Clause added to motion to protect Patterson Street work if approved

Posted August 30, 2010

A 200 meter stretch of Patterson Street in Beeton, that a 5-4 committee vote recommended be added as an 11th hour road project, goes to council tonight for a ratification vote.

Specifically, Ward 4 councillor Richard Norcross' motion would direct Town staff to prepare a tender for the asphalt capping of Patterson between Cedar and Stewart Street. An in-house estimated cost was about $32,000, and it would be financed from anticipated year-end operating surplus.

But the surplus would evaporate if the sale of public land, which the 2010 budget leveraged ahead of time for $550,000, doesn't happen this year. That shortfall would then be funded by borrowing from the HEC reserve fund, and repaid when the lands - including the abandoned public works depot on Nelson Street, and Dayfoot property in Beeton - are sold.

Councillor Norcross' request for Patterson Street split council down the middle last week, with mayor Mike MacEachern casting the tie breaking vote in support of the road fix that jumps the priority queue of the road needs study. And it comes as the 2010 road capital projects near completion.

An additional clause has been added to the motion for tonight's vote that would protect this project's status after this council lapses into 'lame duck' status following the close of candidate nominations on Sept. 10. It does this by delegating council authority to the CAO or a designate to award the tender to complete the project.

As a 'lame duck', council cannot approve expenditures higher than $50,000 not already budgeted, and this project is outside the 2010 budget. The other protective measure covers the fact that tonight's meeting is the last one scheduled before the Oct. 25th municipal elections, though two dates in September are pencilled in at the "call of the chair."

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