Highlights from the Lanark County Council meeting held Wednesday, Aug. 25, 2021

Media Release
August 25, 2021

Here are the highlights from the Lanark County Council meeting held Wednesday, Aug. 25.

Housing Moves Forward on Housing Plan Strategies: Council has taken steps to move forward on addressing some specific categories in its 10-Year Housing and Homelessness Plan for the county and Smiths Falls.

Council passed a motion to award a request for proposal contract to SHS Incorporated (SHS Consulting) to outline municipal opportunities and planning tools to support affordable housing. This follows special meetings earlier this year on housing and homelessness that resulted in a recommendation to support hiring a consultant to move forward on planning for a diverse range of housing choice, educating the community on local housing needs and offering incentives to build affordable housing. Four proposals were received.

Director of Social Services Emily Hollington said the consultant’s report is to provide a broad overview of key characteristics and trends impacting current and future housing affordability within the county and Smiths Falls, as well as creating a toolkit of municipal and planning tools to address needs and demands. The project is to be completed by April 2022 and fees will be covered by provincial COVID-19 funding received by the county. “The final report will create a toolkit of options for local municipalities and the county to encourage affordable housing development,” Hollington explained. “There will be significant community consultation and the report will recognize the uniqueness of local municipalities and regions within the county and will build a framework to help address current and future gaps in affordability.”

Another recommendation resulting from the special meetings was the formation of a Housing Working Group made up of stakeholders from the non-profit and private sector to discuss, propose options and leverage funding and subject-matter expertise to move forward on increasing the housing supply in the county. CAO Kurt Greaves explained the group was tasked with recommending priority initiatives (e.g. rent supplement, portable housing benefit, new builds) and how organizations can partner with the county to speed up implementation of this category in the overall plan.

Key findings from the Housing Working Group included:

• Private developers are interested in partnerships for affordable housing, and there are successful examples of private/on-profit/county partnerships in place.
• There are challenges and risks for the private sector around rent-geared-to-income, but mitigation strategies can be developed between the public and private sector.
• A list of suggestions provided for the toolkit to be developed by the consultant that would facilitate one-stop shopping for developers.
• A range of topics for lobbying the provincial and federal governments, e.g. rural-specific housing and homelessness issues, surplus land policies, landlord/tenant relationship activities, funding consistency.

Greaves said council can help by supporting the work of the consultants with the tool kit, considering the continuation of a working group or task force, proceeding with lobbying, sharing information to get engagement and by reviewing the county’s expression of interest and request for proposal practices to provide more opportunity for innovation. The report of the Housing Working Group was accepted as information.

For more information, contact Emily Hollington, Director of Social Services, at 1-888-9-LANARK, ext. 2101.

Issuing Expression of Interest for Lanark Lodge Redevelopment: Council has passed a motion authorizing an expression of interest (EOI) be released for potential redevelopment partners of Lanark Lodge.

The county’s 163-bed long-term care home is classified as a “B” level facility by the Ministry of Long-Term Care and must be rebuilt or redeveloped to current design standards by 2025. Project Coordinator Jennie Bingley reviewed background with the community services committee earlier this month, noting two major studies have outlined deficiencies in the existing facility that continue to be addressed. A request for proposal to evaluate redevelopment was issued in September 2018. An independent review showed mechanical and electrical systems at the Lodge were mostly past their useful life and require significant upgrades. The report provided options for a partial redevelopment of the existing facility and a partial new addition (estimated at $73 million) or a new building (estimated at $76 million). Estimates are pre-pandemic.

A consultant’s report from early 2020 to assist with a redevelopment and management strategy for the home provided a range of possible options. Further work by staff to explore options and make recommendations to council was delayed due to the pandemic, while several upgrades and repairs were undertaken to ensure operations. “Capital investment will continue to be required in the existing facility and will form part of the annual budget process,” Bingley said.

Bingley indicated consideration of other long-term care beds and locations in the county must be included in order to determine the size and optimal location of Lanark Lodge, while balancing demand for beds and costs to taxpayers. The ministry has approved an increase of 28.4 per cent in the supply of long-term care beds in Lanark County and Smiths Falls up to 2025. She added council needs information about the size of the redeveloped home in terms of beds, location, possible partners, a timeline and how it will be funded in order to proceed.

The EOI will help staff to explore partnership opportunities in order to make recommendations to council. Public input will be part of the process. Bingley noted it is unlikely the county will meet the 2025 deadline, with construction not likely to begin before 2029. “The redevelopment of Lanark Lodge will be one of the biggest decisions made by county council in recent years,” Bingley said. “Staff feel confident that if we gather information locally, we can provide viable options for council’s consideration.”

Expression of interest applications will be due Sept. 30. Staff aim to provide recommendations to council by December. For more information, contact Jennie Bingley, Project Coordinator, at 1-888-9-LANARK, ext. 1320.

Adjusting Child Care Funding Formula: Council has passed a motion regarding the funding formula for child care centres in 2021 that considers hardships faced during the pandemic.

At the community services committee meeting earlier this month, Children’s Services Manager Tammy Kealey-Donaldson explained the funding approach for 2021 will help ensure stability and maintain viability until further recovery from the pandemic can be realized. “The risk of COVID on the child care sector remains,” she said.

Kealey-Donaldson said the pandemic has had a financial impact on the child care sector due to such things as repeated provincial closures, outbreaks resulting in closure, reduced enrolment, limited cohorts, reopening expenses, additional PPE, and enhanced staffing and cleaning. Recovery is expected to continue into 2022. “Financial stability and predictability are vital for the sector to ensure families will continue to have reliable, affordable and quality child care in our community.”

Kealey-Donaldson explained user fees provide the largest source of revenue for child care providers, and centres could not charge fees during provincially mandated closures. The province has authorized service managers such as Lanark County to determine 2021 funding based on the best fit for the community. Each year is usually funded based on the previous year’s capacity. With 2020 being such an anomaly, the recommendation is to fund 2021 and 2022 based on 2019 figures and to take any new 2020 spaces into account. General operating funding is 100 per cent provincially funded and expansion funding is 80-per cent funded by the province, with the municipal portion included in the 2021 budget.

The motion would allow for 2019 capacity numbers and the general operating funding formula to be used to determine funding for the centres in 2021, and that capacity numbers from the last stable year not impacted by COVID provincial closures be used in subsequent years. It also takes new spaces opened in addition to a centre’s 2019 capacity into consideration. For more information, contact Emily Hollington, Director of Social Services, at 1-888-9-LANARK, ext. 2101.

Every Child Matters Flag Raising Approved: Lanark County Council unanimously passed a motion to fly the Every Child Matters flag for the month of September in recognition of the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. The discussion comes in light of recent discoveries of remains and unmarked graves that have led to increased calls for all levels of government to immediately address the recommendations in the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s (TRC) Calls to Action. The 94 Calls to Action cover a wide range of government responsibilities, including child welfare, education, language and culture, health, justice, commemoration, museums and archives, training for public servants, and a few specific initiatives related to reconciliation.

Warden Christa Lowry (Mississippi Mills Mayor) explained the AMO Board of Directors encourages members to recognize September 30 as National Day for Truth and Reconciliation (also known as Orange Shirt Day) and have provided two resource papers to assist municipal councils’ efforts to support Truth and Reconciliation. Further discussion about recognition will be on the next agenda.

As well, Lanark County Council representatives are currently involved with the Indigenous Health and Well-being working group from the Community Plan for Safety and Well-being Advisory Committee for Lanark County and Smiths Falls on actions related to municipal/Indigenous relations. Information from the working group will be presented to the community services committee of the whole next month. For more information, contact Leslie Drynan, Clerk/Deputy CAO, at 1-888-9-LANARK, ext. 1502.

Upcoming Meetings: County Council, Wednesday, Sept. 8, 5 p.m.; Community Services, Sept. 8 (following County Council); Corporate Services, Sept. 8 (following Community Services). County Council, Wednesday, Sept. 22, 5 p.m.; Public Works, Sept. 22 (following County Council); Economic Development, Sept. 22 (following Public Works). Watch for details about public access to meetings on agendas and through online notifications. For more information, contact 1-888-9-LANARK, ext. 1502. Like "LanarkCounty1" on Facebook and follow "@LanarkCounty1" on Twitter!