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The provincial election from a Burlington perspective.

By Pepper Parr

June 12, 2014

BURLINGTON, ON.

It was a healthy crowd. They were attentive and at Nelson High to listen to a debate between Progressive Conservative incumbent Jane McKenna, Liberal candidate Eleanor McMahon in and Janet Mowbray representing the NDP. All want to be elected as the Burlington representative in the provincial legislature.

Other than the debate sponsored by the Canadian Federation of University Women, debate this turned out to be the only opportunity to see the candidates debating

The audience was attentive with the focus on what each political party would do for the province in terms of education.

The lines between the policies were as clear as any citizen could possibly want them to be. The Progressive Conservatives were blunt – they want to see 100,000 fewer civil servants on the public payroll which meant cuts at the educational, medical and public services levels. While cutting in these sectors was to be brutal – the promise was to create 1 million new jobs in the private sector.

The issue for the PC’s was the level of debt the province is carrying. The Liberals weren’t as constrained with debt – they saw debt as what was needed to fully recover from the 2008 recession.

The differences in the political party decisions are fundamentally clear – and we don’t hear that many people talking about a “great” program from any of them.

The New Democrats are still fighting the collective agreement battle of the 2011 election – the Liberal government of the day certainly did themselves no favours when they tinkered with the teacher’s collective agreements. Liberals now argue that the number of teachers needed problem has been fixed and that jobs were not lost – which the Tories say is part of the problem. They point to declining enrollments but nothing comparable in the way of lowering of the teaching compliment.

The Liberals believe that the only way the province is going to grow the economy – we still are not fully out of the 2008 recession – is to ensure that we have the labour force with the education needed to take up the good jobs they believe will surely come if the province stays the course.

The Tory’s are obsessed with the size of the provincial deficit and are prepared to cut, slash and burn – whatever it takes to get the civil service reduced.

The Liberals argue that cutting those education, health inspector and hospital staff will significantly reduce the quality of life and the life style Ontarians have come to expect.

If you voted the political party – these were your choices – and the differences are stark.

The campaign locally has been harder fought at the door to door level than most people realize. The Association of University Woman held their debate during which it is reported McKenna did better than the Nelson High event.

The cancellation of the Chamber of Commerce breakfast (they said no enough tickets had been sold) was a blow to the community. Many suspected the Tories in this town suggested the Chamber event be cancelled – McKenna wasn’t looking all that good at public meetings.

At some point during the campaign Cam Jackson was seen going door to door with McKenna. Those must have been really old solid Tory polls.

The brilliant cover page ad the Liberals ran in the Post stunned many. It sure looked like a real front page – but it was a paid advertorial that has McMahon sweeping the election.

Then she Toronto Star report that had Burlington going Liberal after 71 years of Tory rule- that boosted moral at the Liberal campaign office on Fairview. Some may have been surprised that the Post sold their “front” page – but a buck is a buck – I guess.

There is a time when the quality of the candidate over rides the party choice – and on that level Eleanor McMahon was the most sensitive to the issues, the most persuasive with her arguments and the most able to listen.

McKenna has been backing away from cuts in the education sector. She is reported to have said the PC’s will not be cutting education spending however she did see a need for better allocation of resources in the educational sector.

Jane McKenna has served one term as the MPP for Burlington. She was a close to last minute choice for the nomination in 2011 and was surely the most surprised and delighted woman in the city when Keith Strong approached her to accept the PC nomination.

The question many have about McKenna is: What has she done for Burlington? At a city council meeting recently ward 1 councillor Rick Craven asked why they had never once seen McKenna. “We’re paying her” was Craven’s comment “she should at least appear before us.”

Where the Liberals are weakest is with the profligate spending during the McGuinty years. There was nothing wrong conceptually with Ornge except that the government forgot they were supposed to keep an eye on what their agencies do. Where was the oversight? E-health was necessary but how did the government get hornswoggled into paying the salaries they paid?

At one point during the lead up the vote it looked as if the Liberals might have squeaked through with a slim two seat majority. That would not have been because they are the best choice – they are all disappointments and the citizens of this province deserve better.

Leadership is supposed to be about hope, promise, a better day and a better society – having “chicken little” shout at me saying the sky was going to fall in was not something I needed – thank you.

When Wynne said again and again that she was sorry about the gas plant decisions during the leaders debate I didn’t feel that we were in good hands.

That the gas plants were going to be cancelled was a given – all three parties knew that -it was the way the government sent good dollars after bad out the window as they settled with the contracting companies. The public had a right to better stewardship over public funds

At the Nelson High event candidates were given four questions prepared for the candidates taking part in the Nelson High event – they were given the questions before the event which explained why all of the candidates were reading from documents in front of them

Was it a debate? Not really but it was certainly a chance to see where each candidate and their party stood on an issue.

Other than door to door visits most of the public had not had a chance to see two of the candidates. The evening at Nelson High was an opportunity to see how much Jane McKenna had grown as a member of the legislature – unfortunately she hasn’t grown in either stature or a sense as to just what being the member of the legislature for a community is all about.

McKenna did however make it very clear what the Progressive Conservatives would do and many in the room felt the shudder of the Harris days. However, there were many that recalled all too well what Bob Rae did to the province when he was the NDP Premier.

McKenna, who is usually very quick with facts and numbers, got caught up on her some of the numbers she was putting out.

The politeness and courtesy between Liberal candidate McMahon and NDP candidate Mowbray was so distinct when compared to the brashness and hard words used by McKenna. At one point Janet Mowbray had run out of time answering a question and McMahon turned to her and said – “use some of my time. It was noted as well that every candidate for the Burlington seat was female.

For those that went to the event as hard core partisans – McKenna did fine. For those who were reflective and thoughtful – they would have left the room wondering what kind of a society they want and if McMahon represented that society. The difference between McMahon and McKenna was palpable.

A speaker brought to the audience’s attention that Mowbray was once a Liberal and did not live in the riding. McMahon was quick to point out that while she lives in Burlington her residence is about six blocks outside the constituency boundaries.

The issue for the audience was those 100,000 pink slips Progressive Conservative leader Tim Hudak has said he is going to hand out. McKenna is quick to add that much of that reduction in people on the payroll will come through attrition.

The campaign is over, people are now making their way to the polling stations and by the end of the day we will know what we have in the way of a provincial government for the next four years.

If it turns out to be Kathleen Wynne – expect her to face two different people the next time out. Hudak’s leadership will not survive another loss – and the New Democrats will begin looking for a leader who had s a plan and a vision.

Should Tim Hudak prevail and become Premier Ontario then we have to wait and see how far he goes with his plans to significantly change the way the government provides services and support to the taxpayers and how they grow the economy of the province.

Monday of next week A Different Drummer Books and Burlington Public Library will feature a guest with both knowledge and insight on just how parliamentary democracies work.

Michael MacMillan will talk about his book: Tragedy in the Commons that documents the views of former members of parliament who speak out on Canada’s Failing Democracy. Monday June 16 7pm at the Central Library.

Burlington air park appeal is dismissed – city can begin thinking about how it will enforce site plan compliance

By Pepper Parr

June 11, 2014

BURLINGTON, ON.

Based on an as yet verified report from the Osgoode Hall Ontario Court of Appeal, Burlington Air Park Inc., appears to have lost the second round in efforts to build an air park without having to comply with municipal rules and regulations.

A panel of three judges dismissed the appeal on the spot – which is a bit unusual. Frequently appeal courts take time to review the documents and the pleadings and then write their decision and release it at a later date.

The Burlington Air Park Inc., can seek leave to appeal the decision of the Supreme Court.

We will seek additional details on this matter and follow up.

The tide has certainly turned on this situation. The city can now begin thinking about just what it is going to require of the air park in terms of compliance with the site plan by-law. And residents who have suffered significant property value losses can begin to think in terms of damages they will want to seek.

Burlington’s air park will make it to the big screen tonight on CBC; pop corn parties being held at numerous locations to mark the ocasion.

By Pepper Parr

June 10, 10, 2014

BURLINGTON, ON.

It could not have come at a better time for the north Burlington residents who are looking forward to a second day in court where they hope what they see as an errant, illegal land fill operation finally have the boots put to it.

The Gazette has followed this story since we first got word of the truck rumbling up and down Appleby Line with landfill from quite where no one knew.

Three notices of libel during which we were given an opportunity to retract what we had published, notices to two other north Burlington residents as well and then finally a Statement of Claim from the Burlington Air Park Inc., that we had damaged their reputations and needed to be punished to the tune of $100,000 by way of exemplary damages, And this isn`t over yet.

CBC National News has picked up the story which will broadcast this evening on the national network. The following is a transcript of what the CBC will run.

Rural Ontario residents fear contents of soil dumped near their properties

Anger over some landowners accepting millions of dollars worth of soil dug up in Toronto

Jun 10, 2014 11:43 AM ET

Marnie Luke, CBC News

Residents living in rural communities near Toronto are demanding to know what’s in the thousands of truckloads of soil being dumped on property near them.

Barbara Sheldon’s farmland is located on the edge of Burlington, Ont., and is now walled in by a three-storey berm of dirt brought in by her neighbour, who owns the small Burlington Executive Airport next door.

She is worried about what might be in the muddy mix.

“We’re sitting ducks waiting for the contaminants to leach,” she said.

Sheldon told CBC’s Diana Swain that anyone in the country could face the same problem.

“They could lose everything. That is what happened to me. I lost everything,” she said.

“I’ve lost my property value. For five years I’ve lost the use of my land, I’ve lost the use of my home. I mean, from sun up to sun down and sometimes at night and on weekends we’re talking back-up beepers, we’re talking about dump trucks surrounding me,” Sheldon said.

Need for places to dump dirt will increase

Rural residents are angry that some landowners are taking in millions of dollars worth of soil dug up from Toronto-area construction sites with little oversight. The City of Toronto estimates nearly four million cubic metres of soil will be dug up in the next 10 years for Toronto water and transit projects alone.

With more and more soil being displaced to make room for condos, transit, Pan Am Games venues and other urban development projects, the need for places to dump that dirt is only going to increase.

Some municipalities have bylaws about using private property for landfill, but rules around soil testing and the amount of dirt that can be dumped are muddy.

Ontario environmental commissioner Gord Miller said it’s time for tougher rules as well as clarification on who has jurisdiction.

“We don’t have security on piles, on areas where we know there is contaminated soil … and it can be removed and sort of mixed in and how would we know? So there is legitimate concern when large volumes of soil are being deposited in rural areas with very little checking,” he said.

‘Disingenuously raising concerns’

Sheldon said every level of government she contacted for help since the dumping began five years ago said it wasn’t their responsibility.

Court documents obtained by CBC News show Vince Rossi, owner of the Burlington Executive Airport, earned more than $855,000 accepting fill at the Burlington airport between the years 2011 to 2013.

In a statement to CBC News, Rossi accused his neighbours of “disingenuously raising environmental concerns.”

Rossi said the Ministry of the Environment has not found a problem with the fill he is using.

He also said that municipal bylaws don’t apply to his property.

“As for the issue of jurisdiction, our view is that only Transport Canada has a say over the nation’s airports,” he wrote.

The City of Burlington took the airport to court last year and got the dumping stopped. An appeal of that decision will be heard on June 11.

Similar disputes are playing out in other rural communities, like New Tecumseth in Simcoe County, which sits on the environmentally protected Oak Ridges Moraine about an hour north of Toronto.

A caravan of trucks began dumping dirt on the local air strip there four years ago, and concerned residents say they haven’t been able to get answers about what’s in the soil or the potential impact to well water.

Voluntary guidelines

Ontario’s Ministry of the Environment issued voluntary industry guidelines last year on testing and disposing of soil. But a report by the City of Toronto’s chief planner raises concerns that the guidelines do not deal with excess soil moved across jurisdictional boundaries.

“As a result, there continues to be a policy and regulatory gap in this area,” the report says.

Concerned citizens and environmental groups have formed the Ontario Soil Regulation Task Force, and are calling on the province to create an enforceable Clean Soil Act.

“That fill has to go somewhere. Somebody’s going to find a place for it, because it’s got money attached to it,” Sheldon said. “Until that money is removed from the fill, they should charge people. You want to put it here? OK, you pay us, developers. The whole system’s broken from the start.”

Miller, Ontario’s environmental commissioner, said to tackle the problem, you have to start at the source.

“The people who dig the holes should be responsible cradle to grave to making sure that soil is not only going somewhere where it’s safe, but somewhere where it’s wanted, and deposited in a manner that’s acceptable to the receiving municipality and the local residents,” Miller said.

The CBC is understood to be planning a series of television features on the problem. The natives north of Dundas will be beating their drums wildly tonight as they prepare for the appeal hearing tomorrow.

The rule of law will prevail at Osgoode Hall on Tuesday – it will be a welcome sight for the citizens of Burlington.

By Pepper Parr

June10, 2014

BURLINGTON, ON The structure is majestic. The hallways are grand; the court rooms ooze of power and authority. The library is magnificent. Within the volumes on the shelves is the legal foundation of the province; the decisions the courts have issued which define us as a society that lives by the rule of law that is applied to everyone equally.

View of Osgoode Hal;l from Queen Street West

The building was named to honour of the province’s first chief justice, William Osgoode

It is here that maybe 20 or so people from Burlington will travel Tuesday morning to hear Ian Blue, QC argue the city’s side of an appeal made by Burlington Air Park Inc., against Justice John Murray’s earlier decision that the air park did have to comply with city bylaws, specifically the site alteration bylaw.

The six-acre (24,000 m²) site at the corner of Lot Street (Queen Street West today) and College Avenue (University Avenue today) was acquired by the Law Society in 1828. The original 2 1⁄2-storey building was started in 1829 and finished in 1832 from a design by John Ewart and W. W. Baldwin.

Between 1838 and 1843, the hall was turned into troop barracks. When the Law Society regained possession in 1844, an expansion was designed by Henry Bowyer Lane; the West Wing and Library were built, with two domes (later removed) over the library to connect the two wings.[5] In 1846 the Law Society entered into an agreement with the government to house the province’s Superior Court at the hall. Today, the building is jointly owned by the Law Society and the Government of Ontario.

Main law library – there is another reserved for judges.

The belief once was that the wrought iron gates were put in place to keep cattle off the grounds. Not so – but the grounds are truly something to appreciate.

Two libraries are housed within Osgoode Hall: the Great Library of the Law Society of Upper Canada and a smaller library for judges. The Great Library was designed by Cumberland and Storm (1857–1860) and features an ornate plaster ceiling, cork floors, and etched glass windows. A War Memorial by Frances Norma Loring (1887–1968), sculpted in 1928, was added to the Library in honor of Ontario lawyers and law students killed during the First World War. Behind the Great Library (and accessible through it) is the American Room, designed by Burke and Horwood in 1895, a more intimate room with a spiral staircase.

A five judge appeal court panel. Ian Blue and Peter E. J. Wells will argue their case before a three member panel. There is the belief in the minds of some that this case will be appealed to the Supreme Court of Canada

For those able to make the trip, I am reluctantly not with that crowd today, soak up the splendour of the setting and the history that literally pervades the walls and know that you are in a building where the rule of law prevails.

Be prepared for an experience.

Interim city manager has begun to get a grip on the job – how much bigger is it than he thought?

By Pepper Parr

June 8, 2104

BURLINGTON, ON.

Odd how things sometime work out.

Pat Moyle is driving home in his car, wife with him. He takes the call.

Burlington’s Mayor Rick Goldring is on the line.

Pat Moyle believes he knows why Goldring is calling. Burlington needs a city manager – the one we had found that Calgary was more to his liking. Moyle had recently retired as the Chief Administrative Officer of Halton Region and he knew everyone over there with municipal administrative skills. Moyle thought Goldring was looking for some names of people that might be available as interim city managers until the municipal election is over and a new council is sworn in.

Goldring wanted a little more than a recommendation –he wanted to be able to put Moyle’s name on a business card and have him serve as the interim city manager for as much as a year.

Apparently the Mrs. Moyle wasn’t ecstatic about the idea but Pat wasn’t taking to the Florida retirement stuff all that well – he still had harness he had not worn out and wanted to stay in the game. Pat said he would get back to Goldring but as one listened to Moyle explain the sequence this was a done deal.

Pat Moyle certainly knew what Burlington was all about – perhaps better than many at the “director level” in the city. He knew what the long term issues were, he was more than likeable and had worked with the top line people in the past. And he was certainly no slouch during the six years he served as the Regional CAO. This was going to be a good fit

Then there was that nice little $50,000 plus bonus for the city. Traditionally the municipal sector hires outside consultants who run an add and collect resumes. The tab fir that task comes in at around $50,000 each time.

The bonus for Burlington was that Moyle was going to be attending the annual meeting of the Canadian Association of Municipal Administrators, taking place just down the road in Niagara Falls. Moyle just took a bigger brief case and began to collect resumes – and get a clear sense as to who might find themselves wanting to move up the food chain and enjoy better beef.

Moyle might manage to clean up some of the problems at the city’s General Manager level as well.

That is the easy part of the job Pat Moyle took on as interim city manager. The rest of June is going to keep him humping. The Burlington Air Park appeal of Justice John Murray’s decision requiring the air park to comply with city bylaws will be heard next week. It will take a few months for a decision to work its way into the hands of the public but by the end of the appeal hearing the city will have a sense as to where this might go. Wise people do not attempt to think through how an appeal court might decide. The decision could be handed down right smack in the middle of the waning days of the municipal election.

There are some very positive upsides to the appeal court decision for the city. Once the legal problems are solved the city can get on with the business of getting it right for the rural part of the city. That may mean different ownership of the air park property.

Less than a week after the Air Park appeal is heard Moyle will have to take part in the mediation of just who owes what for the construction of the pier – which is about to celebrate its first official year of existence.

The median will stretch over several days at the end of which a settlement will have been reached or the case goes to trial. Going to trial would probably be the better thing for this council. At this point no one knows what each of the five parties wants from the other. The numbers get put on the table the first day – which is when jaws we are told will drop.

The financial and emotional damage done to Harm Schilthuis and Sons Ltd., (HSS) has been absorbed – now they want their money and an apology that will make the past four years easier to have had to live with just a little easier.

When Jeff Fielding was managing the financial and legal side of the pier file he frequently used the phrase “everyone is going to have to give a little”. Fielding had a way at times of being very persuasive – but Jeff Fielding is no longer on the city payroll and his approach won’t work without him.

Moyle is for the most part on his own with a legal team that no longer has an upper hand. HSS is very clear on want they want; AECOM, the project managers have always been in this for the long haul. PV&V , an insurance brokerage may not have to pay a price for siding with someone other than their client. But it is the city that stands to lose the most.

If there is a settlement the public is going to want to know how much the city settled for – and that isn’t a number they will want to put on the table – so the city ensures that a gag order is included in the minutes of settlement.

Steel re bar being put in place on the pier deck for the second time. First attempt got stripped back to the original beams

But if HSS digs in their heels and demands that they finally get paid and be given the level of apology they feel they deserve – and they are the ones who have been trashed by most members of this city council and gotten by without payment of invoice that were approved for payment for more than three years – then the city has a tough one in front of them. The days of everyone having to give a little are long gone.

Assuming the pier becomes a campaign issue – and it should – there is an opportunity for every Councillor and the Mayor to reflect on what they could have done differently

Pat Moyle has been with us as interim city manager barely month – he might be a significantly different man by the end of June. The Senior management team he leads might be quite a bit different before he turns in his keys as well. We got lucky with Moyle and if the idea to sound him out was Mayor Goldring’s – great, finally, some leadership.

The Election Debates; hard to find a real winner amongst the three

By Ray Rivers

June 6, 2014

BURLINGTON, ON

There was no winner in the debates this week, there rarely ever is. Premier Wynne got nailed by the gas plant fiasco as a first question, though she must have known it was coming. I suppose there is no good answer, so an apology and a promise that it won’t happen again will have to suffice.

The debate was far from her greatest moment -what was with the constant apologizing? In hindsight the gas plant locations were a mistake – every other political party would have cancelled the construction locations..

As the Editorial Board of the Globe and Mail has noted, the deficit and debt are not a crisis for Ontario – what I said last week. In addition, Ontario has the lowest cost public service (per capita) in all of Canada. So Hudak’s plans are over the top and wrong-headed. Killing one hundred thousand public service jobs , plunging the economy into recession and crippling our social programs, including health care and education, will not create his illusionary million jobs – quite the opposite. It was remarkable to hear him actually brag about his math skills, given that every reputable economist consulted has called the numbers in his plan rubbish.

The leader of the party without a platform managed to force an election that wasn’t needed and has yet to understand what corruption is. Add to that getting lost on the way to significant pension reform and you get – leadership?

Hudak claims that high energy prices are the reason investment in Ontario is faltering. But he has conveniently forgotten about his days sitting at the Harris/Eves government table, when Ontario Hydro was broken up, expensive contracts given to the private sector and multiple costly agencies created to do what Hydro had once done better. Electricity rates started going through the roof until Eves subsidized electrical bills, adding this to the very debt Hudak now rightly criticizes. In all its cost-cutting the Harris government delayed maintenance of the province’s electrical grid causing brown-outs and contributing to the big blackout in 2003.

And Bob Rae and NDP’s interference in the operations of Ontario Hydro were part of the reason Mike Harris decided to irreversibly break up the agency in the first place. Having said all of that, McGuinty had almost a decade to rectify the mess he inherited and although he has restored system reliability and shut down the dirty coal plants, the energy rates have risen and they won’t be coming down soon, regardless who wins the election. Neither the Tories nor the NDP have any more credibility on this file than the Liberals.

It didn’t matter how error filled the Million Jobs Plan was – Hudak just plowed right through the facts – the same thing Mike Harris did with his common sense revolution – which we are still paying for.
The province has two very very significantly different futures for us to choose from. June 12th is going to be a long night.

Ray Rivers writes weekly on both federal and provincial politics, applying his more than 25 years as a federal bureaucrat to his thinking. Rivers was a candidate for provincial office in Burlington where he ran against Cam Jackson in 1995, the year Mike Harris and the Common Sense Revolution swept the province. He developed the current policy process for the Ontario Liberal Party.

Background links:

Debates More Debates Globe and Mail Editorial Opposition Gas Plant Promise

CBC National News series “scheduled” for June 10th; Stanley Cup will still be in play.

By Pepper Parr

June 5, 2014

BURLINGTON, ON.

First it was the provincial election debate, then it was the Stanley Cup games, now it’s the Meltdown in Moncton and with the cup still not won yet – hockey is back in the picture.

Tough for a small town like Burlington to get any air time on national television but it appears that the he CBC National News program on air park problems across Ontario and the Burlington Air Park In., in particular will now be a multi-part effort that will run over a period of time.

The CBC News crew was on site last week recording the damage done, as well as the pristine view the owner of one Appleby Line used to have.

The purpose of the series is to take a look at just what has been happening across the province where small air parks are using their sites to dump fill on – the premise being that they are “improving” their property which they claim is not subject to municipal bylaws but only the dictates of the federal aeronautics legislation.

The situation with the air park in Burlington is a little more advanced than it is in other municipalities. The city won its first court case, which has been appealed and will be heard June 11.

Ian Blue, the lawyer retained by the city to argue the appeal, will be on the air for part of the series which at this point in time is scheduled for June 10^th – but every Canadian knows that when the Stanley Cup playoffs are taking place – everything has to adjust that that schedule.

In a note the area residents CBC said: “This is a heads-up to inform you that I have been advised that CBC National News will be airing a report on the fill operations currently underway at various airparks in Ontario – including the Burlington Airpark – and the impacts these have had on the local citizens and the environment.”

They plan to lead the story with footage of the citizens’ rally planned for tomorrow at the Volk Airpark near Tottenham.

It might take more than a year for the problems with the air park to get resolved – but the noose is now getting tighter and tighter. The city and its citizens along with the hundreds of pilots who make legitimate use of the runways now need to begin thinking what could and should be done with that 200 acres of land. Properly approached by a developer that is prepared to follow the rules and adjust to changing conditions. The end game will soon be upon us.

The story was scheduled to be aired Wednesday June 4^th, but that got bumped)

CBC had planned to roll them out on Wednesday but The National’s lineup is heavy and the show is delayed because of hockey so we’re holding it until next week.

CBC added that ”we were only able to skim the surface of some of the issues in this first bit of coverage, and there are many issues we’ve either not yet touched on, or have not had time to fully explain. We plan to keep looking into various issues and story lines that came up over the course of gathering elements for this initial coverage, so I will likely be back in touch again in the near future with more questions.”

Burlington is finally going to get coverage of a critical community event from an organization that has much more in the way of resources than the Gazette will ever have.

Construction crews on air park site take a pass on being filmed; missed there 15 minutes of fame

By Pepper Parr

May 30, 2014

BURLINGTON, ON.

While the CBC News crew was doing its interview on the Sheldon property on Appleby Line, construction equipment and work crews along with what were believed to be crew managers were seen.

Once it became evident to them that camera crews were on the property filming they retreated but the equipment remained on the site

There is a very solid community in north Burlington that watches what goes on like a bunch of hawks. Their objective is to document and photograph as much as they can; including run off from the air park site where tonne upon tonne of partially inspected fill was dumped without the required sit plan alteration permit.

A Superior Court judge has ruled that the air park must comply with municipal bylaws. Burlington Air Park Inc., has appealed that decision. The appeal will be heard in Toronto June 11, 2014

Appleby Line property owner does a CBC News interview with view of the landfill dumped without a site alteration permit.

Construction crews skulk away in the background. They appeared not to be available for an interview.

Construction crews continue their work just out of site of news camera crews.

Four sports achievers inducted into the Burlington Sports Hall of Fame.

By Pepper Parr

May 29, 2014

BURLINGTON, ON

On the night that the Montreal Canadiens were showing North America that they really knew how to play the game by beating the New York Rangers 7-4 – 175 sports people took part in the Burlington Sports Hall of Fame 2014 Inductee event. (Two night later the Habs lost the game and the semi-final series.)

Mayor Rick Goldring presented a certificate with a pin from Council to Jesse Lumsden in recognition of his participation in the 2014 Olympic Winter Games.

The inductees were – Dr Frank Hayden, Ken and Elaine Lake – long time track and field officials, Jesse Lumsden – Olympic Bobsledder – former football player and Nelson grad and Melanie McKay – Olympic Swimmer

Elaine and Ken Lake – tireless workers.

Elaine and Ken officiated in Edmonton at the World Outdoor Championships, at the Vancouver Commonwealth (1994), at the PAN AM Junior in Windsor, at the World Junior in Charlettown, and finally in Toronto at the 2012 World Athletics Deaf Championships.

At the NOC Level, Elaine served as Vice Chair for Human resources for six years, and when she left in 1992, she passed the position on to Ken. Both performances have been excellent and most of their work is still applied today. At the provincial Level, Elaine served as the Ontario Officials’ Council Chair for 1977 -78 while Ken covered the same position during 1984-85. In addition, Ken acted as OOC’s Vice Chair, Evaluator and Clinician, and member of the Provincial Test.

Lance Nethery – NHL Hockey Player – is currently CEO of the Cologne Sharks in the German Hockey League. Centre Lance Nethery played 41 NHL games during the early ’80s. He was a fine goal scorer who put up impressive numbers in college, the minors, and European leagues.

The Toronto native scored 91 goals in four seasons at Cornell University. After scoring 32 times in 29 games, he was chosen 131st overall by the New York Rangers in 1977. He was named to the ECAC first all-star team twice and the second team once and was a two-time selection to NCAA east first all-American team.

During the 1979-80 season Nethery adjusted well to the pros by scoring 62 points for the New Have Nighthawks of the AHL. He was called up by the Rangers in 1980-81 and scored 23 points in 33 games but eventually lost out to centres Mike Rogers, Mark Pavelich, Mike Allison, and Robbie Ftorek.

Nethery began the 1981-82 season on Manhattan but was returned to the minors then traded to the Edmonton Oilers for veteran goalie Eddie Mio. He played three games in Edmonton but spent most of his time with the CHL’s Wichita Wind where he scored 35 goals in only 46 contests. He battled injuries in 1982-83 before joining the HC Davos club of Switzerland the next year. Nethery was a dominant scorer for his new club and led the Swiss League with 46 goals in 1985-86. He retired in 1988 after leading Davos to two Swiss Elite League championships.

Mayor Goldring added in a comment later that he and Lance are the same age – went to school together from Kindergarten or Grade 1 to Grade 13 – two Nelson Grads. “We played on the same house league team when we were eight. One of my more vivid memories is scoring my first goals in organized hockey with Lance being the first to congratulate me.”

Jesse Lumsden – set records that have yet to be broken.

JESSE LUMSDEN: is a hometown boy who loved to play all kinds of sports. But his passion was football and he was good – so good in fact that in 2004 this former McMaster Marauder was awarded the HEC CRIGHTON trophy recognizing the most outstanding collegiate football player in Canada. In the same year Jesse was honoured by the CIS as not just the best football player in the country but the best university ATHLETE in the country.

Jesse followed in the footsteps of his father Neil who had an accomplished career at the University of Ottawa and ten remarkable years in the CFL. 2014 is a memorable year for this father-son team. Later this year Neil will be inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame while his son is recognized now in his hometown as a member of the Burlington Sports Hall of Fame.

Jesse earned football prominence very early in his Nelson High School career. He captained the 1999 Nelson Lords to an undefeated season, earning a trip to the Metro Bowl played in Toronto’s Skydome. A clear underdog, Nelson defeated a bigger and much older Toronto Central Tech team to win the provincial title. This gifted running back was named the game’s MOST VALUABLE OFFENSIVE PLAYER AWARD and a Greater Toronto Area All-Star.

Heavily recruited, Jesse selected McMaster where he made an immediate impact. He electrified spectators (and coaches too) with his speed and elusiveness. In his third year he broke the single season O.U.A. rushing mark gaining a remarkable 1497 yards and averaging 8.4 yards per carry. He also tied the single season touchdown record with 20. His sensational season earned the Nelson grad McMaster’s Male Athlete of the Year. In his senior season he continued to tear up the turf rushing for 1816 yards – averaging 10.2 yards per carry and establishing a record 21 touchdowns. He was named OUA 1st Team All-Star and CIS All-Canadian and he repeated as Mac’s Athlete of the Year

As a young man Jesse dreamt about playing pro ball in the NFL. Even though drafted in 2004 in the first round by the Hamilton Tiger Cats he was drawn south of the border where he signed as a free agent with the NFL’s Seattle Seahawks. The Cats hoped he would return to Tigertown. And he did. Jesse had an incredible rookie season and earned a spot as an Eastern all-star. Injuries short-circuited the talented young man’s six year CFL career.

This gifted athlete recently turned his athleticism to bobsledding. Recognized as one of the top brakemen in the world, the Nelson grad has twice worn the Canadian singlet on the world stage at the 2010 and 2014 Olympic Games. Today we recognize his football talent and welcome “hometown hero” – Jesse Lumsden – to the Burlington Sports Hall of Fame.

DR. FRANK HAYDEN: Frank Hayden had a high school named after him but before that he was a major moving force in the creation of what was first known as the Special Olympics.

A pioneer sets out to explore and find new territory. He/she must have vision but along with this rare quality must come perseverance, tenacity and diligence. Dr. Frank Hayden displayed these qualities and much more in his quest to provide sporting opportunities for those who are developmentally disabled and intellectually challenged.

Frank Hayden with Ontario Lt Governor after receiving the Order of Ontario

In the early sixties, testing of children with intellectual disabilities revealed that they were only half as physically fit as their non-disabled peers. It was assumed that their low fitness levels were a direct result of their disability. Dr. Hayden questioned this assumption. He conducted research which concluded that, given the opportunity, intellectually disabled people could become physically fit, and acquire the physical skills necessary to participate in sport.

His belief and understanding led him to conceive the idea of Special Olympics, a national sports program for people with an intellectually disability. His proposal was originally rejected by the Canadian government, however, his research became known to the Joseph P. Kennedy Foundation in Washington D.C. So he went to work with Eunice Kennedy Shriver for the next seven years. Here he served as Director at the Kennedy Foundation and was the catalyst in establishing federal legislation to assist persons with a disability.

He returned to Canada and worked to establish a similar program here. Canada’s first games were held in Toronto in 1969 with 1400 athletes. In 1975 and assumed the position of Director of the School of Physical Education and Athletics at McMaster. From there Dr. Hayden persisted with his dream and established the Special Olympics Office of International Development , assisting with the growth of International programs from 15 to 50.

His list of achievements and awards is remarkable. Here are a few: Honorary Member of the Canadian Olympic Association; Officer of the Order of Canada in 1999 and Order of Canada in 2000. Also, he was recognized recently by the Halton Board of Education as the name of their newest and ‘state of the art’ secondary school here in Burlington is Frank Hayden High School. Dr. Hayden legally incorporated “Special Olympics Inc.” and today the program provides training and competition for more than three million athletes in more than 170 countries.

Olympic swimmer Melanie McKay was also recognized and inducted into the Burlington Sports Hall of Fame. A biography of Ms McKay was not available.

Kite festival Sunday at Brant Hills Park – free, fun and healthy.

By Staff

May 30, 2014

BURLINGTON, ON.

Burlington’s annual Kite Festival takes place on Sunday, June 1 at Brant Hills Community Park between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m.

Show up, join the fun and build a kite for free, while supplies last. Event attendees will be able to fly their kites in the open space at Brant Hills Park throughout the day.

The event will feature entertainment from:

• Nick’s Juggling Family

• Thompson Clarke, a competitive Rubik’s cube solver, and

• Safari Science.

Face painting, a photo booth and a balloon artist will be part of a fun day.

A variety of vendors and activity providers from the community will be on-site. Local favourites include Burlington B.G.’s and Gymnastics Club, Putting Edge, Momstown, and Health from Within.

Local kite experts from Hobby and Toy Central will be at the event to answer questions about kite selection and kite flying. An assortment of adult and children’s kites such as easy flyers, diamonds, deltas, stunt and parafoil kites will be available for test flights and to purchase. Hobby and Toy Central will be offering event attendees 10 per cent off all Kite Festival purchases.

The Kite Festival will take place rain or shine. Brant Hills Community Park is located at 2255 Brant St. For more information about the event, including the entertainment schedule and list of booths, visit the city web site.

Air park might be getting a little air time: CBC News crew on the site.

By Pepper Parr

May 29, 2014

BURLINGTON, ON.

The weather was great; fine day to be working outside – but it didn’t work out quite that way for a couple of King Paving workers.

CBC News crew was on site at one of the Appleby Line properties destroyed by the air park site alteration work being done without benefit of a permit. Program to be aired early in June.

King Paving's amateur attempt at retrenching 2

King Paving work crew has difficulty digging a small trench with a backhoe on the south side of the air park.

The work was being done on air park property.

The trenching problems just happened to take place the day a CBC National News team was on site to film a portion of a show that will air later in the month on development problems in both Burlington and elsewhere in the province.

The CBC crew appears to want to interview Mr. Rossi but was not able to do so today. Good luck with that effort. Vince Rossi, owner of the air park that is in the middle of a legal dispute with the city, is very choosy about who he gives interviews to. The appeal of the court case the air park lost a number of months ago is to be heard June 11^th.

Given both the complexity and significance of this case for both the air park community and the municipal world it might be after Labour Day before a decision is handed down.

A few days after the hearing the city team overseeing this file will review what they heard in the court room and determine as best they can the city’s “plan B”.

Should a decision be available before the October municipal election that may well change the temperature and the tone of whatever the prime election issue is going to be.

Entrepreneur of the year is whistling dixie – and expecting the referees to use his whistle to officiate the Staney Cup finals

By Pepper Parr

May 28, 2014

BURLINGTON, ON. You have to understand Ron Foxcroft and his affinity with the world of sports. He has been around every game that is played and while he can, on occasion, get the ball in the basket – that isn’t what he is known for.

The whistle business all started on the floor of a basketball court.

Earlier in the week there was a need to talk with Ron Foxcroft – getting to him is not easy – he is on the go from just after seven to late into the evening most days.

But get through we did – and started our conversation asking if he had caught the game – that being the one where the Habs took a hockey game in the direction it was meant to go – 7-4 with a hat trick for the Canadiens too boot. “Of course I got to the game – I had to rush out of the Burlington Sports Hall of Fame inductee event but I saw that game.”

Fox40_SuperForce_NHL_Whistle_WebSafe V2 unwrapped

The Official Whistle of the NHL with a logoed edition for the Stanley Cup finals provided by a high school dropout who lives in Aldershot.

Then he adds – “did you know that Foxcroft International made the whistles – the logoed whistles for the NHL final?

No we did not know that – would you send us a picture? And here it is. Another Foxcroft product.

We chatted about the stupendous game goalie Dustin Tokarski is putting in as he stands between the pipes. Of course we all know the kid used to play for the Hamilton Bulldogs – which at one point was owned by Ron Foxcroft.

What matters of course are those whistles – will they blow at the right time? For the right team?

We will be watching the two remaining games and hopefully the cup – the Stanley Cup, will rest where it belongs – in the head office of the Le Club de Hockey Canadien. It really should be at the Forum, just along St. Catherine Street in Montreal – half a block from the Toe Blake Tavern.

That was a different era – but the hockey then was still the same – great! Jean Beliveau, Maurice Richard, Guy Lafleur – the dream goes on.

Background links:

Foxcroft on his own court.

Is it right for a citizen to get SLAPPED around when they express an opinion that is honestly held?

By: Peter Jacobsen Toby Mendel Shane Moffatt Cara Faith Zwibel

Originally published on Friday, November 8 2013 in the Toronto Star

Freedom of expression and democracy are being undermined in Ontario. A panel of experts convened by the Ontario government in 2010 found that the threat of abusive lawsuits claiming massive damages, especially for defamation, is deterring “significant numbers” of Ontarians from speaking out on issues of important public interest.

However, there is now hope that action will be taken to address this problem, as the province’s political parties find themselves in rare agreement that it is high time to deal with this threat through strong legislation.

A court room is an expensive place to be – is this the place where justice gets done.

Known as SLAPPs (Strategic Litigation Against Public Participation), these dubious lawsuits are often brought by deep-pocketed companies with the specific aim of silencing resource-poor defendants. And they are very effective. The defendants, usually ordinary citizens or public interest groups, naturally feel threatened by the prospect of massive legal fees, disruption of their activities and the possibility of large damage awards. Even when the lawsuits have no merit whatsoever, they often result in a chill on free speech.

Comments on a wide range of public interest issues have attracted SLAPP suits in the past. These include reporting on environmental violations by large companies, exposing corruption and other forms of wrongdoing, and criticizing the behaviour of powerful individuals. In other words, SLAPPs are an attack on democracy. They undermine the ability of civil society and private individuals to act as watchdogs over the powerful.

Unfortunately, the threat of facing a SLAPP suit in Ontario is very real today. Greenpeace Canada is currently fighting a $7-million lawsuit brought by logging giant Resolute Forest Products. Dylan Powell, founder of small environmental NGO Marineland Animal Defence, currently faces a $1.5-million SLAPP from Marineland. The issue of SLAPPs first gained prominence in Ontario when Big Bay Point residents were hit with multimillion-dollar lawsuits by developers.

We need legislative protection from these chilling lawsuits. Anti-SLAPP legislation may affirm a legal presumption in favour of the protection of speech on matters that are of public interest, or engage public participation. If the defendant can demonstrate that his or her statements fall within the scope of this presumption, the burden then shifts to the plaintiff who must show that the case has substantial merit, that it is unlikely that any defence would succeed and that, on balance, the harm it has suffered outweighs the harm that would be done to the public interest if the case were to proceed.

Anti-SLAPP legislation has already been adopted in Quebec and most U.S. states. It’s now time for Ontario to follow suit. Important steps have been taken in this regard, specifically in the form of Bill 83, submitted by the Attorney General to the Ontario legislature in May 2013 – the first government-sponsored anti-SLAPP bill in Ontario.

This follows the first ever Ontarian anti-SLAPP bill, put forward by Andrea Horwath of the NDP as a private member’s bill in 2008. The Progressive Conservatives have also voiced support for this type of legislation, noting that abusive lawsuits represent a serious waste of taxpayer dollars.

Despite these positive steps forward, we are concerned about whether there is sufficient political will to see this through. The parties must not delay in adopting legislation that will champion the human rights of ordinary Ontarians, allow for robust debate on matters of public interest, save taxpayer money and uphold confidence in our legal system and our democracy.

Our organizations, along with more than 150 environmental organizations, free speech groups and unions, call on the Ontario legislature to pass anti-SLAPP legislation as a matter of priority. No less than 64 municipalities and the Ontario Bar Association have also supported anti-SLAPP legislation. It is time to protect Ontarians’ right to free expression.

Peter Jacobsen is Chair of the Canadian Issues Committee of Canadian Journalists for Free Expression; Toby Mendel is Executive Director of the Centre for Law and Democracy; Shane Moffatt is Forest Campaigner for Greenpeace Canada; Cara Faith Zwibel is Director of the Fundamental Freedoms Program of the Canadian Civil Liberties Association.

Bill 183, the legislation that was to create anti-SLAPP legislation that would become law died on the Order Paper when the Legislature was dissolved for the provincial election.

Additional charges laid in sexual assault investigation at sailing club.

By Staff

May 28, 2014

BURLINGTON, ON.

It is the offence that cuts into the hearts of parents whose children are sexually molested.

Parents trust their children to teachers, coaches and others that play a part in the growth and development of their children.

When a person in a position of trust and authority abuses that trust the reaction is one of total and complete revulsion, especially when there are young people involved. All but impossible for a parent to look behind the abuse – it is foul, despicable and cuts to the core of what we as a society can bear. Too much – punish.

The Halton Regional Police continue to investigate sexual assault allegations against Sean Hewson as additional victims have come forward. Hewson was a Sailing Coach instructor.

On Tuesday, May 27th, 2014, Halton Police laid an additional sexual assault and sexual interference charge against Sean Hewson.

The Court has imposed a publication ban which was put in place on May 23rd, 2014.

Mr. Hewson has been remanded to Thursday the 29th of May, 2014 where police will be laying more charges in relation to a sixth victim.

The Halton Regional Police encourage anyone with information to contact D/Sergeant John Mans, Child Abuse and Sexual Assault Bureau at 905 465-8760.

The community’s task now is to aid in the investigation and to be part of the healing and recovery of those assaulted. This is a very hard time for many.

Transparency means telling everyone the same story – and keeping the story honest. Air Park fibs.

By Staff

May 27, 2014

BURLINGTON, ON.

For the record:

In the Update to city council on matters relating to the Air Park staff said:

FOI (Freedom of Information requests) to MOE for Monitoring Plan and Details:

In May 2014 staff spoke with the Mediator from the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario. The Mediator has begun the process of contacting the third party (i.e. the Airpark) to inform them of the City’s scoped request to try and obtain information that pertains strictly to the proposed groundwater monitoring program at the Airpark, and any associated reports, studies and results. The Mediator is also continuing discussions with the MOE. At this point, staff will wait for further correspondence from the Mediator with respect to the possibility of receiving all or some of the requested information or whether additional discussion or mediation is necessary.

Airpark-testing-for-contaminents-again-2-BEST

Drill holes into the tonnes of landfill dumped on the air park property during the last five years. Very little of the landfill was inspected and it was put in place without an approved site plan.

A Judge has already told the Air Park that they must comply with the city’s bylaw. The Air Park has appealed that decision which is their right.

What the Air Park cannot do however do is maintain that they are cooperating and have been transparent. The city’s most recent update does not square with what Vince Rossi is saying. Someone isn’t telling the truth here.

In a Letter to the Editor of the Hamilton Spectator Vince Rossi said:

To be clear, every test of neighbouring streams and wells has met or surpassed federal and provincial environmental standards. There have been six inspections, studies and/or tests carried out since 2009. None have indicated a problem with the fill or an adverse impact on local water. Further, after discussions with the Ontario Ministry of the Environment, the airpark is in the process of voluntarily completing the most comprehensive study to date by carrying out a test well program

Magnificent creatures that many thought were headed for extinction – now winter at LaSalle Park. Not a choice that sits well with everyone.

By Staff

May 28, 2014

BURLINGTON, ON.

There are few more amazing comeback stories than that of the magnificent Trumpeter Swan.

Brought back from the brink of extinction through the dedicated, decades-long work of volunteers, 200 Trumpeter Swans now overwinter at LaSalle Park in Burlington.

But these beautiful birds also did their part to rescue their species from the ashes of extinction. Hear their remarkable tales through stories about Athena, Magic, Pig Pen and many other individual swans at Swan Stories, a free, public event sponsored by the Trumpeter Swan Coalition.

The event will take place on Thursday, May 29 from 7:30 to 9:00 p.m. in the Centennial Room at Burlington’s Central Library, 2331 New St. More on the swans and the story to save their winter home.

Air Park sues Gazette and two citizens for libel and defamation; wants $100,000 and an injunction.

By Pepper Parr

May 26, 2014

Burlington, ON.

Well we kind of expected it would come to this.

The Burlington Gazette, it’s publisher Pepper Parr, Monte Dennis and Vanesa Warren were served with Notices of Libel during the month of April, three for the Gazette, two each for Dennis and Warren.

These are the lands that are described as the Burlington Air Park upon which tonnes of uni-nspected landfill were dumped without a city site alteration approval.

None of the parties served libel notices chose to apologize and the Gazette decided the articles were not libelous and let them remain on the web site.

The air park lawyers then sued the three people, Parr, Dennis and Warren asking for $100,000 in exemplary damages. The air park set out 23 points in their Statement of Claim. They are set out below along with links to the articles they took offence to

1: The plaintiff claims:

(a) compensatory and exemplary damages for libel of $100,000

(b) prejudgment interest on the compensatory damages and post judgment interest on all the damages;

(c) an injunction restraining the defendants and each of them from alleging that the plaintiff has created an environmental hazard by bringing fill onto its lands that has or may adversely impact the groundwater or surrounding watercourses ;

(d) costs together with HST.

The plaintiff

The writ describes the plaintiff; Burlington Air Park Inc.,who they are and where they are located. This is the Burlington Air Park Inc.

The defendants

The defendants are described in sections 3,4,5,6 and 7. This is the Gazette, Parr, Dennis and Warren.

The defamatory publications.

Editor’s note: Links to each of the articles are set out at the end of this piece.

Describes an article: “A “fishy” story – people are being hurt and a part of rural Burlington may have a badly contaminated water supply.

Our Burlington posted the following concerning the plaintiff on its website https://www .burlingtongazette .ca/:

On or about April 16, 2014 Our Burlington posted the following concerning the plaintiff on its website https://www .burlingtongazette.ca/ :

“North Burlington residents petition the MOE – but they don’t make their demands public.

There were four reader comments attached to that piece; they read as follows

Bob says on April 16, 2014 at 11:37 am

(the Bob comment is not set out in the writ)

Vanessa Warren says on April 17, 2014 at 11:39 am

Vince Rossi, president of the Burlington Executive Air PArk and beleived to be the sole shareholder of the private company, met with north Burlington residents. He took all the comments made "under advisement"..

Vince Rossi, president of the Burlington Executive Air Park and believed to be the sole shareholder of the private company was sued by the city for failing to comply with a city bylaw. The Court found in favour of the city. The Air Park has appealed. The appeal is to be heard June 11, in Toronto at Osgoode Hall.

Mr. Rossi.

The Kovachik family opened the airpark in 1962, and for 44 years operated in harmony with its neighbours and its rural surroundings . You are not allowed to capitalize on that history. The history that you ‘re accountable for is amounting to an environmental disaster in our pristine protected countryside, and you may not manipulate that truth unchallenged anymore.

This is not an airpark improvement issue. This is a landfill issue, a water protection issue, a storm water management issue, a truck entrance and road use issue, and a property destruction and flooding issue.

Are we to celebrate that you ‘ve spent money to improve your for-profi t business? Who doesn ‘t do that? You say you ‘ve spent 4 million in improvements , but what about the income you ‘ve made from charging for untold hundreds of thousands of tons of unregulated fill? What about the protected watercourse you ‘ve destroyed? What about the regionally significant woodlot you gutted? The cost to the environment, the community and the City for your ‘improvements ‘ has been too high to bear.

Ask your immediate neighbours – none of whom have “recently purchased their homes” – bow things have improved for them? Flooded fields are unfarmable. Backyards and septic beds are underwater from silted run off. Sight lines and property enjoyment are destroyed. Anxiety about well water safety is high, and you will not permit the MOE to release on-site testing data. Writing that you ‘ve “always respected your neighbours .. .” is more than untrue; it’s cruel.

There are no unsubstantiated claims. Terrapex Environmental found unacceptably high levels of contaminants like hydrocarbons and heavy metals in the paltry 52 soil reports you were able to provide. Off-site water testing may be fine to date (again, where’s the data?), but how long might it talce for those contaminants to leach into wells?

The City of Burlington legally won the right to impose it‘s Site Alteration Bylaw on airpark property , and yet you still will not comply. The community would truly love to know that your property is NOT full of contaminated fill – why don‘t you give us the verified, third-party data to prove it?

We are all so weary of your attempts to manipulate . Standing up to you and stopping the trucks was never political , it was ethical, and you have no ethical credibility left.

Vanessa Warren Aside:

Hamilton Spectator, please don‘t publish this man ‘s letters anymore. The community around this airpark has been under siege since 2007 and the negative psychological impact of unbalanced coverage like this is enormous.

Ford Motor Company, Mercedes-Benz Canada, Evertz Microsystems, L- 3 Communications , Big Brothers and Big Sisters and PwC Epic Tour Halton – are you comfortable being cited in this letter?

Rob Narejko says on April 16, 2014 at 1:44 pm

It is hard to believe that our legal system allows an individual or a corporation ‘s right to privacy to be intact, when the actions of that individual I corporation are detrimental to the quality of life of others.

The tests were paid for by our government and the government is empowered on our behalf to look after the interests of the citizens. The materials from the land fill I dump are more than likely leaching onto other people’s property. The information from the MOE study should be made public without having to resort to Freedom of Information requests .

I give the City credit for jumping on this issue and for their approach. The rights of one person or corporation should not trump the community‘s rights to know what is there. Without knowing what is there, how will it ever be re-mediated? And what happens to the environmental concerns and the adjacent owner’s property value?

PS Check out the ‘scenic’ asphalt piles dumped in the field on the west side of Walker ‘s Line, just north of the 407 overpass. It will be interesting to see why this road waste material was allowed to be dumped in an agricultural field. Or was it?

Editor’s note: We understand that Mr. Narejko has not been sued.

Roger says on April 16, 2014 at 5:10 pm

Bob could not have gotten it any better . The article in the Spec as self serving and deficent on fact.

The owner of a property on Appleby Line stands at her property line. Plans submitted to the Region at one point had a large helicopter pad sitting atop the 30 foot pile of earth. The owner of the property on which the heliport was to be built claimed he did not have to get site plan approval from Burlington. A Judge disagreed with him. That decision is being appealed.

Stephanie Cooper-Smyth says April 16, 2014 at 3:32 pm

Vincenzo Rossi – we know you follow this website, you ‘ve even posted on it. So if you can see this now, which may be difficult considering how exponentially your nose grew while crafting that exceptional ‘tale ‘ for the Spectator, get this:

You have accepted hundreds of thousands of truckloads of (contaminated) fill since 2008, and all you’ve got to show for ‘improvements ‘ is: you paved over a grass runway, you ‘ve done some alterations to your main runway, you ‘ve built a few hangers.

Really?? Hundreds of thousands of truckloads of fill every year since 2008 . ..for just that?? How much longer are you going to try and dupe the good folks of Burlington?

And one more thing, Vincenzo Rossi: According to the information submitted to Hizzoner at the hearing last year, the income from the hundreds of thousands of trucks to which you sold dumping rights, (last figure released was $85.00 per truck) for ‘improving ‘ your airpark”, doesn ‘t even appear on the Airpark ‘s financial statements in 2011, 2012 or 2013. (Hello CRA?)

As for the legacy of the airpark, (“it’s long and accomplished history in Halton”), which you are attempting to claim: How dare you hijack the reputation and relations that the Kovachik ‘s built!

Since you bought the airpark, Vincenzo Rossi, all you have done is destroyed the environment , misled and deceived the authorities, ruined the lives and threatened the safety of the neighboring community. That is YOUR legacy.

Why don‘t you just go to where ever you sent all the money you earned from accepting all that toxic landfill – you are neither believed nor wanted here by citizens of Burlington.

Editor’s note: We do not know if Stephanie Cooper-Smyth has been sued

Joan says on April 17, 2014 at 2:32 pm

Mabe someone should seek advice from Erin Brockovic.

On or about April 24, 2014 Our Burlington posted the following concerning the plaintiff on its website.

“Letter to the Spectator editor altered on Air Park web site: still a “lousy neighbour“

The publication by Our Burlington and Parr on April 11, 2014 set out in paragraph 7 above was actuated by actual malice, in that it was published knowing it to be untrue, or reckless as to its truth. In an article dated April 9, 2014 Our Burlington and Parr republished allegations from an earlier posting dated July 16, 2013 that was, at April 16, 2014, still available on the http ://www.burlingtongazette .ca/ website, that the fill on the plaintiff s land was “toxic” and that the plaintiff had been running “an unlicensed landfill operation.” It also republished allegations from an August 5, 2013 posting that was, at April 16, 2014, still available on the http ://www .burlingtongazette.ca/ website, falsely claiming that a Terrapex report established that contaminants were migrating from the plaintiff s property. The August 5, 2013 posting reported that testing was being done of neighbouring wells. When this posting was emphasized on April 9 2014, the City of Burlington had reported on those results in its Burlington Executive Airport Update #6 dated September 9, 2013 as follows: “On August 23, city staff were sent an email by the Region of Halton regarding testing of wells on several properties adjacent to the airport. The email indicated that the MOE and the Halton Region Health Department were working together to sample and analyze the drinking water wells of homes located immediately adjacent to where the fill was placed on the airport site. Well water samples were collected by MOE staff from two properties . The samples were being analyzed for inorganics, volatile organic compounds, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and petroleum hydrocarbons.

Results of this testing were provided to the Health Department. The results were then compared to the health-based Ontario Drinking Water Quality Standards and the Ministry of Environment Table 2 Brownfields standards. The Region has indicated that no exceedances were reported . These results have been shared with the property owners. Permission was given by these property owners for the Health Department to share the results with city staff.”

Further, the publications referred to in paragraphs 7, 8 and 9 were actuated by malice as Our Burlington and Parr published a letter on May 19, 2014 that made the following allegations concerning the plaintiff s president: “… Are his victims, or anyone who ‘s objected to his fill business soon to be ‘buried ‘ as well?

I think the residents of Rural Burlington better start using the buddy system whenever they leave their homes. And I suggest a telephonic head count every morning, and include Pepper Parr’s…”

On May 2, 2014 Dennis published the following letter to the editor m the Hamilton Spectator:

“Tainted Airpark fill a threat to neighbours’ wells.

Improvements to airpark up in the air (Opinion, April 16)

The recent article by Burlington Airpark owner Vince Rossi leaves out important, relevant facts.

The Burlington Airpark’s own soil analysis data, provided to the City of Burlington’s soil specialists, showed that much of the imported fill is chemically contaminated , and represented only a portion of the imported fill. The tens of thousands of loads of fill dumped onto the airpark were spread throughout the site and will require a grid-work of soil sampling to fmd and quantify.

Depending on imported soil types, conditions, groundwater mobility, precipitation amounts and other factors, the negative impacts could take years to be detected in area wells .

Although the dumping has stopped, the concern is that toxic materials will sooner or later leach into neighbours’ wells. The immediate neighbours have experienced excessive water run-off due to the altered drainage. Some of the land is too wet for farming. Some of the wells are silted, making the water undrinkable.

While waiting for a court settlement and the Ministry of Environment research results, residents are suffering from the stress of an uncertain future. The clean up and rectification of this mess could take years and cost millions. Why won’t the Burlington Airpark share the soil and groundwater test results? The airpark claims the data is private and confidential.

The Ministry of Transport directive asks the airparks to comply with provincial and local regulations that do not affect aviation . Federal legislation regulates the safe movement of aircraft. The airpark lost the court case on the validity of the Burlington fill bylaw and plans to appeal in June. In the case of Scugog Airpark, a judgment decreed that fill operations must comply with Scugog’s municipal fill bylaws, which should be the case with all municipalities. This would result in lawfu l, responsible and environmentally sustainable development.

Monte Dennis on behalf of the Rural Burlington Greenbelt Coalition”

Rural Burlington Greenbelt Coalition is not a corporation, nor is it a registered charity. If it exists, it is an unincorporated association of individuals.

Editors note: The cheek, the unmitigated cheek. Both Mr. Rossi and his legal counsel are fully aware of the existence of the Rural Burlington Greenbelt Coalition who delegated very effectively at both the city of Burlington and the Region of Halton.

The republications

On April 22, 2014 Our Burlington published the libel notice i t received with respect to the publication described in paragraph 7 above on its website https://www.burlingtongazette.ca/ and Twitter account https://twitter.com/OurBur . Such publication of the libel notice amounts to a republication of the original libel. On or about April 22, 2014 Warren posted the following on her website https://vanessawarren .ca/ and Twitter account https ://twitter.com/VanessaAWarren “Vince Rossi threatens to sue @OurBur for libel. Wonder who is next? #BurlON

#BurlingtonAirpark https:// www .burlingtongazette .ca/air-park-lawyer -threaten-to-sue for-libel-gazette-considering-its-options .. .” The links in the postings amount to republication by Warren of the libel described in paragraph 7 above. Having read the article on Our Burlington ‘s website, Warren knew that the plaintiff was asserting that the original publication was defamatory, yet she maliciously chose to draw it to the attention of persons who might not otherwise have been aware of that publication.

Warren republished the comment referred to in paragraph 8 above on her website http ://vanessawarren.ca/ on or before April 23, 2014. The precise date of posting is not known to the plaintiff , but is known to Warren.

Further, on May 2, 2014 Warren made the following post on her Twitter account: vanessaawarren as follows: “Vanessa Warren @VanessaAWarren •May 2 Thank you Hamilton Spectator for balancing the dialogue and bravo RBGC – well said! https://m.thespec.com/opinion-story /4494486-tainted-airpark-fill-a-threat-to-neighbours wells/” The link in that tweet took a reader to the letter set out in paragraph 12 above.

The links referred to in paragraphs 14, 15 and 16 did not simply make reference to the existence and location of content, they also repeated the sting of the libel in the articles to which reference was made, and encouraged viewers of her posts to visit those sites.

The articles and comments are defamatory and were calculated to injure the plaintiff

In addition to the plain meaning of the words so published , by these words the defendants meant, and were understood to mean that the plaintiff was putting the community as well as groundwater, streams and ponds in the community at risk, or causing members of the community actual harm by having brought onto its land toxic fill that was adversely affecting the groundwater , streams and ponds and the fish living in such streams and ponds . They further meant, and were understood to mean that the plaintiff was preventing the Ontario Ministry of the Environment (“MOE”) from publishing test data in the possession of the MOE. They further meant and were understood to mean that the plaintiff has caused flooding and silted runoff onto neighbouring lands. The defendants meant and were understood to mean that Terrapex had actually performed testing in connection with the plaintiff s lands. They further meant and were understood to mean that the plaintiff had posted on its website an altered version of a document that it had already published in the Hamilton Spectator.

The words printed in the foregoing articles and comments were and are defamatory. The addition of photographs and commentary in the publication referred to in paragraph 9 were not part of the letter published by the plaintiff in the Hamilton Spectator, and would have misled readers into believing that they had been. The allegations that the plaintiff brought contaminated fill onto its property and is putting groundwater, neighbouring streams and ponds and the environment generally at risk are calculated to injure the plaintiff in an effort to delay or prevent the further development of the Burlington Executive Airport. By reason of the publication of these defamatory statements, the plaintiff has suffered damages.

The words published by Warren were also false and misleading in a material respect and were knowingly or recklessly made by her for the purpose of promoting directly or indirectly her business interest in Capstone Farms, contrary to s. 52(1) of the Competition Act, RSC 1985, c. C-34, as amended .

The republications described in paragraphs 14 through 17 above were done with callous disregard of the plaintiff s rights and are deserving of an award of exemplary damages which are necessary to dissuade the defendants from engaging is such conduct in future. The protection of a party’s reputation arising from the publication of false and injurious statements must be effective. The most effective means of protection will be supplied by the knowledge that fines in the form of exemplary damages may be awarded in cases where the defendants ‘ conduct is truly outrageous, as it has been in the present case.

So there you have it. This is what will get presented to a Judge who will decide if we libeled or defamed Mr. Rossi.

We do know this – the city of Burlington and the and the Burlington Air Park sued each other and Justice Murray found in favour of the city. He also awarded the city costs of $40,000.

In asking for exemplary damages of $100,00 from the Gazette, Parr, Dennis and Warren, Mr Rossi appears to be attempting to recover from the defendants the amount he had to pay the city.

We have yet to decide what we will ask the Judge who hears this case what the defendants will seek for the vexatious, egregious and whatever big word lawyers use to say what they mean, in the way of damages from Mr. Rossi.

What we would like most is for Mr. Rossi to follow and adhere to the rule of law that he is now using to hammer two citizens who were exercising their right to speak their minds. As for the Gazette, we can take care of ourselves.

Links to past editorial content:

The “fishy” story.

North Burlington residents petition MOE

Letter to the editor.

If your Dodge Caravan is beige in colour – you might have a difficult week.

By Staff

May 26, 2014

BURLINGTON, ON.

The police are on the prowl for a Dodge Caravan – beige.

Last week an estate home in the City of Burlington was broken into; Wednesday May 14^th at 11:50 am to be exact.

Two suspects entered the home and targeted jewellery. These two suspects are associated to a 2005 Dodge Caravan, beige in colour.

Are you getting the connection? The police would like to find that van.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Detective Ellie Bale, 3 District Criminal Investigations Bureau at 905 825-4747 ext 2312 or ellie.bale@haltonpolice.ca or,

Anyone with information on this or any other crime is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1 800 222-8477 (TIPS) or through the web at Crime Stoppers or by texting “Tip201” with your message to 274637 (crimes).

The sale of that waterfront land isn’t a done deal yet – a citizens group will be delegating against any extension at council this week.

By Pepper Parr

May 26, 2014

BURLINGTON, ON.

Well it’s government, municipal government at that –so what did you expect? They need more time. This time – the need is real – the discussions and negotiations are tricky and the city has to deal with a provincial ministry.

Market - Lakeshore-foot-of-St-Paul-looking-west3-1024x682

It is a view to die for – and one that citizens of the city might not get to enjoy if the planned sale of this piece of waterfront property gets sold to the three property owner’s whose land abuts land owned by the city and the provincial government.

Council didn’t see it that way and they agreed to the sale with a number of provisos.

To dispose of Water Street land parcels and develop Windows-to-the- Lake at the foot of St. Paul and Market Streets in a minimalistic manner (benches and signage); and

Direct the Director of Parks and Recreation to report back with a concept for the Windows-to-the-Lake; and

Direct the Director of Roads and Parks Maintenance to enhance Port Nelson Park with available funds.

There are three parcels of land currently owned by the city and the province. Council decided to sell the land in the centre and to create small parkettes on the east and the west. The small red line in the centre lot show the delineation between city and provincial lands.

The property belongs to the city – which means the public – but many members of this council don’t see the waterfront quite that way.

Council also directed the City Solicitor and Manager of Realty Services to work with the Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) and enter into an agreement for the sale of MNR and city lots between St. Paul Street and Market Street to the adjacent land owners within the next six months. They added to that to have the the City Solicitor and Manager of Realty Services to report back to Community Services Committee if a sale agreement for city lots between St. Paul Street and Market Street has not been reached within the six month period.

The six months is up and the people who unalterably opposed to the idea of selling the land in the first place plan to delegate and ask some hard questions.

The man managing the flow of paper, Ron Steiginga, Manager of Realty Services, is one of the best there is. He was the staffer that handled the transfer, a lease actually, of that patch of land off Fairview that the Freeman Station is now sitting on. On that project he had to deal with the Canadian subsidiary of an American multi-national corporation, the city and a private citizens group – and while it took a while – he got it done. The Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) should be a piece of cake for Steiginga.

The staff report lays out the process:

“Given the independent process that the MNR requires, it will take longer than the 6 months to process the agreements and complete all of the negotiations.

“Realty staff has been in regular contact with MNR staff to advise them of Council’s resolution to sell the land to the adjacent owners and to determine what the MNR requirements are to proceed with this matter. In order for MNR staff to consider the sale of the land to the three landowners, the landowners were required to submit individual Applications for Crown Land which were processed by MNR staff.

“MNR staff has recently indicated to the owners that they are prepared to dispose of the filled Crown lands subject to the Ministry policies and procedures which includes the following key provisions:

1. The land must be sold at market value.

2. The City owned Water Street land must be transferred to the three landowners first before the MNR lands can be transferred.

Market - Lakefront-Foot-of-St.-Paul-730x1024

The property with the fence along the edge has riparian rights – which could be used to extend the public pathway even further.

They are working with the three landowners to resolve this issue. “It is clear” said the staff report “that both the MNR and City are in agreement that our respective policies require a fully documented appraisal process to determine the market value, and that both the City and the MNR are using the same valuation method and terms of reference.

Market - water street lots Ziegler-drawing

A resident opposed to the sale of the land put forward a proposal that would protect the privacy of the land owners and give the public access to the edge of the lake. The property on the right has riparian rights attached to it – and was rumoured to be going on the market in he near future. The city could have purchased the property, stripped the riparian rights and extended the waterfront trail just that much further. Port Nelson Park is one lot to the east of the riparian rights.

Given the time it takes for the owners and/or MNR to obtain and review appraisals, and conduct negotiations, staff expect that this matter will not reach a conclusion for at least an additional 6 months.

The citizen based Waterfront Advisory group apparently don’t like either the look or the smell of this and will be at the Standing Committee delegating. This issue isn’t over yet.

Background links:

Selling the family jewels: Part 1

Selling the family jewels: Part 2

It wasn’t a popular decision.

Need to get the provincial election done with before you can focus on city hall. Just what is happening in that campaign anyway?

By Pepper Parr

May 25, 2014

BURLINGTON, ON.

All the election signs are either for Eleanor McMahon, the Liberal candidate or Jane McKenna, the Progressive Conservative incumbent seeking re-election. Have yet to see a sign for the New Democratic candidate. All those signs make it hard to appreciate that there is a municipal election working its way towards the day everyone will cast a ballot in October.

An exceptionally well connected business person, sometimes described as a pundit, was approached by a member of one of the city’s advisory committees and asked how the pundit would rank things in each of the wards. The member of the city advisory committee had decided that it was time in his career to get involved in local politics and make a contribution at the city council level.

Our potential candidate at first thought he would take a shot at the job of Mayor but decided that he needed to learn to walk first before starting to run.

Councillor Blair Lancaster" not a big fan of public meetings.

There are at least five people who want to eat her lunch: Councillor Blair Lancaster has a fight on her hands – if she runs again.

The pundit ranked things this way: Ward 6 is going to have a different council member come October he is reported to have said. Given that there are now five people seeking that seat – the incumbent has yet to file nomination papers – that would seem to be a safe assumption. A lot of people seem to feel Blair Lancaster can be beaten. With a possible six candidates on the ballot it would be a mistake to count the former beauty queen out just yet – name recognition will take a candidate a long way.

Ward 5 is the next easiest to win in opined the pundit. The sense of the pundit was that the incumbent Paul Sharman doesn’t own his ward yet.

Ward 4 is still a tossup, the Roseland Community Organization doesn’t like any of the people who have their hat in the ring and they dearly want to see a strong candidate defeat the incumbent Jack Dennison who will be at his Ontario Municipal Board hearing Thursday and Friday of this week. Dennison has yet to file nomination papers but then he always waits until June to do so.

"I don't want to hear anymore delegations" said Councillor Jack Dennison.

Councillor Jack Dennison: is he running again?

Councillor Dennison asked the Committee of Adjustment to allow him to sever his Lakeshore property into two pieces so he could sell off a part for a reported $900,000. Many in Roseland thought that was an atrocious thing to do and took exception to their Councillor doing something that would lessen the value of properties along Lakeshore Road.

Ward 3 is going to be a fight for anyone who decides to take on 22 year veteran John Taylor. He can be beaten but it will take a candidate with a lot of energy and a strong start to topple Taylor.

Ward 2 is thought to be suicide territory for anyone who decides to run against Marianne Meed Ward. She is certainly popular – but she has yet to be tested. If she is re-elected by a significant majority – and she should win – she will be a leading candidate for the office of Mayor in 2018

Ward 1 – Rick Craven has a tight grip on that ward – nothing happens in Aldershot without Craven knowing about it and giving it his blessing. He goes bananas when Meed Ward buts in on his territory.

Of the two newbies running in ward 1 Katherine Henshell is the only one that can give Craven any kind of a run for his money. The woman is focused, does her homework and is also very pregnant. Will that make any difference? Shouldn’t – might even get her the Mommy vote – and in Aldershot that counts for quite a bit.

Councillor Rick Craven, centre, with a copy of the 2013 budget on a memory stick. Craven did a superb job of chairing the budget committee last year. He will have no argument with candidate Henshell over the need for additional shopping facilities in Aldershot - getting themt there has been the challenge.

Councillor Rick Craven, centre, managed to hide behind a council chamber partition while a vote on an Aldershot matter was being debated. Here he sits with Councillors Dennison and Taylor during a budget meeting. The three are the most experienced members of Council.

Henshell did tweak Craven’s nose when she told a city council meeting she was the only person speaking for Aldershot and the Bridgeview development brought to a Standing Committee meeting at which Craven didn’t say a word – he wasn’t even in the council chamber – he remained outside the room for all of the more than an hour long debate – walking in seconds after the vote was cast.

One political observer we hear from regularly asked how much the developer had donated to the various election campaigns – we weren’t able to find that information on the city web site. While city hall has the data they don’t put it up on the web site where people can look at the file and learn who gave and how much did they give. This kind of information should be available for every member of council for every election then ran in.

Wonder what the Ministry of Municipal Affairs has to say about that kind of information net being available. A good city Clerk would have ensured the information was readily available.

For anyone to actually beat Craven would be an upset – but then that is what politics is all about.

His worship appears to be heading for an acclamation which is unfortunate. Rick Goldring needs a strong contender to stiffen him up. He’s not a bad mayor, many see him as a weak leader but a closer look, particularly at the way he handled the bringing in of an interim city manager when Burlington got dumped by then city manager Jeff Fielding showed some really good leadership on the part of the Mayor. Maybe he is growing into the office. Nevertheless, a good stiff competition would keep him on his toes.

You won’t be seeing city council candidates at your door until the provincial election is over – could that be a blessing?

There will be plenty for you to ask questions about as we wind our way through the summer.

Mayor Goldring picking up donation in the Santa Claus parade - met with other GTA Mayors to pick up provincial finds to help with the ice storm damage. Maybe he should have taken the hockey stick and the sock with him?

Mayor Rick Goldring. He is in the race – just doesn’t have anyone to race against right now. Early in this term of office Goldring said he wasn’t going to go the getting his picture in the paper route. Here he collects funds in a parade for the Old Timers hockey league.

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The defendants

The defamatory publications.

Editor’s note: Links to each of the articles are set out at the end of this piece.

“North Burlington residents petition the MOE – but they don’t make their demands public.

“Tainted Airpark fill a threat to neighbours’ wells.

The republications

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