Burlington Agricultural & Rural Affairs Advisory Committee Meeting

Minutes

Meeting #:
Date:	Wednesday, January 20, 2021
Time:	7:00 P.m. - 9:00 P.m.
Location:	Virtual

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1.

Members Present:

Glenn Portch (Chair), Norm Richardson, Vanessa Warren, Jamie Fisher and Maura Romanelli

2.

Others Present:

Councillor Angela Bentivegna, Kelly Cook (Planner), Bob Jurk (Senior Project Manager) and Jo-Anne Rudy (Clerk)

3.

Regrets:

John Timmis and Sarah Pralet

4.

Declarations of Interest:

None

5.

Election of Chair and Vice Chair:

On motion, Glenn Portch and Norm Richardson were elected as Chair and Vice Chair, respectively, for the term ending December 2021.

6.

Approval of Minutes:

6.1

Approve minutes from meeting held December 16, 2020

On motion, the minutes from the meeting held December 16, 2020, were approved as presented.

7.

Delegation(s):

7.1

Road reconstruction project for Walkers Line and Britannia Road 

• Bob Jurk, Senior Project Manager, Engineering Services, provided an overview of the reconstruction projects for Walkers Line and Britannia Road scheduled for the summer. Bob advised that the road reconstruction will include alignment changes, asphalt renewal, guide rail replacement (east side) and streetlight improvements and is expected to take place between July 12 and August 20. The bridge replacement will be constructed with an upgraded traffic barrier and railings in order to meet the high water demands from heavy rainfall events and will also be 1.5 m wider on both sides. The expected timing for this project is June 8 to October 8.
• Bob advised that a PIC will be held on February 18 at 6:30 p.m. via Zoom. Notices will be sent out to all rural residents and an ad will be placed in The Burlington Post. Bob is retiring later this year and Rob Stuart will be taking over his role for this project.
• Members stated that the road closures and lane reduction on the bridge would make it difficult for farming equipment to access and asked if there was an opportunity to include something in the tender to address this concern. In addition, it was noted that road closure dates and alternative routes are a very important part of the communication to rural residents and needs to be highlighted. Due to ongoing broadband issues in the rural area, members asked if there would be the opportunity to have ducts installed during the construction to be used for future conduits. 
• Bob thanked members for their comments/suggestions and noted the importance of ensuring the bid is very clear so the contractor is aware of any potential issues that could arise. Bob noted that the 5m passage requirement for farm vehicles accessing the alternative route would be included in the tender and that additional details regarding farm vehicle movement would be appreciated. Action- Kelly to follow up with committee members regarding additional details that would be helpful to consider as the tender document is finalized.

8.

Regular Items:

8.1

New Official Plan update 

• Kelly advised that the Region issued a Notice of Decision for the new Burlington Official Plan on November 30, 2020 with a 20-day appeal period. Forty-eight appeals were received, and staff are working through them to determine which policies have been appealed and which are in effect. The LPAT hearing date has not been set yet.

8.2

Regional Official Plan Review update

• Kelly advised that the Integrated Growth Management Strategy is progressing with the release of the next staff report and materials for public consultation targeted for February. 
• Jamie provided an update on the Halton Federation of Agriculture (HRFA) meeting with Curt Benson on Dec 17 and noted that the Region would like to have consultation with BARAAC and other agricultural organizations as they are hoping to have rural policy completed by this Fall. Jamie noted that he will keep the committee and councillors informed as things move forward. 

8.3

Nelson Quarry application update 

• Kelly advised that she submitted comments on January 18. She reviewed the draft peer review of the Agricultural Impact Assessment and noted that it looked good and all of the City’s concerns were included. 

8.4

BARAAC composition in Terms of Reference 

• Kelly advised that she received an email from Allan Nason who is the coordinator of the Horticulture & Landscaping, Green Industries and Aquaculture program at Notre Dame Secondary School in Burlington. He is very interested in opportunities to participate in/support BARAAC in his professional capacity with the Halton District School Board (HDSB). Kelly asked members for their thoughts on amending the terms of reference to include an HDSB education and youth liaison in the composition of the committee.
• Members agreed that the focus right now needs to be on the committee's mandate and feel that the knowledge base is sufficient at this time.  They noted that perhaps as the mandate widens there could be future opportunities to expand the composition of the committee.

8.5

BARAAC recruitment update 

• Jo-Anne advised that there are some very good candidates for the committee's recruitment and added that interviews will be conducted on January 27 by Glenn, Kelly, Councillor Bentivegna and herself .The appointment report will go to Council on February 16 for approval so it is hopeful that new members will be at the March committee meeting.

8.6

2021 BARAAC priorities 

• Vanessa brought forward the broadband issue in the rural area and suggested that we reach out to the Rural Halton Citizens for Broadband Group who have recently worked on a model for a private+citizen-group partnership in order to bring high speed connectivity to part of the rural area. Vanessa noted that this would help provide the committee with a better  understanding of the process and where we could be of assistance. Action - Vanessa to contact Tom Williams, Internet Access Solutions, and a member of the Rural Halton Citizens for Broadband Group to attend the February meeting.
• Vanessa inquired about the possibility of having both rural councillors participate as members of BARAAC.
• Due to time constraints, further discussion on the committee's 2021 priorities will take place at the February meeting.

9.

Other Business:

None

10.

Adjournment: 9:09 p.m.