July 12, 2024 Lo Stratford Times Perth County releases updated draft official plan and project update STRATFORD TIMES STAFF stratfordtimes@gmail.com their property. We’re also providing ad- ditional opportunities to connect directly with the planning team for anyone who may have site-specific questions about the official plan and how it relates to their property.” The updated draft official plan poli- cy document is available to view on the county’s website at www.perthcounty. ca/NewOP. Along with the updated draft official plan, the county also released an online, interactive map viewer allowing the public to see the proposed draft of- ficial plan designations. The Draft Offi- cial Plan Map Viewer along with a tuto- rial video and instructions are available at www.perthcounty.ca/DraftOPMap On July 22, the county will host two open-house information sessions. The first session is scheduled from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the Perth East Recreation Com- plex and the second session will be held from 6-8 p.m. at the West Perth Commu- nity Centre. Each session will include an informative presentation showcasing a summary of updates made to the text and followed by an opportunity to min- gle and connect directly with planning staff and members of county council to ask questions or discuss the project. For those unable to attend, a recording of the presentation will be available in advance for viewing. If landowners have site-specific ques- tions about their property in relation to the draft official plan, appointments can be scheduled to meet in person with a policy planner at a local municipal office on the following days: + July 23 — Perth East + July 24 — West Perth + July 25 — North Perth + July 26 — Perth South To book an appointment, call 519-271- 0531 ext. 419 or email newoffici Perth County council has approved the release of the updated draft official plan and the next phase of public engagement for the official plan project. e first version of the draft official plan text was released in December 2023 to provide transparency for the public, stakeholder groups, steering committees and council on how feedback received to date had been considered and imple- mented. Open houses were held in Feb- ruary 2024 for review of the draft official plan and to receive additional feedback from the public and stakeholder groups. Following the release of the first draft this past winter, significant work has been completed to prepare an updated draft official plan document in response to community feedback. “Council is pleased with the work that has been done to update the policies based on public feedback,” said Perth County Warden Rhonda Ehgoetz in a press re- lease. “We are confident that the revised document and policies reflects the needs of the community and will support the county’s growth for many years to come. We are excited for the community to see the updated draft and have the opportu- nity to provide further comments.” Highlights of the next phase of the of- ficial-plan project include four key com- ponents: 1. The release of the updated draft offi- cial plan policy text 2. The launch of a new online interac- tive map, Draft Official Plan Map View- er, showing proposed land designations . Additional opportunities to connect with the planning team in local munici- pal offices 4. The date and locations for the next Perth County closes out 2023 with $56,500 deficit GALEN SIMMONS Regional Editor Perth County closed out the 2023 fiscal year with a deficit of $56,500, partially the result of overages in the county’s an- “ isle other municipal work deficit was orig- inally projected at $208,000 due to the county’s portion of significant drainage work done locally, which by the end of the year was higher than budget by about $420,000. The total deficit in general nual di ge-di county’s planning division not achieving revenue estimates last year. In his report to council, county trea- surer and manager of finance Corey Bridges recommended council approve the transfers of $52,113 from the county, Stratford and St. Marys’ paramedic ser- vices Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) reserve to fund the deficit in paramedic services resulting from the higher-than-budgeted WSIB costs in- curred in 2023, and $4,360 from the levy stabilization reserve to fund the remain- ing 2023 deficit. “Tt was highlighted in public works we did have a surplus in winter main- tenance, but we did have a significant deficit in relation to our drainage work,” Bridges said. “In discussing (this) with public works staff, we’re looking at some ways of funding that drainage work po- tentially like our capital maintenance with respect to (road) crack sealing and pave it preservation (where) we could ing back to council? In his report, Bridges said county public works’ general maintenance and serve in the future, but that will be com- zation reserve, which is used to lessen by year end was $530,000, which was mainly due to the drainage work, and took into account a final win- ter-maintenance surplus of $490,000 — 11 per cent under budget for the year. The planning division accumulated a deficit of $120,787 resulting from the variance in revenue, public works’ roads division accumulated a deficit of $39,814 despite county staff estimating a deficit of $383,000 as recently as December, and the economic development division teported a deficit of $24,529 due to in- creases in salaries and benefits beyond what was budgeted. Meanwhile, the county saw surpluses of $6,829 in the archives division, $8,347 in the emergency management divi- sion, $5,690 from council expenses and $159,915 from the balance of non-de- partmental revenue and expenses. Following council’s approval of the transfers from reserves to offset the 2023 overall deficit, the county’s levy stabili- | al tax-levy ns on taxpayers and offset the annual re- ductions in Ontario Municipal Partner ship funding, is left with a balance of | $673,600. “a Communities in Bloom Best Gardens contest kicks off STRATFORD TIMES STAFF open-house information sessions “The official plan project would not be possible without the valuable input from the community. We are grateful for everyone who has taken the time to en- gage with this project and provide con- structive feedback so far,” said county senior policy planner Moira Davidson in the press release. “This next phase of the project allows residents to see how their input was directly implemented through the updated policy document and map- ping for the proposed designations on Scam Alert - Parking Ticket Text The City of Stratford has recently been made aware of a possible scam attempt involving text messages about unpaid parking tickets. Similar scams have been circulating in communities across Can- ada. perthcounty.ca. While comments will be accepted up to the day the official plan is adopted by county council, the planning division recommends comments be provided by Aug. 30 to provide staff with adequate timing to incorporate additional com- ments and feedback into the final offi- cial plan document. Comments can be submitted by email at newofficialplan@ perthcounty.ca, by phone at 519-271- 0531 ext. 419, and by mail to 1 Huron St., Stratford, Ont., NSA 5S4. ing tickets cannot be paid through texts. If you have received such a message, do not click on the link or provide pay- ment details. Suspected fraud can be reported to the i Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre at https:// Please note that the City of Stratford i d i ca/re- would never send a text message about — port-signalez-eng.htm an outstanding parking ticket, and park- stratfordtimes@gmail.com If you know of someone with a green thumb and want them to get the recogni- tion they deserve, now’s the time to do it. The City of Stratford’s Communities in Bloom committee is hosting its annual Best Gardens contest and is entreating the community to help them discover whose garden is the best and brightest in the Fes- tival City. will get a sign anda prize. a iP Per a Facebook post on the city’s page, to nominate a residential or commercial garden that has added some beauty to the city send a photo of it (with permission from the owner) to adviscom@stratford. ca, along with the person’s name, address, phone number, and the reason they are be- ing nominated. Winners will be notified at a later date and presented with a sign for their garden, as well as a prize. Nominations close on July 31 at noon.