A loan, the new fire chief, and $435,000 from the government

Council briefs:

City council, at its Monday meeting, approved a motion to allow the Sault Ste. Marie PUC to borrow money for electrical upgrades.

The PUC will apply to borrow $15 million from Infrastructure Ontario. 

The money will go towards replacing poles, switches and substations.

"We've reached the point now where we need to borrow," Dominic Parrella, PUC president and CEO, told council.

Some of the PUC's electrical infrastructure is nearing the end of its life.

The PUC says the borrowing will not mean new, unplanned rate increases for water and electricity other than those originally approved by the Ontario Energy Board in 2012.

Permission to apply to borrow money from Infrastructure Ontario was needed from council, as the city of Sault Ste. Marie is the PUC's sole shareholder.

The PUC will also seek approval from council, in 2015, to borrow another $8 million from Infrastructure Ontario to help with continuation of the Water Quality Improvement Project and the cost of repairing 171 watermains which froze and broke in the extreme cold of the winter of 2013-2014.

Figliola succeeds Marcel Provenzano, who announced his intention to retire earlier this year after 32 years of service, having been chief since 2009.

Figliola has served as North Bay Fire Services deputy chief for the past six months, after serving as nine years as fire chief and three years as deputy fire chief at Toronto’s Pearson International Airport.

Figliola has 28 years of experience in fire services.

Figliola has a bachelor of physical education from McMaster University, a bachelor of science from the University of Waterloo and an MBA from California Pacific University.

He has a number of designations, including certified kinesiologist, chief fire officer, certified financial planner and registered paramedic technician.

Sault Fire Services Deputy Fire Chief Frank Brescacin, who indicated his intention to retire at the end of June 2015 after 31 years of service, will be succeeded by Sault firefighter Peter Johnson.

Figliola’s hiring as chief needed official approval by council with passage of an appointment bylaw, Johnson’s promotion to deputy did not.

Johnson has been a firefighter with Sault Fire Services for 19 years.   

That phase would involve widening the road from the bottom of the hill to Black Road, a distance of approximately 400 metres.

The formula-based funding comes under the province’s Ontario Community Infrastructure Fund (OCIF).

The balance of funding for the project is application based.

An initial expression of interest in the project was prepared and submitted to the province in September, and under OCIF regulations, a full and final application for more funding for the project is being prepared by the city for a December 19 deadline.

The rest of the provincial funding for the Second Line project, if approved by the province, will be $2 million.

After a tax rebate, the estimated cost for the project is $3,870,000.

After the provincial funding is taken into consideration, the city’s share of the project will be $1,335,000.

If the city’s application for $2 million is not successful, staff recommends the Second Line project be put on hold and the $435,343 be used for another project in 2015.

Council also approved staff’s recommendation the Second Line engineering work be assigned to Kresin Engineering, as that firm has already completed the environmental assessment for the third phase of Second Line widening, as well as having worked on the project’s first two phases.