The Village of Morrin council approved returning a number of employment benefits removed from their chief administrative officer (CAO) several years ago after discussing the issue in a closed session.
The resolution was passed at the Nov. 16 regular meeting of council.
In a telephone interview Nov. 21 CAO Annette Plachner stated that the meeting agenda included one personnel issue to be discussed privately, which was then followed by a resolution of council after council returned to the public portion of the meeting.
Plachner noted that the council resolution returned to her a number of employment benefits that had been removed by a previous council.
Some of the benefits that had been removed included statutory holidays, vacation pay and sick days.
Tax sale
Plachner confirmed that the property tax sale scheduled for Nov. 17 at the village office was unnecessary as all overdue accounts were settled.
The CAO noted the village worked with some property owners who were in arrears on their tax bills with the owners beginning to pay off the bills a few weeks ago.
Plachner stated that the village doesn’t like to go through the tax recovery process but sometimes there is no other alternative.
Financial report
Councillors approved the October 2022 financial report which Plachner noted reflected the village is doing pretty well right now, pointing out the municipality remains within budget and has had no big expenditures this year.
Interim audit
Plachner reported to the councillors that Ascend Chartered Accountants will attend the village office Dec. 1 – 2 to perform an interim audit. She noted this is an annual event that most municipalities engage in.
Development letter
During the committee reports section of the agenda, Mayor Chris Hall stated that Palliser Regional Municipal Services informed members that a “compliance letter” from the municipality will now be required in certain situations.
Apparently, the compliance letter will confirm that a transaction follows the municipality’s bylaws and includes a real property report.
Plachner stated the Village of Morrin will likely not include any real property reports but rather will include a letter based off a real property report provided to the village by developers or buyers.
Community support
Councillors unanimously approved a $500 grant to the Morrin Community Association after receiving the annual request for support from the non-profit society.
Stu Salkeld
Local Journalism Initiative reporter
ECA Review
