By Taylor McClure 

Townships’ Daily News Bits 

CIDI 99.1 FM

Two significant developments were made at the Town of Brome Lake’s most recent town council meeting on August 8. The town council passed a resolution to take part in a daycare pilot project launched by the provincial government. The pilot project involves setting up daycares in municipal buildings to address the challenge of accessing day care services in Quebec. 

Town council also made changes to the salaries of the municipality’s First Responders. In the former financial structure, the First Responders were paid $50 for a 12-hour shift no matter the number of calls that came in. As a result of the recent changes, they will now will be paid $23 an hour per call for a minimum of three hours. If another call comes in outside of the three hour minimum, they are paid for another three hours. 

“Last year, we received a press release from the provincial government, I believe all municipalities in Quebec did where there was a big absence of daycares, to see if we had any space available that could accommodate a small daycare,” said Richard Burcombe, mayor for the Town of Brome Lake.

Burcombe explained that over the last couple years, new families have been coming to the area that need daycare services. 

“The requests that we get for daycares, where can they send their children? (…) This would certainly help the working families that need a space for their child instead of travelling to Cowansville, Bromont, some even had to go to Waterloo or Granby,” he mentioned. “That’s a big trip everyday back and forth.”

Town council came up with a plan for its daycare centre and it will be sending it in for government approval. 

“We have a room in the basement of the community centre on Victoria Street that was being used by teenagers, but it was only be used for a couple of hours one afternoon a week,” explained Burcombe. “(…) I think it would be a great place. There will only be 12 spaces. I think four out of the 12 are for children 18 months and under and there will be two educators there.”

Burcombe noted that if the plan is approved, the pilot project is a go. He also encourages families to reach out to the town to put their name on a list if they are interested in having a spot for their child, but there is no guarantee. 

“It’s a pilot project for two or three years I believe it is. So, once we commit to it, it  will stay there for two or three years and then we will reconsider. If the need is still there for it, it will continue,” he said. 

Regarding the changes made to the salaries of the First Responders, Burcombe said that it has long been something that he wanted to address. 

“Their commitment was ‘neighbours helping neighbours’ and they loved what they were doing, but I felt that they should be compensated more,” he emphasized. 

At $23 an hour per call for a minimum of three hours, Burcombe hopes this will have a positive impact. 

“They could end up on a 12-hour shift and be paid for four calls if they all come outside of the three hours of the previous call. (…) We put that in force and it started on August 1,” noted Burcombe. 

Burcombe mentioned that he met with the First Responders after the council meeting to inform them of the decision. 

“They were very happy and as they said, being recognized for their service, but we do recognize their service. Over 50% of their calls are life and death situations for the patient. This is very critical for us with an aging population. In the Town of Brome Lake, 30% or more are 65 years or older,” explained Burcombe. 

Listen to the full interview below: