 By Staff
March 10, 2023
BURLINGTON, ON
Anything that is designed to teach people how to grow relationships in their community is a step forward.
This isn’t a dating service.
What most people call Parks and Recreation is now called Recreation, Community and Culture: they are offering a six week program for people who want to learn more about building stronger community relationships.
 Director of Recreation, Community and Culture Emillie Cote A notice on Facebbok is the first we have seen of the city initiative.
No word on who is delivering the program: Is it city staff or have they done what should be done, bring in competent, outside people with in-depth experience in working with the public.
In Burlington city staff are in place to protect the city and its image.
Newly appointed Director of Recreation, Community and Culture Emillie Cote is making a difference in the way services are delivered; she appears as well to be broadening what the department does – which is certainly good news for Burlington.
The Building Neighbourhood Connections has potential
 By Staff
March 10th, 2023
BURLINGTON, ON
Putting the word ugly in the description of your service is a dodgy approach – even if what you are promoting is cheaper produce.
 Eat Impact Founder Anna Stegink However, groceries are not going to get any cheaper if what we are hearing from the owners of the major supermarket organizations that were grilled in Ottawa earlier this week
Eat Impact, an organization tapping into the ugly and surplus fruits and vegetables sector and delivers it to homes has launched the service this week in the Burlington, Oakville markets.
The cost of food for the average Canadian family has increased by 28% since 2020. With a projected $1,065 increase in grocery bills this year alone, shoppers continue to be challenged to stretch their budget to stock their fridge and pantry.
Eat Impact claims that billions of pounds of produce go to waste every year due to not meeting strict cosmetic retail standards and oversupply. This drives up food prices and has a big negative impact on the environment.
The company partners with farmers and distributors to rescue the ‘too ugly’ and ‘too many’ fruit and veg, and delivers it to customers at up to 40% off grocery store prices. “We are on a mission to build a more sustainable food system and help people eat well, do good and save money,” Eat Impact Founder Anna Stegink shared. “We deliver to hundreds of happy customers across the GTA.
 It’s a pretty simple business proposition. We will try it and let you know what we think. “The produce Eat Impact delivers is always fresh and sometimes funny” Stegink shared. “Over the past weeks the boxes have included curvy cucumbers, twisty carrots, giant parsnips, tiny beets and oranges with slight superficial scarring on the skin”.
Eat Impact offers a variety of produce boxes starting at just $19.95 for a box with 8 to 10 types of perfectly fresh, rescued fruit and veg. The produce selection varies weekly and customers can customize their box to swap items they don’t want or need with ones they love.
Join the rescue mission! Visit www.eatimpact.ca to learn more and sign up. Use coupon code Welcome25 to get 25% off your first box.
Worth looking at: “Always Fresh, sometimes funny”
By Pepper Parr
March 10, 2023
BURLINGTON, ON
My question for Jason Pantalone, President and Managing partner of National Homes was: “How did you do it?”
How did they get to the point where they could build two eight story structure with 210 units and 57 stacked townhouses and offer them at $500,000. Not every unit has that sticker price – there are units that come in at the $700,000 level.
 One of the two eight storey mid rise structures; stacked town houses are behind the mid-rise on a site that is expected to have a lot of trees. The project has taken five years to get it to this point. The sales office is not yet open – and they may never have to build one; there are more than 1000 people on the registration list.
Among the amenities is a fitness room, a party room and a roof top terrace.
Included in the development are some co-work spaces.
 National Homes is the first development in this part of the world we are aware of that has focused on the affordable housing market. Some developers will put up a development and have a few affordable units hoping to pick up some up some brownie points.
National has had the land on Plains Road East for a number of years.
National has been in business for 30 years and currently have two developments in the Brampton market, one of which is a 25 storey tower. They have a development on the east side of the GTA in the small town of Curtis.
They are the developers of the large project at 2100 Brant.
By Staff
March 9th, 2023
BURLINGTON, ON
 When in doubt “bang out” a photo. Lisa Kearns at a Regional Council meeting celebrating Womens’ day Ward 2 Councillor Lisa Kearns said yesterday during a break in the Regional Council meeting that
“Today I have been reflecting on the many incredible women who come together to make our community better.
“I have also been deeply considering the challenges around access to equity, equality and belonging for many women.
“We have been recognizing this day since 1975 and still have a long way to go. I challenge each of us to keep making space and working to value the contributions of all women.”
 By Pepper Parr
March 9th, 2023
BURLINGTON, ON
We pay close attention to what is being read and have a report that tells us how many people are on line, how long they are reading and what they are reading.
We never know who is reading.
 Is this the kind of coyote behaviour the city is going to experience ? In the past few days the coyote stories have been the most frequently read – by a significant factor – on occasion more than twice as many readers as the number two on the list.
This is what people care about and are angry when they feel they are not being listened to.
One Gazette reader commented:
The joke is the coyotes are running this city and doing a much better job than we are. They have free reign, choice of food and protection from animal lovers. The coyotes don’t belong in an urban setting. They have no natural predators other than man and because people are feeding them, they are no longer afraid of us. It is not a question of if, but when a child is killed and eaten by these animals.
That is a extreme but there were occasions when adults and children were nipped which is as close as anyone wants to get to the teeth of a coyote.
You know who your council members are – reach out to them.
 By Pepper Parr
March 9th, 2023
BURLINGTON, ON
What can people say when they comment? Should comments be edited?
 The views of some people don’t, at times, sync with the wider community. Their rights don’t disappear just because they have a different view. We read every comment carefully. If we see it is as factually wrong – we ask the person commenting to back up their view with facts that can be substantiated.
A number of comments are abusive and amount to personal attacks on some other commentor. Those do not get published.
From time to time we have suspended a commentor when they get a abusive.
It is not our place to decide if a comment is valid. One recent commentor made remarks about Burlington’s Member of Parliament that disturbed a Gazette reader to the point where she asked to have her name taken off the subscription list saying:
“I have been a fan of the Gazette until I read (name withheld) comments on Karina Gould….this is a disgusting comment that you should never have printed. Painting her as a communist is absolutely atrocious…my husband and I both want you to suspend our receipt of your publication…bad for our health and bad for creating division.”
Later we got:
“Anyone with these wild accusations that are obviously false should not be permitted to make statements that slander a person like Karina Gould who has great integrity.
“I understand your position is to stir some controversy but this kind of far right comment is just too anti-Canadian for me. We have enough negativity in this world.
“I will miss the information that your column provides but allowing such unedited comments sows divisiveness that is totally unacceptable.”
I know the person who complained, have met her, she is a fine person and appreciate that she looks to the Gazette for local information.
 This monument is in place for a reason – to remind us that the democracy we have needs to be defended – every day. Where I have a problem is being expected to censor a person’s point of view. It is not our place to decide that a point of view is divisive. Readers can come to their own conclusion.
What I found difficult was a viewpoint that asks us to censor a person’s view. If we start doing that who do we censor next?
The right to express a point of view is a fundamental pillar of a democratic society that many lost their lives defending.
We believe the man who wrote the comment is dead wrong – but he has the right to express an opinion.
I do regret losing the reader but the principal is too important to let others decide what a person can say.
They of course have to be polite, respectful of others and have their facts right.
Canada is sending money, munitions and tanks to Ukraine to help them defend the democracy they have – we think it a mistake to side with people who want to take that right away from people they see is as disruptive.
By Pepper Parr
March 9th, 2023
BURLINGTON, ON
We are currently running a readership survey.
Set out below are some of the early results. They are not up to date.
The survey will end on March 15th – at that time we will have a more complete picture.
Is city council delivering on the promise?
 We have known for some time that people are not all that happy with this Council. This data supports our understanding. Are people pleased with the re-built Brant Museum?
 These are not good numbers for the Museum leadership. They might want to know what people expect of the museum. Is city council the right size? It currently has seven members.
 The numbers are pretty evenly split. It will be interesting to determine which wards the votes came from.
 By Staff
March 9th, 2023
BURLINGTON, ON
The under 16 Ringette Association of Burlington won the silver medal at the provincial championships this past weekend in Waterloo.
The win means the team will compete at the Canadian Ringette Championships in Regina, Saskatchewan from April 9th to 15th,2023.
 They look like Champions The Burlington Team is raising funds through a Go Fund Me page and hosting a community clothing drive on March 25, 2023, in partnership with Kidney Clothes at Mainway Arena Parking lot to help support our team. Link to that GoFundMe location.
 The players are as aggressive and as skilled as anyone playing a game on ice.
 By Pepper Parr
March 8th, 2023
BURLINGTON, ON
OPINION
One of the outcomes of the day long workshop on procedures and the flushing out of values and how members of Council wanted to be able to interact with each other was another workshop on things like what a Point of Order is and when a Point of Personal Privilege can be used.
It was also going to include a session on how to be a good Chair of a meeting.
 Mayor Marianne Meed Ward taking part in a Council Workshop on procedural issues It was while Council members were commenting on the idea of a workshop that Mayor Marianne Meed Ward said that if she had known more about Points of Order things may have been different at a past Council meeting.
That was a bit of a stretch. During the last meeting of the 2014 Council Meed Ward demonstrated an impressive understanding of procedure and the ability to respond very quickly.
Defeated council member Jack Dennison made a comment about Meed Ward’s Team “stealing his voters”. Meed Ward rose to speak when Mayor Goldring explained that comments were not debatable at which point Meed Ward pulled out a copy of the Procedural Bylaw and gave it to the Clerk that made it clear she was permitted to speak under a Point of Personal Privilege.
It was the first time that the public got to see how tough Meed Ward was going to be in working to replace much of what Golding’s council had done with the Official Plan that Meed Ward was going to rewrite.
The remarks Meed Ward made during the recent Workshop was the first time the public heard her inch towards an explanation for the behaviour during that terrible June meeting of Council that the Mayor chaired virtually from London, Ontario where she was attending the graduation of one of her daughters.
 Marianne Meed Ward accepting accolades from her election team the day she won the race to become Mayor. That isn’t enough.
The Mayor has to apologize to Shawna Stole, she can do that privately, and then go on camera, look directly into the lens and admit that the June 2022 day as not her best day; that she wishes it had never happened but it did and accept responsibility.
Everyone makes mistakes and sometimes lets a situation get out of hand. Real leaders know that when the err they apologize and work to ensure that kind of thing doesn’t happen again
Less hubris and more humility – it will take time but if Marianne Meed Ward wants to be the leader she aspires to be a behavioural course correction is needed now.
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.
 By Pepper Parr
March 8th, 2023
BURLINGTON, ON
Is there anything to the rumour that the Hamilton Bulldog organization is looking at a Burlington location to build a new arena.
Our source knows the sport, knows the team ownership and is in that loop.
 The intersection of Brant and Fairview – a small mall set up with a Staples retail operation. There is one historical building on the site. The mall itself is not completely occupied; two major tenants have moved. There are some challenges but the people behind the Bulldogs are experienced at overcoming obstacles.
Meanwhile our friends at the Bay Observer report that Brantford city Council has voted 10 – to look at upgrading their arena from 3000 to 5000 seats and has put real money on the table look at what could be done.
From the Observer:
With the Brantford Bulldogs’ season ticket drive sitting at 2.400 for a 3,000-seat arena, the city is taking a serious look at making the team move to Brantford permanent by building an OHL-compatible arena.
On Tuesday night, Brantford Councillors voted 10-0 in favour of exploring upgrades that would bring the building up to a 5,000-seat capacity, thus meeting OHL requirements.
City staffers have now been given the green light to work on a financial plan, hiring an engagement and retaining service and sport consultants to create more ice and seating in the city.
 Bulldogs owner Michael Andlauer shakes with Brantford Mayor Kevin Davis. The Bulldogs are in Brantford under a one year agreement that has three renewal options Ward 3 Councillor Dan McCrary wants to see progress made on the project during the three-years the Bulldogs have contracted to be in Brantford. “We’ve got a three-year arrangement … three one-year options, so time is not unlimited and that’s why we want to advance this during 2023,”
Both the City of Brantford and the Bulldogs will pour an estimated $7.5 million into the downtown Brantford arena to facilitate an agreement that offers the team three year-long renewals.
Brantford has agreed to spend $4.67 million including $1.63 million to install a new heating, ventilation and air conditioning system.
Today, Andrea Horwath told 900 CHML’s Good Morning Hamilton on Wednesday she’s “hopeful” the team will make its way back to the city once a multi-year $100-million renovation of FirstOntario Centre is complete.
‘It does need to be done,” Horwath said.
“Then we’ll have a state-of-the-art arena and we’ll see, hopefully, the Bulldogs back.”
Burlington Mayor Meed Ward is understood to have met with Michael Andlauer owner of the Bulldogs.
By Staff
March 8th, 2023
BURLINGTON, ON
April is National Poetry Month – the Burlington Public Library (BPL) is celebrating with its second annual Burlington Lyrics & Poetry Festival.
 Joseph Dandurand This year’s lineup offers an exciting schedule of performances, workshops, and activities for all ages, including a feature presentation by hip-hop singer-songwriter, LTtheMonk. Represented by Sonic Unyon and known for his lyrical wordplay, LT will showcase his poetic talent on BPL’s stage before answering audience questions.
His is one of seven live performances in the festival lineup, which also includes a showcase by award-winning slam poet, Lisa Shen, samples of Verdi’s La Traviata with Southern Ontario Lyric Opera, and a family-friendly presentation of theatrical prose by The Travelling Stage.
Fans of the spoken word will also get their turn in the spotlight during the festival’s capstone afternoon which includes an open mic event, along with poignant readings by poetry powerhouses, Desiree McKenzie and Catherine Graham.
The festival is as educational as it is entertaining with several poets and songwriters offering intimate workshops and presentations on their writing processes.
 Lita Barrie, CEO of Burlington Public Library. “We are excited to have a lineup of artists from diverse backgrounds presenting a diverse selection of spoken word and music,” says Lita Barrie, CEO of Burlington Public Library. “The goal of the festival is to connect people with the power of words, and we hope everyone will find something that ignites their passion for poetry.”
All events are free to attend, whether or not you are a library member. Registration opens at noon on March 15th. So, bring your curiosity, creativity, and imagination—and come along on this month-long exploration of lyrics and poetry.
2023 Burlington Lyrics & Poetry Festival Lineup
Meet the Songwriter: LTtheMonk – Monday, April 03, 7-8pm
Schubert: His Life & Music – Thursday, April 6, 2-3pm
Meet the Poet: Sareh Farmand – Tuesday, April 11, 2-3pm (virtual)
Meet the Poet: Lisa Shen – Thursday, April 13, 6.30-8.30pm
The Art of Haiku Workshop – Monday, April 17, 1.30-3pm
Meet the Poet:Dionne Samuels – Monday, April 17, 7-8pm
Verdi’s La Traviata – Wednesday, April 19, 2-3.30pm
Meet the Poet: Joseph Dandurand – Thursday, April 20, 2-3pm (virtual)
Step Into Stories – Saturday, April 22, 1-2pm
Meet the Poet: Catherine Graham – Sunday, April 23, 1-1.30pm
Meet the Poet: Desiree Mckenzie – Sunday, April 23, 1.30-2pm
Lyrics & Poetry Open Mic – Sunday, April 23, 2.30-4pm
By Pepper Parr
March 8th, 2023
BURLINGTON, ON
When the city put out a media release earlier this week advising the public that the coyote population was now in its Denning Season a number of people had questions.
 The Gazette is currently running a readership survey. It will be up until the 15th – you can access the survey HERE One wrote: “I’m waiting for the time when someone gets seriously attacked or their pet killed, and resorts to a class action suit. This, sadly, is where we may be heading”
City seems to be taking its lead, again, from Coyote Watch and placing the onus on citizens to manage what the City increasingly appears incapable of administering. This is a failed strategy that is as ineffective in 2023 as it was in 2015.
A dangerous coyote – they don’t all snarl – but they are a concern Another reader finds that when she is out walking her dog, more often than not she spots a coyote and has to pick up her dog and start walking backwards away from the coyote.
In September of 2022, Stephen White and Julie Martin wrote and presented to the City Manager, a detailed report with some action that could be taken.
The City Manager sat on the report – didn’t pass it along to any member of Council. He later said that he should have circulated the report.
White points us to several features in the report which we have set out below.
Conduct an impact analysis by neighbourhoods to identify various controls that should be implemented to safeguard residents, children and pets from coyote attacks.
Improve both the quantity and quality of signage relating to coyotes, and ensure it offers meaningful information on what to do in the event of sightings.
Current municipal by-laws should be amended to permit the laying of charges and assessment of fines for persons who feed coyotes.
Provide appropriate coyote management education in schools and parks that border creeks.
Change municipal by-laws to permit residents to increase fence heights in order to deter coyotes from entering residents’ properties.
Permit residents’ whose properties back onto wooded areas to place an awning structure at the top of their fence to prevent coyote jumps.
Request more frequent and nightly bylaw officer visits to wooded areas known to have coyote dens.
Scientifically measure the size of the coyote population in West Oakville, Bronte and Burlington.
Institute a program of coyote contraception to limit the size of the coyote population.
Initiate a program of aggressive hazing to instill fear in coyotes.
Institute a program of regular pesticide spraying of rats and other vermin consumed by Coyotes in our trail areas and known den areas.
Stephen White is of the view that parts of the report he submitted are being implemented which he sees as a problem
Related news story:
Coyotes are creating dens for their newborn pups
Orillia takes a different approach
The White- Martin report on the Coyote problem
 By Staff
March 8th, 2023
BURLINGTON, ON
Burlington offers a wide variety of recreation programs for all ages and abilities, from educational programs to sports and fitness programs.
Adult programs vary from sports, games, fitness, creative activities, social events, day trips, discussion and learning programs for adults of all ages and abilities. In-person and virtual courses are offered.
 Pickle Ball – the current rage for the Senior set Registration dates and times for the Spring 2023 Adult Recreation Program Registration are is as follows:
Registration opens on Saturday, March 11 at 9 a.m.
Non-resident registration opens Friday, March. 17, at 9 a.m.
Visit our Registering for a Program page for more information
Customer Service staff are available by phone at 905-335-7738 from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday to Friday, and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Sunday. Email support is available Monday to Friday.
In-person registration is available at the Burlington Seniors’ Centre and Tansley Woods Community Centre starting Monday March 13, following the launch.
 By Pepper Parr
March 8th, 2023
BURLINGTON, ON
The Ontario Land Tribunal (OLT) met Tuesday morning and during a 45 minute meeting determined that the case would be head in March of 2024 and last 19 days – from March 5th to March 19th, 2024
The city of Burlington, Millcroft Greens, the applicants, the Region of Halton, the Halton Conservation Authority, MAD, Millcroft Against Development and Millcroft Greenspace Alliance are the parties appearing before the OLT.
 Aerial view of part of Millcroft golf course The OLT member ordered that the issues list be organized and consolidated by April 3rd. An Issues List sets out what each of the parties thinks the key issues are – that list has been submitted by each party – it now has to be organized and consolidated then it becomes what gets argued by legal counsel for each of the parties.
The OLT member hearing the case asked that people not submit form letters setting out their opinions. The hearing process is now at the point where arguments over the technical issues are the focus.
 Rendering of where new homes will be located The OLT member asked if the group has considered mediation. Our correspondent said that there was a rather long period of silence. This development resolution is going to be litigated.
The OLT member added that she was fully aware there was a significant amount of public interest at the pre-application meetings, at delegations to City Council is as well at the required Statutory meeting.
The Member was not aware that the City had passed a resolution supporting the community. That decision was made on December 13th, an occasion when Council went into a closed session and did not communicate their decision made in the CLOSED session.
Burlington’s Counsel at the OLT meeting undertook to submit a copy of the resolution.
This is one of those situations where the city had a good news story for Millcroft residents that they neglected to share.
Related news story:
City decides to support the residents
By Staff
March 7th, 2023
BURLINGTON, ON
Karina Gould, the Member of Parliament for Burlington and a member of the Justin Trudeau Cabinet was today named to Women of Influence+, a leading global organization dedicated to promoting gender equity in the workplace.
 Karina Gould sitting in the House of Commons while then President Obama was addressing both the House and the Senate Minister Gould was named to this distinguished list of influential Canadians for her important work advancing gender equality and fighting for families in Canada, namely her role in negotiating the bilateral childcare agreements with provinces and territories, and building a historic and transformational Canada-wide early learning and childcare system as well as her contributions to Canada through her roles as Minister of Democratic Institutions and International Development. Minister Gould is the youngest woman appointed to Cabinet in Canadian history and is extraordinarily proud to represent her constituency in Burlington.
The Top 25 Women of Influence Awards celebrate women who have made significant contributions to their respective fields. This year’s recipients represent a diverse range of industries and sectors, each with their own unique stories of success and impact. Women of Influence+ is committed to celebrating and promoting women’s achievements and advocating for gender parity in all areas of work and life.
“I am honoured to be named as one of Canada’s 25 Women of Influence+ for 2023” Said the Hon. Karina Gould. “Congratulations to all of the inspiring women on this list. I can’t wait to meet you and see how we can work together to empower others and keep breaking down barriers!”.
The 2023 Top 25 Women of Influence recipients are:
Cheyenne Arnold-Cunningham, Researcher at the Indigenous Law Research Unit and In-House Counsel at Union of BC Indian Chiefs
Louise Aspin, Senior Vice President and Chief Development Officer, Toronto General and Western Hospital Foundation
Kirstin Beardsley, CEO, Food Banks Canada
Linda Biggs, Co-Founder, joni
Elvalyn Brown, the Black Ontario Public Services Employees (BOPSers) Network
Dr. Vivien Brown, Award-winning Physician
Margaret Coons, Founder and CEO, Nuts For Cheese
Jan De Silva, President and CEO, Toronto Region Board of Trade
Lovepreet Deo, Athlete and Disability Advocate
Natalie Evans Harris, Executive Director, Black Wealth Data Center
Allison Forsyth, two-time Canadian Olympian, Safe Sport Advocate, and Partner and COO, ITP Sport and Recreation
Senator Rosa Galvez
Haben Girma, Disability Rights Lawyer
The Honourable Karina Gould, Minister of Families, Children and Social Development
Eva Havaris, Vice-President of Partnerships and Participation, Tennis Canada
Nicole Janssen, Co-Founder and Co-CEO, AltaML
Janet Ko, President and Co-Founder, The Menopause Foundation of Canada
Maya Kotecha and Carly Shuler, Co-Founders and Co-CEOs, Hoot Reading
Dr. Rachel Ollivier, Maternal and Women’s Health Specialist
Bobbie Racette, Founder and CEO, Virtual Gurus and AskBetty
Paulette Senior, President and CEO, The Canadian Women’s Foundation
Domee Shi, Oscar-winning Director, Pixar Animation Studios
Christine Sinclair, four-time Canadian Olympian and Professional Soccer Player
Suzie Yorke, CEO and Co-Founder, The Better Chocolates
By Pepper Parr
March 7th, 2023
BURLINGTON, ON
There was a time when signs of Spring were evident when the upper part of King Road was shut down so that the Jefferson Salamaner could cross the road and do things that the boy salamanders do to the girl salamanders.
 Does the Jefferson Salamander have enough status to justify creating a holiday to celebrate its existence. Times have changed and Burlington has to cope with copulating coyotes.
“It’s Coyote Denning Season: said the city announcement. “– Five things Burlington residents can do to deter coyotes”
It’s that time of the year again when the City of Burlington is reminding residents about steps they can take to help reduce the risk of potential coyote conflicts during their denning season.
Denning season is the time of year when coyotes’ pups are born. Shortly before a coyote gives birth, between April and May, the coyote will begin digging a den which they will use to raise their pups.
While naturally wary of humans, coyotes will seek food and shelter in residential neighbourhoods when they are being fed on purpose or by accident.
The Top 5 things residents can do to help deter coyotes include:
 Does the city have plans to destroy the dens when they discover where they are? 1. Never feed coyotes
Feeding coyotes, on purpose or by accident, teaches them to depend on human handouts and can cause them to become too familiar with humans. This familiarization can lead to aggressive behaviour around people and dogs.
2. Never leave pets unattended
Coyotes may see pets as a threat to their territory and may attack, especially when there is a den site nearby. Always keep dogs on a short leash (less than six feet long) when walking outdoors. Make sure your cats and dogs are not left alone outside, even in your fenced backyard.
3. Keep a tidy property
Residential neighbourhoods are an ideal coyote habitat with access to water, shelter and food sources like garbage, pet food, fruit tress and birdfeeders. Make sure your property is tidy and clear of garbage, food, brush, long grass and wood piles which are ideal den sites for coyotes or other wild animals that attract coyotes.
4. Inspect your property
Make sure spaces around and under decks, sheds and similar structures are closed off with wire screening that extends at least 20 centimetres under the ground.
5. Consistently haze coyotes
Discouraging coyotes takes vigilance. Ongoing efforts by the entire community to haze coyotes can help to re-instill their fear of humans and stop unwelcome behaviour.
Use one or more of these hazing techniques every time you see a coyote to help move it out of a residential area:
• Stop. Don’t run.
• Pick up small children and pets.
• Yell loudly;
• Wave your arms and make yourself look as big as possible;
• Use air horns, whistles, bang pots;
• Throw small rocks, large sticks, cans and/or rubber balls near the coyote;
• Spray the coyote with water from a garden hose or a water gun filled with vinegar.
• Back away slowly.
Report coyote sightings, including aggressive, sick or injured coyotes online at www.burlington.ca/coyote. Call 9-1-1- if a coyote poses an immediate threat or danger to public safety.
 Nick Anastasopoulos, Director of Building & Bylaw getting his point across at a Council meeting Nick Anastasopoulos, Director of Building & Bylaw, did not expect to see coyote management on his job description when he came to Burlington. He is now a bit of an expert and has this to say: ““With spring around the corner, we’d like to remind residents about steps we can all take to help prevent potential coyote conflicts. Research and past experiences have shown the most effective thing we can do to lower direct run ins with coyotes is to remove coyote enticements such as food – this includes direct feeding, such as leaving food outdoors for coyotes, and indirect feeding, like leaving waste garbage out at the curb overnight or rotting fruit on the ground from fruit trees.”
Quick Facts
• Coyotes are native to North America and can be found living in urban and rural areas.
• Food sources like mice, rats and garbage are readily available in urban areas, attracting coyotes to residential neighbourhoods.
• In 2015, Burlington City Council approved a Coyote Response Strategy that provides guidelines on preventing and managing conflicts with coyotes.
• Concerns about direct or indirect feeding of wildlife can be reported to Animal Control at animalshelter.mailbox@burlington.ca
• Hand feeding and ground feeding wildlife on private or public property is prohibited by the City’s Lot Maintenance Bylaw (59-2018) and is subject to a $300 fine.
• To request an audit of your yard for coyote attractants by city Animal Control staff, please email animalshelter.mailbox@burlington.ca.
Links and Resources
• Learn more about living with coyotes at www.burlington.ca/coyote
• Report a coyote sighting online at www.burlington.ca/coyote
By Pepper Parr
March 7th, 2023
BURLINGTON, ON
Council met in a day long workshop last week to take a hard, close look at the Procedural Bylaw – the document that sets out the rules on how members of Council work with each other and how the public relates to Council when they meet.
The Gazette is currently doing a readership survey. You can access the survey here. It will run until March 15th Burlington has had a bumpy ride getting a Procedural Bylaw in place. A number of years ago the province mandated that a municipality had to have a Procedural Bylaw in place and if they didn’t put one in place the province would do it for them.
James Ridge, the City Manager at the time, presented the provincial model to Council and that was adopted.
The city has come a long way since then. Some of the suggestions that were discussed in the day long workshop during which council members went through a process that was intended to give the City Clerk the information he needed to come back to council with a revised procedural bylaw are troubling. At this point the City Clerk is working with Council to work out the kinks and will be returning to Council with a document that will be debated and made final.
 City Clerk Kevin Arjoon said he gets excited when he talks about Procedural Bylaws. City Clerk Kevin Arjoon told members of Council “We are seeking drafting instructions, which means we will be listening, taking notes and will endeavour to return with a draft bylaw.
“The Procedural Bylaw is at its core a set of rules and values that help to structure how a conversation amongst members of council occurs. “That’s it”, said Arjoon. “It really boils down to: how do you want to have conversations with one another on local matters that affect your communities.
 Workshop facilitator Suzanne Gibson described Mayor Meed Ward as “illustrious”. Suzanne Gibson, the facilitator brought in by the Clerk to keep the meeting moving along, which she did rather well, told the workshop “I’m going to ask each of you to tell me what’s really important to you around establishing good process just as an opening, and then we will have a conversation about what values guiding principles, what criteria are important to you to shape this discussion. So we’re kind of grounding ourselves and what matters: is it a democratic process. Is it about inclusion, we want to look at all of those values and make sure that we’re being guided by what matters most to us as a group.
The only glitch, and it was a whopper, was when Gibson referred to Marianne Meed Ward as “our illustrious Mayor” on more than two occasions.
Gibson has helped more than 200 established organizations, at three levels to reach and attain their goals.
City Manager Tim Commisso started the conversation saying he wasn’t quite ready but spoke nevertheless.
 City Manager Tim Commisso “I wasn’t quite ready. I think I was anticipating council to go first, but yeah, I mean, I’ve long loved working for Burlington. I’ve lived here and I have a passion, I think for the fact that this council, you know, makes decisions which quite frankly leave a legacy in terms of the development of the city. It’s the decisions you make that create this place that is so wonderful, and quite frankly I don’t want to sound like I’m saying but I do believe that we are in one of the top municipalities in Canada, if not North America. So that’s it.
“I love the fact that council has passion for doing whatever it has to do to support community and make this place what it is. And that’s that’s really I think, the you know, gets back to the next question about why I enjoy working with this council because you’re all of the same mind.”
 Mayor Marianne Meed Ward Mayor Meed Ward was next:
“I’m very excited about planning our city for the next seven generations. And putting in a strong foundation for the people that will come after us the families and the youth and everybody – so very excited about that.
“And what’s personally important to me, I like to all the values and the guiding principles it was really, really hard to pick one. But for today’s purposes, I love procedure bylaw, by the way. I love good governance and the reason that I do is that it does help people make good decisions. And better decisions and bad process and bad governance will actually make good people end up doing things that are really harmful to them and to the community that they’re trying to serve.
“So you know, I also think it’s really important that people understand expectations, they, if they don’t understand them at the beginning, then they can they can fail because it wasn’t clearly communicated. I don’t think that’s fair to people.
“And then also procedure can help to make sure that the rules are applied equally. And not in a way that you know, we’ll have a different set of rules for people we’d like and agree with and a different set of rules for people that we don’t.
 An example of how Mayor Meed Ward has treated members of Council in the past is HERE. It runs for 14 minutes. “So procedure. bylaw really is the great leveller for everybody that we’re all under the same rules and if we understand them clearly people I believe and especially this council will follow them and you know we will get to good decisions and the final thing that’s important to me as we go through this process, but any process, is that we treat each other kindly with respect and assume if we’re going to assume any motive the motive should be that we’re all here to serve our community and make it a better place. And I truly believe that about everybody around this horseshoe and everybody that works at the city.”
 Ward 5 Councillor Paul Sharman Councillor Sharman took a slightly different approach saying: “The word excite is an interesting one. What I really like about being in this role is being able to make a contribution. And that’s really about it. And that means thinking about the whole community and what we can do to make the community more effective, more efficient, but more importantly more caring.
“And you know, in a municipal environment, government environment, I can say that the two things that come out for me most strongly are purpose and perspective. I believe our purpose is to think about the values that we hold for the city well into the future. And emphasis on the future.
“I am less concerned about things that are urgent things that are bothering people in the community today as to thinking more broadly about where we’re going and how we’re going to get there. Not to suggest we should ignore what things are bothering people, but oftentimes I find that that if you don’t think about the future you can’t put those other things in perspective..
 Ward 6 Councillor Angelo Bentivegna Councillor Bentivegna was perhaps the most direct in why he ran for public office.
“I’m involved in being a councillor because I want to make a difference. I think that’s really why we’re all here; we want to make a positive difference. I think it’s very important that the community evaluates the city evaluates us in their everyday lives. And we have that opportunity to make those adjustments, make those changes so that the quality of life continues to get better in our city.
“And that’s what we’re really here for. And it’s not just, you know, what we do each day has to be fair for everyone. Regardless of what walk of life we come from, where we come from, and what financial situation that we’re in. And that’s it’s a long way to go around and say we need to make decisions that are best and fair in our community.”
Lisa Kearnsm said: “I too, along with what the mayor has said and Kevin has said, I’m a bit of a process nerd. I think that’s been evident. I was really looking forward to today as well. So that is one of the things that excites me about being in this role is that is the opportunity to represent citizens in the city in order to ensure that the process that we’re operating under is fair and reasonable. I like that word that Councilman to Bentivegna used – fair and reasonable.
 Ward 2 Councillor Lisa Kearns “I mean the manner in which we conduct business on behalf of residents should in essence, be under a process that’s fair and reasonable to the people around this horseshoe to the staff and to the residents of the city as far as their voice being heard and that we are being transparent and accountable.
“What’s personally important to me with respect to this comes down to that: are the decisions that we make involve political motivations, and that’s fair and reasonable because that’s part of our role. The process by which we make those decisions should not be politically motivated.
“So I’m excited to make sure that whatever we come up with today is kind of separated so we have a clean and neutral process. While we make decisions on behalf of the city.”
Ward 3 Councillor Rory Nisan: “ Yeah, one thing that excites me, you know, having grown up in Burlington, it’s just really fun to be on council and to be making decisions and seeing things that I saw, or better understanding the city that I grew up in and saw from a totally different perspective.
“And then the other half of that is now developing building a city that I’ve known for a long time and seeing the weightiness of our decisions and the way that it can have an impact for years and decades down the road. So that’s very exciting to be able to have an influence on the future of the city. And what’s important to me ?
 Ward 3 Councillor Rory Nisan took part in the meeting virtually “Well, what I really like about procedure by laws and Robert’s Rules of orders is how democracy underpins the decision making process. How everything is in the end under this principle of majority rules, which I find really cool and I like how there’s tensions that are with say, cheering right chair as an enhanced decision making authority needs to be overruled by a two thirds majority.
“For example. I just find it is very very important that the majority rule be there at the at the bottom, but that we also have rules that enhanced the efficiency of what we’re doing. I think it’s really important that that efficiency be something that we are looking at which I know we are looking at today. But efficiency doesn’t mean rushing either so that’s what matters to me.”
Ward 1 Kelvin Galbraith said: “I’m very excited about being in this role. You know, I’m Burlington born bred, work, live and breathe everything Burlington. To be able to participate at a city level and give back to the community is what really excites me. I realized throughout my life how much time I spent at city rink facilities, parks, and sometimes I didn’t even know they were city run by by the city, but now that I’m on the other side.
“I really want to participate and give back and help build the future for the next seven generations as the mayor said. I can participate and that is really exciting to me. And what’s important about this process well, you know, I I must say I didn’t know the procedure bylaw like the back of my hand; this process could have been done four years ago and might have benefited me and some of our procedures but I’m all about efficiencies.
 Ward 1 Councillor Kelvin Galbraith “I think most of my colleagues will agree with that. So if we can make this process more efficient, and I’m very supportive of that.
“Looking forward to the Deputy Mayor discussion as well. I think that’s a very unique thing that this council is doing and helps us collaborate together. So I’m really looking forward to that discussion as well.”
Kevin, Arjoon, the City Clerk summed up his view saying: “Yeah, for me working with the city. I think the one great thing is I get to work with people right. On Friday, I got to go to Frank Hayden secondary school and talk to trustee Ethan who set up a student poll for their student trustee and it was just so magical to have a conversation with someone about democratic rights and barriers to participation, stuff like that. So I think that’s the one big thing is I get to talk to people that are in the community, doing good things, and that really energizes me.
“The one thing that I like about Procedure Bylaws is when you read one and there’s minority rights, baked in, embedded into the procedure bylaws. So the you know, the majority rules, all of that is really great, but then there’s little nuance pieces that really respect that there could be divergent opinions, and they respectfully provide rules for the divergent opinions to sort of coexist and be managed within the process. So that’s my favourite thing about a procedure by law.”
City Manager Tim Commisso followed up saying: “Sorry, I realized I didn’t answer the second question. My apologies. The procedural bylaw for me is the most important integrating structure we have related to governance. I like to look at alignment and integration as really two keys of a great organization. A Procedural Bylaw provides full integration, not across all aspects of governance, but the ones that really, I think, allow us to work together. The relationship that council and staff have in this municipality, I think is really the strength of the organization.”
And so there you have it – the politicians were not in election mode – there were doing their best to tell Suzanne Gibson, the Workshop facilitator why they liked the job.
Her job was to help them create a Procedural Bylaw that would help them to deliver on why they were members of City Council.
You can now think about what they said and decide if they are up to doing the job. The public now needs to wait until the draft of the Bylaw is presented to Council.
By Pepper Parr
March 7th, 2023
BURLINGTON, ON
You may not have known about it, some members of Council will know – but you aren’t going to get this news from City Hall
 Food Trucks in winter weather might be a bit of a challenge The Burlington Holiday Market is said to take place on DECEMBER 1, 2 & 3, 2023 – Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
The Santa Claus parade takes place on Sunday the 4th
The Burlington Holiday Market has joined the For the Love of Markets event umbrella along with For the Love of Fathers and Food Trucks
The Gazette is currently running a readership Survey. It will run until March 15th You can access the survey HERE In their announcement the Food Truckers ask vendors to “Join us for the third annual Holiday Market, where 15,000 guests stroll their way through the downtown and shop local! “
No word yet on just where the Food Trucks are going to be located.
We do look forward for some comment from Brian Dean, Executive Director of the Burlington Downtown Business Association
By Staff
March 6th, 2023
BURLINGTON, ON
Burlington Public Library is delighted to announce the results of their annual bookmark contest.
Earlier this year, they asked participants to design a bookmark inspired by their favourite book—the 278 entries they received were “as creative and diverse as the books on our shelves”.
Shortening the entries to four designs per age category for community voting was challenging. After tallying up the 1000+ votes cast online, the 2023 winning designers are Rori C. (ages 5 and under), Samreen K. (ages 6 to 12), Shannon B. (ages 13-17), and Hayley E. (ages 18+).
 Congratulations to the winning designers—and well done to everyone who entered the contest this year!
The winning designs truly showcase the imagination and talent in our community. Starting next week, customers can pick up the professionally-printed bookmarks at all branches to use in their next great read.
By Staff
March 6th, 2023
BURLINGTON, ON
A new study out of Brock’s Developing Memory and Cognition Lab shows there may be more to those heartfelt requests from toddlers for “five more minutes” before heading to bed than researchers have previously understood.
Brock student researchers Taissa Fuke (MA ’22), Ege Kamber and Melissa Alunni (BA ’21), alongside Associate Professor Caitlin Mahy in the Department of Psychology, co-authored “The Emergence of Procrastination in Early Childhood: Relations With Executive Control and Future-Oriented Cognition,” which was published in Developmental Psychology last week.
The paper shows that not only does procrastination behaviour emerge as early as age three, but it also becomes more characteristic over time and appears to be linked with other future-thinking behaviours, such as delaying gratification.
One of the key distinctions drawn by the researchers is the difference between task avoidance and procrastination, which boils down to two important factors: a personal need to do something and an intention to do it — eventually.
“Task avoidance for adults may be as simple as staying away from a social event we don’t want to go to,” says Kamber, a Brock PhD student. “But in procrastination, we know we have to do this task, even if it’s undesirable, but we put it off.”
Mahy says determining intention, especially in children as young as three, can be challenging, so the team was careful to have parents report on tasks children intended on doing or had to do themselves, such as getting out of bed in the morning.
As a result, they detected an interesting pattern.
 The marsh-mellow test: a classic tool to determine how long children will delay eating the marsh mellow. “The three- and four-year-olds procrastinated in different areas than the five- and six-year-olds,” Mahy says. “The younger children were much more likely to procrastinate on tidying up messes and engaging in bedtime or mealtime routines, whereas the older children were more likely to procrastinate on doing homework or doing chores around the house.”
Kamber, whose PhD research focuses on episodic future thinking, says the connection between procrastination and future-thinking behaviours, such as delaying gratification, has been of particular interest to him.
Using the example of the marshmallow test, where children are given a marshmallow and assured that if they don’t eat it right away, they can have a second marshmallow in 10 minutes, he explains how delayed gratification and procrastination involve similar forms of impulse control.
“You know you need to wait because the future outcome is better, but it’s also hard to wait, because it’s a marshmallow,” he says. “Delayed gratification is our ability is to inhibit our current impulses to focus on greater future outcomes, but with procrastination, we have to inhibit our impulse to not do the undesirable task in order to get it completed.”
The connection between procrastination and future-thinking is important because it involves “having empathy for your future self,” Mahy says.
“The thing about procrastination is that you get an instant reward of not vacuuming the carpet or not doing homework — you get to enjoy the current moment,” she says. “But the task that you will eventually have to do still hangs over your head and tends to create more anxiety over time — you’re effectively punishing your future self with the task and also the prolonged anxiety.”
Link to the paper HERE
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