MONTAGUE - The Town of Montague appears to be gearing up for a battle.
The town has recently hired legal counsel while preparing to fight its inclusion in the Three Rivers amalgamation proposal, with mediation on the issue set to begin soon.
During a committee of council meeting Monday night, a correspondence sent from the town to IRAC in April was released, describing the town’s concerns about its inclusion in the proposal, which it says is “a travesty and a betrayal” by Communities Minister Richard Brown.
Montague is the largest municipality in the proposed Three Rivers municipality, which also includes Georgetown, Cardigan, Lower Montague, Valleyfield, Brudenell, Lorne Valley and unincorporated areas of three fire districts.
Council charges that Brown advised members of the Three Rivers steering committee to include all the area covered by three fire districts in the application to IRAC.
“The careful messaging of the last number of years, that the proposal and application were a community-driven effort, was destroyed when the minister not only told some community representatives to ignore the decisions of other communities, but also gave direction on the content of the resulting application,” states the letter, which was signed by all members of Montague council.
“It is a travesty and a betrayal that Montague is still included in the proposal after opting out.”
The correspondence notes the town rejected a motion to participate in amalgamation by a 3-2 vote in February.
“That was a statement by the town that it did not intend any further involvement in the process,” stated the letter.
In late May, IRAC appointed Frank Gillan to act as a meditator on the proposal. Mediation must begin with 30 days of the appointment, and a report must be filed to the Island Regulatory and Appeals Commission no later than 60 days after the commencement of mediation.
IRAC will then make a determination on the application.
Council also previously filed a formal objection to the application, stating it violates P.E.I.’s Municipal Governance Act and Interpretation Act.
The objection also states the application is incomplete and does not “appreciate or address the myriad issues which must be dealt with to effectively implement a change of this magnitude.”
The Town of Georgetown has also filed an objection with similar concerns. Georgetown’s objection also describes the proposal as discriminatory since “no explanation was given as to why Georgetown residents would be required to pay the highest residential tax of any urban or rural area.”
Other opposition has included a protest at Province House and a petition sent to IRAC with more than 1,500 signatures.
