Here are the highlights from the South Dundas Council meeting held Oct. 30, 2023.
EDP Renewables & Potentia Renewables delegate to Council regarding battery energy storage systems
EDP Renewables and Potentia Renewables both made delegations to Council, requesting support for separate battery energy storage system (BESS) projects.
Council asked various questions to both parties and emphasized the importance of further review and consultation, including public feedback, before making any decisions about either project approval.
EDP Renewables is proposing a lithium-ion, 5 to 20 acre BESS site on agricultural land parallel to Branch Road, between Byker and New Ross roads. Potentia Renewables is also proposing a lithium-ion BESS on a 15 acre site of agricultural land parallel to Kirker Road, between Carman and Taylor roads. Both projects are seeking to store energy at times of peak generation until a time when it is most needed. Both projects would adhere to all provincial permits and regulation requirements, including setback guidelines.
The Council team had questions for both companies about potential fire hazards, impacts of a fire and requirements for our South Dundas Fire and Emergency Services.
“There’s some unanswered questions… fire is a big deal for us… I would feel more comfortable to know what kind of hazards we could be facing…” said Deputy Mayor Marc St. Pierre. “I am not prepared to support this without some answers. To be quite frank with you, the public may drive this for me as well… this is as much their project, as it is Council’s project, as it is your project.”
“The permitting process that we go through with the province will require us to adhere to a number of standards and design requirements around fire and how that is to be controlled and maintained…” said Darren Carl with EDP.
“We have determined that both an Official Plan and Zoning By-law Amendment would not be required, even though (EDP’s proposal) is in prime agricultural land, the wording in both of those is fairly permissive when it comes to utilities for public use and consumption at some point,” said SDG Counties Community Planner Stephanie Morin. Morin explained that following the delegations, each party must host a public open house before she could present a report to Council for approval. She also confirmed that both projects could be approved by the Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO).
The IESO — the entity responsible for operating the electricity market in Ontario — is forecasting a capacity need of approximately 4,000 megawatts by the mid-2020s.
“I just want to say, this idea is pretty cool. I know it is very popular in other countries like Australia, so it is nice to see Canada moving in this direction as well,” said Coun. Ward.
Cornwall Business Enterprise Centre delegation
Business Consultant with the Cornwall Business Enterprise Centre Shauna Baggs made a delegation to Council, speaking about the various services and opportunities offered through the Centre for the entire region to utilize.
Primarily funded through the Province, the Centre is part of 54 small Business Enterprise Centres operating across Ontario. The Centre offers one-on-one consultation; business registration and financial planning; workshops and training sessions; business plan writing; and access to government grants. Residents are encouraged to seek support from the Centre’s Starter Company Plus program, Summer Company program (designed for youth), and more.
Baggs said the Centre has hosted 10+ networking events in 2023 with over 800 in attendance. The next Business Breakfast being hosted is on Wednesday, Nov. 8, 2023 at Fat Les’s Pub and Poutinerie in Chesterville from 7:30 to 9:30 a.m.
For more information, visit: www.businessenterprisecentre.ca
Iroquois Campground storage garage bid awarded
Council awarded J&M Contracting with the Iroquois Campground storage garage building construction bid for $98,387.00. Council received three bids for the project. Work is scheduled to begin on April 1, 2024 for a duration of four weeks.
Pre-approved for the 2024 Budget, Staff recommended that the funding come from the Campground Reserve, which is currently approximately $192,700 and the estimated annual revenue transfer for 2023 is expected to be around $67,000.
“(The contractor) recently did the renovations at the Morrisburg Waterfront and Beach, which went on time — it was a great project… they also did the Morrisburg viewing platform, which I know has been getting used quite a bit…” said David Jansen, Director of Parks, Recreation and Facilities.
In the 2023 Budget, Council and Staff included $7,500 for the redesign of a new storage building to replace the existing green building at the Iroquois Campground which is reaching the end of its service life.
One Stop Skate Shop lease agreement
Council approved a monthly lease agreement with One Stop Skate Shop for rental of retail space at the Morrisburg Arena.
The space was previously occupied by SportsFix and SD T-Shirt Guys/Bogey Golf.
“One Stop Skate Shop better serves the building users and the residents within the space due to the nature of their retail business going back to being more of a proshop/sports retail,” reads a report to Council. “One Stop Skate Shop has existing relationships with current recreation groups/arena users in South Dundas. This will further increase the services provided from the Morrisburg Arena and Staff Recommend moving forward with the lease agreement as presented.”
“It’s nice to see the area used for sports and I know the folks who use the arena will appreciate it,” said Mayor Jason Broad.
Upcoming Meetings
Regular Council Meeting: Monday, Nov. 13, 2023 at 6 p.m.
Regular Council Meeting: Monday, Nov. 27, 2023 at 6 p.m.
Regular Council Meeting: Monday, Dec. 11, 2023 at 5:30 p.m.
2024 Budget Meetings: Monday, Dec. 11, 2023 at 5:30 p.m.; Monday, Dec. 18 at 5:30 p.m.; Monday, Jan. 15, 2023 at 5:30 p.m.
