February 12, 2025
Oxford Town Councillors gathered Wednesday evening for the monthly Committee-of-the-Whole (COW) meeting, where the core agenda is the filing of department reports and any updates from boards and committees.
Mayor Greg Henley began proceedings by noting that the Council Chamber now features a portrait of King Charles III (the Queen’s portrait remains as well, for those who are curious as to her fate). Also on the wall: a food security “map” arising out of public consultations held over the past year by researchers working to understand how folks are dealing with the cost of food and making ends meet. That was the focus of a presentation at the last council meeting two weeks ago.
In terms of the department reports, as one might expect given the season, Public Works had their hands full with snow clearing, equipment maintenance and even some pothole patching. The Oxford Capitol Theatre, one of the buildings owned and operated by the municipality, had a new furnace installed last month but there are some hiccups with the system — those are being addressed to ensure weekly activities like the very popular Friday Night Jam can proceed as planned.
The Oxford Fire Department report, delivered by Chief Bruce Rushton, noted a busy start to 2025, with 16 calls in January — only two of which were within the town limits. Under the fire coverage model, the Oxford Volunteer Fire Department provides coverage to parts of Cumberland County surrounding the town, as well as providing mutual aid to other departments when requested. Seven of the calls were for motor vehicle accidents, and six were medical emergencies. Firefighter training is ongoing, with two members enrolled in Haz-mat awareness workshops. The Department also held its annual banquet, recognizing members for long service as volunteer fire fighters.
The Police Advisory Board (agendas / minutes) met in January to discuss the quarterly RCMP reports on crime and emergency calls within the Town of Oxford (available here). Oxford CAO Linda Cloney says the Board has recommended to Council that Council consider the purchase of digital speed signs, given that speeding is an issue throughout the town, while Lower Main Street and Little River Road seem to be the areas reporting more incidents. That matter will come to Council at its regular meeting in two weeks, and very likely will be on the agenda as staff and council discuss budget priorities.
Since it’s that time of year, staff and council are turning their thoughts toward the upcoming Spring budget deliberations. Finance Manager RuthAnn Brookins reported on the Town’s books, showing that everything is pretty much on-target, with a few surprises here and there to keep things interesting. Brookins reported that revenues are at about 91% of projected (compared with 93% this time last year), while some expenditures were a bit higher (78% compared with 71% at the end of January, 2024).
One large, unexpected jump in expenditures is due to Oxford’s success in adding housing: The annual payout to the school system saw a $36-thousand increase over last year, and will rise another $24-thousand in the upcoming budget. Brookins says that’s unprecedented in her experience, with the last increase in the annual bill coming five years ago. The higher school bill is calculated from the value of the municipality’s housing stock, which rose significantly this year. One might say that on this item, the Town of Oxford is a victim of its own success.
Another surprise — to the Town’s benefit — is the final tally of last year’s large infrastructure projects, including the Foundry Street watermain and repaving job. With a water capital budget of $2.144-million, an under-budget bill for Foundry Street helped offset other water utility expenses which were unplanned, such as the new pump for well #4 and the fact that some work had to be delayed due to scheduling or a lack of funding secured to cover the projects. Brookins noted that one significant accomplishment last year was the stacking of provincial and federal grants to pay for major infrastructure work: of the $1.67-million dollar cost of the water main projects (originally pegged at $1.767-million), the Town only had to contribute 19% or $322-thousand.
Looking ahead to the Spring budget deliberations, Brookins advised councillors that while the year-end will have capital spending in the black, there won’t be much extra to spend on “wishes and wants.” She advised councillors to send her any ideas for consideration within the next two weeks.
This would also be the time for Oxford residents who have proposals for capital spending to bring those to the attention of council, via individual councillors or to Town Hall directly. While staff and the town representatives have their goals and objectives as responsible managers of tax dollars, there may well be items the public might want to see that haven’t come to the table yet. What would you like to see considered for Oxford’s next budget proposal?
Other items arising from Wednesday evening’s COW meeting, and the special council meeting that followed:
(a) the All Saints Community Health Care Foundation committee continues to be in need of a representative from Oxford who is a member of the community. Since calls for a volunteer have not led to the position being filled for over a year, CAO Cloney has been representing Oxford. That duty will now fall on the Administrative Assistant, Stan MacDougall, until someone comes forward. This committee meets every other month at the Springhill hospital, with the town paying transportation costs to the representative. The meetings see discussion on equipment purchases, hospital maintenance, budget concerns, review doctor reports, and arrange for workshops hospital volunteers. There is no virtual option for meeting attendance. Anyone willing to sit on this committee is encouraged to contact Town Hall.
(b) The Town of Oxford found a buyer for the decommissioned 1989 Ford Fire Truck (Pumper) that has been for sale by closed bid since December. William Bosman submitted the winning bid for the truck, at $7,100.
Videos of the Oxford Town Council meetings can be viewed on the town’s YouTube channel.
