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bilko@rgcmail.com Vol.21 No.2
Wednesday, April 12, 2017
FREE
Cherry Ridge 1, DSBN 0
Column Six Mr. Peanut has it in for me
In soccer field tussle, memo to school board is resounding no BY VOICE STAFF At its last meeting, Town Council voted unanimously not to engage in further discussion with the District School Board of Niagara over the Board’s request to acquire a portion of Cherry Ridge Park, situated next to the former E. W. Farr Public School in Fenwick, now undergoing renovation to reopen as the controversially renamed Wellington Heights school. Having witnessed a formidable amount of opposition, not only from residents of the Cherry Ridge neighbourhood but also throughout the entire town, and taking into consideration concerns raised by Town staff, Council decided that the wiser course was to effectively rip-up the memorandum of understanding it quietly reached
with the DSBN last summer. “Last meeting, or the meeting before, we received a petition from pretty much every household,” said Mayor Augustyn. “We listened, and we heard, and the petition was a clear ‘No.’” Councillor Gary Accursi took a tour and didn’t like what he saw. “When I went out there and looked at the park and the implications for it, I think taking a soccer field out of part of that park would personally destroy the park and really lower its usability,” he said. “Quite frankly, just around the corner we have wonderful soccer pitches that had been developed in Centennial Park and have easy access from the school.” See TUSSLE Page 11
BY JILLIAN EMERSON
Special to the VOICE
Arrival at A. K. Wigg.
VOICE PHOTO
Contest winners are Fire Chiefs for the day BY VOICE STAFF Pelham’s Fire Prevention Officer, Will Underwood, dropped off the winners of the Fire Chief for a Day poster contest, Jayne Stefanik, Grade 7, and McKenna Halsted, Grade 3, at A.K. Wigg Public School on the snowy morning of Friday, April 7 (see additional photo, page 8). The contest encouraged kids to create a drawing based on the theme, “Working Smoke Alarms Save Lives.” The two winners were celebrated by the Town at the beginning of the April 3 Town Council meeting. Underwood said the kids put a lot of effort into their posters, and came up with creative ways to help educate the public about fire safety.
“Schools are the first place we need to start educating people about fire safety,” said Underwood. Smoke alarms need to be maintained regularly, he said, which means they should be tested once a month, and batteries should be changed when Daylight Savings Time starts, and when it ends. Smoke alarms should also be replaced every 10 years, and residents should have a rehearsed home fire escape plan with two ways out of every room to ensure they don’t get trapped in a fire, he said. Underwood also said for people to be safe they need to have working carbon monoxide alarms, as they are the only way to tell if the odourless, tasteless, and colourless deadly gas is present.
A Day in the Life: Bob O'Hara hates the cold BY SAMUEL PICCOLO
Special to the VOICE
B
OB O’HA R A HA D JUST returned from his winter break and was in, for him, a bad mood. During his two-month absence, his friend Bev had taken good care of his junk shop, but her efforts to keep the interior tidy had led her to leave the larger items outside, covered by tarps and sheets. O’Hara was worried that the multi-coloured plastic patchwork would lead to complaints to the Town, and the Town would complain to his landlord, and his landlord would com-
Today is as good a day as any to let life happen, one deal at a time plain to him, and, maybe, not lease him the adjacent warehouse into which O’Hara wanted to expand. “I’d hate to lose this corner. It’s a good spot. And I’d like to get that warehouse.” Having spent two months in the Dominican Republic, where satellite television was cheap, Tennis Channel included, O’Hara had upgraded his cable package when he
returned home and was dismayed to learn that it would run him $40 a month. He said, “How is it that a third-world country has better and cheaper television than us?” And it was snowing. He was bent at the waist, shovelling with a shovel far too short. The spidered blood vessels of his face were accentuated by the cold, and his eyes, blue and aqueous on
the driest of days, had acquired in the weather an advanced degree of liquidity that made them seem almost artificial. After depositing each load of snow onto an enlarging bank, he stood upright and shook his hands to send blood to his arthritic fingers. “It was supposed to be warm when I got back. I guess I shouldn’t have run out of money so fast. It doesn’t feel good to be broke.” Still, he didn’t dwell on the negative. Instead of talking about the Tennis Channel’s expense, he talkSee A DAY IN THE LIFE Page 3
DEBBIE PINE
E
VERY PA R E N T’S worst fear is that their child will fall ill. This was a reality my own mother faced in November 1996. My father, Stephen, and his friend Mike Vaughan had gone to a cabin in Baysville, Ontario to go hunting for the week, and my mother, Sandy, and Mike’s wife, Chris, decided to join the men, each bringing their young child with them. I was just over one year old at the time, and the Vaughans’ son Lucas was almost two. Lucas was older, so he could eat toast with peanut butter, a treat I had not yet experienced. Since I was stuck eating my toast with normal butter, Lucas generously gave me a bite of his toast when our moms weren’t looking. When my mom turned back to check on us she saw me chewing on Lucas’ toast. Almost instantly I broke out in big red hives all over my body. The nearest hospital was 35 KM away in Bracebridge and the men had taken the car when they went hunting. Not knowing what else to do, my mom put me in her bed and sat beside me for hours and just watched me sleep. Thankfully after a very long nap I woke up and See ALLERGY Page 10
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The Voice of Pelham, April 12, 2017
IN THE NEWS
PUBLISHER’S CORNER by Dave Burket
Stranger than fiction...On April Fool’s Day we posted a satirical story on our website. It was headlined, Third pad announced for new Pelham Community Centre The article’s first lines were: Fonthill, ON (April 1) A third pad is coming to Pelham’s new Community Centre—but not the type of pad you might think. Late Friday, at a press conference hastily convened at Pelham Town Hall after Council voted its approval, Mayor Dave Augustyn announced that the Town of Pelham would partner with Space-X founder Elon Musk to add a “world class” launch pad to the new Pelham Community Centre currently taking shape in East Fonthill. The story’s authorship was credited to “April Foelles.” On Facebook it reached some 3,600 viewers, was shared 12 times, garnered 37 Likes, and drew 21 comments—all of which were positive, save for three grumpy malcontents. So, to summarize, a story that one would think was absurd on its face was posted on April Fool’s Day, clearly dated “April 1,” was credited to a writer named “April Foelles,” and, not to belabor the point, described how Pelham was about to add a rocket launching pad to the new Community Centre. Yet still, incredibly, some readers fell for it, or at least fell for it up until the mention of how property taxes would increase by $46,000 annually, per taxpayer. Only then did the penny drop for
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some. This is worth pausing over. In retrospect, it makes sense. It seems that when it comes to the new Community Centre complex, with its sudden 9,000 sq. ft. expansion, its on-again-off-again $200,000 “gateway art” piece, and fresh questions over its finances, literally nothing truly surprises us any more. Not even the addition of a rocket launching pad. To his credit, the Mayor tweeted his appreciation for the joke, and the Community Centre’s Facebook page shared the post. (Media alert: There is a Community Centre Facebook page.) I suspect that we have incoming Town communications specialist Marc MacDonald to credit for that one. We look forward to introducing you to him in a coming issue. The pleasure is in the words...Sam Piccolo’s Day in the Life… profile this week of “Chile” Bob O’Hara is an outstanding read. Sam is a couple of weeks away from graduating from Brock, and he's talking about going to grad school to study political science. We think he should move to Montreal, lock himself up in a garret, and write the Great Canadian Novel. His is a rare talent. Maybe we'll give them the Puzzler to solve... Pelham Library’s Trivia Night is coming up on Saturday, April 22. Don’t miss out on this hilariously corny event. Pizza and terrible jokes included, and for a great cause.
Three-peat for Summerfest
For the third year in a row, Summerfest has been selected as one of Festival and Events Ontario’s Top 100 Festivals throughout the province. Parks and Recreation Ontario also awarded the operations team for Pelham's "Thursday Night Experience" with the Award of Excellence for their work making the weekly event a success in 2016.
Time to get dirty
For this year’s Pelham Mudfest Challenge in Niagara, down and dirty meets bubbly and bouncy. The 2017 version of the fun run, set for Sat., May 6 at Bissell’s Hideaway Resort in Ridgeville, includes even more obstacles this year, enhanced by a few surprises, courtesy of Niagara Inflatables. “Who says you can’t be a kid again?” asks Paul Allen, president of the event organizer, the Rotary Club of Fonthill. “Every year we try to work out something a little different from the year before, so we figured if the kids’ course is getting inflatable obstacles, the grown-ups might want them too!” A total of 26 obstacles, including natural and built elements, are combined over a six-kilometre course throughout Bissell’s picturesque property in the Short Hills. Besides new obstacles and even more mud, a whole new course has been added for children as well. Those
freshments, with food available for spectator purchase. The Shriners, will also be bringing some surprises for the children. The $80 fee for the full course allows mudders to participate, and covers the cost of lunch, entertainment and a souvenir T-shirt. The children’s ticket, which also includes lunch and a T-shirt, is $25. For more information, go to pelhammudfest.ca
ages six to 12 can run their own shorter course with obstacles such as haystacks and tires. The longer course is for anyone 13 years of age, or older. Participants are encouraged to register as a team, so they can to work together through some of the more challenging elements, such as the hydro wall climb. This year’s proceeds will be supporting Big Brothers Big Sisters of South Niagara, to assist with the agency’s programming. Bigs and Littles will also have the chance to participate. Organizers encourage anyone thinking of participating to register now, since some of the set race times are nearly full, while others are about half-full already. Waves of racers go every 20 minutes between 10:20 a.m. and 1 p.m. Spectators are welcome. The Niagara Shrine Club will cater the lunch and re-
Impaired driving collision in Port Colborne
Last Saturday at approximately 7:30 PM, police say that a 2008 Whire ford F350 pickup was travelling westbound on Main Street West in the city of Port Colborne when it ran off the roadway and struck a number of the City or Port Colborne's concrete planters, a light-post and a tree at the north side of the roadway. The vehicle came to rest at which time a male exited the drivers seat of the vehicle and a female exited the passenger side of the vehicle. The parties proceeded to walk away from the scene but were followed by a witness. Police intercepted the two with the assistance of the witness and the male was found to be under the influence of alcohol, according to the police. As a result, 29-year-old Trevor Johnson, of Niagara Falls, was arrested and subsequently charged with Impaired Operation of a motor vehicle and Operating a motor vehicle in excess of 80mgs of alcohol.
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Vol.20 No.48
DSBN wants portion of Town park
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The Comfort Maple myth
Request made of community still peeved at name change
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Special to the VOICE
W
BALLOONING INTEREST Grade 6 student Jinja Shepherd explains her experiment on static electricity at the Glynn A. Green Public School's annual science fair last Friday. See story, page 3. NATE SMELLE PHOTO
Public meeting tonight on school issues BY VOICE STAFF As questions continue to mount regarding an email that Pelham Mayor Dave Augustyn quietly sent to a District School Board of Niagara trustee last summer, Augustyn has agreed to address the issue at a public meeting scheduled for this evening, Wednesday, Feb. 8, in Fenwick. Nancy Beamer, speaking for “Names Matter,” a Pelham citizens group lobbying the DSBN to reverse its decision to rename a local public school, confirms that the meeting will be held at Fire Station #2, known locally as the Fenwick Fire Hall, starting at 7:00 PM. While the Mayor has agreed to ap-
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Under pressure, Mayor to address email revelation, other E. W. Farr matters pear, says Beamer, DSBN officials associated with the school-naming process have either declined to attend or have not yet responded to the group’s invitation. DSBN Chair, Dale Robinson, to whom Augustyn’s email was addressed last June, has declined to appear, says Beamer, asserting that she would be
“on holidays.” The Voice was unable to independently confirm Robinsion’s intentions. She did not respond to repeated requests for comment on E.W. Farr-related matters before presstime. Beamer, whose group maintains an email list of some 580 residents, says that all members of the public are invited and encouraged to attend the meeting. “We would especially welcome parents and children who are unhappy with the name change,” she says, referring to the contentious decision by the DSBN to consolidate two Pelham See MEETING back page
HEN I WAS young, my father and I would go for long drives along the rural routes of Pelham. We’d blast George Thurgood and roll down the windows because we loved the smell of the breeze, the sensation of crisp Niagara wind beating our cheeks and tangling our hair against our summer-kissed skin. My father was not a sentimental man. He worked in factories and had a Gordon Lightfoot mustache and never shed tears over injuries. Yet something about the Pelham landscape, the hilly backdrop to his childhood and the childhoods of our ancestors, drew him in. He’d stop by a farm or a gathering of woods and, surrendering his manly veneer, tell me a story about the town. This place is precious. This is the earth that granted us life. Here is the place where we happened upon love or here is a site of devastation. On one particular drive sometime in the late ‘90s we stopped at a tree with a plaque. “This tree looks dead,” I said to my father. “It sure is getting there, Julie.” The Comfort Maple is supposedly Canada’s oldest See COLUMN SIX Page 14
Vol.20 No.39
Wednesday, November 30, 2016
FREE
Oops: No fire trucks for you
Column Six
BY VOICE STAFF The District School Board of Niagara is requesting that the Town of Pelham cede a portion of Cherry Ridge Park for use as a soccer field to serve the students of the new Wellington Heights Public School, formerly the E. W. Farr Memorial Public School, in Fenwick. Currently under renovation and expansion, the new school will combine students and staff from the previous school and Pelham Centre, where classes are being held while construction continues. Two letters, containing virtually identical text but signed by different authorities, were sent last week to nearby residents of the park, as well as to parents of Pelham Centre students. “The DSBN is currently building onto Wellington Heights Public School on Alsop Drive,” states the letter. “The size of the school's addition means the existing small soccer field will be eliminated. The Town and the Board have been discussing the possibility of working together to create a field for both the school and the
CELEBRATING OUR 20TH YEAR
Wednesday, February 8, 2017
Haist Street traffic-calming measure a little too effective
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Column Six
Growing up British
BY HEATHER McLAREN ROHRER
Special to the VOICE
Repair measures underway last week to correct a construction error in the chicane. truck or an ambulance?” he said. While waiting for the contractor to return to fix
the mistake, the Town has taken measures to temporarily allow passage for vehicles through the neigh-
VOICE PHOTO
bourhood in the short-term. Manager of Public Works Ryan Cook said that after discovering the issue with
the chicane the morning it first opened, the Town
BY NATE SMELLE
The VOICE
Representatives from the Pelham Summerfest committee Candy Ashbee and Bill Gibson presented council with a final report on the 2016 Summerfest at the Council meeting on Monday, Nov. 21. Prompted by a story in the Voice in August about a merchant petition to move Summerfest from Pelham Street, in September Town staff met with various stakeholders to hear their complaints, promising at the time that changes in the way Summerfest was mounted would be con-
sidered. The main concerns identified during the community engagement process were security, parking, ensuring customer can access all businesses in town, and liability for damages. How to get all Pelham Street businesses to participate and finding ways to make it beneficial for them to set up a booth were also determined to be of high priority for the committee as they plan for next year’s event. Gibson told Council that the committee is addressing these concerns in a variety of ways. To improve parking, they intend to create bet-
ter signage for out-of-town visitors to designated parking areas and shuttle services. To make participation in Summerfest more enticing to local businesses, they plan to implement a tiered-charge for booths. Under the new system, Pelham Street business owners will be charged the least, other local businesses will pay a slightly higher fee, and vendors from outside Pelham will pay the most. In response to more specific issues for individual businesses, they will also slightly alter the footprint of the event and make adjustments to security. Another way the committee plans
See CHICANE Page 5
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to improve the 2017 Summerfest is by sponsoring and working with the organizers of the Thursday Night Bandshell Concert series to select the artist performing on the first night of Summefest. They also intend to make more use of the smartphone app they launched in 2016. "We are really going to push it this year," Ashbee said. “It really helps to get people to see what events there are so they can plan out where they are going. We will be able to actually help the merchants and local businesses adSee CHANGES Page 5
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Part 2 of 2: Coronation to embarkation
BY VOICE STAFF
A construction error was discovered following the opening of a traffic calming chicane on Haist Street north of Hwy 20 last Monday that prevented large vehicles from passing through. One resident living in the neighbourhood said he contacted the Town after seeing a small schoolbus get stuck as it tried to get through the new traffic calming measure. Later that day while driving behind a cement truck, he said that he became concerned for the public’s safety when the truck had to turn around because it couldn’t get through. “If a small school bus and a cement truck can’t make it through what about a fire
Glenwood F., A. ST. JEAN, 32, Welland Christopher R. AIRHARDT, 33, Welland Jesse A. SEVERY, 27, St. Catharines Joshua SWIFT, 27, Belle River Wade W. SCAPILLATI, 28, St. Catharines Raymond DURAND, 51, St. Catharines Christian J. HORVAT, 22, St. Catharines Asif FAIZ, 37, Fridley MN Adam G. COX, 27, Niagara Falls Jason R. COUNSELL, 36, St. Catharines Jared A. GORDON, 39, Port Colborne Edson PLAISIR, 40, Welland Craig W. WILLIAMS, 53, No Fixed Abode Peter A. ANTONIOU, 21, Welland John L. AUDET, 23, Niagara Falls Bradley J. SWALM, 38, Fort Erie
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In an effort to bring further attention and deterrence to driving while impaired by alcohol or drugs, the Niagara Regional Police Service reports the names of those people who are charged with an alleged criminal impaired driving offence in the Region. None of the following charges have been proved in court. In addition to being charged, these individuals are also bound by a Ministry of Transportation 90-Day Administrative Driver’s License Suspension and are prohibited from operating a motor vehicle on a roadway. The public is encouraged to contact the Niagara Regional Police Service Traffic Safety Hotline or Crime Stoppers to report those who are driving in contravention of the suspension. The following individuals have been charged criminally with impaired driving by alcohol or drugs, driving with a blood alcohol concentration above 80 mgs of alcohol in 100 ml of blood, or refusing to provide a breath / blood sample.
The Niagara Regional Police Service is committed to reducing impaired driving offences through education and the apprehension of offenders through enforcement programs like RIDE. Impaired driving is still the leading cause of criminal deaths in Canada and destroys thousands of lives every year.
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FTER LUNCH ON Saturday, Mum and Dad had my afternoon cut out for me. Mum had more brass than anyone I knew, and it had to be cleaned. In addition there was the set of silver fish-knives and forks which were never used, but which had to be cleaned and put back in their velvetlined box. Next was a walk to the newsagents to pay for the daily delivery of the Daily Mirror. As I said, Dad was a printer, but when he was 37 he had been rejected for a job, as being too old, by the printers of the Beano. For that reason, my favourite comic was not allowed in the house, but while I was paying the papers, the newsagent let me have a 'shoofty' at the Beano. I'd explained my predicament and he understood completely. Sundays were different again. Dad would play golf on summer mornings and billiards in winter. Then he'd stop for a 'refresher' at the local and would pick up the prawns, cockles, winkles or whelks we'd be having for tea later. Meanwhile, Mum was roasting the 'joint' and potatoes. I got to make the Yorkshire pud, and mint
See COLUMN SIX Page 14
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Vol.20 No.32
Wednesday October 12, 2016
FREE
Apple Day comes to Fonthill
BY VOICE STAFF
The goal is to have these youth develop into confident and well-rounded individuals
ceives them, enabling youth to have experiences that build character, challenge them, and allow them to try new things. The goal is to have these youth develop into confident and wellrounded individuals, better prepared for success. Apple Day helps to achieve that.”
“Any money raised during Apple Day goes towards improving the Scouting program by providing more outdoor adventures for youth, camping equipment, canoes and paddles, training and many other endeavours that the youth want to experience,” says Marie. Scouts Canada has some 100,000 members across Canada, and carries out programs for boys, girls
Joining their principal, Karen Simpson, at the Sept. 19 Council meeting as part of a delegation from EL Crossley Secondary School, students Abby Loewen and Neenah Williams presented Council with a list of reasons that they should immediately approve the construction of the new sidewalk proposed along Hwy. 20. The asphalt side-
walk/trail is slated to be built between the south side of the road from Timmsdale Crescent to the high school. Because of the large volume of motor vehicle traffic travelling at high speeds through this area, and because of the necessity for students to tread this path on a daily basis, many residents would like to see the sidewalk go in sooner than later. After delivering to Council a petition containing
Many residents would like to see the sidewalk go in sooner than later the names of 450 students calling for a safer walk to school, Simpson handed the
podium over to Loewen and Williams to plead their case. Loewen told Council that because there are a lot of students who have work placements and coop placements during the school year, this is the only route for many of them to travel. As one of the students facing this predicament, Williams said she has had no other option but to walk along the dangerous highway.
H EATHER AND P ENNY L ANE S ALES R EPRESENTATIVES
BY JOHN SWART
VOICE Correspondent
and youth ages 5-25. This year the 3rd Fonthill Group, which includes Beavers to Ventures (youth ages 5- 25) will be hitting the streets to drum-up support. Over the weekend, Scouts will be set up in Fonthill outside Sobeys, Tim Hortons, Target Gas station, Fonthill Shopping Plaza and the Pioneer Gas station at the corner of Hwys 20 and 24.
Town Council approves sidewalk to serve E. L. Crossley BY NATE SMELLE
The VOICE
www.pennylanesold.com
T
Second year Beaver with the 3rd Fonthill Group, Russell Letford offers a fresh apple to shoppers in Pelham during the 2015 Apple Day campaign. SUPPLIED PHOTO
A longtime Canadian tradition, Apple Day began in 1932 in Saint John, New Brunswick, when Scouts handed out 21,000 apples as a way to say thank you to the community. In return for their generosity, many people offered them donations. From then on Scouts have reached out through Apple Day to raise funds for their programs.
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Column Six It doesn’t get better than Autumn
Longtime Scouting tradition dates to 1932
While shopping in Fonthill between Friday and Sunday, keep an eye out for Beavers, Cubs and Scouts in front of local stores with bushels of apples. As part of the annual Apple Day campaign, Scouting youth of all ages will be trading apples for donations. The yearly fundraising drive is an important way for young Scouts to connect with the communities they are serving, says Leah Marie of Scouts Canada. “The Apple Day campaign holds a great tradition of being able to have youth interacting within the communities they live in,” she says. “All of the Apple Day donations stay directly within the group that re-
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“I start work at 2:30 PM and school lets out at 2:15 PM so I can’t take any other route,” Williams explained. “I have had friends, family, teachers and other community members reach out to me in the past about how this is unsafe and how there should be another alternative for us.” Looking ahead to winter, when she will need to walk this path three or four times See SIDEWALK Page 2
HERE IS NO BETTER time to cycle than Fall. It matters not whether you’re new to the sport, a seasoned recreational cyclist, racer, touring rider or mountain biker; we all have reason to look forward to autumn. Summer’s heat has faded, and the streams of sweat that ran from soggy helmets into our eyes are now just slight perspiration. Fitness is peaking from lots of saddle time, making those tough climbs of Spring a breeze in Autumn. It’s hard to beat the feeling of beginning a crisp, cool Fall ride with a slight shiver, knowing your efforts will soon warm you perfectly. The hues of Autumn are outstanding. A Pelham route as simple as following our southern boundary is one that would make most Toronto cyclists jealous, especially when our forests and fields are ablaze with colour. Begin from Harold Black Park, and zig-zag south along Effingham Rd toward the Welland River. If you’re new to cycling, it’s important to know south is the direction away from any hills. If you avoid the morning and evening weekday rush hours caused by those travelling through Pelham between Wainfleet See AUTUMN Page 3
Indulgence Bakery Mossimo’s Pelham Street Grille Keith’s Restaurant Fenwick Pie Company Sobeys Fonthill DeVries Fruit Farm Beamer’s Hardware & TV Fonthill Library Black Pearl Fish & Chips Bob’s Boys Antiques Moku’s Fonthill Fitness Curves McDonald’s Fonthill Legion Semenuk’s Gas Bar Target Store Tim Horton’s Giant Tiger Shoppers Drug Mart Zee Lube Express Care Lazy Loon Minor Bros Stores Avondale Stores A-1 Market Sobeys South Pelham Broken Gavel Restaurant Picard’s Peanuts Petro Canada Mtvl. Hwy. Renewed Thrift & Vintage Ridge Berry Farm
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The Voice of Pelham, April 12, 2017
Page 3
I just couldn't take it any more. I felt trapped. I still have nightmares where I wake up, feeling like I need to escape.
Bob O'Hara is the master of his Ridgeville domain.
ART VANDELAY PHOTO
A Day in the Life: Bob O'Hara continued from Page 1 ed about tennis. Instead of complaining about the cold, he promoted snow’s advantages. “The cowboys are going to be out in their cars today. It’s a good snow for doughnuts and drifting. I used to be a cowboy—until I sold that cowboy car, my ’66 Camaro convertible, so I could travel. You don’t need anything when you’re travelling.” O’Hara has had his junk shop in Ridgeville’s downtown—if five stores can be really called a downtown—for a year and a half, but he has been, in his words, “a junker,” since he was a kid. His “junking” began when he started buying and selling odds and ends in the schoolyard, and has persisted ever since—across three jobs, six decades, and three continents. O’Hara’s shop, a long disused filling station whose basement still carries the hint of petroleum, is crammed with everything that anyone has ever wanted or not wanted at a yard sale: old lamps and yellowed Playboys, sports jerseys of players long-retired, ladies’ jewelry, machetes, and pellet guns. Posters are stuck to the walls and hang from strings strung across the room; there are bins of dollar watches and rows of ten dollar watches. The shop’s frontage, with its tarps and sheets, is no less chaotic. It’s at the eastern end of Ridgeville’s five-store strip, a flatroofed, utilitarian structure that seems to buckling in upon itself. It’s next to a cafe that sends over wafts of fresh baking fragrance in the morning, and, on good days, customers in the afternoon. During the day the pavement in front of his shop is covered with claw-footed bathtubs of chipped enamel, with watering cans and petrol cans, with industrial signs and street signs and signs of caution, with dressers and drawers,
with antique ladders only the devout would climb. The disorientation felt by visitors entering for the first time makes it all the more surprising that O’Hara likes this pandemonium. He loves all of his things; he is attached to none of them. He was not upset that most of what was in the shop when he left for the Dominican had been sold and replaced with things Bev had brought in. He was annoyed, however, that she hadn’t put price tags on most of the new stock. When it came time to haggle with customers—which is O’Hara’s preferred way to do business—he didn’t know whether his price matched what Bev had in mind. O’Hara will almost always reduce a price, even if an item is tagged, and always concludes his concessions by telling the buyer to, “Get out of here,” before he changes his mind, and not to tell anyone or else, “The whole town will come here looking for a deal.” He likes to move things fast, and keeps his objectives shortterm. Spencer Burton, who coowns another vintage store down the road in Fenwick, once wanted to buy a hat from O’Hara, but the price was too high. Burton returned a week later, saw the hat still there, and then bought it for half of what O’Hara had wanted the week before. O’Hara explained that the rent had been paid and so prices, at least until the next cheque was due, were going down. As baffled as Burton is by O’Hara’s business practice, O’Hara is confused by Burton’s. “I go down to his store and try and buy things from him, and he won’t sell it!” he said. O’Hara will proudly tell customers who inquire about a particular object that he will sell them anything in the store, including the store itself. “If someone wants to buy the whole thing, I’d do it. I’d just move right along and start
again.” Bob O’Hara is used to starting again. When he was 16, in the early ‘60s, he was bored of school and so he dropped out. Lying about his age, he joined the army. After three years in West Germany, he left the army and came home to Welland, starting work at Fleet Steel. Four years later, in 1966, after he had “met a girl and had a kid—the best thing that ever happened to me,” he went to General Motors in St. Catharines, assembling transmissions. O’Hara hated it there. The vibrations of the machines stayed with him, even at home, and he says that a coolant used in the production of transmissions would get all over him and his coworkers, making them lose their hair. He is convinced that this coolant, which they called “dope,” is what caused the cancer and deaths of coworkers on the line, of whom only two remain. After 22 years, he quit. “I just couldn’t take it any more. I felt trapped. I still have nightmares where I wake up feeling like I need to escape. I wouldn’t even have made it that long if it wasn’t for the marijuana. None of us would’ve.” As O’Hara completed an inspection pass around his exterior stock, a delivery van pulled into the driveway. A man, greying and dishevelled, but clean-shaven, bounded down from the cab and shook O’Hara’s hand, effusively welcoming him home. “My buddy Reno!” exclaimed O’Hara. Reno’s arrival—for no purpose other than to hang out—was more than reason enough to stop shovelling, since, as Reno noted, the snow was falling so quickly that by the time the shovelling was finished the ground where it had begun was covered again. The two went inside, stomping snow from their boots, and sat down behind the counter. O’Ha-
ra typically tries to air the shop of its antique must, but the day’s weather meant that the doors had been closed, and the earthy odour of decay was stronger than usual. The radio was on, playing tracks from the ‘70s, and O’Hara hummed along, out-of-key, as he crouched down to pick up two cans of Bud near his feet. “11:30 for a beer?” Taking off his gloves and rubbing his hands together, Reno said,“That’s too early for me!” O’Hara was insistent: “Look at it outside! No one’s going to be coming in here today.” Finally, Reno took the can, and, cracking it open, asked O’Hara how his vacation had been. “It was perfect. Look at my tan. There was all the sun you could want. You know, Canadian women don’t like you so much when you’re 73. But down there they don’t mind.” Reno said something in reply and O’Hara asked him to repeat it. “You don’t have your hearing aids in,” Reno said. “Yeah, my daughter took them,” O’Hara said. “We had a big fight about it when I came home. Those are twenty-five-hundred bucks, I wanted to sell them. She said that she’d take care of them until until I really needed them.” Reno disagreed. “You need them, Bob. All that time in the factories did your ears in. How you going to make deals with people if you can’t hear them?” Reno had a point. Making deals is the core of O’Hara’s business. The real reason he was willing to sell the whole shop is that he knows that his true business is not the stuff he has but the people he knows––if he were to sell the whole shop he would only have to make a few phone calls before he found another estate or two to clear out, and the people would follow. O’Hara’s name is so well-known in the Niagara junk scene that people come searching for him to unload their things. Soon after he returned from vacation, he was in his shop when an aged woman, white-haired and stooped, entered and said, “You’re Bob, I presume? I’ve been looking all over for you. I’ve got some stuff to sell.” O’Hara introduced himself, explained his prolonged absence, asked for her name—he is a man of impeccable etiquette—and then followed her out to her truck. Tina, one of O’Hara’s friends who sells at his shop, and who has known him from the flea market scene for close to a decade, pulled on a cigarette and watched sadly as O'Hara looked at what was in the woman’s truck. “We just finished getting rid of all the big stuff he buys before he came back. Now he’s going to
pick up more beds and furniture that takes up space. We try to talk him out of it. But you know that expression, ‘You can’t teach an old dog new tricks.’ That’s Bob.” She had pointed out a subtle contradiction in his character. O’Hara is always willing to start again—in new places, without things—but his philosophy of junking has stayed the same since his days on the playground: Buy what you like, and sell it fast. O’Hara left General Motors in 1988 after those 22 years and started selling his junk full-time at flea markets around Niagara. And then his wife died, suddenly. He sold all his things, including his Camaro, and moved to Florida, where he lived illegally, selling junk and cleaning out estates in the state where so many Americans go to retire—and to die. O’Hara liked it in Florida; it was warm, the tennis was outdoors, and business was good, but after 10 years he was arrested for driving a “hot” truck (which he had rented, and says he didn’t know was stolen) and was deported back to Canada. The immigration officers drove him right to the airplane. Canada was still cold, so through his tennis connections O’Hara found work with the Niagara Academy of Tennis, a private school in Vineland, which dispatched him to South America to find students. He spent five years recruiting in Chile, where he found few who could afford to move to Vineland and pay the Academy’s tuition. The weather was nice there, though. And there was lots of junk. Reno and O’Hara finished their beers and crushed the cans. They stood up. “You let me know if you find anyone who wants to go in on the warehouse here with me,” O’Hara said to him. “Will do, Bob,” Reno said. When he opened the door to leave, a sudden gust belched a sheet of snow inside. “Yeah, I gotta get home too,” O’Hara mumbled to himself. “Nobody’s going to be going by here today. I’ll go see if the Tennis Channel is coming in.” O’Hara turned off the radio and hit the lights. He opened up the ledger book behind the counter, flipped to the day, and paused for a minute. “I’ll write here, ‘Tuesday, snowstorm.’” He closed the book and put it back on the shelf, flipped the sign in the window to “Closed.” He pulled on his coat and hat and walked out the door, letting a little more snow inside, seeming to the world a man who had inadvertently aspired to, and accidentally achieved a peculiar luxury: that of an existence independent of, and utterly unaffected by, the specifics of the future. ♦
Bissell’s Hideaway, Pelham Ontario Fun for all 6 to 100, Kids Fun Run, Adult Mud Run, lunch & more! Sign up online now! In Support Of:
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Page 4
The Voice of Pelham, April 12, 2017
www.thevoiceofpelham.ca
OPINION
The opinions expressed in submitted commentary and letters to the editor are those of the contributors and not necessarily those of the Voice of Pelham.
The Voice of Pelham is a 1211858 Ontario Limited publication David Burket, Publisher 2-1428 Pelham St., P.O. Box 1489, Fonthill, ON L0S1E0
As We See It No rush to judgment—Let the Audit Committee do its job
A
P E L H A M homeowner offers a summary we all know: In March, she used $14 dollars worth of natural gas in her home, yet the bill was $60. In February she used $95 dollars worth of electricity, yet the bill was $175. And she would still have been on the hook to the Town of Pelham for $43, for the months of January and February, even if she hadn't used a single drop of water. This masking of the true cost of goods and services is an aspect of life we’ve grudgingly endured, if not accepted as legitimate. To coin a phrase, there are lies, damned lies, and fees. It’s little wonder then that when a politician, or political body, or monopoly claims that they will complete X proposal for Y dollars, we instinctively scoff. We cynically wonder how they’ll manage to hoodwink the consumer or taxpayer this time—whether legally, by stretching the definition of legality, or illegally. Cynicism is corrosive. It eats through the public trust. It weakens our collective belief in fairness and accountability. In short, we expect to be lied to. But in the end, a harsh truth is better than a comforting lie. The public’s
patience with institutional Three-card Monte games is coming to an end at all levels of government, whether it’s a Hydro sale, an NPCA audit, or a municipal project’s financing.
There are lies, damned lies, and fees When it comes to the current debate over the Town's methods of financing its new Community Centre complex, we would do well to keep in mind some commonsense proverbs, such as, “Where there’s smoke there may be fire,” and, “Those who live in glass houses ought not to throw stones.” This newspaper will not be used as anyone’s proxy, a point we made emphatically clear last week at a sit-down meeting and interview with Regional Councillor Tony Quirk, who, with Regional Councillor David Barrick and allied Councillors, is questioning Pelham’s recent financial practices. The Voice
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is interested in the facts, not the spin. We will not be manipulated by any side. Mayor Augustyn asserts that Regional Council’s push is politically motivated, that it is payback for Augustyn’s own pushing into the affairs of the NPCA board and other matters. That looks about right to us. However, it’s not the entire truth. Augustyn’s questioning of NPCA practices doesn’t mean he doesn’t have questions of his own to answer in Pelham’s potentially glass house. No matter the motivations, Regional Council’s Audit Committee is now set to address the practices undertaken by the Town in its Community Centre financing, particularly regarding the use of Development Charges credits. Between now and the Committee’s June meeting there will be time for the smoke to clear, to see whether there are flames, whether there’s a pile of glowing embers where an ill-advised scheme used to be, or whether there’s nothing to worry the taxpayer at all, as asserted by the Mayor, CAO Ottaway, and Town Council. Let’s hope that at the end of the day it was a false alarm—blown smoke, and nothing more.
Letters Positivity, not negativity Congratulations to Town Council for having the courage and vision to see all of the current developments to the build stage. The Community Centre and Fonthill Marketplace, to name two, are projects that the citizens of the Town of Pelham should be proud of, not constantly berate and criticize. I would like to applaud the Town's forward-thinking regarding improving the facilities and services offered. I realize that the costs of these projects are substantial, but for growth to occur, and to keep up with what other Towns offer their residents, it is necessary. These developments are called progress, and projects which the Town of Pelham was desperately in need of.
I do not need to reiterate in this letter about the reasons why Pelham needed these developments. To those naysayers and others who seem to hold a grudge, we are seeing property values increase dramatically, new families are being drawn to this community and we have the opportunity to encourage our Town Council as they endeavour to make our little part of the world relevant in today's economy. I encourage other Pelham residents to share their appreciation and support for our Town Council. Paul Wilson Fonthill
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Letters
The Voice of Pelham, April 12, 2017
COMMENTARY / OP-ED Regional Councillor Brian Baty
continued
Rejection of land-grab applauded I am sure I speak for many in the Cherry Ridge subdivision and the Town of Pelham when I want to thank Town Council for unanimously turning down the DSBN land-grab request to take over a portion of Cherry Ridge Park. Thank you for carefully considering this matter, taking into account the Town staff report and listening to the people who you represent. Your decision truly reflects what was in the best interest of the Town and the residents. I would also like to thank the Voice for its excellent coverage of this matter. On the other hand, shame on you DSBN. Your arrogant attitude on several issues is a public relations disaster. You deceived the residents of Pelham when it came to the process of changing the name of E.W. Farr, telling everyone that the majority of input wanted to change the name to Wellington Heights. Despite numerous petitions and a public outcry, you still refuse to change your mind and have in fact already removed E.W. Farr signs from the school property. A town hall meeting was held on February 8 to discuss the name change and your attempted takeover of a Town park. Despite being invited to attend, you refused to send a representative. You have made absolutely no attempt to meet with concerned citizens to address any of the concerns
Page 5
Can you explain how your survey showed the exact opposite of the other two surveys? within the community. In a letter sent to the Town of Pelham dated 24 February 2017, signed by Stacy Veld, a copy of your slanted survey was attached. How interesting that you claim the majority of respondents were in favour of the soccer field in Cherry Ridge. Your results are completely opposite of two other surveys. A survey done of Cherry Ridge residents showed almost 95% of homeowners asked were opposed. A survey done by the Voice, available to all residents of Pelham, showed 87% opposed. Can you explain how your survey showed the exact opposite of the other two surveys? In the same letter Stacy Veld wrote, and I quote, " Should the Town decide not to proceed with this partnership, the DSBN will construct the soccer field solely See REJECTED back page
The underbelly of politics
P
UBLIC COMMENTARY on civic affairs is beneficial if the facts reported are verifiable and credible. That value diminishes when unsubstantiated comments or ulterior motives cloud the intent. It becomes difficult for the average citizen to distinguish the two approaches. One letter to the Voice last week is concise, pithy and cites factual sources of information related to the “Sunshine List” and the resultant impact on Town of Pelham senior staff compensation. Those facts are quickly verifiable from the source and may be rebutted, if necessary. On the other hand, a piece entitled, “Commentary/Op-Ed: Time for a Political Reckoning at the NPCA,” is littered with accusations and insinuations that seem to be pre-
sented as facts about the NPCA. As a board member of the NPCA, I have seen versions of these matters in print and in verbal presentations before. The NPCA issued a defamation suit against the author. The suit requests a retraction and apology for two items which were not factual (those items were not present in the Op-Ed piece). The suit then requests that there be an identification of the origin of those comments and an order to cease and desist. The NPCA unanimously requested a third party to review all aspects of the NPCA. A Special Meeting supported a direction to commence Requests For Proposals (RFPs) to pursue this matter independently. Those RFPs will be received and acted upon this
Not once did Mayor Augustyn, or Pelham Town Council, request my input week. During the last several months, several citizens and councils have commented on the NPCA. Not once did Mayor Augustyn,
or Pelham Town Council, request my input or commentary on such undertakings. That is also true for my fellow board members in other municipalities. This is what I refer to as the “underbelly of politics.” Rumours, suppositions and accusations are considered as facts and, without consultation or fact-checking, are acted upon unilaterally. I eagerly await the third-party review of the last several years of the See UNDERBELLY back page
Complimentary seminars presented by Financial Advisor Nicolle Lalonde of Edward Jones in Fonthill at the PELHAM PUBLIC LIBRARY Wednesday April 19th from 1:00pm – 3:00pm Making Your Money Last: 10 Principles for Living in Retirement This seminar is designed to help individual investors successfully transition into and live their life in retirement.
Saturday APRIL 22, 2017 9 am to 11 am
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Page 6
The Voice of Pelham, April 12, 2017
Letters
www.thevoiceofpelham.ca
continued
Let's compare apples to apples The Mayor has a fondness for comparing Pelham to other towns in the region for things like taxes, water rates and preserving the natural environment. Comparisons can be useful, so how does the new Community Centre compare to other like projects? For this comparison the Community Centre in Pelham will be compared to the recently completed Meridian Centre in St. Catharines. The criteria will be financing. The Region is investigating the level of debt being incurred for our Centre and our Town officials are not happy about this. Is there an
issue around financing this project? The question being raised is the ability of the taxpayers of Pelham to afford the new Community Centre. As it stands, the Town has assumed the full cost of $36 million for this project, a large sum, but how large in comparative terms? Recently the City of St. Catharines completed the Meridian Centre Arena at a cost of $52.5 million. Some funding was gathered from the following sources: $17 million from their Civic Fund, $7.5 million from fundraising and naming rights, and $1 million from
Spring Tea will be hosted at Holy Trinity Church 1557 Pelham Street, Fonthill on Wednesday, April 19, 2017 from 1:30 pm to 3:30 pm.
The Town has assumed 25% more debt than St. Catharines
the gas tax. The taxpayers have a “mortgage” of $27 million to pay back. With 59,200 households to draw from, that is $456 per household, a manageable sum. Pelham, on the other hand, has 6,600 households. With $36 million of debt, each will owe $5,457. Last year the Mayor assured us that $24 million would be
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Letters
The Voice of Pelham, April 12, 2017
Page 7
continued
The buck stops here, in the swamp As we learn about our Mayor and his pre-programmed robots at Town Hall, it is becoming more and more obvious to me this group of individuals is totally incapable of handling the affairs of the Town. I question the thinking of the Mayor and his puppets to build a Recreation Centre of this magnitude with no formal tenders on a project of this size. What a sweet deal for the contractor! The financing is being done on the spur of the moment with hopes of selling land and also with a little help from the Tooth Fairy to raise enough money to proceed. Let's stick it to the taxpayer for the next 30 years to pay for their untendered project. We’ve already learned that the building needs 9,000 sq. ft. extra space— have no fear, they will cover the cost by buying Canadian brick instead of U.S. brick and will substitute drywall where they were originally going to put some of the U.S. brick. But will the drywall last as long as the 30year debt we will carry, thanks to our Mayor and Council? Our Mayor said 67% Federal and Provincial funding would be required before the project went ahead (Welland Tribune, August 12, 2009). Councillor Durley said no small municipality can afford major capital expenses on its own. So much for these words, and yet this band of robots can sit on their hands and let the Mayor lead them on without a murmur. At the present time our taxes are 30% higher than Toronto. How much further
do they think the people at Town Hall can push us? Most people are maxed out and don't have a cushion to fall back on. We are not all on the executive payroll
Where are the $100,000-plus salaried staff and experts we are paying... for the Town. We haven't finished one project and the Mayor and Council are already starting to shove another Fenwick project on the taxpayers. The Region questions the Pelham financial situation and yet this Mayor and Council just keep spending, spending, spending…. In spite of all the reports, we now find the Mayor and his group of robots have approved a $300,000 rebate as well as a tax refund for 10 years to a new apartment complex on Pelham Street. Where are the $100,000plus salaried staff and experts we are paying at the Town Hall to police this expense? It appears these people are not doing their job for the taxpayers of Fonthill. I personally think trust and transparency are gone. It's time to drain the swamp. K. Kavanagh Fonthill
Parents—Be alert for survey In April, the DSBN will be circulating a school climate survey to all parents and students in grades 4-12. It will be focussing on gathering information about student and parents' experiences of school safety, acceptance and inclusion. We at Names Matter encourage
parents to take the time to carefully fill this out. This would be a good place to express your feelings on the inclusiveness or non-inclusiveness of the new name Wellington Heights. If you or your child feel they were
METAPHOR OF THE WEEK A huge flock of turkey vultures recently decided that the largest tree on Jill Rice’s farm in Fenwick would make a great Pelham pit stop. Jill’s dad, Howard, who’s lived on the property for 50 years, said he’d never seen anything like it, that normally vultures would migrate through Grimsby, with the hawks. Jill counted 112 birds, who sat with their wings open to dry off. “Also they are so quiet,” she said, “Unlike the few crows who tried to interrupt their solace." JILL RICE PHOTO
Happy to help out As a local business and advertiser in the Voice, we gladly volunteer a paid subscription. Over the past few months we see a growing community paper in editorial, local history, stories and events. Letters from concerned citizens writing with heart and passion for Pelham and its future. We value
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Page 8
The Voice of Pelham, April 12, 2017
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Town Council pushes back on Regional motion In two-hour rebuttal, councillors and staff present defense against implications of impropriety BY NATE SMELLE and DAVE BURKET
The VOICE
Pelham Councillors had much to say at their last meeting, Monday, April 3, in response to Port Colborne Regional Councillor David Barrick’s motion on Pelham’s finances, presented at the last Regional Council meeting. Barrick’s motion offered an assortment of allegations that suggest the Town of Pelham’s finances threaten to cause collateral damage to the Region’s credit rating, thereby burdening taxpayers throughout Niagara with higher borrowing costs. When first reading the motion, Councillor Peter Papp said he felt like he was defending himself in court after having done nothing wrong. “As someone who has spent over four decades in municipal government, including being involved as a senior bureaucrat and a member of the electorate, we have not knowingly, willingly undertaken in anything that would be considered as non-compliant with what is required under the Municipal Act, and required by us and this corporation,” he said. “There is nothing here, and we’ve done nothing wrong. If this author and those who feel we have done something wrong [then] prove it. Everything that’s here is substantiated by the audit, and is substantiated by the fact that we as Councillors made sure that we didn’t do anything that was going to violate or put into jeopardy our constituents.” “What exactly are you trying to prove Councillor Barrick? Tell me to my face.” Describing the Barrick’s motion as “utter nonsense,” Councillor Gary Accursi expressed his concern regarding the message it sent to the upper levels of government, to which municipalities and the Region apply for funding. “We look like a bunch of fools,” he said. “This motion has untruths in it, it’s misleading, and we’ve proven that with this extensive [Town re-
sponse]. They are going to look at this and ask what the heck is going on in the Niagara peninsula. Are they going to be willing to invest in the Niagara peninsula when this kind of nonsense is going on?” Accursi believes Regional Council has stepped outside of its jurisdiction as outlined in the Municipal Act. “If they want to run the Town of Pelham then maybe we need a vote for ‘one Niagara,’” he said. “I doubt that’s going to happen because I don’t think the citizens of Pelham want to lose their autonomy and their identity. I know that I as a citizen of Pelham don’t want to see that happen.” Pelham Council and Town Staff spent more than two hours at the meeting presenting a 338-page report prepared as a response to the Barrick motion. Regional Council’s decision to defer the matter to the Region’s Audit Committee meeting in June had Pelham Councillors concerned that Barrick’s charges would remain stewing in the public mind for the next several weeks. “This is game-playing of the worst kind as far as I’m concerned,” said Councillor Richard Rybiak. “I am really disappointed that someone is able to write something like this and put it out into the public realm and watch it do the damage that it does.” Grimsby’s Tony Quirk was one of the 16 Regional councillors voting on March 30 to defer the discussion to the Audit Committee. Quirk said he felt Regional Council needed more time to review Pelham’s lengthy response, delivered in hard copy to councillors only moments before the meeting started. Before the vote to defer was taken, Mayor Augustyn, also a Regional Councillor, raised a point of privilege, asserting that he and a delegation from Town Hall were prepared to address Barrick’s motion. A visibly irritated Alan Caslin, Regional Chair, reminded Augustyn that under the gov-
erning bylaw once a motion for deferral is tabled it must be voted on. Caslin suggested that Council could vote down the motion to defer, thereby giving Augustyn his moment to speak. Councillors voted not to do so, 16 to 12. Pelham Council and Town staff worked their way through the motion one “Whereas” at a time. Treasurer Cari Pupo had a busy evening providing insight
This is game-playing of the worst kind as far as I'm concerned
into the data contained in the report. The motion asserted that because Pelham’s operating levy increased by approximately 20 percent since its 2015 budget that this was cause for concern. Breaking down the numbers, Pupo countered that the three-year increase from 2015 through 2017 was projected at five percent, and the accumulative amount was set at 15 per cent. According to the Town, Barrick’s numbers don’t add up because the accumulative amount — which includes “new growth,” such as new builds and new additions — are not part of the operating budget. Pupo said Pelham’s property taxes are actually 10 percent below the average for all Niagara municipalities, ranking as eighth least expensive in the Region. Barrick asserted that for the years 2013 to 2015 annual budget shortfalls totaled nearly $1 million. Augustyn described this as a misinterpretation, pointing to the difference between being able to read municipal financial statements and being able to understand them. “It was not budget shortfalls, they are non-cash assets. Looking at the financial statements, we in fact had surpluses for those years of more than $176,000.” Pupo added that the val-
ue of non-cash assets did not appear in the books until 2009, when public sector accounting standards changed, making it necessary for municipalities to include them in annual deficit reporting. Barrick also asserted these same three financial statements reveal a 402 percent increase in Pelham’s net debt, from $2.3 million in 2013 to $9.2 million in 2015. He also stated that the statutory annual repayment limit for a municipality is only 25 percent of its source revenues. Augustyn pulled out the Region’s audited financial statements and compared them with the Town’s. “Council will find that if you go to those audited financial statements — which are included in [our] package — and use the same calculation on the Region, instead of it being 402 percent it would be 13,500 per cent,” he said. “Obviously, these are non-cash transactions.” Augustyn responded that the report shows that for 2017, Pelham has debt obligations of $1,051,521, and therefore has used roughly one quarter of the provincially legislated annual repayment limit of $4,065,204. By asserting that the Town’s debenture, a type of loan, of $21.2 million for the Pelham Community Centre might not be enough to complete the development, Barrick suggests that Pelham’s need for additional cash could push taxes up throughout the Region by lowering the Region’s credit rating. Augustyn responded that this is yet another “untruth” because even in a worst-case scenario, in which all development were to stop and interest rates were to climb dramatically, Pelham would need only an additional $10 to $12 million to complete the Community Centre. This would raise the Region’s debt-to-operating ratio from 85 percent to 86 percent, he said. Pupo added that Standard and Poor’s says that this ratio would actually have to rise to 120 percent for the Region’s credit rating to be in jeopardy. Augustyn said he crunched the numbers himself and the Region would have to acquire an additional $273 million in debt before their credit rating would be threatened.
After the Council meeting, several Councillors questioned the timing and motivation behind the motion, acknowledging that it was likely connected at least in part to Augustyn’s and the Town’s lobbying of the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority to accept an independent audit of its operations. In response, Regional Councillor Tony Quirk said there is no doubt that there are political games afoot, citing what he called a “titfor-tat” between Barrick and Augustyn. As someone who has been on the receiving end of 13 different motions at the NPCA, Quirk said he can appreciate how Councillor Barrick’s motion could jeopardize the reputation of the entire Region. He said the NPCA has been facing a similar degree of scrutiny and has responded by appointing an independent auditor to investigate the issues that have been raised. “You start with the premise if you live in glass houses, don’t throw rocks,” said Quirk. “You can play whatever political games you want, but ultimately the chickens come home to roost. You better be above scrutiny if you are going to be complaining that other people are corrupt, if you are going to complain that other people aren’t living up to their obligations.” "Councillor Augustyn said, ‘Our auditor says there is nothing wrong with our books so you don't need to look at them.’ But that answer wasn't good enough when the NPCA stood up and said our auditor said there is nothing wrong with our books.” Despite the politics at play, Quirk said there are still questions that need to be answered. Specifically, he said he is concerned about the negotiations regarding a land transfer deal required under municipal regulations regarding park land, and the Development Charges credits that were being exchanged between the Town and developers, and then between developers themselves. Quirk says that the original agreement between the Town and developers actually permitted such activity, yet when these transactions were publicly revealed the Town backtracked and bought back the credits.
Quirk said he has also yet to see a map defining the lands or any reports documenting the negotiations that took place between the Town and the developers. "If you put together 330 pages, why would you omit the stuff that's critical to the issue,” Quirk said. In a lengthy public backand-forth on Facebook, Quirk challenged Augustyn on these same points, questions that Augustyn ulti-
If you put together 330 pages, why would you omit the stuff that's critical to the issue mately failed to answer to Quirk’s satisfaction. “If there is not information forthcoming that answers these questions, then as a taxpayer in Pelham I would be offended, because there are significant questions that need to be answered. However, if [Augustyn and Pelham Council are] offended because questions are being asked, I've heard the comment made that you should never be offended if the public asks the questions. If you don't have the answers, then indignation is a good way to deflect." Quirk also questioned why Pelham did not include the management letter auditors issue when they find reason for concern with financial statements, however Augustyn said the reason it wasn’t included in the report was that the Town never received one. Pelham Treasurer Pupo confirmed this, presenting a letter from auditors at Deloitte acknowledging that they had not sent a management letter to the Town. Council extended an invitation to Councillors David Barrick, Tony Quirk, Bob Gale as well as Regional Chair Alan Caslin and CAO Carmen D’Angelo to speak at a public meeting they plan to call to answer the public’s concerns. The meeting date has not yet been set.
Regional Councillors: In their own words BY DAVE BURKET
The VOICE
Late last week the Voice invited comment from all 30 Regional Councillors, and Council Chair Alan Caslin, on Councillor David Barrick's motion relating to Pelham's financial practices. By press-time we had received nine on-the-record responses, printed here in their entirety, with copy-editing for clarity and correction of typos. I do not support anything about Barrick's motion. Councillor Debbie MacGregor
No, I do not support Councillor Barrick’s concern. This is the first time that I can remember the Region questioning any municipality’s ability to borrow. There are very strict rules set by the province with regards to debt load, and as I understand it, Pelham falls within those guidelines. If you were to review the various municipalities, I believe that Councillor Barrick’s community is closer to the maximum. It is totally inappropriate for the Region to be meddling in the finances of any of our 12 lower-tier municipalities. In the case of the Niagara Region, and the 12 lower-tier municipali-
ties that make it up, that arrangement for funding debt has worked very well since 1970. I come from a very small community, and over the years, it has been our small communities that have benefitted by obtaining better rates, And the Region has always been repaid, and never had any risk. We also do not require any independent auditor to review their Community Centre project. There have been a variety of methods used from Port Colborne to Niagara-on-the lake (where we happened to wait until all of the fundraising was completed; we also spent a great deal of time working
on, and confirming our operating costs). However, community centres are the backbone of each community, and I fully support Pelham in their current endeavor. If anyone wishes to see a successful community centre, please come and visit our Centre in Niagara-on-the Lake. Councillor Gary Burroughs In my opinion, Councillor Barrick's motion had no place being on the Regional Agenda. The Town of Pelham's budget increase, expenditures and financial statement are issues to be dealt with at the local level and not at the Region. This
motion by Councillor Barrick and or a collection of the 31 Regional representatives manipulated the figures with alternative facts, and appears to be orchestrated to publicly defame and discredit Mayor Dave Augustyn and Pelham Town Council. It looks like a vendetta against Dave Augustyn because he is outspoken on a number of issues that irritate some of the 31 members of Regional Council. With the number of meetings the Town of Pelham conducted regarding the projects and increased debt, I believe they served their constituents in a conSee REACTION next page
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The Voice of Pelham, April 12, 2017
Page 9
Hoo-Ahh Aerial of the Week http://www.hooahhvideos.ca/
NOT A YANK BRICK IN SIGHT Paul and James McGuire braved the thaw over last weekend to take a buzz around the new Pelham Community Centre construction site near Rice Road and Hwy 20 in East Fonthill. Construction is set to continue into 2018. HOO-AHH DRONE PHOTO
REACTION continued from previous page scientious and diligent manner. We as Councillors regularly make decisions that aren't popular with everyone, but if we want our communities to grow and flourish, we need to invest in our infrastructure and facilities. Investments like the ones being planned for Pelham will encourage economic development and prosperity, which will result in further investments by the private sector. Councillor Brian Heit The concern I have relates to the potential impact on future bond ratings for the Region of Niagara. The Region acts as the clearinghouse for all municipalities for borrowing. This consolidation of debt acts to level the playing field for all municipalities, large and small, rich or poor. The consolidation of debt under the umbrella of the Region of Niagara provides significant cost advantages to the communities requiring debentures. Councillor Barrick suggests that Town of Pelham debt may have a potentially adverse impact on the Region of Niagara bond rating and interest repayment levels. Preliminary responses from the Town of Pelham indicate otherwise. Citizens need to know and understand the real impact, if any. There should be a clear demarcation line between the role of the Region of Niagara and local
municipalities with regard to the approval and monitoring of debt. The only place for the Region is at the time of the commencement of the debt request. Thereafter, the total Regional debt should be recognized in conjunction with newly sought debt from municipalities. I absolutely do not see the need for an independent auditor in Pelham. Given the cost, time and effort put into such an exercise, I see it as a further waste of taxpayer dollars. An open, public review of existing data should more than suffice all critics on this issue. The unpredictable element is the speed and scope of new assessment growth and the uncertainty should mortgage rates suddenly spike and no pundit has the answer for these uncertainties. Councillor Brian Baty This resolution was very well prepared and must have taken a lot of time and effort to do so. It makes me wonder why Councillor Barrick would waste so much time on presenting an issue that is so obviously a partisan attempt at distraction, only to have it referred to the Audit Committee. Why was this resolution referred to the Audit Committee? Was it so that Mayor Augustyn would not have an opportunity to respond to this political attack? It seems to me to be very unfair to make these accusations and then prevent him from defending
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The Voice of Pelham, April 12, 2017
Places of Worship and Events Bethany Christian Reformed Church 1040 Balfour St., Fenwick
Glad Tidings Church of God 1 Pancake Lane, Fonthill Holy Trinity Anglican Church 1557 Pelham Street, Fonthill
Concordia Lutheran Church 105 Welland Rd., Fonthill Fenwick Church of Christ 765 Welland Rd., Fenwick
Kirk on the Hill Presbyterian Church 1344 Haist St., Fonthill
Fenwick United Church 1050 Church St., Fenwick
Pelham Community Church 461 Canboro Rd., Fenwick
First Presbyterian Church 602 Metler Rd., Fenwick
Pelham Evangelical Friends Church 940 Haist St., Fonthill
Fonthill Baptist Church 1414 Pelham St., Fonthill
Ridgeville Bible Chapel 418 Canboro Rd., Ridgeville
Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses 1369 Rice Rd., Fonthill
St. Alexander’s Roman Catholic Church 50 Pelham Town Sq., Fonthill
Fonthill United Church 42 Church Hill, Fonthill
St. Ann’s Roman Catholic Church 834 Canboro Rd., Fenwick
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Allergy means constant vigilance continued from Page 1 started to recover. When they got back from the trip, my parents took me to the doctors to have me tested for a peanut allergy. Because I was so young the doctor refused to test me and told my mother to bring me back when I was about five. Between the ages of one and five my parents only ever bought foods that were peanut-free. When my younger sister was born, my mother was terrified to give her peanuts, she waited until my sister was much older than I was when she gave her peanut butter for the first time, and she only did so because her pediatrician recommended it for the “good fat” content that my very petite sister needed. When my sister finally tried it she fell in love. From that moment on there was a shelf in the cupboard that I wasn’t allowed to touch be-
cause that’s where they kept my sister’s huge jar of peanut butter. When I was five, my mom took me back to the doctors to be tested. They, again, refused to test me, saying that if I had not had a reaction in the past four years it was “unlikely I was allergic.” But that answer wasn’t good enough for my mom. The doctor didn’t seem to understand that my parents had never let me be in the same room as peanuts or any other type of nut since that first reaction. I was tested just before I turned six and there was, as expected, an immediate and intense reaction to peanuts. My mother panicked on the way home, thinking of the Honey Nut Cheerios I loved munching on every morning. As soon as we got home she read the label— almonds, no peanuts. That was the key. Many people are allergic to pea-
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My mother panicked on the way home, thinking of the Honey Nut Cheerios I loved munching nuts but not “tree nuts.” However, many are also allergic to both. In fact, people can be allergic to peanuts, tree nuts and legumes as well, as they are all related. It is important for people like myself to watch that our allergy to peanuts does not also become an allergy to tree nuts and/or legumes, as there can be little warning. What does it mean to be diagnosed with an allergy? What difference does this make in someone’s day-today life? Well, not a huge one. The biggest difference is that now I carry an EpiPen autoinjector where ever I go. An EpiPen is a needle encased in a plastic case which, when injected into the thigh, automatically administers a 0.3 mg dosage of epinephrine. Epinephrine relaxes the airways, vital when anaphylactic shock causes airways to constrict to the point that a person is no longer able to breathe. Anaphylaxis can also cause a huge drop in blood pressure, a rapid heart-rate, vomiting and light-headedness. The EpiPen helps relieve these symptoms for about 15 minutes, long enough to get the individual to the hospital to receive medical treatment, usually a dose of steroids. How do I know all the specifics of how an EpiPen works? It’s not just because I have one, it’s because I’ve had to use one. When I was 15, I was at Sea Cadet camp for six weeks of the summer in Kingston, three hours away from where my parents lived. As I was cleaning the sailboats af-
ter a long day on the water, I wiped my face with my hand, unknowingly transferring traces of peanut butter into my mouth and skin. Fifteen minutes later I called my mom because I was having a hard time breathing. It wasn’t until after an officer took me to the hospital that we found out that cadets who were in the sailboat I had cleaned had brought crackers and peanut butter onto the boat, which was against the rules. Before that second reaction I had never taken my allergy seriously, but after that day I was more aware that my allergy was not a joke, that it could be deadly. I take many precautions every day to ensure I don’t ever have to “stab” myself in the thigh again. Whenever I go grocery shopping I must check labels and make sure there are no peanuts or peanut oil in my snacks. And peanut-free food is more expensive, just like lactose-free milk. I can’t go out to eat at most Chinese restaurants because so many of them use peanut or coconut oil instead of canola oil. Any time someone offers me a homemade baked-good I have to politely refuse because of the possibility of cross-contamination. One question that’s always bothered me about my allergy is, why are there so many people having to deal with nut allergies these days? “Back in the day,” as my mom would say, “we took peanut butter sandwiches to school.” So why are nuts banned from schools now? Is it environmental? Is there a link between how our food is grown or processed and these allergies? Scientists don’t have an answer yet, only theories about the immune system and the peanut proteins. They don’t know if in-utero experiences with the peanut protein is related. The closest thing to an answer is that, “Peanut allergies occur when [the] immune See ALLERGY next page
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The Voice of Pelham, April 12, 2017 h 1, 2 and 3. Since this finding there have been many tests to determine the properties these hold. All that has been found so far is that Ara h 2 is the protein most commonly associated with a peanut allergy. Experts used to suggest that pregnant women or young infants shouldn’t be exposed to peanuts. This did nothing to stop the rise in percentage of people with allergies. Now experts say that small amounts of peanuts may help an infant’s immune system defend against potential allergies. The thought is that if children four to six months old are regularly exposed to peanuts or other allergens, they will not develop an allergy. But there still seems to be no rhyme or reason as to why the percent of the population with nut allergies is going up. So for now, people like me need to avoid peanuts, foods with peanuts and even food that may contain peanuts or is made and/or packaged in a facility that also processes and/or packages food with peanuts. It’s a 24/7 responsibility for myself, others like me and parents of young ones.
How to use an EpiPen
ALLERGY continued from previous page system mistakenly identifies peanut proteins as something harmful,” according to a study done by the Mayo Clinic. Scientists do know which peanut proteins are the culprit, though. It’s called Ara
—Remove the blue safety cap on the top —Firmly push the orange tip on the bottom of the pen against the outer thigh so that it clicks —Hold in place to allow drug to be administered —Call 911
TUSSLE continued from Page 1 Accursi suggested to the Mayor that the Town consider approaching the DSBN to keep the lines of communication open, and to offer them the Pelham’s municipal bus to transport students to the nearby pitches. This will save the DSBN money, he said, which will in turn save taxpayers money. Sharing the bus in this way would also increase the ridership, which Accursi asserted would help qualify the municipality for additional funding. Councillor Marvin Junkin acknowledged that the people had spoken loud and clear. “We had a couple of meetings on this with the citizenry and they let us know on certain terms how they felt,” he said. “Again, when you go and take a look at the property, I don’t think the Town is depriving the children of any play time. They definitely have enough land of their own, and with a little bit of landscaping they will have their own soccer field.” During the time he has spent on Council, Junkin said this is one of the few requests from community partners that they have decided to turn down. The majority of the time, he said, Council receives reasonable requests, which Council discusses and usually chooses to support over and above what was originally requested. “This is part of what makes us such a great community,” said Junkin. “But this particular request, from this particular
Page 11
organization — the DSBN — I think it had a lot of weak points.” Echoing Junkin, the Mayor said that Council looks at opportunities presented with an open mind.” Augustyn reminded Council this wasn’t the first time the Town walked away from a memorandum of understanding, recalling a proposed operating deal with the YMCA for the new Community Centre. Council’s decision inspired
a round of applause from the gallery. Ed Doucette was one of the many Cherry Ridge residents pleased to see the DSBN’s proposal turned down. “Everyone is happy,” said Doucette. “For me, it was never about the kids or not wanting them to play soccer or even the ‘not in my backyard’ thing. You just don't give away land. I've always been told that it's wise to hang on to real estate and hang on to gold. You
don't give those things away. I am not even sure why it was entertained to start with.” Doucette said he was disappointed with the DSBN’s communication with the community. "They didn't do very much, and if they did, they didn't share that with us,” he said. “It appears to me that they just stuck their hand out and asked for something. There were many other alternatives, rather than taking someone else's land."
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The Voice of Pelham, April 12, 2017
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SURVEY continued from Page 7
CHIEFS FOR THE DAY Pelham’s Fire Prevention Officer, Will Underwood, drops off the winners of the Fire Chief for a Day poster contest, Jayne Stefanik, Grade 7, and McKenna Halsted, Grade 3, at A.K. Wigg Public School on the snowy morning of Friday, April 7. VOICE PHOTO
bullied into accepting this name— let the DSBN know. Members of the Board have referred to our involvement in this issue as a joke, and that they will not change the name. It is only by sticking together and presenting a united front that we will prevail. The renowned anthropologist Margaret Mead once said, “Never doubt that a group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world.” There has been some feedback from people about the Cherry Ridge park issue that needs to be cleared up. Some people are saying that it is too bad the children will not have a place to play etc. What people don't know is that in two separate letters DSBN personnel have admitted that there is enough room on their own property to build the field. It has also been learned that if the DSBN did not get the property, they had three other plans already formulated. The Names Matter group is continuing the fight to have the Wellington Heights name removed from our local school and to hold the DSBN responsible for their actions. Names Matter Committee Fenwick
PELHAM CARES DONATIONS Local businessman Jim Zoretich (centre) presents Colleen McCarthy (left) and Keith Moore (right) with a cheque for $500, and a matching cheque from Fidelity Investments Canada for another $500. SUPPLIED PHOTO
www.thevoiceofpelham.ca
The Voice of Pelham, April 12, 2017
Page 13
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BUSINESSES. MAKE MONEY & SAVE MONEY BBQ’S, Beach Parties and Weddings available. Get online training E TEMPS ANTAN Yard &- CShed wi th y o ur ow n b andmill ut you need from an employer-trusted o MOVING n your own? MISTY RIVER can help you lumber any dimension. In stock program. Visit: CareerStep.ca/MT Burke’s Masonry et and Pierre-Luc Dupuis have Credit700.ca, $750 loans - no more. SALE, Large INTRODUCTIONS collection FONTHILL to change that! or Keith’s 1-855-768-3362 to start training No credit check - same day deposit ready to ship. FREE Info & DVD: find someone E. L. Crossley Restaurant holiday tuckpointing, of Christmas and oured melodies from the 1-855-527-4368 stomp- Bricklaying, CALL (416)777-6302, (705)734-1292, Toll Free number www.NorwoodSawmills.com/400OT for your work-at-home career Target Store 7 days from 8am to 8pm decorations and www.mistyriverintros.com. household Churchill Natural Meats today! step1-800-566-6899 repair, graniteExt:400OT. ing fiddle,Open accordion, harmonica, Shoppers Drug Mart Pennzoil Quick Lube coatings, brick slices items, SAT. AUG. 30, 8AM- Fonthill Library nstruments, our three virtuosos Lazy Loon 1PM 625 METLER RD, P18-28 905-682-7061. kable joieAVON de vivre found only in Town of Pelham Pharmasave CUTTING AVAILABLE FLOORING NORTHCommunity PELHAM P18-23 EventCafe onGRASS NURSERY m 7-9 p.m. Main Lost an AVON friend, SamanGrass Cutting Service Avondale Store
tha Rocca. To her customers, I would like to offer my services RKSHOP as AVON Fonthill Representabeen selling for 14 years. a varietytive, of techniques. Materials Contact Nicole at 289-8978618,about nico.2008@cogeco.ca ase enquire tools needed.
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T SALE Pelham Arena. Aimed to provide AGRICULTURE NIGHT ming season. Runs Sept. 6 from Fonthill Lions Agriculture Night
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Beamer’s Pro Hardware 8 years experience, references Wholesale nursery growing container grown perennials, available on request, service Sobey’s vines, flowering shrubs, evergreens & dwarf trees seeking includes grass cutting, edge FENWICK individuals who desire a career in horticulture. We are in Putting on an event? McDonald’s trimming, and driveway/sidewalk Avondale need of part time (April, May, June) and full time general of cuttings. John 905- Store Legion Tell the town! Fonthillcleared 892-8410. Fenwick Sublabourers Shop as well as those skilled in the growing, management Tim Hortons Community Event Classified and shipping of nursery stock. Plant knowledge and Golden Grill ads are available in blocksSemenuk’s UNITED CHURCH asset. If you are an individual who has Devries Fruitexperience Farm is an of 30 words, including Pic’s organizational skills and dedication as well as a willingness UNITED CHURCH RidderikhofftoMeats headline for $8.85 + HST.Klagers work as a team player, we look forward to hearing from 42 Church Hill, Fonthill
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Easter Sunday Service• 97 PAPERS PANCAKE,PICKWICK Willowbrook Nurseries Inc. Payment may be made over April 16 at 9:30 am 935 Victoria Ave., Fenwick, ON the phone by credit card, BERKWOOD, BEECHNUT, KATHY, VISTA, Attention: Human Resources or in person at our office by FLOWERS DEVERARDO (SOUTH)• 96 PAPERS No phone calls please. cash or check. Pansies. (We thank you for your application, however Beamer’s Plants, BROCK, DONAHUGH,SHALDANE, Thanks for supporting only those considered will be notified.) 459 Highway 20 W, Fenwick PETRONELLA • 109 PAPERS your Voice! Open 9 -5 daily, evenings by chance. office@thevoiceofpelham.ca CONTACT THE VOICE AT TRUCK DRIVER & MAINTENANCE
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Posted to reach your market coming soon. maintenance skills are an asset. This is a full time position. STORM DAMAGE REPAIRS April 6for early previews of our Rates are hourly and competitive. Resumes, together with Watch abstract can be dropped off between the hours of 8:00 NEW, EXCITING WEBSITE. a.m-4:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday and 8:00a.m.-12:00noon Follow us on Twitter, on Fridays at: Willowbrook Nurseries Inc. 935 Victoria Ave., Fenwick, ON Like us on Facebook.
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FENWICK UNITED CHURCH, 1050 Church Street, Fenwick Palm Sunday Service, April 9 at 11:00 am, with Palm Parade and Hot Cross Buns Taize Service, April 12 at 6:30 pm Maundy Thursday Communion Service, April 13 at 7:00 pm Good Friday - April 14, Joint Service at Fonthill United Church at 10:30 am Easter Sunday Service, April 16 at 11:00 am
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PELHAM COMMUNITY CHURCH Pelham Community Church 461 Canboro Rd Good Friday Service at 10:00 a.m. Easter Sunrise at 8:00 a.m. Continental Breakfast at 8:30 a.m. Easter Celebration at 9:30 a.m.
Page 14
The Voice of Pelham, April 12, 2017
Community support and Pelham Library
The
Pelham Puzzler
BY KIRK WEAVER
Total prize value now:
$240!
Complete the correspondence:
CEO Pelham Library
Volunteer support is vital to the success of the Pelham Public Library. We truly appreciate all of the support
we get from approximately 150 volunteers in our registry. In reality, that number is higher when we consider all of the support we get from other members in the community as well.
REACTION continued from Page 9
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himself. I would believe the experts that created Pelham Council’s rebuttal before I would give any credence to the accusations made in the resolution. If you think that Pelham should retain an independent outside auditor to check their finances, then perhaps someone should be looking at other communities and organizations in the Region and then encouraging investigations there as well. We have heard Chair Caslin expound on how well our 12 municipalities have come together in partnership to move our Region forward. This motion does little to support that ideal and is, in my mind, an embarrassment to our Council. Councillor Kelly Edgar I'm in my 17th year in politics and I've not seen anything like this. I totally disagree with Councillor Barrick's assumptions. He's concerned about the Region's S&P rating hitting rock bottom, in fact it will barely move. [Pelham] is very well managed, Pelham is in the bottom 25% of the 12 municipalities in Niagara when it comes to tax rates and water/sewer rates. With the residential and commercial growth occurring in the Hwy 20/Rice Road corridor, Pelham is and will be in good shape for years to come. Its Community Centre was well-timed with this growth in terms of Development Charge payments to the Town, which could go towards financing the Centre. Why would
Take for example, our book sale room and the two large book sales we hold each year. These events are almost entirely volunteer driven. Members of the community regularly donate
you need a second audit? Waste of time, waste of money. I also found it strange why the issue was deferred just before Mayor Augustyn was to defend his municipality against Councillor Barrick's motion. Why was it deferred? Councillor Ted Luciani Usually civic leaders like to build legacy projects to leave something useful behind for their community. Looks like Mayor Augustyn is leaving a legacy of skyrocketing taxes and ballooning debt to finance a massive community centre. I also have serious concerns about the lack of transparency and public engagement coming out of the Mayor's office regarding this enormous spending venture. As the ONLY Regional Councillor who voted AGAINST the Region taking on the Town's debt last year, I remain steadfast in protecting Niagara's taxpayers from financially risky projects." Councillor Andy Petrowski This situation will require a significant amount of time to review the data, to determine the true story. Let's let the professionals make their conclusions. Ultimately this is a Pelham issue, and will require a Pelham solution. Councillor Jim Diodati Obviously I support Dave Barrick’s motion as I seconded it. I have found in my brief political life that a lot of politicians do not ask the right questions. They accept the status quo with
Specializing in Residential Concrete
their used books to us for sale. We have a small group of volunteers who move the donated books to the basement, sort through each See LIBRARY next page
no regard for taxpayers, and they do not make sure there are proper checks and balances when spending taxpayers’ money. To be clear, every municipality’s debt, if borrowed in tandem with the Region, could affect every taxpayer in the Region and therefore should be properly scrutinized by everyone — not only in Pelham but throughout our Region. Whether any municipality or the Region has the ability to borrow money is not the question here — the question should be, is it a prudent decision on behalf of the citizens of Pelham and all the citizens of the Niagara Region? I was also disturbed to hear of [Mayor Augustyn’s] land transactions and Development Charges scheme. There will be a proper forum in June at our Audit Committee for the Mayor to address the questions. Please understand that I am not a party guy — not a Liberal, Conservative or NDP. I have voted against a supposed Conservative move re purchasing airports, and I have challenged a popular Liberal move on duplicity in municipalities and the Region funding the same charities. I have made mistakes but this episode demands an explanation. In summary, I support the motion and hope the people of Pelham and the Region hear a full explanation of what has transpired, as it is disturbing to me. I also hope that the Pelham mayor will quit responding with emotion to the press and make better, more informed comments. Councillor Bob Gale
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Page 15
Bottom, from left: Adam F, Isaac F, Reed S, Chelsea W, Griffin M, Aaron S, Ewan H (Goalie), Ben M. Middle: Leah V, Nate P. Ryan B, Logan M, London K. Coaches: Jason Marr, Tim Sviergula, Kirk Henderson, James Federico, Todd Major. SUPPLIED PHOTO
Pelham Novice LL Panthers 1 win Niagara District A finals After an outstanding season and a difficult road through the playoffs, the Novice LL#1 Panthers took the NDLL A championship over the Wainfleet Wild in three games. The Novice Panthers put together an undefeated regular season, going 20-0-2. The playoffs unfolded such that a tiebreaker was required against Pelham 2, which was scheduled 15
days after the last playoff game. A season like this will not be seen in Pelham again; the list of accomplishments is incredible. Not only were the Novice LL Panthers the only team to win an A championship, they put together the best record in the association. Every player on the roster scored multiple goals. More than 90% of games were penalty free.
Goaltender Ewan H. finished the season with fiveshutouts and three assists. The hard work, dedication, and sacrifice put in by the players is incredible, and will serve them well as they continue in sport and in life. The support of all 12 families from young siblings to grandparents contributed hugely to the team's success and can not be over-appreciated.
LIBRARY
each major sale approaches, volunteers are recruited to bring all of the sorted boxes of books up from the basement and set them up in the Festival Room for sale. Throughout the week of the sale volunteers look after all of the customers who come looking for their favourite
titles. They help people find what they are looking for and handle all of the sales transactions. Finally, at the end of the week, another group of volunteers comes in to box up and move any unsold items back to the basement. We rely on these books
continued from previous page item to assess it for quality, and make everything ready to sell. The same volunteers maintain the book sale room, making sure it is well stocked, organized, and is nicely displayed. As
TEACHER OF THE YEAR When Humber College student Hannah Beckett heard of the school’s Greatest Teacher of the Year contest, the 2016 E. L. Crossley grad nominated Crossley’s Richard Doucet, then wrote an essay strong enough to win Doucet the award, herself $500, and a year’s worth of Humber tuition for the student of Doucet’s choice. Receiving his award on March 29, Richard Doucet, with Hannah Beckett. SUPPLIED PHOTO
sales for a significant portion of our annual fundraising target. This fundraising is critical to our ability to continue to offer quality programs and services to Pelham residents. The book sale is just one example of the power and commitment of volunteers.
Volunteers also assist with our Trivia night and clothing sale fundraisers. We have volunteers who help with cleaning up the grounds and special cleaning of children’s toys. Volunteers also help out with some of our programs. Without such a committed group of community volun-
teers we would not be able to maintain our current level of service. There are always opportunities available for willing volunteers. If you are interested, please contact Melanie Taylor-Ridgway at mtaylorridgway@pelhamlibrary.on. ca or 905-892-6443. 
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The Voice of Pelham, April 12, 2017
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REAL ESTATE To advertise here call (905) 892-8690
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20 MICHIGAN AVE., WELLAND $389,900
THIS IS A CUSTOM BUILT RAISED BUNGALOW WITH OVER 1950 SQ FT OF FINISHED LIVING SPACE. THIS HOME FEATURES 2 + 1 BEDROOMS, 1.5 BATHS, OPEN CONCEPT LIVING ROOM, DINING ROOM AND KITCHEN AREA. BEAUTIFUL DECK OFF KITCHEN OVERLOOKING YOUR BACK YARD. LARGE FAMILY ROOM DOWNSTAIRS AND BRIGHT LAUNDRY ROOM. ATTACHED SINGLE CAR GARAGE. CLOSE TO SHOPPING AND AMENITIES. LOTS OF HOUSE FOR THE VALUE.
COMPARISON continued from Page 6 raised through the sale of Town-owned land in the East Fonthill Development and from the collection of development fees. As of now the Town has $21 million of debentures— that’s another word for debt. The Town is acting as the developer of these lands around the new plaza and Community Centre. The lands around town that are being privately developed are all well underway, yet the area around the new Food Basics plaza— which, by the way was also privately developed— are still an empty, windswept field of dirt and litter. In the hottest real estate market in a generation the question must be asked: Where is this East Fonthill Development? Where is the medical centre, seniors residences, medium and high density housing and condominiums described in the Mayor's award-winning plan? This project has been announced and re-announced since 2014. Unlike St. Catharines, which drew $17 million from a Civic Fund, the Mayor argued in December 2015 that this wasn’t appropriate for Pelham. Why save funds for the future when you can borrow for today—after all, interest rates are low. The Mayor also stated that the Town would not build this project without money from the other two governments. Indeed, he insisted that the project had to be approved quickly and be “shovel-ready” so as to allow for the grant application process to work in the Town's favour. The Town has not and will not receive any money from the province or federal government. Indeed, St. Catharines applied their gas tax revenue of $1 million per year to help pay for its project, while here in Pelham that money, $80,000, is going to fund the little white empty bus. One of the sources from which St. Catharines got money was fundraising. The City wanted to raise $5 million, or $84.00 per household. The City raised $7.5 million, $2.3 million from the citizens, and $5.2 million from Meridian Credit Union, 10% of the total cost, for naming rights. The Mayor assures
us that Pelham can raise $3 million from fundraising, or $454 per household. The Town received $400,000, just over 1% of the total, for naming rights. The rest, it seems, is up to us. In a recent article in the Welland Tribune concerning the high level of debt the town is assuming, the Mayor said that, "Even if a worst case scenario develops, it won’t affect the Region's credit rating.” Possibly, but it is certainly going to affect the Town portion of our property taxes for many, many years to come. The financing of this project relies on debt, taxes, development fees and the hopeful sale of the East Fonthill Development plan to interested builders. There appears to be no interest from any builder at this time, even though, throughout the Region, builders are working at a furious pace on private projects. Reviewing the Mayor's blog post from October 2014, just prior to the last municipal election, not one of his original proposals concerning the Community Centre were met by this council. The original plan was the proposal presented in October 2014. Citizens voted for a one-pad arena, government grant support, operating costs less than what are spent now, around $100,000 per year, and an affordable Community Centre. So there it is. The Town has assumed 25% more debt than the City of St. Catharines. St. Catharines has almost 10 times the tax base. Corporate sponsorship was 10 times greater and they drew from existing savings. The Town assures us that $200,000 per year will be sufficient to operate the arena, up from $100,000 in the original proposal. The Meridian Centre had $2.7 million in expenses in its first year. They collected $1.7 million in revenue and the taxpayers contributed $600,000 to cover the shortfall. When the Region reviews the Town's figures in regards to the Community Centre project, they might see that there is an issue concerning the financing arrangements the Mayor and Council approved, after the last municipal election. Jim Pitt Pelham
THIS IS A CUSTOM BUILT RAISED BUNGALOW WITH OVER 1950 SQ FT OF FINISHED LIVING SPACE. THIS HOME FEATURES 2 + 1 BEDROOMS, 1.5 BATHS, OPEN CONCEPT LIVING ROOM, DINING ROOM AND KITCHEN AREA. BEAUTIFUL DECK OFF KITCHEN OVERLOOKING YOUR AMAZING PRIVATE BACK YARD WITH NO NEIGHBOURS. LARGE FAMILY ROOM DOWNSTAIRS AND BRIGHT LAUNDRY ROOM. ATTACHED SINGLE CAR GARAGE. CLOSE TO SHOPPING AND AMENITIES. LOTS OF HOUSE FOR THE VALUE.
UNDERBELLY continued from Page 5 NPCA and the actions of its Board members over that time. At least in that process there will be a fair and impartial examination of the issues—unlike what I have seen recently. The time period for an external review/audit covers several years when the NPCA undertook an extensive strategic plan following considerable dialogue with stakeholders. The implementation of that strategic plan is now more than 90% complete and should be finalized within the upcoming months. The changes included a new senior management team. That staff leadership selection included recent NPCA Board members. That has been cause for concern in many quarters. I shared those concerns and communicated to the Board Chair on November 22, 2013 by e-mail as follows: “…I do have a big concern about potential permanent employment for any member of the current or former authority board. To this end I request that you consider using HR staff or some neutral team to interview and recommend candidates should a current or former member of NPCA be considered
for a staff position on NPCA.” The Chair chose not to follow this recommendation and proceeded to interview and hire three senior staff. A later recruitment process led to three finalists for the position of CAO of NPCA. I did not vote for the individual selected by the majority of the board members. However, the accomplishments of that CAO and senior management team are considerable and will be communicated during the upcoming review/audit by an external third-party accounting fi rm. As Pelham’s current NPCA Board member I will continue to provide the highest level of service to that organization as well as to the community at large with energy, enthusiasm and integrity. Editor's Note: Councillor Baty did address various concerns about the NPCA in front of Pelham Town Council during their last regular meeting, on April 3. His remarks to Council echoed those presented in this Commentary.
REJECTED continued from Page 5 on school property." Obviously you knew all along you had enough land on school property, but still proceeded with an attempted land-grab. Maybe it’s not too late. You can actually make an attempt to correct the public relations disaster you have created. Maybe show the public you actually do want a partnership with the community and are willing to listen to them. You could start by admitting that you made a mistake with
the name change and go back to naming the school E.W. Farr. After all, the school was named in honour of someone who dedicated his life to teaching. If you do not make any attempt to rectify the problem, all you have done is drive a wedge between the community and the DSBN and taught the children that it’s okay to deceive and manipulate to get what you want. Curt Smith Fenwick