Municipality of the District of Clare
REGULAR COUNCIL MEETING
Wednesday, April 16, 2025, at 7:00 pm
Meeting held at 1185 Highway 1, Little Brook, NS
PRESENT: Council: Warden Yvon LeBlanc, Deputy Warden Eric Pothier; Councillors Réanne Evans, Danny Hill, Carl Deveau, and Nadine Comeau
Staff: CAO, Stéphane Cyr, Executive Assistant, Ashley Hanks, Communications Officer, Anique Dugas, and Director of Finance, Christien Deveau
Presenters:
ABSENT: Councillors Réanne Cooper and Brian Comeau
1) Call to Order
The Warden called the Council meeting to order at 7:00 pm.
2) Adoption of the Agenda
The CAO asked that the following item be added to the agenda:
- 9.4 Everett Titus – Vice President, Belliveau Cove Development Commission
MOVED BY Councillor Carl Deveau and SECONDED BY Councillor Danny Hill that the proposed agenda be approved with the above noted addition.
MOTION CARRIED
3) Declaration of Conflict of Interest
None.
4) Presentations
None.
5) Adoption of the Minutes from Previous Council Meetings
5.2 March 19, 2025 – Regular Council Meeting
MOVED BY Councillor Danny Hill and SECONDED BY Councillor Nadine Comeau that the minutes of the March 19, 2025, Regular Council Meeting be accepted as presented.
MOTION CARRIED
5.3 April 2, 2025 – Council-In-Committee Meeting
MOVED BY Councillor Réanne Evans and SECONDED BY Councillor Carl Deveau that the minutes of the April 2, 2025, Council-in-Committee Meeting be accepted as presented.
MOTION CARRIED
6) Business Arising from Previous Meetings
None.
7) Warden’s Activity Report – Warden Yvon LeBlanc
March 7 – Attended a meeting with Senator Réjean Aucoin, along with Council members and the CAO.
March 20 – Attended the 25th anniversary celebration for the CDÉNE, along with Councillors Réanne Cooper and Carl Deveau.
April 9 – Attended a meeting with Council members, the CAO, and the Director of Finance to review the proposed operational budget for the 2025-2026 fiscal year.
April 15 – Attended a public meeting with members of the Havelock Fire Department and representatives of the Havelock Community Centre to discuss the possibility of a new building to house both organizations.
8) Official Statements from Members of Council
None.
9) Correspondence
9.1 The Honourable Becky Druhan – Attorney General and Minister of Justice
The CAO read a letter from the Honourable Becky Druhan, Attorney General and Minister of Justice. (
See attached)
9.2 Mary Surette – Managing Director, Yarmouth Hospital Foundation
The CAO read a letter from Mary Surette, Managing Director of the Yarmouth Hospital Foundation. (See attached)
9.3 Bobby Comeau – Regional Coordinator, Clare Special Olympics
The CAO read a letter from Bobby Comeau, Regional Coordinator for Clare Special Olympics. (See attached)
The CAO will ask staff to prepare a prize package in support of the fundraiser for the Clare Special Olympics.
9.4 Everett Titus – Vice President, Belliveau Cove Development Commission
The CAO read a letter from Everett Titus, Vice President of the Belliveau Cove Development Commission. (See attached)
10) Presentation of the 2025-2026 Operational Budget and Corresponding Motions
10.1 Motion to Adopt Municipal Tax Rates
The CAO provided an overview of the 2025-2026 Operational Budget (See attached).
The budget is balanced at $ 14,460,751 and calls for the residential and resource tax rates to be set at $1.10 per $100 of assessment and the commercial tax rate to be set at $2.13 per $100 of assessment. This marks the first increase to the residential and resource tax rates in 10 years and the first increase to the commercial tax rate in 14 years.
PROPOSED BY Councillor Carl Deveau and SECONDED BY Councillor Nadine Comeau that the Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare set the tax rates for the 2025-2026 fiscal year as follows:
- $1.10 per $100.00 of assessment as the Residential and Resource Tax Rate, and
- $2.13 per $100.00 of assessment as the Commercial Tax Rate, and
- $0.25 per acre (below 50,000 acres) and $0.40 per acre (above 50,000 acres) as the Forest Acreage Rates.
MOTION CARRIED
10.2 Motion to Adopt Sewer Service Charges
PROPOSED BY Deputy Warden Eric Pothier and SECONDED BY Councillor Danny Hill that the Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare set the municipal sewer service charges for 2025-2026 at $220.00 per unit for the following:
- Meteghan
- Meteghan Centre
- Meteghan River
- Church Point
- Belliveau Cove
MOTION CARRIED
10.3 Motion to Adopt Streetlight Area Rates
PROPOSED BY Councillor Danny Hill and SECONDED BY Councillor Réanne Evans that the Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare set the 2025-2026 streetlight area rates as follows:
- Highway 1 and Patrice Road – Church Point $63.35
- Highway 1 – Little Brook and Comeauville $38.91
- Highway 1 – Saulnierville $56.66
- Highway 1 – Meteghan River $59.83
- Placide Comeau Road – Meteghan River $75.55
- Highway 1 and Peter Dugas Road – Meteghan $38.81
- Highway 1 – Saint Bernard and Belliveau Cove $39.38
- Highway 1 – Meteghan (8064 Highway 1 to 7974 Highway 1) $47.08
MOTION CARRIED
10.4 Motion to Adopt Fire Service Rates
PROPOSED BY Councillor Nadine Comeau and SECONDED BY Councillor Carl Deveau that the Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare set the 2025-2026 fire department rates as follows:
- Fire Protection $0.05 per $100.00 of assessment
- Fire Truck Purchase $0.06 per $100.00 of assessment
MOTION CARRIED
10.5 Motion to Adopt Property Tax Rebate for Low Income Households
PROPOSED BY Councillor Réanne Evans and SECONDED BY Councillor Danny Hill that the Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare set the 2025-2026 low-income property tax rebate amount at $300 for households earning less than $29,000 per annum.
MOTION CARRIED
10.6 Motion to Adopt Due Date and Interest Commencement Date
PROPOSED BY Councillor Nadine Comeau and SECONDED BY Deputy Warden Eric Pothier that the Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare set the due date for payment of the 2025-2026 municipal taxes as June 30, 2025, and the interest rate be 1.5% per month, beginning on July 31, 2025.
MOTION CARRIED
10.7 Motion to Accept the 2025-2026 Municipal Operational Budget
PROPOSED BY Councillor Réanne Evans and SECONDED BY Deputy Warden Eric Pothier that the Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare approve the 2025-2026 operational budget for the Municipality of the District of Clare as presented on Wednesday, April 16, 2025.
MOTION CARRIED
11) CAO Report – Chief Administrative Officer – Stéphane Cyr
The CAO presented his report for the month of April. (See attached)
12) Committee Reports
12.1 Waste Check – Carl Deveau
The Waste Check Committee met on April 8, 2025.
EPR was discussed once again. The Committee has reached out to contacts in British Colombia with experience with EPR for their comments on the plan currently being negotiated with Circular Materials.
More green carts need to be ordered. Rather than ordering these from the United States, this latest order will be placed with a new supplier in Quebec.
Bin Boss (based in Smiths Cove) is a company specializing in the cleaning of green carts. Their services are available for the Clare area.
13) New Business
13.1 Motion to Award Tender – Washroom Building, Joseph and Marie Dugas Park
A tender was issued for the construction of a new washroom building at the Joseph and Marie Dugas Park in Belliveau Cove. A total of six bids were received, ranging from $136,763 plus HST to $378,000 plus HST. It should be noted that the proposed washrooms are fully accessible and that a request for accessibility funding has been submitted to the Province of NS in an effort to offset the cost of construction. Following a review of the bids, it is the recommendation of the CAO that Council accept the proposal from Mid Valley Construction (1997) Ltd. in the amount of $136,763 plus HST. Council agreed and made the following motion:
PROPOSED BY Councillor Réanne Evans and SECONDED BY Councillor Danny Hill that the Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare award the tender for the new washroom building at the Joseph and Marie Dugas Park in Belliveau Cove to Mid Valley Construction (1997) Ltd. in the amount of $136,762 plus HST, and that these funds be taken from the Municipality’s Capital Reserve.
MOTION CARRIED
13.2 Motion to Award Tender – Generator Shed, Belliveau Cove Wastewater Treatment Plant
A tender was issued for the construction of a generator building at the Belliveau Cove Wastewater Treatment Plant. A total of three bids were received, ranging from $61,570 plus HST to $174,000 plus HST. Following a review of the bids, it is the recommendation of the CAO that Council accept the proposal from Garian Construction Ltd. in the amount of $61,570 plus HST. Council agreed and made the following motion:
PROPOSED BY Councillor Carl Deveau and SECONDED BY Councillor Danny Hill that the Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare award the tender for the generator building at the Belliveau Cove Wastewater Treatment Plant to Garian Construction Ltd. in the amount of $61,570 plus HST, and that these funds be taken from the Municipality’s Capital Reserve.
MOTION CARRIED
13.3 Motion to Amend 2021-2026 Garbage Collection Contract
The CAO proposed an amendment to the 2021-2026 Garbage Collection Contract to include the standard 5% increase in the last year of the contract, as well as some additional service routes based on recent development activity and calls for service since the signing of the contract in 2021. In turn, the proposed amendment increases the value of the garbage collection contract for 2025-2026 to $615,904. Council agreed with the recommended contract revisions and made the following motion:
PROPOSED BY Councillor Carl Deveau and SECONDED BY Councillor Nadine Comeau that the Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare amend the 2021-2026 Garbage Collection Contract to include the standard 5% increase for the upcoming year, as well as the incremental cost for the proposed additions to the current routes, increasing the total amount for 2025-26 to $615,904.
MOTION CARRIED
13.4 Motion to approve a Road Naming Request – Grass Lake Lane
Municipal staff received a request to name a road in Meteghan. Subsequently, letters were sent to the eight property owners along this road asking whether they approved of the name that had been put forward for consideration. Of the eight property owners, seven indicated they were in favour of the proposed name - Grass Lake Lane/ ruelle lac d’herbe. Whereas the proposed name meets the requirements of the Municipality’s Road Naming Policy, Council made the following motion:
PROPOSED BY Councillor Nadine Comeau and SECONDED BY Deputy Warden Eric Pothier that the Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare approve the road naming request for the road shared by the PIDs (Property Identification Number) listed below, as follows:
In English: Grass Lake Lane
In French: ruelle lac d’herbe
|
30265045 |
30369649 |
30083984 |
30348254 |
30268965 |
30269054 |
30083992 |
30082341 |
MOTION CARRIED
13.5 Motion to Revise Committee Appointments
Despite her best efforts, Councillor Nadine Comeau is no longer able to attend the monthly Waste Check meetings (Tuesdays at 10:00 am) due to work commitments. Deputy Warden Eric Pothier has offered to join the Waste Check Committee as the Municipality’s representative (in addition to Councillor Deveau). For her part, Councillor Comeau will be replacing Deputy Warden Pothier on the Municipality’s Accessibility Committee. Council agreed to the proposed changes and made the following motion:
PROPOSED BY Councillor Danny Hill and SECONDED BY Councillor Réanne Evans that the Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare approve the revised Committee Appointments as presented.
MOTION CARRIED
13.6 Motion to Send a Letter to NS Public Works – Intersection of Eustache Comeau Road and Highway 1
The CAO read an email from Shane Robicheau, Ptit Robicheau Food Truck. (See attached)
In response to this email, Council passed the following motion:
PROPOSED BY Deputy Warden Eric Pothier and SECONDED BY Councillor Nadine Comeau that the Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare send a letter to the Nova Scotia Department of Public Works requesting a safety review of the intersection of Highway 1 and Eustache Comeau Road, including the possibility of installing a flashing stop sign at the end of Eustache Comeau Road and a flashing yellow light on Highway 1.
MOTION CARRIED
13.7 Motion to Adopt EDIA Plan – Rooted in Respect: A Plan for an Inclusive Future
All municipalities in Nova Scotia have been mandated by the provincial government to develop and adopt an EDIA plan. Completed plans must be submitted to the Province in April 2025 for approval. The Municipality’s inaugural EDIA plan was prepared by staff following consultation and engagement efforts with various community stakeholders and has since been submitted for Council’s consideration. Following its review of the plan, Council passed the following motion:
PROPOSED BY Councillor Réanne Evans and SECONDED BY Councillor Carl Deveau that the Council for the Municipality of the District of Clare adopt the EDIA Plan – Rooted in Respect: A Plan for an Inclusive Future as presented.
MOTION CARRIED
13) Closed Session
PROPOSED BY Councillor Nadine Comeau and SECONDED BY Councillor Réanne Evans that Council proceed to the Closed Session.
MOTION CARRIED
Topics discussed
13.1 Contract Negotiations
PROPOSED BY Councillor Nadine Comeau and SECONDED BY Councillor Réanne Evans that Council proceed to the Regular Council Meeting.
MOTION CARRIED
14) Date and time of the next Regular Council Meeting
The next Regular Council Meeting will be held on Wednesday, May 21, 2025, at 7:00 pm.
15) Adjournment
MOVED BY Councillor Réanne Evans to adjourn the meeting at 9:44 pm.
Submitted by:
Ashley Hanks
Executive Assistant