Monday, May 30, 2011

Budget Meeting May 30- 2011

Because the Township received revenues from the North-Star Center for 30 years, they of course had that revenue worked into their budget. Now that the revenues are no longer being collected, expenses needed to be cut. Anyone who has experienced a cut in pay knows this reality.

Approximately $265,000 of revenues needed to be recouped. The options were to cut expenses or increase revenues by increasing taxes.

A large chunk was recovered from the Township's Wages expense. All employees willingly took a pay cut, and one staff member will be laid off. The town office will be closed on Fridays to save costs. The library board also cut their costs back significantly. Smaller cuts were made in every department. In the end, they were able to shrink the large deficit. The tax payer will be responsible for what remains; $41,000.00, which equals a 5% tax increase.

A report with all the numbers will be available for anyone who is interested.

Monday, May 16, 2011

Regular Meeting- May 16 2011

It was solidified again at tonight's meeting: we're not in the best financial situation. Do you know they say money is the #1 thing that couples argue about? So if you're feeling upset, stressed, or even angry about our current financial condition, I would say that must be normal. With that said, try to remember that our Mayor and Council are not to blame for our financial state. They've been dealt a crappy hand, and so far they've done a pretty good job at keeping us informed. If you have any questions I encourage you to ask them! The public is just as responsible to communicate with our leaders as they are to communicate with us.

Paul presented the idea to have a coffee and cake night. I may have misunderstood, but it seemed to me that he wanted to host event just so Council and the Public could get together and talk. The joke was made that the public would throw the cake at Council instead of eat with them, LOL. But seriously, Bravo Paul!! I think your idea shows heart for your community.

Morley also gave some special care to an individual resident sometime in the past few weeks. OCWA dug to fix a water break at Gary Goulet's house. The rule is, if the break is on the road side of the shut off valve then it's OCWA's responsibility, and if it's on the other side it's the owner's responsibility. They discovered the break was just past the valve but on the owner's side. Morley, who was present at the site, had OCWA fix the break anyway.

Bette Mulvihill has always taken care of the community garden. She put in request for a flower budget. As Mayor and Council were discussing the funds, Denis Mackie announced that the Fireman's Association would donate the money towards the project. The community garden will cost between $400.00 and $500.00! A big thank you to them!!!

Marg Zajac approached Council to update them on CLUHA. A meeting is going to be held this Thursday in Wawa to review the 4 current proposals. After the Minister reviews the proposals, there will be an open house probably sometime in July. Marg also added that the MNR is "impressed with the people of Hornepayne", because we've sent so much correspondence. Good Job Hornepayne!!!!

Please be aware that there are beaver traps around the Jackfish River and Cedar Point. These traps are necessary, but may be harmful to dogs who may be running loose. Keep your dogs tied up.

The outdoor soccer program starts this week.

There will be a budget meeting on Monday May 30th at 6:00pm. This meeting is open to the public.

The next Regular Council Meeting will be June 20th at 6:00pm.