch said in his department, if the complaint is operational, he gets a manager to deal with the issue as soon as possible. But Curry stressed the main issue is communicating the resolution to the person who filed the complaint in the first place. “Ninety percent of the time, the complainant never hears anything,” he said. Sinnamon replied there is a policy in place and staff members follow it. Mayor Bruce Whale said perhaps the township can review the process to refresh councillors.
Making an impression - Work continued on the downtown revitalization project on Aug. 2, as workers used concrete stamps to create a cobblestone effect on the areas around downtown Drayton sidewalks. Various Mapleton sidewalk upgrades, including the revitalization portion, are expected to be completed within a few weeks. photo by Wilma Mol
Gravel pit expansion bylaw coming forward to council on Aug. 16 by Chris Daponte MAPLETON TWP. - Local councillors will consider at their next meeting later this month a bylaw approving the expansion of a gravel pit southwest of Moorefield. At its last meeting in July council received a report on the application, which was first submitted by a numbered company owned by Jim Willis over five years ago. County planner Mark Van Patter told Mapleton council the application to rezone almost 24 acres of land, from an agricultural use to extraction to permit the expansion of the small gravel pit, will implement the official plan amendment approved by county council in 2007. The rezoning was deferred
because the site - north of the intersection of Concession 4 and Sideroad 6 in former Maryborough township - was home to several endangered butternut trees. “We have received a May 25, 2011 letter from the Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) indicating this has been addressed,” Van Patter said in his report. He noted a public meeting was originally held in October 2006 and another meeting is not necessary. He added he has no further concerns about the proposal. The “Willis pit,” as it is known, has operated for years at its current location and now extracts about 18,000 tonnes per year - a very small amount. The future rate of extrac-
tion, should the zoning amendment be approved, will be about 30,000 tonnes per year, which is still a relatively small amount in the gravel industry. As a comparison, most large-scale pits in the county extract hundreds of thousands of tonnes annually. Van Patter relayed the MNR also no longer has any concerns or objections to the aggregate licence application for the site. “However, prior to the ministry being able to approve the pit license, the appropriate zoning must be in place,” Van Patter said in his report. Council voted to receive the planner’s report and agreed to consider the zoning bylaw at its next council meeting on Aug. 16 at 7pm.
New Mennonite Church approved - but cemetery proposal rejected
by Chris Daponte MAPLETON TWP. - A new Mennonite church in former Maryborough township is now one step closer to reality, but the project will not include a cemetery, as the proponents had first wanted. At its last meeting in July Mapleton council approved a zoning bylaw amendment to allow the construction of the 4,800 square foot church on
a four acre parcel of land on Wellington Road 10, across from Concession 5, northwest of Conestogo Lake. But included in that bylaw is a section specifically stating “a cemetery shall not be permitted on the subject lands.” Owner Ronald Harrington, of the Markham-Waterloo Mennonite Conference (MWMC), with the help of planner Bruce Donaldson, had
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asked for a cemetery on the site in the application submitted earlier this year. Wellington County planner Linda Redmond, in her original report to Mapleton council in April, suggested a cemetery on the property may be okay as long as “the appropriate approvals are obtained by the Minister of Consumer Services and the Medical Officer of Health.”
But councillors were leery about the idea from the start. “We felt there were enough cemeteries within the township already,” councillor Mike Downey said last week when asked about the objection to the proposal. He explained there are “a couple” cemeteries available to the congregation of the proposed church without them having to set up a new one in a
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rural area of the township with several neighbours nearby. Downey added some of those living close to the property weren’t thrilled with the idea and council could also run into land use issues if it approved cemeteries all over the place. After little comment, council unanimously approved the zoning amendment bylaw on July 19 (councillors Andy
Knetsch and Neil Driscoll were absent). However, council decided to defer another bylaw executing a site plan agreement for the church between the MWMC and the township. Deputy clerk Barb Schellenberger explained the applicant wanted to delay the site plan because they had changed their minds on a few of the details.