By Pepper Parr

April 27th, 2023

BURLINGTON, ON

 

It was the best day we have had, the weather was really nice – even though many people were out wearing winter jackets. Dozens and dozens of women out pushing carriage – some seemed to be travelling in groups of eight and ten carriages – almost in a convoy.

Small groups gathered around the cherry trees that were really a welcome picture.

As one strolled along the Naval promenade there were welcome opportunities to look at some really amazing art. The Dan Lawrie collection is on display – some really exciting art.

The Lawrie collection shares the space with some interesting Indigenous art.

There are a few of the pieces included in this story- we will follow up with more later.

By Pepper Parr.

April 24th, 2023

BURLINGTON, ON

 

The staff from the Communications and Engagement department showed up at a Standing Committee recently with a long report that set out everything they’d done since their last report – one list was 15 pages long.

Kwab Ako-Adjei Director, Corporate Communications & Engagement  and his team spoke of the “extraordinary amount of engagement that was done by the city which includes council as well” and then went on to take council through what had been done since their last annual report.

We are a “ very data driven department” and we will start sharing a lot of that with counsel in the near future”, said Kwab

The phrase “giving people a choice for their voice” was the way Communications explained the decision to continue in person or online engagement or a combination of both.

The question Kwab may have wished he didn’t ask was: “What is the will of council for having the Food for Feedback event as an annual event? And what about the locations?

He and his team were before Council to get reaction on various city communications issues, however the Food for Feedback initiative quickly became the focus of the meeting – that and the desire on the part of every member of council for access to all the data collected and a plea that the event be held in their ward at some point.

The Food for Feedback idea was you got a ticket to get something to eat from a Food Truck that was parked nearby – but you had to “engage” with city staff at one of the booth set up in the Band Shell park next to the Library.

It was a popular event – two Food for Feedback events were held – Covid did get in the way of their longer term plans, but it worked and that was the premise behind the report.

Kwab wasn’t prepared for the reaction. He explained that these events were expensive.

Council didn’t seem to care – what they were interested in was doing more of the Food for Feedback events and asking if they could be held more often and in their ward would be nice.

Councillor Sharman explained that it would cost next to nothing to do a Food for Feedback event in his ward and tied it into events that were already scheduled – his annual Appleby Line Street Festival was his angle.

The first event was held in 2019, 1000 people were reported to have attended. COVID knocked out 2020 and 2021. An event was held in 2022 at Brant Hills where 640 people are reported to have attended.

The criteria for these events was put together by the communications department – their recommendation was to hold the event at Central Park band shell because it met all of the criteria.

That criteria became an issue – first because Councillors didn’t think it was accurate and second – they didn’t like the criteria.

Kwab said “… we know you have questions – we have a lot of documentation about how we came up with this criteria, adding that not all wards actually have a suitable location based on this criteria.”

That’s where the differences of opinion began to become evident – almost every member of Council was able to explain how the event could be run in their ward.

First up was Councillor Nisan who said “great work, expecting less and you more than exceeded expectations adding that he was “ basically really happy with everything else but was having a sports field as a criteria is a good thing or a bad thing ?”

Kwab: “We often cannot use a sports field – some other group may have booked the space but not the rest of a park area.
The staff member who had worked in the Events depart with the city for 10 years, explained “we are not permitted to have events on sports fields. We can be in a park but not use the sports fields that are adjacent to and within a park.”

Nisan, no fool when it comes to bringing opportunities to his ward, offered to have the Food For Feedback event at Brant Hills every second year asking “Is there a willingness to rotate – have it at Brant Hills … do you have any issues with doing so?

Kwab responds: “Our first choice would be Central Band Shell however, we are obviously open to the will of council to have north- south alternate every year and our suggestion would be Brant Hills would be the North location because it does meet all of the criteria.

Mayor Meed Ward followed Nisan saying she had few questions – mostly comments and asked if “You have social stats for other channels; there’s the City of Burlington and then there’s the rec one. Are there other city channels out there that we can get data on ? The only other data source I can think of off the top of my head is transit; I am very interested, if you gather those stats, to see any other city channels that are out there.

Kwab: “Recreation has a number of accounts as well as Instagram accounts – we do work with them with to make sure that they are properly engaging with the community. We could share the stats and data on that.”

Mayor: “That’d be awesome. And I assume that there’s some sort of technology tool that you possibly pay for to get all these stats. Can you run it for council channels, so we can see what our own engagement levels are? Other than just you know, looking at them?

Kwab: I’d have to go back and chat with Kevin (City Clerk) about that. There would be an additional cost, because it’s Sprout Social that we use and they are limited in the accounts. But we can see if there is a way to do it. I mean, it does do comparisons to neighbouring municipalities and as you can see, generally speaking in terms of engagement or impressions, we are well above the industry so it does do those sorts of comparisons but to pull specific Councillor data; I’d have to check on that and get back to you on what the potential cost of would be.

Mayor Meed Ward: “We can talk about that offline. I’d be really interested to look into Sprout.

Councillor Stolte noted that the event held in September 2022 had a total of 640 people attending and was told that approximately 1000 people attended at Central Park in 2019?

“When I attended the one at Brand Hills I asked if they were feeling there was representation from across the city and asked: “ Did you take any stats on where people were hailing from when they came out? I certainly got the impression that most of the attendees of 640 were from the north ward 3 area.

Kwab: “Some might have asked but as a whole we didn’t ask – but that’s something we can definitely implement for the future.”

Councillor Kearns: “Can we think about or bring back something to have a more thorough discussion on regarding Food for Feedback during the election year? There was quite a lot of conversation out there around the appropriateness of sitting councillors and or candidates attending – wondering if we can have a further discussion on that at some point.

Kearns also wanted to know more about the social media – “wondering if you can provide some additional insight on how does the information garnered through social media get back to council or help with decision making?”

Kwab – Do you mean the kind of feedback that we get?

Stolte piped in with: “ I don’t think I’ve ever received something from social media through the city to help with decision making, whether that be in a report or anything to that effect goes out, or how it comes back in?

Michelle Dyer, part of the Communications department team: “ We know we do want to make sure we’re sharing more information with counsel in terms of our social media, posts and content. So stay tuned – we’re developing a toolkit that will point to some of the information that we share on social media that will be coming to council very soon.

“In terms of feedback. I mean, we get a lot of comments on social media, a tonnes of comments. I mean, if we compile it all there would be reams and reams of pages. Kevin (City Clerk) and Victoria do a great job of going through those comments. And if they do pertain to a particular department or anything like that we do share it with them. If there’s anything specific to council I think you need to see I’m fairly certain that’s something that we would share directly with members of council but there are many instances that we share the feedback that we get from social directly with staff, which couldn’t make its way into reports or memos or any of that information. They’re also very looped into our social media channels and what we’re doing but if there’s anything specific, I think that counsel needs to be aware of we would definitely share with you directly.

Ward 6 Councillor Angelo Bentivegna wanted more detail on the criteria that was used to choose locations for the Food for Feedback events. He pointed out that the ward 6 Arlene Park and Millcroft Park;, two fairly large parks in his ward “but the criteria says no in terms of parking and I don’t understand that.”

Kwab: ” In regards to the two parks in your ward, the reason it was no is because based on the other amenities that are in the park and the attendance that we expect for the event we don’t believe there would be enough parking for the event to occur as well as the regular Park activities. So that’s why we put no just to kind of prevent any potential parking issues.”

Bentivegna:. “We’ve got parking lots including two massive parking lots next door to each other. My other question would be choosing the location and the question about which wards they come from. I agree with Councillor Stolte I think people sometimes assume okay, it’s in central that means it’s downtown stuff. I know food trucks costs money but you know, maybe we don’t do the food trucks. I think the neighborhoods would walk. I mean, if you’re having it in Alton Village, they’re going to walk to play in the Doug Wright park. I do believe the criteria as to where and why people go to these events is very, very important.

Kwab: “I think if we just step back for a second, we had a clear interest from counsel to make sure that we would move this around. So that’s where we started from knowing that this is what counsel wants. Let’s look at the location. If counsel says they want to have this ongoing feedback every year; my opinion is that they would be in September and as we stand right now, it will be with food trucks, because I know they’re very popular. So we said okay, let’s go and let’s look at where we can actually have this. And when we take all these things into consideration – we could live with moving around; sure we can, but I think we have to consider that there may not be enough parking. If it rains, we may have to move it indoors. We can’t get on the sports field, these are all the things that we need to consider.

This is our recommendation, council wants to move it around. That’s why we presented those options for Council to consider and ultimately direct us to what you what want us to do.

Councillor Sharman : “Thank you very much for the report. Lots of complexity. So with respect to the Orchard, it is probably the urban area furthest away from downtown and Orchard people don’t come downtown very much. Orchard Park has a school right in the middle that has washrooms and has parking. We did a 2000 person event in Orchard Park last summer and there was no problem. My question is it possible that the school board properties can be used?

“This is a Sunday event? no kids in the schools; there’s plenty of space and there’s even public washrooms paid for by the city.”

Kwab – “We can certainly work with them, Again, we do have those risk factors to take into consideration .”

Sharman: “The other question I have is Sherwood Forest Park. It has everything Why is it not on our list?”

Kwab: “We tried to kind of pick two locations per ward that have had events in the past. Sherwood is such a well utilized space. We wouldn’t want to take that out of the inventory for the community if there was already bookings there in regards to the different amenities they have.

Galbraith: I’m just gonna jump in here first time. Thanks for the report. Really, really good and congratulations for creating such a great event that every counselor wants it in their ward including myself.

Looking at the two parks available for Ward 1 – Can you explain the no because of parking at LaSalle?

Kwab: “I think we’re hearing what counsel wants. So we can take this away and come back with our recommendations and we’ll move this around, or we can certainly wait for direction at this at this point in time. I mean based on based on the discussion that we’re hearing, – I will certainly leave it to counsel but I think we’re getting the message – loud and clear.

Galbraith: I think if it was moved around the city and then came back to Central it would be even better because everyone got exposure to it.
Stolte: “Back to Food for Feedback – there’s no doubt that having it in a park with green grass is ideal. But the real ideal is getting as many people out as possible and having it at the right location.

“Could we consider other city facilities and I’m thinking in Ward 4 maybe the Mainway arena?”  “Can we consider venues other than just parks? If we’re going to look at moving it around?”

Kwab: We didn’t plan it that way initially and we have the indoor space more as a rain area in case there’s inclement weather; if there was too much separation between the booths and the food trucks people may eat but not take part in the purpose of the event – let’s be honest, they’re giving out food, some wouldn’t be doing the feedback.

Stolte: Food trucks could go inside the arena. Would it be the least bit feasible to consider hosting two food for feedback events, whether it be two on the same day, or subsequent Saturday’s holding one in the south and one of the North?

Kwab: The short answer: anything is possible. The logistics and the costs would have to be taken into consideration and how you would determine which staff you send North versus the South, which engagement opportunity that you that you had so simultaneous – that would maybe be a challenge.

“Let me reiterate we’ve only done this twice. So we are definitely open to feedback and in terms of how we improve this.

Nisan: “I am open if there’s more questions about Food for Feedback but let me just put it on the table at this point. And then they can have questions and answers. That’s what I would suggest. The motion was to approved the continuation of Food for Ffeedback as an annual engagement event to be rotated between different suitable locations across the city each year.

“I think that gets us landing what we want of this This leads us to essentially a report back

“I would assume staff would come back to us through a CIP which would allow us to, to review and make modifications if we wish, but give them the opportunity to do some more work on it and look at some of the different options that we’ve all raised today.

Certainly would love to have Brant Hills park back again.”

Stolte: Thank you just speaking to this proposed amendment, which I certainly agree with about it being rotated between different suitable locations. Staff. Do you feel the need for us to add in things like and consider two events or a weekend event or anything like that? Or do you feel as though you have enough feedback from the conversation?

Kwab: “We would have to have more resources to look at multiple events.

“The recommendation is to have it in at Central Park for 2023 .”

Sharman: “I really appreciate the hard work that goes into the annual event. That is a big deal. But actually, you don’t need to put a lot of work into doing it in existing events. And it doesn’t need to cost us a lot of money. We don’t need to pay bags of cash for food, because we’ll have people that we can do other incentives.

“I’m also suggesting that we don’t necessarily limit this to an annual event and you don’t need to make it a big deal. Perhaps you could just put that into your thinking, because you can have as many as you want. It may be a booth and it may be some incentive but I think there’s opportunities to do a lot more.

“Last year, we had 14 or 16 booths and I think it was similar in 2019. So I mean, we would have no issue. Our staff if it was just you know, having a booth on engagement and communication, but I think maybe where it might get tricky is is having the number of events if in fact we wanted to have that many booths to garner feedback, that would possibly be the only issue.

“The other thing too is the timing of projects that require feedback, right? It changes throughout the year. So those would be the only some of the cautions that I would add please, for that, you’re gonna have the north end of our Appleby Line Festival – and you can have as many booths as you want.

Now we wait to see how the Communications department reacts. It is clear council wants the Food for Feedback events to happen.

Equally clear is that Communications didn’t appear to have brought much in the way of imagination or innovation to revising the event.  All the good ideas came from members of Council with Kwab saying he would “look into that,”

What was all too evident was that the engagement people don’t do engagement very well.  But they do collect data – ‘tonnes of it”.

 

 

By Aleksandar Angelov

April 25th, 2023

BURLINGTON, ON

 

We as human beings always have the endless desire to satisfy our curiosity for the enjoyable things in life. We want to enrich our lives with colourful moments, memories, and new experiences as often as possible. This counts for all aspects of our life including our hobbies.

What has always been in fashion since the very beginning of civilization is the passion for gambling. Now, that our reality has changed due to the pandemic, we can all observe a massive transformation of the whole industry into a virtual one. Now that we can gamble from the comfort of our place, it is easy to explore online casino games.

Why online casinos?
Online casinos have many benefits that we cannot just ignore. We can all agree that in the 21st century, they are not only similar options to the physical ones, but they even exceed them with all their advantages and with no disadvantages on the table.

1. Comfort
We all love the physical betting institutions with those dim lights, the soft carpets, the sound of every single machine, and the beautiful women walking around and taking care that you feel at home. However, Gambling on the web has another level of comfort to offer! You can enjoy the games and win jackpots right from your couch, wearing comfortable clothes and eating chips while spending time with your pet. Nothing can beat this!

2. Convenience
Gambling has never been this easy. Online betting websites can give you the option to bet from everywhere around the globe. You can live in Ontario and still bet. You just need an electronic device and an internet connection. Gambling required no download if you decide to do it through a browser.

However, gambling applications are available to you to set up on your desktop or your phone. You can be stuck in a traffic jam in Toronto, Canada, and even though you cannot use Canadian betting services, you can still play and win jackpots, a reward, or a bonus through your phone by using the services of a foreign website.

3. Accessibility
If you have ever been to a physical betting institution, you have probably noticed that when it comes to the bigger games, not just slots and spins, nothing comes for free. You have to invest a significant amount of money so you can join the game. This is the complete opposite of what happens when gambling online. Website services with more serious games are unique as they do not require such a massive initial deposit. This makes these games much more accessible to the general player group.

4. Bonuses
Many people believe that in casinos you play and either lose or win. However, this is not the case with online casinos. You can lose in a few games, but the website can give you another chance to try your luck by giving you a bonus. It can be a small one such as a few more free spins, or it can be a great welcome pack that doubles your initial deposit. With the VIP programs that most casinos offer, you can enjoy bigger rewards with every step of your gambling experience on the web.

5. Crypto
You can use crypto as a token instead of money and this is clearly out of question in physical gaming institutions. Now almost all cryptocurrencies are accepted. The biggest favourites such as Bitcoin and Ethereum are always accepted but even simpler ones like Stellar would do you just as well!

What are the best games to play in an online casino?

1. Slots
Slots are one of the most popular options for both beginners and passionate gamblers. It goes this way as it insists on no preparation and you do not have to put a lot of effort and thought into the game. You just press the button and watch the images roll around.

2. Blackjack
This one is one of the most preferred games in online casinos as well. It is usually a live tournament game. This means that it happens in real time and you have a live dealer at your disposition. The game can be very strategic if you decide to explore statistics and numbers. However, this is not a requirement to hit a good win.

The nice about this game is that you, as a beginner, do not have to fight with those crazy passionate gamblers who are ready to eat you alive. You are plating with the dealer. The dealer picks a number, and you have to pick another number that you should always pick smaller than 21 and hope to win!

3. Roulette
Roulette is very popular for two reasons. First, it is easy and you need no preparation or strategy. Second, it is very popular for its winning rates. You can pick a number and bet on it, but the even easier way to play is to pick between two colours – red or black. If the ball falls on your number or your colour, you win. What makes the winning rates go up high is playing by colour. When you do this, mathematically you have the biggest chance to win – 50%.

4. Baccarat
Baccarat is one of the games that beginners love when they are just stepping into more serious games. To play this game you have to know the ruler very well and have a strategy. Most websites offer a demo version of the game so that you can try your luck and strategy there at first.

Before you choose a game to focus your efforts and money on, we suggest that you try different ones from the great variety in online casinos. You may be surprised by the good experience of trying new things and you will surely find a new passion of yours.

By Staff

April 25th, 2023

BURLINGTON, ON

 

The library (BPL) is launching a brand new service called Handpicked For You.

It’s kind of like a personal shopping service, at the library. Customers can fill out a short form online or with a staff member to request a custom list or bundle of items.

Considering BPL has a physical collection of around 240,000 unique books, movies, and music CDs spread across seven locations (plus more in its digital collection!), it’s easy to overlook many outstanding titles. Handpicked For You helps customers find just what they’re looking for and discover hidden gems they may not have found otherwise.

“Our staff have exceptional knowledge of our collections, and they are trained to help people find items that suit their needs and interests,” says Frances Hanemaayer, Manager of North Branches and the leader behind BPL’s Handpicked For You service. “We want our customers to take advantage of this talent so they can enjoy a great read (or watch) every time.”

To get started using this service, simply complete the Handpicked For You online form or ask staff for help submitting your request by phone or in person. You’ll list what you like to read, watch, or listen to, and library staff will take a deep dive into our collection to find titles they think you’ll love. As part of this personal ‘shopping’ service, you select whether to receive a digital booklist of suggested titles or a bundle of items to pick up and check out at your preferred branch.

How Can Handpicked Help You?

Handpicked For You makes BPL’s collection more accessible in a few ways:

• Customers who cannot readily visit the library can select a bundle of titles for a friend or family member to pick up on their behalf.
• Staff can help customers find immediately available hidden gems and discover new authors so they don’t have to wait for our most popular items.
• Customers looking for support on niche topics like welcoming a new sibling or managing incontinence can get discreet help to find useful resources

Of course, the library will continue to welcome people to visit in person and browse! With both options you can enjoy standing in a field full of wildflowers AND receive an artfully curated bouquet.

This service is only available to Burlington Public Library members. Fill out the Handpicked For You form at bpl.on.ca/handpicked.

By Pepper Parr

April 24th, 2023

BURLINGTON, ON

 

The recognition as a Tree City of the World will come is as a disappointment for those who feel a tree on their property is something they can cut down whenever they wish.

Others see a tree is as something a property owner doesn’t own – rather they are the stewards of the tree for is as long is as they live – others will follow will and become the steward. Trees outlive us – always have – always will.

The award was given to Burlington by the Arbour Day Foundation and the Food and Agriculture Foundation of the United Nations as a Tree City of the World.
This is the first time the City of Burlington has been recognized for this prestigious status for leading the way in urban and community forestry.

To earn Tree Cities of the World recognition, a city must demonstrate its commitment by meeting five program standards:

establish responsibility for the care of trees:

set rules to govern the management of forests and trees,

maintain an updated inventory or assessment of local tree resources,

allocate resources for a tree management plan,

and hold an annual celebration of trees to educate residents.

In recognition of this designation, a Tree City of the World flag has been raised at City Hall.

About the Tree City of the World Program
The Arbor Day Foundation is the world’s largest non-profit membership organization dedicated to planting trees. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger. Both organizations came together in 2019 to found Tree Cities of the World.

The program is a global effort to recognize cities and towns committed to ensuring that their urban forests and trees are properly maintained, sustainably managed, and duly celebrated.

Planting trees in a metropolitan area comes with many benefits beyond the recognition of this program. Increasing the number of trees in a community can help reduce costs for energy, stormwater management, and erosion control.

In addition, the program provides a network of like-minded city leaders in urban forestry to celebrate and share best practices to cultivate greenery in the community. Tree Cities of the World aims to create more green spaces in urban areas by recognizing the cities that do it well.

About the Arbor Day Foundation

Founded in 1972, the Arbor Day Foundation is the world’s largest membership nonprofit organization dedicated to planting trees. With a focus in communities and forests of greatest need, the Foundation — alongside its more than 1 million members, supporters and valued partners — has helped to plant nearly 500 million trees in more than 50 countries.

Guided by its mission to inspire people to plant, nurture and celebrate trees, the Arbor Day Foundation is committed to unlocking the power of trees to help solve critical issues facing people and the planet.

 

By Staff

April 24th, 2023

BURLINGTON, ON

 

The Tim Hortons Smile Cookie Week kick-off event – marks the beginning of a fundraising campaign where all proceeds from the sale of Smile Cookies at participating Tim Hortons locations will support local charities.

This year, Tim Hortons across Burlington have once again chosen to support the Burlington Food Bank, with a goal of raising $100,000 to help feed our neighbours.

The kick-off event will take place on Monday, May 1st at 10:00 AM at the Tim Hortons store located at 29 Plains Rd, Burlington.

We will be joined by the Burlington Tim Hortons Owners, representatives from the Burlington community and from the Burlington Food Bank.