JULY 23, 2003 ARCHIVE

Northeast council amends Landfill Compensation Policy


by Neil Zacharjewicz
NORTHEASTERN MANITOULIN and the ISLANDS - It seems the residents of Mountainside Estates may see some compensation as a result of an amendment to the Town of Northeastern Manitoulin and the Islands'
(NEMI) Landfill Compensation Policy.
Following an In Camera session held at a recent meeting of council, a
motion was passed to amend a portion of the Landfill Compensation
Policy.
According to Clerk - Treasurer Ned Martin, changes were made to
provide a different form of compensation, recognizing the existance
of the modified trailers located at Mountainside Estates. Mr. Martin
indicated that, under the amendment, the town will obtain from the
Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC) its evaluation of
the assessed cost for each lot, if the trailers were not present. He
said council would then grant relief for 50 percent of the applicable
taxes to Raeburn and Virginia Smith, owners and operators of
Mountainside Estates and the lots in question.
Presently, Mr. and Mrs. Smith charge the residents of Mountainside
Estates rent equal to the cost of the property taxes for their lots.
Under this scenario, Mr. and Mrs. Smith could choose to pass on the
tax relief to the residents of Mountainside Estates.
Mr. Martin explained that when council originally drafted the
Landfill Compensation Policy, those who were to be compensated were
referred to as property owners. However, Mr. Martin stated that the
intention of council had been to compensate landowners, and that term
was later changed to reflect council's intentions. This caused some
concern from residents of Mountainside Estates. He indicated that the
residents of the park reside in trailers, which many of them have
built additions to that resulted in many of them becoming permanent
structures. However, they were not the actual landowners, and
therefore would not be eligible for compensation.
"We wanted to give them something, so the town gave them some tax
relief," Mr. Martin suggested.
However, Mayor Ken Ferguson indicated that, despite council's
amendment to the policy, council has made no further decision to
proceed with compensating those residents affected by the policy. He
noted council plans to get the values for the individual lots first,
and they have yet to see what the costs would be for approval.
"They will want to see the price tag before that goes through," Mr.
Ferguson stated.
He said council has given direction to make certain it is clear that
the compensation is meant for owners of land, and based on land
issues, rather than for people who leased the land. At the same time,
Mr. Ferguson said council does want to be fair to both segments if
possible.

Manitoulin Wild continue to stack franchise building blocks


by Neil Zacharjewicz
MANITOULIN - With less than a month to go until the Manitoulin Wild
takes to the ice for try-outs, team organizers have been busy laying
the foundation for the future of the franchise.
The pieces of the puzzle began to fall in place a few weeks ago, when
the team negotiated for goaltender Matt George, a three year veteran
of Junior A hockey, having played with the Lindsey Muskies and the
Richmond Hill Rattlers.
"We are starting off strong in goal," commented Larry Leblanc, one of
the team organizers. "As a new team, that is where you want to be
strong."
Mr. Leblanc noted the team will have plenty of depth at goaltender,
as the team has invited a number of goaltenders who have participated
in the Under 17 camp and have served as starters in Junior B hockey.
"Our second priority was defense," Mr. Leblanc noted, and as such,
the team has been taking steps to address this area as of late. He
explained that, while the team is currently in the process of
securing a pair of veteran defencemen, both of whom stand over six
foot, two inches, and weigh over 200 pounds.
Mr. Leblanc indicated the team is anticipating having 45 to 60
players turn out for try-outs, which are scheduled to begin on August
16th. Of the Island players who have confirmed their intention to
try-out are Todd Fox, Adam Meeker, Wade Debassige, Andrew Jeffery,
Hawk Eshkawkogan, Eric Bourcier, Eric Desjardins, Nate Meinzinger,
Evan Bayer, Jerrit Drysdale and Andrew Paibomsai, among others. Mr.
Leblanc noted the team has generated interest from players in
Northwestern Ontario, James Bay, Hearst, Longlac, and Thunder Bay.
"We are trying to stick as much as possible to Northern Ontario and
Manitoulin," Mr. Leblanc said. He indicated the team has been able to
find a lot of good prospects in places in which, like Manitoulin,
there is little Junior A scouting.
"So far, we have been very successful," Mr. Leblanc said.
But the on-ice product is not the only area in which the Manitoulin
Wild have made progress. Late last week, team ownership finally
settled on a logo for the franchise. The new logo features a
prominent picture of Manitoulin, as well as the head of a buck.
As well, a member of the ownership team has stepped down. Mr. Leblanc
indicated former partner Peter Secord has left the organization due
to health reasons.
Mr. Leblanc also noted that season tickets sales are under way. He
said the tickets should become available within the next few weeks.
The cost is $150 for adults and $130 for students. Children under 10
will get into games for free provided they are accompanied by adults.
"That is where our future fans will come from," Mr. Leblanc noted.
But while the Wild are anxious to begin selling tickets for their new
season, he said only 100 season tickets will be made available. He
said the ownership group does not want to completely lock up all of
the seating, so that there is room for anyone who might just want to
take in a few games over the course of the season.
Mr. Leblanc noted the team is currently scouting for sponsors,
advertisers and donations. He noted advertising will be featured on
the ice, walls and in the lobby at the Little Current - Howland
Recreation Centre.
"We seem to have a lot of people willing to contribute," he said.
The Manitoulin Wild organization is also looking at a program of
entertainment to complement their product on game nights. Mr. Leblanc
indicated they are looking at ideas as to try and provide
entertainment before each game and in between the periods. He noted
there will likely be entertainment in the lobby, as well as an
interactive program of activities. He said they are also hopeful
about the opportunity to offer a bar upstairs at the rec centre, and
a local service club has expressed interest in providing the service.
Mr. Leblanc noted fans of the Manitoulin Wild will not only have an
opportunity to support their team during the home games, but will be
able to follow along when the team takes to the road via computer. He explained
that the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League (NOJHL) has nearly
completed negotiations with Vianet to install two digital cameras
into the arenas of all eight of its teams. Fans could then buy a code
from Vianet, which would allow them to tap into the cameras and watch
games when the team is on the road.
"(The NOJHL) is the first league in Ontario to do it," Mr. Leblanc
explained. "It is a really good tool for promoting your players."
Promoting players is exactly what the Manitoulin Wild are all about,
he suggested, noting the team will never hold back a player who has
an opportunity to advance further in pursuit of their dreams. He
explained that, over the years, he has seen approximately 30-40 kids
who had the potential to advance their hockey careers, but were
passed over for another player that a scout may have known more about
simply because scouts prefer the kid they know to the kid they don't.
Some leagues even have an import quota, which controls the number of
players from outside Southern Ontario they can have on their roster.
Mr. Leblanc said the digital cameras will only help with these
problems, as the team will be able to provide the codes to scouts,
who will be able to watch a game from the convenience of their own
office. This will allow them to become more familiar with NOJHL
players.
The Manitoulin Wild will give a longer look to local prospects, Mr.
Leblanc noted.
"Our goal is to be competitive the first year. We believe this is the
case with the players we are bringing in," he stated. "We are looking
at a three year plan, and we hope to be able to challenge for the top
spot in the league by our third year. It's going to take a little
patience."
He did suggest the ownership does believe they will have a successful
squad, and want to keep the program entertainment-driven to help draw
in new fans.
"In the winter, Manitoulin is a hockey mad community," Mr. Leblanc said.
Training camp for the Manitoulin Wild will take place on August
16-23. The team will run two practices a day for the first two days
of camp, followed by one practice a day for the rest of camp. He
indicated the team is planning to hold an intersquad game or two,
followed by an exhibition game or two before the season begins. The
first game is scheduled to take place on September 12th against the
Northern Michigan Black Bears.
 
Wikwemikong hotel project in the works

by Diana Smith
MANITOWANING ---Assiginack Council has been advised to allow the
zoning bylaw amendment process to go ahead for the proposed
Wikwemikong hotel conference centre project, but they have also been
told to "err on the side of caution" as the project proceeds.
The hotel conference centre proposal features a 32-unit hotel with
68-guest capacity (future expansion to 80 units or 168 guest
capacity), a 30 guest capacity indoor pool, a restaurant lounge with
100 seating capacity, and conference facilities for 254 people.
Assiginack Clerk Treasurer Alton Hobbs has been sent a service option
report for the proposed hotel conference centre project with regards
to the potential zoning bylaw amendment.
Mr. Hobbs, who was recently hired as the municipality's
clerk-treasurer, has cautiously approached the above matter, as his
lack of recent history on the project might leave him at a
disadvantage.
In a letter to council he has suggested that many of the potential
issues for the township should be identified during the zoning bylaw
amendment process.
He also recommends that both the zoning amendment and the service
option report be circulated to the Fire Chief, Roads Superintendent,
the Chief Building Officer (C.B.O.) and the Ontario Clean Water
Association (OCWA).
Initial questions that the clerk-treasurer has surround the
requirement of more fire hydrants (as this area of the municipality
is experiencing development pressures), which will affect fire flows,
additional fire training or equipment that might be required, and a
possible need for more technical support for the C.B.O. as he deals
with examination of the plans.
He also needs to know if the roads superintendent has concerns
regarding municipal roads, drains, etc. in this area. He suggests
that OCWA's opinion in terms of water and wastewater should also be
sought.
Mr. Hobbs firmly states in his letter that he is not opposed to this
major development for the municipality. He thinks it should be
supported, but advises council to err on the side of caution, as
"there will be a lot of pressure to move ahead quickly."
In the case of a small municipality when a proposed development
exceeds the scope of its normal process, it has been his experience,
that formal peer reviews at the expense of the developer should be
requested.
He further suggests that the service options report be reviewed by
engineers of the council's choosing and those expenses also be
charged back to the developer.
He states, "With both our water and waste systems under review and
our funding less than guaranteed, I think we would be wise to have an
expert or two on our side."
Having issued these cautions, Clerk-Treasurer Hobbs advises that
council move ahead with the zoning bylaw amendment process so the
Manitoulin Planning Board can circulate the material to various
ministries and agencies while the citizens of the municipality can
look at it through the avenue of a public meeting.
He cautioned, "In other words, let's start the process, but be under
no illusions that it will be a single public meeting and the
developer gets to go ahead the next day or 20 days later."
Northern Sky Architecture Inc. prepared the service options statement
for the proposed hotel project. The statement points out that OCWA
representative Larry Harasym informed the design team about the
current capacities for the domestic water and wastewater treatment.
The municipality has a license from the Ministry of Environment to
draw and treat 750 cubic metres per day of water and has a wastewater
treatment capacity of 250 metres per day.
The report states, "The domestic water for the project is capable of
being supplied by the Town of Manitowaning municipal water supply."
This is important because according to the Northern Sky Architect's
report the municipality has indicated in writing that the water
supply can be provided for the project, with the proviso that, if
upgrades are required to meet the hotel water supply requirements,
the cost would be borne by the proposed project.
Since the Rainbow Ridge Golf Clubhouse is serviced by the municipal
water supply, the report indicates that an extension to this line,
with proper approvals, is the planned route being explored to supply
the hotel conference centre, a 7.8 acre building site that runs
adjacent to the golf course property.
The proposed hotel project will require 50,000 litres per day and
will require Ministry of Environment approval.
The service report also identifies that the municipal wastewater
treatment facility is currently operating at over capacity and is
unable to provide municipal wastewater service to the resort hotel
project.
It has therefore been suggested by the project team that there are
two options being presently considered. One is a stand alone extended
aeration sewage treatment plant, and the other involves an artificial
wetland system, which would involve some primary treatment, a baffled
lagoon with wetland plant material, and a clear water discharge into
the golf course drainage system.
No matter which system is used the project will discharge 10,000
litres of effluent a day and will require a Ministry of Environment
Certificate of Approval.
The Wikwemikong Unceded Reserve, which owns the golf course, also
owns several other pieces of land along this particular stretch of
Highway 6 just outside the town site of Manitowaning.
With the purchase of the Bryant and Halliday properties, the only
property centered in this grouping not owned by the Reserve is the
George Viney property. Other property in the area owned by the
Wikwemikong Band is what used to be known as the Cliff Mitchell
property and is located on the extreme opposite side of the golf
course across the Clover Valley Road.
The Viney property is currently identified in the minutes of Project
Meeting No 5 - Wikwemikong Hotel/Conference Centre, as the property
to possibly locate treatment ponds, if it is to be purchased.
This meeting involved members of the Wikwemikong Development
Commission, Rainbow Ridge Golf Course executive, Don Oliver, of
Northern Sky Architecture, Frank Fisher, manager of the Wikwemikong
Technical Unit, Clayton Shawana and Darcy Maiangowi, of the Special
Projects Committee, Economic Development Officer Mary Lynn Odjig, and
Kurtis Sawatzky, P. Engineer with KNH Sawatsky and Associates.
During the meeting it was suggested by Mr. Shawana that the entire
Viney/Mitchell/Bryant/Halliday land development should be looked at
holistically, that the waste water treatment plant should be located
in a position to most cost-effectively handle all future wastewater
discharge and that future expandability of the plant be considered in
any design.
Everyone involved in these processes are hoping for a favorable
outcome "when all is said and done." It has long been identified that
Manitoulin Island needs a center to house large groups for
conferences and tour packages. This proposed hotel conference centre
identified, as the "Three Fires Destination Resort Project" will
certainly fit the ticket.
 

Lewis Lake

by Jim Moodie
GREAT CLOCHE ISLAND--Manitoulin isn't the only island in the area
that is pocked with a remarkable number of lakes. Great Cloche
Island, Manitoulin's 45,000-acre cousin to the north, has nine, the
biggest of which is Lewis Lake.
From Highway 6 you see Lewis Lake twice, but the lengthy pause
between glimpses can leave the impression that there are two lakes.
And, in a way, there are: Lewis is sometimes referred to as a "double
lake," for its two distinct halves (each about the same size)
connected by a slim channel. The passage is just wide and deep enough
for one boat to slip through.
Nobody seems to know where the name came from, not even members of
the Lewis clan on Manitoulin. Cliff Fielding, who owns all of Great
Cloche Island, believes the lake used to be called Helen Lake, but he
can't account for the origin of that name either.
But however the lake got its name, most agree that Lewis is a special
spot, an inviting oasis amid the flat rock fields (formations known
as alvars) that surround it. Next to this sparse, level terrain, the
lake seems particularly lustrous and lush: bright green reeds sprout
from its shallows, bushy cedars and white pines fringe its banks, and
fish--quite a few of them--lurk in its depths.
The lake has bass and pike, as well as, a bit surprisingly,
muskellunge. Along with Bass Lake on Manitoulin, it's the only inland
lake in the area to harbour the hefty sportsfish.
Howard Wilkinson, whose family operated a resort on Great Cloche
throughout the 1940s and '50s, recalls reeling in a 22-pound muskie
from Lewis Lake when he was a younger man (he's now 72). And he
recalls another young man, an 18-year-old from Gary, Indiana,
catching one almost twice that weight--a 42-pounder.
Tragically, the young angler died shortly after that memorable catch.
Mr. Wilkinson says the family was involved in a car collision while
returning home to the States.
The Wilkinson resort, named the La Cloche Inn, was located on the
southern edge of the Great Cloche--a chimney is all that remains of
the enterprise--but the family kept boats at Lewis Lake which they
provided to their guests.
While there are no lodges on Great Cloche these days, access to Lewis
Lake is provided at a free campground--the "only free park in
Ontario," so the presently dilapidated sign proclaims--on the
southwest shore of the lake.
It was current Great Cloche owner Mr. Fielding who established the
gratis campground. "We thought people would enjoy it," he explains,
adding, "that sign there is a disgrace; we're working right now on
getting it repainted."
Mr. Fielding bought the island 25 years ago from the widow of Sid
Bird. Before the Birds owned Great Cloche, one half of the island was
owned by Mr. Wilkinson's father, Bill, and the other by an individual
whom everyone called Cap Graham.
"He had been a captain in the army," explains Mr. Wilkinson, adding
that, later in his life, the captain lost both legs due to diabetes.
His wife, meanwhile, lost both eyes, and always wore dark sunglasses
as a result.
"She lived with our family for a couple of years," recalls Mr.
Wilkinson. "She couldn't see, but every Saturday night she had to
watch hockey; she knew every hockey player by name."
Growing up on Great Cloche Island, Mr. Wilkinson spent a lot of time
hunting, fishing and snaring rabbits. When he went to school in
Little Current, he would row a boat across the channel with his
brothers (both now deceased), or take the ferry--the swing bridge, at
that time, didn't yet exist.
The cars backed up to wait for the ferry would extend all the way to
the turn-off to the Wilkinsons' resort, and a few impatient people
presumably ended up being patrons of the lodge as a result.
One resort patron, Slim Golden, would become one of the few people to
ever have a residence on Lewis Lake. "He was a lawyer who lived in
the big house that is now the Shaftesbury Inn (in Little Current),"
says Mr. Wilkinson, "but he also had a cabin at our resort."
At some point, Mr. Golden established a cottage at the narrows on
Lewis Lake. The structure doesn't exist now, but Mr. Golden's
daughter apparently still has an attachment to the location and camps
there occasionally.
There was also an English couple who farmed on the shores of Lewis
Lake for a number of years. Barney Turner, of Turner's of Little
Current, recalls seeing the farmhouse from the train that used to run
between Manitoulin and Espanola.
Mr. Wilkinson remembers this farming couple well. "That was Dick
Bills and his wife," he says. "They were squatters. They came all the
way up from Toronto with a team of horses, and squatted right there
at the narrows. They had 200 head of cattle, chickens, pigs. My dad
and Cap Graham couldn't get them off the land."
Apparently the Bills were tolerated for quite some time, even
becoming friends, of sorts, of the Wilkinsons. Mr. Wilkinson recalls
going over to visit the Bills as a boy, and being amused by the
raggedness of the farm. "There was a hole in the screen door, and a
chicken would follow you right inside."
Mr. Wilkinson's brother was troubled by the disarray, however, and
lived in fear that his family would buy meat or butter from the
Bills. "My mother served us some pork one night, and when my brother
learned it had come from the Bills' farm, he nearly choked," Mr.
Wilkinson recalls with a laugh.
Eventually the Bills moved to the Rowe Settlement, an area west of
Little Current on the edge of the Sucker Creek First Nation.
While there are no homes or cottages on Lewis Lake now, temporary
homes abound in the free campground. A typical summer day will find a
half-dozen trailers and tents clustered here.
Some visitors are regulars, people from Manitoulin or Sudbury who
come to camp and fish, staying days at a time. Others, like Gary
Benoit and Tammy Kouroufexis of Wallaceburg, cyclers stopping here in
the first week of July during a cross-country odyssey, just happen
upon the spot.
Others still come just for the day, launching boats from the public
ramp, and trying their luck for pike or bass or muskie.
Not long ago, another large species could also be found at Lewis
Lake: buffalo. People driving Highway 6 were often surprised to see
one of these beasts staring back at them, and no doubt a few boaters
on Lewis Lake were startled as well.
"We've tried a lot of things here," says Mr. Fielding, who introduced
the buffalo, and had a dozen roaming Great Cloche at one time. "But
the buffalo didn't work. They got cranky and I got scared of them."
The last buffalo to call Great Cloche his home, "Buffy," ended up
going to a zoo in Elmvale about five years ago. "We didn't want to
just slaughter him," says Mr. Fielding.
But if the buffalo experiment failed, hopefully some of the species
native to the area will continue to flourish. Once heavily hunted,
Great Cloche, under Mr. Fielding's tenure, has been maintained as a
wildlife preserve, and deer and other animals have free reign. Fish
are caught in Lewis Lake, but it doesn't seem to be close to being
fished out.
Meanwhile, there is the flat rock surrounding the lake, which might
look initially desolate but is, in fact, a valuable habitat for rare
wildflowers and other unique, hardy plants. The term "alvar," a
Swedish word, is used to describe this sort of flat rock ecosystem.
It's a phenomenon rare the world over, but there is an unusual
abundance of alvars on Manitoulin and Great Cloche.
Indeed, Great Cloche (along with neighbouring Little La Cloche
Island) has "the largest grassland alvars in North America," notes
local botanist Judith Jones in a guidebook titled "Manitoulin's Flat
Rock Country."
So if you're visiting Lewis Lake to fish or camp or paddle a canoe,
by all means enjoy the water and wooded shores, as well as the
bargain, but spare a thought for the spare country surrounding the
lake too.
A letter writer to this paper once wittily described Great Cloche as
"tree-less and fee-less," but that description doesn't really do it
justice.
Yes, you can camp for free here. But the shores of Lewis Lake are
thick with trees. And the surrounding alvars, while superficially
barren, are actually abounding in unique species and rare enough
globally to be considered an endangered ecosystem. They are, indeed,
invaluable.