 By Pepper Parr
July 22, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
It’s on!
 Whatever papers have to be signed – are signed and the event will start at between 8-8:15 p.m. at Spencer Smith Park with introductory remarks prior to the broadcast of the final Tragically Hip concert that will begin at 8:30 p.m., with the broadcast coming in live from Kingston courtesy of the CBC who have waived their licensing rights.
Putting this opportunity together was done in a matter of days with a lot of phone calls – Ward 2 Councillor Mead Ward managed to get a motion through council that was approved on a 6-1 vote.
The motion asked:
That City Council authorize matching funds up to $12,500 from the Tax Rate Stabilization Fund to assist with funding the live CBC rebroadcast of the Tragically Hip concert, Aug. 20, in Spencer Smith Park
Ward 1 Councillor Rick Craven decided the event was just a nice to have and voted against it. He missed the opportunity to ask if shuttle buses could be arranged for all those good Aldershot people to get to the Park and
 It’s just a nice to have said the Councillor when he voted against the city chipping in for the cost of bringing in the Tragically Hip concert live from Kingston. enjoy the evening. The Gazette has never understood why the Council member can’t seem to get behind really good community events. If you see him attending the event – do let us know.
An ad hoc committee has been struck and will meet early in August, 12+ members including SET Team, Tourism Burlington, Sound of Music Festival, local citizens and representatives from two charities and Halton Regional Police Services
The team has interest from both The Halton Chapter of Canadian Cancer Services (with a focus on disease prevention) and the Joseph Brant Foundation (local cancer care clinic)
A site is being set up for community/corporate donations. We will send you the link as soon as they have it set up.
All kinds of people have asked if they can donate time and energy as volunteers. Interested parties can contact: mcoletteertel@hotmail.com
The screening was made possible after the Burlington Downtown Business Association (BDBA) put money on the table to kick-start funding for the event, and sought a matching contribution from the city of Burlington. City council supported a motion to contribute to the costs of the event. Donations of cash are still being sought from the community to cover costs of screens, speakers, projectors and security. Please consider making a donation.
 It will be a bitter sweet nice for the Tragically Hip as they close out their final performance in a live CBC broadcast across the country. Bring a chair and a blanket and a handkerchief – it is going to be a very emotional evening. “This is an event of national significance that was looking for a place to happen in Burlington. Many residents reached out to me and said ‘We have to be part of this,’” said Meed Ward. “The Hip is the soundtrack of Canada. Many of us can track significant events in our lives by what Hip song we were listening to at the time. I’m grateful my council colleagues supported the funding request to make it happen.”
This is a rain or shine, alcohol-free and family friendly celebration. Residents are asked to bring their own lawn chairs or blankets to sit on.
The potential audience for this could be enormous. Will people come in from Oakville, will the GO trains be filled?
Hamilton is holding its own event – the location they have chosen doesn’t compare to what Burlington has.
An adhoc committee has been created – they will meet early in August, – 12+ members including SET Team, Tourism Burlington, Sound of Music Festival, local citizens and representatives from two charities and Halton Regional Police Services
 McMahon the Minister now has a chance to give Burlington a great big thank you for electing her to office – send money. Tourism Burlington leading on funding request to Tourism Ontario. The shiny new Minister of Tourism just happens to be our own gracious Eleanor McMahon who one hopes will shower some cash on the city that sent her to Queen’s Park. The Ministry must have a piggy bank somewhere in one of the offices.
 By Staff
July 22, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
DuffleBag Theatre will take over the Lowville School house Saturday afternoon for a fun-filled and hilarious interactive storytelling.
They’ve been doing this since 1992, and now feel they can call themselves the “Nearly World Famous” DuffleBag Theatre.
The DuffleBag actors, there will be four of them on the stage, begin retelling an adaptation of a well known fairy tale that is full of wit and humour. Just when the audience becomes enthralled by the story – a twist is created!
 These four DuffelBag actors will from the core of the production – other actors will be drawn from the audience. People from the audience are asked to come up on stage and join in the action. At this point the play becomes an unpredictable performance and a hilarious experience for all ages and a truly unique interactive theatrical experience where the dream of living a fairy tale actually does come true!
The program this Saturday afternoon begin at 2:00 pm with a workshop for those who want to learn something about being on the stage and developing ideas and learning xxx
After the workshop – the “production” begins. DuffleBag has always been known for their ability to adapt and change things quickly. They will be doing Robin Hood and given that there is all kinds of great outdoor space they just might move part of the production outdoors.
Robin Hood and his merry band of men did hide out in Sherwood Forest didn’t they?
Expect the unexpected from this unique interactive production.
Where did the name DuffelBag come from? The theatre company uses duffel bags to carry all the costumes and props to each of their events.
Great entertainment for the whole family in a wonderful rural setting. There is more to Burlington than Spencer Smith Park.
The Festival is using the Snap’d service for ticket sales. Tickets are available on line
Saturday, July 23; 2:00pm
Workshop for Children with Dufflebag Theatre Company
Old Lowville Schoolhouse
$25 for both workshop & show
3:00pm
Robin Hood by Dufflebag Theatre
Old Lowville Schoolhouse
$15
 By Pepper Parr
July 21, 2016
BURLINGTON ON
Is it already too late?
Have we passed the tipping point and are at the point where the greenhouse gasses already in the environment is going to continually increase the amount of CO2 and ice caps will continue to melt – the sea level will continue to rise and places like parts of Florida will just be under water.
 The Maldives Islands are expected to slip under the water as the sea level rises. The people who study this stuff seriously are believed to being preparing plans for the changes that are going to take place. There are parts of the American coast line that are being given up to rising water levels.
There are places in Burlington and the surrounding community where concrete docks that boats used to be tied up to are now several feet under water.
And at the same time there are lakes in Northern Ontario where the wooden dock sits in the middle of dry lake bottom with the water tens of yards away when it used to lap at the edge of the dock while children jumped into the water from deck.
Are the scientists and the emergency planners telling the public the truth about what we are really up against?
There is a part of Burlington where there are some 72 homes that are in a flood plain and will eventually have to be removed. Those homes are clearly marked on a map that the city has not hidden – nor is it something they have talked about all that much.
Burlington knows that it is going to have to have a lot of money in reserve funds for the next flood. The people who do this kind of work don’t use the word “if” when talking about the next flood – for them the key word is “when” followed by “where”. Burlington
 There are parts of Burlington that are very threatened should the city experience another 190mm + of rain in half a day. The Fire department managed the Emergency Measures. Fire Chief Tony Bavota said at a public meeting that given what we know today – Hidden Valley would not have been built. The flood potential in that part of the city is “something we could not handle”. For the fire chief Hidden Valley is a potential ground zero.
We know these things today and yet the best we seem to be able to do is work harder at recycling those plastic water bottles when the things should be banned.
Use public transit that doesn’t yet meet the needs of people who need to be able to get from place to place in a reasonable amount of time.
 The focus in Burlington is on re-building roads. Burlington spends tens of millions repairing the roads so that people can drive comfortably. This is a city that has an ageing population that was raised on the automobile during a time when gas was cheap and they are never going to give up their cars until someone takes their driver’s license away from them.
And they are a large enough cohort to scare the daylight out over every politician at every level; appealing to them to make the change for the sake of their grandchildren? They want that car so they can visit their grandchildren and they aren’t going to make that trip by bicycle or public transit.
When MP Pam Damoff asked people what they thought could be done – the true believers, the ones who belong to Burlington or Oakville Green, talked about the time they spend planting trees and cleaning up the ravines each year and do the ongoing persistent advocating. But in Burlington there still isn’t a private tree bylaw.
Some serious mistakes were made with the way most of the planners did things in terms of land use planning – they didn’t seem like mistakes at the time but we are now at a point where it is close to impossible to correct those mistakes.
We have lost a lot of time.
At best it is going to take bold action to bring about any change – and it is all three levels of government that are going to have to take those bold steps.
They can’t begin to do much of that until the public is ready – and that isn’t going to happen until the public realizes the wolves are at the door.
 By Pepper Parr
July 21st, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
Trees are technology said a participant at the Town Hall meeting on Climate Change that Oakville North Burlington MP Pam Damoff held last night.
 These trees came down on Pearl Street – nothing has gone up to replace them. That comment raised a couple of eyebrows until Damoff piped up with – “I can buy into that.”
“I had senior who explained to me that she had three trees taken down because they had been infected with the Emerald Ash Bore (EAB). The result was that the shade those elm trees proved on one side of her building meant she needed to buy an air conditioner to keep her home cool.
“That senior was on a fixed income and expenses like this were not a part of the budget she lived within. The additional electricity cost is something else she has to deal with.”
The air conditioner is a technology that senior has to pay for – the trees were keeping her house cool and as far as the senior was concerned that was technology enough for her.
Trees are technology.
 By Staff
July 21, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
 Union Gas is running a 40 inch line right across the top or the city. Appleby Line will be closed to traffic between Derry Road and Britannia Road from Friday, July 22 at 6 p.m. to Sunday, July 24 at 7 p.m. for Union Gas construction activities.
Please follow detour routes.
Vehicles:
1. From the north, traffic will be directed east on Derry Road to Tremaine Road, then south to Britannia Road and west to Appleby Line.
2. From the south, traffic will be directed east on Britannia Road to Tremaine Road then north to Derry Road and west to Appleby Line.
Trucks:
1. From the north, traffic will be directed east on Derry Road to Regional Road 25, then south to Dundas Street and west to Appleby Line.
2. From the south, traffic will be directed east on Dundas Street to Regional Road 25 then north to Derry Road and west to Appleby Line.
By Pepper Parr
July 21, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
It was more than a local town hall meeting to get people to think and act on climate change.
The meeting Oakville North Burlington MP Pam Damoff held at Tansley Woods Community centre Wednesday evening was part of a Canada wide program the federal government has put in place to hear what Canadians think and to learn just how much they are prepared to actually do individually to change the climate.
It didn’t sound like an awful lot at the Tansley Woods meeting
 It was an audience that came to listen and then ask questions. Is this the way these meetings are going to take place across the country? Are we ready to make a real change – or will it be made for us? Damoff knew she was speaking to the deeply converted and ensured that the message would be clear by having the lead person from both the Oakville and the Burlington Green associations at the table with her.
Damoff pretty much stuck to the script that had been prepared – asking people what they wanted to do and explaining that this wasn’t a problem the government was going to solve for them.
 MP Pam Damoff, listening to people who attended the Town Hall meeting on Climate Change. Her son Fraser is on the right. The key word that seemed to come up again and again was “adapt”. Climate change is here – and we certainly know that in Burlington where 191 mm of rain was dumped on the city in less than 12 hours and 300 homes were badly flooded in 2014.
All the creeks in the east end of the city broke their banks which brought about an incredible million dollar fund raising event within 100 days to cover some of the costs of repairing those 300 homes.
 A Burlington Plaza flooded during the August 2014 rain storm. Burlington has tasted climate change – for those that experienced the understanding is very deep. It is the rest of the community that needs to decide what it wants to do about a change that is vital if we are to survive. And so far Canada isn’t doing all that well.
The media release Damoff handed out said: Global temperatures have increased by about .85 degrees Celsius since 1880; Canada has warmed at twice the global average with Canada’s north warming even faster.
Last December Canada joined 195 countries who adopted the Paris Agreement which saw countries commit to limiting the global average temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius in an attempt to avoid the worst effects of climate change.
 CJ Martin asking a question at the Climate Change Town Hall meeting at Tansley Woods When asked how many people attending the meeting drove to the location in a car by themselves – most of the hands in the room were raised. The MP, with a staff of four in her constituency office, apparently all arrived in different cars.
It was justified by there not being acceptable public transit. Some people did car pool.
There were some sterling examples of what can be done. A young mother mentioned the 0 household waste plan she has put in place at her home. We want to look at just how one can do that.
Vince Fiorito, a well-known environmental advocate suggested that with global warning Canada will be able to grow new and different crops in parts of northern Canada that have given us mineral resources and not much more. Fiorito suggested parts of Canada could become a banana belt. It clearly wasn’t his best night.
 People from several communities took part in the Q&A part of the meeting. The people behind the Leaf movement were in the room advocating that the fossil fuels be left in the ground and that we pour subsidies into wind, solar and geo thermal industries.
There were numerous people with their own angles and ideas. Fraser Damoff, the MP’s son wanted to see the federal subsidies given to many in the energy industry done away with. “Stop the subsidies and let them fight it out in the market place where the most effective solution will come out on top” advised Fraser Damoff.
In what was a very Canadian meeting – meaning it was polite, people were respectful of each other and Damoff didn’t cut anyone off – ran longer than was expected.
The interest was certainly there – but then a lot of people drove home, by themselves, in their own cars.
 The audience was mixed, diverse and attentive. Still a lot of work to be done – and more to say on this meeting.
Burlington MP Karina Gould will be hold her Town Hall meeting August 4th. The federal government has its members of parliament out in the field with their ears wide open. Been a long time since we’ve seen that kind of government behavior. They are listening – are we speaking?
 By Staff
July 19th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
Deputy Chief Nishan Duraiappah accepted the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE) Technology Champion of the Year Award at the Annual Training Conference Awards Luncheon on Tuesday, July 19, 2016 in Washington D.C.
The award is sponsored by Harris Corporation and is presented to an individual who is a strong advocate of technology that benefits law enforcement and public safety.
NOBLE is the largest association of black law enforcement officers and spans police agencies across the United States of America.
The fact that NOBLE selected a Canadian police leader out of all the American police agencies is a remarkable testament to the achievements of Halton Police. Deputy Chief Duraiappah accepted the award on behalf of the Halton Regional Police Service.
 Deputy Chief Nishan Duraiappah pleads his innocence to the charge of Grand Theft Donuts, during a police fund raising event. Looking on is Halton Regional Police Detective Constable Paul Proteau. Some of the work that the Halton Regional Police Service has championed includes LTE mobile workstations in each vehicle, public police Apps in ITunes/Google, the testing of smart mobile devices for officers to conduct electronic notetaking in the field and piloting of in-car cameras. Halton Police has established a unique Police Analytics Unit, which has gained international recognition as Leaders in Business Intelligence. These initiatives are supported by world class police officers and civilians working in the Office of Continuous Improvement and Strategic Management and Information Technology.
Through technological initiatives and community programs, Halton Police improves community safety and well-being. We also partner with community groups such as the Canadian Association of Black Law Enforcers (ABLE) to enhance understanding and foster relationships between the police and all members of the public.
 Deputy Chief Duraiappah in command at a public meeting that police were concerned about public reaction. The Halton Regional Police Service contributes to the safety and well-being of the Region’s more than 530,000 residents. Working in partnership with the communities we serve, the Service delivers quality, cost-effective public safety and crime prevention services, as mandated by law. The Halton Regional Police Service is recognized as one of the leading police agencies in the areas of diversity and community policing initiatives, and is committed to ensuring Halton Region remains as safe tomorrow as it is today.
By Pepper Parr
July 20th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
Will wonders never cease?
The city is going to move to an electronic vote recording system that will put an end to the cumbersome call for recorded votes that took place at the last two meetings of city council.
 Ward 5 Councillor Paul Sharman forced city council to record their votes on everything they did – even the accepting of the agenda. He said he was making a political point. Councillor Sharman asked for more than a dozen recorded votes at a July 5th meeting and Councillor Meed Ward asked for almost as many recorded votes at the Council meeting last night.
Those council votes will now be done automatically by having the members of council press a button rather than have to stand up and be physically counted for each vote.
The Staff Direction was to:
Direct the City Clerk to purchase and install an electronic vote recording system in the Council Chambers, the cost to be charged to the capital budget for the Agenda Management solution; and
Hold in abeyance, sections 33.7-33.9 of Procedure By-law 37-2014 until a vote recording system is installed.
The question many have now is – which votes will the technology record?
This city council takes the position that the only votes it records are those taken at a city council meetings which is where everything done is made official.
 Council during a recorded vote: Those standing were voting for the motion. The real grunt work gets done at the Standing committee meetings – there are four different standing committees – Development and Infrastructure; Community and Corporate Services; Audit Committee and Committee of the Whole.
These are the meetings at which the public gets to speak for ten minutes if they delegate and where debate is often boisterous. It is also the meetings at which city staff attend – they speak very openly and inform council on the reports they present.
These are the meat and potatoes meetings – which this Council has decided that the votes taken are not recorded. The minutes of the meetings do say how a vote went – passed or failed to pass. The public report does not say how individual members of council voted.
The city’s procedural bylaw, which sets out how meetings are run and votes recorded has a section that is being waived while the electronic system is put in place. The section being waived says:
33.7 Any member, in Council Meetings, immediately before or after a vote is taken, may require a recorded vote to be taken on the question concerned. Recorded votes shall not be permitted in Committee Meetings.
33.8 When a recorded vote is permitted and required, the Chair shall pose the question and the Clerk will call for those members in favour to rise, at which time the Clerk shall record the name of each Member standing and his vote in favour, and upon completion of the recording, the Clerk will call for those members opposed to rise, at which time the Clerk shall record the name of each Member standing and his vote in opposition. On the appropriate form, the Clerk will also record the number of Members absent and/or abstained.
33.9 On a recorded vote, a failure to vote by a member who is present at the meeting at the time of the vote and who is qualified to vote shall be deemed a negative vote.
The Standing committees report to Council where just about everything is rubber stamped. Many council meetings take less than half an hour. The Mayor has a tendency to race through the meetings – one was pretty close to less than 15 minutes in length.
Public meetings are not the Mayor’s strength.
 Ward 2 Councillor Meed Ward asked for more than seven recorded votes at the most recent city council meeting. In February of 2013 city council decided that recording all the votes wasn’t necessary Here is the comment made at that time.
“With respect to recorded voting at standing committee meetings, members of Council on the review team expressed differing viewpoints. Acknowledging that recommendations from committee are intended to be a preliminary position on a matter, it was felt that recording a member’s vote at that stage of deliberation could inhibit a member from changing his or her position later at Council should new information become available.
“It was also noted that recorded voting would slow the transaction of business at committee meetings. As the review team did not have consensus on the matter, a recommendation on recorded voting is not included within this report and would require direction from Council. Nonetheless, the sentiment of the review team was that if recorded votes were to be permitted at Committee, these would be restricted to the main motions (and main motions as amended) but would not be applied to amendments themselves or any secondary motions tabled.
 Partial view of the Board of Education screen that shows how trustees voted. The Halton District Board of Education bought an electronic system a number of months ago that is close to perfect. There is one Burlington trustee who gets confused when it comes to determining which button to press but other than that it works very smoothly.
When there is a vote the school board chair turns on the voting system and lights show up. When all the trustees have voted all the light go out – the chair then presses a button and they know in an instant who voted which way.
The system was provide by Hamilton Audio Visual – who will hopefully let the city know what they can do them
We elect our members of council democratically and have a right to know how they vote on every issue. Many council members aren’t very keen on letting the public know how they vote at Standing Committee meetings. They forget that deciding what they are directing staff to do is not about them – it is about the people who pay the taxes – and that would be you.
Background:
Sharman asks for recorded votes on everything at a council meeting
Past debates on voting at city council
 By Staff
July 19, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
It was a cash grab – pure and simple.
On June 17th, 2016, Joseph Hamilton Essibuah walked into the Dollar Tree in the area of Dundas Street and Appleby Line in Burlington. He is reported to have approached the checkout and while the cashier was assisting another customer, the accused reached over the counter and grabbed a quantity of money from the cash register. He then fled in a waiting vehicle.
 A short time later the accused attended a Shoppers Drug Mart located in the area of Brant Street and Upper Middle Road in Burlington. Again, the accused proceeded to pay for an item and when the cash register opened the accused reached over the counter and grabbed a quantity of cash. The accused fled in an awaiting motor vehicle.
Police have determined that the accused is responsible for additional occurrences in Halton region and surrounding areas; an investigation is ongoing.
Accused:
Joseph Hamilton ESSIBUAH,(25 years of Mississauga)
Current Charges:
Theft Under $5000 (6 counts)
Breach of Probation (6 counts)
ESSIBUAH is set to appear in Milton for a bail hearing on July 20th.
The investigation is continuing and anyone with information is asked to contact Cst. Jacqueline Ross of the 3 District Criminal Investigations Bureau at 905 825-4747 ext. 2373 or D/Cst. Al MacEwan at ext. 2349 or Crime Stoppers at 1 800 222-8477 (TIPS) or through the web at www.haltoncrimestoppers.com or by texting “Tip201” with your message to 274637 (crimes).
By Staff
July 19th, 2015
BURLINGTON, ON
Earlier this month, Regional Council approved $212,500 in funding for 13 community programs and projects that will support the health and well-being of Halton residents that have inadequate access to food.
The funding is the result of a new stream of funding through the Halton Region Community Investment Fund (HRCIF), which was created to improve access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food in partnership with Halton’s non-profit and community organizations.
 Regional chair Gary Carr tasting honey on a farm tour. “This funding reflects Halton’s commitment to improve access to food by working closely with our community partners,” said Halton Regional Chair, Gary Carr. “Investing in community agencies through the Halton Region Community Investment Fund is another example of how we’re working together with the community to achieve the best possible health and well-being for all and is part of what makes Halton Region such a great place to live, work, raise a family and retire.”
Funding will help community organizations to increase the amount of fresh and culturally appropriate foods available to clients, strengthen the capacity of agencies to safely store and distribute food and will support other efforts that make food more accessible to residents with inadequate access to food.
The food security grants are part of over $1.4 million in 2016 HRCIF funding that will support a wide range of community health and social service programs that serve Halton residents. The following programs will receive funding through the food security stream of the Halton Region Community Investment Fund:
• Acton Foodshare – to increase the amount of fresh food available to clients and to support the development of cooking skills;
• ClearView Community Church (Oakville) – to increase cold storage for its food programs, including cooking classes;
• The Dar Foundation – to support the purchase of Halal meats for its clients;
 • Food4Kids – to determine the scope of need and plan program expansion;
• Food for Life – to hire an additional ‘food raiser’ to source fresh and culturally appropriate food for community programs;
• Georgetown Bread Basket – to support new freezer/refrigeration purchases for its food bank;
• Halton Food for Thought – to purchase freezers/refrigerators to support student nutrition programs in 11 schools;
• Halton Fresh Food Box – to support a pilot project to deliver fresh food boxes to clients with transportation or mobility barriers;
• Halton Women’s Place – to provide grocery cards to women exiting the shelter;
• Milton Community Resource Centre – to support the organization’s Infant Food Bank program;
• North Halton Community Kitchen St. Alban’s Church (Acton) – to support a community kitchen coordinator to develop and expand cooking and dining programs;
• Feeding Halton (through Open Doors at St. Christopher’s Church as the lead applicant) – to support a position to coordinate farm fresh markets that provide access to local produce at a reduced cost. The position will also coordinate purchases from local farmers on behalf of several social service agencies; and
• St. Luke’s Anglican Church (Oakville) – to purchase a refrigerator that will assist the organization to establish an outreach program.
By Staff
July 19th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
The City of Burlington is making improvements to Fairview Street between Guelph Line and Walker’s Line and Commerce Court from Fairview Street to Cul-de-sac.
 Fairview Street between Guelph Line and Walker’s Line plus some of Commerce Court will have traffic limitations during road work. The proposed construction will include:
• Road resurfacing along with traffic island modifications and localized repairs to sidewalks and curbs.
• Proposed Bike Lane on the north side of Fairview Street and Sharrow’s on Fairview Street.
This work will result in single lane closures during off-peak times:
• 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
• 7 p.m. to 6:30 a.m.
 Fairview profile wen the construction is completed in October. Road Construction: July to Nov. 2016
Project Budget: $3,200,000
City is beginning to look and feel like Toronto in the summer.
By Staff
July 19th, 2106
BURLINGTON, ON
At this rate we may not need a city hall.
Another city hall service has gone on line: business licence renewals.
Select businesses in Burlington can now renew their business licences online at www.burlington.ca/businesslicences.
 “We need to support our small businesses as much as possible and that means giving them access to services 24 hours a day, seven days a week,” said Mayor Rick Goldring. “A step in the right direction is that businesses can now renew their licences online whenever they want.”
Business licences available to be renewed online include:
• Automotive
• Pawn brokers
• Personal services
• Public assembly:
o Restaurants/take out/lunch counter
o Movie theatre
o Banquet/public halls
o Pinball or electronic game machine
o Night club
o Sale of foodstuff
o Sale of adult magazines
• Sale of foodstuff
• Sale of tobacco
• Salvage yard
• Tourist/trailer camps
Business licences not listed above are only available for renewal in person.
 Tracey Burrows, manager, bylaw enforcement and licensing. “Business owners needing to renew their licences will need to register an account with their PIN which can be requested online,” said Tracey Burrows, manager, bylaw enforcement and licensing. “We hope this will add to our customer service and meet the needs of our growing business community.”
All new and renewal licences can also be done in person at City Hall, 426 Brant St. For more information, visit www.burlington.ca/businesslicences, call 905-335-7731 or email building@burlington.ca.
No mention of the fee structure in the media release.
By Pepper Parr
July 18th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
Our fair city has decided to join much of Canada on August 20th when, if things work out the way a lot of people would like them to work out – thousands will be able to sit on the grass at Spencer Smith Park and watch a CBC simulcast of the final scheduled concert of The Tragically Hip.
Oh – and it is going to cost the city a cool $12,500 – the Burlington Downtown Business Association will somehow come up with the second $12,500 – for a total cost of $25,000
Council voted to go forward with this one – everyone voted for – except for Councillor Craven. He saw the event as a nice to have – which isn’t quite his cup of tea.
 Gord Downie, lead of the Tragically Hip. CBC has waived its usual licensing fee with some conditions – there can be no sponsorship – so anyone putting up dollars is going to get a thank you.
There are some conditions. No alcohol can be sold. The city does not yet have a no smoking bylaw in public parks on the books.
The Tragically Hip, often referred to simply as The Hip, are a Canadian rock band from Kingston, Ontario, consisting of lead singer Gord Downie, guitarist Paul Langlois, guitarist Rob Baker (known as Bobby Baker until 1994), bassist Gord Sinclair, and drummer Johnny Fay. Since their formation in 1984 they have released 13 studio albums, two live albums, 1 EP, and 54 singles. Nine of their albums have reached No. 1 in Canada. They have received numerous Canadian Music awards, including 14 Juno awards.
The night the country sits down in parks and arenas across the country to watch the Tragically Hip put on their final concert knowing that the lead has been diagnosed with terminal brain cancer will be a hard evening. Gord Downie is in the centre with, in no particular order, guitarist Paul Langlois, guitarist Rob Baker, bassist Gord Sinclair, and drummer Johnny Fay. As the band was getting ready to announce their summer tour they also announced that Gord Downie had been diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. The out-pouring of public emotion led to CBC deciding to broadcast the final concert that was to be held in Kingston. CBC then decided to let other municipalities across the country simulcast the program.
Brian Dean, chief at the BDBA, delegated to council and explained what Councillor Marianne Meed Ward had put in front of Council by Memorandum earlier in the day. She pointed out that the idea had come together very quickly and it looked as if cities across the country were going to do what they could to simulcast the event.
Mead Ward is putting $1000 from her Councillor’s budget into the pot. The ad hoc committee is reaching out to the federal and provincial governments (good luck at that level).
Some thought was given to Central Arena as a location – until they realized that the Children’s Festival is going to take place the following day and that stages will have been set up with porta potties in place – Spencer Smith Park became the obvious choice.
Hamilton is in; Kingston is in, Charlottetown is in, New Westminster is in and Halifax is in.
 Brian Dean with ward 2 Councillor Marianne Meed Ward the day the city got rid of the old parking meters and installed an expensive replacement that doesn’t provide better service. Dean, who could sell ice cubes to Eskimo’s, assured council that this was really quite do-able and presented Council with an outline of the costs. When Dean doesn’t want the public to know what he is up to, he limits the information he shares; when he wants the public to know the media is showered with data.
Media were not given a copy of his cost breakdown.
It didn’t matter – the city manager sensed what council wanted and said that staff would provide oversight and that all the invoices would come to the city for payment.
A formal application has been submitted to the Special Events Team (SET) who gave approval in principle. They are also working on getting an exemption from the noise bylaw that requires events to shut down at 11:00 pm. The concert is expected to run until 11:30 pm
Meed Ward who exuded enthusiasm for the event suggested it was going to be the emotional equivalent of the winning goal Paul Henderson scored for Team Canada in 1972
The city manager wanted the cost of staff time that would be involved to be part of what the city has to come up with.
The event is 32 days away. Staff will have to hustle to make it happen and the city manager will make sure that the costs are controlled.
It took a two thirds majority vote to waive the city’s procedural by law and another vote to permit Dean to speak. If Council can do that in one meeting – the rest is a lead pipe cinch.
It has taken some time to figure out what the city manager is and what he isn’t. Observing him for the past 18 months the Gazette has found it difficult to say just what kind of an administrator he is. While he talks the talk of community engagement – he doesn’t really walk that talk. However, what is now very clear is that James Ridge is a very fiscally prudent man. Nothing is going to go seriously wrong on his watch. He may over promise from time to time – he certainly did that with a work plan he once put forward – but when it comes to watching where the dollars go – nothing disastrous is going to happen on his watch. Should that ever happen – the good Army Captain will choose to fall on his sword.
Where was he when the pier fiasco was being managed at city hall?
August 20th – mark that one on your calendar. With Meed Ward back on the BDBA as the Council representative – things like this get done.
By Staff
July 18th, 2106
BURLINGTON, ON
Construction of the patient tower is moving along nicely. The last window on Level 7 of the new patient tower was installed at the end of June! Soon, two elevators will be up and running on the inside of the building and the man and material hoist will be removed.
The pedestrian bridge structure connects Level 2 of the parking facility to Level 1 of the new tower. Now the construction team is building the metal deck on the floor and on the roof of the bridge and pouring the concrete floor. By the end of July, glass windows will be installed on the bridge and roofing and finishes will follow.
Power will be turned on in late September.
In their latest video, Alean Jackman, Operational Readiness Coordinator and Melanie Burnet, Program Champion for the Surgical Program share the 5 Things You Need to Know about Our New Surgical Suite. Enjoy a behind-the-scenes look at the progress being made inside our future surgical suite and learn more about the new space from our experts!
In the past the hospital has had problems with infectious diseases. The new hospital will have three new washer disinfectors that have greater capacity for cleaning and processing clinical equipment. The machines also have fast and efficient cleaning cycles, larger touch screens, and built-in “cool touch” handles on the racks.
Inside, installation of drywall continues to progress from the Main Level to Level 7 and soon, ceilings will go up. Painting has started and the main lobby staircase will be installed by late summer.
The people who will make the hospital actually work on a day to day basis are involved in critical training programs; much of the equipment is very complex and requires training and practice before nurses roll you into one of the ten new operating rooms – nine of which are reported to be ready for business on opening day.
 A new Lakeshore Road is being constructed that will lead to the new front entrance to the hospital. The construction and re-development of the hospital takes place while the city re-builds the part of Lakeshore Road that will become the new front entrance to the hospital. Parts of Lakeshore Road are being raised by as much as a metre from their current level. The re-built road will slowly slope towards the parking garage where the rebuild will pause until the hospital is completed in 2018.
 Storm water around the hospital has always been an issue – one that hospital media management people don’t like to talk about very much.  Big 20 inch pipes being shoved under North Shore Road to connect properties north of Lakeshore to pipes running along Lakeshore right past the hospital to the Waste Water treatment plant. Traffic in the area has been re-routed in several directions while the construction work takes place. Waste water treatment and storm water facilities are also being upgraded as well.
A 20 inch pipe is being shoved under the Lakeshore Road, North Shore Road intersection from the Brant Museum property to connect waste water pipes to the main trunk line.
 These are the detours that are going to be in place until road re-construction is complete – sometime in September. It is not a pretty place for traffic these days – and it is going to remain that way until late in September.
By Pepper Parr
July 18th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
We were advised this morning that the errors on the plaque have been corrected.
Ed Keenleyside just might be sleeping a little better these days – The Cenotaph that is tucked beside city hall on Brant Street is getting a clean-up.
 Ed Keenleyside at the Cenotaph. Keenleyside has been researching the names of the 82 casualties etched on the Cenotaph with plans to publish an informative book, which will put faces and personalities to those who died so many years ago.
“I have information on all but one name and that person, J. W. Williamson, is among the 44 World War II fatalities. If anyone can identify this person Keenleyside would be most grateful. Please contact him at at ekeenleyside@cogeco.ca if you can help.
But that isn’t Keenleyside’s biggest issue – he was close to spitting nickels when he say the errors in the small plaque to the rear of the monument explain the memorial.
Within the handful of sentences describing this important monument said Keenleyside DATE are the following mistakes:
1. There are 38 World War I casualties listed on the memorial, not 39.
2. The 38 fatalities listed are soldiers from the Great War (or World War I ), not from the Second World War.
3. There are 44 local service people listed from the Second World War, not 43.
 Ed Keenleyside identified a number of significant error on this plaque. In addition to the embarrassing errors on the plaque, Keenleyside wonders why the Korean War Veterans are recognized at the base of the Cenotaph but the Afghanistan War Veterans are not recognized.
Ed Keenleyside can’t understand why the plaque that explains the history of the war memorial he is standing beside has so many errors on it.
The Gazette hasn’t had an opportunity to check and see if the piece of metal with the errors inscribed has been replaced. We expect to hear from Keenleyside on this matter.
The cenotaph was dedicated in April 1922 by Lord Byng (Govenor General of Canada) and was originally located in a park setting on the downtown shore of Lake Ontario. The memorial was moved to its present location after the construction of the new City Hall in 1962.
 Remembered, respected. Now to ensure that it is accurate and up to date. The Cenotaph consists of five pieces of granite, stacked in a plinth and is topped with a sculpture of a World War I soldier cast in bronze. The names of 38 WWI fatalities from Burlington and Nelson Township are engraved on both sides of the column. On the back of the column the names of 17 key WWI Canadian battle locations such as Vimy Ridge, Arras, Mons, Ypres and the Somme are engraved. On the front of the column is a large bronze plaque four feet by three feet in size, with the names inscribed of 44 service people from this area who died in WWII.
Repair work will include: removal of loose corrosion products and accumulated dirt from the bronze statue, plaque and granite base; application of hot and cold wax to the bronze statue and plaque; filling in small bronze losses with wax; surface cleaning the bronze plaque and replacing missing hardware; replacing iron hardware with copper or stainless steel hardware; re-coating the lead lettering with black paint as required; replacing failing mortar on the granite base and surrounding pad.
Keenleyside spots errors on plaque describing the war memorial.
By Pepper Parr
July 18th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
 MP Pam Damoff will lead a consultation on climate change at Tansley Woods on the 20th Member of Parliament Pam Damoff is holding a climate change consultation on July 20th at 7pm at Tansley Wood.
Vince Fiorito urges people to “to show up and speak up in support of an ambitious national climate strategy.”
 Vince Fiorito. Steward of Sheldon Creek has been a climate change advocate for years. A number of months ago Fiorito made a very trenchant observation when he said: “The planet it going to survive – there is no certainty that the human race will survive if they keep on behaving the way they do now.”
It is our planet – we actually get to decide what life on this planet is going to be like in the next 50 years.
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 By Pepper Parr
July 18th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
Getting community culture funded in Burlington is a tricky business.
Culture and the arts gets managed at the Parks and Recreation level, Burlington has not yet grown to the point where it has a group dedicated to culture – there isn’t yet a full realization that culture is an economic driving force that has to be managed and effectively promoted.
In the past few years a cultural underground that is a lot bigger than most people realize has begun to organize itself – it is more vocal than effective at this point – but it does have potential.
Herding cats is easier than getting artists to sing from the same hymn book. At some point the political leadership or the administrative will come to the surface and changes will take place. In the meantime we muddle our way through a mushy place where most people mutter the right words but not much real change takes place.
 Selina Eckersall chose Village Square as the location for the second No Vacancy vent which they called Cirque. It was a huge success. Last week the fissures in the cultural file were evident when ward 2 Councillor Meed Ward put forward a motion to grant a group putting on a significant cultural event for the fourth year. The group had previously been turned down by the Parks and Recreation program because they weren’t a new event.
Meed Ward wanted the group to be given $4000 which members of Council went along with at the Standing committee level – it has yet to be approved by Council.
In her memorandum to city council Meed Ward explained that “No Vacancy is a non profit charitable agency whose mission is to bring contemporary art and culture to Burlington. They have previously sponsored two other art events: Cirque (2014) and Super Nova (2015).”
Meed Ward didn’t mention the first No Vacancy event that was held at the Waterfront Hotel in 2103.
Council provided one-time funding support for SuperNova, as well as funding for the Car- Free Street festivals in wards 4,5 and 6 and a Janes’ Walk in ward 1.
Funding was not sought by the No Vacancy people during this year’s budget for their Moonglade, because they were pretty sure funding would be available under the new Community Investment Fund (CIF). However, that fund turned out to be for new events. Moonglade is new in the sense that it is a different location and theme, although still run at the same time of year by the same organization. As such, the event doesn’t neatly fit the existing criteria of the CIF.
 Tomy Bewick intoned in a strong passionate voice while Teresa Seaton spread the stained glass feathers about the ground. The event was one of the strongest features in the 2015 No Vacancy SuoerNova event. Mead Ward said that “this is an event and an organization we want to support until such time as criteria are developed for ongoing community-delivered events. Currently, staff are working on a revised festivals and events strategy. The issue of ongoing event funding will no doubt be a topic of discussion, given the city currently does fund some existing events year over year (eg Sound of Music), and has funded Car Free Festivals again this year.
Meed Ward trotted out the line we are going to hear for the next five years – “the event aligns well with Burlington’s new Strategic Plan, the direction of an Engaging City.”
The strong point in Meed Wards request that Council contribute funds was the additional partners the event has brought into their tent. The Art Gallery of Burlington and the Burlington Downtown Business Association are very much on board with the No Vacancy initiative.
This year the event will be held in Brock Park behind the Art Gallery and inside the building as well. The city can be a partner as well. The request got past the Standing committee and goes to city council Monday evening.
Selina Eckersall, head of No Vacancy, the group that has put on three events, two of which were unqualified successes, had managed to put together an agreement with the Art Gallery of Burlington to hold the event at that location for their fourth event.
 Culture – it was in 2014 at the No Vacancy Cirque event. This has to be looked upon as a marriage made in heaven. The Art Gallery has all kinds of nooks and crannies that are ideal for the kind of event that No Vacancy does. Their first event at the Waterfront Hotel was small but broke new ground in terms of cultural audacity for this city. The second, held at the Village Square broke records in terms of audience attendance and the eclectic mix of participants that ranged from Belly Dancers to Teresa Seaton Stained Glass – and that is a stretch when it comes to art in Burlington. But it worked and the No Vacancy people heightened their ambitions and decided to hold their third event on Old Lakeshore Road. It suffered from overreach and too large a space – and not enough in the way of volunteer help. Lessons were learned.
 Robert Steven is showing the city that he is prepared to do things differently. Having a CEO at the Art Gallery prepared to reach out and try something new was just what No Vacancy needed. Robert Steven showed the city that he was prepared to do things differently when he sponsored a concert at the Performing Arts Centre where he made better use of the space than the staff over there do.
Inviting the No Vacancy crowd into the AGB was a brilliant move that was aided by the fact that Eckersall, was named the Arts Person of the Year award in the 2014 Burlington Best event now also sits on the Board of the AGB.
With at least some of the core funding they need in place – MoonGlade can now continue with their plans and show the city what they can do in perhaps the best location available in the city.
 Lone Garden will again be part of No Vacancy’s MoonGlade this year Kune Hua, one of the 17 participants, is growing an even bigger Love Garden. There is a man in blue wearing red sneakers that is somehow involved in promoting the event.
By Pepper Parr
July 18th, 2106
BURLINGTON, ON
People enjoyed the city over the weekend – and there was a bit of a breeze.
The audiences for the KooGle Theatre Company production of the 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee were very good as was the audience for The Taming of the Shrew at Thinkspot in Lowville.
 Shakespeare in Lowville. The Shrew production was an incredibly different and innovative take on what the bard wrote. The Driftwood Theatre Company is known for doing thought provoking, at time hilarious productions of Shakespeare’s work. Thinkspot has become known for bringing them to the city.
The Thinkspot event has been for just the one evening in an outdoor theatre. The audience this year was larger than last year.
 Spelling Bee cast talks to the audience after its opening last week. The Spelling Bee runs for an additional week at the Performing Arts Centre – two of the four nights the first week were sold out. Book your tickets now for this one. Fun evening.
The Mayor is reported to have been able to spell some of the words he was given but even he was eventually led off the stage by Muscle Bound Mike. You need to see the play to fully appreciate that actor.
The Bandits took a licking on the baseball diamond.
The Bandits will play again this weekend – hopefully they will do better.
The Lowville Festival begins on Friday the 22nd at the Anglican Church in Lowville where a 60+ member choir will be entertaining. This is the Second Annual Lowville Festival – an event that is finding its legs and adding to the locally based entertainment program.
City council meets this evening – then they are off for their summer break. This Council is at the halfway point of their current term of office. All were re-elected last time around.
Lowville Festival schedule:
By Pepper Parr
July 16th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
Where is Ray?
For many Gazette readers Ray Rivers had become a Friday habit – his views on matters federal, provincial and from time to time international have appeared in the Gazette for more than three years.
I first met Rivers when he was talking to a group of Liberals who used to meet regularly at Artisano’s. I liked what I heard Rivers saying a found a way to strike up a conversation. That led to his writing for the Gazette.
 Rivers tries to get to New Zealand once a year – relaxes with family and gets in a little fishing. His daughter returned to Canada with he husband and their children. Ray is working on making a good hockey fan out of at least the grandson. This summer Rivers and I decided that a full break for a month or more was well deserved – and except for one occasion when he had to say something about the Brexit mess in the United Kingdom, Rivers has behaved and worked with tools on his farm in Mountsburg rather than the keyboard on his computer.
There is a tree lot that needs some pruning and a new deck for the hot tub. Grass to be cut with the mower that Rivers treats as something you drive at a NASCAR event and the chicken coop needs a good clean up.
 Rivers is incapable of getting through a day without reading at last one newspaper. So – for those who wonder where Rivers is – it isn’t quite “gone fishing” but it is a respite from a task that can get onerous. Writing a column every week is demanding.
Rivers and I usually have a short conversation about what he would like to write on – we exchange ideas and I pretty well leave him to his own devices. It is the readers that keep him on his toes.
There are about a dozen that watch what he writes very carefully. It did take a while for Gazette readers to fully appreciate that Rivers was a columnist with a view point. Several complained that he was a Liberal and therefore shouldn’t be writing articles.
He is certainly a Liberal and a liberal as well – and that was the point. The Gazette wanted someone with a clear point of view. We also wanted a strong Conservative and talked to a number of people who could have filled that role – none chose to step up the plate.
Public opinion needs to be informed and the exchange of views is part of what informs people. It took us some time to bleed out the more raucous comments that used to appear in the Gazette.
This is not yet a city with a clear understanding of how important it is to keep the public informed and to do so as transparently as possible.
Rivers, who has consistently written a column with often extensive links to other material that few columnists provide.
 With the New Zealand part of the family now on Canadian soil Rivers can see his grandchildren whenever he wants. Rivers will be back in the fall – we expect him to have something to say about both the Republican and Democratic conventions taking place in the United States and how our federal and provincial governments are doing in this country.
The Gazette is fortunate to have Rivers as part of the editorial team – Burlington doesn’t yet fully appreciate the contribution he makes – which isn’t about what he actually writes – but about the fact that he does write. The city badly needs a public that is informed and is prepared to speak out.
 By Staff
July 14th, 2016
BURLINGTON, ON
Jim Young, a 34-year resident of Burlington is an active member of Burlington Seniors Advisory Committee; he represent them on the Integrated Transportation Advisory. Young was delegating on an issue that he is passionate about – how seniors get around the city.
 Jim Young – thinks the city should consider letting seniors use buses free during off peak hours. Council was listening to people who had thoughts on the cycling lanes that city is considering putting in on various parts of New Street.
“I delegate today” said Young “as a private citizen to offer my private thoughts on the issue at hand.”
“You will understand that for many seniors cycling is not an immediate or pressing issue, (for some of us walkability is challenging enough) though for many seniors it is a hobby that we would love to practice in the healthiest and safest manner available to us. To that end I believe most citizens are generally supportive of the concept, that moving forward, the City must look to promoting cycling as a viable transportation alternative that must be encouraged and accommodated safely, in line with its strategic plan as a ”City that Moves”.
“I would however ask that any accommodation for safer cycling be considered in a way that does not impede or reduce improvements to transit services. Transit is the mode of transport which, by the nature of aging and economic necessity, is probably more the transport mode of the future for seniors in Burlington than cycling.
“So when council comes to weigh the alternatives for bicycle lanes on New Street and the relatively high costs of some of them I would ask you to consider these two thoughts:
Accommodating the sixty cyclists identified in the New Street study for approximately ¾ of the year will cost between $121,000.00 and $4,950,000.00 depending on the alternative chosen. The staff recommended alternative is estimated at $210,000.00.
If you have not already received it, council will very soon be asked to consider a position paper from one of your citizen’s advisory committees titled “Improving Transit for Seniors Improves Transit for Everybody”.
 Transit advocate would like the city to let seniors use the service free during off peak hours. “I have worked with many of you” said Young as he addressed members of council “and city management as well preparing the paper that will recommend free transit for seniors during off peak hours between 10.00 am and 3.00 pm, Monday to Friday. The cost for this will be between $48,500.00 and $72,750.00 per year.
Young added that “even Keith Spicer, Director of Transit, will, when his arm is twisted, agree it will probably cost less than $100,000.00. to provide this service.”
“I respectfully submit that as you consider allocating considerable sums of money to make 60 New Street cyclists happy for two thirds of the year that you consider what allocating a fraction of that money to free transit for seniors in off peak hours would do to making 35,000 Burlington seniors happy on every street all year round. (The $4.95 million option would provide free transit for the next 65 years.)”
It was at this point that Committee chairman Rick Craven, councilor for Ward 1, interrupted Young and asked that he no stray too far from the purpose of the meeting – which was cycling lanes.
Related news stories and comment:
Council couldn’t find a majority for free senior’s transit.
Citizen proposes free use of transit service for seniors during off peak hours.
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