Lake Waseosa Ratepayers' Association

LAKE WASEOSA RATEPAYERS ASSOCIATION

ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

Saturday, July 7, 2007 10:00AM     Location:       844 N. Waseosa Lk. Rd.

Attendance:            Pres. Bruce Howlett, Secretary, Bill Somers, Treas. Richard Harris, Directors Sandy Sebastian and Dwayne Verhey.  Director Guy Lamontagne resigned and did not attend.

Guest:  District Councillor, Brian Thompson

              Jan Thomas, Canadian Diabetic Association, Camp Huronda.

Membership at Large:            41

Welcome:  President Howlett opened the meeting, welcoming all in attendance.  He then commented on some of the projects the Board of Directors worked on over the past year e.g. the updating of the constitution and by-laws, the LWRA brochure and the website to name a few.  

Voting procedure: President described the voting procedure stating that in the past, membership fees went from AGM to AGM.  As our fiscal year is from Jan to Dec, it was decided that the membership fee should coincide.  Any member who paid their dues for 2006 and 2007 are eligible to vote at this AGM and should have received a green card at registration.  In subsequent years, the membership fee will have to be paid by the AGM in order to vote at the AGM.  Any new member has to be approved by the Board of Directors.  That has never been done in the past.

New Residents:   Paul and Monica Rhodes of 671 N. Waseosa Lk Rd, Palette Lake were introduced to the members.                       

Minutes:   The minutes of the 2006 AGM were read by the Secretary and confirmed on motion by Tony Doob and seconded by Cam White.

Treasurer's Report:          Copies of the financial statement for the fiscal year were distributed to the members.  Treasurer Harris reports a bank balance of  $3,073.00 down $658.00 since January 2007 due in part to Liability and Director and Officer insurance.  A vote of thanks was given to the Treasurer for his efforts in coordinating the fiscal year with the membership fee change.

On motion by Tony Doob and seconded by Brian Thompson, the Treasurer’s report was approved.

Septic System Update:   On July, 2006, President Howlett contacted Mike Gooch, Building Inspector with the Town of Huntsville regarding the previously conducted septic inspections.  He learned that of 179 properties inspected around our four lakes, 7 properties showed deficiencies and 29 properties were required to provide additional information.   Most of the seven properties have corrected their deficiencies.  Many of the 29 properties that required producing additional information have failed to do so.  He did not break down their numbers into the different lakes stating he was short of staff.

A couple of weeks ago I again contacted Gooch.  He hoped that all the inspections would be completed by the winter of 2007.  Now because of the numbers, he feels it will not be completed before the end of 2008 and with re-inspections probably 2009.  According to Gooch, if you have a concern about a certain septic system, contact Gooch at the Town of Huntsville.  They will cause an investigation.  If the concern is founded, the property owner will be required to correct the problem.  If he doesn’t, then the Town will intervene and see that it is corrected.  Cam White voiced a concern that any complaint should be funneled through the association, utilizing a stronger voice.  President Howlett was asked what our Councillor is doing for us in this situation.  President Howlett responded saying that if the Councillor was not aware of a complaint, he would have no knowledge of it.  If a complaint is made to Town staff, the Councillor should be apprised of it.  He can then deal with it on your behalf.

President Howlett agreed to research the complaint procedure with the Town to see if the LWRA could be the complainant.

Benthos 2007:  The LWRA conducted its fourth Benthos testing on Lake Waseosa.  We are recording statistics to see if a trend is developing – whether or not the quality of our water is deteriorating.  Regular Secchi disk and temperature testing is being done by Dwayne Verhey on the north end of Waseosa while Cam White is testing the south end.  Bill Somers is testing Palette Lake while Marjorie Bower-Patterson is testing Ripple Lake.

LWRA Cottageware:  The LWRA is no longer taking orders for the logoed cottageware.  If anyone requires a logoed item, simply visit Noveltymann at 1448 Muskoka Road 3 North.  He will charge you the price of the item plus $4.00 to sew on the logo.  He has a number of quality items to chose from.

Speed Signs:  Two 10 km/h speed signs were place at either end of the narrows at the north end of Lake Waseosa.  They have since disappeared.  Following a short discussion, a motion by Barney dales to replace them was defeated by the membership.

Jessop Lake Levels:    The watercourse between Jessop Lake and Lake Waseosa has become a problem for some residents of Jessop Lake.  As this waterway is not navigable, the waterway is controlled by the property owner.  Restricting the amount of water leaving Jessop Lake raises its level thereby causing concern for some of the residents.

President Howlett spent considerable time dealing with the parties involved and the MNR.  He was successful in obtaining an application for altering the water level of a lake from the MNR and has notified the involved parties.  When all is said and done, this could end up costing$15 - $20,000.00.  No further action is contemplated at this time.

Pieper Update:  Tony Doob reviewed the Pieper application/OMB hearing for the membership, explaining the steps taken to reach the OMB’s decision.  He then went on to explain the events leading up to the OMB’s decision to conduct a review of its decision.  This review is scheduled for 10:30AM, Friday, August 10, 2007 at the Town Council Chambers.  Tony emphasized the need for the membership to get out and support the LWRA Board at this review.

New Business:  The Board of Directors has reviewed the constitution and bylaws, which were created in 1963.  At that time it was created for the members of Lake Waseosa and has since included the residents of Jessop, Palette and Ripple Lakes.  The constitution is to be amended to include the other lakes.  There are also a number of terminology and grammatical corrections/changes to be made.

On motion by Barney Dales and seconded by Tony Doob, amending the constitution and bylaws as presented was approved.

Buoys:  The Huntsville Lakes Council is investigating the feasibility of having navigational buoys fabricated by a local firm, PipeFusion.  The LWRA was asked to be included with the area lakes requiring buoys.  PipeFusion will create two prototype buoys for the HLC at no cost, to be place at the Vernon Narrows and at Camp Kitchen just before Fairy Lake.  If the prototypes are successful, the Board will consider purchasing the required number of buoys for Lake Waseosa.

Motion by Barney Dales and seconded by Tony Doob that the Board investigates the cost of insurance to install the existing LWRA buoys.  Carried.

Private Road Insurance:  Bill Somers has contacted the Federation of Ontario Cottagers Association and its insurance broker, Atrens-Council Insurance Brokers Inc. regarding insurance for private roads.  He learned that by being a member of the LWRA who is a member of FOCA, residents of a private road would be eligible for the reduced insurance premium.  Atren-Council quotes a fee of $450.00 for $2,000,000.00 of insurance or $525.00 for $3,000,000.00 insurance.  If any road group is interested, please contact the Board.

Green Products:  Bill Somers contacted a local manufacture of environmentally responsible products mainly for commercial use.  Lord and Partners located at

9-741Muskoka Road 3 North in Huntsville, is prepared to sell his products to the public in smaller quantities.  Bill will attempt to obtain a catalogue of products Lord and Partners will sell to the public.

Website:  Dwayne Verhey updated the membership on LWRA’s existing website, crediting Sandy and Terry Sebastian on the fine graphics and explaining that initially he wanted the website to be an interactive site.  Following a short discussion a vote was taken resulting in 16 voting for an interactive site and 3 against.  Dwayne will adjust the website so that the members can post comments and/or concerns.

Lake Character Survey:  Dwayne talked to the membership regarding a survey for the character of a lake referring to a number of examples to consider.  Dwayne was hoping that the Lake Plan Review Committee would consider creating a questionnaire to assist the LWRA in identifying Lake Character.

Neighbourhood Watch:  Over the last year a number of complaints of break-ins and theft have been reported particularly around the west side of the lake.  Consideration should be given to organizing a neighbourhood watch program.  There are a number of things neighbours can do to help each other and themselves against thefts.  Most importantly, look out for you neighbour.

HLC and FOCA Dues:  The annual fee for the Huntsville Lakes Council is $25.00.  The annual fee for FOCA is $324.00 based in part on last years reported membership.

Missing Trophy:  President Howlett informed the membership that a swim trophy valued at $75.00 is missing.  He wondered if any of the membership would care sponsor a new trophy.  Jim and Marnie Edwards agreed to sponsor the trophy.

Camp Huronda:  Jan Thomas, Manager of Camp Huronda, a camp for children with Type 1 diabetes, made a presentation to the membership regarding proposed changes to Camp Huronda.

Presenting an architectural drawing for all to view, Jan presented her overview of the proposed expansion.  So far tens of thousands of dollars have been spent on upgrades and environmental reports.  Presently the camp has 9 septic systems, all of which are functioning properly.  Their planner is Wayne Simpson and Associates of Huntsville.  The architect is Ross Duncan and the engineer is Kip Huggins, both of Huntsville.

Jan states that the Camp is not in a position to apply for a permit as funding has yet to be secured.

Election of Directors:  Bill Somers, Guy Lamontagne and Sandy Sebastian resigned from the Board requiring 3 Directors to fill the Board.

Nominations:  Donna Haley nominated Tony Doob

                          Bill Somers nominated Cam White

                          Barney Dale nominated Sandy Sebastian

On being asked by the President if they accepted the nomination, each replied affirmative.

Motion to Adjourn:  At 11:57AM by Dwayne Verhey

Prepared by:  Bill Somers, Secretary.                              July 7, 2007