By Staff
May 15th, 2018
BURLINGTON, ON
The following Clay diamonds are closed Monday May 15th due to wet conditions:
Nelson D1
Millcroft D1 & D2
Ireland D1, D2, D3 & D4
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May 15th, 2018 BURLINGTON, ON
They are working their way north. The Sound of Music has often been criticized for being just a downtown event.  Small Town Justice will be “popping up” out side the new Denninger’s location at the Burlington Mall. A change is taking place – the first peek the public will get of that change will be this Thursday, the 7th when Small Town Justice, will be playing mini sessions from 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. and will be back on May 24th for additional mini shows. The Burlington Mall is celebrating its 50th anniversary and has joined forces with the Sound of Music people to mark the progress of the major renovation and upgrade. The pop-up concert is being held in the new wing of the mall in front of Denninger’s which opened their new Burlington location recently.
May 15th, 2018 BURLINGTON, ON
Ireland House is going to be admission FREE for the day from 10:00 am to 4:30 pm. It is a superb little museum with excellent programs. If you’re looking for something to take the kids to – this is well worth the time. The gift store focuses on all things local from small batch honey to custom tea blends and kettle cooked popcorn.
May 14th, 2018 BURLINGTON, ON
The City of Burlington has established its first Urban Design Advisory Panel, created to help achieve design excellence in the city. The Urban Design Advisory Panel is made up of nine design experts, representing a cross section of design disciplines from architects and landscape architects to urban designers and planners.  Set backs and spacing were set out n considerable detail in the Guidelines. Meeting monthly, the panel provides independent and objective professional urban design advice to staff in Burlington’s Department of City Building on development applications for all tall and mid-rise buildings and public development projects, studies and policy initiatives. The advisory committee members are: Ken Coit (Chair) Members of the committee are highly qualified design professionals who currently possess full membership for a minimum of ten years in at least one of the following professional associations: Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC)  The guide lines are not mandatory but it didn’t take developers very long to make extensive use of them. There wasn’t any public input on the creation of the guidelines. What’s missing from this list is at least two people who are not professionals; people who have a “feet on the street” sense of the city. Nothing on what this advisory committee has done in the past. Will dig into that. Jim Young, the Aldershot who delegates to city council frequently, once said: “Have you ever heard a city appointed advisory committee disagree with the city.” To learn more about the panel, please visit www.burlington.ca/urbandesign.
May 14th, 2018 BURLINGTON, ON
As a visitor to Burlington from the UK Derek Newton parked his rented car in the No Frills parking lot.  The signs are not small Newton complains that “ with no knowledge of local parking issues we walked on to Burlington water side with the intention of doing some shopping on the way back. “Was Disgusted to find our car gone on our return and even more so when we found out it cost us $300 dollars to get our car back. “As a visitor how would we have knowledge of the parking issues your having in Burlington and some better signage would be appreciated as it’s ruined our holiday and certainly will not be returning to Burlington or praising its beauty to anyone. Thanks for ruining what was a lovely holiday so far but going home with a sour taste !
May 14th, 2018 BURLINGTON, ON
Add another name to those that will be on the ballot for the ward 2 city council seat. Roland Tanner, a member of the Shape Burlington committee and also a member of the committee that was set up to monitor what Shape Burlington managed to achieve; in hindsight it doesn’t appear to be very much. Both Tanner and his wife hold doctorates and operate a research company  Roland Tanner, ward 2 candidate Tanner contributed to the Burlington Engagement Charter process and Save the Waterfront campaign to oppose the re-zoning of Old Lakeshore Road for high-rises. Roland is a member of the Burlington Downtown Refugee Alliance, a collection of Burlington churches and citizen groups who have sponsored a family of Syrian refugees to settle in Burlington and assist them with their transition to Canadian life. Tanner said that he is “running to tackle the challenges facing Burlington Ward 2 where citizens increasingly feel the way the city is changing is beyond their control, especially in the downtown core. As 24 storey buildings threaten to become the new normal in downtown, Burlingtonians fear the things they love about their city will be lost.” Tanner is keen to emphasize his campaign is about promoting positive solutions to the current problems, not simply pointing out the challenges. “I was part of the Shape Burlington Committee in 2010 which called for City Hall to ‘re-invent itself” by welcoming innovative new ways of bringing citizens into the decision-making process. Unfortunately, despite the subsequent Engagement Charter, I don’t feel we are any further forward in bringing about a genuinely engaged community. Engagement isn’t about more town hall meetings, it’s about making citizens partners in the process of shaping our city, along with City Hall staff, non-profits, businesses, and yes, even developers. City Hall must listen, engage and empower its citizens to build a truly innovative community of which we can all be proud,” said Tanner in his nomination announcement. A man worth watching.
May 14th, 2018 BURLINGTON, ON
The hard news is that here will be lane restrictions on Lakeshore Rd from John Street to Martha Street between May 14 to 25, 2018 Monday, May 14 at 7 a.m. to Friday, May 25 at 7 p.m. Please watch for signs and barricades. That’s the news part. That news came from Doug Conway, Utility Coordinator, Capital Works.  Somehow the transportation people didn’t get the message from the Utility coordinator. The Utility Coordinator is the person who keeps in constant touch with the utilities, (Hydro, Region, telephone, cable and gas companies) that have pipes or wires underneath the asphalt. They talk to each other regularly, or they are supposed to – but somehow someone missed a meeting and wasn’t aware of the work the Region was doing on water main upgrades while the New Street Road Diet experiment was underway. No one at city hall ever explained how that came about.
May 14, 2018 BURLINGTON, ON
Didn’t take long for mayoralty candidate Marianne Meed Ward to hop on a good story and turn it to her advantage. The Toronto Star did a lengthy piece on Sunday about the development planned for the downtown core. Residents have been warning about the negative impact of over development downtown on loss of retail, community character and more, and now others are taking notice. The Toronto Star wrote a front page article today on how Burlington’s growing pains became an election issue Toronto has had their own problems with growth that focuses relentlessly on adding population without planning communities: traffic congestion, crowding, lack of community amenities, loss of retail.  Councillor Marianne Meed Ward and Mayor Goldring. That’s headed our way if we don’t get our downtown plan right. We’re already seeing the focus on counting units, not quality of life. The promise of growth isn’t delivering. Don’t believe the justifications offered for over-intensification: • “it’s good for business” TRUTH: We’re losing retail and commercial space, up to two-thirds in one proposal • “we have no choice, the province is making us” TRUTH: the province sets broad forecasts for growth, which we’ll meet well ahead of time. How, where and how much we grow is up to us • “we have to protect the rural area” TRUTH: the rural area has been protected since 2006 and is not at risk of development. No one should pit one area against another to justify over-development. • ”it will bring affordable housing” TRUTH: the units being built don’t meet Halton Region’s affordability criteria. We have a choice this election: the current mayor who says we have to accept this over intensification (up to 30 high-rises downtown in the new plan he supported) or scaling back the plan with an amendment after the next election.  Retail that will disappear should the 409 Brant development be approved. The choice is clear: responsible growth or over-intensification that will forever change the Burlington we chose to make our homes to live, work, play, raise our families and retire. We can change the downtown plan with a new council, and I’ll do everything I can to make that happen. Spread the word: share this message with your friends and neighbours so they know what’s at stake this election. Meed Ward has always understood social media and used it very effectively. She did that in her 2010 campaign and again in 2014. She will use it just as effectively this – the difference is – will she get the traction she needs to wear the Chain of Office. Her goal from her very first election has been to be the Mayor – Rick Craven beat her in that 2006 election. She moved from ward 1 to ward 2 and has a following there that cannot be beat. The challenge is going to see just how well her support develops in the rest of the city. Elections are usually lost by the person holding the office – are people in Burlington unhappy enough with Mayor Goldring to choose Meed Ward?  Rick Goldring at the Mike Wallace 2015 campaign HQ – little did he know then that when Wallace lost he would come after Goldring’s job. The worst news for Rick Goldring was learning that Mike Wallace decided to run – any Wallace votes will come from the plate Golding has his lunch on. All we have to do is get the provincial election behind us – then focus on local. And if the prediction for a Doug Ford win are true – the direction Burlington can take will be a lot different. Pay attention – this stuff matters
By Staff May 14th, 2018 BURLINGTON, ON
Burlington has made the big time press. The Toronto Star did a long piece on Sunday about the city’s growing pains. The last time Burlington got this kind of press from the Star was when we were building that $14.4 million dollar “mistake by the lake” – The Pier – for the second time. Here is what the Toronto Star had to say. How Burlington’s growing pains became an election issue Downtown Burlington has become a battleground over plans for more highrise development, with some worried that rapid intensification will destroy the charm that drew them to the city in the first place. By Tess KalinowskiReal Estate Reporter Kelly Childs moved to Burlington in 2008 looking to escape “the hustle” of Toronto. The cupcake emporium on Burlington’s main drag draws thousands of customers in a busy week with the promise of luscious treats, part of a charming strip of stores and restaurants leading to the lake. On a recent weekday morning, Kelly’s was crowded with a group of moms and babies. But directly north, the Blossom Lily restaurant, Thomasville furnishings, Elizabeth Interiors and Celli’s restaurant are already closed or have moved.  421 Brant The nearby 23-storey Carriage Gate Homes development and its “twin tower” — a developer has already filed a proposal for a 24-storey sister building — are displacing those stores. The notices on the empty shop windows and impending construction across from city hall have become a rallying point for a polarized community in advance of the fall civic election. Residents and businesses are divided among those who believe tall buildings will feed the vitality and sustainability of the city and those who worry development will drive up prices, pushing out Burlington’s character and dwarfing its civic buildings. “I’ve never seen this kind of tension — I’m going to call it the pitchfork. There are so many residents that are waking up to it,” Childs said. “It’s like the ether has just worn off and they’re going, ‘What the heck have we been silent to?’” Burlington is the latest battleground in the Toronto region where municipalities are struggling to welcome more residents without planting them on farmers’ fields and environmentally sensitive areas. Guided by the province’s anti-sprawl growth plan, intensification zones with denser housing are rising around newly expanded transit lines. Early estimates in the new official plan call for an additional 14,000 people and 1,200 jobs to be added to the downtown, beyond 2041. Up to 72,000 residents and 60,000 jobs are expected in the areas surrounding the Aldershot, Burlington and Appleby GO stations beyond 2041. Burlington’s downtown should never have been considered one of those zones, say local critics. But, in the absence of a compromise, Childs says, “To me (highrise) creates more a generic downtown. It takes away the uniqueness of some storefronts.” The last time Burlington was so rattled by a civic issue was probably the “Mistake by the Lake,” say the locals, citing an epic, seven-year municipal ordeal to install the scenic pier at the foot of Brant St. By the time it opened five years ago, it cost $14.4 million. The recent onslaught of development applications has spurred residents to show up in force for public meetings and even post “Height Is No Solution” lawn signs.  Marianne Meed Ward – candidate for Mayor Downtown Councillor Marianne Meed Ward says “hyper-intensification” will push small businesses off Brant St. with higher rents, replacing them with generic chains, traffic jams and inadequate parking. It won’t enhance the city’s housing needs and it will be wildly out of scale with the heritage surroundings, she said. “We’re seeing store vacancies because nobody can get long leases because these sites are being assembled for redevelopment,” said Meed Ward. There are 35 active development applications at the city, including official plan and zoning bylaw amendments. Construction is already underway downtown on a midrise condo west of Brant St. across from the Performing Arts Centre, and there’s another residential building east of Brant and a massive hotel-condo going up on the lakefront.  The Nautique – to go up at the corner of Martha and Lakeshore Road. Burlington has asked for a review of an Ontario Municipal Board decision that would allow Adi Developments to build a 26-storey condo north of Lakeshore Rd., just east of Brant St. “We have over 90 buildings both residential and commercial within the downtown boundaries that are heritage properties. Only a quarter are designated under that act, which protects them from demolition,” said Meed Ward. “The rest are not protected, so you can imagine a two-storey heritage building — if you are allowing 17-, 20-, 23-storey buildings — the air rights above that property are far more valuable than keeping and retaining the heritage.” The lone No vote on Burlington council’s recently adopted new official plan, Meed Ward says she is running for mayor. Residents like retiree Penny Hersh agree with Meed Ward that the plan, the blueprint for how Burlington will grow, was passed in haste and with too few specifics. Hersh is among the organizers of the group behind the lawn signs, Engaged Citizens of Burlington (ECOB). It organized a workshop in February to encourage more civic election participation. Nearly 100 people turned up.  Penny Hersh on the right. Hersh lives in a 15th-floor condo near the Bridgewater residential-hotel project under construction on Lakeshore Rd., comprising a 22-storey condo, another seven-storey condo and an eight-storey hotel. She says she knew about the development when she moved there and isn’t complaining. She didn’t move to downtown Burlington to look at the water. “I moved downtown because I wanted to be able to walk … Burlington wants to be a walkable community but in the downtown there are a lot of seniors. No one’s getting on their bicycle to cycle up to the No Frills (grocery store) in January,” she said. Hersh says she’s fine with development around the city’s three GO stations. But designating downtown Burlington as an intensification zone and mobility hub, based on its tiny bus depot, makes no sense. “We aren’t fighting the highrises. We’re just asking for a sensible, smart plan,” she said. With a population of about 183,000, Burlington was dubbed Canada’s best mid-sized city five years in a row by MoneySense magazine based on its relative wealth, safety and high employment. It shelters commuters for both Toronto and Hamilton and has maintained a sense of identity through its downtown even as malls and big box stores — including an Ikea — flourish all around.  Mayor Rick Goldring Mayor Rick Goldring says he’s aware of the angst around intensification. Highrise “is a symbol of something in other communities that people don’t want to be like,” he said. But he argues Burlington has no choice. “We’re at a different place than we’ve been in our history. We don’t have any more greenfield remaining. The days of building single-family-home developments are behind us,” he said. Going forward, the city’s focus is on creating more mixed-use, walkable, transit-friendly neighbourhoods around mobility hubs. He likens it to building the Performing Arts Centre. Back then some residents thought the city didn’t need and couldn’t afford the 718-seat venue. They worried that it would be “elitist,” that tickets would be too expensive. Nearly seven years after the curtain went up, Goldring says it’s difficult to imagine Burlington without the theatre. The mayor concedes that Burlington’s older highrises haven’t always been thoughtfully designed. But new tall building guidelines adopted last year and an urban design panel will ensure newer towers connect to the city’s other features, he said. The new “Grow Bold” official plan, prescribing where growth will be concentrated, still has to be approved by Halton Region. It will be followed by a new transit plan recommending frequent service on some key routes, says the mayor. But the first significant changes aren’t likely to happen until fall 2019.  Brian Dean, executive director of the 435-member Burlington Downtown Business Association. “I can’t think of one issue that has kicked the hornet’s nest in the residential mind more than this series of deliberations on the official plan,” said Brian Dean, executive director of the 435-member Burlington Downtown Business Association. “It will be a huge wedge issue for the upcoming election.” He calls the opposition “the most concentrated, vociferous group of residents I have seen in 20 years.” In the business community and even among the association’s 12 board members, “there is very little consensus over whether this period of unprecedented development is the best thing since sliced bread or the death knell of the downtown,” he said. Downtown Burlington tends to draw empty nesters, many of them snowbirds. Dean says more young professionals and families would improve business in the slower shoulder seasons. But the size and price of the new condos won’t attract those buyers, says Meed Ward. There is also no commitment to an affordable housing component — “another lost opportunity,” she said. “People are saying we are not getting what we need in housing … what is being delivered will end up in congestion and sun-shadowing impact, changing character, glass and steel architecture, rising prices for business and pressure on the parking supply, and then the taxpayers will have to help build more,” she said.  Deputy city manager Mary Lou Tanner Deputy city manager Mary Lou Tanner, Burlington’s former chief planner, says she isn’t surprised by the “concern” because it is the first serious conversation about growth in a couple of generations. When city officials reviewed pictures of downtown Burlington from 20 years ago, what they found wasn’t exactly Mayberry. “There were a lot of vacancies, there were boarded-up buildings on Brant St. and in other commercial areas. There were surface parking lots across the street from Spencer Smith Park (on the lakefront),” said Tanner. So Burlington invested about $150 million in improvements such as the arts centre and adjacent parking garage, the pier and park. “When the public sector makes that kind of significant investment in a downtown, it’s a good thing because it creates that confidence and that vibrancy,” she said. “What we’re now seeing is that (development) demand is starting to ramp up a bit.” Meantime, said Tanner, the city is planning to preserve Brant St.’s historic elements by having them replicated in new buildings where possible.  Gary Scobie Retiree Gary Scobie’s ECOB lawn sign declares his status as an engaged resident. He has been to city hall to voice his opposition to the downtown development. “The downtown residents are getting the first taste of what it means to be an urban growth centre,” he said. “I think we’re trying to build a skyline just to impress the neighbours, and who are the neighbours?” You can see the original of the story HERE The photographs are from the Burlington Gazette photo bank.
May 14th, 2018 BURLINGTON, ON
We do politics differently in Burlington. Somewhere along the way the Tory’s in Burlington came to the conclusion that the Gazette was a Liberal newspaper and decided that they would not keep us aware of their events. We are frequently able to dig up some of what they are doing. We hear from the other political parties. This “shyness” on the part of some of those elected to office is disturbing. The politicians seem to feel that we are supposed to write nice thing about them – and on many occasions a piece of reporting does put the politician in a positive light. At the municipal level we used to meet for lunch on occasion with several of the members of council. We have done tours of a ward with Council members. When the news is critical or points out a short-coming – the lip curls. The Mayor decided some time ago that the Gazette is biased and unfair. We didn’t hear that from Rick Goldring during his first term of office. His 59 second comment on how good a job the Gazette was doing was a little embarrassing. The comments were made during Goldring’s first term. He had a change of mind during his second term. In the world of politics the relationship with media is often fractious. Rather than invite media into their office and talk through the concern – in Burlington they decide that you’re biased. The politicians and many of the civil servants don’t understand media and the role it plays. Behind that is the lack of an understanding of what their own role really is – they are there to serve. It is an honourable profession – many – not all, fail to honour the work they do and they diminish themselves in the process. We are all accountable. The Gazette gets it in the ear from readers and we publish what they say. We are members of the National NewsMedia Council – we pay an annual fee to that organization – it amounts to more than my monthly rent – and when someone takes a complaint to the Council we are required to respond and if the Council comes to the conclusion we made a mistake and were wrong we have to publish that finding. They are in the archives. When Mike Wallace was the Member of Parliament he got very upset with the articles we wrote when he was mismanaging the flow of information at a parliamentary committee. Politics is the art of the possible between competing interests. The role of the politician is to listen, and ensure that the interests of the public are heard, understood and acted upon. Recently we have heard politicians say that they are not hearing from the “majority” – they seem to feel that if they don’t hear from half the population then those who do speak up are just cranks who don’t like the idea of change – the nimby’s.  The Mayor wasn’t comfortable enough with the Chain of Office to wear i outside th Council Chamber during his first term. He wore it for a TV interview in his second term. Early in his first term of office we recall a conversation with the Mayor and how people interacted with him in a supermarket or on the street – he was surprised that they saw him as someone special. A Mayor is the Chief Magistrate – what people are responding to is the office of the Mayor and the role a Mayor plays. The fact that it is Rick Golding is not the issue. The public expects their Mayor to lead and to be seen as a leader.  The tension between Councillors Meed Ward and Craven is close to measurable, Neither has ever been a fan of the other. We have heard members of the current city council squabble like children over whether or not the Councillor for ward 2 can involve herself in anything that takes place in ward 1. Every member of the Burlington city council is also a member of Regional council where they represent the city – not just a ward. During the working through the 2010 Strategic Plan I was approached by a member of council – no need to embarrass the member at this point, who said “You should do something about Meed Ward”. I was stunned – did this member really think the role of media was to go gunning for a member of council? The job is to report on what city council does and to hold them accountable and to put what they say and do in context and to remind them what they had said previously. The Gazette also provides a forum for anyone to make a comment on a specific news story. Some of the comments don’t get published – I am constantly surprised at how nasty some people choose to be. Our experience has been that the really nasty ones come from an email address that cannot be verified.  Jim Young Gary Scobie We have been very proud to have been able to publish the delegations made by Jim Young and Gary Scobie and Dee Dee Davies; less proud when we were required to publish situations where we were wrong. Saying we are exceptionally under-resourced may be true but I isn’t an excuse. Many of the politicians in this city seem to feel that media is in place to publish what they write and not ask any questions. Who taught them that? City Council talks about transparency and accountability and seem to feel that if they say they are accountable and transparent – then they are. When more than 30 people delegate on an issue that argument gets shot full of holes and the wind is taken out of the sails. While the provincial election is taking up most of the oxygen and attention it is worth noting that there are now four new candidates under 40 and a fifth expected later this week. Two of the incumbents have chosen to retire. There is a change in the air – new blood and fresh faces. Salt with Pepper is a column of opinion, reflection, observation and musings of the Gazette Publisher.
May 14th, 2018 BURLINGTON, ON
In less than a month; the fourth Lowville Festival will welcome Sarah Harmer home for what will surely be a sold out concert that will take place at St. Georges Anglican Church on the north side of Dundas that is normally seen as Lowville. Two well-known headliners will draw well – the final event: Truth and Illusion is the sleeper. June Cupido, who describes herself as a coach, dramaturge and director who takes each member of a cast through an intense creative process to come up with a heartfelt monologue. The performances are not the equivalent of that great American musical Oklahoma. Cupido describes then as “deep, dark and delicious” and adds that “I have always been intrigued by the idea of personal stories and storytelling as a means of developing a script. I want to take an audience on a thought-provoking journey and explore the stories we tell each other and how they connect us.”  June Cupido: She titles her monologue-based production Truth and Illusion because it examines how our lives can be guided by two separate forces – what lies in our heart and soul (the truth) and what we project to the outside world (the illusion). “It is this process of delving into our own psyche to reveal the truth behind the illusion that will result in a monologue for each performer” – deep, dark and delicious indeed. Each Truth and Illusion production is not the same. Cupido first presented in Oakville where the theme was Separation, which she wrote and performed as her own monologue; the second was on the theme of Creative Fires; Cupido was the creative director and performer; and the third, Dream Narratives, dealt with dreams, dreaming and dream narratives, where she was the dramatist and creative director.
The members of the creative team come from diverse backgrounds, yet each offers a story that speaks to society as a whole. Bringing together their tales communicates larger stories to a broad audience. The monologues will transcend cultural boundaries. This is drama at its best and deepest – think in terms of Pirandello’s Six Characters in Search of an Author. Cupido has taken the Lowville Festival production a step further; collaborating with Michael Mulroony, who has developed a set of musical motives and backgrounds based on the ideas, emotions and themes to support the monologues. “Think of what Michael is doing as a Greek Chorus that supports what is taking place on the stage:, said Cupido. The audience will be engaged in a Q&A panel discussion with the cast and creative team after the performance about the process. If theatre is your passion – this is something you will want to see and be part of. The Lowville Festival team are to be congratulated for bringing a performance like this to their event.  Sarah Harmer Event dates are:  Ben Heppner Ben Heppner in Concert: with the Lowville Festival Choir, Saturday June 9th, 7:30 pm. St. George’s Hall Truth and Illusion: Two Forces present in every moment: Sunday June 10th, 7:00 pm – Lowville United Church Tickets will go on sale on the Festival Website:
May 13th, 2018 BURLINGTON, ON
The Barrie Baycats, winners of the InterCounty Baseball League trophy in 2017, whipped the Burlington Herd Sunday afternoon at Coates Stadium in a 15-1 win. Jackson also singled as part of the Baycats’ 18-hit attack. Kevin Atkinson went 4-for-5 with three RBI and two runs, Kyle DeGrace singled and doubled and had two RBI and two runs, Ryan Spataro went 3-for-5 with two doubles, a single and four runs, Jordan Castaldo singled twice, scored twice and drove in a run, Branfy Infante and Steve Lewis each had two hits and two RBI, and Jeff Cowan drove in a run and scored twice. Emilis Guerrero (2-0) benefitted from the offence, going five scoreless innings and scattering four hits with a walk and five strikeouts. Daniel Ohorodnyk had two hits and an RBI for the Herd. Jensen Park singled twice. Rich Corrente (0-1) took the loss, giving up four runs on eight hits over five innings with three walks. It has been a tough weekend start for the Herd; they were up against the two top teams.
May 13, 2018 BURLINGTON, ON
Summer hasn’t favoured us with much in the way of warm weather so thinking about outdoor theatre in the evenings might not be top of mind – but the RBG summer Shakespearean theatre Trevor Copp has put on for the past three years will be part of the summer season – August 13-17, 20-24, 27-31. The offering this year: Macbeth: Conspiracy Theory Copp explains what he is doing this way: “Shakespeare’s classic story of fate and vengeance is re-imagined as a conspiracy story thriller.  Trevor Copp “Macbeth’s pact with unseen forces to become a tyrant King unfold with consequences beyond his darkest imaginings. This highly physical interpretation is performed outdoors at the stunning grounds of RBG’s Rock Garden and features outstanding emerging talent. Note the day when you plan your summer – and if you have guests visiting – include this event in your plans. Tix will be available next week through rbg.ca/shakespeare. More on this as the summer approaches…..
May 12, 2018 BURLINGTON, ON
It was the first game of the season for the Herd and second for the Panthers, who lost their season opener. Offensively, Keegan Marsden went 3-for-5 with three RBI. Mike Gordner and Brian Burton each had two hits and scored twice. Gordner added an RBI, and Burton swiped a base. Mike Andrulis added a sacrifice fly, and Mike Glinka singled, tripled and scored a run. For Burlington, Jensen Park singled and Robbie Cant doubled to pick up the Herd’s hits. The scheduled game May 12 between the Brantford Red Sox and Guelph Royals at David E. Hastings Stadium was previously rescheduled to Tuesday, June 12 at 7:30 p.m. Future games Sunday, May 13 Thursday, May 17
May 12th, 2018 BURLINGTON, ON
What a day it was. A second member of council opts for a pension cheque and new names pop faster than you can say Jack Rabbit. A name with credibility and depth is said to be making a trip to the Clerk’s office to register as a candidate for the ward 2 seat. Sources tell the Gazette that Roland Tanner, former president of the Burlington provincial Liberals at one point, is going to register his nomination papers for Ward 2 on Monday. Rene Papin got his nomination papers for the ward 1 seat in faster than we thought was possible. Did he have advance notice? Papin has been a Conservative for as long as we can remember – he was hoping to be the candidate for the provincial seat but the constituency wouldn’t have him and, being the good party member he is, – he didn’t push for the nomination. He should have. A loyal reader who gets us via Facebook said: “Wow, new councillors for Wards 1, 2 and 3. Perhaps a new mayor. Perhaps changes in wards 4, 5 and 6. The newest nominations are shown in red. Can we expect to see any withdraws as the field in some wards thickens? Will the expected Tanner nomination in ward 2 help the school board trustee make a decision ? The list as of the close of business is as follows: Mayor Rick Goldring Marianne Meed Ward Mike Wallace Councillor / Regional Councillor Ward 1 René Papin Councillor / Regional Councillor Ward 2 Kimberly Calderbank David Cherry Lisa Kearns Councillor / Regional Councillor Ward 3 Lisa Cooper Rory Nisan Gareth Williams Councillor / Regional Councillor Ward 4 Jack Dennison Shawna Stolte Councillor / Regional Councillor Ward 5 Paul Sharman Xin Yi Zhang Councillor / Regional Councillor Ward 6 Angelo Bentivegna Blair Lancaster Ken White Regional Chair (nominations are filed with the Region of Halton) Gary Carr Halton District School Board Trustee – Wards 1 & 2 Halton District School Board Trustee – Wards 3 & 6 Andrea Grebenc Halton District School Board Trustee – Ward 4 Richelle Papin Margo Shuttleworth Halton District School Board Trustee – Ward 5 Amy Collard Halton Catholic District School Board Trustee Arlene Iantomasi Maria Lourenco Conseil scolaire Viamonde (nominations are filed with the City of Hamilton) Conseil scolaire catholique MonAvenir (nominations are filed with the Town of Oakville)
May 11th, 2018 BURLINGTON, ON  Councillor Rick Craven holding a memory stick with the budget on it.
Dear Friends, I look forward to this new stage in my life but will remain at your service until the new Ward One Councillor takes office in the fall. Rick Craven
May 11th, 2018 BURLINGTON, ON
“I guess we’ve come to expect that everything about Ford is fake,” she said. “The stories are fake, his facts are fake and now we know his supporters are fake.” (Deb Matthews – Liberal campaign co-chair) Matthews was commenting on reports that Doug Ford’s team had hired actors to sit in the audience and cheer for him at the City TV leaders’ debate earlier this week, the first such head-to-head of the campaign.  The actors Though, rather than actors, what the event really needed was a director to bring order to the chaotic muddle the TV station had the nerve to call a debate. For one thing the leaders were forced to stand for the entire time, looking awkward and uncomfortable and…sad. It was absolutely the worst format for a debate. In that formation the loudest and most persistent eventually overcomes the others – as if that kind of behaviour is what we most desire in a premier. Horwath and Ford mostly talked in general platitudes and Wynne kept getting into the weeds – an occupational hazard when one actually understands the files. The leaders were then scored for their performance by instant phone-in polls, which no doubt were also populated by another lot of actors from each of the three parties. And what with the street interviews and backgrounders and endless number of moderators, it was a bun fight to behold. Ford is the clear front runner in the polls, which has nothing to do with his policies or even his qualifications for the job. His alternate facts on the state of the economy and unemployed are just plain inaccurate – lies, or worse, ignorance. And his rationale for another tax cut makes absolutely no sense given a recent report by the OECD indicating that Canadians actually pay lower taxes than Americans.  PC Leader Doug Ford faced a barrage of questions from Liberal Premier Kathleen Wynne and NDP Leader Andrea Horwath in Monday’s CityNews debate in Toronto. Ford has locked onto a couple of wedge issues which are working for him, such as the outrageous salary paid to the chair of Hydro One – “the six million dollar man”. But Ford’s unproven allegations about the Liberals rewarding their friends and unfounded claims of corruption are unworthy of someone wanting to be Premier. This kind of politicking will only reinforce the comparison Kathleen Wynne is trying to make between Doug Ford and Donald Trump. Ford has also accused the Liberals of cooking the books, and has found an ally in Ontario’s overzealous auditor general (AG). Her’s is a complicated, arcane argument, that the surplus money the province holds in pension assets should not be counted in order to make the budget appear balanced. Her position is untenable, however, given that she and previous AG’s had accepted that way of accounting in the past. And it begs the question of whether she would still feel that way if the pension account were in deficit, thus creating a provincial deficit.  Doug Ford But Ford is on solid ground attacking the size of Ontario’s growing debt, particularly as the latest provincial budget just serves to increase the debt. Of course his piety on this matter is compromised, actually shot to hell, when he acknowledges that his promises will also increase the provincial debt. In fact his promises ring in around $16 billion, more than either of the other two. Added to that, Ford’s proposed cancelation of Ontario’s cap and trade carbon tax would add another $2 billion or so in lost revenue. Ford might have more credibility were he equipped with a fully costed campaign plan. He could always fall back on the one his party had approved last November, when Patrick Brown was still leader. Instead, we find him just alluding to the billions he plans to throw into the very areas where he also plans to make undisclosed ‘efficiency’ cuts of some 4% (~ $6 billion) from the budget. Presumably one can always find efficiencies in a budget the size of Ontario’s. Yet as Wynne tried to point out before being drowned out – actually talked over – by the other candidates, Ontario’s government has the lowest per capita cost of any in Canada. That would make Ontario already the most efficient in the country. And does anyone believe Ford’s claim to be able to cut costs without eliminating jobs and laying off the civil servants whose programs get axed.  Andrea Horwath NDP leader Horwath gave the warmest and most sincere TV performance, but she failed to make any clear winning points, leaving the question of how she differs from the current premier up in the air. That shortcoming was partly a casualty of the format, in which policy questions were allocated a mere 45 seconds. The Premier was even more challenged trying to sum up 15 years in a 45 second commercial sound bite. And after 15 years in office people need to understand the rationale for policies like renewable energy, cap and trade carbon taxes, the Green Belt, measures taken to help lower housing prices across the GTA and so much more. If Wynne loses this election, which looks inevitable at this point, it will be less about what she and her party have done than her failure to explain it. Wynne is clearly the most intellectual of the leaders. Yet egg heads tend to get caught up in the details and miss the big picture. Populists resonate better with the public. And in the war of style over substance, style usually wins.  Kathleen Wynne There will be more opportunities for debate among these pretenders to the throne, hopefully in a more traditional debate format. That would give Andrea Horwath more opportunity to explain the math and strategies behind her campaign policies. It would allow Mr. Ford to become more confident in front of the cameras and to get a handle on the files he needs to better understand in order to win a debate, let alone govern the province. And it would offer Kathleen Wynne more time to better account for her party’s record and why.
Background links: Ford’s Actors – Lower Taxes in Canada – Coyne on Ford – McParland on Ford –
May 11th, 2018 BURLINGTON, ON
Jim Young was doing it again. Making statements that made people uncomfortable. His kind of truth is a little difficult to take. At time people want to suggest to Jim that he “lighten up”. He was delegating Thursday afternoon on the matter of the LaSalle Park Marina and the need for a spend of $4 million to keep the place open past April of 2019. Jim Young said:  Jim Young “ECoB worries that $4 million is a lot of money to spend to help protect the private property of a small group of citizens who are surely among the most able to provide that protection and insurance for themselves. “We worry that our city may invest this $4 million only to find that the property at La Salle Park reverts to the City of Hamilton in a few years. “In a city where last fall we had to provide emergency funding to keep our transit system operating legally, might better use be made of that $4 million by our transit system? “In a ward that has no community centre for seniors, children or adult recreation, might $4 million be better directed towards their needs? “In city with another 2 wards which similarly have no community centre, might we better serve more of our citizens by allocating this money to that end? “In a city committed to intensification with so far no supporting Transit Infrastructure in place or planned, that money would allow an 8% increase in the Transit Operating Budget for each of the next 5 years to help achieve those intensification plans. Might this be a better investment? “In a city committed to increasing and improving cycling with a plan to provide a safe North / South Highway and Railroad Crossing might $ 4 million go a long way to building that? “Can a city that rejected a $100,000 annual expenditure to provide free off peak transit to around 35,000 poor and isolated seniors, in all conscience, justify $4 million dollars to provide docking improvements for a few hundred fairly wealthy boaters? “That money would provide free transit for seniors for the next 40 years. “The people of Burlington are engaged and paying attention to city affairs like never in recent history.  The option the LaSalle Park Marina Association hopes is chosen through the Environmental Assessment due March 2013. “By adopting Option A and removing yourselves from the Marina Business you can demonstrate that you are sensitive to and attuned to the needs and wishes of ordinary Burlingtonians for whom a boat is a luxury while Transit, Community Centres and Cycling are real and widespread needs. “At the end of the day La Salle Park Marina is not the city’s business to be involved in. It belongs to an incorporated body, La Salle Park Marina Association on land that belongs to the City of Hamilton and which may very soon revert to that city.” The members of the Burlington Boating and Sailing Club and the LaSalle Park Marina take exception to being referred to as “rich people” who are being given a benefit that others don’t get. Membership in the Marina is $9200 – up front. $5200 of that is an initiation fee and $4000 is part of the annual fee structure that has a declining balance approach. The two clubs don’t talk all that much about fees and what it costs to be a member. They tend to dwell on the benefits the city gets and wonder aloud why a city on the edge of one of the largest lakes in the country should not have a marina. To their credit the Marina has entered into joint ventures with the city for more than 35 years and has never defaulted or even been late with a payment. They want recognition for what they have done. The issue gets complex with a deadline for the new breakwater the sailors must have and what that will do to the formation of ice in the winter and what that will do to the Trumpeter swans that have taken up residence in the same location as the marina.  Trumpeter swan – magnificent creatures that many think need the marina space at LaSalle Park to survive the winters. Nonsense according the Marina Association. What the boaters face are overfed swans that should not be fed by the public who love the birds. The swan people would like to see the boats somewhere else – the sailors feel the same way about the swans. Meanwhile Burlington is unable to come to terms with the city of Hamilton on a price for the water lots that Hamilton owns. It is messy – and the leadership needed isn’t coming out of city hall. $4 million is a lot of money – but the LaSalle Park Marina has always met their obligations under the Joint Venture agreements they signed with the city. Which is more than the Trumpeter Swan people can say when it comes to educating the public about not feeding the swans and then doing something to actually prevent that – maybe having one of their group on hand every weekend telling people not to feed the swans?
May 11th, 2018 BURLINGTON, ON
This Saturday, the New Democrats in Burlington will open their campaign office – in the same location that political party has used for years; located at 2232 Mountainside Dr, Burlington.  Former Burlington Mayor Walter Mulkewich guiding his latest NDP candidate Andrew Drummond, in the orange shirt, around town. This time the New Democrats just might have a shot at the seat. Andrew Drummond, the NDP candidate for Burlington will formally open his campaign office – the same faces will be in the room that were there last time. But this time out there will be more spring in their step. The people of Burlington just might become part of what is, at this point, a not so quiet growing dislike for Doug Ford and the feeling that they have had enough of the provincial Liberals. The campaign is short – four weeks and in the world of politics that is a lifetime. Money is being spent faster than any drunken sailor ever spent. The late Jack Layton showed the public what can happen when a public is dis-enchanted – and the Ontario public is very disenchanted right now.  Andrew Drummond – NDP candidate for Burlington. Andrew Drummond, a Burlington resident for 14 years, has spent his entire 15-year professional career in the telecommunications industry and currently works on Large Enterprise Strategy for Rogers Communications. He decided to run for office to combat the effects of the growing inequality gap in the province. He is young, brings a fresh face to the party – no baggage. Worth a look – Andrea Horwath is going to make sure you hear the NDP story.
May 11th, 2018 BURLINGTON, ON
 A richly deserved recognition – Friends of Freeman Station named Burlington’s BEST for heritage. It is one of the few occasions when this crowd wore suits. But there they were on the stage accepting the recognition long deserved for saving the Freeman Station. In the acceptance speech Ron Danielson said:  They had every reason to be smiling. Councillors Meed Ward and Lancaster pose with five members of the Friends of Freeman Station after the Council meeting that approved the entering into of a Joint Venture that would have the Friends moving the station and taking on the task of renovating the building. It was the intervention of Councillors Meed Ward and Lancaster who held off the rest of Council and gave the Friends of Freeman the time they needed to find a place to put the station that was in pretty rough shape but salvageable despite the comments made by a city engineer. When they found a home – the task was to get the building moved and begin the renovation. Their success is one of the best stores this city has to tell about itself. The politicians will swoop in and take the credit – and to their credit they did come up with funds, albeit late in the game. This is a citizen success story – and Wednesday night at the Performing Arts Centre a bunch of guys who were pretty good with a hammer and a paint brush were recognized for the heroes they are.
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Friday is International Museum Day.
The Lowville Festival production of Truth and Illusion will bring together six performers whose stories will uncover a personal journey. All actors will be on stage at the same time, with each taking their turn in the spotlight as they address the audience. Each monologue reveals personal transformation as the actors explore a part of their life that isn’t necessarily what it appears to be.
The Kitchener Panthers had a 6-0 win over the Burlington Herd Saturday afternoon at Nelson Park.
Ray Rivers writes regularly on both federal and provincial politics, applying his more than 25 years as a federal bureaucrat to his thinking. Rivers was once a candidate for provincial office in Burlington. He was the founder of the Burlington citizen committee on sustainability at a time when climate warming was a hotly debated subject. Tweet @rayzrivers