If you missed Monday night’s four-hour council meeting here are some of the highlights:
Strategic Visioning Process blinded
Council was asked to approve a $25,750 expenditure to hire a facilitator to assist with the strategic planning process. In response to an RFP, the Town received 14 bids ranging from $10,848 on the low side to $43,250, for the consulting work.
Although the visioning process had prior council approval the price tag for the consultant provided for a sober second thought around the table. Councillor Bob Stone got the discussion started with his query, “What are we going to get for our money?”
Counclliors were told that the facilitator would help to engage the citizens of this community to find out what they want to see and develop a plan that would guide council for the next four years and beyond. To which Councillor Alcock said, “that sounds a lot like what we are doing with Official Plan review. I am hesitant to go out with this at the same time (as the OP) because some of the questions will overlap.”
The idea of hiring a visioning facilitator basically fell into darkness when Deputy Mayor Karin Terziano had her say. “One of our goals is fiscal restraint so I have difficultly when being asked to pick the third-highest proposal. As everyone knows, I am a bit of a cynic when it comes to consultants. We are going to get a cookie-cutter plan that has been developed somewhere else and fed to us. It’s a bad spend of money. I think we have staff that can take the six initiatives that we have already identified and work with that.”
Those in favour of hiring a facilitator? – 0
Bronze broom in memory of Don Eagles
Memorial to Don Eagles to be placed next to River Mill Park sign
Downtown Huntsville BIA executive director, Helena Renwick, informed council that the bronze broom the BIA had commissioned as a tribute to the memory of Don Eagles is finished and ready to be placed in the downtown. The memorial broom will lean against the right hand pillar of the River Mill park sign. The broom, weighing about 38lbs, will be pinned to a cemented base and secured at the handle. On the top of the broom it says, In memory of Don “Donnie ‘ Eagles. There will be a formal unveiling of the memorial in the near future. Councillor Brian Thompson recognized this initiative as a wonderful thing. “Congratulations to you. It says a lot about the character of our town to commemorate Donnie in this way.”
Ironman Muskoka by the numbers
22 Countries, 39 States, 10 Provinces were represented
100 kids aged 3 to 6 participated in Ironkids
1300 volunteers supported 1300 competitors
An estimated $5 million was generated in the community during the four days
79 per cent of area hotels and motels were fully booked, as were 71 per cent of housekeeping cottages, 78 per cent of resorts, 66 per cent of campgrounds and 25 per cent of B&B’s
$5 million in spending generates $650,000 in HST, going into Provincial and Federal coffers.
The committee would like to see some of that revenue re-invested in Huntsville and will be aggressively pursuing sponsorships from the organizations that are receiving the tax revenue.
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