Adam Prudhomme
Editor
Greater Napanee council met for a special meeting on Feb. 5 with the goal of setting priorities for the remaining two years of council.
The meeting was seen as a bit of a reset for council’s focus as they reassess what they can accomplish following the pandemic and time left before the next municipal election. The meeting was held virtually via Zoom and broadcast on the town’s YouTube channel.
Town CAO Ray Callery led a presentation that highlighted 65 identified priorities, though he noted it would be impossible for council to realistically complete them all within the current term. Those priorities were funneled into 18 strategic priorities, which would have an impact on the much broader 65.
They include trails and paths, portable staging/chairs, an indoor walking track, a youth centre, aquatics, arts and culture centre, physician recruitment, land for downtown parking, Market Square revitalization, riverfront development, neighbourhood parks, waterfront access/boat launch, community improvement plan, service industrial land, affordable housing, sewage treatment plan, landfill/environmental plan and a community safety plan.
Council identified an organizational review as well as any changes to the election process as immediate priorities and directed staff to begin gathering a report on those areas.
“I would like to see an organizational review, a review of our organizational structure,” said councillor Terry Richardson. “I think once we do that a lot of these other things will probably fall into place and it may aid us and assist us with some of these other things.”
Deputy mayor Max Kaiser agreed.
“I agree with the organizational review, that should be a high priority and that it should be something that we accomplish in this term,” said Kaiser. “I think the other thing that we need to do in the short term is the seven of us rate the strategic projects and maybe it’s just a simple high, medium and low. High maybe meaning urgent, medium meaning also very important but less critical for timing and the low ones to be on the back burner working.”
Kaiser put forward the successful motion to accept the CAO’s report and that a timeline be developed that lays out an organizational review, development of an election by-law and a strategic plan and that it be brought back to council. Council will also bring back any key factors to be considered on these processes at the next meeting.
Mayor Marg Isbester added that staff would begin to draft a mission statement for the remainder of the council term and come back to council with some ideas for that as well.