Duane Hicks
While there’s plenty of work to be done, Fort Frances Mayor Roy Avis is bullish that 2016 will be “a prosperous year.”
Finding a buyer for the local pulp and paper mill remains a high priority on council’s radar.
“The biggest and the most concerning issue to me is to make sure we can get the mill in Fort Frances repositioned and reopened,” said Mayor Avis.
“Believe me—council and myself have been working very diligently in trying to see something happen there,” he added.
The town also is looking for a new Chief Administrative Officer.
Current CAO Mark McCaig retired late last year but council decided to retain him on a contract basis until a new, permanent replacement can be found.
Mayor Avis said finding the right CAO is no small feat and council only is just getting the process started.
“We want to make sure we keep continuity in the organization—that’s a very, very big issue for council going forward to hire the right person for the job,” he stressed.
“That’s probably going to be front and centre for the first three or four months.”
Mayor Avis also is positive the town and the Agency 1 bands—Couchiching, Naicatchewenin, Nigigoonsiminikaaning (formerly Nicickousemencaning), and Mitaanjigamiing (formerly Stanjikoming)—can come to an agreement regarding the Point Park land.
“We’re in negotiations with them at the present time and I’m hoping we can come to some resolution without having to go to court,” he noted.
“We have very, very good communications at the table, and I think all of the parties are working very diligently to try and resolves the issues there,” Mayor Avis added.
With the development of New Gold’s Rainy River Project north of Barwick moving ahead at full speed, it also helps the “economic viability” of Fort Frances.
“We can look forward to lots more happening with that operation,” Mayor Avis remarked.
“It really affects the overall welfare of the whole district, and Fort Frances is a recipient of that.”
Two lots in the Huffman subdivision now have been sold, there’s ongoing interest in several more, and Mayor Avis would like to see them all sold this year.
Meanwhile, the Fort Frances Power Corp.—of which the Town of Fort Frances is the sole shareholder—will continue to fight for its independence and make sure it protects the historic power agreement that gives the utility the lowest rates in province and is worth $2.8 million a year to the ratepayers of Fort Frances.
While the province has said it won’t mandate the amalgamation of utilities in Ontario, the province has been changing rules and regulations that are harder and harder for smaller utilities to meet, explained Mayor Avis, who is a liaison between council and the FFPC board.
“We’ve met all those and we continue to meet them,” he stressed.
“There’s not a direct push but the government would like to see fewer and fewer LDCs [local distribution companies],” he added.
At the request of Mayor Avis, FFPC CEO and president Joerg Ruppenstein made an informative report to council last month—and the public can expect such reports quarterly.
Work on the 2016 budget already is underway. The various town executive committees are reviewing the capital “want lists” and the operational budgets for the respective divisions.
The early form of the budget will come before council Jan. 18.
Mayor Avis said he’s seen the “wish lists” but he’s not sure if the final 2016 budget will include as many capital improvements as 2015 did.
“You have to balance your expenses with your revenue,” he reasoned.
“We have to make sure we keep Fort Frances an affordable place to live and maintain the level of service that we have,” the mayor noted.
“We call ourselves a full-service community and that’s what we want to continue to do.”
Mayor Avis said he’s concerned that when a municipality keeps raising taxes and user fees, “you price yourself out of the market.” But he and the rest of council is committed to keep trying.
“With the shift of taxation from the industrial side and the commercial side to the residential, it’s a bigger challenge every year,” he admitted.
One large project to look forward to is the second phase of the Rainy Lake Market Square development in downtown Fort Frances, said Mayor Avis.
The town currently has a request for proposals out to find an architect firm to develop a market square on the site of the old Rainy Lake Hotel.
After working with stakeholders, the architect firm is expected to have the new market square built this spring or summer.
As well, a major road project will be the reconstruction of Colonization Road East from Scott Street to the overpass.
As with the King’s Highway job this past year, this also will include the installation of new water and sewer infrastructure.
Looking back at 2015, there were many capital improvements throughout the town.
“Our capital budget in 2015 has been the largest that we’ve had in many, many years and we accomplished all of the goals,” Mayor Avis remarked.
If you look around the community, he noted, you’ll see a new animal shelter, a new salt/sand shed, Civic Centre roof repairs, and upgrades to the recycling depot, sewage treatment plant, the day care centre, and Public Works building.
There also were infrastructure reconstruction and road repairs on Nelson Street and King’s Highway, as well as the demolition of the old Rainy Lake Hotel.
Some of these projects partially were paid for through government funding while others, like the new animal shelter or salt/sand shed, were long overdue and simply had to be paid for entirely from the town’s coffers.
Other projects, like the renovations to the Public Works building, mean the building now will be better insulated and more energy-efficient going forward—saving the town on electricity costs.
There also were many volunteer-driven community events here in 2015, including the Snowbirds’ air show, “Harmony of Nations” Music Festival, Fort Frances Canadian Bass Championship, Boundary Waters Dragon Boat Festival, Dudley Hewitt Cup, and “Duncan Keith Day.”
