 By Staff
January 3rd, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
The kids are still out of school and the weather is a little on the mild side,
 Conservation Halton advises that Environment Canada is forecasting rainfall beginning late this evening and continuing through tomorrow into early Wednesday. Expected amounts will range up to approximately 20 mm.
Based on the forecast of mild temperatures and rainfall, combined with the partial melt of our existing snowpack, we may experience an increase in flows and water levels in our creeks throughout Halton. In addition, the snowpack melt may contribute to blockages at bridges and culverts and produce localized flooding concerns in low lying areas.
Widespread flooding is not currently anticipated. Our reservoirs are holding at winter levels which allow for larger storage capacity for circumstances of this nature.
 Creeks on the east side of the city. Conservation Halton is asking all residents and children to stay away from all watercourses and structures such as bridges, culverts and dams. Elevated water levels, fast flowing water, and slippery conditions along stream banks continue to make these locations extremely dangerous. Please alert children in your care of these imminent dangers.
Conservation Halton will continue to monitor stream and weather conditions and will issue further messages as necessary and will issue an update to this Watershed Condition Statement –Water Safety message only if significant changes in the forecasts occur.
This Watershed Condition Statement will be in effect through to Wednesday January 4, 2017.
By Pepper Parr
January 2nd, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
The next five months are going to be filled with a lot of meetings and conversations over whether or not two high schools in Burlington should be closed.
 The Halton District School Board trustees have a major decision to make – do they accept the recommendation that came from the Director of Education to close two Burlington high schools and shift some boundaries or do they craft a motion of their own and try to sell that to the people they represent?
The Gazette has put a number of questions before each of the 11 trustees to get a sense of what their thinking is and what they see as their prime role as trustees.
The Board of Education staff have put forward a convincing argument and a set of facts that are difficult to argue with – there are now 1800 seats in high school classrooms that do not have students in them. That just isn’t a sustainable model.
A number of Gazette readers have asked how a situation like this came about and they point to a period of time before the Hayden high school was opened in the Alton Village when they feel some major errors were made by the Board’s planning department. They might be right and at some point the Gazette will do a feature on how decisions were made in the past.
The errors, if they were really made, would call for some changes in the staffing model at the Board but any mistakes made in the past can’t be corrected; the Director of Education has a significant problem which he has put in front of the elected trustees along with a proposed solution.
Closing a high school isn’t quite as drastic as closing a local hospital but when a high school closes it changes the fabric of a community and that is important – vital to some parents.
While not the prime argument, the closing of a high school impacts property values; the community wonders what the property will be used for should the buildings be demolished.
What do trustees base the decision they will make on?
Financial:
Is it financial prudence – the cost of the decision they make?
Academic:
Do the trustees first concern themselves about the academic soundness of any decision they make?
Community:
Where does community fall in their decision making?
Do they feel that schools are a vital part of a community and that every community should have a school in its neighbourhood?
 Trustee candidates Oliver, Dilly and Shuttleworth signed a pledge to “act with the highest level of integrity”. One of the three was elected – she was from Oakville. While getting themselves elected every trustee will have said something about how important schools are and that every student should be given the opportunity to have the best possible elementary and high school experience with the richest mix of course offerings possible.
The four Burlington trustees are now facing an issues they probably didn’t expect to have to deal with when they ran for office. The pressure on the Burlington trustees will be intense.
Three of the four are new to school board politics – and make no mistake about it – the closing of a school is a political issue; one that involves the full community which includes city hall.
School are one of the brighter threads in the fabric of a community. Those who expect this decision to be made by the school board trustees without any input from the wider public are both naïve and fools.
 Three of Burlington’s four school board trustees listening during the first city wide public meeting at which data on what an audience thought about school closings. From the left, Richelle Papin, Leah Reynolds and on the far right Andrea Grebenc. Of the 11 trustees only three have more than a single term in office by way of experience.
The groups that want Central high school kept open are using traditional protest tools – petitions, lawn signs and taking part in public meetings.
 Central high school students in the Santa Claus parade – some thought it was a controversial stand. The time when those tools were effective is probably past.
The one event they held did make a very strong statement – the Silent Auction raised $14,000 – to the surprise of many. The strength of local support was made clearly evident. Their participation in the Santa Claus parade was seen as controversial by some – it was an excellent way to get their point across to a larger audience.
What that group does to grow that support and turn it into something that becomes more than compelling is the challenge they face. It is a daunting challenge.
So let us see where the current crop of school board trustees stands on a couple of fundamental questions: Is their decision rationale:
Financial
Academic offerings
Community input.
Background links:
That integrity pledge
Council member’s views on the politics of a school closing
 By Marianne Mead Ward
January 2nd, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
Any time there’s a proposal to close a school, things are bound to get a bit bumpy.
Witness the uproar over Burlington Central High School (BCHS) students holding “Save Central High School” signs as part of their school float in the Santa Claus Parade. Enter “Float-gate.”
The Burlington Post ran an article raising concerns (as well as support) for the students’ actions, and followed that up with an editorial criticizing the students.
Students in the Santa Claus parade. The mayor pledged to review the city’s policies. The students were accused of “politicizing” the event – never mind that elected officials ride in it every year – rather than praised for raising awareness about what’s happening in our own community and how they feel about it.
The majority of residents I heard from supported the students, as did I. As one resident summed it up: It’s okay to commercialize the parade with businesses, but not a student group advocating for their community. Huh?
Witness also the (lesser) uproar over my appointment on the Program & Accommodation Review Committee (PARC) studying the proposed school closures. I took heat from some of my colleagues and online commenters for accepting the Parent Council’s nomination as one of two parent representative for BCHS, where my son attends.
Keep politics out of it, was the theme, including from the mayor, who believes elected officials should stay out of this and chose the city manager as the municipal representative on the PARC.
Our city manager, James Ridge, will be terrific and I look forward to working with him. But the mayor missed an opportunity to sit on the committee himself and represent the entire community. I met with the mayor in advance to encourage him to be on the committee, and also spoke about this publicly during the council vote, so reading it here won’t be a surprise.
Why raise these two incidents? First, there seems to be an aversion to anything labelled “political” – which is a terrible way to treat our democracy.
Everything about the school closure process is already political. Elected trustees will make the final decision on any school closures, based on policies set by an elected provincial government. Governments advocate to different levels all the time. Several Ontario city councils are taking tangible action to save their schools. More on that in a future post. Earlier this year, a fellow councillor and myself both delegated at a meeting of Catholic trustees considering elementary school closures in Burlington. Happily, trustees voted not to close any schools.
All of this is democracy in action. Call it politics if you will, but people fought and died for the rights we enjoy to elect and expect our representatives to listen to us, and advocate for us.
Second, notice the criticism isn’t about the issue, the proposal to close schools, but rather about the manner in which people choose to be involved in that issue. This, too, is an attack on democracy. Every time someone is criticized for speaking up or getting involved, it creates a chilling effect on others doing likewise. Safer to keep your head down, and stay out of the issues. You won’t draw fire.
But you also won’t achieve much for your community. This is not a time for elected officials, our young people, or anyone to sit on the sidelines. We all must step up, get involved, and work for the best outcome for our students and our entire community.
Yes, it may get a bit bumpy. So it should. Schools are the heart of communities. We should care passionately about what happens in our schools, and to our schools. With passion, comes differing perspectives. Let’s welcome the discussion.
 Central high school students and parents on the GO train to a demonstration in front of Queen’s Park. Thank goodness our students are bold and bright and won’t be silenced. They showed courage in going public with their views and doing what they can to raise awareness to save their school. We should be celebrating these students, and encouraging all our young citizens to follow suit. These kids are embracing and acting on the privileges that come with living in a democracy. You make our community proud!
The final recommendation and decision by the trustees could be very different from the initial recommendation to close Central, close Pearson HS and make other program and boundary changes. It could be your school proposed to close instead.
 Marianne Meed Ward is the city Councillor for ward 2. She is serving her second term on city council. Central high school is located in ward 2.
 By Staff
January 2nd, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
Dawn Hackett-Burns is having her first solo exhibition at the Art Gallery of Burlington. The exhibit will be in the RBC Community Gallery and will run from January 3rd to the end of the month.
 Hackett-Burns is the 2016/17 resident ceramic artist at the AGB where she has had access to a fully equipped that has allowed her to build a portfolio with diverse projects that support the Gallery’s programming.
The residency provides the artist with the opportunity to teach in community and studio programs, and to present new work in a solo exhibition in the RBC Community Gallery.
Dawn Hackett-Burns is described by the AGB as an emerging ceramic artist based in Greensville, Ontario. Mostly self-taught, she has honed her craft by attending workshops and receiving mentorship from ceramic artist Colleen O’Reilly. Her practice focuses on the use of pattern and repetition, and colours that speak to vibrant cultures observed in her travels.
The residency has allowed Hackett-Burns to explore different ideas and formats, and the work in this exhibition is a direct result of the residency.
The work presented in this exhibition is hand built and the patterning is elevated through low relief carving and hand-painted designs. Hackett-Burns has taught children’s classes at the Art Gallery of Burlington for the past eight years, and her teaching often intersects with her artistic practice.
The public reception is on Tuesday January 3, 6pm-8pm
 By Pepper Parr
January 1st, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
One of the reasons we do what we do at the Gazette is to record what happens in the city. That doesn’t always result in our making a lot of friends – that isn’t our job.
At times it is tiring – Burlington has been poorly served by media in the past ten years – it doesn’t have a radio station, the one local television station tends to focus on Hamilton – its home base. While there was a time when print was very evident in Burlington- that is not the case today.
In the five years plus we have been publishing, first as Our Burlington, then we re-branded and now use the name Gazette, we have listened to hundreds of citizens delegate to their city Councillor’s
News is news – at times it is fun to publish; on other occasions it is disappointing to report on what city council has decided to do or what an agency decides to do.
But there are times when ordinary people who care, who are passionate and have no self interest in what they are saying or writing comes to the attention of the public.
It was our pleasure to write about and report on what Tom Muir and Jim Young had to say during a debate on the amount of time citizens would be permitted to speak when addressing city council. Their words were, without a doubt to this writer, the wisest words heard in the council chamber during 2016. Something we could all be very proud of.
My colleague, Joan Little at the Spectator, described Tom Muir as “acerbic”. That would be about right. Tom does his research and as he said in his delegation – he has been doing this for more than 20 years.
The issue before council was a motion to reduce the amount of time a citizen could spend delegating before a standing committee be reduced from 10 minutes to five minutes.
In November 2016 Muir said the following:
 Tom Muir: Acerbic for sure but still one of the best delegators the city has. “I would hope that Council votes in favor of the 10 minutes unanimously, as a show of good faith. I will say that a vote to reduce to 5 minutes is something I see as an insult to citizens and their possible contribution to what we do as a city – our city.”
“Further, if Councillors still want to vote down the 10 minutes, I say this. If you are so tired of and frustrated by, listening to the views of the people that elected you, then maybe you have been doing this job too long and should quit. I mean that, and will not forget how this vote goes tonight. “
“This Council is not your Council; it is the people’s Council.
“And these Council Chambers are not your Chambers, but are equally, the people’s Chambers. All the Councillors and Councils hold these offices and chambers in trust.
“So to vote to reduce the people’s time to speak in these chambers is to fail in that trust, in my opinion.
I ask therefore; herein fail not.”
No doubt what Muir was saying.
Jim Young, a man with a delightful Scottish brogue made his point very clearly. Jim was a little more philosophical but his words were no less pointed.
 Jim Young – delegating to city council. “When you deny constituents the reasonable opportunity to advise you during council term at meetings such as this, you leave them no other option but to voice their frustrations through the ballot box at election time.
Look at recent election results, where voters vented their frustration at the perception that politicians are not listening, do not provide the opportunity for citizens to be heard, a perception that has given voice to the Fords, the Trumps and the Brexiteers who, bereft of policy or vision or even civil discourse, at least pretend to listen, pretend they will be the voice of the people.
Then proceed to undo all the good that has been done, the community that has been built by that slow and frustrating democratic process.
So far this delegation has taken about 5 minutes, and with more to say, I hope you can understand how limiting 5 minutes can be.
I will finish by challenging each of you who wish to limit the participation of citizens in the affairs of our city:
Will you please explain to this gathering tonight how limiting delegations to 5 minutes is good for our democracy, good for our city?
Will you then publish that explanation in your Newsletter for all your constituents to see and to judge for themselves?
Will you stand at your regular town hall gatherings and tell the people of your wards why you want to silence their voice?
Because you will stand before them in 2018 and they will demand to know.
If you cannot, in conscience, address your constituents on this issue, then you have accept an amendment to rescind that decision and restore the full 10 minute allotment for citizen delegations, or better still do the right thing and propose such an amendment yourself.
The opportunity to listen to these two men and then report on what they had to say made all the trials and tribulations of the past few years’ worth every minute of it all.
 Ward 1 Councillor Rick Craven Council voted 6-1 to maintain the 10 minute time allocation for delegations at Standing Committees. Councillor Craven was opposed.
The motion to limit the time to be available came out of a committee made up of Councillors Craven, Taylor and Lancaster. Craven is what he is; Lancaster doesn’t know any better, Taylor should be ashamed.
 By Pepper Parr
January 1st, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
As a concept it is a really good idea.
Nominations for Burlington’s Best Awards come from the community and there have been some much deserved awards given in the past. There have some unfortunate choices when a husband nominated a wife or a Mother a son. The purpose was to have a community nominate one of their own.
For the most part the awards have been free from any political influence but there are political influencers on the committee that makes the choices. In the past there have been categories that didn’t draw much in the way of nominations.
 The recipient of an award gets a unique plaque from the city along with a piece of art. What the nominations committee has not done in our experience was decide not to make an award in a category and we don’t recall them ever retiring a category. Accessibility was added as a category this year.
The ticket price could be a little lower; if not then give value for money and don’t let the buffet tables empty quite as quickly.
This is a social event where people who quietly serve their fellow citizens are recognized. There have been some who in the past were thickening their resumes for political purposes.
Nominations opened December 1 in eight award categories, including the new Accessibility Award. The winners in all categories are revealed at a celebration held in May each year.
There are eight award categories:
 Citizen of the Year: A person whose volunteer activity has made a significant and sustained contribution to the vibrancy and wellbeing of the Burlington community.
Junior Citizen of the year: A high school student 18 years or younger who has made a significant contribution to the Burlington community.
Senior Person of the year: A person 55 years or older who has advocated on behalf of seniors and/or made a significant contribution to the Burlington community.
Environmental Award: An individual or group that improved and/or protects Burlington’s environment.
Arts Person of the Year: An individual who has contributed to the arts in Burlington as an artist, patron or advocate including but not limited to, visual arts, media arts, musical arts, performing arts and literary arts.
Community Service Award: An individual or group whose volunteer activity has contributed to the betterment of the Burlington community.
Heritage Award: An individual who has demonstrated a commitment to the preservation of Burlington’s heritage, and has volunteered their time in an effort to support the preservation of Burlington’s heritage.
Accessibility Award (new category): An individual, organization or business that has made significant contributions to increase access and participation of people with disabilities in the Burlington community.
 Winners of the 2015 Burlington Best awards Nominations will be accepted until Feb. 17, 2017.
Nomination forms can be completed online at www.burlington.ca/best or by picking up a form at the clerks department at City Hall, 426 Brant St.
 Mary Kay Aird, Chair; Burlington Best. Members of the committee that evaluate the nominations are: Mary Kay Aird, Chair; Calah Brooks, vice chair; Keith Strong; Victor Lesnicki; Adam Smith; Ann Coburn; Matthew Cocklin; Sarah Dunsford and Vicki Singh.
 By Pepper Parr
January 1st, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
It was the place to be if you had kids with more energy than you had on this first day of th year 2017.
There were hundreds of kids running all over the place with almost every one of the rooms at Tansley Woods occupied with one children’s activity or another.
The occasion was used to announce what some of money the politicians were going to do with the tax money we gave them to look after our well being,
 From the left Burlington MP Karina Gould, in the center Pam Damoff, MP for Oakville North Burlington and Burlington MPP Eleanor McMahon who also serves as the Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sports for the province. Burlington MP Karina Gould did most of the talking and reminded the audience that, January 1st, marks the beginning of the 150th anniversary of our country’s Confederation.
The Government of Canada’s vision for the 150th anniversary centres upon four major key themes: diversity and inclusiveness, the environment, young people and reconciliation with Indigenous peoples. This anniversary is an opportunity for all Canadians to reflect on our shared history, consider the path we have taken so far, while also looking to the future with optimism.
Gould announced that the Art Gallery of Burlington and the Halton District School Board and the city were to receive project funding.
 Laura Martin – started the New Year painting faces. The Canada 150 Fund, will provide $49,500 to the City of Burlington for its reaffirmation citizenship ceremony and the Art Gallery of Burlington Celebration Quilt.
The Government of Canada will also be providing $97,000 to the Halton District School Board for their Truth and Reconciliation project for their students.
The 150th anniversary of Canada is an opportunity to come together to celebrate our shared values, our achievements, our majestic environments and our place in the world. It is a time to celebrate what it means to be Canadian.
 The city’s annual New Year’s Day event at Tansley Woods – hundreds of children scooting about the place. Mayor Rick Goldring, Executive Director of the Art Gallery of Burlington, Robert Steven and Executive Director of the Sound of Music Festival, Dave Miller now have some of their funding for the year locked in.
The Canada Day citizenship ceremony should be a block buster.
Mayor Goldring told the small crowd that the city oversees or sponsors 168 events in the city each year.
The kids didn’t seem to care – they were scooting in and out of the small crowd listening to the politicians – they will be the ones to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the formal formation of this country – Canada.
 By Ray Rivers
January 19th, 2017
BURLINGTON, ON
America’s first black president. That is how Barack Hussein Obama will be remembered in the history books. His 2008 campaign logo, “Yes We Can”, was forgotten long ago. People might well ask what it really meant anyway.
 The best orator the Western World has heard in decades. It’s not that he was a bad president, like Nixon, the crook, or GW Bush, the war monger, or even Bill Clinton, the womanizer. Having achieved the highest honour the nation could bestow, he was someone to look-up to for his meteoric rise to power, particularly if the ones looking were non-white Americans.
Trump’s people called him an elite, and he was. He was consumed with the bigger picture, worried about the ins and outs and the every detail of everything he did. Analysis, vision and debate are his strengths. Articulate and a great speaker even if his speeches were dotted with enough pregnant pauses to start a new family. He’ll do well in academia and on the speaker circuit in days to come.
Obama, the idealist was also a compromiser, the art of the deal, something Trump should appreciate. Though history may disprove of his deals. His Obamacare was neither an efficient single payer system nor a purely private affair between an insurer and the patient. His was a costly compromise which will be axed, deservedly by the new administration.
 President Bush meets in the Oval Office with Former President Jimmy Carter, Former President George H.W. Bush, Former President William J. Clinton, and the President-elect Sen. Barack Obama, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2009. (Doug Mills/ The New York Times) He settled for the destruction of Syria’s chemical weapons in lieu of the destruction of its leader, and set up, for failure, the rebels he’d promised to support. In the interest of minimizing American casualties he fought the wars in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Yemen with drones or precision jet fighters and proxies, hurting but never really eliminating his enemies.
True enough, he succeeded in rescuing the US economy after the crash in 2008. And he got bin Laden. But he choked when it came to Russia, giving sway to that global lesser power in Syria and Ukraine. Having won the Nobel peace prize, in large part for his commitment to work towards the elimination of nuclear weapons, he should have made Ukraine a real red line.
 The expressions on their faces tells the story; there was no respect between these two men. After all Ukraine, once with the third largest nuclear stockpile, gave up its weapons in exchange for written guarantees of security from the USA, UK and Russia, guarantees which were ignored by all the signatories following Russia’s invasion and occupation of Crimea and eastern Ukraine. In the face of that breach of trust why would any nation hesitate to develop its own nuclear defence arsenal, as North Korea has done?
There was the Paris climate change agreement which the US signed on, and on which Trump promises to white-out the words USA, once in office. And there was the multilateral Iran deal which Trump would like to re-negotiate but can’t – though everyone knows it is only a matter of time until Iran has its own nukes. And Cuba finally got formal diplomatic recognition, though GITMO is still operating and Guantanamo Bay is still occupied by the Americans, and the Cubans are wary that one day soon their little bit of progress will get Trumpled.
 President Barack Obama receives a standing ovation from guests as he is introduced by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Canada, Wednesday, June 29, 2016. (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press via AP)
This relatively unimpressive record is reflected in his mixed popularity numbers. And in the end it’s hard to figure out what all the commotion was about, and why the celebrities loved him. But then, how many US presidents were really that much better? Maybe the problem is that being head of state and head of government is too big a job for one person – the imperfect American political system. Or maybe his heart wasn’t really in it after all – to be the leader of the free world.
They say it’s hard to turn around a big ship in a short water, but eight years in office is still a long time. Did he just give up convincing the Republicans and so many Americans of the wisdom of his ways, particularly after he lost Congress mid-way though his first term? That was perhaps his biggest failure – his inability to get people to share his vision, be they the Congressional Republicans, the Russians and Chinese or even the Israeli leadership which, despite its unveiled acrimony, will be receiving its largest US aid package ever under Obama.
Finally having helped elect one of their own, what did black Americans get out of this contract? To be fair Obama only ever promised to lift ethnic minorities with the same wave that lifted all the ships in the good fleet America. Still, today with a near booming economy, home ownership is on the decline generally and black ownership has fallen from 46% in 2009 to 43% 2014.
The poverty rate for blacks is 26% and fewer than half young black men have full time jobs, though unemployment has fallen to pre-2008 levels. But the median ethnic minority family’s income, at $18,100, is 20% lower than when Obama took office. At the same time national median wealth has increased by 1% to $142,000. And while white households were 7 times wealthier than black households back then, they are now 8 times richer.
 Michelle and Barack changed the way the world saw Presidential couple; she added to the Jackie legacy. At the least one would have expected America’s first black president to have made an effort to raise the standard of living of those in need who share his minority status. Or was ‘Yes We Can’ just about winning the election. I’ll be expecting a better performance from Michelle Obama after she wins the presidential campaign in 2020. It should be an easy win in light of the upcoming Trump legacy.
 Ray Rivers writes weekly on both federal and provincial politics, applying his more than 25 years as a federal bureaucrat to his thinking. Rivers was a candidate for provincial office in Burlington in 1995. He was the founder of the Burlington citizen committee on sustainability at a time when climate warming was a hotly debated subject. Tweet @rayzrivers
Background links
Obama and African Americans – Obama and Syria – Obama and Drones –
Obama Foreign Policy –
Obama’s Popularity –
 By Pepper Parr
December 29th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
It is a large piece of land that you drive by when you head for the Convention centre on Burloak – you pass it without realizing just how big it is.
Owned by the Paletta organization and zoned as “employment lands” the Paletta’s have wanted to convert it to residential for some time.
That doesn’t look as if it will ever happen.
The city planners describe the land as a “large, contiguous and un-serviced area of vacant employment lands that represents a significant and irreplaceable opportunity in the city and its citizens.
 Bounded by Upper Middle Road on the north, Bronte Road on the east and Mainway on the south this xxx ha piece of property holds significant potential for the city – but no one has yet been able to put together an organization or an institution that wants to locate in Burlington. “The site has the potential to be a candidate site for a major employer or large educational institution. A city-wide strategy should be initiated to attract a major employer and/or another post-secondary institution to the city, consistent with the Strategic Plan.”
The planners point out that there are “a number of strategic locations within the inventory which require municipal services and more detailed land use planning” including Bronte Creek Meadows. The study also noted that these large parcels of land should be the focus of future land use and infrastructure planning.
5164 Upper Middle Road; 5366 Upper Middle Road; 5470 Upper Middle Road; 5900 Upper Middle Road; and 5201 Mainway collectively are known as Bronte Meadows.
Paletta International Corporation (PIC) applied to amend the lands from “Office/Business Park” to “Land Use to be Determined”. That application was refused by the City. Paletta appealed to the OMB to be determined at the same time as PIC’s outstanding appeals of Official Plan Amendment.
The Bronte Creek Meadows constitutes about 40% of the vacant employment land supply (125 ha/308 ha) and 51% of the effective net supply in the entire City (125 ha/248.3 ha).
In 2009, through Minutes of Settlement the City and PIC agreed to identify a portion of the total lands (approximately 88 acres or 35 ha) to be called Burloak Employment Estates. This portion of the land can be described generally as the land abutting Burloak Drive (generally north of Mainway, west of Burloak, south of Upper Middle and bounded to the west by the proposed realignment of Sheldon Creek). The Minutes of Settlement detailed that PIC would withdraw its appeals related to an Official Plan Amendment and not appeal that portion of the site through OPA 73.
 Angelo Paletta on the left standing proudly with his father Pasquelle (Pat) Paletta The Minutes of Settlement further described that PIC would actively market the lands for a period of at least 5 years. The Minutes of Settlement set out requirements for a sign on the site, disclosure to, and discussions with BEDC. The five year time period has elapsed.
The employment land conversion assessment (Burlington Employment Lands Policy Recommendations and Conversion Analysis report) analysis recommended that Bronte Creek Meadows be retained as employment land. Staff support this recommendation.
Since the writing of the 2015 report the Region of Halton commissioned a servicing study based on servicing for employment uses, for Bronte Creek Meadows. The study is currently in draft form. The preliminary findings suggest that there are no major barriers to servicing this area.
Proposed Direction from the planners is that the city should initiate an area specific plan in the near term. Partnership with the owner of the property to develop the land for employment uses will be an important element related to moving forward.
 The Paletta organization is diversified and into food processing and entertainment. They are beleived to be the largest private land holder in the city. Five years ago they had a Christmas Day meeting with then newly elected Mayor Rick Goldring with a proposal to locate a stadium that would be home to the Hamilton Tiger Cats in Aldershot. That idea died an early death. Efforts will be made to understand the potential of these lands to support the Strategic Plan of the city.
Ward 5 Councillor Paul Sharman has said he thought the lands should be a combination of employment lands with some residential permitted.
The struggle between the owners of the largest piece of employment land in the city and the city planners has been an ongoing for many years.
No one has come to the city with an interest in putting a large corporate operation on the site despite its close proximity to both the QEW and the 407.
 Bronte Meadows from the Mainway side. Defined as Employments Lands, spitting distance to the QEW, minutes from downtown – owners would like to see some of it converted to residential. wants to rezone and make it residential. In land development it is all about timing. While the general public perception is that developers reap huge profits from development few appreciate that the Paletta’s have carried this property for some time paying taxes and significant legal fees.
The Economic Development Corporation has not been able to market the property – one observer has said that the price Paletta is asking for the property relates to residential development. It is pretty clear at this point in time that the city is determined to retain the employment land purpose. It is a splendid piece of property but no one knows what to do with it from an employment aspect.
 By Pepper Parr
December 29th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
Something is up!
 Burlington MP Karina Gould will be working New Year’s day. Burlington MP Karina Gould has called a media conference for Sunday January 1st at Tansley woods to announce what Burlington is going to get in terms of the Canada 150 fund projects.
Sunday media conferences are rare in this city – the federal Liberal’s jut might be directing their members across the country to hold these New Year’s Day events.
 Robert Stephen, President of the Art Gallery Burlington. President and CEO of the Art Gallery of Burlington, Robert Steven, and Peter Martin, President of Sound of Music are going to be part of the media conference which suggests there are some goodies for them.
The event will take place at noon New Year’s Day – it will be interesting to see just how much media the event gets.
By Ray Rivers
December 29, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
2016 was an annus horribilis, what with stars (Leonard Cohen, David Bowie, Glen Frey, Carrie Fisher, Debbie Reynolds) dropping like flies, the terrorist acts across Europe, American black lives which didn’t seem to matter, and the murderous Russian destruction of Aleppo.
 To our everlasting shame – we let this happen. It was also a bad year for prognosticators and pollsters of all stripes, what with Brexit and Trump being such unexpected outcomes. The knee jerk response is to blame those making the predictions. Were they reading bad tea leaves or were they just plain incompetents?
But to be fair, we know that polls are more than just descriptive instruments, they can actually influence outcomes – as seems to have been the case in the UK and US this past year. Some people look to a poll before voting, much like farmers do their weather vane before cutting hay. A poll one way or the other may influence their voting decisions. It may encourage folks to go out to just help get someone elected, or it might keep them at home grumbling that one more vote won’t make a difference.
And of those who do make it to the polling stations, some will jump onto a band wagon and some others will register their own little protest – the so-called contagion and strategic voting responses. The independent or rogue voters are typically non-conformist, anti-establishment or anti-elite (todays buzz word), and will support the underdog, maverick, and outsider.
Meanwhile sports-minded folks, who like to cheer for the winning team, almost regardless, will just go with the flow. And nobody should say that voters are either stupid or uninformed, even when they seem to be voting against their own best interests. They may not be able to articulate what each candidate or party really stands for and how that would affect them, but they know what they don’t like regardless how they got that impression. And typically they like change, especially if its back to the future.
 Bernie Sanders: what if he had won the Democratic nomination? So instead of blaming the voters and the pollsters when their dreams go sour, the party leaders should reflect on themselves. They weren’t doing the one thing you have to do to win in politics – listen. Michigan was a case in point – a deja vu. That traditionally democratic state had opted for the outsider Bernie Sanders despite front running Clinton’s lead in the primary polls. Why wouldn’t the party oligarchs have contemplated a repeat when running against the outsider Trump – as did happen?
And thanks to that election south of the border, Canada’s biggest challenge this coming year will be coordinating trade policy with its southern neighbours. Trump’s utterances on NAFTA , climate change and pipelines, if actualized, will present a mixed bag for us, economically and politically. For example, the Keystone XL will be approved but it may not actually move Alberta oil since one of Trump’s goals is energy self-sufficiency and reducing imports.
And if Trump follows though on tearing up the US commitment to the Paris Climate Agreement, our PM will face pressure to back off the carbon tax and possibly other environmental issues. And then there is the future of NATO. But Trump has to contend with his Republican Congress, whose members are currently closer to the other party than they are to their own leader. So expect to see some big league back-peddling – or a war within his own party.
 Justin Trudeau wowing them in Burlington during a campaign stop. At least Trudeau is very much in charge here, but how does he meet his promise to change the first-past-the-post electoral system when his own Parliamentary committee has recommended a solution (proportional representation and referendum) which cannot realistically be implemented before E-day 2019?
Anybody wanna bet he’ll defer that decision to whoever wins the next election and implement a preferential ballot as an interim measure – hoping that ‘whoever’ is Trudeau?
And what of that Conservative nomination process? Is Kevin O’Leary really trying to re-create himself as the Canadian Donald Trump? That would be his third persona after posing alternately as a shark and a dragon. And it may be his to lose as the rank and file Tories will be looking for a Mr. Wonderful of their own. And what could be more wonderful than a dragon, as TV viewers anxiously await the restart of Game of Thrones?
 Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne speaks at the hearings into the gas plant cancellations at Queen’s Park in Toronto on December 3, 2013. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Mark Blinch Ontario’s provincial government is so far down in the polls, and the provincial Liberals so tarnished with that electricity file, that even a minority government may be out of their reach come the 2018 election. So unless the Premier has something up her sleeves to excite the voters, or the provincial PC leader falls on his face again, she might as well pass the torch before the voters do her the favour.
Britain sure looks like it is going to negotiate a hard Brexit which has the same prognosticators, who said it would never happen, pronouncing the death of the great society there. But the EU may not fare any better unless it can get beyond second-guessing its very own existence, and get on with building the Union part of EU, including immigration, fiscal policy and defence. And a little help from Mr. Trump, when it comes to talking NATO, will go a long way towards that end.
Expect to see more tension and some dust-ups between China and the US, especially over the future status of Taiwan. Expect to see Iran tear-up its nuclear deal as the Trump administration renews sanctions, and this time to unabashedly build its bomb. That may mark the beginning of the end for anyone’s hopes for nuclear non-proliferation as Saudi Arabia, Japan, South Korea and even former nuclear power Ukraine jump back into the game.
That isn’t a very promising outlook, unless you like war, but that is how I see it. I also see me continuing with this column and the Burlington Gazette becoming the best read news source in Burlington next year, even if you can’t wrap your fish and chips in it.
And finally I will predict a heck of a year-long celebration, following on our Prime Minister’s wish for a wonderful birthday for this nation of ours, now come of age at 150.
 Ray Rivers writes weekly on both federal and provincial politics, applying his more than 25 years as a federal bureaucrat to his thinking. Rivers was a candidate for provincial office in Burlington in 1995. He was the founder of the Burlington citizen committee on sustainability at a time when climate warming was a hotly debated subject. Tweet @rayzrivers
Background links:
Polls and their Impacts – Worst Political Predictions – Message in Michigan – Trudeau’s Reputation –
Pipelines – Trudeau’s New Year Resolution – Physic Predictions – O’Leary – More O’Leary –
 By Staff
December 29th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
Three years ago – do you remember?
The snow storm that turned into an ice storm hit the city a few days before Christmas 2013 and just wouldn’t stop.
 This was a public road. The ice storm closed Millar |Road along with driveways throughout North Burlington The weather people at the time were predicting winds of 20 kmh – which in the world Gerry Smallegange, President of Burlington Hydro was not good news
The temperature hadn’t risen enough for enough of the ice on the trees in north Burlington to melt. If those tree branches start swaying in the wind they could come down on all those hydro lines he has had to re-build.
It was close to impossible to keep up with the demand for help Smallegange knew that he had thousands of homes in the city without power. Situations like this are not new to the people who supply homes with electricity – it was the sheer volume that came close to crippling the hydro people.
North Burlington wasn’t being ignored by any stretch – the scope and scale of the problem up there was brutal. Smallegange knew that he had a very significant problem on his hands and needed all the help he could get. He also needed a break in the weather – and that wasn’t happening.
 A hydro wire down – waiting for crews to discover it and get it restrung. This was one of many that hydro had to deal with. The ice that had built upon the hydro wires needed to melt – and the temperatures were staying at a stubborn six to ten degrees below zero.
The city’s Emergency Coordinating Committee was almost in constant session and doing their best to maintain a constant flow of information to city residents. The difficulty was that with no power radio and television were useless as was the internet and social media.
What worked best was neighbour telling neighbour and in the north – community meetings. The city held its first community meeting in Kilbride where hundreds showed up with questions. The city did its best – but at times that wasn’t good enough.
 Hydro president Gerry Smallegange explaining to Kilbride residents where the crews were and when he hoped power could be returned to the community. The lack of information was frustrating for the residents without power. Information, like energy, has to have lines it can flow through – and the available lines weren’t working all that well when it came to keeping people informed.
For reasons that are not clear at the time, the city’s communications department didn’t seem to have strong working relationships with the radio stations – which meant the people needing the information weren’t getting it from the radio stations – apparently because information wasn’t getting from the city to that media.
It all happened three years ago – we survived.
By Staff
December 28, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
The province recently passed legislation that will over time create more affordable housing. The new legislation makes changes to four existing acts that will give municipalities the option to implement inclusionary zoning, which requires affordable housing units to be included in residential developments.
Note that this is an option and Burlington might not want to go this route. It will first have to be approved at the Regional level
 Secondary suites such as above-garage apartments or basement units in new homes will be less costly to build because they would be exempted from development charges. Secondary suites are a potential source of affordable rental housing and allow homeowners to earn additional income.
Giving local service managers (that would be the Region of Halton) more choice in how they deliver and administer social housing programs and services to reduce wait lists and make it easier for people in Ontario to access a range of housing options.
The legislation encourages inclusive communities and strengthening tenant rights by preventing unnecessary evictions from social housing and creating more mixed-income housing.
The Region will now have to gather data about homelessness and perform local enumeration of those who are homeless in their communities.
What is inclusionary zoning?
 It is certainly dense when it comes to development – and it is one of the most popular places in Toronto for younger people. Minutes away from the downtown commercial core. There are affordable units in these developments. The Torontoist describes it this way: “Typically regulated by municipalities, inclusionary zoning is one way to make sure affordable housing gets built in a way that promotes socio-economically diverse neighbourhoods. It works by requiring developers to include a set portion of below-market units, usually 10 to 30 per cent, either to buy or sell in every residential building of a certain size.
“Inclusionary zoning can be mandatory or incentive-based–also called discretionary or voluntary. The latter offers developers incentives to build units valued below typical market rent or sale prices. Some municipalities may offer density bonuses so developers can build and sell more units, or they may waive development fees or fast-track projects through the approval process. Volunteer programs are often more attractive to developers, and can be for municipalities as well, since they aren’t as likely to inspire opposition and legal challenges the way mandatory programs can. However, they tend to result in fewer affordable units being built.
“Mandatory programs, which were proposed by the Ontario government, don’t give developers a say in how and when to build affordable units–those regulations are set by local governments. Some municipalities that require inclusionary zoning, however, also offer developers breaks, such as density bonuses.
“One potential drawback of mandatory inclusionary zoning is that developers who don’t want to participate may take their project to a municipality where the legislation doesn’t apply. The Province, after all, is only giving municipalities the option to mandate inclusionary zoning, not the requirement to do so. And while Toronto is poised to take advantage of the opportunity, other municipalities may not be.”
When, if ever, will Burlington see inclusionary zoning? Can you imagine what the public debate on this one will sound like?
By Staff
December 28th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
Griffin Gervais, now a grade six student, made a city program work for him and his chums earlier this year. As a result there is now a well fitted baseball diamond at the park just behind Lakeshore Public school.
 In no specific order: Sawyer Cobham. Scott Rose, Griffen Gervais, Kayden Maslanyk discuss the problems with their ball diamond. Griffen “drafted” three of his friends: Sawyer Cobham. Scott Rose, and Kayden Maslanyk to make it happen – and it did. They used what was then a new city program that had city hall matching funds (up to $5000) for a community related project.
The city is running the project for a second year – called the Neighbourhood Community Matching Fund program.
Applications for the 2017 program are now being accepted – details at
www.burlington.ca/- matchingfund.
Submissions due Wednesday, March 15, 2017.
 It was a pretty rough looking ball diamond before Griffen Gervais found a way to get some funding from city hall to get it fixed up, The program is designed to inspire residents to lead neighbourhood and community projects; the Community Matching Fund provides up to $5,000 to support projects led by local groups.
The Mayor residents to think of projects that showcase our Canadian pride and mark our Sesquicentennial – Canada is about to become 150 years old.
How the Fund works
The Community Matching Fund program provides up to $5,000 in city funding to support neighbourhood and community group-led projects in Burlington. Approved projects receive up to 50 per cent of the funding for the project from the city. The neighbourhood or community group will match this funding with an equal contribution made up through any combination of volunteer hours, donated services, donated materials and supplies or other funds raised, such as cash donations.
“Residents are the experts of our community and they have great ideas about ways to improve how we live and play here,” said Chris Glenn, the city’s director of Parks and Recreation. ““We want to inspire residents to work together to enhance our neighbourhoods and create a sense of belonging. That connection is just as important as the project itself.”
The city will be hosting two information and workshop sessions to assist community groups with any questions they have about their applications or the program. These will take place on:
Wednesday, Jan. 25, 2017
7 to 9 p.m.
Burlington City Hall, 426 Brant St. – Room 247
Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2017
7 to 9 p.m.
Haber Recreation Centre, 3040 Tim Dobbie Dr. – Community Room 1
For more information about the Community Matching Fund, visit www.burlington.ca/matchingfund or email matchingfund@burlington.ca
By Staff
December 28th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
While parents with students in high schools worry about just which high schools are going to be open in the years ahead – those parents with children getting ready to move on to high schools have to begin having the conversation with their children about which educational path they want to take.
The Halton District School Board is hosting several Pathways Planning Information Evenings in January that will allow parents and Grades 7-12 students to explore program opportunities that high schools have to offer in Halton.
 Pathways is a collaborative program between the Halton District school Board and the Halton Catholic District School Board and was created by the Ministry of Education as one of the four pillars of the Student Success Initiative
Literacy, Numeracy and Community, Culture and Caring are the other pillars. The primary purpose of Pathways is to develop learning opportunities and programs and to re-culture our education system to value all learners, all choices, and all destinations.
The goal of Pathways K-12 is to provide learners with a variety of engaging learning opportunities (including Pathways Programs, contextualized learning experiences that incorporate real world situations, curriculum integration, and cross-curricular literacy and numeracy) and to facilitate the development of learners who know themselves (including the ability to identify strengths, accomplishments, and competencies) and are able to create a Pathways Plan to work towards their goals and future education and career opportunities.
Pathways Planning
Through Pathways we encourage students to take advantage of the opportunities provided in elementary and secondary school to know themselves, identify strengths, set educational and career goals and create a Pathways Plan to achieve them.
 The Board offers more than 70 programs geared to meet individual needs, helping more students succeed in their chosen pathway after high school, whether they are pursuing apprenticeship, college, community, university or the workplace. The meetings provide information on how to better prepare students for a rapidly changing world, at the same time receiving a relevant and engaging education.
Registration to attend is not required and all are welcome.
The 6-8 p.m. meetings will be held at the following locations:
• Thursday January 12, 2017: Abbey Park High School, 1455 Glen Abbey Gate, Oakville
• Tuesday January 17, 2017: Georgetown District High School, 70 Guelph Street, Georgetown
• Thursday January 19, 2017: Milton District High School, 396 Williams Avenue, Milton
• Tuesday January 24, 2017: M.M. Robinson High School, 2425 Upper Middle Road, Burlington
Pathways programs include the
Specialist High Skills Major programs,
Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Programs,
Specialty School to Career programs,
the Employ-ability Skills Certificate program,
Dual Credit college programs,
Grade 8-9 Transition programs.
Agenda for each night:
6:00-6:30 p.m. – Pathways displays and meet the Pathways Program teachers
6:30-7:15 p.m. – Pathways presentation (Programs & planning for post-secondary)
7:15-8 p.m. – Pathways displays and specific workshops.
 By Staff
December 28th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
If there is a pdf file attached to an incoming email from a person or an organization that you do not know anything about – open that pdf at your peril.
 This symbol is used to identify a pdf file PDF stands for Portable Document Format. It is a file format used to present and exchange documents reliably, independent of software, hardware, or operating system. Invented by Adobe, PDF is now an open standard which can be used by anyone. What the crooks are doing now is burying code inside a pdf that can infect your computer.
We saw the following in our email this morning:
 This is an email message telling me there are details about a bank transfer. The details are inside the pdf file. all I have to do is click on it. The moment I do that the process of stealing my identity begins. If in doubt – don’t.
We have no idea who the email is from – never heard of the organization – but we do know that banks do not communicate like this.
When you see something like this – don’t open it.
If you see something you aren’t certain about – better to be safe than sorry – take a pass on it.
If in doubt – don’t.
 Once a hacker has gotten you to respond to their phony message they can go through code that you aren’t really aware of and pick out pieces of data that will aid them in stealing funds from your bank account. it happens every day – don’t let it happen to you. Along the same lines. We got an email card from a name that we know – but chose not to open it. We don’t know what is in that card and while we know the sender his name could have been pulled any number of sources.
If in doubt – don’t.
We didn’t
By Pepper Parr
December 27, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
For the parents of students at Central and Pearson high schools the question – Why are we in this mess? Is not unreasonable.
 Ward 5 school board trustee Amy Collard Where were the trustees and why didn’t we know about this several years ago? Another good question and the answer to that one is – the trustees for the most part weren’t there; of the 11 people who serve as trustees four represent Burlington and just one of those trustees has been in office for more than one term. Amy Collard, trustee for ward 5 was acclaimed in 2010 and again in 2014.
 This was the recommendation the Halton District school Board staff gave the trustees We can’t find anything that Collard has written or said about the student population problem at the Burlington high schools.
The other three Burlington school board trustees, Grebenc, Papin and Reynolds, were all elected for the first time in October of 2014 – they’ve been in office a little more than two years. The smarter ones were aware of the problem but we could find nothing in the public record in the way of comments they may have made.
 Milton school board trustee Donna Danielli who is the trustee sitting on the PARC – Program Accommodation Review Committee. The two trustees who have been on the board for the longest time are Kathy Amos, the current chair who represents Oakville and Donna Danielli who represents Milton.
Both have been in office for more than 12 years and they certainly did know or should have known that there was a growing problem that was only going to get worse.
The current Director of Education Stuart Miller has been with the Halon District school board all of his career and had to have been aware – however he was made Director just over a year ago.
His predecessor, David Euale, did not have all that much to say on the subject other than when the LTAP (Long Term Accommodation Plan) was being discussed.
The HDSB web site is not exactly a fountain over flowing with information (it is better than it used to be) and what is there is not all that easy to dig through, especially if you want to go back a number of years.
 Many parents are having a problem squaring the staff recommendation with the facts. How did we get into this mess – demographics is a science – most of the data needed was known – has been known since the late 90’s Few of the trustees in place now were on the board then but they were given updates each year when the LTAP was reviewed.
Was is disturbing and disappointing is that those trustees with several terms of experience have not said a word publicly about how the mess Burlington is in came to pass.
They owe the public an explanation
There is much more to this story – stay tuned!
 By Staff
December 26th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
It has come to this:
On Dec 24, 2016, at 11:06 AM, philip waggett wrote:
Mr. Goldring & Mr. Dennison,
Back in August, I commented that the data collection along New Street was a “sham”, this was not a “test” but a fait accompli in which the bike lanes were now permanent. In fact two comments from the recent minutes of the Cycling Committee support this view.
In October, the Cycling Committee minutes reported “…Phase Two will look at the possibility of physcial separation of the bike lanes and car lanes…”; in November, the minutes reported, “Report that New Street will be going next fall”. Both of these comments indicate that the Cycling Committee believe that the New Street Bike Lanes are a permanent fixture–despite the widespread opposition of thousands of residents!!!!!
Further, the October minutes of this special interest lobby group reveal that $1800 of valuable taxpayers money was approved to buy “free(?) giveaways” at the inspire burlington event in November. The giveaways apparently promoted that “cycling is delightful”.
Why are valuable taxpayers resources being used for this purpose?
At 7:14 am Christmas Day Ward 4 city Councillor |Jack Dennison wrote
Phil
We will get input from Dan Ozimkovic traffic engineering when he returns from Christmas break. He has the details.
The new street bike lanes are absolutely not a done deal, it will depend on if there is a reduction in accidents in that stretch and not a significant increase in travel times, all of which will be reported on.
Phil, Merry Christmas and Happy New year to you and yours
Jack
Our hope is that Jack was up at that hour with those that matter in his life. The bike lanes on New Street can just wait until the New Year,
By Pepper Parr
December 22, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
The Halton District School Board has 11 trustees;
There are four that represent Burlington, four that represent Oakville, two that represent Milton and one that represents Halton Hills.
The four Burlington trustees are:
Amy Collard represents Burlington – Ward 5  
Andrea Grebenc represents Burlington – Wards 3, 6
Richelle Papin represents Burlington – Ward 4
Leah Reynolds represents Burlington – Wards 1, 2
Collard is serving her second term as a trustee and was acclaimed in both elections. She served as chair of the board in the past.
Grebenc, Papin and Reynolds are all first time trustees in Burlington. At least two of the four have aspirations for higher office.
 Leah Reynolds  Richelle Papin The four that represent Oakville are:
Kelly Amos, chair of the board of trustees in 2016 and returned to that position for 2017. She represents Oakville – Ward 5 & 6
Tracey Ehl Harrison: Oakville – Wards 1, 2;
Ann Harvey Hope: Oakville – Ward 3
Joanna Oliver: Oakville – Ward 4
The two representing Milton are:
Kim Graves, Vice-Chair for 2016 and re-elected to that position for 2017. She represents Milton – Wards 1, 6, 7, 8
 Donna Danielli a Milton school board trustee will sit on the PARC and bring a season trustee viewpoint to the discussions. She is probably the most direct and knowledgeable trustee the board has. Donna Danielli represents Milton – Wards 2, 3, 4, 5 Danielli also sits on the PARC representing the trustees.
Jeanne Gray represents Halton – Wards 1, 2, 3, 4
Of the 11, just three have more than one term in office as a trustee. The other eight were all elected for the first time in 2014 – they have two years’ experience as school board trustees.
The Director of Education prepares a report for the trustees. In preparing that report he is advised by a Program Accommodation Review Committee that has representation from all seven Burlington high schools
That PARC will meet several times between publicly to deliberate. They group is chaired by Superintendent Scott Podabarac. We understand he will be supported by the facilitator from Ipsos, the organization that handled the data capture and is expected to do an an analysis of the data. A link to the data collected so far is set out at the bottom of this report.
The Director of education will write report to the trustees with his recommendation that will include the PARC recommendations.
The trustees will vote on the Directors recommendation. It is the trustees who will make the final decision.
The two high schools that were recommended for closing are Central high school and the Lester B. Pearson high school.
The Director of Education has an accommodation problem. He has 1800 + seats that do not have students sitting in them. From a financial responsibility – he cannot justify allowing those seats to remain empty – and the province won’t allow him to continue to do that for very long.
Add to that the belief that he cannot offer the students the choices he believes they are entitled to with high schools that cannot offer the choices.
If there are no students in the schools – then there will be no teachers – put it slightly differently – fewer students – fewer teachers. Fewer teachers, fewer course offerings.
Miller’s solution to this problem is to close two high schools which solves his immediate 1800 empty seat problem and allows him to offer the courses he believes students are entitled to.
That is the job Miller has – to run a fiscally responsible school system and offer students the widest possible course offerings. He believes closing two high schools will do that.
Throughout the process so far Miller has maintained that the PARC may well come up with a recommendation or a set of ideas that will solve the overcapacity problem. In a presentation made to parents the board has said:
Staff is required to present a recommended option according to Ministry Guidelines and Board policy whenmore than one option is present
Option 19 is presented to initiate discussion for the PAR and will be used to start the PAR process
This option is not the final Board decision
The parents see things much differently.
They are opposed to losing their community school – they believe that having a high school within their community is what community is all about.
 More than 350 parents at the first city wide public meeting. The vast majority of the parents were from Central high school. Few parents appear that there are several other high schools that could be at risk. Further at this point they do not trust the process that is in place. Many parents don’t feel they are going to be able to communicate with the members of the PARC – the process that has been set up does not, from their point of view, create a situation that allows open dialogue and the free exchange of ideas.
All the PARC appears to be able to do is accept data, briefs written by parent groups. The PARC doesn’t appear to have a hard and fast set of limitations – and with Meed Ward on that committee you can expect her to stretch the boundaries as far as they can be stretched,
With this task she isn’t going to get hi-jacked the way she has been in the past at city council.
Will the city manager attempt to reign in Meed Ward – we don’t know what his agenda is – yet.
Everything eventually gets put in front of the trustees – who at this point have for the most part dummied up. You can’t get them to say a word.
The seats of the four Burlington trustees are on the line.
The PARC will begin their meetings in late January.
 Assuming the decision to close Central and Pearson stands those schools would not open to students in September of2018.
The municipal election takes place in October 2018
When a group of people meet a chemistry takes place. The different styles of arriving at a conclusion become evident, leaders become evident. There are some strong personalities on the PARC and people we know next to nothing about.
Are there any really creative thinkers in that PARC? What will Meed Ward say if the evidence for closing the school is very very strong? Her council seat might be at risk if the PARC recommends that Central be closed and her wish to become Mayo of the city might be dashed as well.
 Burlington city manager James Ridge City manager James Ridge serves at the pleasure of city city council – has the city given Ridge a set of marching orders he is expected to follow ?
How many agendas are there going to be in the room that the PARC meets in?
The PARC that was created to advise the Director of Education has some interesting people on it. There is very little in the way of biographical material on any of the 14 people (parents) representing the seven high schools.
The city has a representative on the PARC – Mayor Rick Golding chose city manager James Ridge to represent the city’s interests – Mayor Goldring said Ridge volunteered.
Meed Ward has said privately that she would like to run for the office of mayor. If there was ever an issue given to a potential candidate on a silver plate – the possible closing of two high schools in their city is about as good as it could get.
Will Meed Ward be able to show the leadership that many feel has been missing on city council? Will she shine during the PARC meetings ?
This one is hers to lose.
 Ward 2 city Councillor Marianne Meed Ward Does it matter what the PARC says? It is the trustees that are going to decide and they are not bound by either what the PARC says or what the Director of Education recommends.
They have to be responsible – but each will have their own definition of responsibility.
This is a very significant decision for Burlington and few of the trustees have neither the background nor the experience to make this kind of decision. There are a few.
Is this a choice between
ensuring that every high school student has the best opportunity possible to obtain the education they desire
or maintaining complete neighbourhoods that have a local high school?
That’s the challenge faced by the PARC, the Director of Education and the 11 trustees.
Links to related articles:
The data gathered at the first PARC related meeting.
By Staff
December 22, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
Most of us are rushing to get tasks done that just have to be done before we ease up for a few days away from what usually occupies us Monday to Friday,
City of Burlington administrative services will be closed from Monday, Dec. 26, 2016 until Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2017.
Parks and Recreation Programs and Facilities: Activities and customer service hours at city pools, arenas and community centres vary over the holidays.
For a complete listing of program times visit burlington.ca/play
For a complete listing of service hours and customer service locations visit burlington.ca/servicehours
Burlington Transit and Handi-Van Service Hours:
The Downtown Transit Terminal will be closed Dec. 25 and 26, 2016 as well as Jan. 1, 2017. It will be closed early (2 p.m.) on Dec. 24 and 31.
Date Service schedule/hours
Dec. 24 Service ends early at approximately 8 p.m.
Dec. 25 No service
Dec. 26 Saturday service hours
Dec. 27 to Dec. 30 Regular service
Dec. 31 Saturday service extended until approximately 2 a.m.
Jan. 1 No service
Roads and Parks Maintenance: The administrative office will be closed on Monday, Dec. 26, 2016 and will reopen on Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2017. Only winter control and emergency services will be provided.
Halton Court Services: Provincial Offences Courts in Milton and Burlington will be closed Monday, Dec. 26, 2016 and will reopen on Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2017.
Parking: Free parking is available in the downtown core at all meters, municipal lots and the parking garage during the month of December and on Jan. 1, 2017.
NOTE: The Waterfront parking lots (east and west) do not provide free parking on statutory holidays.
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