 By Staff
BURLINGTON, ON November 22, 2011 Carole Ward, Burlington’s 2010 Civic Recognition Award winner for community service once said that Canada is about to experience a tsunami of seniors and doesn’t think the community is at all prepared for the services and support they will need. “There will come a point”, she said, “ where seniors will need help dressing and feeding themselves and many will want to stay in their homes for as long as they can”, and Ward doesn’t believe the community is at all prepared for the number of people who will need care and support.
This generation of people, known ever since they were born as the Baby Boomers have changed every aspect of society as the moved from pre-school, to elementary, high school and on to university. Now that they are seniors there is no reason to suggest they aren’t going to continue to make waves which Ward calls a tsunami because she believes we are not at all prepared for the demands they are going to make on society. And if this crowd doesn’t get what it wants from its government – they will elect one that will give them what they want.
Keeping active and mentally alert is a part of getting older but there are only so many books you can read and most of the stuff on television is hardly worth the time.
Third Age Learning, Burlington (3ALB) is a new community organization dedicated to offering lecture series to the 55+ community. The inaugural series, An Introduction to Third Age Learning, begins Jan 19, 2012.
 Keeping mentally alert once you're into retirement and away from a job isn't always easy and television isn't going to cut it. A lecture series designed for seniors might be just the ticket for you. We increasingly live in a sound-bite world. The Third Age Learning model, however, offers the opportunity to delve into a topic in breadth and depth. Once the program is underway there will be as many as 8 expert speakers presenting differing perspectives on a single subject. Series 1 is an introduction. Going forward, each series will focus on a single theme.
Registrations for Series 1 is going well, although there are still have a few seats available. 3ALB is a registered non-profit, entirely run by volunteers who are seniors. Third Age Learning, Burlington – 3ALB – is the newest Canadian member of the Third Age Learning movement established in France in 1973. The movement rapidly spread throughout Europe and arrived in Canada, in Sherbrooke PQ, in the late 1970’s.
The audience 3ALB proposes to serve is the 55+ community. Multiple research studies indicate that for this community, preventing cognitive decline is perhaps the best strategy for aging well.
Each presentation series consists of 8 lectures offered over a period of 8 weeks. We plan our inaugural series to run from Thursday January 19 to Thursday March 8, 2012. When the project is fully implemented we anticipate offering two Fall and two Winter series, for a yearly total of 32 lectures.
Each weekly meeting consists of: An information-rich, entertaining, 45-minute presentation delivered by a subject matter expert – a respected economist, for example, or a working actor, a heritage gardener, or a professional historian – typically accompanied by PowerPoint slides or some other visual augmentation
A 15-minute break for coffee, chat, and the opportunity to write a question for the presenter that they hope will result in a lively, often provocative, and always informative Q&A session
Participants should leave with enough information and contacts to follow up on their own, or with friends and family, if they find themselves fascinated by a brand new interest. There are Three Age Learning groups in Guelph, Kitchener that have, for more than twenty years, consistently delivered sold out series to audiences of upwards of 200 members.
Registration fee is $40. For each 8 lecture series – five bucks apiece, less than a cup of coffee and a newspaper.
For registration and more information click here.
For more detail on the program click here.
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON November 21, 2011 – When someone appears before Council to speak to an issue they are given five minutes to make their point. Jane Irwin, retired book store owner and a one time member of the Heritage Committee told council way back in April, she was there to scotch some rumours and false information about the Heritage Property Registry .
“Watching the recent streamed Community Development Committee meeting,” said Irwin, “I seemed to hear certain misstatements of fact about the Heritage Property Registry – – which I had heard before, and which I hope to set right tonight.
I want to speak to you before your Workshop because untruthful rumors, whatever their sources, can be very difficult to correct, especially if they circulate unchallenged.
 This is a Burlington home on Walkers line that is on the housing inventory and has been given a grade which tells something about the house. That's all the grade does. There is much confusion about the inventory grades and what they mean. Councillors hear a lot from spokesmen claiming to represent about 1/5 of owners of properties on the heritage register. Spokesmen, she added are “not sworn to speak the truth to Council” Luther Holton, Ms Irwin advised, “speaks very well for himself and his mother and needs no spokesman”.
I’d like to scotch 4 of them” said Irwin.
1: Registry was not produced by the Heritage Committee, but by Burlington’s Planning staff, initially professional Planner Marilyn Lagzdins. The Director of Planning at the time was Gary Goodman.
2: Inventory was never produced by summer students. That statement is completely and utterly false. It implies that irresponsible students with no experience, no mature judgment for the job put homes on a list. Not true.
3: There is the belief that the Grades A B C D that were assigned to homes were subjective or impressionistic. Nothing could be further from the truth. The grade assignment criteria were the result of objective evaluations based on meticulously responsible criteria. There were 20 criteria in 5 different categories with a ceiling that could be given in each category. A grade of C represented “ordinary” standard and a grade of D was given to properties for which there was no information. We made an annual presentation of the revised Inventory to Council every year from 1992 until 2001
One of the references used for the development of the criteria was Harold Kalman’s The Evaluation of Historic Buildings and the 1970 Canadian Inventory of Historic Buildings Parks Canada. Click on the link to learn what grades A,B,C and D mean.
The Council Committee meeting was told that the Burlington Historical Society has data on some 80 First Class buildings in the city that are more than 100 years old and there are almost 30 Century Farms in Burlington — living history. Irwin also pointed out that in 1992 the Lakehurst Villa, the La Salle Pavilion and Shore Acres (now Paletta) Mansion were not on the Inventory.
4: There is the hint that Heritage Committee members were unpaid volunteers, amateurs or worse, dilettantes. Heritage Committee members in my experience were lawyers, architects, designers / builders, engineers and planners. People whose ancestors came to Burlington more than 200 years ago.
 A Burlington farm house - thought to be of historical significance and given a grade on the inventory the city keeps of such properties. To describe the people who sat on that committee the way they have been described is a dis-courtesy to the members of your other volunteer advisory committees
Irwin added that: “Professionals working in Toronto for the Government of Ontario, including one whose responsibility it was to revise the Ontario legislation that has been the most troublesome to property owners, and which has gravely disrespected their right do what they like with their own properties”.
Council got its first primer on what the issues were behind the squabbles over buildings that are on a Heritage Registry. Mayor Goldring was so impressed with her performance that he asked Ms Irwin if she would take part in the workshop session planned to fully brief Council members before a second workshop session takes place with the owners of the homes that are on the Registry. She didn’t take him up on the offer.
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON November 14, 20111 Have you ever had one of those days where you were probably better off just staying in bed? That was sort of the situation with the unveiling of the “orchids” that were set up on Upper Middle Road immediately to the west of the railway underpass west of Appleby, which is a part of Burlington that is coming together quite nicely with all kinds of construction on Appleby Line.
There was to be a formal setting up of three large metal orchards which were part of a “public art” program. These three orchards had a price tag of just over $100,000. But that wasn’t the funny part.
 Orchids being `planted`on Upper Middle Road west of Appleby Line. They were originally to go up on November 9, but that date got pushed back to the 14th – Media were told there were some “transportation” issues. These things happens. The event was to take place at 1:00 pm and a collection of city councillors and staff were on hand to have their pictures taken with these three six-metre tall bronze and stainless steel sculptured orchids. Interesting bit of art and a lot more understandable than whatever it is they call it outside the Burlington Art Centre.
 Councillor Sharman, with wrench in hand looks at the bolt holes - which weren`t quite large enough for the bolts. Ooops! On November 14th, the “orchids” were carefully taken off the trucks that were transporting them. The city had placed concrete pads in the ground with sturdy bolds that would keep the pieces upright and in place. We were told later that the bolts were 25 mm wide and that there were eight of the things for each orchid. It all looked pretty solid – however, when it came time to set the orchids on their bases – guess what? The holes in the base of the orchid that the bolts were to go through was only 20 mm wide. Ooops!
Someone had to get a drill real fast and make those hole bigger – easier said than done. The plates at the base of the orchids were more than an inch of steel thick. This was not going to be easy. But whoever was doing the actual work got it done – not all of it – but enough for the pictures to be taken and the first of the orchids went up and the photo-op types went back to their offices.
The three six-metre tall bronze and stainless steel orchids, painted in bright colours are installed near the underpass on Upper Middle Road. One can understand the intention, but the orchids are just a little difficult to appreciate by people driving their cars and there isn’t much in the way of pedestrian traffic in that part of town. A driver is on a road that dips down to go under the rail line and there really isn’t time to look up and appreciate the public art.
The intention was good – the placement of the art – not so good. Getting the art from Cork Ireland, where they were made, was almost as awkward as installing the art on Upper Middle Road.
Art and a community is never easy. There are still people in Toronto who don’t like the Moore sculptures in their city hall square. Art is very personal – it soothes or challenges your sense of taste – and is often confrontational and challenging; that’s what art is supposed to do.
Burlington engaged a company in London Ontario to handle the selection of an artist, thus getting the decision out of local hands, where there would have been all kinds of pressure for someone local. That was a good move and some informed, sophisticated people were involved in that process which went very well.
Burlington did all the right things with this project. They went international when looking for artists, and when the jury selected someone from Ireland, there was the expected noise from local people about not giving our own people a chance. Our own people do quite well internationally, thank you.
The work, done by Alex Pentek of Cork Ireland who won the competition over 50 other entrants, was more than a year in the making.
In 2010, artists from across Canada and other countries submitted Expressions of Interest to design public art to complement the Upper Middle Road median between Appleby and Walker’s lines.
Proposals were reviewed by an independent public art jury — which included practicing arts professionals and representatives from the local community. The city allocated $100,000, plus consulting fees, for the city’s first public art project meant to complement the Upper Middle Road grade separation — a $15.4 million project completed earlier this year.
 This design was shortlisted in an international competition for a landmark public sculpture overlooking Kangaroo Point, Brisbane, Australia. While not selected, this idea gained an underground following with its own anonymous web site: www.roozilla.com The Expression of Interest, or the call to artists, was advertised in several forums, including: the Community Planners, Inc.’s and City of Burlington’s websites; an e-mail sent by the Burlington Art Centre to all of its members; paid advertisements in Akimbo, a professional artists website, and the Burlington Post; requests to other Burlington arts organizations and Oakville’s and Mississauga’s arts councils to notify artists; as well as word of mouth.
One can understand why the jury looking into the work of the 50 artists that sent in submission to the Expression of Interest were excited when they saw the work of Alex Pentek. The artist has an international following and has done some hugely imaginative work that is quite exciting. Burlington just might become one of the few places in the world that has a “Pentek” .
The city budgeted $100,000 for the public artwork — which included the artist’s travel and accommodation in Burlington — is part of the $15.8-million project budget for the construction of the Upper Middle Road underpass. The commissioning of public art for Upper Middle Road is part of the city’s Public Art Master Plan of which the rather smart looking bicycle racks scattered throughout the city are also a part. Mostly local people did that work.
Beating out nearly 50 artists in Canada and internationally in a city-run art contest, the Cork, Ireland resident says he came across the project on the professional artist website Akimbo while in the process for looking for work internationally.
Pentek has been making large-scale and site-specific sculptures for 15 years and his works have ranged from a six-metre tall illuminated sculpture of a dandelion made from bronze and fibre optic cable to a 12-ton steel hedgehog — Orchids is his first Canadian-featured piece.
Once the pieces were completed and ready (earlier in October), they were transported in shipping crates from Cork to Antwerp in Belgium and then to Halifax, N.S. From there, they were sent to Brampton by train and eventually Burlington by truck, arriving last Friday (Nov. 11). Needing a day to inspect the pieces, Pentek oversaw the final installation of the three orchids..
When asked what he thought of Burlington, Pentek said he was happy to see a level of art appreciation in the community. “Coming from the outside, I see a very interesting community keen on preserving cultural heritage and encouraging the arts,” he said.
When news of the orchid sculptures was first released by the city last year and its selection of an international artist, several residents sent letters and comments to the Post explaining their frustration over the city not featuring a local artist for the project.
But Riley says residents have it all wrong. “I like the piece for its concept and its historical and geographical significance,” said Riley. “It goes beyond the mundane and it’s an excellent piece for Burlington.”
“It’s important to not only have local artists featured in our city, but we need to bring international artists here too,” he explained. “Not only will it diversify our culture, but it will also encourage our artists to go outside of our area and be recognized internationally — this is a key point our community doesn’t understand. It’s important for our artists to expand.”
Andrea Halwa, vice-president and cultural manager of the London, Ont.-based firm Community Planners Inc., was hired by the city to plan and implement the underpass art project as well as oversee the artist selection process. She has been the executive director for the London Arts Council for more than eight years, overseeing the administration of London’s community arts investments and public art programs.
 The Photo Op - Artist Alex Pentek on the left, displays a portion of the Orchid to Councillors Sharman and Lancaster She lists her extensive arts experience to include being “a professional member” of Americans for Arts and its National Public Art Network, as well as a loose knit group of public art managers across Canada. Halwa also has a teaching position within the arts management program at the University of Western Ontario.
It was this experience, Halwa says, that drew the interest of the Burlington-based Carrie Brooks-Joiner and Associates to contact her to act as an associate for developing the Burlington Public Arts Master Plan — and eventually why the city selected her to oversee the jury and artist selection process.
The jury consisted of Wayne Moore and Deborah Pearce, Ward 6 resident Scott Arbuckle and Brian Meehan, executive director and chief curator of Museum London in London, Ont.
When asked how the process worked, Director of Burlington Parks and Recreation, Chris Glenn, explained that “in this case Community Planners Inc., would have been charged with the selection process, which would have used a level of consultation from our staff, a member who was connected (to the project) at that time… they have since moved on,” Glenn said. “They would have had a dialogue with respect to number and type of person/artist that we would need with a certain skill set to align with the type of work in mind and… a bit of knowledge base of Burlington. They would then start to go through a process, to find some people and ask them to volunteer on the jury… in this case we were looking for someone with experience in bigger structures.”
We have cribbed extensively from the Burlington Post for this piece and want to include portions of an editorial they ran.
There was a lot of noise about the delays and the process that was used to select the artist – that’s all part of what a community is. Not possible to keep everyone happy. One of the local media certainly wasn’t happy with the choice of artist and let their provincialism show when in an editorial they said:
Surely we had a skilled sculptor living in Burlington who could have produced something as equally spectacular. If no one in Burlington was capable of taking up the challenge are we to believe that Canada does not have an artist talented enough to spearhead a special creation? But, no, our tax money was spent outside of the country.
Heck, we apparently don’t even have the expertise to set the art selection process in motion. That $20,000 job went to a London, Ont. company.
We know that art has no geographic boundaries. However, the city could have stressed the artwork must be made in Canada. What’s wrong with that?
Well just what is wrong with that? It is a very provincial outlook and not what the art world is all about. A number of Burlington artists are recognized world-wide and Burlington has, with the installation of the orchids recognized a world class artist.
Halwa made an important point when she said of the kerfuffle in local media: “It’s interesting, we have a very good working relationship with the media and our process for these types of programs is really transparent; I really hope that Burlington has adopted the approach for other public art projects as every project is going to have an artist that feels it should have been “his” project or “her” project or they could have done a better job, etc. The process we use has the jury making the decision and the jury is a mix of community folks, artists, arts administrators, etc. so it is not a process that can really be tampered with. Alas, ‘can’t win ’em all’ really applies here.”
The public got to here from the artist when Pentek spoke at the Burlington Art Centre about his work where he explained the importance of having public art that is unique and meaningful to Burlington during a recent meet-and-greet at the city’s art centre last Sunday.
“With a practice focused on making large-scale commissioned work over the past 15 years, as well as temporary gallery-based work, I’m very excited to work on a project that can create a sense of community through a legacy of shared experience,” Pentek said in an interview at the Burlington Art Centre, where he presented his design of three six-metre tall bronze and stainless steel orchid sculptures.
During his presentation to a room of nearly 20 people, the Irish artist did admit coming up with a design for the project had challenged him a bit.
 Pentek, the winner of the Burlington public art competition has always focused on outdoor work. An example of one of his pieces is shown above. “For one I couldn’t get great images of the site and number two, I have to admit, the site really didn’t inspire me,” he said. “The infrastructure was fully functional, but something had to go in here to lift it up.”
That’s why Pentek says he decided to go for a more colourful and realistic look to his orchids as opposed to a more metallic design.
“It would have been easier to work in monochrome, single-tone structures, but I felt that given where it’s going and the concrete around, the pieces needed to lift the area with vibrant colours,” he said.
The design for Pentek’s Orchids was loosely based on his previous successful work on the illuminated dandelion he did in Cork, he says, which used bronze and fibre optic cables.
Pentek researched various orchids from Burlington’s horticultural history and during a 2010-trip to Burlington, Pentek met with a Royal Botanical Gardens team to view pressed and refrigerated samples of flowers, as well as meet artist Georgian Guenther to view her smaller representations of orchids.
He finally settled on three orchids that were once native to Burlington, including the Cypripedium acaule, commonly known as Pink Lady’s Slipper, Arethusa bulbosa (Dragon’s Mouth), and Triphora trianthophora (Three Birds).
“It has been my aim to create this site specific work by celebrating the rich natural heritage of the local area through the diversity and delicacy of these wild orchids whose stillness and organic forms will visually complement the surrounding rail and road traffic infrastructure in an uplifting and light-hearted way,” Pentek said.
 Civic officials and politicians gather around the $100,000 piece of public art. Can you name all of the usual suspects. The artist in the center holds the large wrench used to tighten the nuts on the bolts once the holes for the bolts were enlarged. Totaling six pieces, the orchid structures are made up of three bronze stems sealed with beeswax and three bulbs/flower tops.
Although the pieces are weather protected, Pentek says the stems may have to be touched up every year or so. The flower tops are painted with urethane paint, a strong, robust outdoor paint — which have been supplied to the city by the artist for any future touch-ups — and covered with a polyurea protective coating that Pentek says should withhold Canadian winters.
“I did not want to have them lacquered (a clear or coloured varnish) because if there was the slightest bit of movement, the paint on the pieces would crack,” he explained.
Pentek went on to assure his audience that the fibre optic and low-cost, low-maintenance LED lighting worked into the construction of the orchids will be more a subtle accent to the surrounding street lighting at night, rather than a distraction to drivers.
“It won’t be strong enough to illuminate the street on its own,” he said. “As you’re walking you’ll clearly see them lit, but you won’t be dazzled by them when driving.”
Pentek has been practicing as a full time artist both nationally and internationally since he graduated from the Crawford College of Art & Design, Cork, Ireland in 1996. He has focused on creating large scale site specific work, and has also made temporary gallery based works in paper and sound performances.
 Public art can be astonishingly attractive. This piece, done by Pentek is an example of his work. Burlington`s Orchids, will in time become part of the local scene. “I like to stay abreast of current scientific and mathematical theories, and elements of these inform my working practice on a practical and philosophical level. The study of light through Holography is an area of particular interest to me where information about the ‘whole’ is contained within each smaller ’part’ encoded by laser light interference patterns. I am also interested in the question of the emergence of life in Earth‘s early oceans, where complex systems achieved order not through top down commands but through a bottom up grass roots level of interaction. (Similar ‘passive dynamic’ systems can also be found working in today’s communities in the natural world, from ant colonies to the formation of modern cities). I enjoy exploring these holistic and interactive ideas, which are relevant to the relationship between ‘self’ and the surrounding ‘community’ and World in which we live.
“While the ideas behind each work vary greatly, the work is interpreted just as differently and validly by all who experience it. It is my aim to create openly challenging and engaging work that not only explores different themes and ideas but that also communicates on a more primary visual level.”
The key word there is “challenging”; that is what art is all about. Artists bring what is possible to us; they force us to look at things differently and while that may make us a bit uncomfortable it also enriches the mind and the spirit.
 Not all of Pentek`s work is displayed outdoors. This paper mobile has an evocative look and feel to it. “As I mainly make large scale permanent work, the processes behind realizing any project are an important part of the work. Using my own set of skills as an artist where possible (such as drawing and sculpting / casting in various materials); I enjoy the challenge of working to a large scale by drawing on the skills and expertise of architects, engineers and fabricators to realize a project. Also, often introducing an idea to the local community through public consultation, communication and people skills become important to the success of a project as well as expertise in the finished material of the work itself.”
Our Mayor, in his press release said: “Burlington is an innovative and progressive community, built upon a strong sense of community pride. Public art projects like Orchids help give shape to that pride. We’re excited to see such an impressive art project come to life.”
The public chatter overt the Orchids just might move The Pier off the front pages for the Pier will eventually get built band it will be loved by all – but those orchids will stick in the craw of many for a long time. Fortunately the artist lives in Ireland and he won’t have to put up with all the noise. The Mayor makes an important point when he says public art helps give shape to who we are – it also draws out comment that – well perhaps the words were better left unsaid.
Are the Orchids good art? That’s for you to decide. They just might grow on you.
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON November 13, 2011 For former Governor General Adrianne Clarkson there was no such thing as a short answer and if you were into great detail from an informed and knowledgeable speaker who was there right on the front lines, then you would have enjoyed the talk given by Clarkson at the Royal Botanical Gardens last Sunday afternoon. Some 150 people were on hand to hear what she had to say about the ten people she wrote of in her most recent publication, Room for all of us, which is the story of ten people who immigrated to Canada and the contribution those ten have made to the welfare of the country.
Clarkson argues that we are a richer and at the same time more complex country because of our approach to immigration, which, she pointed out is, significantly different than that of other countries. In Canada` she explained `we expect the people who arrive as landed immigrant to become citizens and some 80% of them do, which is the highest percentage in the world. The Australians percentage is about 75% while in the United States around 55% of those who arrive as immigrants eventually become citizens.
In Europe, added Clarkson, landed immigrants cannot become citizens. They are in a country as workers and when they are no longer needed they are forced to return to the country of origin. Clarkson told of a housekeeper she had in Paris where she served as Agent General for Ontario. The woman had been in France for more than 30 years but could have been told to leave the country with just 24 hours’ notice.
The former host of CBC programs the Fifth Estate and Take 30 certainly knew her subject and she entertained her audience for well over an hour before she sat to autograph copies of her book.
 Burlingtonians line up to have their books autographed by former Governor General Adrianne Clarkson. Clarkson, whose family immigrated to Canada from Hong Kong and settled in Ottawa knew what it was to be an immigrant and told her audience of the less than honourable past of Canada`s immigration policy `We were no better than many of the others when we interned our Japanese citizens during the Second World War or turned back a ship loaded with Jews during that time as well.
 Clarkson at RBG book signing where she spoke of her immigrant experience and the contribution immigrants make to Canadian society. Canada has changed significantly since that time and the waves of recent immigrants included men who did not want to serve in the Vietnam War and the thousands of Vietnamese Boat people who came to this country. Tamils have come to this country as well, and each time a wave of immigrants arrives this county accepts them and they integrate and become a part of who we are today. Clarkson believes we are a stronger and better country because of our immigration policies.
It was the story of these people that Clarkson wanted to tell. Of the ten people in the book she knew five personally and two others were friends. Ì had to find the other three ‘explained Clarkson.
Clarkson passed on an interesting fact that few probably realized about the Boat People. The federal government at the time agreed to admit 25,000 people and local church groups clamored to be able to bring in more. The government agreed and said that if Canadians were prepared to sponsor more and put up $2500. per person then more could be admitted – and Canada eventually brought in 150, 000 boat people who quickly became part of the Canadian fabric.
Her audience learned more about what immigrants have done to and for Canada than most knew when they walked into the room. In the very early 1900`s we brought in 20,000 new people and we know bring in 300,000 every year and they all eventually fit into the country and add to what we are.
 Former Governor General Adrianne Clarkson spoke about her book at an RBG event on the weekend. The Canada we are today explained Clarkson is much, much different than the Canada she came to in 1942. Clarkson is the first immigrant and refugee to become Governor General of this country. We have indeed come along way and after listening to Clarkson one can begin to realize, understand and appreciate the contribution immigrants have made to our country.
Upon leaving the Office of Governor General Clarkson, along with her husband formed the Institute for Canadian Citizenship that engages Canadians in citizenship through innovative programs, campaigns and partnerships designed to ensure new citizens are welcomed and included as equals, to create meaningful connections among all Canadian citizens, to foster a culture of active, engaged citizens and to celebrate what it means to be Canadian.
And that is exactly what Adrianne Clarkson was doing on a Saturday afternoon in Burlington at an event sponsored by A Different Drummer, a Burlington bookstore.
 By Staff
BURLINGTON, ON November 12, 2011
Going out on a high note is the best way to leave the stage – which is what Mayor Goldring is doing with his Inspire series when, Andre Picard, Health reporter and columnist for the Globe and Mail will be the featured speaker at the last of the 2011 series the Mayor instituted during his first year in office.
Attendance has been good and it will grow as people get used the idea of speakers coming to Burlington with new ideas that stimulate and offer new and different perspectives and begin to recognize the quality of the speakers the Mayor is bringing to the city.
The series started with Christopher Hume, Architectural reporter and columnist for the Toronto Star who told his audience that McMaster University`s behavior in the way they handled building of their Burlington campus on the South Service Rd., was a moral outrage. There was no doubt in his mind where he stood on all this.
 Gil Penalosa was the second featured speaker in the Mayor's Inspired series. That was followed by Gil Penalosa, a passionate advocate for improving quality of life through the promotion of walking and bicycling, and of parks, trails and other public spaces as great places which foster vibrant cities with healthier communities and happier residents.
Penalosa earned a Master in Business Administration (MBA) from UCLA’s Management School. Following years of private and public sector senior managerial experience, the Mayor of Bogotá, Colombia (pop. 7 m), appointed him Commissioner of Parks, Sport and Recreation for the city.
Penalosa led his team to design and build over 200 parks, of which the best known is the Simón Bolívar (360 hectares). They were also successful in opening 91 kilometres of car-free city roads on Sundays, the Ciclovia, where over 1.3 m. people come out weekly to walk, run, skate and bike. They also created the Summer Festival, with over 100 events in 10 days and more than 3 million people attending and since the first year has become the main recreational event in the country.
 Tom Rand, author of Kick was the third speaker in the Inspire series. He advocated ways to reduce our carbon footprint. Penalosa was followed by Kick author Tom Rand, a successful software entrepreneur who survived the dot com bubble in 2000. Rand now focuses his efforts on carbon mitigation and is active in Cleantech venture capital, technology incubation and commercialization plus public advocacy. Rand is the Cleantech Practice, Lead Advisor at the MaRS Discovery District in Toronto and sits on the board of a number of clean energy companies and organizations, including Morgan Solar.
One speaker was on the platform the night of an NHL playoff game – but the crowd was still good – in the 150 + range.
The series have in the past been held at the Ron Joyce Centre of the McMaster DeGroote School of Business on the South Service Road. The Mayor has decided to keep the business in the family and this last event for the 2011 series will take place in the Community Theatre of the Burlington Performing Arts Centre. The event starts at 7 pm – the Mayor`s office likes to get a handle on possible attendance – the room holds just over 200 people.
Now – the speaker – Andre Picard.
Picard is the Globe and Mail’s public health reporter and columnist who was recently named the Conference Board of Canada’s CIBC scholar-in-residence.
The program has funded scholars since 2005, enabling them to carry out research on issues that resonate throughout Canada. Picard’s research topic is The Path to Health Care Reform: Policy and Politics.
“He’s the top health journalist in the country,” said Anne Golden, president and CEO of the Conference Board of Canada. “He’s able to cover both the policy issues and the politics because he’s been so engaged on the whole range of issues around all our health-care systems.”
The College of Family Physicians of Canada named Picard a recipient of its 2011 CFPC/Scotiabank Family Medicine Lectureship Award.
Mr. Picard has been recognized for years as one of the country’s top public policy writers. His books, Critical Care: Canadian Nurses Speak for Change and The Gift of Death: Confronting Canada’s Tainted-Blood Tragedy, were best-sellers.
Among Mr. Picard’s previous awards are the Michener Award for Meritorious Public Service Journalism, the Canadian Policy Research Award, the Atkinson fellowship for public policy research and the Centennial Prize of the Pan American Organization. He was named Canada’s first Public Health Hero by the Canadian Public Health Association and was honoured as a champion of mental health. He is a four-time finalist for the National Newspaper Awards.
Picard said being named the CIBC scholar-in-residence at the Conference Board will give him new opportunities and called it “a nice challenge.” “This one allows me to do some journalism – some long-form journalism,” he said. “It allows you to do the work that you usually do but in a different way and more in-depth.”
In a recent column Picard had this to say:
 Andre Picard, Globe and Mail columnist and perhaps the most prominent speaker the Mayor has brought to Burlington. His views on our health system may include some comments on the Joseph Brant Memorial Hospital. He will be a very direct speaker. One of the fundamental structural problems in Canada’s health system is the lack of a clearly identified front door.
Put another way, there is no place where patients can routinely go to access the care they need promptly and efficiently and that tracks them throughout the health-care “journey.”
Traditionally, we have depended on family physicians to serve as that home base. Almost 30 million Canadians have a family doctor, but roughly four million others have none. Still, even for those with a regular caregiver, prompt appointments are hard to come by and same-day access – the gold standard – is a rarity.
So the de facto entry point into the system all too often becomes the emergency room (where patching and dispatching, and long waits, are the norm) or walk-in clinics (tremendous money-wasters that specialize in passing the buck back to ERs or family doctors).
Using these inappropriate points of access is the equivalent of entering your home by clambering up the fire escape or crawling in through a basement window, only to find that the door into the main floor is locked and you have to start over again.
It’s a terribly inefficient and expensive way to deliver health care. Among other things, when there is no front door, there is no real gatekeeper and, with the proliferation of ever-more-expensive drugs and technologies, the gatekeeper function has become more essential than ever.
Worse yet, regardless of what door patients use to enter the health system, there is little continuity in their care.
One of the principal reasons for this disjointedness is the lack of electronic health records. If someone has a heart attack and ends up in the ER, or is prescribed antibiotics at a walk-in clinic, or gets to see a specialist, his or her family doctor is unlikely to know.
This situation is not new.
 The Inspire Series is one of the best things the Mayor has done for the city. It ranks right up there with his decision to tough it out and continue with the building of The Pier. Primary health reform has been talked about for decades. In fact, with the publication of the Lalonde report, a ground-breaking document prepared by health minister Marc Lalonde in 1974, Canada became a world leader in the concept of primary care (but sadly not in the practice.) Every one of the dozens of health commissions since has dedicated a good chunk of its recommendations to the need for primary-care reform.
In the 2004 Health Accord, the provinces received $800-million to bolster primary care, but it was overshadowed by the politically motivated focus on reducing surgical wait times, where billions were invested to produce modest results.
The good news is that there has been a lot of progress of late on the notion that every Canadian should have a clearly identifiable primary-care provider for preventive care, sickness care, and some quarterbacking and follow-up when a patient needs acute care.
In the 21st century, this kind of care can’t be provided by a single physician à la Marcus Welby.
Today’s patients require episodic care occasionally, but mostly they need chronic care. Consider that 81 per cent of people over the age of 65 have at least one chronic health condition such as heart disease, diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, etc. For the most part, they need a team to provide health care, not a single physician.
Thankfully, in recent years, there has been a significant shift to providing primary care using interdisciplinary teams. Alberta has Primary Care Networks; Ontario has Family Health Teams; Quebec has Family Medicine Groups and; most other provinces have variations on these names with similar philosophies.
We shouldn’t forget either that excellent primary care has been offered for decades by CLSCs (community health clinics) in Quebec and Community Health Centres in Ontario, but these pioneering initiatives have always been chronically underfunded.
But the process needs to be accelerated and valued. And, practically, that means shifting resources from acute-care hospitals to community-based primary-care practice.
 Picard is a prolific writer who works from his home in Montreal as the Globe and Mails Health columnist. He has been given some very significant awards for his work. The notion of creating a clear front door into the health system got a significant boost recently in a report from the College of Family Physicians of Canada, which represents the country’s 35,000 family doctors. (Canada has another 34,000 physicians in specialties other than family medicine.)
The CFPC calls for a model that has as its foundation a concept called the “Patient’s Medical Home.” The PMH is described as a family practice that serves as the “central hub for timely provision and co-ordination of a comprehensive menu of health and medical services patients need.”
The PMH is, naturally enough, centered around the family doctor (after all that’s who the CFPC represents), but, to its credit, the group fully embraces the need for interdisciplinary care, the belief that a patient requires a team or network of caregivers, including nurses, pharmacists, physician assistants, and other health professionals, located in the same physical site or linked virtually from different practice sites throughout the community.
The report also makes some key points that are not emphasized nearly enough in our continuing discussions about health-care reform. To wit:
The foundation of good healthcare is good relationships between providers and patients, and among providers;
Timely access to both prevention and treatment is an essential component of good health care, and Canada’s waits are among the worst in the world;
Patients themselves need to be active participants in their care. They need to take responsibility, not just be passive recipients of care;
Continuity of care has to be a priority because it is in the transitions – from the family doctor to the specialist, from the ER to the ward, from hospital to home, etc. – where all the bad things happen.
In Canada, we have a terribly knee-jerk reflex when responding to problems: We throw more money and bodies into doing more of the same, no matter how inefficient.
With primary care, the opportunity for reform lies in actually doing things differently and ensuring that patients have access to the right care, at the right time, from the right professional.
That can’t even begin to happen if there is no front door, no medical home for them to call their own.
Burlington is in for a treat. The Community Room at the Performing Arts Centre has seating for just over 200 people – this could be a SOLD OUT event, which by the way is free.
 Wearable Art event a success at Burlington Art Centre. By Staff
After a very successful Wearable Art event the Burlington Art Centre now moves into its Christmas Season and will begin with the always popular Soup Bowl event and the annual Christmas Sale.
Wearable art attendance held up – basically the same as last year according to Sandra Baker Director Marketing and Development for the BAC, and artists were generally pleased with their individual sales. It was certainly a colourful event.
The Soup Bowl, an always very popular event – so much so that the Thursday and Friday, 17th and 18th noon events, are SOLD OUT – and when we make that statement said Baker – we mean it. Those days are sold out.
 The selection was excellent and the buyers were curious - and sales were good. Saturday and Sunday still has some room – but move quickly if you want to participate in this event where you choose a fabulous handcrafted bowl, fill it with a choice of gourmet soups made by local restaurants. Add delicious salad, a roll, coffee and dessert for a great meal! The bowl you choose is yours to keep! All sittings have a cash bar. $35 BAC Members; $40 non-members; Reserved Table of 8: $275; Tickets and information: at the BAC; online: theBAC.ca/soup or 905-632-7796, ext 326 Remember – just Saturday and Sunday are open.
The Annual Christmas Sale event will have 95 artisans taking part this year. The event runs from
November 17, 11 am – 3 pm;
November 18, 11 am – 9 pm;
November 19 and 20, 11 am – 4 pm
Free admission and parking.
.
 By Staff
 Veteran watches Dutch Highlanders remember at city hall cenotaph. BURLINGTON, ON November 9, 2011 As the city gets ready to celebrate Remembrance Day it hosted the Dutch Highlanders who performed a remembrance service at the cenotaph and performed a short military music program in the plaza outside city hall and hoisted the colours for Burlington’s sister city, Apeldoorn, on the flag staffs..
The Dutch Highlanders are from Apeldoorn, Burlington’s partner city in Holland. That city was liberated from the German army during the Second World War by the Royal Canadian Regiment. The liberation of Apeldoorn was that Regiment’s final Second World War battle honour. The 48th Highlanders were part of that battle.
The Dutch Highlanders were on tour in Canada where they performed in Toronto and ended their visit to Canada in Burlington.
The Dutch Band was founded in The Netherlands, in 1991, as a “living memorial” honouring the liberation of the Dutch city Apeldoorn and its surroundings by Canadian forces in April 1945 in which the leading role was played by the 48th Highlanders of Canada. This was a liberation in which so many young Canadians lost their lives. The Dutch Band has dedicated itself to honouring the memory of all soldiers who perished in the struggle to rid Europe of the Nazi regime between 1939 and 1945. Their motto is “We do remember”.
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON November 8, 2011 – Repairing the roads is important; developing a Strategic Plan and coming out with a budget that provides the services needed at a tax rate residents can live with is all part of what makes a city “work” – but it is the arts that give a city its colour, vivaciousness and puts a beat in its heart.
 Getting your art on the walls of the Office of the Mayor is impressive; does it count if you're married to him? That art comes from the people that live in the city; the people who take the pictures that are posted on web site; that put brush to canvas and paper to produce the paintings that get sold at silent auctions. These are the people who came up with the designs for the bicycle racks that dot the downtown streets. Art extends into the 26 dance studios in this city, the student theatre and the bands that play in the clubs downtown or the jazz sessions at the Lowville Bistro. Burlington has grown culturally to the point where it now has a Performing Arts Centre along with an Arts Centre and a museum in the downtown core.
But behind all the structures there have to be artists who “do art”.
 Chickadees have always been an attraction for Cheryl Goldring who uses watercolour frequently. One of the more public art viewings is the Art in Action event that just completed it’s ninth year and near record public participation. One of the 27 artists that took place in that event was Cheryl Miles Goldring who works with watercolour and acrylic paint. “The acrylics are a little forgiving” explains Goldring, who yes, happens the be the wife of the Mayor but she doesn’t let that get in the way of her life as an artist and an author.
Goldring, who was raised in Quebec and has some of the culture and appreciation for things artistic that are part of the fabric of that province and which the very uptight Ontario types can’t seem to handle, brings a mischievous view to much of what she sees. That ability to see things others often miss is layered into a strong steak of compassion that comes from her work as a nurse where she spent many years in the emergency department. “it’s a tough place to be and the people in those rooms are often in desperate straits and need everything anyone can give them.”
Every artist likes to have their work on a wall somewhere and if there is someone who wants to purchase a piece of art – Goldring is a willing seller. Her art manages to go a little further than most artists because it first graces the walls of the Mayor’s office and is used as a gift to visiting dignitaries.
“I donate the art and the city has it framed and used as a presentation piece given to visitors. My favourite is the chickadees I seem to be able to capture on paper.”
 Simple fence post - forbidding clouds - Goldring Goldring has written two books. “One of my books is in the hands of a publisher and I’m talking to another publisher at the same time” says Goldring. This lady clearly means business and that comes through in the art we see. Some are very strong and direct and others, with the chickadees being the best example, are soft, almost delicate.
Goldring however doesn’t have the fingers of a painter; they are shortish, strong – the kind of fingers you would expect from a potter or perhaps someone who sculpts. The woman is to some degree a collection of contradictions – with eyes that are bright, enquiring and have just that interesting little bit of mischief in them. She works out regularly, stays in shape and slips away to the family cottage as often as she can. No word yet on when we might hear a book publishing announcement – it will be interesting to hear what she has to say.
By Pepper Parr and Pia Simms.
 BURLINGTON, ON November 7, 2011 – The only thing wrong the weekend of the 5th and 6th was that there was barely enough time to take in both the Burlington Art Centre Wearable Arts Sale and the 9th Annual Art in Action studio tour that saw eight different studios around the city opened on two days for visitors. If you hustled around you could just make all nine locations. We hustled.
Each studio had three to four different artists displaying their work. Most had a mix of mediums except for a residence on Ross Street where Dan Jones, Glen Jones and Fred Oliver displayed their photographs. We made our rounds on the Saturday and by mid-afternoon this Studio had logged more than two hundred visits.
 The Studio Teresa Seaton set up shop in had very close to 500 people pass through. "We worked like dogs to make this event happen said Seaton, one of four people that bring Art in Action to Burlington annually. While the art work at each studio was different so was the atmosphere. One studio in Hidden Valley had what amounted to almost a tour guide at the door to greet each visitor and explain what each artist was doing and where they were located on the property which, in this instance, amounted to the house and then a small dwelling in the back yard that served as a studio and a display room. You could hear the sounds of the small but robust stream in the background and at the same time be very aware that you were in the bottom of a small valley with slopes rising, quite steeply on one side and less so on the other.
Perhaps it was the locale or maybe it was the people but the Hidden Valley Studio was the kind of place that had we had two bottles of wine in the car we would have stayed and become part of the party. We had just the one studio left on our tour – and were very glad that we pressed on. At the studio on
 Cheryl Laakes stands proudly before a piece of jewelry she had on display. Her fabric work was particularly good as well. Lemmonville Road we came across George Wilkinson a wood turner who has worked with wood all his life; met with a former Sheridan College Dean of Arts and Cheryl Laake, a lovely fabric artist who turned demurely away from the camera before we took our pictures, to “make sure the girls were all right” as she adjusted her sweater and blouse.
One of the things that happens on these tours is you bump into people whose path you crossed somewhere else along the way and with some you strike up friendships. We watched a young woman of about 25 purchase a painting from an artist and when the artist asked what it was she liked about his work her answer kind of stunned him. He just didn’t see what she saw in the work – which is the magic of the visual arts – the beauty and life is truly in the eyes of the beholder.
We listened to Nebojsa Jovanovic explain his work to a woman who wanted him to do a private commission with the finished work to be a very specific dimension. The artist had that look in his eye that left you wondering – was the client buying something to fill some space on a wall or was she buying art that appealed to her. Whichever, the sale was made.
An artist at one studio looked up in surprise to see a former student walk into the house with her very young daughter in tow. The pleasure shared by all – perhaps not the daughter, she kept glancing cautiously at the artist.
 This work was a favourite, while according to the artist, it is not yet complete, I liked the rabbit just as he was with his grumpy look. Teresa Seaton, co-chair of the Art in Action event and a stained glass artist, explained that the group had learned to keep the number of studios down to less than ten – which allowed people to get to every studio. It was difficult to know what you wanted to take in from the brochure – there was nothing wrong with the document – but you had to be in the houses to get a sense of the artist and both hear and feel the passion they have for their work.
The thinking behind the creation and development of the Art in Action Studio Tour is to bring close to 50% new talent each year so that the public gets to see fresh talent and artists get a good run and then can take some time out to refresh their offerings.
I have been to a number of Art Studio Tours; the one in the Toronto Beach community is touted as being on of the best there is in the GTA – the talent in Burlington was every bit as good and in many cases much better than the work on display in the Beach in Toronto..
The only noticeable difference was that there was more jewelry on display in Burlington, which one artist suggested was a bit of a fad.
 Geore Wilkinson's wife shows some of his work while he stayed in the garage turning his lathe. A number of artists worked in more than one medium. Some was more craft than art and while many might describe the wood that George Wilkinson turns on his lathe as “craft” it made no difference to George what you called it. But as you watched his hands handle the tools he used and looked at his fingers as he ran them over the curve of a piece of wood – you knew you were watching an artist.
Except for the one Studio all were in private homes and while each had to get creative to make the space work – one had black plastic garbage bags over windows to keep the sunlight out, the homes were by far the nicest spots to look at the art work and talk with the artists. The commercial location in the Village Square left one feeling you were just in another store.
 Artist Nebojsa Jovanovic explains his approach to his art to an interested client.. She bought. Most places had coffee or cider and cookies. Some went the full, really nice cheese and crackers route, and at one that we won’t forget had wine for their individual appreciation – and they shared. The Art in Action people deserve great credit for the excellent signage. Visitors were driving to private homes in residential neighbourhoods, to streets they may never have heard of never mind been to before, saw good signs at each intersection pointing the way. The signage was better than it is in elections.
One artist, Peter Schlotthauer, worked with metal and was negotiating a bench the client wanted to have made as a memorial. While he wasn’t able to give an “exact” price, the $800. he mentioned was a darn sight better than the $2,000. the city wants, to put up a memorial bench in one of the parks.
 Don Graves talks about a piece of art bought by a patron. The Art in Action people had near perfect weather for both days, always a bit chancy when you hold your event in early November. “We had absolutely glorious weather” said Teresa Seaton “and the traffic was very good. We got very close to 500 people at our studio”.
We spent the best part of a day touring the eight studios and had the time of our lives. Saw parts of the city we’d not seen before, met some people we hope to meet again, saw and appreciated some art that we would like to acquire for our own collection. Yes, we did see some art that had us both totally bamboozled – we had no idea what the artist was trying to say. It didn’t matter.
Next year will be the 10th annual Art in Action studio tour. We hope the committee that makes this event happen doesn’t decide to do something that is over the top to celebrate ten years of success. The eight studios were just fine – mix up the artists a bit and always bring in fresh talent. But don’t try to make it something it isn’t. A little less jewelry perhaps but my co-writer probably doesn’t agree with me – she is into jewelry.
It’s an event you want to mark down in your calendar – first weekend in November.
One added benefit – we didn’t see one, not a single politician of any political stripe in our tour.
We managed to spend an hour at the Wearable Art Show at the Burlington Art Centre. There was lots of traffic when we were there and it was a good spot to have a sandwich and a sit down – and the parking was free.
By Pepper Parr
 BURLINGTON, ON November 2, 2011
The Art in Action celebrates it’s 9th all day event (10:00 am to 5:00 pm) showing the work of accomplished artisans who have gathered in eight different studios about the city where their work can be viewed and if you’re taken with something, purchased.
Art in Action is an Non Profit organization created to assists artists as entrepreneurs and help them become self-sustaining. The organization does this by encouraging a social community for artists within Burlington and the surrounding area. It provides an opportunity for artists to engage the wider community, as well as to provide exposure for the artists within the community.
 A piece of stained glass done by Teresa Seaton, one of the artists showing on the weekend.  A segmented wooden bowl done by George Wilkinson The organization does this by organizing and promoting a weekend event within the community where participants can showcase their skills and work to the public in their own studio locations. The organization invites artists living and working in the community and surrounding areas to participate in this event for an annual fee.
Art in Action was started nine years ago by Peter Rose who at the time had a Bed&Breakfast on Plains Rd. Peter has since moved to the Maritime’s but his idea held and today there is an organization that serves as a showcase for some very talented artists. Co-chair Teresa Seaton commented that “we work like dogs to get this event and it works for both the community and the artists.
During their busiest year there were 36 artists showing at 12 locations but MS Seaton explains the Board decided to cut that back to never more than ten locations. “There just wasn’t enough time for a person to get to all of the locations – so we are holding at ten each year.
 Eight locations to visit.. All within a very short drive. The event gives you a chance to see the art work and talk to the artists. The location of the studios can be found on the map.
Studio 1 will feature George Wilkinson, Wood Turner, Cheryl Laakes, Fibre Artist, www.cheryllaakes.com, Don Graves, Fine Artist, www.art-in-canada.com/dongraves .
Studio 2 is where you will be able to see the work of: Edward Robin Hoyer, Fine Artist, www.edwardhoyer.com. Heather Moore, Painter , Jeweller, www.dhmoore.ca, Kristina Kirkwood, Sculptor, www.kristinakirkwood.com
Studio 3 will show the work of Helen Griffiths, Fine Artist, www.griffitti.biz. Silvana Terry, Jeweller, mterry1@cogeco.ca, Teresa Seaton, Stained Glass Artist, www.teresaseaton.ca.. Don Dunnington, Photographer, www.elementsdesignstudio.ca
Studio 4 will feature photography done by Dan Jones, Fred Oliver and Glen Jones.
Studio 5 will feature Aubry Denomy, Sculptor, www.adcreations.ca, and Nebojsa Jovanovic, Fine Artist , www.nesaart.com.
Studio 6 will show the works of Peter Schlotthauer , Artist Blacksmith, www.artistryiniron.ca, Kristian Nesbitt, Printmaker, www.kristiannesbitt.com. Sue Gunter, Painter / Jeweller , www.skywavestudios.com
Studio 7 will feature Cheryl Miles Goldring, Watercolourist, 905 632 1903. Dave Lawson, Photographer, www.lawsonphoto.ca. Julie Vanvugt, Jeweller, jvanvugt1@cogeco.ca, Tammy Hext, Fne Artist, www.tammyhext.com,
Studio 8 will have work by Ian Cowling, Photographer – www.iancowlingphotography.com, Leanne Miller, Goldsmith, l.k.miller@hotmail.com. Nancy McLean, Fine Artist, www.nancymcleanstudio.com, and Takanya Marsh, Textile Artist, takanyam@gmail.com.
The weekend weather looks promising, the fall foliage has already delivered. Map out your day and enjoy..
By Staff
 It`s still there –and we`re still losing money on the place. There have been responses to the document the city put out asking for Expressions of Interest on the Paletta Mansion site off Lakeshore Road in the eastern part of the city.
The arrangement the city had for the operation of the site, a location for small conferences and weddings, was less than an ideal situation for the city. On a closer look at the financial reports, the city found that Geraldo’s, at the LaSalle Pavilion, was making a profit but that Paletta was losing money. However, because of the way the financial reports were put out the loss of one operation was buried in the numbers. With those numbers now shown separately, the city realized that something had to be done at Paletta, and that resulted in advertisements asking for expressions of interest on what to do with the place.
 It took time and a lot of money to get the property back to its original sate. It is now one of the most impressive examples of its era - and it's losing money every month. Dating back to 1806 the land was owned by Canadian legend Laura Secord. The British Government in a lottery awarded her the land. Secord later sold the property and may not have even visited the site. It is not clear what the lottery was and if it had any connection with Laura Secord`s heroic trek through woods at Queenstown to warn the British of an impending American plan to attack at Beaver Dam. With the warning the British were able to repel the attack. Laura Secord never actually did anything with the property, she may never have even visited the site.
Between the years of 1810 through 1912 the land changed hands many times until in 1912 two men bought it by the names of Cyrus Albert Birge and William Delos Flatt. Birge was a renowned industrialist, who played a large role in the industrial development of Hamilton as it moved to becoming a major North American steel producing city. Birge’s company, Canadian Screw Company, was one of the five merged in 1910 to form steel giant Stelco.
Cyrus had a daughter named Edythe Merriam Birge. It was Edythe that built the house somewhere between 1929 and 1931, after her father had passed on. That would have been in the middle of the Depression when all kinds of labour would have been available and building supplies on the market at very advantageous process. This suggests there was a very sizable Birge estate.
 It was Paletta family money that made it possible for the city to purchase the property and renovate it to its original state. Edythe married a man by the name of James John MacKay and together they had a daughter who they named Dorothy. James died in 1959 and not to long after in 1960 Edythe also passed on leaving the house and the grounds to their daughter Dorothy who married a man by the name of John Wallace McNichol. This is why it was known for many years as the McNichol Estate.
Burlington and Hamilton had a strong connection dating back to the early 1900’s, when Burlington was the summer destination for many affluent citizens of Hamilton. Birge and his friends used the property to hunt on. It wasn`t until Birge`s estate passed into the hands of his daughter that any development was done on the property. The daughter Dorothy made up for lost time by building a sprawling four storey mansion.
The MacKay’s originally used the estate as their summer home. It stands on an exquisite 14 acre lakefront property rightly called “the jewel in the crown” of the Burlington waterfront. . Dorothy passed away in 1987 and her children sold the property to the city 1990.
By that time the property was in a sad state of disrepair and was boarded up.
 There was a time when the mansion had to be boarded up while waiting for renovations to be made to a site that was much in need of repairs. It took a number of years for the city to figure out what they wanted to do with the property – the purchase at the time was to keep it out of the hands of developers. At one point it looked as if the city was going to put together an agreement with the Niagara Institute, which at that time was in the business of offering corporate executive development courses to senior executives. The city wasn`t able to conclude an agreement. With the property deteriorating the city turned to a wealthy benefactor Pat Paletta who wrote what is believed to be a $2 million cheque that paid for the costs of the renovations with the provison that the name Paletta be put on the property.
The city clearly didn`t have the financial smarts the Paletta`s have and is now looking for someone willing to take on the location and make it a paying proposition.
The site is the only truly historic property left in Burlington and owned by the city to which the public has access. The bird watching people maintain that Paletta is one of the best sites in the city.
As nice as it is – no one has yet been able to find a niche for the place. The park has four heritage buildings (the Mansion, the Orientation Centre and Loft, the Art and Environment Study Centre, and the Dollhouse) on the property.
The property’s mansion ranks among the finest representations of great estate homes designed and built in Burlington in the two decades between 1912 and 1932, and was the last of its kind and quality to be built in Burlington.
 The sun room at the rear of the building was in terrible shape - it took significant private money to get the building to where it was in its prime. Renovations were completed in 2000. The 10 acre Discovery Trail features a flood plain that is one of the only natural areas of its kind remaining along the Halton shoreline of Lake Ontario. The wetland area on the park attracts migratory birds because of the protection, cover and food supply provided.
The gatehouse has been magnificently restored as The Art and Environment Study Centre. The centre boasts a welcome centre, a community gallery space and a studio loft. Currently, selected prints of world renowned environmental artist Robert Bateman are on display. The loft, an open concept studio space, provides a classroom venue for an array of program activities.
The property began to get very run down and with no one using it – plywood was placed over the windows and rot began to set in. Restoration on the mansion began in April 2000.
The site features three other buildings: a gatehouse built circa 1912 which has been redesigned to serve as a small art studio and display area; a dollhouse, the only known heritage children’s playhouse in Burlington; and one of the last remaining stables in urban Burlington. The two-storey barn and stable has been converted into an educational loft. Youth camps, art classes and environmental workshops will be held here.
Preserving the natural habitat and landscape was a top priority for the city and the residents in the immediate community. Shoreacres Creek runs through the 14-acre property, featuring a flood plain that is one of the only natural areas of its kind remaining along the Halton shoreline of Lake Ontario.
As rich as the pedigree of the property is – the city decided it couldn’t just let the place continue to lose money and provide little value to the taxpayers who foot the bill for the property. The property needs a new mission and a new vision – the city is now going through the expressions of interest to see just what might be possible.
Director of Parks and Recreation Chris Glenn said at a recent council committee meeting that no one proposal offered a solution, but that amongst the proposals there appeared to be enough to cobble together a purpose for the site that would stop the financial hemorrhaging.
Burlington now has two historical sites to deal with: The Paletta Mansion and the Freeman Station. There is every possibility that the Paletta gift has some codicils in it that prevent the city from doing anything they want with the site.
Perhaps the city will find itself having to develop a program for preserving and maintaining historic sites in the city. At a public meeting, scheduled for November 19th at Mainway Arena, the city will attempt to answer the very real and noisy concerns of property owners who don`t want the historic site designations that have been placed on their houses.
Why does Burlington have this aversion to recognizing its history?
By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON October 23, 2012 It was a lovely fall afternoon; people were out and about – and hundreds, close to 1000 actually gathered at the Burlington Performing Arts Centre to walk around the place and kick the tires and look into every nook and cranny they could find. Few if any were disappointed.
 The Burlington Teen Tour Band took over the Family Room of the Burlington Performing Arts Centre the day the city turned the building over to the community. There was a festive sense to the day – all the politicians were there but all they were able to do was say hello to people they knew and to people who wanted to know them.
Mayor Rick Goldring was very much the man of the moment even though the building that was being handed over symbolically to the Burlington Theatre Board got its genesis from two men who asked the right question and motivated people to begin something that resulted in the building we have today that sits on a site that used to house the city`s police station.
 Babies and politicians - something magnetic about the two. Here Burlington MP Mike Wallace greets a little one. Some day that child will vote.. One citizen, pushing his Mother in a wheelchair wanted to say hello to the Mayor and did so – the Mother had a shamrock pin in the lapel of her jacket which the Mayor picked up on and asked is she was Irish – she was Irish and the conversation was amiable, the kind of thing that takes place at events like this – and then they asked – when the Pier was going to open – the Mayor just can`t get away from that one. He now has an answer – sometime in 2013.
One couple mentioned that a restaurant north of the Centre was sold to the current owners by her Father. `That used to be where our orchard was`, she commented and her husband added Ì used to come to the police station that was on this site for my papers to be a volunteer.
 Actors from Burlington Student Theatre were on hand for the turning over of the Burlington Performing Arts Centre. Everyone had a comment, hundreds picked up a cup cake or a cup of coffee and just milled around until the Burlington Teen Tour Band marched into the building through glass doors on the east side that opened up fully to the plaza. And in they came – all the redcoats you would ever want to see in one place. They played a couple of tunes and marched smartly out the building. The Main Theatre has great sound and we now know that the Family Room has even greater sound. The sound from those drums reverberated off the walls and just filled the large hall.
David Vollick, the Town Crier for Burlington did his first official gig for the city and read out the proclamation that had the symbolic key to the building placed in the hands of the Burlington Theatre Board president Allan Pearson. Didn’t see Pearson turn over the $1. annual rent to the city – perhaps that cheque is in the mail.
Our Town Crier was at his very best – a full force voice boomed out as he read the proclamation.
“Oyez, Oyez, Oyez” he began.
“Citizens of Burlington draw near and bear witness to an historic event in the growth of our fair city.
Today we celebrate the beginning of a new era for comedy, tragedy, aye for theater in all its forms in our newest and most favourably furnished facility –
The Burlington Performing Arts Centre.
 It was a proud day for former Mayor Walter Mulkewich, standing center with his hands in his pockets. The Centre has been a gleam in his eye for more than 20 years.  Mayor Goldring and his wife look on as the Burlington Teen Tour Band entertains hundreds in the family Room of the Centre. The centre is a gift from the City of Burlington to all the citizens of our fair city. It will encourage local talent of both our performers and our technical producers and will draw performers from across the great Country of Canada, and also from the world at large — to grace its stage.
To mark the significance of this occasion His Worship –
Rick Goldring – The Mayor of Burlington, will present the Symbolic Key to the Performing Arts Center to Mr. Allan Pearson — Chairman of the Board of Directors.
I call forth His Worship Mayor Goldring”
And with that the Mayor came on stage and the transfer and presentation of the key began. The building was now in the hands of the Burlington Theatre Board which is the organization that oversees the working of the staff at the Burlington Performing Arts Centre. But the building is still very much a people place.. With the Burlington Teen Tour Band having sort of blessed the place with its sound people were milling about as if they were on a village square meeting friends and chatting away. The chatter and the exchanging of gossip was all part of the day. Our Theatre had been launched and the people of the city were there to witness the event.
Sometime in December there will be a very fancy $400. a ticket event and then the Centre will move into its Christmas Season program. The Nutcracker Suite has been sold out. Stuart McLean’s The Vinyl Café was sold out and – an additional performance added and it too was sold out. Both are tried and true events. As we move into 2012 the staff at the Centre can begin to bring in more innovative programs and begin to stretch the artistic imaginations of the community. Expect some birth pangs.
 BURLINGTON, ON October 20, 2011 – Halloween can break the bank and there is more taking on the part of the kids than giving. Burlington’s Ireland House has revived a program that is intended for smaller children and their families.
Takes place Sunday October 30st – beginning at noon and running through to 4 pm. Small fee of $5. For the children and $2. for the adults. Thrown in to make it a real deal is a pumpkin for everyone for as long as supplies last.
Lots of activities and crafts for children and adults! Pumpkin carving and painting! Make a magic potion, see special amulets and learn about herbs with The Witch (La Bonne Sorciere) in her creepy cabin!
 Goblins and ghosts and the scary cabin at Ireland House - great entertainment for the young ones Put on a brave face and find your way through our haunted woodshed! March in a costume parade! Enter our costume contest and win prizes! Make some supernatural creations with Mad Science! See a breathtaking fire & ice show! Have you fortune read in a crystal ball! Sink your fangs into delicious barbeque refreshments! Take in carnival style games & a Giant Maze! Live entertainment for children and adults including costumed belly-dancing instructions with Belly-up Dance Studio and other special attractions!
Looks like a fun program:
Storytelling with Child Proof: 12:30
Mad Science Fire & Ice Show: 1:15
Belly-Dancing Demonstrations & Lessons: 2:30
Costume Parade & Contest: 3:15
Crafts, activities, tours and other attractions all day!
The house itself will be decorated for the Halloween season with a woodshed being set up for a special surprise as well as the cabin being put to interesting use. We are told there will be “belly dancers” on the premises – that should ensure that Dad comes along with the kids for this event.
By Pepper Parr
 BURLINGTON, ON October 16, 2011 A second look at the newest gem in the city – the Burlington Performing Arts Centre. We are all agog about the place and Our Burling has certainly been a big and consistent supporters.
Having attended the Royal Wood performance and noting that it wasn’t sold out, we didn’t bother going on line to order tickets to the Jacob Moon event – just drove downtown and expected to walk up to the box office and buy a pair of tickets. SOLD OUT – which is great but we missed out on a performance the Missus wanted to take in and she wanted to see the place I was talking about so much.
 Jacob Moon - SOLD OUT at the Performing Arts Centre I had checked in on the web site and there was no mention there that the event was sold out – I didn’t think Moon would fill the 718 seat Main Theatre. Nowhere on the first level of the web site was there a note that this was a Studio Theatre event. The start time was there and that’s what I was after. I think if I’d know that I would have gone on line and ordered.
So, to the folks in the marketing department, which I assume is responsible for the box office and the web site – tighten things up over there a bit please. Use the technology to be instant – when the last ticket sells get the words SOLD OUT (which you just have to love) up on the web site pronto.
The Centre is one of the best people watching places in the city, especially if you get up into the second level where you can look down into the Family Room. With no tickets available, the Misses and I decided to have a glass of wine and just enjoy the space.
“It’s bare”, said the Missus. “There are no plants, no colour – it’s a cold room – can’t call a cold room a Family Room.” I’d not looked at the space quite that way, but the Missus was right. There is no colour unless you are sitting in the Main Theatre and you see that gorgeous, magnificent, crimson red, velour curtain that rises so elegantly.
The walls have no art on them. There isn’t a picture montage telling the story of what the site looked like when it was the local police station and then pictures of the various construction stages it went through. There are places on some of the pillars where luscious green plants could be placed.
The Family Room and the upper level could use a little more furniture – kind of bare except for the two very comfortable chairs on the upper level. The square upholstered benches don’t support your back when you’re sitting .
 The Family Room would be a great place for a huge Christmas Tree - all that space and to be able to see it from the street lit up at night. Will wee see something like that this year. And what are they going to do around the 10th of December? Will there be a humungous Christmas tree erected smack in the middle of the Family Room and will there be a community event to decorate the tree? Maybe Carollers in costume walking about as people take part in the decorating of the tree. So many opportunities to brighten up the place – not that it is dour or dull – but now that it is open and done “on time and under budget” as well – let’s make it look lived in.
The bar has potential. It’s long, approaching twenty feet is my guess, and the prices are manageable. $8.00 for a very decent 7 ounces of a good Chardonnay. Friendly staff with a mobile bar up on the second level. And even though the crowd for the Jacob Moon performance was small – they were using the Studio Theatre, there were quite a few people bellying up to the bar for some libation.
Now, Centre staff will ask for some time to get all these little things done – they don’t get the time. This is a “community” theatre and every one of us are landlords and we want to see that place just hum. The Jacob Moon event was, we are told, one of the first events, where a performer rented the space and put on his own show. Moon has a significant following with the Christian evangelical crowd and they were out there supporting his music.
The Stewart McLean Vinyl Café performance has been extended to include a Matinee – the evening performance was SOLD OUT. We’re doing something right – but let us not rest on our laurels.
By Pepper Parr
 BURLINGTON, ON October 15, 2011 – The Mayor has gotten into show business and in the process changed one of the major fund raising events in Burlington. Traditionally the Mayor has held an annual Gala to raise funds for projects the Mayor feels will advance the development of the city.
The city has not held a Mayor’s Gala for a number of years. Former Mayor Cam Jackson didn’t hold a Gala during his last year in office.
Current Mayor Rick Goldring hasn’t been in office for a full year yet and he has put forward his approach to Gala’s. When asked where the idea for his approach came from he responds with: “I had the idea before there was a stick in the ground and I just grew it”.
 Burlington's Top Talent will take to the stage - Sound of Music will screen the performers. So what is the Mayor going to be doing? The Mayor’s Cabaret – and it will take place February 24, 2012 What’s a Cabaret? A night of local talent on the biggest stage in town.
Here’s how it is going to happen. The Mayor has partnered with the Sound of Music people to choose who will take part in the Cabaret. The Sound of Music people certainly know something about show business and by having them do the selection takes any favouritism out of the Mayor’s office.
There will be ten acts and tickets to the event will be priced in the $100. range. That plus some corporate sponsorships and the mayor thinks he can raise upwards of $100,000. During the first year those funds will go to the Performing Arts Centre. Where will funds go after that? Mayor Goldring isn’t sure yet but with seven more years in office – expect this man to come up with some interesting ideas and know that the environment will be in there somewhere.
Goldring Galas for the next seven years? You thought the Mayor was elected for just four years – true – but do you really think anyone is going to manage to challenge a Mayor who has brought tranquillity to a council that was torn with division ? Burlington has a council that is focused, about to release a Strategic Plan that is significantly different than anything else this city has seen. There is going to be a very different approach to developing the budget as well and a demand that staff report on the city’s financial affairs in a more timely manner. The city will never see a surprise surpl
 The Mayor won't be dancing. us of more than $9 million again and the significant infrastructure (road repairs) deficit will get whittled down over time. You can expect much sounder civic direction from this council.
The city will see long range plans that address vital issues coming forward in the next six to nine months and a significantly different environment that has the potential to create a more engaged and responsive senior civic administration. Staff are now working with a council that appreciates the contribution they make and the intellectual energy they bring to their jobs.
Sometime in the very near future a new city manager will be hired who will tighten up the team that leads the city day to day. While morale isn’t bad the new city manager will mould the seniors manager into a team that works with council. We will get away from the distancing that ruled in the past and we should see a much tighter working relationship between senior management and council. It will be a healthier place for everyone.
What we won’t apparently see is a mayor wearing tap dancing shoes the opening night of the Cabaret. The Mayor doesn’t dance.
By Staff
 BURLINGTON, ON October 7, 2011 – Well, talk about being proactive and putting your money where your mouth is – Mayor Rick Goldring has cast a new image for himself and is about to become an Impresario. He is going into show business and has announced that he is putting on a Cabaret, with the tag line “Life is a Cabaret my friends….come to the Cabaret!”
 His Worship is going to dance before the bright lights. Will we lose him to Broadway? The event will take place February 24, 2012 at the Burlington Performing Arts Centre. It will be a variety show featuring acts in a many genres – from musicians to dancers to magicians to comedy. This is sure to be a spectacular evening with a focus on local talent.
Funds raised from the event will benefit the Burlington Performing Arts Centre and the Sound of Music Festival.
Tickets will be available through the box office beginning November 1, 2011.
In addition to a wonderful show, there will be a cocktail reception and silent and live auctions. The Mayor`s Cabaret is open to submissions from entertainers. More detail on the submission process will be posted very soon.
Kudo`s to the Mayor for this one.
By Pepper Parr
 BURLINGTON, ON October 5, 2011 – It was going to be all nicey, nicey; they were going to be friends and everyone would be happy and that is the way Burlington`s Budget and Corporate Services Committee started out earlier this week. Acting General Manager, Development and Infrastructure Division, Steve Zorbas explained that this was his 73rd and last report to Council from the Project Management Team that oversaw the construction of the Burlington Performing Arts Centre. Besides thanking everyone for their contribution, and that list was long, Zorbas informed Council that the phrase “on time and on budget“ had to be revised to “on time and under budget“ – the project team was able to say there was $75,000 left in the bank account.
True, but Zorbas didn`t mention that the Project had been given a contingency amount of $3.5 million to complete the project which Zorbas managed to neglect. At a council meeting Zorbas asked if the Management Team could hang onto the funds that remained at the time, rather than have to go back to Council to get each item approved.
 Councillor Taylor had major misgivings about the way the capital levy for the Burlington Performing Arts Centre was going to be used and made it clear he didn't thunk the ticket surcharge was high enough and voted against the Relationship Agreement that was being discussed.. Council was listening to General Manager Budget and Corporate Services, Kim Phillips report on just where things were. Phillips was quite chirpy and talked about what she saw as a good working relationship with both BPAC and the Theatre Board. But beneath the pleasant demeanour one could sense the gimlet eye of an accountant who knew how to count the pennies.
Councillor Taylor was not as confident as Phillips and he asked why there was so much uncertainty around the capital maintenance charges. Phillips said that no one had given that aspect all that much attention. The BPAC people and the Theatre Board were focused on fund raising and getting the building completed and ready for the opening day.
The city thought the capital levy on each ticket sold, would flow into the city`s coffers and the Centre people thought it would flow into their bank account – not wanting to be difficult with each other the city and the Centre decided to make it a 50/50 split. Councillor Lancaster wanted to know what criteria was used to arrive at the 50/50 arrangement and was told that there really wasn`t a criteria – it was just what was done. You could almost feel the shiver go through council members over what Councillor Sharman called “”tin cup” accounting.
Staff had developed a chart that set out all the items that came under capital costs – and realized when they were in discussions with the Centre staff that there was significant difference between who was going to pay for what. Staff had used the word “doing“ in the document to set out who would be doing what and Centre people took that to mean paying – and that certainly wasn`t the case. Of such misunderstandings are interesting court cases made.
Concerns over capital expenditures and the cost of replacing and upgrading features over the projected 50 year life of the building is still an outstanding issue. The city has one view as to who was going to pay for what and the Theatre Board and the BPAC people had another view. Much of the capital related costs are supposed to be covered by that capital surcharge that appears on every ticket purchased. It was to be between $1.00 and a $1.50 – and there is already talk of increasing that amount.
 Phillips made is clkear to council that absolute clarity was needed by both staff and the BPAC administration on what was meant by "sustainability". To be fair – Phillips came onto this file in May of this year and there was a lot of catching up to do. Vacations and a bunch of other issues plus the fact that she will serve as the Acting city manager for November and December is keeping Phillips very busy.
It`s all a bit arcane but come the day when the roof has to be repaired it`s better to know now just who is going to pay for that replacing. Phillips had a document that set all the things that were capital related and indicated who would `do`the work involved and who would `pay`for the work that would have to be done. Exactly who would do and who would pay was not clear during the early discussions between the BPAC people and the city, which is a major concern for the city. They want to have a policy that applies to every joint ventures group in the city. The Burlington Gymnastic Club has a roof repair problem and the city wants to make sure that the same policy applies to everyone and that the money to implement the policy is in the budget.
The city is currently short many millions on road replacement work – the money to pay for it doesn`t exist – and they don`t want to find themselves in the same situation with the performing arts centre. This is the time to do the haggling.
Several council members were disturbed that this level of detail had not already been worked out – staff came back with their being focused on getting the construction of the building completed and they didn`t feel it was useful to get into details that were perhaps a phase 8 task when everyone was focused on tasks 1 and 2. Council made it clear that they wanted to be fully aware of just what the financial ramifications were to the decisions they were making.
It was clear that there is a different financial accountability environment on the council side of the horseshoe they all gather around. This council doesn`t want any surprises and they are not yet confident that the staff in place fully understands the new accountability regime. There have in the past year been a number of surprises that council feels could have been avoided if staff had been more forthcoming. The city is in the process of hiring a new city manager. You can be certain that the new CM will be someone who will be diligent and thorough when it comes to reporting to council. One can also expect to see much shorter reporting financial reporting cycles in 2012. The city uses some of the best accounting software available and council expect staff to use all the features – faster reporter being one of them.
Council wants to be sure they don`t get blind-sided again the way they did with the losses that were being experienced at the Paletta Mansion – the place was losing a ton of money and council didn`t know that. That`s why the city is asking for expressions of interest from anyone who might have some ideas for that place.
One of the concerns that got expressed was when the city would learn if things did go bad and they found they had to or wanted to exercise the 20 day option they have to ask the Theatre Board and BPAC to give the keys back. At this point BPAC doesn`t really own the keys they use – the building belongs to the city and once the lease is signed plans are in place to turn them over to BPAC on October 23rd at a formal public ceremony.
It was emphasized throughout the meeting that while the city owned the property BPAC runs the show. BPAC`s policy is to have commercial shows in that make money for the Centre. There will be programs put on by not for profit groups and prices for the use of the building will be lower. The Centre will also develop a program of its own that will over time develop an appreciation for different art forms: dance, music, drama – trust Executive Director Brenda Heatherington to do what she did so well in St. Albert, Alberta in developing a taste for art forms that the city has not experienced in the past.
 Councillors Meed Ward and Sharman weren't in agreement on very much during the Performing Arts discussion. This photograph was taken at a Strategic Planning session - they didn't agree much there either. While everyone else was consistent in saying that the Centre would never be self-sustaining; that it would always need some form of subsidy from the city. Mead Ward however said that she believed that entertainment can be made to pay and one got the impression she felt that the place could be made self-sustaining. Phillips was experiencing small conniptions when she heard that for she is very firm on the need for clarity when the city sets out the relationship and the expectations it has of both the Theatre Board and the hard working folks at BPAC. As Phillips put it when she said: `We need absolute clarity on this`, she said. You will not make any money from this facility. That didn`t stop Meed Ward from saying she felt the city portion of the operating expense would lessen over time. Meed Ward countered with the bar is very low for sustainability.
The number floating around was about $350,000 a year to cover operating losses that will be experienced. What had Taylor losing his normal smile and adding to his level of heartburn was the sneaky feeling that the city might at some point in the future be looking at as much as $500,000 more to cover capital replacement costs. And he wanted those numbers fleshed out now before the lease is signed and the keys turned over. But the hard number crunching that is needed hasn`t been done.
Taylor estimates that the capital surcharge of $1.50 will provide less than half of what is going to be needed. Problems is if the BPAC loads on too big a surcharge they will become uncompetitive.
Your council then went back to one of its old habits and moved into closed session to talk about the specifics of the Relationship Agreement with the Theatre Board. There was nothing in those discussions that had to be kept from the eyes of the public – if anything council should have wanted the public to know everything they possibly could about the largest capital expenditure the city has ever made. Council members can and should get their views on the public record so that if there is ever a day when the city has to pull the plug and take back the building, which it owns, then the views and concerns of the council members were publicly known. Not a particularly great start in terms of relationship building.
Councillor Taylor has always had concerns about the financial side of facilities that are tied to entertainment and show business. He will point time and again to the Hamilton problems with their HEC5 operation. It is not that Taylor has a bias against entertainment – this is a guy who bought tickets to the Jersey Boys production and they weren`t for his children. His concern is the ability of the Centre to bring in enough revenue so that the city is not on the hook for expenses it has made no allowances for in its longer term budget.
After more than an hour of closed session discussion council then voted on the Relationship Agreement and the Lease that will be in place. Taylor didn`t vote for the agreements but the rest of council seemed to be comfortable – however you will never know because you didn`t get a chance to hear what was said – the session was closed.
Several changes were made to the Relationship Agreement as well as a few changes to clauses in the lease. Mention was made of a change to clause 1601 B – which would presume there is a clause 1601 and therefore also a clause 1 – that would amount to a mighty long, complex document. The Project Management Team also advised council that there were no liens on the property.
By Pepper Parr
 BURLINGTON, ON October 2, 2011 The opening piece made you feel like taking the missus into your arms and dancing away. Royal Wood had that ability to create a mood and keep you with him as he performed exquisitely on the keyboard and moved from number to number during the opening performance at the Burlington Performing Arts Centre on Saturday October 1, 2011
The evening the city had been waiting for actually began back in August – on the 20th, when people lined up around the block to buy tickets at the then newly opened box office – the Centre was open for business. “There were people who brought lawn chairs to sit on that Saturday, while they waited in line”, exclaimed Hilary Sadler, Marketing Manager for the Centre, who then told the opening night audience that 6500 tickets had been sold in the six weeks since the Centre opened and that there were already several sold out events. The Centre had a promotion for the early tickets buyers and “when we went to put all the entries into the draw barrel we had to stuff them into the container we had – there was hardly enough room” but Brenda Heatherington was still able to reach in and draw out the name of Robin Summers as the winner
The sound was just a tad too loud for me – but the piano work was exceptional. Royal Wood has been at a keyboard since the age of four – and it showed. He has his fan base and there were many of them in the audience Saturday night . There were also a lot of people who may not have seen themselves as Royal followers –they just wanted to be in the audience opening night. The event wasn’t sold out but the hall was at least four fifths full – with people in the prime box seats as well.
An interesting and somewhat ironic observation. Two of the people who were on the ground and in the trenches during the very early days of the drive to bring a performing arts centre to Burlington – then city council member Mike Wallace and bookkeeper Deb Tymstra were in the audience. Mike was in one of the box seats while Tymstra sat with the regular crowd. Wallace is now the MPP for the city and Tymstra now runs her own bookkeeping business and had to recently announce that Creative Burlington, the organization she ran to promote the arts and create something of a marketing base of those commercial and artistic organizations had to cease operations for lack of funding. Life at times appears unfair – but Ms Tymstra, the opera is not over until the fat lady sings; you know that.
 Royal Wood signing CD's after the first commercial event at the Burlington Performing Arts Centre. They loved him. Royal Wood moved from number to number and on several occasions you could sense that he was going to let himself go just a bit more and each time he did that – the sound was grand but there was the sense that there was even more voice within this artist. We have not seen the best of Royal Wood yet.
The piano work touched the very edges of a nice jazz sound and then seemed to get just a little honkey tonk, but Wood always came back to strong, solid keyboard work.
The evening started off with a video on the upcoming programmes which was interesting, but all that information was in the promotional literature; we were in our comfortable seats and just wanted to get on with the show. The introduction ran just a little on the long side as well. Wood moved from the grand piano (and it indeed is grand) to the microphone where he played his guitar with the back up of three musicians. From time to time he would engage in light chatter with the audience and we got to see a side of this man that isn’t always noticed. He talked about teen suicide – not a subject that was sure to endear him to an audience, and said that he didn’t want to be preachy or be “Bono” but he didn’t understand why all teens were not full of life and love and then quietly added that one had to “wait it out .. wait it out.
The concert – more of a performance actually was working towards its last coupe of pieces and when Wood announced that “this will be the last piece this evening” then the sly fox in him added that if the audience insisted he had a couple of others in his bag. And the audience of course brought him back several times.
During the performance Graham Frampton, Manager, Operations and Facility Sales, was seen scooting up and down an aisle – whispering a few words into the ears of the technicians handling the sound. Technically the place works. The sight lines are perfect and the Main Hall has a comfortable feeling to it – nothing fancy. Executive Director Brenda Heatherington sat on the edge of her seat for part of the performance – you could almost hear her saying – it’s working.
 First two people to enter the theatre with tickets in hand. Given that this was the first night ever for the Centre, someone sprung for the cost of a wine and cheese reception. Nice to be able to saunter over to the bar and pick up a glass of wine and then another if you chose and not have to pick up the tab.
People hung around for at least a full hour after the performance, talking in small groups. Some gathered in the balcony that surrounds the Family room, that is huge lobby area right outside the theatre. The place works – and it gave Royal Wood, its opening night performer, the “royal” treatment.
Tuesday of this week, the hard financial side of operating the Centre comes before a committee of city council that will receive a report setting out what is left of the $3,439,300 the Centre was given as contingency funds. There is $74,297 left in that contingency account.
Those behind the development of the Burlington Performing Arts Centre speak regularly about the project being on time and on budget – welcome words to the ears of citizens who have heard nothing but grief about the Pier and, even though a contractor is in place to complete the Pier, there are still many who think the city should have walked away from the project and just blown the whole thing up.
The capital cost for the Burlington Performance Arts Centre has amounted to $37.2 million which includes the close to $3.5 contingency. The city owns the building and is in the process of completing both a Lease Agreement and a Relationship Agreement with the independent arm’s length Board that governs the Centre. That Board, a non profit corporation will operate what we know as the Burlington Performing Arts Centre. The corporation that oversees the Centre staff and its operations as well as representing the interest of the citizens, is known as the Burlington Theatre Board Inc.
So we have the Theatre Board operating the Performing Arts Centre which is owned by the city. We will get back to you on how the Theatre Board is organized and what role the average citizen can play in the operation of the Centre. At the Invitation Only event for the donours Vice Chair Rick Burgess explained very briefly that the role of the Theatre Board was one of oversight for the citizens of the city.
Oversight is certainly in order because the city will be giving the Centre $480,700. each year to go towards the cost of operating the organization. An additional $262,800 was made available to the Centre as one time funding for the opening year. The city owns the building and is therefore responsible for the upkeep and maintenance which will require the creation of a reserve fund.
The Relationship Agreement sets out the ability of the Theatre Board to make application for financial assistance through the city’s annual budget process. The Staff report that is going to Council committee emphasizes that the Centre is not expected to be a fully self-sustaining facility.
There is a program in place; it’s called a Capital Surcharge that has an amount of between $1.00 and $1.50 added to the price of every ticket sold. That surcharge is shown as a separate line on every ticket sold. At the moment that surcharge amount to $1.70 (HST snuck in there somewhere). The surcharge proceeds are divided on a 50/50 basis between the city and the Centre.
 Six thousand five hundred tickets for performances at the Burlington Performing Arts Centre have been sold. More than 550 were used on the first night. The city’s Corporate Strategic Initiatives run by Allan Magi will have input on the capital plant, which means the building and the things actually attached to it and the stuff that is inside the building is the responsibility of the Centre staff. Tables, chairs, the seats in the theatre – that kind of thing.
The Lease Agreement (which has yet to be made public) and the Relationship Agreement get a thorough going over at council committee. The nature of the relationship between the City and the Board has more than enough clauses in it to protect the city. Try this one on for size. “The city may terminate this agreement by written notice … in any of the following circumstances and then goes on to list the events that would be defined as a default in the agreement. But here is the killer: “Notwithstanding any other provision of this Agreement, the city may, in its sole and absolute discretion, terminate this agreement on 20 business days. The city may exercise such right arbitrarily…” That’s a pretty tough clause. The city owns the building and if they don’t like the way things are being done they can cancel the agreement with 20 days’ notice.
The trade mark “Burlington Performing Arts Centre” is owned by the city and is licensed to the Centre. The Board of the Centre cannot approve an expenditure of more than $1,000,000 until it has been approved by Council
The relationship between the city, the Centre’s Board of Directors and the staff at the Centre have been remarkably positive. The city has council member, Rick Craven along with the Mayor, sitting on the Board of the non-profit corporation that runs the theatre as well as a staff member; Steve Zorbas, Acting General Manager Development and Infrastructure.
 Volunteers are a large part of what makes the Centre work. Patrons will meet friendly ushers like these two gents. The city provided the telephone system the Centre uses but doesn’t pay the telephone bill. The city was involved in the setting up of the web site but doesn’t provide ongoing technical support. The Centre staff will get paid through the city’s payroll service.
Except for a bit of a flap over the bricks that were to be used on the building the project was completed to the satisfaction of just about everyone. The city took possession of the building from the contractors on September 13th and, believe it or not, there is a one year warranty on the place.
All however, is not sweetness and light between the city and the Theatre and its Board of Directors. Staff is providing verbal updates at the committee meeting “so that committee members are clear about the few remaining areas of difference between the parties.”
Will it work, can it work? There are a number of very positive signs that it will work but show business has never been easy and the entertainment business is fickle at the best of times. Brenda Heatherington and her crew have their work cut out for them as they not only fine tune the building but also get the full measure of the community and figure out what we want and at the same time discern where the community can be taken.
The Board that provides the oversight is going to have to be both vigilant and supportive and give the staff the room they need to develop the business and at the same time be fiscally responsible. This isn’t an 18 month undertaking; this is a three year exercise at a minimum and the Centre needs to develop a relationship with the citizens of the city that is strong enough to allow that amount of time. That isn’t going to be the easiest thing to do in a city that had people who wanted the Pier torn down.
And if the Board and the Centre staff can’t do that – well the Centre could become, as one city hall wag put it, an All Elvis location.
By Staff
 BURLINGTON, ON September 29, 2011 Gary Carr, the Chief Cheese over at the Region wants you to know that “Fall is the perfect time to visit the Halton Region Museum in Kelso, you can take in the fall colours, the beautiful views and round it out with a top notch performance from two well-seasoned and soulful jazz/blues musicians, Terry Blankley and Al Matthews.”
 Cool, quiet jazz vocals in a fall colour setting. The Chair is absolutely right on this one. The Jazz at the Museum program is great entertainment and very good value. It would be nice to see the Chair at one of these events – he could use a little R&R and the Missus would probably like a chance to get out of the house.
Artist/composer Terry Blankley will draw you in and warm your spirits on October the 9th. Described as a cross between Bruce Springsteen and Tom Waits, Terry has been a regular at the grand Old Opry in Nashville, Tennessee. Whether singing Billie Holiday’s classic, “Don’t explain” or the Ray Charles hit, “Hallelujah, how I love her so,” or songs from his latest CD, Cold Weather Blues Blankley is fine entertainment. Terry will be joined at the Museum by Al Matthews, whose brilliant musical styling’s and vocals are matched by a wicked sense of humour.
Sunday, October 9th – great way to spend an afternoon – take friends. Limited tickets are available at the door for $20 per person and include light refreshments. The performance takes place in the Hearth Room in the Museum’s historic Alexander Barn from 2 to 4 p.m. Doors open at 1:30 p.m. You can reserve a ticket by calling 905-875-2200, ext. 27
By Pepper Parr
 BURLINGTON, ON September 23, 2010 The city kicked off it’s part of the United Way
Campaign with a great romp out on Burlington Street while they enjoyed a BBQ on the plaza –
and in the process sold 450 hamburgers at $5.00 a pop to put $2250. into the pot that is holding
the money staff will raise for the 2011 United Way Campaign. The target for 2011 is $60,000
Corporate giving is a large, large part of what the United Way needs to raise each year. Burlington’s city hall staff show how it can be done by giving it more than the old heave ho – this year different city hall departments took turns pulling a water truck down Brant street for a stretch. Some of the times were impressive and while many think the fireman would have made a slam dunk of this – turns out the Roads and Parks Maintenance turned in a slightly better time. Fire Chief Shane Mintz will be getting his people into the exercise room a little more often.
The competition came down to rivals Roads and Park Maintenance and Fire. Fire clocked in at 11.something-very-fast, and then RPM clocked in at 11.something-even-faster. It was literally 4/10 ths of a second difference. So RPM wheeled away with baked goods and bragging rights, while a smoldering crew from Fire vows to really bring on the heat next year… or some clunky thing
There were nine teams out on the street pulling the water truck – and each team put up $150. Of their own money just to be in the event. Some might mutter that – is that all they have time to do – play games on the main street – but this isn’t game playing. City hall staff have committed themselves to raising $65,000 in 2011. The target for the 2010 campaign was $60,000 and they came within $500. of achieving their target.
When the final numbers are tallied, yesterday’s event will have raised approximately $3,300 dollars for an incredibly good cause. And by the time the campaign is finished Chair Tracy Burrows feels certain they will reach the $60,000. goal
The 2010 campaign was successful in raising funds for United Way.
Employee donations: $49,110.00 – 297 pledges
Special Events: $10,388.10
Grand Total: $59,498.10
The 2011 campaign has set the same target as 2010 – to bring in $60,00. This year the campaign is being led by Tracey Burrows, Chair of the employee United Way Campaign committee. Food for the Kick off BBQ event was provided by Recreation Leisure Services Ltd. & Sysco Food Supplies, refreshments provided by Pepsi, and BBQ provided by Pat’s Party Rentals.
The campaign slogan for 2011 is – Change Starts Here. From Poverty to possibility – Healthy People, strong communities, and all that kids can be.
There are more than 50,000 families are at risk of becoming homeless or are homeless due to limited or no income. The United Way supports the basic needs to improve people’s emotional and physical well-being, moving them from crisis to stability, enabling them to achieve their potential. Over 10,000 people receive professional social work services and more than 12,000 seniors have accessed United Ways programs and supports. These services recognize and build on individual strength – the foundations required for independent, healthy living.
More than 77,000 children and youth accessed the United Ways programs allowing children and youth to engage is safe and supportive environments – overcoming barriers and build positive relationships and develop skills for life. Last year alone over 218,000 people in our region accessed one or more of the 133 United Way funded programs.
 Clerks give everyone that funny look all the time - and take best costume prize during the 2011 United Way fund raising event. Lee Oliver, lead scribe is on the right. The campaign team for 2011 consists of: Chair: Tracey Burrows, Planning and Building, Vice-Chair: Joanne Hyde, Clerks, Kim Phillips, General Managers Office, Andrew Maas, Corporate Strategic Initiatives, Wanda Tolone, Clerks, Bryan Hermans, Finance, Lynn Williams, Human Resources, Steve Fyfe, Information Technology Services, Michelle Walsh, Legal/POA, Ashley McCallum, Engineering, Marg Lambert, Parks and Recreation, Brian Adriaans, Roads and Parks Maintenance, Louise Allard, Transit, Greg Grison, Fire, Kathy Pavlou, Building, Be Nguyen, Planning, Leah Bisutti City Manager’s Office. Other staff assisting: Jewel McCabe, Parks and Recreation
City Hall staff have chosen the United Way as their charity of choice because they feel the work of the United Way is grounded on an in-depth knowledge and understanding of our
Community. This is reflected in the three investment priorities of the United Way of Burlington and Greater Hamilton:
- From poverty to possibility
- Healthy People, strong communities
- All that kids can be
When you give to United Way, you are helping to support a network of health and social service agencies throughout our city. Our community agencies provide vital services to thousands of people. It is a funding source for 133 programs and services in Greater Hamilton and Burlington, delivered by 73 agencies. At work across our city every day, they understand how to meet the urgent needs of the local community. Your gift to United Way provides core funding and program support to those agencies, giving them the flexibility they need to respond effectively and ensuring that your donation gets to where it is needed most.
Eighty cents (80 percent) of every dollar committed to the 2011 United Way campaign will go directly to local community building initiatives and program supports, including what United Way uses for its community building activities.
 As well, employees who choose to participate in the United Way payroll deduction program may direct their contribution through United Way to any Canadian registered charity of their choice.
United Way reduces costly and time-consuming fundraising efforts for agencies so their time can be spent helping others. The United Way raises funds far more cost efficiently than most agencies can for themselves. United Way analyzes community needs and invests for impact. When the City of Burlington chooses United Way, we are choosing to help the entire community.
This year we are again seeking support from Senior Management for the Early Bird Draw event that the committee has planned. In past years, Directors, General Managers and the Office of the City Manager have supplied draw prizes for employees who submit their completed contribution form by a specified date. The Early Bird Draw is a great way to entice donors to have their forms in early. It is our hope that Senior Management will be leaders when approached by department representatives.
The committee has planed the following events for 2011 with all proceeds going to the United Way.
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| Clothing Drive – Between October 2 and October 14, 2011 inclusive |
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| Pizza Days – October 13, November 10, December 8, 2011Art Sale – November 17, 2011 |
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| Gift Basket Silent Auction – December 1, 2011 |
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| Early Bird Incentive Draw -TBD |
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| Dress Down Days – last Friday of each month |
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| Kernels Popcorn Sale –TBDRaffles – TBD |
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Many staff donated their service award dollars to the United Way and there are donations from NFL Football Pool. How do people who aren’t on the city payroll get in on that football pool?
What does it all mean? Staff at city hall are leading and showing the private sector what can be done if you really put your shoulder to the wheel –which is what nine city hall departments did on Brant Street last Thursday afternoon.
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