Jim Labow’s answers to election questionnaire
1. My primary reason for seeking election is to continue the work of the last 4 years. I believe that we need to begin work on the Zoning Bylaw that will implement the Official Plan, and because of the time needed, it cannot wait. Other important initiatives of the last 4 years include the work of the Muskrat Watershed Council, the asset management and strategic plans which must be continually updated and utilized in budget deliberations and other discussions on work to be done. I am excited and proud to have been part of this work and feel I have a lot more to contribute. There will be tough times ahead financially for all municipalities and some very hard decisions to be made. I feel that I have the ability to lead council in those decisions. I grew up in the former Westmeath Township, and have called Beachburg home all my life. It was a good place to grow up and raise a family and I want to help keep it that way. I hope to help in some way to bring amalgamation to its conclusion of a united municipality.
2. The mayor’s duties include chairing meetings of council, directing and moderating discussion at those meetings, providing leadership to the rest of council and to staff, representing the township at events in the township when possible and bringing greetings from council when requested (e.g. local fairs, plowing match, other meetings), representing the township on the wider stage when requested or required (e.g. repatriation and memorial services at Garrison Petawawa, Air and Army cadet graduation ceremonies in Pembroke, speaking to County Council at special occasions, meeting with various government ministries at conferences, etc.)
3. I have been a member of the Beachburg Lions Club for 29 years. For approximately the last 20 years I have chaired the Remembrance Day Service in Beachburg, working with the Cobden Branch of the Royal Canadian Legion. Last year, I helped coordinate the relocation and re-dedication of the cenotaph in Beachburg. I have also, on behalf of the Lions club, chaired the gate committee for Beachburg Fair. Council has, for several years worked in the hamburger booth at Beachburg Fair. I am secretary-treasurer of the Beachburg Recreation Association. I am a member of the board of trustees and Chair of the Committee of Stewards for St. Andrew’s United Church in Beachburg. I am also a member of the Beachburg Connection orchestra, which entertains at various functions in the area.
4. Having been on municipal council for 23 years, the last 4 as mayor, I feel I have an intimate knowledge of the job. I am a good listener, have an excellent knowledge of parliamentary procedure and the proper rules of order for meetings. I have a good business sense and understanding of township finances and operations. I understand how we must cooperate with our neighbouring municipalities and with other levels of government to achieve our goals.
5. Like many or all municipalities, our top priorities must include our finances {including the phased increases in our policing costs}, our roads and other services. We need to start work on the comprehensive zoning by-law that will implement our official plan when it is approved by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs. We will need to move forward with the class environmental assessment of the waste water treatment plant in Cobden, so that we will be ready to apply for funding for its eventual replacement. We must also continue to plan to bring our buildings into compliance with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disability Act (AODA). There are a number of deadlines that are fast approaching.
. We were lucky to receive funding for ½ of the salary of an entrepreneurship development coordinator (i.e. economic development officer) for a short time. The purpose of the position is to attract development and business to the township to try to keep and increase jobs and by extension increase our commercial tax base. Another aspect of this job is to apply for grants for programs and projects within the township. This position could be made permanent. We need to be proactive with our approach to other levels of government in order to be ready for funding opportunities for infrastructure projects. Part of that approach will be to ensure that our asset management reports are continually updated.
7. Road funding will be a challenge for many councils in the coming years. We completed a roads needs assessment this year and it tells us that we should be spending several million dollars more on a yearly basis than we have been in order to keep our paved roads as pavement. We should look at economies of scale by working with other municipalities and the county on tenders for paving, fuel, gravel, services, etc. We may need to keep equipment longer, although there is always a fine line between avoiding a new purchase and spending the equivalent in repairs to an old unit. We need to have plans that are construction-ready in order to apply for funding from programs with short time lines. We need to investigate contracting some services to see if that route would save money. Unfortunately there will be tax increases to pay for roads among other things and anybody who says otherwise is not being realistic. For a municipality like ours with a fairly high ratio of residential and farm properties to commercial/industrial properties, tax increases hit residential/farm properties harder.
8. In order to save time and fuel, the trend in agricultural equipment now is to use much larger equipment. Many types of equipment exceed the normal lane width on our roads by ½ a lane or more. This can certainly lead to problems when meeting oncoming traffic. Many of our paved (and gravel) roads do not have sufficient shoulder width to handle this equipment properly. When planning on reconstruction and rebuilding our roads, we need to be aware of that and include increased width allowances. We also need to be aware of the cost of widening roads that will be added to the regular costs. While this new equipment can compact roads more, the wider tires allow for better flotation and may cause less damage than smaller units making more frequent trips with narrow tires. Traffic circles might make some intersections easier in which to maneuver large equipment, but could possibly require more land for the intersection than current road allowances. A lot of reconstruction will need to be done at those intersections, but they should be studied when some roads are being rebuilt. Bridges in Renfrew County are the responsibility of the Renfrew County Roads Department, but if any of our bridges are replaced, we should definitely consult with the county on this issue.
9. When new roads are built in the agricultural areas, we definitely should consult with representatives from the Federation of Agriculture and the National Farmers Union, and local farmers in the specific area of the new road. We could also include consultation with farm equipment dealers.
10. Agriculture was the basis of settlement and development of our area, and is still one of the mainstays of our economy. We need to strike a balance between encroachment on farming areas, and allowing some development near them as our township population grows. We need to be aware of conflicting land uses and work with all parties to avoid them. As the four-laning of Hwy 17 proceeds in the coming years, more people will find it easier to commute to work in Ottawa, leading to increased residential development. Care must be taken with that development not to interfere with farming activities.
11. I was told at one time that it would probably take a generation to get past the feeling of “yours” and “mine” and arrive at “ours”. I am hopeful that the elimination of the ward system will help with that transition. We need to encourage everybody to attend or participate in activities outside their neighbourhood to meet new people and perhaps see another perspective. Time will heal old wounds, as the old adage goes.
12. I grew up living on a gravelled road, and we did not have many issues with it. I realize that the transition from paved back to gravel is a hard pill to swallow and the decision is not taken lightly. However, paved roads have a finite lifespan and refurbishing them is extremely expensive, especially without the funding from other levels of government that paved some roads in the first place. The challenge is to keep up the maintenance on gravel roads and this can be accomplished with a good base, adequate grading and dust control.
13. We could possibly get by with fewer fire halls, but there are some questions that need to be answered before any decisions are made. Can we provide adequate response time with fewer halls? Our firefighters are volunteers who live in the area of the hall that they serve in. Will enough of them transition to another hall and continue in service to the fire department so that we remain adequately staffed? What will be the effect on homeowner’s insurance rates if the closest fire hall is closed? Do we have another use for the hall? What is the current market value of the hall? If another group uses the hall for a different purpose, do they have another option?
14. I think it has been made abundantly clear over the last few years that the provincial government will not be forced into cleaning up the lake. They are, however, open to collaborative ventures that include the users of the lake and the people who live on the lake as interested partners. Much of the problem with the lake originates in the watersheds that feed the lake and cleaning up the lake by itself will not be a permanent solution even if it could be accomplished. It took decades for the lake to get to the state it is in now, and it will probably take decades for it to heal. It will not be one grand scheme that will do it, but a series of different approaches over a period of years. The township helped in the creation of the Muskrat Watershed Council and that group is busy at work looking at different ideas with other groups. They will eventually be able to access funding that the township cannot, and for that they need everyone’s support.
15. One thing that council can do is suggest to the people who live on the lake that they have their septic systems tested and evaluated to ensure that they are working properly in keeping phosphates from entering the lake. Phosphates from septic systems is a small portion of the problem, but it is still a portion. New septic systems might be required to use soils that bind phosphates more effectively. Road designs should take into account runoff entering lakes or streams and work to mitigate any problems. Although it is in the mandate of Natural Resources, vegetative buffers are very important and the township needs to ensure that they are incorporated in site plans.
16. We are blessed to already have a number of venues for adventure recreation in our township. We have the rafting companies, the kayak adventurers, zip-lining, well groomed snowmobile trails, mountain bike trails, walking trails, to name a few. We need to continue to support those businesses and groups. They are doing something the Township cannot and should not. I believe that the rail corridors, both CP and CN, should be retained as whole units to be used as combination trails, be it for 4-wheelers, walking, cross-country skiing or whatever. As soon as the first lot is transferred to an adjacent land-owner, that possibility is gone. The County of Renfrew has been working on that idea with CP and should follow through with CN. Management of the trail could stay with the County or might be transferred to the lower tier municipalities. That has not been determined as yet.
17. The final bill has not been received as yet, but I understand that the increases will be phased in over several years. One thing to think about would be decreasing the level of service that we want, i.e. how many tours should the police do through the Township in a day/week/month. Other possibilities can be found in other departments in the township: twice weekly garbage collection as opposed to weekly, higher tippage fees at the landfill, reduction of fire services as suggested in question 13, keeping equipment longer, not paving roads. Tax increases are probably an inevitability.
18. The debacle in Walkerton several years ago is the cause of a tremendous increase in our water system cost increases. Extra testing, new procedures, extra chemicals required, plant upgrades mandated are all part of that. Safe water is the end result that is required. Costs will probably continue to rise unless we can reduce the number and type of tests required. As I mentioned in question 7 on roads, we need to have construction-ready plans when funding opportunities are announced. The waste water treatment plant in Cobden is nearing the end of its productive life, and we have already started the process of replacement. Although we have never done anything like it before, a P-3 (Public-Private Partnership) project should not be ruled out.
19. In 1970 I had a confrontation with a PTO on a forage wagon and had my leg amputated. I have tried to not let it slow me down over the years, even managing to play broomball and be a hockey coach for a few years. I have spoken to a 4-H Farm Safety Club about my accident, and how it could have been prevented. The support that I and my family received at the time helped instill a sense of community pride in me and I have been active in different aspects of the community ever since. I have been a licenced pharmacist for 37 years, the last 17 as owner/operator of Beach-West Pharmacy. I feel that this is an extension of service to my community and am very grateful to my customers for their support.
