Municipal Council will propose the repeal of the By-Law by resolution at the next council meeting

The last 48 hours have seen a large amount of social media discussion, accusations, speculation, slurs and misinformation over the draft by-law the municipality proposed last month, stating its desire to apply a heritage status to John Cleary’s property, loving known by locals for decades as Cleary’s Corner.

This message is to clarify some of the background and the procedures involved in the process but also to inform you that the municipality will be dropping the foreseen project.

The Cleary Farm, one of the oldest buildings that still exists in our municipality, was built in the 1890’s.  The council felt, in large part based on feedback from the community and region, that the Cleary farm and its surrounding landscape was the last representation of the farming roots that were the origin of our community.  There were also large concerns about the encroaching gravel pit behind the house and the burden on Mr. Cleary, both physically and financially, to maintain the property in the long term.  Most of all, the council reflected on how to properly honor a family and place that we thought had a place in everyone’s heart.

This led to the resolution passed at our last meeting, stating our desire to protect the site.  This is the first step in a long process that works hand-in-hand with the property owner to build a status that not only protects the property but also the owner’s rights. The very next morning after our council meeting Mr. Cleary met with our staff to discuss the first project of regulation, a draft by-law that can be modified and improved with the input of the owner and is eventually presented to the community during a public consultation.  Mr. Cleary was pleased that we were honoring his family and that it remained true in a follow-up meeting a few days later.  The lines of communication were open and he, and members of his family, were informed that the municipal council were open to any changes that they would have liked to see made to ensure their options remained open in the short and long term.  The town offered to provide support in the application for grants, a benefit of a heritage status, if any work on the buildings was needed. 

We have not consulted the general public yet because, it is the property owner’s prerogative to set the terms for their property.  Once the conditions were established to their satisfaction, a public consultation was planned for May 8^th to present it to the community for additional feedback.  The project regulation still allowed repairs, renovations and modifications to the property while maintaining the general look of a historic farmhouse, all of which Mr. Cleary was comfortable with as it reflected his desires for the property.  Most importantly, the citation was at the municipal level only, meaning that all approvals would be made at the local level collaboratively between the owner, the CCU and the council, always in the spirit of protecting and maintaining this slice of our heritage without interference from higher levels of government.

Unfortunately, some social justice warriors, with little to no understanding of the background or ongoing process, have voiced their concerns and started a movement to “protect” Mr. Cleary from the “narcissistic Communist” council.  As we watched this devolve over the weekend, we reached out again to Mr. Cleary and although he still feels honored for the consideration, he asked us to stop the procedure.  We will of course respect his decision and the process of adopting the By-Law will end. Municipal Council will propose the repeal of the By-Law by resolution at the next council meeting.  The consultation planned for May 8^th will now only cover the citation for St. Aiden’s church and its cemetery.  

Let me finish on a personal note by stating my absolute disappointment with the reaction of the community on this file.  A select few levied speculation, rumors and outright falsehoods on top of slurs towards our council, without any confirmation of the facts.  Something that could have been verified with a simple call to the municipality.

You took something intended to be an honor to someone I’ve known and respected for over 40 years and turned it into a nightmare. I’ll end by offering my apologies, and those of our council, to Mr. Cleary and his family for how this ended as I believe he knows we had the best of intentions at heart.

Your Mayor,

Jason Morrison

Read the press release here