This year’s AGM was well attended with 70 attendees representing 43 properties. The Board would like to thank all those who came out on Sunday morning of the long weekend to hear about their road.

Maintenance Fees

Maintenance Fees were approved at $530 for 2020.  Invoices for fees will be sent out early in 2020 given our new year end of May 31^st.

New Board

A new Board of Directors was ratified at the AGM: to see the names of all members of the Board, please view our Your Board page.

Financial Statements & 5 Year Review

The financial statements were reviewed and approved for the fiscal year, August 1, 2018 – May 31, 2019. They can be viewed at the following link. Readers should note that they represent only 10 months given the new year end and that significant expenses that would have been incurred by the previous July 31^st year end are not reflected.

To help members better understand the expenses incurred versus the revenue received, our Treasurer compiled a 5-Year review of fees vs. expenses as well as a summary of Summer and Winter expenses. We are posting this information to enable members to better understand the cost of various activities and ask that they review the information holistically and not focus on individual items. The 5-Year review can be seen at the same link as the Financial Statements.

New Business

There were three orders of new business addressed: The Task Force Report; Changes to the By-law; and a Member Submission.

Task Force Report

The Task Force Report on the road system was approved by the members with a vote of 16 in favour and 10 opposed.  There were also 7 abstentions. There was significant discussion regarding the report with two members from Spur 3 making comments regarding the stated length of their Spur.  The Board has committed to investigating the concerns outlined by the members and will report back to the members following their review. (By-law 9.07, “Business arising at any Members’ meeting shall be decided by a majority of votes of Members present” and “An abstention shall not be considered a vote cast”).

By-law Revisions

Proposed revisions to the By-law to simplify the Director election process and to adopt the road system description in the Task Force Report were passed by the members with a vote of 23 in favour and 6 opposed. There was also 1 abstention. The changes to the election process will remove the need for paper ballots to be distributed prior to the AGM, saving money and simplifying the process for our volunteer Board. Elections will now take place in person at the AGM. (By-law 12.07, “The Members may from time to time amend this By-law by a sixty-six (66) percent majority of the votes cast.”)

Member Submission

As outlined in the By-law, a group of members submitted topics for discussion regarding summer and winter maintenance, half-load restrictions during March-April, the composition of the Road Team, and the maintenance of the Bridge. As a result of the submission and discussion, the Board has agreed to post the Summer and Winter maintenance policies on the website. They can be found on the Resources page. The Board also reminded members of the half-load restriction from March 1st – April 30th and explained that they had posted the restriction on the website and had individually reached out to members they were aware were building to ask them to remind their contractors. However, not all spring damage is done by contractors and the Board reminded members that the road is theirs and that any damage to the road will ultimately be paid for by them. Therefore, members should remind their contractors, suppliers, and be mindful themselves of their loads as the frost comes out of the ground in the spring. Finally, the Board explained that the bridge is inspected every two years as required by the Ministry of Natural Resources with the last inspection taking place in 2018.

Thank Yous and Certificates of Appreciation

Murray Kline and Ted Vandevis were thanked for their service on the Board.  Mike Jansen and Norma Houle were both given Certificates of Appreciation for their decades of service to our road. 

Reminders

The Board members are all volunteers who give their time and expertise to help manage the road we all enjoy, including our appointed Treasurer, Ruth Marshall.  Please do keep in mind that managing the road takes a lot of time and effort and that given the voluntary nature of the Board there may be delays in responding to individual concerns.

Finally, this is your road.  Please drive at a reasonable speed, use caution when using it in the winter months, and be respectful of the other members.

If you would have a question or a comment for the Board, please use our Get In Touch form and your submission will be responded to accordingly.

Thank you to all members who attended this year’s Annual General Meeting. As discussed, highlights of the meeting will be posted on the website once approved by the Board at their next meeting.

Please also note that the next Municipality of Trent Lakes Council Meeting will take place on Tuesday, August 13, 2019 at 6:00 pm.

NOTICE OF MEETING

MISSISSAGUA-GOLD LAKE COTTAGERS’ ROAD GROUP

JULY 14, 2019

This notice serves to inform you, the members, of the upcoming Annual General Meeting which will be held at the Cavendish Community Centre on Sunday, August 4, 2019, at 10:00 am.

The following is the Agenda for the meeting:

• Welcome and Chairperson’s Remarks
• Appointment of Scrutineers
• Minutes of the 2018 Annual General Meeting
• Ratification of acts and proceedings, etc.
• Financial Statements
• Treasurer’s Report
• Approving the 2020 Maintenance Fee
• Appointment of Accountant
• Report of the Road Committee
• Election/Appointment of Directors
• New Business:    
  • Task Force Report
  • Revision of the By-law (August 5, 2018)
  • Member Submission regarding Road Maintenance
• Final Comments
• Adjournment

Enclosed Documents

By order of the Board,

Katie Tingley

Chair of the Board of Directors

One of our Members shared the following story and we thought we would pass it along. A little comic relief and a warning 🙂

Just a heads up. We came in Saturday night at Midnight and around Spur 2-3 we came across a baby moose was on the road. It was my first time seeing one on the cottage road.

I was hopeful it would just run into the bush, but it wanted to be one of Santa’s reindeers and tired to lead our way. After awhile, I beeped my horn at a swamp. I figured that was a safe place to wait for its Mommy.  *The new ingrained code for that moose is to turn to starboard is one beep of the horn.

Just a friendly reminder that a baby calf moose is 6 feet. So Momma is going to be much bigger. Be careful, and let your guests know about the wildlife if they come up late.  ( For all the hunters, and first generation people this is “old hat” – this advice is intended for newbies)

All the best!
Jason Bredin, Spur 8

Good Day Members,

As Chairperson of the Nominating Committee, I would like to inform you that no additional nominations for Director were submitted to the Secretary by the due date of June 20, 2019.  As outlined in Section 2.05 of our By-law, the slate shall be deemed to be elected and the slate shall be ratified by the Members at the AGM.  Therefore, an election will not be held at the AGM.

I would like to thank this year’s board for their work on behalf of our members and look forward to welcoming the new board members following the AGM on August 4^th. 

All the best for a wonderful summer season,

Murray Kline
Chair of the Nominating Committee