Town of Iroquois Falls

Public Meeting – Thursday, January 22, 2015 Iroquois Falls Access Transit Hall – 7:00 p.m.

Rick Charlebois, Moderator welcomed everyone and explained the ground rules for the meeting. Mayor Shea gave an opening address to the audience at the public meeting.

Councillor Jeff Madden addressed the public with an update as to the activities that have transpired to date with reference to meetings with Resolute Forest Products. A copy of the update is attached.

The Community had the opportunity to raise questions and/or make suggestions to Council:

Mark Brown – What kind of jobs are you (Council) looking at bringing to the community? Mayor Shea – We are looking at other opportunities rather than large industries that will create jobs.

Dean Festarini – Commented that we need to focus on what assets we have available to the Town at present such as the excess steam from the cogeneration plant to assist with other manufacturing alternatives; from food production to pellets. He raised the issue that the Town holds the mortgage on the ISP Panel plant on Hwy 11 and that we need to look at what that could mean to attract alternative manufacturing projects. Mr. Festarini also mentioned that the Trestle bridge needed to be opened as soon as possible.

Karen Campbell – Ms. Campbell asked about the ISP Panels building. How many people work there? The response was that there were 3 employees.

George Pirie - Is Resolute, only selling the assets for decommissioning? The response was that Resolute was opened to any and all offers.

A question was asked regarding what land/roadway was owned by Resolute at the Trestle bridge. Mr. Tomchik, Woodlands Manager for Resolute Forest Products clarified that Resolute’s property ends 400 metres on the other side of the bridge. The roadway to Detour is facilitated through a Land Use Permit with the Ministry.

Pellet Plants – A question was asked with regards to the feasibility of pursuing a pellet plant. The response was that the Town has received interest by pellet producers. Councillor Madden indicated that he has reached out to two companies to determine their potential interest.

Woodie Harkins: Asked what the Town was doing with the old Bioshell building. Mr. Harkins indicated that it would be great to attract a Pellet Plant. He emphasized the need to keep the bridge opened and that the Municipality should seek funding to facilitate a pellet plant.

Jim Brown: Recommended hiring a lawyer to provide expertise on the bridge and wood right issues; Need to hire a communication and public relations firm to represent the Town; Invite Premier, and other ministers to Town; Need to organize, stand up and fight.

Ideas: 1. Recommended talking to Wahgoshig as they would be interested in partnering up on a project. 2. Server Farm Banks and other huge conglomerates to use as secondary back up for information storage. 3. Need round wood for alternative wood.

Allan Carroll - Suggested that we should have a sawmill on the site.

Stan Denault – Mr. Denault indicated that we need to get transport trucks off of the highways and that the site could be used as a transport depot or hub and use the rail system to transport goods to market, etc.; that the site could be used to collect/process different waste treatment; Mr. Denault promoted the need for diversification within the Community to decrease dependency on one solution.

Charlie Angus – Indicated that optimism is a two edged sword and that no one is coming in to save Iroquois Falls. Have to make decisions regarding the assets. What are we going to get from Resolute before they leave town.

John Blais – Mr. Blais suggested that consideration should be given to merging communities like Temiskaming Shores.

John Vanthof – Indicated that ideas take time; It is up to us to make decisions on behalf of the residents of Iroquois Falls; Resolute is waiting for a fight from the Town. What we need is goals - Trestle, Buildings (haven’t heard anything from the Town) and we have to push from the same direction.

Jim Keizer – Suggested a moratorium on taxes for 6 months to a year so that the building can continue to be heated and provide enough time to look at the site.

Jim Brown – Indicated that the asset that we haven’t talked about is the people in our Community; there is a need for a survival plan and the people are looking to the Town for that. We can’t talk about the past, we have to look into the future.

Louise Charlebois – Think it’s a good idea to hire someone to work on behalf of the Town because we have such a short period of time.

Todd Pretzell – Understands what is happening in the community. How about having Resolute contribute to the fixing of the Trestle because it will cost them a lot of money to have it demolished. We have to look at ways to use excess steam from the co-gen plant. Trestle is part of our livelihood as well not just economic viability. Consider Iroquois Falls Power be used for heat/electrical source for a greenhouse operation to produce food for the Northeast.

Mark Brown – Indicated that the Town needs to own the bridge.

Michelle Tremblay – Asked, can we afford to buy the mill site. The Mayor responded by saying that the Town cannot afford to buy the mill site.

Shirley Lefebvre – Asked if we can implement a toll on the bridge. The response was that it is a possibility.

Amanda McLeod – Is there any funding available to fix the bridge? The response was that there was funding available through NOHFC and FedNor.

Pat Eaton – Indicated that there was a need to promote Iroquois Falls outside of the community to bring potential economic development.

Dina Festarini – Indicated that she is looking for a commitment for answers to the community; We might not have the answers but have to ban together to move forward.

Pete Jones – Union is involved and intends on being involved on a move forward. Couldn’t be here tonight because they had to tend to important Union business.

Councillor Betty Lou Purdon announced that there are petitions throughout the hall and encouraged those in attendance to sign the petitions so that John Vanthof, MPP can present them to the legislature.

Following the question and answer period, Mayor Michael Shea thanked everyone for attending and that the Community will work together to move the Town forward in a positive manner.

TOWN HALL MEETING NOTES PUBLIC MEETING – January 22, 2015 Iroquois Falls Access Transit Hall – 7:00 p.m.

Labour Adjustment Committee: Council has approved being the lead agency to apply for funding assistance through the Ministry of Training Colleges and Universities for the purpose of facilitating a Labour Adjustment Committee and Action Centre to assist the employees affected by the recent closure of Resolute Forest Products. Specifically through this program, the Labour Adjustment Committee and Action Centre helps employees being laid-off deal with the effects of losing their jobs by helping them review their options and plan their next steps. Staff are hired (from the affected worker group) and peer helpers are trained to work in an Action Centre. Examples of assistance provided are personal support in dealing with stress and job loss, job- search assistance, vocational and educational counselling, financial assistance for training and/or personal needs and information on starting a small business. Depending on the particular need, workshops may also be facilitated to assist employees as well. The Town will be providing office space in the lower concourse of the Iroquois Falls Access Transit Hall for the Action Centre internet access and administrative and finance staff support for the building for the application and reporting for the grant program as an in-kind donation to the project. Resolute Forest Products has also committed to donating desks, chairs, partitions and computers for the Centre, in kind. A financial contribution was also requested of Resolute Forest Products to assist with the Action Centre. It is hoped that something will be in place by the first week in February to coincide with the 8 week notice period. The Committee will be driven by the workforce who will hire a Chair and a Coordinator. There will also be representation from MTCU and the Social Services Administration Board. The position of Coordinator will be advertised and hired from the pool of affected employees being displaced as a result of the mill closure. The grant application was finalized today and was submitted to the Ministry for approval.

Community Adjustment Committee: Council has approved an application to be submitted to the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities for funding to hire a consultant and coordinator to work with the Community Adjustment Committee that will be formed. The Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities offers an Adjustment Advisory (AAP) to work with employers, employees and communities to develop strategies to cope with company downsizing or plant closures. The Adjustment Advisory Program also assists communities anticipate and manage labour market change through Community Adjustment Committees that are made up of various community groups. The committees function could bring together services for displaced workers and/or engage in community wide strategic planning. Since the mandate of a Labour Adjustment Committee is to provide the necessary services to assist displaced workers with their needs, the Community Adjustment Committee would likely put its focus on the latter. The Committee will be comprised of various community stakeholders (e.g. Education, retail, health sectors etc.), which will involve community consultation during the process. In conjunction with this process, the Town will be applying for funding from Northern Heritage Fund and FedNor to conduct a Strategic Plan for the Community moving forward. Both the Labour Adjustment and the Community Adjustment/Strategic plan process are anticipated to each be in existence for a one year period.

Trestle Bridge: In the fall of 2014, a working group that consisted of members from the Chamber of Commerce, Abitibi-Black River Outdoors Association, Member of the SFL group, H2O, Past Mayor, Gilles Forget, Mayor Michael Shea, the Clerk-Administrator, MTO and Resolute. At that time we were looking at a tri-party agreement between Resolute, MTO and a third party that was yet to be determined. The discussion was that we would look at how we could get the Trestle bridge opened to light traffic with financial assistance for the repairs needed from the Province, MTO providing the engineering and project oversight, Resolute retaining ownership and the third party managing the bridge on an ongoing basis for a period of 10 years. During the 10 year period it was thought that that would give the Management Group time to look at longer range plans for access to the other side of the river. This was all prior to the announcement of the permanent closure of the mill. Once the closure was announced, Resolute has advised the Town that they would like to divest themselves of all assets which would include the Trestle Bridge. If the bridge was not taken over by another entity regarding ownership then the plans are to take it down as part of the decommissioning of the site. The working group and the Town are still working on other plans of action regarding the bridge.

Vacant Land: Resolute has a number of properties that they own besides the mill site itself. The Town has met with Resolute to discuss the vacant properties and will further those talks to have them transferred to the Town for possible future development.

Golf Course: The Golf Course land is owned by Resolute Forest Products. Talks have been ongoing with reference to ownership of the lands once Resolute leaves the community. At present, Resolute supplies water to the golf course for irrigation. They have advised the Town that they will no longer be providing the water supply for the upcoming golf season. A meeting will be requested by the Town with representatives of the Golf Course, Resolute and H2O to try to find a solution.

Lift Station: The Town has a major sanitary sewer trunk and lift station that goes through the Resolute property. Currently Resolute provides the power to the lift station and have advised that they will no longer provide the power once they turn it off to the entire site. We have been working with Resolute, H2O and Wires to find a solution for power.

Sanitary Sewer Plant: The access to the Town’s Sanitary Sewer Plant is through the Resolute mill property. Resolute has committed to providing access until a more permanent solution can be determined.

Sludge: Just prior to Christmas 2014, NISG contacted the Town and requested that they be able to dispose of Resolute’s sludge at the Municipal Landfill site. The Town’s certificate of approval CofA allowed for the sludge to be disposed of at the landfill. A decision was made to accept the sludge on a temporary basis with the condition that if the Municipality wanted it removed from the site that they would have to transfer it to another facility. There is also an opportunity to use the sludge as cover for the dump site. No decision has been made yet.

Mill Buildings and Equipment: Resolute is working on a decommissioning plan and will be issuing a Request for Offer to Purchase the buildings and equipment, but not the mill site land from demolition companies to quote on the project. What this means is that the assets will be sold to a demolition company and they will salvage the steel and other metals that are valuable for resale while the rest of the buildings will be torn down and disposed of. This would include Number 8 paper machine. It has been mentioned by Resolute that they may wish to discuss landfilling the remaining buildings that are not salvageable. To date we have not had an in depth conversation as the Town is waiting to find out volumes and types of waste that will have to landfilled before making a decision as this has the potential to seriously affect the lifespan of the landfill site.

Furniture: Resolute has committed to giving any furniture that the Town wants for its use. We have had a site visit to determine what furniture would be useful to the Town and will be returning soon to remove the furniture. Some of the furniture will be used for the Labour Action Centre over the next year. Discussions have also taken place with reference to any supplies and materials that may be disposed of by Resolute that could be used throughout the Municipality’s various departments.

Museum Historical Items and Pictures: Resolute advised the Town that they would be donating historical items and photographs to the Museum to be enjoyed by all. Once they have determined what will be given to the Town, arrangements will be made to remove the items.

Heat and Hydro: The majority of the heat will be turned off by the end of February 2015 and it is unknown at this time when the hydro will be turned off on site.

Wood rights: Right now, Resolute has a 44% share in the Forest Management Inc. the corporation that holds the SFL (Sustainable Forest Licence) on the Abitibi River Forest. They have advised that they are no longer interested in maintaining that 44% share and will be giving it back to Abitibi River Forest Management Inc. The target date for this to happen is March 31, 2015. The Town has had many conversations with MNRF personnel regarding the licencing and how that works once Resolute has given up their share of the SFL. What we have been able to determine thus far is that the 44% share which includes 44% share of the cost of running the SFL, will be redistributed by Abitibi River Forest Management Inc. The point that the Municipality has been repeatedly making to the MNRF (Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry) is that we want to make it clear that if and when Iroquois Falls finds another industry to come to Iroquois Falls, that the ability to get fibre will not be bogged down by the SFL and that the Province will ensure that the company would get the allotment needed to be a viable business in our Community. At present we are being told that there is plenty of chips available but not round wood as it is being utilized to the maximum by the current SFL. We are continuing discussions with the MNRF on this issue and will be having a delegation with the Ministry at the upcoming conference in February.

Environmental: Resolute has advised that they are presently going through an Environmental Phase I assessment and working closely with the Ministry of Environment while doing so. The intention is to decommission the entire property and provide a level of remediation that is necessary to satisfy MOE’s requirements. The Municipality will be requesting such plans and approvals for remediation of the site to ensure that the legislation is being adhered to.

Potential buyer for the site: We continue to have conversations through outreaching to companies as well as following up on leads in hopes of finding a potential buyer for the Mill site property and its assets. We ask that if you have any leads or prospects to kindly contact our CAO, Michelle Larose with the information so that we may follow up with the prospective proponent.

Tax Base: Resolute’s assessment appeal for the years 2009 through to 2014 was settled last year. As a result of that appeal and changes to assessment methodology, the 2009 to 2012 assessment value decreased from 22.5 million to 15 million, or by 33%; and, the assessment value for 2013 and 2014 was revised to 15.2 million. What does this mean in terms of municipal taxation revenue? It means that approximately $500,000 per year was lost from 2009 to 2013. A total of $2.5 million was due to be refunded. Fortunately, Resolute agreed to waive a significant portion of that refund amount. Last year, the Town levied $1.2 million in municipal taxes onto this property, which represented 18% of total taxes and 10% of the Town’s budget. Note: This appeal of assessment was separate matter outside of the Mill closure. It is estimated that approximately the same amount would be levied in 2015. This would not preclude Resolute from making an application under the provisions of the Municipal Act to have their assessment reduced after demolition. Moving forward it is hard to determine what the assessment will be once the site is decommissioned but, guaranteed, there will definitely be a reduction in the assessment and the municipality will have to look at ways in which to minimize that impact. Just to inform the community, a Municipal Service Delivery and Operational Review commenced in the Fall of 2014 and is due to wrap up in February 2015. The review is meant to look at ways in which the Town has the opportunity to raise revenues through a review of our current fees and charges as well as looking at new revenue opportunities. On the expense side, the review is looking at how we provide services presently with a focus on what is mandatory vs. discretionary and how we can find efficiencies in our operations with cost reductions and still provide a level of service that is acceptable to Council and the Community.