 By Staff
June 24th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
The Burlington Food Bank was recently contacted by Feed Ontario to help the provincial government get a better understanding of the effects of the Pandemic on Food Banks in regards to client usage and community support since Covid-19 took effect.
 Robin Bailey, Executive Director of the Burlington Food Bank Robin Bailey, Executive Director of the Food Ban said “They also wanted to know what we were doing to prepare for the long term needs that many in our community will face.
“For us at the Burlington Food Bank, we have seen an increase in usage and an increase in new clients and have also recognized great community support through Food Drives and financial donations.
“We have been able to support everyone that has called us for help, increased the fresh produce and other food we distribute and in addition, when local food agencies ask us for assistance, we do our best to support them as well. One of the other results of the current state is we have seen an increase in the number of people in Burlington offering to volunteer with us which has been a huge help in managing the extra work.
“So we are in excellent shape to support more clients as needed and we are now preparing for a transition in delivery method options as we see the City moving towards Phase 3.
 The volunteers that make the place work every day of the week. “We have been able to support everyone that has called us for help, increased the fresh produce and other food we distribute and in addition, when local food agencies ask us for assistance, we do our best to support them as well. Nice to see them asking for our numbers and seeing that they are coordinating with all city Food Banks in Ontario.
If you are in need or know of someone who could use our help PLEASE have them email us at info@burlingtonfoodbank.ca or call 905-637-2273 to make arrangements to have food dropped at their door or they can now PICK IT UP. If you live in Burlington, we are here to help.
 By Pepper Parr
June 23rd, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
A seasoned commercial real estate developer bought a home in Burlington in 3Q 2019.
He and his wife and their child were looking forward to the move but before the moving trucks were called the met with an architect who drew up some plans they wanted to make to the house,
The architect met with the appropriate people in Burlington’s Planning department where the plans had to be approved before a Building Permit could be issued.
 City of Adjustment counter at city hall during a festive season. There was a bit of confusion that got cleared up. The Planners weren’t the problem. The property owner needs a building permit which he can’t get until there is a decision from Committee of Adjustment (CoA). The planner’s hands are tied.
An application was made to the CoA for a minor variance– that was turned down.
The property owner understood, he knew the rules and was more than prepared to abide by whatever those who gave permissions required.
The plan for the addition to the newly purchased house were revised again and ready for the second submission to the CoA early in March
Then Covid19 hit – and everything came to a grinding halt.
The problem for the homeowner who now owned the Burlington residence was that he had sold his home elsewhere in the GTA.
The need to get before the Burlington CoA took on a new urgency.
The problem was made more complex when the CoA found that it could not give dates for hearing that were going to be virtual.
Hamilton was able to hold Committee of Adjustment hearings but none of the smaller municipalities were ready.
The homeowner met with a real estate agent in Burlington looking for a home that could be rented. He found one that would meet what was becoming a pressing need.
The home that was being sold was due to close at the end of June – which was fast approaching.
All the homeowner could get from Burlington’s Committee of Adjustment was that they expected to begin holding hearings in July – not when in July – just July.
The homeowner wanted to know where he stood in the pecking order – was he number 1 or number 101.
Everyone is being polite – what isn’t understood is – what is taking the Burlington CoA so long to get to the point where they can hold virtual hearings.
No one seems to have an answer.
The property owner wasn’t able to get much from the ward 4 Councillor. He got a bit more from the ward 1 Councillor who was more attuned to development issues
Burlington city council has been doing business virtually for a couple of months. The Regional government has been doing things virtually for several months.
Why not the Committee of Adjustment? No one is talking.
The property owner needs to know how long he has to rent for. He is currently looking at a year. Yikes!
 By Pepper Parr
June 22, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
At the Standing Committee earlier in the month a Staff Report on the Emshih Developments request for an additional six months extension for Phase II of their Garden Trails sub-division to be tidied up.
The Staff report didn’t see it as quite that simple and set out their concerns.
The subject lands are located south of Provincial Highway 403 and the CN Railway tracks, at the terminus of Genista Drive and are approximately 3.8 hectares in size. The lands are made up of two blocks within a Registered Plan of Subdivision and are adjacent to a tributary of Grindstone Creek, which is located south of the subject lands.
In 2001, the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB), now known as the Local Planning Appeal Tribunal (LPAT), approved the draft plan of subdivision to facilitate Phase II of the subject draft plan of subdivision, which includes the creation of 20 single detached lots fronting onto a new municipal road, being the extension of Genista Drive; the creation of new servicing blocks and the establishment of a new Open Space block.
As part of the draft approval, the applicant was required to satisfy the conditions provided within three years. Since the time of draft approval in 2001, the applicant was granted several extensions to the timeframe in which to clear conditions, with the current lapsing date being June 30, 2020.
In November 2019 the applicant requested to extend the lapsing date by an additional three years to June of 2023. As part of this request, staff reviewed the remaining conditions of draft approval and are of the opinion that the applicant has not been demonstrating that they have been actively working toward clearing conditions of draft approval. In addition, staff is of the opinion that a further extension is not appropriate as substantial policy changes have taken place since the original draft approval in 2001, which conflict with the draft approved plans.
Despite the Staff recommendation the Standing Committee decided the developer should get the extension.
That Standing Committee decision came before Council yesterday where it got another hour of debate. The Mayor was adamant – the developer would have to file a new application – any extension was not warranted.
The four who were prepared to give the extension stuck to their positions which produced a classic Burlington division – a 4-3 decision.
Mayor Meed Ward wasn’t able to sway any of the four (Sharman, Bentivegna, Kearns and Galbraith) but she was able to sew some doubt on the costs involved which resulted in City Treasurer Joan Ford having to write a report for the August round of meetings. The Mayor also managed to raise some legal issues which resulted in City Solicitor Nancy Shea Nicol also having to write a report for the August round of meetings.
The motion to extend the development application for six months got revised to just two months while the Treasurer and the Solicitor wrote their reports.
 Phase II of the Garden Trails development (shown in green) was the result of an OMB decision that was handed down close to 20 years ago. At Standing Committee earlier in the month Councillors Sharman, Kearns, Bentivegna and Galbraith were prepared to give Enshih Developments the six months they felt they needed to resolve the differences with the Planning department.
At Council Mayor Meed Ward didn’t want to go along with what was a clear council majority and used an hour to badger her colleagues into going along with her wishes. She went so far as to say the developer had done a good job of lobbying Galbraith and Kearns and providing them with information the rest of Council didn’t have.
Councillors Sharman and Bentivegna thought the request for the additional six months to resolve the differences before the application was closed down by the Planning department was reasonable.
 Mayor Meed Ward who appears to be standing by herself during the playing of the National Anthem at the beginning of a city council meeting. There were three other people in the Council Chamber. City council meets virtually – with the rest of Council elsewhere communicating via Zoom. The Mayor along with Councillors Nisan and Stolte were opposed to giving the developer an opportunity to bring the technical parts of the application up to date arguing that the legislation and environmental requirements had changed so much that a new application would be required.
The Staff report painted the big picture –
The subject lands are located south of Provincial Highway 403 and the CN Railway tracks, at the terminus of Genista Drive and are approximately 3.8 hectares in size. The lands are made up of two blocks within a Registered Plan of Subdivision and are adjacent to a tributary of Grindstone Creek, which is located south of the subject lands.
Staff believed the policy changes since the 2001 OMB decision made any further extension inappropriate.
Sometime in August, when Councillors usually have the month off they will go at this again.
The Mayor’s remark that two of the Councillors were heavily lobbied and given information the rest of Council didn’t have may result in heels being dug in even deeper.
Some really snarky remarks passed between the Councillors with several Points of Order put on the table that had to be resolved by the City Clerk.
Throughout the debate all of the Councillors repeated to each other that they were pleased with the “collaborative” approach that was being taken.
There was more manipulation than collaboration on this matter at City Council yesterday afternoon.
Staff, in their report did say that:
Based on a review of the submitted materials and the nature of the technical comments received, a substantial amount of additional information is still outstanding and would need to be provided to demonstrate that the proposed development is able to achieve compliance with the current policy framework and regulations. Given the time that has elapsed since Draft Approval was first granted in 2001, several studies and reports would require updating and thorough review by staff.
The policy framework has changed substantially since draft plan approval in 2001, and given the ecological significance of the lands, it is important that current standards and regulations are considered and maintained. It is not appropriate to assess the proposal using outdated policy framework given that the applicant has not actively been working toward clearing conditions. In the opinion of staff, these requirements are not minor and should not be considered as part of an extension request; but rather, be more appropriately comprehensively reviewed as part of a new plan of subdivision application.
For these reasons, staff are of the opinion that the extension of the draft approval should not be granted and that a new plan of subdivision application should be submitted by the applicant.
A majority of Council didn’t see it that way. The decision yesterday was to give very short extension while reports are prepared by Legal and Finance.
The original motion that made it through the Standing Committee earlier in the month consisted of just the first paragraph with the date of December 31st. The revised motion brought in the City Treasurer and the City Solicitor who were to produce their take for the August round of Council meetings.
Related news story:
Standing Committee agrees to give developer an additional six months to tidy up an old subdivision application.
By Pepper Parr
June 22nd, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
Alex Don, a Burlington native, a graduate of Assumption High school and a Member of the Upper Canada Law Society with a legal education that took place in France, England and McGill University, has created a not-for-profit organization that is offering pro bono legal services across Canada using a network of 400 volunteers.
 Alex Don, founder of the National Canadian Lawyers Initiative. While studying in Strasbourg France Don served as a Clerk for a Judge with the Court of Human Rights where he became much more aware of the need to respect the rights and needs of ordinary people within the Judicial system.
When he began to practice law he chose the field of insolvency and corporate reorganization as his specialty.
Don first saw the need for help for those who were hit by the impact of Covid19. They needed legal help but didn’t have the funds needed to retain a lawyer but more importantly – they didn’t know where to look for the help they needed. For many their normal income stream had dried up.
When Alex Don started receiving calls from people who were encountering legal problems as result of the COVID-19 crisis, but were unable to provide a retainer because their income had been affected he decided to create an organization that could meet the needs of several groups.
The National Canadian Lawyers Initiative (NCLI), which currently has an office in Burlington, was founded on April 28 and received approval from the Law Society of Ontario to provide pro bono legal service on May 14.
 NCLI was created to improve the access to justice especially during the COVID19 period. Alex Don then realized that access to justice was a problem for many people long before we had to deal with Covid19.
“When I started receiving calls” said Don ” I soon realized there was a very large unmet need. That was when the idea for a national organization took for in my mind.
“We created a platform where this help could be made available
“The volunteer lawyers, many of whom are law students, do not go to court to defend people. They are there to listen and document the legal problem and then prepare a short brief which is sent along to lawyers who are in a position to take on cases.
“The volunteer can and have spent up to as much as five hours talking to people with legal problems. They focus on identifying the problems and then do what they can to pair them up with a lawyer
Don reports that NCLI has gotten as many as 100 calls some days.
The Law Society does have a program that gives a 30 minute conversation with a lawyer at no cost to the caller. Few senior lawyers take on this type of Law Society volunteer work.
Ontario has a Legal Aid service that involves a means test that many people don’t qualify for – they aren’t poor enough. They have jobs but they don’t know where to turn to for the kind of help they need.
At the same time there are hundreds of lawyers who have been called to the bar but don’t have much in the way of experience – they know the law, they can write applications but they don’t have clients.
Don decided there was an opportunity to help people and reached out to various colleagues to create an online platform that could do just that.
“People need help with contracts that are not working out, lease agreements that have to be renewed or employment matters – there are legal problems everywhere.
Don saw a need during the Covid19 crisis and then realized that the need was a lot bigger. He wants to grow the organization and once it is proven begin looking for funding to make it part of the legal infrastructure.
 Some of the members of the National Canadian Lawyers Initiative. “This is why our team of volunteers have started this not-for-profit, to help the people in our communities. Our mission is simple: To launch a web-based platform that will match law students and newly-called lawyers to seasoned legal professionals who together will provide the much-needed legal advice in their communities, quickly, efficiently and most importantly free of charge.”
There is currently as lot of federal funding in place; some of which Don thinks might be available to fund NCLI adding “we might be able to help people determine if they are eligible for financial support.
Alex Don started out seeing the NCLI initiative as a temporary 12-month program that could help people in all areas of law, with the exception of criminal law.
NCLI is an attempt to pair law students or men and women recently called to the bar, with mentors who can guide them. “A lot of law students lost their summer placements,” said Mark Mejia Kuznetsova, a vice president at NCLI.
“There are a lot of students with a lot of time on their hands and not much to do during the summer months … This way they will get some experience and give back to society.”
The NCLI operates on a first-come, first-served, triaged basis.
 By Pepper Parr
June 22nd, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
The city opened up and people did what they have been wanting to do for months – get out and relax and be themselves.
The restaurants weren’t able to invite people inside – but they were able to open up patios and invite people to newly created pop up patios that met some of the need.
Social distancing was respected in most places – a few exceptions – hopefully no infections were passed around.
We will know in about ten days if we were behaving well enough to allow a further opening up.
It was great weather and a number of additional locations will be opening for the National holiday.
 Relaxing and enjoying being out with friends.  He wants his Mother to know where he was.  It was all about a good smoke.  The restaurants wanted you to know that there patios were open.
 By Pepper Parr
June 22nd, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
 Halton Regional Chief of Police Stephen Tanner Halton Regional Police Chief Stephen Tanner is to be commended for his immediate and strong statement over some police behaviour that was captured on video by a citizen and shown on social media networks.
The video, show here, is disturbing
In his statement Chief Tanner said: “I can assure you that this matter will be dealt with appropriately and as swiftly as possible, and individual(s) disciplined accordingly.
“I am extremely concerned with what I have seen in this particular video, particularly the actions of all four officers who were present at the time of the incident.
Chief Tanner adds that a “criminal process is the presumption of innocence until there is a finding of guilt. This fact is the same for all citizens including members of a police service.”
Rightly so.
 The reputation of the police force is in play. Is it a collection of thugs or a barrel with some bad apples? Hopefully the police will announce that the three police officers who looked on and took no action are taken out of active police work and put behind desks where they can shuffle paper or assigned to police escort work transmitting people being held in custody and transported to court houses.
Chief Tanner’s strong statement will hopefully be followed by swift action.
The leadership of the Oakville detachment might be worth looking at more closely – good commanding officers know the men and women they lead.
The Police Services Act of Ontario is a complex document that allows for long delays if that is what is wanted while investigations take place. Covid19 precautions can also be brought into play if that is the wish of the police administration.
At play here is the reputation of the hundreds of police officers who serve the public daily; they deserve to be supported by a Chief of Police who is steadfast in how he carries out the mandate he swore to uphold when he was sworn in.
 By Staff
June 22nd, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
It isn’t often that the community hears directly from the Chief of Police.
The follow was sent out to the media and the larger public on Sunday.
On June 20, 2020, a video was posted to social media showing an altercation between members of the Halton Regional Police Service and a male party. We believe the incident took place in Oakville in April 2020. Immediately upon learning of this incident, the officer who made direct physical contact with the individual was suspended from duty. That is a decision that I am responsible for as your Chief of Police.
 An excerpt from the video the Chief of Police is concerned about. Full video is shown below. I am extremely concerned with what I have seen in this particular video, particularly the actions of all four officers who were present at the time of the incident.
In accordance with the Police Services Act of Ontario, the only immediate option available to a Chief of Police is suspension from duty with pay. While police chiefs and Police Services Boards have long sought to have the option for suspension without pay, this has yet to become a reality in the new Police Services Act.
I fully understand the concerns voiced by our residents about this incident. And through emails, voicemails and social media comments since yesterday, I recognize that many have demanded the immediate firing of the individual involved.
The reality is that we must ensure that we conduct a full and fair investigation, as always, and pursue charges as appropriate.
In an incident such as this, there are two parallel processes.
First, there is the potential for a criminal investigation and criminal charges which would proceed through the normal court process. Built into the criminal process is the presumption of innocence until there is a finding of guilt. This fact is the same for all citizens including members of a police service.
 Halton Regional Police Services Chief Stephen Tanner. Secondly, there is the matter of police discipline which is a separate charge-like process which would proceed under the Police Services Act of Ontario. In this process, a separate investigation is conducted and an officer would be served with a notice of hearing, and their employment cannot be terminated until there is a finding of guilt and ruling of termination and/or the individual resigns from the service.
Unfortunately, both these processes take time depending on the circumstances; this understandably leads to frustration for many involved in the system and for those watching the process through the lens of the public. Nonetheless, they are the systems that we must function within.
The 1,000-plus members of our Service work day in and day out to foster and maintain a positive reputation with the members of the public that we serve. We know the video shows actions that erode your trust in us. As your Chief of Police, I can assure you that this matter will be dealt with appropriately and as swiftly as possible, and individual(s) disciplined accordingly.
The video that has the Police Chief concerned can be seen here
By Staff
June 20th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
The Gazette web site, we call it our press room, is undergoing a security upgrade. The content has been hacked into several times and someone is playing with the comments section. Thus, unfortunately, the comments section will not be available until security is solid enough to prevent people from removing what you want to say.
The city came out of its ‘lockdown” yesterday; people walked the streets and had a beer or a glass of wine and met with neighbours and friends.
Some of the distancing rules didn’t stick as well as they perhaps should have.
Earlier in the week city council decided they would go all out to give the hospitality sector all the help they could.
The rules for pop up patios were relaxed; fees were waived and there was staff in place to process applications.
Citizens saw how city hall could move when it wanted to. There was no bureaucracy to trip over.
The pictures tell the story.
 The Queen’s Head was open for business and the suds flowed – masks for all the staff.  Joe Dogs made sure you understood the rules – happy hands during the Happy Hours.  Social distancing strictly observed.  Did they check her ID? She could walk home if it came to that. Ward 2 Councillor Lisa Kearns checking on the hospital sector on the first night of limited re-opening.  In the up close and personal services market – everyone wears masks. Getting appointment with a hair dresser is not as simple as a single phone call.  Not everyone bounced back right away. The Back Porch at Emma’s looks abandoned.
By Pepper Parr
Jan 20th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
Wearing a mask we are told is now what we should be doing to prevent the Covid virus from being transmitted from person to person.
Many of the handmade masks are quite creative and many retail locations now have a supply.
 Kim Reid and Lisa Faria use sign language to communicate and rely on being able to read the faces of people they are communicating with. The masks allow their mouths to be seen. Both are at the Bob Rumball Canadian Centre of Excellence for the Deaf
What about segments of the population – particularly the deaf who depend on the facial expression of the person they are “talking” to?
 The masks are made of 100% cotton and come in bright patterns. A former Milton Town Council member, Jan Mowbray, who led the making of 3,000 masks for Burlington residents serves as a Board member of the Bob Rumball Canadian Centre of Excellence for the Deaf.
She was acutely aware of the problems deaf people have and designed and then made 400 masks for Rumble residents.
 Jan Mowbray at her sewing machine stitching the ties for the masks Mowbray worked out a design, then created a template from which she cut the fabric and then glued in the piece of plastic that covers the mouth.
“It was long painstaking work” said Mowbray, who went through several designs to come up with what she was finally satisfied with.
Kim Reid and Lisa Faria are delighted with the masks they now have.
Note: Anyone wishing to purchase masks made for those who are hard of hearing and need to be able to read the lips of those they are communicating with please be in touch with: seamstress@hwkp.com
By Staff
June 19th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
In a Media release put out by the Halton Regional Police service earlier today the death of a 60 year old woman was reported to have taken place at Harvester Road and Appleby Line.
There was no mention of who the person was other than to say that next of kin had been notified.
 Regan Russell at the intersection of Harvester Road and Appleby Line yards away from where she was killed by a truck transporting pigs. Regan Russell, who was identified as the victim in a release by Animal Justice, was struck by a transport truck that was hauling pigs through the gates of Fearmans Pork meat processing facility at Appleby Line and Harvester Road at around 10:20 a.m. on Friday, June 19.
The truck with its cargo of pigs remained at the scene for several hours as police blocked off the area and began their investigation.
A Burlington resident sitting across the street from the plant in the Wendy’s parking lot when the incident happened, described what he saw:
“The truck was there for about four or five minutes. The protesters were there. Then they walked away from the truck when they were done,” said the observer.
“Then I saw a woman … I assumed the truck driver thought he was clear to go and didn’t see that last protester.”
Around 10 protesters who had been engaged in a regularly scheduled animal rights vigil at the plant remained on the scene following the crash.
Anita Krajnc, co-founder of the group Toronto Pig Save, talked about the victim, a Hamilton resident in her 60s.
While Krajnc was not on the scene when the collision happened, she noted Regan Russell and the other activists were bringing the trucks to a stop by standing in front of the gate to the plant and then giving water to the pigs in the truck, recording video and attempting to raise awareness of the pigs’ plight.
Animal Justice said in its media release that Regan Russell was run over by a transport truck as she attended a peaceful vigil outside of the facility.
 Firefighters and slaughterhouse staff attempt to corral pigs trapped in a transport truck that flipped on its side with a load of pigs. “Ten thousand pigs are trucked into and slaughtered at the Fearmans Pork slaughterhouse every day. Advocates with the Animal Save Movement hold regular vigils outside of the slaughterhouse to document the suffering of these animals in transport. On a scorching hot day like today, many pigs are likely to arrive at the facility already dead from heat exposure.
“The tragic death comes two days after the controversial agricultural gag (“ag gag”) law, Bill 156, was passed in Ontario. Bill 156 is designed to cover up animal cruelty on farms and during transport. Among other troubling provisions aimed at preventing whistle blowers and animal advocates from exposing the abuse of farmed animals, the new law aims to restrict the peaceful protest rights of those who hold vigils at slaughterhouses across the province.
 Protesters photograph the pigs in a transport truck – part of their documenting what they see as cruel. “It does so by making it an offence to “interact” with farmed animals in a transport truck—a prohibition widely denounced by animal advocates and constitutional law experts as an unconstitutional restriction of rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly guaranteed in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.”
Today’s vigil was one of the last opportunities for a vigil before the bill becomes law.
 Protesters giving pigs on the way into the slaughterhouse water. Movement founder Anita Krajnc, was arrested and charged with criminal mischief for giving water to pigs in a transport truck outside of the Fearmans slaughterhouse. Ms. Krajnc was acquitted in 2017 after a much-publicized trial. Vigils at Fearmans Pork adhere to strict safety protocols.
“Regan Russell was a kind, elegant, strong, and courageous person,” said Anita Krajnc, founder of the Animal Save Movement. “She was a mentor to others, and she always did activism with kindness in her heart.”
“She had been an animal advocate since 1979, attended vigils weekly for years, and cared deeply about justice for animals, racial justice, and protecting the vulnerable.”
Related news story:
Police report on the death of a 60 year old female.
 By Ray Rivers
June 19th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
Chief Allan Adam of Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation photographed after he was beaten by RCMP officers in Fort McMurray, Alberta, Canada, March 10, 2020.
As we approach another Canada Day it is time to reflect on why the world community largely left Canada sitting on the shelf. Norway and Ireland, and not Canada, have been elected as the non-permanent members of the UN Security Council. In fact Canada had fewer votes than when we last tried under the Harper government.
So who cares whether Canada gets a seat at the Security Council and would we have made a difference anyway? Hasn’t the UN and its Security Council (SC) been largely discredited since its creation over half a century ago? And there were all those times the UN failed us, like when Russia invaded Ukraine and the US bombed Iraq, and when we allowed a massacre in Rwanda.
Unlike Justin Trudeau, former PM Stephen Harper couldn’t have cared less when he tried and also failed to get a seat. But then he couldn’t even be bothered attending scheduled UN meetings. No doubt his animosity towards world governance has left Canada in a shadow. So it would be easy to just blame Harper but that’s not going to stick.
 Canadians that are part of the United Nations Mali Task Force Losing says more about Canada and how we are seen by the rest of the world than whether the UN was worth the cost of Harper’s airfare there. There are a lot of explainers out there with a lot of excuses for why we failed this time. Canada came late to the party and had fewer committed votes. The EU clearly voted for European nations over Canada.
Although Canada has moved to increase its miserable levels of international aid and policing, it’s still too little too late. Perhaps the poorer nations would rather not vote for another rich G7 nation. And maybe China used its influence to discourage its client nations as a way of further punishing us over the Ms. Meng, Huawei mess.
How hard did the US work on our behalf given Trump’s mixed emotions about our PM? Renewing our contract to arm Saudi Arabia didn’t help our reputation as a peace loving nation. And the Saudis themselves are hardly going to vote for us after our recent human rights spat. And did I mention how Russia might be voting? Come to think of it Canada has earned itself a few good enemies lately.
Then there is Canada’s middle east policy, slavishly pro-Israeli and embarrassingly so during the Harper years. The Liberals have since nuanced that policy, voting against new settlements, Still, it is hard to see much daylight between the policies of the two governments as Israel mulls amalgamating the West Bank.
We’ve been bullied, abused and pushed around, by both China and the US. And we just sit there and take it as if we really believe that the meek shall inherit the earth. We used to be respected as a powerful military and manufacturing nation. Today we have fallen back in many ways to where we started out – hewers of wood and drawers of oil. Would a UN seat allow Canada to develop a backbone?
 Meng Wanzhou – Chief Financial Officer of Huawei wearing the tracking bracelet required under her bail conditions. Even Canadians don’t understand why we’re still holding that Huawei executive prisoner for a dysfunctional US administration when she broke no laws in this country. And we don’t get why we haven’t responded in kind to China’s one-sided trade war with us when they export so much more than we do. Do we really expect other nations to vote for an international wimp?
Mr. Trudeau invested a lot of capital twisting the arms and peddling Canadian democratic exceptionalism to more than just a few dictators in his quest for the elusive UN seat. Had he paid as much attention to the budding global pandemic, fewer Canadians might have perished to COVID 19. Ireland has half the death rate and Norway doesn’t even register on the same scale. A pandemic is a matter of global security after all.
While the PM was selling his vision of an inclusive, tolerant and compassionate Canada to African leaders, racial warfare was breaking out at home. And the conflict was over another fossil fuel pipeline making a mockery of any credibility the PM might claim on the climate change file. Oh and isn’t Canada still subsidizing the oil industry, and aren’t the provinces still fighting the carbon tax?
There is no concealing that racial inequality was behind those spectacular protests last winter, which partially shut down our economy. But then racial inequality is embedded in Canada’s Indian Act, created back at the time of confederation. And beyond indigenous populations, the black lives matter demonstrations have challenged the reported successes of Canada’s immigration and multiculturalism policies.
 Chief Allan Adam of Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation photographed after he was beaten by RCMP officers in Fort McMurray, Alberta, Canada, March 10, 2020. Then video footage appears telling everyone that Canada’s famous red coats are not much better than a pack of thugs and goons. The unending American style police brutality and even murder against indigenous minorities is carried on tape for all to see as the PM and his police commissioner debate how much systemic racism really exists in our police services.
We keep telling ourselves that we live in the best country in the world. And indeed life is pretty good here for some but that ego-centric view glosses over our many warts, especially when it comes to life conditions for our indigenous populations.
So as we approach another celebration of the founding of this country we should embrace some humility. The UN delegates sent us a message. We’re not ready to take a leadership role on the world stage when we haven’t even got our own act together here at home.
But we can do better and there is a lot of work to do. Are you ready for the challenge Mr. Trudeau? What about the rest of us?
 Ray Rivers writes weekly on both federal and provincial politics, applying his more than 25 years as a federal bureaucrat to his thinking. Rivers was a candidate for provincial office in Burlington where he ran against Cam Jackson in 1995, the year Mike Harris and the Common Sense Revolution swept the province. He developed the current policy process for the Ontario Liberal Party.
Background links:
Canada Fails – Trudeau’s Loss – COVID Death Rates –
Foreign Aid – Are We Listening –
By Staff
June 19th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
On Monday, June 22, 2020, Ontario’s driver testing services provider, DriveTest, will begin to gradually offer limited driver testing services in a staggered, phased approach across the province. Driver Examination services will be reintroduced in three phases until full services are restored this fall. The gradual approach will ensure that strict protocols are in place to prevent the spread of COVID-19. This is part of the government’s efforts to ensure that critical services are in place so people can return to work as Ontario reopens.
Visiting DriveTest Centres
To reduce crowding and support new requirements for physical distancing, health checks and enhanced sanitation, most DriveTest centres will serve customers who want to take a knowledge test, exchange a driver’s licence and apply for or upgrade a commercial driver’s licence based on when they were born.
People with birthdays between January to June will be allowed to visit a centre the first week of reopening and people with birthdays between July to December will have access to DriveTest services the following week:
Access to DriveTest services will continue to alternate weekly until full services are restored.
Plan Your Trip to DriveTest Before You Go
Learn more about available driver testing services, how to access DriveTest centres, and which customers are being served each week at DriveTest.ca.
Information will be updated every Monday.
Extended Driver’s Licence Status
The Ontario government has extended the validity of all Ontario driver’s licences to keep people safe and reduce the need for in-person visits to ServiceOntario and DriveTest centres to contain the spread of COVID-19. No one will lose their licence due to COVID-19.
Access to the different services available is being phased in.
Phase 1
On Monday, June 22, 2020, all 56 full-time DriveTest Centres will reopen for the following transactions:
G1 knowledge and vision tests
M1 knowledge and vision tests
Driver’s licence exchanges
Out-of-province licences
Out-of-country licences (jurisdictions with reciprocal driver’s licensing)
Out-of-country licences (non-reciprocating jurisdictions)
Commercial driver’s licence applications and upgrades
Knowledge tests
Vision tests
Medical report submissions
Criminal Record and Judicial Matters (CRJM) Check or equivalent document submissions
School Bus Driver Improvement Course certificate submissions
New Entrant Education and Evaluation Program (NEEEP)/ Commercial Vehicle Operator’s Registration (CVOR) Test
Commercial road tests (Class A, B, C, D, E, F and Z) at 28 locations across Ontario:
Barrie, Belleville, Brampton, Brantford, Burlington, Chatham, Clinton, Cornwall, Downsview, Guelph, Hamilton, Hawkesbury, Kitchener, Kingston, Lindsay, London, Newmarket, Oshawa, Orangeville, Orillia, Ottawa Walkley, Peterborough, Sault Ste Marie, St. Catharines, Simcoe, Sudbury, Thunder Bay and Timmins
Phase 2
Starting on Tuesday, August 4, the following services will be available:
Road-testing for G2 driver licences
Road-testing for all motorcycle licences
Commercial driver road testing will expand to the remaining 22 DriveTest locations across Ontario that road test commercial drivers.
Part-time Travel Point locations will resume driver examination services as locations become available for the public’s use.
Phase 3
Starting on Tuesday, September 8, all DriveTest centres and Travel Point locations will be fully operational, including G road-testing services.
Ontario will work with the service provider and with public health officials to ensure that the above dates are appropriate depending on the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak.
New Health and Safety Protocols
To protect the safety of Ontarians, DriveTest will also require customers to wear face coverings inside centres and during road tests, sanitize their hands when they enter the building and undergo temperature checks before road tests.
All DriveTest staff will wear personal protective equipment when serving customers. Driver examiners will also be equipped with face shields, sanitizer packages and seat covers when conducting road tests.
 By Staff
June 18th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
We are not where we want to be yet – the objective is going to be to ensure that it doesn’t get any worse.
People will be out mixing with other people. Be careful – pay attention and realize what we are up against.
If there is a spike in infections at the end of the month the province will have to take away the play time we’ve been given. Beating this virus is a job that we all share – don’t blow it.
This is the first Public Health Unit report where Burlington has not had the lowest number of infections in the Region. Halton Hills is the lowest – just by one.
Cases over time
789
COVID-19 cases among Halton residents to date (710 confirmed + 79 probable)
83
COVID-19 cases currently active among Halton residents (74 confirmed + 9 probable)
 Figure 1: COVID-19 cases, by episode date, Halton Region, Mar. 1-Jun. 17, 2020
Figures 1 and 2 show the 789 COVID-19 cases among Halton residents reported by end of the day on June 17. All cases have been graphed according to their episode date, which is used to estimate the date that symptoms began. Figure 1 shows the number of new cases per day, while Figure 2 shows how cases have accumulated over time. Counts for the past 14 days should be interpreted with caution (indicated using the grey shaded area on the graph), since there is a delay between when a person becomes infected and when they develop symptoms, get tested and are reported as a case. Please note the large increase on April 11 is due to expanded testing and identification of COVID-19 among asymptomatic individuals at Mountainview Residence.
Individuals who are lab-confirmed cases are shown in green. Individuals who are probable cases are shown in orange. Probable cases are individuals presumed to have COVID-19 because they have symptoms of COVID-19 and are travelers returning from an affected area, have had close contact with a confirmed case and/or lived/worked in a facility experiencing a COVID-19 outbreak, or have indeterminate test results.
For each day, Figure 3 shows the average number of new confirmed COVID-19 cases over the past seven days, including only those cases that are not staff or residents/patients associated with an outbreak in an institutional or congregate care setting. Cases have been graphed according to their collection date, which is the date that a sample was taken from them to be tested for COVID-19. The graph suggests that the average number of new cases per day was highest in late March/early April, with another increase in mid-May. Counts for recent days should be interpreted with caution (indicated using the grey shaded area on the graph), since there is a delay between when a person is tested and when their test results are reported to Public Health and entered into the system.
Case demographics
78
cases were residents or patients of an institution experiencing an outbreak (10% of all cases)
111
cases work in health care (14% of all cases)
 Figure 4: COVID-19 cases, by age and sex, Halton Region, 2020  Figure 5: COVID-19 cases, by municipality of residence, Halton Region, 2020 Figure 4 shows that by end of the day on June 17, the most COVID-19 cases were among Halton residents aged 40-59 (with 284 cases, or 36%). 441 cases (56%) were female.
Figure 5 shows that by end of the day on June 17, the greatest number of COVID-19 cases were among residents of Oakville (with 265 cases, or 34%). Please note this figure shows counts, and therefore does not take into account the different population sizes or age structures of the four municipalities. Counts in municipalities can also be inflated by outbreaks that have occurred within institutions in their boundaries.
Case exposure source
Figure 6 shows the percentage of COVID-19 cases by primary exposure category for Halton’s four municipalities and for Halton overall. For Halton overall, by end of day on June 17, 285 cases (36%) had contact with a confirmed case that was believed to be the source of their infection. 266 COVID-19 cases (34%) had no known travel or contact history, and therefore were believed to have acquired the virus within Ontario, making them community cases. 132 (17%) were residents/patients or staff associated with an outbreak in an institutional or congregate care setting. 99 cases (13%) had a history of travel that was believed to have been the source of their infection. Information on exposure source was pending for the remaining 7 cases (1%). These proportions vary by municipality. It is important to note that cases can have multiple exposures, and these data reflect only their primary exposure category based on information gathered during case investigation.
Case and contact follow-up
 Figure 7: Percentage of COVID-19 cases reached by Public Health within one day of being reported, Halton Region, cases reported Jun. 11-Jun. 17, 2020  Figure 8: Percentage of COVID-19 community contacts reached by Public Health within one day of being reported, Halton Region, contacts identified Jun. 11-Jun. 17, 2020 Figure 7 shows that 100% of Halton cases reported over the past seven days (June 11-17) were reached by Halton Public Health within one day of being reported, which exceeds the provincial goal of 90%. Similarly, Figure 8 shows that Halton Public Health reached 100% of contacts identified over the past seven days (June 11-17) within one day, compared to the provincial goal of 90%.
Case outcomes
97
cases who have ever been hospitalized to date (14 listed as currently in hospital)
682
cases who are recovered/resolved
24
cases who have died to date (11 of the deceased were residents or patients of an institution experiencing an outbreak).
Institutional outbreaks
19
confirmed institutional outbreaks of COVID-19 reported to Halton Region Public Health to date (1 is ongoing)
Figure 9 shows the 19 confirmed outbreaks of COVID-19 in Halton institutions reported by end of the day on June 17. Institutions are defined as long-term care homes, retirement homes and hospitals. 18 of the outbreaks have resolved, and one is ongoing. Among the 19 confirmed institutional outbreaks reported to date, 11 (58%) have been in long-term care homes, seven (37%) have been in retirement homes and one has been in a hospital (5%).
Lab testing
>3,100
Halton residents were tested for COVID-19 within the past seven days of available data (June 7-13).
>24,400
Halton residents are known to have been tested for COVID-19 to date.
The green bars in Figure 10 show the number of Halton residents who were tested for COVID-19 each week, beginning the week of March 1-7. Data for the most recent week (June 7-13) is incomplete due to reporting lags. The number of people tested decreased the week of May 17 compared to past weeks as mass testing of institutional residents was completed. The number of people tested then began to increase again, as the provincial government permitted more widespread testing.
The orange line in Figure 10 indicates the percentage of tested Halton residents who were positive for COVID-19. The percent positivity was highest the week of March 29-April 4, when 8.2% of Halton residents who were tested for COVID-19 had positive results. In the most recent week (June 7-13), 0.8% of people tested for COVID-19 tested positive, although this number is subject to reporting delays.
Comparison to Ontario
32,917
total confirmed COVID-19 cases reported in Ontario to date
Figure 11 shows age-specific rates of COVID-19 for Halton and Ontario. Rates take into account the population size of each age group to make it possible to compare between different areas. Halton’s age-specific rates are currently significantly different from the provincial rates for all age groups except youth aged 0-19. For example, Halton has 36.4 cases per 10,000 residents aged 80+, which is statistically significantly lower than the 84.3 cases per 10,000 residents aged 80+ in Ontario overall. It is important to note that these rates will fluctuate as numbers increase throughout the pandemic and that differences between age groups may reflect differences in the likelihood of developing symptoms and being tested.
Data limitations and data sources
Halton case data: integrated Public Health Information System (iPHIS), extracted at 7:00 AM on June 18, 2020, to reflect data entered by the end of the day on June 17, 2020
Halton lab data: Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences, Number of individuals who were confirmed positive for COVID-19, COVID-19 Testing Period: 15 Jan 2020 to 13 June 2020. Received on June 15, 2020.
Ontario case count overall: Public Health Ontario, Epidemiologic Summary, COVID-19 in Ontario: January 15, 2020 to June 17, 2020, posted on June 18, 2020 to https://www.ontario.ca/page/2019-novel-coronavirus.
Denominators for Halton and Ontario age-specific rates: Population projections [2020], IntelliHEALTH Ontario, extracted on April 8, 2020.
Data notes
All cases of diseases of public health significance diagnosed in Ontario are entered into iPHIS by local public health units. iPHIS is the Integrated Public Health Information System. It is a dynamic disease reporting system which allows ongoing updates to data previously entered. As a result, data extracted from iPHIS represent a snapshot at the time of extraction and may differ from previous or subsequent reports as data are updated.
The data only represent cases reported to public health and recorded in iPHIS. As a result, all counts will be subject to varying degrees of underreporting due to a variety of factors, such as disease awareness and medical care seeking behaviours, which may depend on severity of illness, clinical practice, changes in laboratory testing, and reporting behaviours.
Cases are included if their “diagnosing health unit” in iPHIS is Halton Region, which means counts include only individuals whose primary residence is in Halton Region. The case may not necessarily have been managed by Halton Region, if they were temporarily residing elsewhere during their case management period. Cases managed by Halton Region who normally live elsewhere but who were managed by Halton Region staff because they were temporarily residing in Halton during their case management period have not been included.
Cases for which the Disposition Status in iPHIS was reported as ENTERED IN ERROR, DOES NOT MEET DEFINITION, DUPLICATE-DO NOT USE, or any variation on these values have been excluded.
Cases are considered “currently active” if they are open in iPHIS.
Figures 1 and 2 distinguish between lab-confirmed and probable cases. Probable cases are defined as epi-linked cases, which means they are presumed to have COVID-19 because they have symptoms compatible with COVID-19 and have travelled to an affected area; have had close contact with a confirmed case; and/or lived in or worked in a facility known to be experiencing an outbreak of COVID-19; or have indeterminate test results. All other figures and numbers include both confirmed and probable cases combined.
Figures 1 and 2 use episode date, which is a field that is intended to approximate the symptom onset date for each case. It is calculated hierarchically, using symptom onset date if available; when it is not available, specimen collection date is used; if neither symptom onset nor specimen collection date are available, the lab test date is used; and finally, if none of these other dates are available, the date the case was reported to Public Health is used.
In subsequent reports, counts in Figures 1-3 may increase as cases are added from past dates as individuals become symptomatic, get tested, and their results are reported to Halton Region Public Health, as well as any past results are added due to delayed data entry or new arrival of lab results.
Cases are considered to be patients or residents of an institution experiencing an outbreak if they are linked to a confirmed Halton institutional outbreak in iPHIS, and they are not known to be a staff person at the institution.
Cases are considered to work in health care if they are known to have an occupation that involves caring for patients, e.g. physician, nurse, occupational therapist, recreational therapist, chiropractor, paramedic, midwife, orderly, etc. Individuals who work in health care settings but do not provide direct care to patients (e.g. managers, cleaning staff) have not been included.
Exposure type is determined by examining the exposure and risk factor fields from iPHIS to determine whether a case travelled, was a resident/patient or staff member in an institution or congregate care setting experiencing an outbreak, was a contact of a case or neither. A hierarchy has been applied as follows: Travel-related > Associated with institutional or congregate care setting outbreak > Close contact of a confirmed case > Neither (indicating community acquisition) > Information pending. It is important to note that cases can have multiple exposures, and these data reflect only their primary exposure category. Numbers are relatively low, and differences between municipalities have not been assessed for statistical significance. Known cases reflect only individuals who were prioritized for testing, which means that differences between municipalities are currently difficult to ascribe to other factors.
Case outcomes (hospitalizations, recovered/resolved, deaths) reflect the latest available information reported to Halton Region Public Health and recorded in iPHIS by the extraction time.
Cases are considered to have been reached within 24 hours if their investigation start date and case reported dates in iPHIS are no more than one day apart.
Contacts are manually tracked to determine if they were reached within one day. Any contacts referred to Public Health Ontario for follow up have not been included.
Institutional outbreaks include outbreaks of COVID-19 in settings such as long-term care homes, retirement homes, hospitals and prisons.
Lab testing data reflects only lab tests that have been assigned to Halton Region based on the methodology used by the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences. There are several known limitations associated with this data which result in the numbers being underestimates:
• The unit of analysis is the tested individual. Once an individual is confirmed positive, subsequent tests for that individual are excluded from the daily totals;
• The COVID-19 test results were captured in the Ontario Laboratories Information System (OLIS). The testing date represents the date of specimen collection: “observation date” in OLIS. Due to the time required for transportation and processing of specimens, it takes six days for approximately 95% of results to be finalized and reported for a given testing date. Some laboratories did not report all or part of their COVID-19 test results to OLIS. Unconsented test results were excluded;
• Daily counts less than six suppressed;
• The location of tested individuals was based upon the test recipient’s postal code (and corresponding PHU) recorded in the OHIP Registered Persons Database (RPDB) for those residing outside a long-term care (LTC) facility, and the LTC address on the OLIS test requisition for specimens collected from LTC facilities. These address assignments lead to misclassification of PHU in approximately 14% of individuals.
By Staff
June 18th.2020
BURLINGTON, ON
At around 6:30 pm, yesterday a sharp eyed police officer was following up with a citizen-reported traffic complaint in the area of Dynes Road and Woodward Avenue.
While conducting traffic enforcement, the officer noticed a northbound motorcycle with no licence plate.
The motorcycle was being followed by another motor vehicle with proper licence plates attached. The two vehicles were travelling together in a manner that made the officer believe the drivers of the two vehicles knew one other.
After following the motorcycle for a short distance, several Highway Traffic Act offences were observed. In the interest of public safety, the officer made the decision to cease following the motorcycle.
 Police seized the motorcycle – then laid 14 charges As a result of the follow up investigation, on June 17, 2020, a 19 year-old male from Burlington was identified as the motorcycle driver and charged with 14 offences from the Highway Traffic Act, Compulsory Automobile Insurance Act, and Trespass to Property Act. Those charges include:
• Drive Motor Vehicle – Perform Stunt
• Drive Motor Vehicle – No Licence
• Disobey Stop Sign – Fail to Stop
• Owner Operate Motor Vehicle on a Highway – No Insurance
• Engage in Prohibited Activity while on Premises
The motorcycle was also seized by police.
All drivers are reminded to operate under a valid driver’s licence, valid insurance policy, and to follow the rules of the road. Officers have many investigative tools at their disposal to properly locate and identify drivers operating on Halton roadways in an unsafe manner.
By Pepper Parr
June 18th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
A week from today school would have closed for the academic year.
We just didn’t have all that much of an academic year.
Parents and students adjusted to the changes – not always easily. There are still grade 12 students who are working with their teachers to get to the point where they can graduate.
The Premier and his Minister of Education promised that every student who put in the effort would graduate – and if that required extra tutoring then extra tutoring would be available.
Now what ?
Does school start again in September?
School will start – just what form it takes is far from clear. The Province has said they will announce their plans for the Boards of Education across the province by the end of the month.
 Stuart Miller, Halton District School Board Director of Education speaking to parents at Central High School. Stuart Miller, Director of Education for the Halton District School Board isn’t leaving anything to chance.
He has appointed a Task Team co-chaired by two of his top Superintendents to take a deep look at what educators are up against and what the possible options are.
Terry Blackwell and Scott Podrebarac are co-chairs of the Task Force.
Scott Podrebarac was the Superintendent that oversaw the implementation of the Board decision to close two of Burlington’s seven high school. He didn’t get much in the way of brownie points for that job.
His job was to do what the Board of Trustees determined – it did get a little messy when the decision to close Central High School was rescinded and Bateman high school was closed instead. That decision did not go well with the Bateman parents.
 Terry Blackwell Terry Blackwell was the Superintendent tasked with creating an iStem program for Aldershot High School that turned out to be an amazing success. Miller and his staff were not at all sure that the parents in the Region would take to the idea.
 Superintendent Terry Blackwell and Director of Education during the night parents showed up to register their children for the iStem program at Aldershot High School. Registration was much higher than expected and while the first year, made up of grade nine students, wasn’t a full academic year, the students did very well.
The Gazette covered those iStem classes on several occasions – they are an amazing bunch of students.
The plan is for a second iStem program to be opened in Milton.
 Scott Podrebarac Scott Podrebarac showed an ability to handle a very tense situation over a long period of time.
Blackwell sounded every stakeholder she could think of as the listened to the community and what they thought a more science based high school program should look like.
Her listening tour was extensive – the most extensive we have seen within any organization during the ten years we have been reporting on Burlington.
These two Superintendents will be looking at possible directions the delivery of an education can take. Will there be more “on-line learning”? Can students adapt to the change and how much of a change is necessary.
One hope that at some point there will be an opportunity for the public to have significant input on a critical public service.
In commenting on what the province meant when the Premier said there would be a plan in place for September, Miller said “We don’t know what it means.”
 Director of Education Stuart Miller – never to far from a cup of coffee Everything hinges on the number of new infections that are reported – and that number, according to what the science community tells us, is dependent on people staying far enough apart so that the infection is not transferred person to person.
There are a lot of unknowns – which Miller said creates a huge challenge for staff and a lot of uncertainty for parents.
The school closures resulted in less spending on facility operations but very large sums had to be spent on technology and software so that teachers could communicate with their students and get them through the course load.
Miller said that the Educational Assistants were able to work the telephones and keep in touch with the students – in what we learned was a much needed support role.
 Some of the Halton District School Board principals and vice principals at a PARC meeting. These people had to administer schools that weren’t open and support staff they could not meet with. Asked what was the biggest challenge he has had to face Miller replied with: Everything was a challenge and we certainly made some mistakes. It wasn’t a day by day situation – in the early phases it was hour by hour.
Internet access turn out to be a big problem, teachers were not sure what the best approach was in many given situations. Students, as well as parents, were concerned that their children were not getting the education they needed and deserved but everyone realized that the classrooms were closed for very good reasons.
Miller realizes that this situation isn’t over nor is he at all sure what direction it is going to go in.
“We have great students and great teachers” said Miller. “I am fortunate to have a senior staff that comes through day after day.
By Pepper Parr
June 18th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
News today –Eleanor McMahon will not be the Liberal candidate running against Jane McKenna in the next provincial election.
Ms McMahon accepted an appointment as the CEO of Trans Canada Trail last December; she took over from Deborah Apps early in March. Apps had been TCT’s President & CEO since 2008.
 McMahon campaigning with Kathleen Wynne – they both lost. McMahon served in the Kathleen Wynne Liberal government for a single term during which she was a Member of Cabinet and later President of the Treasury Board.
“We are a very different organization today, thanks to Deborah’s dedication to building Canada’s national Trail – The Great Trail of Canada. Her forward-thinking leadership and determination helped achieve the connection of The Great Trail in time for Canada’s 150th anniversary of Confederation – the most successful initiative of its kind in Canada,” says Valerie Pringle, Chair of the TCT Foundation Board.
Eleanor has over 30 years’ experience within the private, public and non-profit sectors. She spent the early years of her career working on Parliament Hill, including as press secretary to the Rt. Honourable Jean Chrétien.
Later, she brought her consensus-building know-how to a variety of other roles, including Director of Public Affairs at the Canadian Advisory Council on the Status of Women, Vice-President at the Canadian Chamber of Commerce and Vice-President at United Way Ottawa. She was elected the MPP for Burlington from 2014 to 2018, and served as Ontario’s Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport, as well as President of the Treasury Board.
“My fellow board members and I have great confidence that Eleanor is the right person to lead TCT into its future. Notably, her non-partisan approach and successful tenure as founder and CEO of the Share the Road Cycling Coalition gives her excellent experience for working with Trail groups across Canada,” says Neil Yeates, Chair of the TCT Board of Directors.
 Eleanor McMahon and her bicycle – it was a large part of a very important part of her life. A passionate advocate for the safety of cyclists, Eleanor founded the Share the Road Cycling Coalition in 2008. Under her governance, this grassroots organization united cycling groups across Ontario to make communities more bicycle-friendly, and pressed the Ontario government to toughen the law regarding individuals who drive while suspended. In addition, she steered the movement that resulted in the launch of #CycleON, Ontario’s first bicycle policy update in 20 years. While in office, she was instrumental in two other legislative safety measures: Ontario’s One Metre Safe Passing Law (2015) and legislation strengthening the Careless Driving provisions of the Highway Traffic Act, creating Canada’s first Vulnerable Road User penalties in 2017. That same year, she announced a $100 million investment in cycling infrastructure in several communities across Ontario.
“As an avid cyclist and outdoor enthusiast, I am thrilled to join the team at Trans Canada Trail,” says Eleanor. “Like so many Canadians, I have watched the inspiring story of The Great Trail evolve from an ambitious idea to the incredible cross-Canada network it is today. I’m looking forward to building upon the significant legacy that Deborah Apps built during her tenure, and leading TCT in its mission to make the Trail a safe, accessible destination for all outdoor enthusiasts in Canada and beyond.”
 Eleanor McMahon at her first public meeting after being appointed to Cabinet. Moving forward, Trans Canada Trail’s mission will be to continue to enhance and improve the Trail. This involves creating more adventures by developing new Trail sections, converting more roadways to greenways, strengthening relationships with Indigenous communities across the country, making the Trail more accessible, funding emergency repairs and ensuring the long-term financial viability of this national icon.
McMahon was an exceptional campaigner – she had that ability to get through to people.
Burlington Liberals who focus on provincial issues have plenty of time to find a candidate. The current Conservative government was in trouble until the Covid pandemic – Premier Ford has done an exceptional job of leading the province during a very difficult time.
If there were an election tomorrow he would be returned to office and take Jane McKenna, the current MPP, in on his coat tails.
However in the world of politics, 24 months is a lifetime. A lot of things can change.
By Staff
June 17th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
The Shelter in Place order given by the Halton Regional Police earlier today to residents in the Woodview Road area, near New Street and Walkers Line, has been removed.
The suspects remain outstanding and the investigation is ongoing at this time.
 The police investigation is ongoing A 23 year old male victim is in serious but stable condition at hospital and is presently receiving treatment for a gunshot injury.
Based on current information obtained by investigators, it is believe that this was a targeted incident and that there is no known, ongoing, related threat to public safety.
Investigators are working to obtain an accurate description of the suspects involved in the incident. Suspect descriptions will be provided to the public as soon as available.
Anyone with dash cam video or home surveillance video from the area of Woodview Road, near New Street and Walkers Line, between the hours of 8:00 AM and 9:45 AM is asked to contact the Criminal Investigations Bureau at 905-825-4777 ext. 2315 or 2316.
Tips can also be submitted anonymously to Crime Stoppers “See something? Hear something? Know something? Contact Crime Stoppers” at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS) or through the web at www.haltoncrimestoppers.ca.
By Pepper Parr
June 17th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
The city will begin to open up later this week – people will be getting out and experiencing a much different dining experience.
The Gazette will have photographers out documenting how the city responds and behaves.
 Queen’s Head setting up for Sound of Music in better days. Will we see this on Friday? Will there be lineups next to the pop up stands – How many patio places are there going to be?
The city is currently at a Level 3 under the provincial emergency legislation. City manager Tim Commisso reports that the city declared a level 2 on March 12th and moved to a level 3 five days later.
He said earlier today that the Emergency Coordination Group reviewed the criteria and said “we still meet the criteria for level 3 so no change.
The documentation and legislation, including the regulations amounts to a decent sized book. Commisso did say that he hasn’t read every page but is “generally aware of the policy” adding that he has “the benefit of having Amber Ruston advise me as our Emergency Manager – she is an expert staff resource in all things related to provincial and emergency municipal management.
So – we are still at level 3 but we can get out for a meal – with wonderful weather seats at Emma’s Back Porch and Spencer’s overlooking the lake will be at a premium.
There will be some pretty tight rules to be followed – follow them – they are in place for our benefit. When you come across an establishment that isn’t following – remind the operators that the rules are in place for a reason – your health.
 By Staff
June 17th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
As identity theft scams go – this one is good.
Well written, sounds right – but it isn’t.
It was sent to us at the Gazette – we don’t bank with the Royal.
Here’s their pitch:
RBC continues to develop industry-leading digital capabilities for its clients. As we make our clients’ everyday banking experience easier, we continue to be guided by the imperatives of trust and security. Verifying and protecting our clients’ identities is among the most important things we do.The world-class technology underpinning these features will better protect clients.
A single digital platform gives us immense flexibility to reuse core capabilities that extend across the bank and design solutions with our clients and advisors in mind from the start. This means clients will enjoy a more consistent experience with RBC across our delivery channels.
For more details about this new technology and to keep your account at RBC up to date as required by law in your jurisdiction please find the document attached for a complete guide.
For your security the document as been password protected, please find the password below.
Document PassKey: NISTRBC3073
Bank Safely and Securely with RBC
Look at the url – RBC Online Registrations <registrationupdate@rbcd.com> The letter d is what gives thiis one away.
Remember – if in doubt – don’t
By Staff
June 17th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
There were exactly half as many active listings at the end of May as compared to the end of May 2019.
Just to put this into perspective, at the end of May 2015, there were 615 freehold properties for sale in Burlington as compared to 203 active listings at the end of May 2020.
Given the inventory levels, you would expect a corresponding reduction in sales but in fact, sales were down only 36.8% which helps explain why we saw a 9.3% increase in sale prices whilst in the middle of a pandemic.
Year to date, sales are down 21% and sale prices are up 12.9% as compared to the same period in 2019.
Properties sold for 98.34% of the listing price and in 33 days, on average during the month of May 2020.
What Does This Mean?
The market has responded favourably to this otherwise distressing and unsettling time. Inventory levels have remained very low, demand seems to be strong and so of course, the result has been increases in prices paid. Economics 101. The larger question is, what will happen as the restrictions ease, people get back to work (or not) and the fallout becomes a reality. With no historical reference to help us predict the future, it’s anyone’s guess how this will all turn out. For now, we are experiencing a sellers market (but a restrained one) in all of our trading areas and it’s hard to imagine how that will change.
Condominium market
While inventory levels are still well below 2019 numbers (100 units for sale in 2019 compared to 84 in 2020), they are trending upwards. Sale prices were up 7.6% and sales were down 38.8% in the month of May, when compared to May 2019. Condo units sold for 99% of the asking price and in 20 days, on average during the month of May.
|
|
