On January 3rd, Terrace Bay Council met for the first time this year, 2023. It started with the usual land acknowledgement and an addition was added to the agenda regarding the community church building. The minutes of previous meetings were adopted and approved. 

The Chief Administrative Officer report was presented with CAO John Hall explaining the appointment process of citizens to various committees, which was created at councillor Dube’s request. Councillor Aduanno also mentioned that qualifications could be listed pertaining to the various committee positions. A recommendation to improve the process will be discussed at the next meeting.

Next up, there was a discussion about gaging public reaction to the Strategic Plan for the new year. It was suggested that a public forum, and/or a survey or comment form might provide better feedback from residents on it.

The community church was purchased by the town last month with the intention of possible future uses depending on the results of a study plan aimed at repurposing for a potential housing project.

Treasurer Mulligan presented his report on proposed water rate increases with justification for the increase. A 3% hike represents a small increase overall but will add approximately $30,000 to the water reserve fund, he explained.

The need for child care spaces was the next item to be presented. A needs assessment would establish the need for child care centres and would be the first step towards providing better child care in the Terrace Bay Area. The district services board is ultimately responsible for the approval of such a facility and the operation could fall to the town unless a private operator were to be found. 

The discussed  bylaws were then passed. No other business was on the agenda and so the meeting was adjourned.