Augusta Township Confirms its Christmas/Holiday Season Office Hours
Augusta Matters by Mayor Doug Malanka
(As published in the South Grenville Journal – Thursday, November 26, 2020)
During its regular meeting of Council on Monday, November 23rd, 2020, Council passed three motions of importance. The first motion confirmed the Christmas/Holiday Season business hours for 2020. As agreed by Council in 2013, this Council confirmed that the Township office will be closed (or have a skeleton crew) during the holiday between Christmas and New Year’s Day to allow employees time with their families. As a result, the Township office will be closed from noon on Thursday, December 24 and re-open on January 4th, 2021. Staff will have the option to work December 29 & 30 and the ½ day on New Year’s Eve or they may take vacation time or time in lieu. The impact of the closure on customer service is a consideration but the holiday season is the “slowest” time of the year for municipal staff and no time sensitive issues such as tax payments are expected during this period. To report URGENT safety and infrastructure matters during the time the office is not open, residents can call 613-348-3455 extension “311”. The Landfill Sites will be closed on December 25 & 26, 2020 and January 1, 2021.
The second motion directs staff to work with the City of Brockville, the Town of Prescott and the Township of Edwardsburgh‑Cardinal to explore and develop a submission to the Eastern Ontario’s Leadership Council (EOLC) for a commuter service running from Brockville to Edwardsburgh Cardinal and to bring back a submission to Council in January 2021 for further review and consideration. The need for cross boundary bus service from Brockville to Edwardsburgh‑Cardinal has been raised several times and I am pleased to see us moving forward on this file.
In the third motion, Council received the final version of the Augusta Township Service Delivery and Operation Review and directed the CAO to consider the analysis and recommendations in the report in his 2021 Budget and future year budget recommendations. I have written previously regarding the Augusta Township Service Delivery and Operation Review, as it is an important document for consideration by staff and council members in plotting the future direction for Augusta Township and adopting budgets. A copy of the final report will be available on the Township website and I encourage residents to take a look at the report and its findings.
At its regular meeting of Council held on Monday, November 9th, 2020, Council authorized staff to proceed with preparations for a Volunteer Appreciation Day at its Farmer’s and Craft Market. As a reminder for those interested in attending, the event will be held at the MERC Hall (120 E McLean Blvd., Maitland) on Saturday, December 5th, 2020 from 9 am to 1 pm. Local musician Sue Prosser will be performing from 11 am to 1 pm.
Finally, everyone is reminded of Augusta’s Firefighter Association third annual Snowsuit and Toy Drive. Our firefighters ask that you drop off your new toys and/or new or gently used snowsuits to one of the following locations which include: Maitland Fire Station; Augusta Township Office; Greenham’s General Store; Riopelle’s Grocery; Augusta Public Library; the Creekside Diner; and MERC Hall. Donations will be collected until Saturday, December 5th, 2020 and will be given to the Salvation Army for distribution.