There's a jam-packed agenda for council's last official meeting of 2020.
From updates on pandemic relief to community safety and the opiate crisis, there is a lot for Timmins council to cover at tonight's meeting.
Here's a look at some of the items of note:
- Dr. Louisa Marion-Bellemare and Dr. Julie Samson are giving an update on the opioid crisis. In 2019, Timmins' overdose-related death rate was 46.8 per 100,000 people. The Ontario rate for the same year was 11.2. The last time the doctors talked to council they shared their vision of how to address the overdose deaths in the city. One of the points they noted in their presentation is that there had been no access to safe beds this year. Since then, the Jubilee Centre has reopened at least two safe beds.
- There is an update on the city's pandemic relief for tax and water. According to a staff report, six applications were received for the program. One was eligible, four non-compliant, and one applicant withdrew their application.
- For organizations renting from the municipality, there is also a staff report to extend the COVID-19 lease rebate program from July 2020 to September 2020. The city had offered two categories for the rent relief program. Five applicants qualified for 100 per cent rent reduction, and one qualified for 25 per cent rent relief and 50 per cent payment deferral, reads the report. From April 1 to July 31, the rent waived totalled $30,205. To extend it to September 2020 would mean an additional $15,102. The program was offered by the city because earlier in the pandemic, groups renting from the municipality were not eligible for federal rent relief. However, the report says "it appears" tenants would qualify for the new Canada Emergency Rent Subsidy being offered through the Canada Revenue Agency. Read the full staff report here.
- Last year, staff pitched the Python 5000 to council. Staff is now looking for the green light to buy the semi-automated pothole filler. The recommendation is for a sole-source purchase of the unit for $563,673 plus HST. When the piece of equipment was first pitched in December 2019, the price tag was around $520,000. "The unit currently has a 180-day lead time and is the only unit of its kind currently in the industry. For that reason, it needs to be sole sourced. Superior Solution also requires a 50 per cent deposit due to the special nature of the unit at the time of order," wrote staff. Read the full report here.
- The definition of biohazard is back on the agenda. At the last council meeting, a new $500 fee was approved for municipal biohazard cleanups. That was approved ahead of the city defining a biohazard in the Property Standards bylaw. The change to that bylaw is up for approval tonight. It defines a biohazard as "rubbish or debris containing 25 needles or other similar share objects and/or rubbish or debris (that) may be scattered or piled in a manner that the officer cannot easily identify the rubbish or debris as household garbage."
- After a multi-year trial program, snowmobiles could officially be allowed on certain Timmins streets. For the past couple of years, the Timmins Snowmobile Club has been working with the city to allow access to certain streets. The final part of that program is changing the city bylaw, which is what's on the agenda for tonight's meeting.
The full agenda is available here.
Council meets at 6 p.m. You can watch the meeting online here.
