Harbour Main residents addled by road’s status

By Mark Squibb

A little road is causing big trouble in Harbour Main.

Spring Road is small road leading off Harbour Drive that connects to a number of trails along Salmon Cove, but the question of whether the road is actually a road or not is at the centre of an ongoing town hall debate.

The question first arose back in April when a number of residents, some of whom claim to own land along Spring Road, sought clarification from the Town regarding the road’s status after a resident erected a ‘Private Driveway’ sign.

Council at the time approved a motion to consult with the Town’s lawyer regarding a land use agreement with the property owner until the matter could be straightened out.

Following a heated discussion at the public council meeting last week, which saw a full gallery of spectators and another list of participants chipping in via a conference call, it’s clear the matter is a long way yet from being straightened out.

Mayor Mike Doyle set the ground rules at the start of the meeting.

“This is a public forum, and we expect that people will speak professionally and politely,” said Doyle. “Any attacks against either council or other members of our gallery or online will not be permitted and if such (happens), as the mayor I will call the meeting to an immediate close and dismiss the council at that time, so that we can get quorum back into the council chambers.”

The first to speak was resident Glenn Dalton.

Dalton noted the Town had previously rescinded a stop work order issued against him to build on Spring Road and that council had agreed Spring Road was a Town road and that should anyone wish to build on it, all they needed do was submit a development application.

Dalton said since then he has had police knock on his door asking if he had been trespassing on Spring Lane, which they described as ‘private property.’
“I found it very strange,” said Dalton. “We’re right back to square one, right back to April 2 again. So, what’s going on? Is it a road, or isn’t it? I’m asking for a building permit to protect what I’ve already put into the ground. Winter is coming, I need to put in some backfill, or else all of that is going to crack up on me… So, the main question is how do I get a building permit for a road that was always there? Is it or is it not a road?”

The short answer, Doyle explained, is that according to the Town’s lawyer, Spring Road is a road, has been a Town road, and is acknowledged as such in the Highway Act.

The issue, said Doyle, is that the roadway borders onto a resident’s private property and the public road itself is considerably narrow.

“We’re trying to come up with a solution to complete that road so that you can get down there and so that every other person who wants to develop can get down there and do so in a safe manner,” said Doyle. “That’s what we’re trying to resolve here.”

Dalton countered that council documents show that Spring Road had previously been developed to council standards, that there are even narrower roads in town, and that there are other private homes that front directly onto public roadways, and asked council where it draws the line on such matters.

“All I can tell you Mr. Dalton, is that for this council, roads are now probably one of the top items that we deal with right now,” said Doyle. “It is the item that is on the council table right now. And what we don’t want to do is get this wrong. Because whatever we do here will apply to every single road hereafter. And it’s taking some time to make the right decision. All I can say is I wish things would move faster and that we would get information faster than we’re getting it, but we can only go at the pace at which we’re receiving the information to the inquires that we’re making to ensure that we’re making the right decision.”

Council then went about the remainder of its business, which included yet another disagreement about another right of way, but the discussion circled back to Spring Road when council opened the floor for debate.

First to speak was Clarence Murray, who said he had also been approached by the RCMP.

“You told me that road was all good,” said Murray.

“That is correct,” said Doyle. “Our attorney has informed us that Spring Road is Spring Road. That’s all I can tell you about that.”

“So, I can still travel in there?” asked Murray.

“Yeah, that’s still Spring Road, if you want to travel on Spring Road there’s nothing they can do to stop you,” said Doyle.

Murray said he would come by the Town Hall the next morning to pick up a letter saying as much that he could give to the RCMP so as to avoid being charged with mischief.

Clerk Rhonda Dalton committed to coming to the office the next morning, despite having been cleared for a vacation day, to draft such a letter with the Town’s lawyer.

Shelly Dalton also spoke to the matter.

“Spring Road is a road, everybody knows that it’s a road,” said Dalton. “So, I guess the question is, ‘Where is the road?’ And that is the legal issue.”
Doyle agreed that is the question that council needs to settle.

“We are working and trying to work out a solution,” said Doyle. “But at this time, we just don’t have that. What we can say is that we have received legal advice and that is a throughfare, and as I said, you can use the road as long as it’s not encroaching on private property.”

Other residents spoke to the issue, including Glenn Dalton, who had addressed the matter earlier in the meeting.

Dalton asked council pointedly if he could drive his truck from Harbour Road to his property without getting into trouble.
Doyle referred then to the letter that staff would be drafting with the Town lawyer.

“We can provide that to you, and you can provide it to who you need to,” said Doyle.

The meeting wrapped up after about two hours, roughly half of which was dedicated to discussion around Spring Road.