Duane Hicks
Town council agreed Monday night to the majority of the Fort Frances Canadian Bass Championship’s requests for continued financial and in-kind support.
These include:
•approving a $5,000 donation for the FFCBC operating budget;
•agreeing to enter into a three-year agreement for the FFCBC to pay outstanding accounts receivable in the amount of $6,739.27 resulting from the 2010 tourney;
•providing a letter of support for a Rainy River Future Development Corp. application for a Community Initiative Grant (to help pay for arena rental costs);
•designating the FFCBC as a significant community festival event and proclaiming July 17-23 as “Fort Frances Canadian Bass Championship Week” in the Town of Fort Frances; and
•designating the mayor or his designate to act as honorary host for the FFCBC.
Other in-kind services range from use of the Sand Bay dock, supplying picnic tables, and line painting of parking spaces to installing banners, signs, and pennants along the waterfront and waiving launch fees for competitors and volunteers during the tournament.
But several requests were denied.
One was the waiving of arena rental fees, although it is hoped a grant could cover this cost.
Another was a request for providing and installing fencing to secure an area on the north side of the arena.
As well, the town said nothing can be done to increase air circulation and reduce heat in the Ice For Kids Arena during the event.
Meanwhile, the consumption of alcohol cannot be allowed in the stands because the town can’t get a special occasion permit that includes viewing stands and it doesn’t want to licence the facility on a permanent basis.
In other news, council deferred the presentation of the 2011 budget until its May 9 meeting.
While the budget was supposed to be publicly presented and then passed Monday evening, Mayor Roy Avis announced it would have to wait for two reasons.
“Because of the situation that arose in an in-camera session this evening, there’s a few questions to be asked,” he noted.
The second reason is Shaw Cable was experiencing some technical difficulties on site that night and only was able to broadcast audio, but not video.
The budget includes a PowerPoint presentation explaining the town’s revenues and expenditures, debt and reserves, and tax ratios and rates.
Also at Monday night’s meeting, council:
•approved a report to ensure the town enter into a three-year agreement with the Electrical Safety Authority (this is for continuous electrical safety services, at a cost of $9,046 in 2011, with an automatic annual fee increase of three percent);
•received the March, 2011 drinking water systems monthly summary report;
•approved an adjustment to aviation fuel pump prices at the Fort Frances Airport (the new pump prices, effective April 26, are set at $2.11 per litre for 100LL while Jet A-1 will be $1.85/litre, including HST);
•agreed to authorize a $650 contribution to the Rainy River Vet Assistance Trust Fund;
•received a request from the Confederation College Foundation to support the Patricia Lang Realizing Education Dreams (RED) Award;
•agreed to transfer $107,323.85 from the sanitary sewer projects reserve fund to sewer operations for Dec. 31, 2010;
•received the name of Nick Wihnan as a candidate for reappointment to the Fort Frances Municipal Non-Profit Housing Corp. board of directors for 2011; and
•approved purchase card expenses for CAO Mark McCaig in the amount of $850.82 (for attendance at the ROMA/OGRA conference in Toronto on Feb. 28-March 3);
•approved purchase cards expenses for Mayor Roy Avis in the amount of $31.58 (for a lunch meeting with local DSSAB chair John Callan on March 17);
•approved travel expense and per diem claims for Coun. Ken Perry in the amount of $102 to attend a Rural Economic Development meeting in Emo on April 14; and
•approved travel expense and per diem claims for Coun. Rick Wiedenhoeft in the amount of $1,107.96 to attend the Ontario Association of Police Services Boards conference held in Marathon on April 7-8.
