 By Pepper Parr
September 15, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
Close to the first thing city council did when they returned from a three month vacation away from city business was to go into a closed session to talk about the property the city owned and how it could be leveraged to get something going in the downtown core in terms of development that wasn’t just condominiums and retail operations that lasted a year and went bust.
Before the meeting went into closed session Councillors Taylor (ward 3) AND Mead Ward (ward 2) complained about getting a document several hours before the discussion was to take place.
 Councillor Taylor wants to see reports in his hands several days before he is asked to discuss the contents, His beef was over getting document just a few hours before he was to make comments. Taylor started out with a Point of Order he wanted to make and then asked why the policy that was agreed upon in 2014 to get material to council members on the Friday of the week before meetings take place allowing time to read the material and think it through.
“I don’t know what is expected of us” said Taylor, “there hasn’t been any time to read the material. Are we just going to receive and file it?”
Taylor went on to say that “knowledge is power and it looks to me as if you are going to go ahead and do what you want without any input from Council.
 General Manager Scott Stewart was away on vacation which meant a report to be discussed wasn’t available in its final form until he returned to the city. General manager Scott Stewart responded by saying the report was meant to bring council members up to date on the thinking that was being done and to give a sense of where staff was going. “If we are offside” he said, “this was the time to let us know”.
Staff may have been offside and council may have let them know – but the public will never know – the session in which all this revealing was taking place was closed so the public.
City manager James Ridge explained that the documents they were seeing today was one of three pieces of information.
Council was getting a look at what staff felt could be done with property the city owned in the downtown core – parking lots for the most part.
Ridge went on to say that with staff thinking in front of council they could then talk about how all this would relate to the “core commitment” – an issue that has been kicked around for more than a decade with no results that are visible.
 Something along these lines was planned for Burlington’s downtown core – but McMaster stiffed the city when a nicer deal came along. The last great hope for the downtown core was when McMaster University got serious about locating a campus on the Elizabeth Street parking lot – McMaster had a change of heart, helped by a great deal on a piece of property and decided that the South Service Road was a pretty good location.
Ridge went on to explain that with the basic information clearly understood and agreed upon staff could begin doing some “growth modelling” that would get attached to the Strategic Plan which would in turn inform the Official Plan that is slowly working its way through a required revision.
While the process was clear enough Councillor Meed Ward wanted a little more information on why the documents in front of her were not available when they were supposed to be available.
Scott Stewart fessed up and explained that he had been on vacation and staff wasn’t able to get as much done without his presence. Stewart did add that changes were being made to the report as late as Sunday night.
All well and good – but the public still doesn’t know what the debate was about.
The web cast did not catch all the council member remarks – there was a comment from Councillor Sharman – he appreciated “you’re bringing this to us now”.
At some point the public might get to know what it was they talked about.
 Cine Starz Upper Canada Place
460 Brant Street
WWW CINESTARZ.CA
SHOWTIMES September 18 to 24 , 2015
PIXELS PG
Fri to Sun 11:15 1:15 3:15 5:15 7:15 9:15
Mon to Thur 1:00 3:00 5:00 7:00 9:00
RICKI AND THE FLASH PG
Fri to Sun 11:30 1:30 3:30 5:30 7:30 9:30
Mon to Thur 1:00 3:00 5:00 7:00 9:00
TRAINWRECK 18A
Fri to Sun 3:00 5:10 7:20 9:30
Mon to Thur 1:00 3:00 5:10 7:20 9:30
AMERICAN ULTRA 18A
Fri to Sun 11:20 1:10 3:45 5:30
Mon to Thur 1:10 3:15 5:10
JURASSIC WORLD PG
Fri to Sun 11:15 1:10 5:20 7:15 9:40
Mon to Thur 1:00 5:15 7:15
SOUTHPAW 14A
Fri to Sun 1:30 7:20 9:30
Mon to Thur 7:00 9:15
INSIDE OUT G
Fri to Sun 11:20 1:15 3:15 5:15
Mon to Thur 5:20
PAPER TOWNS PG
Fri to Sun 11:15 3:25 7:40
Mon to Thur 1:00 3:15 7:30 9:30
AMY 14A
Fri to Sun 9:30
Mon to Thur 3:00 9:30
 By Pepper Parr
September 15, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
City Manager James Ridge put it pretty clearly to council members when, after more than an hour of debate, he said they had to decide how the city wanted to treat coyotes.
Do you want them lopping along the streets of the city or do you want us to remove the animals from our urban spaces, he asked?
The sense from Council was that no one minded the animals on the streets just as long as they don’t hurt us – and that was the issue – there appear to be coyotes out there that do want to hurt us.
The worst concentration of coyotes appears to be in the east end of the city but they are spreading around and are now found in all the wards. In the rural part of the city Councillor John Taylor said “we have our own way of handling the coyotes” which appeared to be acceptable.
 There isn’t going to be a coyote kill like this in Burlington – unless someone is attached by one of the animals – there is considerable debate over whether or not coyotes actually attach people. What wasn’t acceptable is shooting the animals, Councillor Craven kept calling them critters. And it isn’t acceptable to bludgeon them to death either, which appears to be what happened to one of the pups belonging to a bitch coyote in the east end.
Ward 6 Councillor Blair Lancaster told of an evening driving home and there was a coyote in the middle of the road – she slowed down, drove past the animal and moved on then came upon a resident walking a small dog and suggested he might want to carry the dog.
The male resident said he wasn’t worried – he would just shush the coyote away.
Two Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry staffers delegated and told council that there were no known incidents of coyotes attacking people. The Mayor Googled and came up with specific incidents in Ontario where people were apparently attached by a coyote.
The issues seems to be – what does a community do when a wild animal changes its behaviour and decides it will not co-exist with humans and attacks them instead.
The draft bylaw that was in front of the Standing Committee didn’t seem to provide an answer to that question and so it was deferred to the next cycle of Standing Committee meetings.
 A coyote that has apparently gone rogue in the east end of the city lost at least one of her pups to a public that wants that specific coyote out of the community Councillor Paul Sharman has what he called a rogue coyote in his ward that had chased a young boy on his bike and another situation where a coyote had circled someone driving a jeep.
Council was meeting to debate a proposed by law that none of the members of council had seen more than a half day before council met.
The end result was to defer the debate on the bylaw – which was going to make it illegal to feed animals or fowl on public property.
What people did on their own property wasn’t something council could do anything about – which didn’t do much for the two woman, Kelly Rosbrook and Jennier Glenn of ward 2 – they had a local resident feeding the coyotes, the pigeons, the geese and apparently anything else that was hungry. They showed a video of vermin scooting through their back yards.
 The trumpeter swans can be fed on public property – but only by people with a license to band them for scientific purposes – there are only eight people who can do that in Burlington. The draft by law was to prevent people from feeding wild life on public property – there is to be an exception – the people wanting to restore the Trumpeter Swans were going to get an exemption – however it was to be limited to just the eight people who have a license to band and record data on the swans.
Councillor Craven had concerns over the number of people he believes are feeding the swans. He commented that anyone feeding swans in LaSalle park had better have their banding license with them.
There is more to this story. Stay tuned.
Female coyotes are properly described as bitches
 By Staff
September 15, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
Artists throughout the area are gathering together the material and tools they will need to set up their art installations along Old Lakeshore Road for the third annual No Vacancy event – which this year is being called Supernova.
Dozens of art ventures will appear on the Old Lakeshore Road, immediately outside, adjacent to and across the road from Emma’s Back Porch the evening of Friday, September 18th beginning at 7 pm – the installations will be in place until just after midnight and then disappear just as quickly as they appeared.
The now annual event that began in 2013 at the Waterfront Hotel where new ground was broken in the Burlington arts world. The second year drew 3500 people to the Village Square made No Vacancy, which is given a different title each year, an event that was now a must for the city.
During the next few days the Gazette will tell you a little bit about each participant – there are about 20+ of them – all up for one enchanting evening.
We start this time with:
 Apollonia Vanova is a Contemporary artist from Slovakia, currently residing in Canada. She is a graduate from the Emily Carr University of Art and Design in Vancouver, BC. Before she attended university, she travelled to Italy and became an apprentice to the famed sculptor Tomasso Gismondi. Upon her return to Canada, she opened Vano inc., where she designed and produced large ceramic murals. Her first commission at the age of 20, was a 20′ x 5′ pediment sculpture for a Neo-classical private villa. Apollonia works out of her private studio in Toronto, Ontario and continues to create contemporary sculptures and installations in various media including bronze, steel, leather, hair, as well as paintings in oil and acrylic.
Her work has been exhibited in galleries across Canada, and acquired internationally in private collections. Currently, her artwork explores narcissism within contemporary society through the meaning and interpretation of language, myth, dreams, instincts and objects of desire.
vanovaart.com
 Ryan Van Der Hout
Ryan Van Der Hout is a photo based artist working in Toronto. His work explores photographic materials and experimental processes. Ryan has an ongoing documentary project focused on artistic process and studio space.
Ryan’s work has been exhibited across Canada, the U.K. and in New York and is held in both private and public collections.
He’s a graduate of Ryerson’s photography program.
ryanvanderhout.com
 Keith Busher
Hamilton, Ontario based artist Keith Busher started Precious Mutations in January 2012. Inspired by the art of David Irvine, and tired of his kids watching the same old television programs repeatedly Keith took his kids to the local ‘Drop n Shop’ to find an up-cycling project. Keith came home with several ceramic figurines and began his mutating career. Since then he’s created over 50 mutations and continues to create every day. In May of 2013 Keith shared a show with David Irvine at Manta Contemporary Gallery entitled ‘Re-Visions’ and was featured in the Hamilton Art Crawl.Highlights of what he’s accomplished so far include his ‘Zombified Nutcrackers’ which were highly sought after during the holiday season of 2012 and saw his work get shipped globally to Australia, Japan, Europe and throughout North America.
Keith has expanded his ‘mutations’ to include photography and other items being up-cycled, no longer just figurines. You can find Keith and his Precious Mutations at this years upcoming Toronto Zombie Walk on October 26, 2013.
preciousmutations.com
 Sanjay Patel
Sanjay is Canadian of Indian descent, residing in between Hamilton and Toronto. His main focus for, “Live Art” is to capture the atmosphere and energy of the particular events he attends. This talented artist is also carving a path with his one-of-a-kind commissioned work; a unique experience that offers the client a custom abstract representation of the their energy, tastes and personality, while taking into consideration the current colour, lighting, and space in the room.
sanjaybpatel.com/
 Reg Moore
Reg Moore is a projection and light artist holding unique events under the name Realtime Activities. Realtime turns the clock back and forth with shout-outs to eclectic moments and personalities in motion picture, photography, animation, music and popular culture. Using an existing site and manipulating it, Realtime creates installations that are a visual feast for the average individual and a delight to the more seasoned viewer who recognizes Realtime’s incorporation of such ground-breaking works as “Moth Light”, “Rhythmus 21”, “Dog Star Man”, and “Matrix III”, to name a few. A Realtime installation is both a fabulous live event and a compelling expression of art.
realtimeactivities.com
 Jordyn Stewart
Jordyn Stewart is an emerging artist from the Niagara Region. Coming from a small town, she adopts child-like fascinations and curiosities from her upbringing. Now, immersed in developing urban environments, she investigates the materials found within these spaces in search for the familiar. Working predominantly in video and performance, she creates site-sensitive performances.
Stewart recently received her BA, Specialist in Art and Art History at University of Toronto, joint program with Sheridan College. She has most recently exhibited works at Trinity Square Video,Video Fever 2015, as well as, The Blackwood Gallery, Horizon Line. She is currently living in Toronto, interning as a curatorial assistant for Christine Shaw, the curator of The Work of Wind, an exhibition featured in this years Nuit Blanche. Jordynstewart.ca
 Tiffany Schofield
Tiffany Schofield is an emerging Canadian artist and curator. Her practice explores the relationship between the body, place and history through site-specific performances, photography, and video installations. Her recent work is concerned with the physical and psychological manifestations of the suburban landscape. Schofield recently completed her Honours Bachelor of Arts with a Specialist in Arts & Culture (Studio) at the University of Toronto Scarborough, where she received multiple awards and scholarships. Most recently, her work has been exhibited at Artscape Youngplace and Trinity Square Video in Toronto.
tiffanyschofield.com
 Elyse Portal
Somewhere between meditations and memorials, Elyse Portal’s creative research is rooted in embodied intimacies generated between local material research and place-based exchanges. Textiles and video confront solastalgia, a term coined by philosopher Glenn Albrecht, which means the “homesickness you have when you are still at home.” Here, beauty is (re)discovered within the micro-processes of indigenous and invasive plant species. Materia medica is an ontological survey of ecological remembrance, including dye experiments with organic cloth and video of the watery plant pigment ecologies – alongside urban traffic.
elyseportal.com
There are others. The event, which has broken several of the artistic boundaries that kept Burlington a quiet sketches of flowers town for a long time is at that point where it will take on a life of its own and draw people from well outside the area. Will it ever equal the Supercrawl in Hamilton – would city hall ever let that happen?
 By Staff
September 14, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
PRESTO customers are advised that transactions normally performed at a Customer Service counter are currently not available at the Downtown Transit Terminal (430 John St.) until further notice.
 Burlington customers needing assistance with their card can visit any of the three Burlington GO stations or call PRESTO customer service at 1-8-PRESTO-123 (1-877-378-6123).
 By Pepper Parr
September 14, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
How did this manage to happen?
Two of the more significant community events scheduled for the same day at basically the same time?
 Amazing Bed Race – doing its 6th Annual event – same day as the Terry Fox Run The 6th annual Amazing Bed Race on Brant Street in downtown Burlington, Sunday, September 20, 11am-3pm.
The Burlington Terry Fox Run course is a 5km or 10km loop long the beach and Spencer Smith Park. The start and finish are at the Pavilion at Beachway Park on Lakeshore Rd. Runners for 5km and 10km start at 9:00am. Everyone else starts at 10:00am. Registration opens for runners at 8:00am.
We have food, music, a raffle, balloons and tattoos, and even dog treats. Joins us for a run or walk and a great party atmosphere. It is a great day for a run or just a family day to remember Terry Fox and keep his dream alive.
The Amazing |Bed Race has people who formed teams, decorated a bed and race up Brant Street trying to beat a clock – it’s great fun
 Burlingtonians have been doing the \Terry Fox Run for 35 years. Raised close to $1 million. The Terry Fox isn’t so much great fun – it is a time of reflection and celebration for the thousands of people who show up – the way they have for the past 35 years.
It is a true pity that the two groups were not aware of the conflicting dates.
A person could cover both events – it would be a bit of a dash to get from one to the other.
Better planning would have made a difference.
 By Staff
September 14, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
Dozens of art ventures will appear on the Old Lakeshore Road, immediately outside, adjacent to and across the road from Emma’s Back Porch the evening of Friday, September 18th beginning at 7 pm – the installations will be in place until just after midnight and then disappear just as quickly as they appeared.
It will be a Supernova – a now annual event that began in 2013 at the Waterfront Hotel where new ground was broken in the Burlington arts world.
Year two for what is known as No Vacancy, which is given a different title each year took place at the Village Square when 3500 people showed up. Fortunately the Fire Marshal wasn’t aware of the crowd – he might have shut the event down.
During the next few days the Gazette will tell you a little bit about each participant – there are about 20+ of them – all up for one enchanting evening.
We start with:
Teresa Seaton is working with Tomy Bewick
 Teresa Seaton creates highly original, dynamic Stained Glass for galleries and private commissions. Her uniquely sculptural work is a trademark; featuring multi layers of panels and glass with spun wire incorporated as a structural element and design accent. Teresa Seaton studied Graphic Design at Sheridan College and obtained the degree, BFA in drawing and sculpture from York University. Her career in design led her to positions as Senior Designer, Associate Creative Director and Creative Director with clients from Toronto to New York. Teresa studied the craft of stained glass with Paul Beatty and has operated as a full time artist since 2010. In 2007 she became chair for Art in Action. She helped define Art in Action Burlington Studio Tour as a go to cultural event that showcases many talented local artists and artisans and brings a growing number of art lovers to the community. In 2013 she opened her Studio & Gallery in Burlington. As well as giving her a place to showcase her own artwork she has opened her Gallery to other Canadian artists by showcasing them for two months at a time.
teresaseaton.ca/
Juliana LaChance focuses on avante garde themes
 Juliana LaChance is a Hamilton based painter specializing in original acrylic, multimedia art of contemporary, avant garde themes.
Her paintings and art have been exhibited throughout southern Ontario and her work can be found on instagram, facebook, tumblr, youtube.
She has produced four solo albums that you can listen to on her youtube channel by searching Juliana Lachance
She works in a small, cozy studio where she records, creates and paints her heart out in Hamilton, ON
julianalachance.com
Courtney Lee is a newcomer to this art form – works in water colour on Yuppo paper.
 Courtney Lee is a Toronto based Artist. She has only recently begun to paint professionally with her first show in the summer of 2014. She works in watercolour on Yupo paper, two materials that are both very demanding, but when combined have an organic chemistry that blossoms into something bold and playful. She pairs these bold, colourful paintings with layers of intricate geometric paper cuts creating an intriguing juxtaposition of colour and shape, in other words “contained chaos”. These paintings are an expression of her interest in natural science and the beauty found in organic forms. For Courtney, The ultimate example of these organic forms for is the nebula and the creation of stars in space. The geometric context that she gives these spontaneous paintings refers to her interest in sacred geometry (such as the Fibonacci sequence) which is the lens through which she tries to understand the mysteries of unexplored space.
Jefferson Campbell-Cooper has been featured in Nuit Blanche Toronto twice
 From drawing to sculpture to performance, artist Jefferson Campbell-Cooper’s works navigate the changing world around us. His practice includes such projects as collecting recycling for the City of Toronto with home-made machines, transforming a tourist train into a subway using sound installation, and developing large-scale social mapping projects with the cities of Windsor, Kitchener, and Toronto. Campbell-Cooper has been featured in Nuit Blanche Toronto twice, and is part of the public collections of the City of Kitchener and the University of Guelph. Numerous residencies have led to site specific projects in New Mexico, the Yukon, Newfoundland and Connecticut. Exhibiting internationally, he most recently completed projects in Athens, and Geneva. He received his BFA from the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, Halifax, and MFA from the Meadows School of the Arts, Dallas, Texas.
jeffersonsculpture.com
Mary Ma’s work explores landscape phenomenology.
 Working primarily in video projection, installation, sculpture, and sound, Ma’s work explores landscape, phenomenology, and moments of contact within collective experience. She has exhibited at the Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival (Toronto), Place Gallery (Portland OR), and recently presented a solo exhibition at Katharine Mulherin Contemporary Art Projects (Toronto). Upcoming exhibitions include Scotiabank Nuit Blanche 2015, and CAFKA’s 2016 Biennial in Kitchener Ontario. Ma holds a BFA in Sculpture and Installation from OCAD University.
More work can be found on her website at www.maryma.ca
Judy Graham is a multi-media artist who has exhibited her work both nationally and internationally.
 Judy Graham is a multi-media artist who has exhibited her work both nationally and internationally. Currently, her drawings can be seen at Artspace Gallery in Buffalo, N.Y. Judy’s projects have been reviewed in such publications as The Globe and Mail, The St. Catharines Standard, Now, and Artvoice. Ms. Graham teaches in the Visual Arts Department, Marilyn Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts, Brock University.
There are more – tune in tomorrow.
 By Staff
September 13, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
 Are Burlingtonians fairly taxed – on reader doesn’t think so. The comments section of the Gazette usually has boisterous debate – several of them write far too long but those that participate in the comments return again and again.
This came in earlier today. A reader said:
Toronto Star, on September 5, published a Home of the Week. It is located in North York, 3,300 sq. ft, 5 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms. with a pool, and a toboggan hill. It sold for $1,729,000.
Taxes are $5,747. I have a small, frame, 1,509 sq ft bungalow in Burlington, assessed at $709,000 which pays $14,433 (including BIA and a commercial surcharge).
Even assuming that 1/3 of my tax is commercial, my Burlington property pays almost double the rate of a North York property valued at much more than double my valuation. This is crazy.
Why should it cost over 4 times as much here as in Toronto?
Interesting question. Our reader should pull the belt in another notch – you are likely to be taxed even more next time around,
 By Pepper Parr
September 11, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
The Community and Corporate Standing Committee will meet on Tuesday September 15th at 1:00 pm in the afternoon and again at 6:30 if required.
Standing committees have a procedure they follow. There is a Consent Agenda which consists of Reports of a routine nature, which are not expected to require discussion and/or debate. Any council member can ask that an item be pulled from the Consent agenda for discussion – if not they are all passed in one vote.
For the Community and Corporate Standing committee the following are on the September 15th consent agenda:
Report recommending approval of Burlington Inclusivity Advisory Committee 2015 work plan and providing the 2014 annual report.
Report providing the City of Burlington’s financial status as at June 30, 2015.
Report providing information regarding insurance litigation as of July 31, 2015.
Report recommending approval of a Municipal Capital Facility Exemption for the Aldershot Library By-Law.
Report providing information regarding the operating budget performance as at June 30th.
From time to time a standing Committee considers Confidential Matters which are usually Human Resources issues or property sale and or acquisition issues.
Confidential reports may require a closed meeting in accordance with the Municipal Act, 2001. Meeting attendees may be required to leave during the discussion.
 Air Park matter is before the city again – to be discussed as a confidential legal matter this time – something is up. The list this time around is extensive:
Confidential legal department report providing an update regarding the Ontario Municipal Board hearing for 374 Martha Street.
Confidential legal department report providing an update regarding Burlington Airpark.
Confidential legal department report providing quarterly litigation update from May 1 to July 31, 2015.
Confidential finance department report providing the status of the reserve for contingencies as of July 31, 2015.
Confidential appendices A and B of finance department report providing information regarding insurance litigation as at July 31, 2015.
Confidential memorandum from Councillor Craven’s office regarding proposed acquisition of land by the municipality.
Confidential and consent matters make up the bulk of the agenda – all there is left is a Report providing the state of the downtown report and recommending approval of core commitment performance measures.
 The ADI application to put up a 28 storey structure is now before the OMB – city has some information they want to talk about behind closed doors – why? The one item on the agenda that isn’t either a consent matter or a confidential matter is a report providing the state of the downtown which recommends approval of the core committeemen performance measures.
This could be a short meeting for the public. The gazette will provide background on several of the confidential matters
 By Pepper Parr
September 11, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
Deciding to run for public office is driven by a vast range of emotions and ambitions. Some plan for years and have a clear idea as to where they want to go, what they want to be and what they would like to do when and if they get there. Some get there and stay far too long.
And for some – there is a phone call: “Would you consider being the candidate?”
Vince Fiorito got such a call and decided to step up to the plate. The following is the letter he wrote to Green Party officials and friends.
My name is Vince Fiorito. I will be the Green Party Candidate for Burlington. I am still completing the registration process. I have the required 100 signatures. I still require confirming letters from Elizabeth May and my auditor. Then I am ready to file my nomination papers with Pat Barr, Burlington’s Returning Officer.
 Vince Fiorito pulling up a fence that had been trampled into the ground by trespassers along the GO train tracks. Several months after his finding the fence down – it still hasn’t been put back up properly. I believe I was selected to be the Green Party Candidate primarily because of my environmental activism. Two years ago I founded a Halton Region Conservation Authority award winning stewardship group to clean the trash out of an urban ravine in Burlington, known as Friends of Sheldon Creek Watershed.
https://www.facebook.com/sheldoncreek
I am an environmental activist because I subscribe to a growing international movement to recognize The Rights of Nature.
I suppose I am a politician now, but until I was contacted by the Green Party last week to be their candidate in Burlington, I considered myself to be an environmental activist.
I expect that the Good People of Burlington will want to know more about their Green Party choice in the 2015 Federal Election.
For the record, I am NOT ambitious for power. I am ambitious for change. I believe our political system has become dysfunctional and unrepresentative because the decision making power has become concentrated in the hands of too few people.
When I beat incumbent Mike Wallace in this election, I intend to create citizen advisory committees, consisting of citizens from Burlington who are honest, reliable and hardworking, one for each Government Ministry and one for the PMO. Each committee will consist of 6 or 8 trustworthy people with impeccable integrity who will be involved in my entire decision making process from beginning until the end. In general, I will respect the will of the committees and vote accordingly in the House. My power will come from appointing people to the committees, casting the deciding vote in the event of a deadlock as well as dissolving and reforming any committee with new members if I believe that committee has become tainted, corrupted or dysfunctional. Other than that, I will respect the will of the committee and vote accordingly, even if I disagree with the committee’s decision.
 Fiorito comes across a piece of rusted equipment thrown into the creek – he has taken refrigerators, vehicle tires by the hundreds our of Sheldon Creek The Halton conservation Authority named him a Steward of Sheldon Creek. I call this decision making process Distributed Democracy. I feel this decision making process will fairly represent the Green Party’s vision of their MPs representing their constituency first and the Green Party second.
The results of Citizen Advisory Committee votes will be available to the public. The committee will be nonpartisan. My expectation is that my future political rivals will likely rise from the ranks of these committees. I will appoint people to these committees based on their qualifications and merit, not their political affiliation. My only stipulation will be that everyone on these committees will balance the Rights of Nature with the Rights of People when they make their decisions.
After I beat Mike Wallace in this election and after he has had a 6 month vacation, I intend to offer him a seat on one of my citizen advisory committees, provided he can pass a vetting process.
I will act as an honest broker to offer the citizens of Burlington an opportunity to participate in the democratic decision making process and transfer to my constituency real decision making power. I feel this offer to share power with the community will capture the imagination of the Burlington electorate.
I expect that once my decision making process becomes more widely known, it will generate a lot of discussion. To be clear, I am offering the citizens of Burlington real political power. In theory a citizen of Burlington on the Finance Advisory committee could cast the deciding vote on a House non-confidence motion that would dissolve the Government of Canada.
 Vince Fiorito, wondering how a piece of equipment this size ended up in the Sheldon Creek – and wonders how he is ever going to gt it out of the creek. The only Green Party policy with which I disagree is Proportional Representation. I agree that the First Past the Post system is broken. I support a ranked ballot system instead because I feel it would be more fair to candidates who run as independents. Other than that, my viewpoints completely align with the Green Party’s platform.
Regardless, I will always represent the will of Burlington first.
Environmentally,
Vince Fiorito
Green Party Candidate for Burlington
The Gazette has interviewed Vince Fiorito a number of times – he is certainly committed to the environment. it is not our place to endorse any candidate at this point in time other than to say Vince is one of a kind; a unique human being doing what he believes in. One can’t ask for much more than that.
Our practice in past elections has been to follow a specific candidate and tell their story – we did that with Carol Gottlob in the municipal election and we will be doing that with Vince Fiorito in this federal election – telling the story of his trials and tribulations as he goes about trying to get himself elected to the House of Commons where he can advocate for the environment on behalf of the people of Burlington.
For a city that cannot get a private tree bylaw passed – Vince has his work cut out for him
By Staff
September 11, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
Choristers in the region are invited to audition for the Burlington Civic Chorale Singers. Rehearsals begin in September and are held Tuesday evenings from 7:15 pm to 9:30 pm, at St. Christopher’s Church, 662 Guelph Line, Burlington.
 The Burlington Civic Chorale is a mixed-voice community choir formed in 1994 through the collaboration of founder Dr. Gary Fisher and Mary Jane Price, former organist and music director at St. Christopher’s Anglican Church, Burlington, Ontario.
Their repertoire encompasses classical literature from the 16th century to the present; folksongs; opera choruses and vocal jazz.
2015-16 is our twenty-second season! We couldn’t have done it without some help along the way: grants from the Ontario Trillium Foundation, the United Way, the Toronto Foundation, and the former Halton Healthy Foundation; our loyal patrons and members; and local businesses who support us generously.
Please contact Gary Fisher at 905-632-2085 or Email: glfisher63@gmail.com or visit www.burlingtoncivicchorale.ca
By Pepper Parr
September 11, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
The last time your city council met was July 15th- they meet again three times next week – on Monday at 1:00 pm as a Committee of the Whole where it looks as if everything is going to be talked about in a closed session.
 They should return to the Council Chamber all tanned and rested. Now to make wise decisions on your behalf. There is to be a presentation by General Manager Scott Stewart, Allan Magi, Executive Director of Corporate Works and Ron Steiginga, Manager of Realty Services.
The agenda says they are talking about Downtown Real Estate. The city owns a considerable amount of real estate in the downtown core – parking lots, city hall, the Art Gallery and a number of other lots here and there.
The practice is to review these holdings and determine if there is anything Council wants to do that is Strategic in nature.
Steiginga did his best to acquire a small piece of property adjacent to the Art Gallery – the owner of the property was too long in the tooth to bite that bait that Steiginga offered.
The deal Steiginga got for the city on the sale of the waterfront road allowance between Market and St Paul isn’t one that he will be remembered for – but that ship has left harbour. The public will watch with some anticipation for the Windows on the Lake that are to be created on the land the city didn’t sell.
 The public will get to walk along this space which will become a Window to the Lake – the obstacles you see in this picture were not put in place by city – they were put in place by property owners who didn’t want the public to enjoy public land. That day is now over. There was some encroachment on city land by a private driveway – it looks as if that has been resolved.
One hopes that the Mayor is not foolish enough to hold a ribbon cutting ceremony and go for another of the photo ops of which he is so fond when the first window on the Lake is opened.
The first meeting on the Monday looks like a pretty tame event.
By Pepper Parr
September 11, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
There is more to the Advanced Manufacturing hub the ¨Prime Minister announced with great fanfare in Burlington recently. The City’s Economic Development Corporation has been working on the project for some time; their approach is to do away with the fanfare and let the results of their efforts speak for themselves.
“When we have something to say that is relevant” said Fran McKeown, Executive Director of the not for profit organization “you will hear from us”.
 Prime Minister Stephen Harper speaking to a hand picked Burlington audience. The Gazette got a note from Tony Araujo, Vice President – Testing, Paragon Systems, Concord, ON. Here is what he had to say:
I read your story on the Prime Minister’s announcement of a new “Advanced Manufacturing” hub for Burlington and was shocked that the Conservatives would do this again! I’m already fighting the last “investment” this government made in London’s Advanced Manufacturing Park.
In March 2015, Industry Canada’s FedDev Ontario gave Fanshawe College an $8.1 million gift to set up a for-profit commercial testing lab on land provided to the college for free by the City of London. The Canadian Centre for Product Validation (CCPV) will compete head-to-head with existing private sector testing labs throughout Ontario using students as labour.
FedDev Ontario’s own analysis of Fanshawe’s CCPV business plan even concluded that it would “adversely affect” the existing 30 private sector testing labs that “currently serve Ontario industries quite well”.
$8.1 million is bad enough. $100 million will be the death of my business and the 32 jobs that we currently have in Vaughan.
As a small business person, I expected this kind of crazy policy from the NDP, certainly not from the Conservatives.
Is it any wonder the electorate thinks that the Conservatives have lost touch with their values?
There are usually several sides to every story.
By Staff
September 10, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
Route 1 bus Detours in Downtown Hamilton Sept. 11 – 14
 Beginning Friday, Sept. 11 through to Monday, Sept. 14, Burlington Transit’s Route 1 will detour in downtown Hamilton during the James Street Supercrawl.
Detour Information
Friday, Sept. 11 from approximately noon to 5:30 p.m.:
• Regular routing to York Boulevard and Queen Street
• Right at Queen Street
• Left at Main Street
• Left at John Street
• Left at King Street
• Resume regular routing
Friday, Sept. 11 (at approximately 5:30 p.m.) through to Monday, Sept. 14 (at approximately 1 a.m.):
• Regular routing to York Boulevard and Queen Street
• Right at Queen Street
• Left at Main Street
• Left at John Street
• Left at Cannon Street
• Resume regular routing
By Pepper Parr
September 10, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
There will be shovels in the ground the first few days of January – and Jeff Paikin will start the next, and biggest phase of his career as a developer.
The three structure Bridgewater project, initially approved in 1985 and justified as a “landmark” project for the city, will rise to 22 storeys under the direction of a man whose first development project was a done more than 25 years ago, which was about when the city approved the project he is going to move into as a resident.
 The hotel has had an additional floor added to it – shovels are scheduled to dig into the ground first thing in 2016 – now there is a photo op for you! Paikin will be at the front of a project that will change forever the look and feel of the waterfront forever.
How this came to be is one of those extraordinary stories of drive, energy and a lot of luck that came about because Paikin decided to go for luxury and quality in a city he loves
There will be a Christmas party for the people who have bought about 60% of the units in the Bridgewater project. Paikin says he needs to be at 62% sold to have the financing he has arranged kick in.
Paikin said he would buy another unit if that’s what it takes to get past that magic 62% number. “Were at 60% with five in the pipeline” he said rather proudly.
 The view of the lake from a passing car will be brief – the opening is reported to be 50 feet wide – not much more than a glimpse. What Burlington now knows as the Bridgewater project isn’t something Paikin started and how it ended up in his hands is an amazing story.
Paikin was developing town homes for twenty years.
He was doing custom renovations, moved into high end luxury homes but “land supply changed the market” and Paikin could see that condominiums was where the growth was going to take place.
The day of the small bungalow market that resulted in the sprawl Burlington how has to contend with was a thing of the past.
The first project Paikin took on had 49 units – then 101 units then a 134 unit project – the progression was consistent. The 246 unit Vibe was followed by the 400 unit Mint.
Paikin focused on quality finishes and customization. He sees himself as “in touch with the market” and very much a people person.
Paikin is a big man – tall, imposing and available to anyone who wants to talk to him. This isn’t a developer who hides nor is he a man who suffers fools easily.
His office is in Hamilton, a stones throw from the GO station but his home and his heart is in Burlington where he doesn’t get upset at the profile the city has in the rest of the province – or the country for that matter. He believes Burlington’s objective is to maintain and protect the lead that it has – and in the eyes of Jeff Paikin Burlington has a great lead over other cities.
The Bridgewater project consists of three buildings – all are part of the project Paikin’s New Horizons corporation now controls. The hotel will now be a Marriott – it was originally going to be a Delta and open for the Pan Am Games – that date got missed.
The project has been littered with missed dates – Paikin sounds confident that the breaking ground in January is going to happen.
 The buyers for the priciest condo property in town will be treated to a smash of a Christmas party – then the wrecking ball rolls in to level the space. The sales office will be taken apart sometime after the Christmas party for those who have bought units.
How Jeff Paikin actually got the units is due in no small measure to the way the people at Mayrose Tyco think. In the agreement they put together with the Mady Group, the original builder’s, there was a “reputational risk” clause that allowed them to back out of the agreement if the reputation of the builder was at risk.
Mady ran into some problems with projects in Markham, Scarborough, Waterloo, Barrie and Kitchener – and sought protection from creditors – Mayrose Tyco invoked the reputational risk clause and according to Paikin asked him if he would take over the project – which he did.
Prior to the call from Mayrose Tyco, Paikin was thinking about building a new home in Burlington. His wife wanted something near the lake, Jeff wanted something that wouldn’t require much of a claim on his time.
 They will see this from Hamilton – architects rendering of the Bridgewater project at night. He liked the look of the Bridgewater project – he and his wife looked at the plans and decided that would be home for them. It was going to be the perfect empty-nest home for him and his wife.
Then he got a call in January: did he want to build the project?
The original builder, Markham-based Mady Development Corporation, had run into financial problems with projects – Paikin took over Mady’s position in a development partnership on the 0.7-hectare, block-long property between Elizabeth and Pearl streets just east of Brant.
Paikin was now pumped “The design is so fantastic and the location is probably the No. 1 location in all of Ontario, if not Canada, as a place to live.”
Prices start at about $400,000 and climb to about $3.5 million.
Paiken now has half of the top floor as his home – all he has to do is get the place built –
 The 22 storey structure that is due to be built on the waters edge will forever change the look of the city. For the better? Paikin says the transition from Mady to New Horizon on the Bridgewater project was fast and seamless. Burlington Ward 2 Councillor Marianne Meed Ward learned of the Mady problems one day and the next learned that New Horizon had stepped in.
The project has been deemed a “landmark” in Burlington’s official plan which some take to mean” “Any future development on Old Lakeshore Road or across the street needs to defer to the landmark and not overwhelm it.”
 What a great place to make a sales pitch for a condominium that starts at $400,000 One hopes Burlington has a stronger position than that when they oppose the ADI Development at Lakeshore and Martha that is now before the OMB.
 There are people in the city with fond memories of the Riviera – wonder where the sign went? The site, in what has been designated the Old Lakeshore Road precinct, was once home to an ice cream shop and the Riviera motel, which was built in 1964 and changed very little before it was demolished in 2012.
The approvals for the Bridgewater date back to about 2006 – as a project it was first approved in principle in 1985
By Staff
September 10, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
That we even have a World Suicide Prevention Day is painful – we shudder when we hear the words and try to brush away the thought when we think of families we know that have experienced a loss.
The Burlington Community Foundation (BCF) Mental Wellness Alliance is sharing information in an effort to raise awareness and discuss suicide prevention.
Some of the difficult truths about suicide in our communities include:
– Suicide is the 2nd cause of death in young people
– 1 in 5 Ontarians experience mental health problems and addictions
– 1 in 4 teens and young adults in their 20’s will experience mental health issues in Ontario
– 71% of family physicians ranked access to psychiatrists in Ontario fair to poor
– Youth and families can wait for months or up to 2 years for services
– Joseph Brant Hospital Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Clinic reports:
– 16% increase from 2010-11 to 2011-12 in case load
– 31% increase for the average wait time for assessment – 47 days
 As outlined in BCF’s Vital Signs Reports, mental health issues are growing. To address this imminent need BCF launched the Mental Wellness Alliance in April 2015 by bringing together a diverse and knowledgeable group of over 55 leaders from a broad cross-section of mental health perspectives. These include practitioners, policy makers, program service delivery organizations, civic leaders, interest groups, partners, caregivers and individuals living with mental health issues. The participants are from Halton Region through to Hamilton. BCF is leading the efforts and recognizes these “communities” are interconnected from both a needs and delivery of programs/services perspective.
Brian Hansell, co-chair of the BCF Mental Wellness Alliance knows all too well how devastating suicide can be. His son Paul lost his life to suicide in December 2010. To help ensure that other families don’t face the same tragedy and to do something in memory of Paul, Brian founded the Paul Hansell Foundation. Its mandate is to promote programs aimed at the mental and emotional wellbeing of youth.
By Staff
September 10th, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
 Mayor Golding will take part in the Kick off for a campaign to increase the use of alternate forms of transportation – and less use of cars for short trips. The process has begun – the attempt to change the culture in the city and leave the car at home and choose active and alternative transportation instead is now a challenge from the office of the Mayor.
Billed as the Think Outside the Car Challenge, it will run from September 15th to – October 30th.
Many of the trips people take in Burlington are within a very short distance and are the ideal distances to cycle, walk or hop on a Burlington Transit bus. These alternative modes of transportation not only promote a healthy lifestyle but also save money on the cost of gas, parking and have very little impact on our air quality.”
To participate in the challenge:
1. Ask a friend or family member to take a photo or video of you using alternative transportation when you would have normally taken your vehicle. Share on social media using #ThinkOutsidetheCar.
2. Challenge three friends, family members or co-workers to choose alternative transportation instead of using their vehicle.
3. Be part of the change.
Campaign Kickoff Event
On Tuesday, September 15th , students at M.M. Robinson High School will be part of the kickoff event.
 Burlington MPP Eleanor McMahon has been a strong Share the Road advocate – she now wants people to make more use of bikes and public transit. Eleanor McMahon, MPP Burlington and Danijel Ozimkovic, Transportation Technologist at the City of Burlington will be talking part in the event.
“Travelling by car is very popular in Burlington,” said Vito Tolone, acting director of transportation at the City of Burlington. “Ninety per cent of all trips within our city are made with an automobile. If we are going to reduce traffic congestion and create a greener city, the entire community needs to work together and consider other forms of transportation.”
By Staff
September 9, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
Each year the Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) holds the Rising Star Talent Competition. They have been doing this for 29 years.
The final round of competition took place this past weekend at the CNE’s International Stage inside the Enercare Centre, where spectators witnessed the best of the best among more than 100 contestants who competed over 17 days of the Fair.
 The Talent Competition is one of the longest standing talent competitions in Ontario, long before the popularity of TV shows such as “Idol” came along. Contestants are judged on their natural ability, audience appeal, stage presence and the quality of their performance. 2015 Winning Contestants of CNE Rising Star Competition
Junior (aged 6-12):
 Grand Champion: Brooklyn Slade, 12-year-old dancer(Milton)
1st Runner Up: Emma Wright, 11-year-old singer (Meaford)
2nd Runner Up: Lauren Salt, 12-year-old dancer (Burlington)
3rd Runner Up: Allison Lee & Daniel Tamburro, 7-year-old dancers (Aurora)
4th Runner Up: Detention, Hip hop dance group (St. Catharines)
5th Runner Up: Alyssa Almeida, 11-year-old singer (Mississauga)
 By Pepper Parr
September 9, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
This popped up in my email box – can you imagine a bank asking you what you thought of a change they were making .
That never happens – which was the first clue that the email was the first step in an attempt to get into my identity and rummage around my bank account to see if there was something they could steal.
I’ve not had an account with the CIBC for at least ten years – so there is nothing to learn about me there.
Somewhere along the way someone who makes their living taking what isn’t theirs from people
If you see this one – click on delete, quickly.
The cheek!
Changes to the Electronic Access Agreement
We’ve changed the Electronic Access Agreement.
We wanted to check it’s OK with you.
The following is a summary of the changes made to the Agreement effective as of August 1, 2015
Part I “Terms and Conditions for CIBC eDeposit” is new and applies to your use of the new CIBC eDeposit feature within CIBC Mobile Banking.
Part K was amended to add new definitions to explain the meaning of the following terms: “CIBC eDeposit” and “Images”.
Section 56 “Exclusive Jurisdiction” was removed.
Section 70 “Governing Law” was amended to clarify its meaning and add new information.
What do I have to do?
If You agree with the changes we’ve made, please click on the link below:
https://www.cibc.com/ca/agreement-2015-confirm.aspx
You must use your Bank Card and Password to access Online Banking. You may also be required to answer your Personal Verification Questions when accessing Online Banking.
If you do not agree to a change in this Agreement, you must immediately stop using Online Banking
Cine Starz Upper Canada Place
460 Brant Street
WWW CINESTARZ.CA
SHOWTIMES September 11 to 17 , 2015
WE ARE YOUR FRIENDS 14A
Fri to Thur 1:20 3:10 7:20 9:15
SINISTER 2 14A
Fri to Sun 5:20 9:10
Mon to Thur 7:40 9:30
AMERICAN ULTRA 18A
Fri to Sun 1:30 5:40 7:30 9:20
Mon to Thur 1:30 3:30 5:20 7:10 9:20
FANTASTIC FOUR PG
Fri to Sun 11:30 1:30 3:30 5:20
Mon to Thur 5:30
JURASSIC WORLD PG
Fri to Sun 11:10 1:00 3:20 5:10 7:15
Mon to Thur 1:00 5:10
VACATION 14A
Fri to Sun 11:20 1:30 3:15 7:30
Mon to Thur 1:00 3:15 7:20
SOUTHPAW 14A
Fri to Sun 11:15 7:15 9:30
Mon to Thur 1:15 3:00 7:20 9:30
INSIDE OUT G
Fri to Sun 11:15 1:15 3:15 5:15 7:15
Mon to Thur 5:40
PAPER TOWNS PG
Fri to Sun 11:00 3:20 9:30
Mon to Thur 3:30 5:15 7:30 9:30
AMY 14A
Fri to Sun 5:00 9:15
Mon to Thur 1:10 3:20 9:00
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