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Counties armed and ready to fight for college
GREGG CHAMBERLAIN gregg.chamberlain@eap.on.ca
présenté au comité d’aménagement le 4 juin 2014. Le terrain a une superficie de 0.70 hectare. La superficie minimum pour un chenil comprenant moins de 10 chiens doit être de deux hectares selon le règlement. Malgré tout, la municipalité a adopté le changement de zonage en septembre 2014. Le changement aurait permis l’exploitation d’un chenil avec un total de 30 chiens adultes. Actuellement, le chenil abrite 18 golden retrievers et entre 50 et 70 chiots de cette race. «Maintenant ils veulent vendre le chenil et ils n’ont jamais payé de taxes commerciales, a affirmé M. Zanth. Ce n’est pas pour dire non au changement de zonage, c’est simplement qu’il faut retourner au comité d’aménagement pour être capable d’en discuter». De son côté, le propriétaire du chenil, Raymond Marengère, espère que la modification de zonage sera maintenue. Bien qu’il souhaite vendre cette entreprise, il aimerait qu’un nouveau propriétaire prenne les commandes. «J’aimerais ça que l’entreprise continue parce que ça a fait un nompour Hammond. Je vais avoir 69 ans cet été et ce serait bon de la vendre à quelqu’un qui pourrait continuer de l’utiliser. Sinon je vais fermer boutique. Ça serait dommage parce que c’est un bon commerce», a déclaré M. Marengère. But he credited the consultant firm with providing the counties an excellent report to take to the Ontario Good Roads Association (OGRA) gathering in Toronto at the end of February. “It’s a great tool for us,” Dicaire said, adding that he wonders if the provincial government’s own Godbout report on Alfred College contains the same amount of detail of the financial impact the facility has for the region. “I’d be curious to find out if they (Godbout report) match or don’t match.” Mayor François St-Amour of The Nation Municipality and others at the counties council table want to wait until after the OGRA session beforemaking any further de- cisions regarding the consultant report.The UCPR delegation to Toronto for the OGRA gathering has a meeting with Agriculture Minister Jeff Leal about Alfred College. “I want to hear first what the province is willing to do about that place,” said St- Amour, “before I am willing to commit myself.” Counties council did approve a resolu- tion towards the end of its regular meeting that the provincial government, through the agriculture ministry, “should assume responsibilities in the consolidation and financial management of Alfred College and that it must not expect local municipalities or the United Counties to be responsible for the rehabilitation of the college’s buildings.”
When the mayors from Prescott and Rus- sell counties meet provincial officials in Toronto this week about Alfred College, they will be shooting some heavy-calibre statistics through any arguments about closing the campus down. The United Counties of Prescott-Russell (UCPR) council received a verbal summa- ry during its Feb. 18 regular session from consultant Paul Blais, of Millier Dickinson Blais, regarding an economic investment strategy for Prescott-Russell. Part of the stra- tegy concerns the future of Alfred College and whether or not it will continue as Eastern Ontario’s premier post-secondary agricul- tural education and research centre. Blais’ report argues that the college represents a unique opportunity that could prove very profitable in many ways for the region. “There’s a strong case to bemade that the investments the counties makes,” said Blais, “and the provincial government makes will have a strong positive effect.” The continued operation of Alfred College still remains uncertain since the University of Guelph’s announcement last year of its plan to cease operations for both its Alfred and Kemptville campuses. A joint effort by La Cité and Boreal College have saved the existing agricultural science curriculum for the next two years and ensured that students enrolled now will finish their programs. But whether the college will remain open and for how long is still in question. The provincial government made a recent announcement that it is ready to work with themunicipalities of Prescott-Russell to keep the college open in the same way that it is working with North Grenville Municipa- lity to keep the Kemptville College campus open.The province is negotiating withNorth Grenville to take over ownership later of the facilities and keep themopen for public use. Several mayors on counties council ex- pressed concern about what the province has in mind regarding future ownership of the Alfred College campus and that the consultant report from Millier Dickinson Blais also seems to suggest that the coun- ties should invest local taxpayer funds into keeping the college operating. “My concern is that we could be getting into something that is not our jurisdiction,” said Mayor Gary Barton of Champlain Township. “Education is a provincial res- ponsibility.” Stéphane Parisien, UCPR chief adminis- trator, told counties council the purpose of the report is not to convince local mayors that they should agree to invest local taxes into the college’s ongoing operations or upgrading of any of its facilities. He said
La ferme Golden Retriever en difficulté
the goal is to provide solid arguments for the province to takemore direct action itself in keeping the college open and operating. “I don’t want to invest (taxpayer) money in the college,” Parisien said. “This report is meant to provide information, to provide ammunition on Alfred College. This is a message for the province.” Closure of Alfred College, Blais and Pari- sien both noted, represents an annual loss to the local economy of Alfred-Plantagenet Township and the regional economy of Pres- cott-Russell of about $10.5 million in both direct revenue from student tuition fees and spending on living accommodations, meals and other expenses, along with staff wages, and indirect revenue like the wages paid to all the people employed by businesses which provide goods and services to the college. “I just want you to grasp the magnitude of the impact of closing the college,” Parisien said, adding that the consultant’s report also noted how the revenue potential of the college can increase as its future student enrolment grows, requiring more teaching and support staff, and thus providing more profit potential to local businesses. Mayor Fernand Dicaire of Alfred-Plan- tagenet Township had some questions about the state of the existing college infrastructure and the cost to upgrade to current standards.
MARTIN BRUNETTE martin.brunette@eap.on.ca
Un changement de zonage adopté par l’ancien conseil municipal de Clarence- Rockland soulève la controverse ces jours-ci. En effet, un changement de zonage touchant le chenil Golden Retriever Farm de Hammond fait présentement l’objet d’un appel devant la Commission des affaires municipales de l’Ontario. Lors de la dernière réunion régulière du conseil, le 16 février, celui-ci a décidé de reporter sa décision de soutenir la modification de zonage pour le chenil situé sur le chemin Joanisse. «On n’a eu aucune conversation concernant cette demande, a affirmé le conseiller Mario Zanth, également vice- président du comité d’aménagement. J’ai parlé àMichael Michaud (NDLR : directeur de l’aménagement du territoire de Clarence- Rockland) et il a confirmé que le projet ne répond pas aux exigences de la province.» Le nouveau conseil a également été mis au courant du fait que l’entreprise en question opère dans l’illégalité et ce, depuis une quinzaine d’années. Le terrain ne serait pas désigné pour accueillir un chenil. Voulant vendre le commerce, le propriétaire Raymond Marengère a amorcé des démarches pour faire changer le zonage au mois d’avril 2014. Au mois de juin, le comité d’aménagement avait alors recommandé au conseil municipal de refuser le règlement modifiant le règlement de zonage (no 2006-3). «En raison de la superficie du terrain et sa proximité de résidence, le département (d’aménagement) ne peut appuyer la demande», peut-on lire dans un rapport
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