North Frontenac just landed roughly $2.25 million through the province’s 2026 Ontario Municipal Partnership Fund, a 14% increase over last year. It’s unconditional operating money. Council can put it toward roads, fire service, admin, libraries, reserves, the levy, or any other municipal priority. In other words, the township has real room to move.
If we’re honest, our biggest constraint isn’t always cash. It’s imagination. We can’t sit around watching the seasons change and then complain that nothing changes for us. Progress starts with proposals on paper, not with grumbling at the counter or in a Facebook thread. Bad ideas are allowed. That is how communities sort the wheat from the chaff. What matters is that good ideas are in the mix, too, so we have something worth debating and improving.
I attended the roast beef dinner at the Ompah hall last week. The food was excellent, the room was packed, and conversations with neighbours, Mayor Lichty, and Deputy Mayor Huetl came easily. Looking around, it struck me that there is a lifetime of know-how in that room that will vanish if we do not capture it. We often talk about being pioneers here. As former Central Frontenac mayor Bill MacDonald said when recalling the ‘98 ice storm, in an interview with Frontenac News, “we do have the pioneer spirit here.” If that is true, then it is time to turn that spirit into concrete projects the Township can act on.
NFNM is asking the Township to spell out how this year’s OMPF dollars will be used. What portion stabilizes the levy, what portion goes to reserves, and which services see improvements because of this money. We will publish the answers verbatim so residents can see the plan without spin. For context, the province increased the OMPF envelope to $600 million for 2026, up $50 million from last year, and distributed through the fund’s core components for rural and small municipalities. That is the scale of support now available.
While we wait for that breakdown, here’s the hard truth. If residents don’t put forward concrete proposals, Council will default to housekeeping. Housekeeping keeps the lights on. It doesn’t build the future. If you want better roads to lakes, safer shoulders for cyclists, atv’s, and joggers, bylaw enforcement, entrepreneur support, a youth committee after-school, or a seasonal shuttle connecting our boat launches, you need to put it in writing and put it on a desk.
The municipal process can feel convoluted—forms, committees, acronyms—but that is not a barrier to entry. This isn’t a contest for the cleverest pitch; it’s a pipeline. Every idea has value, even the ones that don’t survive contact with budgets or bylaws, because they help us test assumptions and refine better ones. Leave ego at the door. Not every proposal will be adopted and that is fine. NFNM will publish every submission so the community can see the full range of thinking and track what moves forward.
Call for ideas
NFNM is opening the door to everyone in North Frontenac. Students, parents, retirees, entrepreneurs, cottagers, full-timers. Send one idea you believe this funding should help unlock. Keep it specific, cost-aware, and local. NFNM will compile submissions, group similar proposals, and forward them to the relevant committees and staff so they get in front of the right eyes. We will also publish a public log so people can see what was sent onward.
NFNM inbox on facebook or donald.nfnm@gmail.com.
If you want something built, say what it is, where it goes, why it matters, and how the Township could phase it in. Send your idea to the NFNM inbox or page with “2026 Idea” in the subject. We’ll handle the routing and follow up with the Township on outcomes and publish updates. If you want to go direct to council or committee then you are welcome to as well, this is not to replace the existing procedure, only to encourage more flow of creative ideas.
The Township has money. What happens next depends on whether we have the courage to flood the zone with smart, serious ideas. We live here after all. let’s own it.
Sources/Documents of interest
- Quote used for “pioneer spirit.” Frontenac News, Craig Bakay, “Former Mayors remember what the Ice Storm of ‘98 was like”: https://frontenacnews.ca/article.php?id=12077
- North Frontenac’s 2026 OMPF allocation — $2,248,900. Provincial allocations table (official): https://www.ontario.ca/document/2026-ontario-municipal-partnership-fund/municipal-allocations?utm_source=chatgpt.com
