 By Staff
BURLINGTON, ON October 26, 2012 A 52 year old Hamilton woman was killed in a car collision on South Service Road at Harvester Road at around 5:15 Thursday evening.
Earlier in the day the United Way had held a rousingly successful fund raising event when three Food Trucks were feeding line-ups that got to more than 200 people.
The very serious two car collision involved a black Buick Rendezvous that was westbound on Harvester Road when it collided with a silver Pontiac Grand Am that was attempting to turn from the eastbound lanes of Harvester onto northbound South Service Road. The Buick broadsided the Pontiac.
A passenger in the Pontiac, a 52 year old Hamilton woman, was pronounced dead at the scene. The driver of the Pontiac, and a 41 year old female and another passenger; a 23 year old male, both of Hamilton, were taken to Joseph Brant Memorial Hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
Two passengers in the Buick, a 22 year old male and a 20 year old male (both from Burlington) were taken to Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital with non-life threatening injuries. The driver of the Buick, a 21 year old Burlington male, was not injured and was arrested at the scene of the accident
The decedent had to be extricated from the wreckage by firefighters.
Several witnesses have come forward and provided statements to police.
Due to the fatality, members of the Collision Reconstruction Unit (C.R.U.) attended the scene and took carriage of the investigation. Reconstructionists spent over six hours at the location collecting evidence and measuring the scene.
Police will not be releasing the names of the decedent or the injured persons.
Charged with Impaired Operation Causing Death, Dangerous Operation Causing Death and two counts of Failing to Comply with Probation is Kyrie McKay, 21 of Burlington.
McKay will be held for a Bail Hearing scheduled for Friday October 26th at the Milton Courthouse.
This was the 9th traffic fatality to be investigated in Halton Region for 2012; the second in the City of Burlington.
 By Margaret Lindsay Holton
BURLINGTON, ON October 26, 2012 Last Friday, a friend and I went in search of the mighty Chinook salmon that spawn in the upper reaches of Bronte Creek. After a solid trek through Bronte Provincial Park down to the creek edge we were quickly rewarded for our efforts. The shallows were teeming with mature salmon traveling up-stream towards Lowville to lay their eggs, and die. It was amazing to watch their progress, banging against rocks and shoals on route. Watching them engendered a kind of stupefying awe. It really was profound and time stopping in an ‘other-worldly’ kind of way. These primordial wild creatures operate on life cycles independent of our clock-watching species. They respond, instead, to the Earth’s position to the Sun.
I came away from this primal wildlife experience with a new found sense of the precarious and demanding aspects of hunting and fishing. The demarcation between ‘novice’ and ‘professional’ became acute. Fishing, when salmon are spawning, is not only irresponsible but stupid, as any pro will tell you. Yet novices and ‘weekend warriors’ were out in abundance on that balmy Friday – trolling, fly-casting and some were even baiting with mini-marshmallows. For these amateurs the thrill-of-the-catch far outweighed all other sensible considerations about the overall health of the species.
- Well-dressed fly-fisherman ignores the breeding basics of a successful spawning season. Picturesque: Yes. Responsible: No.
In today’s business world, the ‘catch’ is certainly different, but the fundamental rules of a responsible and successful hunt remain the same. First off, one must know the habits and habitats of one’s prey, including breeding cycles. Once that is appreciated, the hunter must carefully prepare for the hunt. During the hunt itself, the hunter has to become a cagey and attentive ‘stalker’. If these elements are all performed successfully, yes, you will eventually ‘harvest’ your trophy.
In our day and age, high above the banks of Bronte Creek, these ancient rituals of successful hunting are now applied to ‘harvest’ money. It helps to have a ‘mentor’.
Nick Bontis, business professor at McMaster University’s DeGroote School of Business, and one of the judges for Hamilton’s entrepreneurial mentoring Lion’s Lair, affirmed to CBC Hamilton – “The skills of entrepreneurship don’t come naturally.” To get in the door, and to catch the eye of the Big Gamer, one needs a viable ‘pitch’, or in hunting parlance, ‘good bait’. (… And we ain’t talking mini-marshmallows here …)
Donald Trump’s tried-and-true business mentoring program, ‘The Apprentice’, spawned similar mentoring programs, like CBC’s very popular Dragon’s Den. https://www.cbc.ca/dragonsden/ These shows allow ‘unorthodox’ dreamers and schemers an opportunity to engage with those who have proven business acumen – as well as scads of investing capital. Novices can, will, and do learn a great deal from these Big Game hunters.
In Halton, the De Groote School of Business, the Royal Bank of Canada and the Rotary Clubs of Halton have recently set up a similar business mentoring forum, the Python Pit. https://pythonspit.ca/ Python Pit judges are offering inventive entrepreneurs (aka dreamers and schemers) a chance too to get a piece of the pie.
 What if you could turn your ideas into money? Graphic courtesy PythonPit.ca With $150,000 up for grabs, these Big Gamers have formed two groups: an open division for adults, and a high school division for aspiring youth. The open division competitors will receive investment capital from the Pythons in return for an equity stake in their business or product idea. (Remember, predator and prey is what it’s all about … ) High school students will receive cash prizes and be eligible for scholarships.
 Chinook salmon caught in Bronte Creek, 2012. ‘Novice’ hunter needs to know the basics. Better to leave the salmon in the Creek so it can lay eggs further up-stream to revitalize the species. Responsible hunting IS successful hunting. Consider that old Chinese proverb, ‘Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.’ For budding entrepreneurs – “Don’t swim upstream, you’ll die there. Swim downstream, where awaits the ocean … ” Finally, here is some practical and sound advice from that all-round Big Gamer – Sir Richard Branson:
 They are pythons – this is what they do. Do you have what it takes to move from a ‘novice’ or ‘weekend warrior’ to a full-time ‘professional’? Aspiring entrepreneurs have until December 1st to submit their applications to the Python Pit.
Remember, the key is ‘fresh bait’.
In today’s terms, that means a GOOD IDEA.
Now, go get ‘em …
Margaret Lindsay Holton is both an environmentalist and a community activist. She is an artist of some renown and the designer of a typeface. She is also a photographer and the holder of opinions, which are her own, that she will share with you in an instant. She appears as an Our Burlington columnist every two weeks. All photographs are by MLH unless otherwise indicated.
 By Staff
BURLINGTON, ON October 26, 2012 The Halton Regional Police Service Guns & Gangs Unit conducted a three week long investigation after receiving information from uniform patrol about alleged heroin trafficking in the City of Burlington.
On October 25th, 2012 investigators concluded their investigation after the arrest of male seen leaving a residence and found in possession of heroin. A short time later the alleged trafficker was arrested in Burlington and found in possession of several packages of heroin and cash.
The police raided a residence at 2050 Upper Middle Road, (they had a search warrant) in Burlington. Investigators seized a small quantity of marihuana, a small marihuana grow operation and a variety of prescription pills. The estimated street value of the drugs seized is $ 3000. Two replica pellet pistols were also seized for further investigation.
This is small potatoes – hopefully during the three week investigation the police got a look at the food chain and now know who is supplying the drugs.
Charged are:
Eric MORRISON 20 years of age from Dundas, with Possession of a Controlled Substance-Heroin. Released for court.
Nathanial KING 22 years of age from Burlington, with Trafficking in a Controlled Substance-Heroin and Possession for the Purpose – Heroin. Held for Bail.
Ken INGRAM 44 years of age from Burlington, with Production of a Controlled Substance- Marihuana, Possession of a Controlled Substance – 2 counts. Released for court.
Investigators remind the public to utilize Crime Stoppers to report on any illegal drug, gang, or gun, activity 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS)\
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON October 25, 2012 Awesome – a much overused word but it certainly applied to the several hundred people in the parking lot at 3425 Harvester Road at noon today.
The United Way was running a really novel idea – get a bunch of Food Trucks to park in one place and invite people to walk over for lunch – with 10% of the proceeds going to the United Way. You would expect some people to show up – wouldn’t you.
 When people get into lines this long – you know something is going on. The United Way came up with a great idea – put Food Trucks in parking lots and earn a portion of the revenue for the cause. Great idea – and it worked. Some people – more than 300 people stood in line to buy lunch. The Cup Cake Diner didn’t think the crowd would be all that large and because their product is good for just the day it is baked they arrived with enough product to last them for the first half hour of the two hour event.
 The Cup Cake Diner sold out in half an hour Gayle Cruikshank of Food for Thought, one of the United Way agencies came up with the idea as a way for the agencies served by the United Way to do their own thing to help with the fund raising. Cruikshank had no idea the line ups would be like this.
 When people eventually got to the front of the line – they found it was worth the wait. Yummy. Mayor Goldring was on his way into city hall for a meeting and thought he’d drop by for lunch – the line ups were too long and he had to pass up on the chance to eat and help out.
Clearly Cruikshank and the United Way people are on to something.
Food Trucks are an “in” thing right now; a different approach to lunch.
 Two food trucks were open for business in a parking lot. A third, Cup Cake Diner sold out within a half an hour. Cruikshank would like to hold a couple more of these and thinks holding one in the downtown core would work very well. There are other parking lots along Mainway that would work very well. Parking five or six trucks in one location would ease the line ups and Cruikshank thinks John Street leading into city hall would work quite well.
 They lined up for a premium grilled cheese sandwich. The window of opportunity is pretty small – colder weather is close – but if they move swiftly – this could happen. The folks at city hall that handle the paper to make things like this happen should be ready for applications.
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON October 25, 2012 Turns out the Minister of Transportation doesn’t like the idea of a highway through the Escarpment either but he isn’t sure what the next step should be.
He has the document on his desk – he doesn’t like what’s in it but he isn’t going to release the document until sometime in the first quarter of 2013. Given that the government isn’t sitting right now – there isn’t much anyone can say to the Minister in the Legislature.
The Liberal Party will have a new leader at the end of January and our Escarpment isn’t going to be at the top of that leaders agenda unless the Burlington provincial Liberal Association makes a big stink during the leadership race.
 Regional chair Gary Carr on the left with Mayor Rick Goldring of Burlington beside him – drove to Queen’s Park Thursday morning and heard the Minister of Transportation say he was not happy with the recommendations coming from some of his staff. However, the public will not get to see just what those recommendations are until sometime early in 2013. All we can do now is wait it out – knowing that they won’t be doing all that much until there is a decision by the Minister who will take it to Cabinet and they will decide. We are looking at some time in the fall of 2013 – by which time the pier will be open – or so they say.
Burlington Mayor Rick Goldring and Regional Chair Gary Carr met with Bob Chiarelli this morning and spent 40 minutes reviewing the recommendations. The Minister is not happy and he looks to the Region and the city of Burlington for some input, comment and feedback – and he apparently doesn’t want to hear more “we don’t want the highway here” – he wants to hear what people think about just how we are going to handle all the traffic that is going to be generated with the population growth the province faces.
Mayor Goldring felt Chiarelli was upset with what he had before him and had apparently engaged in a vigorous debate with the engineers and planners who prepared the document.
 Minister of Transportation Bob Chiarelli doesn’t want a highway busting across the Escarpment and is said to be unhappy with the recommendations his planners and engineers have given him. That’s good news – but we need better news. “He (Chiarelli) is basically a very decent guy and he doesn’t want to see a highway going through the Escarpment nor through part of the Green Belt either – but he doesn’t have any solutions at this point.” And so he wants feed back.
The Stop Escarpment Highway Coalition (SEHC) know what they want and that is an end to the Phase 2 part of the study. Goldring was not able to say if the Minister was prepared to say that there would not be a Phase 2 section to the current Environmental Assessment. All he appeared to want to say was that he wasn’t happy with the recommendations he was getting.
So the demonstrations and the protests are working.
Geoff Brock, SEHC spokesperson has concerns with the mandate the EA people were given in the first place. “They are highway people, they build roads – it was unrealistic to expect them to even suggest transit.
Brock points out that the transit portion of the traffic along the routes being discussed is now 6% and they see that possibly going to 12%. Brock wants them to determine what I would take to get that number up to 20% or higher.
Brock feels the transit people need to get away from the “hub and spoke” system we have now where everything goes to Union Station.
The solution of course is the electrification of the Lakeshore West GO line. By electrifying the service we would see a train every five minutes. Metrolinx has a plan to electrify the line – it will cost $10 billion and the funding hasn’t been made available to them.
 These 600 people did not want a highway through the Escarpment – and the Minister of Transportation just might be hearing what we have to say. As for ideas coming from the public, Brock thinks the idea not to go forward is the best one the public has and they’ve done a very good job of getting that message across.
“It would help too” comments Brock “if the terms of reference for the EA were changed to include a serious look at rail”.
Pete Zuzek, SEHC spokesperson, said at the community meeting on Tuesday that this situation needed an independent peer level review. SEHC might offer to do just that for the Ministry – put forward a proposal for some funding and see where that gets them. If the Minister wants outside opinions – help finance them. SEHC would do a much deeper, more comprehensive report – and for a lot less than the province would.
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON October 1, 2012 It was a new Advisory Committee. Formed by a former, Mayor Cam Jackson who felt it could stifle some of the political heat he felt was going to be created during an upcoming municipal election from a very unhappy electorate over the delays with the building of a pier on the waterfront.
The project was an initiative that Mayor Rob MacIsaac was heavily involved in. He and Mayor Jackson didn’t exactly get along. The Waterfront Access and Protection Advisory Committee (WAPA) had political baggage before it held its first meeting.
Once formed, the city put out a call for citizens who wanted to serve on the Committee – there were to be two from each Ward with the Council member from Wards 1 and 2 plus the Mayor serving as ex-officio members. No other Advisory committee had this much political representation.
The committee was mandated to review and discuss all and any matters relevant to the creation of a cohesive vision of the future development of Burlington’s waterfront and adjacent waterfront lands.
Formally established in February of 2010, the members of the committee were appointed on May 3rd and met for the first time on May 4th. From May to August the Committee was chaired by Councillor Rick Goldring who was at that time the Councillor for Ward 5. On September 10th, 2010 the Committee elected Nicholas Leblovic as Chair. He was re-elected the following year but “elected” is a bit of a stretch. On both occasions Leblovic’s was the only name put forward. No one else apparently wanted the job.
 Nicholas Leblovic, chair of the Waterfront Advisory Committee, far right, takes part in a Beachway design event. The Beachway was a priority matter for the advisory committee but they ran out of time – the city sunset the committee Leblovic chaired. The task before this committee was daunting. There was no clear plan for the waterfront – one that the citizens understood and bought into – but there was a very real and significant opportunity to shape that part of the city; the committee had to figure out what was possible and take recommendations to city council.
No one on the committee had any experience at anything like this. Chair Leblovic brought an impressive legal background to the job. A graduate of McMaster University, then both the University of Toronto where he earned a law degree and the University of California at Berkeley, where he earned a Master’s degree in law, Leblovic went on to develop a career in which he is a recognized and repeatedly recommended practitioner in Asset/Equipment Financing and Leasing.
Leblovic has participated in various seminars dealing with corporate commercial topics and was an instructor in the Advanced Business Law Workshop, taught to third year law students at the Osgoode Hall Law School of York University.
It was very natural for him to take a seminar approach to figuring out how the committee should tackle its mandate. The group of 12 citizens had to first learn who they were and then decide what their priorities were going to be.
Leblovic brought a tight, disciplined approach to the task while others, who didn’t have the education he has, tended towards some pretty woolly thinking at times.
Everything Leblovic wrote read like a legal brief – that’s what he is – a lawyer. Was it what was needed? After less than two years of operation city council didn’t think so and decided WAPA would cease to exist. Then both the Mayor and Ward 2 Councillor Meed Ward announced they were going to form waterfront committees of their own. According to Meed Ward all the WAPA committee members, except for Leblovic, have said they would serve on the committee Meed Ward was forming. Meed Ward will chair the unofficial committee as a non-voting member.
Leblovic said he felt he had been blindsided by city council when it sunset the committee. It was certainly a shock to him and Council’s decision did show there was a significant disconnect between the city and the advisory committee.
Better committee management on the part of the city would have been useful. Leblovic wasn’t thanked by the city for the work he did and he did a lot of work. He brought to the forefront many of the issues that needed attention. The city just wasn’t listening as well as it might have. The only project that got out of the committee to Council where it was approved heartily, was the idea to turn the Pump House on Lakeshore Road into a coffee house/pub.
An issue that was also important if the lake’s edge is to be seen as something the public has a right to be able to walk along and appreciate, was the excellent work done by the Access sub-committee looking into how many places the public could actually get to the edge of the lake. It was an excellent report that the city has failed to act on effectively. Fighting this battle would have meant stepping on the toes of people who owned lakefront property – not something easily done in Burlington.
Leblovic’s practice was to create sub committees and basically let them get on with the job. The Access sub-committee did excellent yeoman’s work and the report did get to a council committee and on to staff where it got stalled. Leblovic, who has some experience with the municipal political process when he delegated in Burlington on development charge issues and when he delegated on matters related to his cottage in Tiny Township, was nevertheless unable to work with city staff to move this file along. Leblovic was never given the chance to argue for better citizen access to the lake’s edge; Burlington’s delegation process limited the amount of time he had.
Other than the Clerk assigned to an Advisory committee by the city, there is no one at city hall overseeing these committees. Leblovic had no one to go to for help and guidance. In his law firm, one of the top five in the country, Leblovic could walk down a hall and spend some time with a colleague learning what he had to do to move a file forward. He didn’t have that kind of access at city hall.
What also has to be remembered and appreciated is that WAPA met just once a month for half a day. Leblovic still practices law and is in Toronto much of his time. He wasn’t around Burlington during most days and able to drop in on people at city hall or meet for coffee to develop relationships.
Several of the members of the committee knew each other quite well, there was a familiarity between them that Leblovic didn’t share.
As Chair, along with his committee, WAPA decided it needed to get on a learning curve and get more background and a deeper understanding of the issues and their complexity. And the issues were complex. Everyone had ideas, thoughts, hopes and dreams for the waterfront but few were fully informed and they needed to learn as much as they could. Leblovic guided his committee into a learning curve that was steep and extensive. He learned as much, if not more than his committee members. A total of 29 presentations were made to the committee. They ranged from a great discussion with former Toronto Mayor David Crombie who suggested the committee hold a design competition (which the committee followed up on) to a presentation on the Randall reef, one on sewage treatment facilities as well as one on the War of 1812. In hindsight the range of presentations was too broad but don’t fault the chair for that – he was probing and finding his way through a subject that was central to what the city is – in a city that still isn’t sure what it wants to become.
Leblovic wanted his committee to hear from anyone who had something useful to say about the waterfront. City Hall wanted to see recommendations coming forward.
 Leblovic arranged to have former Toronto Mayor David Crombie attend a WAPA committee meeting during which he sold them on the idea of holding a design competition. It was a good idea but the committee was never able to get it off the ground. Mayor Goldring took part in the meeting. He was one of three Council members on the WAPA WAPA did come forward with plans for a design competition. While the ideas were not fully formed when Gary Scobie, spokesperson for the sub-committee, took them to a council committee – he did get enough of a positive response and encouragement from the council committee to take it away and come back with something that was more developed. Unfortunately, the WAPA committee member who was heading up the design competition moved and the committee didn’t have anyone who would pick it up and run with it. Also, they began to realize just how big a task they had taken on and realized as well that they were not up to it. As Scobie put it at the time – “we just lost interest in the idea once Sarah Banks was gone”. It was an opportunity lost. Leblovic was never really keen on the idea, partially because he realized just how much work it would entail and he probably suspected his committee was not going to be able to go the full ten rounds it would take.
While a little brittle on the personality side, Leblovic was very capable of reading his committee members and he knew what he had and didn’t have in the way of talent.
While learning as much as they could the committee had to set some priorities and they settled on:
Old Lakeshore Road /Mayrose Tycon development
Burloak Park usage
Water access and facilities
Brighton Beach.
The committee later revised this and settled on three priorities:
Water Access and Facilities
Burlington Beach/Spencer Smith Park
Old Lakeshore Road area and other shoreline development/acquisition.
Old Lakeshore Road area and the Mayrose-Tycon development. That project is now referred to as the Bridgewater development and some movement on that project, which goes back to 1985 has taken place. Did the WAPA have any impact on the developments? Other than informing the committee through the media WAPA had no impact. WAPA during its short life never issued press releases and never arranged to meet with the public. All their meetings were open to the public. Our Burlington was the only media to cover their meetings.
The language used in the report WAPA made to the Community Development Committee represents the experience and background of the chair who authored all of the reports. There are “hereto’s” and “aforesaids” sprinkled throughout the reports Leblovic wrote.
Leblovic is a lawyer trained to advise clients and advocate their interests often to other lawyers and courts. But communicating effectively to the public and politicians is another skill completely. There appeared to be no clear understanding of how best to communicate what WAPA was doing with a wider public. Neither the public nor city hall seemed to get a clear picture of what was being done. Leblovic could have used some help on the communicating side. City staff eventually gave up on the committee.
What WAPA was doing was an attempt to create a framework within which the development of the Old Lakeshore could take place. Leblovic is not a development lawyer but he understands the principles and knew that his committee needed to know more about who all the players were and what role the city could and could not play in getting something real happening in Old Lakeshore Road part of the city . Leblovic felt this could only happen if there was a disciplined approach to learning who owned what and then think through what might be possible.
 Jeff Martin, centre, was a very passionate advocate on the Pump House. Gary Scobie on the right had hoped the design competition would actually happen – he certainly tried hard enough. Nicholas Leblovic, chair of WAPA is on the left. Pump House: In time the building just might become a place where people can park their bikes and slip in for a sandwich and a glass of wine along with some of that over-priced pastry they all seem to sell. Getting this through the committee and into the hands of a council member who got it approved – was not a simple task. But it got done and it got done while Nicholas Leblovic was chair of the committee.
Public access to the lakes edge. The WAPA sub-committee that undertook this task, under the guidance of the chair brought to light facts few people knew. It was superb work that would not have been done were the WAPA committee not in place.
Nicholas Leblovic didn’t fail in his efforts – he just ran out of time and the city ran out of patience and for that the city has to accept much of the blame and responsibility. Leblovic brought in speaker after speaker. He managed to get former Mayor of Toronto David Crombie to speak and heard some of the best advice the committee would get. Crombie urged the committee to hold a design competition and put some “oddballs” on it and use the “bully pulpit” they have to promote their ideas. That called for a level of communication skills this committee just didn’t have.
Nicholas Leblovic is not a bully pulpit kind of guy. He deals in certainties; no surprises please. He deals in contracts where everything is set out and fully understood. That is not the world of municipal politics.
Do we fault Leblovic for what he wasn’t? We should be celebrating Nicholas Leblovic for what he was, the guy who took on the job, for whatever reason. His city failed to work with him and help him with the areas he wasn’t strong in. Nicholas is not a “superman”. He is just a citizen who wanted to participate in the process and thought he had something to contribute.
Was Our Burlington too hard on Nicholas Leblovic? He certainly thinks we were. Our intention was never to do any harm; we were at the meetings to report and explain what was being done for the citizens of the city. When a reporter writes something about a person that the person doesn’t like – some animosity builds up. The job is to write what you see and not do “fluff” pieces that make a person happy.
We were supporters of WAPA and big fans of the design competition idea. It is unfortunate that the city’s planning department chose not to step forward and provide some of the support needed. Burlington would have been well served had a design competition taken place,
We thought the idea of turning the Pump House on Lakeshore Road into a pub was a great idea and applauded the committee for bringing this one forward.
Getting better public access to the lake’s edge is important and another project one of the WAPA sub committees did great work on. We thought the chair should have continually prodded the city to get moving on this one. That didn’t happen.
The Shape Burlington report said Burlington suffered from an information deficit. Our Burlington has played a significant role in improving what citizens learn about what is being done for them with their money. That is not always a pleasant process.
Was serving his city a pleasant experience for Nicholas Leblovic? Probably not. Does he deserve a strong vote of thanks for taking on the almost impossible task of putting forward ideas and approaches for the creation of a waterfront that serves the city Leblovic has lived in much of his life? Most certainly.
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON October 23, 2012 It was a good crowd. As many, if not more, than the 600 that showed up December 2010 when the Region was advised that the province wanted some arrows placed on the Region’s Official Plan to show where a possible highway through the Escarpment might go.
That was the first anyone had heard about an actual location for any road being built across the Escarpment. There was an arrow placed on a map way back in 2002 that crossed Guelph Line north of Dundas Street and south of No. 1 Side road, bringing a potential highway down a more gentle (and less populated) slope of the escarpment.
 Councillor John Taylor, war horse on Escarpment issues got a round of applause before he said a word at the community meeting, held to voice once again Burlington’s opposition to a highway through any part of the Escarpment. John Taylor, the politician who has been fighting any highway for longer than anyone else, took the standing room only audience back 40 years when the battle we are fighting today began. Twenty years ago it was the 403; in the 90’s it was the 407. That allowed the creation of Alton, a community of 10,000 people. Now they want another road that eats into the Escarpment – and we have to tell them that just is not on.
 Regional Chair Gary Carr, Burlington Mayor Rick Goldring and Councillors Blair Lancaster and John Taylor all spoke to an audience of more than 600 people at the Mainway Recreation centre – on an evening when it rained. When the event at the Mainway Recreational Centre was planned Burlington Mayor Rick Goldring and Regional Chair Gary Carr had an appointment with the Minister of Transportation (MTO) to impress upon him just how opposed both the Region and most particularly Burlington was to any kind of highway going through the Flamborough – Burlington part of the province.
At that time, just over six weeks ago, the government was keeping everyone in the Legislature to fight off any sudden vote that would bring down the minority Liberal government. The meeting kept being put off. Then the Premier resigns and all the rules change.
The Minister of Transportation was supposed to see Carr and Goldring on Monday, but that got pushed back to Thursday. One keeps wondering why these meetings keep getting pushed back.
Assuming Carr and Goldring meet with Bob Chiarelli, Minister of Transportation, they will be able to point to a room that was packed with people, every seat taken and all the walls lined with people standing as well as a couple sitting on the floor at the front of the room.
 There wasn’t a seat to be had in the meeting room. Standing room only. If what people think and feel matters – this was a crowd that politicians have to pay some attention to.
Gary Carr, Regional Chair spoke and then played a 5 minute video that is on the Regional web site.
Burlington Mayor Rick Goldring spoke.
Director of Transportation Services for Burlington, Bruce Zvaniga spoke and laid out the issues from a transportation perspective.
Pete Zuzek, spokesperson for Stop Escarpment Highway Coalition, gave the strongest presentation of the evening.
Burlington’s Ward 6 Councillor Blair Lancaster spoke.
John Taylor, Councillor for Ward 3 rose to speak to a great round of applause and provided some of the history that went back 40 years. This is indeed a long fight.
Ted Chudleigh, provincial PC member for Halton spoke – forcefully one might add with not a word of notes.
Jane McKenna, provincial PC member for Burlington spoke, read from notes and released her correspondence to the Minister of Transportation.
While Tim Hudak, leader of the PC opposition at Queen’s Park is on record as being FOR a highway because he believes the issue is about jobs – both Chudleigh and McKenna were very clear that they were opposed to any highway going through Burlington. Would that opposition still be evident if a vote that could bring down the minority Liberal government was being held.
 They hunched over tables as they signed the petition opposing any kind of road through the Escarpment. Zvaniga set out where the province is in their deliberations. He laid out what had been done, when it was done, why it was done and what the next steps are going to be. Zvaniga had to give the technical overview because the province declined to send anyone to the meeting.
The MOT people have a job to do, part of which is to advise the government on what future transportation needs are likely to be. Part of the problem with this approach was brought to light when former Minister of Transportation, Kathleen Wynne explained to the Mayor of Burlington, during the last provincial election, that transportation engineers and planners don’t know how to think beyond the car and highways. At the time she said the province has one of the best highway building departments in the country – and that was the problem – they don’t know how to think outside that highway box. Which is a point the SEHC people are trying very hard to get across to the public.
There are more people on the roads and there will always be more people on the roads if we keep building roads. I had occasion to be at Pearson airport on Monday to pick up my wife returning from a visit with her Mother in Denmark. The flight was due at 3:00 pm, which I knew meant fighting rush hour traffic. It turned out to be a pretty quick trip – because we were able to use the HOV lane. There were very few cars in that HOV lane, but there were three lanes plugged solid on our right, bumper to bumper, with a single passenger in the car.
 None of these people want to sit in their cars with bumper to bumper traffic on the QEW. But of the 600 people in the room less than ten took the bus to the meeting. Why anyone would sit in that traffic, when they could be in a faster lane was something I couldn’t understand. Of course they needed an additional passenger in their car – why is that so hard to set up. Most of those people are driving to or from work, where there are surely people in their offices who live near them. Why are there not more people going on line to look for a person near them, that can share that drive? There is a smart phone app for people who want a lift (we used to call it hitch hiking) and are prepared to share the cost. It’s all done on line.
It was also pointed out that while rail isn’t being given the consideration it needs, a large part of that is because the federal government is not at the table. This is a provincial matter the government argues, while SEHC argues that it is a social matter and that we need to look at transportation issues at a much higher level and not focus on just what’s going on in Burlington.
SEHC believes people need to understand that we must look at transportation a lot differently and that we are going to have to get out of our cars. They point to global warming, the damage to the environment and the impact of commuting more than an hour to get to work and another hour to get home. Driving our cars is a habit we haven’t managed to break – and like smoking, it may eventually kill us.
Gary Carr finally got around to publicly thanking the people of PERL, Protect Escarpment and Rural Lands, for the hard fight they fought to win the Nelson Aggregate battle in North Burlington where Nelson had applied for a second aggregate mining permit. That application was denied – the first time anyone can remember such an application being turned down. It is perhaps a good omen. Carr, quite rightly, pointed out that were it not for organizations like PERL “we wouldn’t be this far without them”. Hopefully Carr will come through with some form of support for PERL – they are suffering from battle fatigue and they are hurting.
Carr pointed out that the Region has a population of 520,000 now and will have an expected 780,000 by 2031 and those people are going to have some way to get around. “This is a fight” declared Carr “that is going to last for decades. Fundamental changes are going to have to be made in the way we transport ourselves or a new highway will be needed. Somehow we have to get the cars off the road”.
But it is about more than just getting cars off the road; we have an agricultural economy in the Region and west into Flamborough.
Mayor Goldring pointed out again that the city has a 50/50 split between rural and urban settings and that any highway through the Escarpment will be the beginning of the end for the north Burlington we know today.
 The land identified by the red borders was made available for development when the 407 highway was completed. The northern edge of developable land is south of the 407. Prior to 407 the boundary was Dundas – a highway through the Escarpment would move the rural-urban boundary even further north – as high as Lowville? Taylor told of the Alton community that came into being when the 407was put through. The urban rural boundary used to be Dundas but the 407 created a piece of land that became available to developers and today we have a new community of 10,000 people.
GO got a solid mention – if the Lakeshore West line is electrified, that will result in GO trains every five minutes during peak travel times and every 20 minutes during the off peak. THAT kind of scheduling would take a lot of traffic off the QEW.
There were half a dozen speakers but they weren’t all politicians. Pete Zuzek, spokesperson for SEHC, the Stop Escarpment Highway Coalition, a group made up of 14 communities, grass roots level organizations with more than 15,000 members, gave a very clear presentation on what he felt was wrong with the approach the provincial government was taking to deciding if a highway was needed.
The Environmental Assessment is currently in Phase 1 – where they look at 1) Optimizing what we have, making better use of the roads we have; 2) expand the non- roads options; 3) widen the existing roads and 4) if none of those will provide the future means of getting around the MOT thinks we need – then look at new corridors.
One of those corridors would come though Burlington. It would swoop in at around Cedar Springs Road and drop down into that land on the North side of Dundas and joining up with the 407.
Pete Zuzek doesn’t want the province to get as far as that Phase 2. SEHC points out that building such a corridor will do very little for the traffic congestion down on the QEW.
What Pete Zuzek made clear was the immediate objective is to convince the MOT people that Phase 2 isn’t necessary – that there are more than enough sensible, environmentally sound options within the Phase 1 level.
The fear SEHC has is that should the province decide that Phase 2 is the direction to go in – then the planners and the engineers begin drawing lines on maps and thinking about expropriating property and the developers begin to plan for new housing developments. Some of the golf clubs along Walkers and Guelph Line will begin to get offers and before you know it – there goes the neighbourhood.
 Pete Zuzek argued that SEHC – Stop Escarpment Highway Coalition was the only independent set of eyes watching what the government was doing – and they didn’t like what they were seeing. Zuzek said there was no peer review and that the work being done for a project that would cost as much as $5 billion was both flawed and limited. Pete Zuzek wants the province to forget about a possible Phase 2 and he explained why – the work being done on the Phase 1 part is flawed and limited. “There is no independent peer review” explained Zuzek ” yet the want to spend $6 billion without a second set of eyes looking at their recommendations.”
What are the next steps? Keeping informed is the biggest part of it. Our Burlington has been on top of this story since the newest assault on the Escarpment by the provincial government became clear back in 2010. We have covered the creation of the SEHC – we were in the room when the deal between the city of Burlington and SEHC was worked out and when they came up with the SEHC name. Back then Burlington said it would support SEHC as advocates who would be able to say and do things the city couldn’t say and do. While the SEHC and city of Burlington relationship gets strained at times – it does work. At one Public Information Centre more than 1200 people turned out to protest. At that session there was an “open mike” segment that heard some very powerful statements. John Taylor, with his impish grin, advised that “they don’t do open mikes anymore.
Whatever the team doing the Environmental Assessment passes on to the government in the way of recommendations, they have to be put those recommendations before the public. And the EA team has to record every objection as part of their final report.
PERL fought the application for a second mine on the Escarpment for more than seven years – and they won. The fight to keep a highway out of the Escarpment will take far more than seven years. Back in the days when Bill Davis was Premier of Ontario he put a stop to an expressway that was planned to run right into the center of Toronto. Governments can make smart decisions – they just have to be nudged in the right direction. Last night at the arena on Mainway, 600 + Burlingtonians gave a bit more than a nudge.
Janet Turpin Myers on her blog put it the way Garry Carr wanted to put it: – “We need to get loud.”
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON October 22, 2012 They want it to be another biggy; at least 400 people, closer to 800 would be really great. They want you to once more make sure the provincial government, which is currently in hiding, knows that we are not interested in seeing any kind of a highway rammed through any part of the Escarpment.
The Stop Escarpment Highway Coalition will be a large part of the presentation made Tuesday evening. The coalition is an organization that represents 14,000 people in 15 community organizations; true grass roots representation.
Burlington’s escarpment stalwart John Taylor will be there as will every other politician in the city along with the Regional Chair.
 Not through this part of the Escarpment if you don’t mind. Citizens want to make sure the province fully understands how opposed they are to a road through this part of our city. They will talk about an Environmental Assessment report the province has in hand – but we don’t know what the province plans to do with that report nor do we know at this time what the recommendations in the report suggest.
Mayor Goldring and Regional Chair Gary Carr were supposed to meet with the Minister of Transportation Bob Chiarelli and press home the views of the community – but given that the provincial government is in hiding – that meeting may not take place. So we will have a meeting at which the public is expected to shout its support but no provincial government decision to discuss nor any of the recommendations the bureaucrats have put in front of the Minister of Transportation.
Why then are we meeting?
What the provincial government decides to do in terms of planning for a highway through the Escarpment is really important to Burlington; but for a government that isn’t going to meet in the Legislature until sometime late in January at the earliest, and in the meantime is fighting for its political life – what has people hot and bothered in Burlington really isn’t going to matter all that much. We are not a squeaky enough wheel to get much grease – or are we?
Burlington’s MP, Jane McKenna will be on hand. This could be an awkward meeting for Ms McKenna; her party doesn’t have that much of a problem with a highway going through the Escarpment. For the PC’s it’s all about jobs and if it takes a highway through a sensitive environment – well that just might be something Burlington has to live with.
It would be great if the Regional chair and the Mayor of Burlington could convince the Minister of Transportation to be at the meeting and make it crystal clear that he understands the issue and he understand our concerns and he will take our views back to Cabinet and do his level best to see that the Burlington we have today is the Burlington we will have twenty years from now. He might politely ask that we make Burlington a Liberal seat to show our appreciation.
 The options that were suggested by the team doing the Environmental Assessment are shown in a light grey. That one in the mid right is too close to our part of the province, Problem is the Minister of Transportation has no idea what the issue is. He will have a report to read and there will be maps with lines all over it and colour graphics to show where a new highway could go and a list of all the options. But the man has not driven up Walkers Line to Derry Road and east to Bell School Line and then zig- zag across to Guelph Line coming out at Side Road #1 and glide down Guelph Line slowly so that he gets a sense of what our city is really all about.
Then take him to dinner at Spencer’s on the Waterfront when the sun is setting and make sure his seat gives him a view of the pier we are building.
No one has ever taken the man to Mount Nemo, where he can gaze out over farm fields and golf courses and see the CN Tower on an average day.
That’s what Burlington is about and those people at Queen’s Park need to know that. It isn’t about a road through a piece of geography to create jobs. It is about the quality of life here in our city.
Councillor John Taylor has plans to bring the Minister of Transportation to the city and let him see what we are talking about. He might also want to include some of the potential Liberal leaders in that invitation to visit the Escarpment. If they get a good look at who we are they might see an opportunity to add Burlington to the list of Liberal members in the Legislature.
On the bright side for the city is the very recent Ontario Municipal Joint Board that found for the city and the people at PERL (Protecting the Escarpment and Rural Lands) when they denied the application for an additional aggregate exaction permit. Long term we can see the end of aggregate mining on the Escarpment. Perhaps that OMB decision is the beginning of a new direction for the province.
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON October 21, 2012 It is hard at times to see the progress.
The plan for a “landmark” structure on the edge of the lake that was approved back in 1985 is finally going to see something happening on the site.
 Sometime very soon that piece of construction equipment will begin taking down the Riviera Motel, long a Lakeshore Road icon. Later in the year construction of a seven storey Delta Hotel will begin so that it can be operational for the 2015 Pan Am games. A piece of construction equipment with a large claw on it, sits beside the Riviera Motel waiting for a demolition permit to be issued before anything can come crashing down.
Earlier in the week more than 125 people took in a meeting that had the developers explaining what the next steps were for the development that will make a significant change to the look of the city from Lakeshore road.
 That part of the waterfront east of Brant Street bound by the Old Lakeshore Road and Lakeshore Road has been seen by many as an incredible development opportunity. Here the view looks east along the Old Lakeshore Road. The Waterfront Advisory Committee was never able to come up with much in the way of ideas and was recently sunset by the city. The development of this site will impact what gets done with the properties to the east, which have been the subject of much pondering and discussion at the Waterfront Access and Protection Advisory Committee (WAPAC). However that committee wasn’t able to come up with anything useful for city council to think about. They did have a very good idea, given to them by former Toronto Mayor David Crombie, to hold a design competition to bring forward some ideas and get more public involvement and participation in the decisions as to how best to develop the lakefront part of the city. While WAPAC made a valiant effort when the woman heading that effort, Sarah Banks, moved from Burlington and the momentum was lost and the idea died.
 While the building will be tucked away behind a tall building on Lakeshore road it will bring more people into this part of the city. It will be a five minute walk from the pier. The city held a “Lasting Impressions” ceremony in front of the Waterfront Hotel on Saturday to mark some milestones in the construction of the Pier.
The developers of the Riviera site will begin with the construction of a seven story Delta Hotel (they are asking Committee of Adjustment for an extra floor to make it an eight storey building which will make it as tall as the Waterfront Hotel to give you some sense of the scale)
A couple of blocks to the north the Reichmann Seniors Housing at Pearl & Pine is well underway. With the pier but a five minute walk away and an LCBO store across the street this will be a great place to retire.
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON October 20, 2012 Burlington invited elementary students from across the city to take part in a draw that would have seven of them take part in a Lasting Impressions ceremony at Spencer Smith Park to commemorate the milestones that mark the building of the Brant Street Pier.
Few of those seven young people have any idea as to what they were taking part in on a chilly Saturday afternoon. With the pier still under construction in the background, seven of the 444 people who entered the draw to be participants in the Lasting Impression project sat to have their pictures taken.
 Each of these seven secured a bolt in a plate that will be part of the pier structure. They also had their hand prints taken which will become part of a “Lasting Impression” that will be on permanent public display when the pier is opened, which will be, according to the Mayor, “sometime in 2013” A proud parent sits behind each participant. Once they were introduced each of the seven inserted a large bolt into a metal plate that will be placed on the pier later in the week.
 Brooklyn Humphries, 9, puts her signature on the plate into which she had tightened a bolt that will be used in the construction of the pier. She was one of seven young people who took part in a ceremony that created “Lasting Impressions” While the plate with the seven bolts in it will get covered with concrete, it is still there for eternity, which for this pier is said to be about 75 years.
The city wanted there to be something more public and so they had each of the young people get their hands coated in ink and a hand print made with their signature on the sheet of paper as well.
 Evan Sebok’s Mom gives him some help getting a signature on the sheet of paper with his hand prints on it. The imprints will be digitally manipulated to produce a hand print that will be part of pedestal that will be set out on the pier where the millions that visit the site will get to see it.
The objective is to have each of the children create a print of their hands in a plaster mold that would then be used to create hand prints that would be mounted on a podium when the pier is officially opened.
The city is now at the point where news on the progress on the pier seems to be consistently good but the Mayor has learned not to trap himself into a date and now says that the pier “will be completed sometime in 2013”.
 Craig Stevens, city project manager for the pier and Mayor Goldrin, the man who takes all the political heat for the project delay, met with two of seven young people who placed a bolt in a steel plate that will be used in the construction of the pier. No mention was made of the $15 million + that the city has spent so far on the project nor did the Mayor tell those seven young people that they will be the ones paying for the pier for many years to come.
The city hosted Lasting Impressions, a draw that attracted 444 entries from children aged four to 13. The seven chosen children, youngest to oldest, one from each ward and one to represent the Mayor were: Evan Sebok, 4; Charlie Sibley, 6; Carter Needham, 7; Brooklyn Humphries, 9; Grace Hodgson, 10; Logan Szyiko, 10 and Eva Moreau, 11.
They probably have no idea just where those hand prints are going to go and how many people will see them.
Creating the event was really very creative on the part of the city. And they moved very quickly to revise a good idea that didn’t turn out to be possible into an idea that was very possible.
 Anyone who was at the ceremony could have had their hands inked and made in impression on a large piece of canvas that will be on display in a city building. While the seven hand prints will become a part of the pier there will also be a large canvas that had the hand prints of the members of the public that were watching the ceremony. The canvas will probably get placed somewhere in city hall. The turnout wasn’t very large. There had been some rain earlier in the day – the public doesn’t show up for things like that all that often.
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON October 21, 2012 Burlington could begin to see commemorative plaques all over the place.
Heritage Burlington, the city’s advisory committee on heritage matters, has had a request that it look into a plaque to recognize the people who originally owned the property that is now Sherwood Park.
Rick Wilson, a member of the Heritage Advisory committee has been wanting a plaque in Burlington that tells the story about the Burlington Races, a name used to tell part of the War of 1812 story. Wilson believes there is ample evidence to show that events took place right off the shores of this city in 1813 that were pivotal to the outcome of the War of 1812.
 Rick Wilson, a member of the Heritage Burlington Advisory Committee, points out what he believes is a glaring error on a historical plaque, located in Hamilton overlooking Burlington Bay. Wilson hopes there can eventually be a plaque in Burlington correcting the error. There is a plaque over in Hamilton that Wilson claims is just completely wrong but he hasn’t been able to get that plaque changed. Those plaques we see in parks and other public places are put up by both the federal and provincial governments. The one that Wilson claims is wrong was put up by the province. Wilson claims Jane McKenna, Burlington’s MPP is just “blowing me away” and that Mike Wallace, our MP has tried to get something done but the sign is a provincial jurisdiction and there is nothing he could do. Wallace was able to get Wilson into the Fort York event in Toronto last summer at which the Prince of Wales was the feature attraction. Wilson is eternally grateful; that’s another Wallace forever vote.
Councillor Meed Ward suggested to the advisory committee that they pull together all the documentation they have and send it to the appropriate people within the provincial government; “if you make your case clearly enough you will be heard” was Meed Ward’s advice. Heritage Burlington just might take this one on. Turns out Jim Clemens, chair of the Advisory Committee has a strong contact within the arm of the provincial government that over sees the erection of those plaques all over the province.
Burlington has a very strong waterfront history but we aren’t particularly good at telling our story. That might be part of the difficulty behind all the problems we have with wanting to highlight our local history. One is very hard pressed to find any reference to the canning factory that was once the biggest commercial operation in the city. It was located on the property that now houses the Waterfront Hotel.
We have a Historical Society that does a good job of collecting data on our history; but we don’t do a very good job of getting those stories out of the archives and in front of today’s public.
The city does have a system for listing any property that has even a hint of historical significance and that really upsets many people. A property along Lakeshore Road owned by the Morrison’s was said to have historical significance, which the Morrison’s claim is totally bogus, and they want their house taken off any list the city has.
There are lists, some of them are of little use, but there are other lists that are vital if Burlington is to have any hope of maintaining some of the historical properties.
 The Navy Memorial on the Waterfront is close to the best piece of historical recognition in the city. It is a truly remarkable statue that pays tribute to the merchant marine and naval activity in WW II. This memorial was created by community groups and put up in a city that really doesn’t have a marine or naval tradition. It does however go to show that there is a deep interest in telling our story. Wilson is pointing to a part of Burlington Bay where he believes the Burlington Races probably took place. One of the problems is that in this city the real estate community has convinced the public that any kind of a historical reference to a piece of property lessens the value of the property. In other cities a historical reference adds significant value to a property. There is still a lot of educating to be done in this city. While there is some leadership on this at city council there is none from the real estate community. Their bread and butter comes from the sale of homes – and homes with a demonstrable historical significance are more valuable in many cities – look at Niagara-on-the-Lake if you want an example.
This designating of property for historical purposes has been a very contentious issue in Burlington for some time. It has torn different communities apart and created much ill will between otherwise very decent people.
The Advisory committee has been given the task of changing the approach taken to how we recognize what is and what isn’t historical – it is not going to be an easy task.
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON October 19, 2012 I spend far too much of my time at city hall. If you spend enough time in a building you get to know the security guard – which in Burlington’s case is Bob Kerr, a grizzly old coot who knows where everything and everybody is in that building at night.
He and I chew the fat. He comments on the Our Burlington web site – caustically at times I might add. Kerr used to work for Midnight Security, the company that had the contract to provide security services at city hall. The contract came up for renewal, purchasing put out a call for tenders and they took the lowest price. For reasons that are not clear Midnight didn’t submit a bid – so Star Security got the job – on a one year contract.
Kerr had a new employer and a new pay grade and it wasn’t what he was getting before. It gets worse – he has to chase the company for his paycheck.
The city did save some money on the security contract and Kerr took a hit right in the pocket book. His colleague at the time took a $7000 annual haircut as well. Both Kerr and the other security guard who has since left the company with the contract to provide security services, ended up with less – much less. This happened because Council, wisely, changed the purchasing procedure that allowed the purchasing department to spend up to $100,000 without having to go to Council.
We were seeing one of those “unintended consequences” that happens when we look for ways to reduce our costs.
Purchasing saw a way to save some money and they gave the security contract to a new company. One that both Kerr and his colleague found they had to chase more than once to get their paycheques. It was a one year contract – the city might want to give the previous security firm a call.
The current firm adds no value to what the city is getting. The two guards who were doing the job were still going to be in place – they would just get less money. One of the guards couldn’t handle the cut and found work with the parking people. He was one of the most polite security people I ever met. We lost a very good security guard. We’ve still got Bob Kerr – who now works for less. That’s what they mean by an unintended consequence.
City staff wouldn’t be asked to take a pay cut the size of the one Kerr and his colleague had to swallow. Time to make amends.
What has all this got to do with the Beachway and the art community?
 Women are great fans of the whimsical, flighty work that Cora does. It has a light fun feel to it. It is very serious art. Turns out that Kerr has relatives who are artists and they are holding a viewing at their house which is right on the lake – but on the Hamilton side of the canal. Bob asked if we could do a little write up on the event. Our name, Our Burlington, tells what we are about – and I explained to Kerr that it isn’t a Burlington event. “Is there a Burlington angle to this” I asked Kerr. “Eric got a parking ticket in Burlington once” Kerr responded. That was enough for us – we decided to do a little write up and use the occasion to tell how Kerr got stiffed when the city moved to a new security firm.
I checked to see where the studio was located in Hamilton – it’s on Sierra Lane which is a hop, skip and a jump from where our columnist Margaret Lindsay Holton lives. Two artists in the same part of town? Looks like the start of a cluster to me.
Burlington is struggling with what it wants to do with its Beachway community; that close to desolate bit of land where the Pump House sits empty waiting for a new tenant. The railway embankment is a serene walk almost any time of day for thousands of people each week. Is this the place to develop an arts community? Could Burlington create the conditions that would see this kind of community grow? When the Freeman Station is eventually renovated, there isn’t a person of sound mind in the city that doesn’t want to see it somewhere in the Beachway alongside the old railway tracks.
 Eric Brittan’s style is a little more formal, less whimsical. There is a spartan feel to some of his work, you might call it minimalist. The beauty is always in the eye of the beholder. They’ve done it on the Hamilton side – all kinds of life over there. Might be a lesson for us.
The art show that Bob Kerr got me to promote is on October 27th and 28th, from 11:00 am to 4:00 pm. Wine and cheese is being served. The stdio is located at 5 Sierra Lane north off Beach Blvd. If you get lost: 905-545-7034 will get you some help.
Eric and Cora Brittan have been holding these open house art sales for 14 years – this is the 15th event for them. Both Cora and Eric run in house small group classes and occasional special workshops in calligraphy, drawing and painting. They also regularly take part in workshops offered at the Burlington Art Centre and the summer program at the Southampton School of Art in Southampton, ON.
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON October 19, 2012 Back when Montreal was the bank robbery capital of North America Friday was THE day for robberies – there were days wen the police couldn’t keep up. When the banks hired a big shot in the hold-up squad things suddenly quietened down. Maybe it’s time for the gas stations to hire one of our best in the Regional police robbery squad.
Yesterday afternoon there were two gas station robberies an hour and five minutes apart.
 The theft of the lottery tickets could create a problem – what if they have a winner and have to show up to get the money. Do they not realize that every lottery ticket is registered as to where it was sold? It was a good idea – just turned out to be a dumb one as well. Three masked men robbed the Shell gas station at 1235 Appleby Line, Burlington, and robbed the attendant of a quantity of cash, cigarettes and lottery tickets.
The three males were wearing hooded sweatshirts and covered their faces. There were no injuries or weapons involved.
The suspects are described as:
1) male, white, 5’3″ – 5’5″, skinny build, wearing a white hoodie with small black print, white bandana covering his face, grey sweat pants
2) male, brown skin tone, 5’3″ – 5’5″, skinny build, wearing a black and grey hoodie, black bandana covering his face and dark pants
3) male, brown skin tone, 5’3″ – 5’5″, skinny build, wearing
a black hoodie, grey sweat pants, grey shoes and a black bandana covering his face
Sixty five minutes later, two men entered the Esso gas station at 345 Speers Road, Oakville and threatened to kill the attendant if they did not give them money. The men were wearing bandanas and fled with a quantity of cash.
They are described as:
1) male, brown skin tone, 5’3″ – 5’5″, skinny build, wearing a black and grey hoodie, black bandana covering his face and dark pants
2) male, brown skin tone, 5’3″ – 5’5″, skinny build, wearing
a black hoodie, grey sweat pants, grey shoes and a black bandana covering his face
What do you think? Same guys?
Anyone with information is asked to contact the Burlington Criminal Investigations Bureau about the Appleby Line robbery at 905-825-4747 x2316, Crime Stoppers at 1 800 222-TIPS(8477), through the web at www.haltoncrimestoppers.com or by texting “Tip201” with your message to 274637(crimes).
Anyone with information concerning the Speers Road robbery is asked to call the Oakville Criminal Investigations Bureau at 905 825-4747 x2215, Crime Stoppers at 1 800 222-TIPS(8477), through the web at www.haltoncrimestoppers.com or by texting “Tip201” with your message to 274637(crimes).
The Halton Regional Police put out two media bulletins on this – do you suppose they’ve figured out they’re all looking for the same bunch?
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON October 16, 2012 It might set a record for the longest slowest train the city has ever seen but it looks as if it is going to have a station to pull into. City Council last night agreed to sign a Joint Venture with the Friends of Freeman Station that is now an incorporated entity.
The Friends have charitable status and can raise funds and issue tax receipts which will allow them to get on with the task of totally rehabilitating the station that currently sits on blocks next to the fire station on Plans Road.
It has been a long arduous citizens battle and while the struggle isn’t over the opponent now is not city council or city staff but a Canadian winter.
 Sign announces the new home for the Freeman Station – made possible by a $1 a year lease for the next three years from Ashland Canada. The wording of the Joint Venture between the city and the Friends isn’t totally known but James Smith, President of the Friends of Freeman Station believes he will have the document in hand very soon after which they can begin the process of moving station the 100 yards or so onto the property where it will sit for the next couple of years while the renovation takes place.
In the past year we have seen the city involve community groups in the creation of policy and in the development of projects that can best be done by citizens on their own. Heritage Burlington came up with proposals for the management of the way heritage buildings are identified and protected; they did such a good job that the city now has the Advisory group reporting directly to a council committee.
For the life of them, this city council and the one before them could not find a suitable location for the Freeman Station – they actually got to the point where the city placed advertisements in the papers asking if anyone would just haul the thing away. It wasn’t just city council that wore the veil of shame – some city staff plainly didn’t want the station to exist and they didn’t exactly tell the whole story when they described the structure to a council committee.
 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. shown are:John Mello, James Smith, Reg Cooke, Councillor Meed Ward, George Curran, Councillor Blair Lancaster and Brian Aasgaard
At what was the turning point for the survival of the station, Councillor Meed Ward along with Councillor Blair Lancaster, proposed that the city allow some time for the creation of a citizens committee that would take on the task of finding a home for the station and then raising the funds to refurbish the structure.
There weren’t a lot of supportive voices at that council meeting but Mead Ward persevered and council agreed to give them some time. Councillor Sharman was pretty insistent at that time that if the group could not find a home or raise the funds – then they would go along with getting rid of the building. It certainly wasn’t his best day as a council member or civic leader.
The Friends of Freeman Station did it – they found a home, they raised some money and they went through the arduous process of getting a Joint Venture agreement with the city in place.
Now the real work begins and if you’d like to be part of that real work – take in the Strategy meeting [planned for Saturday, October the 27th at city hall.
That’s when the nuts and bolts of moving the station from its blocks next to the fire station on Plains Road to the site they have for the next three years for certain and six years if they need it. A foundation will be put in and the station moved,. Ideally before winter. Then they will cover up the structure to protect it from further deterioration and plan for the Spring and Summer of 2013 when a lot of work will be done.
 Make a fashion statement and support the renovation of the Freeman Station. The next big step for the Friends of Freeman Station is a fund raising drive. If you care to donate you can double the value of your donation by sending the funds to the Friends of Freeman via the Historical Society who have agreed to match every donation dollar for dollar up to a total of $5000.
Send you donations to: Friends of Freeman Station, 3023 New Street, P.O. Box 91536, Roseland Plaza, Burlington ON, L7R 4L6
Get used to the idea of seeing Freeman Station sitting out there on the north side of Plains Road next to the fire station but don’t see it as the permanent location for this structure.
It belongs on the railway embankment down on the Beachway and it will eventually end up there. The public will that saved the station will eventually get translated into political will.
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON October 18, 2012 The Halton Regional Police have a problem on their hands. Their mandate is to respond to public calls for help and in this part of the province they do that rather well. We wouldn’t be known as one of the safest place in the country to live without an efficient responsive police force.
But those man and woman in blue don’t have crystal balls – they react to calls from the public.
 Chief of Police Steve Tanner explains that Social Media is not the same as a 911 call The police note that during the past few weeks, there have been a number of public opinion surveys and news articles circulating regarding the use of social media platforms, such as Twitter and Facebook, during an emergency or crisis situation.
“Some of these surveys indicated that a significant portion of the public believes that if they posted a Facebook status or tweeted a need for immediate police assistance, that police would be aware and respond, similar to a 9-1-1 call.
“Social media is an excellent way for police and other emergency services to have a dialogue with the public we serve, and it is a useful platform to exchange a wide variety of public safety information. That said, it should not be used to contact police, fire or ambulance in the event of an immediate emergency or crisis.
“We want to remind the public that the first and only avenue people should use to contact police in the event of a crime in progress, immediate or imminent public safety risk, or other police-related emergency is to call 9-1-1,” said Halton Chief of Police Steve Tanner.
“During an emergency, a lot of critical and confidential information needs to be exchanged, often under duress, and our 9-1-1 Communicators are best equipped to do this, to ensure you get the help you need as quickly as possible,” explained Chief Tanner.
Social media sites are third-party public platforms, and as such, were never designed or intended to be an appropriate substitute for trained 9-1-1 communicators who are available to immediately answer emergency calls 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
As such, the public is reminded that the @HaltonPolice Twitter feed and official Facebook page are not monitored 24/7, nor do police personnel monitor an individual’s personal Twitter or Facebook accounts for emergency notifications.
“We absolutely encourage people to follow us on social media, and engage in a dialogue with us about their police-related questions or concerns – just not in an emergency situation where your safety or someone else’s is at risk,” said Chief Tanner.
If someone is uncertain if a situation warrants a 9-1-1 call, but is still a matter which requires police response they should call the non-emergency police line, which is also staffed 24/7. In Halton, police non-emergency calls can be made to 905-825-4777, 905-878-5511, or 519-853-2111.
The Halton Regional Police Service official Twitter feed can be found at @HaltonPolice and our Facebook page can be found at https://www.facebook.com/HaltonRegionalPoliceService or visit our website at www.haltonpolice.ca
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON October 17, 2012 One of the fun things you can do in November is take in the Art in Action Studio Tour.
You get to drive around the city, spend time in ten different locations looking at all kinds of art from some very, very nice wood turning, to iron work, or stained glass if that works for you.
 Thirty six artists – ten locations – you will see much that you like and some you may want to buy. The event is put on by Art in Action – an artist’s collective that puts on the event each year on a Saturday and a Sunday – this year it will take place November 3rd and 4th – from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm
You get to meet the artists and talk about the work they do – which ranges all over the map. Sort of like going to ten different art galleries.
There are ten studio stops where 36 artists will have their work set out.
 Paintings, jewellery, glassware, weaving – this city has a rich artistic community that you can experience in a single day. You might even get to know many of them personally. We did this tour last year for the first time – it went so well that we invited friends to join us this year.
What will you see? Well there is a brochure but it’s more fun just to dive from location to location and be surprised when you walk in the door.
Don’t be shy about walking into someone’s home. They want you to come in. As you make the rounds you will find that you bump into people you saw earlier in the day and you get to exchange ideas and comment on what you saw.
Last year we watched Don Graves sell a piece of art to a young woman who had not bought art before. She didn’t really see herself as an art collector but the paining appealed to he and the price was right – so she bought it.
At another location there was an almost party atmosphere. I swear that if we had had a bottle of wine in the trunk of the car the party would have begun right then. I’ve learned that the same group will be opening up their home again this year – and we will put a bottle of wine in the trunk of the car – you never know. Where did this happen last year? That would be telling but it was in the western part of the city – in a valley.
 All 10 locations can be done in a day. You’ll see parts of the city you’ve not seen before as well. How do you buy art? There is usually a price sticker on the piece but you’re not in a supermarket, this isn’t a commodity you’re buying. The object you buy is something the artist has spent many hours on and they put a lot of themselves into the piece you’re looking at.
What if you think you like it – but you’re not sure. Many of the artists will rent a piece of their work. Each artist will have their own approach to rentals – but if you’re interested in a rental – talk to them. What if the piece is more than you want to spend at that moment – but you really like the piece? Many artists are quite happy to take a couple of postdated cheques from you. They can’t be dated too far into the future – the artist would like to be alive when they are deposited.
Artists are people you can work with – they want good homes for their art and they want to sell what they make to people they like. So – if you’re not an art buyer – but you think you’d like to be an art buyer – pick either the Saturday or the Sunday and drive around. You’ll enjoy yourself.
Meet some really interesting artists as well as Burlingtonians who will be doing what you’re doing – looking around.
 By Staff
BURLINGTON, ON October 16, 2012 The Halton Regional Police Service have arrested a Hamilton man who approached women at various venues, including: fast-food restaurants, hair salons and gas stations and engaged in conversations that were generally non-criminal in nature, but did cause concern to the females who felt they were being harassed.
The male was described as: white, 5’7”, thin build with balding brown hair. He was known to drive either a grey Dodge pick-up truck or more recently, a white Dodge Charger. The police investigation led to the arrest of a Hamilton man, Tibor Varga, 49 years of age. He has been charged with one count of criminal harassment.
Police continue to investigate these incidents and are requesting anyone who may have been approached by the accused to contact the Halton Regional Police Service – Burlington Criminal Investigations Bureau at 905 825-4747 x2316.
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON October 16, 2012 They show up at your doorstep. The look innocent enough; they have a badge or what looks like a badge and they will tell you about how they can upgrade the water heater you have – free and save you some money. But they need to look at the water heater first.
The sales rep can sound very convincing, claiming to be representing a company that has taken over for another company. In most cases, they will look official and attempt to gain entry into your home to look at your water heater. They will then tell you your water heater needs to be upgraded and that this is a free service.
You might be asked to sign some paperwork and they will offer you discounts for signing up on the spot. You may end up locking into a contract where you have not read the ‘fine print’.
 That hot water heater might need an upgrade – but talk to someone you know and trust – and that probably isn’t the person standing on your doorstep offering a free upgrade. Several reputable service companies have been calling customers and warning them of this scam, however Halton Police has still been receiving calls from residents who have fallen victim.
Police offer the following advice to avoid becoming victimized:
• Never let unsolicited workers in your home if you are unsure of their identification
• Always read the full contract
• Do some research on the service being offered
• If you do allow someone into your home and you then feel your personal safety compromised, dial 9-1-1
Additional information concerning frauds/scams and what you can do to avoid being victimized can be found at www.haltonpolice.ca under the ‘Specialized Units – Fraud’ tab.
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON October 16, 2012 You know that the Saturday afternoon you go out to rake them up – more of them are going to fall onto your front lawn or your back yard. And even though you raked up all the leaves from the trees on your property – the wind will blow leaves from the tress form your neighbours trees. Such is life in the suburbs where we get to enjoy the fall colours and then we get to exercise our upper bodies raking them up.
Fortunately the city will take them all away – here is the schedule they will follow.
The city has created a bunch of zones. Check the map below, note the dates and follow the rules as to how you put the leaves out – and it will work out just fine.
Monday, Nov 5: Zones 3, 5, 6, 11, 13
Monday, Nov.12 Zones 1, 2, 4, 7, 8
Thursday, Nov. 22: Zones 9, 10, 12, 14, 15, 16, 8B
Thursday, Nov. 29: Zones 3, 5, 7, 11,13
Monday, Dec. 10 : Zones 2, 4, 6, 8, 12
Note: hatched areas ( 1, 8B, 9, 10, 14, 15 & 16 ) receive only one pick-up
 Figure out which zone you are in. Note the dates and get the bags of leaves out on the street in time for the pick up. Your tax dollars at work.  The nice part about the fall season. Everyone of those leaves is going to be on the ground – soon. This is the nice part of the fall season. Raking them up and chasing the squirrels off the lawn and then getting the property ready for the winter – happens every year.
There are, believe it or not, people in Burlington who don’t know about Our Burlington. Do your neighbours a favour and tell them about the web site – the map is useful
 By Pepper Parr
BURLINGTON, ON October 12, 2012 The team is coming together. They’ve met often enough now to know each other reasonably well and the objective is crystal clear. Len Lifhcus, Chief Executive Officer for the combined Burlington/Hamilton United Way operation – with a campaign team in each city, makes the point, if they don’t already get it, when he says “we need an exceptional campaign to reach our target this year”.
 Part of the Burlington United Way Campaign Cabinet – From the left – Brian Ferguson, Kendra, Wendy Derrick, Scott Massey, Richard Rizzo, Robyn. Tim Miron. Interesting conversation going on in the corner. That target for the Burlington portion of the Burlington/Hamilton United Way 2013 total is $2.1 million. Everyone involved knows what they have to do – and they know that the calls have to be made and the energy maintained. All the reliable donours from past years have to be contacted, cheques picked up and thanks given for the support.
It can be a grind but for the 20 odd people who met in the United Way Board room on Harvester Road last week, it was a chance to get caught up and report on what had been done.
It’s a slightly different Campaign Cabinet – there are more younger faces in the room. Many of the people who were there Friday had either made lunches and gotten kids off to school or got a call into their office to get things moving on that side of their lives.
Burlington chair Paddy Torsney is focusing on events that will involve people. She has a number of low cost events in place. Four food trucks will gather in the United Way parking lot on Harvester Road – 3425 Harvester, east of Walkers Line 11-00 am to 2:00 pm. If you work in the area drop by and take in a Food Truck Lunch. If you expect to be driving by – pull in – there is plenty of parking space.
Participating in this event are: Gorilla Cheese,; Caplansky’s; Hank Daddy’s BBQ and The Cupcake Diner
Another date you want to note is October 28th – The Runway @ the Rude – Sunday, October 28 – 1:00pm – 4:00pm at the Rude Native Bistro & Lounge – 370 Brant Street
Fashion show accompanied by lunch, door prizes and raffles! Tickets $25 (available at all vendors – click image below to enlarge) The price is right, the United Way will benefit. I want to know who is going to walk that Runway – and what will they be wearing? Stay tuned.
The Mystery Night – event. This one is so interesting that we will cover it in a separate story.
Debra Pickfield Think Master over at ThinkSpot has been tasked with introducing small and medium sized companies to the United Way payroll deduction program, which allows employees to instruct their employers to deduct a bit of money from their pay cheque each week and automatically send the total to United Way. Many small companies add an amount to the employee portion.
Many in the small business community think that payroll deduction is for the big operations. A payroll deduction can be set up for as few as two people. The Burlington United Way hasn’t had a lot of success in getting through to the smaller businesses in the city – the Mystery Night might be just the tool to bring these people in
 City General Manager Kim Phillips pulls for the United Way drive during the city hall staff outing to raise funds. If we all do this the $2.1 million target will be easily met. The Burlington team: Hon. Paddy Torsney, Campaign Chair VP, The Capital Hill Group; Jim Frizzle, United Way Board Liaison. Retired, RBC Royal Bank; Richard Rizzo, Senior Tax Manager, SB Partners; Jamie Edwards, Broker of Records, J.M. Edwards Associates Inc.; Wendy Derrick, Owner & Director, Fern Hill School; Greg Jones, Director, Corporate Communications & Community Relations, Newalta; Tim Miron, Senior Manager, Beckett Lowden Read; Scott Massey, NPI Project Lead, L3 Wescam; Kim Phillips, General Manager, Corporate Services, City of Burlington; David Euale, Director of Education, Halton District School Board; Michael Pautler, Director of Education, Halton Catholic District School Board; Gayle Cruikshank, Executive Director, Halton Food for Thought; Brian Ferguson, Campaign Vice-Chair Senior Manager, Sourcing, VMware; Jason Lemaich, Director of Retail Sales – Ontario, Pepsico Beverages Canada.
They aren’t going to raise the $2.1 million by themselves – give them more than a helping hand – please.
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