 By Pepper Parr
January 19th 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
The budget city council is debating this week and will make law next week adheres to the Long Term Financial plan created in 2012 which contained the following key strategic objectives for the city:
1. Competitive Property Taxes
2. Responsible Debt Management
3. Improved Reserves and Reserve Funds
4. Predictable Infrastructure Investment
5. Recognized Value for Services
 City treasurer Joan Ford puts the numbers together – she does so at city council’s direction. Staff have shown a realistic scenario where assessment growth is slowing; no new legacy projects are forecasted; and infrastructure renewal funding is addressed over the 20 year time horizon.
The budget being debated recognizes budget drivers and includes the following assumptions within each item:
Maintaining Current Service Levels – Base Budget
Inflationary Impacts and User Fees
With the exception of human resources and commodities (hydro, water, fuel etc.), 2.0% inflation per year has been applied to all other expense categories (materials and supplies, purchased services and contributions to local boards and committees)
• The increases to User Rates and Fees assumed a 2.0% increase per annum, which is dependent on the nature of the revenues and external market conditions
• An annual increase of 3% to the Vehicle Depreciation Reserve Fund to sustain the City’s fleet and equipment inventory
Corporate Expenditures/Revenues
• An annual increase to the provisions for Insurance and Contingency Reserves of
$300,000 and $100,000 respectively
• An increase in Investment Income of $100,000 per year in 2019 and beyond given the current low interest rate environment
 Long term tax increase projections – above current inflation every year. Other Expenditures
Infrastructure Renewal Funding and Joseph Brant Hospital
• An annual increase of 1.25% for Dedicated Infrastructure Renewal Funding from 2016-2022, reduced to 1.0% for 2023-2033 and 0.5% for 2034 and 2035. This provides funding for capital renewal, as per the Asset Management Financing Plan (approved 20 year scenario)
• An annual increase of 0.2% (2016-2019) in order to finance the repayment of additional tax supported debt for roadways. This will be repositioned in 2020 to fund renewal needs for new infrastructure
• Includes the repositioning of the hospital levy to infrastructure renewal in 2019 ($1.3 million), 2026 ($900,000) and 2027 ($2.6 million)
As with all forecasts, it is imperative to recognize that there are a vast number of unknown factors that will likely occur in the future that could impact the model. In order to address these unpredictable factors, an amount of $300,000 has been included in the 2018 forecast, increasing by $50,000 per year.
 Assessment growth is stagnant – costs of running the city increasing – there is a crunch coming that is going to hit pocketbooks. Assessment Growth
Assessment growth is estimated to be 0.9% in 2017 and decreasing by 0.1% per year to 0.6% in 2020 and beyond. Over the last 5 years, weighted assessment growth has ranged from a low of 0.5% to just over 1.0%. The five year average is 0.9%.
Financial Matters:
The single largest portion of City funding comes from property taxes. As outlined in the Long Term Financial Plan, strategic objective 1 is Competitive Property Taxes; whereby, “the city must respond to the demand for programs, services, and the continued maintenance of our existing infrastructure in an affordable manner.
The city must strike a balance between conflicting goals, such as minimizing tax increases, while maintaining existing programs, services and infrastructure, and providing new services in a climate of increasing costs.”
The report then comes to this astounding conclusion: The 2017 -2035 forecast meets recommendation 1, whereby, “Base budget tax rate changes align closely with inflation”.
Inflation currently hovers at the 2% level and is expected to remain at that level for the next few years. The simulation forecasts the city tax impact from 2017 to 2035 to begin at 3.89% reducing to 2.96%.
Do they do mathematics differently at city hall?
And if they repeat the statement: “Base budget tax rate changes align closely with inflation”. often enough does that make it true?
By Pepper Parr
January 19, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
The report going to the Community and Corporate Services Committee asks city council to approve the 2016 Operating Budget including any budget amendments.
The proposed net tax levy for 2016 is set at $146,883,341.
Members of Council have had the Operating Budget book since November and will now debate the operating budget and listen to public delegations at meetings on January 19, 20 and 21.
The budget goes to city council on January 25th where it gets approved.
The city held a just the one public meeting on January 14, 2016 at Tansley Woods Community Centre. The intent of the meeting was to provide residents with an overview of the 2016 proposed budget.
A disturbing comment was made when city council discussed the operating budget. Treasurer said her staff would inform the public about the operating budget but would not be “engaging” the public. No one corrected the treasurer – so this city might have to swallow a budget that asks for an increase of 3.85 % over the 2015 budget.
With inflation at the 2% level one would think the people paying the bills would want to have some say in why such a big difference between inflation and the increase in taxes. Perhaps city council feels the public had their say when they re-elected every member of this council in 2014.
Members of Council are given thick binders will details on the spending plans and are asked to submit Budget Action requests in which each council member sets out items they would like to see changed.
Some of the changes that have been put forward are set out below:
 Members of city council were given the budget on a memory stick that allowed them to do simulations on what the budget total would look like if they added or deleted an expense items. This year they went through the budget line by line individually. Based on what the public has seen so far – it doesn’t look as if there is going to be much in the way of cuts. From the left are Councillors Jack Dennison, ward 4, Rick Craven ward 1 and John Taylor ward 3. Ward 1 Councillor Rick Craven wants to see the one time funding of $35,000 for the Downtown Data Collection Project pulled. He points out that the original staff recommendation in September 2015 included the following observation: “After considering the staff and funding resources that would be required to collect accurate and useful data to inform the performance indicators and headline measures, staff is of the opinion that the value of obtaining and maintaining such data as a means to evaluating the experience of the downtown may be limited” Remove project and one-time funding of $35,000
The Performing Arts Centre appears to be facing an uphill battle for the additional business case funding it is asking for; $72,500 for a technician and $115,800 for someone to work on community engagement.
Ward 4 Councillor Jack Dennison wants the Performing Arts centre to stay within their budget; Councillor Blair Lancaster (Ward 6) wants data to show the success of the previous contract position and indicate if the proposed permanent position could be self-sustaining.
He also wants to know: Why has the Human Resources budget been increased by 6.2%?
Why is the Arts and Culture – Human Resources year-end projection for 2015 $43,000 over the budget?
Why is the budget $1,009,140 for Human Resources?
Why has the Human Resources budget for Council and Citizen Committee been increased by $30,000?
Dennison has always been the Councillor with the best understanding of the budget and has consistently asked the toughest questions.
 Ward 2 Councillor Marianne Meed Ward seems to have focused on transit and seniors in the changes she wants to see in the 2016 budget. Ward 2 Councillor Marianne Meed Ward has focused some of her energy on seniors and transit.
She wants to replace the existing business case with the following staff direction (Part 1): “Direct the Director of Transit to implement a pilot program for free transit on Mondays for seniors (65+) for the period April 1 – Sept 30 2016 and report back with results and a recommendation as part of the 2017 budget cycle.” The goal of the program is to increase ridership among seniors; among the Key Performance Indicators that will be tracked during the pilot are: change in ridership among seniors on Mondays; change in ridership among seniors Tuesday to Sunday; change in revenue from seniors Mondays and the rest of the week.
Replace the existing business case with the following staff direction (Part 2): “Direct the Director of Transit to implement a pilot program of a $30 monthly pass for seniors (65+) (about $1/day) for the period April 1 – Sept 30 2016 and report back with results and a recommendation as part of the 2017 budget cycle.” The goal of the program is to increase ridership among seniors and remove affordability concerns for people who may not qualify for the Regional SPLIT pass. Among the Key Performance Indicators that will be tracked during the pilot are: change in sales and revenue of monthly passes for seniors; change in ridership among seniors.
Ward 5 Councillor Paul Sharman has focused om both information technology and corporate management and is asking that staff be directed to prepare an assessment of each of the services with respect to their relative strategic importance. The objective is help determine where we might wish to reduce/cut spending and therefore be able to re-allocate funds to services which are strategically more important.
 Councillors Sharman and Lancaster – both had changes they wanted to see in the 2016 budget. Staff be directed to conduct a series of Council Workshops to explain and seek agreement about each service: strategic positioning; service improvement goals; improvement actions: short/medium & long term resource/financial requirement projections.
The Strategic Plan has now gone through an extensive public review – when staff returns with its summary of what the public thought of the document it will be brought to Council for adoption. Some of what Councillor Sharman is asking for will then get matched up with what is included in the Strategic Plan.
Sharman is perhaps the Councillor with the best understanding of spending on Information technology. He suggests that a justification based on the 2 1/2 year old report is of questionable value today due the pace of change in technology. He points out that a report did correctly point out that City systems are aging and should be updated.
Rather than spend $209,350 in 2016 and $407,250 in 2017 Sharman proposes the following staff direction: Funding for IT Business Cases be approved but be refined by the City Manager relative to his assessment of the alignment of IT projects, in the context of the Strategic Plan, and the current strategic review of IT now underway, as well as the approach proposed in the subject Business Cases.
City manager James Ridge has some IT experience – but his desk is pretty full with managing the city – and he no longer has a management level between his office and the directors. Interesting that there has been no mention of just what the city is going to have in the way of a management structure going forward.
 Mayor Rick Goldring didn’t ask for any cuts to the 2016 budget but did want the city manager to look for ways to increase revenue. Mayor Goldring didn’t seem to see anything he wanted to cut in the 2016 budget but did want the city manager to study approaches that the city can take in revenue generation and provide a report to committee with the presentation of the 2017 budget
 Snow Update: January 18, 2016, 11:00 p.m.
Plowing of Primary and Secondary roads is ongoing, and will continue overnight.
Sidewalk plowing will begin in the early morning and continue throughout the day.
 Roads clearing priorities.
 By Pepper Parr
January 18th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
There are traces of Charlie Chaplin, a sense that the mime Marcel Marceau is in the room as you watch a dancer/actor perform an art form that we are lucky to have on the stage of the Performing arts centre.
We wanted to watch Trevor Copp in a rehearsal setting and be in a position to write about his work before the public performances take place.
The nine acts, several are very short, were conceived by Copp who has been a strong consistent advocate the more in the way of opportunities to use the Performing Arts Centre. His day has come.
 A time exposure of Trevor Copp on stage rehearsing for his four day run at the Performing Arts Centre. Copp will perform in “Air” on Thursday the 21st at 7:30 pm; Friday the 22nd at 7:30 pm and on Saturday at both 2:00 pm and 7:30 pm. All performances are in the Community Theatre.
Robin Patterson directs, Kelly Wolf did the costume most of the photography in this article was done by Kaitlin Abeele.
The opening piece, a meditation on Air is superb. While the dance is good – it is the acting that comes across very strongly. The way Copp tells you that he is on a train looking out the windows is just a really fine piece of acting.
1. Opening: A meditation on Air: This piece is not only a fine performance but a delight. Copp takes toy through a number of emotions – you feel what he is conveying –his going up in the balloon was marvelous.
2. Starry Night; Painter Vincent Van Gogh on the verge of a breakthrough
3. The Stupendifying Giganticism of Mr. Small: On the way home, Mr. Small’s passion for the constellations fail to move a woman he meets on the way. A miraculous burst of growth suddenly makes anything possible.
4. Sometimes It Snows in April: Snapshots of the rise and fall of a relationship that starts by offering an umbrella in the rain.
5. Butterfly: A man’s obsession with figuring out how to fly is inspired by a run-in with a Butterfly.
6. Questica: Concept by Stephen Sass; A great search begins. This one didn’t work for me
7. That Time I Asked God a Question: A man’s death is just the beginning of his path to enlightenment.
9. The Stag Hunter : A hunter has visions of a stag as he tracks it deep in the woods.
This is a very powerful performance – it might need a little more work and some refinement – but it is more than well worth watching at this point in its life.
What am I about to see if I buy a ticket?
A series of high impact physical stories: One spontaneously expands to galactic size and climbs the stars. One falls in love. One hunter becomes the hunted. One flies. One dies. ‘Air’ explores the connections we have through the simple act of breathing. Physical theatre performer Trevor Copp uses movement to launch into places where words cannot follow.
 It isn’t magic – but it is in the air. An artist with just a bare chair as a prop and an imagination attached to a body that can move with grace and artistry. Try not to miss this one. What do you mean by ‘Physical Theatre’?
Copp explains: “I spent a lot of time debating the use of ‘Mime’ to describe what I do – because this word is a kind of marketing death. Mime sounds like a thing trapped in an invisible box which is, in turn, trapped in the ‘70s. How did that happen?
‘Our cultural memory of Mime isn’t kind. I was busking (right on the streets of Hamilton) in full classic stripes and white face once and had to cross the street when a car sped up drastically. It was a near miss, and the driver yelled out ‘Mime! 2000 points!’
“But this wasn’t the mime I knew. I studied the Canadian Mime companies from the 70s, 80 and 90s, – and the work was amazing. Rich, varied, complex – and highly disciplined. My studies in Mime in Paris proved this to me further. But the work from Canada in that period is all but lost.
“I got a small but timely grant from the Hamilton Arts Council and started these pieces with Richard Beaune, a wonderful physical theatre practitioner. I went on to develop the production with core members of the Canadian Mime Theatre/Theatre Beyond Words Terry Judd, Robin Patterson, and Harro Maskow.
“Air’ emerges out of the chance to work with them: bringing back their work that inspires me, inventing work under their direction, and getting a chance to work with some of the unsung masters of Theatre in Canada.
“My dream is to create work that takes their theatre and puts it back in dialogue with our time. I ask big questions, hopefully well enough to provoke even bigger ones. I want us back sitting around the fire beside our basic longings: to fly, to die, to want impossible things, to move beyond. Movement has taken me there. I hope to show you what I mean.”
In a comment made by a reader to an advance piece we wrote on the production the ticket price was an issue – at $36 it is certainly more than a movie. See Copp now at $36 – it will cost you three times that at some point in the future and you will be able to see a great before he was discovered.
 Director Robin Patterson on the left and production manager Courtney Pyke talk through a lighting and sound issue during rehearsal. Director Robin Patterson put the performance Copp gives in context – explaining what mime was and what it has become. “Mime’ is not one rarified, historical kind of theatre” Patterson explains, “but rather a range of modern styles of physical theatre with many names. A story might be told by using gesture language, by drawing images in the air, or by carefully ordering a series of actions often supported by text, music, sound effects and/or projections. Pure Mime is the style in which a solo actor on a bare stage creates visual poetry.
“For the audience, the magic of ‘Pure Mime’ is seeing the actor create something out of nothing. For the actor, the joy is in devising a very specific story out of nothing – nothing but air, amazing physical skill and incredible ingenuity. There are no props or set pieces except what the performer is able to define by gesture, action, rhythm and intent.
“Trevor Copp blends the two styles to bring us ‘Mime for the 21st Century”.
 By Pepper Parr
January 18, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
There is that phrase “build it and they will come” and it might be true but if your sinking millions into the construction of a five tower project that is going to change significantly a part of town that didn’t have much vim or vigour to it – you don’t just build – you sell.
People driving along Fairview can see a smart looking one storey structure with a lot of glass and the liberal use of pink paint. If they stretch their necks they might see the two construction cranes – but traffic moves along Fairview at a pretty swift pace.
 Project manager Rodger Park looks over the second level of the parking garage of the West Tower. In behind the construction hoardings there is a big hole out of which is rising the West Tower – the first of three Paradigm towers that will rise out of the ground and up to a height of 22 storeys at the back of the project. Two additional 18 storey towers will be at the front closer to Fairview.
Project Manager Rodger Park is on the site very early each morning waiting for the arrival of the crane operator who will climb up the 215 foot ladder and get the electricity running to the crane – and in the winter get the heaters turned on as well before the serious construction on the ground can begin.
 John Caronello spends his shift in a crane 215 feet above the construction site John Caronello, the crane operator with 32 years experience behind him, gets his communications gear on and does the sound checks with his rigger Ryan Vandermeer on the ground so the buckets of concrete or loads of steel can begin moving.
The people building the project are focused on getting each level of the building completed on time – and with Park running the show – schedules get met. The construction crews will tell you how big each building is going to be – but oddly enough they don’t know all that much about what the building is going to look like other than what they see painted on the construction hoardings.
When first interviewing Caronello and rigger Vandermeer, we needed a warm place to sit and talk about the job they do so we slipped into the sales office – a place construction workers have no reason to walk into with their muddy boots.
 Ryan Vandermeer on the left along with John Caronello and Paradigm sales agent Sophie look over the model of the development site. Crane operator Caronello and rigger Vandermeer had never seen the model of the site – all they see are the drawings that indicate where the forms are going to be set up for concrete pours and where the steel beams have to be placed so that they can be bolted down tightly.
John was delighted at what he saw when Sophie, the sales agent on duty when we dropped in, explained how the buildings were going to be set on the site and how it all comes together.
Interesting that highly skilled construction workers would move tonnes of material around a construction site and get it to exactly where it is supposed to be with no mistakes and no injuries to anyone on the site don’t have the time to look at the model and see what they are building – and making sure they get it right.
Yards away from the cranes and the excavators and the big dump trucks there are sales agents’ explaining how the community being built is going to work and where all the amenities are going to be.
The construction crews arrive early in the morning and leave at the end of the day tired and ready for the drive home – looking over models of a building isn’t something they have much time for – they build.
 By Pepper Parr
January 15th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
While the construction of the hospital is on schedule –concrete pours for levels 7 and 8 slabs of the tower are now done, and construction of the building envelope and structural steel work has started, the team that is going to run the place when it opens is gearing up to operate a hospital that will be a lot different than the one we have today.
More on the construction side before we get to the Readiness Team.
 It will be up and opened before we know it. The verticals from Level 7 to 8 are complete and the verticals from 8 to 9 are in progress and will be completed by the end of January. Levels 8 and 9 will be dedicated to mechanical and electrical equipment that will run the building.
 Construction cranes loom over the hospital site 0 pouring of the slabs for the top floor expected to be done by the end of the month. • There will be five concrete pours in total for Level 9. The final pour will happen by the end of January.
• The vertical from Level 9 to the roof of the hospital will begin at the end of January and will be completed by the beginning of February.
• The construction of 6 elevator shafts and 3 main stairways from Level 8 – 9 is underway and will be finished by mid-January. Construction of 1 stairway and 2 elevator shafts will continue from Level 9 to the roof throughout January/early February.
• Mechanical work, plumbing, electrical and duct work continues on the Main Level, Level 1 and Level 2 throughout January and February.
• Installation of drywall continues on the Main Level, Level 1 and Level 2.
• Masonry work on the Main Level, Level 2 and Level 4 is happening throughout January and early February.
• The construction of the Building Envelope (also known as curtain wall) continues on the Main Level and will begin on Level 1 soon. If you take a look at the site from the parking garage roof you will see some of the curtain wall panels.
• Structural steel work begins in the Ambulance Garage.
• In our existing hospital, the excavation for footings for the second section of our loading dock is complete and the pouring of concrete for the footings is done. Forming and pouring for the foundation wall has begun and will be completed by mid-January.
You can log into the web camera that runs 24×7 and watch the hospital being built – you get to be a sidewalk superintendent without getting cold.
Construction is on schedule – the people who will run the hospital have been organized into an Operational Readiness Team that will focus on ICAT (Information, Communications and Automation Technology).
“We want staff to feel excited, to be comfortable and confident to move into their new space in a seamless transition so they can operate out of that space on move day,” said Kate Traianopoulos, Project Manager, Operational Readiness.
 Trish Hamilton Readiness Project coordinator Trisha Hamilton, Operational Readiness Coordinator and Registered Nurse is working with 11 programs at the hospital including Emergency, ICU, Finance and Decision Support and IT to ensure staff are prepared to move and operate in our new hospital in 2017. Trisha describes her role: “I meet with my assigned programs and essentially we review every little task that needs to be completed so they can hit the ground running. Staff need to feel comfortable going into that space on opening day because we have patients to care for and we have a lot of safety concerns that we need to address so that everything is smooth right from opening day.”
“Once we move into this new building your entire processes change. It’s a big change and that’s why we need to start early, ” she said. For Hamilton the challenge is “getting right into the minutiae of that program, down to the meat and potatoes of what those programs do and the processes they need to accomplish and how they serve our patients is important.”
 By Pepper Parr
January 15th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
The crowd that rides the GO train and those who drive the QEW collectively make up the bulk of the people who think about the economy, where we are going as a country and how their home town Burlington is coping.
Before too many noses get out of joint over that opening paragraph, I did say the “bulk” – not all the people who think in this city.
 How soon might we see a functional club house at the Nelson Stadium? These are the people that sit on community committees with their friends and neighbours – the Nelson Stadium Revitalization group is one example, the Rural Burlington Greenbelt Coalition is another. Burlington has dozens and dozens of strong community based groups.
They are aware of our fragile economy, they see the impact and deal with the stuttering economic growth – and they read – and they hear about the federal plans to take on some debt and build or upgrade our infrastructure.
How much of that infrastructure upgrading money is going to get spent in Burlington? And what will it gets spent on? Surely some of it will go into the roads that the current city council says we are millions of dollars behind on.
But what else – what has city hall got on hold that could be rolled out tomorrow if the dollars were available.
Well Councillor Jack Dennison would be close to the front of that line with a move to get the pool at Nelson started.
 Are the Mainway and east end rail crossing next on the grade separation list? Then there are the two remaining rail grade separations that are on the books: Mainway and the crossing in the east end.
 A plaza with trees liberally spread out – where can you see that in this city? Mapleview? Burlington Mall? Would someone at city hall begin to work with the owner of the Lakeshore Village Plaza and find a way to integrate the city holdings with the private property and get something happening out there? The architect on that project has put forward some excellent ideas and the community took part in a meeting more than a month ago on what they would like to see. City hall has yet to report on just what the 300 plus people had to say at that community meeting.
Would the city want to nudge the Region and fast track the building of the Beachway Park?
 Has city hall passed its best before date? There is a fat file in a cabinet somewhere at city hall with a detailed report on what the city needs in terms of space and also sets out how deficient the city hall itself actually is. We are currently renting office space across the street from city hall.
There is a golden opportunity to goose up the never quite vibrant enough downtown and give it some life. Those who continually tell us that downtown is vibrant have jobs that depend on that sleight of hand. Were we to admit that we have failed with our downtown core – those people would need to find jobs doing something else.
What are we missing here?
There is hardly a word coming out of city hall on what they have in the way of ideas and projects that can be made close to “shovel ready”.
The Mayor hasn’t held a press conference this term – the only real press conference he held in his first term was when the city explained how the pier fiasco was settled out of court – and on that occasion he got the city manager to do all the talking.
The current city manager is basically media adverse.
While we have an economy that is struggling, a dollar that is worth 70 cents; oil that is running at about $30 a barrel – but doesn’t seem to have brought gasoline prices down, we are still a people of ideas and energy and we have within us the capacity to make things happen.
Would someone actually do something – soon?
 By Staff
January 15, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
The Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra has once again partnered with the Art Gallery of Burlington to bring a professional orchestra into an inspirational and beautiful environment for a 60 minute chamber concert.
The Gallery Series brings the HPO String Quartet into the room where the current ceramic exhibition Still Life – Landscape, from the Permanent Collection is being displayed.
The HPO String Quartet will perform glistening and harmonious works written for violins, viola and cello.
 Launched in the winter of 2015, the Gallery Series brings a regional local art galleries and professional orchestra together to create intimate, 60-minute chamber concerts within the setting of the current ceramic exhibition Still Life – Landscape, from the Permanent Collection.
Following the performance, Art Gallery of Burlington Chief Curator Denis Longchamps provides an introduction to the exhibition before inviting guests to join HPO musicians and Gallery staff for a reception.
“I’m thrilled to perform with my colleagues at the Art Gallery of Burlington,” says HPO violinist Cecilia Chang. “Having the opportunity to play great string quartet music in an intimate and beautiful setting is an exciting change of atmosphere for those of us who regularly perform in large concert halls. Having great art around us as we perform is an added bonus!”
The performance is hosted by HPO composer-in-residence Abigail Richardson-Schulte who provides context for each musical selection on the program.
Wednesday, January 20 at 7:30pm
Art Gallery of Burlington
1333 Lakeshore Rd., Burlington
Featuring the HPO String Quartet.
Reception following the concert. Cash Bar.
The Gallery Series is a FREE concert series with donations gladly accepted at the door. Seating is limited seating and on a first-come, first-served basis. Doors open one hour prior to the concert starting.
 Art Gallery of Burlington The Art Gallery of Burlington is an award winning gallery located in the heart of Burlington, Ontario. They stage as many as 20 regional, national and international exhibitions a year, and are home to the world’s largest acclaimed collection of Canadian contemporary ceramics and seven art and fine craft guilds. An interactive and creative space, the AGB provides arts and craft education programs and public tours for people of all ages. Spanning over 44,000 square feet, our space boasts seven equipped art studios, three galleries, a one of a kind gift shop, an exhibition courtyard and year-round conservatory.
The Art Gallery of Burlington is located at 1333 Lakeshore Rd, Burlington, ON L7S 1A9
Gallery Hours:
Monday: 9:00 am – 6:00 pm
Tuesday – Thursday: 9:00 am – 10:00 pm
Friday – Saturday: 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
Sunday: 12 noon – 5:00 pm
 By Staff
January 14, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
Economical Insurance has generously donated $10,000 to the Art Gallery of Burlington (AGB) and has been named Contributing Sponsor to Children’s Programming, in association with their broker partner and fellow AGB contributor Dan Lawrie.
 Participants in one of the children’s art classes. The Art Gallery of Burlington has a very active and robust program for children that has enables over 6,000 taking part in art education programming, including financial assistance, free open studios, affordable classes and camps, and school outreach.
Chiara Frigeni, a therapist, with ROCK Reach Out Centre for Kids, explains that the role arts education plays in children’s lives is vital to their development “I often see less anxiety, less rigidity, more self-confidence, and more ability to have fun and be with peers in children and adolescents when they start attending courses at the AGB.”
Robert Steven, President and CEO of the Art Gallery of Burlington accepted a $10,000 gift from Joe Pansino, Business Development Advisor at Economical Insurance.
 Dan Lawrie – arts benefactor. Dan Lawrie of Dan Lawrie Insurance Brokers, a broker partner with Economical attended. Lawrie recently donated a significant sum for the installation of a major piece of stone sculpture created by Walter Rickli.
Lawrie was also a contributor to the Spiral Stella that is outside the Performing Arts Centre.
Gallery Hours:
Monday: 9:00 am – 6:00 pm
Tuesday – Thursday: 9:00 am – 10:00 pm
Friday – Saturday: 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
Sunday: 12 noon – 5:00 pm
 By Staff
January 14th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
That was fast.
The Esso Station on Guelph Line at Derry Road was robbed early Wednesday – before the sun had set on Thursday two males were in custody and heading for a bail hearing.
Two males were arrested and have been charged in relation to an early morning robbery at the Esso Gas Station. The accused persons are:
Jacob DEMARSH (age 27) of Milton, Ontario
Andrew SMITH (age 25) of Sylvan Lake, Alberta
Charged with:
 Esso gas station at Guelph Line and Derry Road robbed – two males arrested less than 36 hours later. -Robbery
-Theft of Motor Vehicle
-Possession of Stolen Property- Over $5000
-Wear disguise with intent (DEMARSH only)
DEMARSH and SMITH have been held for a bail hearing and will appear in the Ontario Court of Justice in Milton on Friday January 15th 2016.
The same gas station was robbed in July of 2011
Anyone with further information in this case is encouraged to contact Detective Phil Vandenbeukel at 905 825-4747 extension 2343 or Crime Stoppers at 1 800 222-TIPS (8477), through the web at www.haltoncrimestoppers.com or by texting “Tip201” with your message to 274637 (crimes).
By Pepper Parr
January 14, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
It was described as the only decent sized stadium in the city – if you wanted something like it you had to drive to Guelph or Mississauga; the Nelson Stadium User Group, formed in the late 1990s wants the city to climb into bed with them and give the stadium a major overhaul.
The delegation, headed up by one of the strongest community groups this writer has seen in some time, was led by Janeen Stodulski – and she meant business. They presented a very detailed proposal that was supported by a motion from Councillor Jack Dennison to:
Direct the Director of Parks and Recreation and the Executive Director of Capital Works, in partnership with the Halton District School Board, to work with the Nelson Stadium User Group on their proposed Nelson Stadium Revitalization project including vision, scope and future budget impacts, and in order to move this project forward,
Direct the Director of Parks and Recreation and the Executive Director of Capital Works to work with the Halton District School Board, and report back with as much detail as possible by April 7, 2016, so that we can be prepared for the next meeting with the Nelson Stadium User Group scheduled for April 21, 2016.
 What was interesting is that most members of council agreed that there was a lot of work to be done but there had never been a proposal come forward from the Parks and Recreation department.
The property on which the stadium is located is owned in some instances by the city and in others by the Halton Board of Education.
 The Nelson Users Group has been working with the Board of Education and plans on that side are very well advanced. The council members didn’t really seem to be “in the room”. At one point the Mayor said he had been taken on a tour “two or three years ago” and that the stairs to the press box were dangerous then. The press box is no longer used.
Stodulski, who is charmingly aggressive, let it be known that she has Cogeco Cable TV down for a specific donation amount.
In the summer of 2011 through a joint partnership with the Halton District School Board (HDSB), Nelson Stadium User Group and City of Burlington, an artificial surface was installed at Nelson Stadium.
In 2013 the Nelson Stadium User Group expanded to include representation from all major user groups. This group has prepared a Proposal for Nelson Stadium outlining the needs, costs, upgrades and improvements required for the stadium, its facilities and surrounding areas. The Nelson Stadium User Group is requesting to again work with the HDSB and City and provide the much-needed improvements to Nelson Stadium – improvements to make our city’s one and only stadium a World Class Sports Facility.
 Architects rendering of what a club house – change room could look like. Nelson is the only Football and Hardball Stadium and home to various associations in the city. It is the only stadium that can accommodate larger number of spectator viewing, has dedicated change rooms for visiting and home teams and a press box.
Unfortunately, the facilities are now in dire need of improvements and upgrades. The people behind this project, and this is something that is being driven by the community not led by either the school board or the city, want to turn Nelson Stadium into a World Class Sports Facility
Nelson Stadium’s track and multipurpose sports fields are located at the west end of Nelson Park, off Belvenia Street and is the first general gateway into a sport corridor. Adjacent to the stadium one can stroll past baseball p arks, an outdoor pool, an indoor ice rink, soccer pitches, BMX Park and tennis courts. All linked by walkways and bike paths a cross bridges and streams: A gem of a sport corridor in the City of Burlington.
 Rendering of what a press box could look like. Paying for all this may not be all that difficult. The Director of Parks and Recreation explained that there were “small pockets of money here and there” that could be used and the user groups were quite prepared to get into joint ventures with the city to raise some of the funds.
Wonderful to see the drive coming from the community – council needs to just raise their hands and vote yes and let these people get on with what they have set out to do. We are lucky to have them.
 By Staff
January 14th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
The Halton District School Board is adding an Professional Activity Day to the school calendar – Friday, April 8, 2016 is the day you will have to find something else for the kids to do.
 The additional day is part of the negotiated terms bargained between the Ministry of Education and the federations representing Ontario teachers.
Schools will be closed to students and there will be no classes on Friday, April 8, 2016. This date has been added to the School Year Calendar posted on the Board’s website.
The Easter holiday is at the end of March.
By Staff
January 14th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
Early yesterday morning, a lone male entered the Esso gas station located at 6783 Guelph Line in Burlington and demanded money from the clerk while having his hand in his pocket insinuating a weapon being present.
 This Esso station seems to be a favorite with the robbers – held up yesterday and in July of 2011 The clerk complied and turned over an undisclosed amount of cash from the till to the suspect who fled North out of the store and out of sight.
No vehicle observed by the clerk and the clerk was not injured.
The suspect is described as:
male/Caucasian, 20-30 years of age, 5”3-5”6 in height, approximately 140-150 pounds, slim build, blue/green eyes and light colored facial hair (approximately 2-3 days growth). The suspect was wearing a black/white plaid scarf around his face, red toque with a “Hockey night” blue emblem on the front, black jacket with hood and black pants.
The same gas station was robbed in July of 2011. A light blue box pick was used as the getaway vehicle then and we asked if there was a video. Was there a video this time?
Anyone with information that would assist in locating the suspect vehicle or identifying the suspect are encouraged to contact Detective Phil Vandenbeukel at 905 825-4747 extension 2343 or Crime Stoppers at 1 800 222-TIPS (8477), through the web at www.haltoncrimestoppers.com or by texting “Tip201” with your message to 274637 (crimes).
Snow Update: Jan.13,2016 4:00pm
Road plowing is complete.
Local road sanding is ongoing.
Primary and secondary sidewalks have been completed.
Local sidewalk plowing is ongoing.
By Staff
January 13th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
The Gazette has written about the 100 Women Who Care Burlington. It is a simple concept whose impact is very powerful.
The goal is to raise $40,000 (or more) annually for local registered charities or their charitable programs that help Burlington residents live their lives to the fullest. This is done by gathering 100 women (or more) who commit to donating $100 (or more), four times per year. At each of their one hour meetings, nominations for charities and/or their programs are submitted by members for consideration of the group.
To expedite the process, of the nominations submitted, three are selected at random and of those, the nominators have an opportunity to pitch their cause to the members, after which a vote is taken, ballots counted and cheques written to the organization that receives the most votes.
 The group is part of a grassroots movement that’s spreading rapidly across the globe. Men’s groups have also been formed (one is in the works for Burlington) and in some communities, the kids have been inspired to follow suit (with $10 donations).
Since their inaugural meeting in 2014, they have collectively donated in excess of $40,000 to:
– Burlington Humane Society
– Halton Women’s Place
– Home Suite Hope
– Food4Kids
– Carpenter Hospice
– Alzheimer Society of Hamilton and Halton
– Community Living Burlington
– Friday Night Community (Wellington United Church)
 More information about the group can be found at www.100womenwhocareburlington.com. Their facebook page is www.facebook.com/100WomenBurlington
Meeting dates for 2016 are January 19, May 31, September 13 and November 29. All meetings this year will be held at Emma’s Back Porch at 2084 Old Lakeshore Rd.
Craig Kowalchuk and the team at Emmas Back Porch has a long history of giving back to the community and 100 Women Who Care Burlington are appreciative of their support in hosting our quarterly meetings this year.
Dermetics, a Burlington based business is sponsoring 10 of their staff as members. It’s been a fabulous way for their business to give back to the community, while involving their team as they contribute to the decisions on where the funds will be directed. Dermetics has also provided numerous door prizes and incentives to grow our membership.
By Staff
January 13th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
City Council will meet next week for two days to thrash out the 2016 budget which, at this point, looks like it will increase 3.85% over what they asked for last year.
The Bank of Canada set inflation at 2% and for the most part the country has been able to keep spending within the inflation range.
For some reason Burlington’s city council feels it has to spend more in 2016 than it did in 2015 (3.85% is the most recent budget increase projection) which has the people at Bfast (Burlington for Accessible, Sustainable Transit) upset because they don’t see any increase in the amount being sent on transit.
“Despite commitments in the City’s Strategic Plan, transit users in Burlington are again being shortchanged by the municipality‘s 2016 budget,” says a spokesperson for Burlington For Accessible, Sustainable Transit (BFAST).
Council is set to approve a budget for the system that provides no funding increase for 2016.
 Doug Brown, chair of Bfast says the city is short changing transit users. “When inflation is considered, the 2016 transit budget is actually less than the budget in 2015,” commented BFAST spokesperson Doug Brown.
“Funding and service cuts, schedule changes and fare increases over the past four years have resulted in a 17% decline in ridership for Burlington’s chronically underfunded transit system. This is despite the requirement of the Ontario Municipal Board that the city increase transit ridership to 11% of all city trips by 2030.
“In contrast,” he ads ” Oakville has seen large increases in transit use as a result of higher funding and better service levels.”
“Burlington’s politicians like to point to the survey by MoneySense magazine that rates our community as the most livable mid-size city in Canada,” Brown said. “But that same magazine notes Burlington is well down the list when it comes to walkability and transit.”
Brown said adequate transit service is an investment, not an expense.
 Bus drivers got a pay increase, some new buses arrived – but transit advocates say the city is still not spending enough on transit. “How much does it end up costing us when people without cars can’t get to their jobs? What’s the real cost of students not being able to take advantage of educational opportunities because Burlington Transit can’t get them to school on time? How much does it cost every taxpayer to own a second or even third car because they can’t rely on the transit system?”
Council is set to vote on the 2016 budget on Jan. 25..
BFAST is a citizen’s group formed in 2012 to advocate for better transit in Burlington.
Ciné-Starz Upper Canada Place,
Burlington, ON L7R 4B6
Week of Friday, January 15, 2016 through Thursday, January 21, 2016
Point Break (14A)
Fri – Sun: 11:00 AM, 1:10, 3:00, 7:20, 9:30
Mon – Thu: 1:00, 3:10, 7:35, 9:40
Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip (G)
Fri – Sun: 11:00 AM, 1:10, 3:10, 5:10, 7:40, 9:50
Mon – Thu: 1:00, 3:30, 5:10, 7:40, 9:40
In the Heart of the Sea (PG)
Fri – Sun: 7:25 PM
Mon – Thu: 2:50, 7:25
Creed (14A)
Fri – Sun: 5:05 PM
Mon – Thu: 5:10 PM
The Good Dinosaur (G)
Fri – Sun: 11:00 AM, 1:00, 3:15, 5:20
Mon – Thu: 1:00, 3:15
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2 (PG)
Fri – Thu: 5:10, 9:30
Spotlight (—)
Fri – Sun: 1:00, 3:00, 5:00, 7:20, 9:40
Mon – Thu: 1:00, 2:45, 5:00, 7:20, 9:40
The Peanuts Movie (G)
Fri – Sun: 11:15 AM, 12:45, 3:15
Spectre ()
Fri – Sun: 12:15, 2:30, 7:00, 9:40
Mon – Thu: 2:30, 7:00, 9:40
The Martian (PG)
Fri – Sun: 5:00, 7:25, 9:35
Mon – Thu: 1:00, 5:00, 7:00, 9:30
Snowtime! (La Guerre des Tuques) (G)
Fri – Sun: 11:20 AM
Mon – Thu: 1:00, 5:15
 By Pepper Parr
January 12, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
There were hundreds of them. The kept streaming into the room and immediately headed for the table that had hundreds of donuts of every imaginable flavour laid out.
 Tough to make a donut choice from a table like this. Later in the day when this small hoard of young people had to be fed the pizza was brought into the rooms on small trolleys.
How did the Board of Education manage to get more than 500 young people out early on a Saturday morning? They were there to get the details on the robotics competition that Burlington students have been part of for 19 years.
It is one of the city’s best kept secrets – the crime is that it is a secret – the event gets next to no media coverage.
 They were an attentive audience – they were there to get the instructions they needed for the competition they were going to engage in. This was serious stuff. The daylong event took place at the Gary Allan High school and had participants from throughout the Region.
The starting point was the broadcast of a video that was shown across North America to students in auditoriums who wanted to get the fundamentals of the robotics challenge.
 Dave Hammel from MM Robinson and Director of Education Stewart Miller exchange a laugh during the first phase of the North American robotics competition. Under strict rules, limited resources, and the guidance of volunteer mentors including engineers, teachers, business professionals, parents, alumni and more, teams of 25+ students have just six weeks to build and program robots to perform challenging tasks against a field of competitors. They must also raise funds, design a team “brand,” hone teamwork skills, and perform community outreach. In addition to learning valuable STEM and life skills, participants are eligible to apply for $25+ million in college scholarships.
 The challenge in the 2016 First robotics competition was to breach the castle stronghold of the other team – using robots to do the breaching. FIRST Robotics Competition Kickoff. The new game and playing field are unveiled and teams receive a Kickoff Kit made up of donated items and components worth tens of thousands of dollars – and only limited instructions. Working with adult Mentors, students have six weeks to design, build, program, and test their robots to meet the season’s engineering challenge. Once these young inventors build a robot, their teams will participate in one or more of the Regional and District events that measure the effectiveness of each robot, the power of collaboration, and the determination of students.
The Gazette intends to follow the robotics team from Burlington Central High school and M M Robinson high school. Our first look at these two groups was an amazing time – we saw some of the brightest young people we have come across in this city.
Stay tuned.
 By Staff
January 12, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
BurlingtonGreen put its two cents on the table and gave city council and senior staff its views on the Strategic Plan that is currently out for public review.
They made several significant points: One being that there wasn’t enough focus climate change and they wondered why there was a long term vision but not much in the way of a four year, single term of office document. Burlington Green isn’t the only group asking that question.
Burlington Green’s Executive Director Amy Schnurr points to “the extensive community feedback” they received through their Greenprint for the Future outreach program where they learned what the citizens of Burlington had to say about a variety of local environmental issues.
 Ice birgs are melting. “Both globally and locally, the health of the environment and need for effective, results-oriented action to ensure a sustainable future has never been more important. Municipalities have an essential role to play in combating climate change and must prioritize and integrate associated action strategies into short and long-term planning. Additionally, with Burlington currently facing the conflicting challenges of build-out and population growth, the associated issues of intensification, infill practices, habitat destruction, local food security, waste management and effective transportation, combine to make sustainable planning a top priority.”
BurlingtonGreen strongly believes that climate change and the environment must be central to Burlington’s vision and planning going forward and respectfully offers the following input to aid the City in improving the draft Strategic Plan for 2015 to 2040.
Issue: Strategic Plan versus Long Term Vision: we feel the current document represents a strategic vision, rather than a plan which requires specific, measurable time-bound strategies.
Recommendation: Re position the document as “Burlington’s Vision for 2015 to 2040”and develop a five year Strategic Plan in consultation with the community, to implement the short and long term elements of the vision.
Issue: The Vision Statement “Where people, nature, and business thrive” is missing the element of community context.
Recommendation: Include the word “community”, so that the vision statement reads: “Where people, nature, business, and community thrive”.
 Smoke stacks are killing us. Issue: Climate Change: the document makes no reference to this, the most important environmental and social issue of our times, and though some elements, such as the City’s carbon-neutral proposal, address it in part, there is no cohesive or strongly-stated strategy articulated. Cities must be on the front line of action in dealing with climate change, and Burlington needs to demonstrate clear leadership here.
Recommendation: Add a fifth section to the plan dedicated to climate change because strategies dealing with climate change must include or involve all sections of the plan: not just health and environment, but also transportation and economic development and the type of growth we want to have and can sustain in the next twenty five years.
If it is deemed that an additional section cannot be added then all document sections should be strengthened significantly to integrate climate change mitigation and adaptation planning strategies.
Issue: A City that Grows: we support the thrust towards intensification and smart growth; however, there is insufficient recognition of the need to develop and preserve a livable and environmentally sustainable community, while promoting economic growth.
Smart growth must advance strategic plans that respect nature’s biodiversity and our irreplaceable green spaces that Burlington is fortunate to have. This additional point is not only important for Burlington citizens, but is fundamental to promoting economic growth in a postmodern information economy.
Reccomendation: Strengthen this section to clearly indicate that the vision is to absorb growth in the currently defined urban areas to support an economically strong, livable and environmentally sustainable community.
Issue: A City that Moves: we strongly believe that a much greater focus on public transit and active transportation is required in the draft plan.
 Do we have enough buses and are they the right size to meet the changing demand? Recommendation: Make Public Transit and Active Transportation priorities by creating a dedicated section specifically dealing with “public transit” and “active transportation options”, in coordination with the Region of Halton’s recently published Active Transportation Master Plan, and where necessary, work proactively with the Region to suggest any improvements to the Plan that are needed to meet Burlington’s specific requirements.
Issue: A Healthy and Greener City: we find this section represents a fairly traditional approach to environment and more innovative and integrative thinking and strategies, with a strong focus on Climate Change are required.
 Tree canopies like this take decades to mature – is there a plan in place to replace these trees when they begin to fail? It is streets like this that give Burlington much of its character and value. Recommendation: Review this section approaching urban and growth issues from an environmental point of view, and ensure the inclusion of important issues such as:
• Green Space: include strategies for green space growth and preservation for its carbon sink capacity and quality of life and health benefits.
A comprehensive (city and privately owned) green space inventory and acquisition plan is required to support this;
• Tree Canopy: include strategies to protect and strengthen our tree canopy to meet Environment Canada’s community sustainability standards.
One example includes the establishment of a practical, effective private property tree bylaw given that the majority of our tree canopy is located on privately owned lands.
• Habitat & Biodiversity Protection: A balanced approach to development planning is essential to ensure the city’s natural areas are preserved and habitat restoration work is advanced to ensure local biodiversity is protected and enhanced.
• Waste Reduction: include municipal and community strategies to support the Region and Province to meet waste reduction goals. Advancement of the city’s green procurement strategies and establishing local targets, incentives and requirements for all events and festivals conducted on city property are a few examples.
• Energy: consider whether energy, being at the fulcrum of climate change, should be a distinct initiative in this section and perhaps whether the section might be renamed Environment and Energy. Include forward looking strategies such as developing community energy systems(s) by engaging industry experts and committing to community energy infrastructure development.
The test for feasibility should not be limited to existing business and geopolitical measures but should include forward looking plans that anticipate changes in support of combatting climate change.
• Farmland/Source Water Protection: include strategies that will strengthen the protection of our vital agricultural sector and water resources such as adopting a Food & Water First policy.
Issue: A Healthy and Greener City: we find this section represents a fairly traditional approach to environment and more innovative and integrative thinking and strategies, with a strong focus on Climate Change are required.
 Do we have a rural farmland policy? Recommendation: Review this section approaching urban and growth issues from an environmental point of view, and ensure the inclusion of important issues such as:
• Green Space: include strategies for green space growth and preservation for its carbon sink capacity and quality of life and health benefits.
A comprehensive (city and privately owned) green space inventory and acquisition plan is required to support this;
• Tree Canopy: include strategies to protect and strengthen our tree canopy to meet Environment Canada’s community sustainability standards.
One example includes the establishment of a practical, effective private property tree bylaw given that the majority of our tree canopy is located on privately owned lands.
• Habitat & Biodiversity Protection: A balanced approach to development planning is essential to ensure the city’s natural areas are preserved and habitat restoration work is advanced to ensure local biodiversity is protected and enhanced.
• Waste Reduction: include municipal and community strategies to support the Region and Province to meet waste reduction goals. Advancement of the city’s green procurement strategies and establishing local targets, incentives and requirements for all events and festivals conducted on city property are a few examples.
• Energy: consider whether energy, being at the fulcrum of climate change, should be a distinct initiative in this section and perhaps whether the section might be renamed Environment and Energy. Include forward looking strategies such as developing community energy systems(s) by engaging industry experts and committing to community energy infrastructure development.
The test for feasibility should not be limited to existing business and geopolitical measures but should include forward looking plans that anticipate changes in support of combatting climate change.
• Farmland/Source Water Protection: include strategies that will strengthen the protection of our vital agricultural sector and water resources such as adopting a Food & Water First policy.
 A rapt audience listens to an overview of a budget – did they have any real input ? Issue:
An Engaging City: we generally support what is here, however as a Blue Dot community, Burlington needs to step up to the commitment and advance a plan to stimulate citizen engagement specifically in regards to growth and environmental issues.
Recommendation: Advance plans to stimulate meaningful citizen engagement with respect to growth and environmental issues.
Burlington Green has been consistent with its plea that the public be listened to and heard. They argue that the City’s Strategic Plan for 2015-2040 “must reflect this commitment; they hope the constructive input and recommendations provided make it into the final document.
 By Pepper Parr
January 8th 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
Strategic plans are by seldom an easy read. They are however important – they set out where the politicians you elected want to see growth take place.
There was a time when Burlington had acres of farm land that was developed over time – the two malls we have were once very productive farmland at a time when Burlington was known around the word for the quality of its produce.
 The city – then a town – was once a produce garden known around the world. We grew and we now need a strategy to guide the growth, We shipped so much fresh fruit and vegetables that the railway had two tracks coming into what was then a town.
That was then – developers bought that farmland and put up a parking lot and added some stores along the edges. The old Burlington began to change and the downtown core that once was a place where people did gather began to wither.
 Strategic Plan is based on four strategic directions. The city believes it needs a Strategic Plan and spends a considerable amount of time and significant financial resources putting a document together and looking for public comment.
The draft version of the Strategic Plan that is now ready for public comment has four Strategic Directions: a city that moves; a city that grows; a healthy and greener city; and an engaging city.
This report takes material from the draft report and adds comments to put what the draft Strategic Plan is saying in context. See the draft plan as a piece of sales literature with one side of the story. The Gazette has added comment based on its five years of covering this council and attendance at all the meetings for the 2011 Strategic Plan and most of the meetings for the plan that is ready for public comment. The commentary is set out in bold italic.
Everything your city council wants to have happen in Burlington as it grows – and the city has to grow because the province says we must – is pinned to the four strategic directions. There was no public input on the choice of those four strategic directions. They came out of discussion and debate and wordsmithed by the consultants.
First strategic direction is related to growth. That growth is identified as coming about as the result of – economic development, intensification and smart population growth.
Each of these has a list of strategic initiatives the city will undertake and then a list of progress indicators telling us what real progress has been made.
Council wants to promote economic growth. Local incomes have risen and Burlington continues to be a prosperous city due to the co-ordinated action of the city, region, province, educational institutions and industry. The very significant increases in the selling prices of housing has made a difference as well; a recent report had the increase at the 9.2% year over year level.
More people who live in Burlington, work in Burlington and targets for employment lands have been met (15,000 new knowledge-based jobs by 2025) through the creation of an employment lands vision to unite the community, developers and industry.
 An empty lot on the North Service Road at Walkers Line was to be the home of a new IKEA – that didn’t work out but a six storey office building got built a couple of hundred yards away. The development community has been banging away at council to let quite a bit of the land set aside for employment be converted and used instead for housing – which is a lot more profitable.
The draft report claims that employment lands are connected to the community and region and include transportation links and options that are easy to access and contribute to a sustainable and walk able community. That statement is more than a bit of a stretch. A report earlier this week in the Spectator said that those who attended the Pan Am games didn’t make much use of public transit – and there is nothing wrong with the GO service.
Burlington hasn’t taken to the idea of public transit yet. When a significant number of seniors find that they can’t drive or find the traffic too congested to drive – they will make their concerns known to council and then watch how quickly city council comes onside and starts spending the gas tax rebates on transit – which is what they were intended for.
Small businesses contributes to the creation of complete neighbourhoods. Commerce aligns with land-use planning goals so that residents are close to goods and services.
Innovative, entrepreneurial businesses have settled or developed in Burlington. The city has helped create the technological support, business supports, infrastructure and educational environment to attract start-ups and growing businesses.
The people who write these reports keep saying things that are just not true – they seem to feel that if they say something often enough it will become true.
 This just isn’t a vibrant downtown – the site has been sold with yet another condominium being planned for the site – right opposite city hall. Two statements that need to be dealt with honestly – Burlington’s downtown is vibrant and thriving with greater intensification. The downtown isn’t vibrant – hasn’t been vibrant for a long, long time. Better minds than mine may know how to make it vibrant – but we aren’t there yet.
Much of the rural property is in the hands of speculators who limit what can be done with the land. There are farmers north of Dundas that would like to grow different crops but the owners of the property limit what they can grow. The City of Burlington’s rural areas will be economically and socially vibrant, producing commodities and providing unique recreational activities for the city.
How will Burlington make the growth wanted actually happen?
These are some examples of actions and measures of success:
Create an employment lands vision that drives investment and growth in the Prosperity Corridors.
 Getting the people who own the land to work with the city and develop with long term viability is the first step – some of the plans on the table for the land around the Aldershot GO station leave a lot to be desired.
Develop and put in place a redevelopment and intensification strategy for the Prosperity Corridors
Build one economic development brand for the City of Burlington that reflects the city’s economic development vision
Develop a holistic strategy for Burlington’s rural area. This strategy will consider economic, social and environmental factors in support of the rural community, agricultural industry, natural heritage and water resources
Develop a post-secondary attraction strategy.
 Something along these lines was planned for Burlington’s downtown core – but McMaster stifed the city when a nicer deal came along. There was a time when the DeGroote campus now on the South Service Road was going to be downtown on land that is currently the Elizabeth Street parking lot. That on got away on us. There has been some rumbling about perhaps getting some of the Mohawk College courses delivered in Burlington. Mohawk president Ron McKerlie says that isn’t going to happen. The one post-secondary institution we did have pulled up their stakes and moved on.
 Develop a business-friendly environment that attracts investment. The real issues is to find investors who look for long term returns and not the getting in and getting out to turn the fast buck. There is a project in the west end that the developer wants to get approved that doesn’t include very much, if anything in the way of amenities. There are developers building forms of housing that are not built that often. And at the same time there are developers prepared to work with city hall and the ward Councillors and not grab every last square foot of density available. There is a developer currently building what will amount to a new community that will house more than 2000 people.
Create and invest in a system that supports the start-up and growth of businesses and entrepreneurship. There are a lo of people who would love to know what such a system would look like. The role of government is to create the conditions needed for economic growth and then stay out of the way and let business people do what they do best. Keep the taxes low – provide services that people need fix the pot holes and keep the snow off the roads and sidewalks.
Progress indicators:
How will we know we are getting to where we want to get to?
• Median household income will rise
• Labour force by industry will tell us ho we are doing
• Industry location targets will be clearly identified
• Income distribution will be known to track inequity
• Percentage of families with low income will be lower
• Rural economic health indicator will exist
• Number of hectares of farmland under active cultivation
• Year-over-year employment land absorption
• Jobs per hectare in the urban boundary
• Percentage of the community that does not work in Burlington
• City’s gross domestic product
• Employment and unemployment rates.
There is a bit of a problem with this list of data – the city does not have a demographer on staff and without one it will be very difficult to report on any of the above. There was no mention made of hiring a demographer during the strategic plan discussions.
Intensification:
Growth is being achieved in mixed-use nodes and corridors, including mobility hubs and urban centres.
 The city defined four possible “mobility hubs” They appear to have settled on the Aldershot location. Mobility hubs are developed near each GO Station and in the downtown.
Aging plazas are being redeveloped and transformed into mixed-use neighbourhood hubs.
New/transitioning neighbourhoods are being designed to promote easy access to amenities, services and employment areas with more opportunities for walking, cycling and using public transit.
Older neighbourhoods are important to the character of Burlington and intensification will be carefully managed to respect this character.
Energy-efficient buildings and other onsite sustainable features are the norm, thereby improving Burlington’s environmental footprint. Existing buildings are being renovated to improve efficiency.
Intensification is planned so that growth is financially sustainable and supported by appropriate funding and service delivery.
Burlington has an urban core that has higher densities, green space and amenities, is culturally active and is home to a mix of residents and businesses.
Architecture, sustainable buildings and urban design excellence are being achieved through a commitment to creating public spaces where people can live, work or gather.
The city will create and implement an awards program to recognize and celebrate excellence in architecture, urban design and sustainability in all developments.
 Waterdown Road was recently widened from Hwy 403 to Plains Road. As part of an intensification exercise the planners prepared visualizations of what that Road could look like if there were some commercial development. This is what they thought possible.  This is what Waterdown Road north of Plains Road looks like today. How will Burlington make this happen?
These are some examples of actions and measures of success:
Strategic Initiatives:
The city will focus intensification to mixed-use nodes and employment corridors by updating intensification targets and co-ordinating infrastructure to achieve growth objectives. The city will incorporate revised intensification targets into its Official Plan. The city will demonstrate its commitment to growth management by preparing an intensification plan to manage projected growth and its related impacts. This will be complete in two years but will not limit prioritizing/directing intensification in the shorter term.
Through policy, the city will influence the redevelopment of aging plazas and transform them into mixed-use neighbourhood hubs.
The city will work with Halton Region and other partners to develop a servicing plan for intensification areas.
The city will conduct and implement an intensification plan that will include a specific focus on the Urban Growth Centre, and will develop a strategy for the downtown core that will promote residential and appropriate niche/boutique office development
The city will develop energy and sustainable site feature guidelines to require new/ renewed buildings to promote energy-efficient technologies.
The city will complete a city-wide fiscal impact analysis of all forms of development
The city will put in place the recommendations of Core Commitment in the downtown and extend, where possible, recommendations to other urban centres.
The city will create an independent capacity study to understand and comment on real estate economics and trends.
The city will create a design review panel and put in place an awards program to achieve excellence in architecture, urban design and sustainability.
Progress Indicators:
Percentage of aging commercial plazas that have redeveloped
Percentage of mobility hubs that are developed
Intensification (Jobs/people per hectare) for mobility hubs, urban centres, urban corridors, commercial plazas and urban employment areas.
Smart Population Growth:
Burlington is an inclusive city that has a higher proportion of youth, newcomers and young families and offers a price range and mix of housing choices.
Seniors are supported by a strategy that promotes health, recreation, transportation and aging in place.
How will Burlington make this happen?
These are some examples of actions and measures of success:
Strategic Initiatives:
 Fairview was seen as a street with people walking and lanes for cyclists. That’s not what it is today. Future development will be higher density, walkable, accessible and transit- oriented. The city will become a leader in walkability scores in the province, and will be fully aligned with provincial strategy and goals.
The city will prioritize one mobility hub, and will work with partners to ensure resources are available to allow the development to proceed in a timely way. The prioritized hub will be included in the Official Plan and Transportation Master Plan. Stakeholders will be consulted to help gain consensus.
Within two years, the city will develop a strategy in co-operation with other levels of government to support young families:
Housing supply will allow young families and newcomers to locate in Burlington
Infrastructure will support the economic, social and community goals of youth, young families and newcomers.
Within four years, the city will develop an economic migrant outreach and liaison office to attract investor/entrepreneur class immigrants, while remaining a destination of choice for all immigrants, including refugees.
An Age Friendly strategy for seniors will be developed within three years to ensure sufficient seniors’ programming space is provided throughout the city.
The city will improve its ability to monitor, track and understand Burlington’s demographic growth trends and profile.
If you give them enough rope – they eventually hang themselves – what’s with all the “within” dates? Do your best and try not to set yourselves up for failure by attaching a specific date to something you may have little control over.
Progress Indicators:
Walkability score applied to intensification and population growth
Population by demographics
Median age
Immigration numbers and percentages
Household size
Median housing price
Mix of available housing types.
More data is always nice – the capacity to make decisions is what taxpayers both look for and expect.
The remaining three Strategic Directions will be detailed in a follow up article.
There are three more public information sessions on the draft Strategic Plan; January 13 and January 18th.
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