When members of Mississippi Mills Council return from the Association of Municipalities of Ontario Conference being held in Ottawa, they will have to swing into high gear in efforts to lobby the local Conservation Authority to change its mind in midstream.
The Mississippi Valley Conservation Authority wants to break the log-jam over the future of the Mill of Kintail by converting the facility to a “Water Museum”.
To do so, the MVCA would have to “divest” the R. Tait McKenzie and Dr. James Naismith Collections it currently houses.
That’s not sitting well with Mississippi Mills Council, as the mementos of two of Almonte’s favourite sons, a renown sculptor and artist- and the inventor of basketball would, in effect, be turfed at the curb.
It’s not a new worry. A similar fate was avoided in 2021.
That’s Mayor Christa Lowry, who says important that if there is to be any dialogue, each side shares the same information.
There wasn’t a lot of support around the Mississippi Mills Council Table for the MVCA proposal.
That’s Deputy Mayor Rickey Minnille.
Councillor Bev Holmes opinion is the two local celebrities aren’t getting the respect they deserve.
Without saving the location, we risk having history rewritten before our eyes.
The Mississippi Valley Conservation Authority has gone on record as indicating it will approve its new Strategic Plan, which includes the museum mandate change- at its September 8th Board Meeting.
By Rick Stow