Vol.13 No.5 by Frontenac News PDFs have moved to Google Drive. Access them from our website.

February 7, 2013 Vol. 13, No. 5

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Snow Road Hall repairs reinstated

Future of Parham library branch in doubt A

by Jeff Green s they poured over the details of their 2013 budget last week (January 31) members of Central Frontenac Council took note of a $1,000 annual expenditure on the Parham branch of the Kingston Frontenac Public Library (KFPL). Councilor John Purdon, who sits on the KFPL Board of directors as the representative for Frontenac County Council, pointed out that if a branch is going to remain in Parham past June 30 of this year, the township will need to act quickly to find an alternative location in time. The Limestone District School Board has hosted the branch for the township, and used it as a school library as well, in a portable classroom attached to Hinchinbrooke Public School. The school is slated to close forever on June 30. “I mentioned this last year. We are coming down to the crunch here, and there still is no money in the library budget. I would believe that if the Parham branch is closed temporarily it may never be re-opened,” said Purdon. He pointed out that the circulation figures for the Parham branch show a higher percentage of youth-oriented material is borrowed than is the case in Sharbot Lake and Arden, which are not attached to the local school. “Thirty to forty percent of the material is from the youth category in Parham, whereas that figure is only 15% in Sharbot Lake and Arden,” said Purdon, suggesting that once the school goes, the circulation figures at any branch that remains in Parham may see a drop. He added, “I don’t know which way we should go, but we did pass a motion in 2011 that says there should be a library branch in each district, so we have to do something or else revisit that motion.” Councilor Wayne Millar asked Purdon if the library board has said anything about closing the branch when the school closes. “There has been no decision or discussion about this at the board,” Purdon responded, “but I’m sure it will come soon.” When no one on council said anything further, Mayor Gutowski said, “The silence speaks to council’s intentions. If there is no motion on the floor, we will move on.” “I think we should put some more money in there,” said Councilor Bill Snyder.” Councillor Norm Guntensperger then proposed that Council direct staff to look into the possibility of moving the branch to the seldom used Piccadilly Hall. Although it is a 15-minute drive from Parham, the hall is in Hinchinbrooke district. Guntensperger’s proposal received no support, but Councilor Jeff Matson proposed that staff investigate the possibility of purchasing the portable classroom that houses the library from the school board and moving it to the Parham fire hall on a temporary basis.“That way we could keep it open and when we build a new fire hall in a few years we can look at including space for a library,” Matson said. Council accepted this proposal, throwing a lifeline to the beleaguered branch.

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by Jeff Green he phone lines were buzzing last week in Snow Road and Mississippi when residents found out about a decision that North Frontenac Council has made at a budget meeting a couple of weeks earlier. After receiving word that a grant application to cover 1/3 of the cost of bringing the kitchens at all of their township halls up to a new safety standard had been successful, Council decided to fore-go over $8,000 of the grant money, thus saving the $17,000 township cost for the upgrade of the Snow Road Hall. At the same time they voted to accept the grant money for the other four halls and commit to upgrading them (Plevna, Harlowe, Ompah, and Cloyne). After an emergency community meeting on Friday, (February 1), Lorie Ryder and Sheila Kittle attended Monday’s regular North Frontenac Council meeting to try to convince the council to change their minds. Part of the reason Coucil decided not to ivest in the Snow Road Hall was its proximity to thje Snow Road Snowmobile Club. However, Lorie Ryder pointed out that “The Snow Road Snowmobile Club is a private entity and their rental rates are unaffordable for the Snow Road community. Also, the club gives priority use to snowmobilers during the winter season, and is in fact open 24/7 for such purpose.” Sheila Kittle said that a number of uses are planned for the Snow Road Hall once the flooring is changed later this year, a project that is being financed through fundraised dollars. “The Snow Road upgrade is also the least expensive and the hall is the least expensive to operate and is in excellent repair,” said Sheila Kittle. Councilor John Inglis was the first to respond. “When we voted on this it was in ignorance of some of the details. I would be in a position of changing my vote. I think perhaps we made a mistake in the vote,” he said. In the end Council voted to reverse their decision and will accept the grant money. The township share of the cost will come from parkland reserve funds that come from the sale of road allowances, etc. so it will not impact the 2013 budget. “It is not true that this is not going to be paid for by taxpayers, however,” said Mayor Clayton. “All the money comes, one way or another, from taxpayers.” Although the township will now be upgrading all of their halls to meet new fire code standards, the future of the halls is anything but secure. Council also passed a motion declaring all of their halls, save the Barrie Hall, surplus in seven years, paving the way for the potential closure at that time. “All these halls are very costly to operate. That’s one of the reasons we started looking at costs. It is sort of a wake up call, we have five and they are very costly to run. We may have to have one central one instead, which would be a lot cheaper to operate in the long run,” said Deputy Mayor Fred Perry.

Hinchinbrooke mural Muralist Maureen Walton of Belleville with grade 5/6 HPS teacher Kathryn Sawdon and some of the students who helped create an Aboriginal-themed mural that they hope to see installed at the new school in Sharbot Lake. See story on page 7

Concern on all sides over Algonquin Land Claim AIP I

f the Algonquin Land Claim Agreement in Principle (AIP) were a great big pot of stew, it might be said that some of the ingredients within the pot have started to bubble over, from all sides. On January 23, the chiefs from the Algonquin communities of Timiskaming, Wolf Lake and Eagle Village, located along the Upper Ottawa River on the Quebec side, put the Ontario, Quebec and federal governments on notice that they are asserting their rights to their traditional territories. The timing of the assertion is no coincidence, since much of the territory involved overlaps with territory included in the AIP between the two levels of government and the Algonquins of Ontario. “Our communities retain un-extinguished Aboriginal title. We have never surrendered our rights, by treaty or otherwise. What we need today is a recognition of those rights, and we are presenting this evidence to ensure effective consultation on matters affecting our interests,” said Chief Terence McBride of Timiskaming. “We want to participate as true partners in the regional economy.” Gilbert Whiteduck, the chief of the Kitigan Zibi First Nation, which is located further inland on the Quebec side, has also said that he is consulting with lawyers to see how the Ontario Algonquin Land Claim can be halted, so that a comprehensive claim on the Ontario and Quebec sides of the border, can be negotiated, and he welcomed the assertion of rights by Timiskaming, Wolf Lake and Eagle Village. There are 10 status Algonquin communities on the Quebec side of the border, and only one, Pikwàkanagàn, on the Ontario side. One of the unique features of the Algonquin Land Claim in Ontario is the inclusion of nine

non-status Algonquin communities in the claim. Recipient status in the claim is not limited to those individuals and communities who fit within the framework of the embattled Canadian Indian Act. Instead of the blood quantum requirements of the Indian Act, any individual who is able to prove they are a direct descendent from a registered Algonquin individual is eligible for inclusion in the claim. This requirement has worked well over the years in bringing more individuals and communities on stream. This week, however, there are proceedings underway at a hotel in Pembroke that could have a major impact on at least one Algonquin community, the Shabot Obaadjiwan. A former Ontario judge will hear the appeal of the Algonquin status of Simon Gene Bedard and Simon Jude Bedard. The two brothers were among the first Algonquin settlers to be established in the vicinity of Sharbot Lake in or around 1840, and about 2/3 of the membership of the Shabot Obaadjiwan trace their Algonquin lineage to them. The appeal intends to settle a question that has dogged the local community ever since the Land Claim talks got underway over 20 years ago. Some members of the Sharbot and Badour families have continually claimed that the families’ roots are Mohawk and not Algonquin. By settling whether the Bedard brothers were Algonquin or Mohawk in a formal hearing, that question may be put to rest. The implications if the judge rules the two men were Mohawk is not clear, but it could potentially shrink the membership of the Shabot Obaadjiwan considerably. While all of these issues have been sort-