Cumberland municipal council has approved the second reading of an application to amend the land-use bylaws to change a property near Wentworth from rural resource to recreational residential to permit the construction of a subdivision of recreational cottage lots on the Valley Road.
The subject property is approximately five kilometres west of Wentworth.
The subdivision will be built on a newly built private road on the adjacent property.
The property is currently running as an unmanaged wood lot. Neighbouring properties are mostly forested lots and a few neighbouring dwellings are zoned as agricultural.
A public hearing was held on Dec. 14 with no submissions.
Cumberland County awards new solid waste contract to Miller Waste
The Municipality of Cumberland is awarding Miller Waste System Inc.’s the contract for solid waste collection in the county.
The bid from Miller Waste includes a Christmas tree collection every January, a bi-weekly collection of one bulky item of garbage, an annual special collection of construction and demolition debris (metal and bulky garbage), leaf and yard waste special spring pickup and weekly pickup of eight-yard organics bins within the municipality.
The total value of the five-year contract is $12.6 million.
The municipality’s 10-year solid waste collection contract expired on March 22 and a one-year extension was negotiated.
After ongoing discussions, a joint request for proposals was issued by the municipality and the Town of Amherst. The intent of the joint RFP was to gain efficiencies and create opportunities to align contracted services within the region.
Three proposals were submitted and Miller Waste’s alternate proposal scored the highest. The alternate proposal required both the Municipality of Cumberland and the Town of Amherst to select this option.
The proposal makes changes to how solid waste is collected curbside. Collection zones and days will be changed to create a more even distribution of work in the collection schedules.
It is anticipated these changes will result in fewer late or incomplete collection days during times of peak collection volumes.
The change that will most impact residents is moving to a bi-weekly collection of all three waste streams. In this proposal, residents will place all streams of waste curbside (garbage, organics and recyclables), and property sorted, every two weeks for collection.
The above changes are to be implemented on April 1, 2024.
The request for proposals did ask to include costs for weekly collection through the summer and all year, but the price tags came in at an extra $313,478 and $497,186 respectively. Staff did not recommend this option.
The cost of the contract is higher than the extension by $513,451.
Cumberland County is selling surplus Springhill property to Jamie Merritt
The Municipality of Cumberland is selling a piece of property in Springhill to Jamie Merritt for $13,000 plus any applicable taxes and the proviso that the purchaser acknowledges that the sale of the land does not imply pre-approval by the municipality for any specific use.
Council had declared the land at 213 Main St., Springhill, to be surplus.
Three bids were received for a tender call for the property.
Municipality of Cumberland providing a $12,500 grant for Log Building repairs
The Municipality of Cumberland is providing $12,500 to the Advocate and District Development Association for upgrades to the Log Building (community centre) in Advocate Harbour.
The total budget for the project is $25,000 and includes putting a new roof on the building.
The community centre serves the surrounding area, including Advocate Harbour, Fraserville, Apple River and Salem.
Cumberland County amending its workplace wellness policy
The Municipality of Cumberland is amending its workplace wellness policy following a staff review that found the policy does not include a statement from council authorizing the administration of the wellness subsidy program.
The program was previously administered by the wellness committee but was on hold while the review was being completed. The program’s purpose is to provide funding to help municipal employees take ownership of their physical, mental and emotional health, improving their overall health and well-being.
Cumberland County enters into a three-year agreement with Cumberland Business Connector
The Municipality of Cumberland has agreed to enter into a new three-year agreement with the Town of Amherst and the Cumberland Business Connector.
The existing five-year agreement with the Connector expired on March 31, 2022.
Following discussion, the Town of Amherst has approved the agreement and the Connector is ready to sign as well.
Changes to the agreement seek to improve communication and increase municipal input into the Connector’s strategic priorities.