Tuesday, April 30, 2019
Monday, April 29, 2019
WE NEED YOUR SUPPORT TODAY
WE NEED YOUR SUPPORT TODAY
LSARA as many of you know is in the process of conducting two petitions that will hopefully result in the opportunity for all of us to exercise our democratic right. The right to vote on two separate bylaws. One that would allow the County Administration and Council to borrow a million dollars and the second that would allow Council and Administration to lend the million dollars.Sunday, April 28, 2019
LSAC COUNCIL WANTS TO RUN BUSINESS
LSAC COUNCIL WANTS TO RUN BUSINESS
Why was the question of Debt Limit and Total Debt to Date an important question to ask the Councillors? Because we only have so much borrowing power, and if wasted on ill thought out plans of grandiose in Establishing not one, but two "FOR PROFIT" Corporations, then there will be limited borrowing for necessities such as Roads, Bridges, and lets not forget, the repairs in the thousands (perhaps hundreds of thousands) of dollars for the County Office Building.
Saturday, April 27, 2019
Rights of the Ratepayers of LSAC Are Being Denied
Rights of the Ratepayers of LSAC Are Being Denied
Yesterday LSARA posted regarding how the Rights of the Ratepayers of LSAC were being denied. That the two Peace Officers who showed up at the Hillcrest Land Transfer Station, under order from their Supervisor, were sent to remove the two peaceful, law abiding Ratepayer Representatives.Wednesday, April 24, 2019
Letter to the Ratepayers Chris Yeoman
Letter to the Ratepayers Chris Yeoman
I want to share a brief synopsis of what “Life within LSARA” means. To those of you who may be new to us, our Executive and our Directors have remained pretty consistent since 2016. That is the year we FORMALLY structured the Lac Ste. Anne and Communities Ratepayers Association. What you may not know is that the Association was as a direct result, an evolution of the way Ratepayers of the County of Lac Ste Anne have been forced to organize.Monday, April 22, 2019
WHY ANOTHER PETITION? THIS IS WHY!
WHY ANOTHER PETITION? THIS IS WHY!
- The Ratepayers Deserve Transparency, Accountability and Open Lines of Communication!
- People think their signature won’t matter! It takes thousands of bricks to build a house. One voice may seem weak, but banded together, our voices echo deeply.
- LSAC Councillors will never agree! Remember that nobody likes to be the bad guy. A petition with your vocal support can sway a council that is previously stubborn or a council that simply is unaware that their actions and policies are contrary to public desires. LSARA knows change doesn’t happen overnight, and we have to be patient. But the more we speak out, the closer we get. ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!
Letter to the Ratepayers Alice Szybunka
Letter to the Ratepayers Alice Szybunka
Hi and Happy Easter to you all.
I am wondering if you have been following or are aware of the latest Lac Ste. Anne county plans to initiate a "Legacy Municipal Land Corporation " (basically a separate company...under county control) which they are proposing to build all sorts of things... low cost housing, industrial parks, buildings for new businesses etc. beginning with a new medical clinic in the town of Onoway which they proposed with be run by the "Onoway Regional Medical Clinic" (which is currently a joint committee comprised of LSA County, Onoway, and four or five other summer Villages). The county also plans to make that 'committee ' into a "Municipally Controlled Corporation" which would make the lion's share of responsibility fall on LSAC ratepayers!
The county has served public notice that they plan to borrow one million dollars at 4.5% (until 2044) then loan that money to the Legacy Municipal Land Corporation (at 4%) to supposedly buy land in the Town of Onoway and build a clinic in Onoway. The Onoway Medical Clinic would then pay rent.
Our illustrious Council and Administration are telling us that they plan to accommodate more doctors, "nurses, dietitians, therapists and other specialized medical resources". There is talk of an x-ray machine.
Grandiose ideas but not one single indication that Alberta Health Services will EVER approve, fund or maintain any of it. It fact we have found nothing to show Alberta Health has ever been contacted. Our own investigations have shown quite the opposite.
Many of us feel it would be impossible to buy land and build a clinic for one million which leads us to believe this money would only be the beginning of long term debt which would belong ENTIRELY to LSAC Ratepayers.
The very principal of the Land Corporation is frightening. ... how many business ventures are they planning.... and where? The Notice of Public Hearing (Lac Ste Anne Anne Bulletin April 1) describes "the purpose of the Legacy Municipal Land Corporation is to use a wide range of innovative entrepreneurial approaches to commercial and residential real estate development, property management and infrastructure advancement, to achieve outcomes beneficial to the needs and desires of residents".
By their own statements, they are clearly attempting to enter the arena of "private business"....not the job of governance. One must ask...whose needs? Whose desires? This council appears to be wading into some risky waters...for the ratepayers!
Our current CAO currently makes about 250,000.00 a year and one could guess his 'managers' are taking home well over 100,000.00 per year.... this administration will be put in charge of all these extra corporations. We can assume they will not be doing so without some added compensation. ... a cost that LSAC ratepayers will also carry.
Aside from all of us voicing our opinion on this matter, the only alternative the ratepayers have is to petition the borrowing Bylaw and the the lending Bylaw. And demand a public vote. The current petition deadline is April 30. Please check the LSAC website for the information regarding the Legacy Municipal Land Corporation and the Onoway Regional Medical Clinic.
Feel free to call me anytime with questions or your own comments. Also feel free to share this message to anyone you think would be interested. It is important that I make it very clear that neither I nor LSARA (Lac Ste Anne Ratepayers Association ) are against Onoway having a medical clinic. We are opposed to the lack of public disclosure, public input and consideration of the taxpayers who will be held responsible to carry the debt load.
The first and ONLY public information appears in the Lac Ste Anne Bulletin on March 25th. It was almost immediately followed by the Public Notice of Borrowing Bylaw 11-2019 and Loan Bylaw 12-2019 in the Bulletin on April 8th, 2019. NO "Public Hearing" to provide information and hear public concerns has been scheduled. A public hearing regarding the formation of the two corporations has been scheduled for 9:45 and 10:00 May 1st.
Written submissions or requests to speak must be received by Administration by April 30th.
It appears money has already been spent in "design", engineering, architecture etc. because the timeline presented on the county website has "Tender Construction " slated for May 10th, 2019.
A petition demanding a public vote has been drafted...it is time sensitive and must be submitted by April 30th. If you wish to add your name please contact me and I will come to you or you can come to our house to do so.
Thanks for your time.
PLEASE SUPPORT LSARA AND SHARE YOUR VIEWS!
IT'S TIME TO STAND UP!
Saturday, April 20, 2019
WHAT DOES LSARA DO
LAC STE. ANNE AND COMMUNITIES
RATEPAYERS ASSOCIATION
(A NOT-FOR-PROFIT SOCIETY)
Our Society was formed during the time when we were forced to do several petitions for the right to vote on the Administration Building. Due to bureaucratic inefficiencies and a lack of want by the CAO to work with and for the people, the petitions,( although later proven by our group to be sufficient), were stuck so long in the hands of Municipal Affairs, that the building was already partially constructed.Monday, April 15, 2019
LSAC Ratepayers Facing More Uncertainty
LSAC Ratepayers Facing More Uncertainty
It was published in the Lac Ste Anne Bulletin in the April 1 edition, that the County of Lac Ste Anne is now considering yet another Borrowing Bylaw for a million dollars, only to loan it out to another entity. Sounds all a bit confusing and even after having read some of the information posted on the newly created information website, all of this information is still very confusing.
We all know just exactly how important having services in our communities are, and of course having an innovative Medical Centre is a definite asset. There is no question we all want state of the art servicing surrounding the Medical Centre as well, with imaging, x rays, labs, etc. The medical clinic currently in Onoway could certainly look to be enhanced, no question,
The questions that do come up though in this newly created process of developing two new corporations, having County of Lac Ste Anne as main or only stakeholder is why are we not working within the current framework where we currently have 6 municipalities sharing in costs and funding or partnership programs with AHS.
We had 15 municipalities in the previous structure but some have dropped out of the partnership leaving only 6 now.
Question is why? This whole process is mind boggling but leaves very little time to research with no previous CONSULTATION given by the County to the Ratepayers, They have just put out an information website and brochure however, most of our questions come straight from what this information doesn’t say.
We did write to the Councillors via email on two occasions. We have asked that they either rescind or postpone the borrowing Bylaw until further Public Consultation. We also wrote and asked that the Public Hearing be held on a Saturday when all residents have an opportunity to attend.
The following are the two letters sent to council.
LSARA Letter to Council to rescind Bylaws 11-12 The following are the two letters sent to council.
LSARA Letter to Council Public Hearing
Straight from LSAC's "New Website"www.legacymunicipal.ca
"Legacy MLC Business Plan"
Legacy Municipal Land Corporation (Legacy MLC) will use community wealth-building strategies to develop place-based assets that may otherwise experience prohibitive barriers to locating in the region. Legacy MLC will use a wide range of innovative entrepreneurial approaches to commercial and residential real estate development, property management and infrastructure advancement, to achieve outcomes beneficial to the needs and desires of residents and partners within a given community.Although the single-minded focus of Legacy MLC will be to undertake projects to allow the County to overcome some of the roadblocks and barriers to the development of new services in its communities, the scope of potential projects will be very broad. Ultimately, projects may be identified as financially practical that include daycare facilities; seniors and low-income housing; commercial/industrial land development; recreation and community facilities; or internet and telecommunications projects. The possibilities for advancement within our communities will only be limited by the limits of entrepreneurial innovation.
As Legacy MLC moves forward with Initial project and the many projects it will undertake in the future, the County and its residents will benefit from the strengthened foothold of the Community Economic Development in our region to help families benefit from local jobs, quality services and homes to enable the continued development of the region’s thriving communities.
"Impact of Control"
As per the Legacy MLC Business Plan "Controlling the Legacy MLC is not EXPECTED to impact Lac Ste Anne County’s financial viability." LSARA strongly disagrees!So now for just a few of the questions regarding this whole process and structure.
- Why the tight timelines? Why not give the Ratepayers the opportunity to for consultation and seek out or research more information.
- What were the costs and who paid for Legal consultation, Website and Information Brochures, Design and Drawings for the building and any other costs to date?
- Is the current lease period complete or is there still a contractual obligation?
- Have we purchased land already for this project? How?
- Who are the shareholders and what is the structure of BOTH Legacy MLC and ORMC MCC? Who will be managing director of both corps?
- Why two corporation formations? Why not just ORMC MCC? Why do we need two? The other has other partnership opportunities with the 6 other municipalities.
- Who appointed CAO or CFO to these corporations? Was this completed by vote and where can this be referenced? What is the positions, responsibilities, commercial tax the LSAC ratepayers will owe the Town of Onoway
- What is our total Debt Limit? What is our total current Debt? As Per MGA: No Municipality may make a borrowing if the borrowing will cause the municipality to exceed its debt limit.
Has there been consultation with AHS and approval for the doctors, therapists, nurses, dietitians, and other specialized medical resources will be paid for by the province.
Why did the other municipalities opt out of involvement in the Medical Clinic? There were 15 municipalities involved at the inception of the medical recruitment program however there are now only interest from the County and the 6 municipalities? What happened to the past partnerships?
Why does the Bylaw 11-2019 say: …the annual interest rate not to exceed the interest rate as fixed from time to time by the Alberta Capital Finance Authority, and not to exceed four and a half (4.5%) percent but Bylaw 12-2019 where we are taking the borrowed funds and loaning it to Legacy MLC “the rate of interest on the loan to Legacy MLS shall be that of Alberta Capital Finance Authority or another authorized financial institution on the date of the borrowing is completed by the County, for a twenty-Five (25) year debenture, and not to exceed four (4.00%) percent.
Question is, why would we borrow the money at 4.5% and loan it out at 4%?
On page 24 of the LSA Bulletin April 1 edition it states “The Council of Lac Ste Anne County is CONSIDERING the establishment of a Municipally Controlled Corporation” and identifies both the MLC and MCC in two separate ads however, on page 27 of same issue it states “Council has DECIDED to establish a Municipally Controlled Corporation".
On page 24 of the LSA Bulletin April 1 edition it states “The Council of Lac Ste Anne County is CONSIDERING the establishment of a Municipally Controlled Corporation” and identifies both the MLC and MCC in two separate ads however, on page 27 of same issue it states “Council has DECIDED to establish a Municipally Controlled Corporation".
So is it understood that the decision has been made despite or in spite of any ratepayer consultation?
Why are there absolutely no increases, even Cost of Living, in their 5 year projections?
Why under the MGA does it state under section 254 (1) No municipality may acquire, remove or start the construction or improvement of a capital property that is to be financed in whole or in part through a borrowing unless the borrowing bylaw that authorizes the borrowing is passed. Yet based on timeline an Architect has already been selected and Building Designs have begun. Also on this same timeline, it speaks to Unanimous Shareholder Agreements and yet in the information booklet under Corporate Structure it says 1 Shareholder LSAC? Again, begs question of structure?
So why not keep the same structure as current in the ORMC? What is the subsidy or payments from AHS currently and in the new structure? Are there doctors looking in the area? I happen to know there are some physicians seeking operations in the immediate areas.
What happens if MLC or ORMC MCC are unable to make payments? Who is liable for defaults? For this or any other projects? LSAC wants to be 100% shareholder/risk taker of Legacy MLC MCC and 80% shareholder/risk taker of ORMC MCC. LSARA believes that this is NOT in the best interests of the ratepayers of LSAC.
Why would LSAC want to compete directly in commercial, land and residential development? Why not support local business in this since the same employment opportunities would be evident?
So in the last sentence where it says “… to provide property development and facility management services for community-focused projects that may present significant benefits to our community but where the economic benefit of these projects is not great enough to attract private investment” Does this mean that the new MLC is willing to take more risks than that of a “private industry?
There just is not enough information for any ratepayer to support this Corporation initiative nor to support yet another Borrowing Bylaw when we do not know where we stand financially with outstanding debt. More time is required for investigation/research and input.
Why are there absolutely no increases, even Cost of Living, in their 5 year projections?
So why not keep the same structure as current in the ORMC? What is the subsidy or payments from AHS currently and in the new structure? Are there doctors looking in the area? I happen to know there are some physicians seeking operations in the immediate areas.
What happens if MLC or ORMC MCC are unable to make payments? Who is liable for defaults? For this or any other projects? LSAC wants to be 100% shareholder/risk taker of Legacy MLC MCC and 80% shareholder/risk taker of ORMC MCC. LSARA believes that this is NOT in the best interests of the ratepayers of LSAC.
Why would LSAC want to compete directly in commercial, land and residential development? Why not support local business in this since the same employment opportunities would be evident?
So in the last sentence where it says “… to provide property development and facility management services for community-focused projects that may present significant benefits to our community but where the economic benefit of these projects is not great enough to attract private investment” Does this mean that the new MLC is willing to take more risks than that of a “private industry?
There just is not enough information for any ratepayer to support this Corporation initiative nor to support yet another Borrowing Bylaw when we do not know where we stand financially with outstanding debt. More time is required for investigation/research and input.
Sunday, April 14, 2019
LAC STE. ANNE COUNTY FINALLY RELEASES ADMINISTRATION BUILDING ENGINEERING REPORTS
LAC STE. ANNE COUNTY FINALLY RELEASES
ADMINISTRATION BUILDING ENGINEERING REPORTS
LSARA has finally received three engineering reports on the Administration Building ongoing "Heaving Slab" issue. We now have three Engineering Reports and they are available to you at the end of this post. Unfortunately LSAC has neglected to provide us with 8 additional Reports that were provided by LSAC to Thurber Engineering for their assessments of the "Heaving Slab" Issue. These reports were reviewed and noted by Thurber Engineering in Section 2 of their report dated August 28, 2017.LSARA will be reviewing these reports to try to determine what LSAC should already know but refuse to disclose to the Ratepayers, "WHAT WENT WRONG and WHO IS RESPONSIBLE"?
LSAC now wants to take the reins and use our credit and our tax dollars to fund an Arms Length Land Development Corporation to continue on with their efforts to sink us further into "DEBT"! There are other options for our Onoway Regional Medical Clinic. Is it not operating just fine without our County creating another nightmare and taking on all the risk? We don't need to take on another white elephant!
Is a LSAC Municipal Controlled Land Development Corporation a risk that we are willing to take with our families future?
The following LSARA Blog Posts, that we have provided during the past years to our Ratepayers Association, will bring you up to date on what we have done to inform you of the serious issues we the ratepayers are facing with Lac Ste. Anne County's Development and Construction of our
"New Multi Million Dollar Nightmare".
"New Multi Million Dollar Nightmare".
Please feel free to review these posts and provide your comments, if you think LSAC should take all the "Risks" and be in the Land Development Business funded by our County Tax Dollars while competing against you and the private sector.
On April 27th 2017, LSARA sent an email to Council and Administration. We asked the following questions as we were unable to find them on the Lac Ste Anne County Website.
2. No response
3. "We will post to our website the project manager Reports under the new office information. We are awaiting a report from our consultants with respect to the new office after their meeting in May. We will post to the website once received."
4. No response
5. No response
April 27th LSARA responded once again requesting responses to questions 2 & 4. We also stated " In regards to item #5 "Heaving issue" we believe that an " issue Report" with "Recommendations" from the Project Manager should have already been provided to Administration on this matter. We would also appreciate a copy of this report as we believe this is a serious issue not to be taken lightly, and we as Ratepayers need to be kept aware of as it is a time sensitive matter."
The response we received came May 2nd, once again from the County Manager. His response was as follows:
"All New Administration Office information is being reviewed to release to our website. We will update once a further review has been completed by our consultants. Access to any information that is not publicly released will be subject to FOIP legislation."
We did a FOIP request including this information, LSAC wanted $13000.00 to release it to us!
CLICK TO VIEW THE COMPLETE POST
Then the bomb….. the Floor is Heaving!!!! County Manager Mike Primeau and General Manager of Infrastructure & Planning Joe Duplessie both had the opportunity to see the damage first hand and commented "It was Shocking".
Why did the Council not request that a communication be sent to the Contractor to provide an "Engineering Report to address the damage and cause of the Heaving". Repairing the damage and who's cost is it, is not the problem, was the concern brought up by Councillor Borle. A serious issue such as this in a "Brand New Building", will be an ongoing issue if not addressed properly.
First issue was the borrow pit. Did they achieve proper compaction on the new material they brought in at an additional cost that was not forecast. The General Manager of Infrastructure & Planning and the County Manager have been actively involved in this and apparently, there are additional issues.
The question is why are our Staff actively involved in the issues when in fact as part of the budget there was a Firm hired to take care of the build (MHPM the Project Managers)?
It is their assumption that weeping tile would minimize the issue. Stated by the County Manager at the meeting that “the building is 100% theirs until handed over at final completion". So, was there compaction tests completed prior to putting the building on top of new soil as the borrow pit was the first issue that was overlooked due to rushing to get the building up? Does it have anything to do with the work being done in the winter and frost? There was also a statement made that due to the amount of rebar, do not know if it will allow the floors to come back down.
WHY WOULD THERE EVEN BE A CONSIDERATION TO ACCEPT THIS BUILDING WITH THAT KIND OF ISSUE????
On April 27th 2017, LSARA sent an email to Council and Administration. We asked the following questions as we were unable to find them on the Lac Ste Anne County Website.
1. Bylaw 15-2017 Property Tax Rate
2. Agreement between LSAC and the Project Manager for the Administration Building.
3. All Project Manager Reports as per the agreement to Date.
4. All Geotechnical Engineer Reports including the report on testing of the soil as well as the Excavation and Compaction Reports as overseen/tested by the Geotechnical Engineer.
5. The reports related directly to the heaving concrete issue.
3. All Project Manager Reports as per the agreement to Date.
4. All Geotechnical Engineer Reports including the report on testing of the soil as well as the Excavation and Compaction Reports as overseen/tested by the Geotechnical Engineer.
5. The reports related directly to the heaving concrete issue.
The response to these questions were received by LSARA from our County Manager.
2. No response
3. "We will post to our website the project manager Reports under the new office information. We are awaiting a report from our consultants with respect to the new office after their meeting in May. We will post to the website once received."
4. No response
5. No response
April 27th LSARA responded once again requesting responses to questions 2 & 4. We also stated " In regards to item #5 "Heaving issue" we believe that an " issue Report" with "Recommendations" from the Project Manager should have already been provided to Administration on this matter. We would also appreciate a copy of this report as we believe this is a serious issue not to be taken lightly, and we as Ratepayers need to be kept aware of as it is a time sensitive matter."
The response we received came May 2nd, once again from the County Manager. His response was as follows:
"All New Administration Office information is being reviewed to release to our website. We will update once a further review has been completed by our consultants. Access to any information that is not publicly released will be subject to FOIP legislation."
We did a FOIP request including this information, LSAC wanted $13000.00 to release it to us!
CLICK TO VIEW THE COMPLETE POST
LSAC Council Meeting April 13 2017
Then the bomb….. the Floor is Heaving!!!! County Manager Mike Primeau and General Manager of Infrastructure & Planning Joe Duplessie both had the opportunity to see the damage first hand and commented "It was Shocking".
First issue was the borrow pit. Did they achieve proper compaction on the new material they brought in at an additional cost that was not forecast. The General Manager of Infrastructure & Planning and the County Manager have been actively involved in this and apparently, there are additional issues.
The question is why are our Staff actively involved in the issues when in fact as part of the budget there was a Firm hired to take care of the build (MHPM the Project Managers)?
It is their assumption that weeping tile would minimize the issue. Stated by the County Manager at the meeting that “the building is 100% theirs until handed over at final completion". So, was there compaction tests completed prior to putting the building on top of new soil as the borrow pit was the first issue that was overlooked due to rushing to get the building up? Does it have anything to do with the work being done in the winter and frost? There was also a statement made that due to the amount of rebar, do not know if it will allow the floors to come back down.
WHY WOULD THERE EVEN BE A CONSIDERATION TO ACCEPT THIS BUILDING WITH THAT KIND OF ISSUE????
Lac Ste. Anne County has no idea what the real cause of the Floor Heaving is and wants to settle the issue with a Quick Claim Cover Up!!!!
“The building is wonderful, it's a beautiful build. Yes, this is an issue we had to deal with and we dealt with it,” Primeau said. “The alternative was it sits empty for five years as we battle in court over $16,000.”
- What will $16000.00 Fix and who came up with that Figure???
- What is the Real Problem and How is it to be Fixed????
- How will this building be Insured????
- Who is making these decisions and are they to be held liable!!!!
Who did we vote for and what did the rest of our Councillors say????
LSARA Warned the Ratepayers and Now it is Critical that an Independent Inspection and Review is Properly Conducted!!!!
Here we are folks, a year later and we have Engineers still trying to figure out, "How are we going to fix this disaster"?
These are the 3 out of 8 Reports that they have released to date. The deficiencies still are not completed and more reports are underway! We know there is more to this issue than meets the eye and we are going to find out!
Machibroda Engineering Report
Thurber Engineering LSAC Slab Heaving Concerns August 28, 2017
Thurber Engineering LSAC Slab Heaving Concerns October 18, 2017
Thurber Engineering LSAC Slab Heaving Concerns August 28, 2017
Thurber Engineering LSAC Slab Heaving Concerns October 18, 2017
Friday, April 5, 2019
LAC STE. ANNE COUNTY A YEAR IN REVIEW #8
LAC STE. ANNE COUNTY A YEAR IN REVIEW #8
Wednesday, April 3, 2019
LAC STE. ANNE COUNTY A YEAR IN REVIEW #7
LAC STE. ANNE COUNTY A YEAR IN REVIEW #7
This is the 7th segment in LSARA's Year in Review. As we go back through all the requests that we have submitted to LSAC and the responses we have received, it generates more and more questions. One of the areas where you, the Ratepayer can assist us. Searching for information, gathering information as it takes a team, an army. When we as Ratepayers are once again faced with the call to action, that is what we will need, an army.
