Snow Update: Jan.13,2016 4:00pm
Road plowing is complete.
Local road sanding is ongoing.
Primary and secondary sidewalks have been completed.
Local sidewalk plowing is ongoing.
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January 13th, 2016 BURLINGTON, ON Ron Foxcroft, Hamilton, Ontario, president and founder of Fox 40 International, has been selected by the National Association of Sports Officials (NASO) as the recipient of this year’s Gold Whistle Award, which is officiating’s highest honor.
His wife Marie serves as his driver when he returns from an event where he is adjudicating referee performance – she drives while he writes up the report. Foxcroft came close to serving as the referee at an event in British Columbia when Angelo Mosca got bopped by a former over an old grudge. During the months after the 2014 flood in Burlington there wasn’t a banker in the province who really wanted to take a call from Foxcroft – he was in his arm twisting mode pulling cheques for flood relief. Pulled in just short of a million in 100 days for the Burlington Community Foundation. They made him a vice chair for that and come July he will be the full chair What do you think he will do with that position?  Ron Foxcroft demonstrating the product. The award will be presented Tuesday, Aug. 2, in San Antonio during the Celebrate Officiating Gala, which wraps up the 2016 Sports Officiating Summit. “A primary determinant in awarding anyone NASO’s Gold Whistle Award is this: The recipient has to have a long and meaningful history of ‘shining a positive light’ on officiating,” said Barry Mano, NASO president. “Further, any recipient must be someone who is held with some reverence within the officiating community of which he is a part. Ron Foxcroft was an easy choice, frankly. “There are precious few individuals who place the wellbeing of sports officiating well in front of personal agenda or gain,” Mano added. “Members of this group have made outsized contributions to officiating. Ron is without doubt a member of that elite and critically important group. He is one of those unique individuals who, for decades, has fulfilled all of the requirements above. And, of course, he continues to do so.” Although Foxcroft is best known as maker of the famous pealess whistle used by officials around the world, he has made his mark in the world in many other ways. As an NCAA and international basketball official, he worked five NCAA tournaments, an Olympic final and numerous other high level international games. He has shone a positive light on the industry through his many charitable and leadership efforts, including serving as chair of the McMaster Campaign for Athletics & Recreation, founder and former chair of the Foxcroft Family Youth Fund held at the Hamilton Community Foundation and serving on the St. Joseph’s Healthcare Foundation fundraising committee, the first healthcare charity in Hamilton to earn the Canadian Centre for Philanthropy’s Ethical Fundraising License.  Foxcroft rousing the troops at the beginning of the Flood relief fund raising drive. He donated thousands of Fox 40 Classic whistles used by search and rescue professionals when they were saving lives following the San Francisco earthquake, the Oklahoma City bombing, the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami and Hurricanes Katrina and Wilma. Foxcroft has received awards from B’Nai Brith Canada and the Burlington (Ontario) Rotary Club. Foxcroft was named Hamilton’s Distinguished Citizen of the Year, received an honorary doctor of law degree from McMaster University and had an award named for him by Sports Officials Canada. The award is presented annually to recognize excellence from an official in a professional sports environment, their contribution to the development of young officials and their example as a positive role model for officials by virtue of personal involvement at the community level.  Foxcroft with queen Elizabeth – is he explaining to her how his whistle works? He is an honorary colonel in the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, Canadian Army Reserve infantry battalion. After a member of his regiment was killed in a terrorist attack, Foxcroft met with Queen Elizabeth II and received her personal condolences. Fox 40 received the Mel Narol Medallion Award in 2004, presented to a group or individual for outstanding contributions to NASO. Foxcroft is a former member of the NASO board of directors and currently serves as a special adviser to the board.  Did he make the shot? We’re not going to tell other than to say he doesn’t miss very much. The Gold Whistle Award is presented annually by NASO. Those considered are individuals or groups that have made significant contributions to the betterment of officiating, exhibit a high degree of integrity and ethics and other qualities that are held in high regard by the industry. Candidates must have a consistent record of presenting officiating in a positive light as well as exhibiting a “service above self” attitude. Public service to officiating, having a motivating effect on others and/or strong community involvement are considered.
January 13th, 2016 BURLINGTON, ON The Gazette has written about the 100 Women Who Care Burlington. It is a simple concept whose impact is very powerful. The goal is to raise $40,000 (or more) annually for local registered charities or their charitable programs that help Burlington residents live their lives to the fullest. This is done by gathering 100 women (or more) who commit to donating $100 (or more), four times per year. At each of their one hour meetings, nominations for charities and/or their programs are submitted by members for consideration of the group. To expedite the process, of the nominations submitted, three are selected at random and of those, the nominators have an opportunity to pitch their cause to the members, after which a vote is taken, ballots counted and cheques written to the organization that receives the most votes.
– Burlington Humane Society
Craig Kowalchuk and the team at Emmas Back Porch has a long history of giving back to the community and 100 Women Who Care Burlington are appreciative of their support in hosting our quarterly meetings this year. Dermetics, a Burlington based business is sponsoring 10 of their staff as members. It’s been a fabulous way for their business to give back to the community, while involving their team as they contribute to the decisions on where the funds will be directed. Dermetics has also provided numerous door prizes and incentives to grow our membership.
January 13th, 2016 BURLINGTON, ON The Halton District School Board started the year with an agenda that had few action items but a number of” For Action “and information points. This was going to be a quick, quick meeting The first item was Trustee Collard’s (Burlington) Ombudsman motion which passed unanimously.  Burlington trustee on the public Board of Education Amy Collard. RECOMMENDATION This was in response to the recent mandate by the province to allow the Ombudsman’s office to investigate complaints within the school system. This motion will attempt to find a solution whereby the local board would have a role in the process. This was followed by the board unanimously passing the “Board Recognition Program”. The policy had been posted on the board website for the required 25 days. This program will recognize those individuals within the Halton board that show exemplary contributions. It is open to students, staff and the community. The board then passed on to the” For Action” portion of the meeting. This usually gives notice of motions that will be acted on in following meetings. RECOMMENDATION This motion will be voted on at the next meeting. The next motion was the recommendations of the striking committee (They recommend which committees trustees will sit on) RECOMMENDATION: Although this was to be voted on at the next meeting, the trustees unanimously agreed to wave the rules and voted on the motion which was passed unanimously. RECOMMENDATION:  Andrea Grebenc represent Burlington on the public board of education. During the discussion period, Superintendent Zonneveld said all 35 would not be needed immediately but that 25 would start right away. Chair Amos requested that the rules be waved so that this motion could be voted on today. Trustee Grebenc (Burlington) was cautious in waving the rules as she felt the public might want some input on this motion. However, when the vote to wave the rules was taken, it was unanimous. The following discussion brought up a number of points; How can the Educational Assistant funding process be improved The motion then went to a vote and was passed unanimously. Director Miller, on behalf of Superintendent Dyson, presented a brief overview of recruitment for French Immersion teachers. The Halton Board will continue to attend Career Fairs in an ongoing effort to hire enough teachers for the growing French Immersion uptake in Halton. With fewer education graduates next year, the future is somewhat grim. Some graduates prefer to stay close to home (most schools are not close to Halton) while other boards hire at the fair while Halton hires later. This, coupled with a high demand from other boards will make the recruitment process difficult.  Director of |Education Stuart Miller, on the right, chats with MM Robinson teacher Dave Hammel Director Miller then added a few of his own comments. He noted that the board website is in the initial stages of an overhaul. Slight improvements to date have made the site more user friendly and there is a more easy flow in accessing information. Videos of the recent Program Viability presentations are available along with a questionnaire wanting public input on English/French programming in Halton. Miller pointed out that the board will now be entering the second phase of program viability by getting public input and that they have met with the company that will conduct the focus groups. One hour and eleven minutes after the start, the meeting concluded.
January 13th, 2016 BURLINGTON, ON City Council will meet next week for two days to thrash out the 2016 budget which, at this point, looks like it will increase 3.85% over what they asked for last year. For some reason Burlington’s city council feels it has to spend more in 2016 than it did in 2015 (3.85% is the most recent budget increase projection) which has the people at Bfast (Burlington for Accessible, Sustainable Transit) upset because they don’t see any increase in the amount being sent on transit. “Despite commitments in the City’s Strategic Plan, transit users in Burlington are again being shortchanged by the municipality‘s 2016 budget,” says a spokesperson for Burlington For Accessible, Sustainable Transit (BFAST). Council is set to approve a budget for the system that provides no funding increase for 2016.  Doug Brown, chair of Bfast says the city is short changing transit users. “When inflation is considered, the 2016 transit budget is actually less than the budget in 2015,” commented BFAST spokesperson Doug Brown. “Funding and service cuts, schedule changes and fare increases over the past four years have resulted in a 17% decline in ridership for Burlington’s chronically underfunded transit system. This is despite the requirement of the Ontario Municipal Board that the city increase transit ridership to 11% of all city trips by 2030. “In contrast,” he ads ” Oakville has seen large increases in transit use as a result of higher funding and better service levels.” “Burlington’s politicians like to point to the survey by MoneySense magazine that rates our community as the most livable mid-size city in Canada,” Brown said. “But that same magazine notes Burlington is well down the list when it comes to walkability and transit.” Brown said adequate transit service is an investment, not an expense.  Bus drivers got a pay increase, some new buses arrived – but transit advocates say the city is still not spending enough on transit. “How much does it end up costing us when people without cars can’t get to their jobs? What’s the real cost of students not being able to take advantage of educational opportunities because Burlington Transit can’t get them to school on time? How much does it cost every taxpayer to own a second or even third car because they can’t rely on the transit system?” Council is set to vote on the 2016 budget on Jan. 25.. BFAST is a citizen’s group formed in 2012 to advocate for better transit in Burlington.
Ciné-Starz Upper Canada Place,
Week of Friday, January 15, 2016 through Thursday, January 21, 2016 Point Break (14A) Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip (G) In the Heart of the Sea (PG) Creed (14A) The Good Dinosaur (G) The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2 (PG) Spotlight (—) The Peanuts Movie (G) Spectre () The Martian (PG) Snowtime! (La Guerre des Tuques) (G)
January 12, 2016 BURLIGNTON, ON Finally – the city made Vito Tolone the Director of Transportation; he has served as the acting director since May 2015 and is a long-time city employee. Tolone has been with the city since 1990; has held various positions at the city, including transportation planner, project leader, supervisor of traffic signal systems and senior transportation planner.
“Vito is well regarded in the Ontario municipal sector and brings extensive experience to this role.” Tolone is a graduate of the Mohawk College Transportation Planning Technology program and a member of the Ontario Association of Certified Engineering Technicians and Technologists. The transportation department at the City of Burlington oversees the delivery of various road-related services, including the traffic signal system, traffic services, transportation planning, parking, and school crossing guards. If Burlington is going to function as a city people can move around in – Tolone is going to have to be right on top of how much in the way of financial resources are available to him to do the job. He knows the transportation field – will his advice and recommendations be heard?
January 12, 2016 BURLINGTON, ON There were hundreds of them. The kept streaming into the room and immediately headed for the table that had hundreds of donuts of every imaginable flavour laid out.  Tough to make a donut choice from a table like this. Later in the day when this small hoard of young people had to be fed the pizza was brought into the rooms on small trolleys. How did the Board of Education manage to get more than 500 young people out early on a Saturday morning? They were there to get the details on the robotics competition that Burlington students have been part of for 19 years. It is one of the city’s best kept secrets – the crime is that it is a secret – the event gets next to no media coverage.  They were an attentive audience – they were there to get the instructions they needed for the competition they were going to engage in. This was serious stuff. The daylong event took place at the Gary Allan High school and had participants from throughout the Region. The starting point was the broadcast of a video that was shown across North America to students in auditoriums who wanted to get the fundamentals of the robotics challenge.  Dave Hammel from MM Robinson and Director of Education Stewart Miller exchange a laugh during the first phase of the North American robotics competition. Under strict rules, limited resources, and the guidance of volunteer mentors including engineers, teachers, business professionals, parents, alumni and more, teams of 25+ students have just six weeks to build and program robots to perform challenging tasks against a field of competitors. They must also raise funds, design a team “brand,” hone teamwork skills, and perform community outreach. In addition to learning valuable STEM and life skills, participants are eligible to apply for $25+ million in college scholarships.  The challenge in the 2016 First robotics competition was to breach the castle stronghold of the other team – using robots to do the breaching. FIRST Robotics Competition Kickoff. The new game and playing field are unveiled and teams receive a Kickoff Kit made up of donated items and components worth tens of thousands of dollars – and only limited instructions. Working with adult Mentors, students have six weeks to design, build, program, and test their robots to meet the season’s engineering challenge. Once these young inventors build a robot, their teams will participate in one or more of the Regional and District events that measure the effectiveness of each robot, the power of collaboration, and the determination of students. The Gazette intends to follow the robotics team from Burlington Central High school and M M Robinson high school. Our first look at these two groups was an amazing time – we saw some of the brightest young people we have come across in this city. Stay tuned.
Burlington Green comments on Strategic Plan - will they be listened to? The comments are very valid.
January 12, 2016 BURLINGTON, ON BurlingtonGreen put its two cents on the table and gave city council and senior staff its views on the Strategic Plan that is currently out for public review. They made several significant points: One being that there wasn’t enough focus climate change and they wondered why there was a long term vision but not much in the way of a four year, single term of office document. Burlington Green isn’t the only group asking that question. Burlington Green’s Executive Director Amy Schnurr points to “the extensive community feedback” they received through their Greenprint for the Future outreach program where they learned what the citizens of Burlington had to say about a variety of local environmental issues.  Ice birgs are melting. “Both globally and locally, the health of the environment and need for effective, results-oriented action to ensure a sustainable future has never been more important. Municipalities have an essential role to play in combating climate change and must prioritize and integrate associated action strategies into short and long-term planning. Additionally, with Burlington currently facing the conflicting challenges of build-out and population growth, the associated issues of intensification, infill practices, habitat destruction, local food security, waste management and effective transportation, combine to make sustainable planning a top priority.” BurlingtonGreen strongly believes that climate change and the environment must be central to Burlington’s vision and planning going forward and respectfully offers the following input to aid the City in improving the draft Strategic Plan for 2015 to 2040. Issue: Strategic Plan versus Long Term Vision: we feel the current document represents a strategic vision, rather than a plan which requires specific, measurable time-bound strategies. Recommendation: Re position the document as “Burlington’s Vision for 2015 to 2040”and develop a five year Strategic Plan in consultation with the community, to implement the short and long term elements of the vision. Issue: The Vision Statement “Where people, nature, and business thrive” is missing the element of community context. Recommendation: Include the word “community”, so that the vision statement reads: “Where people, nature, business, and community thrive”.  Smoke stacks are killing us. Issue: Climate Change: the document makes no reference to this, the most important environmental and social issue of our times, and though some elements, such as the City’s carbon-neutral proposal, address it in part, there is no cohesive or strongly-stated strategy articulated. Cities must be on the front line of action in dealing with climate change, and Burlington needs to demonstrate clear leadership here. Recommendation: Add a fifth section to the plan dedicated to climate change because strategies dealing with climate change must include or involve all sections of the plan: not just health and environment, but also transportation and economic development and the type of growth we want to have and can sustain in the next twenty five years. If it is deemed that an additional section cannot be added then all document sections should be strengthened significantly to integrate climate change mitigation and adaptation planning strategies. Issue: A City that Grows: we support the thrust towards intensification and smart growth; however, there is insufficient recognition of the need to develop and preserve a livable and environmentally sustainable community, while promoting economic growth. Smart growth must advance strategic plans that respect nature’s biodiversity and our irreplaceable green spaces that Burlington is fortunate to have. This additional point is not only important for Burlington citizens, but is fundamental to promoting economic growth in a postmodern information economy. Reccomendation: Strengthen this section to clearly indicate that the vision is to absorb growth in the currently defined urban areas to support an economically strong, livable and environmentally sustainable community. Issue: A City that Moves: we strongly believe that a much greater focus on public transit and active transportation is required in the draft plan.  Do we have enough buses and are they the right size to meet the changing demand? Recommendation: Make Public Transit and Active Transportation priorities by creating a dedicated section specifically dealing with “public transit” and “active transportation options”, in coordination with the Region of Halton’s recently published Active Transportation Master Plan, and where necessary, work proactively with the Region to suggest any improvements to the Plan that are needed to meet Burlington’s specific requirements. Issue: A Healthy and Greener City: we find this section represents a fairly traditional approach to environment and more innovative and integrative thinking and strategies, with a strong focus on Climate Change are required.  Tree canopies like this take decades to mature – is there a plan in place to replace these trees when they begin to fail? It is streets like this that give Burlington much of its character and value. Recommendation: Review this section approaching urban and growth issues from an environmental point of view, and ensure the inclusion of important issues such as: Issue: A Healthy and Greener City: we find this section represents a fairly traditional approach to environment and more innovative and integrative thinking and strategies, with a strong focus on Climate Change are required.  Do we have a rural farmland policy? Recommendation: Review this section approaching urban and growth issues from an environmental point of view, and ensure the inclusion of important issues such as:  A rapt audience listens to an overview of a budget – did they have any real input ? Issue: Recommendation: Advance plans to stimulate meaningful citizen engagement with respect to growth and environmental issues. Burlington Green has been consistent with its plea that the public be listened to and heard. They argue that the City’s Strategic Plan for 2015-2040 “must reflect this commitment; they hope the constructive input and recommendations provided make it into the final document.
January 8th 2016 BURLINGTON, ON Strategic plans are by seldom an easy read. They are however important – they set out where the politicians you elected want to see growth take place. There was a time when Burlington had acres of farm land that was developed over time – the two malls we have were once very productive farmland at a time when Burlington was known around the word for the quality of its produce.  The city – then a town – was once a produce garden known around the world. We grew and we now need a strategy to guide the growth, We shipped so much fresh fruit and vegetables that the railway had two tracks coming into what was then a town. That was then – developers bought that farmland and put up a parking lot and added some stores along the edges. The old Burlington began to change and the downtown core that once was a place where people did gather began to wither.  Strategic Plan is based on four strategic directions. The city believes it needs a Strategic Plan and spends a considerable amount of time and significant financial resources putting a document together and looking for public comment. This report takes material from the draft report and adds comments to put what the draft Strategic Plan is saying in context. See the draft plan as a piece of sales literature with one side of the story. The Gazette has added comment based on its five years of covering this council and attendance at all the meetings for the 2011 Strategic Plan and most of the meetings for the plan that is ready for public comment. The commentary is set out in bold italic. Everything your city council wants to have happen in Burlington as it grows – and the city has to grow because the province says we must – is pinned to the four strategic directions. There was no public input on the choice of those four strategic directions. They came out of discussion and debate and wordsmithed by the consultants. Each of these has a list of strategic initiatives the city will undertake and then a list of progress indicators telling us what real progress has been made. Council wants to promote economic growth. Local incomes have risen and Burlington continues to be a prosperous city due to the co-ordinated action of the city, region, province, educational institutions and industry. The very significant increases in the selling prices of housing has made a difference as well; a recent report had the increase at the 9.2% year over year level. More people who live in Burlington, work in Burlington and targets for employment lands have been met (15,000 new knowledge-based jobs by 2025) through the creation of an employment lands vision to unite the community, developers and industry.  An empty lot on the North Service Road at Walkers Line was to be the home of a new IKEA – that didn’t work out but a six storey office building got built a couple of hundred yards away. The development community has been banging away at council to let quite a bit of the land set aside for employment be converted and used instead for housing – which is a lot more profitable. The draft report claims that employment lands are connected to the community and region and include transportation links and options that are easy to access and contribute to a sustainable and walk able community. That statement is more than a bit of a stretch. A report earlier this week in the Spectator said that those who attended the Pan Am games didn’t make much use of public transit – and there is nothing wrong with the GO service. Burlington hasn’t taken to the idea of public transit yet. When a significant number of seniors find that they can’t drive or find the traffic too congested to drive – they will make their concerns known to council and then watch how quickly city council comes onside and starts spending the gas tax rebates on transit – which is what they were intended for. Small businesses contributes to the creation of complete neighbourhoods. Commerce aligns with land-use planning goals so that residents are close to goods and services. Innovative, entrepreneurial businesses have settled or developed in Burlington. The city has helped create the technological support, business supports, infrastructure and educational environment to attract start-ups and growing businesses. The people who write these reports keep saying things that are just not true – they seem to feel that if they say something often enough it will become true.  This just isn’t a vibrant downtown – the site has been sold with yet another condominium being planned for the site – right opposite city hall. Two statements that need to be dealt with honestly – Burlington’s downtown is vibrant and thriving with greater intensification. The downtown isn’t vibrant – hasn’t been vibrant for a long, long time. Better minds than mine may know how to make it vibrant – but we aren’t there yet. Much of the rural property is in the hands of speculators who limit what can be done with the land. There are farmers north of Dundas that would like to grow different crops but the owners of the property limit what they can grow. The City of Burlington’s rural areas will be economically and socially vibrant, producing commodities and providing unique recreational activities for the city. How will Burlington make the growth wanted actually happen? These are some examples of actions and measures of success: Create an employment lands vision that drives investment and growth in the Prosperity Corridors.
Develop and put in place a redevelopment and intensification strategy for the Prosperity Corridors Build one economic development brand for the City of Burlington that reflects the city’s economic development vision Develop a holistic strategy for Burlington’s rural area. This strategy will consider economic, social and environmental factors in support of the rural community, agricultural industry, natural heritage and water resources Develop a post-secondary attraction strategy.  Something along these lines was planned for Burlington’s downtown core – but McMaster stifed the city when a nicer deal came along. There was a time when the DeGroote campus now on the South Service Road was going to be downtown on land that is currently the Elizabeth Street parking lot. That on got away on us. There has been some rumbling about perhaps getting some of the Mohawk College courses delivered in Burlington. Mohawk president Ron McKerlie says that isn’t going to happen. The one post-secondary institution we did have pulled up their stakes and moved on.
Create and invest in a system that supports the start-up and growth of businesses and entrepreneurship. There are a lo of people who would love to know what such a system would look like. The role of government is to create the conditions needed for economic growth and then stay out of the way and let business people do what they do best. Keep the taxes low – provide services that people need fix the pot holes and keep the snow off the roads and sidewalks. Progress indicators: • Median household income will rise There is a bit of a problem with this list of data – the city does not have a demographer on staff and without one it will be very difficult to report on any of the above. There was no mention made of hiring a demographer during the strategic plan discussions. Intensification: Growth is being achieved in mixed-use nodes and corridors, including mobility hubs and urban centres.  The city defined four possible “mobility hubs” They appear to have settled on the Aldershot location. Mobility hubs are developed near each GO Station and in the downtown. Aging plazas are being redeveloped and transformed into mixed-use neighbourhood hubs. New/transitioning neighbourhoods are being designed to promote easy access to amenities, services and employment areas with more opportunities for walking, cycling and using public transit. Older neighbourhoods are important to the character of Burlington and intensification will be carefully managed to respect this character. Energy-efficient buildings and other onsite sustainable features are the norm, thereby improving Burlington’s environmental footprint. Existing buildings are being renovated to improve efficiency. Intensification is planned so that growth is financially sustainable and supported by appropriate funding and service delivery. Burlington has an urban core that has higher densities, green space and amenities, is culturally active and is home to a mix of residents and businesses. Architecture, sustainable buildings and urban design excellence are being achieved through a commitment to creating public spaces where people can live, work or gather. The city will create and implement an awards program to recognize and celebrate excellence in architecture, urban design and sustainability in all developments.  Waterdown Road was recently widened from Hwy 403 to Plains Road. As part of an intensification exercise the planners prepared visualizations of what that Road could look like if there were some commercial development. This is what they thought possible.  This is what Waterdown Road north of Plains Road looks like today. How will Burlington make this happen? Strategic Initiatives: Through policy, the city will influence the redevelopment of aging plazas and transform them into mixed-use neighbourhood hubs. The city will work with Halton Region and other partners to develop a servicing plan for intensification areas. The city will conduct and implement an intensification plan that will include a specific focus on the Urban Growth Centre, and will develop a strategy for the downtown core that will promote residential and appropriate niche/boutique office development The city will develop energy and sustainable site feature guidelines to require new/ renewed buildings to promote energy-efficient technologies. The city will complete a city-wide fiscal impact analysis of all forms of development The city will put in place the recommendations of Core Commitment in the downtown and extend, where possible, recommendations to other urban centres. The city will create an independent capacity study to understand and comment on real estate economics and trends. The city will create a design review panel and put in place an awards program to achieve excellence in architecture, urban design and sustainability. Progress Indicators: Percentage of aging commercial plazas that have redeveloped Percentage of mobility hubs that are developed Intensification (Jobs/people per hectare) for mobility hubs, urban centres, urban corridors, commercial plazas and urban employment areas. Smart Population Growth: How will Burlington make this happen? Strategic Initiatives:  Fairview was seen as a street with people walking and lanes for cyclists. That’s not what it is today. Future development will be higher density, walkable, accessible and transit- oriented. The city will become a leader in walkability scores in the province, and will be fully aligned with provincial strategy and goals. The city will prioritize one mobility hub, and will work with partners to ensure resources are available to allow the development to proceed in a timely way. The prioritized hub will be included in the Official Plan and Transportation Master Plan. Stakeholders will be consulted to help gain consensus. Within two years, the city will develop a strategy in co-operation with other levels of government to support young families: Housing supply will allow young families and newcomers to locate in Burlington Within four years, the city will develop an economic migrant outreach and liaison office to attract investor/entrepreneur class immigrants, while remaining a destination of choice for all immigrants, including refugees. An Age Friendly strategy for seniors will be developed within three years to ensure sufficient seniors’ programming space is provided throughout the city. The city will improve its ability to monitor, track and understand Burlington’s demographic growth trends and profile. If you give them enough rope – they eventually hang themselves – what’s with all the “within” dates? Do your best and try not to set yourselves up for failure by attaching a specific date to something you may have little control over. Progress Indicators: More data is always nice – the capacity to make decisions is what taxpayers both look for and expect. The remaining three Strategic Directions will be detailed in a follow up article. There are three more public information sessions on the draft Strategic Plan; January 13 and January 18th.
January 11th, 2016 BURLINGTON, ON The Halton Regional Police Service Human Trafficking and Vice Unit (HTVU) have arrested a Burlington male for trafficking a person under 18 years of age. On January 8th 2016, the HTVU arrested Troy Terrance TAYLOR (21 years of age) for several human trafficking offences. The investigation revealed that TAYLOR had been trafficking a female minor for the purposes of sexual exploitation for a prolonged period of time. Troy Terrance TAYLOR was charged with the following offences: • Forcible Confinement – Section 279(2) TAYLOR will appear in Milton Court on January 11th 2016. Investigators believe that TAYLOR is not involved with trafficking any unknown victims at this time.
January 12, 2016 BURLINGTON, ON An information release from the office of MP Karina Gould announces that Not-for-profit organizations, public-sector employers and small businesses with 50 or fewer employees looking to hire full-time workers for summer 2016 can now apply for funding under the Canada Summer Jobs (CSJ) program.  Summer employment has been the beginning of a lot of careers. CSJ creates summer job opportunities and valuable work experience specifically for youth aged 15 to 30 intending to return to their studies in the next school year. The program’s aim is also to help employers create summer job opportunities that focus on priorities important to their local communities, which could include special events such as sporting or cultural occasions. In Burlington, the priorities focus on local special events and festivals, advanced manufacturing, tourism, and organizations that provide programs and services for seniors or disadvantaged community groups, but all eligible applicants are encouraged to apply. It is hoped that a number of employers will come forward with applications which will also complement a number of national priorities, including support for: • employers who help welcome and settle Syrian refugees to Canada, as well as Syrian students; The application period runs from January 4, 2016, to February 26, 2016. Applicants approved for funding will be able to hire students as early as May 2016.  An education is part of getting a job – some experience helps. For further information and to apply, please visit www.servicecanada.gc.ca/csj or visit a Service Canada Centre. Canada Summer Jobs is part of the Government of Canada’s Youth Employment Strategy, which is its commitment to help young people, particularly those facing barriers to employment, get the information and gain the skills, work experience and abilities they need to make a successful transition into the labour market.
January 11th, 2016 BURLINGTON, ON Transparency and accountability are words that flow out of city hall – every organization uses the words – it is often difficult to see any meat on those bones. There are also a number of organizations that get funding from various sources; grants and donations seem to be the biggest sources.  John Mello with one of the Whinstone stones that are a part of the history of the station – there is a work day coming up when the things have to be moved. The Friends of Freeman station have produced a report that sets out what they brought in in terms of funds and how they spent them. This level of transparency and accountability is a model for all the non-profits in the city – the public has a right to know what you are doing with the funds that you get. For Friends of Freeman – here is their story. Consolidated Financials: To date we have raised about $260,000 which represents about 50% of the estimated cost to restore the station and make it a viable asset to our community. Construction materials, including lumber, paint, hardware, tools….. 11%  John Aasgaard with some of the pictures that are in the Freeman Station collection.  Grill being fitted into the wicket of the Station Master’s office. Our organization is 100% unpaid volunteers. Things slow down a little in the winter – but donations and volunteers are always accepted – the xxx stones are going to get moved soon – strong backs needed for that task. Set out below are the chores that are waiting to get done along with some meetings. when the Missus wants you out of the house the Station is a pretty good place to scoot over to. January 13th – 7 PM – FOFS Board meeting – City Hall – all members welcome
January 11, 2016 BURLINGTON, ON Revised with additional police information. It was cold out there last night – police report that a male was seen breaking into cars in the area of Walkers Line and Medland Drive, in the City of Burlington. Police responded and after a short foot pursuit an adult male was taken into custody. A quantity of property was recovered, but officers are unable to determine how many vehicles in the area may have been entered. The first call to the police was at 12:55 AM, when a resident of Medland Drive as woken by a sound outside and looked to see a male wearing a black hooded jacket rummaging through his vehicle which was parked in the driveway. The male then exited the vehicle and walked away in a southbound direction at which time police were called. As a result of a canine track, the male was located hiding behind a tree on Walkers Line where he attempted to run from police however he was quickly apprehended after a brief physical confrontation where he tried to resist being arrested. The male was found to have a significant amount of property in his possession that was believed to have been stolen from other vehicles. This property consisted of change, metal cigarette container, sunglasses, several bottles of cologne & aftershave, gift cards, blue headband, silver pendant and a Toronto Maple Leafs hockey puck. The owners of this property have yet to be identified. Anyone missing such items are encouraged to call the investigating officer. Arrested and held for bail is: Michael Kenneth MORSE (34 yrs) of Main Street West in Hamilton Charges: Anyone with information are asked to contact Det. Ellie Bale of the Burlington Criminal Investigations Bureau – Residential Crime Team at 905-825-4747 Ext. 2312 or anonymously through Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477). The Halton Police are continuing their investigation – they may well be getting calls from drivers who have discovered their cars were broken into last night. If you have any information regarding this theft investigation, or you may be a possible victim, call us at 905-925-4747.
January 11th, 2016 BURLINGTON, ON
It was fine event – came off without a hitch and was different enough for people to perhaps return to next year. It was the New Year’s Levee sponsored by the MP and the MPP for Burlington and they basically ate the Mayor’s lunch.  It was a very respectable crowd – the public clearly wanted to take part in a New Year’s Levee. In Ontario the Levee has traditionally been a civic event. While MP Gould and MPP McMahon were doing their thing Oakville mayor Rob Burton was holding his levee. Burlington gave up on levees sometime ago. No one knows where Mayor Goldring was – we didn’t see him.  Levee participants were given the run of the Art Gallery and an opportunity to see how the politicians handled some of the equipment. MPP Eleanor McMahon tried her hand at one of the looms – she seemed surprised that she was able to make something. Gould and McMahon found a way to make the event more than just a bunch of speeches – they used the Art Gallery of Burlington as a backdrop and had tour guides to tell people what was done in the various Guild’s that were open. It worked very well and gave the Art Gallery of Burlington more visitors than they get normally. One of those win – win situations.  MP Karina Gould enjoying a moment with two new Canadians at the New Year’s Day Levee held on Sunday. And they found a few ways to include the ethnic communities by handing out the very attractive folder that new Canadians are given with their Citizenship certificates There were 109 of those certificates to be handed out – they didn’t all show up – but many of them did and they were made to feel very welcome.  Citizenship certificates for new Canadians – there were 109 of them on hand. It was a family event – there were art rooms for the kids to draw and paint. There were several food tables set up- strawberries dipped in chocolate, nibblies and coffee, tea and juices. There was no receiving line – and the two woman chose to be very casual. One of the Deputy Police chief’s was on hand – not in uniform. It was casual, easy going and an opportunity to network like crazy.  Oakville North Burlington MP Pam Damoff is shown how wool is prepared for a spinning wheel. Pam Damoff, the MP for Oakville North Burlington wasn’t front and center – she got tied down at the Oakville Levee (held by the Mayor over there) – happens when your constituency bridges the two municipalities. There are in Burlington those old timers who remember the days when the New Year’s Levee took place at city hall. One such city stalwart got into his car with his wife and drove to the Art Gallery New Year’s Day at the appointed hour – found the parking lot empty and is reported to have said to his wife – what if you had a party and nobody came. Yesterday they did come – thanks to MP Karina Gould and MPP Eleanor McMahon for holding the event. Jazz it up and bit and keep it fresh.
January 10, 2016 BURLINGTON,ON When it rains, many of the people in the east end of the city – especially if they live in the Tuck Creek – Regal Road part of town look up to the sky and at the level of water in the creek if they live close to one.  Tuck Creek has not gone over its banks – but we didn’t get that much rain – unsettling to the people who live along that creek. It will be a decade before they trust the banks of those creeks and whatever the city and the Region or the Conservation Authority have put in place to manage exceptionally high rain. It was a very small proportion of Burlington’s population that suffered from the rain that fell for a solid day and dumped 191 MM of rain in a single day.  Tuck Creek – fast running water – and not all that much rain. The provincial government did come through with funding and the community raised just shy of $1 million in a 100 day time frame to help with the devastation 272 family underwent. Recovering from that flood was a magnificent act on the part of the citizens and the commercial community. The pictures of Tuck Creek that accompany this article were taken by Carol Gottlob who gets passionate about the state of the creeks – especially Tuck creek. The water levels are high – and there wasn’t that much rain. Has Tuck Creek been upgraded, repaired, fixed – whatever it needs to prevent the flooding we experienced in 2014?  A full day of rain made this happen – have the fixes that were needed been put in place to prevent this kind of flooding? The flood experience changed many lives forever – the financial support helped – but those properties are not worth what they used to be. Background: A reader asked if we would provide a link to a more detailed report on the flood and how it happened.
January 9th, 2015 BURLINGTON, ON Respectfully, I must disagree with Premier Kathleen Wynne that the LCBO should control marijuana sales in Ontario. If the only issue associated with selling recreational drugs like tobacco, alcohol and marijuana was just keeping them out of reach of our youth during their formative years then I would agree. I would also add that the LCBO and Brewers Retail are models of environmentally friendly packaging and recycling. Bravo.
Recreation drug policy goals should include educating the public on the risks associated with recreational drug use, with a long term objective to decrease demand. I believe in a “least harm” approach to guide marijuana decriminalization. I believe that current marijuana laws are more harmful to society and the individual than marijuana use itself. I support marijuana legalization, provided marijuana consumption is regulated to reduce harm to the individual and society. We should not allow large powerful corporations in this business as they become too powerful and difficult to control. For example, because the LCBO is so powerful, we are currently stuck with a system which promotes and encourages alcohol consumption to the benefit of other large corporations and small producers cannot compete fairly with large corporations. We should not make the same mistakes with the emerging recreational marijuana industry as we already made with the recreational alcohol industry, that are now difficult to change.  Marijuana on sale $8 a gram – wide selection. The marijuana industry should be deliberately regulated as sole proprietorships and partnerships to maintain control and create the maximum number of small businesses and jobs. Corporations with limited liability and profit sharing should be kept out of the recreational marijuana industry. Only those directly involved should share the risk and reward of marijuana production, distribution and sales. No profit sharing with limited liability. Overt public advertising should be prohibited, respecting the rights of parents to control what their children know and people who don’t want to see, hear or know about it. A simple standardized symbol over the door of a discreet marijuana cafe is enough.
Corporate control of the marijuana industry, which promotes consumption could lead to marijuana becoming as big of a problem for the individual and society as alcohol is now. If we can’t implement this change in a way that reduces harm to the individual and society, then I would rather marijuana remained illegal with a punitive fine for possession.
January 8th, 2016 BURLINGTON, ON
Week 1 – Raymond FRENCH (WANTED) Week 2 – Curtis KOMP (ARRESTED FOUR DAYS AFTER THE RELEASE) Week 3 – Kenneth MOODIE (WANTED) Week 4 – Scottie RYERSON (ARRESTED SAME DAY OF RELEASE) Week 5 – Mark AUBERTIN (ARRESTED IN HAMILTON) Week 6 – Michael RAMSAY (ARRESTED) Week 7 – Milan SUCHY and Blanka DOLEZALOVA (WANTED – PARTIES RESIDING OUT WEST, ONGOING EFFORTS TO EXECUTE WARRANTS) Week 8 – Sean KELLY (WANTED) and Jessica HAYNES (ARRESTED) Sean remains wanted on outstanding charges for Fraud Under $5000, Theft Under $5000, Personation with Intent and Fail to Re-Attend Court. Week 9 – Bryon BULLIED (WANTED) Outstanding charges include Theft under $5000 x 3, Unauthorized use of a Credit Card x 3, Fail to Comply with Undertaking, Breach of Probation Order Week 10 – Brennen BOWLEY (ARRESTED) Week 11 – Corey Rodgers (ARRESTED) Week 12 – Marcin SYDOR (WANTED) The accused is also wanted by Hamilton Police for Fraud over $5000, Fraud under $5000 x 7, Breach of Probation, Fail to Comply Recognizance x 2, Breach of Undertaking x 2, Possess – Use of Credit Card x 29 Week 13 – Michael CRICK (ARRESTED), Ashley JACOBS (WANTED) ( JACOBS currently residing in Quebec, efforts on-going to execute her warrants) CRICK was wanted Theft under $5000 x 2, Fail to Re-Attend Court and Fail to Comply Probation Week 14 – Ahmad ALAMI (ARRESTED) Week 15 – Beth MICHAUD (ARRESTED) Week 16 – Darnell PARCHMENT-YATES (ARRESTED) Week 17 – Korde HILL (WANTED) HILL is also wanted by Six Nations Police Service for Possession of Break and Enter Instruments, Occupy Motor Vehicle without Consent and Possession of CDSA Week 18 – Matthew PARSONS (WANTED) Week 19 – Ryan Andrew WOOD (WANTED) (Believed to be in BC, efforts on-going to execute warrant) He is also wanted by Hamilton Police Service for Possession for the Purpose of Trafficking – Schedule II, Production Schedule II – Marihuana and Fail to Re-Attend Court Week 20 – Joshua WEEDMARK (WANTED) Week 21 – Christian Stuart DRENNAN (ARRESTED) Week 22 – Brennan HOWE-PATTISON (ARRESTED) Week 23 – Trevor Grant ADAMS (ARRESTED) Week 24 – Michael DAWE (ARRESTED) Week 25 – Vezio CARDULLO (ARRESTED) Week 26 – Beth MICHAUD (ARRESTED) Week 27 – Jordan MILLER (WANTED) Also wanted by Brant OPP and Brantford Police Week 28 – Donald Ray McGILL (ARRESTED) Week 29 – Scott MacDONALD (ARRESTED) Week 30 – Nicholas SAWADSKI (ARRESTED) Week 31 – Samantha Rose DUNLOP (WANTED) Week 32 – JASON KEARNS (ARRESTED) Week 33 – Rob NELSON (ARRESTED) Week 34 – Benjamin BRZEZINSKI (ARRESTED) Week35 – Kerry Lee HENWOOD (WANTED) There are numerous people who continue to evade the police and the court system and continue to live out in our communities while having a warrant for their arrest in place. Every Friday, the Burlington Offender Management Unit will share information on a wanted person in hopes that the public can assist in locating the individual. The police share “Fugitive Friday” information on their website and via social media through Twitter @HRPSBurl and @HaltonPolice. “The 2015 Fugitive Friday project has been a success as the sharing of information publicly has led to numerous wanted person being arrested and brought to court to answer to the charges against them. It is due to our concerned community, those that helped spread the wanted information via social media, that we have affected 23 arrests out of 37 wanted persons” said Detective Constable Calvin Bulbrook, the officer who brought the idea to Burlington.. Anyone who may have witnessed these wanted persons or has information that would assist investigators in locating them are encouraged to contact D/C Bulbrook – Burlington Criminal Investigations Bureau – Offender Management Team at 905-825-4747 Ext. 2346 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS), or through the web at www.haltoncrimestoppers.com, or by texting “Tip201” with your message to 274637 (crimes). Comment on the Fugitive Friday initiative and the role media plays.
January 8th, 2016 BURLINGTON, ON The Halton Regional Police released the results of their Friday Fugitive initiative today – the results are impressive – 23 of the 37 people they were looking for were arrested. Pictures of each of the wanted people, provided to us by the police, were published by the Gazette.  Publishing this picture now is entertainment. Some of these people had very long criminal histories and would appear to still be living the life of a criminal. Several were preying on older people unable to protect themselves. Many of the people the police were looking for were wanted for failing to appear before a judge once they were released on bail.  Is publishing this picture also entertainment – the person happens to be a very dangerous individual. The police spend a lot of time and financial resources apprehending the people wanted for committing criminal acts. They get to court and are released on bail – which means the police have to go looking for them all over again.  Jails are expensive places to operate. Should we jail people who fail to appear for a court hearing? If we don’t – what happens to public respect for the justice system? Keep them in jail would seem to be the sensible thing to do. Problem with that is keeping people in jail is an expensive proposition. The criminal justice system seems to prefer to let them out and then have them re-arrested. Cheaper – but it also impacts on the respect the public has for the criminal justice system. For the rule of law to be effective there has to be strong public respect for that rule of law. Without it – we slide into anarchy and that is not a pretty picture.  Commonly called “super max” it is a provincial jail in Penetang where dangerous people are kept for long periods o time. There are frequent riots at this jail. We are a civilized society with some very intelligent people working at the justice ministry – the public deserves to have the problem of how we handle people who consistently fail to appear in court when they are released on bail. Our member of the provincial legislature might want to tackle this problem and see what she can get done. As we reviewed the Fugitive Friday initiative, looking at the pictures of the people the police wanted to apprehend we were struck by the number of very young men who had run afoul of the law. Some of them were not much beyond boys and we wondered if we were serving a useful purpose by publishing their pictures know that once on the internet they are there for a long time – a long long time. The Gazette has heard from several of those the police arrested in the past asking us to take down their picture. Is that our role? Are we to be the judges of whose picture stays up and whose picture does not remain in the public domain? One young man had several people write on his behalf – and we took the picture off the internet – but that really isn’t the role media plays. At some point some prominent personality will have a relative or a family member that got themselves into a spot of trouble, made it into the media and asked if we could just quietly delete what was written. It troubles us – is that our role? We don’t think so. Do we remove all those who have been arrested and just keep those the police are still looking for? Whose interests did we serve by publishing the results of the 2015 Fugitive Friday successes? Do we know if the people who were wanted were actually found guilty? What if they were acquitted – do we have the right to keep the “wanted by the police” information on the Gazette web site?
January 8th, 2016 BURLINGTON, ON Is here a threat to the nascent growth that has been percolating in the cultural field in Burlington? Last year there were a number of events that took place which added to the health of local culture – one being the national Culture Days initiative that was developed to create a source of information on events taking place across the country and to promote those events. Local artists could post their event and communities were encouraged to work locally with artists from every discipline possible.  Donna Grandid, a noted Burlington artists was front and center during a recent Culture Days event. Burlington climbed aboard the Culture Days train last year and the year before that and the sense was that the city would continue to put resources into the event. Why not ? – the view appears to be that if artists want the event to happen – then let them make it happen. Burlington’s growth as a cultural destination is not yet at the point where it can fly on its own; it is going to need nurturing for a number of years. Burlington has a manager of culture events who has some support from a part time assistant. There are times when culture file gets very busy and additional support is needed.  Angela Paparizo and Trevor Copp – both strong advocates for a more robust Burlington with a higher cultural profile. Angela Paparizo is the manager of culture events and was reporting to the one general manager the city had. It isn’t clear yet who Paparizo will report to now that the city no longer has any general managers. The understanding is that city manager James Ridge now chairs the Cultural Action Plan implementation committee. There was some talk that the culture file will move back into Parks and Recreation where it languished for years. Culture and sports are two different animals and in Burlington they have not mixed very well in the past. Fortunately for the arts crowd, the city is in the process of finalizing its operations budget – this is the time for the arts community to delegate and ensure that the gains they have made do not get lost while the city manager figures out what he wants in the way of an organizational structure. Ridge is focused on getting a Strategic Plan in place; getting a budget approved and then getting back to the Official Plan review that sort of got put on hold. While there is a Cultural Action Plan along with a Committee to implement that plan, other than the city manager’s blessing it doesn’t appear to have much more propelling it. The Strategic Plan has cultural arms and legs sticking out all over the place – but as one commentator put it – is the city going to walk the talk? There is that old phrase that reporters use when they want to figure out what’s going on – follow the money. How much has been allocated to culture? And then where are the human resources to support what has to be done if culture is to get to the point where it has lift off. The city has an excellent Performing Arts Centre that has experienced several years of strong successes; the Art Gallery has new leadership – the Museums are still there with Ireland House is a sterling example of how local history can be made part of the cultural scene. Poor Joseph Brant is not getting the same treatment – but with different leadership that too might change.  Maureen Barry, CEO of the Burlington Public Library and a consummate professional has overseen the move deeper into electronic media yet keeping real books on shelves. There is a clear cluster of cultural nodes in this city – they need to be pulled together and given strong executive leadership. Who could do that – Maureen Barry – she will shoot me for saying this – but she is one of the best executives we have in the city with a better big picture of culture than anyone else on the horizon. That’s just an opinion.
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