2020 Virtual Annual General Meeting - AGENDA
Approval of the minutes of the 2019 Annual General Meeting *voting required
Business arising from the minutes
Approval of bylaw amendments
Presentation of financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2019 *voting required
President’s report
Report on the condition of the Association’s property
Report on water quality
Committee Reports
Trails Club
Environment Committee
Buoy Committee
Election of directors *voting required
New Business, Good and Welfare
Adjournment
1. Opening Remarks
Welcome to the AALM’s first-ever virtual AGM. We invite you to review this page as well as the following documents which you may download by clicking on the links below:
- 2019-2020 financial statements
- Proposed slate of directors for a 2-year term
When you have completed your review please click on the following link to register your vote. Voting will be open from 03Aug2020 -1 7Aug2020. Please remember that only votes from members in good standing (ie have paid their 2020 dues) will be counted, so please ensure that your dues are paid up.
If we are able to, we will hold a Special General Meeting in December in order to provide a forum for discussion and exchange of ideas that this virtual meeting format does not allow. Of course, this will depend on the evolution of the measures taken to prevent the spread of Covid-19. We will keep you posted.
Happy reading!
2. Approval of the minutes of the 2019 Annual General Meeting *voting required
Please consult the 2019 meeting minutes here.
3. Business arising from the minutes
There was no business arising from the minutes.
4. Approval of bylaw amendments
No bylaw amendments have been proposed.
5. Presentation of financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2019 *voting required
The financial statements are available here.
The AALM maintains a healthy bank balance which is now in excess of $18,000. We collected $8,925 in dues, an increase of $1,450 compared with 2018) and donations of $2,220 (similar to 2018). Our expenses totalled $5,076, compared with $6,473 in 2018. The main differences are in the following:
- Lower spending on property maintenance in 2019 than in 2018
- Slightly less spent on trails committee expenses in 2019
- It was decided to move to fecal coliform testing every two years, so there were no costs for this in 2019
- We invested $1,054 for buoys and anchoring hardware in 2019
Overall our revenues less expenses allowed us to contribute over $6,000 to the bank balance
6. President’s report
2020 has sent us all a curve ball with the Covid-19 pandemic and the disruption it has caused to our normal activites. We hope this finds everyone well and that families have found ways to adapt and to enjoy the summer. Many AALM members are Montrealers who are perceived as having a higher likelihood of being a carrier of the virus. Please be respectful of this perception by minimising shopping in and around Sainte-Agathe and by practising social distancing.
The threat of Eurasian milfoil infestation remains a top concern to the AALM. This has also been taken very seriously by the municipality of Ivry-sur-le-lac – the municipality has reacted favourably by acting quickly to put in place a boat washing station at the municipal yard, as well as a protocol for use of the boat launch. Please respect the protocol and be patient with the process as it may cause delays. Remember that this is all in the interest of protecting Lac Manitou.
The municipality has applied and has been approved for a Federal government subsidy to promote boater safety. AALM is collaborating with the municipality in the programme that will be put in place under this subsidy, which will include the following:
- The creation of a brochure for boaters on Lac Manitou
- Signage
- Maps indicating buoy locations, underwater hazards, speed limit zones
- The purchase of a boat to be used for regular patrolling by a municipal employee of boaters’ adherence to the navigation rules
There is no update concerning the lawsuit launched against the municipality by the APSQ. This action seems to have gone quiet. Of course, the AALM will continue to monitor the situation and will report any pertinent information back to members.
As President of the AALM, I have received an increasing number of concerns and complaints about the dramatic increase of activity involving the generation of large wake, be it wake boarding or wake surfing. Historically there has always been a certain friction between the waterskiers and the rest of the community. It has been hotly debated at AALM AGM’s for decades. Today, by and large, there is a certain harmony between the waterskiers and the others. The new battleground is to do with large wake. It is astonishing to me that residents engaging in these activities show so little regard for the disturbance they cause to others in doing this. I am certain that there are some who are respectful, but there is no question that this is an issue. I ask you, please, if you are one of those who engage in these activities, BE CONSIDERATE. Your wake is HARMFUL and DANGEROUS. It damages personal properties (boats, docks, etc.). It damages our sensitive natural shoreline. It upsets nesting grounds and other flora and fauna. It is extremely disruptive to people’s quiet enjoyment of their lakefront property. And it is a serious threat to small boaters, canoers, etc. What is it going to take to make the abusers of these activities become aware of their selfish behaviour? Is it going to take an accident where someone is injured or potentially worse? I urge you to be CONSIDERATE of others, and to engage in these activities ONLY in the middle of the lake, known to some as “the big bay”, as FAR from shore as possible. BE AWARE of any smaller boats and give them a wide berth. Lake Manitou has a long tradition of respect for the environment and for others – please don’t let those traditions go away. We cannot stop you from engaging in these activities all we can do is appeal to your sense of duty and community to BE AWARE and BE RESPECTFUL. The patrols of the lake will identify those who are not doing so.
I would like to take this opportunity to recognize the efforts made by the following people throughout the year:
- Mayor Daniel Charette and the rest of the Ivry councillors with whom we have a close and respectful collaboration
- City Manager Josiane Alarie and her staff, who continue to do an excellent job of running our municipality and with whom the AALM also has a very functional and respectful relationship
- The AALM Executive that is made up of Rick Rubin, Michael Prupas, Harold Lehrer, Lyn Lazure and me. Both Lyn and Harold will be stepping down this year, many thanks to them for their contributions.
- The AALM Committee Chairs:
o Michael Prupas and his team on the Trails Committee
o Julie Segal on the Environment Committee
o Kyle Bebb on the Buoys Committee as well as for the water testing
- Jerry Golick for his help with AALM communications
- Matt Stotland for his IT and website support
I wish you all a good summer season, and I hope to see you all in a post-Covid world soon!
7. Report on the condition of the Association’s property
The AALM property (dock and gazebo) is in good condition. There are no major interventions planned for 2020. As part of the collaboration with the municipality on the boater safety programme, we will likely be using the AALM dock to moor the patrol boat that will be acquired.
8. Report on water quality
As previously mentioned, there was no fecal coliform testing carried out in 2019, as these tests have consistently given very favourable results over successive years. We will perform this testing on water samples this year and will monitor any hot spots as usual. As for our participation in the RSVL (Réseau de surveillance volontaire des lacs), we will continue with the water clarity testing again this year.
9. Committee Reports
a. Trails Club
In this time of Covid The Ivry Trails Club has been actively preparing for its members to be able to enjoy the pleasures of the wonderful Ivry Trails system this summer and fall. In addition to the very thorough trails clearing effort that we completed in October 2019, we have now substantially enhanced the information about our trails that is available through the AALM website (www.aalm.ca). We have created a password accessible link in the Trails Club section of the website which gives currently signed up members of the Ivry Trails Club access to the recently updated map of the Trails in the Ivry Valdurn area, as well as detailed descriptions of how to enjoy several of the trails. Signed up Trails Club members will be sent an email giving them the password that allows access to the site, which password will be changed periodically. Members are encouraged to use the trails during this time when family hiking is one of the few sporting activities that are available.
In addition, The Ivry Trails Club will be again organizing socially distanced group hikes on the following dates and times:
1) July 25, 2020 the Titanium Mine Trail: 1.5 -2 hours up a moderate climb leading to a great view of Mont Tremblant. This hike starts at 10:00 a.m. from the Prupas House at 272 Ch. Fyon:
2) August 24, 2020 - The Barbara Richardson Reserve Trail: this is the first time that we will be able to explore this huge reserve recently acquired by Conservation Manitou with the Nature Conservancy of Canada, which is situated about 8 kilometers west of Ivry along chemin Lac Manitou/chemin des Lacs. There will be both a short 1-1.5 hour and a more challenging 3-3.5 hour route offered that day. We start at 10:00 a.m.
3) October 26, 2020 - our annual Trail Clearing day to be followed by the ever popular Pot Luck dinner. Details to be provided in the fall.
Over the past year, the Ivry Trails Club had a very successful Trail Clearing day last October 27 with an excellent clean up job done on most of the trails in Ivry and over 80 people attending the evening Pot luck dinner that followed. In addition there were 3 winter cross country ski and snow shoe hikes in December, January (in conjunction with the Valdurn folks) and February. Unfortunately, due to Covid, the March trek had to be cancelled.
We look forward to seeing you using the trails this summer and joining us on our planned group hikes.
Thanks for your support:
Your Trails Club Executive
Michael Prupas
Alice Lehrer
Stephen Takacsy
Joyce Arsenault
Matt Stotland
Dan Knafo
Mauricio Idaraga
b. Environment Committee
The main activities of the environment committee were the creation of a vegetable garden at the Lake Manitou Community Centre as well as strong collaboration with the environmental characterization project as part of the Bleu Laurentides program with Jessica Krejcik. Many thanks to Julie Segal.
c. Buoy Committee
We invested in accessories for an improved installation of the buoys in 2019. We are now taking care of the installation and removal of the buoys in the narrows of Lacasse bay. A big thank you to Kyle Bebb for his expertise and his work.
10. Election of directors *voting required
We propose the following slate of directors for 2020 – 2022:
1. Joyce Arsenault
2. George Barker
3. Kyle Bebb
4. Elliot Berzan
5. Peter Cohen
6. Tim Dorey
7. Boyd Fuller
8. Tassie Fyon
9. Jerry Golick
10. Geoff Harling
11. Lyn Lazure
12. Harold Lehrer
13. John Patton
14. Michael Prupas
15. Rick Rubin
16. Julie Segal
17. Michael Vineberg
11. New Business, Good and Welfare
Please contact us at info@aalm.ca if you would like to bring new topics or concerns to the attention of the board of directors.
12. Adjournment
Thank you and have a good summer!