TO ANNEX OR NOT TO ANNEX

     It has been confirmed that talks are ongoing with the city of Peterborough and the province of Ontario regarding lands in the former North Monaghan.
     The Mayor has stated that the talks are not about annexation but rather are about development and in particular about employment development, which sounds good, but if anyone believes the province and city focus is not on annexation they are sadly mistaken.
It is true that if the province requests discussion the municipality is required to comply but it is imperative that the municipality stress how detrimental annexation would be to Cavan Monaghan. The commercial and industrial base we have in the former North Monaghan is crucial to our survival and this must be stressed in any discussions that take place.
     The city of Peterborough has a dismal track record when it comes to acquiring land from our municipality. The last annexation included land east of Airport Road and south of Sir Sandford Fleming Drive, which the city said they needed for employment lands but then proceeded to rezone it for residential development.
     The city has not made good decisions when it comes to land use and I suspect that trend would continue if they were to acquire more of our territory. It seems to me they are just looking for additional taxes that they could collect from the existing development on the lands in which they would be interested.
     It is also a fact that the residents of that area do not have any desire to become part of the city. Many of the people I spoke with during the recent election campaign, not only in ward 1 but throughout the entire municipality, are opposed to any annexation and not one person spoke in favor. It is the responsibility of Council to do what is in the best interest of the people who elected them.
     It is likely that the bulk of the negotiations will be between staff of Cavan Monaghan and city staff but staff is supposed to take direction from Council, not the other way around and Council needs to make it known that there is no interest in Cavan Monaghan giving up any more land to the city. If there is a way to work together that benefits both municipalities then that is the way the discussions should go.
     We should all be concerned because the loss of the land area that the city would be interested in acquiring would eventually lead to the demise of Cavan Monaghan, in my opinion.
     Everyone is free to agree or disagree with my point of view but for what it is worth that’s my view from the country.