 By Pepper Parr
November 11th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
We gathered in the hundreds fifty yards or so north of Civic Square where more than a hundred wreaths were laid at the cenotaph that recently underwent a clean-up and some refurbishing.
Some of the men who were there last year were not with us this year.
We do know that William (Bill) Basil McConnell was there. Earlier this year McConnell was made a member of the French Legion of Honour. This is an award given by the President of France.
 Retired Chief Petty Officer William (Bill) Basil McConnell being congratulated by Colonel Roger Vandomm during the awarding of the French Legion of Honour medal. This is no small measure – the recognition given by the President of France was presented to McConnell aboard HMCS Haida, a retired Tribal Class destroyer that is tied up at HMCS Star in Hamilton.
McConnell is a hero in the largest sense of that word. He was what were called boy seamen – signed up at 16 and served in the Royal Navy until 1953 after 15 years of service.
He was aboard the battleship HMS Ramillies on D Day supporting the troops that were being rushed to the shores of France to begin the liberation of Europe.
Battleships were in a class of their own. The Ramillies had four 16 inch guns forward.
A sixteen inch gun means the bullet that comes roaring out of the barrel is 16 inches in diameter.
Ramillies was part of the D Day landing in June of 1944. She was to use her big guns to take out a German battery with six 6” guns at Beneville, France to the east end of Sword Beach. The Ramillies took out four of those gun batteries in 80 minutes. The British shells coming in meant the Germans had to do their best to return fire and were not able to train their guns on the troops landing on the beaches.
It was during this battle that Bill had to go aloft to the Aloft Director to repair some electrical equipment. The Aloft Director is the station high up on the ship that was used for observation.
With his electrical tool kit in one hand and the other reaching from one rung of the ladder to the next to get to the location where repairs were necessary the guns of the Ramillies roared deafening McConnell instantly.
McConnell was not able to put his hands over his ears because, as he put it, “you can’t cover both ears, hold the ladder and your tool kit at the same time”. He was deafened completely in on ear and seriously in the other.
 Legion d’Honneur awarded by the President of the Republic of France to William (Bill) Basil McConnell. In a small, dignified ceremony on a lovely sunny summer afternoon at HMCS Star aboard the retired Tribal Class destroyer HMCS Haida, the Legion d’Honneur awarded by the President of the republic of France was awarded to that William (Bill) Basil McConnell
Colonel Roger Vandomm, of the French Consulate pinned a medal on the chest of McConnell. He read out a message from the government of France: “By order of the President of the Republic of France, you have been awarded the rank of Knight of the French National Order of the Legion of Honour.
“This distinction, the highest national order of France, illustrates the profound gratitude France would like to express to you in recognition of your personal involvement of the liberation of our country during World War II.”
Had you been there you would have seen a retired naval hero look into the eyes of a serving French Colonel and exchange an understanding of what war is all about and the terrible price that is paid.
Today in Burlington – its citizens lined the street and recognized again those who fought.
 By Jim Young
November 11th, 2106
BURLINGTON, ON
Following the outrage over the New Street “road diet” and the introduction of bike lanes to the disadvantage of drivers, transit users and residents; one might have hoped that Burlington City Council would waken up to the fact that communication and consultation, before a decision, is preferable to acrimony and bitterness in its aftermath.
In the New Street aftermath every Councillor I heard from agreed that, no matter how well intentioned, the implementation was a communications disaster. They vowed the road diet will be monitored, measured and the data reviewed and debated by the public to gain their input before permanent adoption.
 Jim Young delegating at city council. He had ten minutes on this occasion. In their rush to calm outraged citizens, Councillors assured their constituents that next time around their actions will be more open, transparent and attentive to public input. So far so good; ruffled feathers have been smoothed, angry voices calmed and all the proper civic engagement boxes ticked. A veneer of local democracy survives and maybe they will all get re-elected next year. Sighs of relief all round.
So how, mere weeks later, you may ask, can this same group of Councillors who have sworn transparency, openness and engagement now vote to limit public delegations to council on matters of community interest and concern?
Until last week any issue before council was open to public input via delegation to council when the issue was discussed and voted on. Interested advocacy groups or individual citizens were allowed ten minutes to present their thoughts, concerns or their support for the matter at hand. Now council’s Community and Corporate Services Committee, which comprises all of city council, have decided that citizens will be limited to five minutes for individual presentations while advocacy and special interest groups will still be allowed ten minutes.
 Just how democratic are the city Councillors? I am at a loss to understand how this promotes or advances engagement and community involvement. Indeed it is an affront to the whole notion of local democracy. Perhaps Councilors Craven, Sharman and Taylor who voted in favour of the new limit will grace their constituents with an explanation. Perhaps they were looking ahead to when the New Street issue comes back before council next year and trying to silence critics who will doubtless be lining up for their full ten minutes to vent on that subject.
 Councillor Dennison defended the ten minute time limit on delegations.  Mayor Goldring defended the ten minute time limit for delegations. Kudos to Mayor Goldring, Councillors Dennison and Meed Ward who opposed the five minute limit; Defending our right as citizens to speak truth to power. (Councillor Lancaster was absent.)
The matter will come before the full council on November 28th for final ratification. Hopefully Councillor Lancaster will be in attendance and vote some sanity back into the issue or, perhaps, our three errant Councillors will regain their professed love of citizen engagement and vote more wisely on that date.
Members of the public who wish to make their feelings known about this issue at the Nov. 28 meeting can register to speak at the meeting on.
I urge my fellow Burlingtonians to do so. It may be your last chance to get a ten minute hearing with your council members.
 By Ray Rivers
November 11th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
They’re red and blue, plastered across the map of America, the divided states representing the divided state of America. And it hasn’t changed much over the years – the reds and blues are pretty constant from election to election, except for a handful of battleground states.
 Yes I called the election result but that wasn’t my preferred outcome. Now it seems that the glass ceiling will have to wait. And if Hillary was doing this for womankind, it didn’t work since nearly half of all female voters chose Trump anyway. But then this contest should never have been about gender… or sex. It should have been about the next four years. There was this entitlement thing. Again, Clinton and her cronies believed it was her turn, that she deserved to be president because she got beaten out by an African-American in 2008.
Trump’s folks called her an elite though she, and not her opponent, had pulled themselves up from a humble beginning. But she acted the part, perhaps overconfident in the knowledge that she was the the only qualified candidate. So she went high when he went low and allowed herself to be branded as corrupt and crooked by someone much closer to that description.
For at least a couple of generations now we have been conditioned by the television set. And when we get bored watching a re-run we change the channel to a reality show – its easy to do. Perhaps Clinton didn’t understand that the people wanted change, and not that phoney ‘yes we can’ change they were handed back in 2008. Even if unemployment has fallen to historic lows under Obama, slinging burgers is not the pathway to becoming part of a dwindling middle-class. The American dream just wasn’t working out for all those angry white voters who ended up propelling Trump into the White House.
 Trump went rogue. End free trade! Build a wall! Kick out illegals! Tear up the climate change deal! Ban Muslim immigrants! Drop out of NATO! Make love with Putin! Plain speak so nobody could accuse the real estate magnate of mincing words. And when the pollsters and the media prematurely pronounced his imminent defeat, the voters thought what the hell? What have we got to lose? It was a Brexit echo, and it sure looks like Trump played that card from the beginning.
It should have been Hillary. Not because of some sexist reason, but because she was qualified and had some very progressive policies, which she rarely even got to talk about. Baggage drags you down, and she had too much, the flip side of all that experience. And then there was how she got be the nominee. Yesterday’s candidate won her party’s nomination with a stacked hand.
Nobody can say that Bernie Sanders would have performed better, but he was at least liked and respected for his years of experience, his ideals and his ethics. Perhaps the millennial crowd would have come out for him, because they sure didn’t for Hillary. And Bernie and Trump would have at least been fun to watch in debate.
 Still, had it not been for the FBI intervention at the eleventh hour, which reinforced doubts about her character, Clinton might have won. And the FBI will likely get off scot-free, since the Republicans are in control now. Isn’t that’s how politics works – the winners get it all?
America was a nation divided before this election, those perennial red and blue states. And it won’t get any less divided over the next four years. Because people don’t always vote in their own self-interest, and they keep voting like they always did. And there can only be two parties in that very imperfect democracy south of the border, where check and balance has transitioned to confrontation and obstruction.
 Hillary Clinton graciously wished Trump a successful presidency, whatever that means. One should expect he will be as divisive in governing as he was in campaigning – and big league. Some politicians focus on what unites us… ‘stronger together’. Others use racism and sexism to drive a wedge between the people, and pit one against another. It’s called divide and conquer. And it worked in the Divided States of America.
There were protests on the first two days following the election. Wouldn’t it have been more effective for those young people to simply have voted? After all, it won’t be long before governing America will be the responsibility of their generation.
 Ray Rivers is an economist and author who writes weekly on federal and provincial issues, applying his 25 years of involvement with federal and provincial ministries. Rivers’ involvement in city matters led to his appointment as founding chair of Burlington’s Sustainable Development Committee. He was also a candidate in a past provincial election.
Background links:
Hillary’s Concession – Trump’s Lies – Bernie and Donald – What Happens Next –
Lest we forget.
 A veteran on the reviewing stand during a Remembrance Day parade Let we forget. A veteran on the reviewing stand during a Remembrance Day parade.
Let we forget. A veteran on the reviewing stand during a Remembrance Day parade.
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 By Pepper Parr
November 10th, 2106
BURLINGTON, ON
We know a little bit more about how your city council got to the point where they could approve a Staff recommendation to reduce time for delegations to city Standing Committees to five minutes from ten.
 Ward 2 Councillor Marianne Meed Ward manged to delegate often enough to build a profile and get herself elected to Council where she is reported to be preparing to run for Mayor in 2018. Delegating does have its advantages. According to Marianne Meed Ward, who was responding to a resident, the Community and Corporate Services committee was considering a staff report to “make changes to the procedural bylaw. The report was produced by staff and a subcommittee of council that included Taylor, Craven and Lancaster.
“One of those changes to the procedure bylaw included in the report was a recommendation to change delegation speaking time from the current 10 minutes to 5 minutes.
“Jack Dennison moved the staff report with a change to the report to keep delegation speaking time at 10 minutes.
“Votes were taken in parts.
“First we voted on this section, to keep speaking time at 10 minutes. That failed 3-3 with one member of council absent.
“Then a vote taken on the entire report, which included the recommendation that delegations be limited to 5 minutes. That passed 5-1 – I did not support” said Meed Ward.
 By Staff
November 8th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
We now know what the City Solicitor told members of city council when they went into closed session yesterday afternoon.
The Ontario Superior Court of Justice has ordered Burlington Airpark Inc. to pay City of Burlington court costs in the amount of $118,327.53.
 The Air Park corporation dumped tons of land fill on their property to level out the land and in the process earned thousands of dollars in fees collected for permitting the land fill on the property without an approved site plan, The black line indicates the boundary of the Air Park property. The cost award is related to the June 30, 2016 decision of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in favour of the City of Burlington’s application to compel Burlington Airpark Inc. to submit an application for a site alteration permit to comply with the city’s bylaw.
With the court ruling, the Airpark was required to file an application for a site alteration permit for the fill deposited between 2008 and 2013 before Aug. 31, 2016 and has now been ordered to pay the city’s court costs on a substantial indemnity basis.
 Heavy construction equipment parked on a 30 foot + hill 50 yards from the kitchen window of the Sheldon property on Appleby Line next door to the Air Park landfill operation. Many thought the overnight parking of the equipment overnight was intimidating An appeal by Burlington Airpark Inc. to the June 30, 2016 judgement in favour of the City of Burlington is scheduled to be heard by the Ontario Court of Appeal on March 28, 2017 at Osgoode Hall, 130 Queen St. West in Toronto.
The City of Burlington site alteration bylaw 64-2014 regulates the placing, dumping, cutting and removal of fill or the alteration of grades or drainage on a piece of land. Individuals doing this type of work must first submit an application to the city for a site alteration permit.
This is getting to be a very expensive experience for the Air Park and almost a profit center for the city. This is not the first time a Court has ordered the Air Park to pay the city very substantial costs.
By Pepper Parr
November 8th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
City council spent a full four hours on Monday making changes to the way the public gets to interact with them.
Marianne Meed Ward delegating at city hall.  Vanessa Warren delegating at city hall. One of the biggest changes is the amount of time you will get to delegate. It used to be 10 minutes – on a tie vote the Standing Committee voted to cut that back to five.
Councillor Blair Lancaster was not present at the meeting – so when the recommendation gets to council it might be different.
 Monte Dennis delegating before city council, The Gazette was not in the Council chamber on Monday and cannot tell you who voted for the reduction in delegation time and who voted against it.
We have noticed that the cameras that record the web cast did not pan to the members of Council as they voted which means those viewing the city’s business on the web cast don’t get to see how members of council sitting as a Standing Committee.
This city council has in the past voted against their votes at Standing Committee being recorded.
It looked as if this was deliberate. If it was that is a very unhealthy sign.
If you value the time you used to have delegating – get on the telephone and let your elected member of Council know that you aren’t too happy with the recommendation.
This is what citizen involvement is all about and they are about to take away half of the time you used to get.
To be fair – a Standing Committee can extend the time a speaker has or a member of Council can engage the delegation and give them the chance to complete their point.
Things are being tightened up at city hall – a better word might be squeezed.
 By Staff
November 8th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
The police would like to know if you got stung by this one.
A male was at the cash register of a Shoppers Drug Mart store and purchased a package of Halls cough candy. Total cost was $1.46
The suspect handed the cashier a Canadian $20.00 bill. While the cashier was making change the male said he would pay with coins instead.
 Through distraction and the exchange of money the cashier did not realize that the male received an extra $20.00. The male exited the store and entered a newer model black Infinti Q5S.
A similar incident occurred at a variety store in Burlington involving the same male.
Through investigation the male was identified, arrested and charged with two counts of fraud. Police believe there are additional victims who are either unaware they have been scammed or who declined to report the incident at the time. The police would like to hear from them
Anyone with information is asked to contact Constable Michael Garvey at 30 Division in Burlington at 905-825-4747 ext. 2305, or CrimeStoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS), through the web at www.haltoncrimestoppers.com or by texting “Tip201” with your message to 274637 (crimes).
By Staff
November 8th, 2106
BURLINGTON, ON
Something is up with the Air Park and its legal battle with the city.
City Council went into a 22 minute closed session for an update from city solicitor Nancy Shea Nicol on what was described as an Air Park matter.
The Air Park has filed a site plan with the city’s planning department but that plan has not come before council yet.
 Vince Rossi, president of the Burlington Executive Air Park and believed to be the sole shareholder of the private company. The Air Park is in a very delicate situation. They have to file a site plan and the city gets to approve that plan. The city is believed to want quite a bit of the land fill that was dumped on the property removed – that would prove to be very expensive for the Air Park
The Air Park was sued by the city for not filing a site plan – they lost that court case but have appealed the decision.
The appeal is to be heard in March of 2017
 This is not the view the Appleby Line property owner had when she bought the property. She doesn’t believe the Air Park had the right to dump all that landfill next to her property line. While all this legal arm wrestling takes place there is a property owner on Appleby Line who has to look at piles of landfill in excess of 30 feet high on either side of her property.
No one at city hall is doing anything for this taxpayer.
This is an ongoing saga not only for the residents who live in the rural part of Burlington but for two residents who were sued for libel by the Air Park. The Burlington Gazette was also sued – but that court case doesn’t appear to be going anywhere.
 By Pepper Parr
November 7th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
Dania Thurman made her first delegation to city council yesterday. It was not that pleasant an experience for her – even though she gave a strong, informed presentation.
Council didn’t ask her a single question about what is perhaps one of the most important issues about the kind of downtown the city is going to have in the future.
Thurman argued that closing the Central High school would damage the downtown core community.
 Dania Thurman – vice chair of the Central High School parent group. Thurman is the Vice-Chair of the parent group opposing the closing of the high school. She was delegating along with another parents the same time that Halton District School Board, Director of Education Stuart Miller was explaining to council the why behind why high schools had to be closed.
 The T-shirt tells it all – for the parents – it is about the community. Central Strong, the working name of the parent committee, was formed to organize and inform the downtown core residents, parents, alumni and business owners who will be impacted by the Halton District School Board’s proposal to close Burlington Central High School explained Thurman.
They have 2000 people a week going to their Facebook page and the 500 lawn sighs printed have been snapped up
Thurman said: “Burlington Central High School is the heart and soul of our downtown community and generations of students have attended and excelled there. Our Central Strong team is committed to keeping our school open so the students can benefit from the true community spirit of our school. This includes everything from dedicated staff (many of whom are also alumni), unique programs (like robotics, theatre and theatre tech), and the joy of walking or biking to school every day (which has also been proven to increase student focus and overall success).
“We truly hope that the recommendation to close the Central and Pearson schools is indeed only a starting point for discussion as was indicated by the Director of Education and the Chair of the Board of Trustees.
 Central High school corridor – the place reeks of local history. “Our group’s mission is to provide as much accurate information as we can to aid in finding alternative solutions. Our opinion is that Burlington Central is not the right choice to close and we will work as a community to find creative alternatives to the issues the board may face that don’t involve the closure of Burlington Central High School. We believe that alternatives exist and would be healthier for the students, families and the community than a school closure.
“In addition to this, the Central Strong Community group has officially aligned itself with the growing uproar from the Ontario Alliance Against School Closures, who are calling on the government for an immediate moratorium on school closures. The Ontario Alliance Against School Closures represents 27 school groups across the province. It also has the support of “The Community Schools Alliance” which represents 33 municipalities and approximately 350,000 residents.
Thurman argues that the Ministry’s Pupil Accommodation Review Guideline, as it is currently written, is both damaging and undemocratic. It fails to take into consideration, the value of a school to its community, municipality and local economy. Close to the entire student population at Burlington central can currently walk to school. The physical and mental health of our students impacted by these closures and consolidations is completely disregarded. The municipality should also be concerned as this will ultimately result in increased busing.
“Our environment and an already congested infrastructure will only further deteriorate. You should also be deeply concerned about the narrow vision of the Pupil Accommodation Review process and how it will affect our city and Burlington’s Strategic Plan.”
Thurman was direct, brought up strong arguments but didn’t get a single question from city council.
Michael Kukhta, also a member of the parent group delegated. He was asked a lot of questions which we will cover in a seperate story.
By Staff
November 7, 2107
BURLINGTON, ON
There is a group in Toronto that have done something really smart – and there is an opportunity for you to get involved if climate change means anything to you.
The Centre for Social Innovation (CSI) and Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change (MOECC) have launched an accelerator program for social enterprises tackling greenhouse gas emissions.
 Do you want to work to change behaviors to reduce emissions and combat climate change? If this kind of stuff matters to you – and it should or we will all be wearing breathing masks in a decade – there is a group you can touch base with.
Applications are now open until December 11th, 2016! Log in at
https://socialinnovation.org/apply-climate-solutions/
for the application form.
Over the course of one year, Agents of Change: Climate Solutions will provide social enterprises with workspace, training, mentorship, access to capital, advisory services, impact measurement support, and membership in CSI’s community of over 1,000 organizations, with the goal of accelerating and scaling promising products, campaigns, services, and technologies that lead to a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.
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By Pepper Parr
November 7th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
Everyone appears to still be in the dark as to just what is going on at the Seniors’ Centre.
One source said “I went on the Centre web site there was only a notice of what has happened and the Board would be meeting in November and the results of that meeting would be posted on that site, so like everyone else I am in the dark.
“There is a general notice at the Centre of what has happened issued by the city you could call and pick one up they are on the front counter.”
The Board seems to be hiding behind their web site.
The city has just moved in and taken over – so much for citizen participation.
The Seniors will get angry and at some point elect a new board.
 Ward 2 Councillor Marianne Meed Ward serves as the city representative on the Seniors Advisory Council. The city council representative on the Seniors Advisory Board, Marianne Meed Ward has said she “was hoping the discussions the city and board were having over the past year would lead toward a new MOU that would benefit both parties.”
At the same time she said: “The BSCI now has an opportunity to chart a new role for itself serving seniors in Burlington, and I have committed to stay on the board to assist them in this transition for as long as they would like.”
This is very unlike Meed Ward. Every battle she has taken on – the Pier, the different developments during her six years as a city councillor, the sale of waterfront property – you name it – she has been at the front of the parade.
The Beachway was not in her ward and it drives Councillor Craven crazy when she involves herself in that issue. There has never been anything shy about Marianne Meed Ward in the past – so why the backing away now?
This was the organization with the potential to be a large part of what was going to propel her into the Office of the Mayor.
To say that the BSCI “now has an opportunity to chart a new role for itself” is so completely disingenuous.
It would appear that she too has left them to their own devices and with the leadership the BCSI has at the moment it is going to be slim pickings for the over 55 set.
For the first time in a very long time Meed Ward’s political instincts appear to have deserted her.
Everyone loses.
 By Pepper Parr
November 6th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
What would Spencer Smith think if he could see what they have done to the park he created?
The willow trees that he planted 70 years ago are gone.
 This is the Gazebo that was. The Gazebo that used to be on the waterfront is gone too.
Come the Spring the eastern end of the park will have a much different look. There will be a new concrete pathway that will wind from the beginning of the Naval Promenade to the back of the new Gazebo and loop back to the Promenade
 This is the |Gazebo your city i in the process of constructing for you. New trees have been planted. In a couple of years we will have forgotten what it used to look like and the trunks of those willow will have been turned into table tops. Maybe some of the wood carvers at the Art Gallery will fashion a desk that will sit in the office of the Mayor.
 This is where the new Gazebo is gong to be built – it looks like it will be quite a bit bigger. Spencer Smith would probably approve of that.
There are a couple of hundreds clippings taken from the willow trees that were cut down – they will be handed out to people in the Spring.
All good stuff – but where was the public input in all this. Remember – this government was going to be transparent – they were going to include you the tax payer.
We didn’t see any drawings for the new east end of the park with different ideas the public could comment on.
The landscape architects just went ahead and did it because they could.
 This is one of the scenes you get to enjoy from the park. while Burlington isn’t a port city – Hamilton is a large inland port and everything that sails into Hamilton sails by Burlington. That is not healthy civic government.
Related articles:
Who was Spencer Smith?
 Where will the willows go?
 By Pepper Parr
November 5th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
It is almost done – close to being ready for a ribbon cutting ceremony if the Mayor is foolish enough to do any such thing on the site of where he went along with giving away a significant part of the city’s heritage. The Mayor didn’t do this all by himself – every member of Council except for Ward 2 Councillor Marianne Meed Ward, voted to sell the land next to the lake to the people whose property abutted land that was owned by the city and the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources.
 The potential was for a lovely little parkette that would have been a nice quiet place to enjoy the lake. The city sold a critical part of land that was owned by both the city and the provincial Ministry of Natural Resources. The patch of land to the west on Market Street was made into a Window onto the Lake – the patch of land to the east on St. Paul was also made into a Window on the Lake. They sold the family jewels for a pittance – and put an end to a true Waterfront Trail.
 It is an absolutely superb site that was sold because the city council didn’t have the foresight to keep the land and let it become a part of the Waterfront Trail. We did get two Windows to the Lake out of it – and they are close to being ready for public use.
 The Window at the foot of St. Paul is a little austere but it is better than nothing. What a great place to sit down and read a good book. Plenty of space to set out a blanket and just enjoy the view.  Resident makes the best of late afternoon sunshine in new chairs placed in one of the city’s newest Windows on the Lake. There are two Windows, one on Market Street and the other at the foot of St. Paul.
 The Window at th foot of Market street is a nice, quiet secluded area tucked in behind a small grove of trees. Great place for a quiet conversation.  Looking north to the foot of Market street the red leaves and the blue chairs are a lovely contrast. Of the two the one at west on Market is the nicest. It is tucked into a nice small grove of trees and is a little more intimate than the one on the east side.
By Pepper Parr
November 5th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
They come and they go.
The people who run the city are people we rely upon to come up with the solutions to solve the problems.
In the five years the Gazette has been reporting on this city we have seen four city managers. Currently James Ridge, a former Canadian army veteran who served in the Military Police.
 City manager James Ridge There was a point when the city had three General Managers who reported to the city manager. That level of management no longer exists and the city manager has a team of Directors who meet with Ridge as part of what he calls his Leadership Team.
And as long as you do things the way Ridge wants you to do them – you get to stay on the team.
 Retiring Director of Transit Mike Spicer on the left attends a community meeting with city manager James Ridge. One of these two is not a happy camper. Mike Spicer, Director of Transit will be leaving the tram November 18th.
The Gazette got a note from a reader who brought Spicer’s resignation to our attention. It took a few days to get comment from Spicer who we found to be usually available for comment.
We asked Spicer if there was any truth to the rumour we received.
Here is the flow of the conversation:
Gazette: Got a note from someone saying you had been shown the door.
Spicer: I was not shown the door. I resigned. Last day is November 18th.
Gazette: Where are you going and what are you going to do next?
Spicer: Seeking new opportunities, don’t have anything concrete at this moment but am looking at a few opportunities.
 Mayor Goldring reading a transit app on his cell phone. To his left is Joey Edwardth of Community Development Halton and Doug Brown – the guy who knows more about transit in the city than anyone else. He seldom gets a call. Good luck to Mike. He had a difficult job – he was expected to provide a transit service without the funds he needed and the full support of city council.
He did slip up on a number of occasions – failing to attend meetings that were put on by transit service advocates was a killer.
By Staff
November 5th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
A 13 year old boy was struck by a vehicle on Friday at the intersection of Appleby Line and Taywood Drive in the City of Burlington.
The boy was on the bicycle heading northon Appleby Line within the crosswalk when a northbound white Volkswagen attempted to turn left onto Taywood Drive. The vehicle hit the male and fled from the scene.
The bicycle driver was initially taken to Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital before being airlifted to a children’s trauma centre in critical but non-life threatening condition.
A coordinated search of the area resulted in the suspect vehicle being located at a residence close to the collision scene. The driver of the vehicle returned to the scene of the collision and was arrested for failure to stop at scene of an accident causing bodily harm.
The driver was identified as 23-year-old Stephen BALON of Burlington. Mr. BALON will appear in court on December 7th at the Ontario Court of Justice, 491 Steeles Road, Milton Ontario.
The status of the bicycle rider has been upgraded to stable condition.
Any witnesses to the collision are asked to contact the Collision Reconstruction Unit at 905-825-4747 extension 5065, or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS), or through the web at www.haltoncrimestoppers.com, or by texting “Tip201” with your message to 274637 (crimes).
By Ray Rivers
November 4th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
So the election is Tuesday and like so many others, I am not crazy about either of the main candidates Americans have to choose between. For a while it sure looked like Hillary had it in the bag, but the FBI staged something as close to a coup as one can in a liberal democracy. And now it’s too close to call. Except I’m calling it for Trump. He has the momentum and sometimes stuff just happens – look at Brexit.
 The leader of the Western world? And what would we expect from a President Trump? It will depend on whether he has a Republican Congress or whether he is at the mercy of a Democrat-dominated House and/or Senate. And even if the Republicans keep Congress, it is not a given that they will simply rubber stamp all his nutty notions. Many have distanced themselves since learning of his roving small hands and filthy mind.
But if they managed to bury that hatchet we might see some big changes in American foreign policy given what Trump, the candidate, has said to date. NATO would be in for a shake-up at a minimum, and this might get the EU nations off their butts and taking their own security seriously. The US will break its Paris commitment on climate change, as Trump mimics one of GWB’s earliest actions, and that will have some spill-over here in the great ‘still-white’ north.
We are America’s largest traditional trading partner, after all. And who knows whether Trump will really tear up NAFTA or just tinker with it the way Chretien did with the Canada-US trade deal he inherited?
And would Mexico still pay for the wall?
 If it ever gets built – how would Donald Trump make the Mexican government actually pay for it? Some kind of wall will likely get built along the US/Mexican border, but with much of the border comprised of shared rivers (Rio Grande and Colorado), it won’t be nearly as formidable as the one in his imagination. His promises of mass deportation of illegal migrants will also pale in light of the fact that more Mexicans are now leaving than coming to America. But tough love for criminals will make a comeback, including stop and frisk for minorities, and maybe some new punishment for women who have abortions once he gets his hands on Roe v Wade.
Trump hints that he would make the US insular or isolated, though that was also what “Dubya” said as he was plotting to invade Iraq. The result of which led to ISIS, Trump’s number one target. Though his talk of cooperation with Russia makes one wonder if he’d just abandon all of that Syrian mess for Russia to deal with.
Despite that, it is unlikely that Putin and Trump would be soul mates for very long – there is too much distance between them for that. And with Trump promising an even larger military machine, Putin may very well regret losing Obama as his primary punching bag.
 Will this man ever address the Canadian House of Commons? Trump is wealthy so it is no surprise he is a fan of trickle down economics – give to the rich and it’ll trickle down to the poor. But just about every economist in America says he is wrong, and that his massive tax cuts would result in massive deficits, a falling exchange rate, recession and/or crazy inflation. And with Obamacare gone it’ll be back to getting health insurance the old way – if you can and if you can afford it in the Trumped down economy.
The problem with Trump bringing these few wild promises with him to the White House is that nobody is sure how serious he is about them. The rest of what he is offering is short on detail and full of bravado. And the reason for that is simply that he has such scant knowledge of the issues that would be before him. Even worse he is his own chief advisor and one with zero experience in government.
It could be an ugly election and I feel sorry for Americans. Friends in the US are expecting riots in the streets almost immediately should Clinton win. This election is better, or worse, than anything else on TV these days, with the possible exception of the ABC/CTV series Designated Survivor. And the late night talk shows are almost as much fun to watch.
Except it isn’t funny. Americans are faced with two markedly different visions of their future for the next four years, and if I’m right they’re about to make a huge mistake. It was never supposed to end up like this. Sure we all knew Hillary was going to model for the Democrats but nobody expected this buffoon to to even get the GOP nomination, let alone be readying himself for the role of most powerful leader in the world.
 What will she be Wednesday morning – some think it could be just Mrs. Clinton If Hillary loses, she’ll have no one to blame but herself. Her flawed judgement calls as Senator and Secretary of State have come back to take their revenge. And while she is a powerful speaker with a solid presence she has failed to connect with so many Americans, like the millennial crowd. But Trump has promised to put her in jail after the election is over, anyway.
One could argue that her time in the foreign office wasn’t her own, that aside from the email flap she was only carrying out Obama’s largely unsuccessful foreign policy. Even the former chief of NATO has come to that conclusion, calling out the US president for his weakness as a leader. One wonders when the Nobel prize folks will be knocking on Obama’s door, asking for their peace prize back. They could have given it to Bob Dylan, but then they’ couldn’t find him.
 Ray Rivers is an economist and author who writes weekly on federal and provincial issues, applying his 25 years of involvement with federal and provincial ministries. Rivers’ involvement in city matters led to his appointment as founding chair of Burlington’s Sustainable Development Committee. He was also a candidate in a past provincial election
Background links:
Mexico-US Border – Canada-US Trade – NATO – Economists on Trump – Republicans and Trump – Designated Survivor –
 By Pepper Parr
November 5, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
In response to the question: What happened? Ward 2 city councillor Marianne Meed Ward said she “ was hoping the discussions the city and board were having over the past year would lead toward a new MOU that would benefit both parties.
Meed Ward was talking about the significant change that has taken place in the way programs and services are being delivered at the Seniors’ Centre which is a piece of city property that the seniors use.
 The Bistro, the heart of the Seniors’ Centre and the focal point for many of the administrative problems. The Seniors organized themselves as a not for profit – Burlington Senior’s Centre Inc. (BSCI). They elect a board which serves for a two-year period. It is that Board that has been “negotiating” with the city
There was a Memorandum of Understanding that set out who was to do what and who was going to pay what that had been put in place a number of years ago after considerable disruption and happiness on the part of the seniors.
There was a meeting a number of years ago that drew 300 seniors and they were not happy. The MOU seemed to settle things down.
Now things have flared up again.
 Joe Lamb wonders why someone didn’t call him. Joe Lamb, the person who negotiated a very fat deal for the seniors wonders why no one called him when things were going wrong.
The current president of the BSCI, a non-profit organization, hasn’t been able to make himself available for any kind of interview. Fred Hendriks issues media releases and doesn’t allow for any follow up.
Some of those with past board experience complain that Hendriks isn’t much of a communicator – they got that right.
Meed Ward adds that “With the recent change, members of the Seniors Centre should not notice any difference to services or programming.”
 Councillor Marianne Meed Ward listening to a senior. She continues: “The BSCI now has an opportunity to chart a new role for itself serving seniors in Burlington, and I have committed to stay on the board to assist them in this transition for as long as they would like.”
Meed Ward is the city representative on the Seniors Advisory committee.
There is indeed trouble in paradise. Don’t think this story has come to an end.
The seniors are one of the few really well defined groups in the city with a lot of time on their hands. They have in the past badgered city councillors with telephone calls when they weren’t happy.
The French have a phrase for it – some things never change – Et certaines choses ne changent pas.
By Gareth Williams
November 4th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
What is the value of convenience? Is it worth sacrificing some of our democratic institutions, like the secret ballot and the knowledge that our election results accurately reflect the intent of voters?
This Monday Burlington City Council (sitting as the Community & Corporate Services) will consider a staff report which recommends Burlington continue its experiment with remote Internet voting. I call it an experiment because Internet voters made up a relatively small overall percentage of ballots cast in the 2010 & 2014 elections in which it was offered.
I do not believe that as a City we should continue to embrace this flawed method of electing our leaders, and I believe most citizens would agree if they better understood the significant challenges involved.
Here is a brief summary of the issues with online/Internet voting:
 This is a secret ballot • Internet voting eliminates the protection of the secret ballot and could enable coercion of voters by family members and others. With the large population of seniors in Burlington, and the very real issue of elder abuse this is a significant concern. At the public polling station election staff are there to ensure you can vote in privacy, free from interference; at home or work just about anyone can be standing behind you as you cast your ballot.
• It also facilitates vote buying and/or individuals casting ballots on behalf of others, with or without their knowledge. This has already happened back in 2010 when an Eastern Ontario man was charged and fined with voting on behalf of his family members. It is probably safe to assume there have been other cases (perhaps even here in Burlington) which went unnoticed as it is not uncommon for several family members to share a computer or Internet connection. A mother or father might, for example, decide to vote on behalf of their kids who are away at University or College.
• Evidence indicates that Internet voting does not increase turnout, even among youth. The most recent example of this is Halifax’s 2016 municipal election where the number of online voters dropped by over 10,000. Leading researchers in the field have analyzed 15 years of data and concluded that Internet voting is unlikely to solve the low turnout crisis faced by Western democracies. Perhaps surprisingly, they also found Ontario voters age 18-34 were more likely to prefer paper ballots.
 The level of sophistication the ID thieves have is close to beyond belief – if they want the information – they can get it. • Most computer security experts warn that Internet voting is not secure. A large number of multinational firms as well as Canadian government departments have been successfully cyberattacked in recent years. There have been many stories in the news recently of high profile attacks like the ones that affected the Ontario EQAO exam and attempts to influence the US election through the release of emails obtained through hacking or phishing attempts. Third party IT security consultants hired by the City of Toronto to study proposals for Internet voting in that city recommended against moving forward with any of the options.
Many other jurisdictions that considered or experimented with online voting have dropped support for Internet voting. These include Toronto, Mississauga, Kitchener, and Huntsville Ontario, the provinces B.C. & Alberta as well as the country of Norway.
A City of Kitchener 2012 staff report was the impetus for that city rejecting Internet voting; it recommended strongly against implementation for their 2014 election. Most of the aforementioned issues were cited. According to this report and other academic studies the highest user of Internet voting is the 45-55 demographic and the vast majority of Internet voters would likely have voted anyway.
Problems with Internet voting were in the news again as recently as this past week in P.E.I. where they are using it for a non-binding plebiscite on electoral reform. An unknown number of voter information packages with personal identification numbers (PINs) were sent to the wrong addresses. These codes could potentially be used to cast a ballot on behalf of another voter. If the vote is cast from a public location like a library, there would be little that could be done to track down the offender.
Many advocates point to the opportunity Internet voting provides to make it easier for disabled voters to cast their ballot. However, as Dr. Barbara Simons a former researcher with IBM pointed it out during her recent testimony to the Electoral Reform panel in Ottawa, it does a disservice to voters with disabilities, to anybody, to provide them with a tool that is fundamentally insecure. We owe it to them when we provide them with alternatives to make sure those alternatives are secure.
Despite the issues we continue to hear that, based on opinion polls, there is a demand and support from the public for Internet voting. To quote Dr. Simons again, if this were a medical hearing to determine whether to approve a new drug for human consumption, safety would be paramount. A drug that is likely to result in serious injury to patients would be rejected, no matter how many people wanted to use it. Internet voting is like a drug we are considering for our democracy.
If this scares you as much as it scares me be sure to contact your Councillor before Monday.
 Gareth Williams is a graduate of the Political Science program at McMaster University. He works in Information Technology in Hamilton with 18 years in the field. Gareth lives in Brant Hills with his wife and their dog Misty.’
By Pepper Parr
November 3, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
Gas leaks are dangerous.
Yesterday there was a gas leak on a construction site.
The fire department and the gas company were able to get on site very quickly and shut the gas off.
A resident who was walking in the area wants to know why things like this happen.
When construction permits are issued do the contractors not know where the telephone lines are; where the gas lines are and where the water pipes are?
 The project has been a long time getting to te point where the shovels were in the ground. within a week something struck a gas pipe line shutting down the immediate area for several hours. Fast work on the part of the fire department and the gas company averted a disaster. Our resident wants to know: What is the procedure at The City of Burlington going forward with the developer who put Downtown Core residents and businesses in jeopardy yesterday when a gas pipe was ruptured during construction at Caroline and Elizabeth Streets?
She was walking by the site when the gas pipe was hit and the concentration of gas permeating the air was dense and made it difficult to breath. She didn’t know how gas pipes and pressure work when there is a rupture, but there was gas filling businesses on Brant Street. Wardell Insurance had all of their doors open as their building filled with gas; this building is directly across from City Hall. I observed firemen taking gas readings as far south as James Street.
How is it possible that a builder can still rupture a gas line in the middle of a City with all of the technology available in 2016 for pinpointing exact location? This site is bordered by an apartment building, town homes and businesses in a highly populated and travelled part of our downtown community.
 Medica One or the Carriage Gate project – pick the name you like best – will go up at the top of John Street and consist of a medical offices building, an above ground garage and an apartment/condo complex. It will bring significant change to the intersection and drive redevelopment of the plaza to the immediate north, A transit hub a couple of blocks to the south then makes a lot of sense. Is this developer capable of safely building a safe building in our midst? What are this developer’s credentials? Has this developer ever worked on a project of this scale? This is a disturbing start in the early stages of a multi-year construction at this site.
Does the developer pay the thousands of dollars for the emergency response personnel that were on site for the many hours that it took to secure the area and stop the gas leak? Is there any consideration for the businesses that either had to be evacuated or suffered loss of business?
It is absolutely terrifying to consider the consequences to our downtown community had the gas ignited.
All good questions. Watching for the answers.
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