The Corporation of the City of St. Catharines

GENERAL COMMITTEE MINUTES

Monday, April 24, 2017

Item 4.2 - Following Delegation Item 6.2, at the request of Councillor Elliott, Council voted to move this item from Consent: Brock University Natural Area Interpretation - Lockhart Drive

Item 4.4 - Feasibility of Increasing Staffing and/or Hours for Parking and Property Standards By-law Enforcement (Councillor Stevens)

Moved By:  Councillor Bellows

That Council approve the Consent Agenda, save and except those items brought forward for discussion. FORTHWITH

Yeas:Councillors Bellows, Britton, Elliott, Garcia, Harris, Haywood, Kushner, Phillips, Siscoe, Sorrento, Stevens, Williamson, and Mayor Sendzik

Nays:

Carried

Council proceeded to Item 3.3

Follow this link to view General Committee Agenda reports of April 24, 2017

The order in which the reports were discussed is not the same as they appear on the agenda.

Moved By:  Councillor Siscoe

That, as requested by the Board of Management of the St. Catharines Downtown Business Improvement Area (BIA), the City Clerk commence the process to approve the expansion of the boundaries of the BIA in accordance with the requirements of the Municipal Act, 2001. FORTHWITH

Yeas:Councillors Siscoe, Sorrento, Stevens, Williamson, Bellows, Britton, Elliott, Garcia, Harris, Haywood, Kushner, Phillips, and Mayor Sendzik

Nays:

Carried

General Committee recessed at 7:05 p.m. and City Council reconvened. City Council recessed at 7:33 p.m. and General Committee reconvened with Item 4.2

Moved By:  Councillor Harris

That Council approve a Draft Plan of Vacant Land Condominium for the lands described as Part Lot 16 Concession 1 Grantham Parts 1, 2, 3 & 4 30R 14754, municipally known as 168 & 170 Lakeshore Road, prepared by Upper Canada Consultants, dated October 31, 2016, showing 14 units (3 townhouses blocks consisting of 10 units and 2 semi-detached dwellings consisting of 4 units) on a common element area (private road, visitor parking, landscaping and servicing), as outlined in Appendix 3, subject to the conditions outlined in Appendix 4; and

That Draft Plan of Vacant Land Condominium approval shall lapse after 3 years from the date of Council approval, unless a request for extension has been submitted, reviewed and approved prior to the lapsing date; and

That the Notice of Decision required by the Planning Act, R.S.O. 1990, c.P. 13, as amended, be processed by staff; and

That upon expiration of the appeal period, staff be directed to forward any appeals to the Ontario Municipal Board for consideration and final approval; and

Further, that the Clerk be directed to make all necessary notifications. FORTHWITH

Yeas:Councillors Williamson, Britton, Elliott, Garcia, Harris, Kushner, Siscoe, Sorrento, Stevens, and Mayor Sendzik

Nays:Councillors Bellows, Haywood and Phillips

Carried

Council proceeded to Item 3.6

Dave Sherlock, General Manager of St. Catharines Transit Commission, provided Council with an overview regarding the $8.7 million available to St. Catharines through the Federal Public Transit Infrastructure Funding (Phase 1). He advised the Transit's application included some major items, which will be co-funded by the provincial gas tax. Mr. Sherlock answered Council's questions.

Moved By:  Councillor Siscoe

That the St. Catharines Transit Commission be authorized to use funds provided from the Federal Public Transit Infrastructure Funding (Phase 1) to purchase the items listed as per Appendix 1 of this report. FORTHWITH

Yeas:Councillors Siscoe, Sorrento, Stevens, Williamson, Bellows, Britton, Elliott, Garcia, Harris, Haywood, Kushner, Phillips, and Mayor Sendzik

Nays:

Carried

Mark Green, Manager of Environmental Services, addressed Council regarding the Covenant / Compact of Mayors Program, climate change and its affects and the next steps. He answered Council's questions.

Moved By:  Councillor Williamson

That Council direct staff to work with the Niagara Sustainability Initiative (NSI) to meet the requirements of the Covenant / Compact of Mayors Program in 2017. FORTHWITH

Yeas:Councillors Garcia, Harris, Haywood, Kushner, Phillips, Siscoe, Sorrento, Stevens, Williamson, Bellows, Britton, Elliott, and Mayor Sendzik

Nays:

Carried

Council proceeded to Item 3.2

Moved By:  Councillor Garcia

That Council approve the inclusion of a new stage / performance area into the project scope; and

That staff be directed to prepare a report on Phase 3 and 4 of the project; and

That, upon design approval, operating costs be determined and referred to the Budget Standing Committee for pre-approval and addition to the 2018 Parks, Recreation and Culture Services operating budget. FORTHWITH

...

Moved By:  Councillor Siscoe in Amendment

That the inclusion of the new stage / performance area into the project be conditional upon a third party vendor taking over operational costs and programming of the stage.

Yeas:Councillors Siscoe, Sorrento, Stevens, Britton, Haywood, Kushner, and Mayor Sendzik

Nays:Councillors Williamson, Bellows, Elliott, Garcia, Harris, and Phillips

Carried as Amended

Main Motion as Amended:

That Council approve the inclusion of a new stage / performance area into the project scope; and

That the inclusion of the new stage / performance area into the project be conditional upon a third party vendor taking over operational costs and programming of the stage; and

That, upon design approval, operating costs be determined and referred to the Budget Standing Committee for pre-approval and addition to the 2018 Parks, Recreation and Culture Services operating budget; and

Further, that staff be directed to prepare a report on Phase 3 and 4 of the project. FORTHWITH

Yeas:Councillors Williamson, Bellows, Britton, Elliott, Garcia, Harris, Haywood, Kushner, Phillips, Siscoe, Sorrento, Stevens, and Mayor Sendzik

Nays:

Carried as Amended

General Committee recessed at 8:28 p.m. and City Council reconvened. City Council recessed at 9:16 p.m. and General Committee reconvened with Item 1.

Moved By:  Councillor Siscoe

That Council authorize the City Clerk to use optical vote scanning equipment in the 2018 Municipal and School Board Election; and

That Council authorize the City Clerk to lease the required optical vote scanning equipment supplied by Dominion Voting (DV) legally known as Dominion Voting Systems Corporation through the Elections Ontario municipal lease program; and

That the City Clerk be authorized to execute any agreements or documents required to implement the use of vote counting equipment with DV and Elections Ontario; and

Further, that the City Solicitor prepare any necessary by-laws. FORTHWITH

Yeas:Councillors Harris, Haywood, Kushner, Phillips, Siscoe, Sorrento, Stevens, Williamson, Bellows, Britton, Elliott, Garcia, and Mayor Sendzik

Nays:

Carried

Council proceeded to Item 4.4

Councillor Kushner was out of the room prior to discussion of this item due to his declaration of a Conflict of Interest (pecuniary) to delegation Items 6.2, 6.4 and 6.5, stating the matter relates to his employer, Brock University, and did not return to Council Chambers for discussion of this item.

Moved By:  Councillor Williamson

That City Council request the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry to convene a meeting with the Niagara Escarpment Commission, Regional Municipality of Niagara, the City of St. Catharines and Brock University to discuss the resolution process by which the matter of delineating the boundary line between the Urban Area and Escarpment Natural Area on lands known as the Lockhart Drive lands owned by Brock University, on the south side of Lockhart Drive, can be determined in an open and transparent manner; and

That a public consultation process include stakeholders (i.e. Brock University Student Union, relative faculty); and

That Council supports the preservation of existing forests in the subject lands and encourages Brock University to reach a resolution that maximizes the forested land to be retained as Escarpment Natural; and

That the Regional Municipality of Niagara, the Niagara Escarpment Commission, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry and Brock University be circulated a copy of this report and related Council motion. FORTHWITH

...

Councillor Siscoe requested clause three be voted on separately

Clause Three

That Council supports the preservation of existing forests in the subject lands and encourages Brock University to reach a resolution that maximizes the forested land to be retained as Escarpment Natural.

...

Moved By:  Mayor Sendzik

That Council refer clause three to staff for a report to come back to Council.

Motion to Refer Carried

Council now voted on clauses one, two and four

Yeas:Councillors Harris, Phillips, Siscoe, Sorrento, Stevens, Bellows, Britton, Elliott, and Mayor Sendzik

Nays:Councillors Haywood, Williamson and Garcia

Carried as Amended

General Committee recessed at 7:57 p.m. and City Council reconvened. City Council recessed at 8:02 p.m. and General Committee reconvened with Item 3.5

Moved By:  Councillor Stevens

That Council receive and refer the report to the Parking and Property Standards By-law Enforcement Review Task Force. FORTHWITH

Yeas:Councillors Stevens, Williamson, Bellows, Britton, Elliott, Garcia, Harris, Haywood, Kushner, Phillips, Siscoe, Sorrento, and Mayor Sendzik

Nays:

Carried

Council proceeded to Item 5

Follow this link to view General Committee Agenda reports of April 24, 2017

That Council approve the request from the Niagara Grape and Wine Festival (“NGWF”) for an extension in the Line of Credit Guarantee from the City of St. Catharines for an additional two years subject to the following conditions:

•         The Line of Credit (LOC) maximum for the first 12 months would remain at $100,000. During the second year, the maximum amount guaranteed is reduced to $95,000.

•         The extension for the Guarantee on the Line of Credit is lengthened to 25 months (to June 1, 2019) to accommodate the timing of the approval of the audited financial statements of the NGWF so that the statements can be included in future staff reports.

•         All Conditions and Obligations outlined in the Fee for Service agreement are met.

•         Internally prepared quarterly reporting of financial status, and annual reporting of externally audited financial statements and business plans/budgets be provided to City Finance staff.

•         Monthly reports from the applicable financial institution on the amount advanced against all Line of Credit accounts are provided to City Finance staff.

•         In the case of default, the Line of Credit that is guaranteed by the City, be given first priority for settlement over any other debts of the NGWF.

•         A comprehensive business plan outlining steps taken to improve the NGWF’s financial position and the removal of the City as guarantor for the NGWF’s Line of Credit be included in the next request for an extension to the Line of Credit Guarantee such that the limit on the LOC is reduced each year between 2020 and 2024; and

That the City Solicitor be directed to prepare the necessary by-law authorizing the execution of the agreements and other related documents. FORTHWITH

Approved on Consent

That Council receive for information the Building Services Annual Report on Revenues, Expenses and the Stabilization Reserve Fund for 2016; and

That Council refer the proposed 2.4% increase in building fees to the Budget Standing Committee for consideration of the Rates and Fees By-law review for 2018. FORTHWITH

Approved on Consent

That Council approve the request by 2497118 Ontario Limited for the Port Dalhousie Spring Market, Summer Market, Thanksgiving Market, and Christmas Market; and

That the public be notified that the Director of Transportation and Environmental Services will temporarily close Hogan’s Alley between Main Street and the Lakeside Park Parking Lot (as shown in Appendix 1) during the following periods:

•         Friday, May 12, 2017 at 11:00 a.m. to Sunday, May 14, 2017 at 11:00 p.m.;

•         Friday, May 19, 2017 at 11:00 a.m. to Monday, May 22, 2017 at 11:00 p.m.;

•         Friday, June 23, 2017 at 11:00 a.m. to Sunday June, 25, 2017 at 11:00 p.m.;

•         Friday, June 30, 2017 at 11:00 a.m. to Monday, July 3, 2017 at 11:00 p.m.;

•         Friday, October 6, 2017 at 11:00 am to Sunday, October 8, 2017 at 11:00 pm;

•         Thursday, December 7, 2017 at 11:00 a.m. to Saturday, December 9, 2017 at 11:00 p.m.;

•         Thursday, December 14, 2017 at 11:00 a.m. to Saturday, December 16, 2017 at 11:00 p.m.; and

That Council direct staff to enter into a License Agreement with 2497118 Ontario Limited detailing the conditions and requirements for the provision of community events as generally described in this report and to the satisfaction of the Director of Transportation and Environmental Services; and

Further, that the City Solicitor be directed to prepare the necessary agreement documents and by-laws. FORTHWITH

Approved on Consent

That Council approve the request from Mainstream: An Unsheltered Workshop to provide graffiti removal services in 2017 and 2018; and

That the City Solicitor be directed to prepare the necessary agreement and by-law. FORTHWITH

Approved on Consent

That Council direct staff to allocate $35,000 or 10% of the 2017 Parks, Recreation and Culture Services Tree Planting budget to the 2017 Tree Giveaway to purchase tree saplings; and

That Council direct staff to distribute the trees to St. Catharines residents free of charge in 2017; and

That Council direct staff to refer to the Million Tree Challenge offered in London, Ontario for best practices and implement a similar program in St. Catharines; and

Further, that Council direct staff to report back to Council in November 2017 regarding the rate of participation in the Tree Giveaway and to recommend an approach for 2018. FORTHWITH

Approved on Consent

That Council receive and file the items listed within the report; and

That Council support Sub-Item 1, resolution from the Town of Fort Erie, regarding the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative’s responsibilities, and their opposition to any reduction in the budget allocated by the United States government to Great Lakes Restoration Initiatives and programs; and

That Council receive and file additional correspondence distributed for the meeting held April 24, 2017, which is available upon request, and includes a memorandum from the Canada 150 Anniversary Task Force regarding the activity book published in celebration of the 150th anniversary. FORTHWITH

Approved on Consent

Directions for staff have been noted and will be provided to the appropriate members of staff.

Moved By:  Councillor Williamson

That Council direct staff to prepare a report regarding the inventory of soccer fields and how the City will meet the needs.

Carried

Council will meet In-Camera for the following purposes:

•         a proposed or pending acquisition or disposition of land by the municipality or local board; and

•         the additional reasons as stated during Adoption of Agendas:

• two items regarding personal matters about an identifiable individual, including municipal or local board employees
• one item regarding labour relations or employee negotiations

Moved By:  Councillor Garcia

That this meeting of the General committee recess and reconvene In-Camera.

Carried

There being no further items of business, General Committee adjourned at 11:04 p.m. and City Council reconvened.