> Friends/family rally to help cancer stricken Smithville mom /Pg 10 > Grimsby Lawn bowlers earn wins Pg 7 > GBF hosts “Great Buy” sale this weekend Pg 8 > Business study struggles to finish line Pg 13 Thursday, October 14, 2021 Vol. 10 Issue 24
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West Lincoln working through key planning study By Tristan Marks NewsNow West Lincoln residents had another chance to give their input into the ongoing Smithville Master Community Plan study at a second Public Information Centre (PIC) held virtually last Wednesday, Oct. 6. Township of West Lincoln staff gave an update on the plan, explaining how they made use of feedback received at the first PIC held in February of this year, and answered questions related to this new information. The project seeks to create a vision for land use in the future expanded urban boundary of Smithville. As the plan stands, the community’s current borders will expand up to Young St. to the north, west to South Grimsby Rd. 6, and to a number of plots past Townline Rd. to the south. The presentation noted that participants of the February PIC were asked for their preference of two options for assigning residential and employment zones. This time around staff moved forward with the most
preferred option, which favours slightly more residential/mixed use zoning. This is mostly concentrated along the west and south of the urban expansion, leaving a large strip of land to the north, between Reg. Rd. 20 and Young Street for urban employment lands. Staff unveiled a more detailed concept map which shows specific zoning for various kinds of residential use, community facilities, natural heritage greenspaces and so on. Consultant Steve Wever explained that under this plan, 32 per cent of the new urban area would be used for residential mixed use, 34 per cent would be left for natural heritage and 21 per cent would be used for new employment lands, leaving the rest for various other types of land use. Overall the plan is to grow the urban settlement area of Smithville to accommodate approximately 22,000 people and 5,500 jobs by 2051. The PIC also delved into plans to grow the transportation network See PIC, Page 3
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Storytime!
Last Thursday a number of young kids and their parents came out to the Fleming Branch of the Lincoln Public Library, eager to here stories read by Assistant Fire Capt. Dennis Skinner. This event, part of Fire Prevention Week, was the last of three “Storytime with Firefighters’ events hosted by the library. Marks - Photo
Shop Grimsby campaign a success: CAO By Tristan Marks NewsNow With no measurables or program milestones attached, assessing any outcome for a Town of Grimsby/Grimsby Chamber of Commerce shop local campaign is impossible, says Richard Dunda. Dunda, a member of Grimsby Economic Development Advisory Committee (GEDAC) made the comments during a presentation of the Grimsby Got It campaign at the group’s Sept 22 meeting after it was noted a $50,000 Chamber grant would be spent to extend the program. In the presentation, Grimsby CAO (chief administrative of-
ficer) Harry Schlange told the committee the progam was very successful. “Given the enormous success of the buy local campaign, staff welcome the continuation of GGI for the remainder of 2021 and look forward to working with the COC in early 2022 to determine the best way to continue the momentum gained through this campaign,” according to Schlange’s report. In the report, Schlange noted the success of the program could be measured by improved communication between the Town and the business community and a portable sign was set on Hwy. 8 at the east edge of town.
He also cited having a facebook page for Grimsby Got It (GGI) having 281 followers, an Instagram with 339 followers and 1,600 visits to the GGI website as examples of success, along with 47 businesses joining an online directory. Schlange noted that $49,000 in retail sales were attributed to the program, with $2,300 in gift cards and gift baskets being given away as incentives to get shoppers to go onine and enter receipts for draws. About $40,000 in cash and inkind resources went into achieving that result from the fourmonth campaign with $10,000 See SHOP, Page 5