Written By David Gomez, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
ADELAIDE METCALFE - At its May 5 meeting, Adelaide Metcalfe council approved a two-year land lease agreement for hay harvesting near the Kerwood Wastewater Treatment Plant and received a financial update confirming the township’s strong borrowing position.
Public Works Manager Coulter Cahill presented the lease report, noting that two bids were received for the partial land lease of township-owned property at 27897 Kerwood Road. The winning bid was submitted by Alfons Bles, offering $350 annually for the 2025 and 2026 seasons. “This year, we had two people bid… ended up being $350 a year to rent the lot for the purpose of hay harvesting,” said Cahill.
Mayor Sue Clarke supported the agreement, pointing to the dual benefit of reducing maintenance responsibilities and offering a local opportunity. “It’s not a lot of money, but then it’s land that we don’t have to maintain, and somebody’s able to benefit from it, and looks like it’s somebody fairly close by,” Clarke remarked.
The motion was moved by Councillor Arend Noordhof and seconded by Councillor Mike Brodie, receiving unanimous approval. The lease permits hay harvesting under specific conditions, including restrictions on fertilizers and the protection of monitoring wells located on-site.
Council then turned its attention to the township’s 2025 Annual Repayment Limit (ARL), presented by Treasurer Johnny Pereira. The ARL is established annually by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing and reflects the municipality’s maximum allowable debt service based on 25 percent of its own-source revenues. For Adelaide Metcalfe, this equates to $1,212,774 as of December 31, 2023, following adjustments for existing obligations.
Pereira clarified that the municipality remains well within its borrowing capacity. “The township has capacity to borrow that would result in annual payments equivalent to $1,212,774 (…),” he stated.
Mayor Clarke expressed confidence in the township’s financial standing, noting that “25 percent debt service ratio is fairly conservative. So, that doesn’t expose [us], if we were ever in that position.”
The report was received for information with no objections. Councillor Betty Ann MacKinnon moved the motion, seconded by Councillor Garett Kingma, and it was carried unanimously.
