 By James Burchill
January 5th, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
How To Write Kick-Ass, Profit Pulling Adverts For Your Business
Doesn’t that just grab you by the eyeballs and make you stop dead in your tracks? I mean it’s a little harsh – grammatically speaking – but holy smokes, it does it have ‘stopping power’…
 Diving right in – Photo byFiona Brophy Now I’ll share with you a few secrets for creating good adverts. So let’s dive right in because we’re all busy people 😉
First you need to be introduced to AIDA.
– A stands for ATTENTION, as in get some or you lose your chance
– I stands for INTEREST, as in now keep me interested.
– D stands for DESIRE, as in ok, make me want what you’ve got.
– A stands for ACTION, because people need to take action for something to happen.
Got it? That’s all there is to it…Easy right?
If it were that easy we’d all be rich and you wouldn’t need marketing consultants like me. Truthfully, just invest a few thousand hours studying, read all the classic books on advertising that date as far back as 1920 (when advertising really became a science) and you’ll have the subject down cold.
On the off-chance you don’t have that much free time, I’ll give you some wickedly powerful pointers that will let you leapfrog over the other guys. So let’s begin…
Headlines R Us (or is that You?)
It all starts with a headline. You know, the first thing the prospect sees. The title at the top of the page, that’s the headline. The first few words they hear on the radio, that’s a ‘headline’ too. Take this article for example, the headline was the first thing you saw. A good headline can almost stand alone and you just ‘get it’. It’s an advert for the advert.
Studies have shown the headline results in approximately 80% of the results. So the headline makes all the difference. In one test a changed headline improved response over 2000% (over 21 times!)
Here’s an example of a really bad headline… YOUR COMPANY NAME
 Your company name is not a headline. That’s right, your company name is not a good headline. In fact your name, your contact details, how long you’ve been in business and all those other boring bits of data you often put at the top of adverts, is a waste of time…and money UNTIL the prospect wants to know who you are – only then are they important.
Next…Make Them An Offer They Can’t Refuse
Then you have to make a good offer. Don’t beat around the bush. People are busy, your headline stopped them, now they’re looking – so make your pitch. Give them the best you’ve got. Make them an offer they can’t refuse…
Describe the benefits of having your product or service in a way that the prospect can experience. Don’t focus on the specific features – focus on benefits. People buy benefits. Here’s an example:
[Feature] 1/4 Inch Masonry Drill Bit.
[Benefit] 1/4 Inch hole… Probably to hang a picture – so the real benefit was admiring the picture or proving to your spouse that you really are handy around the home…
Finally…Action!
And once you’ve helped them see themselves experiencing your product or service tell them what you want them to do – call, click or visit today. Or words to that effect. Remember, advertising that does anything other than sell is a waste of money for most of us – brand advertising is expensive.
 This a headline – outrageous and direct. You probably read it twice and you might even mention it to someone. Because headlines are so critical to the success of your adverts I wanted to sign-off with this formula for a good headline: SINC (Self Interest, Curiosity & News).
If you can make the headline show the reader what’s in it for them, make them curious to read more, and share something newsworthy you’ve likely got a winner on your hands.
Remember, the money is ALWAYS in the headline.
 James Burchill is the founder of Social Fusion Network – an organization that helps local business connect and network. He also writes about digital marketing, entrepreneurship and technology and when he’s not consulting, he teaches people to start their own ‘side hustle.’
 By Pepper Parr
January 5th, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
The Mayor hasn’t seen anything like it in his ten years in office and the developer is shocked.
The two are now trading strong words. A Burlington developer is telling it as he sees it – the city is playing “pay-back time” against the Adi Development Group when they rejected a staff supported decision to allow the creation of a development in the Alton community that would include two 19 storey apartment buildings in a community where two storey homes are the norm.
 A graphic of the [proposed Adi development proposed for Alton. The graphic came from the web site of Ward 2 Councillor Marianne Meed Ward – no friend of the Adi’s. A Planning department report approved a 612-unit housing project for the Alton community last month. City council voted against the project and the developer now claims that this vote was a pay back for Adi taking the city to the OMB on another project.
Tariq Adi, CEO if the Adi Development group is reported to have said: “Oh yeah, absolutely. “Look, I’m not going to sugar-coat it, I know what’s going on here.”
Them’s fighting words.
City Council voted against the project located just north of Dundas Street in north Burlington.
Burlington’s planning staff had negotiated with the developer and thought they had a deal. Feelings are now hurt.
City planners recommended acceptance of the project after months of negotiations with the developer to modify the original proposal. The ward Councillor, Blair Lancaster, told the residents she would not support the development.
Residents of the Alton community, turned out in large numbers for a meeting in December and expressed their anger about the existing congestion in their neighbourhood, traffic issues and overcrowded schools.
Adi has now taken the city’s rejection of their Alton project to the Ontario Municipal Board.
Adi has a proposal for a 26 storey unit at the intersection of Martha and Lakeshore Road that is also now before the Ontario Municipal Board. It is currently in an OMB guided mediation that took place December 15th and 16th. The outcome of that mediation is not yet known.
 The Adi brohers, Tariq on the right, Saud on the left. It was Tariq who was shocked into taking their development to the OMB. Tariq Adi is also reported to have said: “Yes, what happened at Martha absolutely has something to do with this. That’s fine, that’s part of doing business. We’ll just deal with it.”
The Mayor is reported to have denied that the votes against Adi are politically motivated and said the vote was based on the delegations made to city council.
Burlington is in the process of writing a new Official Plan. The decision to write a new plan rather than concentrate on revising the existing plan was to have it reflect the 25 year Strategic Plan that was approved last year.
The Planning department is also working up the rules and regulations that will apply to proposed mobility hubs at the downtown transit terminal, at the Appleby and Aldershot GO stations as well as at the Burlington GO station where the Molinaro Paradigm development, currently well underway with sales exceeding the original projection.
The Adi Development Group is relatively new to Burlington. They have a number of projects in different stages of development.
 A view of the Adi development on Guelph Line just south of Upper Middle Road is a project with a very contemporary look. The Station West development in Aldershot has yet to break ground. Their Moder’n project on Guelph Line was completed more than a year ago and fits into the community very nicely.
 The Adi Link development at Dundas and Sutton in north east Burlington. Their Link project at Dundas and Sutton is well underway.
There are still disputes with the organization that paid for the initial infrastructure work in the Orchard community. The Adi people appear to not want to pay their share of those costs at this point in time.
Tariq Adi is reported to be shocked at the rejection of the Alton project and is quoted in the Spectator as saying: “The mayor is not a fan of me and I’m not a fan of the mayor, period. He’s walking around preaching intensification and he’s talking out of both sides of his mouth.
 Mayor Rick Goldring talking to an Alton resident during the last municipal election. “He says this is not a good site for intensification when staff is saying this is the perfect site for intensification.
“We were proposing something that we believed was fair and reasonable and from a planning perspective conformed to all the official plans and growth plans that the City of Burlington was trying to do,” Adi said, “especially with the whole preaching of the intensification gospel.”
The city and the Adi people will now hire lawyers to argue before the OMB.
The one consistent factor in all this development activity is that if Adi is the company digging the hole in the ground – there will be major differences of opinion and, so far at least, two of their developments are going to the OMB.
They are quite quick to sue when they don’t get what they want.
 By Pepper Parr
January 4th, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
Part 1 of a 3 part series.
They met on December 8th at the Gary Allan high school in Burlington for what many thought was going to be a dialogue with questions asked and answered.
It wasn’t that kind of meeting.
Scott Podabarac, an HDSB Superintendent and the Chair of the Program Accommodation Review Committee (PARC) explained that the occasion was going to be used to gather data and Kirk Perris of Ipsos and the man who will serve as the facilitator of the meetings to be held between now and next March began to put a total of 25 questions up on a screen and asking people to give their answer by using a small hand held device.
 The time line the Program Accommodation Review committee will be working to. There were 256 people responding.
The first question put to the audience was – which high school do you children attend. A little awkward for parents with children in two different high schools.
This article is an attempt to analyze the answers that were given and put them in a larger context. It is going to be published in three parts.
What needs to be fully appreciated is the imbalance that impacted everything: 58.6% of the responders were from Central high school; 16.8% from Pearson and 16.8% from Hayden; 2.7% from Aldershot; 2.3% from Nelson; 2% from Bateman and .8% from Robinson.
The issue is the recommendation from the Board to the trustees that two high schools be closed.
 The recommendation the Director of Education sent to the school board trustees. Given that the trustees are completely free to recommend the closing of any high school in the city – they could also decide to direct the Staff to not close any schools but to find a way to change boundaries.
Stewart Miller, Director of Education has said that from his perspective any high school could be closed and that is the decision they must make.
That is a little disingenuous – these trustees are never going to close Nelson, Hayden or Aldershot. Bateman is certainly at some risk – perhaps more so than Central.
Question 2 was: How important is the availability of mandatory/core courses for your child(ren) within your home school.
Very 71.9%; somewhat 22.3%’ not very 4.6%; not at all 1.2%.
Question 3 was: How acceptable is it to attend a school outside of a home school for mandatory/core programming for your child(ren)?
Very 8.4%; somewhat 16%; not very 24.3%; not at all 51.3%
The parents clearly want core courses available from the school in their community. Questions 2 and 3 appear to have been to determine how significant this was to parents and how open they might be to their children getting perhaps a part of their education in a school elsewhere in the city.
 There was close to 400 people in the room – 256 of them responded to the 25 questions they were asked. Many of the parents didn’t like the format of the meeting. The question addressing importance pulled 94.2% – resounding no matter how you read the answer. The question addressing accepting some classes outside the school got an equally resounding (75.6%) not at all interested,
These people want their children educated in their community.
Question 4: How important is the availability of optional elective courses within your home school for your child(ren)?
Very 35.7%; somewhat 44.5%; Not very 14.4%; not at all 5.3
Question 5: How acceptable is it for your children to attend a school outside of a home school for optional/elective courses?
Very 14.2%; somewhat 35.2; not very 26.8; not at all 23.8%
Question 6: How willing are you to have your child(ren) take a mandatory core course in an alternative method, e.g summer school, night school, e-learning or attend another school.
Very 21%; Somewhat 20.6%; not very 21.8%; not at all 36.6%
Question 7: How willing are you to have your child(ren) take an optional elective course in an alternative method, e.g summer school, night school, e-learning or attend another school.
Very 34.7%; somewhat 28.6%; not very 17.8%; not at all 18.9%
Question 8: How important it is for your high school to offer a full range of pathway programming, e.g. Workplace, college, university.
Very 46.7%; somewhat 34.6%; not very 12.8%; not at all 5.8%
Questions 9 through to 16 will be analyzed and commented in a separate article; questions 17 to to 25 in a third article
When one looks at the questions one wonders why they weren’t asked in each community much earlier in the process. What parents want; what they will put up with and what they won’t tolerate would have been very useful to the board as they worked through the process of determining how they were going to resolve the problem of 1800 + classroom seats that don’t have students sitting in them.
To gather that data now and, after analyzing it, place it before the two representatives from each high school seems counterproductive.
 There is no mistaking the message. It is getting through to parents? The Board has placed large signs to the side of every high school telling people that the school is at some risk. They are there now – they could and perhaps should have been put up when the question of a Program Accommodation Review was being considered.
The Gazette takes the view that an informed community can make informed decisions. The Board and the trustees have not delivered on that responsibility.
 By Staff
January 4th, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
When you see a well-known brand name you feel confident and you might read an email that came from that company.
Any email from someone you do not know – is an email you should treat with suspicion.
 The head line talks about money – the greedy get pulled in by this. The content is quite different – the offer of a job, The pdf file is probably filled with malware that will do you great harm. If you don’t know the sender – don’t open the pdf and don’t respond. The following came to us today:
“We are looking for receiving payment agent personal who will act as medium of reach between our customers and us. Their job is to receive payment from our customers within your country, Annual income:$24,000USD and 10% of any payment received from our clients.
“Our company will pay you $24,0000 as annual income, and you will get 10% of any payment you receive on behalf of our company.
 Millions of dollars are stolen by thieves who want access to your identity. “Please send us your personal information if you are interested. Names:Age: Telephone No:Sex:Occupation:Country:Bank Name:
email me at E-Mail: Peterfoods@aim.com”
There were so many red flags with this email the number of zeros in the dollar amount. The headline bears little relationship to the content. They used the brand name Kraft to catch your attention.
These thieves target the greedy and the vulnerable who get to add “broke” to how they are described. Don’t be one of them.
If you don’t know the person who sent the email – don’t open it.
By Staff
January 4th, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
Between January 1st 2016 and December 31st 2016, there were 434 reports of vehicles being entered and property stolen from them throughout the city of Burlington.
In December alone there was 49 reports of vehicles being entered.
The majority of the vehicles entered were unlocked.
 The majority of the cars that had property stolen from them in 2016 were unlocked This is a crime of opportunity and most commonly occurs overnight in the cover of darkness where culprit(s) walk along residential neighbourhood streets trying door handles until an unlocked vehicle is located. Culprit(s) are stealing items such as change, electronics, wallets, purses, sunglasses, clothing and power tools.
Police are reminding the public of the following prevention tips:
• Ensure your unattended vehicle(s) are kept locked/secure
• Park in a well-lit and attended areas whenever possible
• Never leave spare keys in your vehicle
• Never leave personal identification or valuables in your vehicle
• If you have to leave valuables in your vehicle, lock them in your trunk. Don’t tempt thieves by leaving packages or purses in plain view or on the seat.
• Remove GPS navigation and cell phone devices & power cords from view when not in your vehicle
• Help police catch those responsible by keeping an eye out in your communities and immediately reporting any suspicious activity.
By Staff
January 3rd, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
The kids are still out of school and the weather is a little on the mild side,
 Conservation Halton advises that Environment Canada is forecasting rainfall beginning late this evening and continuing through tomorrow into early Wednesday. Expected amounts will range up to approximately 20 mm.
Based on the forecast of mild temperatures and rainfall, combined with the partial melt of our existing snowpack, we may experience an increase in flows and water levels in our creeks throughout Halton. In addition, the snowpack melt may contribute to blockages at bridges and culverts and produce localized flooding concerns in low lying areas.
Widespread flooding is not currently anticipated. Our reservoirs are holding at winter levels which allow for larger storage capacity for circumstances of this nature.
 Creeks on the east side of the city. Conservation Halton is asking all residents and children to stay away from all watercourses and structures such as bridges, culverts and dams. Elevated water levels, fast flowing water, and slippery conditions along stream banks continue to make these locations extremely dangerous. Please alert children in your care of these imminent dangers.
Conservation Halton will continue to monitor stream and weather conditions and will issue further messages as necessary and will issue an update to this Watershed Condition Statement –Water Safety message only if significant changes in the forecasts occur.
This Watershed Condition Statement will be in effect through to Wednesday January 4, 2017.
 By Staff
January 2nd, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
Dawn Hackett-Burns is having her first solo exhibition at the Art Gallery of Burlington. The exhibit will be in the RBC Community Gallery and will run from January 3rd to the end of the month.
 Hackett-Burns is the 2016/17 resident ceramic artist at the AGB where she has had access to a fully equipped that has allowed her to build a portfolio with diverse projects that support the Gallery’s programming.
The residency provides the artist with the opportunity to teach in community and studio programs, and to present new work in a solo exhibition in the RBC Community Gallery.
Dawn Hackett-Burns is described by the AGB as an emerging ceramic artist based in Greensville, Ontario. Mostly self-taught, she has honed her craft by attending workshops and receiving mentorship from ceramic artist Colleen O’Reilly. Her practice focuses on the use of pattern and repetition, and colours that speak to vibrant cultures observed in her travels.
The residency has allowed Hackett-Burns to explore different ideas and formats, and the work in this exhibition is a direct result of the residency.
The work presented in this exhibition is hand built and the patterning is elevated through low relief carving and hand-painted designs. Hackett-Burns has taught children’s classes at the Art Gallery of Burlington for the past eight years, and her teaching often intersects with her artistic practice.
The public reception is on Tuesday January 3, 6pm-8pm
By Pepper Parr
January 1st, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
As a concept it is a really good idea.
Nominations for Burlington’s Best Awards come from the community and there have been some much deserved awards given in the past. There have some unfortunate choices when a husband nominated a wife or a Mother a son. The purpose was to have a community nominate one of their own.
For the most part the awards have been free from any political influence but there are political influencers on the committee that makes the choices. In the past there have been categories that didn’t draw much in the way of nominations.
 The recipient of an award gets a unique plaque from the city along with a piece of art. What the nominations committee has not done in our experience was decide not to make an award in a category and we don’t recall them ever retiring a category. Accessibility was added as a category this year.
The ticket price could be a little lower; if not then give value for money and don’t let the buffet tables empty quite as quickly.
This is a social event where people who quietly serve their fellow citizens are recognized. There have been some who in the past were thickening their resumes for political purposes.
Nominations opened December 1 in eight award categories, including the new Accessibility Award. The winners in all categories are revealed at a celebration held in May each year.
There are eight award categories:
 Citizen of the Year: A person whose volunteer activity has made a significant and sustained contribution to the vibrancy and wellbeing of the Burlington community.
Junior Citizen of the year: A high school student 18 years or younger who has made a significant contribution to the Burlington community.
Senior Person of the year: A person 55 years or older who has advocated on behalf of seniors and/or made a significant contribution to the Burlington community.
Environmental Award: An individual or group that improved and/or protects Burlington’s environment.
Arts Person of the Year: An individual who has contributed to the arts in Burlington as an artist, patron or advocate including but not limited to, visual arts, media arts, musical arts, performing arts and literary arts.
Community Service Award: An individual or group whose volunteer activity has contributed to the betterment of the Burlington community.
Heritage Award: An individual who has demonstrated a commitment to the preservation of Burlington’s heritage, and has volunteered their time in an effort to support the preservation of Burlington’s heritage.
Accessibility Award (new category): An individual, organization or business that has made significant contributions to increase access and participation of people with disabilities in the Burlington community.
 Winners of the 2015 Burlington Best awards Nominations will be accepted until Feb. 17, 2017.
Nomination forms can be completed online at www.burlington.ca/best or by picking up a form at the clerks department at City Hall, 426 Brant St.
 Mary Kay Aird, Chair; Burlington Best. Members of the committee that evaluate the nominations are: Mary Kay Aird, Chair; Calah Brooks, vice chair; Keith Strong; Victor Lesnicki; Adam Smith; Ann Coburn; Matthew Cocklin; Sarah Dunsford and Vicki Singh.
 By Pepper Parr
January 1st, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
It was the place to be if you had kids with more energy than you had on this first day of th year 2017.
There were hundreds of kids running all over the place with almost every one of the rooms at Tansley Woods occupied with one children’s activity or another.
The occasion was used to announce what some of money the politicians were going to do with the tax money we gave them to look after our well being,
 From the left Burlington MP Karina Gould, in the center Pam Damoff, MP for Oakville North Burlington and Burlington MPP Eleanor McMahon who also serves as the Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sports for the province. Burlington MP Karina Gould did most of the talking and reminded the audience that, January 1st, marks the beginning of the 150th anniversary of our country’s Confederation.
The Government of Canada’s vision for the 150th anniversary centres upon four major key themes: diversity and inclusiveness, the environment, young people and reconciliation with Indigenous peoples. This anniversary is an opportunity for all Canadians to reflect on our shared history, consider the path we have taken so far, while also looking to the future with optimism.
Gould announced that the Art Gallery of Burlington and the Halton District School Board and the city were to receive project funding.
 Laura Martin – started the New Year painting faces. The Canada 150 Fund, will provide $49,500 to the City of Burlington for its reaffirmation citizenship ceremony and the Art Gallery of Burlington Celebration Quilt.
The Government of Canada will also be providing $97,000 to the Halton District School Board for their Truth and Reconciliation project for their students.
The 150th anniversary of Canada is an opportunity to come together to celebrate our shared values, our achievements, our majestic environments and our place in the world. It is a time to celebrate what it means to be Canadian.
 The city’s annual New Year’s Day event at Tansley Woods – hundreds of children scooting about the place. Mayor Rick Goldring, Executive Director of the Art Gallery of Burlington, Robert Steven and Executive Director of the Sound of Music Festival, Dave Miller now have some of their funding for the year locked in.
The Canada Day citizenship ceremony should be a block buster.
Mayor Goldring told the small crowd that the city oversees or sponsors 168 events in the city each year.
The kids didn’t seem to care – they were scooting in and out of the small crowd listening to the politicians – they will be the ones to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the formal formation of this country – Canada.
 By Pepper Parr
December 29th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
It is a large piece of land that you drive by when you head for the Convention centre on Burloak – you pass it without realizing just how big it is.
Owned by the Paletta organization and zoned as “employment lands” the Paletta’s have wanted to convert it to residential for some time.
That doesn’t look as if it will ever happen.
The city planners describe the land as a “large, contiguous and un-serviced area of vacant employment lands that represents a significant and irreplaceable opportunity in the city and its citizens.
 Bounded by Upper Middle Road on the north, Bronte Road on the east and Mainway on the south this xxx ha piece of property holds significant potential for the city – but no one has yet been able to put together an organization or an institution that wants to locate in Burlington. “The site has the potential to be a candidate site for a major employer or large educational institution. A city-wide strategy should be initiated to attract a major employer and/or another post-secondary institution to the city, consistent with the Strategic Plan.”
The planners point out that there are “a number of strategic locations within the inventory which require municipal services and more detailed land use planning” including Bronte Creek Meadows. The study also noted that these large parcels of land should be the focus of future land use and infrastructure planning.
5164 Upper Middle Road; 5366 Upper Middle Road; 5470 Upper Middle Road; 5900 Upper Middle Road; and 5201 Mainway collectively are known as Bronte Meadows.
Paletta International Corporation (PIC) applied to amend the lands from “Office/Business Park” to “Land Use to be Determined”. That application was refused by the City. Paletta appealed to the OMB to be determined at the same time as PIC’s outstanding appeals of Official Plan Amendment.
The Bronte Creek Meadows constitutes about 40% of the vacant employment land supply (125 ha/308 ha) and 51% of the effective net supply in the entire City (125 ha/248.3 ha).
In 2009, through Minutes of Settlement the City and PIC agreed to identify a portion of the total lands (approximately 88 acres or 35 ha) to be called Burloak Employment Estates. This portion of the land can be described generally as the land abutting Burloak Drive (generally north of Mainway, west of Burloak, south of Upper Middle and bounded to the west by the proposed realignment of Sheldon Creek). The Minutes of Settlement detailed that PIC would withdraw its appeals related to an Official Plan Amendment and not appeal that portion of the site through OPA 73.
 Angelo Paletta on the left standing proudly with his father Pasquelle (Pat) Paletta The Minutes of Settlement further described that PIC would actively market the lands for a period of at least 5 years. The Minutes of Settlement set out requirements for a sign on the site, disclosure to, and discussions with BEDC. The five year time period has elapsed.
The employment land conversion assessment (Burlington Employment Lands Policy Recommendations and Conversion Analysis report) analysis recommended that Bronte Creek Meadows be retained as employment land. Staff support this recommendation.
Since the writing of the 2015 report the Region of Halton commissioned a servicing study based on servicing for employment uses, for Bronte Creek Meadows. The study is currently in draft form. The preliminary findings suggest that there are no major barriers to servicing this area.
Proposed Direction from the planners is that the city should initiate an area specific plan in the near term. Partnership with the owner of the property to develop the land for employment uses will be an important element related to moving forward.
 The Paletta organization is diversified and into food processing and entertainment. They are beleived to be the largest private land holder in the city. Five years ago they had a Christmas Day meeting with then newly elected Mayor Rick Goldring with a proposal to locate a stadium that would be home to the Hamilton Tiger Cats in Aldershot. That idea died an early death. Efforts will be made to understand the potential of these lands to support the Strategic Plan of the city.
Ward 5 Councillor Paul Sharman has said he thought the lands should be a combination of employment lands with some residential permitted.
The struggle between the owners of the largest piece of employment land in the city and the city planners has been an ongoing for many years.
No one has come to the city with an interest in putting a large corporate operation on the site despite its close proximity to both the QEW and the 407.
 Bronte Meadows from the Mainway side. Defined as Employments Lands, spitting distance to the QEW, minutes from downtown – owners would like to see some of it converted to residential. wants to rezone and make it residential. In land development it is all about timing. While the general public perception is that developers reap huge profits from development few appreciate that the Paletta’s have carried this property for some time paying taxes and significant legal fees.
The Economic Development Corporation has not been able to market the property – one observer has said that the price Paletta is asking for the property relates to residential development. It is pretty clear at this point in time that the city is determined to retain the employment land purpose. It is a splendid piece of property but no one knows what to do with it from an employment aspect.
 By Pepper Parr
December 29th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
Something is up!
 Burlington MP Karina Gould will be working New Year’s day. Burlington MP Karina Gould has called a media conference for Sunday January 1st at Tansley woods to announce what Burlington is going to get in terms of the Canada 150 fund projects.
Sunday media conferences are rare in this city – the federal Liberal’s jut might be directing their members across the country to hold these New Year’s Day events.
 Robert Stephen, President of the Art Gallery Burlington. President and CEO of the Art Gallery of Burlington, Robert Steven, and Peter Martin, President of Sound of Music are going to be part of the media conference which suggests there are some goodies for them.
The event will take place at noon New Year’s Day – it will be interesting to see just how much media the event gets.
 By Staff
December 29th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
Three years ago – do you remember?
The snow storm that turned into an ice storm hit the city a few days before Christmas 2013 and just wouldn’t stop.
 This was a public road. The ice storm closed Millar |Road along with driveways throughout North Burlington The weather people at the time were predicting winds of 20 kmh – which in the world Gerry Smallegange, President of Burlington Hydro was not good news
The temperature hadn’t risen enough for enough of the ice on the trees in north Burlington to melt. If those tree branches start swaying in the wind they could come down on all those hydro lines he has had to re-build.
It was close to impossible to keep up with the demand for help Smallegange knew that he had thousands of homes in the city without power. Situations like this are not new to the people who supply homes with electricity – it was the sheer volume that came close to crippling the hydro people.
North Burlington wasn’t being ignored by any stretch – the scope and scale of the problem up there was brutal. Smallegange knew that he had a very significant problem on his hands and needed all the help he could get. He also needed a break in the weather – and that wasn’t happening.
 A hydro wire down – waiting for crews to discover it and get it restrung. This was one of many that hydro had to deal with. The ice that had built upon the hydro wires needed to melt – and the temperatures were staying at a stubborn six to ten degrees below zero.
The city’s Emergency Coordinating Committee was almost in constant session and doing their best to maintain a constant flow of information to city residents. The difficulty was that with no power radio and television were useless as was the internet and social media.
What worked best was neighbour telling neighbour and in the north – community meetings. The city held its first community meeting in Kilbride where hundreds showed up with questions. The city did its best – but at times that wasn’t good enough.
 Hydro president Gerry Smallegange explaining to Kilbride residents where the crews were and when he hoped power could be returned to the community. The lack of information was frustrating for the residents without power. Information, like energy, has to have lines it can flow through – and the available lines weren’t working all that well when it came to keeping people informed.
For reasons that are not clear at the time, the city’s communications department didn’t seem to have strong working relationships with the radio stations – which meant the people needing the information weren’t getting it from the radio stations – apparently because information wasn’t getting from the city to that media.
It all happened three years ago – we survived.
By Staff
December 28, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
The province recently passed legislation that will over time create more affordable housing. The new legislation makes changes to four existing acts that will give municipalities the option to implement inclusionary zoning, which requires affordable housing units to be included in residential developments.
Note that this is an option and Burlington might not want to go this route. It will first have to be approved at the Regional level
 Secondary suites such as above-garage apartments or basement units in new homes will be less costly to build because they would be exempted from development charges. Secondary suites are a potential source of affordable rental housing and allow homeowners to earn additional income.
Giving local service managers (that would be the Region of Halton) more choice in how they deliver and administer social housing programs and services to reduce wait lists and make it easier for people in Ontario to access a range of housing options.
The legislation encourages inclusive communities and strengthening tenant rights by preventing unnecessary evictions from social housing and creating more mixed-income housing.
The Region will now have to gather data about homelessness and perform local enumeration of those who are homeless in their communities.
What is inclusionary zoning?
 It is certainly dense when it comes to development – and it is one of the most popular places in Toronto for younger people. Minutes away from the downtown commercial core. There are affordable units in these developments. The Torontoist describes it this way: “Typically regulated by municipalities, inclusionary zoning is one way to make sure affordable housing gets built in a way that promotes socio-economically diverse neighbourhoods. It works by requiring developers to include a set portion of below-market units, usually 10 to 30 per cent, either to buy or sell in every residential building of a certain size.
“Inclusionary zoning can be mandatory or incentive-based–also called discretionary or voluntary. The latter offers developers incentives to build units valued below typical market rent or sale prices. Some municipalities may offer density bonuses so developers can build and sell more units, or they may waive development fees or fast-track projects through the approval process. Volunteer programs are often more attractive to developers, and can be for municipalities as well, since they aren’t as likely to inspire opposition and legal challenges the way mandatory programs can. However, they tend to result in fewer affordable units being built.
“Mandatory programs, which were proposed by the Ontario government, don’t give developers a say in how and when to build affordable units–those regulations are set by local governments. Some municipalities that require inclusionary zoning, however, also offer developers breaks, such as density bonuses.
“One potential drawback of mandatory inclusionary zoning is that developers who don’t want to participate may take their project to a municipality where the legislation doesn’t apply. The Province, after all, is only giving municipalities the option to mandate inclusionary zoning, not the requirement to do so. And while Toronto is poised to take advantage of the opportunity, other municipalities may not be.”
When, if ever, will Burlington see inclusionary zoning? Can you imagine what the public debate on this one will sound like?
By Staff
December 28th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
Griffin Gervais, now a grade six student, made a city program work for him and his chums earlier this year. As a result there is now a well fitted baseball diamond at the park just behind Lakeshore Public school.
 In no specific order: Sawyer Cobham. Scott Rose, Griffen Gervais, Kayden Maslanyk discuss the problems with their ball diamond. Griffen “drafted” three of his friends: Sawyer Cobham. Scott Rose, and Kayden Maslanyk to make it happen – and it did. They used what was then a new city program that had city hall matching funds (up to $5000) for a community related project.
The city is running the project for a second year – called the Neighbourhood Community Matching Fund program.
Applications for the 2017 program are now being accepted – details at
www.burlington.ca/- matchingfund.
Submissions due Wednesday, March 15, 2017.
 It was a pretty rough looking ball diamond before Griffen Gervais found a way to get some funding from city hall to get it fixed up, The program is designed to inspire residents to lead neighbourhood and community projects; the Community Matching Fund provides up to $5,000 to support projects led by local groups.
The Mayor residents to think of projects that showcase our Canadian pride and mark our Sesquicentennial – Canada is about to become 150 years old.
How the Fund works
The Community Matching Fund program provides up to $5,000 in city funding to support neighbourhood and community group-led projects in Burlington. Approved projects receive up to 50 per cent of the funding for the project from the city. The neighbourhood or community group will match this funding with an equal contribution made up through any combination of volunteer hours, donated services, donated materials and supplies or other funds raised, such as cash donations.
“Residents are the experts of our community and they have great ideas about ways to improve how we live and play here,” said Chris Glenn, the city’s director of Parks and Recreation. ““We want to inspire residents to work together to enhance our neighbourhoods and create a sense of belonging. That connection is just as important as the project itself.”
The city will be hosting two information and workshop sessions to assist community groups with any questions they have about their applications or the program. These will take place on:
Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2017
7 to 9 p.m.
Burlington City Hall, 426 Brant St. – Room 247
Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2017
7 to 9 p.m.
Haber Recreation Centre, 3040 Tim Dobbie Dr. – Community Room 1
For more information about the Community Matching Fund, visit www.burlington.ca/matchingfund or email matchingfund@burlington.ca
By Staff
December 28th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
If there is a pdf file attached to an incoming email from a person or an organization that you do not know anything about – open that pdf at your peril.
 This symbol is used to identify a pdf file PDF stands for Portable Document Format. It is a file format used to present and exchange documents reliably, independent of software, hardware, or operating system. Invented by Adobe, PDF is now an open standard which can be used by anyone. What the crooks are doing now is burying code inside a pdf that can infect your computer.
We saw the following in our email this morning:
 This is an email message telling me there are details about a bank transfer. The details are inside the pdf file. all I have to do is click on it. The moment I do that the process of stealing my identity begins. If in doubt – don’t.
We have no idea who the email is from – never heard of the organization – but we do know that banks do not communicate like this.
When you see something like this – don’t open it.
If you see something you aren’t certain about – better to be safe than sorry – take a pass on it.
If in doubt – don’t.
 Once a hacker has gotten you to respond to their phony message they can go through code that you aren’t really aware of and pick out pieces of data that will aid them in stealing funds from your bank account. it happens every day – don’t let it happen to you. Along the same lines. We got an email card from a name that we know – but chose not to open it. We don’t know what is in that card and while we know the sender his name could have been pulled any number of sources.
If in doubt – don’t.
We didn’t
By Pepper Parr
December 27, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
For the parents of students at Central and Pearson high schools the question – Why are we in this mess? Is not unreasonable.
 Ward 5 school board trustee Amy Collard Where were the trustees and why didn’t we know about this several years ago? Another good question and the answer to that one is – the trustees for the most part weren’t there; of the 11 people who serve as trustees four represent Burlington and just one of those trustees has been in office for more than one term. Amy Collard, trustee for ward 5 was acclaimed in 2010 and again in 2014.
 This was the recommendation the Halton District school Board staff gave the trustees We can’t find anything that Collard has written or said about the student population problem at the Burlington high schools.
The other three Burlington school board trustees, Grebenc, Papin and Reynolds, were all elected for the first time in October of 2014 – they’ve been in office a little more than two years. The smarter ones were aware of the problem but we could find nothing in the public record in the way of comments they may have made.
 Milton school board trustee Donna Danielli who is the trustee sitting on the PARC – Program Accommodation Review Committee. The two trustees who have been on the board for the longest time are Kathy Amos, the current chair who represents Oakville and Donna Danielli who represents Milton.
Both have been in office for more than 12 years and they certainly did know or should have known that there was a growing problem that was only going to get worse.
The current Director of Education Stuart Miller has been with the Halon District school board all of his career and had to have been aware – however he was made Director just over a year ago.
His predecessor, David Euale, did not have all that much to say on the subject other than when the LTAP (Long Term Accommodation Plan) was being discussed.
The HDSB web site is not exactly a fountain over flowing with information (it is better than it used to be) and what is there is not all that easy to dig through, especially if you want to go back a number of years.
 Many parents are having a problem squaring the staff recommendation with the facts. How did we get into this mess – demographics is a science – most of the data needed was known – has been known since the late 90’s Few of the trustees in place now were on the board then but they were given updates each year when the LTAP was reviewed.
Was is disturbing and disappointing is that those trustees with several terms of experience have not said a word publicly about how the mess Burlington is in came to pass.
They owe the public an explanation
There is much more to this story – stay tuned!
For unto us a child was born …
 By Staff
December 24th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
Before there can be a Christmas – there has to be a Winter Solstice; the day with the shortest number of daylight hours… or the longest number of darkness hours – totally your preference.
For the past four years Debra Pickfield’s Thinkspot in Lowville has celebrated both the Winter and Summer Solstice.
 Getting ready to launch a sky lantern On Wednesday, a surprisingly large crowd of 150+ gathered for a meal together, some activities for children, or simply decorating a sky lantern which they released at just after 8:30pm as a way of honouring what they were grateful for in 2016 and also what they wanted to release from 2016.
 Launching the sky lanterns to celebrate the Winter Solstice Watching those sky lanterns fill with warm air from a candle and they ascended majestically into the night sky was something to watch.
 A sky lantern reaching for the winter sky. People were asked to bring a donation of new socks and underwear that will be provided to individuals experiencing homelessness at shelters in our communities.
 By Staff
December 23, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
Fixed!
The ice pads at Mainway Arena have reopened following a temporary closure to complete unexpected repairs.
Two of the three compressors used at the arena to help maintain the ice surface stopped working and required replacement. The new compressors were installed this week and the ice pads are restored and ready for the Golden Horseshoe Tournament starting on Dec. 27 in Burlington.
The pressure to get those compressors in place was driven by the 100 AAA + major-age teams who are arriving in Burlington arenas for its traditional Dec. 27-30 slot in the schedule.
 Seven of those teams are host Eagles teams (two in tyke, one in the remaining five major age groups) donning the colours of the Burlington City Rep Hockey Club.
Despite increased competition from other holiday tournaments over the past few years, the Horseshoe still thrives. Fratesi thinks the reason is simple.
“We run a great tournament,” he said matter-of-factly. “We have the core guys that have the format down now. There’s a lot of grunt work that has to be done when you have 236 games to schedule in four days.”
Perks that players and parents remember — spotlights on the player during the championship games introductions, for example — have become a mainstay. Others, such as the introduction of a the FFP Laser Systems show at the opening ceremonies and championship games last year, are adding to the event’s lustre.
 The events concludes with the six championship games on Tuesday, Dec. 30. The site of the games prevents Cogeco from showing the games live (signal interference) so games are tape delayed.
 By Pepper Parr
December 21, 2016
BURLINGTON,ON
We need to get through Christmas – but when that is done – and if you have an appreciation for modern dance and would like to take part in a class – mark the date Tuesday, January 3 from 5:30pm – 7:00pm at the Burlington Performing Arts Centre
 FORM Contemporary Dance is putting on a free workshop that will flow through various exercises to find avenues to access confidence, explore and express creative range and physicality.
Tuning awareness to the sensations, feelings, emotions and ideas that are naturally present and allowing them to blossom into breathtaking movement.
The people at FORM are remarkably creative – if dance is your thing they are as good as it gets.
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