The highlight of tonight's meeting was council's approval of Automated Speed Enforcement in 12 Community Safety Zones. Council also approved Councillor Asselstine's motion to request that the province extend the deadline for the removal of Heritage properties listed on municipal registers.
You can watch the video for the April 29th meeting here, but remember it will only be live for two weeks.
Quick Links:
Mayor's Comments:
• King welcomes a new Deputy Clerk, Adam Foran. Adam comes from Oshawa where he served s the Election Officer since 2021. Prior to that he was the Legislative and Projects Advisor for Richmond Hill and smaller municipalities in southern Ontario.
• Last week King hosted the annual Volunteer Appreciation night. Award recipients included:
Citizen of the Year: Ivan Rapa for his contributions over the last 13 years to the King United Soccer Club.
Special Recognition Award: Nancy Boyd for her support of the King Township Food Bank and community, her creation of the Love Bags program and her dedication to serving the less fortunate in a profound way.
Non-Resident Award: Karlene MacDonald for her dedication and service with the Nobleton Skating Club and Ken Orr for his contributions to the community by way of coaching and donating to youth sports teams, along with his giving more than 40 years of service to work with and help fundraise for the Lions Club.
Senior Citizen Award of Merit: Earl Groombridge was recognized for his coordination of initiatives to uplift the underprivileged, his involvement with the King Township Food Bank and support of those facing transportation challenges, offering his time and vehicle to those most in need.
Lifetime Achievement Award: Carol Ann Trabert for her creation and development of the King Township Food Bank, her “proclivity for saying yes” when it comes to serving her community and her exemplary dedication to her community’s well-being.
Youth Award of Merit: Isabella Iacolino for her volunteer work over the last two years with King’s Community Services department. She first started volunteering to obtain her high school volunteer service hours. However, she has far surpassed her 40 hours and continues to volunteer with King. She tackles every volunteering opportunity with enthusiasm and a sense of fun.
• Community Yard Sale - May 4th at Trisan from 8am-2pm. Entrance is free. Book a table here.
• Free Electronic Recycling – May 4th from 8am to 2pm at Trisan. Bring your unwanted electronics to the to ensure they are disposed of safely, recycled and kept out of landfill.
• May is Museum Month - King Township invites everyone to a Journey Through Time at the King Cultural & Heritage Centre.
• Green Yards Program - Take a step towards greening your yard this spring and supporting pollinators by purchasing a wildflower kit, rain barrel or backyard composters. Registration runs May 1-31. Click here for costs and to register.
• Community Tree Planting – Join us for some family-friendly fun planting native trees and shrubs on May 5 from 1-3pm at Hill Farm Park North, 130 Goodfellow Crescent, Nobleton – register here.
• Youth Week from may 1-7. King Township has planned a week-long of fun activities from May 1 to 7, in celebration of National Youth Week including volleyball, basketball, badminton, dancing and doing Zumba, working out in the gym or penning a (horror story) for a writing contest. Click here to see the complete schedule.
• Meet the Mayor and Councillor with Ward 6 Councillor Avia Eek at the Ansnorveldt Park on May 7th from 6:30-8pm (butter tarts have been promised!)
• Virtual Public Open House for the development of its Growth Management Strategy on May 14. Learn more about strategies, King growth targets, future growth in King and housing types and densities. This is a virtual event. To register email: policyplanning@king.ca
• 174th Schomberg Agricultural Fair – May 23-26 – this year’s them is “From Farm to Table”. Find out more here.
• Nobleton Victoria Day – Monday May 20th – The parade begins at the Nobleton Library at 11am. The fireworks are the largest publicly funded show that relies on donations, click here to donate.
Agenda Highlights:
Automated Speed Enforcement (ASE) – Council approved the use of automated cameras in Community Safety Zones to detect speeding vehicles and issue citations. King currently has 12 Community Safety Zones that are primarily around schools and places of worship:
Speeding is regularly noted as a major issue in the township and ASE averages a 53% reduction in driver speed. Not only does it increase community safety, but it also allows police services to focus on more critical issues such as vehicle theft and break-ins.
Tickets will be processed by Newmarket which has its own Processing Centre so King does not need to budget for facility space, additional staff or the software required to operate an ASE program.
As regulated by the province, ‘Coming Soon’ signage must be installed 90 days prior to a camera being activated for enforcement so residents will have plenty of notice. Once the 90-day period has passed, a camera can be activated and ‘Camera in Use’ signage must be installed instead of the ‘Coming Soon’ signage.
The lease of the two cameras will cost King $35,755 and they expect to issue about 50 tickets a day. The net revenue will be reinvested into traffic safety initiatives and will be incorporated into the 2025 Budget.
New Motion:
Councillor Asselstine brought forward a motion which was supported by council to ask that the province extend its deadline for removal of heritage properties.
Under the Ontario Heritage Act, municipalities can "List" properties of cultural heritage value or interest to their heritage registers. The municipality is not required to consult with the owner before listing the property on the register, and once the property is listed, the owner must give the municipality 60 days' notice before demolishing the property. This allows the municipality enough time to determine if it wants to fully designate the property under Part IV of the Act.
The province introduced Bill 23 in October 2022 that requires before January 1, 2025 that Council either: (a) issue a notice of intention to designate the property; or (b) remove the property from the register. If a property was listed on the heritage register after January 1, 2023, Council must, within two years of the listing date, either: (a) issue a notice of intention to designate the property; or (b) remove the property from the register. If a non-designated property is removed from the register because it has not been designated before the applicable deadline, it cannot be re-listed for five years.
King staff and members of the Heritage Advisory Committee have been diligently working to review the 164 listed properties but this has been extremely time-consuming and cannot be completed by December 31, 2024 with the limited municipal resources available.
The Architectural Conservancy of Ontario sent a letter to Premier Ford requesting an extension which Councillor Asselstine included in her motion.
New Business:
Ward 2 - Victoria Day Fireworks in Nobleton is a great chance to support a wonderful community initiative. Please join in and support this great initiative.
Ward 3 - King's Fire Services has installed two new dry hydrants in Ward 3, one at the highway 27 and 17th sideroad and another on the 16th between the 8th and 7th concessions. These dry hydrants make use of local ponds providing our fire trucks with quick access to water in case of emergency and help reduce insurance rates.
Ward 4 - May 4th Schomberg is hosting a Jane's Walk which is a community led history walk to start at the library and go to the community hall. King Township is supporting the event with a gallery presentation at the Community Hall featuring images of old and new Main St.
May 7th the Dufferin Marsh Nature Connection is hosting a Frog Night Out. Meet at the shelter at 8pm to be introduced to all the frogs in the area.
The Schomberg Fair is May 23-26. There is also a Bird Walk on May 26th at 6:30am.
Ward 5 - Thoroughly enjoyed attending the Here's to the Farmers exhibit at King's Cultural & Heritage Centre. The exhibition highlights the evolution of barns in King Township, from the early days to modern use; and, features artwork and photography from local historian Phyllis Vernon, as well as agricultural artifacts from across King Township.
The exhibition runs from April 13 - June 22, 2024; and, is open during regular KHCC hours: Tuesday to Saturday, 10 am to 4 pm. General Admission rates apply.
Ward 6 - Thanks to Team King for supporting the Nature's Emporium Run for Southlake. You can still donate until May 3rd. This is the 100th year for Southlake which started out at York County. The board of the Lake Simcoe Protection Plan heard a report from staff about eight projects and almost $2 million in funding from the Ministry of Environment, Conservation, and Parks and partner municipalities to inspect and provide rehabilitation and maintenance recommendations for stormwater assets.