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Column Six Being Canadian
Report from Oversight team is all-positive
1949 essay is truer than ever BY SHIRLEY LAZARETH
BY NATE SMELLE
Special to the VOICE
The VOICE
The Pelham Community Center Oversight Committee was established by the Town to provide transparent oversight of the construction of the Pelham Community Centre (PCC) construction project in terms of the project’s cost and schedule, schedule objectives and the anticipation and management of risks. On Monday, June 19, Bill Gibson, Chair of the Committee, presented Pelham Town Council See UPDATE back page
THE "HURRICANE HAZEL" WAY From left, Nathan Ward, Joanne Goulet and Debby Leigh. Story, page 7. NATE SMELLE PHOTO
Senior Pelham Planner leaves BY VOICE STAFF The Town of Pelham’s Senior Planner, Julie Hannah, has left to take the same position for the city of Thorold, effective July 4. In a June 19 email apparently sent by Hannah to staff and those she has worked with in the real estate development industries, she announced the move, stating that her last day on the job in Pelham had been the previous Friday, June 16. The Voice was unable to independently confirm the email’s authenticity, nor has any announcement been made by Town Hall.
Hannah did not respond to a request for comment. Hannah’s departure comes as Pelham is under increasing pressure from the Region concerning its East Fonthill financing practices, and from developers, including at least one East Fonthill developer currently suing the Town at the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB). At four years, Hannah tenure was the longest of those currently in the planning department, which has recently seen a high rate of turnover. Its current head, Barb Wiens, is just shy of her second year in the job.
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Hannah was hired following the departure of Craig Larmour, Pelham’s Director of Planning and Development for eight years before he was abruptly terminated in early 2013. In October 2014, Larmour filed a Council Code of Conduct complaint, alleging violations in the manner in which the Town sought to sell Town-owned land in East Fonthill to the Allen Group, a GTA commercial developer. Larmour requested that an independent Integrity Commissioner, to be named by the Ontario Ombudsman, hear the allegations, rather than relying on Town Hall’s internal process. Three
days after receiving notice of Larmour’s filing, Pelham Town Council voted to deny his request or to conduct its own investigation, asserting that Larmour’s complaint was a “misuse of the process.” Reached Monday for comment, Larmour asserts that he requested to meet with the Mayor and CAO. “Instead, they presented it to Council without providing me notice to opportunity to speak to the matter,” he said. “My option was to pursue them in court. I did not pursue this option.” See PLANNER Page 13
In 1949, as graduating students in Grade 13, we were asked to write an essay on Canadian Citizenship. At 17, my age then, I was just becoming aware of the benefits of being a Canadian citizen and the war years 1939-45 had left an indelible mark on my concept of patriotism. Now, at age 84, soon to be 85, I am fully aware that my life here in Canada, here in Ontario, here in Fonthill, has been enhanced because of who I am—one of Canada’s proud citizens. We must never lose sight of our bounty and our blessings. Happy Birthday, Dear Canada. CANADIAN CITIZENSHIP Senior Essay—First Prize Recently I read the tragic story of Philip Nolan, "The Man Without a Country.” Several lines of this poem, familiar to all Canadians, remain firmly in my mind. "Breathes there a man with soul so dead, Who never to himself hath said This is my own, my native land!” To be without a country you can call your own! Can we who are Canadians by birth or design realize the true meaning of that tragic statement? Every child born in Canada is from birth a Canadian citizen and may grow See COLUMN SIX back page
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The Voice of Pelham, June 28, 2017
PUBLISHER’S CORNER Meeting expectations: A solicitation arrived the other day from the local branch of a large financial institution. We were PRE-APPROVED for a Visa card, it announced (Promo code: APPROVED). Yet on the letter’s reverse, in the sort of mealy-mouthed backtracking that we’ve come to expect these days from anyone selling financial services, came this advisory: “Pre-approval is subject to completion of full credit card application and credit review that may take up to 10 business days. [Institution that shall not be named] reserves the right to revoke this offer at any time.” Oh give us a break. Honestly. Just headline it, “Apply now and we’ll give you a card if you can afford it (and maybe even if you can’t)”… Stocking up: Until last weekend, the most crowded place I’d been was the arrival terminal at Manila’s international airport, not long after Ferdinand Marcos hightailed it out of the country. Fonthill’s LCBO overtook that on Saturday. Polite but thirsty hordes descended, extra staff were called in, all to ensure sufficient beverages were on hand in case the threatened strike that no one really thought would happen, happened. “The last time, we had record sales,” said the cashier as I paid for my Publisher’s Red Label Rotgut, meaning the last time a strike was threatened. We agreed that the entire exercise was a means to drive revenue. Mission accom-
IN THE NEWS
Rotary Club of Fonthill in the Canada Day Spirit
by Dave Burket
plished. On Monday came the announcement that for this week, anyway, heavily taxed liquor is still ours to purchase freely, with both sides at a temporary truce… The Conversation: Both a classic Francis Ford Coppola thriller and a new Voice feature. We’ll sit down for an extended chat now and again with people who have something to say. Call it anti-Twitter. The inaugural interviewee is Pelham ex-mayor Ron Leavens. As you’ll see, while he has his quibbles, Ron is a champion of the new Community Centre. What you won’t see is how often he chuckles while he speaks. Really, if this were a deposition for trial, every other line would read [Laughter]. A decent man, is Ron… It could turn out either way: Three different Fonthill business people said the same thing last week. All thought that the right-turn-only proposals at the foot of Church Hill and from the arches were dumber than dirt. And all three predicted—using the same word—that the Town would go ahead anyway. That word was “spite,” as in, because people, particularly business people, had the temerity to object publicly to the idea, those in charge would make it happen to spite them. True, not true. Let's hope not. But it speaks volumes about certain perceptions of Town Hall… How about Hazel for mayor? Enjoy Nate Smelle’s piece quoting Hazel McCallion, page 7. What a woman.
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The Rotary Club of Fonthill is providing fun for the community on Canada Day at Harold Black Park, Fonthill. There will be plenty to amuse children who are celebrating the holiday. Kids of all ages can enjoy bouncing on several inflatables. Toddlers will love the Animal Kingdom where they will find pop-up zebras, dolphins, lions and giraffes. A climbing structure and slide will keep energetic kids busy and entertained. The eight-foot-high Kiddie Striker, for kids up to 10, is a revival of a classic carnival attraction. Who is strong enough to ring the bell? Strike Zone is a fun game like bowling. Just slide the puck down the lane to try to flip all 7 pins. Come and let your inner artist free with the Spin Art Machine, back again this year. Make your unique psychedelic pattern using a variety of paint colours. Take a break and do some colouring in special Fonthill edition colouring books or blow big bubbles at the bubble station. The popular Sandtastik returns for another year of fantastic critters at the craft station. Using coloured sand and lots of decorations, kids get creative and take home a new buddy. Sno cones will be be on sale to help beat the heat. Get in the spirit and wear your red and white! See you in the park!
driving, resulting in an automatic seven-day driver licence suspension and vehicle impoundment. The driver was issued a future court date to answer to the charges.
NPCA gets new CAO
At a special meeting of the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority Board of Directors held last Thursday, June 22, the Board appointed Mark Brickell as CAO/Secretary-Treasurer of the NPCA. Brickell joined the NPCA in 2014 in NPCA's Operations division and has previously held leadership positions with Niagara Economic Development Corporation and Peel District School Board. The appointment of Brickell to the CAO position is effective immediately. In an NPCA news release, Brickell says, “I am humbled by the Board’s expression of confidence in me. The work of the Conservation Authority is challenging, complex and often misunderstood. I look forward to working with all our partners to further the understanding of this organization and its service to the Niagara Peninsula watershed.”
Possession of Marijuana. Daniel Swain, 29, also of Welland, was charged with Break, Enter and Commit, Possession of Property Obtained by Crime Under $5,000, and Fraud Under $5,000. Investigation continues. 
Wainfleet break and enter arrests
Members of the Central Region Street Crime Unit have been investigating two break and enter complaints to a rural residence in Wainfleet. The break and enters occurred over a three-month period and in both incidents a motorcycle was stolen. Last Thursday, June 15, several arrests were made in relation to these investigations. In relation to the break and enter that occurred on March 20, police say they recovered a Honda dirt bike value at $1,500. Anthony Barichello, 41, a Port Colborne resident, was charged with being in possession of stolen property under $5,000. In relation to the break and enter that occurred on May 31, the following individuals have been charged with break, enter and commit: Jeremy McGilvery, 31, of Welland; Christopher Ianni, 29, and Krystal Brown, 26, both of Port Colborne. Police say that additional arrests are expected.
Pelham break and enter arrests
Last Tuesday, June 20, members of the Central Region Street Crime Unit entered into a break and enter investigation at a rural residence in Pelham. Police say that during the course of their investigation they recovered stolen property and made two arrests. Travis Cloutier, 29, of Welland was charged with Break, Enter and Commit, and
Police Chief to retire
Niagara Police Chief Jeff McGuire has informed the Regional Municipality of Niagara Police Services Board of his decision to retire, effective July 14, having served his original five year contract term and opting not to work a three-year extended term. McGuire has had a 40-year career as a police officer, reaching the rank of Acting Deputy Chief of Police of the Toronto Police Service before being appointed as Niagara's Police Chief on June 18, 2012, becoming the eighth Chief of Police in the history of the Niagara Regional Police Service. McGuire is a former president of the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police and he is a member of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police, the International Association of Chiefs of Police, the FBI National Academy Associates and the Police Executive Research Forum. "I am incredibly honoured and humbled to have had the opportunity to lead the men and women of the Niagara Regional Police Service for the past five years," says
Clare Avenue stunting charge
Last Saturday police were conducting traffic enforcement on Clare Aveneu in Welland in response to public complaints. Police say they stopped a vehicle travelling 102km/h in the posted 50km/h zone. The driver was charged with speeding as well as stunt
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Column Six
Growing up British Part 2 of 2: Coronation to embarkation
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Apple Day comes to Fonthill
BY JULIE MANNELL
Special to the VOICE
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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-
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
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
BY HEATHER McLAREN ROHRER
Special to the VOICE
A
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 See CHICANE Page 5
Petition-inspired changes coming to 2017 Summerfest 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
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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
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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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-
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.
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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
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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
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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
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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 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 Grill on Canboro Petro Canada Mtvl. Hwy. Renewed Thrift & Vintage Ridge Berry Farm
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The Voice of Pelham, June 28, 2017
Page 3
The Conversation
A Ron Leavens check-in Former Pelham mayor talks Community Centre planning, real estate development, and traffic on Pelham Street BY DAVE BURKET
VOICE Publisher
W
HEN MY SPOUSE and I moved to Fonthill we had a big Yellow Lab with a big appetite. After getting the keys to the house our first stop was PetValu. What should have been a five-minute transaction for a bag of kibble turned into a 45-minute chat with a friendly man named Ron, who turned out to own the store. Then it also turned out he was a former mayor, not all that long out of office. It helped explain his breadth of knowledge about Pelham. Two contradictions struck me back then about Ron Leavens and haven’t gone away since. First, for a socialist and a stalwart NDP supporter, he’s remarkably pro-business. Second, his warmth, self-effacement, and tendency to speak plainly are at odds with what we’ve come to dread from our politicians. It’s a wonder he was elected to start with. His style stands in particular contrast to the smug self-aggrandizement that characterizes much of our current leadership at all
levels. You won’t catch Leavens speaking in surgically assembled soundbites designed to deflect or conceal. Now 71, he tells anyone who asks that his days in politics are done. Leavens was a teacher in Niagara schools from 1975 to 2000, and he’s owned his PetValu store for 20 years. He served as Pelham’s mayor from 2002 to 2006. Then, as he says, he was “voted out of office,” beaten in a close race for re-election by Dave Augustyn. The issue that killed Leavens was the municipal purchase of the acreage now known as East Fonthill. In part, Leavens sought to protect it from developers bent on making a quick buck with cheap, slipshod construction. He wanted the Town to determine how, and when, the tract was developed. Every few months I’ll stop in for a reality-check with Ron. While we share some fundamental political philosophies, we disagree on a few details, particularly when it comes to how well, or badly, the current council
has overseen new development. It’s true that provincial law can’t be flouted by local municipalities, but it’s equally true that some municipalities do development better than others. When we got chatting a few days ago at his store, after I’d come by on ad business, I realized that Voice readers ought to be included too. We did the official interview the next day, talking over coffee and barking dogs being groomed in the back. The conversation has been edited for clarity. Even condensed, though, you might want to brew your own pot of coffee before settling in. BURKET: You’ve expressed disappointment that the Town didn’t go after provincial or federal funding for the Community Centre. When was that, and what do you mean? LEAVENS: Well, there were a number of times over the last 25 years where we had the opportunity to take advantage of infrastructure grants from the two senior
Former Pelham mayor Ron Leavens in his Fonthill PetValu office. levels of government, not just this council, but previous councils as well, and we weren't ready to do it. And as a result of that, our local taxpayers missed out on some funding that should have been here. I'm not laying blame on any one council for it, it's just that as a municipality, when you know you've got these types of projects coming up, you need to be agile and ready to take advantage. How did the pursuit of that money not happen. This project has been in the works for how many years? Quarter of a century.
Twenty-five years. Yeah. At least. Well, I just think that over the years there were a number of councils who received a consultant's report, and the consultant's report said, "This is what you need." And council said, "Okay. Well, let's put that on the shelf." Which was wrong— even if you didn't want to move ahead with the project at that time, you get some planning in place so that when opportunities do come along, you can pull that plan off the shelf and say, "Okay. We're ready to go." I mean, we've had enough consul-
VOICE PHOTO
tant's reports over the years that we should have known we had to get something ready. When you were mayor, did you attempt to move that process along? We were hoping. We were getting ready. Number one was to secure the land, and that's what the council decided to do. And after that was to put together a plan so that when infrastructure money came along like it did in 2008, 2009, we'd be ready for it. And the plan wasn't there. See LEAVENS Page 10
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Page 4
The Voice of Pelham, June 28, 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
COMMENTARY / OP-ED Larry Coté Keep on reading
F
OR M ANY OF US there is a tactile pleasure in holding in your hands and reading some form of printed word such as a book, a newspaper, a magazine or a letter from a friend. Sadly, the pleasure from such experiences is nearly lost. However one might describe the quality of that tactile experience, it is not quite the same when reading the monitor of an electronic reader or tablet. The shift from the print media to the electronic presentation of information is part of the so-called technological revolution. However, in some transformations there may be some unpleasant consequences. Clearly one can neither ignore nor avoid these advancements in technology. One must acknowledge that many of these technologies have measurably improved our lives. But not without some occasional downsides. For example, if you were a production-line worker replaced by a robot then you were devastatingly impacted. If you were a bank teller prior to the installation of the ATM then you were out the door. If you were a taxi driver prior to Uber driving into town then you were left
by the side of the road. And so it is that the print media has also been greatly impacted by some of these ‘advancements.’ Many journalists, reporters and others working in this sector have
What will be the future of newspapers and other print media forms? been furloughed, downsized or otherwise impacted. The reason for such retrenchment is primarily due to the business model that was adopted by this industry from its early beginnings centuries ago. That business model determined that revenues were derived primarily from selling advertising and marginally from subscriptions. There was always some debate about how this arrangement might bias journalism in favor of the advertisers. For example, would news outlets that
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relied on tobacco company advertising be able to thoroughly report on studies that linked smoking with lung cancer? Some advertisers are switching their advertising dollars away from print media and are spending these dollars to promote their goods and services on social media. This shift in carriers has heavily impacted newspapers and magazines. In response, print media companies are scrambling to develop in-house digital services in the hopes of improving their revenue streams. What will be the future for newspapers and other print media forms? There are some investigations and studies underway in an attempt to ensure the survival of these news forms that are a crucial element to the proper workings of democracy. Some of these inquiries favor subsidies and other incentives such as those that underwrite the CBC that claims to be Canada’s national broadcaster. In the interim, keep on reading. Larry Coté is a retired professor of business. He was awarded a Governor General’s Medal for his work in community development.
Letters No soil nightmare 'round these parts, ma'am I read with interest the article on soils of China and Ontario and comments by Dr. Vasseur of Brock [“Unhealthy soil a ‘nightmare’ for farmers here, China,” June 21, p. 2]. Her very generalized statements of what can happen are true; however in Ontario we have been good land stewards for many decades and leaders in many practices that promote good agriculture and land/ecosystem protection. Personally, I have worked with growers across Ontario delivering and researching IPM practices as a summer research student at Agriculture Canada – Vineland in the late ‘70s and then as a professional advisor, which I continue to do today some 40 years later. I was one of three people hired in 1980
by the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food to be Pest Management Specialists and work with growers and organizations on IPM implementation. While as a specialist at OMAF Vineland (1983-1997), the grape and tender fruit program was taken up by growers’ insecticide use was reduced by 50% in four years and in some cases reduced by more than 90%. As well, along with colleagues I taught the first Grape IPM degree courses at Brock University (1997-2013). Great strides continue today with specialists and researchers at Vineland, Brock University, University of Guelph and others across Ontario working to develop sustainable and See SOIL next page
CONTACT YOUR ELECTED OFFICIALS Member of Federal Parliament
Electoral District: Niagara West
Dean Allison, MP 4994 King Street Beamsville, ON L0R 1B0 Dean.Allison@parl.gc.ca 877-563-7900 Member of Provincial Parliament
Electoral District: Niagara West-Glanbrook Sam Oosterhoff, MPP 4961 King St. East, Unit M1 Beamsville, ON L0R 1B0 sam.oosterhoffco@pc.ola.org 905-563-1755
Members of Niagara Regional Council Councillor David Augustyn mayordave@pelham.ca 905-892-2607 Ext 317 Councillor Brian Baty 742 Memorial Dr. Fenwick, ON L0S 1C0 905-892-5317 Town of Pelham 20 Pelham Town Square P.O. Box 400 Fonthill, ON L0S 1E0 905-892-2607
Mayor of Pelham David Augustyn mayordave@pelham.ca 905-892-2607 Ext 317 Members of Pelham Town Council Ward 1 Councillor Richard Rybiak rrybiak@pelham.ca 905-892-2105 Councillor Marvin Junkin mjunkin@pelham.ca 905-684-4870 Ward 2 Councillor Catherine King cking@pelham.ca 905-658-8599 Councillor Gary Accursi gaccursi@pelham.ca 905-892-5528 Ward 3 Councillor John Durley jdurley@pelham.ca 905-892-5388 Councillor Peter Papp ppapp@pelham.ca 905-328-6008
Congratulations It is with great joy that William and Catherine McInnes announce the marriage of our daughter Kimberly Anne to Jordan Douglas Lewis, son of Doug and Charmaine Lewis. The wedding took place on June 17th 2017 at the End Of The Road Vineyards. We wish the happy couple many blessings and much happiness as they start the next chapter of their lives.
•
Jill C. Anthony Law Office
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The Voice of Pelham, June 28, 2017
Page 5
OPINION Letters
continued
Peering into the murk ahead, hoping to find the right path
Praises the Piccolo effect [RE: "Babe has left, yet lives on," June 21, p. 1], Sam, are you aware how many apartments I go into at Lookout [Ridge retirement home] where articles you're in or columns you've written are posted proudly on fridges and bulletin boards? Or if your picture is in the paper it's cut out and posted as well. And they remain for years in some cases (as long as I've been there ). And after you've visited, if I don't happen to see you and share a chat, it doesn't take long to know you've made an appearance, because it's the “talk of the town,” so to speak. It's truly wonderful the impact you've made, the time you take for visits, the genuine compassion and friendship that you extend. Thank you, Sam. Tammy Ruzanske-Rietveld Pelham Via Facebook
SOIL continued from previous page effective strategies for farm use and land stewardship. Since 1997, as a consultant I have worked with growers on vineyard and orchard nutrient programs to optimize (reduce to most efficient inputs) fertilizer rates, pesticide use, soil management practices, biodiversity, and undertaken research projects. In addition to optimizing inputs, cropping strategies and soil management practices have been refined to encourage plant diversity to enhance soil structure, soil biology and the ecosystem. Since 2003,
FOLLOW THE MONEY By Jim Pitt
I have been able to see firsthand vineyard production in China as I travel to a region near Penglai China multiple times per year, and can say the soil and growing conditions are significantly different than in Ontario. I look forward to Dr. Vasseur’s and her colleagues’ results, yet feel it is important that Ontario soils not be considered at a “nightmare” status, but should be considered as healthy and growing with the tender fruit and grape industries as leaders in land stewardship and promotion of healthy ecosystems. Kevin Ker, PhD, P.Ag. Fenwick
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Happy Canada Day
P
REDICTIONS ARE EASY TO MAKE. Many predictions are based on forecasts of future events from present trends. Predictions can disappoint, however, if they don’t come true or if you planned your present based on your future. I was reading an article on predictions that the Ontario government earlier insisted that municipalities across the province were to have in place for growth ten years ago. This “Places to Grow” plan was for the following 35 years. We’re now ten years into the plan. So how are are these predictions going? Waterloo Region seems to have missed the mark, by quite a bit. The Region planned for 136,000 more residents than they seem to be getting, if present trends persist. They were planning for schools, light rail, and services to meet the needs of this growth but, as it stands, these predictions were too optimistic. Ten years in and they are already 24,000 short of the expected number, and this with a major housing bubble and construction boom. Niagara Region doesn’t fare any better. According to the predictions, our region was forecast to grow to over 600,000 by 2041. That number is actually trending to just over 500,000 by 2041. Even here in Pelham growth forecasts are lagging. In a May 2016 report concerning development
charges to pay for the new arenas, the firm contracted for the report used a forecast for a population of 18,011 in 2016, while the 2016 census reported a population of 17,100—5% less than expected. Growth plans can be useful, but are ultimately flawed. They’re usually far too optimistic because they are designed for best-case scenarios. Politicians always plan for best-case scenarios; to do otherwise would not be moving forward, as they say. Individuals also like to make predictions about the future. People plan and spend on the assumption that growth is a straight line up. I bought my house for X and now it’s worth Y. I’ll borrow lots of money and my house will pay for it. There is no thought given to the possibility that it could go back to being worth X, or less. That’s why we, as a nation, are in so much debt. The levels of debt Canadians hold today are truly frightening. Since 2006 private debt—not government debt, which is equally disturbing—has ballooned by a further $1 trillion, to over $2 trillion dollars. Canada stands alone as having the highest personal debt per capita in the developed world. Credit card debt is the most expensive type, because the bank insists you pay a high premium interest rate to cover possible defaults by the entire credit card debt pool. The money borrowed from a bank for credit cards is all their
Growth plans can be useful, but are ultimately flawed
money, and it is not secured by anything but trust and your credit rating. If you carry a balance of $6,000 and pay the monthly minimum, you will be paying for that $6,000 for 40 years. At the end of March, 20.4 million of us were carrying a balance. Long term car loans with low monthly payments allow people to buy cars they can’t afford. The car is usually replaced before the loan is paid and so you just roll the old loan into a new loan, and drive off. Canadians hold an average of $20,000 each in car loans. However, the most popular and largest type of loan people have is Home Equity Lines of Credit or HELOC. These loans are demand loans secured by the value of your property. You can borrow up to 80% of the value of your home, but only 65% can be a demand-type loan. The other 15% is like a second mortgage. What does a HELOC have to do with predictions? When the housing market is hot See FOLLOW THE MONEY Page 23
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Professional SERVICES Directory Dr. Ken Sawatzky Dental Surgeon
LOOKOUT RIDGE RETIREMENT COMMUNITY TRAINING OPPORTUNITY We are currently accepting registrations for our CARE WORKER CERTIFICATION course, which could lead to possible employment with our facility. The course content includes learning how to assist the elderly with daily care needs. Applicants should possess good customer service skills as well as enjoy working with seniors. Please send RESUME to the attention of: CWC Course. FAX: 905-892-9488 E-mail: lindsayrandall@lookoutridge.ca For more information, call 905-892-9218
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NEWSFLASH Tell us your story Column Six presents tales of personal triumph, adventure, strange-but-true stories, life-changing events, and looks-back at our past. Did you conquer Everest or kick a bad habit? Did you meet your spouse-to-be in jail or on an African safari? Do you know where Hoffa’s buried? Write it down, send it in: publisher@thevoiceofpelham.ca (You won’t get rich, but you will get paid.)
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Page 6
The Voice of Pelham, June 28, 2017
Bill Culp's O' Canada Rock 'n' Roll Show
2017 Bandshell Series
BY JIM CASSON
Special to the VOICE
In honour of Canada Day and Canada’s 150th anniversary, coming tomorrow, June 29, 7-9 PM at the Fonthill Bandshell, the “O' Canada Rock’n' Roll Show” celebrates the all-time greatest hits from the most legendary artists in Canadian music history. You'll hear hits from Blue Rodeo, Bryan Adams, The Guess Who, BTO, The Tragically Hip, Teenage Head, Burton Cummings, Downchild Blues Band, Anne Murray and more. Hosted by Niagara's own Bill Culp, the show features an incredible line-up of talented musicians, including Kim Ladd, Jeff Giles, Bruce Tournay, Jim Casson, Jeff Brown, Loralee McGuirl, Dave Rave and Max Casson, all dedicated to the music of the Great White North. Presented by Pleasantview Memorial Gardens. For more information, please go to fonthillbandshell.com
OFF
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Bill Culp.
Letters
www.thevoiceofpelham.ca
continued
If Feds can do it, so can the DSBN Isn't it ironic that, on the day that Prime Minister Trudeau announced the name change on his office building in Ottawa, the DSBN refused Archdeacon Val Kerr's request for delegation status at their June Board meeting. Archdeacon Kerr (a member of the Wolf Clan) is the Anglican minister chosen to lead the truth and reconciliation process for the Anglican Church in Niagara. She offered her services to do a blanket exercise, but the school board said they had their own people. Understandable. However, she also wanted to speak to the issues that Trustee Campbell said were to be on public record, in which she stated it was not her job to undue the wrongs of the past. These are not Trustee Campbell's "exact words" because even though she said her remarks were for public record the DSBN has not responded to five requests for a copy of her speech. The DSBN will not allow Archdeacon Kerr to address Trustee Campbell's remarks in person. They have suggested she send her comments in writing and they will be given to the Trustees. This would greatly lessen the impact of her comments. While the rest of the country is going forward on a path to a more inclusive future, the DSBN 's use of the name Wellington as associated by them to the First Duke of
Wellington, continues to push the village of Fenwick back to the time of British Colonialism and all it stood for. Although this refusal is disappointing, the positive side is that it is one more proof for the Ombudsman of the DSBN's unwillingness to listen and to consider all the information brought forth by this issue. I hope many of you took the time to send a letter to Dale Robinson and the Trustees the other week. If not, there is still time to do so. I am meeting with some parents soon who wish to get involved. If you have a child in the school, please let me know as there is strength and safety in numbers. I cannot tell you how many parents have told me they are afraid to get involved for fear of repercussions on their children. It is totally unacceptable, in a democratic society, that anyone should have to think like this when dealing with their child's school. The DSBN hopes that by stonewalling us and refusing to hear presentations that this matter will wither and die over the summer months and that when the children go back to school everyone will say it's already done, just let it be. Well this issue is not over. When something is wrong, it's wrong and you don't condone it just because it is easier or more convenient to do so. Nancy Beamer Names Matter
11am-7pm
($14.99 minimum. One coupon per entree.)
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Bill Culp’s O Canada Rock 'n' Roll Show 12.99 on stage 7pm - 9pm @ Peace Park 155 HWY 20 W Fonthill
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Right-turn-only not the solution for Church Hill Street I've been wanting to speak to someone regarding the intersection of Pelham and Church Hill. Although I think the stop light was a help, I believe the biggest problem is the parking allowed in front of the church, which obscures the vision of traffic entering Pelham Street from Church Hill. As a local resident, I agree that making it a right-turn-only will be a big inconvenience for us, also. Yvonne Tychynski Fonthill
We’re moving and changing our name! On July 1, Quality Cleaners, at 1423 Pelham Street, will return to its previous address, 1421 Pelham Street—now the beautiful new Fonthill Flats building! We’re also changing our name to
Nick’s Dry Cleaners
Family owned and operated, Nick’s Cleaners has been continuously operating at 483 East Main Street in Welland since 1952, making us the oldest dry cleaning plant in Niagara. We are very proud of our 65 years of service and we know that we owe our many years of success to our loyal customers and dedicated long-term employees. Without either group, we would have never been able to stay in business for this many years.
Same great staff, same great service!
There are still openings for camp! Reserve your spot today! Games, swimming, Bible lessons, archery, boat races, crafts, and more! The days are packed full of fun and adventure!
Day Camp • Ages 7-13 Registration 9:00am • Camp runs 9:30am to 4:00pm • $65 The following weeks of day camp still have openings: August 7 to 11 • August 21 to 25 • August 28 to September 1
Teen Camp • Ages 14-18 Teen camp runs 6:00pm to10:00pm • $65 Both weeks have openings: July 24 to 28 • August 21 to 25
(905) 892-8744 / Mon. to Fri 8 am - 6 pm / Sat 8:30 am - 1 pm. www.nickscleaners.com
392 Kilman Rd., RR#1 Ridgeville, ON, L0S 1M0 Phone: 905 892 4273 • E-mail: agapevalley@agapevalley.ca www.agapevalley.ca
www.thevoiceofpelham.ca
The Voice of Pelham, June 28, 2017
Page 7
Staying young the "Hurricane Hazel" way Iconic Ontario politician, who first held office in 1967, shares her secrets
Top, "Hurricane Hazel" McCallion. Center, McCallion's appreciative audience, including Pelham Town Councillor Peter Papp, left. Bottom, Master of Ceremonies, John Storm of Cogeco TV’s Taking Niagara by Storm. NATE SMELLE PHOTOS
BY NATE SMELLE
The VOICE
There are few politicians who garner the type of respect as does “Hurricane” Hazel McCallion. Serving as Mayor of Mississauga from 1978 until 2014, and as Reeve and Deputy Reeve of Streetsville from 1967 until 1973, McCallion has earned her place in history as an icon of Canadian politics. With so many accomplishments in life, one might think that the 96 year old would be showing signs of slowing down. Well, anyone who had the chance to catch her keynote address at the Celebrating Age-Friendly Niagara Forum last Wednesday knows this is not the case. The crowd of 300-plus in attendance for her talk at Amici's Banquet and Convention Centre in Thorold listened intently as she shared with them her lifetime of wisdom. "Don't think about aging, because there is no such thing as aging," said McCallion. "It’s up to you — each and every one of you — to make a difference. Don't fear the future, don't fear your future, don't fear the future of our country. Do something about it and shape it, shape your life, shape your community and shape your country." On several occasions during her talk, McCallion advised the audience of elders that a good way to age well was to not consider yourself as old. One way to do this, she said was to not look at retirement as retirement, but instead as a change of jobs. Changing jobs is something people do throughout their entire lives, she said. Reflecting on the many times she had changed jobs herself, McCallion said she has come to see life as a highway. “We start on this highway at a very young age, as a baby, then we grow up to be a young person, then an adult and then they call us seniors,” she said laughing. “I don't know what a senior is, because you can be a senior at 65 or you can be a senior at 100. That highway is a rough road at times because anybody who goes along that highway is going to run into problems. There are going to be detours and some of those detours are not the best things. But every time there's a detour we become more confident and more capable of dealing with the next detour, because life is an experience.” This lesson especially holds true for youth today, McCallion said, because the idea of remaining with one company or job until retirement doesn't exist anymore. Because many people nowadays change jobs four or five times throughout their life, she said it is essential for people to be happy with their occupation. McCallion said she was happy to be the Mayor of Mississauga, and for that reason she was determined to be the best mayor the city ever had. "You have to live your life with passion," McCallion declared. "Passion is extremely important. If you love the job that you have, then you will never work another day because you love to get up in the morning and you're happy to go to whatever responsibilities you have. You've got to be happy. I believe that if you give your best to what you do, the best will come back to you." No matter what it is that one does in life, McCallion said it is always wise to plan ahead for the future, because good planning brings success in business, in managing a city and in living one’s life. When taking on a new job or starting a new chapter in one’s life, she sees planning as the key to making intelligent decisions. The story of Noah’s Ark is a good lesson in the value of planning ahead, proclaimed McCallion.
“Good advice for those who are aging— don’t miss the boat, and remember that it wasn't raining when Noah built the Ark,” she said. “That gets me to climate change. It's time we prepared for the flooding that is occur-
Don't miss the boat, and remember that it wasn't raining when Noah built the Ark
ring. It’s very serious. I don't know what the rivers down here are like but we've had to close places along the Credit River because of the high water and the flooding. Like I said, plan ahead. Noah built the ark before the rain came, but we're not too good at planning ahead in Canada.” Before planning, she said people need to do their homework. Though McCallion left school long ago, she has never stopped doing her homework. Doing her homework helps her to keep an active mind. Keeping an active mind is another effective way for people to stay young as they age, she said. Throwing a little shade at U.S. President Donald Trump, McCallion revealed that she had been doing some homework on the tumultuous state of politics in the United States. "The mind is extremely important, so read — watching TV is not the best. They say if you want to become depressed, watch TV. Nobody wants to become depressed, but with what's happening around the world there is certainly nothing to be proud of or happy about — especially today with the President of the United States. You know when I was 13 my mother told me anybody could become President of the United States. Well, it took 96 years for that to happen." Not wanting to spend much time on the unnatural disaster they call The Donald, McCallion stressed the importance of remaining positive. Simply put, dwelling on negativity and associating with negative people speeds up the process of aging. During her time as mayor, McCallion recalls one woman who kept calling in to raise a fuss over the dandelions blooming along one of the boulevards in Mississauga. When this woman scolded her, asking why the city had done nothing to stop the dandelions from blooming when she was able to keep her own lawn dandelion-free, McCallion said she remarked to the woman how beautiful the little yellow flowers are. She said people can stay young as they age by ignoring the critics and focusing their minds on doing their best. "People love to complain and they complain about everything — even the good things,” she said. “Somebody can always find a reason to complain. You know what will age you more than anything? Always looking to criticize something — criticize your family, criticize your friends, criticize the way the services are provided — because you become negative. It's so much easier to be positive. People that are negative are not happy. They find things wrong with everything." While keeping the mind active is a very important component of staying young, so is remaining physically active. This is where one’s community can play a huge role. Volunteering is an excellent way to keep the mind and the body moving, she explained. When speaking with newcomers to Canada, McCallion makes a point of telling them how this country has become what it is today because of volunteerism. "Each and every one of us can do something for our community in some way or another,” McCallion said. “Of course, we can all do things for other people. It's so simple and we feel so good about it. That keeps us from aging as well. It is so important to make every day count. We want to be a contributor to the future of our community and the future of this great country of Canada. So, it's up to us to take charge, with confidence and with the desire and the commitment to give everything we can while we're here."
Page 8
The Voice of Pelham, June 28, 2017
Pelham Library Board Chair, CEO update Council
Small libraries can have a big impact BY KIRK WEAVER
CEO Pelham Library
There are often arguments put forward that bigger is better. This argument is sometimes made with respect to library facilities. Some have suggested that no new library build should be less than 5,000 square feet or be a standalone building. The Fonthill Branch is approximately 7,500 square feet so would meet this arbitrary size standard, but it is a standalone building. The newly renovated and expanded Maple Acre location is only 4,000 square feet and a standalone facility. Some library experts might suggest this was a mistake. We don’t think so. Some in the community will certainly recall the debate about the need for a branch in Fenwick a few years ago. There are many benefits to a small branch library in smaller communities I came across an article recently by Erin Kernohan-Berning who made a strong case for small branch libraries. The argument is rooted in the mandate of libraries to serve as local institutions. Libraries are intended to provide access to information, community gathering space, and equal access to services. In communities with smaller populations but large geographic territory, like Pelham, this can be difficult to accomplish
with a large central branch. Unless you had the time and transportation to get to the facility, it would become inaccessible to many in the community. There is always a balance to be struck between providing access to all and the allocation of scarce financial resources. Early numbers at Maple Acre would seem to suggest we are on the right track. We have had more visitors to the branch in the first three months of opening than we did in all of 2015 (the most recent year of full service in Fenwick - 2016 had limited service during construction). Our challenge – and a challenge we put to the community - is to maintain this level of activity over the long term. We are regularly seeking out creative ways to improve access to the services we offer without significant costs. We are not alone, the article cites other communities in Ontario who have chosen to invest in small branches to serve their community better. We believe that our two branches, while not large in physical size, can play a large role in creating a strong sense of community and belonging. We welcome your suggestions for creative ways to do this. It is not the size of the building that makes us successful, rather it is the strength of the community resolve to have vibrant community spaces.
BY VOICE STAFF Pelham Public Library Board Chair, Tim Wright, and Library CEO, Kirk Weaver, provided Town Council with an update on the library’s strategic plan at Council’s meeting on Monday, June 19. Wright told Council that through the planning process conducted in 2016 they identified five key themes. The first of theme he spoke of was community engagement. Seeking innovative ways to engage with the community, he said the library now plans to participate in more activities in the community, and to invite the community to participate in more events at the library. “We still do the traditional things libraries do — in fact we are doing an awful lot of them and I think we do them well,” Wright said. “But certainly, the trend in libraries throughout Ontario, and probably throughout Canada is to become integral parts of the community as a meeting place, and to help develop any number of things within the community.” The second theme to arise from the strategic plan was community enrichment. Wright said they have seen firsthand how the library enriches the community in many ways. For instance, he said the library provides growth and learning opportunities for residents by giving them access to traditional tools and resources and by providing reasonably extensive programming for the community. Other key themes defined included: financial sustainability, facility improvement and workplace development. Wright said that the library has been striving to help the Town achieve its goals of fostering “continual innovation and long term financial sustainability, providing excellent public service and creating a caring and friendly
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Hard to believe—the view at Maple Acre exactly a year ago as work started on the branch's renovation. BOB LOBLAW PHOTO
culture.” One of the library’s 2017 priorities is to establish new partnerships with social services and other libraries in the Niagara Region. Currently partnering with five other libraries in Niagara, Wright said they are looking to build on that by improving reciprocal borrowing services. According to Wright, the new Maple Acre Branch in Fenwick has proven to be an excellent example of how libraries can engage, encourage and enrich the community. Since it opened to the public on Jan. 24, the new branch has been providing the community with 32 hours of service per week. Library staff have received a great deal of positive feedback and issued 60 new cards. Also worth noting, the new branch has welcomed 9,100 visitors as of April 30. To get a better idea of how the public is enjoying the new branch, and how to make improvements, Wright said they will be conducting a user survey. Speaking to the long-term sustainability of the library system, Weaver said there was a feasibility study done about a year ago that identified the
scope of work to be done at the Fonthill Branch, and some of the high-level costing for the renovations. Capped at $215,000 in capital expenditures, the study focused on upgrades to the basement office, elevator, and renovations to the main floor meeting room/staff room to create more public space. Currently, he said they are looking at the details of the design and seeking quotes for the work that needs to be done. To limit the capital investment required to get the renovations started, Weaver said they are planning to phase in the work over a couple of years. “We'd like to have detailed costing that we can bring forward a business case,” said Weaver. “The goal being to extend the useful life of the facility to accommodate the town's growth projections. With the East Fonthill development and the space constraints that we face now, we are looking at how can we make this building useful, and provide good solid library service over the next 10 to 15 years as the downtown master plan evolves.”
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Page 9
100 YEARS OF SERVICE Earlier this month members of the Fenwick Lions and Fonthill Lion clubs, pictured above, raised a 100th anniversary flag at Pelham Town Hall honouring the establishment of the Lions Club International by Melvin Jones in Chicago in 1917.Fonthill Lions Club was chartered in 1945 and the Fenwick Lions Club was chartered in 1949 after being sponsored by the Fonthill club. Over the years both of clubs have supported several local charities, as well as supporting Lions Foundation of Canada Guide Dog Program, Camp Dorset (family dialysis), Camp Huronda (children with Type 1 diabetes), Camp Trillium (children with cancer), CNID Lake Joe and others. As Lions Club International starts into its second century they say that their Fonthill Lions-coined motto, “We Serve,” will remain as true as ever. SUPPLIED PHOTO
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The Voice of Pelham, June 28, 2017
LEAVENS continued from Page 3 So what happened in 2008 that the plan wasn't there? They weren't ready for it. The fact of the matter is that I got voted out of office. Hopefully any council that I would have led after 2006 would have been putting together the plan for it. And East Fonthill wasn't ready at that time either. But council did get the Region to put the services down Rice Road. When did that happen. I think it was completed before I was voted out of office in 2006. That’s an interesting way
to phrase it. “Voted out of office.” Hey, that's what happens. You want to say booted out? That's okay. Rather than “beaten by so-and-so.” Yeah. You mentioned yesterday that a customer had come in to the store who wasn’t happy about how tough it is to find out how the Community Centre build is progressing, and you said that Port Colborne had done a much better job of communicating the progress of their build. I haven't seen it, but I've heard from numerous people that Port Colborne used a very good communications
program that keep people up to date on how things were proceeding. I looked on Pelham’s website today and there's stuff there, but you’ve got to wade through it. And people in this day and age don't have time to wade through that kind of stuff. It's not laid out in a user-friendly way? No. It would have been nice if they had identified milestones in the whole process. And then report on those milestones throughout. There's some information from the Oversight Committee on phase one, phase two, phase three, phase four, phase five, but what does that mean to the average
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person in town? If you talk about it in everyday terms— steel work's going in, and we're this far along in getting that completed, and so on. A report like that on a monthly basis. The Town should be doing this, or the contractor. Yeah, the Town definitely should be doing that. For sure. If you want to have open lines of communication with people, you've got to make it easy for them. You can't bury it in jargon. I used to get this when I was teaching as well. I got so sick and tired of the educational jargon that was being used instead of directly communicating with people in plain, ordinary English. I
Dean Allison Member of Parliament for Niagara West
Celebrate Canada!
Happy Happy 149th 150thBirthday BirthdayCanada! Canada! Contact Dean’s office for Inquiries & assistance with:
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You're mandated by the province to have a certain number of years of development land within your municipal boundaries
think it's really important to understand that the average person doesn't understand the jargon that Town staff or Council might. Give it to them in plain, ordinary, everyday English. The Town does seem to be particularly fond of euphemisms and rather elaborate job titles. That's the name of the game in this day and age in politics, you know? You see it at all levels. But you need to remember who it is that you're doing it for, and why you're doing it, and how you need to communicate with those people. It's like talking to a lawyer. You know? It really is. What do you make of the Town’s shifting explanations for the 9,000 square foot design change? It's typical. Nobody wants to take responsibility for it. It happened, it has to be dealt with. When everything is said and done, then you can go look at pointing the finger at someone for not having followed through on what they should have. If that was the situation. It has to be done. Let's get it done. And that's why you build a contingency in any major con-
struction project, to take are of those things. In this case, the contingency seems to have been eaten up by the buyback of the Development Charge credits. Yeah. That I would have had problems with. You build a contingency fund into a project like that to deal with problems involved in the actual construction project itself, not to cover anything else outside of it. So, from my own point of view, I would have had a real problem allocating that money for something else. And I should add, not that what they did was wrong or anything, I just— Not illegal. Not illegal. Well, let's say not— no, let's just say it certainly wasn't illegal. I mean, when you're in a position like that you have to make decisions. “We need three million dollars right away. How do we get it? Well, we can find it here? Okay.” They're in a position where they had to make decisions, and I'm not going to second-guess the decisions they made but— You're questioning the fiscal prudence of the decision. See LEAVENS Page 12
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Page 11
50 years ago: Our pavillion at Expo 67 BY MARY DAURIO
Special to the VOICE
Growing up on our farm it is unusual to travel any distance. The mailbox is our window to the world, yielding correspondence till a mother robin takes up residence. She gleans straw and fills the box with her golden nest. No letters arrive for a time as the mail lady refuses to deal with a broody bird, and mom will not disturb the nest. Like most children in my community, school, church, and the general store comprise the sphere of our knowledge. In 1967 Canada has a special birthday: One Hundred years of Confederation. The World's Fair is in Montreal that year, the ultimate celebration. From the quiet confining realm we live in, an opportunity arrives to see the entire world at its best and finest. A school trip is planned to the World's Fair, Expo 67. I am to be a part of this splendid adventure, and my mother joins as a chaperone. The long, arduous bus ride brings us by nightfall to the Expo residence. Our excitement and anticipation is so boundless sleep will not come, instead we chatter boisterously. Our den mother, strict and unyielding, with her face scarlet, cheeks billowing, hollers, "Silence!" Undeterred we prattle on, so my mother offers a voice of reason saying, "Settle down girls. Morning will come early and our adventures will begin. You must be rested, and it's nice to be quiet So others can sleep. Close your eyes and rest. Sleep will Come." She tucks in a cover here, plumps a pillow there, and her calming presence wraps itself around our jubilant group, till soon we can't help but close our eyes
to sleep. Morning comes and gone are the over-taxed spirits of the night before. After breakfast we join our groups to carry out planned activities. Mom isn't my chaperone and as we part she says, "Have fun.” I know she also means, "Behave."
My mother is much like the pavillion she favours, both complicated in their simplicity Our group goes to see the United States Pavilion, a spherical marvel of concrete and glass. Two rambunctious boys forge ahead, my cousin and I follow suit. From high up on a curving staircase bannister one of the boys starts spitting down on people below while his mate copycats. The two culprits are spotted by an angry guide who starts pursuit. The boys tear off and guilt by association has us hot on their tails. We find ourselves outside looking in as we gasp great gulps of air in fear and excitement. In due time our chaperone and the rest of the group join us. We four are subdued on our trip back to the residence, savoring a lucky escape. That evening Mom takes me out to the fair by herself. I go with a certain amount of dread, wondering if some word of our misadventure had reached her diligent ears.
I know she would take a dim view and say something like, "We didn't come all this way to spit on the world." Instead she takes me to the Canadian Maple Tree Pavilion. With silk-like panels of red, yellow, and orange, it looks like a paper lantern, translucent with radiant light glowing through. Mom says, "Isn't it a thing of beauty, telling a story of our country and its people in pictures. I know you saw the lavish United States Pavilion." I'm feeling a little squirmy thinking she knows, but she continues, "I'm enjoying the fair, but can't help think how expensive most of these exhibits are with the world for many a hungry place. It's good to show our glory, but we must not forget our people. They are our guts. I know Jesus said, 'The poor are always with you,’ but even the birds of the air have nests to call their own. Anyway, this simple pavilion touched me and I wanted to show you it." "I understand a little mom." I reach my hand to hers, and smiling she says, "For now that is enough." My mother is much like the pavilion she favours, both complicated in their simplicity. I only remember two pavilions from Expo 67. One I didn't see much of, and the one my mother opened my eyes to. We arrive home just in time to see the mother robin teaching her babes to fly. Copying a post card she sent home, Mom paints a picture of “our” pavilion. It is luminous, not unlike her lessons. She feels moved. Her inspiration flows around her and encloses me in its sweet spell. It takes a mother's heart to teach the little birds to fly right.
LEAFY STREETS A 1916 postcard showing Canboro Road, Fonthill.
IN THE NEWS continued from Page 2 McGuire. "I could not have succeeded in my role without the support, loyalty and friendship of my executive team and I thank them for welcoming me into this organization and supporting me throughout my tenure." According to a news release, the Niagara Police Services Board will convene shortly to consider interim responsibilities and the recruitment of a new Chief of Police.
Welland remembers Councillor
City of Welland Council and staff are mourning the loss of Welland’s Ward 5 Councillor Rocky Letourneau, who died last Thursday, June 22. Letourneau was
well known in the Francophone community, helping bring a variety of Francophone events to Welland, including the Francophone Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AFMO) conference in 2014. Letourneau lobbied to have a permanent flagpole at Welland Civic Square to display the Francophone flag. Last week the flag flew at half mast, along with the City of Welland flag. Bridge 13 will also light the sky with Franco-Ontarian colours on June 27, to commemorate Councillor Letourneau’s life and unfaltering dedication to his constituents, his community, and his work as a City of Welland Councillor.
Soccerfest a success
Earlier this month, Pelham Soccer Club hosted the 6th Annual RBC Soccerfest. Some
SUBMITTED BY SHIRLEY LAZARETH
29 teams across six divisions demonstrated their skills in 20 games. Off the pitch, the players were busy with team photos and warm-ups for their next games, while family and friends enjoyed food, refreshments, and an inflatable obstacle course. When asked about the inspiration behind Soccerfest, organiser Joanne MacPherson said, “We wanted to provide the house league players with the opportunity to experience tournament style play and atmosphere which [our travel] teams get to do several times in a season. It is a great opportunity for kids to get to know each other and their coach two weeks into the season. We especially love promoting a sense of community with all our stakeholders, while providing a fun day playing the beautiful game."
The
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Happy Birthday Canada
Find the Voice at these locations: Indulgence Bakery Mossimo’s Pelham Street Grille 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 Grill on Canboro Petro Canada Mtvl. Hwy. Renewed Thrift & Vintage Ridge Berry Farm
Meghan McNaughton Doctor of Naturopathy Degree Canadian College of Naturopathetic Medicine
HBSc (Sciences Biomedicale) Laurentian University
We congratulate Meghan on her graduation from CCNM. Having completed her clinical internship, she has returned to Niagara and will soon be providing Naturopathic care at Health Over All in Fonthill.
150
th
P
elham Council and I are excited to celebrate Canada’s 150th birthday with you.
The Town of Pelham is gearing up for a full schedule of events leading up to July 1, and we hope you’ll join us as we celebrate 150 years of our great country. Happy birthday Canada,
We are proud of your passion and determination during this eight year journey. Wishing you continued success and happiness as you pursue your career in Naturopathy. Welcome back! Love, Mom & Dad
Mayor Dave For a full list of events and further details, please visit:
www.pelham.ca/canada-day
Page 12
The Voice of Pelham, June 28, 2017
LEAVENS continued from Page 10 Yeah. The overall prudence. If it's surplus to a project, okay, I can understand. But you're not far enough along at this point to know whether it's surplus or not. It may happen that somewhere down the road you're going to need that three million because there is still a lot of work to be done there, and where are you going to get it? Once, as far as I'm concerned, council earmarks for a project and the project is ongoing, then you've got to leave that money in the project just to make sure that when you're finished, you've done everything that you need to do. Who handled human resources while you were mayor? For a town of our size, albeit with a growing staff, it’s surprising that we have our own Human Resources Director. [Note: This position paid $106,500 in 2015, and $134,000 in 2016, a 26% salary increase in one year.] We did a lot of it through the Region. The day-to-day stuff was handled in-house, but if we had any serious situations where we needed advice and guidance, we went to the Region. And when we were doing searches for upper-level management, we always went through the Region. How did that work? They would place the advertising, or—? They do the advertising. They would screen applicants for us and get it down to the top 10 or so, and then they would set up interview ses-
sions for us. They would give us their evaluation on the candidates for the position as well. So the final decision was ours, but they had input. And it worked well. I don't know that it still would at the Region because I don't know what the situation there is anymore. Yesterday we were chatting about Town staff. We hear from time to time from residents who go to Town Hall that they are maybe not treated as well as they think they ought to be. And I'm wondering whether you've heard anything like this, or what your own experiences have been recently. Of course I've heard it, but I take the things I hear with a grain of salt. It's a two-way street. My philosophy always in my job and as mayor is if you treat people with respect, they'll treat you with respect. For the most part. For the most part. I think the important thing for management at the Town is to remember that they are employees of this people of this town, and if someone comes in to you with a reasonable request, then it's your job to make sure that you fulfill that request, if you can, in an efficient and a friendly manner. Customer service is all-important. And sometimes it's pretty difficult to deliver friendly, good customer service when you're dealing with people like— what I used to do in teaching, Dave, interview time. I'd tell parents when they'd come in— actually, I told them at our parent "Meet the Creature Night" we called it, at the very beginning of the
year. So parents would come in and I'd lay my philosophy on the line. It was very simple. “I'm here to help your child. I hope you are, too, because then we'll get along.” I don't want to come across as that I've experienced it personally. But I've heard people come into the store all the time and talk. Staff need to realize that they have to serve the public in a friendly and efficient manner. And if they're not doing it, they shouldn't be there. Over the last number of years, for a number of reasons, because the community center project and East Fonthill, there's been a lot of flak coming both ways. Residents feel they're not getting the answers they need to get. Not just the staff, but the Town in general figures that they're providing the answers and people just aren't listening. So unless you're on the inside experiencing what's going on, it's very difficult to say either they're wrong, or the public's wrong. But just based on what I've heard— you've got to be customer friendly, and the public is your customer if you're a Town staffer. What do you make of the current staffing numbers in Town Hall? A lot of it is driven by liability in this day and age. It first started when I was mayor. When you look at the front desk, the auditors started talking to us at that time about, "Well, you can't have this person handling the money and that same person paying it out. It's got to be two different people for liability reasons." And I think a lot of that kind of thing
may have driven some of the expansion at Town Hall, as well as the increased workload. I'm not sure whether it's being run efficiently or not. It just seems to me that everything is driven by liability these days. You want to protect your backside, so you hire somebody to do that job. The good old days, one person did it all because they could. It's hard to say who is not needed or who is needed. The town is growing. When I was mayor, we were really challenged in some areas, especially in planning and development. We were really challenged because of the very small staff that we had at the time. And I'm not prepared to say that the number of staff we've got now is too great or it's too low. I will tell you that once all of this is developed in East Fonthill, we are going to need a lot more people than we had when I was mayor. That's for sure. More people for? Everything. Everything. I mean, I was just looking at staff at Town Hall this morning, on the website. And you see in Recreation, I think there are four or five people, including an administrative assistant. Well, when this new building is up and running, those four or five people are going to have a hard time if the Centre is being run right. So you're probably going to see an expansion. One of the major responsibilities of municipalities is cultural and recreation activities. The public needs to understand that municipalities are mandated by the province to provide those kind of things. So we can make up our own
www.thevoiceofpelham.ca minds what level we want to provide them, but at some point you have to decide that you're going to bite the bullet and do what's necessary. I think in the town of Pelham, for a number of years, we've gotten away, in a lot of situations, with the bare minimum. It's not saying the programs weren't good, but there were probably other things that we could have and should have been providing that we didn't. Doesn't that depend on resident demand? Yeah. And you're seeing now that we're getting a lot of people moving into the municipality from the GTA and they're used to having a lot more services, so they're asking about what services are provided. If we want to continue to be a viable community, then we have to provide the services that are necessary. Otherwise, what are we doing? Why are we here? But think about this for a second. When you say if we want to remain a “viable community,” what does that really mean? Well, I hear from all kinds of people who are lifelong residents like I am, the community is growing and we're losing our identity. And at the same time, I've heard those people complaining about the cost of providing certain types of services. Well, we're going to lose our identity if we're sending our people off to other communities in Niagara to access those services. You maintain your character and your culture in your community by having your people participate
in things in your community. You know, I always go back to looking at some of the old smaller communities in the GTA. They have managed to maintain their community identity even though they are part of the city of Toronto now. For example? Rexdale is one example. Don Mills is another one. They've lost something, sure, but you don't go into Don Mills and play a Toronto AAA hockey team. You play the Don Mills Flyers. They still have those organizations active in their municipalities. And I don't want to leave this out—the business community in those municipalities is to a very great extent responsible for that because they form their BIAs. They've been very active. Probably the most notable one in Toronto is the Danforth. So they've been able to create and maintain that kind of community spirit even though they're in a huge city. Back on the “viability” thing. What we hear, both through letters to the editor and talk on the street, is that there are so many facilities, athletic facilities, concert facilities, restaurants, etc., within a very short drive of Fonthill and of Pelham, here in Niagara, and there's really no solid business case to be made for Pelham building these facilities here. People who move to Pelham move here for the country—arguably idyllic, country lifestyle, and that's what's being lost. Remaining “viable” may not necessarily be found in a See LEAVENS Page 14
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The Voice of Pelham, June 28, 2017
This week in baseball
PLANNER continued from Page 1
BY MELISSA WELLS
Mayor Augustyn and five of six Town Council members went on to win re-election in the municipal election held three weeks later. Larmour later became Director of Community and Development Services in Niagara-on-the-Lake, a position he stills holds. Inquiries continue into another land deal between the Town and the Allen Group, the East Fonthill Development
Special to the VOICE
Group 92 Mechanical Rookie Rep team played in their first ever tournament this weekend in Thorold. They held their own in the games but fell short. The coaching staff is proud of how the kids conducted themselves on and off the field. They showed great sportsmanship and most of all they had fun. They are back in league play starting Monday in Beamsville and they continue to make great progress with each time on the field. The Miller Restoration Mosquito Rep team had an exciting game against the St. Catharines Majors on Wednesday with a late, come from behind win. Connor Jolicoeur hit his first career home run. Max Veld had a solid stroke to the opposite field and came around to score. Great defensive plays from third baseman Austin Wilson and catcher Matthew Oakes kept the team in it long enough for a 9-8 win. First baseman Chase Munn made two flyout catches at first. The team then headed north for the Saugeen Shores tournament. Pelham faced some tough teams and celebrated the small victories. Maverick Halstead put six batters down in a row against the tournament hosts. MVP Andy Nawrocki had the Kitchener players on the rails with several strike outs. Cameron Wells is starting to hit his groove at
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The Pelham Medical Associates Peewee Rep team continues undefeated. the plate with a double, several singles and stolen bases. Max Myers came through with clinch hits and two defensive plays at second base. Gutsy base running by Mitchell Morden kept the opposition on their toes. Ty Pelltier won the fortitude award with several tough plays at the plate and a great second to first out. Julian Rubino's infield fly catch brought an end the inning. The weekend was capped off with some fun on the beach and a campfire. The Pelham Medical Associates Peewee Rep team continued their undefeated record in leauge play this week with victories over Welland and Beamsville. A solid hit by rookie Jake Kalailieff, followed up by good base running contributed some much needed fire power. A stunning unassisted double play
by Lucas Grant ended the close Welland game to the gasps of the crowd. Excitement mounted as the team started play in the Saugeen Shores weekend tournament. Ethan Wells was awarded MVP of the opener with a shut out, complete game against Corunna. Although a nail biter, Pelham was victorious against the home town team with Nate Girling taken the mound. To complete pool play, Pelham tied Woodstock with Will Baltrusiunas leading the offensive charge. With attention turned to the semi-finals, Pelham faced off against Collingwood and took the win 9-5. Excellent catching with an "out at the plate" and clinch hitting by Wyatt Gibson and a strong outing from battery mate Ryan Culig. With victory one win away, Pelham faced off against tourna-
Charges credits-for-land scheme, subject to further examination by the Niagara Region’s Audit Committee, which will again take up the matter in September. In her email, Hannah writes, “I have very much enjoyed working with you in getting the approvals needed for development and/or the creation of planning policy. I hope in the future that our paths will again meet so that we can continue the positive working relationship was formed in Pelham.”
SUPPLIED PHOTO
ment rivals, Woodstock for a second time. Determined to prevail this time, MVP Jake Passmore made two difficult plays from short stop and shored up the offense with reliable hard hits and RBIs. Centre fielder, Cole Townson, not only made his usual beautiful catches but added to the excitement with a strike throw to the pitcher to catch the runner off second base for an inning ending surprise out. Two clutch hits by Jake Laewetz drove in more runs and smart at bats by Tyler Hunter and Owen Nicholls secured the 8-5 win and the tournament gold! The weekly "This Week In Baseball" articles overview the activities of various Pelham Minor Baseball Association teams. Teams span from T-Ball to Midget age with several rep teams representing Pelham across the region.
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LEAVENS continued from Page 14 new Food Basics. Well, you know what? If you're content to travel out of town for all of these things, you can make that argument. But if you're like me, and I believe in this municipality, if you want to keep the municipality vibrant and alive, then you need to keep the people that live here doing things in town. As a business person, I applaud what they've done in that new shopping centre, even though it brings in more competition. In the long run it will keep more people here in town shopping than running off to the Pen Centre or to Welland. And that's the
The Voice of Pelham, June 28, 2017 whole name of the game for businesses. If you don't have the traffic, you die. At the same time, you can appreciate how the perspective that you've just described is a business perspective. Sure. And that they are relatively few residents of Pelham who are business owners. But from the perspective of a resident who's not involved in business, would you prefer to hop in your car and drive two minutes down the road to do your grocery shopping? Because now you have a couple of different grocery stores. Or do you want to drive to Costco in St. Catherines to do it? I mean, you're going to go to Costco anyway.
Wishing you and your family a
Well, if you were asking me personally, I would prefer to drive a little farther out of town than have the amount of development that's coming in now that we're seeing. That development is inevitable because of the province. You're mandated by the province to have a certain number of years of development land within your municipal boundaries. The only thing that the municipality can really control is the speed at which that development takes place and the character of the development. What's your opinion of the character of the development so far. Overall, I'm pleased. I think it's meeting the need that we have here in town. I think the commercial development was well-planned, and it's attractive. That, of course, is in the eye of the beholder. We’ll have to see what's happening in the housing area. I suppose there will be some cookie-cutter stuff. But that type of development leads to more affordable housing, which we also need. I hear the seniors all the time complaining about the prices. They're not looking for a six or seven or eight-hundred-thousand-dollar home.
They're looking at something under five hundred thousand. And hopefully, we'll have a bit of that here with this Fonthill development. About the Community Centre, I think it's going to be a great boon to the municipality. I want to give the present council credit for moving ahead. I know there's a lot of controversy around the financing and that. People will expect to hear this from me, but I fully support what they've done. I think the design is beautiful. And I hope it gets used as effectively as it potentially can be. But the one thing that is missing, Dave, is that swimming pool. I hope that as soon as this project is done, the council will look forward three or four or five years down the road and start planning for that. Because I think it's something that's absolutely necessary as well. Was the second pad necessary? Yes. You wouldn’t have rather seen a pool there? I don't think it's a case of either-or. There's not an efficiently run single pad arena in the province of Ontario. Probably nowhere in the world. When you stop
www.thevoiceofpelham.ca and think about it, okay, you put that second pad in, takes the same number of people to service it as it does a single pad, but you double the potential revenue stream from it. And that's another thing too. People say that arenas never pay for themselves. No. Of course they don't. And they shouldn't be expected to. Does the library pay for itself? We still have a library. We still put tax money into that. And do the baseball fields and the soccer fields pay for themselves? No. They don't, but we put tax money into that. There's a significantly less amount of capital expense in painting lines on grass for a baseball field. That is true. But the fact of the matter is that we live in a country where skating on ice, and playing hockey, and all kinds of things like that are very popular. We go through cycles where activity in those sports drops off a little bit but it tends to bounce back over time. The only part of hockey in Canada that is really growing right now is women's hockey. For decades women have played second fiddle to the boys who were playing hockey. Well, this gives
the opportunity to expand even more of that part of the game. And if it's run properly, not only you can have lacrosse in there in the summer time, lots of other things you can do in them too, like having concerts and that type of thing. And it will be nice for something like the Art Festival to be able to come in, and you still have a venue that can be used for the hockey and lacrosse while the Art Festival is going on. So everybody benefits. There was a reason that we bought the 32 acres. We looked at the future and the kinds of things that could be put down there on a permanent basis. And one of the things that's always been of interest to me, because we are a farming community— not as much as we used to be—but how about a permanent farmers' market that could be run all year long? Great idea. I look at a farmers' market in the city of Welland. They have a nice building there with a kitchen that can be used for community activities, and by service clubs as well. And that's over and above what you can do in a See LEAVENS next page
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LEAVENS continued from previous page Community Centre facility. Despite the controversy over the funding—I took a look at the funding plan that they put together when they first brought it out. I wasn't unhappy with it, based on what I've been told in the past by municipal economists. And we had that discussion yesterday. I'm still not unhappy with it. There's a lot of if's in there. Like you said, if the growth takes place the way it's supposed to. But there's always if's in everything. Any big project that you do. I mean, a developer comes in and puts up a new shopping plaza. What if all the stores don't rent out? Interesting you've mentioned that. There’s a surprising number of vacancies in this new Fonthill Marketplace. Well, I'll tell you, I think that there are still some businesses in town that are planning on moving over. It's going to take a place like that a year or two to fill up. I was approached about moving my business down there but we still have four years left on our lease here and were quite happy with our landlord. It will fill up eventually. In the meantime, they've got their anchors in there. One thing we have heard, and I have to say that I personally agree with this, is that the signage in Pelham, the commercial signage, can be pretty garish and a little bit too in-your-face. Is there something that could
be done, do you think, in line with what Niagara-on-the-Lake did, and other communities have done, to sort of rein-in the worst of it? You have to be careful what you want council to do. If you want them to take total control of every aspect of the development, down to the very design of the buildings, they can do it. We did it in the Lookout development up behind the fire hall. We exerted architectural control in there. We were afraid that the developer had a reputation for cookie-cutter homes, and the council that I was on didn't want that. One of the things the developer said when we did this was, "These are not going to be affordable homes." As a council, we knew that was going to be the case. And I think the results speak for themselves. A lot of people want to live there if they can afford it. You could argue that it's not absent it's own cookie-cutter look, though. There are a lot of very similar designs. Yeah, there's only so much that you can do, really. But they are upscale homes, there's absolutely no doubt about that. And that's what the developer said to us when we were bargaining with him. They're going to be expensive homes. And they are. I'm just saying just be careful what you wish for because it can lead to results, down the road, that you didn't expect and you didn't want. Understand what it is you're asking for
The Voice of Pelham, June 28, 2017 before you ask for it because, generally speaking, I think government should be a facilitator. Rather than? We should facilitate what we believe the electorate wants us to do, the direction we want to go. I'm a longtime politics nut. I have some real— even though I'm a socialist—I have some real problems with government interference in the things that should be up to the individual. And part of that's the individual's fault because they don't want to take responsibility. I'll give you a good example. I was thinking about this one today. When I was mayor, I went to the police chief because a lot of people were complaining about speeding in town. I said, "You know, we need more enforcement," and I gave him an example. "I live out on Chantler Road, out in the rural area. They come down there 120k an hour. We need radar out there once in a while just to send a message." So I'm coming home from the office one night and I'm late for something, going down Chantler Road, and a cop steps out and pulls me over. And he said, "Could I see your license, sir?" I give him my license and he looks at it and he started laughing. He said, "You should know better!" And I said, "Don't you dare let me off. Give me the ticket." And he did. Well, you and I were talking yesterday about traffic on Haist Street, the speed humps and all of that. If we could depend on everybody to obey
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Page 15
the law, they wouldn’t be necessary. But people don't. And the police will tell you that the vast majority of the people they stop on Haist for speeding, or did before we had these things built in, were local residents. Well, that’s a good segue. There’s a proposal now to require a right turn at the foot of Church Hill, which would send traffic down College Street and up Station to come back to Pelham Street. And there’s a similar proposal to mandate a right-turn-only at the arches on Pelham Town Square. Any opinion on this one? Oh yes! From the residents’ point of views, first of all, if you live on College Street, you better be fighting this one big time, because that's where all the traffic is going to go. And from a business perspective, it's just one more hurdle for businesses. I mean, the problem at the foot of Church Hill is the fact that those signals on Pelham Street cannot be seen by the people coming down Church Hill. If you happen to be new to the area and don't realize that there's a signalized crosswalk there, you're pulling out and going through them. The same is true over here coming out of our plaza by the library. In front of the library, the crosswalk there. Coming out of our plaza, people coming out and wanting to make a left turn, they don't see that signal there. And at the arches? At one time that was sup-
posed to be signalized. The Region had built it into their budget. I can claim responsibility—I told them, "No, don't put it in!" You fool! Yeah! Simply because it was too close to the signal on 20. Do you still feel that way? Yes. The one parking spot near the TD Bank is the big problem. When there's a car parked in that space, you can't see the oncoming traffic very well. So again, I guess it comes back to personal responsibility. Take some responsibility and do what the driving code tells you to do. If you can't see down there, just creep up a little bit at a time until you can see. And people do that. But isn't it also true that the amount of traffic in the last 10 years has increased, and certainly in the 10 years to come will multiply to the point that some sort of better control at that intersection will be required? Well, if we're going to do that, then we need to have a community-wide traffic plan. One of the councilors on my council used to call these stop signs and traffic signals “political stop signs.” You put them there because people are complaining about it and that really doesn't solve the problem. Again, personal responsibility. Do what you're supposed to do and the problems are largely solved. Do you really have any hope that that's going to happen? Let's take texting while driving, or using your
cell phone while driving. I see it multiple times a day. I'm sure you do too. How do you cope with that? I think that the laws need to be stiffened. Statistics and studies show you're just as likely to get into an accident texting as you are if you're driving under the influence. Make the penalties equal. Take their license away for 24 hours or whatever, and seize their vehicle. That's the thing that will get people's attention. Back in the early part of the 2000s, they tried to experiment in Niagara with red-light cameras. People were dead against it because it's an “intrusion.” No, it's not. It's an easy way to enforce the law. Even as a dyed-in-thewool NDP partisan, you'd be okay with red- light cameras? Oh, I certainly would. Because you see it all the time, and people keep pushing it more and more and more. But if they're getting a ticket for running that red light, even though they didn't see a cruiser around, they're going to have second thoughts about it next time. And it's unfortunate that you have to have negative reinforcement to get you to act the right way, but it quite often is the case. Anything I missed that you want to comment on? There's all kinds of things, but not all of them related to the Town. All right. I appreciate your time. Not a problem.
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The Voice of Pelham, June 28, 2017
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New benches for Bandshell fans, Peace Park users Easier than ever to park your bum and enjoy some tunes BY NATE SMELLE
The VOICE
Members of the Fonthill Bandshell committee arrived at Peace Park last Wednesday afternoon to accept a special delivery from the students at the Niagara Launch Centre (NLC) — 10 newly constructed picnic tables. Over the three days prior to the delivery, a team of 20 students from the NLC’s Construction Technology program worked together to build the tables for the committee. Committee member Gayle Baltjes-Bazinet said she and her fellow committee members were grateful for all the hard work the students put into the project. She said the students did a fantastic job, and the picnic tables will enhance the event’s social atmosphere by providing additional seating for concertgoers who don’t have their own chairs to bring. The project was a real community effort, Baltjes-Bazinet said, pointing out that the students donated their time and that local businesses donated money for the materials needed to build the picnic tables. “We were very lucky to connect and partner with them, and we’re very grateful,” she said. “The tables are just beautiful and they will add some much needed seating.” Operated by the Niagara Catholic District School Board out of their location at the Seaway Mall in Welland, the NLC helps students develop practical skills they can use in the
Top, new benches arrive, courtesy of the Niagara Launch Centre team, left.
workforce. The centre currently offers courses in construction, manufacturing,
robotics, and automation. Construction teacher Dino Nardangeli worked with
the students on the project. Wanting to complete the tables before the end of the school year, he said the class set up work stations in the shop to make the production more efficient. This way each of the students could try their hand at the different tasks involved in building a picnic table. Nardangeli said the program is designed to expose the students to as many trades as possible. “It was like a production line system,” he said. “We were trying to teach the students what it would be like in an assembly po-
sition. Every student had a different task. Some were measuring, some were cutting angles, some were bolting the tables together and some were sanding the wood down. By the end of it, every student had done each one of the tasks. Then we assembled them together.” Working with different tradespeople and municipalities also teaches the kids social skills, Nardangeli said. Every time they are in Pelham, he said they will feel a sense of pride when they see the tables they created for the Town.
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The Voice of Pelham, June 28, 2017
Page 17 Paul Harris Rotary Fellows for 2017
From left, Karen Chcoski, Ann Mantini-Celima, Tim Droppert and Jayne Watson. SUPPLIED PHOTO
The Rotary Club of Fonthill recently held its annual Paul Harris Fellows celebration, at Lookout Point Country Club, as part of the festivities marking the end of another Rotary year. Paul Allen finished his year as president by naming four Paul Harris Fellows for their contributions to the wider Pelham community. Paul Harris was the founder of Rotary, a 112-year-old humanitarian service organization with clubs around the world. The Paul Harris Fellow is the highest honour an individual may receive from Rotary International. This year, the club honoured: — Karen Chcoski, an E.L. Crossley teacher, for her work with the Interact Club, a high school service club; — Tim Droppert, an A.K. Wing teacher, for his work with the EarlyAct Club, a service club for elementary school students; — Ann Mantini-Celima, Executive Director of Wellspring Niagara, for her ongoing efforts heading an organization dedicated to serving cancer patients and their families; and — Jayne Watson, a member of the Rotary Club of Fonthill, who serves the club in many ways, helping organize the registration process at the Pelham Mudfest Challenge, for example. During the evening, Allen handed over the ceremonial gavel to Paul Snack, incoming president for the new Rotary year, which begins July 1.
WHO recognizes Pelham as Age-Friendly Community BY VOICE STAFF Chair of the Pelham Seniors Advisory Committee (PSAC), Gail Hilyer, stood before Pelham Town Council on Monday night a week ago to deliver some good news from the Committee, and to request the Town’s support with a new initiative. Hilyer informed Council that the Committee’s efforts to have Pelham recognized by the World Health Organization (WHO) as an “Age-Friendly Community” paid off recently, when PSAC received notice that their application had been approved. Describing the application process, Hilyer said members of PSAC put together a submission based on WHO’s eight essential outcomes in dealing with seniors. Communities desiring to be part of the network must possess: suitable outdoor spaces and buildings, access to transportation and affordable housing, encourage social participation, respect and social inclusion, civic participation and employment, communication and information, community support and health services. WHO’s Global Network for Age-friendly Cities and Communities was created in 2010 to connect cities, communities and organizations worldwide with the common vision of making their community a wonderful place to grow old.
Seniors Committee stepping up efforts to improve quality of life for seniors in Pelham Thanks to PSAC, Pelham has now joined a worldwide network found in 37 countries and some 380 cities and communities worldwide that have received the prestigious designation. The WHO identifies this network as part of a more comprehensive strategy designed to make the world more age-friendly. Looking for innovative ways to enhance Pelham’s age-friendliness, Hilyer requested Council’s support in the Committee’s funding application to the federal government’s New Horizons for Seniors Program. The $25,000 grant PSAC is applying for will be used to conduct a community-based survey to collect relevant data from Pelham residents 55 years of age or older. Collecting their own data in the meantime, Hilyer said she and the members of the Committee have been speaking with seniors that are new to the community every chance they get. She said the Conversation Café sessions held in the spring helped to facilitate some very interesting discussions. “It's very interesting what you learn when you talk to your new neighbors,” said Hilyer.
“We are going to pick up that term for this proposal and called, ‘Getting to Know Our New Neighbours.’” For instance, Hilyer said she had an enlightening conversation speaking with one newcomer who had sold her home in the GTA to take up residence in a bungalow in Pelham. When Hilyer asked the woman why she chose Pelham, she said that one of the main reasons she wanted to move here was because she has fond memories of visiting the community as a child, and eating lemon pie with her parents. According to Hilyer, the 2016 Census revealed that 40 percent of Pelham’s population is 55 years of age or older. She believes this fact provides insight into the type of planning the Town needs to be doing. Hilyer said there have been a variety of surveys done to date, but none with the goal PSAC has in mind. “We want to know who our neighbors are,” Hilyer said. “Some people been here all their lives, some people like the lemon pie lady — and she said I could call her that by the way —
has only been here two years. She plays bridge at their library, she's looking forward to the walking track, she was very well informed and she chose this community. Once we do this survey we want to establish a hub where seniors in this community can come and get resource material, can meet oneon-one with service providers or in small groups.” The Committee also intends to use funds from the New Horizons grant to create such a space. Drawing attention to the fact that many service providers such as Canadian Mental Health and Family and Children Services and other similar organizations do not have venues in Pelham, Hilyer suggested the space could be used to help seniors connect with these types of agencies. Ideally, she said they want to create a place where they can come and talk to people in an informal and relaxed atmosphere. The space would also include resources such as computers, books and comfortable armchairs. Working as Council’s representative on PSAC, Councillor Peter Papp had nothing but praise for
the Committee and its work. Urging Council to support the Committee’s application, he spoke to the advantages such a survey and public space would create. What the Committee is attempting to do, he said is build an appropriate comprehensive database, that demonstrates how the Town can prepare for and serve a growing seniors population so that people can age comfortably in place. “What we're trying to do is to pull together a comprehensive multilateral type of integrated database,” Papp said. “So, if you want to use the [language] of the corporate world we would ‘know our customers.’ We would know what they need, what they want, when they want it how much they need. So, we're very excited about this and we think this application will then also set the basis for policy development with regard to ongoing phases of whatever and however we want to expand the town, be it whether it's young or old.” When asked where PSAC planned to create the community hub, Hilyer suggested a room in Pelham’s new Community Centre. Liking the idea, Council congratulated the Committee on their achievement with their WHO application, then voted unanimously to support PSAC in its new initiative.
Town takes action to clean up, protect Harold Black Following a Voice story prompted by neighbours' concerns, Fire Chief, staff respond BY NATE SMELLE
The VOICE
The campaign by residents in the neighbourhood surrounding Harold Black Park to protect the public space from youth using it as a party spot and a dumping ground has inspired the Town to act. Since touring the areas of concern in the park with residents, Pelham’s Fire Chief, Bob Lymburner, has
been taking steps to put an end to the problem. “There are three distinctive areas down there in the bush where kids loiter and have campfires and do what kids do, but it’s a safety concern because of the fires,” said Lymburner. “They leave garbage everywhere and they don’t pick up after themselves.” In response, Lymburner said the Fire Department has teamed up with
Town staff and residents to clean up the trash, cut the grass and dismantle the fire pits. He said they have also posted five signs throughout the park that inform park users that no trespassing or loitering is permitted in the park from dusk to dawn. The signs give the police the authority to act under the Trespass Act, he said, if residents call in to report any violations in the park.
If all those evergreens back in there got going, we'd never get it out Recognizing that the fires posed a serious danger to residents in the neighbourhaood and the park, Lymburner said they also plan to step up patrols
in the park. “We’re going to pick up the pace and hopefully deter the kids from going back in there, because the fires were concerning me the most,” Lymburner said. “If all those evergreens back in there got going, we’d never get it out. If there were kids in there, they would never be able to outrun it and people would get hurt.” One of the residents who contacted the Voice about the matter last week, Patti Hazlett, said she was pleased to see how quickly the Town responded.
Walking through the park in the afternoon last week, she said she crossed paths with a couple of the youth that had been partying in the park. Acknowledging that the kids were there cleaning up the mess in the bushes, she said it seemed the message had gotten through to them as well. “I spoke to the kids about respecting the earth and how years from now they will want to leave a nice planet for their grandchildren and they were very receptive to that. They were actually good kids,” she said.
Page 18
The Voice of Pelham, June 28, 2017
www.thevoiceofpelham.ca
You definitely won't see this in your dreams tonight. Above, a Massassauga rattlesnake, just as friendly as a puppy. Note: Not actually as friendly as a puppy. Do not pet. Left, researcher and snake advocate Anne Yagi.
Researcher aims to restore Niagara rattlesnake population BY NATE SMELLE
The VOICE
Anne Yagi began working with the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry (MNRF) as a Management Biologist on the Massasauga Rattlesnake Recovery Team in 1998. Last fall the Fonthill resident retired from the MNRF to focus her research on restoring this endangered species to its native home here in Niagara. According to Yagi, habitat loss due to urban expansion throughout the Niagara region, and its entire range, currently poses the biggest danger to the species. Its remaining habitat in the Wainfleet Bog is not the most suitable for the species, she explained, because it is essentially composed of what’s left over from the mining of peat moss that took place there from the
1930s until the 1990s. At that time, said Yagi, the whole area where the Massasauga was thriving was drained and mined for peat moss to be used in people’s gardens. Adding to the severity of the damage this industry caused was the way the peat was extracted. Because peat bales were cut from of the surface during the winter when the snakes were hibernating, Yagi said many of them didn’t stand a chance. The peat industry was not the sole factor contributing to Ontario’s only venomous snake becoming endangered. They are also killed out of fear and collected for sale in the illegal pet trade. “Even though they seldom bite, they were constantly being killed whenever anyone saw one,” said Yagi. “Over the last 20 years we’ve
been trying to change the mindset of the people living around the bog. We’ve been trying to teach them to live with the snakes, if they happen to see them.” Luckily for the Massasauga Rattlesnake, the difficulty in accessing its prime habitat provides slim chances to see one of these snakes. The populations in Wainfleet and Windsor are now designated as endangered. In the Bruce Peninsula and along the eastern shores of Georgian Bay they are listed as threatened under the Species at Risk Act. With man-made climate change producing more frequent extreme weather conditions, the Massasauga Rattlesnake faces new threats to its critical habitat. In 2006, the future of this endangered species slipped even further into jeopardy when the hibernation site in the
Wainfleet Bog experienced extensive flooding. The flooding of the hibernation was caused by a heavy snowfall (15 to 30cm) in early October that year, which was followed soon after by two and a half inches of rain. “It flooded right at a really critical time for snakes when they are looking for their hibernation sites, because the home back to them,” she explained. “They’re really stuck in set patterns. We know we lost all of the snakes that we knew were in there because we never saw them again.” When Yagi and her team went in to the bog the following summer, they found only one of the snakes that had been born in their area of study. During that time, she said the population fell from approximately 300 snakes to about 100. Exacerbating the problems for the Massasauga Rattlesnake is the fact the bog has caught fire twice in the past five years — once in 2012 and then again in 2016. While climate change did play a factor in these fires, Yagi said they were at least partially due to the bog being drained too quickly for agricultural purposes. She said the best way to prevent the bog from catching fire again in the near future is to provide farmers with a different drainage system. This way, she said, they will be able to continue farming and the wetland will be able to exist without catching fire every few years. Bog fires are extremely dangerous to fight and very costly to extinguish, she said. Pointing out that the municipality fighting these fires is the same one draining it, Yagi said it is in the best interest of their community to take immediate action. Since the fires, she has been lobbying the municipality, the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority, and the MNRF to separate the farm’s drains from the drains necessary to allow for ecological restoration. “With climate change the fluctuations in our patterns are so much faster now, and severe droughts and flooding are happening more frequently,” Yagi said.
SUPPLIED PHOTOS
“Wetlands are designed to absorb the water, so we need to let them, and not try and drain it off so fast. Then we will start to see more dynamic ecological stability in the ecosystem. We’re not saying it’s always going to be wet or it’s always going to be dry, but it has the capability of a pattern of holding and draining water. It doesn’t have to be a man-made, manipulated drainage system anymore. There is no need for it.” Through her research at Brock University, Yagi has been working to help the Massasauga Rattlesnake overcome these manmade obstacles. With help from her master’s supervisor, Dr. Glenn Tattersall and her team at Brock, she has developed a technique called “forced hibernation,” which improves the odds of survival for the snake. This technique entails ensuring that the neonatal snakes have a fair shot at surviving the winter by placing them in an area where they will be able to hibernate in peace. Yagi explained that since these snakes exhibit a homing behavior similar to turtles and salmon, forced hibernation takes the “guesswork” out of their selection of a hibernation site. “I put them in the ground where I know they will survive,” she said. “I know they will survive because they have a space underground that is maintained over winter, that’s above the groundwater table and below the frostline that it doesn’t freeze. When I take them out of that artificial burrow I have made for them, if they survive that summer they will home back the next fall to that area.” Yagi said the goal of the forced hibernation technique is to prevent the decline in numbers and eventually increase the Massasauga Rattlesnake populations. To her delight it seems to be working. This spring, they have observed an increase in the population found in the study area. As the first snakes released in this area three years ago reach sexual maturity they are expected to renew the lifecycle, connecting another generation to the safe hibernation area they have been inhabiting.
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The Voice of Pelham, June 28, 2017
Page 19
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Places of Worship and Events Bethany Christian Reformed Church 1040 Balfour St., Fenwick
First Presbyterian Church 602 Metler Rd., Fenwick
Glad Tidings Church of God 1 Pancake Lane, Fonthill
Pelham Evangelical Friends Church 940 Haist St., Fonthill
Concordia Lutheran Church 105 Welland Rd., Fonthill
Fonthill Baptist Church 1414 Pelham St., Fonthill
Holy Trinity Anglican Church 1557 Pelham Street, Fonthill
Ridgeville Bible Chapel 418 Canboro Rd., Ridgeville
Fenwick Church of Christ 765 Welland Rd., Fenwick
Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses 1369 Rice Rd., Fonthill
Kirk on the Hill Presbyterian Church 1344 Haist St., Fonthill
St. Alexander’s Roman Catholic Church 50 Pelham Town Sq., Fonthill
Fenwick United Church 1050 Church St., Fenwick
Fonthill United Church 42 Church Hill, Fonthill
Pelham Community Church 461 Canboro Rd., Fenwick
St. Ann’s Roman Catholic Church 834 Canboro Rd., Fenwick
Page 20
The Voice of Pelham, June 28, 2017
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Niagara Parks is set to mark Canada’s 150th birthday with a full lineup of events over the July 1st petitive ride takingCelebrate place onthis Sept. weekend. momentous occasion at one of the ara and support the Walker Fam-country’s most iconic destinations with two days of entertainment featuring a free performance by Hollerado on Saturday, July 1; the launch of a brand-new Niagara Parks experience: Lights: Journey m Tuesdays at the Night Pelham Arena Behind the Falls After Dark; comBandshell for 9-10:30 am. There plimentary admission to Old Fort ormation,Erie please contact jcook@ and Laura Secord Homestead on Saturday, July 1; and bonus extended Falls Fireworks displays on
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Saturday, July 1 and Sunday, July 2. Live in Niagara Parks This year's Coca Cola Concert Series kicks off on Canada Day weekend with free performances from local talent, as well as Canadian indie rock band Hollerado. Visitors can enjoy performances on the Illumination Stage in Queen Victoria Park on July 1 and July 2 beginning at 4:00 p.m. Hollerado will headline Saturday night’s Canada Day celebration, taking the stage at 8:00 p.m. Both evenings will culminate with a fireworks show over Niagara Falls at
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This ad is to be printed by all participating Ontario papers Beginning on July 1 and conFollow ustinuing on Twitter, Monday to Friday, through to September 1, Night Lights: Like us onJourney Facebook. Behind the Falls After
10:00 p.m. All fireworks displays are subject to weather conditions. Niagara Parks will also be serving up a specially prepared Canada 150 barbeque menu on the front lawn of Queen Victoria Place on July 1 and 2 from 3:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. The menu will highlight seasonal dishes and local providers from the Niagara Region. A variety of Niagara VQA wines, local ciders and craft beers will also be available in a licensed area near the Illumination Stage. Night Lights: Journey Behind the Falls After Dark
Dark will allow visitors to explore the network of tunnels behind the Falls to view the illuminated cataract up close and enjoy the Falls Fireworks from an entirely new perspective – the base of the Horseshoe Falls. Guests will now be able to experience this beloved 128-year-old attraction and designated Canadian Signature Experience, after hours during the nightly Falls Illumination and
Fireworks displays. Admission can be booked as part of the Adventure Pass or purchased individually for $17.30, plus tax for an adult (13+ years) and $11.25, plus tax for children ages 6 to 12 years old. Children 5 years of age and under are free. Tickets are subject to availability. Free Admission to Old Fort Erie and Laura Secord Homestead on Canada Day On Canada Day, Niagara Parks Heritage will be offering free admission to Old Fort Erie and Laura Secord Homestead.
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The Voice of Pelham, June 28, 2017
New company is a real buzz-killer
Page 21
The
Pelham Puzzler
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BY VOICE STAFF Rather than spending your summer hiding indoors from mosquitoes and ticks, a new company in the Pelham area, Mosquito.Buzz, is offering residents a variety of treatments for their property to help make them feel more comfortable outside. Mosquito.Buzz branch manager in Niagara, Stephen Fulford, has been working with the company since it was founded in Kitchener two years ago. Since then, Fulford said the company has been growing quickly, opening franchises in Saskatoon, Calgary, Winnipeg, Ottawa, Brockville and Niagara. "It doesn't hurt to give us a call, we do have a money-back guarantee on our services if you are not satisfied," Fulford said. “A lot of people have different varying levels of sensitivity and a lot of people attract mosquitoes more than others. My service typically reduces mosquitoes by 85 percent or more, so even that remaining 15 percent may be too much for some people." Fulford said his full-barrier mosquito treatment
...is to concrete, as:
Stephen Fulford stands ready for battle. uses a synthetic form of pyrethrin that is sprayed out of high-velocity sprayers on trees, shrubs, dense plant materials, under decks, and other areas mosquitoes prefer to live, rest, and hide. Mosquito.Buzz also offers an all-natural protection consisting of a concentrated garlic oil for those who prefer the natural approach. When treating for ticks, Fulford said they substitute pyrethrin with another synthetic chemical called deltamethrin. According to Fulford, both pyrethrin and deltamethrin are safe for people, pets and children, but they are
toxic for mosquitoes and ticks. The one risk with these chemicals, he said is for fish. Because of this, Fulford said he needs to set up a buffer area around any lakes, ponds, rivers or streams nearby to where he is spraying. "It's safe for the skin of mammals and it doesn't absorb through the skin very easily," he asserted. "If you are to ingest it, most of it will pass through your urine but for the most part you want to avoid ingestion and eye contact." As the climate warms, biting insects such as ticks and mosquitoes thrive. De-
...are to what?
VOICE PHOTO
spite the fact these insects are native to this area, some individuals have the potential to carry and transmit life-threatening diseases such as West Nile virus and Lyme disease. “The migration of ticks is largely dependent on hitching onto animals,” said Fulford. “Whether a generation can survive over the winter is the next big part of whether they are going to stay, or whether you are just going to get the odd tick. The staying power with our milder winters is definitely contributing to more and more ticks each season.”
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Page 22
The Voice of Pelham, June 28, 2017
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Traffic light decisions not bright ideas The powers that be in Pelham want all cars to turn right at the foot of Church Hill in Fonthill. But I need to go to Beamer's, so I must drive around the houses, down College Street, left on Station Street, left on Highway 20, and left, yet again, on Pelham, to buy hardware and paint. There already is a traffic light at Pelham and Church Hill, which is only utilized by pedestrians to cross the road. In actual fact, the whole process takes so long, that walkers often feel badly for holding up traffic! The lights are so slow that motorists are understandably miffed, once pedestrians have crossed, to find themselves still waiting at the wheel, ad infinitum, for the light to turn green! Now that I know how expensive these
traffic lights are, thanks to the Voice, I think they could be put to full use as traffic lights and not just pedestrian enablers, to allow traffic to turn right, or left, onto Pelham Street. There are other expensive traffic lights, farther down Pelham—one is at Pancake Lane and appears to be for pedestrian use only. And then there are the little yellow 'sticks' in front of Glynn Green School, back for yet another year, to coerce us into submission...whose bright idea was that? Let's hear from more readers who feel the same... I give a damn because the businesses on that block of Pelham Street, like Beamer's, could be in jeopardy if we don’t. Heather Rohrer Fonthill
Facebook page lights up over right-turns-only Last week we asked you to post on Facebook your reaction to the proposed right-turns-only onto Pelham Street from Church Hill and from under the arches. A sampling, edited for clarity: Traffic lights are not a bad idea at all at that intersection. I can't understand why the traffic lights that have been installed at Pancake Lane and Pelham Street are not being used for traffic and pedestrians. The traffic to turn left from Pancake Lane onto Pelham is getting more difficult because of the traffic volume on Pelham. Not sure what went into this decision. Ivana Bachetti For every action there is a reaction. This is not the big city. Why is the Town of Pelham always on about making Pelham some sort of perfect little town and being like the big guys. What are the traffic counts for that intersection and the one at Pancake? Why the fuss, the research, the expense? Everybody could just slow down a bit, be courteous, and let the traffic flow. Keith Moore I am surprised that no one has ran over a pedestrian yet.... I use Church Hill every day and am always concerned about that STUPID light. I think there should be a safer option for pedestrians crossing
the street. I think it was a poor design and a waste of money. Whoever designed that should be fired! Vera Cira I honestly don't understand why people don't use some common sense when in the downtown core. It is possible to get around without ever making a left hand turn and holding up traffic. Think about it next time you are down there. And the hardware store has a back door. Margie Reitveld This council has no ability to make ANY good decisions. We have that stupid light just past the Church Hill intersection when in fact it should have originally been put in as a 3-way stoplight. Forcing traffic out of downtown will obviously affect other roads but more importantly, businesses such as our wonderful Beamer's. There is too much traffic with no infrastructure due to our development hungry council....it's crazy and really not a positive for our town. I didn't vote for anyone on council and I hope the next round will see these individuals removed! Jessica Srivastava
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The Voice of Pelham, June 28, 2017
Page 23
Golfers raise funds to improve childhood nutrition BY NATE SMELLE
Kirkpatrick, is important because it builds the organization’s ability to help others. “It’s really the Breakfast Gala in May and this tournament here that contribute the most to the pot of money that we can spend on programs to help children,” said Kirkpatrick. “Our other funds come from making grant applications, soliciting donations and things like that. There are many children who benefit from our programs and we need to continue being there for them.” Thanks to Kore and his team at Sobeys, Kirkpatrick said the tournament has become like a “welloiled machine.” Every year she said more and more people are coming out to support the cause. Once again, the local business community has offered a great deal of assistance with the event as well. For example, this year local business owners donated 93 prizes for the silent auction. “It’s a really great crew that comes together for this,” she said. “We had lots of golfers who have been here every year since the tournament started. This is the fifth anniversary so it’s great to see so many of the golfers who continue returning year af-
The VOICE
Teams of community-minded golfers showed up at the Peninsula Lakes Golf Club early on Tuesday morning last week to take part in the annual Sobeys Charity Golf Tournament. Now in its fifth year, the tournament has raised some $40,000 for Niagara Nutrition Partners (NNP) since its inception. When Fonthill Sobeys owner and tournament organizer, Ron Kore, came up with the idea to host the event, he set himself a fundraising goal of $50,000 in five years. Considering this year’s tournament had 138 golfers signed up, NNP Program Manager, Anne Kirkpatrick said she was confident Kore will reach his goal—and, in fact, just before press-time Kore confirmed that this year's event raised some $18,000. Striving to improve access to healthy food for local children and youth, the NNP provides nutrition programs in elementary and secondary schools, and community-based programs, serving some 16,000 students throughout the Niagara Region. As one of two major fundraisers that the NNP relies on to fund their programs, the Charity Golf Tournament, said
FOLLOW THE MONEY
kitchen or backyard Shangri-La or some new toys, maybe a quad or boat, or even summer cottage. It’s all possible and heavily encouraged. So much so that the average Canadian owes $30,000 in HELOC loans. As mentioned, these loans are demand loans. There is no fixed payback date and the interest rate is variable. The bank, at any time, can “demand” repayment of this loan. Would they do that? This quote from the federal agency charged with these matters sums it up best: “Falling housing prices may constrain HELOC borrowers’ access to cred-
continued from Page 5 and your home is growing in value, you can borrow a lot of money based on this new-found asset appreciation. This wealth-effect tricks people into believing that they're worth more than they think. Eighty percent of Canadians with HELOCs link their mortgage payments to this line of credit so that, as the mortgage goes down, the HELOC goes up. You can take all of this new wealth and spend it on whatever your heart desires. A new
Mike Sirotkik grills up the goodness on behalf of hungry golfers at last week's fundraiser.
ter year. It’s wonderful to see so many new faces here this year as well. Many of our volunteers are returnees as well.” Mike Sirotkik is a culinary teacher with the Niagara Catholic District School Board. This was the third year he has been volunteering his skills on the grill to help make the tournament a success. As a teacher, he said,
he has seen how the demand for the NNP’s programs is growing. Recognizing that research shows how good nutrition helps to enhance students’ ability to learn, and that many children are going to school hungry because of poverty, Sirotkik sees the tournament as a great way to improve the lives of students in Niagara. “It’s all for a great cause,” he
house prices and land values can’t go down. A previous column about the housing bubble mentioned the growing number of listings and falling number of sales in the GTA. Those numbers were reported to the end of May. As of June 16, sales are now off 50% year-over-year. Overall prices are down 6.4% from May, which were down from April, for a total drop of 12% in eight weeks. Prices are being reduced, depending on the level of despair the seller is experiencing. Banks are appraising purchased house values lower, forcing new buyers to pony up more cash for the down payment. Loan terms are being tightened. It wouldn’t be a stretch to
it, forcing them to curtail spending which could in turn negatively affect the economy. Furthermore, during a severe and prolonged market correction, lenders may revise HELOC limits downward or call in loans.” If property values continue to fall, as they seem to be doing in the GTA, loanto-value ratios change. You could be asked (i.e., told) to reduce your limit by paying money back, hence the “demand” part of this loan. An alarming 40% of HELOC borrowers do not make regular payments. The first demands on these loans would fall upon the shirkers who have not been making regular payments. You may be thinking that
said. “That’s the main reason I’m here — it’s what it is for and what it is all about. I volunteer and give my time to the community I try to give back as much as I can. My students also help with the Niagara Nutrition Partners’ Breakfast Gala, so we have a very good partnership going with them.”
see the banks re-appraise all of these HELOC debts lower as well. It seems people may owe more than they're worth. Banks can be tricky, but you should already know that by now. Based on present trends, here are some predictions for you to consider. Interest rates will be going up—there is a 50% chance rates could rise in mid July and an 80% chance rates will rise later this year. A quarter point here, a quarter point there, so that before you know it, rates will return to more normal levels. The Bank of Canada said as much last week. The crisis of the last decade seems to have finally abated and deflation is not seen as the enemy,
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inflation is, along with the alarming level of debt Canadians have amassed over the last few years. If the housing market continues on the slide it seems to be in, a trend will form. The psychology of the masses will change and prices will begin to return to the long-term trend line. The mantra will soon be: Why would I buy a house now—if I wait a while the price will be even lower. Some areas will see rather drastic falls while other areas will fall less. The drop will depend on how much out of kilter these prices got. Municipalities will not experience the levels of growth as predicted. They already are failing to meet the rather lofty numbers set ten years ago. Forecasts for land sales and development fees will have to be re-aligned with reality, and bills for projects like double arenas, based on forecast growth, will have to be paid for by the local tax base. That could be pretty hard on many people as they also struggle to get out from massive debts of their own making and pay higher monthly installments because interest rates rose. Anyway, it’s just a prediction and predictions are easy to make. On a related note, it seems the Region has decided it’s time to cash- in on the housing boom in Niagara. The Region is proposing increasing development fees. Certain incentives in place could be reduced or eliminated. Pelham's favourite, the Community Improvement Plan, may be in jeopardy. In what can only be called a visionary and bold move, these measures would help calm the bubble in the Region better than any petitioning from local citizens. I’m not sure that is the intention though. ♦
Page 24
The Voice of Pelham, June 28, 2017
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UPDATE continued from Page 1 with an update on the construction of the new facility, Professing to have “good news for Council,” Gibson reported that the project was moving ahead as planned. He said the “value engineering” process led by Ball Construction and risk-managed by the Oversight Committee had resulted in a project that currently has an excess of 75 percent of all sub-contracts awarded, including completed work. “This results in the project being ahead of schedule and under budget including the 9,000 square feet of additional space,” said Gibson. Stressing the point that the PCC was on schedule and under budget despite the additional 9,000 square feet, Gibson went on to explain in detail recent developments with the new public facility. When the need for an additional 9,000 square feet was first announced, the Committee had said they were looking at cost-saving measures that included constructing the concrete block walls to a height of 12 feet instead of all the way to the ceiling, and switching from American to Canadian-sourced brick. Gibson acknowledged that the Committee had decided to stick with the original brick because it is a superior material and the cost would come in under budget. Still involved in the tendering process until the fall, he said he could not release the cost of the brick at the moment. Councillor Richard Rybiak expressed his thanks to Gibson and the Committee for keeping the project on track. “The brick is the brick that the ar-
chitect specified, but the price was not the original price,” said Rybiak. “So, we kind of got the best of both worlds — we got the brick we want at the price we preferred.” Gibson explained that the construction process was divided into three tender packages. Tender packages One and Two comprise 77 percent of the total project, and Gibson said that all the sub-contractors hired to date have agreed to the current schedule. Tender package One includes pre-grading site work, excavation, site servicing, foundation, structural steel, elevator and stairwell shafts, sprinkler system, roof deck, hollow core slabs. Tender package Two consists of concrete floors, reinforced steel (for masonry and slabs), interior/exterior masonry, miscellaneous metals, spray insulation, roofing, insulated metal siding, zinc paneling, metal doors and frames, finish hardware, glazing, drywall/acoustics, dash boards, and seating. Next, Gibson walked Council through the stages of the construction underway or already completed. The project has already achieved several of the milestones as defined by the committee. For instance, Phases 1 to 5 of the structural steel construction have been completed as have the core slab construction and Phases 1 to 4 of the steel deck construction. Though Phase 5 of the steel deck construction was scheduled to begin on July 24, Gibson told Council that because the project was moving ahead quicker than expected it would now be starting on July 4. He also indicated that the roofing crew will be back on site on July 10. Gibson asserted that tender package Two will be completed and the
COLUMN SIX continued from Page 1
The brick is the brick that the architect specified, but the price was not the original price
building will be enclosed by mid-December as planned. He also said tender package Three will be tendered in late June and close at the end of July. According to Gibson, the PCC is projected to be substantially completed by June 1, 2018. Comparing the PCC construction to a facility of comparable size and type, Gibson told Council, “A friend of mine works for Mississauga and their Hershey Center is about the same size as our building and it cost them over $80 million fifteen years ago to build most the same structure. They had a population of 600,000 people at that time and here we have a population of 16,000 and we're going to build it for less than half.” The Town’s Acting Treasurer, Teresa Quinlin, took a moment to break down the project’s finances. She said the Town’s first debenture of $9,066,151 for the project was issued in December 2016. As of May 31, Quinlin said expenditures had totaled $7,227,856, leaving a balance of $1,838,295. The next debenture will be issued in mid-July for $951,776. The interest accrued on this debenture is $23,194.
up in the love and protection of that one word —citizen. He may feel free to worship in the church of his own choice whether he is Protestant, Jew or Catholic. He may express his views on the governing of his country by voting for the party of his choice and it is the duty of every eligible Canadian to exercise this privilege. In the present day almost everyone can have a career. School guidance directs us from childhood. Scholarships help those who otherwise would be unable to further their education. In regard to careers, doctors, nurses, teachers and all social workers are fulfilling their duty as good citizens by helping others. They realize the many benefits they receive as Canadian citizens and are trying to repay their mother country. To be a good citizen does not mean "receive-only.” To be a true citizen one must give. My idea of a good citizen is one who does all he can to make his mother country proud of him. He takes an interest in the town council. He is an active member of Parent-Teacher Associations in the school his child attends. He goes “all out” for Youth Recreation. This citizen is willing to donate generously to any charity. Come rain or shine, he will go out and vote, for he knows that is the only way to have a suc-
cessful government. In time of war, he will take up arms to defend his native land. He will buy war certificates and bonds and will try not to complain of shortages, long hours of toil and rationing. It seems to me that citizenship is taken too much for granted. We Canadians are fortunate to live in a country where we are allowed freedom of speech, religion and the press. Each year thousands of immigrants flock to Canada. They know the meaning of persecution but they also know the meaning of citizenship. It is the shining goal in the not too distant future. For them it is protection and security and a country of their own choice. What then does citizenship mean to us who are Canadians by birth? If all Canadians would look upon citizenship as something to cherish and honour we would all be better citizens for Canada to claim as her own. In closing may I quote a stanza from Lurana Sheldon's “The Naturalized Alien.” To me this should be the feeling of all loyal Canadian citizens. The land I claim claims me! It holds me sacredly its own, and I For its best welfare will both fight and die If such a sacrifice will be Part of the great necessity. Shirley Rodgers Grade 13 1949