One town councillor in Port Hawkesbury does not want to attend an upcoming meeting with Richmond County without a set agenda.
Last night during the regular monthly meeting of Port Hawkesbury Town Council, CAO Terry Doyle reviewed what he called a “lengthy agenda” for a joint meeting between officials and councillors with the Town of Port Hawkesbury and the Municipality of the County of Richmond.
While it will be interesting whether they can address all the items, Deputy Mayor Mark MacIver agreed that the agenda covers “quite a bit” and he said he’s satisfied with it.
In response to a question from Town Councillor Blaine MacQuarrie, Mayor Brenda Chisholm-Beaton said the meetings will include presentations from staff and CAOs with both municipal units.
Brenda Chisholm-Beaton
Doyle said other municipalities, like the Town of Antigonish and the Municipality of the County of Antigonish, have been holding joint meetings for years and they have a process in place which includes two chairs that rotate.
In response to a question from Town Councillor Hughie MacDougall, the CAO said the meeting can include updates from joint committees and reach consensus on how to move forward on issues but each council has authority under the Municipal Government Act to make final decisions.
Chisholm-Beaton said she is glad that housing is “front and centre” on the agenda since it is a “huge priority” for both the town and county.
Town Councillor Jason Aucoin said he wants to concentrate on the agenda for the first meeting, noting he is concerned that not all items will be discussed in a timely fashion.
Without an agenda for that first meeting, Aucoin said he “will not be present.”
The deputy mayor said the meeting will deal with each agenda item in order.
The mayor replied that there could be a “succession of meetings” and “multiple conversations” to deal with all items.
Council agreed to a suggestion from the mayor that she, the CAO and deputy mayor meet with the warden, deputy warden, and CAO from Richmond County to raise the prospect of multiple meetings and set dates for those meetings.