Libraries open during current heat wave

By Staff

June 16th, 2022

BURLINGTON, ON

 

At 2:52 this afternoon the city released a statement advising the public that Cooling Centres Open –

A heat warning is in effect. Residents can stay cool at all open Burlington Public Library branches.

There was no mention as to how long the hear warning was to be in effect.

Central Branch

2331 New St.
905-639-3611

Aldershot Branch

550 Plains Rd. E.
905-333-9995

Alton Branch

3040 Tim Dobbie Dr.
905-634-3686

Brant Hills Branch

2255 Brant St.
905-335-2209

Kilbride Branch

6611 Panton St. Kilbride
905-335-4011

New Appleby Branch

676 Appleby Line
905-639-6373

Tansley Woods Branch

1996 Itabashi Way
905-336-5583

 

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Update on the offer to sell Fairview Development - Councillor reports just a portion of the land is on offer

By Pepper Parr

June 16th, 2022

BURLINGTON, ON

 

Earlier in the day we reported that the Holland Park development was up for sale.

This is the development with seven towers and no height restrictions.

Because the development proposal met all the zoning and Official Plan rules there was no nee for them to make an application development.

The first time the city would get a chance to say anything would be at Site Plan approval – for which there is no set date.

We asked the ward Councillor Lisa Kearns for a comment.  She said:

“It is quite routine in situations such as this for the advertised sale of the condominium portion of the site only. We know that the partnership with CLV, in the Fairview Limited Partnership (Brookfield Properties, InterRent REIT, and CLV Group) specialize in multi-family residential rental buildings, not condominiums.  As such, by offering the condominium portion of the site for sale, the group will bring the right ownership to the development.

“CLV’s commitment is to provide and operate the 4 residential rental towers on the site as planned to help increase the rental inventory in the City.  CLV Group has been working with the City to obtain the appropriate approvals and permits to construct the first phase consisting of two mixed use towers with 774 residential rental units.

“This is a customary process and as Councillor, I have expressed to the group that it is important to select a condominium partner that respects our community and its future residents.”

There is no mention of CLV and the operation of the rental units.

No word on shovels in the ground.

Much more to be worked out on this site.  Making space for a fire station would be one thing to be included.

The plan is for a phased development with the rental units going in first – closer to the rail line and the condo units at a later date.

 

In a virtual presentation the public got to see what appeared to be a very sophisticated development with all the signs of a big urban development back by investment from major real estate players.

Related news stories:

Councillor sticks her finger into a development pie

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An illustrated look at what the election results mean -

By Staff

June 14th, 2022

BURLINGTON, ON

 

Dave Meslin has been working tirelessly to “Unlock Democracy” and change the way we elect our leaders.

He champions ranked ballots and thinks that is the way the public will get the kind of representation they deserve.

First past the post keeps the small less established political parties of the House of Commons and the provincial legislatures.

There was a time when Justin Trudeau that it was an idea worth trying – then changed his mind and put Burlington’s MP Karina Gould in front of a microphone to explain what wasn’t going to happen.

And it will never happen until the public votes the New Democrats or the Green Party into office and they “might” stand behind their promises.

Politics is about power and those who have it don’t trifle with it – they hold very tightly in their hands.

Nevertheless Meslin soldiers on. He sent us two illustrations and asked that we share them.

For those who didn’t vote – you know who you are – you get to live with what Doug Ford is going to do to this province. Those two donuts are about as healthy as Crispy Cream donuts.

 

 

 

Sometimes things have to get worse before they get better.

Related background:

What does Dave Meslin mean when he talks about ranked ballots?

Meslin offers a free course on the first day of every month – Click here for the link

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City sets out how it plans to Celebrate Canada’s birthday at Spencer Smith Park

By Staff

June 14th, 2022

BURLINGTON, ON

 

The City of Burlington is excited to return to an in-person Canada Day celebration in Spencer Smith Park on July 1.

Fire works on the waterfront with the pier in the background.

This year’s event will start with an opening ceremony at 4 p.m. followed by evening entertainment on the main stage and the grand finale of a spectacular firework display presented by Bunzl over the lake at 10 p.m.

The event will also feature food and market place vendors.

For our early risers and active residents, a Canada Day Run and Yoga in the park will be held in the morning in Spencer Smith Park.

Other Canada Day Activities

There are plenty of fun options for the family this Canada Day throughout the city, such as splash pads and pools. All nine of the City’s splash pad locations are open and always free.

Nelson Outdoor Pool & Splash Park and LaSalle Wading Pool are open for swimming on Canada day (weather permitting). If you prefer to swim indoors visit Angela Coughlan Pool. For times of swims at all locations, visit burlington.ca/dropinandplay.

Canada Day is a great time to get outside, explore Burlington and get active. Take our Get Outside and Play Challenge, and complete 90 activities in 90 days. The challenge is on now until Aug. 29, 2022. Win great prizes!

 “It’s been two long years since we’ve had the Canada Day celebrations in-person and we are excited to bring this very popular, award winning event to our community. We are looking forward to a great evening with some spectacular fireworks” said a city spokesperson.

Links

burlington.ca/canadaday

burlington.ca/playoutside

burlington.ca/splashpads

 

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Halton Small Business Centre is hosting A Back to Business Webinar Series

By Staff

June 14th, 2022

BURLINGTON, ON

 

Halton Small Business Centre is hosting A Back to Business Webinar Series: How to Hire & Retain Employees session on June 22nd, from 9:30am – 11:00am.

What will be covered:

The delicate art of interviewing

·    How to attract the right person for the job

·    What you need to know about recruiting

·    Hiring through an agency

·    Tips on interviewing & what to consider when hiring

·    How to retain employees & how to create a great employee experience

·    Employment Halton Services (Job board, additional services for employers)

Sign up for this Zoom event here.

 

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What will it take to handle fires in high rise buildings - firefighters and equipment - which Burlington doesn't have at this point.

By Pepper Parr

June 13th,  2022

BURLINGTON, ON

 

Dan VanderLelie, President, Burlington Professional Firefighters Association, IAFF Local 1552 and Director Zone 3, Ontario Professional Fire Fighters Association, is an Acting Platoon Chief in the Burlington Fire department.  He delegated to city coumcil last week.

Dan VanderLelie, President, Burlington Professional Firefighters Association, IAFF Local 1552 and Director Zone 3, Ontario Professional Fire Fighters Association.

It was one of the lengthier and drill down deep delegations this writer has ever heard in Burlington .  Dan was before Council for more than an hour.

As head of the Fireman’s union it has been suggested that he puts the interests of the union members before the public interest.  Our experience with Dan, covers a period of ten years and in that time I have come to the conclusion that Dan is very concerned about public safety and the safety of the men and women who fight fires.  He does argue that if the firefighters are not properly taken care of – you don’t have an effective fire department

Here is what else VanderLelie had to say:

When responding to fires in high rise buildings, firefighting crews of four to five members instead of two or three are significantly faster in putting out fires and completing search and rescue operations. The Fire Department Master Plan report (which was also discussed at Council on the same day)  made it clear that the Burlington Fire Department is not currently able to assemble the fire fighting teams that are needed to fight high rise situations.

What the city has and what it is going to need in terms of equipment and staff -including two new fire stations.

The minimum required is 39 firefighters at the location within 10 minutes and 10 seconds.  It has to be noted that the department currently only deploys 35 firefighters per shift which includes a platoon chief

VanderLelie adds that one high rise fire will pull multiple resources from different parts of the city – which doesn’t leave much to answer another fire call in the same time period.

This graphic shows where the current fire departments are located and what each has in the way of equipment.. When there is a major fire that requires a lot of equipment the dispatch people will move equipment around so that there is the kind of coverage needed on an hour by hour basis.

The Burlington fire department should add resources to the waterfront downtown area, which contains many high rise high rises and large future developments. Building a station nine (which would be a new station) and stuffing it with a truck with four firefighters provides better coverage for the downtown core.

Increasing ladder 342 (which is a fire fighting unit – not a piece of equipment) with a daily minimum staffing of four would allow for more efficient deployment of aerial apparatus and protect existing and proposed high rise structures and occupants.

Increasing daily minimum staffing on rescue 312 and 372 (these are also units) will allow for timely assembly of effective response force. This will better protect the citizens structures and firefighters. The purpose of the National Firefighting Professional Association (NFPA) 1710 standard is to specify the minimum criteria addressing the effectiveness and efficiency of the Career (as opposed to volunteer) public fire suppression operations, emergency medical service and special operations delivery and protecting the citizens of the jurisdiction and the occupational safety and health of the fire department employees.

Each red dot is a development application that is working its way through the approval process.

So I don’t want to say imagine this because you already aware of the intensification and density we are faced with in the very near future. When we requested the IAFF International Association of Firefighters do a GIS study for us which you all received a copy of – they were astonished at the speed and rate of the vertical growth in the city.

Their report discussed the development expected to take place and the need for additional fire station space and equipment in station 3’s and and more on station 1’s area. They were shocked at how quickly and how high we are going.

The intensification and vertical growth will create increased traffic congestion. It will also create longer emergency contact times whether it be for medical rescue or a fire. It must also be pointed out that this creates response time concerns for all of the other occurrences that we run within the city.

Our city has seen tremendous growth over the past 11 years, whether it be up in whether it be out and during that time our fire service has been stagnant.  There has been no increase in staffing or deployment options. We’ve had zero growth. We’ve been asked to do more with the same or less  – this model in practice cannot continue.

The fire chief made a presentation to you a couple of weeks ago regarding our staffing levels. I’m asking that the immediate needs to be addressed and met by this council and further requests be included in the 2023 budget.

That was the end of the VanderLelie delegation.  The questions from members of Council began; it took the Acting Platoon Chief an hour to answer them all

After his formal delegation he was asked by Ward 2 Councillor Lisa Kearns what was involved in fighting fires in high rise towers – buildings in the 30 floor plus range.  Kearns: asked: can you explain the word high rise tome?  And can you explain what a high rise response involves? And can you give us a better understanding of the resources required?

I’ll also ask you to weave in some conversations around what is a tall building? What is a high rise? I’m not quite sure recalling those two things, the same thing from a planning perspective and from a response perspective.

This is what is required in the way of a medium response force.

Dan:  Okay. So if I may, I’m going to walk you through some of the the issues that we’re faced with including what a response looks like. And we’ll count through some of the individuals that respond.

So high rise fires are extremely labour intensive for us. There’s many factors that add so much complexity to it, Vertical Response –  having to get to the floor. We talked about four minutes getting to the building – we could have up to two minutes in a vertical response if we’re in elevators. If we can’t take elevators we got to take stairs and therefore adding more time understanding that time means more fire growth. Fire conditions are amplified if, let’s say in the in the unit where the fire is, if the windows blow out. Obviously feeding more wind, wind driven fires, are  extremely dangerous for firefighters.

The top of the list is the residents  – we can have upwards of 400 residents in a building. So when you start factoring in the fire and the smoke migration to the other floors, which means more time and more taxing on the firefighters.

The manpower and equipment demands increase wit the height of the building.

These apartments are concrete. They’re ovens. They are concrete boxes, just radiating heat inside. Extreme heat makes things difficult.

I will use  an apartment building with say 20 stories on Maple Crossing Boulevard. The first primary truck and when I say primary I mean  a pump rescue which has four firefighters on it. When I say rescue, that’s two firefighters. A ladder truck is two firefighters.  With the first primary truck on scene they will do an evaluation of what they have and report that back to dispatch and do a size up.

The annunciator panel is almost a map to the building with real time data essential to the firefighters who need to know what is happening where.

They firefighters will have made their way to the lobby. They’ll broadcast an initial report to our dispatch as to what they see on the annunciator panels and verify the incident location.

Every building has a panel that displays information – which floor a fire is on – which unit the fire is taking place in and determine if the building is equipped with a Chubb box, which is that little silver box which only firefighters have access to – it holds all the keys necessary to access every space in the building.

They open up the box pull out the appropriate keys they need; be it an elevator master key or a master key for the building.

They then move to take control of all the elevators and bring them to the ground floor. Then find the superintendent to gather as much information as we can.

That crew will then begin to initiate search and rescue operations and attempt confinement and extinguishment.  The driver of the vehicle will be left with the elevator to operate the elevator. That’s if we can use the elevator. If we can’t use the elevator then we’ll take the driver with us. walking up the stairs

The firefighters will climb to one of two floors below the incident floor and that will be designated as incident control for our crews.

Then, as we are preparing we’re looking at what’s happening on that floor. The layout of the of the cabinets, the layout of where the elevator is the stairwells, the door numbering so then we’ll proceed to the operation stairwell and standby the standpipe connection.

We need two firefighters to hook up the standpipe, these are the pipes that carry the water to each floor –  but we’ve only got one that can do it because the other two need to assist the captain going to the fire floor to begin rescue operations. So the crew will connect the high rise pack to the appliances in the standpipe and then we’ll begin to make our way down the hall into the onto the fire floor to the unit in question for fire containment, extinguishment or other measures that may be needed to mitigate the situation.

A team of firefighters carrying high rise packs of hose and an oxygen tank preparing to ascend a stairwell.

These crews will have with them so obviously their full PPE or personal protective equipment, their breathing apparatus, their hand lamps or portable radios. If we have a truck phone, we’ll take that with us. The high rise apartment packs, which is pretty much taking the truck up to the floor. So we have hoses, forcible entry tools, thermal imaging camera and other equipment that’s required.

So that’s the first truck. The second truck is going to arrive and they’re going to they’re going to support rescue operations as best as they can. So the second primary that arrives, they’re going to make their way to the incident control for and they’re going to set up a RAT team. The RAT team – rapid intervention team is  there to protect the fire  fighters.. If a firefighter goes down or firefighter needs rescue, that rapid intervention team is used for that so they bring all of their equipment. So that’s two guys off of that four man truck.

A pumper truck that will push water up through hoses and standpipes to get water to each level.

Then we need a second hose line. Realistically we need two people to take that second hose line. We’re only going to get one because of the people that we have there. And then the captain is going to act as a support role and an on deck role on that for so now we’ve got eight firefighters on scene eight firefighters on scene.

A third primary truck is in charge of water supply – locate a hydrant and then when you walk up to an apartment or the CFTC which means fire department connection, you see those brass fittings that stick out the side of the wall of the of the apartment those are we’re going to use those are the that’s FTC. That truck is tasked with water supply so they’re going to hook into the they’re going to use the crew that they have there to hook into that. And then once that’s hooked up, the driver remains with the truck. Those other three firefighters report to the incident control floor as more support.

The fourth primary that now shows up will report to the incident control for this out of all the trucks is one of the trucks that’s tasked with the most. The officer will be the incident safety officer will also be the could be the incident command for officer to have their people will formulate the RAT  team which to set up an accountability board and know how to maintain accountability of all the firefighters that are involved in fire suppression operations or any firefighters that are on air on scene.

On air means those firefighters using oxygen. The rescue that showed up more than likely with the first primary they’ll still be in the lobby. They’ll be running lobby control and an accountability board in the lobby as well.

That accountability board tells the command people where every fire fighter is, how much oxygen they have left in their tanks if they are on air.

There are limits to just how high a ladder truck can rise.

The ladder when it shows up, will have two firefighters on will be charged with setting up aerial operations if required. They will be responsible for assisting and pressurizing of the stairwells with ventilation fans. They’ll provide ventilation through the through the roof, and they’ll also provide air monitoring.

Now a lot of the time what with all of this and all of these individuals that are working we haven’t factored in whether or not we find the victim yet whether or not we’ve had smoke migration or fire migration to another floor. We saw this in Toronto. I can’t remember the street but we saw in Toronto a few years back. The fire licked its way up and made its way to the next balcony.

At this point we have  20 people on scene with a Platoon Chief who is going to Command operations and move our resources.

With 20 or more on site it is more than likely that there will be a secondary call  for a secondary unit to assist us  with response. When we put all that together, the city has all those trucks –  four of them – three primaries remaining with 12 firefighters and one rescue so we have 14 firefighters remaining in the city.

Like I said more than likely upgrading that department fire so now we’re going to have three trucks.

Dan VanderLelie was nearing the end of his explanation – added that it has been said before that while one fire is being battled there will always be another somewhere else that requires firefighters and resources .

And to meet those other fire calls the department needs both firefighters and equipment.

So, it’s been said before it’ll never happen, but every time we say it will never happen. It always happens.

Sorry. I should have told you it was going to be long.

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Halton Regional Police Service Extends Station Hours

By Staff

June 13th, 2022

BURLINGTON, ON

 

The Halton Regional Police Service (HRPS) has extended their service hours at the District stations effective today, Monday, June 13, 2022 as follows:

Burlington now open to the public 8:00 a.m. – 10:00 p.m.

Georgetown  8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Milton  now open to the public 8:00 a.m. – 10:00 p.m.

Oakville  now open to the public 8:00 a.m. – 10:00 p.m.

HRPS Headquarters is also open 8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, closed on statutory holidays.

In addition to attending a HRPS facility in-person, there are a number of ways to contact the HRPS, depending on the assistance needed:

In an Emergency

If you have an emergency, please dial 9-1-1. It is an emergency if someone’s immediate health, safety, or property is in immediate danger or there is a crime in progress. For non-emergencies, dial 905-825-4777.

Collision Reporting

The HRPS has three Collision Reporting Centres. These centres are staffed and managed by Accident Support Services. Learn more here.

Record Checks

The HRPS provides Police Record Checks to residents of Halton region for employment or volunteer purposes. Police Record Checks are available online or in-person at the HRPS Headquarters.

Freedom of Information Services

Anyone needing to file a FOI request can now do so online, via our website at haltonpolice.ca/foi

Online Reporting

We have a number of online reporting tools available on our website. These tools can be used to report some crimes, or to report traffic concerns.

 

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City manager suggests delegation on fire services not get into operations

By Pepper Parr

June 10th, 2022

BURLINGTON, ON

OPINION

The city manager sits in on every Standing Committee meeting as well as Council meetings.

The City manager is the only person that Council hires.  The city manager runs the administrative side of the city delegating the authority he got from Council to his team.

Members of Council chair the Standing Committees – as Chair they make decisions on how the procedural manual is to be interpreted and remind speakers if they have run out of time or if they are wandering from the subject matter.

Earlier this week, for the first time in the ten years I have been covering city council Tim Commisso, the City Manager caught the eye of the Chair  and said the following.

City manager Tim Commisso at Standing Committee earlier this week.

“I think it’s one of the things we’re very fortunate yo have which is a great relationship with the Chief,  but I would just caution council, I don’t know if it’s fair for the delegation to be talking in depth about operations.

I’d be honest with you, I think certainly perspective on NFPA. You know, and that I just think you’re going to hear from the on the presentation on the master plan in front of the chief.

So I just suggest that the in depth nature of fire operations and I know, Mr. Vanderlelie is more than capable of speaking about it, but I think it’s really questions that are directed, I think in conjunction with the Master Fire Plan.

Finally, the other thing that raises and it’s a very good point is the growth intensification comes with certainly a set of questions is whether we need to be in a position to fund something like a new station downtown in advance or once we see that growth in the tech space so I just I would just suggest it through the chair. The questions really don’t focus on operations so much.

Thank you.”

For the City Manager to suggest that a Fire Service Captain should not delve into operations when he was specifically asked by a Council member to do just that is a bit more than surprising.

Salt with Pepper is the musings, reflections and opinions of the publisher of the Burlington Gazette, an online newspaper that was formed in 2010 and is a member of the National Newsmedia Council.

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Delegator, Jim Thompson blasts Council for what he saw as a patronizing introduction

By Pepper Parr

June 10th, 2022

BURLINGTON, ON

 

Every once in a while a delegation stands before council and says what many people feel.

Jim Thompson, who has delegated frequently in the past couple of months, usually on the LaSalle Park Marina, was ready to speak..

“Welcome Jim”, said Chair Galbraith, “I think you know the drill you will have 10 minutes whenever you’re ready.”

Before starting Thompson said:

Jim Thomson blasting Council at the start of his delegation earlier this week

Okay, I’m ready. Okay, first thing I want to say is that I find that your opening remarks are patronizing. If I don’t get any questions here, it doesn’t mean that the council understood me perfectly clearly.

It just means you don’t want to ask questions or engage. So with that, can I have the next slide please?

And Thompson got on with the delegation

That is not what Council was expecting.

Thompson did get a couple of questions from Councillor Sharman.

And he also got a look from Chair of the meeting, ward 1 Councillor Kelvin Galbraith – if looks could kill – Thompson was dead.

And Thompson was not wrong –  too often Councillors sit mute and don’t engage delegations. That statement – “If there are no questions it just means that you have provided clear comments that don’t require clarification” is read out at every meeting when there are delegations. Many delegations find it offensive.  Councillors might think in terms of asking for a rewrite of what they are required to read out.

It sounds like something that was prepared for the Chair of a meeting by the city’s Communications department

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Boats will go into the water on the 16th: LPMA members happy campers

By Pepper Parr

June 9th, 2022

BURLINGTON, ON

 

There will be life at the marina.

The LaSalle Park Marina Association has secured the insurance they needed; a crane has been booked and the lift in is set for June 16th.

Boats will go into water on the 16th

The city hasn’t has had to put in as much as a dime. The LPMA paid for the services of a lawyer the city was going to bring in to oversee the joint venture loan agreements.  The LPMA is paying for the use of the waterlots that are owned by Hamilton and the LPMA is continuing to pay the fees that are part of the agreement they have with the city.

The thought that the city would have to take over operation of the marina – won’t happen.

They will be hoisting the pewter mugs with tots of rum when the lift in is complete.

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Regional Police make an Arrest in a Grandparent Scam

By Staff

June 9th, 2022

BURLINGTON, ON

 

The Halton Regional Police Service (HRPS) has made an arrest related to a “grandparent scam” being operated in the region. The grandparent scam is a type of fraud that has been an ongoing trend across Halton resulting in many community members being victimized.

On June 8, 2022, HRPS officers were made aware of a scam in progress taking place in Georgetown. Police attended the residence and arrested Kevin Tshiyoyi (27) of Montreal.

Kevin Tshiyoyi

The suspect attended this location in order to collect $10, 000 cash from a victim for the alleged and fabricated bail of her grandson. This is a theme often used by fraudsters throughout the GTA.

The suspect was placed under arrest by investigators and charged with Fraud Over $5000.

Following his arrest, and through additional investigative steps, police were able to identify a hotel room where the accused was staying. In June 9, 2022, a search warrant was executed at an Oakville hotel room where evidence related to additional fraud offences in Halton and neighboring jurisdictions was located.

In total, investigators have charged Tshiyoyi with 11 counts of Fraud over $5000 and Unauthorized Possession of a Credit Card.
Total losses by victims in these occurrences is more than $80,000.

A photo of Tshiyoyi is attached as police believe there may be additional victims. Investigators are asking anyone who has information or has been victimized by him to contact the Regional Fraud Unit – Intake Office at 905-825-4777 ext. 8741.

Tips can also be submitted anonymously to Crime Stoppers. “See something? Hear something? Know something? Contact Crime Stoppers” at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS) or through the web at www.haltoncrimestoppers.ca

Emergency (Grandparent) Scams
These types of scams typically involve the victim receiving an unsolicited phone call regarding a loved one being in distress. The perpetrators falsely identify themselves as a loved one, or impersonate a police officer and/or other participants of the criminal justice system (such a lawyers, bailiffs, and “bondsman”), falsely claiming that the loved one is in police custody as a result of a specific incident. They request a larger sum of money to have the supposed loved one released from custody, or to pay for associated bills/fines accrued as a result of the alleged incident. The funds requested can be in the form of a direct cash payment, bank transfers, various gift cards, and digital currency. While the scam is ongoing, and the payments are being made, the perpetrators will on occasion use the threat of a fictitious “gag order” to prevent the victim from discussing the matter with anyone else.

Tips to protect yourself
• Attempt to verify the caller’s identity – do not volunteer any information, and further ask very specific probing questions about the caller.
•Request to call back the initial caller – then independently find the number of the police service (or other purported agency in question) and call them directly to clarify the situation. If unsure, call your local police service and ask them for assistance.
• Attempt to directly call the loved one in question and clarify the matter with them.
Remember – Fraudsters will count on your good will to act quickly and help a loved one. Take your time and use above noted tips to protect yourself.
Additional information on frauds and scams can be found here, or through the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre website.

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Electric bus pilot in the city's future

By Pepper Parr

June 9th 2022

BURLINGTON, ON

 

A graphic of a bus at a charging station. Transit people are working on a pilot to test something like this in Burlington.

It isn’t totally official, which means the Communications people haven’t gotten the memo yet, but it looks like Burlington is going to have a four electric bus pilot, as early as 2024.

The pilot will be done with CUTRIC, an organization with some of the brightest people working on turning diesel buses into electrical.

That is good news.

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Massive increases to the cost of the grade separation at Burloak - city negotiates a decent deal

By Pepper Parr

June 9th, 2022

BURLINGTON, ON

 

The city has been dealing with Metrolinx on the cost and timing of both the Burloak Grade Seperation and Drury Lane Pedestrian Bridge.

Both projects are already included in the City’s capital budget with sufficient funds to cover the required contributions to Metrolinx, assuming the approval of an additional 12-month road closure.

Getting to this point has proven to be an arduous task.

The current situation at the Burloak crossing

The budget for the Burloak grade separation went from $60 million to $177 million – and Metrolinx expected Burlington to pick up a share of the increases.

The cost of the grade separation was to be 50% Metrolinx and 25% for both Burlington and Oakville.

It will be interesting to hear how the city managed to keep the cost at the original number.

Burloak grade separation
• Temporary relocation of utilities April 2023 –March 2024
• Relocation of Burlington Interlock (track work) November 2022 – April 2023
• Temporary Road/Track Detour March 2024 – June 2024
• Bridge Construction August 2023 – May 2026
• Interim Completion June 2026
• Completion of road works June 2027

When completed in 2027 this is what is expected to be in place.

More once Council has completed its discussions later today.

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Halton Region Public Health confirms first case of monkeypox

By Staff

June 8, 2022

BURLINGTON, ON

 

Halton Region Public Health has confirmed Halton’s first reported case of monkeypox virus. The individual is currently isolating at home and all contacts have been notified by Halton Region Public Health.

“While most people infected with monkeypox will have mild symptoms, some people such as children, pregnant women and those with immunodeficiencies are at higher risk for severe disease,” said Dr. Hamidah Meghani, Halton Region Medical Officer of Health.

An example of monkeypox

“If you have symptoms of monkeypox, it is important to stay home and call your doctor to be assessed. When seeking medical care you should wear a high quality medical mask and cover up all lesions.”

Monkeypox is a disease caused by the monkeypox virus. Symptoms of monkeypox typically include

fever, headache, swollen lymph nodes, low energy, muscle aches and skin rash or lesions.

The rash usually begins within one to three days of the start of a fever. Lesions can be flat or slightly raised, filled with clear or yellowish fluid, and can then crust, dry up and fall off, much like chickenpox.

The number of lesions on one person can range from a few to several thousand. The rash tends to be concentrated on the face, palms of the hands and soles of the feet.

Symptoms can start within five to 21 days after exposure to monkeypox, but usually appear in six to 13 days. Symptoms last between two to four weeks and go away on their own without treatment. A person infected with monkeypox can be contagious five days prior to the onset of rash until the rash has cleared and new skin has formed after a few weeks.

The virus can spread from person-to-person by respiratory secretions, direct contact with skin lesions, and/or contact with materials contaminated with the virus (for example, bedding, clothing).

The virus enters the body through broken skin, the respiratory tract or mucous membranes (for example, mouth, nose, eyes). Transmission through respiratory secretions requires prolonged face to face contact with close proximity to an infected person.

Halton Region Public Health continues to monitor the situation, investigate suspected and confirmed cases and complete contact tracing. For more information on the virus, visit Halton Region’s monkeypox webpage.

 

 

 

 

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Spongy moth control update and free prevention demonstrations

By Staff

June 7th, 2022

BURLINGTON, ON

 

Spongy moth, commonly known as the gypsy moth or Lymantria dispar dispar (LDD), is an invasive pest

The spongy moth, commonly known as the gypsy moth or Lymantria dispar dispar (LDD), is an invasive pest that is a nuisance and can cause damage to trees in Burlington and throughout many parts of Canada.

Each year, the City’s Forestry team and other forestry experts survey public trees and woodlots within Burlington for these pests to determine the risk of damage to the trees. Last year, the surveying found the number of egg masses on trees were reduced from previous surveys and within limits that do not warrant an aerial spray application. The City of Burlington did aerial spraying in 2019 and 2021 which has been very successful in reducing this infestation and for 2022 will be focusing on area specific methods to address these pests.

In some areas around the City has placed either “sticky bands” or “burlap bands” around their preferred trees to help prevent the caterpillars from crawling up the trunk to the tree’s canopy.

Most trees can survive an infestation of spongy moth caterpillars and will be able to regrow new leaves without having permanent damage done.

Residents and property owners can also do this on their trees to help reduce the spongy moth’s population.

Free Burlap Banding Demonstrations
Residents and tree enthusiasts are welcome to attend a free “burlap banding” demonstration that will be held at three parks in Burlington on June 11. A forestry expert will show participants the materials needed and the steps to create the simple, yet effective method of burlap banding.

Burlap banding is an effective way to help reduce the population and damage done by spongy moths.

Registration is not required. Demonstrations will happen rain or shine.

Session #1
Location: Kilbride Park, 2175 Blessington St.
Time: 8:30 a.m.

Session #2
Location: LaSalle Park. 50 North Shore Blvd.
Time: 10:30 a.m.

Session #3
Location: Sherwood Forest Park, east side. Enter from Fothergill Boulevard, off Burloak Drive
Time: 12:30 p.m.

A moth eating its way through a leaf.

About the spongy moth
Spongy month, previously known as the European Gypsy moth, Lymantria dispar dispar, is a non-native invasive pest that was introduced in the late 19th century. It was first discovered in Ontario in the 1960’s and has been a major defoliator of deciduous and coniferous trees across Southern Ontario.

Gypsy moth populations tend to be cyclical, with peaks every 8-12 years, followed by dramatic population decline of the pest.

Burlington’s Integrated Pest Management program
As part of Burlington’s Integrated Pest Management (IPM) program, Forestry staff assess sites annually across the city and conduct egg mass surveys to determine areas that have exceeded an action threshold, when natural processes can no longer maintain pest population levels on their own. Although healthy trees can generally withstand defoliation several years in a row, trees which are already in distress from problems such as acute drought, compacted soils, diseases or other pests, may decline and die. Generally, healthy trees which are defoliated in spring, will regrow leaves again by mid-summer.

Aerial spraying for gypsy moths.

The City of Burlington last conducted an aerial spraying program for spongy moth caterpillars in 2019 and 2021. Program frequency is determined as part of the City’s Integrated Pest Management program.

Steve Robinson, Manager of Forestry

Steve Robinson, Manager of Forestry who has made it through a couple of dozen Standing Committee meetings with his shirt still on his back.  Burlington is really hard on the forestry people. Robinson said: “Our Integrated Pest Management program looks at multiple factors to decide if we need to do an aerial spraying with a natural pesticide referred to as BtK. We look at how many egg clusters are on the trees in the fall, whether the wooded area is healthy enough to handle a normal cycle of caterpillars and if the area was sprayed the year before.”

 

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Burlington MP Karina Gould highlights what the government is doing about improving the passport renewal service and the Child Care program

By Staff

June 7th, 2022

BURLINGTON, ON

 

Here’s what Karina Gould had to say in the House of Commons yesterday.

Burlington MP Karina Gould speaking in the House of Commons

Responding to a Member from New Brunswick, who had issues with the way the government was managing the Child Care benefit program, Burlington MP Karina Gould said:

Mr. Speaker, the member knows very well that in his province of New Brunswick, we have now reduced child care fees by 50%. In fact, that leaves hundreds of dollars each month in the pockets of the mothers he is talking about.

When it comes to the Canada child benefit, for a single mom, that could mean almost $7,000 a year. That is real money for families that need it when it comes to the high cost of living.

We have been there since 2015, and we will continue to be there for them every step of the way.

Later in the same day Gould tackled the problem with the Passport service.  Thanking a different colleague for a different question related to the problem people have had getting passports renewed Gould said:Gould said:

Mr. Speaker, it is really reassuring to hear the Bloc talk about Canadian passports. We are in the process of hiring more employees. Since January, 600 employees have been hired. We are now hiring another 600, and 600 Service Canada employees are being redeployed to ensure that we can better respond to Canadians’ needs.

We will continue to change the process because we know that it is important for all Canadians across the country to have access to their passports.

As we know, this is an unprecedented time, when many Canadians want to travel at the same time. Many passports expired over the past two years, and we are in the process of ensuring that Canadians can travel because we know that is what they want to do.

As I have already mentioned in the House, many offices across the country are open in the evening and on Saturdays. We are doing what we can to provide this service to Canadians.

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A Gazette reader has a question for you on the Bateman High School site that the city is in the process of purchasing

By Jeremy Skinner

June 5th, 2022

BURLINGTON, ON

 

Much has been mentioned in the Gazette about the Bateman opportunity that is before us. I ask that each person who has contributed a comment thus far and are interested in the issue to respond by way of a comment to this article with your answers to the following two questions.

Question 1:
Do you believe that the City should acquire the Bateman property via a land swap which would enable the HDSB to acquire Wellington Park as part of their Burlington Central site?

If not, do you acknowledge the fact that the HDSB will likely be forced to sell the Bateman property to private as opposed to public interests? Note: Public access to Centennial Pool may be lost because it is owned by HDSB and operated by the City.

A lot of land and a lot of public interest.

Question 2:
(Answer only if yes to question 1. ) What do you believe that the Bateman property along with or without existing 220,000 sq. ft. 2 storey building should be used for?

Consider the fact that the City has received multiple offers from potential tenants seeking long term leases to reside in Bateman. These include:

– Brock University who wishes to relocate their Faculty of Education from Hamilton;
– HDSB who wishes to relocate their Burlington Gary Allan Learning Centre from 3250 New St.;
– Burlington Public Library Appleby Branch who wishes to relocate from Appleby Square Plaza (which will soon undergo redevelopment).
– TechPlace who wishes to establish presence in the East Burlington business community; and
– a City Community Centre complete with gym and pool facilities.

The long term leases from these tenants will cover most, if not all, of the one-time costs required to enable necessary maintenance upgrades required to host these tenants. Think of the financing to that of seeking a mortgage to repair an existing owned house which has a long term revenue stream from multiple tenants.

So is the Bateman situation a mountain or a molehill? Share your answers to the two questions above by adding a comment to this article.

When Jeremy Skinner sent this in we weren’t sure if it was a good idea – then thought that it might be a good idea to let the readers ask the questions and see how other readers respond.

Take it as one of our engagement initiatives.  We will work with what comes in and send it along to Council members.

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Andrew Drummond lost the election but he doesn't feel defeated

By Pepper Parr

June 5th, 2022

BURLINGTON, ON

 

Thursday was not a good day for Andrew Drummond.

His third campaign to become the representative for Burlington in the provincial legislature didn’t work out the way he had hoped.

Drummond had the best funding he has ever had plus a bigger team to knock on doors – the wind he needed was never in his sails.

He started the campaign with better funding than he has ever had. The NDP saw Burlington as a seat that could be won.

Drummond said the NDP had identified 6000 people who would vote for them

The Burlington NDP organization got the best results in all of Halton. And Drummond is fervent in his belief that if there is going to be an NDP seat in the region it will be in Burlington.

The days immediately after an election that was lost are not the hardest – those are yet to come. Today Drummond talks about an organization with 100 formal members that he believes can be built to 200 and that in the months and years ahead Burlington will see the NDP protesting on street corners and in front of city hall.

There are important issues said Drummond who lists them: Daycare funding, environmental issues, climate change, better job prospects, Women’s Place, Urban boundaries – he has more.

Ever the campaigner – Andrew Drummond was out every day – but the New Democrats didn’t have enough traction at the provincial level to give him the room to grow his campaign.

He plans on more meetings for the local NDP association and expects to be able to partner with other groups on their issues.

Drummond explains that people were Ok with the job Doug Ford did on the COVID 19 issue – the other serious issues just didn’t get the traction they needed. He added that provincially, the NDP campaign just never did really take off.

Which leads Drummond to the forthcoming leadership campaign. At this point his voice changes – some excitement comes back – “There are some stars in caucus; there are bright lights that will begin to shine” he explains. Expect Drummond to be up to his ears in the leadership campaign – but isn’t prepared to say if there is a candidate that he likes the look of.

Will he run again in 2026 – four years is a long, long, long time in the world of politics – but a guess would be – he will run again.

What can we expect from the new government we asked? Drummond does not subscribe to the view that Doug Ford is a changed man. “He is there to help his buddies make a lot of money” adding that parts of Burlington are at serious risk.

The 407-Dundas urban divide is at risk. Drummond believes that the owners of most of the property that is immediately north of that roadway – 407 and Dundas, will end up being developed with the Ford government that will be sworn in soon.

 

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Is Mayor Meed Ward considering a run for the office of Regional Chair ?

By Pepper Parr

June 5th, 2022

BURLINGTON, ON

 

With the Ontario election over and Doug Ford in place until 2026, running the province with little in the way of an opposition party, our eyes turn to the municipal election in October.

Look for a move on the part of Councillor Sharman to indicate that he will run for the office of Mayor.

Jane McKenna, MPP when the photo was taken, at a Freeman Station event with a friend.

A comment made, at a Joseph Brant Museum event last week, by someone who would know, that Mayor Meed Ward might consider (is considering) running for the office of Regional Chair where she would be running against Jane McKenna who gave up her seat at Queen’s Park to run for the office that Gary Carr doesn’t appear to want any more.

Carr moved from Milton into downtown Burlington recently.

Meed Ward has let the very strong support she had when she became mayor dwindle away; it will take more than we think this Mayor has to pull that support back.

Meed Ward has changed the way municipal government works in Burlington – too many, the changes were not all that beneficial.

The biggest thing Meed Ward brought was hope – and then she dashed that hope by making herself the focal point.

As a Councillor for ward 2 between 2010 and 2014 Marianne Med Ward made a significant difference – she brought hope to the hearts of those who wanted to keep the Burlington they had.

Politics is both an art and a science. The better politicians have a strong survival instinct – Meed Ward may have figured out that her political life can be extended by moving to the Regional level and then on to the provincial level where she has always wanted to end up.

 

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Councillor Sharman puts the Bateman High School development in perspective

By Paul Sharman, Councillor ward 5

June 4th, 2022

BURLINGTON, ON

The following appeared in Local News – Burlington, an alternative online news source.  Reprinted with permission

Many people are extremely interested in what is happening with the acquisition of the former Robert Bateman High School (RBHS) by the City of Burlington.

In a nutshell, as they say, after a year of talks, property analysis, assessment, engineering analysis and negotiations, the acquisition is getting closer to completion. Here are the key steps taken by the city in the process to acquire RBHS, with two steps still to occur:

The former Bateman High School site. What will the city name the location once it acquires the property ?

Key steps completed

June 23, 2021: the Halton District School Board (HDSB) announced that it has declared Robert Bateman High School surplus to its needs.
June 24, 2021: the City of Burlington announced that an expression of interest would be submitted to the HDSB to purchase the Robert Bateman site through a partnership with Brock University.
December 2021: council provided direction to staff to submit a formal offer to purchase the Robert Bateman High School site, subject to price and details to be negotiated.
February 3, 2022: Burlington City Council endorsed next steps to advance the potential acquisition of the Robert Bateman High School site from the Halton District School Board.

Steps yet to come

June 21, 2022: city council will consider results of public input and then decide whether to proceed with the land exchange and long-term leases and will then authorize staff to complete all matters.

September 2022: The deal will be complete (if authorized to proceed) and funds transferred, at which time the land exchange price and other details will become public in accordance with provincial regulations and city policy. The parties are prohibited from disclosing price information until after completion.

What is going on
Halton District School Board (HDSB) voted to close the school in June 2017. I and a huge number of community members opposed that choice for several reasons. Those reasons remain extremely relevant to this day, but that is another article. After the decision was made, I and then-Mayor Goldring committed to seeing RBHS purchased by the city for community, recreation, and other uses.

On Wednesday, June 23, 2021, HDSB declared the Bateman property surplus to its needs. Since then, the school board has followed a prescribed process to negotiate the sale of the property. The City of Burlington had the right to purchase it if no other school organization wanted it. Because Burlington’s population has grown significantly over the last 20 years and is due to increase in the order of 70,000 more people in the next 30 years, more land and buildings are required for community recreation and other uses by the city. Accordingly, shortly after the property was declared surplus, the city voted to proceed with the acquisition of the property.

After a year of work, on June 21, 2022, city council will consider results of public input from a survey and a meeting held on May 31, and then decide whether to proceed with the land exchange and long-term leases of space to the HDSB and Brock University. Council will then authorize staff to complete all remaining matters. In September 2022, the deal will be complete and funds transferred, at which time the land exchange price and other details will be made public, following provincial regulations and city policy. Unfortunately, those details cannot be released earlier.

After that, a lot of activity will occur to obtain community input on how the property will be used. Partial details of use are discussed below, and they will evolve over time.

What Burlington is getting
When the HDSB declared invited offers to purchase from municipal government, they prescribed that only those that allowed the board to retain approximately 39,000 sq.ft. of space in the school under lease for a period of over 20 years would be accepted. Meanwhile, Brock University also wanted to lease a similar or larger amount of space as HDSB in order to offer programming in Burlington. The City of Burlington press release discussing the Brock partnership in June 2021 can be found here.

The RBHS building is so large (at 212,270 sq. ft.) that the space available for community and recreation use after deducting Brock and HDSB leased space from the total will be greater than any existing Burlington recreation centre.

Central High School land transfer
On May 18, 2022, the Halton District School Board issued a media release stating that they were

“…advancing a land transaction with the City of Burlington that would see the exchange of the City-owned sports field at Burlington Central High School (1433 Baldwin St, Burlington), with the sale of the former Robert Bateman High School ​(5151 New St, Burlington).”

“The parcel of land adjacent to Burlington Central High School is approximately five acres and includes the sports field and track to the west of the school. The Board’s purchase of this land ensures the continued operation of Burlington Central High School by the HDSB for the foreseeable future.”

This relates to the fact that the city already owns land at Central High School, Wellington Park on the west side, on the corner of Hager Ave., and on Baldwin Street, which features a sports field, outdoor track, and playground, and is integrated into daily school use. The school board has been interested in acquiring the property for a number of years. It makes no sense for the city to own land that the school is using, especially downtown where it is very valuable, and to then be buying land from the school board for the city to use elsewhere. Therefore, city ownership of land at Central High School will be transferred to the board with a value based on market prices. The dollar value of the property will be credited in favour of the city against the price of the Bateman purchase.

Brock, HDSB tenants and the Central High School land transfer all have the effect of making the acquisition of RBHS less of a burden for Burlington taxpayers. In the long run, when Brock and the HDSB leases expire, the city will decide how to use the entire building for community or other uses.

If Central is ever closed, then the board would have to declare it surplus and the city should be able to buy it back, if it wants.

City and recreation uses of the property
The primary goal of the city for the Bateman site is to satisfy community recreation needs, which will include: retention of Centennial swimming pool and school gym; public greenspace; new flexible programming areas (i.e. expanded city community centre); relocation of Burlington Public Library (BPL) – New Appleby Branch; and relocation of TechPlace. All of this is being done to create a sustainable signature community hub, with a focus on learning and active living.

Conclusion
Assuming final purchase of the Bateman property by the city concludes as expected, we will be able to offer recreation services to members of our community of all ages for decades to come. I am totally supportive of acquiring the property at a reasonable cost by the city, which I expect will happen.

 

 

 

 

Paul Sharman has been the Councillor for ward 5 since 2010

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