Council Meeting Minutes – September 17, 2026

#210-26

Moved by: Todd Rydall
Seconded by: Wayne Junor

BE IT RESOLVED THAT Council hereby approves the September 17, 2026, agenda as presented with the amendment to include: 8. a. Government Road Bridge Repairs, 9. c. Waste Disposal Site Fall Clean-up, 9. d. Council Interview Participation, and 9 f. Finns’ Bay Road South Road Association – Resignation.

Carried.

#211-26

Moved by: Matt Frolick
Seconded by: Brad Shewfelt

BE IT RESOLVED THAT Council approves the minutes of the Regular Council meeting of August 20, 2026 and the Special Council meeting of September 9, 2026 and the Recreation Committee minutes of August 25, 2026 and September 8, 2026.

Carried.

#212-26

Moved by: Brad Shewfelt
Seconded by: Wayne Junor

BE IT RESOLVED THAT Council approves the general accounts to August 31, 2026, in the amount of $7,418.98.

Carried.

#213-26

Moved by: Todd Rydall
Seconded by: Matt Frolick

BE IT RESOLVED THAT Council approves the roads account to August 31, 2026, in the amount of $54,337.77.

Carried.

#214-26

Moved by: Todd Rydall
Seconded by: Brad Shwefelt

BE IT RESOLVED THAT Council receives the Road Superintendent Report dated September 17, 2026, as presented;

AND FURTHER THAT Council direct the Treasurer to get an additional credit card for the Road Department with a limit of 10,000.00 dollars.

Carried.

#215-26

Moved by: Todd Rydall
Seconded by: Wayne Junor

BE IT RESOLVED THAT Council receives the Clerk’s Report dated September 17, 2026, as presented;

AND THAT Council authorize the Acting Road Superintendent and the returning Waste Disposal Attendant to attend the September 24, 2026 Landfill Operator Compliance Training hosted by the Township of Hilton Beach, at a cost of $112.50 plus applicable taxes per participant;

AND THAT Council approve engaging Planner Danielle Waters to review the Township’s current planning procedures and prepare updated Zoning By-law templates, at an estimated 10 hours of work billed at $150 per hour, noting that this expense is not included in the current budget but is required to ensure compliance with the Planning Act;

AND THAT Council authorize the provision of the Township’s dump trailer to assist the Sault Naturalists with transporting the dismantled Pumpkin Point Road Bird Watching Platform to the Waste Disposal Site, subject to staff availability;

FURTHER THAT all related expenses be approved as outlined.

Carried.

#216-26

Moved by: Brad Shewfelt
Seconded by: Wayne Junor

BE IT RESOLVED THAT Council receives the September 17, 2026, Task Summary Sheet & Recent Activity Log and the Concern/Information Log as presented.

Carried.

#217-26

Moved by: Brad Shewfelt
Seconded by: Matt Frolick

BE IT RESOLVED THAT Council receives the Bar River Hall Sub-committee minutes of September 2, 2026.

Carried.

#218-26

Moved by: Brad Shewfelt
Seconded by: Wayne Junor

BE IT RESOLVED THAT Council receive the report titled Joint Official Plan – Peer Review Status & Next Steps dated September 17, 2026;

AND THAT Council direct staff to proceed with scheduling Laird Township’s Statutory Public Meeting for the Joint Official Plan on October 15, 2026, with staff to issue the required 21-day notice;

AND FURTHER THAT Council discontinue efforts to secure an external peer reviewer at this time, noting that no qualified reviewer has confirmed availability.

Carried.

#219-26

Moved by: Todd Rydall
Seconded by: Brad Shewfelt

BE IT RESOLVED THAT Council receive the proposal from TULLOCH Engineering Inc. for a geotechnical investigation and settlement analysis of the Government Road Bridge;

AND THAT Council authorize TULLOCH Engineering to proceed with the investigation on a time-and-expenses basis, as outlined in Proposal P26352-132, at an estimated cost of $18,365.00, excluding tax, subject to any required change orders being brought back to Council for approval;

AND THAT the Clerk Administrator be authorized to sign the Agreement on behalf of the Township;

AND THAT the completed geotechnical settlement analysis report be presented to Council for review and direction on future bridge repair actions.

Defeated.

#220-26

Moved by: Todd Rydall
Seconded by: Matt Frolick

BE IT RESOLVED THAT Council approves the Letter of Intent dated September 17, 2026 between The Corporation of the Township of Laird and 1001744321 Ontario Ltd., establishing the principal terms for the new lease of the Laird Fairgrounds with the annual rent be crossed out with to be determined, inserted, as Council needs to discuss this further with 1001744321 Ontario Ltd.

Carried.

#221-26

Moved by: Todd Rydall
Seconded by: Brad Shewfelt

BE IT RESOLVED THAT Council receives the 2027 Laird International Raceway (LIR) Schedule of Events, as amended to correct the July event date from July 16 to July 15 and to confirm that Test and Tune events occur on Tuesdays rather than Wednesdays, and authorizes LIR to advertise the proposed dates, conditional upon Council’s approval of the Letter of Intent and the execution of the new lease agreement with 1001744321 Ontario Ltd.

Carried.

#222-26

Moved by: Wayne Junor
Seconded by: Brad Shewfelt

BE IT RESOLVED THAT Council sets the Waste Disposal Site Fall Clean-up dates for October 17 and 18, 2026 from 9 to 5 p.m.

Carried.

#223-26

Moved by: Todd Rydall
Seconded by: Brad Shewfelt

BE IT RESOLVED THAT Council delegates authority to staff to proceed with the hiring of the Seasonal Grounds Manager prior to the next Regular Council Meeting, and that the successful candidate be reported to Council at the following meeting.

Carried.

#224-26

Moved by: Matt Frolick
Seconded by: Todd Rydall

BE IT RESOLVED THAT Council receives the resignation of the President, David Sawer and the Vice President/Treasurer, Darlene Sawer, of the Finns’ Bay Road Association.

Carried.

#225-26

Moved by: Matt Frolick
Seconded by: Brad Shewfelt

BE IT RESOLVED THAT Council proceed into closed session at 7:47 p.m. in accordance with Section 239(2) of the Municipal Act, 2001, for the following reasons:

• Personal matters about an identifiable individual – s.239(2)(b)

Carried.

#226-26

Moved by: Brad Shewfelt
Seconded by: Matt Frolick

BE IT RESOLVED THAT Council come out of closed meeting session at 8:26 p.m. and continue with the Regular Council Meeting.

Carried.

#227-26

Moved by: Todd Rydall
Seconded by: Brad Shewfelt

WHEREAS recent municipal infrastructure funding programs by the Government of Canada and Province of Ontario have tended to prioritize growth-related or housing-enabling infrastructure projects over infrastructure renewal needs;

AND WHEREAS the Government of Ontario has regulated municipal infrastructure asset management through O. Reg 588/17 (Asset Management Planning for Municipal Infrastructure) under the Infrastructure for Jobs and Prosperity Act, 2015;

AND WHEREAS municipal asset management plans and the Financial Accountability Office of Ontario have identified that municipalities have significant state-of-good-repair backlogs and renewal needs for infrastructure;

AND WHEREAS the Government of Ontario doubled the Ontario Community Infrastructure Fund (OCIF) from $200M/year to $400M/year for 2021-2026 but has not publicly committed to maintaining this level of funding beyond 2026;

AND WHEREAS the OCIF has become a vital and indispensable resource for municipalities, assisting them with improving their asset management programs and meeting community- preserving infrastructure renewal needs;

AND WHEREAS increased geopolitical uncertainty is threatening the economic prosperity of Canada, Ontario, and every municipality;

AND WHEREAS municipal infrastructure is a key enabler and preserver of economic prosperity;

AND WHEREAS the Municipal Finance Officers’ Association of Ontario (MFOA) has heard from its members and their municipalities concerns regarding the potential erosion of existing municipal infrastructure and thus service levels in light of the ongoing focus on housing- enabling infrastructure by grant funding programs;

NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that THE MUNICIPALITY OF LAIRD TOWNSHIP supports MFOA’s letter to the Ministry of Infrastructure requesting that the doubling of the Ontario Community Infrastructure Fund be made permanent in advance of the allocations for the 2027 calendar year, helping municipalities to continue building housing-enabling infrastructure while preserving the economic value provided by existing infrastructure.

Carried.

#228-26

Moved by: Todd Rydall
Seconded by: Brad Shewfelt

BE IT RESOLVED THAT Council adopts By-law 2096-26, being a by-law to confirm the proceedings of the meeting of Council held on September 17, 2026.

Carried.

#229-26

Moved by: Matt Frolick
Seconded by: Wayne Junor

BE IT RESOLVED THAT this Council shall now adjourn to meet again on October 15, 2026 or until the call of the chair.

Carried.