Matheson holding special council meeting days before new members sworn in

BLACK RIVER-MATHESON - Five days before a new council is sworn in, Matheson’s staffers are moving ahead with a special council meeting. 

The township has scheduled a special meeting tonight (Aug. 22), with the agenda including staffing changes and budget discussions. The timing of the meeting has raised eyebrows, with Mayor-elect Dave Dyment questioning the necessity of addressing significant agenda items just days before the new council assumes office. 

It will be the last meeting before the township’s new council is sworn in on Tuesday (Aug. 27).

TimminsToday reached out to the township for comment but did not receive a response.

Dyment said it doesn't make sense for the township to be discussing some of the "pretty big items" that are part of the agenda just less than a week before they're sworn in.

"I don't know if they're doing it to maybe slide some other agenda items in there while they have the minister live, or... To me, it makes no sense at all," he said.

There are currently no sitting council members in Matheson, though new members were elected in the Aug. 12 byelection. Their inaugural meeting is next week. 

Back in the spring, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing Pail Calandra declared all of the seats vacant and provincial bureaucrat Kathy Horgan was appointed to make decisions until new members are sworn in.

Here’s a look at what’s on the agenda: 

• Since the township and CUPE Local 1490 came to an agreement, four union employees have resigned. Three people have been hired to replace them.
• Four union staff and one union staff are currently on leave ranging from a time frame of five weeks to three months.
• The township’s deputy treasurer position remains vacant. According to the CAO's report, “no movement will be made” until the new council discusses this year’s budget. The search for a new director of infrastructure, however, closed on Aug. 9.
• Former councillor Allana Schmidt has been hired as the executive assistant to the CAO.
• A report with the official numbers pertaining to voter turnout for the 2024 Matheson byelection.
• Training for the new council is being arranged.
• A budget report noting that the proposed budget will be distributed to the new council for consideration next month. According to the report, it's expected the final budget will be approved in November.
• Matheson’s name didn’t appear on a list of names attached to a recent announcement made by the province noting that broadband is expanding across Northern Ontario. As a result, the township has set up a meeting with the Ministry of Infrastructure at the end of this month.
• The township is continuing to make changes to its website to make it more functional and to add new information.

The full agenda is online here.

The meeting is at 6:30 p.m. Watch the meeting live online here.