 By Pepper Parr
November 10, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
Tom Muir wasn’t at all sure it could be done that way – but when he saw the agenda for the Development And Infrastructure Committee he was at first aghast and then just a little stunned.
The Development and Infrastructure Committee received an excellent report on the tax rebate available to people who wanted to upgrade their homes that had been designated as historically significant.
It was a good report – there was relatively little debate – the usual congratulatory remarks were made and the report was received.
It was a short meeting – it adjourned after just over an hour and recessed until the evening session.
 A Mayor can call a meeting of Council whenever he chooses. Before anyone could leave the Council Chamber the Mayor called a Special meeting of city Council that had been announced to pass a bylaw that would make the recommendation on the tax rebate for designated homes legal.
It took less than five minutes – and Tom Muir still wants to know why something like that wasn’t done with the development application that was being made by the ADI Development Group for a structure they want to put up at Martha and Lakeshore Road. The Staff recommendation was to not approve the development and that recommendation was accepted at a Standing Committee meeting. The next step that that time was for city Council to receive that recommendation from the Standing Committee and vote on it. They never did that – because the time line within which that was to be dine had run out.
Muir has been pressing the ward two Councillor and the Mayor for an answer as to why the deadline was missed.
“I was looking at the agendas for this week and saw something interesting that is related to the ADI Martha file and timeline”, wrote Muir in an email he sent the Gazette.
“The D&I will pass the Heritage properties requests tomorrow, and then right after that the Special Council meeting will vote on it again and pass it. It’s the only agenda item.
“So this can be done slam dunk, but the staff recommendation to refuse ADI Martha can’t make it through in 22 days, and can’t do what is being done tomorrow.”
The Gazette has explained in the past that the Mayor can call a meeting of Council whenever he wishes. He is required to give the members of his Council some notice – but that notice can be waived. The Gazette was advised by the city clerk Angela Morgan that a quorum has to be in the room and that a Clerk has to be present.
 Tom Muir just wants to know why City Council did not vote on the ADI Development project. Muir is shaking his head – he doesn’t understand. He has apparently taken the Mayor off his Christmas card list for the way he was treated. Muir took the Mayor at his word and was prepared to be patient while the Mayor put together the promised “meaningful response” to the questions Muir had. What Muir got was a copy of an email the Mayor sent Ward 2 Councillor Meed Ward – thanking her for answering all Muir’s questions.
Muir takes issue with the way this had been handled and doesn’t feel Meed Ward answered any of his questions but danced around the issue.
For reasons that aren’t at all clear – this city council has changed its tone and is far less civil with some of its constituents.
 Will this be built? City council didn’t say it shouldn’t – the Council – not one of its Standing committees – didn’t vote on this issue. What the Gazette doesn’t understand is – why didn’t Council formally vote against the ADI project. They had plenty of time?
In the early stages of the Muir questioning he was told it didn’t really matter – then the position changed and Muir was told that Council did vote against the application – they did no such thing – they voted to receive a report from staff that recommend Council not approve the application.
Council did what they are supposed to do earlier yesterday, when a report was on the agenda and presented – this particular report didn’t get much in the way of debate or discussion. There was a delegation that asked Council to pass the bylaw that would increase the tax rebate to 25%.
Council did exactly that – within 15 minutes the Mayor called the Special Council meeting to order, read out the by law, the vote was called, they all put their hands up and it was passed.
Done a slam dunk! Easy, simple – Council has done exactly the same thing in the past.
The public doesn’t know why the same thing was not done with the ADI development application.
The Council member for ward two would appear to be obfuscating. The Mayor was just plain rude to a constituent. The rest of the members of this council are just as complicit – they are all sitting on their hands hoping this will go away.
There is a small group of people who want to know – why. They have patience and are aware that come January 1, there will be recourse for them.
 By Vince Fiorito
November 9, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
Alien invaders surround us. They can be found along roadsides. They are common in lakes and rivers. Eventually they will completely over run all natural areas and green spaces.
The alien invaders aren’t people. They are plants, insects, fish, birds, animals and all the non-native species which never existed in a place until they were deliberately or accidentally introduced by people. While some of these alien species are benign, far too many have become invasive and destructive.
Invasive species are a global menace with significant, far-reaching environmental and socio-economic consequences including loss of agricultural productivity and damage to renewable natural resource industries (forestry). Invasive species have caused entire ecosystems to become dysfunctional.
 Emerald Ash Bore – This little creature is costing us a fortune – and we are not at all certain we are going to win the battle to stop the infestation.  The Zebra Mussel completely changes a fresh water ecosystem. Hundreds of alien species are currently present in Ontario. Some of the more well know alien invaders include the Zebra Mussel (completely changes a fresh water ecosystem), Emerald Ash Borer (kills native Ash trees) Dutch Elm Disease (nearly wiped out the American Elm) Sea Lampreys (decimated the Great Lakes Trout fishery) and Starlings (crowd out native bird species and cause millions of dollars in agriculture losses each year).
 Lovely to look at – as invasive as all get out – Purple loosestrife Scientists are fighting back against invasive species, with some successes. Purple Loosestrife (destroyed wetlands) is now controlled by an introduced beetle at the cost of millions of dollars in research. Their decision to release the loosestrife eating beetle was gutsy, considering that a similar effort in Australia to eradicate the invasive Cane Beetle by introducing the Cane Toad was an ecological disaster. While the Cane Toad did eat the Cane beetle, it also ate everything else it could swallow.
Since the Cane Toad had no natural predators in Australia it soon became one of Australia’s most dominant species. The Cane Toad has caused many of Australia’s native insects to become so rare, they no longer contribute in a significant way to the local ecology, with ripple effects on many of Australia’s native plants and animals which have since become rare and threatened with extinction.
The least expensive solutions to the invasive species problems are to prevent problems in the first place and reacting quickly, aggressively and decisively to the first sign of a new invasive species problem.
On November 3rd, 2015, Ontario became the first jurisdiction in Canada to enact a tough law which will reduce the invasive species threat. As per the new Ontario Invasive Species Act, no person shall,
bring a member of a prohibited invasive species into Ontario or cause it to be brought into Ontario;
deposit or release a member of a prohibited invasive species or cause it to be deposited or released;
possess or transport a member of a prohibited invasive species;
propagate a member of a prohibited invasive species;
buy, sell, lease or trade or offer to buy, sell, lease or trade a member of a prohibited invasive species.
bring a member of a restricted invasive species into a provincial park or conservation reserve or cause it to be brought into a provincial park or conservationreserve;
or
deposit or release a member of a restricted invasive species in Ontario or cause it to be deposited or released in Ontario.
First time offenses can result in a $250,000 fine and/or a year of imprisonment. A second offense could cost $500,000. If that sounds excessive, consider that first time corporate offenders could face a $1,000,000 fine with subsequent offenses resulting in fines as great as $2,000,000.
Even though this law’s punitive sanctions don’t fully offset the damages which can result from invasions species, they should sufficient to deter deliberately destructive behavior.
 Snow-On-The-Mountain (aka Goutweed) is a robust ground cover that will eventually become Ontario’s most dominant forest plant. Ontario’s new Invasive Species law will affect many local nurseries and gardeners. Several common ornamental plants which have been sold in local nurseries for decades are known invasive species problems. Snow-On-The-Mountain (aka Goutweed) is a robust ground cover that will eventually become Ontario’s most dominant forest plant. Goutweed will displace most of Ontario’s native forest species, including Trilliums which are our provincial flower. Goutweed is a likely early candidate for the invasive species list.
Another problematic invasive ornamental plant is Mountain Fleece (aka Japanese Knotweed). The roots of this tenacious alien species can destroy driveways and cause structural to buidings. Once established, Japanese Knotweed is nearly impossible to permanently eradicate. Eventually this plant will replace most native plant species growing along Ontario’s shorelines.
Both Goutweed and Japanese Knotweed have escaped cultivation locally. They are commonly found throughout Burlington’s green spaces along with invasive Himalayan Balsam, Garlic Mustard, Phragmites and Buckthorn.
These invasive species are not just serious ecological problems here in Ontario; they are also serious global ecological problems which affect natural areas near London England, Sapporo Japan, Christchurch New Zealand, Pretoria South Africa and every other ecosystem on the earth which shares similar climate and conditions as Burlington. Deliberately cultivating this species in the UK is illegal and can result in substantial fines.
 Japanese knotweed – seen all over the place in Burlington. Fiorito believes that once established, Japanese Knotweed is nearly impossible to permanently eradicate. The mere presence of Japanese Knotweed in a neighborhood lowers everyone’s property values. British Real Estate law now requires home sellers declare the presence of Japanese Knotweed on their property. If this plant is subsequently discovered on that property, then the buyer can sue the seller for eradication costs.
In Burlington, Japanese Knotweed is available at many local nurseries. Many local gardeners have unwittingly created problems that will be expensive to fix, when Japanese Knotweed is inevitably put on the invasive species list.
The easiest way that gardeners can avoid creating invasive species problem around their homes is to choose plant species which are native to the local ecosystem. Each spring the Royal Botanical Gardens holds an annual native plant sale. Most nurseries now have a native plant section. Several local nurseries and landscape designers have become native plant specialists. This new invasive species law will help forward looking local businesses grow and prosper.
We can no longer ignore the destructive consequences of invasive alien species anymore. Failure to consider the ecological consequences of introducing an invasive alien species will become expensive in the not so distant future. This new law will help change attitudes leading Ontarians to becoming better stewards of the natural systems which rejuvenate our soils and clean our air and water. Ontario’s new invasive species law represents real change and will help protect Ontario from the growing international invasive species threat.
 Vince Fiorito is the steward of Sheldon Creek; a designation given him by Conservation Halton. He was recently a candidate for the Green Party and is an extremely knowledgeable person when it comes to what we are doing to our environment. Don’t get him going.
 By Staff
November 9, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
Things get done by a city government when orders are sent out.
City Council is being asked to:
Authorize the Executive Director of Capital Works to support the implementation of the Burlington Beach Regional Waterfront Park Master Plan under the leadership of the Region of Halton.
The report put before the Standing Committee this week is to:
confirm staff commitment to assist the Region of Halton with the implementation of the Burlington Beach Regional Waterfront Park Master Plan (Master Plan) in accordance with directions approved by Regional Council
provide information related to the Region of Halton’s application for Canada 150 funding
provide a summary of findings to date for options to relocate/ bury the hydro lines
The fight to maintain the community of some 30 homes in the Beachway park wasn’t won but it wasn’t lost either – things are sort of at a standoff with the Regional government saying they will wait until a property owner is ready to sell and they will then negotiate a price and the deal will be closed. It’s a sort of grind them down over time – and so far it’s working.
 Region has applied for federal funding to get started on the Beachway Park aIn the meantime plans for a park that the public first got a glimpse of last June are well underway,
The Master Plan project is being led by the Region of Halton, in partnership with the City of Burlington and Conservation Halton. The three agencies worked closely together to develop the Master Plan that was approved at Regional Council on May 27, 2015.
 There was a willing seller for this house – and the one next door to it as well – they are being bought up one by one. The long-term implementation of the Master Plan is based on acquisition of all properties on a willing-seller/ willing -buyer basis, as approved at Regional Council on May 27, 2015. The Master Plan provides a guide for the implementation of improvements to this exceptional waterfront resource. This requires continued commitment by city staff to work with the Region of Halton to:
prepare detailed design and phasing plans
obtain approvals
administer contracts for construction
The federal government created the Canada 150 Fund as part of the celebration of the country’s 150th birthday in 2017. Canadian municipal governments and their institutions have been invited to apply for funding of various projects.
The Region of Halton applied for federal funding through the Canada 150 Infrastructure Fund for implementation of the approved Master Plan. Applications for the following stages of development of the Burlington Beach Regional Waterfront Park were submitted:
rehabilitation and expansion of the “Living Shoreline” in Beachway Park
renovation of the Waterfront Trail (promenade) in Spencer Smith Park
rehabilitation of the “Strand” in Beachway Park
Subject to funding, the tentative schedule is to issue a Request for Proposal for consulting services to prepare the detailed design this year; and to complete the construction in 2017/ 2018 to meet the deadline stipulated by the funding.
 Illustration on where the hydro line could go if it were to the west of the QEW These works will be coordinated with other related works required at Spencer Smith Park including improvements to drainage at the promenade and repairs to the parapet wall. The city will contribute to funding of infrastructure renewal items and to support staff fees, subject to approval of the 2016 Capital Budget and 2017 – 2025 Forecast.
 Illustration of where the hydro wires could go if they were to the east of the QEW Hydro Lines Relocation
Back in June 2013 Hydro One undertook a preliminary investigation to review options and determine high level costs for the relocation and/ or burial of the hydro lines located in Beachway Park. Three options were out forward
Option 1- Relocate structures/ lines westward to the east side of the QEW
build new structures #18 to 26 including 5 new lattice towers and 4 new steel pole structures
remove existing structures #18 to 26
estimated high level cost $8 – 9 million
Option 2- Relocate structures/ lines westward to the west side of the QEW
build new structures #18 to 26 including 6 new lattice towers and 4 new steel pole structures
requires two QEW crossings
remove existing structures #18 to 26
estimated high level cost $9 – 10 million
Option 3- Relocate structures/ lines underground to the west side of the beach, east of Lakeshore Road
keep towers #17 and #27 and bury the sections in between
remove existing structures #18 – 26
estimated high level cost $32 – 36 million
 Illustration of where the hydro wires would go if they were buried – best solution and of course the priciest one. The Region of Halton has determined that approximately $12 million is required to relocate the hydro lines. Staff from the region and the city have met to review the high level options. The Region of Halton will lead further study required to determine a preferred option for more detailed assessment.
Financial Matters:
The region has applied for funding toward implementation of the Master Plan through the Canada 150 Infrastructure Fund, with matching funding to be provided by the region.
Further funding to continue implementation of the Master Plan is currently under consideration by the region and subject to approval of the region’s budget, anticipated to be approved in December 2015.
The city has budgeted funds for infrastructure renewal improvements to Spencer Smith Park which will be included with the project and yearly funding for staff fees to support continued commitment to this project, subject to approval of the 2016 Capital Budget and 2017 – 2025 Forecast.
Current budget impacts, related to ongoing requirements to maintain/ operate the park as the park improvements are implemented will be brought forward as part of the current budget process.
The next step is to learn just what the city might get from the federal Canada 150 funding opportunity.
Our former MP Mike Wallace will have had a firm understanding as to just what was possible – Karina Gould, the newly elected MP will have to be reading late into the night to learn how the program works and develop the relationships that will be needed to get whatever is possible for Burlington.
By Pepper Parr
November 9, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
As a city that hosts three of the top 100 Festival and Events in Ontario city hall wants to improve the way these events are managed.
The Sound of Music and RibFest come close to taking over the city and Canada Day gives everyone to celebrate who we are as a country. The city has been recognized for the excellence of these three events
Festival and events of all sizes take place which leads to connectedness and civic pride. The City directly delivers a small number of events with the majority of events being delivered by the community for the community.
 Ribfest Burlington – said to be the biggest in the province. The City supports festival and event’s organizers because they activate the community, achieving two of the three strategic goals; Vibrant Neighbourhoods and Prosperity. In addition, Festival and Events have been identified as a cultural resource in the City’s Cultural Action Plan 2013 and key to the activations of the Downtown Core Commitments.
The current event process is complex as it touches various departments within the corporation and the Region of Halton. To address these complexities, a staff team was formed, represented by various departments in the organization. In the fall of 2014, the team conducted a Business Process Management Review (BPM) of the Eventing Management Process.
The purpose of the process review was to:
1. Determine and implement process efficiencies
2. Reduce duplication of work
3. Streamline sub processes as necessary in each service area and across the organization
4. Increase role clarity for the staff and event organizer, including internal corporate events like facility openings
5. Increase event organizers satisfaction
The top action item identified through the BPM process was to develop a corporate strategy for event management inclusive of the service perspective of sport, recreation & culture.
The strategy will:
• Provide linkages to existing Service Business Plans
• Set a vision for events in Burlington by determining why we allow events to be hosted in the City and what is the City trying to achieve through event hosting, strategically seeking certain types of events
• Guide the development of a new events process; providing criteria and a process for considering new events and/or eliminating duplicate or less desired events
• Outline the approval requirements and risk assessment process
• Define different event types
• Outline the guiding principles for funding support from the City
A Staff Direction issued earlier in the year directed the
Director of Parks and Recreation to work with the Sound of Music event organizers to develop a policy that addresses city funding allocations and alignment within the strategic plan, in order to inform future budget considerations.
 When the Sound of Music is good – it is very very good. The Sound of Music has wanted the city to increase its grant and align it with the grants it gets from the federal government and the province. There was a point at which Sound of Music did not want to open their accounting records but still wanted an increase in their grant – that got worked out.
The implementation of the Results Based Accountability (RBA) Business Process Management (BPM)and Service Based Budgeting (SBB) that are now standard procedures for the administration has resulted in better managed programs. With specific staff members now responsible for the effective delivery of programs the move to taking a more strategic look at what will be done in the future was a logical next step.
What does the city want to do with the festivals it funds? Are these the right events for the city or have they passed their best before date? Everyone wants to use Spencer Smith Park – is the space being used in such a way that the city and its citizens benefit or are their organizations that use the space with little real benefit to the city and the brand it is in the process of creating?
The development of an event strategy will help guide the community and staff on what the corporation is trying to achieve through events. This visioning exercise is becoming progressively more important as there is increased interest in hosting events in the Downtown Core and in particular at Spencer Smith Park.
Spencer Smith Park has reached its capacity for hosting events. Currently there is a historical approach on what events are hosted in the park. Just because an event has taken place for a number of years does that mean it should continue?
 At some point, perhaps in the distant future, there will be a different park to the west of Spencer Smith – it might even have some private homes in it – this might be a good time to talk about the kind of events hat should take place in what will be called the Beachway Park In addition some business and residents have suggested expressed that the downtown roads have also reached their capacity for event hosting and that there is a need for balance.
There is a desire to expand eventing outside of the downtown core. Currently there is limited infrastructure to support this interest. If expanding eventing is the key outcome of the strategy, it is anticipated there will need to be an investment from the City to make this feasible.
The city has had some difficulty getting events that are focused on Spencer Smith to work their way up Brant Street and into some of the streets to the east that have something of a commercial base.
To initiate the input /engagement phase for the development of an overall Events Strategy, it was decided to use a Committee of the Whole format to allow for dialogue in more of a workshop format on the vision for eventing in Burlington. Pamela Hubbard has been retained to guide committee through a focused conversation on events.
Following Committee’s input facilitated sessions will be conducted with:
• Festival and Events Organizers
• Businesses
• Residents
• Staff
Representation from downtown and city wide will be sought.
Using the information gathered from facilitated sessions, and baseline data gathered through the BPM process, a team comprised of staff from various departments in the corporation will review the feedback and build a vision for events in Burlington.
 Culture is getting more play in the city; it is getting m,ore attention in the draft of the Strategic Plan. How can the Culture Days events get tied into the Festivals and Events more tightly – and can the Performing Arts Centre and the Art Gallery be brought in as well? The team will also outline an action plan to achieve that vision. This draft strategy will be presented to Committee in 2016 for support and endorsement helping to guide the community on eventing in the future.
Included on the staff team is the Downtown Coordinator and the service owner for Culture to ensure that there is interconnection between Core Commitments and the Cultural Action Plan.
Festival and Events bring energy, smiles and enjoyment for residents and visitors and are a large part of the way the city is seen by the rest of the world. Are we satisfied with the image we are projecting?
The development of an event strategy will help guide the community and staff on what the corporation is trying to achieve through events. This visioning exercise is a very good opportunity for the public to make a comment.
A little more notice would have been useful – and holding the discussion in the evening would have let ordinary people take part in the meeting.
A good hard look at what we do with the magnificent waterfront property we have is just good corporate governance – open it up and let some of the ideas the citizens have make it to the table.
The route we are talking allows the vested interests to lead the parade. Not in the long term best interests of the city.
You may not have time to get to the meeting – Councilor Jack Dennison is the chair – he is pretty good at listening to people and is always open to new ideas – send him a note if you have comments.
 By Staff
November 6, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
Between October 19 and October 26, 2015, the Halton Regional Police Drug, Gun and Gang Unit ran a week long amnesty for residents to get rid of unwanted weapons. Officers responded to pick up requests from citizens around the region, looking to surrender and dispose of firearms, weapons and ammunition.
 Police display the weapons turned in by the public during a weapons amnesty. A list of items turned into police is as follows:
55 rifles
14 shotguns
27 pellet handguns
22 pellet rifles
17 handguns
2 starter pistols
1 one-handed crossbow
10 knives
250 pounds of ammunition.
It is evident our communities in Halton are that much safer due to the partnership between the community and police. 135 total weapons capable of firing some form of projectile are no longer available for opportunistic thieves.
A Remembrance Day Ceremony will be taking place in downtown Burlington on Wednesday Nov. 11, 2015.
Buses will be detoured from approximately 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. as follows:
Routes 3 South and 5 East to Burlington GO
• Leaving the Downtown Terminal
• Right on James Street
• Left on Drury Lane
• Left on Prospect Street
• Right on Brant Street
• Resume regular routing
Route 300 to LaSalle
• Regular routing to Downtown Terminal
• Right at James Street
• Right at Elizabeth Street
• Right at Lakeshore Road
• Right at Burlington Street
• Left at Ontario Street
• Resume regular routing
Routes 3 North and 5 West to Downtown Terminal
• Leaving Burlington GO Station
• Regular routing until Brant and Prospect Streets
• Left on Prospect Street
• Right on Drury Lane
• Right on New Street
• Left on John Street to Downtown Terminal
Route 300 to Seniors’ Centre
• Regular routing to Ontario Street
• Right at Burlington Avenue
• Left at Lakeshore Road
• Left at Elizabeth Street
• Left at James Street
• Left at John Street
By Pepper Parr
November 6th, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
Tom Muir is not happy.
He asked what he thought was a pretty simple question about a development in ward 2 – the downtown part of the city. It seemed logical to Muir to ask Marianne Meed Ward the questions she had; the project was in her ward and she had a reputation for getting back to her constituents.
Tom Muir just wanted to know why the city failed to vote on a development application and found itself defending the failure to do so at an OMB hearing. While Muir didn’t live in the ward the Council member had a reputation for helping everyone – no matter where they lived.
For reasons that aren’t clear, Meed Ward didn’t get back to Muir – she apologized later for the oversight.
When Muir didn’t get a reply he sent a second email and this time copied the city manager and the Mayor.
Meed Ward then responded and proceeded to give Muir reams of information – none of which Muir later said actually answered his questions.
There was a lot of back and forth of long answers from Meed Ward and even longer follow up questions from Muir – these two clearly deserved each other.
Things got to the point where other people jumped into the discussion and Meed Ward decided a conversation was the best thing to do. She invited Muir to call and ask for a meeting.
Muir wanted to know who else would be at the meeting: the Mayor and city manager perhaps?
 Ward 2 Councillor Marianne Meed Ward gets tripped up by a resident who writes longer messages than she does. Meed Ward didn’t see it that way – she was prepared to meet with Muir and address his questions. Muir came back with: “Addressing questions is not answering them. So what exactly do you mean?”
While all the back and forth was going on the Mayor finally got back to Muir and apologized for the delay asking him to be patient and that he would in the fullness of time give Muir a “meaningful response” – words I am sure the Mayor now regrets.
Tom Muir wanted to know why the city failed to hold a vote on the application to build a very high building on a very small lot. Muir thought about a meeting with Meed Ward – decided it couldn’t hurt – but what he really wanted was an explanation from someone as to why the city failed to vote on the ADI Development application for what is now believed to be a 26 storey (not 28 anymore) structure at the intersection of Martha Street and Lakeshore Road.
Then out of the blue Muir gets a response from the Mayor – sort of. What he got was a copy of an email from the Mayor to Meed Ward thanking her for answering all Muir’s questions.
Muir then gets back to the Mayor with “Your message – “Thanks Marianne for addressing all of Tom’s questions” – is ambiguous.
Muir adds: “And the meeting invitation that you replied to with this message has not yet taken place. So nothing at all, including questions, could have been “addressed” yet, never mind answered, or provide anything to be thanked for.”
Muir continues: “Marianne has not answered any of my questions, and there is no evidence of answers for you to thank her for. So your use of ambiguity obscures and evades, and is to me a case of political double-talk.”
Muir points out that on October 8 the Mayor wrote me the following;
HI Tom, – You will receive a meaningful answer.
I was away recently for 10 days and am obviously behind in responding to some emails as well.
Please be patient. – Thanks – Rick
 Mayor doesn’t appear to be evading questions here. Muir then be begins to lace into the Mayor:
“You have been a recipient of all the correspondence on this matter, so you are familiar with all the questions I have asked.
“You promised to provide a “meaningful answer”.
“You have not lived up to your word.
“You have provided nothing yet, except what appears to me to be a double meaning spin.
“You appear to be evading the questions.
“You asked me to be patient, and I think that waiting a month and more is patient.
“Please provide me your meaningful answer.
“Thank you.” – Tom Muir
You can see where this is going.
Tom Muir delegates at council meetings frequently. He is a dog when he gets a bone in his mouth – something the Mayor should have known.
Informed citizens are not to be trifled with – tread carefully and provide considerate answers – never blow them off.
Political pundits often describe politicians who don’t quite get it when they are ‘doing politics’ – as people who have a “tin ear”.
They might well be describing the Mayor of Burlington.
By Staff
November 6, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
The Burlington Offender Management Unit of the Halton Regional Police Service is searching for Scott Michael MACDONALD 36 years old of, St Catherines ON.
 In September 2015 the accused stole a quantity of electronics from a store in Burlington and made good his escape.
During the investigation it came to light that the accused was on a separate release for similar offences in York Region as well as probation for a similar offence in Halton Region
Officers made numerous attempts to locate the accused with negative results and a warrant was issued for his arrest
To date the accused has managed to amass 25 convictions for various offences including; Thefts, Frauds, Break and Enters, Over 80 mgs and Fail to Attend Court
He is wanted by Halton Regional Police for:
Theft under $5000
Fail to Comply Undertaking x 2
Fail to Comply Probation
MACDONALD is described as 5’9”, 150 lbs with dirty blonde hair and blue eyes. He has numerous tattoos – Right forearm – “SATYANEARY”, Left arm – full sleeve, Left forearm – “MIKAYLA” in Cambodian. MACDONALD is known to frequent the areas of Burlington, Brantford, York, Niagara and the surrounding areas.
The Regional police began a Fugitive Friday program intended to seek the support of the community to apprehend people who continue to evade the police and the court system and continue to live out in our communities while having a warrant for their arrest in place.
Every Friday, the Burlington Offender Management Unit will share information on a wanted person in hopes that the public can assist in locating the individual. The information will be on the Police Service web site and made public via social media through Twitter @HRPSBurl and @HaltonPolice.
The HRPS shares “Fugitive Friday” information on our website and via social media through Twitter @HRPSBurl and @HaltonPolice.
Anyone who may have witnessed this person or has information that would assist investigators in locating him are encouraged to contact D/Cst. Bulbrook – Burlington Criminal Investigations Bureau – Offender Management Team at 905-825-4747 Ext. 2346 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS), or through the web at www.haltoncrimestoppers.com, or by texting “Tip201” with your message to 274637 (crimes).
 By Staff
November 6, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
Additional background information has been added to this piece after it was first published.
Cogeco Cable Community TV does a regular program live from their studio on Syscon Road where Mark Carr hosts The Issue and brings in guests to talk about specific issues.
 Pepper Parr, publisher of the Burlington Gazette The Issue invited the publisher of the Gazette, Pepper Parr to take part in a panel discussion about the problems the city of Burlington is having getting a Code of Conduct for its Council members in place.
 Che Marville, NDP candidate in Oakville during the last federal election. Che Marville, the New Democratic candidate for Oakville during the last election and CEO of Marville Media plus the founder of multiple social enterprises including the Children’s Media Museum. Rachel Halliwell, a Cogeco volunteer last year and now a student studying sports broadcasting completed the panel.
Mark Carr, moderator, was once a city of Burlington council member – at a time when a motion from then Council member Mike Wallace to reduce the size of Council from the then 17 members to the current seven.
Then Mayor Walter Mulkewich preferred a nine member Council and put forward a motion to that effect – it was defeated and the motion for a seven member council passed by a vote of 9 for and 8 against. Which is why we currently have a seven member city council.
Mulkewich points out in his response to the first version of this story that the Region of Halton had at the time reduced its size by four Councillors from 25 to 21 by taking away two from Burlington and two from Halton Hills which meant Burlington had to reduce its Regional Councillors by two and this became the trigger for the Council size issue in Burlington.
There is a longer story to this, to the saga of the debate at both the Region and City, and the reasons I voted as I did at that time. Now that Milton has dramatically grown as has Oakville, and therefore the Regional representation issue needs to be revisited – how will the Region deal with representation in this term or will it – and will there be ramifications for Burlington?
Is Burlington’s seven member Council more effective? Debatable and Carr made his views known.
Carr, who is well versed on public issues, gets into the debate and discussion as much as he can – few softball questions from him.
Che Marville can also get quite scrappy
One of the best comments was made by 18 year-old Halliwell who suggested city council take part in events that called for them to work as a team “seems to me” she said “that they need some team building opportunities.”
Halliwell voted in her first election this year
 The Issue moderator Mark Carr – Live on Cogeco Cable television The program was broadcast live Tuesday, and will be re-broadcast on the following dates on Channel 23 and HD 700
Fri, Nov 6, 2015 @ 2:00pm
Sat, Nov 7, 2015 @ 10:00am
Sun, Nov 8, 2015 @ 1:00pm
Sun, Nov 8, 2015 @ 9:30pm
Tue, Nov 10, 2015 @ 2:00pm
It got lively.
By Pepper Parr
November 6, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
The radio forecast 21 degrees – did we reach that level?
Wonderful weather – the hospitality people are just loving it – especially those with patios.
 Mark Cole, part of the Joe Dogs management team takes advantage of the great weather to have lunch on the patio. Its been a great couple of months for Joe Dogs. Mark Cole of Joe Dogs – the people who sell us beer when our work day is done, report that they had a “fabulous baseball season and are really liking the way the weather has held.”
“It doesn’t get better than this” Mark added as he sat in the sun working his cell phone and tapping numbers into a spreadsheet on his tablet.
What has the phenomenal sports season done for the hospitality people? Exceptional – so much so that when Liberal Pam Damoff won the Oakville North Burlington seat they planned on a victory party and booked space at the Tin Cup on Upper Middle Road. There was a baseball game on that night – all they got was a little space in a corner – most people are reported to have watched the ball game.
Many of the hospitality destinations are partnering with the Art Gallery of Burlington for their annual Soup Bowl fund raising event.
 Each Soup Bowl luncheon attendee gets to choose the bowl they want to slurp from and then get to take the bowl home with them. This event has sold out in the past. The Gazette has asked those making the soup if they would share their recipes – several have stepped forward. The event runs from the 19th to the 22nd of November. Tickets here.
Watch for the recipes.
By Pepper Parr
November 5, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
I was supposed to get together with a friend but he cancelled –“Can’t make it – when we learned that Platters were going to be in town we couldn’t order our tickets fast enough.
“They were part of what I was raised on: he added – “you don’t get chances like this to take a trip down memory lane. I can see me and the misses getting out for a drink after the show and reminiscing. You should join us?”
The show, which is in town for the one day – Friday – tomorrow – and there are still some decent seats available. I notice the box seats don’t seem to be sold – wonder why? Will look into that.
 Meanwhile – the show. The audience will hear both the Platter and the Ink Spots – both were category breaking for their time.
For those of you who lived your lives then – you know what I’m talking about. If you’ve never heard of them – Google the guys and listen to a few tunes on You Tube – you are in for a treat.
The Platters was an American vocal group; one of the most successful groups of the early rock and roll era. Their distinctive sound was a bridge between the pre-rock Tin Pan Alley tradition and the burgeoning new genre. The group had 40 charting singles on the Billboard Hot 100 chart between 1955 and 1967, including four no. 1 hits.
The Platters were one of the first African American groups to be accepted as a major chart group and were, for a period of time, the most successful vocal group in the world.
They were part of that ground breaking, ground shaking era when the segregationist views were being taken apart.
 The Ink Spots gained international fame in the 1930s and 1940s. They preceeded the Platters and had a unique musical style that was more rhythm and blues and the subgenre doo-wop. The Ink Spots were widely accepted in both the white and black communities, largely due to the ballad style introduced to the group by lead singer Bill Kenny.
The Ink Spots disbanded in 1954; since then there have been well over 100 vocal groups calling themselves “The Ink Spots” without any right to the name; they have claimed to be “2nd generation” or “3rd generation” Ink Spots.
If there is a good thing going – someone was bound to take up the brand.
In the visuals of the Ink Spot – especially in the album covers the men are portrayed as railway porters because that was the way American then saw what they then called Negros – time have changed and today they are called African Americans in a country led by a black president.
Neither the Platters nor the Ink Spots ever thought such a thing could ever happen.
Seat selection is at: Click here
By Staff
November 5th, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
The Halton Regional Police have completed their week long firearms and weapons amnesty.
Between October 19 and October 26, 2015, Halton officers responded to pick up requests from citizens around the region, looking to surrender and dispose of firearms and weapons.
Approximately 130 firearms were turned in, approximately 10 knives and 250 pounds of ammunition.
 By Staff
November 4, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
Not quite the number that was hoped for (305,000 LBS) but a fabulous number nevertheless.
 Some of the 295,000 lbs plus food collected in a two day period – ready for the trucks and the fork lifts And there are bits and pieces that will arrive on Thursday that will take that total of 295,671.77 lbs up a notch or two.
The efforts of the various teams went like this:
In 1st Place: Minor Atom AA with 22,132.7 lbs!
2nd Place Team: Minor Atom A with 18,889.04 lbs!
3rd Place Team: Tyke 1 (AAA) with 17,127.88 lbs!
4th Place Team: Tyke 2 (AA) with 16,998.5 lbs!
5th Place Team: Novice A with 14,503 lbs!
295,671.77 lbs. of food to be distributed to organizations across the community.
Final numbers announced tomorrow.
 Citizens in the making – learning how to give back to the community. One final step in what is truly a magnificent effort – and that is to instill in the minds of the thousands of young people who were on the floor of the gymnasium lugging bags and boxes of food from the weighing scale to the sorting tables and then to the bins that will be used to transport the food to warehouses from which it will be distributed – that this is what community is all about.
We are so very fortunate to live in a city that is safe, healthy, prosperous and when called upon exceptionally generous.
This is not something to be taken lightly. Those young people are tomorrow’s leaders – help them understand how big an event they were part of and why it is important for them to carry that tradition forward.
By Staff
November 4, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
Kim Kelly, a Special Constable with the Halton Police Service, will be meeting the Governor General of Canada later this month and receiving the Caring Canadian Award (one of Canada’s highest honours for volunteers) for her Kim’s Ride To Cross Out Cancer fundraising.
Created in 1995, the Governor General’s Caring Canadian Award recognizes individuals who volunteer their time to help others and to build a smarter and more caring nation. The award also highlights the fine example set by these volunteers, whose compassion and engagement are so much a part of our Canadian character. It allows us to thank them for their contributions and for the positive impact they have had on the lives of others.
 Twenty three days at between 80 to 100 km per day got Kim Kelly to Charlottetown PEI on her bike. In July 2013, as a result of a friend’s battle with cancer, Kim planned to do something to help raise awareness and funds to fight it.
In her own words “ When a lifelong friend of mine told me she had stage 4 cancer, I knew I wanted to do more than just offer her support, cook a few meals and drive her to doctors’ appointments. I decided to ride my bike across the Eastern provinces to create awareness and obtain donations for the Canadian Cancer Society”. Her plan turned into action and became “Kim’s Ride to Cross Out Cancer”.
She spent the next year organizing a variety of fundraising efforts, public speaking engagements and rigorous training for what would be a very grueling cycle ride from Burlington, Ontario to Charlottetown, PEI.
Her journey started on June 1, 2014 and she rode 80-100KM everyday arriving in Charlottetown on June 23, 2014.
 There was never any doubt what she was setting out to do – and she did very well – raised more than $41,000 Kim personally raised over $41,000.00 for the Canadian Cancer Society and has become a remarkable ambassador for the society as well as the Halton Regional Police.
We are proud and commend Kim not just for the sheer magnitude of her efforts, but for the strong impact she and her team had in the Region of Halton, within the police service, and in the towns and villages along her route.
Kim will be receiving this prestigious award on Tuesday November 10, 2015 in the Music Room of the Lieutenant Governor’s Suite, Queen’s Park, Toronto. His Excellency the Right Honourable, David Johnston, Governor General of Canada will be attending from Ottawa to present the award.
Kim Kelley is now one of more than 1,000 volunteers that have been awarded this National Honour,
By Pepper Parr
November 4, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
Second of a multi part series on how the city thinks intensification could be managed.
Last month the Gazette did an article on what intensification could or might look like at a number of locations around the city.
We passed along what planners thought could be done under the current zoning and what could be done with enhanced zoning
We showed what the plaza at New Street and Guelph Line could look like and the number of people + jobs that would be attracted to the area.
 In an earlier article we published several drawings of the kind of development that planners thought could be done along Fairview at Cumberland. We showed what could be done with parts of Fairview – a part of the city that is certainly car friendly but not a place for people or bicycles for that matter.
We showed what would be possible in the way of changes along the widened Waterdown Road, which the Gazette sees as the hot spot in the city when it comes to growth – the challenge out there will be convincing the citizens that the growth is in their best interests. Aldershot is a part of the city where many of the streets do not have sidewalks – and they like it that way.
The purpose of what the planners called a vizualisation exercise was to give city council an idea of what things would – could look like as the city works its way towards a bigger more populous city.
This city council, with the possible exception of ward 5 Councillor Jack Dennison, would prefer not to see any growth. That there will be growth is because the province is telling us we have to grow – and they are telling the Region how much growth there will be – and the Region will decide how much of that growth lands on our streets.
Council has to find a way to make the growth happen and to keep the taxpayers happy by ensuring them that their part of the city isn’t going to have to absorb that growth.
Existing Official Plan and Zoning By- Law permissions can accommodate 200 people and jobs per hectare within the Urban Growth Centre (UGC) by 2031
This amounts to 22,800 people and jobs within the UGC by 2031
There are no wide swaths of land that the developers can put residential housing on – well there are a couple. The growth in residential is going to have to be up – which means higher density.
We are seeing that with the Molinaro project beside the Burlington GO station and with the Nautique structure that ADI development wants to put up at the intersection of Martha Street and Lakeshore Road.
The visualizations are intended to provide a high level understanding of:
What intensification could look like
The level of development that can be generated through intensification
How well the City’s current planning framework supports intensification
Another development hot spot is the downtown core – specifically along Lakeshore where shovels will go in the ground for the Bridgewater development that will see a 22 storey condominium, a seven story condominium and an eight story hotel operational by sometime in 2018. Ward 2 Councillor Marianne Meed Ward wanted to see more interest in developing the downtown core and getting high quality office space built which would attract new corporate clients.
The final two locations that were given a vizualization treatment were Appleby Line north of Upper Middle and Harvester Road at the Appleby GO station.
 Appleby Line north of Upper Middle Road – described as Burlington’s Uptown – the street as it looks today Appleby Line has seen some very good development south of Upper Middle – the streetscape north is waiting for something to happen. The street width is very good and the depth of many of the properties is exceptional. Are there developers that will see the opportunities or will current property owners see an opportunity to improve the return on the land they own.
 Appleby Line north of Upper Middle – a drawing setting out the kind of development that could be done today under the existing zoning. The direction Burlington wants to go in includes well marked bicycle lanes and public open space at either intersections or beside buildings – they are looking for a livable city look with plenty of trees and foliage. The planners envision three storey retail and high rise up to eleven storeys. significant increases in the number of trees and wide strips of grass between the sidewalks and the clearly marked bicycle lanes with benches almost anywhere one can be fit in.
The planners want to see open space at the intersections with benches and plants.
 In order to achieve the intensification targets the province has imposed on the Region – greater density might be needed. This drawing suggests where additional height might might be permitted  Entrance to the Appleby GO station on Harvester Road as it looks today. An Urban Employment area near the Appleby Line GO station was also reviewed. Burlington has become quite keen on the idea of hubs – places where commercial, residential and transit would all be in very close proximity to each other. The city identified five such possible hub locations and appears to be very close to making a decision on which they would like to focus their energy and efforts on.
The extent of possible development around the south side of the Appleby GO station doesn’t appear anywhere near what was thought to be possible suggesting that the planners don’t see this part of the city as that significant a possible hub.
 A vizualization of what current zoning would permit close to the entrance to the Appleby GO station. What they pointed out could be done under the existing zoning is shown below.
During the discussion and debate that took place as the visuals were shown and at the Strategic Plan creation meetings that have been taking place at the same time were several comments from Ward 2 Councillor Marianne Meed Ward who wanted to see the Downtown core as a place where office space was being built.
Meed Ward argues that the hope for a future Burlington is not the attraction of the seniors – but the attraction of young people who want to live and work in the city – and ensuring that there is housing they can afford. She argues as well that the core needs more people to make the retail and hospitality sectors more viable.
These vizualizations are ideas – what could be done if all the people involved – the owners of the property – the residents in the community, the different agencies who are part of the approval process and city council working from advice their planning staff give them found themselves in agreement. There were no decisions made, nor were recommendations put forward – the meetings were an occasion for staff, council members and the consultants that were hired to advise to look at some ideas and and discuss some potentials.
Part 1 of the vizualization exercise.
By Pepper Parr
November 4, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
They came trooping through the door – lugging boxes and bags of food that would be weighed, tagged and then distributed to one of the close to 100 bins that were set out on the floor of the gymnasium of Nelson High School where the Giving Back project, celebrating its tenth year was taking place.
 Judie Kavanaugh updates the tally of food as it gets carried into the Nelson gymnasium and weighed At 11:30 last night Judie Kavanagh told us that they had 164,908.93 lbs of food and added the comment that it was “not a bad start” – more than half way to the target – expect them to reach and pass the target.
 The food comes into the high school gymnasium in boxes and bags. All the planning and preparing done at endless committee meetings came to a head as food kept arriving and young people were scooting back and forth with boxes and bags.
Jean Longfield, a recipient of the Burlington’s Best Citizen of the Year award, and John Tate roamed the room answering questions, doing interviews and guiding people who were not quite sure what to do next.
 The scale sits on the floor where it is weighed and recorded. Tate stood in the background greeting people and congratulating those who came through the door with cartons of food.
Parents who normally pack the kids into the vans and take them to hockey games were now sitting at tables tabulating the totals those same children were bringing into the gymnasium.
 Hockey players take packages from the sorting tables to the bins. It is a significant logistical challenge – the Gazette will report on where all that food goes and how the team that makes it happen debriefs and plans for the next year.
 Jean Longfield during a CHCH interview – with John Tate in the background keeping an eye on things. Last year, The Gift of Giving Back collected more than 278,000 lbs of food and this year, hopes to exceed that amount and collect more than 305,000 lbs.
By Staff
November 3rd, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
The Halton Regional Police partnered with the Canadian Border Services and intercepted a shipment of heroin they believe was headed for the streets of Halton.
On November 2, 2015, the Halton Regional Police Drug, Gun & Gang Unit concluded an investigation related to the importation of heroin into Canada, more specifically, into Halton.
 Heroin seized by the Regional police at a post box service outlet in the Region – check the weight. In October 2015, the Canada Border Services Agency intercepted a package into the country containing heroin which originated from Uganda. The package was destined for a private mailbox at a retail shipping store in the Town of Oakville. The Canada Border Services Agency notified the Halton Police who began monitoring the package.
On November 2, 2015, two Brampton men, Jordan JONES and Rogan THOMAS, attended the Oakville retail shipping store and retrieved the package. Both men were arrested and a search warrant was executed at Jordan JONES’ residence resulting in the seizure of electronic devices.
Accused:
Rohan THOMAS, 19 years from Brampton has been charged with:
Importing heroin
Trafficking heroin
Uttering a forged document
Use a counterfeit mark
Jordan JONES, 27 years from Brampton has been charged with:
Importing heroin
Possession for the purpose of trafficking heroin
Both men were held in custody pending a bail hearing schedule for November 3, 2015, at the Milton courthouse.
Anyone with information on this crime is asked to contact the Drug, Gun and Gang Unit at 905 825-4747 ext 8732 or anyone with information on this or any other crime is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1 800 222-8477 (TIPS) or through the web at www.haltoncrimestoppers.com or by texting “Tip201” with your message to 274637 (crimes).
 By Pepper Parr
November 3, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
There is apparently some development movement in the east end of the city – Lakeside Plaza is said to be breathing and not dead; it was described as a “blight”by the ward councillor.
 Ward 5 Councillor Paul Sharman  Lakeside Plaza in east end Burlington – might be getting a major refurbishment. Public being asked what they would like to see. Ward 5 Councillor Paul Sharman told Council that after years of work the city is now talking to the owner of the property who, according to Sharman, is now interested in working with the city. He said they now “wished to develop” the area and come up with something “empathetic” to the community.
A number of years ago Burlington city council said it was very interested in working with the property owner but were not able to communicate with them.
Sharman is understood to have gone to the company’s office in Toronto but couldn’t get past the receptionist – an unusual experience for Sharman.
The Burlington Economic Development Corporation was heavily involved in getting the owners of the property to the table.
An architect has been working on very early preliminary drawings and the people trying hard to make something happen in the east end are going to meet with the public and perhaps do a show and tell.
There is a small single pad arena behind the plaza, buses turn around at the plaza and there is a large park as well.
The Burloak Park is yards away – which Sharman sees as the opportunity to create a stronger sense of place and community.
The public is going to be asked what it would like to see. Councillor Sharman expects a lot of people to show up which is why he has had to choose a location outside the ward for the public meeting which will take place Tuesday, November 24th at the Bateman High School cafeteria from 7:00 to 9:00 pm.
The question will be, said Sharman, what would the public like to see? The Gazette will follow this development carefully.
 Ciné-Starz Upper Canada Place, Burlington, ON
Burlington, ON L7R 4B6
Week of Friday, November 06, 2015 through Thursday, November 12, 2015
The Last Witch Hunter (14A)
Fri – Sun: 11:00 AM, 3:15, 5:20, 7:20, 9:20
Mon – Thu: 1:00, 3:15, 5:20, 7:20, 9:20
Crimson Peak (14A)
Fri – Sun: 1:00, 5:10, 7:20, 9:30
Mon – Thu: 1:00, 5:20, 7:30, 9:40
Pan (PG)
Fri – Sun: 11:00 AM, 1:00, 3:05, 5:10
Mon – Thu: 1:00, 3:00, 5:10
Sicario (14A)
Fri & Sat: 1:00, 3:00, 5:00, 7:15, 9:30
Sun: 1:00, 3:00, 5:10, 7:30, 9:40
Mon – Thu: 1:00, 3:10, 5:20, 7:30, 9:40
Everest (PG)
Fri & Sat: 1:00, 7:15, 9:40
Sun: 7:25, 9:40
Mon – Thu: 1:00, 3:00, 7:10, 9:40
Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials (PG)
Fri & Sat: 7:15, 9:30
Sun: 7:15, 9:40
Mon – Thu: 7:15, 9:30
War Room ()
Fri – Sun: 11:00 AM, 3:00, 5:15, 7:30, 9:40
Mon – Thu: 3:10, 5:15, 7:30, 9:40
Minions (G)
Fri & Sat: 11:10 AM, 1:15, 3:15
Sun: 11:10 AM, 1:15, 3:45
Inside Out (G)
Fri – Sun: 11:00 AM, 1:00
A Walk in the Woods (14A)
Fri & Sat: 11:00 AM, 3:10, 5:10
Sun: 11:00 AM, 3:10, 5:30
Mon – Thu: 1:00, 3:10, 5:10
 By Staff
November 2nd, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
On Tuesday, November 3rd and Wednesday, November 4th, more than 2,000 young hockey athletes and students will come together at Nelson High School to turn over all of the food they have collected from the Burlington community for The 10th Annual Gift of Giving Back Food Drive — the largest food drive of its kind in Canada.
It is an amazing event and one that to a large degree defines the city.
 Celebrating its 10th Anniversary, the annual Fall community food drive supports, educates and empowers thousands of young male and female hockey athletes and high school students to compassionately give back to their community.
 These are young men and women who are being taught to give back to the community they have grown up in and been educated. The community that is one of the safest in the country and offers opportunity for personal growth to our youth at every socio economic level.
These are young people that play hard and enjoy the life they live – some may not appreciate how fortunate enough they are – but the leadership that created The Gift of Giving Back Food Drive deserves credit for making it happen. They of course won’t hear of any credit going to them – they will tell you that it is the kids that make it happen.
  The Burlington Eagles; The Burlington Girls Hockey Club (Barracudas); Burlington Cougars; and Nelson Lords.
The food collected by more than 85 male and female youth hockey teams from: The Burlington Eagles; The Burlington Girls Hockey Club (Barracudas); Burlington Cougars; and Nelson Lords.
 Since its inception, more than 1 million lbs of food has been donated to families in need. That is the accumulative donation of $2.5 million. Last year, The Gift of Giving Back collected more than 278,000 lbs of food and this year, hopes to exceed that amount and collect more than 305,000 lbs.
How does it happen – see for yourself – Click here.
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