Lakeshore Waves Newsletter - December 2022/January 2023

Message from Mayor Bailey

There’s much work to be done in the four years ahead and Council is ready to hit the ground running

I am honoured to have been elected and I want to thank my friends, family, colleagues, and citizens from all of Lakeshore’s communities for supporting me. I’d also like to thank all the candidates who put their names forward to represent their communities, and Lakeshore as a whole.

Congratulations as well to Lakeshore’s newly elected Council. I am incredibly excited to build consensus and harness our shared passion and energy to serve our communities. We may not agree on every issue, but I know we are dedicated to working as one for the future of the municipality.

And we certainly have lots of work ahead of us, as Lakeshore has as many challenges as it does opportunities. We have a strong Council and a talented team of staff. We’re centrally located, with a mix of urban and rural living, which has made us one of the fastest-growing municipalities in Ontario.

But that growth brings new challenges. As a Council, we will be tasked with balancing needs and wants; increasing levels of service while keeping taxes low; upgrading infrastructure and building new.
We are prepared to meet these challenges head-on, to make tough decisions and provide clear direction to accomplish our shared goals.

With that in mind, we are now embarking on the strategic planning process, which will help us create a vision and a roadmap of where we want to take our municipality over the next four years. We’ll soon deliberate on and approve Lakeshore’s 2023 Budget, which will set out how we’ll effectively use tax dollars to make our vision a reality.

As we make these important decisions, we expect to be held accountable by citizens and stakeholders. In turn, they can expect honesty, transparency, and advocacy, that we will work with each other and with all levels of government.

This cooperation will be critical to our success because together we are strong.

Together we are Lakeshore.

Connect with Council

2023 Budget Update

A draft of Lakeshore’s 2023 Budget will be presented to Council on January 10, 2023*.

Following the tabling of the draft budget, Council deliberation and approval of the final budget are scheduled to take place on January 30 and 31, 2023.

Stay tuned and learn more at Lakeshore.ca/Budget

*Please note, the print edition of the Lakeshore Waves indicated that the budget would be presented on December 13, 2022.

New Animal Care and Control By-law to Take Effect in 2023

Lakeshore’s new Animal Care and Control By-law comes into effect starting January 1, 2023.

The by-law is designed to meet and exceed the standards set out in the Province of Ontario’s Animal Welfare Services Act.

The by-law contains a number of new and updated rules which impact pet owners. Highlights of the new by-law include: 

• Four-hour daily limit for the tethering of dogs outside.
• A maximum of three dogs and three cats per household.

Read the full by-law, find contact information, and learn more about Lakeshore’s animal care and control at Lakeshore.ca/Pets.

Stormwater Master Plan Phase 2 Coming Up

Citizens and stakeholders to be invited to provide feedback

Lakeshore is kicking off Phase 2 of the Stormwater Master Plan with consultant Civica Infrastructure Inc.

The Plan will review Lakeshore’s existing stormwater systems, determine existing and anticipated needs, as well as develop solutions that respond to the challenges identified.

As part of the development of the Plan, citizens and local stakeholders will be invited to participate in Public Information Centres in early 2023.

Phase 2 of the Plan will focus on parts of Lakeshore not covered in Phase 1, including the communities and areas of:

• Comber
• Lighthouse Cove
• Ruscom
• Rochester/Deerbrook
• St. Joachim
• Staples
• Stoney Point/Pointe-aux-Roches
• Woodslee
• Areas around Essex & Tilbury

To learn more about Lakeshore’s stormwater infrastructure, phase 2 of the Master Plan, and how you can get involved, please visit Lakeshore.ca/SWMP2.

Go Paperless with E-billing!

Sign up online to receive property tax and water bills straight to your email inbox

Property tax and water account holders can now receive bills directly to their email inbox.

The new option, introduced earlier this year, will help reduce paper usage and provide you access to your billing information from anywhere in the world!

To sign up, you’ll need your name, property address, and contact information, as well as your water account and/or property tax roll number.

Learn more and sign up online at: Lakeshore.ca/Ebilling.