MRC council: river safety, art funding, summer camp assistance

STEPHEN RICCIO
MRC PONTIAC May 19, 2021
The MRC Pontiac Council of Mayors had its monthly meeting to discuss its affairs on May 19, gathering on the platform Zoom while also streaming live to the public on Facebook.
Warden Jane Toller and each of the 18 mayors were in attendance for the meeting.

Administrative
The council meeting began with extended discussion surrounding the recent tabling of provincial Bill 96 (See story on page two) and its implications on language laws, and was then followed by Toller awarding two different members of the community with awards.
First was a sporting excellence award for Mansfield et Pontefract weightlifter Xavier Lusignan, who is travelling to Colombia in early June to compete at the the Junior Pan American Weightlifting Championships.
Toller delivered words of congratulations to Lusignan, who was connected to the Zoom call to receive the award, and she and the mayors wished him the best of luck as he prepares to enter his first international competition.
Next up was a certificate for Marc Soulière to recognize his work in the protection of Lac Dumont in the MRC’s TNO territory.
Several public questions were submitted to the council, beginning with one questioning the circumstances around the status of local libraries. Toller said that economic development director Cyndy Phillips would look into the topic and would have answers during the next council meeting in June. A handful of additional questions were related to COVID-19, as well as one pertaining to a local issue in the Chichester area.
A resolution was passed concerning the position of president on the board of Connexion Fibre Picanoc (CFP), the non-profit that had been formed by the MRC in partnership with MRC Vallée de la Gatineau to develop internet infrastructure. It was resolved that MRC Director General Bernrad Roy would step down as board president, but would continue to represent the MRC in communications with CFP. The council attempted unsuccessfully to find a replacement for Roy, and Toller said finding a replacement would be a focus in the future.
Roy explained that the organization is changing its priorities given the recent federal-provincial government announcement in internet development, with the main goal being to re-define what CFP’s role is moving forward.
The council then passed a resolution approving a request to ask the Quebec Ministry of Transportation (MTQ) to assist in funding the local organization TransporAction Pontiac for the 2021 year.
With both users of the service and the MRC Pontiac expected to contribute $25,000 each, the request to the MTQ is for $100,000.

Financial
The council passed a resolution approving a series of investment committee recommendations in the following amounts: $50,000, $31,250, $28,000, $37,500 and $176.52. The receipents names are not made publically available.
Following that, a resolution was approved regarding the Pontiac Artists Association request for $500 to purchase a new air conditioner for its second-floor gallery of the Stone School in Portage du Fort.
Sticking with the theme of financial contributions to Pontiac artists, the council passed a resolution concerning recommendations from the Creative Development Fund, which had its month-long application window closed in early May.
Under the category of collaborative projects that were submitted for funding were two requests, both of which will receive $750. The first was from Maxime Galand, a singer-songwriter from Fort Coulonge who is collaborating with photographer Cyndy Lottes to launch Maxime de Wilde’s first EP, which will create “the visual universe of the album.” The second was for Tyson Burger of L’Isle aux Allumettes, who is hoping to create a documentary film called the Heart of the Valley alongside Josh Murphy of Pembroke. The film will be a full-length documentary on 15 “ordinary” people from the Ottawa Valley on both sides of the river, with four of them coming from the MRC Pontiac.
Galand was approved for an additional $750 grant in the category of concert/exhibition through an application concerning a concert to be held at Café Downtown in Fort Coulonge.
Bristol’s Phillip Smith was approved for $750 to assist in his STICKS AND STONES project, which he will be presenting at the 2021 Canadian Sculptors’ Festival in Ottawa.
Lastly, under the COVID-19 pandemic aid for centers and galleries category, the Pontiac Artists’ Association received $250 to help make up for the lack of events the group has been able to hold throughout the pandemic.
As part of receiving the FRR 2020-2024 funding from the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing (MAMH), the MRC reached an agreement with the MAMH to fulfill a Signature Innovation project that would see the MRC receive an initial amount of $46,000 to assist in defining the project with the help of a firm.
The firm Visages Régionaux was assigned to handle marketing and planning projects for the MRC, and up to $50,000 will be paid to cover the firm’s consultation fees.
L’Île du Grand Calumet Mayor Serge Newberry asked why the MRC was paying a firm to help define the MRC’s Signature Innovation project. Phillips explained that it was required to work with experts to develop the project, and that it was approved by the ministry to use these fees for consulting.
Summer day camp contribution
During the meeting, Phillips announced the $800 million envelope of COVID-19 compensatory funding being delivered to MRCs through the Ministry of Housing and Municipal Affairs (MAMH), specifically the $879,829 allotted for the Pontiac.
The council also passed a resolution to commit a portion of those funds, $104,000 in total, to summer day camp sources. According to a press release sent by strategic communications advisor Colleen Jones, the following sources are receiving assistance to run their summer day camps this year:
$13,000: Le Patro, Mansfield et Pontefract
$20,000: Le Jardin Éducatif du Pontiac, Litchfield
$8,000: La Maison des Jeunes in Rapides des Joachims
$20,000: The Municipality of Alleyn et Cawood
$20,000: The Shawville Recreational Association
$20,000: The Chapeau Recreational Association
$3,000: The Norway Bay Municipal Association

Public Safety/Miscellaneous
Civil Engineer Kim Lesage presented a resolution to the council requesting that the Sûreté du Québec increase its budget for prevention and water patrol activities during the upcoming summer season.
The resolution noted that the MRC has “seen a marked increase in the number of watercraft” throughout the territory as a result of the pandemic, and that while this is a positive for tourism it also brings with it increased safety risks.
The council then briefly went over a resolution put forth by Chichester Mayor Donald Gagnon regarding a formal request to the Canadian Coast Guard for “the reinstallation of the original number of river markers along the Ottawa River from Chichester to the Culbute locks.”
According to the resolution, the lack of navigational markers along the river along with the substantial increase in traffic has become a public security issue. The formal request to the coast guard comes after past requests, with the most recent one prompting the coast guard to only recommend installing one additional marker.
Near the end of the meeting, Roy presented a point of information about an upcoming presentation by the MAMH to help Pontiac citizens increase their understanding of municipal elections and become more engaged. The meeting is exclusively for Pontiac residents and it is scheduled for May 27, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Zoom.
Toller added there will only be three more council meetings before the elections: in June, August and September. The council already takes the month of July off, and the elections mean that there will be no October meeting either.
The next meeting is scheduled for June 16 at 6:30 p.m.