Deputy Mayor Carlucci advised that he attended the Kenora District Municipal Association virtual meeting. He noted that he along with Councillors S. MacKinnon, M. MacKinnon and Bush attended the Infrastructure Funding announcement on Friday at the Dryden Memorial Arena and at the Dryden Go-Getters with the MPP Rickford and federal government representatives. He thanked Mr. Belanger and his staff for the effort they had put into the application. Deputy Mayor Carlucci noted that he attended a partnership meeting with the Nuclear Waste Management Organization and advised that terms of reference will be available to Council at the Committee of the Whole meeting on April 12, 2021.
Councillor M. MacKinnon noted that he remembered ten (10) years ago when the first discussions were taking place about the Arena expansion and upgrades and he was now seeing it all come to fruition. DREAM gave the extra push when it was needed. He thanked everyone involved for all of their hard work. He also thanked the Federal and Provincial Governments for the Infrastructure Funding and MPP Rickford for pushing to help get the funding for the City of Dryden. Councillor M. MacKinnon noted that the Kenora District Services Board (KDSB) is working on several projects around the region. He advised that the KDSB are continuing with homelessness issues and dealing with getting residents vaccinated and isolation requirements. Councillor M. MacKinnon noted that paramedics volunteered their time to ensure that residents in the northern First Nation Communities were vaccinated.
Councillor S. MacKinnon thanked Deputy Mayor Carlucci for his time as Deputy Mayor. He congratulated Marnie Oliphant and the DREAM Committee, Mr. Belanger and his staff and CAO Nesbitt for all of their hard work with the Infrastructure Funding. Councillor S. MacKinnon also thanked the Provincial and Federal Governments for their financial resources for the City of Dryden Memorial Arena. He thanked the previous Recreation Director and others for their perseverance. Councillor S. MacKinnon was excited about the funding the Dryden Go-Getters received as he can't wait to see that wonderful facility grow. He thanked everyone that put names forward for the renaming of Colonization Avenue; in the end there were 265 names submitted. He also noted that the Working Circle will be bringing the suggested names for Colonization Avenue forward to Council in April. He advised that vaccine clinics are now in the City and he advised residents to check with the Northwestern Health Unit or call the helpline for appointments.
Councillor Bush noted that Friday was an excellent day for the City of Dryden with over $6 million going towards the Dryden Memorial Arena and the Dryden Go-Getters. He thanked Mr. Belanger, Marnie Oliphant of DREAM, Mr. J. Nesbitt and Mr. R. Nesbitt for all their hard work in obtaining the funding. He also thanked all the people in the past that were instrumental in getting the Arena built in the first place.
Councillor Price noted that she was still working with Patricia Area Community Endeavours (PACE) with COVID-19 financial assistance which comes to an end on March 31. She noted that she had also attended PACE Board meetings. Councillor Price thanked everyone that put a name forward for the renaming of Colonization Avenue. She had also been assisting the new Chamber of Commerce Manager on a weekly basis to get her familiar with her new position. Councillor Price advised that Municipal Accommodation Tax (MAT) Committee ad will be out in the near future on CKDR, the Chamber of Commerce Facebook Page and Website, and advised anyone interested in being a part of the MAT Committee to contact her. She thanked the Public Works Department for the quick response to the emergency on the street in front of her house; within 20 minutes, staff was on site. Councillor Price was also very pleased with the Infrastructure funding received on Friday. She thanked all the volunteers in the community. She noted that there is a great volunteer base in the City of Dryden which makes it a great place to live.