The Creemore
ECHO
Friday, March 19, 2021 Vol. 21 No. 12
www.creemore.com
News and views in and around Creemore
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Sheltering at Home
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New CAO terminated from county job in Nova Scotia by Trina Berlo Clearview Township has hired the highly Googleable John Ferguson as its new chief administrative officer (CAO). Ferguson was terminated as CAO of Annapolis County in Nova Scotia in December following the fall election. A quick search turns up dozens of articles relating to a number of contract disputes, developments and court proceedings past and present. Ferguson told The Echo that the termination was discussed openly during the hiring process with Clearview council, but declined to comment to media due to ongoing legal proceedings. He said he could not discuss the conditions of his termination, except to say it was without cause. A hiring announcement issued by Clearview Township said, “the recruitment committee was consistently impressed with his strategic thinking, creativity and understanding of the role... John brings a breadth of experience and has demonstrated a leadership style that is collaborative,
John Ferguson thorough and results driven.” Council delegated the recruitment process to an outside firm that presented a shortlist of candidates for in-person interviews at the Stayner arena on Feb. 25. When asked, “Why Clearview?” Ferguson told The Echo, “I was looking
for a community that had a mixture of rural and urban, and that’s exactly what I feel Clearview is like.” He has been working in government since taking his first job with his home city of Saint John in 1990, after a oneand-a-half-year stint on the teacher supply list. Ferguson said he was then recruited by the province to be a municipal recreation consultant for the Fundy region. Ferguson went on to serve as CAO for the Town of St. Stephen in New Brunswick before going to Annapolis County. He also served a four-year term as a council member in Saint John, where in 2012, Ferguson was in the news when he won a five-year legal battle with the Saint John pension board which had accused him of defamation for criticizing the management of the city’s pension fund during his time on council. When asked about his experience on both sides of the council table, Ferguson said, “I have the perspective of administration as it relates to all the
statutory responsibilities but I also have the perspective of a councillor and what the community expects of councillors.” He said it helps him to see both sides of the process of bringing community ideas to the table and allowing the administration to move forward with the initiatives that council approves. “The vividness that a councillor experiences is often far more vivid than the administration because they get the immediate either praise or negative feedback, from whatever may occur.” he said. “Often matters are much more of an urgent nature to a councillor and I felt that when I was a councillor so I understand it and it allows me, I think, to work well with councillors.” Ferguson said he has done a lot of community development work during his career, working with not-for-profits, sport and recreation governing bodies and individuals. “You deal with a lot of different people and, no matter what you are dealing with, there’s always a little bit of politics involved. It’s interesting (See “Annapolis” on page 2)
Request to sever surplus lot draw support from farmers by Trina Berlo A proposed change to land use rules in Clearview Township would allow farmers to sever a surplus dwelling even if they don’t own abutting lands. A public meeting was held March 8 for an Official Plan amendment and zoning bylaw amendment application filed by Jim and Martha Patton. The Pattons operate an Everett-based broiler chicken breeding and cash crop operation, and own or rent farmland in four area townships, including Clearview where they own five parcels. The topic prompted area farmers to comment, mostly in favour, of allowing for the severance of surplus dwelling lots with a habitable farmhouse, that could then be sold off.
Working on behalf of the Pattons planner Jamie Robinson, of MHBC Planning, said the amendment would facilitate a consent application to allow for a surplus dwelling application. He said Clearview’s Official Plan, was approved in 2002 and since then, there have been significant changes to provincial policy, which are reflected in the County of Simcoe Official Plan, approved in 2018. Both support surplus farm dwelling severances, as long as no future residential uses are permitted on the retained parcel of farmland. What happens is that as farmers expand and purchase parcels of land, they may include existing dwellings. “These applications are also designed so that farmers don’t need to be
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landlords and it allows for the dwelling to be maintained,” said Robinson. The Pattons have severed a surplus dwelling in Essa Township and are working on one in Adjala-Tosorontio. “If this wasn’t allowed, you can imagine, we would have a collection of houses,” Martha told The Echo. “Yes, we don’t want to be landlords. You can appreciate how a rented house is treated versus an owned property so we don’t want to see these houses go to waste or be destroyed.” She said they do have homes that they rent and have had good experiences with tenants but even then, it is a lot of work to manage and not an integral part of their large farming operation. “To us, it doesn’t make sense that
this isn’t allowed to happen because you take that house off of the farm and you are going to make money off of it tax-wise as a residence,” she said. Brian Dunlop, of Dunlogon Farms, wrote in support of the application. “Farmers typically do not want to be landlords of residential housing,” wrote Dunlop. “Because we have not been able to sever I have demolished three houses in Clearview Township since 2008. These houses all could have been severed, all could have had improvements, all would have generated tax dollars for the township.” Dunlop said currently, the only other option really is to rent, because insurance companies frown upon a (See “Goal” on page 3)