Town council on Monday night approved a report from the manager of Operations and Facilities ensuring the downtown area will receive a consistent level of winter control maintenance, which is in accordance with the minimum standards for municipal highways.
Doug Brown’s report was put together in response to a complaint from Business Improvement Association chair Russ Ling, who indicated the 100-300 block of Scott Street was not plowed by Nov. 5 after a snowfall Nov. 4.
Brown inquired into this and learned that Raymond Roy, Superintendent of Works (Operations), previously had received a directive from former Operations and Facilities manager Pat Hickerson not to plow snow in the downtown area unless it could removed at the same time.
As a result, only a large amount of a winter control sand/salt mixture was applied to downtown area during the storm.
Brown also reviewed the maintenance standards as per the municipal highways regulations that went into effect Nov. 1, 2002 and suggested the following guidelines for future snow removal:
•A sand/salt mixture will be applied during business hours on Scott Street after a snowfall.
•Snowplowing will occur immediately after business hours, where snow is pushed or winged to the outside edges of the roadway.
•This snow then will be removed after the plowing operations are competed for the entire town, or once resources are available and there is a need to remove the snow (i.e., roadside snowbanks have reached 24 inches or more).
It will be removed before the snow at any other location in town.
•Snow removal only will occur after regular business hours on Scott Street and Mowat Avenue, where side streets and other parts of the downtown area can be removed at any time.
In addition, snow removal practices will take place prior to the Christmas parade (while is being held this Saturday) regardless of the size of the snowbanks.
These guidelines will be followed on a three-month trial basis.
Also at Monday night’s meeting, council:
•passed a bylaw to authorize borrowing the sum of $2,340,712 for capital projects to balance the 2003 budget (this will be paid off at a rate of roughly $260,000 a year for 10 years at an interest rate of 3.47 percent);
•approved a report from Operations and Facilities manager Doug Brown to gather information to determine if a pedestrian crossover is needed at Colonization Road East;
•approved a non-budgeted capital expense for the Fort Frances Fire Department (upon recommendation from Fire Chief Steve Richardson, a new “jaws of life” will be purchased for $4,995, plus taxes, as opposed to repairing the current one for $3,900);
•advised the Economic Development Advisory Committee to seek outside support through a service club for funding to acquire a Twin Beech aircraft from Rusty Myers Flying Service;
•accepted the decision of a reassessment for property at 1101 Mill Rd. from commercial to residential status, and further reimbursed owner Julie Halvorsen for legal fees of $333.80 (a letter of apology also will be issued to Halvorsen as per the request of Coun. Dave Bourgeault);
•recommended a meeting between chief building official Rick Hallam and the Fort Frances Power Corp. regarding establishing a framework for an agreement to address ongoing and equitable operating and maintenance costs relating to the FFPC’s occupancy within the Civic Centre;
•referred a request to advertise in a program for the Oldtimers’ Hockey Challenge coming up Jan. 13 to the Administration and Finance executive committee for a recommendation;
•passed a bylaw to approve the minutes of council for the period Dec. 10, 2002-Nov. 30, 2003;
•passed a bylaw to permit West End Motors to use a town-owned boulevard on Holmes Avenue;
•passed a bylaw to allow Bruce Caldwell to get a licence to utilize town-owned land to access private property owned by him;
•amended the existing bylaw to prohibit smoking in town-owned buildings and on town property; and
•passed a bylaw to adopt the estimates of the sums required for all municipal and school board purposes for the year 2003.
Fort Frances Times
Local News from Across the Rainy River District
