 By Pepper Parr
February 12th, 2019
BURLINGTON, ON
The business of making changes to the Official Plan that was adopted by city council on April 26, 2018 but not accepted by the Regional government has begun.
Changes to the Official Plan was a contentious election issue and resulted in a new Mayor and a decidedly different council. Five of the members are new.
Getting all the changes made is not going to be a simple one step process.
On Feb. 7, 2019, Burlington City Council voted to re-examine the policies in Burlington’s Official Plan, adopted in April 2018. That plan was sent to Halton Region for approval. The Region sent the plan back with some questions without approving it.
 Mayor Meed Ward has taken the position that “Once the Region identified areas of non-conformity, that stopped the clock on approving the new Official Plan and opened the plan up for any other matters of discussion. This allows our new City Council the time to define what areas we want to study, undertake that work, consult with the community, and send back a comprehensive plan. We expect that plan to truly reflect the needs, best interests and vision of the community and it’s elected Council.
The motion, approved by Council, directs Burlington’s Director of City Building to immediately commence a process to re-examine the policies of the Official Plan adopted April 26, 2018.
Proposed Amendment 1 to the Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe, 2017
On January 15, 2019, the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing released proposed amendments to the Growth Plan, 2017 which can be found here. The Province identified that the purpose of the proposed changes is to streamline growth management planning in the Greater Golden Horseshoe to achieve the following outcomes:
• More Streamlined Process: Provide greater flexibility so that municipalities will be able to move forward faster on the implementation of the Plan and meet the deadline to update Upper-tier and Single-tier official plans to conform with the Plan by July 1, 2022.
 One of the development proposals that can resolve the housing availability. Nothing affordable about it. • More Land for Housing: Respect the ability of local governments to make decisions about when and where to add new land for housing, to ensure that there is enough housing supply to meet demand.
• More Housing and Jobs near Transit: A more flexible framework for focusing investments around transit infrastructure will enable municipalities to plan to increase the supply of housing and jobs near transit faster and more effectively.
• Greater Local Autonomy and Flexibility for Municipalities: Ensuring that municipalities will have the ability to implement the Plan in a manner that better reflects their local context while protecting the Greenbelt.
A staff report regarding the proposed submission to the Province will be delivered to Planning and Development Committee on February 27th at 1 pm.
It is clear that there are going to be many stages in the re-writing of the plan that was approved in April of last year. What we are seeing now is just the first step. It will be interesting to see how Staff responds to the Direction.
The matter of streamlining the process has a number of Burlington residents who have been trying to take part in Tribunal hearings concerned.
One Gazette reader said in her opinion “the streamlining comes about because there is little or no resident participation.”
 Residents are finding that they have no problem preparing comments – they are accepted and put in the file. But when they ask to be able to be a “participant” they are for the most part being denied.
 Gary Scobie delegating at city hall. Gary Scobie asked to be a participant on the Reserve development for the former Elizabeth Interiors property. The developer didn’t have a problem with Scobie and the city lawyer didn’t have a problem – so there he was – a participant. Now what – Scobie doesn’t know – he might have played his role – submitting a document.
A resident of the Dynes Community was told they would not be recognized as participants. To date that group has spent $17,000 to date on legal counsel.
Being a participant you have no liability. If you have status as a Party you could be sued if the developer thinks you have simply tried to delay an application from being approved.
With the OMB – a resident could come to the hearing – and as a participant could basically delegate. The lawyers from both sides then had the opportunity to “cross examine the witness”.
The residents we have talked to get the feeling that the process is going to be “streamlined” because it will consist of lawyers talking to lawyers and arguing fine points of provincial policy. The “local” element and response seems to be missing.
Not a healthy process.
Will the city planners push for better public participation?
 By Ray Rivers
February 11th, 2019
BURLINGTON, ON
We’ve seen the numbers. Canadians spend almost $30 billion a year on some 600 million prescriptions. And we know we could save as much as $8 billion by transitioning to a universal nation-wide single-payer system. It’s a no-brainer, right?
 Tommy Douglas – advocating for universal health care. What would a universal program look like? It could be modeled on Canada’s universal health care system. In fact that would make it the perfect complement – administered by the provinces and funded jointly by both levels of government. The provinces already have a seniors’ drug program in place, and Ontario even had an OHIP+, covering those youth without a private health plan.
But to go that route, the provinces would have to agree among themselves on the universality and portability aspects. And they’d have to agree with the federal government on their joint responsibilities and cost sharing. That kind of deal might have been do-able back when the feds and most of the provinces shared a common political stripe, but with national partisan bickering increasing in the lead-up to the 2019 federal election, it won’t likely happen this year.
 Doug Ford at the Joseph Brant Hospital For starters, Ontario, which is preoccupied with cutting or ending former Liberal programs has little interest in adding anything resembling a new or expanded social program, especially one which might lead to increased taxes. And cost-sharing discussions with a federal government currently being sued over carbon taxes is definitely a non-starter.
On the other hand there are good reasons for the federal government to implement a cross Canada program all on its own, given federal jurisdiction in the management of pharmaceuticals in this country.
One might expect the provinces to welcome a comprehensive program, funded at the federal level, saving them the costs of current provincial drug programs. But provinces are always wary about federal intrusion in what they see as their areas of responsibility, particularly in Quebec, so it’s not that easy.
How can we afford it? Well folks we are already paying the costs…and more. The existing patchwork of federal and provincial government subsidized programs is being funded through your tax dollars. On top of that, there is the cash we dole out at the pharmacy, the subscriptions to private drug plans, and the lower earnings accompanying a work place drug benefit. And that doesn’t count the costs to both the health system and work places for people who can’t afford to fill their prescriptions and end up just getting sicker.
It’s what we learned after moving to single-payer universal health care. We can’t afford not to have Pharma care. The four to eight billion dollar savings estimates may be speculative but it’s clear the savings won’t be zero. Efficiencies will be gained as competing pharmaceutical programs are reduced. Lower prices should be expected by negotiating for larger orders and buying in bulk. And then, of course, there is all that drug and drug insurance company profit.
 Profits for the pharmaceutical industry are among the highest in the world. Besides partisan politics at the provincial level, the other obstacle to implementation comes from lobbying by the Canadian patent drug industry and its international parents. They have become wary of efforts like Pharma care to compromise their profits in the nation with the highest drug prices on earth, after the USA. So they have offered to voluntarily hold the line on drug price increases over the next decade.
Their offer, which they estimate at $26 billion has been spurned by the federal government and for good reason. One has only to look at countries like New Zealand for inspiration. They manage to keep drug prices as low as one tenth of those here.
Pharma care was an integral part of Tommy Douglas’ vision for the nation’s first medicare program which he enacted In Saskatchewan. It was also a component of the original plan for universal national health coverage which the Pearson government introduced in 1964. The federal Liberals, in 1997, campaigned on a pledge to develop a plan for the implementation of universal Pharma care but failed to deliver.
 Jack Layton won almost everything in Quebec in the 2011 election. That let Stephen Harper form a government with the NDP serving at the Opposition. Only in 2004 had Paul Martin finally secured landmark inter-jurisdictional agreements for a number of social programs, including universal Pharma care. But dithering and being caught up managing fallout from the Liberal Sponsorship scandal took its toll. In 2006 Martin’s minority government fell thanks to Jack Layton’s NDP, and with it so did our hopes for universal Pharma care.
Stephen Harper wasted no time giving any more time to universal Pharma care. Tommy Douglas must have shuddered in his grave knowing that his own party had helped deprive Canadians of Pharma care for the next decade and a half. It was only last year that the Liberals announced setting up an advisory committee to plan for a national drug plan.
 Scheer hasn’t had much to say on a universal health care plan. And Trudeau’s own finance minister mused that it might require means testing for income, thus ending dreams of universality. He clearly needs a primer on what the term Pharma care really means. And so does opposition leader Scheer, who, like Harper before him, has been mute on the idea, except for partisan attacks on the person leading the advisory committee.
And if Scheer wins the next election… there may well be somebody else writing this column in fifteen years and she’ll be asking … It’s a no-brainer, right?
 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:
Global Pharmacare – Pharmacare – National Program –
Drug Prices Deal – Advisory Committee – Scheer –
 By Staff
January 30th, 2019
BURLINGTON, ON
The Burlington Gazette has published the State of the City Address verbatim for the past nine years.
The full address given by Mayor Marianne Meed Ward is set out below.
8:00 am, Wednesday January 30th, 2019
Burlington Convention Centre
John Goodwin, Chair of the Board of the Burlington Chamber of Commerce, welcomed a sell-out crowd of 500 attendees, thanked notable guests including two local MPPs and the Mayor of Oakville, thanked sponsors, and introduced Antoine Shiu from Cogeco to introduce Mayor Meed Ward.
Antoine Shiu then spoke, referencing the Mayor’s experience and service as a civic leader, her passion for listening to constituents, and keeping the people of Burlington informed about what’s going on at City Hall. “I’d like to invite our mayor up to the stage to tell you more about city council’s vision for our city and the plans they have for making it all happen.”
Mayor’s Remarks:
Well good morning everybody, how is everyone this morning? I think introductions are a little like cooking. You know the saying that it always tastes better when somebody else cooks for you, and I love to cook but even I feel that way sometimes. Introductions are always better when someone else gives it to you so thank you so much, I appreciate that, they always sound better that way.
I really do want to thank all of you for being here and making this a sell-out event. This is absolutely incredible, and it really shows how interested you are – not just in me – but in our city and what happens to it and in ensuring a good future for our city. So I want to take a moment to just thank all of you for braving the weather – we’re Canadians though right – and coming out and spending about 3 hours with me while I give…no just kidding…about a half hour I think is what they gave me which is a true gift for me, I get five minutes at council, so I’m going to take advantage of every minute.
I do feel very lucky to be standing here before you as your Mayor. I pinch myself every morning when I wake up that it’s really true. And I know it’s true because of the butterflies in my stomach. So let’s carry on.
It is truly an honour to be here, and it’s one I take very seriously, but it’s also one that puts a smile on my face every morning, so thank you for that privilege.
I do want to acknowledge a few people here today, and you heard some of the sponsors, so I won’t go through them again, but I do want to thank all of the sponsors for making today happen. We couldn’t do it without you. I’d especially like to thank the Chamber for hosting, and also for what you do in the community all the rest of the year to promote business and retain business and make sure there’s a networking opportunity for all of us here. Thank you to Keith our retiring head of the Chamber, you leave very big shoes, and I think if we’ve learned anything it’s that your diet of only meat has gotten you a long way. And a special thanks to John Goodwin as well for MC’ing and for everything that you’ve done over the year during your tenure.
I also want to do a special thanks to Bell because of today being Let’s Talk. It’s so important for us to continue the conversation around mental health. Every single one of us knows somebody who has been affected by mental health issues, whether that’s a family member, a friend, a spouse, an employee, it’s so important for us to make it safe for us to talk about those challenges just as we would talk about our physical health. So make sure you tweet and do the hashtag, there is money that’s being raised, and this is not just an Ontario or a Canadian movement now, this is a global movement, and they’re targeting to raise $100M for mental health so I think that deserves a round of applause too.
I will be introducing my council colleagues shortly, but I have something special in mind for them (they know what it is). And it’s great to see the other elected officials here. Thank you for spending some time, I know how busy you are as well.
I want to thank our city manager (interim city manager) Tim Commisso, who is here. Thank you for being here. We have a lot of city staff joining us today and I do want to thank each and every one of you for being here. There are 1580 city staff in the City of Burlington and we know on council, and I certainly know, I couldn’t serve the community without the help of front line city staff, so I do want to thank all of you for what you do every day, and also for being here and taking an interest.
We have a number of agencies, boards, committees that are represented here today. I want to thank you for all of the great work that you do in our community. Again, we couldn’t do what we do in Burlington and serve our people without your help.
I also want to thank our media sponsor, in the back, thank you for broadcasting this to the folks who couldn’t join us today. This will also be on Facebook Live, right now, so folks can join in. we will have that posted online for anyone who couldn’t come this morning, and my remarks will be on my website later today as well. So just make sure you get my good side.
Finally I want to thank my husband, Pete Ward, who is here, and I won’t point him out ‘cause he likes it better that way, but I am so grateful for his support. We celebrated 25 years of marriage the day after the election, so I told folks… I spent over a quarter of my life with this wonderful man, and three children a daughter who’s 20 and boy and girl twins who are 18. I wouldn’t be standing on this stage without his support. He believed in me before I believed in myself, and that’s special. So thank you.
And finally, I want to thank the people and the business in Burlington that make our city great. The strongest part of our city is you, all of the people here, all of the people out there, that live here, that work here, that invest in our community to make it the wonderful place that it is, so thank you so much for everything you do, all year, and for many years.
So, I have three things that I’d like to share with you today. I do want to take some time to introduce you to our new council. I want to talk about the priorities; the things that we heard during the election from our citizens, and I want to talk about the vision that we have as a council and that I have as your Mayor, for the next four years but to set the future for Burlington in a way that reflects the citizen vision for our community.
I also want to share a few things about what we’ve accomplished so far. We’ve been on the job…I think about two months. We’ve done a lot, already, so we’ll talk about some of those things.
And as I talk, you’re going to hear about 3 broad themes:
Partnerships, change and openness.
So, let’s get started.
First, I want to talk about partnerships, and this will be not only a theme of my remarks today but a theme of my term for the next four years. Essentially it means that none of us does anything alone. Whenever we achieve great things it’s because we have partnerships with people coming alongside us working together for the same good. You know you’ve probably heard the saying that it takes a village to raise a child. I’d like to adapt that a little bit to our city and say that it takes a village to build a great community. Every voice matters.
I want to start by introducing you to the other folks around the table in council who will help me, and help us, achieve our vision for the future, and that’s your council colleagues. So as I call their names I’m just going to ask them to stand, and stay standing, until everyone is recognized…and I think everyone is here today.
So, in Ward 1 we have our newly elected councillor Kelvin Galbraith
In Ward 2, our newly elected councillor Lisa Kearns
In Ward 3, our newly elected councillor Rory Nisan
In Ward 4, newly elected councillor Shawna Stolte
In Ward 5, our veteran returning councillor Paul Sharman, now serving his third consecutive term
In Ward 6, our newly elected councillor Angelo Bentivegna
This is your new team.
I want to say a couple of words about our council, because this is one of the most diverse councils the city has ever had. First of all we have the most women on council the city has ever seen. 3 of us. 3 out of 7. And the first female mayor in 40 years. That’s a whole generation. And I mention that because recently I was at a high school – I do a lot of speaking at public schools and high schools – and a young woman came up to me after I spoke and she said “I’m going to be the next Prime Minister” and I said “Yes you are, yes you are, dream big!” and the importance – it’s so important for people to see themselves reflected in their decision makers and that’s what that does for those young men and women when they see a diverse council that looks like them.
And our council is starting to look like and reflect the people in our community. So just a little ‘fun facts’ about our council, and maybe after if you have some time to network you can try to figure out which one is which when I tell you some of these things.
• The average age has gone down by about 15 years; I used to be the youngest on council but there are now 4 younger than me
• We have two folks who are grandparents, we have two with high school or university aged children, we have two with kids in public school, including one with a brand-new baby, and one young’un who is still living the fine life with his girlfriend and no kids! I’ll let you figure out who that is too.
• We have three who are immigrants to this country, who were born outside of Canada.
That’s diversity. And you want to see not only diversity in our opinions reflected in council but you want to see diversity reflected in council itself. And I think we’ve done that. We’ll you’ve done that, in the last election you asked for change, you got it. So thank you.
Before I go any further, I do want to let them talk to you a little bit about their priorities for the next four years because we do this as a team and as a partnership. And there’s a little fun in there for your too so…roll the video.
VIDEO PLAYS.
Aren’t they awesome!? That’s the first time I’ve seen this actually. We had a great time, my staff and I, and the staff at the City, putting that together and we had just as much fun I think coming up with those last questions and I can assure you, we’re not drinking Kopi coffee this morning, so you don’t have to worry about that. But I would like to point out that on your table is a brochure that has all the contact information of every member of council and a little bit of bio about them, so I would encourage everybody to take one home…we want you to stay in touch…and as you can see we’re a fun group. We have a lot of fun while we are also doing the very important work of looking after the city on your behalf.
So let’s talk about our priorities for the next four years, and what we’ve done together already.
And a great sense of humour, which as you can imagine is pretty helpful to have when you’re doing
And the first theme that I want to talk about is change. On October 22nd, you, the people of Burlington, voted for change. 5 brand new council members, a new mayor, and one returning. You wanted to see, and you want to see, your vision for our city reflected in the decisions that we make on your behalf.
So what does that look like?
I’d like to talk about our top priorities, and the great thing is that if you look at the platform of all of brochures of the folks that did get elected, and I have, it’s very similar. There’s a lot of alignment. So that is great, it allows us to hit the ground running.
Previous council had adopted a 25-year strategic plan, we know that we need a 4-year action plan to start taking steps in that direction. So, right away, as soon as we were elected, this group got together in December, with our staff, and started talking about ‘what’s our work plan for the next four years’? They’re very keen, by the way, this group. They don’t waste any time.
So we hope to have something to show you in March about what our action items for the next four years are going to be to start moving in the direction of our vision for the city.
I want to talk about some highlights, of those things.
The first thing we’re going to do, is we’re going to change the conversation that we have around growth and development and intensification in the city. We are going to talk about and ensure that we have reasonable growth, not overdevelopment.
Overdevelopment strains our limited infrastructure, and ultimately causes taxes to go up, because growth doesn’t pay for itself. It pays for about 80% of all the costs related to a growing population, whether that’s residential growth or employment growth.
And I don’t know if folks have been paying attention to some of the budget discussions of other communities, but Milton, our fastest growing city in Halton, the fastest growing for a time in our country, their first budget proposal this year came out at a 9% increase. That’s what growth does, if you don’t control it and pace it well.
Growth in the wrong place and the wrong amount causes congestion and leads to new costs for unplanned infrastructure, and this isn’t good for residents or businesses.
In many respects, the election was a referendum on development, making sure we have the right amount of development in the right place. Our community members resoundingly said the new Grow Bold plan did not reflect your vision for the community downtown and elsewhere.
And I can tell you, we are listening.
So, here’s what’s happened so far:
First, the day after we were all sworn in, Halton Region, which is the approving authority for our Official Plan, pushed pause on their approval because they found some areas that needed to be changed, including employment land conversions, uses permitted within agricultural areas, Natural Heritage Systems, and transportation matters. But the effect of Halton Region pushing pause is that it allows our council to make any additional changes that we wish to make, and it pushes pause on this plan indefinitely.
Now we’re not going to take an indefinite amount of time to review the plan.
We are already moving forward.
Next week I’m presenting a motion to our planning and development committee related to the Official Plan, and it does a couple of things, in light of what we heard from the community.
First, we’re going to review height and density in the new plan, and we will be making changes there that will reflect what we heard from the community and during the election. It directs our staff not use the new unapproved Grow Bold plan in assessing new development. That’s important, because our current Official Plan is the only one that is in legal force and effect. We need to be using that plan to assess new development. And the existing plan was updated in 2008, and it includes all of our growth population forecasts that have been assigned to us by the province. So we’re in good shape. We’re up to date, and we can move forward with the right amount of growth in the right place. So…getting the right development in the right place is a priority.
Second, we know we need to know deal with traffic and transportation and congestion. I was recently in Toronto in a room of 16 mayors from the GTHA, Greater Toronto Hamilton Area. John Tory called us together to talk about what we can do on those areas of shared concern that don’t have municipal boundaries. Transit doesn’t stop at municipal borders; you don’t stop at municipal borders. So we need to work together on that.
Affordable housing as well as climate change.
So what are we doing so far on transportation and transit.
Our staff are already looking at a pilot for synchronized traffic lights and I’m not going to tell you what road yet – we’re still working out the bugs – but I think you’re going to know which road as soon as that is up and running and we’ll have this conversation again. Suffice it to say, it is a busy corridor. So that’s good news.
Transit. We have heard from the community, the importance of transit. Not only for our employees and our business corridors, but also for our residential community. So in this budget, coming up, we have three new buses and six new drivers to expand our service, and we also have another driver and handivan proposed for those that need accessible transit.
This is going to allow us to look at increased frequency and different routes that get people where they need to go in a timely manner.
We also need to have a discussion about how we serve our low rider areas. In the past, and some of you who are frequent transit riders will know, we have a few meandering routes that go through neighborhoods. We get complaints from folks about those, the riders that are on those routes don’t get where they need to go quickly, and sometimes at certain times of the day, buses are less than full. So, we need to still provide service in those low rider areas, and I’m happy to say that our transit director is very keen to look at different alternatives – there’s a whole range of different things we could be doing, from Dial-A-Ride, working with local cab companies – a lot of other municipalities are already moving into that territory. In fact, we used to have a Dial-A-Ride service in Burlington so sometimes what’s old is new again.
We also need to look at the regional level of government on shared transit services or at least shared lines. There is no reason why somebody who’s taking a handivan from Burlington to Oakville Trafalgar hospital should have to transfer their handivan and wait between those transfers. You don’t stop at the borders, and our transit and transportation systems can’t stop at the borders either.
So addressing transit and transportation is a priority for this council.
Next priority, and this is again our change theme, but its dealing with the biggest change facing us right now: climate change and unpredictable and severe weather.
Flooding is the biggest risk to municipalities from an insurance standpoint, and from a human safety standpoint so we need to change our conversation about trees and greenspace and water and creeks. They are critical green infrastructure and we have to treat them that way.
Our tree canopy, right now, is about 17%, and its sliding backwards. That’s due to disease, and development, and to aging trees. A healthy tree canopy is roughly 40-50% coverage. But we know we’re not going to get there in the next 4 years. This is why having a 24-year vision, but action items that you deliver on in the next 4 years, is so important.
So last night there was a meeting to talk to folks about the new Roseland Tree Bylaw, and that bylaw will be launching March 1st, in Roseland, but we really need to roll that out across the city. We need to focus on how we not only add to our tree canopy, but one of the best ways to increase your tree canopy is to protect the trees that are already here.
And so the bylaw will help us keep track of what’s being removed, to avoid removal on private property, and to replant where approval is necessary.
But we need to do more than use the rule of law. We also need to provide incentives for people to plant trees. And that’s where our partners are extremely important. So we have already in the city worked with Burlington Hydro, with Enbridge Gas, who are here with us this morning, with BurlingtonGreen and other associations to plant trees. Conservation Halton is another organization that we need to partner with. All of us working together – it will require that consolidated effort to build our tree canopy from where it is now to where it needs to be for a healthy city.
We also have, tomorrow night, Gil Penalosa of 8-80 cities to talk to us about urban parks. And if you know Gil Penalosa you know that his philosophy is that if you create a city where people from 8 years old to 80 years old can thrive, then you’ve built a good city. And that’s our goal too.
So adding to our tree canopy and protecting from flood risk and do more to invest in and add to our urban park structure.
Hand in hand with protecting our urban greenspace, is protecting our rural greenspace.
More than half of Burlington’s land mass is rural agricultural
We are unique in Halton for that.
We need these areas for farming. We have a thriving agricultural economy and the potential to grow that in our community. And our farmers give us the food that we can eat on a day like today. There are businesses that we need to protect. And we know that we need to be constantly vigilant to protect against incursions and the desire to develop in those lands. We’ve seen that very recently with this provincial government where during the election there was a commitment made or a pledge made to open the greenbelt and backed off. Then recently in Bill 66, that would have allowed municipalities to pass what was called “Open For Business” bylaws to build into the greenbelt for employment land and they recently backed off of that. You helped do that. But it just shows us, twice in the last couple of months, our greenbelt has been potentially under threat. And so this council has taken a very strong position. Two nights ago at council, unanimous approval for a motion I brought forward to put our line in the sand between the urban and the rural boundary and say this council is committed in perpetuity to protecting our greenbelt from any development, protecting our clean water, protecting our waterfront and our creeks and I want to thank them for doing that and for showing that leadership and being vigilant to protect not only our urban greenspace but our rural greenspace. So thank you.
I will say, we are open for business and we don’t need to sacrifice our greenbelt to be open for business. We don’t need to sacrifice the health of our community to be open for business.
And we do need to do right by all our businesses here in Burlington. We need to focus on business retention and business attraction and a key priority for this council will be business attraction and retention. We have two business people sitting on our council who I turn to for advice on these matters.
So let’s talk about ‘open for business’ – the theme of openness and partnerships.
What has our council recently done? Well we took the very difficult step – but the right one, in my view – of allowing cannabis retail stores in Burlington. That’s a business. There are about 10-15 employees that will be employed at every one of those stores. And it was a tough one. There are different views in the community, maybe, I’m sure in this room, but this council decided to say that we will open our doors to legal businesses in this country to allow them to operate. And that helps to eliminate the black market for that product.
And we have an incredible opportunity to be open for all our businesses. We have over 500 acres of vacant employment land in Burlington that is ready for you. Ready for business investment. And most of it is along the highway corridor, so well-positioned to transportation. But that also poses a challenge, because we need the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario approvals for a lot of that land, and those approvals are often slow in coming. It used to take weeks to get responses back from the MTO; now it takes months. It also takes a long time to get responses back from the Ministry of the Environment. In once case, in a development in my ward on the Brownfield site, where we want to see revitalization, we want to see remediation, they were slowed down almost two years on their project. So I can tell you that as the government goes looking for efficiencies as part of the regional review, which is always a good thing to do, I will be bringing a message forward to them that we’re willing to work with them, but we also need the province to work with us. We need them to speed up their approval process and we need them to be efficient too.
Next week will be meeting with Ken Seiling and Michael Fenn, some of you may know both of those names, they were here in Burlington for a time, so I’m very happy to see them – very well-respected folks. And that’s the message I’ll be telling them. I’ll be saying to them, when it comes to us wanting to be open for business, wanting to be efficient and effective in our government, we’re doing fine. Don’t fix what’s not broken. And approach us with a handshake not a hatchet. We don’t want arbitrary cuts that don’t need to happen. In fact Burlington council is the most efficient council anywhere in the GTA. We are a 7-member council for 184,000 people. That is the smallest council of any municipality of our size, and it’s the smallest across the board in the GTA.
That means a lot of work for these folks. One of the first jobs as mayor was to assign council members to standing committees, boards and associations. 63 assignments for the 7 of us. So they do great work. We’re very efficient. But we do need help from other levels of government to speed up business.
Businesses are expected to operate at the speed of a Tweet. That’s the world that we live in. And I know that feels to have to be that quick or to be expected to be that quick because sometimes folks expect our elected officials to have to do our business as the speed of tweet. And although we have a leader to the south who thinks they can run a whole country by Twitter, that’s not how it works.
We need to be agile, but we also need to take the time to get it right.
We need to do what we can in Burlington to fast-track business approvals and permits, and to make sure we’re not only open for business and helping the folks that are here to expand, but attracting new businesses.
And to that end, I’m thrilled to announce today, the creation of the Mayor’s State of the City Red Tape Red Carpet Task Force. And the goal of the task force is to bring businesses together to talk about what’s working, what’s not working, where do you need our help, so that we can eliminate the obstacles to doing business. That’s the red tape part.
But we also need to roll out the red carpet and make sure we are actively seeking businesses to locate here in Burlington. And we have competition from everyone in this GTA corridor, and if we don’t get out in front and start attracting businesses, they will go to some other community. So I’m very pleased to announce that Kelvin Galbraith, our Ward 1 counsellor who you met earlier, has agreed to be my co-chair on this committee. I’m so grateful for his support. He’s a businessman in Aldershot, runs the Fitness Firm, and has sat on the Aldershot BIA as chair for many years, so brings that perspective and we’ve already been discussing some of the challenges that he’s heard from the business community and ways that we can speed up that process. So in coming weeks, we will be announcing a broad public engagement process, but we’ll also be selecting folks for a stakeholder group to give us advice.
This is about a very focused task. We want to bring people together, and by the summer, have this group give council, and the province where appropriate, advice on what we can do better. So if any of you are interested in being a part of that please get in touch. You’ve got my business card on your table please take it, you’ve got Kelvin’s contact information as well.
So I need your help. I need your help to make sure that we’re open for business and make sure that we’re attracting the businesses that we want to be locating here.
A couple of final thoughts on some of the priorities we heard from you during the election.
I want to talk t you about community, and our community centres. One of the things that we heard throughout the campaign is that because we’re a growing population, we have our community centres in many cases bursting at the seams, particularly our senior centres. We have a lot of growing seniors. And we need new facilities. We know that sports fields are at a premium for our young families. We know that we need programming for young folks for the teenage years, and we need to look at how we make sure that young people feel welcome here in Burlington as well.
So one of the opportunities coming up that may be available to us and I know there are some school board members here so thank you for joining us, there are 2 high schools that are slated to close. One has already closed, and one will close in 2020. This is an opportunity should the school board decide that is no longer needed for their purposes, for us as a city to acquire that and make that community-focused space. So that is something that I am committed to and I know council will be very interested to have those discussions.
I want to talk to you about respect. Respect on council, respect for our residents and our businesses, respect for our staff. Working in partnership and collaboration with civility. Embracing and supporting different viewpoints. We have tough challenges ahead and there are different perspectives in this community, in this room, probably even at my table. And we need to welcome and respect the broadest array of voices and make sure that everyone feels that their viewpoint is welcome, and that we will hear it, and that we will use that diverse opinion to make the best decisions that we can for this community.
I would say that is already on display by this council. And a classic example was our vote on cannabis. That was a 5-2 vote. And that was a difficult discussion, because there are varying views on that issue in this community. And I want to say that though I was glad that the vote went the way that it did, I was just as welcoming of the 2 members of council who did not vote to have cannabis retail stores because they reflected a view that is present in our community on that issue. And you need to see your views reflected in all of the votes that this council makes. And I can tell you after that vote there was no acrimony, there was no “get with the program”, I think I gave a couple of folks a hug after and said, “well done”. You represented your conscience and your views, and your residents’, and we got through a tough vote. I think that’s what you will see more of for the next four years.
Finally I want to talk about partnerships with other levels of government and with other mayors. I spoke about going to Toronto to talk with John Tory and the other mayors of the GTHA and in 2 weeks I’ll be meeting with the Large Urban Mayors Caucus (a name that we really need to change) to talk about shared issues of concern, and issues that cross our borders and boundaries.
The bottom line for you is that I will continue to be a strong voice representing the city at every single table. At the federal table, and we have an election coming up, we will be doing some advocacy as part of that, at the provincial table, at the municipal table, with my colleagues at the Association of Municipalities of Ontario, and our federal counterpart, the Federation of Municipalities of Canada.
None of us do this alone. And none of us have all the great ideas right in our community. We need to listen and hear from each other and I’m committed to doing that.
And we now have as of a couple of days ago, at council, we approved to make government relations a focus of our committee meetings going forward so that we can have an eye on what’s coming down the pipe from the federal and provincial level, and I can tell you every morning I wake up and wonder what football I’m going to have to catch today. We want to be ready. We want to be ready to position Burlington’s voice and Burlington’s needs at all of those tables. So this council made the decision to make that a focus of our discussions, so we will do that.
And finally I want to talk about being good stewards of your money. Three times in the last 8 years tax increases in Burlington have been over 4%. And one of the commitments that I made during the election is to get that down. We are currently heading into budget talks so please express your views, we have an online budget tool, we have a number of community meetings coming up. We want to hear from you about your priorities and where you think the opportunities are to make changes.
At the federal level when there’s a budget, the minister goes out and buys a new pair of shoes. And I’m always up for shoe shopping, but I decided to go a different way. You may have noticed I have a new hairdo today. A little shorter than it was. So I’ll leave you to read anything into that you like about the budget.
The current tax increase right now is pegged at 3.99% if we make no changes. I have made a commitment to do what I can to find enough savings, about $1.6M to get that under 3%. I’ve started those conversations with our staff, our boards and our agencies, and we can do it. And we will do it.
We also need to make it easier for our front-line staff to tell me and to tell council where they think the opportunities are for efficiencies and savings. You know your area best, and we want to hear from you.
In closing, we have a great team of people on city council. We have a great team of people in city hall who are willing to work with you. We have great employers in our community and community partners. And we need all of us working together to deliver on the priorities that we have come together to say we want to do as a community.
We do have important work ahead of us. And it won’t be easy. And I’ll tell you it won’t be fast. One of the things that people asked me the very first time I was elected in 2010 was what was the most surprising thing about being an elected official and you have to remember I come from journalism, where I was in newspapers so I would write my column one night, it was in the paper the next day, and the day after it was in recycling. It was very fast. Government doesn’t move that fast. That was frustrating. And sometimes there’s good reasons for that. Sometimes we have to take the time to get it right. And sometimes we also have to move quickly. And so balancing those two competing things is something we will continue to look at as a council.
And I’m so grateful to have all of you here today, and to have you in our community living or working here, or some of you doing both. And committing to making our city the best that it can be.
The road is not always going to be easy. But it will be worth it.
And I just want to leave you with a quote that has meant a lot to me that I came across in the last term of council, and had it made up as a poster and it hangs in my office. Many of you know I’m a dual citizen, I was born in the US, but I also was raised here in Ontario, so I consider myself culturally a Canadian. This quote I’ve looked to many times when the going got rough. When people were ready to criticize rather than help. So, I leave this with you because whatever you are doing in our community you will know the sting of criticism and you will know how much better it is when folks work with you to make it better. So I’m just going to read it for you. This was written about a hundred years ago and in very masculine language back then so I’ve tried to modify that to make it gender neutral. So here we go:
It is not the critic who counts; Not the person who points out how the strong one stumbles,
Or where the doer of deeds could have done them better.
The credit belongs to the person who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood;
Who strives valiantly; Who errs, Who comes short again and again,
Because there is no effort without error and shortcoming;
But who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions;
Who spends themselves in a worthy cause; Who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement,
And who at the worst, if they fail, at least fail while daring greatly, so that their place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”
I will leave you with this video of what we hope to achieve in four years, on your behalf. Thank you so much for your attention and your time this morning.
VIDEO PLAYS
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 By Staff
January 30th, 2019
BURLINGTON, ON
She has hit the ground running.
Mayor Marianne Meed Ward announced plans to launch and lead a Red Tape Red Carpet task force at this morning’s State of the City address at the Burlington Convention Centre and had a media release out before people got back to their desks.
 The Chamber of Commerce meeting was more than event to hear what the Mayor had to say; there was business to be done. In front of a sell-out crowd, (not quite – there were three empty seats at my table – maybe that’s because I was sitting at it?) the Mayor spoke about her plan to help eliminate the red tape and bureaucratic delays that Burlington businesses have faced in their pursuit of growth throughout the city.
The Task Force will begin with a broad meeting that is open to the public to raise specific issues and concerns on topics ranging from permits, approvals, and other obstacles. A smaller task force of stakeholders will then be identified to come up with actionable recommendations that will be brought to council and shared with the Province by summer.
Dates and details will be announced shortly, and the Mayor suggested that anyone interested in participating at the task force level can reach out to her via email at mayor@burlington.ca.
Co-chairing the task force with Mayor Meed Ward will be Kelvin Galbraith, Ward 1 Councillor.
Mayor Meed Ward said: “I’ve heard your concerns and I’m taking them seriously. As mayor, I consider it my job to make it easy to do business in Burlington, and to be the chief advocate of attracting new business and expanding current businesses throughout our city. To help create a place where people can live, work, and thrive.
What better timing to look at ways to improve our processes and drive efficiency than while a regional review is already underway by the Province. I’m delighted to have Kelvin Galbraith as my co-chair, with his wealth of experience as both a business owner and as chair of the Aldershot Village BIA.”
 Kelvin Galbraith has gone from being a small business owner to a city councilor and an expert on how to reduce red tape Councillor Galbraith sees the “task force is a great step towards addressing the obstacles business owners see when they look to expand or start a new business here in Burlington. We have the space, infrastructure, and talented work force to support them, we just need to fast-track the approvals and processes that limit and frustrate them. I know from first-hand experience that we can identify the low-hanging fruit and come up with some actionable solutions that will make a real difference. We want to let business owners know that Burlington is open for business!”
The State of the City address also touched on Mayor Meed Ward’s plans for the coming term and introduced the team of councillors she’ll be working with to make it all happen. Issues ranging from over-development and the Official Plan review, to traffic and transit, protecting greenspace, and restoring civility and respect at City Hall were just some of the priorities she covered in her speech.
Her top five priorities for the 2019-2023 term as she laid them out are:
Reasonable Growth, Not Overdevelopment
Reasonable growth, not overdevelopment by amending the downtown plan to limit more highrises; end overdevelopment across Burlington by sticking to zoning.
Get Traffic Moving, While Keeping it Safe
Better traffic flow and transit through improved traffic synchronization & intersections, transit routes, free seniors fares, and no road lane elimination.
Reduce Flood Risk, Enhance Greenspace
We must be prepared for flooding by dealing with root causes; not just effects by ending overdevelopment, keeping water at source with greenspace, and green infrastructure.
 Meed Ward said she trimmed her hair style to indicate that she was prepared to trim the budget as well. Reduce Tax Increases, Keep to Your Priorities
Reduce tax increases by cutting unnecessary administration; improving business attraction; investing in snowclearing, bylaw enforcement, road repair, family and seniors’ amenities.
Rebuild Trust, Create an Open Government
Rebuild trust between city hall and the public by including residents in shaping decisions, not just reacting to them; restoring civility on council and toward residents.
 By Staff
January 29th, 2019
BURLINGTON, ON
We now know what the Mayor would like to see in the way of a Budget increase for the city residents.
Staff have put forward a budget that would see an increase of 3.99% over what they were taxed last year.
Mayor Meed Ward thinks that can be chiselled down to 2.99%
The City is inviting residents to share their feedback about the spending priorities in the proposed 2019 city budget at two town hall events in February.
 Mayor Goldring did a Town Hall call in on the budget from the Council Chamber – response was dismal. Telephone Town Hall
On Thursday, Feb. 7 at 7:30 to 8:30 p.m., Mayor Marianne Meed Ward will host a live, call-in telephone town hall where residents can listen in and ask questions about the proposed 2019 budget priorities.
Burlington residential phone numbers will be randomly selected to be part of the telephone town hall. Residents who would like to be added to the telephone call list can email getinvolved@burlington.ca by February 5th.
 A Public meeting to review the tax rate was held at Central Arena on Drury Lane. It snowed – the hall was empty but the area next door was packed. Anyone who does not receive a telephone invitation can call 1-800-837-8058 at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 7 to join the town hall.
Town Hall – Central Arena
On Monday, Feb. 11 at 2 to 3:30 p.m., Mayor Marianne Meed Ward will host an in-person town hall in the auditorium at Central Arena, located at 519 Drury Ln. Senior city staff will be at both town hall sessions to help answer questions.
 Burlingtonians will show up for public meetings and share their views. The location and the way the event is organized is critical. And letting the citizen make changes would help as well. Delegate
Members of the public can also register to speak to Burlington City Council as a delegation at one of the following Committee of the Whole meetings. Both meetings take place at City Hall in Council Chambers, located at 426 Brant St. on the second floor:
Feb. 4, 2019 at 6:30 p.m. Meeting of Committee of the Whole:
Delegations from the public on capital and operating budgets
Feb. 7, 2019 at 9:30 a.m. Meeting of Committee of the Whole:
Delegations from the public on capital and operating budgets
 Marianne Meed |Ward standing before the public moments before she was sworn in. Mayor Marianne Meed Ward reminds people that “Public engagement is one of the most important things when it comes to city matters, particularly budget. With engagement, residents can not only see exactly where their tax dollars are going, but also understand how they and Burlington will benefit. It also gives us, their elected representatives, a chance to hear their thoughts and ideas on what’s been proposed for the 2019 budget. Whether you want to attend in person or call-in to listen, I would encourage members of the community to ask questions and join the conversation.”
It is what she ran her election on – will people show up?
Quick Facts
• The City of Burlington provides 38 services to its residents.
• maintaining existing service delivery levels
• planning for infrastructure renewal
• enhancements to transit service.
• The proposed operating budget results in a 3.99% increase to the city’s portion of the tax bill, including:
• 1.97% to maintain services
• 1.25% for infrastructure renewal
• 0.77% for service enhancements.
 IN 2013 members of Council were given a copy of the budget on a memory stick that they could manipulate – there was still a significant tax increase. • Burlington’s Open Budget tool provides users with 2019 budget information broken down into easy-to-understand graphs and charts. Explore the tool at Burlington.ca/budget.
By Staff
January 26th, 2019
BURLINGTON, ON
Community Development Halton, an community agency funded in part by the Hamilton Halton United Way and the Region of Halton regularly delivers a series of research papers on issues that matter to the health and social welfare of the Region.
The most recent paper focuses on the number and proportion of working seniors.
This sector of the working population continues to increase. Over one in five (22%) seniors in Halton worked at some point during 2015 compared to about 16% ten years ago (2005). The number of working seniors grew from 9,000 to 16,700, a 86% increase. Working seniors between 65 and 74 years old increased by 91%.
Do working seniors continue to work in the same occupation after retirement? Is there any difference between senior men and senior women? What are the most common occupations for working senior men and women?
For working senior men, the most popular occupation is sales and service (e.g. insurance, real estates and financial sales, retail salesperson and cleaners). About one in five (20.5%) seniors aged 65 to 74 and almost one in four (24.4%) seniors aged 75 and over are in that occupation. This occupation only accounts for 15% of older men working between 55 and 64 years of age.
Management is the most common occupation for men aged 55 to 64 years and is also a popular occupation for seniors aged 65+ (e.g. senior managers in various industries). About 17% of working senior men (65-74 years) work in trades, transport and equipment operator occupations. Many work as motor vehicle and transit drivers (e.g. taxi, limousine, bus drivers, and transport truck drivers).
For working senior women, the most popular occupation is business, finance and administration (e.g. general office workers, administrative officers, office administrative assistants – general, legal and medical). About 33% of working senior women aged 65 to 74 and 37% aged 75 and over are in that occupation. This is also the most common occupation for women between 55 and 64 years old.
Sales and service is the next popular occupation (e.g. retail salesperson and insurance, real estates and financial sales). Almost one in three (30.4%) working senior women aged 75 and over work in this occupation.
Over one in ten working senior women are employed in education, law and social, community and government services. Many work as secondary and elementary school teachers and educational counsellors, home care providers and elementary and secondary school teacher assistants.
By Pepper Parr
January 24th, 2019
BURLINGTON, ON
It was an issue that sort of crept up on the public.
Someone caught Premier Doug Ford telling a group of developers that he was prepared to open up some of the Greenbelt so that developers could build much needed affordable housing.
It was music to the ears of the developers who would take advantage of the opportunity to build high end homes in a rural setting – there wasn’t a hope of there ever being any affordable housing in these prime building sites.
The Premier’s comments about affordable housing were a laughable ruse to a public that is a little less gullible than it was the day they elected him seven months ago..
The municipalities pushed back hard and have been able to convince the provincial government to take out a section of proposed legislation off the table.
The province announced earlier this week that it would pull the controversial Section 10 of the Proposed Bull 66 that is now before the Legislature.
 The Greenbelt created in 2005 – eye candy for the developers, lifeline for the taxpayers. It was not a simple task, Burlington, along with a number of other municipalities that touched on or were part of the Greenbelt created in 2005.
Burlington submitted comments as part of a response to the legislation tabled on December 6, 2018, by the Provincial Government, referred to as Bill 66, Restoring Ontario’s Competitiveness Act, 2018.
If passed, the legislation would have allowed municipalities to, with the Minister’s consent, pass “Open for Business’” zoning bylaws. These bylaws would not be bound by existing legislation, such as the Clean Water Act, 2006 or the Greenbelt Act, 2005.
For a city such as Burlington, where half our land is rural and located within the Greenbelt, the tools proposed in this legislation were of great concern and do not address the barriers the City is facing regarding economic development.
 All smiles when Mayor Meed Ward met with the Premier while he was on a hospital tour – no word on whether or not she advised the Premier to keep his hands of the Escarpment. Burlington is already “open for business” with over 400 acres of employment land sitting vacant and available.
Mayor Marianne Meed Ward said: “Residents have overwhelmingly expressed support to protect our Greenbelt and public safety in the Clean Water Act. We will do that. We have sent a clear message to the province; I have written to Steve Clark, the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, and Halton Regional Council already unanimously approved a resolution confirming that we won’t compromise public safety or our Greenbelt to be open for business. We have a large supply of suitable land available and are ready to work with businesses.”
Burlington made its comments for submission to the Province regarding Bill 66 available to the public on January 18th.
The resolution approved at Halton Regional Council on the legislation was included in the Regional Council meeting minutes from January 16, 2019.
In promoting the legislation to the municipal sector Steve Clark, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing said: “Our government is committed to making it faster and easier for municipalities in the region to plan for growth, increase housing supply, attract investment, and create and protect jobs. That is why we are proposing changes to the Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe, 2017 and its transition regulation.
“Given the rising number of people who will live and work in the Greater Golden Horseshoe in the next 20 years, the Growth Plan provides a long-term framework for growth. It aims to:
• Increase and promote economic growth, reduce congestion and provide residents easy access to businesses and services
• Build communities that maximize infrastructure investments, while balancing local needs for the agricultural industry and natural areas
 Does this look like a site for affordable housing? The Minister added: “We have heard that planning for growth in the Greater Golden Horseshoe Region is needed. However, we have also heard that there are some issues with how best to implement the Growth Plan. The proposed changes build on feedback that the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing heard from the business, research and development sectors, municipalities, and others during engagement sessions last fall.
The proposed changes respect the ability of local governments to make decisions about how they grow. The province will maintain protections for the Greenbelt, agricultural lands, the agri-food sector, and natural heritage systems.
Helen Walihura, Government Relations Specialist and part of what city hall staff call the Burlington Leadership Team, wrote much of the document Burlington submitted. It is quite detailed and is a recognition of the fact that the province is always looking for ways to make changes to MORE HERE
 Burlington managed to beat back the attempt to have a highway run through Kilbride and Lowville. It was the highway that the Ministry of Transportation wanted to push through Kilbride and Lowville and have it join up with highway 407.
City of Burlington Comments on Bill 66, Restoring Ontario’s Competitiveness Act, 2018
On Dec. 6, 2018, the Provincial government introduced Bill 66, the Restoring Ontario’s Competitiveness Act, 2018. This omnibus bill is meant to “eliminate red tape and burdensome regulations so businesses, can grow, create and protect good jobs.” The proposed legislation includes 32 actions across 12 ministries. Of particular interest, is the proposed new Open-for-Business planning tool and the new regulations under the Planning Act related to the tool.
The Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing invited comments on the proposed legislation via the Environmental Registry under three separate consultations.
• ERO 013-4125 – Proposed open-for-business planning tool
• ERO 013-4239- New regulation under the Planning Act for open-for-business planning tool
• ERO 013-4293 – Bill 66, Restoring Ontario’s Competitiveness Act, 2018.
Comments for all three consultations were required by January 20th, 2019.
City of Burlington staff reviewed the proposed legislation and submitted the following comments to the Province.
Proposed open-for-business planning tool (EBR Posting 013-4125)
City of Burlington staff does not support the creation of an open-for-business planning tool as proposed, for the following reasons:
a. The tool undermines the city’s goals to achieve coordinated and sustainable planning, as delivered through the application of the Provincial Policy Statement, Growth Plan, and Greenbelt Plan. Allowing major employment uses in areas not intended for such uses will fragment Agricultural Systems and Natural Heritage Systems and could lead to a creep of land use pressures to introduce residential, ancillary and other supportive uses to support the major employment use;
 The Burlington GO station is steps away from a major five tower development on Fairview that is part of the new mobility hub that covers all of the property on the north side of Fairview east to Guelph – which is where the city wants to see new development take place – affordable housing fits into spaces like this. b. The tool undermines provincial investments in infrastructure, such as the transit projects identified in the Metrolinx Regional Transportation Plan. The tool could also undermine Regional investments in infrastructure. Major employment uses should be directed to locate within existing urban areas that are supported by transit and other infrastructure investments, such as near Major Transit Station Areas. Locating major employment uses within the Greenbelt Plan area, and other areas not intended for or compatible with such uses will result in the inefficient use of existing infrastructure and contribute further to traffic congestion;
c. Businesses want certainty and clarity regarding land use permissions. The tool introduces uncertainty in the planning framework that could increase land speculation and contribute to affordability challenges;
d. The tool contradicts the climate change goals articulated in the Province’s draft Environmental Plan, by potentially increasing the greenhouse gas emissions associated with sprawl, and the potential for long term increased costs in environmental remediation and the impacts to water resources and drinking water; and
 Did Grow Bold mean that we were open to everything? Not with the new council elected last October. e. The open for business planning tool will create a competition amongst municipalities that rewards those that will accept the weakest planning, environmental and health and safety regulations. The province should ensure that all municipalities are raising the bar to achieve quality and sustainable developments, to ensure health and safety and to reduce long term cost impacts that would result to address environmental issues and to maintain unsustainable investments in infrastructure.
f. Eliminating the requirement for notification and consultation with the community, other agencies or municipalities may speed up the approval process, but will not necessarily result in good decisions or faster completion of a development. Residents want and ought to be involved in planning decisions that will impact the communities they live in. Local planning decisions that will impact the service delivery of others cannot be made in isolation. Not including Halton Region in Burlington planning decisions where new regional services are required will not result in jobs coming to Burlington faster, in fact, bypassing the Region could result in delays and additional costs.
g. Allowing major trip generators (such as employment developments), to by-pass council approved transportation policies and directions will mean that municipalities will be responsible for meeting conditions that developers would usually be responsible for. For example, if a developer asks for relief in the amount of parking which they are required to provide, and this relief is granted through this proposed policy, only to realize once the project is constructed and operating that there are insufficient parking spaces. The overflow parking becomes an issue the municipality must address.
Instead of an Open for Business Bylaw, please consider the following tools:
a. Tools to incent the creation of innovation districts located near Major Transit Station Areas and other areas that are serviced by transit. Innovation Districts are a type of business and or industrial district to attract and promote clusters of private and public-sector firms and organizations engaged in the development of new products, materials, services and knowledge . An Innovation District at its core must be driven by existing assets and an economic development strategy. A Provincial program to support and build upon existing businesses and organizations within a municipality would be a more prudent approach to using existing specialization and resources. Such a program could include support for creation of economic development strategies for local Innovation Districts;
 The first of the five tower development is about to be occupied. All the property to the east is part of a new mobility hub that will encourage higher density growth. b. The tools proposed in the open-for-business planning tool do not address our barriers to economic development. An example of a barrier to the development and redevelopment of employment lands is the timely and coordinated issuance of MTO permits. Approximately 80% of the City’s employment lands are within the MTO development permit area. Addressing this barrier would assist in the timely development of serviced and transit oriented employment lands; and
c. The province should consider the use of the MZO tool as an alternative. This tool already exists at a provincial scale. The Planning Act could be amended to expressly identify the attraction of a major employment and economic growth opportunity as a matter of provincial interest. Consideration of these types of uses should be done at a provincial scale to ensure coordinated planning and use of infrastructure.
The following items require more clarity to understand how the tool will be implemented:
a. What is the evidence/data that demonstrates that these sections of the Planning Act are the barriers to locating major employment uses?
b. Please define major employment and economic growth opportunities.
c. What are the prescribed criteria referenced in Section 34.1(2) of the Planning Act?
d. How does the use of this tool apply to Upper Tier vs. Lower Tier municipalities? Are there criteria for determining what is of Regional interest or local interest?
New Regulation under the Planning Act for open-for-business planning tool (EBR Posting 013-4239)
1. Please see EBR Posting 013-4125 above for additional feedback from the City Burlington.
2. In order to provide all feedback a copy of the regulation should be provided.
 Burlington has a lot of land that is “open for business” The location on Mainway next to Burloak is zoned commercial, spitting distance to the QEW, minutes from downtown – owner wants to rezone and make it residential. 3. The regulation notes that evidence is required to demonstrate the minimum job creation threshold . This presents implementation challenges. What evidence is acceptable? How do you ensure the proposed jobs are delivered and remain in place for a significant amount of time? Are there penalties if the proposed jobs do not materialize? Will there be any recognition of the differences or importance of either basic or non-basic industries?
4. The regulation indicates that residential, commercial or retail cannot be the primary use. This language could actually introduce mixed uses, particularly residential which appears to be in conflict with the main objective of the open-for-business tool.
5. Any proposed regulation should be specific to not permit recreation or institution uses.
Burlington, along with the other three municipalities in the Region are going to have to be constantly vigilant and ensure that what makes Burlington unique is left alone.
By Pepper Parr
January 17th, 2019
BURLINGTON, ON
Some useful background when city council gets to talking about what they want to do with the “approved” Official Plan now that it has come back from the Region.
Jane McKenna, the MPP for Burlington said recently that she has “received a few emails from residents about the pace of high-rise development in our downtown.
 Burlington MPP Jane McKenna “Many are concerned about the intensification in the downtown core and the mobility hub designation that is part of Burlington’s official plan. (The one that was adopted by the city but not yet approved by the Region).
Some suggested the mobility hub designation was coupled with the approval, through the appeal process, of tall buildings in the downtown area.
McKenna talked to staff at the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing (MMAH) for clarification about the legislation.
“The first thing I learned is that “mobility hubs” are identified by Metrolinx’s regional transportation plan, but do not have to be reflected as such in any local planning documents.
“The growth plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe, 2017, does not refer to mobility hubs. The City of Burlington council is free to remove these mobility hub designations from the local official plan.
Burlington might be able to remove mobility hub designations but there isn’t a hope in hades that Burlington will move away from the concept of hubs which are understood to be locations where development is increased and transportation options intensified.
The City’s Planning department is well into some deep dive research and with precincts defined and mapping work done showing where different heights and density of residential will be located. Plans for additional park space are also well advanced.
McKenna has muddied the waters with her comments. There will be three mobility hubs; one at each of the existing GO stations.
 The mobility hubs at the GO stations are a fact. Nothing is going to change that. The Downtown mobility hub’s long term existence has yet to be determined by the new city council The continued existence of a Downtown Mobility Hub is in doubt. City Council will debate that at some length when they get to that matter.
The creation of a downtown mobility hub and the loss of an OMB hearing that should not have ben lost has done significant damage to the kind of downtown core residents voted against in the October election. The challenge for this council is to find a way out of that mess.
She adds that: “The growth plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe, which was reviewed and updated in 2017, identifies downtown Burlington as an urban growth centre and sets a specific growth target.
“It also identifies the Burlington GO station as a major transit station area and sets a growth target. These are required elements of all official plans because higher densities are necessary to justify transit infrastructure investment.
 The Urban Growth Centre boundary may well get revised when city council tackles that issue. “That brings me to the second important point I took away from my discussion with MMAH. If city council voted to change the boundaries of the downtown Burlington urban growth centre this could be accomplished by Halton Region as part of the next official plan review.
“This must take place prior to July 1, 2022. Burlington could then, in turn, amend its official plan to reflect the new boundaries.
“Although boundary changes are allowed, the growth plan does not permit the removal of the urban growth centre designation. Changes would need to be approved by the Ontario government as part of the approval of Halton Region’s official plan amendment.”
 MPP McKenna wrapped her Christmas parade float in Tory blue – she will play that card as long as she can and hope that it keeps her in office.
By Staff
January 16th, 2019
BURLINGTON, ON
In a Statement from the Office of the Mayor, Marianne Meed Ward said:
“Yesterday afternoon, 16 mayors from the GTHA region met at Toronto City Hall at the invitation of Toronto Mayor John Tory for a closed-door meeting to discuss shared issues that cross our municipal boundaries such as transit, affordable housing, and climate change. We know that no one municipality can fully address these issues alone, and with a federal election coming up, there is an opportunity for us all to speak with a united voice on behalf of our communities.
 Burlington Mayor Marianne Meed Ward delivering the best line of the day at a GTAH media event. “We agreed that we need to send a message to both the federal and provincial governments that money has to follow the downloading of additional services resulting from legislative changes that are outside of our control. Cannabis legislation is just one example as municipalities, whether they opt in or out of allowing retail cannabis stores, will incur costs, and the funding announced so far is insufficient.
“We further discussed issues ranging from the Places to Grow Act, greenbelt development, affordable housing, and transit.
“We have committed to meet again as GTHA mayors and continue to collaborate on the issues that matter to our constituents. In two weeks, a number of us will also be meeting as part of the Large Urban Mayor’s Caucus of the Association of Municipalities of Ontario, and we will discuss these matters at that table as well.
“During our meeting, the provincial government announced they have undertaken a process to review the effectiveness and efficiency of regional governments across the province, creating some concerns and speculation about the possibility of future amalgamations. The purpose of the review is to look for opportunities to better serve the communities involved and evaluate the areas of governance, decision-making and service delivery. We all welcome a conversation on how to make government more efficient and effective, but agree that any changes must be done in consultation with area municipalities.
“Burlington is already an efficient council, the smallest of Halton Region at seven members, and the smallest of any Ontario municipality of our size. The Region is also already efficient and effective: we enjoy being the safest region in Canada, a Triple A credit rating, high satisfaction on our services, and tax increases at or below the rate of inflation (with a number of years of no increases).
“My fellow GTHA mayors and I agree that we would like to work with the province and our constituents on any changes.”
She then delivered a line that media grabbed and turned into headlines. “Instead of a hatchet, we’d like more of a handshake approach from the province.”
The rest of the province just got a look at the ‘chops’ Burlington’s Mayor has.
 By Roland Tanner
January 15th, 2019
BURLINGTON, ON
Originally published on January 9th in Raise the Hammer.
Burlington’s and Hamilton’s municipal elections had one thing in common: they were both, unusually for municipal politics, heated and divisive affairs that pitched mayoral and concil candidates against each other with fundamentally different points of view.
In Hamilton it was a referendum on light rail transit (LRT), convincingly won by incumbent Fred Eisenberger.
In Burlington it was a referendum on the future of urban intensification ordered since the Places to Grow Act in 2005. The result was an overwhelming victory for Marianne Meed Ward, formerly the Councillor for downtown Ward 2, who has campaigned for ten years against downtown and citywide ‘over-intensification’, especially with regard to high-rise buildings.
 Marianne Meed Ward: She was often a lone voice pleading for better municipal government. Until the election, she was a lone voice on council, and one whose council colleagues viewed her with often vitriolic animosity. With almost a complete sweep of Councillors, with the exception of one re-elected incumbent, the new council is one seemingly aligned with Marianne Meed Ward’s agenda to control intensification.
In both cases, therefore, the elections have been portrayed as a battle between progressive urbanists – pro-transit, pro-intensification, pro-walkable communities – against regressive and entitled suburban interests fundamentally opposed to healthy modern cities. Both elections can be painted as NIMBY referendums.
 ‘Residents treasure downtown as a special area characterized by unique stores and a low to medium-rise character with a high proportion of historic buildings. They like the already walkable streets which are narrow and ‘car unfriendly’ by North American standards.’ In Hamilton, the story goes, the urbanists won, while in Burlington a reactionary, car-centric and selfish aging population elected a populist leader promising the impossible – to stop Burlington’s urban intensification contrary to provincial law, meanwhile denying pro-urbanist Millennials an affordable place to live.
So is this perception correct? Did the bad guys win in Burlington, or is the truth more complex?
Progressive New Council
 Lawn sign opposing tall buildings in downtown Burlington (RTH file photo) I was one of the candidates in the election, coming second to Lisa Kearns in Burlington’s downtown Ward 2. I would certainly call myself an urbanist – pro-transit, pro-walkable communities, pro-intensification, anti-car-centric planning and anti-urban sprawl. It was therefore surprising to find myself cast on the ‘wrong’ side of the urbanist debate and accused of selling out to NIMBYs.
Both Lisa Kearns and I campaigned in favour of controlling intensification, and especially controlling height in Burlington’s downtown, protecting an area that residents from across the city perceive as both special and fragile.
It was testament to the extent to which voters shared that perspective that we came first and second respectively, without any risk of splitting the vote and allowing a candidate aligned with incumbent mayor Rick Goldring to win.
Consider the following. Most of the incumbents in Burlington who were just voted out or retired had consistently voted against transit funding, some for decades, and in fact voted for a disastrous cut to transit funding eight years ago, which caused a dramatic fall in ridership.
 Paul Sharman – made it back to city council where he is now a lone voice for a different way of governing. Paul Sharman, the one incumbent to keep his job, first became involved in municipal activism because of his opposition to a bus route outside his home.
All the incumbents were highly conservative, and mostly also Conservative. In contrast, every single one of the new Councillors, and Marianne Meed Ward, is on the record favouring better transit in Burlington. Burlington may finally have a council that believes in, and is willing to fund, the transit system it needs.
Goldring Advocating Sprawl
Meanwhile, Rick Goldring, the supposed defender of urbanism, intensification, and the Greenbelt, suddenly suggested mid-campaign that Burlington should annex Waterdown from Hamilton, a suggestion which Mayor Eisenberger countered with some panache.
Goldring’s logic was the ludicrous position that annexing Waterdown would take pressure off downtown development by allowing Burlington to develop greenfield sites. All of a sudden, Burlington’s supposedly urbanist mayor, who had invited Brent Toderian to speak and employed a former high-ranking Vancouver City Planner as his city manager, was advocating sprawl.
It was a suggestion as counterproductive as it was confusing. Furthermore, Goldring sought to throw the previous provincial government, and his former provincial counterpart, under the bus at every opportunity. It was suddenly all the Liberals’ fault – forcing intensification on him against his better judgement.
A new PC government and PC MPP, according to Goldring, opened up the opportunity for working with the province to ‘fix’ Places to Grow. We can all guess what that ‘fix’ would look like.
Marianne Meed Ward, as far as I am aware, has never criticized Places to Grow, or intensification, which she campaigned for as an Ontario Liberal candidate in the 2007 provincial election. She is on the record as consistently supporting better transit.
She stated in her inaugural speech that she would never support any development of Greenbelt land, a particularly welcome statement given the provincial government announced it would allow cities to build new businesses on the Greenbelt the same week.
Don’t get me wrong: I have had disagreements with Marianne Meed Ward over the years, and there are policy areas about which I wish she were more enthusiastic. But I do not see the evidence that she, or most of the new council, is opposed to a modern, healthy city. The facts simply do not support the position that anti-urbanist candidates won.
Residents Accept Growth, Cherish Downtown
And what of the voters, the supposedly selfish NIMBYs who want Burlington not to change and to force young Burlingtonians away?
I’m biased, but I believe I and my team knocked on more doors in Ward 2 than any other candidate. What I found at the doors was people who, yes, were overwhelmingly concerned about the scale of downtown development, particularly in a small area around south Brant Street and Lakeshore Road.
That was as true of young and old residents, the wealthy and those on lower incomes, private home owners and those in apartments and housing co-ops. There was no Boomer/Millennial split.
And when I say ‘overwhelmingly’ I mean ‘overwhelmingly’. When asked for their concerns, between 80 to 90 percent of people mentioned downtown development unprompted.
But literally 100 percent of the people I met loved their city – what an amazing statistic! They loved it but feared that the things that made it special were under threat.
They accepted that Burlington had to grow and that more people were going to move here. They were willing to see change. Most were even willing to see some more high-rises if they were done in appropriate areas – namely mobility hubs connected to Go Transit. In other words, they were willing to accept exactly what the province has been encouraging cities to do for over a decade.
Residents treasure downtown as a special area characterized by unique stores and a low to medium-rise character with a high proportion of historic buildings. They like the already walkable streets which are narrow and ‘car unfriendly’ by North American standards.
They appreciate too, that downtown can be better. There is too much space wasted on surface level parking which could become residential or commercial. There are many buildings which are neither historic nor attractive, where nobody would oppose good development – just not high-rise.
They want better transit – strongly – and appreciate that better transit is in everybody’s interest. Almost as strongly, they want more affordable housing, and dispute that high-rise condo development is doing anything for affordability. At $700,000 for a new studio condo downtown, I tend to agree.
Missing Middle
Does this sound like a NIMBY revolution to you? The only distinction between residents and Burlington’s planning department is that the residents I spoke to want a human scale in development, especially when building in established and loved neighbourhoods. They want the city that exists post intensification still to be recognizably the city that existed before – just bigger, and better.
Change is fine, they kept telling me, but it shouldn’t overwhelm the existing built environment. That is a position entirely consistent with the best urbanist principles. Urbanism has never been about ‘high-rise or bust’. It is about complete communities, with high density at a human scale.
Brent Toderian, the high priest of Canadian urbanism, makes the point constantly – it is the ‘missing middle’ we should be seeking most of all. Mid-rise development makes European cities what they are, and some of the most successful models of what urbanism seeks are famous for their lack of high rise development – Edinburgh, Copenhagen, central Paris, or a thousand other European cities.
The ‘missing middle’ is entirely appropriate as a means to allow more people to live in downtown Burlington. The mistake in Burlington has been the wish by developers, which was welcomed and endorsed by the council and then further reinforced by the OMB, to treat downtown like a greenfield site where residents interests don’t count and only maximizing height makes sense.
It wouldn’t happen in those European cities, and it shouldn’t happen here.
Decade’s Worth of Resentment
 This refusal to take residents’ reasonable opinions into account built up a decade’s-worth of resentment which almost swept the field on October 22. Seldom can a municipal election have stirred such strong feelings – strong enough that a council inaugural meeting had to be held in a sold out Burlington Performing Arts Centre, and some ward debates attracted over 400 people.
Other cities, and the provincial parties, would do well to learn from Burlington’s lesson. But they need to take the right message. Contrary to myth, the message is a good one for urbanists if we listen carefully to what is being said.
High-density cities built without resident input and careful engagement, and which overwhelm already successful urban environments with buildings residents hate, will repeat the mistakes of urban planners from the urban renewal era. We need to be careful to avoid adopting the same ‘we know best’ arrogance as those who drove highways through downtowns and advocated for suburban sprawl and car-centric planning.
The failure of urban planning, again and again, has been to ignore the people who actually live in the place being planned, and to claim residents don’t know what’s good for them. It’s these sweeping generalizations that allow us to use slurs like ‘NIMBY’, which are counterproductive, reductive and reflect a refusal to try to understand someone else’s point of view.
 Roland Tanner The result has too-often been well-intentioned innovation implemented badly. But if cities like Burlington can truly learn to listen to residents’ voices, and to work hand in hand with citizens in building a better city together, perhaps they can be a model for a better way forward.
Roland Tanner lives and works in Burlington, where he has been a community volunteer for municipal and provincial causes for over a decade. You can visit his website.
By Pepper Parr
January 13th, 2019
BURLINGTON, ON
They now begin to get into the nitty gritty of the job they have been elected to do; deliberations on the budget begin in earnest on Thursday and continue through to March 25th when the Operational budget is scheduled to be approved. The Capital spending budget is scheduled to be approved on February 25th.
This Thursday council will spend time on an Overview report on both the Capital and Operational budgets.
 The broad strokes are for a budget increase of 3.99% over what the citizens were taxed in 2018.
In the report to council the Finance department refers to the base budget, the money that has to be spent just to keep the doors open and the wheels turning – this makes up 1.58% of the 3.99% 0f the budget increase.
Regulatory and contractual obligations amount to 1.03% of the 3.99% increase.
The special hospital levy that was put in place when Burlington was told that it had to come up with a whopping $20 million to pay for part of the hospital rebuild/renovation was to be reduced by $1.7 million this year – that amount is being repurposed to infrastructure renewal.
There is a $2 million infrastructure levy that makes up 1.25% of that 3.99% tax increase.
An additional million is being added to public transit that represents .64% of that 3.99% increase.
There are two business cases that will be debated; additional by-law enforcement officers and additions to the para transit service that amount to $214,000 + which make up .21% of that 3.99% budget increase.
 Lisa Kearns will be chairing the budget committee – she has her work cut out for her. Ward 2 Councillor Lisa Kearns is going to stick handle the budget deliberations. She has no experience managing a city budget but she has been reading and getting all the help she needs. Will there be stumbles? Of course there will be stumbles but Kearns is a quick study and supported by a strong committee clerk.
Some of the city Councillors will struggle to keep up.
This is likely to be a harrowing experience for most of this Council. Their hearts are in the right place – but their hands are going to slide into your pocket to pay the bills.
The way the Finance department re-purposed the original hospital levy and slid it into the infrastructure account is something that needs a closer look.
The current council didn’t do the dirty on this but the citizens of the city went along with a special tax levy to pay for the hospital rebuild/renovation thinking that when the bills were paid the tax levy would come to an end.
Nope – they are going to keep that tax grab and use it to pay for roads.
By Staff
January 10th, 2019
BURLINGTON, ON
The Burlington Economic Development Corporation (BEDC) is currently recruiting Board Members to fill up to three seats at their 2019 AGM. Board Members serve an initial term of three years, renewable up to a total of three terms.
BEDC is a not-for-profit agency that delivers economic development services on behalf of the City of Burlington.
The Board oversees the development of BEDC’s strategic plan and operations providing insights from the business community. BEDC is seeking experienced business executives with board experience who will ensure BEDC stays focused on key business issues for the community and delivers on its mandate to support companies to start up, locate and grow in Burlington.
Board Members are responsible for providing oversight in setting the goals, objectives, and strategic directions for BEDC within its mandate. Collectively, members of the Board oversee the direction and performance of BEDC and are accountable to City of Burlington Council.
Qualified candidates are asked to submit a Resume and cover letter outlining their interest in serving on BEDC’s Board to careers@bedc.ca by Midnight January 16, 2019.
 Anita Cassidy, BEDC Acting Executive Director Anita Cassidy is the Acting Executive Director, a position she has held since last June. One would have expected to have Cassidy appointed at the Executive Director by this time if she was to be given the job. The current board does not appear to be ready to make up its mind. A little confusing for people who have an interest in serving as members of the board.
 Frank McKeown, former Chief of Staff to Mayor Rick Goldring served as the Executive Director and was the driving force that got TechPlace up and running. With a new city council and a Mayor who did not see eye-to-eye with former BEDC Executive Director Frank McKeown it was difficult to see how the Office of the Mayor and the head of the BEDC were going to work together; the differences in both approach to economic development and what the long term objective was were not exactly in sync.
A Gazette reader came across a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) analysis. It was a draft that had some interesting comments that many thought should have been included in the 25 year Strategic Plan the current city council has to live with – unless they choose to revise that document – not something this council can so anything with this calendar year – there are just too many critical issues to be dealt with.
The SWOT had this to say
The following section of this report presents aggregated findings into common themes from the various forms of community and stakeholder consultations performed, including the detailed baseline data analysis and competitiveness assessment results, as well as a background review of the infrastructure environment and planning policies.
A SWOT analysis is an important element to any strategic planning process, and a valuable tool that supports decision making through the identification of internal and external factors that directly impact on the viability of an organization’s projects or plans.
Strengths are generally attributed to local assets and resources the municipality can leverage, or build on to support local growth and prosperity. Weaknesses are current disadvantages internal to the community that hinder, or impeded successful outcomes. These factors may require improvement, strengthening, or mitigation in order to encourage and support the community’s ability to capitalize on opportunities.
Opportunities are specific elements that the municipality can exploit, or leverage to its advantage in order to overcome challenges and effect positive change. Threats are generally associated with factors that may jeopardize a community’s success and represent barriers, or obstacles that may prevent the City’s ability to implement its strategy.
The purpose of this section is to utilize the SWOT Analysis in order to inform the overarching goals and objectives that are developed in order to effectively execute upon the Economic Vision the City of Burlington has for its future. They are drawn from a comprehensive research process, driven by stakeholder and community input, and grounded in an evidence based approach.
Strengths
Burlington has a well-educated population and highly skilled workforce presenting competitive advantages for attracting and retaining industry looking for more educated workers, and increasing the net worth of residents
 The Meridian Brick works is a major employer exploiting Queenston shale in the Tayandaga community. The residents don’t want that resource developed now that there are homes in the immediate area. High levels of professional services, entrepreneurship, and micro businesses that support a vibrant entrepreneurial culture and diversity of self-employment
Very high quality of life with ample cultural and lifestyle amenities, festivals, accessible waterfront, family oriented, green space and northern rural agricultural area, clean and safe environment, and appeal to broad audience of socio- demographic characteristics
Availability of quality and high speed telecommunications in most urban areas
Burlington has a relatively less expensive development environment than competitor communities to the East, and the lowest average land prices compared to eastern neighbours
Burlington has a low unemployment rate, and relatively high earnings in professional, knowledge based, and highly skilled occupations that position it well for attracting self-employed professional talent
Burlington has a relatively diverse economy and did not fare as bad as other communities during the recent recession
Burlington has a relatively high level of household income and experienced one of the fastest levels of income growth between comparator jurisdictions
Within the Greater Toronto Area, Burlington is a relatively affordable place to buy a home
Go Transit and integration with broader regional and inter-regional transit connectivity
Weaknesses
Gridlock, traffic congestion, and poor transit offerings (especially along key employment districts and corridors) were noted as critical barriers to growth
A insufficient supply of investment ready lands (not to be confused with a vacant land inventory) presents a key challenge for securing new investment and expansion
 Is there a business development organization anywhere in North A,America that doesn’t feel there is too much bureaucracy? Overly complex bureaucratic environment that discourages investment and frustrates business growth
Lack of a strong and vibrant Burlington Brand that differentiates the city from its competitors, and energizes and entices people, business, and talent to move to Burlington
Burlington suffers from a lack of a unique selling proposition
Burlington needs a strong, long term vision for the city that drives all other elements of planning and corporate activity
Aging and a lack of modern office space prohibits potential new business growth and employment
Delayed improvements to municipal infrastructure frustrate the ability to attract and retain new investment
Need to shift Burlington away from a car dependent design and stimulate more active transportation
Need for greater alignment between the post-secondary educational community, stakeholders, and the City to increase the required type of talent in demand by local industries
Opportunities
Supporting and/or enhancing the educated workforce, skilled labour development or skill training
Advancing redevelopment and intensification opportunities, strategic planning and rezoning
 Is Hamilton and it vibrant local economy what is going to save Burlington’s economy. Do we align with Hamilton or stay where we are – aligned to Toronto? Leveraging Burlington’s location between Hamilton and Toronto to better effect population and workforce growth
Ensuring stronger municipal support structures for business development by streamlining regulatory process, enhanced business expansion and retention activities, small business, start up and innovation enablement
Establish more effective and appealing incentivization programs that will encourage increased appetite in redevelopment and intensification
Great potential contained in pursuing sector growth opportunities in High Technology, Information
Communications, and Health and Life Sciences and building out the industries to develop stronger support clusters.
Additional opportunities were identified in pursuing increased Tourism, Higher Education, Professional Services, and advanced manufacturing
Better leverage Burlington’s transportation infrastructure system that see all 400 class highways converge in the city and allow access to major economic centres and populations
Establish Mobility Hubs around Go Stations to stimulate mixed-use live/work environments
Significant level of knowledge and wisdom contained in older populations that could be tapped into more effectively to support mentorship, stimulate entrepreneurship, and support growth and prosperity in the local economy
Greater volunteerism potential and community engagement to support city building and future directions
Need to effectively harness the potential contained in strategic alliances with local developers and land owners to support mutual aims and benefit
Focus on leading companies in key sectors that have global markets and ambitions – encourage increased corporate and regional headquarters to locate in Burlington
Potential contained in agricultural and rural opportunities north of the 407 that could be explored and capitalized on
Threats
Burlington needs a stronger and more integrated transit system that supports the import of workers and talent, as much as it does the export of residents and workers out of the city
Transit systems are under serviced in key employment districts, particularly the Prosperity Corridor
Increasing cost of living and housing affordability present ongoing challenges to Burlington’s ability to attract and retain newcomer and young professionals and families
Greater affordability of living and housing in Hamilton encourages outmigration of population and workers
Concentration of privately owned lands affects availability, price, and flexibility in providing development options
Availability of modern and in demand office space in surrounding competitor areas and high vacancy rates inhibit development opportunities
Cost and availability of lands in Hamilton, and other competitor jurisdictions to the west of Burlington pose significant risk to attracting new development related investment
Burlington’s lower unemployment rate may deter investment from companies with higher labour overheads, depending on the level of skill and qualification required to meet company needs
 How many of these students will be able to afford a home in Burlington and get a decent job in the city when they graduate from university or college? Burlington is facing a serious shortage of younger aged cohorts, and in an increasing aging population. This is occurring at a more rapid rate than surrounding and comparator areas. In order to meet new employment, knowledge economy, and creative class talent attraction goals. With significant gaps in the ages of 24 and under,
Burlington is faced with a potential shortage of people to transition into the prime working age population category over the next ten years
Burlington suffers from youth and talent leakage as skilled individuals pursue more accessible employment and affordable living opportunities outside of the city
Community resistance to intensification and downtown redevelopment, including prohibitive regulatory environment
Employment Lands Operational Plan and Regional Best Planning Estimates not aligned and contribute to confusion, lack of direction, and delays associated with infrastructure and growth planning
Lack of alignment among all key decision makers at Regional and Provincial levels towards Burlington’s growth targets and aspirations
 Burlington Mayor Marianne Meed Ward with Christa Papavasiliou, David James Vandenberg, Mark Daniel Mikkelsen-McGuire, Sille N Mikkelsen-McGuire and Catherine J. There are those who have served Burlington in the past at senior levels in city hall who think that it might be time to bring economic development into city hall and make it part of the Planning department.
What would appear to be clear is that there are changes coming within the Burlington Economic Development Corporation – where the influence and pressure on those changes is going to come from is what is not all that clear.
The Mayor’s office seems more focused on photo-ops; there hasn’t been a clear statement on any issue since the swearing in.
By Staff
January 5th, 2019
BURLINGTON, ON
The National Homes proposed development on Brant street just south of Havendale has been contentious since the day it got to the city Planning department.
It was probably the worst managed planning file in 2018.
 The developer wanted 236 units – they scaled it back to 212. The residents think 150 units would be more appropriate. At one point it looked as if the development was going to get approved without a staff report and without much in the way of public input.
The biggest thing the public had going for them was the exceptionally good delegation made by the people in the Havendale community and some exceptional analysis by Steve Armstrong.
The legal talent hired by National Homes found a way to skate around the rules and confuse, obfuscate and basically jerk everyone around until a critical time frame was met.
The Planning department has to give a developer a response within 180 days of a complete development application being submitted.
Ed Doer, a member of the group of residents who delegated on the issue verbally set out the gruesome details that backed up the written delegation.
When that 180 day period ended the developer filed an appeal to what is known as the LPAT – Local Planning Act Tribunal. Due to the transition taking place from OMB – Ontario Municipal Board – hearings and LPAT hearings the appeal was to be heard under the OMB rules. Confusing? – agreed and that confusion was worked to the developers benefit.
To add to the mess was the fact that the outgoing council voted to approve the development even though five of the seven members of council knew they were not going to be serving on the new 2018-2022 council.
Some felt the old council had no right to vote on the matter – others thought they were required to vote on it.
An LPAT hearing had been scheduled for December 17th, it was originally a Pre-hearing Conference (PHC). The National Homes legal counsel asked that it be heard as a Settlement Conference – they felt they had a deal in place.
The city’s legal department kept taking council into closed session (in-camera) to explain why this development was fraught with legal issues that they didn’t want to talk about publicly.
The Gazette learned that the city’s legal department thought they could see another Walmart like case coming their way. That case is reported to have cost the city fifty big one ($500,000).
The LPAT hearing took place and the hearing officer decided that it would be a PHC and adjourned everything to a date in early April.
Mayor Meed Ward made a comment on Facebook that brought out some very mixed responses.
Here is what the “public” had to say:
 Mayor Meed Ward The Mayor:
Withdrawing the settlement allows the current council, the community and the developer to continue to work on this project to get a better development. Settlement should never have been voted on by previous council, post election when 5 of 7 councillors were known not to be returning.
Public responses:
Rita Giammattolo Hardy Awesome work by our new Council . . . . thank you all for listening to the residents. 🙏🙏🙏
Andrew Alexander
I don’t know why people are against this? Looks like a great new development on vacant land. It also adds affordable houses to people wanting to move into Burlington. The plan looked great.
Lisa Cooper I am not totally for this project, but to say the previous council should not have voted on it is presumptuous. As far as I can tell they were still a paid council to do their job no matter how many seats were going to change on council.
Sean Kenney Sad day for fair process in Burlington. The council of the day had the right to make decision to settle and they did so. Hopefully when LPAT awards costs to the developer the new Council will be transparent and let us know what the costs are.
In the world of politics you can please some of the people some of the time – you can never please all the people all the time.
This dog and pony show is far from over.
 The original application didn’t include any park space – that was revised and a small park was included. The question one might ask is: why is the Mayor taking to social media as frequently as she does?
Because it works.
It is beginning to look like government by photo op, Facebook comment and tweets. Major issues should be given the background and detail they need and deserve.
We are watching just how much damage can be done when social media is the platform used to debate and discuss important issues.
Related new story:
The Ed Doer delegation
By Staff
January 1st, 2019
BURLINGTON, ON
What kind of a year is it going to be?
A number of resident offered their thoughts for the year – perhaps they were wishes.
Don Baxter, who at one point was the Economic Development Officer for Burlington offered two suggestions. He is a little shy when it comes to cameras – thus no photo.
My two suggestions are simple; and if they get these two right, then all else eventually falls in place.
First, you cannot have functioning democracy if you do not have freedom of the press. So many great articles have recently been written about freedom of the press because of the brutal slaying of Jamal Ahmad Khashoggi. Anything I could say would pale in comparison. How does Burlington expect to be a responsive if people are not provided with different perspectives? Sure, Pepper, you sometimes get things wrong; but now, the City Hall version of the truth is a mollycoddled newsletter.
 This is what people want in Burlington. Most of these trees are on city property. Should there be a bylaw to protect trees like this on public property? Second, All I really want for Christmas is a coherent tree policy that is actually implemented in 2019; in other words, stops dithering and just do it. For 5 years we have been pushing this rock up a hill? Why?
When working with the Excellence in Manufacturing Consortium, for example, members freely and efficiently steal policies from one another to get the job done – they do not try to break new ground every time, only when it is competitively necessary. So, steal a needed policy, make sure all departments understand Council’s intent, and then, work together as a team.
Implementation of a tree policy would start with a review and increased understanding of the official plan tree policies, and then, implementation of a coherent tree policy involving many department including planning, building, tree, legal, budget, finance, and hydro folks working with the Mayor and CAO to regulate tree-cutting and tree-planting on both public and private lands – finding reasons to save trees, not cut them down. This dynamic (read – not silo) will eventually build the corporate culture, and staff will begin to feel good because they are doing good things.
After each municipal election, it is like the start of Maple Leaf hockey season – they have great players, and you have a faint hope the team will make the play-offs; but then, the team never really gels. The job for our new Mayor, and CAO (once she is hired), is to be responsible for a corporate culture aimed at getting things done. There is a saying, “culture eats strategy for breakfast”, everyday. The last Council and senior staff put a lot of effort and research into a 25 year strategic plan that resulted in “dynamic inaction”.
Not original – but just do it!
 Ron Foxcroft Ron Foxcroft, who was made a Member of the Order of Canada in December took a serious note as well:
On a serious note
The Provincial government must tackle a growing and serious problem that is over the highway gridlock in and out of Burlington to and from the GTA
It is effecting commerce, trade and everyday enjoyment of lives. Burlington people who do not work in Burlington are worn out spending 3 plus hours a day in traffic
Kudos to all political parties over the past 30 years for their strategic planning to enhance public transit
Not everybody can reach their home or employment by public transit so solving over the highway gridlock must commence in 2019
IGNORE is NOT A SOLUTION. Enough talk. Let’s have an action plan as our Provincial and City resolution for 2019. Smart people live in Burlington. Let smart people be smart, and work on this problem with government. Let’s establish a sense of urgency.
In an ideal world it would be nice to live and work in Burlington. That is a dream for many but not realistic.
Burlington is a good City. Let’s make it great and solve over the highway gridlock in and out of our City.
Roland Tanner Roland Tanner, a candidate for the ward 2 city council seat painted a bigger picture saying:
The biggest stories in 2019 are likely to come from the province, not Burlington City Hall.
There are rumours of amalgamation being on the premier’s agenda, and we must hope that the fatal damage this would do to the PC’s electoral position in Burlington will keep it off the table here. The premier may have a strong electoral mandate, but he should remember that nobody voted for a reduction in local democracy on June 6th.
The first full budget of the new government will also have enormous implications for what was intended to be Phase 2 development at Jo Brant, Burlington Transit and our local schools.
At City Hall I hope 2019 will see the new council be courageous in it’s approach to change. I’d like to see Councillors going back to the 2010 Shape Burlington Report and adopting overlooked recommendations, but also taking the opportunity to go beyond that document.
If Council wants to establish Burlington as a City that listens, it should embark on a complete overhaul of citizen advisory committees and make them the primary tools for citizen engagement. The committees should have an independent appointments process, they should be properly funded, given a remit to reach out and engage the public and measure public opinion, and their recommendations should be accorded a level of respect equal to staff recommendations.
It would then be the job of Councillors to vote for solutions which combine staff expertise, strategic planning, and public preferences. Building rigorous citizen engagement into City Hall processes would prevent any future Council from simply choosing to ignore the voice of residents.
The Gazette is now wide open to whatever you have in the way of ideas and predictions for what is going to be a tumultuous year. Hang on!
And Happy New Year.
There will be major changes for the Gazette and nice changes for the publisher.
 By Staff
December 30th, 2018
BURLINGTON, ON
In a media release from Queen’s Park the Ministry of the |Environment said: “Ontario’s Government for the People is gaining support across Canada in its fight against the federal government’s unconstitutional carbon tax. In addition to the Province of Saskatchewan, the Province of New Brunswick has now also joined Ontario’s challenge to the federal government’s Greenhouse Gas Pollution Pricing Act, which is an unconstitutional, disguised tax.
“The federal carbon tax will eliminate jobs and make life more difficult for families, seniors and everyone who works hard to get ahead in Ontario and across our country,” said Premier Doug Ford. “We are on the front lines of this fight because the costs for people and communities are simply unacceptable, whether in Ontario, in Saskatchewan, in New Brunswick or everywhere people are bracing for this new tax.”
 Ontario now has a government that doesn’t see environmental issues the way the federal government does. “Canadians across the country are calling on the federal government to eliminate the unconstitutional carbon tax and let the provinces decide how best to regulate greenhouse gas emissions.
“Ontario has already intervened in the reference case Saskatchewan has launched to its Court of Appeal.
“We are thankful for the support of Premier Ford and Premier Higgs, and the people of Ontario and New Brunswick, for intervening in our case against this unconstitutional and harmful federally imposed carbon tax,” said Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe. “Premier Ford and Minister Mulroney have shown great leadership in introducing a constitutional challenge against this job killing carbon tax, and Saskatchewan is proud to stand with the people of Ontario in this fight. The federal government should respect the court process by delaying the imposition of this harmful and job-killing tax until the courts have rendered a final decision.”
New Brunswick has intervened in the reference case in Saskatchewan as well and has now joined Ontario’s challenge.
“The Province of New Brunswick is on track to meet and exceed carbon emission reduction targets by 2030. We believe the federal government’s carbon tax unfairly targets our business and is too heavy a financial burden for ordinary New Brunswickers and Canadians alike,” said New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs. “That is why we have made good on our promise to join Saskatchewan and Ontario in court to fight a federally imposed carbon tax.”
“While our plan sets out a clear path as to how Ontario will achieve our share of the Paris targets, the federal government demonstrated yesterday that they do not.
 There is a fundamental difference between what the province of Ontario wants to do on managing the amount of carbon in the environment and what the federal government wants to see done. “Ontario is doing its share to address climate change and reduce greenhouse gas emissions; our families, workers and businesses have already made significant sacrifices to get here, and there is no justification to punish them further with a carbon tax,” said Rod Phillips, Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks. “With our environment plan, Ontario will continue to protect the environment while respecting taxpayers.”
The federal Minister of the Environment took a different tack saying: “Today demonstrates that multi-lateralism works to tackle a clear global problem—climate change. Three years ago almost to the day, some 200 countries came together to land an ambitious Paris Agreement. Over the last few weeks, the world gathered once again in Katowice, Poland, for the 24th Conference of the Parties (COP24) where our team worked hard throughout the negotiations to find common ground between developed and developing countries.
“I am pleased countries around the world came together to agree to rules for transparently reporting how all countries are fulfilling their commitments to reduce emissions and tackle climate change. To increase our ambition for climate action, we need clear and transparent rules.
“Canada also played a leading role in laying the groundwork for a global carbon market, to help mobilize the billions of dollars of investments needed to tackle climate change. We were pleased with the outcome although more work remains over the next year to finalize the guidelines for international trading. Recognizing the global momentum on pricing pollution, Canada took part in the Carbon Pricing Leadership Coalition, encouraging all countries around the world to use the most cost-effective tool to reduce emissions.
 Catherine McKenna, lower left, at the UN Conference on Climate Change in Poland “At COP24, Canada and the United Kingdom celebrated the first anniversary of the Powering Past Coal Alliance—founded by both countries—which now has 80 members including Israel, Scotland, Senegal, Melbourne and Sydney, and ScottishPower. We also pledged $275 million to the World Bank to help more countries around the world power past coal and move toward clean and renewable energy. We know that to achieve the Paris Agreement targets, every country needs to phase out coal and ensure a Just Transition for workers and communities. People must be at the centre of climate policies.
“Canada helped advance the work of the Local Communities and Indigenous Peoples Platform, with Indigenous representatives from Canada and around the world. To further this work, we will be supporting an Indigenous representative in the UN Climate Change secretariat.
“By bringing together not only governments, but also stakeholders, organizations, businesses, Indigenous partners, and civil society, COP24 demonstrated the world’s shared commitment to fight climate change. As we move toward a more sustainable economy in our common fight against climate change, we can ensure good jobs and healthy, resilient communities for our people.”
 We will need more than demonstrations to bring about the changes in behavior that are needed. Prior to the opening of the COP24 conference the United Nations issued one of the starkest warnings yet of the catastrophic threat posed by climate change, nations gathered in Poland on Sunday to chart a way for mankind to avert runaway global warming.
The COP24 climate summit comes at a crucial juncture in the battle to rein in the effects of our heating planet.
The smaller, poorer nations that will bare the devastating brunt of climate change are pushing for richer states to make good on the promises they made in the 2015 Paris agreement.
Three years ago countries committed to limit global temperature rises to well below two degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit), and to the safer cap of 1.5C if at all possible.
 Getting from 1.5 to 2 degrees centigrade But with only a single degree Celsius of warming so far, the world has already seen a crescendo of deadly wildfires, heatwaves and hurricanes made more destructive by rising seas.
UN General Assembly president Maria Espinosa told AFP that mankind was “in danger of disappearing” if climate change was allowed to progress at its current rate.
“We need to act urgently, and with audacity. Be ambitious, but also responsible for the future generations,” she added.
In a rare intervention, presidents of previous UN climate summits issued a joint statement as the talks got under way, calling on states to take “decisive action… to tackle these urgent threats”.
“The impacts of climate change are increasingly hard to ignore,” said the statement, a copy of which was obtained by AFP. “We require deep transformations of our economies and societies.”
At the COP24 climate talks, nations must agree to a rule book palatable to all 183 states who have ratified the Paris deal.
The road to a final rule book is far from smooth: the dust is still settling from US President Donald Trump’s decision to ditch the Paris accord.
G20 leaders on Saturday wrapped up their summit by declaring the Paris Agreement “irreversible”.
But it said the United States “reiterates its decision to withdraw” from the landmark accord.
The UN negotiations got off to a chaotic start in the Polish mining city of Katowice Sunday, with the opening session delayed nearly three hours by a series of last-ditch submissions.
A string of major climate reports have cast doubt over the entire process, suggesting the Paris goals fall well short of what is needed.
Data doesn’t lie
Just last week, the UN’s environment programme said the voluntary national contributions agreed in Paris would have to triple if the world was to cap global warming below 2C.
For 1.5C, they must increase fivefold.
While the data are clear, a global political consensus over how to tackle climate change remains elusive.
“Katowice may show us if there will be any domino effect” following the US withdrawal, said Laurence Tubiana, CEO of the European Climate Foundation and a main architect of the Paris deal.
Brazil’s strongman president-elect Jair Bolsonaro, for one, has promised to follow the American lead during his campaign.
Many countries are already dealing with the droughts, higher seas and catastrophic storms climate change is exacerbating.
“A failure to act now risks pushing us beyond a point of no return with catastrophic consequences for life as we know it,” said Amjad Abdulla, chief negotiator for the Alliance of Small Island States, of the UN talks.
A key issue up for debate is how the fight against climate change is funded, with developed and developing nations still world’s apart in their demands.
 The world has to get this right in the next decade. Poorer nations argue that rich countries, which are responsible for the vast majority of historic carbon emissions, must help others to fund climate action.
“Developed nations led by the US will want to ignore their historic responsibilities and will say the world has changed,” said Meena Ramam, from the Third World Network advocacy group. “The question really is: how do you ensure that ambitious actions are done in an equitable way?”
If the world doesn’t get this right in the next decade – future generations are going to have to live in a world regularly racked by weather the likes of which we are only beginning to see.
 By Pepper Parr
December 26th, 2018
BURLINGTON, ON
This is a story the Gazette published almost a year ago. It was about a series of motions (8 in total) that then ward 2 city Councillor Marianne Meed Ward brought to a Standing Committee of Council.
Marianne Meed Ward announced earlier this month that she will be bringing a series of motions to modify the proposed new Official Plan policies to avoid over- intensification and ensure balanced growth in keeping with our strategic plan and requirements under provincial and regional policies.
The detail and Meed Ward’s rationalization are set out below along with maps that visualize the changes she thinks should be made.
Given that Meed Ward is now the Mayor, it is instructive to take a look at what she advocated for last January, it will tell us a lo about what she will want to do as Mayor leading a Council that, for the most part is aligned with her thinking.
Motion: 1
Defer approval of Official Plan till after the 2018 Municipal Election
Rationale:
• Major changes are coming to the city through proposed intensification in the mobility hubs at the 3 Burlington GO stations, and the downtown.
• When the Official Plan review began in December 2011, changes to the downtown were out of the scope. The mobility hubs were not included in the scope.
• In October 2016, the city shifted from an update to a rewrite of the plan. The first draft was released in April 2017. Downtown and mobility hubs policies were not included.
• Proposed changes were first released in September for the downtown, and in November for the GO stations. Area specific plans are still to come.
 There is considerable community opposition to some of the proposed changes, particularly in the downtown.
• We need time to get this right and give the community more voice, by testing the proposed plan democratically via the 2018 election.
• There is no need or requirement from the province to rush.
• Council continues to retain full decision-making control over applications that may come in prior to approval of the Official Plan. Rules around appeals to the new Local Planning Appeal Tribunal restrict what can be appealed and give more weight to local decisions, further strengthening council’s decision-making authority.
Meed Ward is absolutely right – what’s the rush? Where is the time for the public to absorb the huge amount of information? And were changes of this magnitude part of the mandate this council was given in 2014?
What citizens began to realize was that they had a city council that was determined to push through a new Official Plan over significant protest. That decision cost three of them their jobs.
Strategic Plans in Burlington were traditionally four year, single term of council documents. The 2014-2018 council went for a longer term, driven to a considerable degree by the wishes of the then city manager and KPMG, the consultants, who were delighted to find themselves given a much more robust. assignment. The four year plan got an upgrade to a 25 year plan then based is administration changed the time line to a 20 year Strategic Plan and has based much of what it now wants to do on that plan. Future councils are not obligated to accept a Strategic Plan created by a previous government.
Motion: 2
Direct staff to discuss with the Region and province the possibility of removing the mobility hub classification for the downtown, and shifting the Urban Growth Centre to the Burlington GO station.
Rationale:
• The Urban Growth Centre and Mobility Hub designations have put pressure on the downtown for over intensification. Meed Ward points to the ADI development at Martha & Lakeshore, that was unanimously rejected by council and staff. ADI appealed the council decision to the OMB; a decision is expected soon
• The city has input on the location of Urban Growth Centres (UGC) and Mobility Hubs, and recently added more Mobility Hubs on its own without direction from the province (Aldershot and Appleby). “Ergo” said Meed Ward, ” we can work with the region and province to request a shift in the UGC to the existing designated mobility hub at the Burlington GO station. Urban Growth Centre boundaries recently changed – and can be changed again.”
• The city is positioned to meet city-wide growth targets set by the province for 2031 within the next five years: the population target is 185,000; 2016 census shows the city at 183,000, with 1,000 units under construction at the Burlington GO station alone.
• Downtown will continue to absorb its share of city growth under current Official Plan permissions, and will surpass a target density of 200 people or jobs within 5 to 8 years.
 Current development activity in the Downtown core.
• There is significant development interest in the downtown, with at least 23 areas under construction, approved (whether built or not), under appeal, at pre-consultation , or subject to known land assembly.
• The downtown can meet the intent of provincial policy and the strategic plan without the pressure to over-intensify that comes with UGC and Mobility Hub designations.
Meed Ward has spoken with The Director of Planning Services/ Chief Planning Official at Halton Region who is open to this conversation, without precluding any outcome. The Region will be reviewing its own Official Plan in 2019.
Motion 3: Staff Direction
Direct staff to work with the Region of Halton to review the Downtown Urban Growth Centre boundaries, and consider restoring original boundaries with the exception of Spencer Smith Park.
Downtown development sites App A
Land use as the city planning department has presented it in their Mobility Hub reports.
Growth Centre boundaries as put forward by the Planning Department.
Changes Ward 2 Councillor Meed Ward will be bringing to council on January 23rd by way of motions.
Rationale:
• Parts of stable neighbourhoods and a community park have been added to the Urban Growth Centre, while the intent of the boundaries is to protect and exclude stable neighbourhoods.
• Areas of high density including mid-rises and high rises have been eliminated , while the intent of the boundary was to accommodate higher density built forms.
Meed Ward said she has spoken with the Director of Planning Services/ Chief Planning Official at Halton Region who is supportive of the proposed boundary changes. The Region will be reviewing its own Official Plan in 2019.
Areas to Eliminate:
• Ontario North/East of the hydro corridor
• West side of Locust and parcel fronting Hurd
• West side of Martha to James, including Lion’s Club Park
Areas to Add back:
• Ghent West to Hager
• Lakeshore South of Torrance
• South East parcels of James/Martha
Motion 4:
4a Retain the current height restriction of 4 storeys (with permission to go to 8 storeys with community benefits) for the Downtown Core Precinct. Proposed height in the new Official Plan is 17 storeys as of right.
4b Include a range of heights in the precinct, to help secure community benefits during redevelopment.
4c Include policies to allow additional density in developments that preserve heritage buildings, as a factor of square footage preserved.
Historic property locations are shown on this map in light purple.
Arrows point to where Meed Ward thinks changes should be made.
Rationale:
The downtown can meet growth targets under existing planning permissions. Refer to the intensification analysis completed by staff for the 421 Brant/James proposal, and earlier for the ADI proposal at Martha/Lakeshore. There is no policy need under provincial legislation or the city’s strategic plan to over intensify to accommodate growth.
 Residences in the St. Luke’s Precinct.
The majority of residents are not supportive of this height in this precinct. Residents are supportive of a range of new developments up to a mid-rise character as reflected in the existing plan (4-8 storeys).
 Residences in the Emerald Precinct.
Approving an up zone to 17 storeys as of right does not provide opportunity to negotiate community benefits, for example heritage preservation, affordable and family housing, additional green space setbacks and street-scaping, parking and other matters. That can be achieved in part by including a range of heights in the plan, which the existing policy framework has. That can also be achieved by writing into the precinct policies extra density in respect of the square footage of the historic buildings preserved.
There is precedent: the existing OP for the Old Lakeshore Road area includes density increases for heritage protection during redevelopment; add similar policies to the downtown core precinct.
Up zoning to 17 storeys would compromise the historic character of parts of the precinct, create a potential forest of high rises every 25 metres in this area should land owners take advantage of the new heights by application, in accordance with the Tall Building Guidelines, and make it more difficult to preserve historic (but not designated) buildings in the downtown, as the air rights of these existing 2-3 storey buildings would be more valuable than retaining the building.
There are 93 properties in the downtown mobility hub study area of heritage significance (on the municipal register or designated).
• Of these 26 are designated
• 5 adjacent to mobility hub, 1 of these designated
Motion 5:
Height restriction of 3 storeys along Brant Street with permission to go to 11 storeys along John Street frontage, only with the provision of community benefits.
Rationale:
Existing permissions are 4 storeys along Brant, up to 8 with provision of community benefits. The proposed is 3-11, which is roughly the same; this motion seeks additional of language that allows securing community benefits to get to the full 11 storeys.
6a. Add the north west corner of Burlington Avenue and Lakeshore Road to the special planning area to match the north east corner.
6b. Reduce height to 3 storeys.
Current proposal in the Official Plan is 6 storeys, on the east side only.
motion 6
Councillor Meed Ward sees Burlington Street as the entrance to the St. Luke’s Precinct and believes that the two corners at Lakeshore Road should be the same height.
Rational:
Burlington Avenue and Lakeshore is a gateway to the stable neighbourhood of St. Luke’s. This corner has existing townhouses and single family homes that contain multiple units. Both sides of the street should be treated the same; the proposed 3 storeys reflects existing built form and is compatible with the balance of the street in the St. Luke’s Precinct. Higher height/density will put pressure on development creep up the street into the neighbourhood.
Motion 7:
Reduce the cannery district at the north east corner of Lakeshore Road and Brant Street to 15 storeys.
Rationale:
Reflects existing heights in the area.
Motion 8: Upper Brant Precinct:
8a. Remove East side of Brant from Blairholm to Prospect 8b.
 The arrows indicate where Councillor Meed Ward would like to see changes made in the current version of the Official Plan. The arrows indicate where Councillor Meed Ward would like to see changes made in the current version of the Official Plan.
Remove West side of Brant from Blairholm to Olga
Existing heights are 4-6 storeys; that is an appropriate transition in these two areas which back onto stable neighbourhoods.
The eight motions were a bold, typical Meed Ward approach to change. As a Councillor she put forward far more motions that any other Councillor, she always asked far more questions than any other member of Council. These eight motions represented her vision for the downtown core.
With the Chain of office around her neck and the first of several expected staff changes completed the city might be on the cusp of a form of moderate, reasonable growth that maintains the tone of the city.
By Pepper Parr
December 23rd, 2018
BURLINGTON, ON
She is off to an exceptionally good start.
Lisa Kearns was the first out of the gate with a Newsletter to her constituents. She opened it with a reminder to her constituents as to just why she was a city Councillor by setting out the oath she took on December 3rd, 2018.
I will truly, faithfully and impartially exercise this office to the best of my knowledge and ability.
I have not received and will not receive any payment or reward, or promise thereof, for the exercise of this office in a biased, corrupt or in any other improper manner.
I will disclose any pecuniary interest, direct or indirect, in accordance with the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act.
She held a meeting for her constituents before the middle of the month at the Art Gallery.
Under the heading: NEED TO KNOW Kearns sets out her approach to the possible sale of cannabis in retail locations.
“At its meeting on December 17, 2018, City Council deferred the decision to opt in or out of recreational cannabis stores in Burlington until the January 14, 2019 Committee of the Whole meeting.
She doesn’t turn the microphone over to anyone but she answers every question and doesn’t sting on the details. “This deferral will:
• Provide Council with time to understand new regulations announced by the Province of Ontario on Dec. 13, 2018, allowing a total of 25 business licenses across Ontario for cannabis retail stores on April 1, 2019. More information is expected to be released in the new year, and
• Allow more time for additional public input on this issue. Please share your thoughts with me directly or take the online survey about cannabis retail stores in Burlington.
“You are welcome to attend and speak to Council at the January 14, 2019, Committee of the Whole meeting. Note that registration to delegate is required.
“My vote will be based on:
• Results of the survey
• Summary of the Mayor’s Town Hall
• Communications to Councillors
• Public engagement from Election campaign
• Role of the Municipality – Commenting agency.
Her comment on cannabis
The provincial government has given municipalities in Ontario a one-time offer to opt out of having cannabis stores in their communities. The deadline to make this decision is Jan. 22, 2019.
• As long as we have controls around where (distanced from schools, parks and recreation centres) and how (business licensing) cannabis is distributed.
• As long as there’s an equitable share of the excise tax revenue.
• Municipalities in other provinces are seeking 40 per cent of the tax revenue, up to 50 per cent once negotiated provincial revenue targets are hit.
• I support exploring an opportunity to reduce the reliance on municipal revenue through development fees and open a new stream of revenue through tax revenue generated by retail cannabis.
• The provincial government has pledged $40 million in transitional funds to address regulation, enforcement and education. This is in response to the Cannabis Act passed November 2017 and expected private retail model for cannabis that would launch in municipalities by April 1, 2019.
Provincial law will prohibit recreational cannabis use in any public place, workplaces and motorized vehicles.
Can’t ask for much more than that.
There are a number of developments scheduled for the ward. We didn’t hear Kearns say that any of the developments she mentioned were a mistake. Nor did she get overly enthusiastic about any of them.
She gave the small audience her take and listened to what people had to say.
 Two towers: 350 units in total. New Street west of Guelph Line: :
• Building 1 (west) 223 units are planned as seniors retirement of various care levels: independent, assisted, care-taker. This includes 32 units (studio) dedicated for Memory Care living space (Alzheimer’s/Dementia Care units)
• Building 2 (east) 139 units are planned as residential condo. There was clear interest from the younger crowd for availability in this development. The unit mix consists of 97 one-bedroom units and 42 two-bedroom units.
Status: Under technical review (FYI). Statutory Meeting scheduled for January 15, 2019 at the Planning & Development Committee at City Hall.
She announced that she was going to create a ‘lobbyist” register for her office and hoped that it is something the other Councillors, and the Mayor, would emulate. She wants people to know who came knocking on her door.
 Nick Leblovic, former chair of a Waterfront Advisory Committee that bumped into a Sunset Clause, will want to be an active participant in the new Committee. Kearns will sit on the Waterfront Advisory Committee when it is set up. She thought she would serve as the Chair, that would be unusual. The Terms of reference for that Advisory committee have yet to be set out.
That is a task the Clerk’s office will do – watch for some significant changes coming from the public on this one.
There are a number of politically active people who think the Advisory Committees are a sham and want to see significant changes made in what they are expected to do and what they will have in the way of resources.
Lisa Kearns is setting the pace. It will be a while before we see what the other Council members do in the way of relating to the people that put them in office.
We will take a look at this at the end of January.
 By Pepper Parr
December 6th, 2018
BURLINGTON, ON
City hall is leaking like a sieve.
 City hall is leaking like a sieve. Numerous trusted sources have touched base with the Gazette with tips on what is taking place in a building undergoing a radical change.
All three sources, who have passed along basically the same information, have demanded that we not publish and certainly not name them. We’ve been told that the tap will get turned off if we say too much.
Fear abounds – talk too much and your career may come to an end.
Reference is made to some of the positions in the Mayor’s office that are to be filled. Mayor Meed Ward did say earlier in the week that staffing announcements would be made soon.
Sources use the phrase “her comfort zone”.
Getting the right staff people in place is critical to a Mayor. The work is demanding and what is really vital is getting people who will, to use a phrase Meed Ward used often, put truth to power. Meed Ward needs people who will tell her what she may not want to hear.
A former staff assistant to Meed Ward when she was a member of council was thought to be a great fit – but something went wrong. That staffer left Meed Ward’s office and worked within the Clerk’s office and is now back as an assistant to a new Council member.
 Pete Ward, the Mayor’s best mentor photographing Marianne Meed Ward when she was filing her 2014 nomination papers. The Mayor told us during the inauguration, that her husband was her greatest mentor; he does have exceptional strategic skills.
What politicians have to work hard to insure is that they are not living inside a bubble where they hear what they want to hear and listen to people who may not have the strength to challenge them.
Meed Ward said all the right things the evening she was sworn in; the public loved it. The Gazette was impressed.
What we are hearing from people who seem to be part of the transition to a new regime is that there is some concern with the people being considered for staff rolls.
Former Council member John Taylor used to say: Stay tuned.
 Stand By says the city motto – for how long one might ask? The Gazette might begin to use the city motto – Stand By.
Several of our sources are aghast at some of the Standing Committee chairmanships that have been made.
All seven members of Council got sworn in at the Regional level on Wednesday. Half their income is from the Region.
By Pepper Parr
December 4th, 2018
BURLINGTON, ON
There was never any doubt as to who was in charge.
There was never any doubt as to what she was going to do
And there was never any doubt as to how the audience felt about the direction Marianne Meed Ward, Mayor was taking. The applause was close to rapturous. There were at least five, heck make that six standing ovations. This was her night.
 Mayor Marianne Meed Ward and Justice Barry Quinn. The moment Justice of the Peace Barry Quinn, a former municipal Councillor himself, slipped the Chain of Office around the neck of the stunning red dress Meed Ward wore she was in the driver’s seat.
Meed Ward gave a hint as to just how well she was going to be able to deliver on her election promises when she told the audience that she would have some good news for them “tomorrow”. Expect some word on the “approved” Official Plan being in the mail from the Region and on its way back to city hall.
There was entertainment for the audience; Hayley Verral sang O’Canada, the Royal Hamilton Light Infantry performed, Dan Murray, a Burlington poet read and Dania Thurman sang to close out the evening after which everyone congregated in the family room to munch on cup Kelly’s cupcakes and cheese trays from a local provider.
 The 2018 – 2022 Burlington city council. The Mayor set out how she was going to run the city when she laid out four themes that she said would define her term of office.
1: Residents first
2: Burlington is everyone’s city
3: Protecting the city
4: Honour the trust and the commitment to serve.
For the most part the Mayor spoke extemporaneously. Marianne did not needs notes or a script, this was an evening she has spent the last ten years preparing for.
 Citizens being citizens after the Inauguration and the Inaugural address. Her theme, that respecting the residents was first and foremost, was supported with a commitment to “serve you” by providing more parks and delivering budgets that are not in the 4% annual tax increase range. “We need to do better than that” she said.
“This council is dedicated to your vision, we need to repair the trust” and added that leaders do not need to come up with all the great ideas, leaders need to create the environment that lets great ideas come from the community”.
Statements like that brought people to their feet.
Staff, said the Mayor implement the decisions council makes.
Point number 2. Burlington is an inclusive city. She wants to “fix transit “The meat behind her 3rd point, protecting the city was this: “We will not take on over-development”. The applause was instant. The Mayor added that she was pushing the reset button on the downtown plan.
Point # 3: Meed Ward wants to flood proof the city and protect the green space. She committed to fighting any effort to opening up the green space north of the Hwy 407 – Dundas demarcation line. The same comment was made about any effort to re-open the debate over an NGTA road cutting through Kilbride and Lowville.
Meed Ward gave Mary Munro, a former one term Mayor, a strong nod when she said “Mary committed to saving
Lakeshore Road and not going along with cutting down any trees to widen that road.
Meed Ward was not as successful in her efforts to save prime waterfront land from sliding into private hands.
Throughout her address she was firm in her resolve. “We heard you” said Meed Ward “and we are listening”.
“Stand firm and never back down” she added.
Statements like that make it clear that Meed Ward is firm in her commitment to lead a city council that will be significantly different than the one that was in place from 2010 to 2018.
In expanding on her 4th point Meed Ward told the audience that many felt the province holds all the cards. “Not true” she said and added that “we are going to choose our destiny.
The audience heard a slightly combative Mayor stake out her territory when she said to the audience, quoting Winston Churchill, that you “go from failure to failure without giving up” adding that she lost two elections before she went on to win three.
 Mayor Marianne Meed Ward wearing the Chain of Office for the first time. Before turning the inauguration into a meeting of City Council Meed Ward said “the cause is nothing less than our city. We need you to now go out there and do some good.”
Did Burlington get a look Monday evening at a woman who just might turn out to be a great Mayor? This country hasn’t had all that many great Mayors. Toronto did have David Crombie serve that city as Mayor; Crombie has a soft spot for Burlington and there is certainly a meeting of minds between Meed Ward and Crombie on how the city should protect its waterfront.
Those two should have lunch sometime. Crombie was a strong proponent of a Waterfront Trail – something Meed Ward has some ideas about as well.
 By Pepper Parr
December 3rd, 2018
BURLINGTON, ON
The old order changeth.
This evening a new city council will be sworn in: five of the seven member council will not be returning – two retired and three were defeated.
 Just two left standing We can’t find anyone who remembers seeing anything like this in Burlington’s history.
The Mayor was defeated, replaced by ward 2 city Councillor Marianne Meed Ward.
Councillors Dennison and Lancaster were also defeated.
Councillors Craven and Taylor retired.
Two issues dominated the election: the approving of an Official Plan that did not have wide public support and the demand for a change in the way city council engaged the public – failed to effectively respect people who delegated at city council is a better way to put it – and the lack of acceptable public engagement.
The distance between council and staff and the public made itself painfully evident in the remarks made at the final meeting of the current city council when Deputy city manager Mary Lou Tanner commented on the outgoing council and its working relationship with Staff.
City Manager James Ridge was absent.
Tanner spoke of the excellent, professional way that Staff and Council were able to work together. Saying a strong positive relationship existed doesn’t mean it did.
 Plains Road; an old suburban highway transitions into a vibrant urban main street. The contribution made by Councillors Craven and Taylor deserve comment: Plains Road is a different place today than it was when Rick Craven was first elected. And the developments taking place in the community are an improvement over what was in place when he got there.
Craven didn’t have the best of relationships with sectors of his ward; the Beachway people wish he had never been elected. A number of people don’t think he understood the mix that was needed along Plans Road.
He could never come to terms with Marianne Meed Ward who ran against him in ward 1 – he prevailed and Meed Ward moved into ward 2.
There is the suggestion that Rick Craven just could not live with the idea that he would have to work with Meed Ward on her terms. Some have suggested that is a large part of why he chose not to run for another term. Had he run he would have taken more than 50% of the votes.
The piece that he wrote and made public about Meed Ward was regrettable.
 Councillor Craven may have felt his McMaster jacket would ward off some negative comment. There will be more tall buildings but nothing any higher than the Drewlo Development that lost its building permit for a period of time when the played fast and loose with the development that had been approved.
Developers found they could work with Rick Craven. Did he compromise himself in doing so. One would be very hard pressed to point to anything that was just plain wrong in the ward.
Craven was tireless in his efforts to make sure that Aldershot was not forgotten. He has superb relationships with Staff.
He was the best chair of a Standing Committee this city has seen in some time. Yes, he was abrupt even dismissive at times but he kept the agenda going.
Publicly there was nothing touchy feely about Tick Craven. All business.
Privately he could be a funny.
 More candidate than Craven could manage? Sandra Pupatello on a trip through town looking for local support for her Liberal leadership bid. Craven was prepared to let the party romance him. He once told this reporter as we sat outside the Council Chamber at Conservation Halton that he had thought about running for Mayor.
He took a serious look at running for the provincial seat as a Liberal. Sandra Pupatello was a little too much for his taste.
Craven was usually able to take the long view and see the bigger picture – where he fell short was in explaining that bigger picture to people.
Craven is now, officially, a senior citizen. He isn’t going to sit at home and read old city council agendas. He will be a valued observer and hopefully he will tune in with comments from time to time.
There has been word that he will join one of the development organizations in the province.
 Taylor was always a careful listener John Taylor, the Dean of City Council, found that the job was getting harder and harder to do. Keeping up was proving difficult and he had the strength to realize that it was time to move on. For John Taylor the moving on is not going to be as smooth.
He will miss the people at city hall; his job as a Councillor was his life.
He was one of the true liberal voices on council and always went more than the last mile to solve a problem for a constituent.
He was probably working the telephones in the forenoon while his assistant packed up his papers for him.
Taylor wants to stay involved, has his eye on a specific appointment that he will get.
 If the public was in the room – so was John Taylor – listening carefully. He has a huge store of knowledge, he was there when the big decisions were made.
He could be cranky at times but for the most part he was genial, available and he cared.
He worked for the rural people in the North West side of the city. The provincial plans for a highway that would run through Kilbride and Lowville was not going to happen while John was the ward 3 council member.
He was the rural voice on council. His constituents loved him; community meetings in his ward were more like family get togethers.
The three members of council that were defeated at the ballot box had failed to connect with the public. Rick Goldring just didn’t hear what the vocal groups had to say. He will never be forgiven for selling that part of the waterfront between Market and St. Paul Street.
 The house on the right was built when Jack Dennison to an appeal to a Committee of Adjustment decision to the Ontario Municipal Board and won. Blair Lancaster should perhaps not have run; health issues were making it difficult for her to do the job.
Jack Dennison was able to stay in office because the number of voters on the ballot allowed him to split the vote. This time there was just the one candidate running against him and she did very well.
The house that Dennison built on the severed piece of the Lakeshore Road is up for sale; the house next door with the historical designation has been rented.
In his closing remarks Dennison said: “See you around”. Wonder where he will live?
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