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September 29, 2014 BURLINGTON, ON.
In a statement from family we were informed that: “Mr. Thiara has been advised by his medical provider that he needs to take some time to ensure fast recovery. At this time he will be resting until his health permits.” We wish Mr. Thiara a speedy recovery. 
September 29, 2014 BURLINGTON, ON Each week, until the ballots are cast on October 27th, we are going to follow the tales and travails of a single candidate. We have chosen Carol Gottlob, running in ward 4 against a well entrenched incumbent. Gottlob has no experience in civic government, has never campaigned before. Following this candidate is not an endorsement; Gottlob will win on her own merit. Zoning and intensification seem to be the buzz words to get citizens and developers fired up on both sides of the issue. Developers persistently remind us that Burlington has a provincial mandate to meet regarding intensification. There is a growing Ontario population that needs options for places to live. We get that. The numbers: Current targets call for a minimum number of new housing units to be added to the built-up area between 2015 and 2031 as 8,300. The intensification mandate also speaks to the intent of building responsibly vis a vis existing mature neighbourhoods, so it’s not a carte blanche to simply build out without thought to consequences of high density population, not to mention affordable housing. Consideration must be given to the impact a larger population would have on public transit, traffic and road infrastructure, and social services.  Two tower project proposed for Appleby Mall location – 16 and 11 storey structures. That Official Plan is intended to protect, preserve and help Burlington grow responsibly. I believe one of the issue with our planning is the current zoning by-laws which are too large a zoning designation, too generalized a description and not sufficiently specific to reflect the needs of the prospective sub communities within current designated zones. These by-laws are typically set as minimums that the developers are pushing and the reality is these minimums today do not accurately reflect these sub-communities’ neighbourhoods, their character, their streetscapes or setbacks. For this reason we are seeing a multitude of sub-communities within these ‘grand zones’ rise up against ‘Monster Home’ and ‘High Rise’ development. When I am out talking to people I hear their stories and their fears: One example of such a conversation was relating to over building on lot sizes and the impact it has to the neighbourhood character. Potential requests for adjustment to by-law zones could be a change to the side lot setback- in other words how close to the property line a person could build. Current bylaws stipulate no closer than 3 meters (9.8ft), but the request is to move a new dwelling to 2 meters (6ft). Seems minimal on face value, but when the houses in the immediate vicinity are actually on average 4.5 meters (15ft), the new home being so close to the existing property can be daunting. The results become very drastic to privacy, notwithstanding the impact of precedence setting when bylaws are ‘excepted’. One can quickly appreciate what a Monster Home’s impact is to a neighbourhood adorned by smaller homes on larger treed lots. It also has long reaching implications of clear cutting in the absence of what one may feel are meaningful tree by-laws. Clearly the citizens’ needs are not being met with generalized zoning minimums that don’t reflect their sub communities’ character, or their neighbourhood needs for responsible growth. I also don’t believe developers want to lose time and money investing with planners and representation and delays going to Committee of Adjustment hearings every time they want to build; it’s just bad business.  Indian Point underwent a character study that was abandoned. Roseland waiting for its study to be completed. This past year council has been requested to participate in numerous neighbourhood character studies (Roseland, Indian Point, Shore Acres) in an effort to offset this imbalance in the current Official Plan and subsequent zoning bylaws. Citizens are screaming to address this with expedience but the process has been way too slow, without meaningful output for these neighbourhoods or the developers. So the two parties continue to be at odds with the absence of reflective bylaws, and some developers leveraging the intensification needs as opportunities to build big, build out and, build often while they can. We need to do better for these communities. Until the rules by which all parties’ interests are best served and enforced with some sense of consistency, we will continue to see these disputes. Burlington is also suffering a significant imbalance in its Citizen Tax Base. We are currently 75% residential and only 25% commercial. So while we are focused on building out residential to meet this provincial mandate, we are not keeping pace with the city’s need for commercial build out. We are hemorrhaging in our ability to meet the service needs of our community. Our transit services are failing with systemic issues that we are currently only addressing through route changes, or worse, route removals and no Transit Master Plan to resolve any of it. Our main thoroughfares are congested with traffic and getting around town is becoming more and more problematic.  Carol Gottlob, an English as a Second language teachers looked at the candidates that had nominated themselves in ward four and came to the conclusion she could do the job as well if not better than any of them – and she had no time for the incumbent. with no experience at city hall, no community experience she filed her papers and is now running hard against a 20 year member of council. Of such races are legends made. I’m hearing you residents of ward 4, and I want you to know I’m ready to advocate for you. It’s time for change, time for an Official Plan that better reflects the needs of residents and still satisfies the provincial mandates; a plan to better address the Burlington of today as well as tomorrow, one that should be reflective of the attributes that continue to attract people to our city, and we should be wary of continuing to trade on these attributes for development projects. We need a Transit Master Plan to address the growing population, the increase in traffic, and ensure we have a strategy to have sufficient support services. We have been developing our Residential Tax Base, but at what cost? Ignoring the rest of the things our city needs to support our growing Burlington? On the cusp of our build out, one candidate in our ward is suggesting now we should “Build Up”, but how we move forward now matters more than ever if we are to preserve the values of our environment, our character, and our city’s culture. We need projects that make sense for our community, not just today, but long term. Links:
September 28, 2014 BURLINGTON, ON.
You know what those geese do – don’t you?  Geese on a church lawn getting ready for lunch. Now imagine a flock of geese who discover a large collection of apples that have fallen to the ground. And picture a spot where there is space for those geese to walk around and not be bothered by a lot of people. Is there anything safer for geese than a church lawn? All this has come together at St. Christopher`s church on Guelph Line just south of Prospect. The church provides the lawn, the neighbouring apartment building provides the apple trees – and the geese think they have died and gone to heaven – what with all those apples to dine on. The geese do leave a lot of gooey stuff on the driveway into the church and the superintendent of the apartment building has said he would like to cut the trees down. That brought Melissa Tervit into the picture. Ms Tervit heads up Growing and Sharing Food in Halton and she wasn`t on for the cutting of trees just because the apples were following to the ground and providing lunch for the geese.  All those “free fall” apples have attracted geese. Does that mean the trees have to come down? I had an “interesting” chat with the property manager of the apartment buildings beside St. Christopher’s Anglican church yesterday while I was harvesting the apples from the trees, said Ms Tervit. He informed me that he intends to have the trees cut down later this week since the windfall apples are attracting too many geese. I suggested that he perhaps pick up the windfalls which would remove the lure for the geese. He wasn’t too keen on that idea, feeling that it was the fault of the trees directly that the geese were camping out on the driveway. He asked me if I had any power to stop him from cutting down the trees. I replied that I did not, however he may find himself the topic of an article in the Gazette. Tervit wasn`t going to be deterred. She has found a group of Girl Guides who will gather up the apples, wash them up and get them to the Food Bank. Will this arrangement work out? We will let you know. We`re still trying to get to that superintendent. You can never find those guys when you want them.
Chair: Accessible Sustainable Transit September 28, 2014 BURLINGTON, ON I wasn’t at the recent Ward 6 All-Candidates Meeting – but transit did come up as an issue. I was very surprised at Councillor Blair Lancaster’s comment that “Council has made serious improvements in congestion and transit ridership, since the introduction of its transit master plan,”
 Doug Brown, chair of Bfast, wants to see a bus schedule with routes that work for people and not the current bus route set up in place. It doesn’t work claims Brown. More puzzling still is her comment on the “introduction of the transit master plan” The City aborted the Transit Master Plan before it could be completed, so that the City of Burlington has been without a long-term transit plan. For the past two years, staff and Council have made extensive arbitrary schedule changes, causing confusion to bus users, and resulting in service cuts to Ward 6 and Burlington’s northeastern communities.
 Blair Lancaster – almost holding court with her constituents at a corn roast at the Air Park. I don’t understand how Councillor Lancaster can talk of the “introduction of its master plan” as Councillor Lancaster was on the Steering Committee for the Transit Master Plan study and was present when staff dismissed the Steering Committee and aborted the study. Councillor Lancaster also joined her fellow Councillors in voting for a $500,000 annual cut in transit’s share of the Provincial Gas Tax funding, and for the transit service cuts in the “Interim Transit Service Plan”
September 27, 2014 BURLINGTON, ON. Story has been updated The proposal is for a two tower structure on the north side the Appleby Village which is on the north-east corner of the New Street – Appleby Line intersection.  First Capital did a total makeover of the Appleby mall site a number of years ago – they now want to add some residential to a part of the property. The site has undergone a major upgrade in the past two years and the developer wants to do some intensification. The two buildings would be situated on the north side of the property – fronting on Pinedale. Anyone can take a building proposal to the city. The bigger developers know the rules; they know that studies have to be done and they know the process. In this instance, First Capital, the developers, will have read the provincial government policies and be fully aware of the nuances of the provincial Places to Grow policy and they will have hired planners to write the justification reports so that when it is taken to the city hall staff will have a very clear idea as to what the developer proposes to do with their property. Artists rendering of the two tower apartment complex with one 16 storey and a second 11 storey building that will have underground parking. This development requires both a change to the current zoning and a change to the Official Plan – both tend to send citizens up a wall. Many don’t understand how a developer can ask for a change in an Official Plan. Director of Planning Bruce Krushelnicki will explain, as he has done hundreds of times before, that the Official Plan is a dynamic document that is in place to set out what the city said it wants at a point in time. Developers however are encouraged to bring ideas and proposals to the city. Burlington wants growth – the citizens say we need that growth. When a developer comes along with a proposal the response is often – “well we didn’t mean that kind of growth”. Part of the process of getting these development ideas before city council for a decision is a Statutory Public Meeting which has been scheduled for November 18th 2014.  Ward six candidate James Smith beleives the statutory public meeting should be moved back to a date when the new council can make the decision on this project. That’s a problem for ward five city council candidate James Smith. The new council will be sworn in on December 1st and he wants the Statutory meeting to take place after the new council is in place. In his letter to Mr. Krushelnicki, Smith said: “As you know this proposed development represents a very large change to the design fabric of the site and the adjacent neighbourhood; to say that this proposal is controversial in our East End neighborhood’s is something of an understatement.” Smith argues that tabling the Statutory meeting until early 2015 would facilitate important criteria of the City of Burlington’s Engagement Charter, especially when it comes to both Accountability, and Capacity Building. Turns out candidate Smith didn’t have some of it right. The planner on this file contacted the Gazette and explained that “we are just starting the required review. One thing that should be clarified is that the November 18 meeting we have scheduled at Robert Bateman High School is NOT the required statutory meeting under the Planning Act. It is a neighbourhood meeting that the City is holding above and beyond the standard Planning Act requirements, but consistent with our policy to have a meeting for public discussion on major applications prior to any staff reports going to Committee/Council. I only raise this because I don’t want people in the community to get confused and show up on Nov 18th with expectations that formal decisions are being made on the applications that night and/or that it is their only chance to provide input. The statutory meeting will be scheduled for a later date, dependent on the file processing timelines and Planning Act requirements, and notification will be provided of this meeting. In addition, in the case of these applications it is anticipated that staff will be presenting an information report to Committee/Council for consideration before coming back at an even later date with some type of recommendation report. Smith points out that the City’s engagement charter states: “The City of Burlington will encourage the ability of its citizens and stakeholders to effectively participate in the development and implementation of engagement processes with respect to issues and decisions that affect their lives and their community”.  An apartment complex to the east consists of three towers – each 11 storeys high. Smith also points out that the white signs that asks citizens to visit a website for a meeting in two months is not compliant with the ideal set out in the concept of either Clear Language or Early & Widespread Notification. “I’m critical under the Clear Language provision, as information signs posted do not have a clear English explanation; only a legalese description; citizens should have both. Widespread notification is deficient, for three reasons: the poor location of information signs, – facing streets that have been under construction for some time, the lack of information signs available in the Plaza itself and lack of illustrations on the information signs. Besides wanting the public meeting date changed Smith adds some comments on the development proposal. “The site plan as proposed further exacerbates the deficiencies of the present site as it pertains to Pedestrian, Bicycle, Transit and Vehicle traffic flow, nor does the plan address the lack of street frontage of the businesses on this site.”
 Public art is set at the north west corner of the Village. Goats. For the record, said Smith, I am a supporter of the Province’s Places To Grow policy and firmly believe we need to intensify some of our underused sites in Burlington. However; given the examples in the province’s policy guide and the fact that the City of Burlington does not have hard design guidelines for this kind of rezoning application or for so-called Transit Friendly Design, I believe we need to take some time, as a city, to produce such documents in collaboration with our citizens and the development industry. This way we can get the kind of intensification our citizens can generally agree upon and avoid long, and costly protracted battles between citizens, the city and the development community.  South elevation of the two proposed towers. The developer sets out details on the location: Appleby Village consists of seven (7) buildings with a variety of retail/service commercial/office uses, including a Fortinos grocery store, Home Hardware, Rexall Pharma Plus, LCBO and the Beer Store. The Gross Building Floor Area (“GBFA”) within Appleby Village is approximately 20,056 square metres (215,881 square feet). The 6.6 hectare (16.3 acre) site is bound by, on the immediate north by Pinedale Avenue, where there are three condominium high-rise buildings known as Pinedale Estates which were built in 1989. The three buildings are each 12 storeys and provide a total of 338 dwelling units. To the south and east of Pinedale Estates, there are two elementary schools (Ascension Catholic School and Frontenac Public School) Robert Bateman High School) with associated parkland.  Smith would like to see storefront access to the street for those who walk – just about all the retail locations open out to the inner parking lot. The Provincial Policy Statement, Places to Grow, states: “it is in the interest of all communities to use land and resources wisely, to promote efficient development patterns, protect resources, promote green spaces, ensure effective use of infrastructure and public service facilities and minimize unnecessary public expenditures.” It is a key Provincial policy to promote land use Density is almost always an issue for the people of Burlington. Current targets call for a minimum number of new housing units to be added to the built-up area between 2015 and 2031 as 8,300. The phasing for these units are: 2,525 by 2016; 2,758 between 2017 and 2021; 2,669 between 2022 and 2026 and finally 2,659 between 2027 and 2031 by which time we will all be looking at a much different Burlington.
September 27, 2014 BURLINGTON, ON.
There are a couple of people in north Burlington who were delighted to learn that the provincial government is to re-introduce anti-SLAPP legislation. In a statement issued yesterday the government said the Ministry of the Attorney General would pursue the re-introduction of legislation to protect the public from lawsuits intended to discourage public participation.  From the right: Monte Dennis, Ken Woodruff, Vanessa Warren, Roger Goulet, city general manager Scott Stewart. Lawyer Ian Blue, who defended the city in the Air Park case and staff lawyer Blake Hurley SLAPP is a strategic lawsuit against public participation which is what Monte Dennis and Vanessa Warren believe Vince Rossi is doing to them with his $100,000 demand for exemplary damages for comments they made and words they wrote about the landfill dumping on the Air Park property and plans that may be made to the air park. The provincial government wants to promote Fairness and Access to Justice by focusing on the delivery of legislative and systemic initiatives that promote fairness and access to the justice system for Ontarians. For Dennis and Warren the matter has relevance. At this point in time there is no such thing as SLAPP legislation – they face a simple libel case. Roger Goulet, a leading participant in the Rural Burlington Greenbelt Coalition (RBGC) wants everyone to get behind this change. What difference new legislation will make in the Dennis, Warren case is not clear – unless the legislation is made retroactive – which is highly unlikely. The Gazette and its publisher were also sued for libel – they are not relying on the SLAPP argument as a defence.
September 27, 2014 BURLINGTON, ON.
The Regional police would really like to get their hands on four people who failed to show up in court.  All four are wanted by the HAlton Regional Police Service. Charged back in June in connection to numerous day time break and enters in Burlington and Oakville the four are now wanted after they failed to re-attend court. On May 14th 2014 at approximately 11:50 am, a residence located on Lakeshore Road in Burlington was broken into by two unknown culprits who were operating a beige Dodge Caravan. The female culprit then exited the front door and walked down the driveway when the beige van pulled in front of the residence. Both culprits then entered the home through the front door where they proceeded to the master bedroom and broke into locked drawers where they stole a large amount of jewelry before leaving the home in the van. Members of the Burlington Criminal Investigations Bureau identified suspects and located the vehicle believed to have been involved in the break and enter. On June 25th 2014, police conducted mobile surveillance on the suspects who were now operating a grey Honda Odessey van. Throughout the day, the suspects were followed to various affluent neighbourhoods in Burlington and Oakville. On several occasions, two females were seen leaving the vehicle on foot carrying flyers. They were observed walking up to several homes and into back yards before returning to the van. Investigators have also executed search warrants at two Etobicoke residences and seized a quantity of jewellery, cash, clothing worn and a vehicle used during the May 14th 2014 break and enter on Lakeshore Rd. in Burlington. During the search warrant, an additional arrest was made in relation to possession of property obtained by crime. Arrested and held for bail are: Jacek JEDYNAK (27 yrs) of Blackfrair Ave. in Etobicoke Sandra TALAR (26 yrs) of Weston Rd. in Etobicoke Robert TALAR (66 yrs) of Dixon Rd. in Etobicoke It is unusual for the police to post pictures of people who did not appear in court for a hearing while on bail. The Regional police must really want these four culprits.
September 27, 2014 BURLINGTON, ON.
On Wednesday night the Burlington Gazette held its first all municipal candidates’ debate; it was held in ward six where there will be a total of 10 candidates on the ballot. Two of the ten were absent while one left shortly after the beginning. Joan Little, a Hamilton Spectator columnist and Kurt Koster, a north Burlington resident and one of the founders of BurlingtonGreen wrote the questions that were put to the panelists. On the stage were: Angelo Bentivegna, Jim Curran, Pardeep Dosanjh, Jennifer Hlusko, Blair Lancaster, Jivan Sanghera, Ishare Thiara who left early due to illness and Vanessa Warren. There were about 120 people ence was approximately 100 with many, but not all, being cheerleaders’ for their candidate. Not sure how many minds where changed during the debate.
That notwithstanding, the questions and responses did offer an insight into not only the candidates, but why they were running and what their goals would be. Though not a Toronto style debate with name calling and heckling, there were a few zingers thrown. Why each of the candidates was running was quite apparent throughout the evening, they were not happy with the current councillor. Not returning phone calls or responding to the needs of residents was a major complaint of Lancaster. However, she did respond by pointing to her long list of accomplishments as shown on her brochure and the fact that when addressing issues, one needs finesse and careful negotiations. The candidates were asked if they would be full time councillors. Most definitely was the response back. They felt that being a councillor was a full time job and that they would treat it as such by being available 24/7. Jennifer Hlusko said the $120,000 Councillors are paid (they are actually paid under $100,000 – half of which comes from the Region and half from the city. They also get pension contributions and health benefits from the city) was far more than she earned as a trustee and she treats that job as full time.  Angelo Bentivegna chats with Jivan Sanghera after the debate. Should a Councillor accept political donations and if so, from whom? Recognising that money is essential to run a campaign some stated that there was a difference accepting money from friends and relatives and from developers. Each candidate had a different response to this question. Hlusko said she has never accepted money in the past and only recently accepted one donation which she says will be her last. Bentivegna, Curran, Dosanjh and Warren have accepted donations from friends and relatives but stressed not from developers. It could be a conflict if the developer addresses council. Sanghera stated he would not accept donations but would rather people donate to the flood relief fund. Only Lancaster had a slightly different approach. She felt that a donation of $750 (which is the maximum that one can donate) is not that great of an amount and would not sway a Councillors opinion. Anyone can donate to a campaign, she said and that developers are important and that we must respect people that donate. In discussing ward 6, Angelo Bentivegna felt that it was comprised of four distinct areas, Headon Forest, Millcroft, Alton and rural Burlington with each having their particular needs. He felt that the Alton community felt isolated and should be brought into Burlington. Resident Fareem Samji (current Canadian Women’s Long Drive Champion) asked the Councillors how this could be done. This resulted in a variety of answers. Jennifer Hlusko reaches her community via blogs and twitter on a daily basis. Jim Curran feels that the community is isolated from city hall and is not a geographical problem.
 The traffic on Dundas is seen as an accident waiting to happen. Is there a solution? The candidates didn’t agree on one. Speeding appears to be a common occurrence here. There was near consensus that a pedestrian walkway should be constructed to ensure safety for all residents crossing Dundas. They do not want a tragedy to affect change. However, at a cost of $1.2 million, this will not happen in the immediate future. Dundas is a Regional Road; decisions as to what gets done are made at the Regional level. Bike lanes: everyone is in favour of having more, but what kind and how to pay for them? Do we want bike lanes for the serious commuter or for casual biking? Once that has been determined, how do you pay for them? That is the $2 million question. Lancaster said it would cost $2 million for a small section of road and that we should install the bike lanes when the roads are redone. Bentivegna wanted additional studies before further action while the balance of the field wanted immediate action. Sanghera suggested that corporate Burlington pitch in. He asked “why can’t Tim Horton’s, for example, sponsor a bike lane”? This was echoed by the others while Hlusko felt there could be efficiencies at city hall that could result in additional funds for bike lanes. There was the obligatory discussion of the airpark fiasco with all candidates stressing that this will not be another Buttonville (more than just a recreational airport). None of the candidates would support further expansion. Lancaster suggested that the city hire an aviation consultant whose expertise would guide council with the potential problems that the airpark could present to the city. A rhetorical question by Sanghera “How did the first truckload happen?” received loud applause by the audience. All candidates were disappointed with transit within ward six as development and transit routes do not appear to be in sync. “We tend to build first and the get transit to serve” said Warren. Lancaster added that the city is making progress in this area – looking at smaller buses. She added that ridership is up by 15%. This was disputed by Sanghera and Bentivegna.
 Transit was a debate question: How much and how does it get paid for? “Transit is calculated by boards and not by ticket sales” said Bentivegna. One ticket sales could easily be two rides. All were concerned that seniors should get the transit that they deserve and with an aging population in ward six, transit should be upgraded to meet these needs by increasing the number of stops and by reducing fares for seniors. How do we engage younger voters? – a question in any election. The use of social media such as twitter and Facebook was a most common reply while Dosanjh and Curran felt that parents have a certain responsibility in having their children be more politically aware. The recent ice storm and flooding was covered with all candidates stressing that we need to be more prepared for these types of events and that our infrastructure needs to be upgraded. Many topics were covered and many words spoken. Reading candidate literature gives one a certain perspective on the candidates and seeing them live in a debate forum adds an additional layer to the individual. They all seem to use the same buzzwords such as concern for seniors and our children but decisions should be done based on a multitude of facts and not emotion. For example, concern for seniors is important, but we should remember that all seniors are not alike. As recently reported in Macleans magazine, today’s seniors are much more active and wealthier than previous generations. Before we start spending more money on transit for ward 6 seniors, we should totally understand the type of senior in this ward and how many would use increased and cheaper transit.
 This is the part of Burlington the environmentalists want to keep the highway makers away from. The building of an additional highway through north Burlington was not discussed yet all candidates were concerned of our current traffic woes both within Burlington and throughout the GTA. All candidates want more employment within Burlington, but with all candidates not wanting to change our current urban and rural boundaries, we face either more dense housing within Burlington or additional traffic into the city. With a population projection of 6.6 million by 2025 within the GTA how many of these would be travelling the QEW corridor and can we handle the traffic?  Councillor Lancaster got herself attached to the Air Park in a way that many north Burlington residents did not appreciate. As the evening concluded, the panelists said that they were impressed with the quality of candidates for ward six. It would be great if we could take a piece of each candidate and have a super Councillor. Angelo Bentivegna has done his homework but was proposing too many meetings and consultations. Jim Curran seemed to lack a certain dynamism when addressing the audience. Pardeep Dosanjh showed deep support for seniors and children, but did not have a strong platform for all the other issues. Jennifer Hlusko has the political background as a trustee and has a sound knowledge of how government operates. Blair Lancaster, the incumbent, has experience on her side. The main problem here is was she responsive enough to her constituents and can she improve on this in the future. Jivan Sanghera was a pleasant surprise as he had a strong presence and offered some unique solutions to the needs of ward six. However, name recognition is low within the ward. Vanessa Warren entered the race initially because of the airpark situation and presents herself well in a public forum. The main question is will she be able to give equal time to the rest of the ward. Nine people wanting to replace the incumbent was a political message of its own. Walter Byj is a frequent contributor to the Gazette
September 27, 2014 BURLINGTON, ON
The Air Park is the most important issue in ward six however it really didn`t get the debate it needed. As publisher of the Gazette I did not choose the questions the panelists asked. I did choose the panelists.
 An early photograph of the Airpark property. There are now two runways and a lot more landfill now than there was when this picture was taken. The lines indicate the extent of the Air Park holdings. The Air Park is not just ward six issue – it is a city wide issue – what happens to that land and that operation will define for a long, long time what rural Burlington looks like in the years ahead. Our task is not to decide the issues but to help in defining what the issues are. We have some very active (and opinionated readers in whom we delight) who take part in this process. We got the following from a resident: I’m a resident of Ward 6, and I was at the debate the other night. One issue I thought might come up was one that has previously been raised by Ms. Hlusko concerning Ms. Warren’s potential conflict of interest regarding the Airpark. Since she has stated in the past that Airpark expansion would negatively impact her equestrian business, there does seem to be a real possibility that she would have to recuse herself from discussion of any airpark expansion plans. It would indeed be ironic if she were elected to council, but was then unable to participate in the issue that brought her to local prominence in the first place.
 Tonnes of landfill were dumped on the Air Park property without the required permits. The public does not know where much of that land fill came from. The Air Park owners claimed they were regulated by the federal government and did not have to comply with municipal bylaws, Justice Murphy said they were wrong and that they did have to comply with city bylaws. How they comply is what your council is going to decide. We asked Ms Warren to respond and she sent the following: A Buttonville-like expansion of the Burlington Airpark would negatively affect everyone living in Burlington, including my home and farming operation. The 5 year unregulated fill operation that I fought through the Rural Burlington Greenbelt Coalition and the Ontario Soil Regulation Task Force negatively affected numerous families and properties in Ward 6, and may yet effect all of us if the fill is left untested. Every decision a City Councillor makes also effects them personally as a resident of this City; what they may not do is have a pecuniary interest in the outcome of a decision. I will in no way financially benefit from a Burlington Airpark that is environmentally safe, or that remains feasible within the context of the Greenbelt Protected Countryside that it has operated on for the last 60 years. As Ward 6 Councillor, I would never recuse myself from anything to do with the Burlington Airpark, and I would continue to advocate for environmental and social justice on this file. Jennifer Hlusko is plain wrong on this one. There you have it – two opinions. You now have to think about what you want your Burlington to look like. We would like to add this: the Air Park would not be the issue it is had Ms Warren not brought it to public attention. And you might want to ask why Vince Rossi is suing Ms Warren (and the publisher of the Gazette) for libel. Salt with Pepper is a column written from time to time by Pepper Parr the publisher of the Gazette
September 26, 2014 BURLINGTON. ON
In the late 1990’s former Premier Harris imposed amalgamation on a number of municipalities in Ontario, including Flamborough, where I live. Folks were so upset that it was only the lack of access to heavy weapons which prevented scenes like the ones we’ve seen taking place in eastern Ukraine from happening right here in Hamilton. But instead of occupying municipal buildings, the ‘free Flamborough folks’ just demanded a municipality-wide binding referendum on de-amalgamation.
So what was Scotland’s referendum all about? Hardly 300 years of slavishly oppressive rule by their English masters or being forced under the yolk of British economic imperialism. Though perhaps it was really about correcting history. After all, Rob Roy, Mary Queen of Scots, Bonnie Prince Charlie, Mel Gibson (Brave Heart’s William Wallace) all failed to bring independence. And here was a chance to win without firing a crossbow or swinging a broad sword. Scotland, unlike Flamborough, for a number of years had its own parliament and the ability to enact its own local laws, including taxation. But that is not real independence, like your own army and a seat at the U.N. In some ways the parallels with Quebec are scary. In fact, the Scottish National Party (SNP) took inspiration from our own ‘Parti Québécois’ and their twice-failed attempts at sovereignty, though at least they had a clear, unambiguous question for the voters.  It eventually went no but 45% wanted to leave the United Kingdom The turnout was over 80%, a voting population which had seriously poured over the pros and cons, like a fine single malt, before finally opting unequivocally for the status quo. National health care, a strong British currency and EU membership beat out the elusive benefits of independence. In the end the Scots followed the lead of Quebecers in their first vote in 1985 – refusing to jump into the unknowns of the deep end and choosing instead to paddle around the shallows they were most comfortable with. They chose head over heart, some would say – rational over national – swimming against the current in a renaissance era of nationalism. Russia has become the leader for this reversion back to nationalism – something which harkens back, disturbingly, to a Europe of the 1930-40’s. Militarization, media control, banned opposition and public expression; the signs of a man with a plan to be sure. In the name of defending Russian nationalism the cleaver big Bear has been able to impose its imperialist will, somewhat ironically, on its neighbours and in the face of their own nationalism.
Canadians breathed a sigh of relief with the election of the Quebec liberals earlier this year. And it looks like the next sovereignty referenda is some years off, especially as Premier Couillard is determined to have his province sign onto Canada’s constitution. But these kinds of things can change in a heartbeat sometimes, so should never be taken for granted. One just needs to look at events in Iraq.  Canada came very, very close to losing Quebec. We came so close in 1995. While the Chretien government may not have been prepared for a ‘Yes’ vote, Saskatchewan was. Premier Romanow had developed a strategy for his province to also secede from what would be left of a Canada without Quebec. It is probable that there might have been no Canada-without-Quebec, at all, had Mr. Parizeau played the hard ball he wanted to in 1995.  Perhaps Flamborough should have become independent in 1906 Flamborough had evolved as a kind of artificial construct, cobbled together as so many geo-political entities in the jig-saw puzzle of municipalities in Ontario. It was more of a mosaic than a community, lacking the kind of deep cultural history and evolution we see with the Scots, the Mesopotamians, the Israelites, or the Kievan Rus. So nobody felt strongly enough to bring out the tanks and the ground-to-air missiles in this civil fight to retain an independent identity and local government. Still, if you were to poke some longtime resident of Flamborough, you’d find the embers of a freedom-fighter looking for a whiff of oxygen to re-ignite the issue, especially as another election year is upon us. You’d also find someone disappointed by ‘the system’ and tired of the garbage spewing from the mouths of populist-tending politicians only interested in your votes – politicians with no real intention on this matter. And maybe you’d see a sad smile of ‘deja vu’ on faces that are tired of all the dishonesty and unfairness, and are still waiting for the referendum they were promised’. Links: Free Flamborough Scotland Referendum Cameron of Scotland SNP – The Queen Quebec To Sign Sask. Plans What Quebec Wants Ukraine Crisis
September 26, 2014 BURLINGTON, ON.
Was it a good debate? Not bad. It was the first the Gazette has sponsored and perhaps the only ward level debate the city will see – however we understand there might be a ward level debate in Aldershot. We will certainly do this type of thing again – maybe not this election. Events like this take time and with our limited resources – time is one of the things we never have enough of. On the stage at the theatre at the Hayden High School were the following: Angelo Bentivegna; Jim Curran; Pardeep Dodanjh; Jennifer Hlusko; Blair Lancaster; Jivan Sanghera; Ishar Thiara and Vanessa Warren. Mina Wahidi had to excuse herself from the debate – her Mother was taken to hospital. Ishar Thiara had to leave the stage part way through the evening; he had become ill and Shoaib Shams didn`t show up. Email from people we look upon as reliable, informed observers who have served the city in some form in the past and are aware of what happens at city hall, sent in some comments.
We pass these along to you along with our own observations. Later this week our reporter Walter Byj will complete his write of the three hour event. “I was expecting to see some strong drive for change, but all I saw was room temperature water, except for Warren’s opening remark about the number of candidates being a good indicator of how well Lancaster has done her job. Bentivegna – wants to do more studies – there are already too many studies – need some action! Gazette comment: Should Bentivegna be elected he will choose to be very tight with senior staff. He very much wants to be part of what he sees as the people who run the decision. Bentivegna believes he can help the Mayor be a better mayor by offering him direction and guidance. Curran – weak communicator – hard for him to string more than 5 words together – could not hold my attention.
Dosanjh – save your time and drop out. Gazette comment: At one point she began to believe what she was saying – but lost any credibility she might have had when she asked another candidate how much he had donated to the flood victim account. Hlusko – acted like she did not want to be there – “too much anger when responding to the early question when she said ‘which question do you want me to answer’ “strange loud positive response from the crowd when she said that… “SHE built Hayden school’ – her quote – Government of Ontario funding had nothing to do with it, nor did demographics or the province’s school funding formula? If force of personality could get a school built, why did Millcroft not have a school for 8 or 9 years? Because of the funding formula…. she was on duty when it was built, but to take credit, I don’t think that is a valid claim Angelo Bentivegna and Jivan Sanghera exchange comments after the debate “Burlingtonians have deep pockets and are willing to pay for parks, road repairs” – paraphrased – Easy to say when her family brings in north of $200k and her peers working for the school boards make $90k plus. Example: Two husband and wife school board employees near me. First set – her teaching 10 years ~ $80k / year. Him, school admin ~ $120k / year. Second Set – him, school admin ~ $170k, her teaching 30+ years $90k+. If Hlusko comes out of her circle of friends/peers she will see there are many people in Burlington who struggle to get by or live paycheck to paycheck. Gazette comment: Hlusko had the best grasp of the numbers than anyone else – she knew her file and while she is a little quirky – (She might be a Mensa.) she knows what she is talking about. We saw her as snappy in a very positive way. We don’t share the view of our observer. Lancaster – – she is so meek, silent and vacant in Council, I was surprised she skated so well on thin ice It is the Ward she represents, not a Ward she possesses. Gazette comment: Lancaster was Lancaster – she described Warren as an activist – a word that left a bad taste in Lancaster’s mouth, but she gave as good as she got. She represents a demographic that is older but they love her and if enough of them stick by her – she could make it back. Her support is solid – the question is – just how deep is that support. When the incumbent has nine people running against her it has to be a message she hears. One didn’t get the impression she has heard the message, Sanghera – did his research, spoke well – needs to find a differentiator to succeed – potential – maybe not this year. Gazette comment: We were very impressed with this young man. He spoke very well, had his fingers on the facts and came across, to us anyway, as balanced and rational. Were we to live in ward six – he would be our choice. Warren – very well prepared, confident – may be the ultimate winner – if she gets a presence south of 407
We are not sure Warren has the patience to sit through those hour upon hour Standing Committee meetings talking about parking spaces and property setbacks. Her sense of justice would bristle at some of the things developers ask for – which the current council usually gives them. Warren would be a firm ally of Meed Ward – not a bad thing – but it would mean 5-2 votes on many issues. In the past they have been 6-1 with Meed Ward calling for a recorded vote each time. Meed Ward is good at this kind of thing and, while she is an irritant to her colleagues she is effective. Warren doesn’t have the stomach for this kind of thing. There are going to be those out there that claim we are biased. We don`t live in the ward. We know the incumbent better than most people; we have watched her for the past four years. We have followed several of the candidates for some time. Others we saw for the first time Wednesday night; for at least one of them that was all we needed.
September 26, 2014 BURLINGTON, ON.
There are people that have stuff they don’t need and there are people who need stuff desperately. The trick is to match the two – not always easy. The city set up a Community Bulletin Board as a way to connect people in the community.
Many generous people have offered their items for free to people in Burlington affected by the flood in August. The offerings range from a red leather couch to Lego blocks, a washer and dryer, television sets and coffee tables. There are many goods available to help people rebuild their basements and their lives. The Community Bulletin Board is here. Click on the yellow virtual sticky note to see the list of items.
September 26, 2014 BURLNGTON, ON.
Every minute of every day, someone in Canada needs blood—in most cases, blood from more than just one generous donor. Someone undergoing treatment for leukemia, for example, may require blood and blood products from up to eight donors a week. That’s why Canadian Blood Services continues to work with partners and members of communities from coast to coast to Rally Together to Save Lives, because collectively, blood donations have a positive impact on patients and their families.  Kristen McEachern, territory manager for Canadian Blood Services in Burlington needs to book 4000 appointments between now and the end of October. Help her out. Making a blood donation this fall helps ensure an adequate supply for patients. Bring a friend or family member to donate with you. You can book an appointment online at www.blood.ca or by calling 1 888 2 DONATE (1 888 236-6283). Last week, the Burlington Blood Donor Clinic has hit an all-time low in terms of booked appointments. They have 807 spots to fill – just 400 have been filled thus far Canadian Blood services is putting out the call to remind people from across the region who are eligible to donate to come in and donate.
Higher than expected cancellations and no shows have put a strain on the national inventory – patients rely on this supply. In the longer term they would like to book group appointments to help us fill the gap. Between now and the end of October they need to have over 4000 appointments booked to keep up with demand. Contact Kristen McEachern at 905-546-7203, if you are interested in booking group appointments. Complimentary transportation provided for group. They need the Burlington community to rally together; it takes many donors to help save a hospital patient. Every donor makes a difference.
September 25, 2014 BURLINGTON, ON
The cheque books came out and in less than half an hour the 100 Women Who Care Burlington voted to support Food 4 Kids, an organization that works with our schools who have identified children/families living in poverty situations and discreetly provide the child (it goes in their backpacks) with food on weekends.
There are currently 76 members of the Burlington Chapter of 100 Women – room for more of you. At $100 each Food4kids could be looking at $7,600 which is a lot of lunches. You can reach then at www.food4kids.ca. The other organizations nominated were Burlington Breast Cancer Support Services and the Seat Yourself Campaign @ Aldershot School. Links: In and out in less than an hour – Humane Society benefits. The teachers knew who they were – Food4Kids fed them
September 26, 2014 BURLINGTON, ON.
The city is calling the weekend Cultural Days and has a long list of events planned for the public. The Rocca Sisters, no slouches when it comes to promotion, decided to do their own cultural thing and are sponsoring Applefest at Ireland House at Oakridge Farm, 2168 Guelph Line in Burlington to celebrate the best the fall season has to offer.  Ireland House – an original Burlington farm house that once stretched for acres on the northern edge of the city will be the location for Applefest – an occasion when the city remembers when it was the food garden for a large part of the world. This Sunday, September 28 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., the “sisters” invite you to join them to celebrate the best the fall season has to offer. Admission to the event is free compliments of the Rocca Sisters as a way to say thank you to the community for all the support it has shown.
Funds raised at Applefest go towards Museums of Burlington’s educational programs and preservation of the historic collection.
September 25,2014 BURLINGTON, ON.
There aren’t many opportunities to say that you don’t like something without going to a lot of effort or offending someone. There is a word out there that is offensive but it is still in use. The moment I write the word I give it currency and I’m reluctant to do that – so let me say it begins with R end in D and has four letters in between.  In the soccer world the yellow card is a caution – it is being used to caution people who choose to use a really repugnant word. It’s a repugnant word, filled with hurt and harm and not in the least bit funny. They call it they yellow card program and it is tied into the Special Olympics Canada and Canadians living with intellectual disabilities. Motionball is a national charity that raises funds and awareness for Special Olympics Canada year-round. There is #nogoodway to use the “R-word,” and Canadians are asked to take the pledge to stop using the “R-word” and raise a proverbial yellow card when others use it socially. In soccer, a yellow card is shown to offending players as a warning that they have crossed a line; in the same way, the Yellow Card Campaign aims to inform Canadians that using the “R-word” is offensive to those living with intellectual disabilities even if used in a way that seems harmless. By informing and engaging without being punitive or threatening, the Yellow Card Campaign hopes to invite and inspire change, not force it. The campaign hopes to see 36,000 Canadians take the pledge online to stop using the “R-word” – a figure that reflects the number of registered Special Olympics athletes across Canada. In addition to the social change the campaign hopes to inspire, the Yellow Card Campaign’s corporate sponsors and private donors have come together to donate $1 to motionball for each supporter who takes the pledge online at www.motionball.com/yellowcard on Yellow CardDay which will be recognized in Halton when Regional Police Chief Stephen Tanner and Oakville Mayor Rob Burton will be taking the pledge and helping to kick off the event in the Rotunda at the Halton Regional offices on Wednesday, October 1, 2014 at 10:00am By taking the pledge on behalf of the almost one million Canadians living with an intellectual disability, supporters not only promise to stop using the “R-word”, but also to raise a proverbial yellow card when others use it casually.
September 24, 2014 BURLINGTON, ON
The spin at the Art Gallery of Burlington has begun. The announcement that he had left the Art Gallery was made by Ian Ross on his Facebook page. Sandra Edrup, Chair of the AGB said this morning that Ian Ross and the board met last week and mutually agreed that Ian Ross’s 20 years at the gallery would come to an end. That was last week – but there was no announcement until the Gazette broke the story earlier this morning.  Ian Ross in better days at the Art Gallery of Burlington Kim Varian, Doug Niven and Denis Longchamps are serving as a sort of triumvirate to run the gallery on a day to day basis while Anne Swarbrick serves as a volunteer temporary Executive Director. A search team will be put together said Ms. Edrup that will be inclusive and include all the stake holders and the wider community to find a new President and CEO The phrase “support for success” has entered the language the senior AGB people are using and there was mention of confidentiality and Ian’s career future. Was the parting of ways the result of philosophical differences over how the new branding was to be put into play? Or was there a clash of wills between some of the newly appointed senior staff? Ross has not been available for comment. The AGB is an important part of the cultural tapestry of Burlington – it matters and the public that pays a large part of the tab deserves as much transparency as possible. They didn’t get it today.
September 24, 2014 BURLINGTON, ON
As of noon today, the Burlington Community Foundation Flood Disaster Relief Committee has raised $600,000 in cash. “Each week we learn of new efforts to help raise funds and awareness for flood relief in Burlington and we are very thankful for these efforts,” says Ron Foxcroft, Chair, BCF Flood Disaster Relief Committee. “With shorter days and cooler temperatures the need for financial assistance is becoming even more urgent. We still need to raise more funds.” Over the last week the BCF Flood Disaster Relief Committee received numerous generous donations from businesses and the community. Retailers are displaying cash boxes, schools are organizing events to engage students and community organizations like the Burlington Sport Alliance are rallying together to help raise much needed funds. The Flood Relief Donations Centre which has been open for a few weeks continues to accept clothing and household items.
Homeowners and tenants, small businesses, non-profit organizations and farms can apply. Applicants will be required to fill out a more complete form that will be made available at LINK by September 30th. At that time, more information outlining what expenses are eligible will also be provided. There are a reported 40 plus homes in the city that do not have furnaces that operate in their homes. The need is serious. Banks in the community are expected to become donours in the near future.  The furnace in this basement is not likely to work. Donors are encouraged to continue supporting the campaign by: Cheque – make cheques out to “Burlington Community Foundation” with a memo reference to Flood Relief Campaign – mail or drop off at Burlington Community Foundation, 3380 South Service Road, Unit 107, Burlington, Ontario, L7N 3J5 On-line donations – Click on the DONATE NOW button at www.burlingtonfoundation.org
September 24, 2014 BURLINGTON, ON  Ann Swarbrick, former MPP in the Bob Rae government, then the executive Director of Habitat for Humanity , then the Chair f the Art Gallery of Burlington and and now in place as the Executive Director. Anne Swarbrick, chair of the Art Gallery of Burlington Foundation has been appointed as the Executive Director of the Art Gallery of Burlington. The appointment follows on the heals of the very sudden and surprising departure of long time leader of the Art Gallery operations Ian Ross.
September 24, 2014 BURLINGTON, ON.
“Yesterday was my last day as President & CEO of the Art Gallery of Burlington” said Ian Ross on his Facebook page That was a stunning statement. No one apparently saw that coming
 Ian Ross, former President & CEO of the Art Gallery of Burlington – taking a bid by telephone at the most recent Art Auction. Was this planned. Did he jump? Was he pushed? Nothing from the board of the AGB – that’s not good news. In a statement Ross said: “I want to thank all of you for your great contribution to making our Gallery such a tremendous success. These past few years have been ones of positive change and evolution, and 2015 is full of great promise and potential. Thank you for all of your planning and vision. “Thank you all for your friendship and the warmth and kindness that you have shown to me and my family. We have all been positively ‘marked’ by our experience of living and working at the AGB.
 Denis Longchamps Dennis Longchamps was brought in more than a year ago to head up the curating and operational side of what was recently re-named and re-branded as the Art Gallery of Burlington. Links: Art Centre re-named and re-branded. Director of programs appointed at Art Centre
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Ishar Thiara left the stage last Wednesday evening shortly after delivering his opening remarks. He left his jacket on the back of the chair he was using. We assumed he was going to return shortly.
After opening remarks from the candidates the panelists questioned the candidates on a number of topics allowing each candidate time to response. Unfortunately with the large number of candidates and the limited amount of time, it was difficult to always get detailed responses.
But the plebiscite never happened and in the end ‘big Hamilton’ won. Property taxes shot up and local government was shut down. To speak to city hall folks now had to haul their butts into the big smoke, pay the outrageous Hamilton parking fees and hope the heck that somebody on council would recognize them. Finally, many just gave up – the discouraged elector effect.
Today the multi-ethnic EU, the great melting pot of Euro communities, is at risk – threatened with Euro-scepticism and the rise of right-wing nationalist forces which threaten to tear it apart. For example, the UK plans to hold a plebiscite on its own EU membership, something which might cause the Euro-inclined Scots to question their latest vote on independence.
Gazette comment: Warren is always well prepared. She is the best delegator we have seen at both city hall and the Region, her research is close to impeccable. And she is an activist – Burlington needs more like her. She just didn’t come across as a person who could find the middle ground and understand that politics is the art of the possible. A city is made up of a collection of interests and all those interests have to be contended with and considered.
They will keep this live until the end of October 4. 
They need donors to come to Burlington Clinic to help meet the need of patients. Key dates: Monday September 29th 8am-12pm, Tuesday September 30th 11am-7pm & Thursday October 2nd 11am-7pm. 
The Gazette wrote about this group a few months ago. We told of those 100 Women as well. If it’s something you might be interested in – touch base with them. It’s amazing what women with a cheque book can do – some might put the word “amazing” in big bold black letters. 
All children will receive a free goodie bag and a special surprise from the Rocca Sisters. Stop by their tent and table to say “Hi!” and help celebrate Applefest.
The second phase of the claims and disbursement process is The Assistance for Losses and Damages funding. It is designed to assist victims in greatest need with more extensive losses and damages, and who were either uninsured or underinsured for their building and/or contents. 
