[4:15] [music]

[4:21] Oh, [music]

[4:26] our home [singing] and ned >> [music]

[4:31] » True love [singing]

[4:36] in all of us [music]

[4:41] with [singing] glory hearts [music] we see

[4:46] the children [singing] and free

[4:52] from [music]

[4:55] Canada [music] we and unorder. [singing]

[5:03] [music and singing]

[5:09] Glorious and [music] free. [singing]

[5:14] Oh, [music]

[5:18] we stand on [singing] God [music] for thee.

[5:25] Oh [music and singing] Canada,

[5:29] we stand on God [singing and music] for

[5:35] the

[5:43] » We have regrets today from councelor Utton who's not feeling well. Any

[5:48] declaration of pecunary interest? Seeing none, item 4.1, which is

[5:54] confirmation of minutes. Moved by councelor Reed, second by

[5:58] councelor Martin, that the minutes of the township of Mapleton council meeting

[6:01] held on May 12th, 2026 be confirmed as circulated in the agenda. Any comments,

[6:06] questions? All in favor? It's carried.

[6:15] Matters arising from the minutes. Mr. Clerk.

[6:19] » Thank you, sir. Just a note, quick note of apology to those people who struggled

[6:23] with their downloading their agenda. We are with I Compass good company and

[6:29] we're lucky to be with them. But uh in this place it was the worst kind of

[6:32] problem which is random. So we checked around um mostly it was working. I

[6:38] checked here, I checked at home and it was working. But uh and Carl checked for

[6:42] me too. It wasn't internal and the answer was just to republish the agenda.

[6:46] So those who struggled, just let me know as quick as you can and we'll get it

[6:49] fixed up. Thanks. >> Thank you, Mr. Clerk. We don't have any

[6:55] matters rising under the planning act delegations and

[7:00] uh we have here we have Konosoga Crest Seniors living and with us today we have

[7:06] chairperson Keith Macintosh. Um Keith, we are here to talk about your project.

[7:11] You want to give just a little bit of an overview? Your pictures are up on the

[7:14] board. >> Okay. Thanks very much.

[7:16] » Just hit the button there, Keith.

[7:22] » The lights on. It's on. Thank you. Thanks, Mayor uh Davidson, and thanks so

[7:26] much for uh for welcoming us here today. I've got uh my fellow uh board of

[7:31] directors and uh David McCauley and and Grace Slott with me who are all part of

[7:36] this project. We've been in uh we've been providing seniors care in one form

[7:40] or another in uh in Mapleton or Drayton. Drayton initially, but then Mapleton

[7:45] since 1983. Uh we're a proven operator. We've got 32

[7:49] units uh uh now which are in very very high demand. In fact, uh we can't meet

[7:54] the demand and so often uh people uh don't leave their name on the waiting

[7:59] list because it's too much of a demand. But uh we're looking at building a new

[8:03] 40 unit on three-story facility here. As you can see in the uh in the rendering,

[8:08] uh a combination of uh two-bedroom, onebedroom, and uh and studio suites. We

[8:14] think it'll be a great uh addition to the uh it'll be a great addition to the

[8:18] community. Uh we uh as as far as seniors care goes, uh I think it allows uh

[8:25] within Mapleton to age in place, which is what our vision was when we first uh

[8:30] first came up with the idea. Certainly thanks to uh Mapleton Council and and

[8:34] and Wellington County, none of this would have been available. Uh Mayor

[8:38] Davidson, you and I have spoken for some time about this and and certainly the

[8:43] monies that have now been made available are going to be made available are are

[8:47] are an enabler to make this happen. Uh, I can't tell uh the group uh how happy

[8:53] we are with the leadership and support we got from yourself, council uh CEO uh

[8:59] um Manny Baron and uh uh uh chief of uh director of finance Patrick Kelly. It

[9:06] was just an absolute pleasure to move through to where we are today. Uh we uh

[9:11] we are presently working on uh with architects and engineering firms etc. to

[9:17] get all of the upfront work done. We're getting very close to that. We're

[9:20] getting very close to selecting an architect. Uh done select. We've

[9:25] selected an architect. So, uh so it's uh it's an exciting project. Uh certainly

[9:31] we're going to continue to need the support of uh the uh of our federal

[9:36] government, the Canadian government, and our provincial government to realize uh

[9:39] this project. Uh the monies we're getting from uh Mapleton are are

[9:44] certainly instrumental. the monies that we're going to raise ourselves with the

[9:48] support of the local community are key, but certainly we're looking to uh to

[9:52] Build Canada, which is a federal program to help us with a large share of the

[9:57] monies that we're going to need. So again, on behalf of uh a Konosto Crest

[10:02] board of directors, I'd like to thank Mapleton Township and uh and Wellington

[10:06] County for your support. we've got an opportunity to really do something in

[10:11] this in these communities that's going to serve it for the next 50 to 75 years

[10:16] and I think that's exciting. Thanks very much. Thank you Keith. And as you

[10:20] alluded to, Welton County Council approved the community housing

[10:23] development fund policy back in May of 2025 based on the funds previously

[10:27] raised for the continuum of care project. And the goal is to develop uh

[10:32] development of housing to address availability gap between low and market

[10:36] housing and subsidized housing. Speak a little bit more about that. We have

[10:39] warden of the county Chris White. Chris,

[10:49] » thanks. Thanks, Craig. Yeah, I guess I I'm sure you're all well aware of the

[10:53] housing scenario we've got in the county and throughout. And so we ended up with

[10:57] $7 million out of the continuum of care. We weren't sure what to do with it. We

[11:00] could have just returned it to social services for regular housing, but we

[11:04] thought with each of the townships trying to struggle and come up with some

[11:06] innovative ways to come up with some housing, we just thought give everybody

[11:10] a million bucks. It's seed money. I mean, what's a million bucks? Get you a

[11:13] set of stairs. But I mean, so we're doing that locally. We're doing um some

[11:18] seniors and there's a big big demand for that. And each of the townships are

[11:21] coming up with little innovative ways. We're trying to be as flexible as

[11:24] possible to make sure that this money can get out the door and and bring some

[11:27] housing in. So great project you guys have brought forward. The thing looks

[11:30] fantastic. Greg, you've been working hard on this and so we're really pleased

[11:34] to have this money find a home. Um because there are tight deadlines and um

[11:38] so if you can get the money and get housing built then I think we're we're

[11:41] ahead of the curve. So I just want to thank your council for supporting it and

[11:45] for someone showing up with an idea. That's what we're looking for.

[11:48] » Great. Thanks Warden. Council, I do have the resolution moved by councelor

[11:53] Martin, second by councelor Reid, the township of Mapleton Council receive for

[11:56] information the delegation of Knosoga Crest Seniors Living uh Chairperson

[12:01] Keith Mintosh regarding the recognition and presentation of the Township of

[12:04] Mapleton's contribution of $1 million with the first installment being

[12:08] $500,000. Any questions from council members or comments from council members

[12:13] on this project? All in favor? Now I invite Thank you.

[12:18] That's carried. I invite uh members of um of Konosoga Crest as well as the

[12:24] warden and and we have here Earl Campbell who was our county counselor

[12:28] come to the front and we take a photo big check

[12:45] where they

[12:58] We're going to squeeze in a little bit here.

[13:07] » Right side up. Everyone Everyone else got to squeeze in.

[13:14] » Squeeze in. >> Squeeze in.

[13:16] » Got to get closer.

[13:31] Thank you very much.

[13:46] Thank you. >> Thanks very much.

[14:12] All right. It's great to see that that project and wow,

[14:20] there's a lot of work goes behind the scenes to get these projects off the

[14:25] ground. And I know the council of Crest and their board of directors have done a

[14:29] lot of work behind the scenes to get it to a point where they had this concept

[14:34] drawing. And I can remember um Keith asking me to come and and have a chat

[14:39] with him about what they would like to do. And that was a couple years back.

[14:43] And when this opportunity came around for the million dollars,

[14:47] um we kicked the can around here about who it was going to go to. And and um

[14:53] then I I contacted Manny. I said, "Manny, what about this project?" And uh

[14:58] he goes, "Hey, that will really work out well." So, we contacted Keith and had a

[15:02] great conversation with Keith and what started out to be 20 units is now 40

[15:06] units more, which is fantastic for the community. And it's all because of this

[15:10] $1 million uh from the county of Wellington's program that was provided

[15:14] to the township so that we could actually do something in our community

[15:19] for seniors. So, I think this is fantastic. Thank you everyone.

[15:26] Moving along,

[15:32] we now have uh Mapleton Historical Society here. I got Karen Smart here.

[15:40] So Karen, just come up to the podium and uh whoever's here with you, come up to

[15:44] the podium. >> Thank you.

[15:46] » Yeah, I would just like to introduce you to Abby Cooper here who will be speaking

[15:50] first.

[15:54] Good evening, Mayor Davidson and council members. Thank you for the opportunity

[15:58] to speak with you today. My name is Abby Cooper. I'm the executive director of

[16:02] Hearts Open for Everyone Hope. Uh, and I'm here to alongside our committee

[16:07] members Karen Smart, who you already know uh, from the Mapleton Historical

[16:12] Society, and Denise Dickisen, who's also part of Hope, to share a project that is

[16:17] putting our region on the map, and that is the Queens Bush Settlement Mural

[16:22] Project. [clears throat] This is a story of endurance,

[16:26] collaboration, and a history that's literally under our feet here in the

[16:30] Township of Mapleton. Karen's up next.

[16:38] » So, um, a lot of this I hope will be old hat to you, but, uh, in case not, we're

[16:43] going to fill you in on some background here. Um, to understand this project, we

[16:50] have to look back to the late 1830s. At that time, this area was known as the

[16:54] Queen's Bush. Was a vast un unorganized territory. Yet a thriving community of

[17:01] 2,000 black pioneers, many seeking freedom and a p and a place to belong,

[17:06] carved out a life in the wilderness here. They weren't just passing through.

[17:11] They were people of deep conviction, grit, and service. And many arrived

[17:15] having served during the McKenzie Rebellion and the 1838 border

[17:19] incursions, looking to establish permanent multigenerational roots. While

[17:24] the settlement eventually spanned modern m municipal boundaries, Mapleton and

[17:30] specifically historic Peele ca became the most significant part of this with

[17:35] clearings, homesteads, and resilient families. The photograph shown here on

[17:41] the presentation slide, this is an incredibly popular photograph because

[17:46] there are so few of the Queens Bush people. This one was taken in 18 in 1920

[17:52] in this township. shows Edward Hissen, his wife Mabel Lawson with their four

[17:57] daughters, Elsie, Annabelle, Ada, and that's baby Alice in her grandmother

[18:02] Maryanne Lawson's arms. Mabel and Edward built this family home along Sailing

[18:08] Club Road, which of course at that time did not exist in 1912. Edward passed

[18:14] away in 1949, but the house remained Mabel's home for 62 years until her

[18:20] death in 1974. Edward Maple and Mabel and their sons

[18:25] are buried right here in Glenn Allen Cemetery.

[18:29] So why Mapleton?

[18:34] Because this is our distinct history. If you speak with elders of the community

[18:39] today and ask what they recall of the historic black presence here, the very

[18:44] first name that you're going to hear is Normmy Hen.

[18:48] Norman was Babel and Edward's son. His great-grandfather, Dangerfield Lawson,

[18:53] came to Queens Bush with his four children in May of 1844 and settled on

[18:58] the seventh concession. When Norman Hiss left Glenn Allen

[19:04] 143 years later, it marked the departure of the very last local direct descendant

[19:10] of Mapleton's Queens Bush Hope pioneers. For many years, the profound history

[19:16] that's been kept alive by dedicated local groups from Mapleton Historical

[19:20] Society. However, it hasn't yet been woven into a shared, highly visible

[19:26] regional legacy. When we look at the origins of Mapleton's farms, we see a

[19:31] story of incredible physical determination. Black pioneers cleared

[19:35] the dense forest and built the first homesteads. and later black and white

[19:40] settlers worked together as neighbors to build the literal foundations of

[19:44] Mapleton today. Black excellence has been a functional part of this township

[19:50] identity for nearly two centuries. Through this mural, we're hoping that we

[19:56] can finally honor a story that's been right here the entire time.

[20:01] Our vision is a large-scale professionally

[20:05] curated mural at Earthscape Play in Wallenstein, located on one of the

[20:11] prominent street facing buildings on line 86. Our advisory committee brings

[20:17] [clears throat] together an incredible wealth of experience that includes

[20:22] representation from, of course, Mapleton Historical Society, as well as Tracy

[20:26] Lee, who's a fifth generation descendant of the original Queensbush pioneers.

[20:32] Working alongside our other black menite and indigenous com committee members,

[20:37] they ensure that every single detail of this project is deeply accurate,

[20:41] collaborative, and rooted in historic truth. We've already secured

[20:46] internationally recognized artist Cal Calcan to lead the design and he has

[20:52] already delivered the second of three collaborative drafts. However, this

[20:57] remains a project created by the community, not just for it. neighbors,

[21:02] residents, and descendants have been coming together at our workshops to

[21:05] share the specific stories, family names, and local symbols that they want

[21:11] to see immortalized in in that wall. We're doing the work to ensure this

[21:16] mural is a permanent, accurate landmark that our entire region can be proud of

[21:21] when we officially reveal it this summer on August the 15th. I'll pass you on to

[21:27] Abby now. That's okay. We changed things out.

[21:33] This project is a major driver of regional tourism. We've already secured

[21:38] the support of R04, Explore Waterl Region, Wellington County, and G tour

[21:43] Tourism because they recognize the high value of historical tourism. To give you

[21:48] an idea of the scale and the emotional pull of this project, we already have

[21:51] descendants from across the United States planning their travel to our

[21:55] region for the reveal event in August. This represents a direct economic

[22:00] benefit to Mapleton's hospitality sector, creating measurable tourism

[22:04] traffic for our independent retailers and local agricultural businesses. To

[22:09] give you a sense of the opportunity, the neighboring Kissing Bridge Trail

[22:13] welcomed 193,000 visitors in 2025, primarily cycle tourists from GE and

[22:20] Toronto seeking local culture, landscape, and history. [clears throat]

[22:24] By placing this mural along line 86, we position Mapleton to capture even a

[22:29] small share of that steady visitor flow, converting pass through traffic into

[22:33] meaningful engagement with your community and giving those travelers a

[22:37] compelling reason to stop, reflect, and spend time in Mapleton.

[22:43] Earthscape has proactively set up the space specifically for visitors,

[22:48] including dedicated parking spaces and a thinking bench for reflection. There

[22:53] will there will be a large interpretive sign with a QR code linking visitors to

[22:57] an interactive map on our website complete with multilingual translation

[23:01] tools and fully accessible fonts. This digital experience will also guide

[23:08] tourists to other sites of interest, local agra businesses and historical

[23:13] landmarks throughout Mapleton and the surrounding area.

[23:24] We're fin we're incredibly proud of the public private partnership driving this

[23:28] vision. Our partner, Earthscape Play, is dedicating $30,000 toward the artist and

[23:36] site infrastructure. And uh the remaining $36,000 of our

[23:41] $66,000 goal covers the critical work managed by hope and the advisory

[23:47] committee, which includes deep dive historical research, extensive community

[23:52] outreach, and a landmark reveal event. This portion also enables us to invest

[23:58] in durable, sustainable engagement tools from a digital driving map to QR linked

[24:04] content and interactive materials that ensure the project continues to educate

[24:09] and inspire long after the mural is unveiled. We've already secured $6,000

[24:15] from our regional tourism partners, including the collaborative funds from

[24:19] Wellington County, and Hope is currently backstopping the remaining costs um with

[24:25] our own internal funds to ensure we stay on schedule for the August reveal. We're

[24:30] seeking support from every local municipality connecting to this history.

[24:35] Mapleton's own municipal cultural plan explicitly identifies artistic and

[24:41] cultural diversity and cultural mapping as foundational pillars for defining our

[24:47] your community's identity and advancing economic development and building civic

[24:52] pride. Our project does exactly that. tangible mapping out of Mapleton's own

[24:59] black pioneer heritage like the Hissen family lineage and transforming it into

[25:04] a shared cultural resource that supports cultural learning, deepens community

[25:11] identity, and strengthens long-term civic capacity for residents and

[25:16] visitors alike. Your cultural plan also states that Mapleton's long-term

[25:21] sustainability relies on regional collaboration. Um because of this

[25:25] project, uh Bridges, Mapleton, Welssley, Willich, and Wellington County

[25:30] supporting us is a direct actionable investment in that mandate. We ask

[25:35] council to consider the local significance of this project when

[25:39] determining discretionary fund allocations for the year. Beyond

[25:43] financial support, in kind contributions such as assistance with local promotion,

[25:47] staff coordination, or historical archiving in partnership with the

[25:51] Mapleton Historical Society would make a tangible difference. To have the

[25:56] Township of Mapleton as an official partner ensures that the stories of your

[26:00] pioneers are told with it with the dignity, reach, and economic impact that

[26:06] it truly deserves. Thank you, and we welcome any questions that you might

[26:11] have. Well, thank you for the presentation.

[26:14] That's uh that's an amazing project coming to this area and uh we know

[26:20] Earthscape is a fantastic organization to work with and uh obviously you guys

[26:25] are very passionate about your project that you're having here and and I think

[26:29] it's great and well we had the plaque stolen,

[26:34] right? So this is this is actually something really really good to to put

[26:38] in place that on a big scale [clears throat] can't be taken away by

[26:44] somebody. So >> congratulations. Fantastic questions,

[26:48] comments. [cough]

[26:54] Just making sure you're okay over there. >> Uh thank you for the uh for the

[26:59] presentation today. I love it when folks come in here and quote our own

[27:02] documents, uh, like our CIP and all that stuff. So, I think that's wonderful. Um,

[27:08] for next steps as far as what Mapleton's contribution, uh, could look like, uh, I

[27:13] know you talk about permitting, promotion, coordination, that type of

[27:17] stuff. Uh, I'm assuming that's something that, uh, that would come through the

[27:20] CEO's office to see what it is we can do. Um and then we could anticipate

[27:27] maybe a report back with something that we could actually look at rather than

[27:30] trying to concoct that all on the spot today. Um but yeah, just thank you. Um

[27:35] like the mayor said, Earthscape has been a wonderful partner on a bunch of

[27:40] different projects locally here in Mapleton and uh you know, we've

[27:44] certainly got nothing but great things to say about them. So the fact that you

[27:48] guys are partnering with them is wonderful, too. So um it looks like an

[27:51] amazing project. >> Thank you. Thank you.

[27:55] » Thank you. Any further? >> That's great. Thank you very much.

[27:59] » Thank you. >> We'll be in touch.

[28:03] » Resolution I have here is moved by councelor Martin, second by councelor

[28:06] Reid that council receive information and delegation of Mapleton Historical

[28:09] Society Representative Karen Smart and from Hope Denise Dickinson. And we have

[28:16] Abby Cooper regarding the strategic partnership

[28:20] Queens Bush Settlement Mural Project and Mapleton Cultural Plan regarding the

[28:24] opportunity for the township of Mapleton to officially join the partnership and

[28:27] provide formal support for this regional landmark partnership. Anything further?

[28:36] » Go ahead. >> Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Can we include or

[28:38] amend that uh for a request for a report back?

[28:42] » Correct. Second for the council Woodm. Thank you. All in favor to the

[28:47] amendment. It's carried. So tag on the line there and the CEO or

[28:55] staff will report back on how we can support this project.

[29:01] Anything further? All in favor? It's carried.

[29:10] » Thank you everyone. >> Thank you.

[29:13] Next we have up 7.3 we have Dorothy Keller. Dorothy, welcome.

[29:24] » We're not in a rush. Take your time. >> I forgot my cane.

[29:32] Sorry. As you know, Greg, I've

[29:38] had my house up for sale. I lost the sale due to my neighbors.

[29:45] Now, I understood that this was going to get

[29:50] cleaned up and

[29:54] the rooster was going to have to go, but it's just the same as it was. I took

[30:01] pictures today that it's the very same. I had the rat guy come into my home

[30:09] again today

[30:13] and there's still rats in there. Now, in all the years I have lived out there, I

[30:19] have never ever had a rat until these people put their chickens

[30:26] and their goats and left their manure there.

[30:31] And even the rat guy says that's where they're coming from.

[30:38] I was offered, somebody else offered me some money for

[30:42] the house. 10 acres of 10.1 acres of land, three bedroomedroom house, and a

[30:48] big workshop garage. $540,000

[30:55] because of the rats.

[31:01] Like, we got to do something. I can't stand another winter out there, Greg.

[31:07] That's why I wanted to get it cleaned up and get my place sold. And I've had a

[31:14] lot of interest, but as soon as they find out about rats,

[31:19] nope. Or they give me a ridiculous low offer. So, I'm asking you, please,

[31:26] can we not clean up this mess? That's going to stink to high heaven come

[31:32] summer.

[31:36] » Thank you, Dorothy. >> Thank you,

[31:46] » Michelle.

[31:59] Michelle, do you have comments for this?

[32:06] » Thank you. Uh, through you, Merrick. The, um, Officer Clemens has sent out

[32:11] notification with a deadline and has followed up on the situation. The

[32:17] deadline is not up yet, but I know that uh Officer Clemens did attend earlier

[32:22] this week, which obviously means yesterday because it's only Tuesday

[32:26] today. And the applicant or the person in question did ask why were we there so

[32:32] much sooner and it was to at least be able to give an update to council that

[32:36] things have progressed. They're not complete. That is absolutely correct,

[32:41] but it is in progress. >> Thank you.

[33:01] So,

[33:04] » so Mrs. McCabe has has answered the question saying that there there is a

[33:07] deadline that was put on by the bile officer. That deadline has not been met

[33:11] yet. So when that that deadline comes up?

[33:15] » Well, do we know when that deadline is? I do

[33:19] not know. We we could actually we can get we can get that information. We can

[33:23] get that information to Dorothy. >> Okay. Well,

[33:28] » sorry, mayor. We we do not divulge >> case information. I mean, I can

[33:34] certainly provide a deadline, but we don't do do followup other than we have

[33:40] been out. It has been documented, letters have been been sent and we just

[33:45] have to give them their their time. And like I said, we did go out so that we

[33:48] could give an update here to council as well as to to for Dorothy for you to now

[33:55] relay that to her. >> No, no, you can absolutely absolutely

[33:59] tell her. >> Oh, and I would absolutely tell you

[34:03] that. I just don't have it in I just mean but we don't we just don't give out

[34:07] details this.

[34:15] No, I absolutely can follow up with you tomorrow.

[34:19] » Any questions from members of council?

[34:24] » Okay. Thank you. >> Have the resolutions here. 7.3 moved by

[34:31] councelor Reed second by councelor Martin Township Mapleton Council receive

[34:34] for information delegation of Dorothy Keller of 7858 side 21 Arthur regarding

[34:40] the repercussions of her neighbors livestock.

[34:43] Anything further from council? All in favor? Carried.

[34:56] Moving on to uh item number nine. So we have close to home the good neighbor

[35:01] project. Sounds like a great project. Can't wait to hear all about it. Helen

[35:15] » through you mayor uh Davidson. Um yes, I just am here to give um a progress

[35:21] report on a project that we're starting here in the township of Mapleton called

[35:26] the Good Neighbor Project. Um in my report, I had mentioned a bit of the

[35:32] background um regarding this project. Um in September of 25, we had a seniors

[35:39] advisory group meeting and part of our strategic plan. Um some of the members

[35:46] uh thought that it would be a great opportunity to meet some unme unmet

[35:51] needs of seniors in our community and this was the way um we decided that we

[35:58] would try and and launch the program. Um, I would like to say that when we

[36:04] came to the township to meet with Manny and Michelle and Amy, um, we really

[36:08] appreciated their enthusiasm for the program. And in fact, we were surprised

[36:13] to leave with our very first volunteer, Mary Manny Baron himself. So, I mean, it

[36:19] really says something when you'll put your time behind a project. So, just

[36:23] bringing this um to council for information. um just letting you know um

[36:29] what we were thinking in terms of how the project would look. So, next slide

[36:34] please. And we can just and that is the link to the Google um site that we set

[36:41] up while we were um making sort of a draft to have a look to see how the

[36:45] program might work. And so that is a live link in the presentation so people

[36:50] can check that out if they would like to. Next slide please.

[36:55] Um, so we know that Mapleton has good strong community and good roots and

[37:02] that's why we want to start here because we feel like we have a good chance of

[37:06] getting some volunteers to come out and help us with with the program. So the

[37:12] idea is to meet seniors unmet needs with community members that can meet that

[37:18] need. So it s sounds kind of simple but there are many things that don't take a

[37:23] lot of time that seniors find challenging. So I was noticing with our

[37:28] last person um when they were making their presentation how hard it is for

[37:33] them to get around. So imagine a senior with mobility issues just trying to put

[37:39] out their blue box in the wintertime. Now that's something that takes us

[37:45] 15 seconds maybe 30 seconds. we get to our car and forget that we were supposed

[37:50] to put it out. But for someone who has mobility issues, um it can be really

[37:55] challenging to get that blue box to the curb. And it's something that a good

[38:00] neighbor could do in 20 seconds. So, we're not necessarily asking people, we

[38:06] know how busy everyone is, to dedicate hours and hours of their time, but to

[38:11] put out what they're able to do and then um match the seniors will be matched

[38:16] with the volunteer. So, next slide, please.

[38:21] So, we wanted to find an easy way to make this work. So, we created and I say

[38:26] we um this was all the work of uh Johanna Brown. If it was the work of we

[38:32] um as in myself, it would be two little squares. This is totally beyond me. Um

[38:38] so we uh Johanna created these two forms and basically I need help or I can help.

[38:45] So the I need help can be filled out by a senior themselves or a family member

[38:51] and it clicks to a form where they can indicate what the need is. And I can

[38:57] help is the same for the volunteer. So, they are able to indicate what kind of

[39:02] things they're able to offer, whether it's picking up someone's groceries,

[39:07] whether it's taking out someone's garbage, whether it's doing a fall leaf

[39:12] um cleanup, those kinds of tasks. And so, um those two forms will take you to

[39:19] an application. So, it's pretty easy, um to move through the the application

[39:24] itself. Um next slide, please. So yeah, and this is just draft because we need

[39:31] the help of um Amy and Michaela to get this so that it's incorporated actually

[39:37] in the Mapleton website. This is um a Google um website which is not

[39:42] compatible, but we wanted to get our ideas together in a draft form and

[39:46] thought that was the easiest way. So and next slide please.

[39:52] And um so here's the volunteer application. Um and when it's in Google

[39:58] then it would populate a spreadsheet that we would be able to go to so we

[40:03] would be um aware of when someone had filled out the sheet.

[40:07] Um next slide. So, um this is just like around B uh

[40:13] bridging the generations and we do think that the older adults in um Mapleton

[40:20] bring so much to the community and you don't have to look around very far to

[40:25] see where seniors are keeping things going in our community. If you look at

[40:30] any of the historical societies or the church groups or um service clubs, many

[40:36] many seniors dedicating their time to keeping this community strong. Next

[40:41] slide, please. And so we also um made some draft um social media posts to

[40:49] indicate what we're looking for. Um so we have two of those. And next slide,

[40:55] please. And so um this sort of indicates what we

[41:00] were thinking um and with the help of Amy and Michaela and your guidance would

[41:07] like to bring um to the township. So, um I would say that um we always uh we know

[41:17] from our interactions with seniors what what a lot of the needs are, but these

[41:22] forms allow specific needs that the senior has identified.

[41:27] And we um we always try to get this message across that asking for help

[41:35] isn't a sign of weakness. So, um, we we often have people who don't recognize

[41:43] when they need help and then that's when they have a fall or something happens to

[41:48] their health. But if you um if you do reach out when you do need help, um it's

[41:54] actually a sign of strength and insight into where you are in your journey. And

[42:00] so um we feel that Mapleton is the absolute right place to start this

[42:07] initiative. So thank you and I am happy to take any

[42:12] questions. >> Great. Thank you Helen. Resolution moved

[42:16] by council read second by councelor Martin that council receive report cth

[42:20] 20226-02 for information questions to Helen. Councelor Wood.

[42:26] » Thank you through you mayor Davidson. Just more a comment. I just wanted to

[42:30] say thank you so much um for all the work that the seniors for excellence

[42:34] does. I know in my former position of working with the uh Marville Township

[42:39] Housing Corporation, it was difficult for some of the seniors

[42:44] just even to shovel off their patio once in a while, right? So, this is a great

[42:49] opportunity. I'm not sure. I'm kind of on the fence. I will volunteer, but

[42:53] pretty soon I'll be a senior, too. So, [laughter] but no, I don't need help

[42:57] yet. But but definitely I think it's a fabulous opportunity and I think you

[43:04] will be surprised how many volunteers you will have to to assist our seniors

[43:09] in Mapleton. Thank you. >> Thank you.

[43:12] » Other comments or questions Martin?

[43:16] » Uh thank you, Mr. Mayor. You don't often get questions, so

[43:20] » I was like I was like two. [laughter] >> Uh so I would echo councelor Woodham's

[43:27] comments. seems like a really great program and a platform. Um the question

[43:31] I have is um how it gets operationalized. So I

[43:36] love the fact that you're doing VSC's and all that stuff, right? Like

[43:38] protecting uh you know our vulnerable population is

[43:42] a it's a must, right? Um but how does it work in the background? um if you've got

[43:50] people. So, how does Manny know what to volunteer for if he's not sure what the

[43:55] actual needs are and how like is that something that somebody on the

[43:58] background facilitates and and joins up? I know for myself

[44:03] um um if you you know you can offer

[44:07] something maybe your capabilities are multiplatform and cut grass do a whole

[44:13] bunch of things but if there's another need out there that's not identified uh

[44:17] by somebody how do you how do you bridge that gap

[44:22] » we were kind of struggling with what do we get first do we get the volunteers

[44:28] um and then have them sort of let us know what what they're interested in or

[44:35] do we get the seniors but if we have the seniors first and we don't have anyone

[44:40] to match them with it's very disappointing right because seniors hear

[44:44] that a lot you know oh I'm sorry there's a wait list for that or so what we were

[44:50] hoping to do to get the program started was when we have our volunteers sign up

[44:58] when we get those needs in would be to say um like to contact the volunteers

[45:04] and say this is what this is the need that we have because we don't know the

[45:09] specific needs. So people could be telling us all kinds of things and then

[45:13] someone gets in touch with us and says I need this and we're like oh. So so that

[45:18] was how we were um hoping to get the first few connections going and I think

[45:25] as we get requests we'll be able to finesse the application form too so that

[45:31] we can take off some of the things that we never are asked for and add things

[45:36] that come up on a regular basis. So it will sort of be an evolving type um

[45:42] thing. Um so we hope to have the the information on the Mapleton website for

[45:48] July 1st to go live. Um and then we will um like we we will hopefully be getting

[45:56] lots of volunteers. And I honestly think even if we had to

[46:01] start like a halfozen good volunteers, we would find that we had um we would be

[46:09] able to help a lot of people with that because a lot of these tasks aren't

[46:14] major tasks like the garbage is an example. Um that does not take anyone

[46:20] any length of time to do. Um, and also like I kind of envision a bit of a

[46:27] education program. I don't want to say like education people just kind of roll

[46:31] their eyes, right? But just sort of um having some success stories and maybe um

[46:37] Tony down the road doesn't ever um volunteer for us, but he hears about how

[46:43] somebody had help with getting their grocer.

[46:47] And then he's like, "Oh, Mabel down the street. I could lend a hand to Mabel."

[46:52] and it's never through this official program. So, it's sort of like we want

[46:57] to have two we want it to spread with our own volunteers, but we also want

[47:01] people to kind of open up their eyes and look around and see how they can help

[47:07] their community. That was a very long answer. So, no wonder no one ever asked

[47:12] me a question. [laughter] >> Actually, I take your answer as you know

[47:17] as long, but usually councelor Martin's questions are quite long as well.

[47:20] [laughter] it works out.

[47:23] Anything further, Kather Reed? >> Uh, thank you through your mayor. Um, I

[47:28] I know that this is very much directed to adults helping adults. Has there been

[47:32] any thought to like our younger adult community or teens mowing lawns and

[47:37] doing things or is that not something in this scope yet? Like if I have a son

[47:41] who's 12 and who would he'd help the world if he could, but like putting

[47:46] garbage out and stuff, is that something that we could foresee happening? like if

[47:50] there's easier tasks for local neighbors.

[47:54] » I see that. Yes, I do. I think that's great. And the one thing that's great

[48:00] about intergenerational um relationships is that it um fosters

[48:06] different conversations and different relationships because when we're with

[48:10] our peers and I'm a like I'm older myself, right? And when I sit around

[48:14] with a bunch of my friends, like we all kind of talk about, well gosh, is this

[48:18] happening to you or is that happening? But if I'm sitting with a group of

[48:22] younger people, the conversation changes, right? And I think there's a

[48:26] great benefit to both groups for that. So I could see how that could happen.

[48:31] It's just I we would need to put some thought into how to engage those younger

[48:36] people because um the younger people if they're engaged right from the get-go

[48:42] then they grow up to be fantastic volunteers and fantastic community

[48:46] members. So it needs some thought for sure, but it's a great one.

[48:50] » Council Martin got a followup. Okay, call a question. All in favor? It's

[48:57] carried. Thank you. Thank you, Helen. >> Thank you.

[49:02] Moving on to 9.2. Aman, your report. Thank you.

[49:08] » Okay. >> Thank you everyone. Um, this report is

[49:12] for information regarding the awards of contracts RFP 202517

[49:18] hotmix paving and RF 20264 bridge MB2 replacement.

[49:25] The detailed breakdown of both projects is included uh within the report for

[49:30] council's review. Uh the 2026 hotmix paving program was tendered in December

[49:36] of last year 2025 which was significantly earlier than we have done

[49:41] in previous years and prior to many municipalities finalizing their budgets.

[49:47] So by going to the market early, the township was able to take advantage of

[49:51] more favorable conditions. As we all know, contractors had greater

[49:56] availability at the time, which allowed them to better plan their crews and uh

[50:01] avoid increases in fuel cost, labor, and material costs, which ultimately led to

[50:06] more competitive bid pricing. Um also clarification to the report I want to

[50:11] say is like the awarded amount of $965,527

[50:17] and 555 cents reflects only the paving tender itself. The total cost of the

[50:23] praing program will be higher as it also includes the additional components such

[50:28] as pulverizing the existing ash vault placement of granular a shoulder gravel

[50:33] line painting as well as our internal staff cost for labor and equipment.

[50:38] These items were not included in the tender amount but will be tracked as a

[50:42] part of the overall project. Uh while we do not anticipate while we do anticipate

[50:48] that there will be a lot of costs saving the exact amount is not yet known. Uh

[50:53] and yeah and everything else has been included for the MB00002 project. It was

[50:57] well within the budget and we're here to answer any questions if council has.

[51:02] Thank you. >> Thank you. Resolution 921 moved by

[51:07] councelor Martin, second by council Reed, that council receive report FYIN

[51:10] 2026 task 22 regarding the award of contracts for the 2026 hot mix paving

[51:16] program and the replacement of bridge MB002 for information. Questions for

[51:21] Aman

[51:25] Woodm. >> Thank you through you, Mayor Davidson. A

[51:29] question to Aman then. So thank you for clarifying that because I was trying to

[51:35] do the math. So we're thinking that it could be up to 1.3 million for the

[51:41] pulverizing existing ashvault supply and delivery of the road granu a then

[51:46] because that's the difference or we feel that it would be less than that.

[51:54] » Uh through you Mr. Mayor. Uh we I would anticipate that the total cost would be

[52:00] less than $1.3 million. Uh like we have already tendered out the

[52:06] gravel and the pulverizing and I while I do have those numbers other numbers are

[52:12] yet to be determined like our internal costs and equipment. Uh we have also

[52:18] never really gone out for tender that far like in advance like we went out

[52:24] like people like 2025 I did two paving tenders for 2025 and 2026 so there will

[52:31] be cost savings not 1.3 because we still have to like uh account for all th those

[52:38] costs but I think after Patrick would be able to answer speak to that a little

[52:44] bit. Sure. Thanks, Aman. And through you, mayor. Yeah, I think we we did kind

[52:51] of predict not to this extent of savings um of what can happen when we get this

[52:56] budget approved in a timely manner um and tenders out on the street quickly.

[53:01] Obviously, having Aman um on our team to have these tenders ready to go with

[53:07] support from from Jim and the rest of the folks um on their side is huge. um

[53:13] the fact that that council approved a budget late in in 2025 and we can get

[53:18] teners on the street. This shows the true benefit to that. At the same time,

[53:23] um we do build budgets based on what our general market prices at the time.

[53:27] Ashvalt price index pieces can can inflate the cost substantially the

[53:33] longer that you wait. So, um, while we did have savings on this project in this

[53:37] year, there'll be other projects that didn't get out as early where we'll see

[53:41] some cost overruns or closer to the budget, um, I'd say the township does a

[53:46] really good job of of estimating um, our need. Uh, last year, you'll recall we

[53:51] did get um, external funding for Side Road 15. And when that external funding

[53:56] showed up, we brought forward a report that said, "Hey, now that we have excess

[53:59] funding, maybe we considered another project." The challenge with that this

[54:03] year, because maybe I'm just inferring what council might be thinking, but the

[54:07] challenge with that this year, if we were to try and say, "We've saved on

[54:09] this one. Let's jam in another project." We don't have projects that are ready to

[54:13] go um for those funds. So essentially, whatever savings we we realize at the

[54:18] end of the year, at the end of this project, when all costs are incurred,

[54:20] they don't go anywhere. They go directly into the infrastructure reserve fund and

[54:24] get used for future capital. So, hope that adds a little more context.

[54:29] » Thank you. Further questions? Aman, can you advise council and the

[54:35] huge audience we have online? Um, how many kilometers are we doing

[54:40] this year of paving? >> Uh, we're doing 9.36 kilometers of

[54:45] paving this year. >> That's amazing.

[54:49] » Thank you so much. If there's nothing further, all in favor, it's carried.

[55:02] Moving on to uh public works which is preliminary acceptance of block 90 Glen

[55:08] Avalid subdivision.

[55:15] So I have the resolution here moved by councelor Wood second by council read

[55:19] that council receive report PW2026-06 regarding block 90 Glen Avalid

[55:25] subdivision for information and further council accept the recommendation from

[55:29] RJ Burnside and Associates Limited and grant preliminary acceptance of block 90

[55:34] of the Glen Avalid subdivision. Any questions from council on this report?

[55:41] All in favor? It's carried.

[55:50] Next, we have a report on the Murfield and Drayton concession booths.

[55:58] Jim.

[56:03] » Okay, Patrick. Thanks, uh, Mayor Davidson. Um, and, uh,

[56:09] Amy Gross is unavailable for the meeting tonight, so I said I'd cover for her on

[56:12] this one. So essentially, uh, council did, um, direct staff to explore the

[56:18] potential to open up concession booths at both Ball Diamonds, um, in Murfield

[56:22] and in Drayton. So, what this report simply does is is asks for council's

[56:28] approval to issue an RFP, which would go out, a pretty simple RFP, which again,

[56:32] we got Aman's expertise to help out with that, would go out on the street to seek

[56:37] anybody that might be interested in running the concession booth or

[56:40] concession booths. um it would be evaluated in our regular process for

[56:44] evaluating them and then brought back to council to determine whether um we want

[56:48] to move forward with that option. So, it's a fairly simplistic report but more

[56:53] outlines that we don't have the resources internally on staff to run

[56:57] open up and run a concession booth and we weren't interested in hiring staff

[57:01] and managing those concession booths. But if somebody from the public is

[57:04] interested in it wants to put in a proposal, it'll be available and we'll

[57:07] we'll advertise it in the public for that.

[57:09] » Thank you, Mr. Kelly. Resolution I have moved by councelor Reed second by

[57:12] councelor Woodham that council receive report RECC 2026-03 regarding the

[57:18] Morfield and Drayton concession boosts and further council approve the issuance

[57:22] of an RFP for the operation of outdoor seasonal concessions within municipal

[57:26] parks questions

[57:31] Martin. >> Uh thank you Mr. Mayor. I just want to

[57:34] say thank you for the report. Uh I'm assuming

[57:38] Patrick kind of what you inferred that there would be the ability for somebody

[57:42] to uh do one or both. Correct. Um >> that's correct. Okay.

[57:49] » All seasons uh underway. Uh lights are on an awful lot. There's certainly a lot

[57:54] of noise happening down there. So, uh it sounds like the timeline's pretty

[57:57] aggressive, too. So, I think that should be excellent.

[57:59] » Thank you. >> Thank you.

[58:02] » Anything further? All in favor? It's carried.

[58:11] On to item 10, which is approval of bylaws.

[58:15] 10.1 moved by councelor Woodham, second by councelor Reid. That bylaw number

[58:20] 2026 to 029 being a bylaw to dedicate certain lands within the township of

[58:25] Mapleton as part of a public highway. We hereby ready first, second, and third

[58:29] time. finally pass this 26th day of May 2026.

[58:34] Questions on any of these? All in favor? Carried.

[58:43] Nothing on item 11. We have item 12. There

[58:48] a number of items from Push.

[58:54] Anybody wish to speak to any of these 17 items?

[59:04] Not seeing any, we'll move to item 13. Any notice of motion?

[59:10] Item 15. Other business.

[59:15] All right. Moved. Item 16 moved by councelor Reed, second by councelor

[59:19] Woodham. The town shall be able to council move into a close session to

[59:22] consider the following subject matters. the security of the property of the

[59:26] municipality and personal matters about identifiable individual including

[59:30] municipal employees. All in favor? Right. It's carried. 10-minute recess

Regular Council Meeting - 26 May 2026

Transcript