District leaders want H.S.T. implementation delayed

By Duane Hicks
Staff writer

Citing the Harmonized Sales Tax will hurt Northwestern Ontario even more than residents in the south, the Rainy River District Municipal Association passed a resolution here Saturday to petition the province to reconsider the implementation of the HST on July 1.
“Anything that could create extra taxes in Northwestern Ontario now is not a good idea,” said Atikokan Mayor Dennis Brown, who is chair of the RRDMA’s resolution committee.
The resolution, passed at the RRDMA’s annual general membership meeting at the Fort Frances Legion, stated the additional eight percent sales tax will increase the cost of heating fuel, natural gas, hydro and gasoline, and other essentials required for living in Northwestern Ontario.
The impact of these increased costs, combined with the anticipated rate increases of said essential services, will create a substantial hardship on seniors and others with fixed incomes.
As well, due to the sparse populations and lack of an urban area, residents of Northwestern Ontario already are required to travel in excess of 500 km to receive specialized health care services.
The resolution stated the RRDMA will petition the province “to reconsider the implementation of the HST or alternatively provide additional compensation for the residents of Northwestern Ontario, who will be burdened with increased costs compared to our neighbours in southern Ontario.”
The resolution now will be forwarded to the Northwestern Ontario Municipal Association for its support.
In other news, La Vallee Reeve Emily Watson will serve a fourth-consecutive term as RRDMA president while Rainy River Mayor Debbie Ewald was acclaimed its new vice-president for 2010.
The membership also approved an amendment to the constitution, which changed the maximum number of consecutive years served on the RRDMA executive from three years in a row to four years in a row.
Linda Armstrong was re-acclaimed as the RRDMA rep to the Rainy River Valley Agricultural Society while James Gibson will remain the RRDMA rep on the Rainy River District Veterinary Services Committee.
Meanwhile, Morley Reeve Gary Gamsby, as a representative of the RRDMA, will continue to serve as vice-president of the NOMA executive for the year ahead.
Mayor Brown and Fort Frances Mayor Roy Avis will sit on the NOMA board of directors as elected officials while Town of Rainy River CAO Veldron Vogan will serve on the NOMA board as a municipal staff member.
(The NOMA appointments do not get confirmed until its annual general meeting slated April 21-24 in Marathon).
Other business at Saturday’s RRDMA meeting here included:
•remarks from Reeve Watson, Mayor Avis, Dryden Mayor and NOMA president Anne Krassilowsky, and Fort Frances Clerk Glenn Treftlin, representing the Association of Municipal Clerks and Treasurers of Ontario (AMCTO) Zone 9;
•a presentation by Gerd O’Sullivan, of the Regional Planning Group transportation committee, to rally support for affordable public transportation running from Rainy River to Fort Frances;
•a presentation by Johnathon Hall and Anthony Friedrich of the Township of Schreiber regarding that municipality’s proposed waste pelletization project;
•a mining update from Garett Macdonald of Rainy River Resources, who indicated exploration is turning up promising results and the gold mining operation potentially may be in production by 2014;
•an update from Thunder Bay-Rainy River MP John Rafferty, who pledged to continue his fight against the HST, which he insisted is not yet a done deal;
•a detailed summary of the recent Municipal Elections Reform (Bill 212) and council considerations for the 2010 municipal election by Heather Brown of the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing;
•an update from Kenora-Rainy River MPP Howard Hampton, who reiterated the need for the government to implement an industrial hydro rate to reduce costs for the forestry industry and make the region a more attractive place for economic investment;
•an overview of the Northwestern Health Unit’s 2010-12 strategic plan by health unit chair John Albanese, CAO Mark Perrault, and medical officer of health Dr. James Arthurs (Dr. Arthurs also spoke on the success of the recent H1N1 immunization campaign);
•a report from Wade Desserre and Mildred Beck of the Rainy River District Social Services Administration Board regarding the implementation of the full-day junior kindergarten pilot projects coming into effect at North Star Public School and St. Patrick’s in Atikokan for the 2010-11 school year;
•a history of the Rainy River District Women’s Institute Museum by museum assistant intern Amanda Turco, who encouraged those on hand to visit the museum in Emo;
•an annual activities report from Safe Communities Rainy River District chair Bob Swing, who also presented four certificates of achievement to individuals for their contribution to district safety (these individuals, not all of whom were in attendance, included Tyler Moffitt, Hugh Dennis, Jim Cumming, and Linda Plumridge);
•an activity report from economic development officer Geoff Gillon of the Rainy River Future Development Corp., who noted the RRFDC has submitted an application to FedNor to hopefully secure funds for a second three-year agricultural project (the first three-year project, headed by ag co-ordinator Jeannette Cawston, ended last year); and
•a report from Rainy River Federation of Agriculture president Rick Neilson and treasurer Linda Armstrong regarding the Rainy River Agricultural Economic Impact Study released in October.