Adam Prudhomme
Editor
Greater Napanee’s iconic Big Bright Lights will have a new home this holiday season, migrating from Dundas Street to Conservation and Springside Parks.
Greater Napanee council approved the relocation during their March 28 council meeting. The recommendation was born during the budget process, where it was noted setting up the lighting displays within the town’s riverside parks would be more cost and labour effective. For over a decade the lights have been strung on the front of stores lining the town’s downtown core, illuminated nightly from mid November through early January.
What next season’s displays will look like isn’t yet known and will be planned with the help of community volunteers. Among the ideas discussed is to string any additional lights on buildings such as town hall, Roblin Hall and the former Adolphustown Hall, among other town buildings. Planning is slated to begin in May with assessment and site planning to take place in June and July.
The motion to relocate the lights was the second part of a two-part proposal from a report titled Market House and Town Hall, prepared by town staff.
The second was a request for $100,000, which would be used to apply for grants that would be put towards renovations at town hall. Council tentatively approved the ask, subject to the passing of the 2023 budget.
“We have a pretty good idea from the architects that we’re looking at close to a $5 million renovation project to complete what needs to be done to (to town hall) when it’s finally completed,” Brant Zätterberg, general manager of Greater Napanee Community and Corporate Services, told council. “The $100,000 would allow us to begin to use spaces on the main floor as community space and also would address some of the accessibility issues we’re having, including hopefully a washroom on the main floor and also maybe the ramp, but definitely the steps at the front of the building.”
Following Tuesday’s meeting, town staff were scheduled to meet with a representative from the province who was expected to tour town hall and be given a brief presentation as to the town’s vision for the renovations.
“The idea is to start that dialogue with the province for any available grant opportunities that are out there and we can start that process,” said Zätterberg.
Built in 1856, Napanee’s town hall has remained for the most part unchanged since its last major renovation in 1977. According to the report, those renovations done 45 years ago had a cost of $274,000, which equates to about $1.3 million in today’s dollars. Town staff cited the recent renovation of Loyalist Township’s Layer Cake Hall as what they might expect in terms of possible government funding. That project cost $545,000, of which Loyalist covered 43 per cent.
If that exact same formula were applied to Napanee’s town hall project, the cost to the town would be about $2 million-though all speculative figures.
Renovating the first floor would allow the hall to return to its original roots so to speak, serving as a place for vendor markets, art exhibition and live music.
Staff has identified the fall/winter of 2023 as the soft launch date target for the rebooted Market House and Town Hall, with the hope it would coincide with Culture Days or a Harvest Festival/Market.
-Melissa Hoyt appeared before council with the hope of convincing council members to reverse the previous council’s ban on backyard poultry.
Following a survey conducted last summer, council voted to not allow residents within the urban boundaries of town to house backyard chickens.
“Ever since I was a little kid all I ever wanted was to have a tiny little hobby farm of my own,” Hoyt told council. “Unfortunately I’ve been through two recessions so far and even though myself and my partner make really good wages, we’re still living paycheque to paycheque and that little parcel of land is probably never going to happen.”
Hoyt referred to the results of last summer’s survey, which showed over 60 per cent of residents being in favour of backyard flocks. She also noted several neighbouring communities allow chickens, each ranging in quantity but the average being four hens, no roosters.
“If somebody wants to have four chickens and it’s not bothering anything and you can have fresh eggs, no offense guys, I don’t see a big thing,” councillor Mike Schenk said. “But I don’t live in town.”
Schenk, a farmer himself, added chickens are great for insect control.
Councillor Angela Hicks agreed, requesting that staff bring forward the results of last year’s survey to the next council meeting so the matter could be discussed further.