Council briefs: Council lends support to battery bank application
Council has given its support to Compass Greenfield Development for its IESO Long-Term 2 (LT2) Capacity procurement application for a Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) in Stayner.
Compass Greenfield Development is seeking approval for an 18-MWac system at 219 Industrial Road that will store energy to be sold into the grid during peak consumption.
Compass Greenfield Development is hoping to construct the battery bank on leased land at 219 Industrial Road, which is zoned general industrial. The proponent requires council support for the IESO’s request for proposal bid submission date for capacity due Dec. 18.
The project has been the subject of two public meetings and delegations to council.
Council wages to increase
Council has approved a pay raise for elected officials that will come into effect after the municipal election in 2026.
Based on a recommendation from Marianne Love, of ML Consulting, who conducted a Remuneration Review, council has voted to increase the pay in order to keep up with its 13 comparators. When compared with other municipalities of similar size and location it was found that the mayor is paid 7.0 per cent below the 60th percentile, while the deputy mayor is paid 7.1 per cent below and councillors are paid 0.3 per cent below.
“The results do not present a surprise to me and I think they’re nominal in terms of the gaps,” said Love. “This review produced reasonable and defensible result.”
As a result the base pay rates will increase from $47,719 to $51,037 for the mayor, $33,414 to $35,793 for the deputy mayor and $28,837 to $28,931 for council members, plus a three per cent cost of living increase effective Nov. 15, 2026.
Council members will also see an increase in mileage reimbursement to the current CRA rate of $0.66/km.
Duntroon lots approved
Council has granted draft plan approval for the creation of six rural residential lots for single detached dwellings in Duntroon.
The development, named Meliora Terra (above), is 16.8 acres in size and has about 140 metres of frontage on County Road 91 as well as 340 metres of frontage onto an unopened portion of Sydenham Trail East, a municipal right-of-way.
In accordance with the legislative changes established via the implementation of Bill 23, the More Homes Built Faster Act, 2022, a public meeting for the Draft Plan of Subdivision is not required.
County bursary awarded
Hannah Bloemendal is the Clearview Township recipient of this year’s County of Simcoe Bursary.
This fall she is enrolled in the Bachelor of Engineering, Biomedical and Mechanical, co-operative education program at Carleton University.
Each year, in partnership with members municipalities, the county awards 22 bursaries worth $3,000 each, available to County of Simcoe students attending a post-secondary institution in Canada. One bursary is guaranteed for a resident of each of the County of Simcoe’s 16 member municipalities and the City of Orillia.
