Mapleton council agreed to rectify any future damage to a tile drain crossing Sideroad 17 until 2032 after being presented with documents supporting a resident’s contention the road was used to transport turbine components during construction of the Conestogo Wind Energy Centre (CWEC) in 2012.
Council agreed to the action on March 28 and Mayor Neil Driscoll also apologized on behalf of council and staff for previous remarks by township CAO Brad McRoberts that resident Dunc Lamond felt called his character into question.
Lamond initially came to council about the issue on March 8, 2016, asking who would be responsible for any future repairs to a tile drain that crosses Sideroad 17 near his farm.
Lamond told council the transportation route outlined in the agreement between the township and NextEra Energy Canada indicates turbines would be brought to the site via a series of back roads off Highway 6.
Yet he said he and other area residents saw blades and turbine components transported straight to the site along Sideroad 17 from Wellington Road 109. He said he believes the heavy loads caused the road to settle and disrupted the tile outlet.
The township declined to take further action after investigating Lamond’s concerns, including contacting NextEra officials, who stated the company never used Sideroad 17.
At the June 8, 2016 meeting McRoberts reported staff was unable to confirm or refute Lamond’s assertions.
“Right now as far as we’re concerned they used their approved haul route. We have nothing in our files to suggest they deviated,” said McRoberts.
“I’m not trying to suggest the delegation was lying, but I just don’t have anything to support what he’s saying.”
At the March 28 meeting Lamond told council, “If that comment (reported in the June 17 Community News, the Advertiser’s sister publication) was designed to raise my blood pressure, it certainly succeeded.”
Lamond continued, “As far as I’m concerned, when someone says they’re not trying to suggest something the perception is that that something is exactly what they’re suggesting.
“I’d certainly like to know what council thought about that comment in the Newspaper. Did you think it was appropriate? Did it bother you at all? Did you think it called my character into question?”
Lamond said he was approached by several people who suggested McRoberts called him “a liar.”
Lamond presented council with a copy of a Transportation Management Plan for the CWEC project that he received from a NextEra official on March 2, 2017.
He pointed to a map within the document that shows a light blue line running from Wellington Road 109 along Sideroad 17 to the development.
He noted a legend on the page indicated the line marked a “blades delivery route” but commented “it should have said it’s the delivery route for the blades and the tubes.”
Lamond said the first indication any documentation existed that Sideroad 17 was on the transportation route came during a conversation with NextEra senior vice-president Mike O’Sullivan, during a Feb. 5 telephone conversation.
Lamond asked O’Sullivan to send him a copy and he did.
“What is really mind boggling about this revised transportation route is that apparently neither NextEra in Florida nor Mapleton Township has any document authorizing the revision of that transportation plan. I can’t believe that, but that’s apparently the way it is,” said Lamond.
The township has replaced its CAO once and public works director three times since the wind farm was built in the summer of 2012. McRoberts didn’t join the staff until 2014.
“I’m hoping that council is now going to accept my word that tranSports travelled Sideroad 17,” said Lamond.
“I hope that council accepts that with all the weight on those tranSports … it would cause that road to settle, and finally I hope that council accepts that settlement would result in damage to my tile outlets.”
Mayor Neil Driscoll said, “If you’re looking for an apology I would give you an apology on behalf of council and staff if you feel that your reputation was damaged by a report that the paper put in.
“I’ve read the articles in the paper but I know you so I didn’t perceive it as our CAO as saying you were lying. But I do apologize if that’s the way you took it.
“We are very lucky to have the reporter that we do have. He’s very factual, but there are days that I read it and think, ‘That’s not what I said.’ I apologize for that if you feel your character was damaged. That’s not what Mapleton township and council is out there to do, definitely not. So we apologize for that.”
Lamond replied, “It’s not necessarily that I felt my character was in question. It’s that other people felt my character was in question.”
Driscoll said, “Again, I can’t control what they put in the paper. If an apology is what you’re looking for, I’m giving you a sincere one. This council apologizes if you feel that your character was challenged. I don’t feel that was behind the comments of our CAO.”
Driscoll thanked Lamond for providing “great information” but noted without before-and-after documentation it would be difficult to press NextEra for payment of any future damage to the drain, which was originally installed in 1982.
McRoberts noted a drain crossing a township road would not be allowed under current policies without a legal agreement.
“I don’t know what permission was or wasn’t given back in the day. We do know that there’s a crossing there today and if it isn’t working someone has to look after it,” said Driscoll.
McRoberts pointed out township staff concluded “any damage or issue with the tile wasn’t the result of any settlement of the road,” after an inspection following Lamond’s 2016 council delegation.
“If you take NextEra out of the equation and the drain had failed on its own, then who would be responsible?” asked councillor Marlene Ottens.
McRoberts said current policy would make repairs the responsibility of the property owner.
While McRoberts indicated it appears NextEra did cover repairs to a sinkhole in the area of Sideroad 17 in 2012 and 2015, Driscoll said that doesn’t guarantee they can be held accountable for repairs indefinitely.
Councillor Lori Woodham said NextEra acknowledged responsibly if they paid for repairs in the past and stated, “I don’t think it’s fair that going forward we say the landowners have to pay for it.”
She moved a resolution calling for the township to pay for the cost of repairs of any future damage until 2032 (the estimated typical life of the tile). The motion also stated the township will make a “best effort” to recover any costs from NextEra.
Councillor Michael Martin questioned the wisdom of agreeing to pay for future repairs.
“There’s a lot of questions around all of this, and we sit around here and get sweaty palms over 500 bucks for a donation,” said Martin.
“It resolves an issue today, but to put the general taxpayer on the hook, that gives me sweaty palms.”
Martin was the lone councillor to vote against the resolution.
