The Rural Municipality of West River is getting some federal funding under the safe restart agreement.
The municipality is eligible for $63,113, although council had applied for $93,500.
The funding model is a joint effort of the federal and provincial governments geared to assist municipalities with additional costs attributable to COVID-19.
Council applied for funding for the development of an official plan and bylaw for the municipality. It hopes to receive confirmation by January and intends to have the process complete by November 2022.
The municipality has recently signed contracts with Innovation P.E.I. and the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA) to administer a multi-party agreement to enable three-phase power to be extended to the Nine Mile Creek Wharf.
Meanwhile, council recently appointed its first committees.
Planning board is chaired by Coun. Sharon Slauenwhite with members Deputy Mayor Bob Clow and Coun. John Yeo. Coun. Stephen Gould chairs the finance committee, which includes councillors Sabrina Loughran and John Yeo.
Councillors Shaun MacArthur and Aaron MacEachern join chairman Coun. Chad Stretch on the properties committee. Coun. Shaun MacArthur chairs the emergency measure committee with councillors Pam Baglole and Lori Ashley. Mayor Helen Smith-MacPhail is a member of all the committees, as per the Municipal Government Act.
Ashley will represent council on the Bonshaw Community Centre board while MacEachern sits on the Afton Hall Board.
The competition for a permanent chief administrative officer is currently underway with council intending to confirm the hiring this month.
Council intends to give first reading to as many as 10 bylaws at the December meeting.
Drafts of these bylaws will be posted on the municipality’s website in advance of the meeting. Currently, the municipality is operating under the mandatory bylaws adopted by the Rural Municipality of Bonshaw.
Council expects to sign a transitional funding agreement, designed to address costs of restructuring, with the province in the near future.
Dave Stewart is the municipal reporter for The Guardian.
