A lighter than usual agenda was dominated by the proposed new library during the Region of Queens last council meeting.

As previously reported here, council voted to rescind their approval to build a new library at a site in Queens Crossing.

They’ve asked for studies to determine the cost to instead build either directly beside or attached to Queens Place Emera Centre.

The March 14 meeting began with a presentation from Queens Care Building Society updating their progress on the new long-term care home to be built at Queens Crossing.

The group is currently awaiting design approval before they can formally buy the land from Region of Queens.

Next council gave second reading to a Tax Exemption bylaw to support some non-profit organizations by allowing them to forgo paying their municipal property taxes.

Council passed the motion to give up $241,000 in revenue for the Region of Queens.

They also approved the naming of a new road off Shore Road in Western Head as Serenity Now Lane.

Council then rescinded library approval before awarding a community grant of $2,800 to this station, QCCR to update some broadcasting equipment.

Approval was granted to conduct an HVAC investigation at the Town Hall Arts and Cultural Centre.

Council agreed to provide $10,975 to DUMAC Energy to complete a comprehensive heating, ventilation, and air conditioning assessment to determine the needs and find solutions to the heating and cooling systems in the building which houses the Astor Theatre.

During the discussion portion of the meeting council talked about creating a tiered support system for low-income property tax relief.

Anyone with an annual household income up to $20,000 will receive $400 in relief, from there up to $25,000 will get $350 and between $25,000 and $30,000 will enjoy $300 in property tax relief.

Council will vote on that proposal in an upcoming meeting.

Added discussion items included how to reduce the amount the Region’s fire services are paying for insurance.

Council decided they will go with a lower cost insurance provider and pay the higher deductible for any of the five departments as there have been very few claims.

The next council meeting will be held Tuesday March 28 in council chambers beginning at 6:00pm.

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Photo Ed Halverson

The sale of 11 acres of municipal land was the highlight of Tuesday’s Region of Queens council meeting.

The only session in August started with a presentation from the Queens Care Building Society providing an overview of the proposed new long-term care home set to replace Queens Manor and Hillsview Acres.

The four members representing the society highlighted the programs the new facility will provide along with one and two-storey options for construction of the new 112-bed structure.

The society’s request to secure municipal land adjacent to Queens Place and the Best Western hotel was granted during the in-camera portion of the meeting when council agreed to sell 11 acres for roughly $960,000.

Some long-standing items that had previously come before council were also approved.

Region staff will get to work crafting a bylaw to allow Queens to collect road levies on behalf of non-profit associations.

Mayor Darlene Norman says staff has assured council they have the capacity to take on the added responsibility using existing resources.

“It only seems right and proper that we help them where we can,” said Norman. “For example, we do not put streetlights on their roads. We do not have personal garbage collection at their doorsteps. So, if we can, as a council, help them improve their roads, then it is the right thing for us to do.”

Council also agreed to a request from the South Shore Regional Hospital Foundation to provide $100,000 for their Brighter Days Capital Campaign.

The money will be the Region’s one-time contribution towards the $115 million redevelopment at the area’s regional hospital which will expand the size of the emergency room and surgical areas, add new dialysis chairs, MRI suite and CT-scanner among other upgrades.

The vote was not unanimous as some councillors argued with the ongoing doctor shortage and frequent ER closures, council should be supporting Queens General first.

Norman says South Shore Regional is just as much Queens’ hospital as Queens General.

“We could give a million dollars to our hospital, and it is not going to help our ER situation at this point in time. Our foundation, the Queens Hospital Foundation, have encouraged us to provide this money to South Shore Regional,” said Norman.

Council also decided to pay between $50,000 and $60,000 to build an accessible ramp at the Town Hall Arts and Cultural Centre.

The new ramp will be located between the centre and the neighbouring RBC building to provide access from the parking lot into the Astor Theatre lobby.

Council then heard the Region took in just over $300,000 from the sale of 23 properties at the July 18 tax sale.

Approximately $48,000 will go to paying off outstanding debt with the remaining $250,000 or so, being put in the Tax Sale Surplus Reserve Account where previous owners have up to 20 years to claim the proceeds from the sale.

The first quarter financial review indicated the Region will be paying an additional $150,000 for garbage collection this year to cover the increase in fuel costs.

The original estimate was negotiated based on a cost of 89.64 cents per litre and in the past few months, the price of fuel has routinely been a dollar or more per litre above that.

Council was also made aware of human resource changes to the Region’s employee handbook to make the policies more inclusive and in keeping with 2022 standards.

Some of the policies hadn’t been updated in 20 years.

And the planning and development department is looking to increase the fees for some services to better reflect the cost of providing permitting and development amendments.

Council then moved in camera and approved the sale of the lot for the new long-term care facility as well as a piece of property in Milton for a multi-unit housing development.

Council will not meet again until the second Tuesday in September.

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The preferred option for the new long-term care facility coming to Queens Place. Credit: Queens Care Building Society submission to Region of Queens Council

The Chair of the Queens Care Building Society says now that a site has been secured, they can close in on a final design for the new Queens long-term care facility.

Christopher Clark was reacting to Tuesday’s decision by Region of Queens council to sell the society 11 acres of land at Queens Place.

Clark says the province has outlined an 11-step process for building long-term care facilities and moving into the design phase puts them at step 3.

“As we complete each step it’s submitted to government for approval to make sure that we’re meeting their standards, not going overboard with spending money and so on,” said Clark. “By the time we get to step five, complete step five, the government will approve the whole thing and we can start construction.”

Clark says at this point in the process the group envisions the 112-bed facility will be situated on one level next to the Best Western with the entrance to the building facing Queens Place Emera centre.

He would like to see a park that is accessible to both residents and the public created at the front of the building and points out the new facility will tie into the existing resources people already enjoy on the site.

“The walking trail that goes around Queens Place, which is sacred land, really, won’t be affected,” said Clark. “In fact, it will become a real asset to the facility because it’s surfaced with crusher dust, so easier to push a wheelchair on and so people will be out there exercising or being taken around the trail.”

Clark is quick to note they have a team of architects and builders who are very experienced at designing long-term care facilities that integrate into the surrounding community, and the fine details of the plan will be worked out over the coming months.

He says no matter what the final design looks like, the experience for residents at the new facility will be far superior to the existing Queens Manor and Hillsview Acres.

Putting aside the obvious health benefits to residents, Clark says a new long-term care facility will also be a major economic driver for Queens.

“The economics are huge. Construction, the jobs, looking after people. You know, we have 103 people working at the Manor now, Hillsview Acres has, I think about 13. But with a new facility with 112 individual rooms, we’re going to need a much greater staff. So, there will be a lot of jobs and a lot of money being spent in the community.”

Clark expects the design work should be complete by early 2023 and is optimistic the new facility could be opening its doors by Labour Day 2025.

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Future site of Queens long-term care facility. Photo Ed Halverson

Queens new long term care facility has found a home at Queens Place.

During Tuesday’s meeting, Region of Queens council voted to sell 11 acres of land adjacent to Highway 103 and the Best Western to the Queens Care Building Society.

Over the course of an hour, members of the society outlined plans for the new provincially funded, 112 bed facility.

The society stressed the need to secure land to keep the process moving on a timeline that will see a replacement for Queens Manor and Hillsview Acres in place before Labour Day of 2025.

Region of Queens Mayor Darlene Norman was enthusiastic in praising her fellow councillors for their unity on this project.

“I am so proud of the council of the Region of Queens who were unanimous in this decision,” said Norman.

The mayor says the 479,000 square feet of land will be sold at $2 a square foot, with the Region receiving somewhere in the neighbourhood of $960,000 with the money being reinvested into the development of the new site.

“That million dollars will be for infrastructure and improvements to all the lands at Queens Crossing,” said Norman.

The preferred option for the new long-term care facility coming to Queens Place. Credit: Queens Care Building Society submission to Region of Queens Council

The land around Queens Place Emera Centre has been tied to a couple of high-profile projects in recent months.

The site was the unanimous choice of the library steering committee to replace the Thomas Raddall Library before the idea was rejected by council.

The Queens Community Aquatic Society is also looking at the location to build a new pool, and construction of the new universally designed play park is currently underway.

Norman says residents of Queens will see the benefit of selling the land and securing the site for the new long-term care facility for years to come.

“And all of those things need infrastructure and money because they will belong to the Region,” said Norman. “This is a good start at developing the infrastructure for other future projects.”

Norman says building the new long-term care facility next to Queens Place means residents will be integrated into the community in which they live.

And while the province is footing the bill for the facility, the Region will continue to offer whatever technical and administrative help the Queens Care Building Society may need to see this project through to completion.

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