WHAT THEY TOLD YOU THEN and WHAT THEY SAY NOW
BY- ELECTION: We Asked For One! In a contested 3-2 vote, council decided not to hold the by-election, which would fill the seats for Division 4, Sangudo and Cherhill, and Division 5, Lac Ste. Anne South, in the county.
Then:
Then:
Bill Hegy, Lac Ste. Anne County mayor, said "council’s remaining agenda for its term is not so large that it requires additional Councillors".
“It’s not like we have been discussing things like we have in the past with the land use bylaw,” Hegy said.
Now:
RV Bylaw 23-2015 was recently brought forward. This Bylaw was not a new Bylaw, but rather one that they dug out of the archives and did some tweaking to in order to reintroduce it as a tax.
With Ratepayer Outcry it has since been "Shelved" until the proper process of Amending the Land Use By-Law and Public Consultations can take place but according to Mayor Hegy that would require "Additional Councillors"!
When it came to the change in the LSAC Boundary's Mayor Hegy seemed to have changed his thinking again realizing how irresponsible it was to not hold a by-election!
Councilor Ross Bohnet, Councilor Lorne Olsvik and Deputy Mayor Lloyd Giebelhaus voted in support of the second and third readings of a bylaw to change the boundaries, while Councilor Wayne Borle and Mayor Bill Hegy voted against them.
The seats for county Division 4 and Division 5 were both vacated in 2016, with council voting against by-elections to replace the seats.
Hegy now said, "such a change should only be made with a full, seven-member council in place."
“We're actually kind of ... slapping the residents of Division 4 and 5 in the face by saying the Councillors from the other divisions will now decide what makes up your division” Hegy said. “It is mandatory that the people from those divisions have an equal say in the outcome (of division realignment)".
Really? No Kidding, that's what the ratepayers told you before you voted against a BY-ELECTION!!
This issue of a boundary change is not a new issue, in fact as Councillor Lorne Olsvik said "previous councils have sidelined division realignment for too long and it needed to go through. This has been going on now for the past two elections it was put off”.
SOLID WASTE UTILITY: Another Tax!
Then:
The fee was instituted this year to cover the charge for garbage collection and waste transfer station use for landowners.
But the fee has come under a large amount of protest from residents - causing county council to put forward several changes and clarifications to the fee during the Oct. 27/2016 meeting of council.
Mike Primeau, chief administrative officer of Lac Ste. Anne County, said it would take time and work to ensure the solid waste utility bylaw works properly.
”It does take time and if we work with the people, we'll modify this bylaw and look at what we have to do to make it work better," Primeau said.
Now:
According to Council and Administration, the Solid Waste Utility created in the spring of 2016, ended the inequity of having Solid Waste Utility charges collected through taxation.
The example they used was "In 2015 Solid Waste cost collected with taxation amounted to approximately 6% of municipal taxation. This meant that two home owners with differing property assessments ($100,000 and $400,000) would pay different amounts (in this example the first home would pay only a quarter of the amount paid by the second). Additionally, properties that couldn’t access the system, like commercial and linear properties, paid 6% of their taxes to a service they couldn’t access".
This "UTILITY FEE" still is not fair or equitable. It isn't being administered properly at any juncture. Some still haven't paid. It isn't on their taxes, they don't pay to use the facility. Some didn't even get the cards with the opportunity to pay if they chose to.
The "UTILITY FEE" is the same from one cardholder to another, regardless of how much waste a cardholder puts into the landfill.
Is that a fair system? Why is it not a user fee that simply can be monitored by a weigh scale if they really wanted to end the "INEQUITY"?
How Much has this Utility Fee Card System Cost the Ratepayer and What is it Going to Cost Us in the Future?
The example they used was "In 2015 Solid Waste cost collected with taxation amounted to approximately 6% of municipal taxation. This meant that two home owners with differing property assessments ($100,000 and $400,000) would pay different amounts (in this example the first home would pay only a quarter of the amount paid by the second). Additionally, properties that couldn’t access the system, like commercial and linear properties, paid 6% of their taxes to a service they couldn’t access".
This "UTILITY FEE" still is not fair or equitable. It isn't being administered properly at any juncture. Some still haven't paid. It isn't on their taxes, they don't pay to use the facility. Some didn't even get the cards with the opportunity to pay if they chose to.
The "UTILITY FEE" is the same from one cardholder to another, regardless of how much waste a cardholder puts into the landfill.
Is that a fair system? Why is it not a user fee that simply can be monitored by a weigh scale if they really wanted to end the "INEQUITY"?
How Much has this Utility Fee Card System Cost the Ratepayer and What is it Going to Cost Us in the Future?
Mayerthorpe Freelancer Article November 4, 2016
No By-Election for Lac Ste. Anne County
Friday, November 4, 2016
Lac Ste. Anne County Council will continue on the rest of its term with five members are voting not to hold a by-election to fill two council vacancies.
In a contested 3-2 vote, council decided not to hold the by-election, which would fill the seats for Division 4, Sangudo and Cherhill, and Division 5, Lac Ste. Anne South, in the county. Councillors Lorne Olsvik and Ross Bohnet were opposed. Council will proceed with five council members for its remaining term, which ends in Oct. 2017.
Bohnet said not holding the byelection leaves council without representation in two key areas.
“That leaves us without two central divisions – four and five,” Bohnet said, adding that would require remaining councillors to account for those two areas and their travel.
But Coun. Lloyd Giebelhaus said the remaining council has been able to take calls for Division 5 and can do so for Division 4 as well.
“We have talked that we're going to realign the divisions. And I know that council here has bee taking calls on the division. It might not be perfect but we're addressing the concerns,” Giebelhaus said.”
He added that with the 90 days it would take to complete a by-election, the new councillors would only be in their position for eight months.
Bill Hegy, Lac Ste. Anne County mayor, said council’s remaining agenda for its term is not so large that it requires additional councillors.
“It’s not like we have been discussing things like we have in the past with the land use bylaw,” Hegy said.
Solid-waste utility amendments
Lac Ste. Anne County Council is making further changes to its new Solid Waste Utility fee in the wake of grief from county residents.
The fee was instituted this year to cover the charge for garbage collection and waste transfer station use for landowners. But the fee has come under a large amount of protest from residents - causing county council to put forward several changes and clarifications to the fee during the Oct. 27 meeting of council.
Mike Primeau, chief administrative officer of Lac Ste. Anne County, said it would take time and work to ensure the solid waste utility bylaw works properly.
”It does take time and if we work with the people, we'll modify this bylaw and look at what we have to do to make it work better," Primeau said.
Council is approving amendment to exempt the fee from lots with improved residential homes if the home is declared vacant and the owner is paying for the fee at another property in the county.
Council also discussed removing the fee in Sangudo, which already pays for curbside garbage collection, but did not make a motion to approve the idea.
Other modifications to the bylaw include pro-rating the fee for those who purchase property in Lac Ste. Anne County mid-year and making residential multi-dwelling properties ineligible for a solid waste utility.
CALL ANY OR ALL COUNCILLORS TO DEMAND THE ANSWERS AND MAKE SURE THEY KNOW HOW YOU FEEL - ENOUGH IS ENOUGH
- Phone: (780) 937-5360
- Phone: (780) 967-3073
- Phone: (780) 786-4290
- Phone: (780) 785-2095
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