Category: News 2021

Unfinished Business December 2021

John Draper

The good news is that there is a list, so theoretically, work to be done does not get forgotten – but it certainly gets delayed, some items longer than others. Hopefully the extra staff agreed for 2022 will allow some of it to get done. Also theoretically, projects get prioritised based on the Council’s Strategic plan but in practice that only happens sometimes. The list is provided at the end of every Council meeting but is rarely discussed – it’s at the end of meetings so Councillors are no doubt tired and not interested although the list is gradually getting shorter. One item often missing from the list is a current expected completion date. The latest full list is available in… Read complete articleUnfinished Business December 2021

Demolition by Neglect

John Draper

An architectural gem that is gradually being demolished by neglect is the property on King Street East known as Sidbrook.  It has been empty since 2002 and is in bad shape.  Efforts to force owners to keep it in good repair have gone nowhere  – see link below to my report in 2018 on “Stopping Demolition by Neglect”.  But now, there is another example and Council made it clear that they have no sympathy for owners who try to demolish by neglect.  At the Committee of the Whole (CoW) Meeting on Monday December 6, the owner of the property at 93 Albert Street asked the Town for permission to demolish the building because it’s in really bad shape but the… Read complete articleDemolition by Neglect

Donating Trees and Benches

John Draper

You might have seen plaques on Trees and benches in Cobourg’s parks – these generally commemorate someone and are there because a citizen donated them. But to do that, the donor has contacted the Parks Department and discussed it with them although to date there has not been any policy or presumably, consistency on costs or what is done. But now, the Town’s Parks department is working on establishing a policy and procedure for such donations with the first step being to discuss draft documents with the Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee at their meeting on December 7. The cost will be standardized at $3,000 for most benches (including plaque) and $450 for a tree plus $275 for a plaque…. Read complete articleDonating Trees and Benches

Fees for Marina and Campground to Increase

John Draper

At the next Committee of the Whole Meeting (CoW) on December 6, staff are reporting that they have reviewed current fees for the Marina and Campground and are proposing increases so that they continue to cover costs. Most of the proposed Marina increases are around 3% but campground increases range from 2% to 11% – more details below and links to Staff reports. I understand that separately Staff are undertaking a comprehensive “User Fee Analysis” and these increases are interim (for 2022) pending the results of that study. User fees include Development charges, Parking, Transit, CCC fees and others as well as Marina and Campground. A report on parking fees was provided at the November 15 CoW but was referred… Read complete articleFees for Marina and Campground to Increase

Cobourg Entertainment Coming Alive

John Draper

So far there have been no cases of the Omicron Covid19 variant reported in Northumberland and many people are responding to the Entertainment scene opening up in Cobourg in time for Christmas. After a missing a year of many Christmas events, it’s time to enjoy those that are being held. There’s a list below with details on how to get information but the first one is of course tomorrow’s Santa Parade at 6:00 pm. The weather may not be the best so I may join others and just watch it on TV (Cogeco Cable Ch. 700) but there is a long list of indoor events over the next couple of weeks. The Concert Hall at Victoria Hall re-opened November first… Read complete articleCobourg Entertainment Coming Alive

Transit Fares to Increase

John Draper

If Council approves staff recommendations coming to Council at the next Committee of the Whole meeting on December 6, transit fares will increase.  Cobourg’s Transit is currently heavily subsidised – riders pay $2.00 per ride and Cobourg taxpayers pay another $4.88 to cover costs (based on 108,372 riders in 2019).  Total taxpayer subsidy in 2019 was $707K * – numbers for recent years are worse because of fewer riders during the pandemic – details below.  In 2022, revenues from fares are budgeted at 7.5% of operating costs – capital costs are extra.  As reported earlier, during the 2022 budget review, Councillor Darling commented that the cost of Transit to the Town in 2022 of $1,069,024 was a lot for the… Read complete articleTransit Fares to Increase

Tannery District Public Meeting – November 2021

John Draper

The Tannery Project began in 2009 and since then: has had three open houses (including the initial Charrette); a special page was created for the Town’s web site; a special Community Improvement Plan (CIP) was created to allow the Town to spend money on it and on Monday, a Council Public Planning meeting considered a Secondary Plan and Rezoning Bylaw which would effectively implement the Consultant’s master plan.  See the links below for more detail. Once again, the consultant Matt Reid, presented his plan: over 30 citizens were online to hear what he said and 10 participated – mostly in support.  There are two aspects of the plan that generate support:  first, It’s “Green” and sustainable and second it promises… Read complete articleTannery District Public Meeting – November 2021

Final Draft Budgets approved 5-2

John Draper

Deputy Mayor Suzanne Séguin chaired the two-day Budget review Council meetings and hoped to reduce the levy increase impact of 6.7% to 5.3% per Council’s target. But by 4:00 pm on the second day, she expressed her frustration that Councillors kept adding amounts that cancelled any reductions. She said “we need to do better”; her comments seemed to blame councillors and Mayor Henderson then told her to “Watch your comments”! He said that they were all trying to do the right thing. When the two days’ work was complete, the budget increase was 6.3% and with a growth amount of 2.2%, the tax levy increase would be 4.1%. In a recorded vote, Suzanne and Councillor Chorley voted against approving the… Read complete articleFinal Draft Budgets approved 5-2