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Wednesday, September 27, 2017
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No NPCA audit after all
Column Six
Picking it up
Ontario Auditor General declines Conservation Authority's request BY VOICE STAFF
BY SAMUEL PICCOLO
The VOICE
Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority (NPCA) Board Chair, Sandy Annunziata confirmed via a news release last Friday that the office of the Auditor General of Ontario will not be conducting a value-for-money audit of the NPCA. At a special board meeting of the NPCA Board of Directors held on April 21, the Board unanimously carried a motion to engage the Auditor General of Ontario to conduct such an audit. "We are disappointed the Board's motion could not be accommodated, but we respect the Auditor General's decision," said Annunziata. "We know the Auditor General does outstanding work on behalf of the residents of Ontario. We know her time is precious and we appreciate the energy and resources she has given us in consideration of the Board's Motion." Annuniata’s reaction was echoed by board member Tony Quirk. "I am disappointed that the Auditor General has declined, said Quirk. “As Audit Chair of the NPCA, I know she would have provided confirmation that the allegations being levelled against the NPCA from some quarters are baseless and without merit. We will continue our independent review as part our Strategic Planning Process and identify any shortcomings." Activist and vocal critic
of the NPCA, Ed Smith, was also displeased.
T
door shoes. Goodwin and her assistant, Erika Bachynski, passed out rocks from a box. “Who had the hearts for eyes,” said Goodwin. “Was that you George?” George shook his head, and Goodwin tried asking someone else. The rocks, which were about child-fist in size, were covered in all sorts of different colours and designs, though almost all had a smile on them somewhere. One particularly pious boy had painted two small crosses on his, and proudly held it up for all to see. Another had put x’s and o’s, to show, he said, “love.” Finally, once the rocks were firmly in the hands of their rightful owners, the class dutifully lined up and went out the door. Outside, they joined another kindergarten class, whose students had their rocks in hand too.
HE QUESTION, “If you weren’t a _____, what would you be?” has been asked of nearly every famous person at one point or another, and the answers are typically predictable. “I’d be a tennis player,” the soccer star says, or the actress says that her parents wanted her to be a lawyer. A musician might claim that he’d still be trying to make music. This is the answer most favoured by writers—that there isn’t anything else that they could possibly be doing. “I have to write,” they like to tell us. “I’d die if I didn’t.” The American humourist David Sedaris gives a different answer. “If I weren’t writing,” he once said, “I’d probably spend even more time picking up trash by the side of the road. I do it now for about four to nine hours a day. If I didn’t write, I could be out there for a minimum of seven.” Sedaris lives in West Sussex, in England, and over the past few years he has picked up so much litter that he was invited to a public service appreciation day at Buckingham Palace. His local council even named a garbage truck after him. The “David ‘Pig-Pen’ Sedaris” now roams the streets.
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See COLUMN SIX Page 6
We will continue our independent review as part of our Strategic Planning process “Where do we go from here with this audit, an audit that was requested by more than 10 municipalities?” said Smith. “The Niagara Region needs a champion for the citizen and the environment on that Board. We had one in Bill Hodgson, he states he was bullied into resignation. We will all pay the price for that. There are ten elected officials on the NPCA Board and one in senior management. The time for ultimate accountability is the election of 2018.” Pelham Regional Councillor and NPCA board member Brian Baty suggested options now available include “reopening an RFP process or to search for an independent external auditing firm or to seek potential review See NPCA back page
Lily Jones leaves her ‘Smile Rock’ under a tree near a sidewalk. VOICE PHOTO
Kids rock their Smile Rocks BY VOICE STAFF If you are walking near Peace Park and come across a painted rock, you owe it to the kindergarteners at St. Alexander Elementary School—and yourself—to smile. The students painted the stones, called “Smile Rocks,” during the second week of school, and last Tuesday went on a field trip to distribute them. One teacher, Tracy Goodwin, announced to her students that they had to get ready to go outside as they were in the middle of their morning activities. The students were so excited that they stopped what they were doing without question, apart from one boy, who was reluctant to leave his building blocks. “You can finish with those when we get back,” Goodwin told him. The boy relented and hurried off to his cubby, where his classmates had already assembled, and the group put on their out-
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Page 2
The Voice of Pelham, September 27, 2017
PUBLISHER’S CORNER
Guardrail repair coming
by Dave Burket
It’s big, and it doesn’t sound pretty: To quote Buffalo Springfield, There’s something happening here, What it is ain’t exactly clear. Over the last two weeks there has been a marked increase in chatter around town about...what, specifically, we don’t yet know, but we’re getting closer to finding out. While Town Council has been predictably miffed about being called on the carpet by the Region’s Audit Committee relating to its East Fonthill finances, this latest event or data seems to be something more. Working backward, it looks like Council was given some unpleasant news toward the start of September. The calendar suggests September 5, the day after Labor Day, when both in-camera and public Council meetings took place. One councillor was later described as resembling a ghost. Another is allegedly still having trouble sleeping, and another has been uncharacteristically reluctant of late to defend the Town’s finances, even as a prospective forensic audit looms. When asked what might be going on, Mayor Augustyn responded, “I think this might be about the discussion Council had during our strategic plan last week. The Plan will help formulate our 2018 budget.” He went on to cite various capital expenses coming up, such as road repairs. But paving expenses don’t ruin appetites and lead to sleep deprivation. Comparisons to Watergate have been an easy lob during this summer of nonstop audit news and Town Hall bluster, but this actually does seem to have the potential to leave us asking, sooner rather than later, who knew what, and when, and why didn’t they do something about it. It may be instructive to recall that in the week between deciding to terminate former Treasurer Cari Pupo, and actually doing it, Council’s decision was discussed soto voce in pubs, clubs, and pews. Whatever it is, this sounds bigger by at least an order of magnitude, which means it will be almost impossible to contain for very much longer… Speaking of classic rock and what helped inspired it: MPP Sam Oosterhoff wants to hear what you think about recreational mary-jane. See his invite on page 11… The Town is also looking for input, this time about East Fenwick development: See the news brief at right, and the ad on page 8… An earful of opinions: We asked for them and seem to have gotten them—the results of that telephone poll conducted a few weeks ago, the one which the Mayor warned residents, in effect, to ignore, commissioned by a still-unknown person or entity. While our source has been reliable in the past, we need to corroborate with at least one other party. So if someone out there can kindly let us know whether this table of questions and responses is the real thing or a pile of horse manure, please do so: publisher@thevoiceofpelham. ca… Does it really need saying? Nick Saltarelli does so anyway on page 4. Do the audit, Council, and do it right—use the Region's terms of reference, or don't waste the time.
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IN THE NEWS
In answer to a reader’s letter questioning why a damaged guardrail along Sawmill Road has remained without repair since 2013, Pelham’s Public Relations and Marketing Specialist Marc MacDonald explains that when the accident occurred it was already too late for repairs to be included in the Town’s 2013 guardrail repair program. “Due to budget prioritization and internal staffing in subsequent years it was delayed,” says MacDonald. “Last year, staff reviewed all the guardrails in town and concluded that there were several in need of repairs. The steel beam attenuating terminal on Sawmill Road was identified and will be repaired as part of this year’s guardrail repair program.” MacDonald says that the tender closed recently and an approximate date for the repair will be forthcoming once a contractor is appointed.
East Fenwick public consultation
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Members of the community are invited to the Community Design Options workshop on September 30, from 1-3 PM at Fire Station 2 in Fenwick, to discuss and provide input on the development of the East Fenwick Secondary plan. This summer the Town launched a study to develop a “community vision” for the East Fenwick area, defined by Balfour Street to
their properties need to be limited or blocked to complete the work.
Roland Road rehab
Until mid-October, contractors will be working on Roland Road between Sulphur Spring and Short Hills parking lot B to complete resurfacing work. Due to the nature of the job, resident will experience periods of long delays and limited access. Residents are advised to seek alternate routes to avoid the area during this time. The Town advises that due to the closures on Sulphur Spring Drive, this will not be a possible detour point. Access onto Roland Road from either Effingham Street or Holland Road will be limited to local traffic only.
the west, Memorial Drive to the north, Cream Street to the east and Welland Road to the south. The purpose of the East Fenwick’s Secondary Plan study is to guide future growth and development in the area in a manner that, according to a Town news release, “takes into consideration the character of Fenwick and is consistent with Provincial, Regional and Local planning policies and legislation.” For more information the public is invited to contact Ute Maya-Giambattista, Planner and Urban Designer, SGL Planning & Design at eastfenwick@sglplanning.ca
Culture Days return
For a second year, the Town of Pelham & the Pelham Public Library will partner with local artists to host Culture Days activities, September 29 to October 1. “Many local artists are volunteering their time or opening their doors for you to come and experience their talents and expertise,” said Jodi Hendriks, Pelham Culture & Community Enhancement Programmer “Culture days is a great way to try something new.” All events are free to attend and range in age-group participation. For a complete breakdown of Culture Days activities, visit: www.pelham.ca/culture-days
Sidewalk and curb construction
Weather dependent, the Town will undertake repair work at various locations around Pelham between October 1 and November 17. Contractors will be working throughout town to facilitate the replacement of deficient curb and sidewalks. Due to the nature of the work, there may be times, says the Town, when residents will experience short delays. Additional notifications will be given to specific residents should access to
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Vol.20 No.48
CELEBRATING OUR 20TH YEAR
Wednesday, February 8, 2017
DSBN wants portion of Town park
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Column Six
Growing up British
Vol.20 No.32
Wednesday October 12, 2016
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Apple Day comes to Fonthill
BY JULIE MANNELL
Special to the VOICE
W
BALLOONING INTEREST Grade 6 student Jinja Shepherd explains her experiment on static electricity at the Glynn A. Green Public School's annual science fair last Friday. See story, page 3. NATE SMELLE PHOTO
Public meeting tonight on school issues BY VOICE STAFF As questions continue to mount regarding an email that Pelham Mayor Dave Augustyn quietly sent to a District School Board of Niagara trustee last summer, Augustyn has agreed to address the issue at a public meeting scheduled for this evening, Wednesday, Feb. 8, in Fenwick. Nancy Beamer, speaking for “Names Matter,” a Pelham citizens group lobbying the DSBN to reverse its decision to rename a local public school, confirms that the meeting will be held at Fire Station #2, known locally as the Fenwick Fire Hall, starting at 7:00 PM. While the Mayor has agreed to ap-
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
Part 2 of 2: Coronation to embarkation
BY VOICE STAFF
A construction error was discovered following the opening of a traffic calming chicane on Haist Street north of Hwy 20 last Monday that prevented large vehicles from passing through. One resident living in the neighbourhood said he contacted the Town after seeing a small schoolbus get stuck as it tried to get through the new traffic calming measure. Later that day while driving behind a cement truck, he said that he became concerned for the public’s safety when the truck had to turn around because it couldn’t get through. “If a small school bus and a cement truck can’t make it through what about a fire
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
Debbie
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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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Column Six
BY VOICE STAFF The District School Board of Niagara is requesting that the Town of Pelham cede a portion of Cherry Ridge Park for use as a soccer field to serve the students of the new Wellington Heights Public School, formerly the E. W. Farr Memorial Public School, in Fenwick. Currently under renovation and expansion, the new school will combine students and staff from the previous school and Pelham Centre, where classes are being held while construction continues. Two letters, containing virtually identical text but signed by different authorities, were sent last week to nearby residents of the park, as well as to parents of Pelham Centre students. “The DSBN is currently building onto Wellington Heights Public School on Alsop Drive,” states the letter. “The size of the school's addition means the existing small soccer field will be eliminated. The Town and the Board have been discussing the possibility of working together to create a field for both the school and the
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In an effort to bring further attention and deterrence to driving while impaired by alcohol or drugs, the Niagara Regional Police Service reports the names of those people who are charged with an alleged criminal impaired driving offence in the Region. None of the following charges have been proved in court. In addition to being charged, these individuals are also bound by a Ministry of Transportation 90-Day Administrative Driver’s License Suspension and are prohibited from operating a motor vehicle on a roadway. The public is encouraged to contact the Niagara Regional Police Service Traffic Safety Hotline or Crime Stoppers to report those who are driving in contravention of the suspension. The following individuals have been charged criminally with impaired driving by alcohol or drugs, driving with a blood alcohol concentration above 80 mgs of alcohol in 100 ml of blood, or refusing to provide a breath / blood sample. Thomas M. COWAN, 48, St. Catharines Czeslaw S. RZESZUTO, 61, St. Catharines Rachele C. A. GINGRAS, 30, Port Colborne Colten S. OLSEN, 22, St. Catharines Mirolsav KOSTENYUK, 33, St. Catharines James D. KRAMER, 52, Port Colborne Tashawanda C. CARTER, 26, Toronto
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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 Sobeys Fonthill DeVries Fruit Farm Beamer’s Hardware & TV Fonthill Library Black Pearl Fish & Chips Bob’s Boys Antiques Moku’s Fonthill Fitness Fenwick Pie Company McDonald’s Fonthill Legion Semenuk’s Gas Bar Target Store Tim Horton’s Giant Tiger Pelham Town Hall 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 Circle-K
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The Voice of Pelham, September 27, 2017
Page 3
SMILE ROCKS
“Smile Rocks.” “I’m sort of known for putting smiley faces on everything,” she said. “And that’s what we’re “All right. We’re going to walk trying to do with these rocks— in single-file, okay. You can only bring smiles to people who find leave the line to put out your them.” rock—we’ve got to stay together,” By then, her class had reached said Goodwin. the Bandshell. She let a few stuEager to be off, the students dents who still had their rocks nodded in agreement. Once outgo over to the war memorial to side the gate, they soon passed a find a spot for them. “I’m going tree. “Who wants to put their rock to put mine in a tree,” said a boy. there?” asked Goodwin. Hands “Me too!” said his friend. The shot up at the front of the line. “Go two spent a few minutes trying ahead,” she told one girl. “Make sure you put it right up against the to find a branch on the sapling strong enough to support the tree, and face-up, too! We want rock. The girl in the group just people to see the painting on it.” put hers on the bench nearAt the first corner, Bachynski by, and then watched as the and Goodwin took their students boys tried different positions. in one direction, while the othOnce they had finished, Gooder class went in another. It was win called all the students back Bachynski who approached Goodin. They assembled quickly and win with the idea, having first lined up. One girl, who had both seen pictures on the web of other of her arms in pink casts, held schools doing it. the hand of the boy beside her. “It’s a really great thing to have “Who still has a rock?” Goodthe students involved in commuwin asked. nity,” she said. “That’s part of or A boy, who in a sign of the curriculum here. So not only is this times had painted an emoji on an art activity, and one the kids his stone, held it up. really love, it’s one where they can “Okay, she told him. “We’ll be thinking about interacting with find a special place for yours.” others in the community.” Goodwin was going to lead The activity as Bachynski saw him to the library, but then worit was called “Happy Rocks,” but ried that the rock would be too Goodwin changed1 2017-09-20 its name 1:30 to PM SWIFallad2_Layout Page 1 continued from Page 1
I'm sort of known for putting smiley faces on everything
Logan Puzio, Calista Policella, Gemma Phelan, and Henry Kerr look for the right spot. VOICE PHOTO near its windows. “That’s not what we want,” she said more to herself than any student. “It would be just my luck if one of these went through a window.” She pointed to a tree under which the emoji could be placed. “Right there!” she said.
The boy scuttled over and place his rock carefully. As the class made the walk back to the school, one student said, “I can come back here later and find my rock again!” “You could,” Goodwin said. “But remember, if you take a Smile Rock, you have to leave one too.
Make sure that you tell your parents and grandparents and friends that, too.” He started to respond, but was distracted by a cup on the ground, and trailed off his sentence in a way that only kids can do. The class arrived back in the playground. “The rest of the school is at Mass,” said Goodwin. “We have the whole place to ourselves. Should we get out the parachute?” She looked to Bachynski. Bachynski shook her head. “I think they want to get back inside and have a snack,” she said. Goodwin nodded. “Yes, you’re right. Next time we’ll do that.” The kids followed her inside, talking about their rocks and snacks as they pulled off their shoes. They were in a good mood.
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Page 4
The Voice of Pelham, September 27, 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 Nick Saltarelli The forensic audit: Council, do the right thing
O
V ER THE PA ST FE W months the ratepayers of the Town of Pelham and the Niagara Region have been witnessing a gathering storm. What they do not yet know is whether it will rage into a cyclone consuming many, or devolve into a tempest in a teacup, a contest between two men of local prominence who alone may bear the brunt of the consequences. This is, of course, the Town’s East Fonthill development and the forensic audit proposed to clear away, or substantiate, the suspicions surrounding it. On one side is Mayor Augustyn and on the other is developer Rainer Hummel. Augustyn insists there is absolutely nothing to see here, while Hummel’s nose for business tells him something definitely smells fishy. Mr. Hummel trusts his instincts so completely that he is prepared not only to put his money where his mouth is but to put his credibility, and potentially the health of his business, on the line. At stake for Mr. Augustyn is also his credibility, but more importantly his legacy and political future. While his off-mic “indelicate remark” about
Mayor Augustyn following last Monday’s Regional Audit Committee meeting remains unpublished, that Mr. Hummel uttered it is a matter of public record and is a clear indication that, for him, this matter has taken on a personal dimension.
The upside potential is at best unclear, while the downside is considerable
In its umbrage Council, which we can safely assume includes the Mayor, has publicly contemplated initiating a libel suit against Mr. Hummel, and there are few things more seriously personal than that. Mr. Hummel bids Council to bring it on. That second shoe may yet drop. Notwithstanding the bit players in the unfolding drama —certain Town staff and sitting councillors
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The Voice
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www.thevoiceofpelham.ca PUBLISHER & EDITOR Dave Burket publisher@thevoiceofpelham.ca NEWS WRITER Samuel Piccolo ADMINISTRATION Lori Gretsinger office@thevoiceofpelham.ca CONTRIBUTORS John Swart, Larry Coté, Nick Saltarelli, Carolyn Botari, Kirk Weaver
in the two levels of government —the stakes are highest for these two men. Ironically the upside potential for either is at best unclear, while the downside is considerable. Mr. Hummel’s business enterprise depends, if not on the goodwill of the various municipal governments of Niagara, then at a minimum their cooperation. If the audit findings indicate nothing untoward and everything above board, Mr. Hummel’s professional capital amongst municipal staff and officials who review and approve his development proposals will be much diminished, and that cannot be good for business. More significantly perhaps, it would effectively untie the laces of that other shoe. Legally, Mayor Augustyn and Council are under no obligation to accept Mr. Hummel’s $50,000 offer to underwrite the forensic audit or to accept the recommendation of the Region’s Audit Committee that they do so—and the smart money is on the full Regional Council endorsing this same recommendation at its next meeting on OctoSee AUDIT next page
Letters Don't take Council's bait It seems Mayor Augustyn is now willing to answer questions that Mr. Hummel has regarding questionable land purchases and financial dealings in the East Fonthill development. Mayor Augustyn has suggested that a Pelham Council meeting might be an appropriate place for this discussion. As someone who has watched many Pelham Council meetings I can assure Mr. Hummel that there would be no answering of questions at a Council meeting. Mr. Hummel would have to submit his presentation, and if approved he would be added to an upcoming agenda. Mr. Hummel would be given 10 minutes to present. Councillors could then ask questions or
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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR are welcome. Letter submissions should contain the writer’s full name, address and telephone number. Names only will be published. Names may be withheld if compelling reasons are provided. The newspaper reserves the right to change, condense or reject any contribution for brevity or legal reasons. All material in this publication is protected by copyright. Reproduction is prohibited without express, written permission of the publisher. ADVERTISING: The Voice of Pelham regrets any errors or omissions that appear in advertisements in this newspaper, however, we will not be held responsible for more than one absent or incorrect insertion or for any damages beyond the cost of space containing the error. The Voice is an independent, locally owned and operated publication.
See BAIT 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
Mayor of Pelham David Augustyn mayordave@pelham.ca 905-892-2607 Ext 317 Members of Pelham Town Council
Member of Provincial Parliament
Ward 1 Councillor Richard Rybiak rrybiak@pelham.ca 905-892-2105
Sam Oosterhoff, MPP 4961 King St. East, Unit M1 Beamsville, ON L0R 1B0 sam.oosterhoffco@pc.ola.org 905-563-1755
Councillor Marvin Junkin mjunkin@pelham.ca 905-684-4870
Electoral District: Niagara West-Glanbrook
Members of Niagara Regional Council Councillor David Augustyn mayordave@pelham.ca 905-892-2607 Ext 317 Councillor Brian Baty brian.baty@niagararegion.ca 905-892-5317 Town of Pelham 20 Pelham Town Square P.O. Box 400 Fonthill, ON L0S 1E0 905-892-2607
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make comments. Following that, Mr. Hummel would NOT be allowed to ask any further questions of Mayor Augustyn, staff or Council. Council meetings are a one-way street. Presenters present, some are complimented, some are patted on the head and sent on their way and some, unfortunately are berated and insulted, as Councillor Brian Baty found out just a few weeks ago. There is never an open back-and-forth question-and-answer dialogue. Mr. Hummel chose the right place to stand up for the residents of Pelham. Something stinks at Town Hall and we should all be
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The Voice of Pelham, September 27, 2017
Page 5
OPINION Letters
continued
If no collusion, then why the stonewalling There are so many issues here and questions: Can five of six councillors collude on this mess with the Mayor? I find it hard to believe. But I also am disgusted at what appears to be stonewalling. If you question us, we'll sue you—sounds so familiar in today's world (hint, hint), a strateg y to scare away questions. Mr. Hummel I thank you helping the transparency, but when you say you are a taxpayer I guess it's because you pay taxes on investment holdings—do you live here? I'm just a resident who is aghast at what our
Is the Voice just another media outlet trying to influence us to their way of thinking... new taxes will be. Building a multimillion dollar facility and no road improvement necessar y? Don't these councillors drive during commute times or any
BAIT continued from previous page grateful that someone with so much expertise in development has come forward to get to the bottom of the sketchy dealings go-
AUDIT continued from previous page ber 5. Much like Donald Trump’s refusal to release
other time on Highway 20 through the middle of town? W hy do we still have municipal councils? I thought Regional government was to reduce bureaucracy, streamline our municipal processes and save us money. Or conversely why have we kept Regional government? Oh and since I'm here... is the Voice just another media outlet tr ying to influence us to their way of think ing and their opinion, instead of just reporting the news without their slant? Jim Stokes Via Facebook
The Town of Pelham’s Code of Conduct for Members of Council states: “It is recognized that attaining an elected position within one’s community is a privilege which carries significant responsibilities and obligations. Members are held to a high standard as leaders of the community and as such, are expected to carry out their duties in a fair, impartial, transparent and professional manner.” Are our members of Council transparent? You be the judge. These are just a few of the many questions I had for Council members and staff. In April I asked Mayor Augustyn what the cost was to print the 330-page glossy bound document that he delivered to all 30-plus Regional councillors, a document they all received in digital form. The Mayor did not know the cost. In June I asked the Mayor what fee is being paid to Interkom Smart Marketing / Martin VonZon. Interkom has been hired to run the $3 million dollar Community Centre fundraising campaign. They will charge a fee for this work. If their fee is, say 10%, it will be necessary for the Town to actually raise $3,333,000 in donations in order to achieve a net $3 million to put toward the final Community Centre cost. Their fee may be more, it may be less. The Mayor did not know the answer to this question and forwarded it on to Town staff. Town staff did
ing on. Thank you Mr. Hummel. You have brought out the facts that we all suspected were being buried by outrageous paperwork, doubletalk and B.S. You have my full support. Lyn Davis-Brown Pelham
his tax returns, Council’s refusal to perform a full and independent audit will leave an indelible impression that they have something to hide. This would not bode well at the polls
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not reply. In an attempt to find this information I looked through Committee of the Whole contract awards information, but could not find any information on a contract awarded to Interkom Smart Marketing. I again asked the Mayor what fee is being paid. He again forwarded the question to Town staff, and Town staff again did not reply. In July I asked the Mayor how much money is “in the bank” right now from those who have made very generous financial donations to the community centre building fund. I also asked if donors have made multi-year pledges and what is the length of time for each pledge to be paid in full. It is significant to taxpayers if donations are in fact being made over many years. This means that come 2018, when the Community Centre is finished and all the bills need to be paid, there will not be $3 million in donations available to pay them. We will need to borrow the outstanding amount until the donation installments come in. The Mayor’s response was simply that donors can make gifts outright or over multiple years. I also asked our Mayor how much money has been paid in transaction fees to date with regards to East Fonthill land transactions (buying and selling).
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Page 6
Letters
The Voice of Pelham, September 27, 2017
continued
Watch out, Thief Last week someone stole my sports bag from my open van while I went into the Beer Store. That’s a warning to people who park in Pelham! The new Pelham is here. To the perp...you didn’t get much—my bag, my exercise bands, and my music player. That player was important to me, but you will find it useless. I have the charging cradle, and if you want you can come and get it. I hate to see the player wasted along with 3000 songs. Also you will need the app to delete or load more of your music...I could show you how! My dog was in the vehicle. You are lucky you didn’t lose an arm. I am Ken Edwards and I live in Fonthill...look in the phone book! Ken Edwards Fonthill
Ready to chip-in for audit cost As a Pelham ratepayer I have had enough of the controversy over the Town’s finances and want some clarity. I don't know who is telling the truth, but I want an answer. I will send a cheque to Rainer Hummel to help with his bid to fund a forensic audit of the Town’s finances. I truly hope that the audit will show that all of the Town’s dealings were above board and within the usual standard and practices of municipalities, but I want to know. Pelham Council’s reluctance to allow the audit troubles me. Let's have an open, fair airing of the Town’s finances. What's the big deal? John Csikos Fonthill
Take his cash and prove him wrong It’s a slam-dunk for the Town. Takes this guy’s money and prove Hummel and the Voice wrong. You're in a perfect position to make good with public confidence that will help through your next election on someone else’s dime. The fact that you guys probably will protest shows that your stubborn ways will continue to lose the people’s trust. You're in a win-win situation, unless you know maybe there is something to hide. You guys could actually follow through with a lawsuit as well. This is a trifecta in your favour. We're all tired of the complaining of transparency—currently everything is clear as mud. I know this because everyone I talk to has a different idea of what's going on. Take the offer. Nick Lancione Via Facebook
Just do it already Enough. The Region wants an audit. As a taxpayer I want an audit. The Town Council needs to do the right thing—vote YES for the audit, then we can all move on. Taxpayers need to come together now. Peggy Smith Via Facebook
QUESTIONS continued from previous page Finally the mayor responded with the following: “You have asked some very specific questions. I do not have access to these specific answers in the way you are asking. Please consider filing Municipal Freedom of Information & Protection of Privacy requests for this information. Six of my questions were met with this same response: “Please consider filing a FOI request for this information.” Personally, I believe my questions were simply stated and straightforward and that the availability of the information that I requested would be absolutely necessary for the Town to understand its financial position. Town staff should have this information on hand, and when asked for it the Mayor should be able to access this information and be able to communicate it to the taxpaying public. No one should have to pay for an FOI to get this simple in-
formation. Now, after five months of getting no information from the Mayor, it seems that he has invited Mr. Hummel to sit down with him and staff and go through all Mr. Hummel’s questions, questions which are quite detailed and involved. I hope that if this “sit down” occurs it will be in a public venue with enough room for all Pelham residents who also want to hear the answers to these questions. And I hope the Mayor will also make himself and staff (not a panel of “experts” who are directed to only answer questions that meet Town criteria) available to answer questions from anyone else in the community. I find it very interesting that the Mayor at no time suggested to Mr. Hummel that he consider filing Freedom of Information requests for the information he is seeking. Carolyn Botari Fenwick
COLUMN SIX continued from Page 1 A local newspaper’s coverage of the ceremony quotes one of the councillors saying that, “David Sedaris is a familiar and very welcome sight in the lanes and by-ways of this lovely part of Horsham District, as he tirelessly and painstakingly goes about gathering up the litter so thoughtlessly discarded.” After this article ballooned in popularity online, and the paper’s website received traffic exponentially greater than usual, the paper was made aware that Sedaris had sold millions of books and was very famous in the United States. “UPDATE:” it printed. “World following for Horsham district litter picking ‘hero.’” Sedaris later said that most people in the town thought that he was mentally disabled. But this doesn’t much bother him. Wearing a reflective vest and wielding a trash picker, Sedaris still roams the sides of roads and retrieves bottles and loaded diapers and plastic bags and anything else that you’ve ever seen lying in the grass. “When I first moved to Horsham district three years ago,” he told the local paper, “I was struck by the area’s outstanding natural beauty, but I was also struck by all the rubbish that people leave lying around the roads.” Littering is one of those things, much like murder, that no one will attempt to defend publicly and yet still seems to stubbornly persist. There are no doubt people who are indifferent to a landscape, but I have never heard anyone say, when coming across an unspoiled bit of land, “My, this place is nice. The only way to improve it would be to sprinkle it with a truckload of garbage.” And to those who aren’t indifferent, the sight of someone absent-mindedly tossing a piece of trash can bring fits of rage. “I’m angry at the people who throw these things out
their car windows, but I’m just as angry at the people who walk by it every day. I say, ‘Pick it up yourself,’” Sedaris told the paper. During an online “Ask Me Anything” event on Reddit, someone questioned Sedaris on what he thought the punishment should be for those who drop litter. “I've given a lot of thought to this,” Sedaris responded. “And I think they should lose an arm.” You imagine that he is only half-joking. When I was in sixth grade, my teacher once recounted an exciting event that happened over his weekend. He was idling at the intersection of Highway 20 and Merrittville Highway when the driver of the car in front of him rolled down his window and tossed a McDonald’s bag out on to the grass. My teacher promptly put his car in park, walked over to where the bag lay, picked it up, and knocked on the car’s recently rolled-up window. When it came down again, he threw the bag inside without saying a word and stomped back to his own vehicle, which was by then no doubt holding up traffic. You have to admire the boldness. I don’t think that I’d have the guts to do that. Even Sedaris says that he would only be brave enough to confront a little old lady, and for everyone else he’d probably just meekly pick up the trash and quietly curse. That’s a shame, really, because it’s probably the case that most litterers are secretly ashamed of who they are, and deep down are hoping and wishing that someone will point out their sins and demand repentance. A few years ago my parents and I went out for dinner in Port Dalhousie with my mother’s parents. We had just left the restaurant and were preparing to head up the street for ice cream when my grandfather unpackaged on of the little breath mints that had been left with the cheque. He popped the mint into his mouth, and then, casually, seemingly without thought, let the wrapper slip through his fingers. This was a man who was so
www.thevoiceofpelham.ca horrified by defilement of any kind that he once said of tattoos that “none is too many.” I watched the plastic float
Littering is one of those things, much like murder, that no one will attempt to defend publicly down from his hand, catch a brief breath of wind, and then settle on the pavement a few feet away. My mother saw too. I was still young enough to believe, however faintly, that parents rarely did wrong, but my mother was not, and she tore a strip off of him. “What are you doing?” she said. “Go pick that up, right now.” He slunk over to where the wrapper was lying and put it in his pocket. As long as he lived, I didn’t see him throw another piece of trash on the ground. My mother has always been something of a puritan on these matters. At the time, we lived on a dodgy street in St. Catharines, a place where I had to be warned by my parents to avoid the occasional needle that had been left lying on the road or thrown into our backyard from the parking lot behind our house. There was, as you can imagine, a lot of litter lying around, and this dereliction inspired my mother to arrange family garbage walks. We would tow behind us a child’s wagon into which we would place our filled bags. We found just about every bit of garbage around, but it was not a treasure-in-the-junk sort of endeavour. There were no suitcases of cash. Moving to Pelham was a reprieve, of course, though there are still great deposits of trash here for which we should be roundly ashamed.
A few years ago, I with two friends picked up a few bags of garbage on the John Nemy Trail, the footpath in Marlene Stewart Streit Park named after the founder of Fonthill Lumber and great lover of nature. We had to leave when we ran out of bags. Different memories surface at different times, and all of this came wafting back to me as I was walking around the streets of Oaxaca, Mexico, a few months ago. Mexico is a thoroughly wonderful place—and there are parts of it that are very clean—but where I was in Oaxaca there was more litter than even the most littered area of Toronto. The problem had become one of those that appears so insurmountable that no one single person can muster the energy required to begin work on it. David Sedaris is evidently not bothered by the fact that he has been collecting trash for years and yet there always remains more. “You can tell where my territory ends and the rest of England begins. It’s like going from the rose arbor in Sissinghurst to Fukushima after the tsunami. The difference is staggering.” He is satisfied enough by cultivating that territory that he could give up writing and just keeping picking up more. “It’s an amazing feeling,” he says of trash-picking, sounding much like those smiling charlatans who try to sell you exercise equipment on Paid Programming channels. But you can’t help but believe him, just a little bit. This summer I housesat for a week in Hamilton. When I walked the dog in the mornings and evenings, I would bring around a plastic bag and fill it with whatever I found lying near the sidewalks. One night, as I bent over to add to my collection, a man stopped as he was walking by me. “Do you always do that?” he asked, looking at my hands. “No,” I said. “But I should.” 4
Grand mismanagement at the NPCA Last spring, after months of pressure from the residents of Niagara, NDP MPP Cindy Forster, and ten area municipalities, the NPCA finally agreed to have a financial audit take place. The Auditor General of Ontario offered her services at that time but the NPCA refused as they said they weren't ready, if you can make any sense out of that statement. The Auditor General then offered to look at the possibility of doing the audit when the NPCA felt ready, but made no commitment. After refus-
ing a free government audit the NPCA decided to do a Request For Proposal for an independent audit. Somehow, for reasons unknown to the public, this process became tainted, with the end result of being dropped and board member Bill Hodgson being censured, which ended up with Mr. Hodgson stepping down from the NPCA board. Now the taxpayers of Niagara find out that the Auditor General of Ontario can't fit the NPCA audit into her schedule so the NPCA has decided to
start the Request For Proposal process all over again and the taxpayer will be on the hook for probably hundreds of thousands of dollars when and if it ever gets completed. Remember...last spring the Auditor General offered an audit to the NPCA with no charge to the Regional taxpayer, an offer that was refused, and you have to ask yourself how long are we expected to fund mismanagement on such a grand scale. Robert Milenkoff Welland
for pedestrians. Fonthill prides itself as being a walkable community, yet in my neighbourhood the Station Street/Hurricane Road intersection is a barrier many are reluctant to cross. From one end of Station Street to the other, there is a park, a school, a church, a nearby library and a wooded footpath, each a safe place meant to bring the community together. Two red stop signs and a little paint on the pavement is all we ask—a small portion of our tax dollars to protect the residents of our neighbourhood. Yet
the Town wishes spend thousands to study the situation, to consider speed bumps for 2018, anything but what we ask for: a Stop Sign please. Why is Council afraid to inconvenience folks who cut through the neighbourhood, speeding down Hurricane to avoid the traffic on 20 Highway? As voters we elect officials to serve and reflect the will of the people. This is a community, not a principality. Dorothy Brown Fonthill
The heart of the matter The heart of my part of Fonthill is the corner of Station Street and Hurricane Road. I travel those roads every day. Driving on Hurricane at a respectful 50 km/h, I am often passed. Stopping on Station Street, I have to guess where the stop line might be as there is no marking on the pavement. Walking on Station Street, the sidewalk zig zags from west to east right at the intersection of Hurricane. There are no crosswalks marking the pavement, and no indication that the drivers on Hurricane are watching
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The Voice of Pelham, September 27, 2017
Page 7
TOWN COUNCIL NEWS Cycling, snow removal, no discussion of audit BY VOICE STAFF Compared to last Monday morning’s Regional Audit Committee meeting, in which the Committee formally requested that Pelham commission a third-party audit of its finances, Monday night’s Town Council meeting was a sedate affair. Prior to the meeting, councillors were speaking amongst themselves about the morning’s events, with Mayor Dave Augustyn saying that he would perhaps raise the matter while presenting his report. Councillor Peter Papp advised against it. “Just let it simmer,” he told Augustyn. “We don’t need to talk about it tonight.” And so it simmered. It was not mentioned by any councillor during the meeting. There was little else on the hob—the meeting’s agenda was relatively short. Papp, Council’s representative on the Senior’s Advisory committee, announced that Pelham is now a member of the World Health Organization, one of just 30 municipalities across Canada. “We need to celebrate this,” said Papp. Director of Public Works Andrea Clemencio provided Council with more information on Pelham’s planned participation in the Ontario Municipal Commuter Cycling project. In its three-year timeframe, this project would promote commuter cycling through a variety of methods. Following a ridership
assessment, to be completed in 2018, the Town could be eligible for provincial funding for several projects. Clemencio mentioned specifically the paving of the Steve Bauer trail, as well as cycling lanes on Canboro Road, both of which could be done in 2019 and 2020. Should the Town be chosen by the province, 80 percent of the funds required for this work would be covered by Queen’s Park. The Town only intends to carry out these plans if it does receive provincial money. During the second half of the meeting, Council spent more time questioning Clemencio, this time on a report she presented regarding the Town’s snowplow fleet. Public Works has projected a substantial budget shortfall for winter roads maintenance for the rest of 2017. Clemencio attributed this shortfall to heavy snowfalls in March, and the addition of material and labour demands not included in funding projections. Clemencio said that this shortfall would mean that the Town would “risk not meeting minimum maintenance standards.” Councillor Gary Accursi asked Clemencio about these standards. He recalled reading that Ottawa had moved from six to ten centimetres of snowfall on rural roads before sending out the plows. “This saved them $6 million,” Accursi said, before mentioning that there was a substantial difference in size between Pelham and Ottawa. Clemencio said that there are some municipalities
where snow must stop falling before plows begin, though she stipulated that Pelham does not do this. “We may have to, though,” she said. Councillor John Durley lamented the possibility of a change in snow-removal service. Durley made reference to people he knows who have such faith in Pelham’s plowing abilities that during heavy snowfalls they reroute themselves just to drive on Pelham’s roads. Public Works put forth a number of plans for Council to consider, though the one that staff recommended involved leasing a portion of the fleet. This option, according to Clemencio, would save $56,000 in capital expenditures. Councillor Marvin Junkin asked a series of precise questions on this proposed leasing. “When the Town leases a plow—it that for a set number of years? Or just November to April?” “The winter season, which is November through to March,” replied Clemencio. “And what is our commitment to maintenance?” said Junkin. “We have to put in oil and gas, but what about if a transmission goes or something like that?” “The lease is all-inclusive,” said Clemencio. “If one truck breaks, we’ll be provided with another one.” “Good,” said Junkin. “So we don’t even have to wash it at the end. We can just say ‘here’s your truck back.’” Junkin looked to Papp, who was
chairing the committee meeting. “One more question?” Papp made a face, but then smiled. “All right,” he said. “You’re on a roll.”
If one truck breaks, we'll be provided with another one
Junkin then asked if the Town would receive a new truck every year. “I’m not sure if they’re new,” answered Clemencio, though she asserted that they would be in good, workable condition. Public Works also has begun something called “smart purchasing.” Accursi asked what exactly “smart purchasing” is. According to Clemencio, “smart purchasing” is a process initially developed through one of the Town’s “How Might We?” sessions, and it revolves around considering alternate approaches. Clemencio said that while conventional wisdom would be to merely replace machines that are aging out, “smart purchasing” considers all other options,
which in this case, she said, means leasing vehicles and not purchasing them at all, either smartly or otherwise. Augustyn asked her about Public Works’ process for reviewing plowing routes and streamlining the process. “Things change,” said Augustyn. “For example, there’s no longer a school on Centre Street. I’m sure that was previously a high-priority area with a lot of buses, but it may not need to be anymore.” Clemencio clarified that Public Works reviews routes during the summer, after considering all feedback from drivers, staff, and residents regarding the previous winter’s service. As Council prepared to vote on a motion that received Public Works’ report and acknowledged the approaching budget shortfall, Accursi again raised his hand. “I think that we should remove the acknowledgement of the budget variance,” Accursi said. “Since we don’t yet know what will happen.” Papp received this as a friendly amendment, and the motion passed unanimously. “If we could have a financial breakdown of where our budget will end up in 2017, that would be helpful,” Papp said. “Rather than something general, we want more concrete numbers.” Clemencio assured him that she has been keeping the Town’s Treasurer up-to-date. Council concluded the public portion of the meeting by moving to go in-camera.
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Page 8
The Voice of Pelham, September 27, 2017
Letters
www.thevoiceofpelham.ca
continued
Why the rush to sell? I have expressed my concerns previously to the Town and with the latest round of public meetings on the Haist Street parklands I wish to be on record again with the following comments and concerns: Like a large contingent of residents in Pelham we have lost all trust in the current Mayor and council. I have on previous issues submitted letters and emails yet when the Mayor’s “official” count comes public, my emails are not there.
It appears he picks his support to influence numbers. In my view, there is no rush to liquidate lands. The Town claims that its financial picture is good and the bills are being paid. The Place Speak survey site did not work for nearly three weeks, not just the one weekend as the Town claims. How many residents did that discourage from participating adding to the vast numbers who feel the deal is sealed and just gave up.
No one objected to Wainfleet numbers The options tells us that the deal is sealed. We have the choice of single homes, duplex homes, town homes, two-story homes. Nowhere do they suggest repurposing the building or site or enhancing what is there now. I have a 40-year career in building design and construction. Having done a cursory look the existing building I see a very sound structure, very adaptable to reuse. Once we lose our inner town public green space it’s
gone forever, never to be regained. What if our town continues grow into a mini Mississauga and we need a new Town Hall? Would you go to North Pelham or to Fenwick, inconvenient for residents and where further green space would be lost to development. Councilors Junkin and Baty, we appreciate your continued support and your struggle against the Mayor’s forceful demeanor. Our appreciation will be seen at the 2018 voting booth. Curt Harley Fonthill
I am also not happy with being accused of lying by someone I do not know, who does not know me, nor whom I have ever met as far as I am aware [“Not happy being fed false numbers in Wainfleet,” Letters, Sept. 15, p. 4]. The figures refer to a letter to me, dated November 2016, in response to a letter received from me in January 2016. The respondent had taken nearly a year to reply and referenced those false figures five separate times under different headings to argue that the proposed Lakewood Condominium
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was an almost insignificant development for Wainfleet over the next ten years. This was a very clearly thoughtout letter with these figures being offered as facts and based on Regional forecasts. At the Wainfleet Council meeting on July 18, when the Lakewood Condominium development was approved by a 3 to 2 vote, those figures were referred to and clearly shown for all to read and study. That included at least three planning consultants, including the author of the original letter, Wainfleet’s own planner, all five members of Wainfleet Township Council, the Lakewood developer himself, and a gallery full of Wainfleet residents mainly against, but some in favour of, the Lakewood development. There was not one single voice raised at that meeting to suggest that those figures were anything but correct. On September 5, nearly two months after Lakewood was approved, I received an e-mail from the author of the letter, with an attached copy of a letter to the Township of Wainfleet. In the e-mail to me the author offered an apology for sending those figures and stated the “mistake” had only been noticed two weeks before the e-mail was sent. So those figures were a basis for at least two substantial and important reports submitted to Wainfleet Township: the EA Report and the Justification Report, major reports in support of Lakewood. The letter to Wainfleet Township excusing the mistake claimed the “error” was in predicted new builds in Wainfleet and nothing to do with population growth figures. The information also referring
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Page 10
The Voice of Pelham, September 27, 2017
www.thevoiceofpelham.ca
Parade opens Wainfleet Fall Fair Annual event sees big crowds, record temperatures over three days BY SAMUEL PICCOLO
The VOICE
T
HE THREE-DAY L ONG Wainfleet fair began last Thursday evening with a boisterous parade that was heavy on the marching bands and classic cars. Near the front of the line was the E.L Crossley Marching Band, the only of the three present to augment its drum line with brass and woodwind. Band Director Dave Gaines marched up beside the banners-holders, keeping what are presumably the band’s newest members in time. “All right. A hard left now,” he told them as the group hit the end of the parade. Shortly behind the band was a trailer-full of Wainfleet Minor Hockey players, wearing their jerseys and chanting, “Let’s go Wainfleet, Let’s go,” over and again. A few players, bags of candy in hand, ran up and down beside the trailer, tossing lollipops and other sweets to kids sitting by the curb. Most kids had a little pile of sweets collected on the pavement in front of them, and while the quantities likely won’t be enough to last until Halloween, there were some impressive hauls. Another drum line passed by, this time from Lakeshore Catholic High School. Whereas Gaines had been near his band’s leaders, the director of the Lakeshore line was not, and so the band continued on the to right. “Stop, stop!” the teacher cried out. “That’s the wrong way.” Some of the drummers kept pounding their instruments. “And the parade’s over…you can stop playing,” the teacher added. Further back along the parade route, Frank Deruyte, who has lived in Wainfleet for over 60 years, had a microphone in his hand and was narrating the floats as they passed by. “Here we have a ’75 Monte Car-
lo,” he said, consulting his sheet. “And the next one—it’s not even on my paper—but it’s a lot older than that. From ’36?” He was interrupted by three long blasts from the horn of a transport truck. The driver, only just visible way up in the cab, laughed as he again reached to pull the air horn. The sound was so loud that it temporarily blocked the noise from yet another drum line that came soon behind. Drummers from Port Colborne High School hammered away, and even when one of the tom-toms dropped her sticks, others members struck the sides of their drums in a rhythmic clicking until she had again picked them up. The Niagara Shrine Club had several members zipping around in those little cars that look distinctly uncomfortable. As one of the drivers passed close to the crowd lining the sidewalk, he slowed down and waved like the Queen. “This is my ‘royal wave,’” he said. The end of the parade was now approaching, and Deruyte was losing steam. A small, newer car passed by. “And that’s a…Volkswagen convertible,” he said. “All I know about these is that they have no roof on them.” As the parade ended and Deruyte walked away from his post, a few friends came over to congratulate him for his narration. He pretended to throw the cordless microphone to one of them. The person flinched. Deruyte laughed. “No. I wouldn’t take the risk with something this valuable.” Seeing that the parade had ended, the crowds moved away from the street, with half of them or so trudging back to where See FAIR Page 14
It’s Turkey Time at the Grille! The holiday classic ...
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The Voice of Pelham, September 27, 2017
Page 11
WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT MARIJUANA LEGISLATION? Join
Sam Oosterhoff
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re Days in Pelham October 1, 2017
supports community exposure to free and interactive activities, entrepreneurs; another example of the Town of Pelham being a
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RSVP by OCT. 6th to: Pamela Haire 905-563-1755 or email pamela.haire@pc.ola.org 4961 King St. E. Unit M1, Beamsville ON L0R 1B0
Page 12
The Voice of Pelham, September 27, 2017
www.thevoiceofpelham.ca
New digs for Bertie & Clinton BY VOICE STAFF Bertie & Clinton Mutual Insurance, a Niagara-based company whose roots go back to 1880, moved its headquarters to Welland this spring, leaving its building at Highway 20 and Merrittville after nearly 20 years. When Bertie & Clinton first moved into that building some two decades ago, it filled barely half of its 10,000 sq. ft. capacity. A few years ago, the company realized that it was running out of space, and drafted a committee to look at expansion options. “We first looked at putting an addition on the existing building,” said Brian Heaslip, a member of the company’s board of directors and its building committee chair. The committee had a difficult time getting clear guidance from either Thorold or the Niagara Region, and so was reluctant to spend time and money on a plan that might not be approved. At that point, Heaslip said, the committee looked around at properties for sale and found nine acres in Welland. The site on Niagara Street was the former home of Tallman Transport, and was soon agreed upon by the committee to be the right spot for Bertie
& Clinton’s new home. A report from an environmental consultant showed that while some clean-up could be required of contaminated ground, there was nothing that would pose too severe a challenge. Tallman’s building would have cost a great deal to renovate, so the committee decided to build from scratch. Demolition wasn’t cheap, but considerable savings were realized on development charges. The new building, at two stories with some 21,000 sq. ft. of space, cost $4.7 million to build. Heaslip was happy to say that Bertie & Clinton was involved at every stage of construction, approving proposals and making sure that it was exactly what the committee wanted. “And we were a few hundred thousand under budget,” he said proudly. The move was not without hitches. A whole new computer system was installed,
and in order to avoid an interruption in client service, Bertie & Clinton kept the old system running in the old building for six weeks after vacating. Heaslip emphasized that Bertie & Clinton is policyholder-owned, meaning that a portion of the company’s profit is returned to policyholders in endof-year rebates, which can come as a pleasant surprise each spring. (Some Voice shareholders, the paper itself, and its publisher are Bertie & Clinton policyholders.) Heaslip hopes that the new location will allow Bertie & Clinton to continue growing in the future. Heaslip himself will be retiring this coming spring, after 20 years on the board. “It’s time for new people to come in,” he said. “Things change faster than I want to go—and I’m just happy that Bertie & Clinton is in a better position now than when I started.”
Fenwick's new fire hall opened six years ago in June.
SUPPLIED PHOTO
Century celebration for Fenwick Fire BY GREG BEAULIEU
Special to the VOICE
This coming Sunday, October 1, the Fenwick Fire Fighters Association will be hosting an open house at Pelham Station # 2, 766 Welland Road, to celebrate 100 years of organized fire service in the Village of Fenwick. The family-friendly event will include a display of old equipment, photos and other paraphernalia. Several historic fire trucks will be in attendance. There will be an area for kids to try their hand at squirting water. Hot dogs and hamburgers will be served and there is even a rumour that Sparky the Safety Dog will be making an appearance. Around 1917, the merchants of Fenwick pooled together to purchase the village’s first fire pump. This was a hand pump, operated by eight men, mounted on a four-wheel steel tire wagon, and was drawn to fires by
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The Voice of Pelham, September 27, 2017
Page 13
Local woman comes second at Racquetball Championships Catherine Dickinson redeemed by this year’s Silver after last year’s injury BY VOICE STAFF Ridgeville’s Catherine Dickinson, the champion racquetballer who was forced to withdraw from last year’s world championships, made a triumphant return to the tournament in Albuquerque, New Mexico, earlier this month. Coming off a broken foot at last year’s event, Dickinson finished second in the 55-plus category, winning four of her five matches and missing out on the gold medal by just two points. While disappointed that she had missed the title (“I should’ve won,” she says), Dickinson, who at 55 just qualified for her category, is these days happy to be able to compete. Though she played on the pro circuit in the ‘80s and ‘90s, and won a silver medal with Team Canada at the 1987 Pan-American racquetball championships, in the late ‘90s she had worn down her knee so severely that doctors told her to stop playing. Dickinson did, for seven years. She is a retired nurse, after all, and knows the importance of valuing medical opinions. But in 2004 she got back into the sport, and has been playing ever since. Along with her coach and husband, LaVerne, she has developed a style of play designed to keep points as short as possible. “I can’t bend very well,” she said. “I have to send my racquet down to get the balls.” Catherine credits her big serve for much of her success. LaVerne concurs. “Most of the women she plays
don’t even have time to react,” he said, “and if they do return, it’s very weak and Catherine can end the point right away.” Even though Catherine tries to play with a style that is easy on her body, she admits that sometimes she gets caught up in the point. “I’ll be running around for a point, and chase after the ball all over. When I was younger, I used to dive for it. It has to be the adrenaline,” she said. Catherine first met LaVerne in the early 1980s, when she was playing on the competitive circuit. He was a high-school math teacher at the time, living in Rochester, and spotted Catherine at events. He thought that she had great potential as a player, and helped her to find sponsors in the United States, since they were easier to find than in Canada. The two remained in contact, and in 2006, they were married. The next year, they moved to Ridgeville. LaVerne was a competitive racquetballer too, though he attended university on football scholarships at both Wyoming and later Southern University, in Lousiana. He was drafted by the Chicago Bears in 1972, though was cut before the season began. Injuries have caught up to LaVerne, too. He can no longer play racquetball with Catherine, though he does help her practise by standing in the court and trying to return her serve. Most of Catherine’s practise is alone. “I can’t find anyone to play
Catherine Dickinson sports her Silver Medal. anymore,” she says. Previously, there was a group of locals with whom she played, but now she largely trains without any opponents at YMCAs in St. Catharines, Niagara Falls, and Welland. After playing competitive tennis in high school, Catherine took up racquetball with her brother. In those days, she says, there were a lot of people playing the sport. Ever since, she has seen interest in it diminish. “The kids aren’t playing it anymore. They want to play the sports that are on TV,” she said. Racquetball is particularly unsuited to television. The
ball moves quickly, and unless the court is constructed entirely of glass, there is little room for spectators. While the ball moves quickly in tennis, too, it is at least bigger and the court is more spacious, meaning that it is easier to follow the action. Last week’s US Open finals in New York were played in a stadium with some 20,000 people in attendance. Though Dickinson is fiercely competitive, she returned to the training gym just a month and a half before the World Championships. “There’s just so much to do here,” she said, gesturing to her
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impeccably-maintained garden, before hurrying off to the barn to ensure that the feral cats had food and water. “We have four cats and a dog in the house, too,” LaVerne added. The two have a trip to Vermont planned, where they will cycle and enjoy the fall colours, and later in autumn Catherine will return to training for a January event in Tucson, Arizona. “It isn’t a very big event,” she says quickly. But when she says this, it is clear from both her tone and expression that this won’t matter once she arrives. She won’t be playing for second.
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The Voice of Pelham, September 27, 2017
FAIR continued from Page 10 they’d parked, and the other half turning and walking the other way, towards the arena. Admission to the fair was free, though donations were encouraged, and most people held out a five or a ten or a twenty and gestured to those the money was supposed to cover. The area of the arena usually covered by ice was instead laid out with dozens of tables filled to overflowing. The back Zamboni doors were open, and the air, which is typically crisp from artificial refrigeration, was fresh and smelled more of the harvest inside than the deep-fried Mars Bars outside. The whole place looked good. Two middle-aged men walked on to the floor. “Wow, it has a fresh coat of paint, too,” one said. “It sure looks different that when we played here.”
“Yeah, and you can’t drink beer in the stand any more, either,” the other added, laughing. They walked over the look at the prizes awarded for produce. The main attraction of this part of country fall fairs has to be the biggest pumpkin, and Wainfleet’s did not disappoint. Josh Hilbing, of Hilbing’s Pumpkin patch, grew this year’s first place winner to a staggering 426 lbs. But there were other impressive feats of agriculture as well. A few corn stalks towered over those walking by, and there were heads of sunflowers the size of a tractor’s steering wheel. A small stage was set up at one end of the arena. A band with eight fiddlers, a pianist, and someone on the guitar were playing. The fiddlers, who were older and evidently experienced, seemed to be playing without looking at the music, their hands flying over the
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A Shriner gives his royal wave in passing. fingerboards yet still managing to stay in time. The band’s apparent leader, who had not been conducting during the song, stepped to the podium and made a series of quick horizontal gestures, cutting the players off. Without explanation, he read an old and not kid-friendly joke involving a zipper, a garage door, a Jaguar, and a minivan with two flat tires. After he’d finished, he paused to let people laugh. Then he said, “Our next song will be ‘Plaza Polka’” and the band started right up again. As dusk lengthened, most people who were outside stood in line to buy food, or else drifted over to the poultry barn. It had been a humid day, but there were fans set up by the barn’s two doors and inside it smelled as much like a mattress store as it did a farm. Each bird looked to have been
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recently cleaned, and every cage had a fresh supply of wood shavings or straw. Ribbons for the top three or four birds were pinned to the outsides of the cages of the lucky animals, and people crowded in the dimly lit rows to peer at the winners. A few cages held warnings of “Keep Fingers Out” but most of the birds seemed good-natured and pleased to be the subject of so much attention. Upon seeing a series of “Penguin Ducks”, which are long, white, and thin, two boys put their hands to their sides and waddled like penguins until their mother told them to cut it out. The roosters present were not crowing, and like them, everyone else seemed to be having a peacefully good time. One man, standing near the barn’s entrance, said to his friend, “So I was just waiting to see if he was going to call the cops or take it like a man.” Even though it was obvious he wasn’t talking about his chicken, it was hard to take anything too seriously as the sun dipped below the treeline and the music floated out the arena’s doors. Everyone was moving, but no one was in a hurry—the fireworks weren’t to start until 8:30.
I want to register my wishes and direction to the Town of Pelham Mayor and current sitting Council with regards to the Town-owned public asset known as the Pelham Arena, located at 1120 Haist Street. I do not wish any sale or development of that property at this time. I do not wish any further studies or planning to be done at this time. My direction to the Town is that nothing be done with respect to this property until after the new East Fonthill Community Centre is opened and that its first year of operation is proven and until after the next municipal election is complete. This comes from a concerned citizen and taxpayer who has lost all trust in this Mayor and Council. Diane DiFlorio Pelham Editor’s note: At press-time the Voice was continuing to receive several similarly worded letters from other residents, evidently the result of an organized lobbying effort aimed at Town Council.
NUMBERS continued from Page 8 to exaggerated Regional household growth figures which are now discredited and “false.” It is surprising that our planners and consultant planners continue to ignore the fact that the Region is completely redoing the population growth figures for all 12 municipalities. The ones they continue to quote from the Niagara Regional Official Plan ignore the actual results of the past three census reports and Stats Canada figures for the past 15 years. Just how “false” are these figures? Had Big Pipe been approved it would have led to an increase of population of up to 20,000 along Wainfleet’s Lakeshore alone. Provincial Policy requires mains servicing to be utilized to its full capacity. At a Wainfleet Council meeting in March 2016, a delegation from the Region’s Planning and Development Department stated that the population in Ni-
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Page 15
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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
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Page 16
The Voice of Pelham, September 27, 2017
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will be a rest stop at about did! I’ve never let him forget in in 2004 headline with just this half way, and a chilievent. lunch atIt that.” refuge as in togames give shelter Rodeo, and liveKitchener entertainment years exciting Even now, Bradbury will end. and hope. So this could be 25 riders. Since then, rides runs from Sept. 11-14 in at the Welland Fairgrounds.theBradbury, Central often commute by bike from a women’s shelter, or for Canada and the United on the other Ads included his home in Wellandport to hand, will be absconding for young teens, or an interna- StatesRegion have raised some $12 just enough time to captain Pelham Friends Church, optional organization—for ac- million dollars. Bradbury BIG MOVE CANCER RIDE a team. posite Harold Black Park in tual refugees, too. It targets and Edwards are hoping to The Big Move That’s Cancer raise RideThis is a ad non-competitive taking place Sept. $25,000 this year, and ride Cycling has longonbeen a Fonthill. the less-fortunate. is to be printed by all participating Ontario papers his. When BradBradbury’s work what I like about it.” were just over halfway to 7. Proceeds for the Big Move stay in Niagara and passion supportofthe Walker Fam- asThough a pastor is no doubt a bury was in Grade 9, a knee Edwards has been in- this goal with about a week ilyinCancer Centre. injury meant that he could motivating force for him, he volved with the ride for to go. The Pelham event all four of its years, plan- typically draws between 90 no longer participate in said that when it comes to ning the route and posting and 110 participants. gym class. He took up bikRide For Refuge, he is, “just CLUB signs,WALKING among other things. Though Edwards is an ing instead, and started the a cyclist.” first cycling club at his high She and Bradbury are both experienced cyclist herself, Interested in walking in Pelham? Join them Tuesdays at the Pelham Arena While most of the charschool in Crystal Beach. ities involved are faithvolunteers, and they are still she will be busy ensuring from 9-10more am people and Thursdays Fonthill Bandshell 9-10:30 am. There that all isat going smoothly on Hefor once took his road bike based, not all are, and Ride hoping to have help out during the dayFor of the ride. The day (the type contact with very thin For Refuge, he says, is priis no fee the for day. this program. more information, please jcook@ “We’re always looking before, she and two others tires) through a snowstorm marily concerned with pelham.ca or call 905 892-2607, ext 329. from Kitchener to Guelph helping people work for a for others,” Edwards said, will spend the better part just to see his now-wife. “I cause that they’re passion“especially high school stu- of six hours posting signs dents, who are searching for along the ride routes, which had to knock on my uncle’s ate about. HAMPER DAY FOR CARES Registration remains opportunities to fill their 40 PELHAM snake their way through door and ask him to drive open through the end of this hoursPurchase [of community ser- and Pelham and never leave the or mebring home.a And then he got fresh fruit vegetables at the Market non-perishable Town’s boundaries. There a speeding ticket while he week. vice].”
food item to fill the hampers at the Pelham Farmers Market on Sept. 4.
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The Voice of Pelham, September 27, 2017
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Drawn in quarters—Spencer Burton puts things together Ridgeville-based performer on life at home and on the road BY SAMUEL PICCOLO
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The VOICE
H E M O S T stressful moment on a Thursday last month for Spencer Burton, the 33-yearold singer-songwriter who lives in Ridgeville, came just after lunch. Having seen the old one towed away in the morning, he was showing off his newly-built chicken coop to Doug and Mary, his neighbours, when a small bird squeezed between his legs and through the door’s open crack. Usually, an escaped chicken is no real concern, Burton said as he scrambled into action—they are relatively slow-moving and typically eager to come for a handful of feed. This one was different. Burton picked up a fishing net that lay against a nearby woodpile and made several wild passes, but each time the escapee felt or saw the whoosh of the net approaching, and, with a squawk, accelerated its walk and flapped its wings just enough that Burton’s sweep bottomed out too early and arced away. Eventually, he managed to trap the hen in the six-inch gap between the henhouse and larger barn, which holds goats, and sent Doug to the other side to block the way through. Holding the net in his left hand, Burton grabbed a broom with the other and, gently at first, then with greater impatience, pulled the chicken towards him until it popped out straight into the net, twisting and hooting. “That’s a $100 bird––and it’s basically wild at this point.” Burton said, as he triumphantly returned it to its roost. Seeing Doug’s confusion, he clarified: “It’s a very rare Indonesian one. They stay fairly small and black—black bones, black feathers, black eyes,
black everything.” “Black eggs, too?” Doug asked. “Nah, it’s a cream egg. I wish they laid black eggs. That’d be really cool,” Burton replied. He latched the door firmly. After walking the couple down to the driveway and saying goodbye, he sat on a chair on his deck and produced a paring knife and peach, seemingly from nowhere. Burton’s combination of green rubber boots, muddied jeans, and white undershirt was not out of place in the garden, but his ornate belt buckle and intricately tattooed arms were the mark of someone with his toes in another world. Even his hands revealed this duality: his palms were lightly callused from handling an axe or saw or buckets of water, while the tips of the fingers on his left hand bear the marks of years of pressing down on guitar strings. As Burton pared off bits of the peach’s flesh and brought them to his mouth, he looked at the backyard— the goats, the rabbits, the chickens, the vegetables–– and smiled. The day’s main tasks had been done. He had good reason to be putting things in order. He was soon to get back to work on his other job, the music, departing for a brief tour of the east coast, and wanted to make things as easy as possible for his wife, Bailie Maxwell—whom he married on the farm earlier this year— and their two kids, while he was gone. “I’ll do one big clean-up before I leave, and then all they’ll have to do is put out feed and pick up the eggs,” he said. The tour would be in support of his new album, “Songs Of,” his fourth as a solo artist. Burton ini-
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Burton attends to his rabbits. SAM PICCOLO PHOTO tially came to acclaim as a member of the Welland indie-rock group “Attack in Black,” which was active in the late aughts and has been on hiatus since 2010. Burton’s first few solo records, some of which were released under the name “Grey Kingdom,” were mostly melancholic outings, the sort of indie-folk songwriting that you’d expect from a sensitive 20-something with a thick beard and acoustic guitar. But he feels “Songs Of” is different. “In the past I wrote songs mostly for myself,” he said. “About this thing or that thing that happened to me, what I thought and felt. Now, I’ll write a song for my wife, write a song for my kids.” Burton technically is a business owner now, too. Along with a few other friends, he and Maxwell have a vintage clothing store in Fenwick, Friday’s Child, though “store” might be too strong a description. Its Facebook page lists its hours as “Monday-Sunday—somet imes but not often but not never either,” and Burton says that it’s just as much a closet as shop. Much of the stuff isn’t even for sale, and the group is happy if the store just pays its rent. More than anything, Friday’s Child is a reminder of Burton’s time on the road, since most of his contributions to the stock came from years of picking through thrift stores while touring, something that he still tries to do when he goes away. All of those other responsibilities have undeniably made working more difficult for Burton. “That’s a big question that comes up in interviews––people are always saying ‘You live on this farm, it must be so inspiring,’ and I’m always like, ‘Yeah, oh so inspiring,’ but really, it can be tough, be-
cause it’s so relaxing. I used to write a lot of songs about hardships…but now my life is pretty good. Everything’s okay. My kids keep me up at night, from time to time, though usually they’re just great. And so I could be out here writing, but sometimes I just want to sit on the porch, eat a peach, and listen to the silence.” On the last Sunday in August, Burton played a concert at Oast House Brewery, in Niagara-on-the-Lake. Wearing jeans and a denim jacket, he’d been hot in the green room and went outside to stand behind the stage while he waited for things to get going. The temperature inside had reddened his face, a colour intensified by the auburn of his beard, while his pale blue eyes matched his clothes and gleamed as the day went dark. A woman walked past, looking sidelong at Burton. She smiled and then pivoted to approach him, seemingly trying to hide that she had planned to stop all along. She rummaged in her purse. “Would you sign this for my boyfriend?” she asked, pulling out an old Attack in Black CD. “He was too nervous to come over himself.” Burton smiled and flushed further, and it was hard to tell whether he was himself abashed or if he was merely embarrassed on behalf of the man too afraid to ask for an autograph. When he had produced a marker and signed the disc, the woman said that her boyfriend would probably come over and say hello. “Tell him I’m very scary,” Burton said. By then the sun had disappeared and the evening had become cooler. Late arrivals to the show brought with them sweaters and blankets that they carried over their shoulders. Strings of incandescent bulbs threw a yellowed light on the rows of tables, and the crowd cheered
when the opener, Oscar As, appeared onstage. Before returning inside to warm up again, Burton applauded As too, who turned out to be a talented young singer with a high-reaching falsetto. During one song, As pursed his lips and released a rich buzzing, which, when you closed your eyes, was a passable imitation for a muffled trumpet blast. Later, As forgot the first line to a cover he had intended to play, and broke into a string of curses while he tried to remember it. He moved on to another song after someone in the audience promised to look up the lyrics for him, but at that point his time was up and Burton’s set was about to begin. After 31 years of only having to worry about himself, Burton concedes that it took some time to grow accustomed to living in close quarters with his wife, and then his children. He gives a lot of thought to “rolling with the punches” though, and credits much of his maturation to this mantra. Three years ago, he and Maxwell were at the Ridgeville house to visit Daniel Romano, an Attack in Black bandmate who still lives in part of the home. On that day, the landlords were having a conversation with the other tenants about moving out. “They’re moving out?” Burton recalls saying. “Great! We’ll move in.” Two weeks after they relocated from London, he and Maxwell learned that they were going to have a child. Burton was unperturbed: Ridgeville seemed like a pretty good place to raise a baby. But running just beneath the surface of all of Burton’s enthusiasm for this quiet life is the acknowledgement of a sacrifice he might be making. While he’s still reasonably productive, musically, he spoke
with faint envy of the success that his former bandmates have had. Ian Kehoe, Attack in Black’s bassist, has been writing albums at an unearthly pace of three or four per year. Burton said that Kehoe’s prolificness “Makes me think: ‘How does he do it?’” And then there’s Romano, who was nominated for a Juno in 2016 and is currently on the road in Europe in support of his new album, “Modern Pressure.” In describing Romano’s tour, Burton said “I don’t really follow it too much. It’s more like, ‘My friend’s gone—I’ll miss him, though I’m happy he’s doing what he loves.’” Nevertheless, Burton is so disconcertingly polite that it’s difficult to imagine him harbouring anything resembling true jealousy. Even if he had garnered, like Romano, rave reviews on NPR’s Fresh Air, the sort of mammoth commitment involved with a multi-month overseas tour is not something that would complement a young family. Or, for that matter, young chickens. The day after the Juno Awards ceremony this spring, Burton posted a photo on Instagram of himself in work gloves, a toque, and headlamp, holding a newborn kid. He captioned it: “While you were watching the @ thejunoawards last night, I was in the barn helping birth two baby goats. I don't know…both things are cool I guess or whatever.” At the deepest level, then, Burton has embraced a certain irony of being a touring musician voluntarily tied down to his land and family. In the lyric video for one of the new album’s songs, Burton sings of “pedestaled love” while footage of romping farm animals rolls in the background. It’s easy to imagine him delighting in having subverted the conventional See BURTON back page
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We need your help. Subscribe to the Voice. From left, Richard Dykstra, Richard Nan, and Mayor April Jeffs.
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communicate effectively with people at the same time,” said the Alderman after the unveiling. “It’s been a long time in the making and certainly worth the wait.” Wainfleet Manager of Operations, Richard Nan, was responsible for overseeing the construction of the sign, which included liaising with the Provincial Ministry of Transportation. “This project ties in well with Councils Strategic Plan and has been on the radar for quite some time,” said Mr. Nan. “I’m glad to have been able to play a role in bringing this plan into reality.” Standing 8’3” feet high
The Township of Wainfleet officially launched its new digital sign directly in front of the Township Office. The sign represents several years of planning and consideration in terms of the best way to embrace this new technology. Alderman Richard Dykstra, who has been spearheading the project since its inception, was pleased to see the sign finally in place and broadcasting its inaugural “Welcome to Wainfleet” message late Tuesday afternoon last week. “This will add a little professional touch to the Township and allow us to
and over 7 feet wide, the new sign features a rustic stone base and LED message board topped with an illuminated Township logo. Wainfleet Mayor April Jeffs also expressed her excitement about the upgrade. “In recent years, we’ve seen many municipalities going to the digital signs as a more attractive and effective way of communicating messages to the community than more traditional signage,” she said. “Despite being a small rural centre, I’m pleased to see us getting out ahead of the curve and taking this great step forward to communicate our message in a new way.”
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NPCA continued from Page 1 by the newly hired auditing and procurement team at the Region of Niagara.”
NPCA Chair Annunziata.
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Baty added that the NPCA recently conducted an independent review by an auditor of their restoration division. “During this audit records were frozen and staff placed on temporary leave while the audit was undertaken,” Baty said. “The results of that intense audit were released to the NPCA Audit Committee a week ago and I enquired if there was any evidence of wrongdoing. The answer was that all things were above board and staff have now returned to their roles with recommendations to improve our methods of delivery with respect to restoration projects.” In a value-for-money audit, the Auditor General examines government programs, agencies, certain
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BURTON continued from Page 18 solemnity of the form, even if it’s a little hard to take the music seriously while a cow’s swollen udder swings on the screen. Before a Willie Nelson tribute show earlier this year in Toronto, at which he performed two songs, Burton announced online that he would be bringing eggs to the concert for all interested urbanites. And if the rabbits continue to reproduce at the rate they are now (which is likely—they’re rabbits), he mused, only half-jokingly, that he could start bringing those to the merchandise table, too. “Spencer Burton,” the man who appears onstage, is a recognizable though sharply different version of Spencer Burton the civilian. While in person he can be deferential, and seems perpetually concerned that he is causing offence, at the microphone Burton vibrates with loose energy. In his Niagara-on-the-Lake performance, he opened with a polished rendition of “Unmistakeable Love,” a song from the new album, bending his knees to the beat as he sang. “That’s the first love song I ever wrote that didn’t end in absolute heartbreak. Yet.” he added after a long pause. “That was about four dad-jokes in one sentence. I’ve never been more proud.” A few songs in, just as Burton was about to launch into the story of how he came to write for his kids, a woman with a baby in her arms shouted out that it was her son’s first birthday and he was there for the show. Burton shifted course mid-sentence, directing the woman to bring the boy up to the front. “All right…‘Kevin,’” Burton said, guessing wildly at the boy’s name. (It was actually “River.” Bur-
Burton in performance.
SAM PICCOLO PHOTO
ton continued calling him “Kevin” to great comedic effect.) “I’m going to sing you a song for your birthday.” He started strumming rhythmically: “I'm a duck, I'm a dog, I'm a squirrel, I'm a frog, I'm whatever…I want to be.” “I wrote this song for my kids, obviously,” Burton told the crowd, which was laughing uproariously, between verses. When he broke into the chorus (“My mother told me that I am the best, so I guess I'll wear a big red 'S' on my chest. Cause I'm a hero, I can fly, I can lift things up high, Yeah I'm whatever…I want to be”) even he was having trouble stifling a smile. Towards the set’s end, Burton played “Small Town,” another new song. He made reference to his home—“the good life,” as he later called it—before beginning the track. Its lyrics are perhaps Burton’s simplest, and for this reason, perhaps also his most transparently honest. “Livin’ in small towns, a small life. Nobody knows me, but everyone does.”
It grows more specific later on: “We got them chickens, clucking around the yard. No one understands why. We never travel too far.” When I asked him about it, Burton said that it wasn’t directed to anyone in particular, though it is clear that Burton has encountered enough people incredulous at where he lives to be able to address a disembodied “no one.” But as earnest as the words are—and surely he sings them with extra oomph when performing in cities—on that Sunday night, it wasn’t hard to imagine that many people in attendance could understand, considering that the stage on which Burton performed was built on the bed of an old truck, not unlike something you’d expect to see sitting behind a woodpile at Burton’s place in Ridgeville. Before he walked off for the last time, he looked over and past the audience and the patio, to where those incandescent bulbs cast just enough light to see where the rows of fruit stretched out into the night. He could have been playing in his yard. On the farm, a few days before that show, one of Burton’s goats took to ramming his horns into the enclosure’s fence, Then, after entangling himself, he pulled back and forth, further bending the wire. Burton sighed. “I don’t know why he’s doing that.” He walked over and tried to straighten the metal. “Good thing we’re putting in a new fence anyway.” I observed that building a sturdy barrier and a new henhouse were signs that they'd be living there for a while. Burton smiled, turning to look at where his property runs to the cherry orchard, and then up the hill to the tree where he and Maxwell were married. “No,” he said. “We’re not going anywhere.” 4