PaBIA eBlast February 2019

Volume 11 No. 2

Dear PaBIA,

As the weather continues to be crazy all over the North American continent and beyond, PaBIA keeps its warm fires glowing, awaiting the end of winter! Many cannot remember a winter as cold as this one in a very long time. May that bring stable water levels and a good balance of rain and sunshine this summer.

PaBIA’s Survey Committee has received the results from last fall’s survey, is sharing the details with the Board; and together they will prepare a report on the results to be presented to you in the coming months. A great deal of time and effort is going into the labour-intensive cross tabulation that occurs once a survey has been completed! The Board is very pleased with your thoughtful input and will be looking to prioritize our actions based on your responses. Stay tuned!

To help us all begin planning for this upcoming summer, Dave Anderson, our Webmaster, has updated our PaB summer calendars! So please check out when the Triathlon will be run, the Naturalist Talks (yes, 2 of them) are scheduled, the times set for the sailing races, and learn when the Regattas will be held (and all the other events) by checking out PaBIA’s calendar!! Please note that the Ojibway’s Entre Amis, to which everyone is invited, is being held on Saturday, June 29th!!

Lastly, in this eBlast, please note an added component – a connection to our ToA Councillors who, once a month, will be providing Bay Notes from their monthly council meetings. Check it out!

PaBIA Off Season Cottage Patrol

PaBIA Patrolman Bruce Tiffin is presently out checking our properties during his Winter Rounds. Problems reported so far are all related to severe weather – doors and windows blown open and in two cases, windows broken. Where possible, Bruce will close and secure the windows and doors. Bruce takes detailed photos that are sent to the owners immediately; so that should action be needed, the cottager can contact their contractor should they feel the need.

2019 Membership Dues

By now, you should have received your invoice form and have taken advantage of the different options to pay for this year’s unchanged dues:

online by credit card through PaBIA’s Membership section on the website;
by e-transfer to Nancy Rogers ([email protected]);
by cheque payable to PaBIA and mailed in the addressed envelope provided: Nancy Rogers, Unit 1 – 38 Elora Dr., Hamilton, ON L9C 7K3.

Reminder: to be listed in the Yearbook,

the deadline for payment is March 15th.

From COUNCILLORS

SCOTT SHEARD & EARL MANNERS

BAY NOTES for Ward 3

Pointe Au Baril, Skerryvore, Shawanaga Bay, Frederic Inlet, Lighthouse neighbourhoods

February 2019

The February 21-22, 2019 meetings of the Township of the Archipelago

Township Update

Strategic Plan

Councillors and Township Staff are engaged in the development of Strategic Directions and Priorities for the 2018-2022 Term. The CAO, Clerk and each of the Departments identified a set of Priorities that included established and/or planned projects as well as requirements legislated by the senior levels of government. Each Councillor has subsequently identified issues and programs to be included in Council’s Strategic Directions for consideration by Council. Environmental protection measures have been highlighted and emphasized to support the first principle of the Official Plan; ‘… to preserve the unique and high quality of the natural environment …’ Amalgamation is a threat to our unique environment, adapted services, Official Plan, influence and leadership in the Region. It is an important reminder that TOA must sustain much effort in communicating our uniqueness and engage our communities in the preservation and development of our unique environment and services. Community dialogue is key and well-recognized by Council. Consensus was reached on the re-establishment of the Deerhorn Conference as a forum for effective and transparent communication among the Community, ratepayer associations, G5, Council and TOA Staff. Another significant opportunity to engage our community is to review, amend and develop the Comprehensive Zoning Bylaws for the future, now that the Official Plan has been finalized.

Skerryvore Update

Road Construction

Council received an updated Report on road maintenance requirements on the Skerryvore Road. The TOA and MNRF have been working cooperatively to ensure that construction at the 5 locations where it bridges water will be able to proceed as soon as possible.

Pointe au Baril Update

Pointe au Baril Community Centre

As part of the Budget process, Council has been requested to provide for the replacement of the outdated oil-fired boiler and hot water system that operates year-long with higher efficiency appliances and cleaner burning fuel source that will realize overall cost savings and lower greenhouse gas emissions.

Conservation in Canada:

A Progress Update on the Protection of our Biodiversity

with Janet Sumner

Tuesday, March 19th

6:30 cocktail reception, 7:15 talk

Bishop Strachan School, 298 Lonsdale Road, Toronto

Free admission: Register

Join the Georgian Bay Land Trust on March 19th as we welcome one of the leading voices in Canadian conservation to LANDMARK Speaker Series.

Janet Sumner is the Executive Director of the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society’s Wildlands League, and co-chair of the National Advisory Panel tasked with helping Canada meet its target to protect 17% of lands and inland waters by 2020. She will provide an insider’s perspective on conservation in Canada: where we stand, where we’re headed, and what challenges we need to meet head on.

GBLT Dattels Reserve Complete In Hemlock!

Introducing the newly-expanded Dattels Reserve!

This beautiful island in Pointe au Baril’s Hemlock Channel is now entirely protected as a 10-acre nature reserve.

The Dattels Reserve was first created in 2009, when neighbouring conservationist Jennifer Dattels purchased the eastern side of the undeveloped island and donated it to the GBLT. After waiting for nearly a decade, Jennifer says “my dreams were realized last year when the western half of the island came up for sale, allowing for a further purchase and donation to the GBLT. This made the Dattels Reserve complete at last. It is my pleasure to have protected the island from development, and to have preserved the natural beauty of Hemlock Channel.”

The Dattels Reserve is home to at least five species at risk: Eastern Musk Turtle, Midland Painted Turtle, Eastern Whip-poor-will, Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake, and Eastern Milksnake. It’s quite likely that other species at risk, in addition to many non-threatened species, also make use of the island’s habitat, which includes rock barrens, mixed forest, and a coastal marsh.

Situated in an area that includes both cottage development and neighbouring protected spaces, the Dattels Reserve is an important link in Pointe au Baril’s network of conserved habitats for its many native species. Thank you so much to donor Jennifer Dattels for your generosity, vision, and commitment!

Listen to Experts Discuss: Climate Change

Climate Change – there can be no doubt. It’s here and it’s going to get worse.

See this compelling 36 minute video by Dr. Carto, from the office of the Environmental Commissioner of Ontario (ECO).

It was one of the highest audience-rated presentations from H₂O 2018 conference sponsored by GBF and GBA.

It is so imperative to see because of the urgency to mitigate even worse effects, and because the Ontario government has eliminated this really important independent office.

It’s a GO for 2019 –

The Plan:

The village and seasonal residents, with strong support from the Township, in step with the Official Plan to increase village densification, want to lead on creating affordable housing opportunities so that working families can live and work in the community. In 2019, working with Habitat for Humanity-Ontario Gateway North (HFH-OGN), the Pointe au Baril Adopt-A-Home team plans to build a high performance, simple, three-bedroom family home to be sold to an area employed, inadequately housed family. HFH-OGN will manage the process of family selection, support the family and provide a 20 year no interest mortgage. The family’s principal and property tax payment are limited to 25% of annual adult family income. The annual family minimum income base will be around $35K and the down payment is 500 hours of volunteer HFH-OGN labour. Habitat partner families get a hand up, not a hand out.

Many working families now commute to work, just like large urban areas. The limited numbers of affordable priced, non-waterfront homes that come available are generally sub-standard and expensive to heat. Conventional mortgage lenders, like the banks will not support the purchase of these homes. The community does not have natural gas service; electricity, propane, oil and wood are higher cost home heating fuel sources and the power does go out for a day or more.

Family Selection:

If you know of an area employed family that needs stable, good housing have then contact Susan McCool, Family Relations Manager at Habitat OGN at 705 646-0106 #209. More information here…

The Build:

The home will be built largely by volunteers recruited from the seasonal, village, First Nations, educational and business communities. From mid-June to the end of August the plan is for 600 volunteer days of community service. From February to early April there are volunteer opportunities for lot clearing and pre building window and door frames and the fixed window awnings. After the cottage season and the wind down of the on-water construction season more of the volunteer help will be from the year-round community. Trades will be hired as required for work like foundation, roofing, electrical, plumbing, etc.

Why support this Habitat for Humanity project:

Village residents and islanders will be donating time, efforts and finances for a common cause of helping to grow their relationships while helping a new family in the Village. This project will encourage new relationships in many ways.

Volunteering time and talents affords an opportunity to make new friends, learn a new skill, while helping the village with new energy efficient and affordable housing.

To read and learn much more about this exciting project, click here!

Your Cottage, Taxes, and Conservation

If You are an American

U.S. taxpayers who own natural lands in Canada are often interested in transferring their property to the next generation of family members and/or permanently protecting their lands in Canada. In both cases, conservation can be a valuable legal and financial strategy. There are tax incentives in both the U.S. and Canada to encourage conservation of priority natural lands in Canada.

Landowners from the U.S. are often unaware of either the potentially dire implications of Canadian taxes or the good news about available incentives. These landowners and their professional advisors, from both the U.S. and Canada, need to know how the tax codes of the two countries interact and how tax benefits can help with estate planning.

With support from the Ontario Trillium Foundation, American Friends and the Ontario Land Trust Alliance (OLTA) developed tools to inform U.S. taxpayers and their advisors about how to conserve land in Canada, and the potential U.S. and Canadian tax benefits.

You are invited to access one of these tools, Save Some Green, A Handbook for US Taxpayers, through completing a form on the American Friends of Canadian Land Trusts website to join their mailing list so you can be alerted when new information and tools become available. Continue to read…

Please remember that should you see that the eBlast content has been truncated, please go to the bottom of the eBlast where it says: “the [Message clipped] View entire message“. Once you click on the verbiage, the entire message/side panel can be read

CORRECTION – Great Lakes Economic Forum

In May 2019, the Council of the Great Lakes Region (CGLR) will host the Great Lakes Economic Forum in Cleveland, Ohio. To understand more about what is involved, please click here to learn more about this program, now in its fifth year.