Broadband – Rural Midhurst
I must congratulate Jeff Kerk from the North Midhurst rural
area for his excellent presentation on the development of a local high speed
solution for his immediate area by forming a Ontario Incorporated Numbered
company to offer a fibre based service. It is a Cadillac solution and I
question the need for such a high capacity service that far exceeds the Federal
standard. I am always suspect when the delegation comes with a prepared
resolution and requests Council to endorse it on the spot without much thought.
But again, thanks to the cooler heads of mainly Councillors Hanna and Cabral, a
number of Councillors posed excellent questions and a different direction was
forthcoming. Don’t get me wrong, we definitely have spotty Internet services in
the rural areas of Springwater and most of Ontario, and if an affluent
neighbourhood can support the estimated $3,000 to $6,000 for each home that
connects, I wish them the best of luck. It is certainly outside the parameters
of my pocketbook. Mr Kerk has a great idea that will serve a small area and a
few residential properties north of Midhurst but it is so narrow cast and is out
of the Township’s jurisdiction (Broadband is a Federal Communication
responsibility), that Council must be cautious on how they approach such a
request. We all know there are many areas of Springwater with deep pockets that
could show up with the same request. In the end the Council decided to be
advocates of any party that wanted to improve Broadband in the Township, which
to me is the right and most effective approach and removes any suggestion of
bias to a provider. The Deputy Mayor who seemed to want to push Mr. Kerk’s
resolution along with the Mayor, even suggested that some funding could come
from the Community Improvement Fund (CIP). The CAO rightfully suggested that did
not fit the guidelines. The CIP was intended for any business in the Township
that wanted to improve their operation to better serve ALL the residents of
Springwater. It was never intended to be incubator funding which this new
company would be. This Broadband solution by Mr. Kerk and his Numbered
Corporation will only serve a small area in North Midhurst and is not available
to anyone else in the township and therefore does not qualify. Again the motivations
of the Mayor and Deputy Mayor are suspect. The Mayor even trumpeted the project
in his editorial column prior to it coming to Council. I find that rather
presumptuous. I do think the Township must be cautious on how much time they
spend with one proponent as that could be construed as playing favourites with possible
political motives at the forefront of their support. It was agreed that
Councillor Cabral, DM Coughlin and CAO Smyth will form a small working group
and come back with ideas. That is the way it should be done and keeps Council
out of areas that they should not be venturing into, especially if it entails
spending taxpayer money.
Springwater Long Range Financial Plan (LTFP)– Maybe a
different approach
Two weeks ago, the LTFP by Watson and Associates and the
future impacts on the Springwater Taxpayer was presented. It painted a less
than rosy picture. Effectively, the Midhurst Secondary Plan (MSP) and its mega
developments are not sustainable unless the pacing of development is changed,
taxes and user fees are increased or the developers provide truck loads of
voluntary contributions up front to stabilize expenditures and financial burden.
Even though, I am not supportive of the MSP, one solution I had thought of to
reduce the short term impact was a change on the phasing of development.
Remember, under the Midhurst Secondary Plan they are building two new communities
of roughly 15,000 people each, one close to Russel Road and Doran Road and the
other at Carson and Wilson. The Carson and Wilson developments are advancing as
Council approved the first subdivision of about 400 homes. This development is
close to the location of both the new fresh water supply and treatment
facilities as well as the wastewater sewage facility that will service both
developments in the long term. If I were on Council, I would attempt to renegotiate
with the two developers and strive to agree that only the Carson and Wilson
developments will proceed, rather than trying to simultaneously develop two
areas that are 5 kilometres apart. In other words, until the all phases of the
western portion of the developments at Carson and Wilson are complete, no construction
or servicing should be commenced on the eastern Russell and Doran Road
developments. I will guarantee that the infrastructure costs would be reduced
significantly and place a lower burden on both today’s and tomorrow’s Springwater
ratepayer. Since all the numbers are available, as Council, I would request
that Watson and Associates provide an analysis and impact of such an approach.
