BURLINGTON, ON.The city, finally, put out a media release on the renting of the Paletta Mansion to a restaurant operation.
City Council approved the renting of the property after running advertisements looking for someone who could do something with a property that had all kinds of prestige but they couldn’t turn on a profit on the place.There was a time when the sales and rental numbers for Paletta were mixed in with the numbers for Geraldo’s at LaSalle Park.When one of the bean counters at city hall took the numbers apart – Paletta didn’t look very good.
This could become the front entrance to an upscale, fine dining high end restaurant. Would the grounds still be available to the public?
It looked so bad that the city decided to look for a professional operator to do something with the place.All the history and the fine restoration work were nice to look at but the space just wasn’t used enough and it was clear the city didn’t have the capacity to run it.
It took more than one Expression of Interest advertisement to bring in the kind of operator the city had hoped would come forward.But they did get a bite and this time there was something well worth reeling in.In a media release the city announced that it “will soon sign a contract with Radius restaurant group, a Hamilton-based company, which will become the service operator at the city’s historic Paletta Mansion starting in January 2014.
They appear to have attracted someone who has the experience and the reputation to make the site work as a very high-end, fine dining location.
The grounds are exceptional, the setting is picture perfect.There is all the parking that one can ask for.Look for valet parking once the place opens.
There hasn’t been a lot of detail available from the city on the lease agreement.City hall wasn’t prepared to release details until the fine print on the lease agreement had been worked out. The questions to be asked before the ink dries on the lease is: just what is being rented? Just the Mansion? The grounds surrounding it? The sweeping lawn south of the wide stone deck that give a great view of the lake?
Will the grounds become a private enclave? Birders will tell you that some of the best pictures they get are on the Paletta grounds.
Early attempt to reach the company that was going to lease the property proved futile.When we finally managed to get someone from the company on the phone – we got disconnected.
City council approved Radius after the city received four bids as part of a request for proposal process.They add that details “of the agreement will be made public once the contract is signed later this month.” The existing vendor will stay in place until December 2013. Until then, all bookings for Paletta Mansion will continue as usual.
Paletta Lakefront Park and Mansion is located on 14 acres of waterfront parkland. It offers community space, a lakeside park with walking trails, a beautifully restored heritage mansion and breathtaking views.
The mansion is used for corporate and public meetings, weddings and social functions. It is considered one of the finest representations of great estate homes designed and built in Burlington between 1912 and 1932.
The property at one time was actually owned by Laura Secord.There is nothing recorded that suggests she ever visited the property.Flipping land was apparently one of the ways to turn some cash back in those days.
There are some questions that need to be asked as the city wades into a deal with a new operator.The city didn’t provide any details when it announced the company it would lease the location to. Radius.When the tender for the pier was announced the city provided numbers.
Radius hasn’t been at all forthcoming with information.
The Mansion is a gem, the setting is superb and there is an opportunity to put a very high-end dining establishment in the buildings.
We will dig about a bit and see what else we can come up with.
BURLINGTON, ON.August 8, 2013.Growth for a city like Burlington isn’t always a positive thing in the minds of many people.There are loads of residents who like the place just the way it is – the last thing they want is more traffic.
The local community didn’t want the development and took their argument to the Ontario Municipal Board which approved the project.
These higher, multi-storey houses face Queensway, with a balcony and a patch of grass behind them, re-place the older housing shown below.
However cities don’t get to decide on what kind and how much growth there will be – those decisions get made by the province.
This World War II era housing met the needs of families for more than 60 years. They were purchased, assembled and after zoning and Official Plan changes were approved demolished. These houses front on Queensway.
It was one of the first infill project that came to this council.It wasn’t popular with the neighbours and looking back – it’s kind of clear that it isn’t the best planning work this city has done.
It met all the rules, but it really amounts to a lot of houses being put on six, albeit large lots, that had six houses.There is basically no open space for people to play around in the new community.Oddly enough, to the immediate west of the project there is a co-op that has all kinds of space between the buildings.
The stretch of land once housed two buildings, one at each end, with large back yards. Developers saw this an opportunity and bought up the land for this development.
Like much of Burlington, the community was orchards that over time gave way to housing. At one point there was a small school that was closed and razed.
The public school board, with two years notice that this development was to be approved, don’t have space for the influx of new students
The original application was for 74 houses – that got whittled down to 56 – and was seen as a win for the city.
The community is bound by the QEW on the north and the railway line to the south. It is a pleasant walk from the development to the GO station.
BURLINGTON, ON. July 26, 2013Very early in July, the St. Raphaels Church located on New Street was vandalized by two suspects.Damage to the church included anti-religion and profane writings on both the doors and windows.
On Thursday, Halton Regional Police Service, 3 District Criminal Investigations Bureau arrested Patrick GRAY, a 21-year-old male from Burlington for one count of mischief under $5000.GRAY was released on a Promise to Appear and Undertaking with Conditions and is scheduled to appear in Milton court in August 2013.
Use of Social Media helped police find and arrest a vandal.
The wider community was able to assist the police using social media and Twitter accounts to help the police make their arrest.Graffiti is a community issue and it is partnership between the Police and the community that will help us address this issue.
Anyone with information related to this investigation or other acts of vandalism is encouraged to contact the Three District Criminal Investigations Bureau at 905-825-4747 ext 2316, Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS(8477), through the web at www.haltoncrimestoppers.com or by texting ‘Tip201’ with your message to 274637(crimes).
BURLINGTON, ON.June 26, 2013.Remember that meeting that was to take place at the Court House in Milton; the one where all the lawyers involved in the pier lawsuits were to meet and get their ducks lined up; the one that was going to be open to the public and then at the last-minute got switched from an open court to a teleconference call – that one?
Well, they figured some of the stuff out.The presiding judge determined that all the discovery stuff has to be completed by September.The consensus of all the suits was that a trial date would not be any time before May/June of 2014.
Will the citizens be out marching in the streets along with the Burlington Teen Tour Band when the city announces they have settled all the pier related lawsuits in a closed mediation session?
Somewhere in between everyone has to at least make a stab at considering mediation, a process where everyone goes into a room and looks for a way to settle their differences behind closed doors.Everything said during mediation is confidential and never gets released and that would certainly suit city hall.
Given the position the city is on – mediation is their best hope.They are going to have to settle withHenry Schilthuis and Sons Ltd., the contractor who came to the conclusion that the pier could not be built with the plans he was given – Burlington will be giving them a cheque and then work at getting as much they can from Aecom.
June of 2014 is when we begin to learn who is going to run for office in 2014 and the last thing this city council wants is a public trial in the middle of an election.
Will the city do the right thing and tell you how much they spent on legal fees before the election?During the election remember that it was Mayor Goldring and Councillor Marianne Meed Ward who voted to release those numbers – the rest voted no – don’t tell the public how their money was spent.
BURLINGTON, ON.June 5, 2013If you haven’t seen the Mayor around town that’s because he left town – spending a couple of days in Germany on city business.That should bring howls from those that think the politicians do nothing but spend public money and provide little in return.They do that in Toronto.
Mayor rick Goldring delivered an address on water to an organization that develops strategies on how to better manage water around the world. Burlington with its abundance of water will provide a significantly different perspective.
Mayor Rick Goldring and Kyle Benham, Executive Director of the Burlington Economic Development Corporation, have been hopping across Germany and dropping into Berlin, Munich and Frankfort.
The Mayor was invited to give an address to the German Water Partnership (GWP); a central coordination and contact office of the German water sector serving foreign partners and clients.
Kyle Benham, Executive Director of the Economic Development Corporation joined the Mayor on a three day trip to Germany to develop interest in Burlington as a Canadian base for German companies in the water business.
Burlington realized that it has a cluster of some 60 organizations that are involved in the water business and that the Canada Centre for Inland Waters was a leading research institute on water.The thinking was that there might be some synergies that could result in some much needed economic development.
While we in Ontario seldom think about water as a commodity or a problem other parts of the world are not nearly as fortunate.Water is a very serious problem in large parts of Africa and the Middle East.Wars are fought over water.
The GWP is involved in water projects in Palestine, Jordan and Beirut, Lebanon. They put together the umbrella organisation that is now the Arab Countries Water Utilities Association.
The GWP is seen as the leading organizational group focused on water.They wanted a Canadian perspective and Mayor Goldrring was invited to speak and while there visit with organizations that might look on Burlington as a place to grow their North American operations.
This can be pretty heady stuff – something different for the Mayor who often finds himself bogged down in small local problems.
Boehringer Ingelheim (Canada) Ltd., a major multi-national in the prescription drug field with a focus on products for the veterinary market has an operation on the South Service Road.While in Germany the Mayor will be meeting with some of the head office people.
Centre for Inland Waters, a federal facility that may have the potential to spearhead some economic development.
Burlington is home to Canada Centre for Inland Waters where the National Laboratory for Environmental Testing, , a fully accredited environmental analysis capability for a wide range of organic and inorganic chemicals, including a specialization in low level metals and the analysis of organic contaminants.
In addition to laboratory research, work carried out at the National Laboratory for Environmental Testing involves engineering and technical operations, such as the planning and management of field sampling programs.
This is all pretty technical stuff but a vital part of the water business and something Burlington just might manage to build into something that could become an industrial and commercial focus for the city and perhaps put some of the “economic development” land we have for sale to use.
The decision to make the trip to Germany came out of the realization that Burlington has a number of companies that are in the water business. About 60 actually. Economic development types call that a cluster – and clusters are very good for economic growth.
Burlington’s economic development corporation is in the middle of a re-development of its own – moving away from putting on events, retaining the companies that are doing business in Burlington and looking for newer opportunities for the city.
The change in focus bumped into a stunning surprise when the city realized that the income from Industrial, Commercial and Institutional (ICI) tax sources was going to be a negative number for 2013 – less than it was for 2012.That was not a good sign for a city that has reached the build out point in terms of large new housing developments.There is the Eagles Heights development in the north east and the Tremaine Road/Dundas development on the drawing boards and after that it is all infill.
Burlington does have a lot of land that is defined as “employment lands” but very little of that is shovel ready which in the minds of the economic development people means they can begin to build in a short period of time.Some of the developers are not all that keen on seeing land used for ICI type construction when, in their minds, they can build houses which provide a significantly larger financial return.
These conflicting interests put Burlington in an awkward financial spot – we have the land for new business; the developers don’t want ICI type construction; the city faces a situation where the money needed to run the city for an aging population isn’t what it used to be; that population will need more in the way of services and the city faces a massive expense to repair the infrastructure.The cost of getting our roads up to snuff is reported to be $18 – annually.
Pasquale (Pat) Paletta will be inducted as 2013 Entrepreneur of the Year Thursday evening at the Burlington Convention Centre
Given that kind of a scenario a Mayor might be forgiven for wanting to go to Germany and staying there.Our Mayor is hoping that his trip to Germany will interest companies over there into coming here – and using some of that “economic development” land we have for sale.
International Harvester is in the process of getting ready to move out of the Harvester Road and Guelph Line property. Emshie Developments either has it on the market or is looking for an opportunity to get a new client into what is really industrial space on the corner of two of the busier streets in the city.There is perhaps a better use for that land.
It will be interesting to hear what the Mayor has to say when he returns.He will land in Toronto on Thursday and head directly to the Economic Development Corporation dinner to celebrate Pat Paletta, founder of the company that is the largest holder of economic development land in the city.
Pasquale (Pat) Paletta will be inducted as 2013 Entrepreneur of the Year. Mr. Paletta is the founder of what is known today as Paletta International Corporation. He started the company in 1964 with a 10,000 sq.ft meat packing plant, today the facility is over 200,000 sq.ft. They export to over 17 countries worldwide, in addition have developed 1000s of residential units, constructed over 500,000 sq.ft of buildings, developed 100s of acres of property for retail and employment, farm thousands of acres, and expanded in to film, media and entertainment. Burlington has always been home for the Paletta Corporation.
BURLINGTON, ONJune 4, 2013. The Board of The Burlington Performing Arts Centre is pleased to announce the election of four Directors at its Annual General Meeting on Wednesday, May 22, 2013.The election returns the Board to its full complement of thirteen directors.Joining the Board are Donald Baxter, Michael Southon, Barry Simmons and Arthur Salzer.
Don Baxter has spent several years in Economic Development positions, including Burlington Economic Development Corporation from 2002 to 2008. Baxter brings experience in business management positions and board governance to the board.He is involved in the development of the Roseland Community Organization as well.
Baxter, who was executive director of the Burlington Economic Development Corporation where he picked up the tag of Burlington Booster moved on to Mohawk College where he served as the executive director of corporate training and partnerships.
It was built on time and on budget; they hired an accomplished Executive Director then the wheels got loose and things didn’t run smoothly and the blame game began costing the Centre its Executive Director.
Before joining the BEDC, Baxter was a founding partner of consulting firm Economic Growth Solutions Inc., doing education, tourism, economic development strategy and downtown work for municipalities, provincial ministries, colleges and school boards and private clients. He also served as executive director of economic development for Metro Toronto.
Baxter is a registered professional planner and a member of the Canadian Institute of Planners, Economic Developers Council of Ontario, Economic Development Association of Canada, Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters, and the International Economic Development Association.
He also worked in the consulting and municipal planning fields, and was seconded to be Research Director for a Federal/Provincial Task Force on the Supply and Price of Serviced Land in Canada. He then became Commissioner of Planning and Development in a Toronto municipality responsible for planning, building and economic development activities. For 11 years, Don was Executive Director of Economic Development for Metro Toronto, including economic development responsibilities as diverse as hosting the G7 summit, establishing the GTAA, international bids, and developing the National Trade Centre. He has degrees from the University of Guelph and Queen’s University.
Give them an Oil thigh Don and show them how it’s done
BURLINGTON, ON.June 1, 2013.It started when Stuart Crawford told colleagues on the Business in Burlington web site that he was going tohave to vacate the office space he had because Regus was shutting down their operation in August.That was a bummer and Crawford wasn’t the only person in this situation.
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James Burchill, the guy that runs the Business in Burlington (BiB) MeetUp group, has maintained that the best way we have of communicating really effectively is to use the social media that is available to us.
Here is how this has worked this time.
Crawford puts up his note.We at Our Burlington put in a call to Ian Cameron at the Economic Development Corporation who gets in touch with Crawford.
Others from the BiB site plug into the conversation.
Here is how part of it went:
Hi Everyone…The Regus office at 460 Brant Street is shutting down leaving many businesses without a business home at the end of August. We are looking for a new home for our IT marketing business. We need a small office for our 2 team members to work advises Crawford
Barb Keck, who runs a graphics operation in Burlington passes along a recommendation (Try https://www.ceoburlington.com/) for Crawford to follow-up.
Jose L. Ponce adds that the closest Regus will be Glen Abbey (Oakville). “Yesterday, I did receive an email with an interesting idea on co-working space for entrepreneurs / small business. I know it is not an immediate solution but I think it’s something that can be developed over time since I am sure there is demand for shared/flexible open spaces.”
Jason Calacanis comes back with: I started a co-working space in LA and passes along some detail.
“It was a co-working space in Los Angeles. Being an entrepreneur is sometimes lonely work, and having a bunch of founders around you makes it a lot easier. We’re calling it LAUNCH co-work, and it’s a 10,000+ square-foot, 30-foot ceiling space in Culver City with room for a dozen start-ups.
“We’re looking for awesome collaborators to learn, share and generally change the world with. I might angel invest in some of the start-ups, have them on “This Week in Startups” or just talk shop in the kitchen.
Rent starts at $50 a desk/month (unfunded) and tops out at $350 (funded). We’re not making a profit, we’re making a community!”
The Regus operation on the top floor of 460 Brant is shutting down in August. The space recently had a major face lift done to the front of the building. The movie theatre on the ground floor went out of business recently – they didn’t want to invest in an upgrade to their projection equipment.
Interesting idea but the tenants at Regus need to nail down new space now
Marie Copeland (Hryczynski) comes on-line and adds that she too is at Regus in Burlington and “only needs very small space, even shared space as we are fully paperless and don’t even have a filing cabinet – most of our clients want to deal by phone and only occasional client wants to come to the office.”
She adds that she has a commercial realtor looking — how about we survey some people at Regus to see if we can get several businesses together and create a shared office.Contact her if you’re interested: 905-308-8063
None of this could have taken place without the BiB site.That crowd meets on Wednesday June 5th – at Ivy’s on the South Service Road; might be an opportunity for some ideas to get some traction.
The people that run the smaller, usually techie type operations but a number of service providers as well, meet monthly in the city. Business in Burlington now has a number of its members having to look for new space with the announced closure of the Regus operation on Brant Street.
What was a little on the disappointing side was that Regus didn’t appear to be doing much for their clients other than trying to get them to perhaps move to their Oakville location and the Economic Development people didn’t appear to be moving quickly to resolve the problem. For the people with small office space needs – having to find a new home in a couple of months is disruptive and it will be expensive.Moving your computers and all your communications gear is not cheap.
Burlington’s Mayor Goldring wants to meet with the tenants and see what the city can do to help.He leaves for a short trip to Germany next week, where he will be meeting with people in the water business.More on that later.His Chief of Staff will be making calls and pulling people together.
The Mayor will be traveling with the Executive Director of the Economic Development Corporation – perhaps they can have a chat about how one services the smaller operations.
The small operations are the base metal of every economy. They provide services or vital parts that the bigger guys need.It is at this small, two, three five member shops that make the big wheels turn around.The Mayor would do well to connect with these people and find a way to keep them in town.
Quite why Economic development has not taken the lead on this is – disappointing.
BURLINGTON, ON.April; 22, 2013.James Burchill, an absolutely shameless promoter and one of the those people in this city who KNOWS social media and has managed to make a decent living at it.
He has created a network that grew from about 50 people to the point where it is now at more than 2000 “members” and strong enough to support a mini-trade show at the Performing Arts Centre and bring his flock together once a month, always at an upscale bar for nodding and noshing.
There is someone out there who wants to MeetUp with all these people – James Burchill founder of Business in Burlington doesn’t quite see it that way and is becoming familiar with the phrase “cease and desist”. Will that be enough to stop some interloper from eating his lunch?
MeetUp is the vehicle Burchill uses and Business in Burlington is the name of the game.He also has gigs going in Oakville and Niagara.Add to that the chutzpah to get a car dealer to loan him a fire-red sports car for use for a day – or is it longer?My name wasn’t drawn so I’ve no idea how long anyone gets to use the car.
Burchill handing out as Hypnosis session as a door prize. Has James been asleep at the switch while someone tries to steal his market. Competition is said to bring out the best in all of us.
Burchill sent out a note to his followers with this “heads up. I’ve learned someone has launched a new MeetUp using our the “Business In” trademark in their name.t’s already causing confusion and thank you to everyone who’s emailed me about it.
There are 3 approved and licensed Business In ™ Networking groups and Burchill is in discussions to launch more. “Unless you hear it from me directly,” advises Burchill “ it’s not an approved group nor is it licensed, part of the “Business In” network, or operating under the same code of conduct and/or rules.
Burchill has “reached out” to the person behind the group and is endeavouring to clear up the naming confusion. Again, if you didn’t hear it from me – it’s NOT an approved Business In ™ Networking group.
Burchill has bumped into that hairy beast called “intellectual property.Can he lay total claim to the name?It costs to do that.Someone obviously sees that Burchill is on to a good thing and they want in on it.Is Burchill far enough down the track and keeping his flock warm and fuzzy enough for them to stay with him?Or will they wander over and see what the other guy has to offer.
The business schools tell us that competition brings out the best in us – gets us the lowest price and the best value for our money.Burchill doesn’t charge a fee – he just puts on an event and charges people for using his event to promote themselves and his service.His followers do however give him their time and that’s more valuable than cash at times.
How will Burchill handle this?Does he have the cahonies to ward off some interloper?This might be a useful lesson for him to involve his membership in – great brand bonding if he can get his followers to ride this wave with him.
And a lesson in what to do when someone walks into the room expecting to eat your lunch.Stay tuned.
BURLINGTON, ON.April 17, 2013Starting today, the city’s E-Government program will be launching the first of several new online services. For the first time, the city’s parks and recreation department’s Live & Play Guide is available online, allowing people to view program information and directly register for recreation programs of their choice at any time, day or night, from the comfort of their homes.
Wow! Is this as good as it sounds?
“Posting the very popular Live & Play Guide on the city’s web page is an important step for the City of Burlington’s E-Government program,” said Mayor Rick Goldring. “The people of Burlington have told us online service is an important option, and we are listening.”That’s good – having a Mayor that listens is good.
Two pages of the electronic version of Live and Play, the city’s magazine on all its recreational programs. Convenient once you get the hang of the thing. Was there a real savings? We did save some trees.
The on-line version of Live and Play will allow people to search, bookmark and tag favorite pages.The content is to be Mobile-friendly, which means you can book something from your smart phone while travelling on the GO train.That’s very good.
You can set things up so that you get information via email and social media sites.City hall has in the past been a little reluctant with social media.There was the sense a year back that staff couldn’t be trusted to send out sensible messages.That appears to be shifting.
In the media release the city says” “People are now busier than ever. The introduction of the online guide and its features will give residents user-friendly recreation information, whether at home or on the go,” said Chris Glenn, director of parks and recreation. “The online guide will provide easy access for residents to register for a variety of programs.”
What you used to get in your mailbox is now on-line. Really slick, fun to use but allow yourself some time to get the hang of the thing.
The city’s E-Government strategy will be delivered through 10 projects put in place over three years. Over the next couple of months, the city will launch epost in conjunction with Canada Post for property tax billing and tee time bookings for Tyandaga Golf Course.
Brent Stanbury, E-Government program manager, who built the first web site for the city before he went to work for the federal government, came back to Burlington to take us from the entry-level web site to something much more sophisticated and, it might be added, a lot harder to create.
There wasn’t enough space within the IT department at city hall to house the team.
Now – about the site.It is slick but it is going to take some getting used to.There are all kinds of tabs on the sides and it will take you some time to get used to it. When you move from page to page there is a sound effect that is all but identical to flipping the pages of a magazine.
Is it too complex?Many will have problems with it – but it appears to be all there – you just have to get used to getting around the thing.Best approach: put your ten year old in front of it and let them tell you how it works.
Navigational Tool – takes a bit to get used to them but they work very well.
It does work.There is an event on the Seniors’ Centre page that kind of interested me: a day trip to Toronto to take a Tall Ship Cruise.I clicked on the spot I thought I should have clicked on and that brought me to a page that had all the information – and told me that I had to come back June 1, to register.I didn’t figure out how to get the program to remind me to come back June 1 – just put that into my Outlook calendar and that will remind me.
It looks as if the thing is going to work well.
Did notice though that the publication doesn’t appear to be on the city’s web site and the media release didn’t tell you where to go to get to it.There was a link in the media release – but few people get that document.
So – if you want to get to the Live and Play CLICK HERE.
Make a point of bookmarking that page when it comes up on your screen – you will want to go back to it.
That website address suggest Live and Play, in its electronic edition, is on some other website and that the city is paying a fee to keep the thing there. Is that fee less than the cost of printing the magazine and having it distributed?The media release makes no mention of any cost – but there are no free lunches.
At first blush this looks like a superb effort – now some time and effort has to be made to help people learn how to use it – or am I just showing my age? Hope not.
BURLINGTON, ON April 16, 2013.Firemen and women are vital to the safety of any community and Burlington has a fire department that has been recognized in the past for their bravery and service as well as being on hand to get that cat out of a tree and take part in civic events.Great guys.
But to hold a special photo-op to take a picture of the Fire Chief being given his badge – is that not a little much?Have the city communications people not got anything better to do?Did the Mayor have an opening in his Day Timer that was looking for something to do?
Burlington’s recently appointed fire chief, Tony Bavota
On April 22 members of council; Kim Phillips, general manager of corporate and community services; Fire Chief Tony Bavota; deputy fire chiefs Dave Beatty and Jeff Weber; city officials; retired Burlington Fire Chief Shayne Mintz; regional emergency services personnel; family and friends will gather in celebration of Burlington’s new fire chief.
Burlington firefighters have been cited for their bravery in the past. This photograph has several of them being recognized by the Lieutenant General.
A special badge presentation and ceremony will take place in recognition of Tony Bavota, Burlington’s recently named Fire Chief.
And it’s all going to take place at the Burlington Performing Arts Centre, Community Studio Theatre with areception to follow in lobby immediately following the formal presentation.
BURLINGTON, ON. April 3, 2013 – The first hint that there were going to be neighbourhood character studies was when the Planning department held a very small workshop at the Performing Arts Centre where they gave three groups of people the same very large map and asked them to define the neighbourhoods on the map.
Each of the groups came up with vaguely similar boundaries but there really wasn’t much in the way of a clear expression of just what a neighbourhood was. Little wonder: according to Alan Gummo, formerly with the planning department and now retired, the word neighbourhood doesn’t appear in the Official Plan, a document the city was setting out to review as required by provincial legislation.
The city’s Planner had decided the 2013 review would be much deeper than past reviews, doing so for a number of reasons. Bruce Krushelnicki now had Provincial guidelines he had to adhere to and he had a much more robust Strategic Plan to adhere to as well. That document was crystal clear in its viewpoint – there were to be “vibrant neighbourhoods” and while that concept has been used to slip through some pretty dodgy spending, there was no getting away from the fact that it was something that had to be dealt with.
If there are to be vibrant neighbourhoods the planners needed to know just where those neighbourhoods were located.
Fifteen acres, 30 homes, three streets are all part of the Indian Point enclave felt to be the oldest neighbourhood outside the Burlington core.
Krushelnicki explained to the residents from Indian Point Tuesday evening, that Burlington was a core city that just added neighbourhoods as it evolved. Indian Point was probably the very first neighbourhood that got described as an “enclave” with 30 properties that were made distinct by large lots bounded by a creek on the north and Lake Ontario on the south.
Aldershot evolved. Roseland came into being, Millcroft, the Orchard are a few of the others that followed. The most recent is Alton Village that came about whenthe 407 was built which created a piece of land that was no longer north of the rural boundary. Other than some housing to be included in the Tremaine Road/Dundas development in the eastern part of the city and the Eagle Heights development in the west, the city is pretty well-built out and as Krushelnicki put it “we now have to better manage what we have.”
Anne McIlroy, standing, talks to Indian Point residents about their views and vision for the community that is part of an Official Plan review character study.
BURLINGTON, ON. April 1, 2013 You will see the T-shirt first.
517 People. 25 Vendors. 344 Comments. 158 Photos. What Next?
Indeed – what next. James Burchill has managed to take an idea and use Social Media to build an audience and a network into something that approaches 2000 people. He is a shameless self-promoter. His events are described by him as “epic”. He emails like the service was going to end tomorrow but this guy managed to get more than 500 people out to an event at the Performing Arts Centre to just network. The bar prices were on the high-end and the selection was limited but the people were there and the door prizes were good and the Mayor said nice things about what he was doing. That was enough for James Burchill this time out.
Business in Burlington is all about business cards which identify the more than 2000 people who are part of a unique collection of people who meet once a month.
Burchill runs the Business in Burlington (BiB) “Meet Up”. It is what is says it is – a place for people to meet and talk business. It’s not a place to find the man or woman of your life or even for the next weekend. Certainly not a singles set up.
The way we relate, the paths we walk along to get where we want to go, the people we meet and then choose to meet are all part of the way the society we live in works. We organize ourselves into groups; it used to be Scouts and Girl Guides but those organizations didn’t keep up with the needs of families and the pedophilia within the Boy Scouts certainly didn’t help that crowd.
We join golf and country clubs, or a book study group; maybe the Chamber of Commerce or the YMCA. New organizations come into existence to meet new needs.
They didn’t fill every square foot but there were certainly enough of them to create a buzz. The display tables on the mezzanine were very busy.
Burlington has one of those unique situations where there are four Rotary Clubs – each meeting the needs of different groups of people. Many people use Rotary as a touch point and refer frequently to their fellow Rotarians. It is almost as if you have to belong to the Rotary to be real.
Sports is a big part of family life in this city. We put athletics ahead of scholarship and are relentless when it comes to funding events in the community with galas and gatherings.
In Burlington the Chamber of Commerce , which is fairly described as the mainline business organization, has committees and represents the commercial sector. BiB doesn’t do any representing nor does it seem to involve itself with the larger community.
Is this the direction Social Media is taking us in?
The ‘mini-trade show at the Performing Arts Centre was such a success for Burchill that he has already booked the date for the next such event – March 20th, 2014.
The last one went so well that Burchill is holding an event at which he will tell you how he pulled it off – he says he is prepared to tell you about what worked; what didn’t work and the mistakes along the way.
Here’s how Burchill shills for this event:
Finally, when you pull off an event this big on your own, people begin to wonder how you did it. A couple of popular questions are: How do you keep growing the networks? How do you get such high engagement and turn-out?
Would you be interested in attending a private presentation about this event and how I put it together, how I marketed it, the tools I used, the strategies I deployed and so on?
I’ll take you behind the scenes and show you the successful parts … and the screw ups (there were a couple of good ones!) It’ll be a candid experience and one I think will open your eyes to the marketing power of local networking events.
Networking – right. It was an “epic” event for Burchill. So good that he is going to do it again next year.
He promotes: shamelessly, consistently, a little outside the Burlington character but his people love him and they tend to leave satisfied and plan on returning.
Burchill has moved his monthly event from the Waterfront Hotel to Ivy on the South Service Road. Next time up is this Wednesday 5 to 7 pm. It is certainly a nice location and the parking is free. It will be “fabulous” when they are out on the patio.
Business in Burlington – if you want to know how to exploit Social Media to its fullest – listen to Burchill.
BURLINGTON, ON March 6, 2013 The city has a new fire chief – Tony Bavota will take on the role of chief of the Burlington Fire Department, effective immediately.
Tony Bavota appointed Chief of the Burlington Fire department.
Bavota has been a deputy fire chief with the Fire Department since 2009 and is in his 18th year of employment with the City of Burlington. His progressive responsibilities within the department include acting platoon chief, fire captain, acting captain, firefighter and infrastructure project manager. Bavota also gained extensive corporate experience while working in the city manager’s office on a job rotation as the assistant to the city manager.
Bavota is going to have to rely heavily on his city hall experience to get the fire fighters he feels he needs and to prepare Burlington for a different kind of preparation. In the next five years the city will see a 22 storey structure on Lakeshore Road and, if the way the city manager is talking, we can expect to see more in the way of high-rise structures.
High rise buildings create different challenges for fire fighters. This multi-storey building on Maple was completed recently and the 22 storey development on Lakeshore Road mean different, expensive equipment and time to train the men who will man it.
The Strata on Maple Avenue is an example. These buildings require different kinds of firefighting equipment – and the stuff isn’t cheap. Then firefighters have to be trained in how to use the equipment.
Before joining the Burlington Fire Department, Bavota worked with the Guelph Police Service, as a constable and tactical response unit member.
Bavota earned a Masters of Public Administration from the University of Western Ontario in 2011, and holds a diploma in Public Administration and a Bachelor of Arts-Economics Degree.
Acting Chief Dave Beatty will return to his role as deputy chief. “We thank Acting Chief Beatty for his continued leadership. The fire department management team continues to work effectively together throughout the transition period and I sincerely appreciate their collective efforts,” said Phillips.
The fire department has a combined urban and rural area covering 189 square kilometres that has to be covered. They provide public education, fire prevention, suppression and emergency response in Burlington. The Burlington Fire Department currently has 202 full-time staff and a complement of 65 volunteers serving the community.
The previous fire chief left the Burlington fire department for greener pastures where he didn’t have the ongoing battle with city council for the resources he felt he needed.
Firefighters in Ontario are exceptionally well-organized and aren’t shy about showing their muscle to make their point. In the last provincial election they made it very clear they were supporting the government. They have been known to attend city budget review meetings as a group and to attend at Council meetings sitting as a group in Council chambers. .
BURLINGTON, ON. March 4, 2013 Here’s a different one for you. A group is putting on an event for a local charity, Breast Cancer Support Services. The city certainly has its share of charity events.
But this one is different with a unique angle.
Kimberly Neale, a young go-getter we met some time back, had created a service for people with more money than time. She called her business “I’m On It” and was available to do things that called for promptness and quick thinking.
We got this media release from her yesterday. What the group she is part of has come up with is a photo session that has a local model posing for 12 different photographers. The concept came from Derrick Van Der Kolk who pulled together a group of photographers who would be given a camera, a roll of colour film, a couple of props and a model to photograph. The photographers would all use the same studio and have one hour to complete their shoot.
A simple naturally lit setting for the twelve photographers taking part in the ONE event. The setting along with a pink boa, a pink mask and a pink scarf was all each photographer had to work with. They all had to use the Hasselblad camera with Fuji colour film that will be developed and mounted by a professional film processing company.
The camera – a Hasselblad – not too shabby – and 120 Fuji Colour film with an ISO of 400 would be used in the warehouse space using the same the same props: a pink boa, a mask and a pink ribbon.
That’s it. There is also a make-up artist, Courtney Nevins available to the photographers.
The studio space they used offered some interesting lighting opportunities. It sounded interesting.
“I hope this email finds you well” said Kimberly Neale in the email she sent us. “I wanted to let you know about a unique charity event taking place at Spencer’s at the Waterfront in Burlington March 28th to help support Breast Cancer Support Services. Now the relevance of the pink scarf became evident.
We gave Kimberly as call and learned more. The 12 photographers were chosen a couple of months ago by Derrick Van Der Kolk .
The photographers were given the film and camera – Fuji Colour film (ISO400) – that’s about all there is in terms of colour film – yes film – not digital. Kodachrome bit the dust about a year ago.
Each photographer’s ONE best shot will be showcased, displayed and will appear anonymous at the Gala event March 28th at Spencer’s on the Waterfront. Each photograph will be framed in the same manner. The film will be processed with no retouching and of course no Photo Shopping – this is real film, the old stuff, the original stuff. The photographers will use 120 film – didn’t know they still made the stuff.
Each print will be blown up to 36 x 36 inches and then framed.
The prints will be judged and then sold at the March 28th event.
ONE will feature the creative talent of 12 photographers and showcase the artistry of film photography while raising funds for an amazing, local charity.
The showing of the photographs is the culmination of the event. At the final event on March 28, 2013, at Spencer’s, where each photographer’s ONE best shot will be showcased and displayed. Photo Media Décor is doing the framing with World of Lighting putting just the right amount of spotlights on the pictures to show them all at their very best once they are hung. The photographs will not have the names of the photographers on them. Three judges will then declare the winning photo. Traditional film photography will be used and photos will not be altered after the development process. Film processing is being done by Duncan & Wright. At the conclusion of the voting, the winner is announced and a silent auction will be held for each photo with all the money raised going to Breast Cancer Support Services.
This is a ONE of a kind event taking place in a beautiful location, featuring the artistic abilities of talented, local photographers!
Kimberly tells, in a breathless voice that their “Facebook page has reached 78,463 people in just ONE month and we continue to see this number rise.”
Almost too much – but it in an interesting take on modern photography.
The idea came out of three minds that managed to meet. Derrick Van Der Kolk came up with the concept and recruited Neale and Chris Sakai (Sakai Promotions) to assist with organizing, hosting and promoting the event.
ONE was created to bring the true art of true photography back in to the forefront. As a talented and passionate photographer, Derrick wanted to give photographers a platform / competition where the true skills that a group of photographers could be challenged.
The twelve chosen include both professionals and amateurs and one as young as fourteen.
“Van Der Kolk had the idea but he needed help in promoting and getting it to actually happen. He approached us with his idea and how to bring this to life. The three of us saw an incredible opportunity to tie it all together; creative art (showing local talent), local charity and an opportunity to showcase / promote local businesses – community, art and business all in one location”, says Kimberly. The venue, the Discovery room at Spencer’s, is as good as it gets. The Killin’ Time Band playing an acoustic set will be there as well!
BURLINGTON, ON. February 27, 2013. The social side of this city seems to go through cycles – last year it was the Torsney ‘s with Brian Torsney deep into the Hospital Foundation fund-raising events to raise the $60 million they were tasked to come up with while his sister, a former Burlington Member of Parliament, Paddy Torsney headed up the United Way drive.
Angelo Paletta on the left standing proudly with his father Pasquale (Pat) Paletta
This year it looks as if the Paletta`s are going to take up the headlines in the social sector. Pat Paletta got himself nominated as the Entrepreneur of the year – that event will take place on June 6, 2013, and now son Angelo has been appointed as the honorary chair of the Masquerade Ball – the lead fund-raising event for the (BCF) Burlington Community Foundation. The Ball will take place October 26th at the Burlington Convention Centre. Tickets began to get scarce last year – so slip over to their website and book your appointment with the hair dresser.
Angelo, according to the Foundation, has played a number of key philanthropic and community support roles in Burlington. Besides being the honourary chair the family corporation has joined BCF as its first Proud Supporter of our Vital Signs report, a community check-up we will share with Burlington residents on October 1st.
Last year the BCF published their first ever Vital Signs report,which, while not quite what many in the social development sector had hoped for, it was their first effort. Everyone is looking for something quite a bit deeper and more relevant to the community this year. Their report is announced for release on October 1st.
Colleen Mulholland, Executive Director, Burlington Community Foundation is as pleased as punch that Angelo is “sharing his time and leadership with us, in support of our largest fundraising event.”
Jazz – New Orleans style at the Burlington Community Foundation Masquerade Ball.
In their media release the BCF announces they will continue with the alluring feel of a masked gala, featuring the swinging streets of the French Quarter. “I am honoured to have been asked to be the gala’s honourary chair this year,” says Angelo, who will dance up a storm. “ I love the excitement of New Orleans, jazz and Bourbon Street, and my family and I have always had a terrific time at the Masquerade Ball. I hope the community will join us in this great celebration.”
In 2007, Angelo was formally installed as a Knight of Malta under the Sovereign Order of St. John of Jerusalem, a religious order founded by Pope Pascal II in 1113. Devoted for 900 years to caring for the sick and the poor for more than 900 years, today this philanthropic Order operates accredited diplomatic and humanitarian missions in more than 100 countries.
Closer to home, Angelo is also the current Chair of the Board of Directors for the Carpenter Hospice.
The Paletta’s are also in an early stage ‘kiss and make up’ with the city. There are a number of issues related to the development of land owned by the Paletta’s that some feel are hindering the economic development of Burlington. As the largest holder of what the city has classified as “economic development lands” the city wants to be able to see those properties marketed and developed to bring some much-needed development to the Industrial, Commercial and Institutional part of the city tax assessment base.
City manager Jeff Fielding has brought a much different approach to developing relationships with the major stakeholders in the city.
Part of this process is a significant shake up in the way the Economic Development Corporation manages the growth of the city. In the past much of their focus has been on raising funds to keep the operation alive. Fielding thinks that isn’t the smartest business model if Burlington is to prosper and has asked the BEDC to come back with a better business case. That case has been presented to the Budget and Corporate Services Committee where it didn’t seem to generate a lot of enthusiasm on the part of either council members or staff. Expect to hear more on this one.
Paletta International is a Canadian owned and family managed company, started by Pasquale Paletta (Burlington’s 2013 Entrepreneur of the Year) in 1951. With its humble beginnings in beef processing, the company grew through vertical integration into raising cattle with feedlots in Burlington, Alberta and Colorado. The company also is involved in real estate, construction, media and entertainment. The company is managed by Pasquale’s four sons: Angelo, Paul, Michael, and Remi Paletta, from its Paletta Court facility in Burlington.
The BCF was established in 1999 by a group of local volunteers and philanthropists to improve the quality of life in Burlington. The Foundation collaborates with donors to build endowments, gives grantsand connects community leadership. For Masquerade Ball tables, tickets or information on becoming a Proud Supporter, contact Sandra Baker, sbaker@burlingtonfoundation.org, 905 639 0744 x 223
BURLINGTON, ON. February 21, 2013 We were accepted as full members of the Ontario Press Council last fall.
The Press Council serves at the body that listens to the public when they feel media have been unfair. Anyone can take a complaint or a concern to the Press Council. The address is set out below.
Ontario Press Council, 890 Yonge St., Suite 200, Toronto M4W 3P4. Telephone: (416) 340-1981
There is no cost to anyone going to the Press Council.
As member of the organization we are required to abide by their decisions and publish any decision they make. Because we are an electronic publication any Ontario Press Council decision related to anything we have published remains on our web site for anyone to see. The decisions of the press council are also on the Press Council web site.
Many people don’t understand the role of media in a society. Communities with small local newspapers are often poorly served by those publications. Burlington’s “information deficit” was brought to light in 2010 when the Shape Burlingtonreport was published.
That document, written by former Mayor Walter Mulkewich and the late John Boich, set out quite clearly what the problem was and where the responsibility for the information deficit lay.
One of the Shape recommendations was to create a Community Engagement Charter and the city is in the last phase of finalizing that document and deciding what it wants to do with the numerous recommendations that have been set out in draft versions of the Engagement Charter.
Another recommendation was for the city to fund some form of media that would help reduce the “information deficit”. The city should not be in the business of funding media, look at City Talk,the city’s quarterly magazine that is filled with puff pieces written by Council members or their staff. Terrible waste of money.
John Boich convinced me to use my 30 years of publishing experience to produce some form of electronic media; that conversation resulted in Our Burlington that came out October 2010.
The relationship between the different organizations in the city and the media is usually a strained one. People and organizations want nice things said about them. Our job is to say nice things if there are nice things to say but we are also there to report and explain. We have chosen a cheeky and irreverent style. We are constantly amazed at how bland most of the statements that come out of city hall, the Region or the offices of the MP and the MPP are; self serving puff pieces for the most part.
Here is what the Mayor had to say about us last summer.
The two or three media people who cover city hall are there to observe and report. Running a city is a complex business and its matters are complex. Saying the tax rate is going to be increased is a statement of fact – but those facts have to be put in context. One percent of the tax increase last year was to pay for the city’s portion of the hospital re-build.
Saying the pier is now on schedule does not mean we don’t also say that the thing is over the initial amount it was expected to cost by more than 200% – and then asking why this happened. Getting a straight answer is easier said than done.
Asking why city council always goes into closed session when the city solicitor speaks about the law suits the city is involved in over the pier and continually asking how much has been spent on legal fees is part of what media does.
We also reported on the 58 Burlingtonians who were awarded Jubilee medals.
We see more of the council members and staff than most people and we arrive at conclusions. There are some very good people doing fine jobs at city hall; there are others just putting in the time until the can leave on a pension.
There are some that are always helpful and others that snow you with a dozen documents or refer you to someone else when their job is to provide information and inform.
Our Burlingtonhas had some major differences with some people; some of those differences get resolved, on others we just disagree.
City hall has 1000 people on the payroll and is run by a top tier team of three people – with five layers of management between the city manager and the entry level clerk.
There are more really smart, energetic enthusiastic people at city hall than there are slugs. And more often than taxpayers realize, they give very good value.
Our relationships with the members of council are all different because they are different people with agendas of their own. Their public image is basically a brand they use to get themselves re-elected. Re-election for a council member is like a promotion to other people; they work hard to get them.
The Mayor is, we believe, in place to show leadership. While the Mayor has just one vote he does have the opportunity to lead and to set the tone. For those who don’t think the style of leadership and the tone of the city council is important, look back to how quickly this city decided it didn’t want Cam Jackson as Mayor, even though he had served the city as its MPP for many years. Adapting a Queen’s Park skill set to city hall was something Jackson was not able to do. Voters saw that inability and chose someone else to be Mayor.
While we have been critical of Rick Goldring in the past, and will be critical of him again in the future because that is part of what media do – we will never forget the evening he basically said goodbye to John Boich a week before he passed away. He treated John Boich with great dignity, deference and sympathy and in doing so reflected what this city is about.
We really liked the comments the Mayor made about Our Burlingtona couple of months ago – note sure Goldring would say them today but they reflect the kind of man he is.
BURLINGTON, ON October 23, 2012 It was a good crowd. As many, if not more, than the 600 that showed up December 2010 when the Region was advised that the province wanted some arrows placed on the Region’s Official Plan to show where a possible highway through the Escarpment might go.
That was the first anyone had heard about an actual location for any road being built across the Escarpment. There was an arrow placed on a map way back in 2002 that crossed Guelph Line north of Dundas Street and south of No. 1 Side road, bringing a potential highway down a more gentle (and less populated) slope of the escarpment.
Councillor John Taylor, war horse on Escarpment issues got a round of applause before he said a word at the community meeting, held to voice once again Burlington’s opposition to a highway through any part of the Escarpment.
John Taylor, the politician who has been fighting any highway for longer than anyone else, took the standing room only audience back 40 years when the battle we are fighting today began. Twenty years ago it was the 403; in the 90’s it was the 407. That allowed the creation of Alton, a community of 10,000 people. Now they want another road that eats into the Escarpment – and we have to tell them that just is not on.
Regional Chair Gary Carr, Burlington Mayor Rick Goldring and Councillors Blair Lancaster and John Taylor all spoke to an audience of more than 600 people at the Mainway Recreation centre – on an evening when it rained.
When the event at the Mainway Recreational Centre was planned Burlington Mayor Rick Goldring and Regional Chair Gary Carr had an appointment with the Minister of Transportation (MTO) to impress upon him just how opposed both the Region and most particularly Burlington was to any kind of highway going through the Flamborough – Burlington part of the province.
At that time, just over six weeks ago, the government was keeping everyone in the Legislature to fight off any sudden vote that would bring down the minority Liberal government. The meeting kept being put off. Then the Premier resigns and all the rules change.
The Minister of Transportation was supposed to see Carr and Goldring on Monday, but that got pushed back to Thursday. One keeps wondering why these meetings keep getting pushed back.
Assuming Carr and Goldring meet with Bob Chiarelli, Minister of Transportation, they will be able to point to a room that was packed with people, every seat taken and all the walls lined with people standing as well as a couple sitting on the floor at the front of the room.
There wasn’t a seat to be had in the meeting room. Standing room only.
If what people think and feel matters – this was a crowd that politicians have to pay some attention to.
Gary Carr, Regional Chair spoke and then played a 5 minute video that is on the Regional web site.
Burlington Mayor Rick Goldring spoke.
Director of Transportation Services for Burlington, Bruce Zvaniga spoke and laid out the issues from a transportation perspective.
Pete Zuzek, spokesperson for Stop Escarpment Highway Coalition, gave the strongest presentation of the evening.
John Taylor, Councillor for Ward 3 rose to speak to a great round of applause and provided some of the history that went back 40 years. This is indeed a long fight.
Ted Chudleigh, provincial PC member for Halton spoke – forcefully one might add with not a word of notes.
Jane McKenna, provincial PC member for Burlington spoke, read from notes and released her correspondence to the Minister of Transportation.
While Tim Hudak, leader of the PC opposition at Queen’s Park is on record as being FOR a highway because he believes the issue is about jobs – both Chudleigh and McKenna were very clear that they were opposed to any highway going through Burlington. Would that opposition still be evident if a vote that could bring down the minority Liberal government was being held.
They hunched over tables as they signed the petition opposing any kind of road through the Escarpment.
Zvaniga set out where the province is in their deliberations. He laid out what had been done, when it was done, why it was done and what the next steps are going to be. Zvaniga had to give the technical overview because the province declined to send anyone to the meeting.
The MOT people have a job to do, part of which is to advise the government on what future transportation needs are likely to be. Part of the problem with this approach was brought to light when former Minister of Transportation, Kathleen Wynne explained to the Mayor of Burlington, during the last provincial election, that transportation engineers and planners don’t know how to think beyond the car and highways. At the time she said the province has one of the best highway building departments in the country – and that was the problem – they don’t know how to think outside that highway box. Which is a point the SEHC people are trying very hard to get across to the public.
There are more people on the roads and there will always be more people on the roads if we keep building roads. I had occasion to be at Pearson airport on Monday to pick up my wife returning from a visit with her Mother in Denmark. The flight was due at 3:00 pm, which I knew meant fighting rush hour traffic. It turned out to be a pretty quick trip – because we were able to use the HOV lane. There were very few cars in that HOV lane, but there were three lanes plugged solid on our right, bumper to bumper, with a single passenger in the car.
None of these people want to sit in their cars with bumper to bumper traffic on the QEW. But of the 600 people in the room less than ten took the bus to the meeting.
Why anyone would sit in that traffic, when they could be in a faster lane was something I couldn’t understand. Of course they needed an additional passenger in their car – why is that so hard to set up. Most of those people are driving to or from work, where there are surely people in their offices who live near them. Why are there not more people going on line to look for a person near them, that can share that drive? There is a smart phone app for people who want a lift (we used to call it hitch hiking) and are prepared to share the cost. It’s all done on line.
It was also pointed out that while rail isn’t being given the consideration it needs, a large part of that is because the federal government is not at the table. This is a provincial matter the government argues, while SEHC argues that it is a social matter and that we need to look at transportation issues at a much higher level and not focus on just what’s going on in Burlington.
SEHC believes people need to understand that we must look at transportation a lot differently and that we are going to have to get out of our cars. They point to global warming, the damage to the environment and the impact of commuting more than an hour to get to work and another hour to get home. Driving our cars is a habit we haven’t managed to break – and like smoking, it may eventually kill us.
Gary Carr finally got around to publicly thanking the people of PERL, Protect Escarpment and Rural Lands, for the hard fight they fought to win the Nelson Aggregate battle in North Burlington where Nelson had applied for a second aggregate mining permit. That application was denied – the first time anyone can remember such an application being turned down. It is perhaps a good omen. Carr, quite rightly, pointed out that were it not for organizations like PERL “we wouldn’t be this far without them”. Hopefully Carr will come through with some form of support for PERL – they are suffering from battle fatigue and they are hurting.
Carr pointed out that the Region has a population of 520,000 now and will have an expected 780,000 by 2031 and those people are going to have some way to get around. “This is a fight” declared Carr “that is going to last for decades. Fundamental changes are going to have to be made in the way we transport ourselves or a new highway will be needed. Somehow we have to get the cars off the road”.
But it is about more than just getting cars off the road; we have an agricultural economy in the Region and west into Flamborough.
Mayor Goldring pointed out again that the city has a 50/50 split between rural and urban settings and that any highway through the Escarpment will be the beginning of the end for the north Burlington we know today.
The land identified by the red borders was made available for development when the 407 highway was completed. The northern edge of developable land is south of the 407. Prior to 407 the boundary was Dundas – a highway through the Escarpment would move the rural-urban boundary even further north – as high as Lowville?
Taylor told of the Alton community that came into being when the 407was put through. The urban rural boundary used to be Dundas but the 407 created a piece of land that became available to developers and today we have a new community of 10,000 people.
GO got a solid mention – if the Lakeshore West line is electrified, that will result in GO trains every five minutes during peak travel times and every 20 minutes during the off peak. THAT kind of scheduling would take a lot of traffic off the QEW.
There were half a dozen speakers but they weren’t all politicians. Pete Zuzek, spokesperson for SEHC, the Stop Escarpment Highway Coalition, a group made up of 14 communities, grass roots level organizations with more than 15,000 members, gave a very clear presentation on what he felt was wrong with the approach the provincial government was taking to deciding if a highway was needed.
The Environmental Assessment is currently in Phase 1 – where they look at 1) Optimizing what we have, making better use of the roads we have; 2) expand the non- roads options; 3) widen the existing roads and 4) if none of those will provide the future means of getting around the MOT thinks we need – then look at new corridors.
One of those corridors would come though Burlington. It would swoop in at around Cedar Springs Road and drop down into that land on the North side of Dundas and joining up with the 407.
Pete Zuzek doesn’t want the province to get as far as that Phase 2. SEHC points out that building such a corridor will do very little for the traffic congestion down on the QEW.
What Pete Zuzek made clear was the immediate objective is to convince the MOT people that Phase 2 isn’t necessary – that there are more than enough sensible, environmentally sound options within the Phase 1 level.
The fear SEHC has is that should the province decide that Phase 2 is the direction to go in – then the planners and the engineers begin drawing lines on maps and thinking about expropriating property and the developers begin to plan for new housing developments. Some of the golf clubs along Walkers and Guelph Line will begin to get offers and before you know it – there goes the neighbourhood.
Pete Zuzek argued that SEHC – Stop Escarpment Highway Coalition was the only independent set of eyes watching what the government was doing – and they didn’t like what they were seeing. Zuzek said there was no peer review and that the work being done for a project that would cost as much as $5 billion was both flawed and limited.
Pete Zuzek wants the province to forget about a possible Phase 2 and he explained why – the work being done on the Phase 1 part is flawed and limited. “There is no independent peer review” explained Zuzek ” yet the want to spend $6 billion without a second set of eyes looking at their recommendations.”
What are the next steps? Keeping informed is the biggest part of it. Our Burlington has been on top of this story since the newest assault on the Escarpment by the provincial government became clear back in 2010. We have covered the creation of the SEHC – we were in the room when the deal between the city of Burlington and SEHC was worked out and when they came up with the SEHC name. Back then Burlington said it would support SEHC as advocates who would be able to say and do things the city couldn’t say and do. While the SEHC and city of Burlington relationship gets strained at times – it does work. At one Public Information Centre more than 1200 people turned out to protest. At that session there was an “open mike” segment that heard some very powerful statements. John Taylor, with his impish grin, advised that “they don’t do open mikes anymore.
Whatever the team doing the Environmental Assessment passes on to the government in the way of recommendations, they have to be put those recommendations before the public. And the EA team has to record every objection as part of their final report.
PERL fought the application for a second mine on the Escarpment for more than seven years – and they won. The fight to keep a highway out of the Escarpment will take far more than seven years. Back in the days when Bill Davis was Premier of Ontario he put a stop to an expressway that was planned to run right into the center of Toronto. Governments can make smart decisions – they just have to be nudged in the right direction. Last night at the arena on Mainway, 600 + Burlingtonians gave a bit more than a nudge.
Janet Turpin Myers on her blog put it the way Garry Carr wanted to put it: – “We need to get loud.”
BURLINGTON, ON October 18, 2012 The Halton Regional Police have a problem on their hands. Their mandate is to respond to public calls for help and in this part of the province they do that rather well. We wouldn’t be known as one of the safest place in the country to live without an efficient responsive police force.
But those man and woman in blue don’t have crystal balls – they react to calls from the public.
Chief of Police Steve Tanner explains that Social Media is not the same as a 911 call
The police note that during the past few weeks, there have been a number of public opinion surveys and news articles circulating regarding the use of social media platforms, such as Twitter and Facebook, during an emergency or crisis situation.
“Some of these surveys indicated that a significant portion of the public believes that if they posted a Facebook status or tweeted a need for immediate police assistance, that police would be aware and respond, similar to a 9-1-1 call.
“Social media is an excellent way for police and other emergency services to have a dialogue with the public we serve, and it is a useful platform to exchange a wide variety of public safety information. That said, it should not be used to contact police, fire or ambulance in the event of an immediate emergency or crisis.
“We want to remind the public that the first and only avenue people should use to contact police in the event of a crime in progress, immediate or imminent public safety risk, or other police-related emergency is to call 9-1-1,” said Halton Chief of Police Steve Tanner.
“During an emergency, a lot of critical and confidential information needs to be exchanged, often under duress, and our 9-1-1 Communicators are best equipped to do this, to ensure you get the help you need as quickly as possible,” explained Chief Tanner.
Social media sites are third-party public platforms, and as such, were never designed or intended to be an appropriate substitute for trained 9-1-1 communicators who are available to immediately answer emergency calls 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
As such, the public is reminded that the @HaltonPolice Twitter feed and official Facebook page are not monitored 24/7, nor do police personnel monitor an individual’s personal Twitter or Facebook accounts for emergency notifications.
“We absolutely encourage people to follow us on social media, and engage in a dialogue with us about their police-related questions or concerns – just not in an emergency situation where your safety or someone else’s is at risk,” said Chief Tanner.
If someone is uncertain if a situation warrants a 9-1-1 call, but is still a matter which requires police response they should call the non-emergency police line, which is also staffed 24/7. In Halton, police non-emergency calls can be made to 905-825-4777, 905-878-5511, or 519-853-2111.
The Halton Regional Police Service official Twitter feed can be found at @HaltonPolice and our Facebook page can be found at https://www.facebook.com/HaltonRegionalPoliceService or visit our website at www.haltonpolice.ca
BURLINGTON. ON August 17, 2012 Halton Regional Police are reminding the public of the perils associated with social media platforms after notice of a Burlington house gathering resulted in several unwanted youths attending.
On Thursday August 16th at 10:55 p.m., police were called to a disturbance at a home on Silvan Forest Drive. A child of the homeowner had invited a few friends over and word of the gathering was inadvertently posted on various social media sites.
Surprise – we heard about your party and we want in. Police were called – it got “unruly”
The posting resulted in several unwanted youths attending the home, causing damage and removing items from within. Despite the unruliness of the attendees and having objects tossed at them, police were able to quell the disturbance and restore order.
Despite its many benefits, the advent of social media has its downsides and incidents such as these are becoming all too common within our community. The police in conjunction with school board officials continue to work on educating both youth and parents of the need to be cognizant of the potential implications associated with social media applications.
This Social Media can cut both ways. The Mayor of Burlington recently sent out the following:
Hi Pepper,Rick Goldring has invited you to like his page The Mayor’s Cabaret.
The Mayor wants you to show up at the Performing Arts Centre and attend the fund raiser he is sponsoring for the Centre – which remind us – what have they been up to at the Centre lately and is their agreement with the city signed yet?
BURLINGTON, ON August 2, 2012 Every organization goes through a process of social change. The Boy Scouts are not what they once were. The Legions are either ceasing to exist or have changed significantly.
Watching that process of change take place can be fascinating.
Burlington has watched a small group form and suddenly grow topsy turvey. It got to the point where Mayor Goldring thought it significant enough to pay a visit.
Each meeting Brant Florist donates a bouquet – which James Burchill, founder of Business in Burlington is seen giving to Janet Cockburn
The group Business in Burlington was formed electronically and meets once a month, usually at the Waterfront Hotel, where they occupied part of one room and then found they needed all of the room and then the whole floor.
“We were at the point where more than 300 people were showing up for what was basically a networking event”, said James Burchill, a Burlington social media guru.
The participants were those people who don’t feel they fit into the Chamber of Commerce mould. They are, for the most part, all independent operators, looking to expand their network. The events are always packed; they last a bit longer than an hour and are always overbooked.
“People just go on line and tell me they are going to attend – and I then put the total on the web site” explained Burchill, who developed the concept as an experiment that took on a life of its own.
There is now a Business in Oakville that is developing the same way.
People create what they need in terms of social organization. Formal, top down organizations like the Chamber of Commerce, with a bureaucracy that has to be paid for, results in membership fees that many smaller independents don’t feel they need.
“We don’t charge anything; people just show up. If they want to buy a drink, they can buy a drink. We don’t sell raffle tickets, we don’t hold an annual golf game and we don’t have political action groups – just people getting together to make connections and do business”, is the way Burchill explains the organization that has formed.
There are now 550 + people who attend and another 750 who are part of the network through LinkedIn, another social media. Combined the two are greater than the 1100 the Chamber boasts about.
Donnie on the left and Craig Denby on the right exchanging ideas – maybe Denby is trying to sell him that watch. All part of Business in Burlington meetings at the Waterfront Hotel.
By linking together electronically and also being able to make direct contact, members of the BiB (Business in Burlington) get the benefits of both worlds – the older stodgy Chamber of Commerce model and the faster more direct channel.
With the electronic bulletin board they use, BiB members can asked questions and anyone who can help answers.
One woman needed T-shirts made up for a non-profit and asked if there was anyone in the network who could recommend a supplier. Within half a day there were six responses, several from T-shirt suppliers, many from people who recommended a T-shirt supplier.
Of real interest was the recommendation for a supplier who had offered his services. All within a working day.
That is one of the benefits of social networking – the ability to move quickly.
Burchill sees several opportunities to monetize his social experiment. At future events members will be able to set up a table to display what they have to offer. At most events there are door prizes. There was a business card draw for the use of a very high end sports car provided by a car rental company.
It’s all sort of like the old saying: One hand washes the other until they both come clean.
Burchill is having the time of his life – he is at his core an educator and a writer who has learned to do things electronically that pull people together. He handles the technology well and certainly know how to write copy that catches the attention of the reader.
“But it always comes down to people” explains Burchill. “not organizational structure, not social stature – just one person talking to another and exchanging ideas.
August 17, 2013.
