Last year I had the privilege of taking part in McHappy Day at McDonalds here in Milton.  Radio personality Scott Fox and myself attended at the drive thru to help raise money for MDHF and Ronald McDonald Houses in the area.

This year I am pleased to be a part of the team once again.  All day on May 2nd a percentage of sales will go to raise money for MDHF and Ronald McDonald House so at some point on Wednesday please come on by  to say hello to myself, Mayor Gord Krantz and other local celebrities to beat last years total.

Heres some more info at Milton District Hospital Foundation website.  I hope to see you there…and BE MCHAPPY!!!

From Christina Commisso at the Milton Canadian Champion

Main St. to close for construction. Motorists are advised to expect delays and lane restrictions as construction on the Main Street underpass begins. Graham Paine/Canadian Champion

Milton drivers may be in for some traffic delays as the first two of five planned Main Street weekend closures get underway next month.

Monday town council approved the closures to accommodate construction work for the $49 million Main Street underpass.

Main Street East between Ontario Street and about 10 metres east of the CPR tracks will shut down at midnight Saturday, May 5 and reopen at 5 a.m. Monday, May 7 as construction crews remove the existing tracks and install temporary ones.

The intersection will close again the following weekend from midnight Saturday, May 12 to 5 a.m. Monday, May 14.

Three future road closures are anticipated for the underpass — which is Milton’s costliest infrastructure project — two in summer 2013 and one in 2014.

Engineering Director Paul Cripps said all closures will occur on weekends for the least impact on traffic, especially for those making their way to and from the Milton GO Station.

Detour routes north of the tracks are planned for Wilson Drive and Woodward Avenue and south of the tracks drivers will be redirected along Childs Drive and Lauier Avenue.

“This project will be very disruptive to Miltonians for some time,” said Mayor Gord Krantz. “But there’s never a good time to close a road like that. When it’s all finished people will ask, ‘Why didn’t you do it 100 years ago?’ They’re probably right, but there was no money to do it.”

Long-term lane restrictions on Main Street East began earlier this month with one lane in each direction and a shared turning lane between the Milton Mall entrance and Wilson Drive.

Construction is ongoing on the temporary mall parking lot at the Nipissing yard and temporary streetlights have been installed at the mall entrance and Wilson Drive.

The underpass is expected to be complete by fall 2015.

The Thompson Road underpass was officially opened in October 2008 following three years of construction and $28 million — which at the time was the Town’s most expensive capital project.

After an almost marathon regional council meeting last week, Halton Region Council voted to increase the development charges for the next few years.  As you will read in this article, the DC bylaw is updated every 5 years to have development pay for the much needed services the region provides including among other things infrastructure, water etc.

As soon as the link to the meeting is up on the Region of Halton website (www.halton.ca) I will post a link so you can watch the debate.

From Christina Commisso, Milton Canadian Champion

DC hike for retail development

Retail development will soon cost more after regional council approved a hike in development charges (DCs) Wednesday.

Beginning September, developers building spaces for clothing stores, restaurants or grocers will pay $24.98 per square-foot for Greenfield development and $22.01 per square-foot with Halton’s built boundary in DCs, which represents a 52 and 76 per cent increase over current charges, respectively.

During the DC update process, which began last September, retail developers have spoken against the increase. A Lowe’s that’s been underway in Burlington since 2007 is looking at about another $2 million in DCs, for a total of $3.85 million, without any changes in the scope of the development as a result of the increase. After speaking to council about the issue on several occasions, regional staff said the home improvement warehouse could potentially pay their DCs before the increase is implemented in September.

Non-retail development, such as office and industrial spaces will see a 25 per cent decrease in DCs while charges for homes will see a slight increase. Developers will pay more than $36, 000 in DCs for a single family home built in a Greenfield field area, which is about 13 per cent higher than what’s currently paid while the fee for houses in the built boundary will increase slightly by three per cent to about $27,000.

Changes in Halton’s DC bylaw, which is updated every five years, include a non-retail to retail conversion fee for any space that’s more than 3,000 square-feet. Also, the new bylaw states high-density development requires a minimum of 130 units per net hectare — up from the current 100-unit minimum — or a four or more storey building.

From the newswire of the Town of Milton

NEWS RELEASE

April 25, 2012

Milton connects communities with pedestrian bridge

The construction of a pedestrian bridge over the existing Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR), between Thompson Road and James Snow Parkway, has been approved by Milton Council.  Construction will begin in May 2012 and is anticipated to be completed at the end of 2012.

A Public Information Session, detailing the plans and designs of the bridge, will be held on May 10, 2012, from 6:00 – 8:00 p.m., with a brief presentation taking place at 6:30 p.m. The session will be held at the Milton Sports Centre, Banquet Room, 605 Santa Maria Blvd..

The overpass, which includes accessible ramps, asphalt walkways, lighting and landscaping, will provide a much-needed connection between Clarke Neighbourhood to the north and Dempsey Neighbourhood to the south. It will allow more direct pedestrian access to the GO Station, Bishop Reding Secondary School, Milton Leisure Centre, Centre for the Arts, Memorial Arena and the downtown area.

Identified in both the Bristol Secondary Plan and the 2007 Trails Master Plan, the pedestrian bridge will provide a safer alternative for crossing the railroad tracks for both pedestrians and cyclists while adding to the trail routes within the Town.

Following three public consultations in 2008 and discussions with CPR and Conservation Halton, a detailed design of the pedestrian bridge was completed. At the beginning of 2011, the project was approved by Milton Council to be moved up from 2018 to 2012.

Additional information about this project is available on the Town of Milton website (http://www.milton.ca/en/townhall/cp_railwaypedestrianbridge.asp) or by calling 905-878-7252, ext. 2571 or 2169.

- 30 -

For further information, please contact:

Jennifer Reynolds Director, Community Services - 905-878-7252, ext. 2180

Liliana Busnello, Communications Specialist - 905-878-7252, ext. 2154 

Looking at the upcoming reports listed on the Town of Milton website recently shows that there is a report on the Bell cell tower proposal at New Life Church is expected to be presented to the members of the Administration & Planning standing committee (of which I am a voting member) on May 14th.

There has been an exhaustive amount of information presented during this process.  If you remember back on March 1st, I was the first to point out this potential development in our area.  From that point on, I have done extensive research in this field and believe me, my eyes are bleary with the sheer number of reports out there, and talked with residents in the immediate and surrounding areas to get their views on the proposal.  You can also contact Halton MP Lisa Raitt’s office by going to http://www.lisaraittmp.com/?page_id=12 and sending in your comments & concerns.

The most vocal have been those who oppose the tower in our area, but I have discussed this with a number of residents who are in support of the tower and allowing the New Life Church to move forward with it.  I will be the first to admit there is a lot of information on both sides of this, and as I mentioned in a Champion article, this debate is very similar to the debate the Region of Halton recently had regarding fluoride in the water.  Emotions have been running high as the process moved forward.

I await the receipt of this report, as many residents in our wards are and as soon as its made available I will have a link to the report here.

So mark your calendars for May 14th at Milton Town Hall.  The meeting starts at 7pm and if you would like to speak on the report, you can register as a delegation for the meeting.  I will have all the information available when the report is ready.

Until then, I’ll see you at the doors.

Here is an interesting article from Christina Commisso from the Champion.

Councillors debate DC issue

Corporate welfare or a tax grab?

Regional council was divided yesterday on the issue of charging business owners a development charge (DC) to convert their space from a non-retail to a retail use.

The issue was a sticking point for business improvement associations that said the hefty fee, which would amount to tens of thousands of dollars, would hurt small, family-run businesses in Halton’s downtowns.

For example, a 2,500 square-foot office, which paid DCs when it was built, that’s converted to a retail use would face a $24,000 DC.

The Region has said generally retail operations generate more traffic and wear and tear on the roads in justifying the charge.

In its 2012 development charges update, the Region agreed to wave the fee for businesses under 3,000 square-feet in the interest of economic development. However, Oakville Mayor Rob Burton called the move “corporate welfare” and asked that all businesses, regardless of size, pay the fee.

His motion was supported by most of Oakville’s councillors and Regional Chair Gary Carr, but failed after being widely criticized by the majority of Halton’s 21-member council.

“This is not welfare. Honestly, if you vote for this amendment you’re stealing money from people. Let’s find out who the thieves are,” said Halton Hills Councillor Jane Fogal. “This (conversion) amount is small to Halton Region but big for the mom and pop operations.”

Added Burlington Councillor Marianne Meed Ward, “Let’s see who is in favour of a tax grab and who is against economic development and small business owners, who are residents and taxpayers as well.”

Not all were convinced that the fee for small businesses should be waved.

“Retail, when it’s converted from an industrial or office use, it creates more demand and use of our transportation infrastructure. There is a cost, it’s not free,” said Oakville Councillor Tom Adams. “We’re talking about money that will come out of the taxpayers pocket eventually for the benefit of two or three developers. That’s the exact definition of corporate welfare.”

Fogal asked if businesses who convert from a retail operation to non-retail would receive some sort of refund on the development charges previously paid, however staff said that move would create uncertainty in terms of regional revenue.

The conversion fee was part of Halton’s 2012 development charges update, which was passed by council.

Currently non-residential DCs — office space, retail and industrial — are grouped together. The updated DCs, which come into effect September, separates retail and non-retail business into two separate categories with retail DCs increasing by 52 per cent and the non-retail charge decreasing by 25 per cent for Greenfield development. 

Today I had the opportunity to take part in an exercise at the Region of Halton.  A number of elected officials were invited to take part in an emergency management overview and test our skills on how to handle a real emergency.

Of course the emergency wasn’t real, but our reactions and skills were put to the test during a staged emergency event.

This was all in real time starting from the announcement of the event and laid out what the different departments would do, how it would handle the situations, demands, and communications to the public.  Needless to say we were overwhelmed and thank heavens it wasn’t real as there might have been zombies running around in Oakville and Burlington (Councillor Jeff Knoll would get that the most )

From the beginning, our communication skills were put to the test.  Having to contact and communicate with so many departments, detailing information we’ve received and passing it along.  Of course things were missed by the elected folk, but in a real emergency, that couldn’t happen.  In a real emergency, if details are missed as to possible injuries or fatalities could result in chaos and even worse more lives could be lost. 

In the end we were all given a passing grade (and really would they fail US?) but many of us now understand the massive undertaking involved in getting so many departments of the region, local officials, emergency services and communications to the public up and running.  I have a new appreciation for the roles these individuals play and I am very thankful we have some very competent people handling things in the emergency management team.  Things have to be done with lightening speed with little or no room for error and I can honestly say that I feel much safer knowing how prepared this team is for any emergency it might face.

Thank you to the organizers of todays event as it was eye opening and humbling to say the least.

If you would like to know more about the Region of Halton’s Emergency Preparedness Campaign you can go to www.halton.ca/beprepared for info.  Its a good place for tips on how to prepare you and your family in case of an emergency.  There are some valuable tools and kits you can order to make sure you and your family can survive any emergency.

If youre on Twitter you can follow them www.twitter.com/bpreparedhalton for updates on information, events and tips on emergency preparedness.

Until then, I’ll see you at the doors.

This coming Monday night April 16th will be the Administration & Planning Standing Committee meeting at Town Hall starting at 7pm.

This Committee consists of five Councillors and the Mayor. Committee members review all reports, formulate policy and make recommendations to Council on matters over which Council has authority under the Municipal Act, the Planning Act and other legislation. Recommendations are made in the areas of corporate administration, personnel, legal issues, planning and finance.

The Administration and Planning Committee reviews the operating and capital budgets as well as various financial matters affecting the Town of Milton.

The agenda for the meeting can be found here.

Some of the highlights include:

• Staff report on Open Data in Milton – Referral to 2013 Budget Call Process
• Public Meeting & initial report for property owned Zureit Holdings (near Dublin Line & Campbellville Rd) 
• Public Meeting & initial report for property owned by Greenlife West Condos (at 3074 Main Street)
• Technical Report for Zoning ByLaw amendment for potential Tim Hortons at Thompson & Louis St Laurent

As always you can watch online on Monday night at 7pm.  If you have any questions or comments for any of these reports, please email me mike@mikecluett.ca

This is just a reminder that the Altus Group will be holding a public information session / open house this Thursday April 12th at 7pm in Milton Leisure Centre.

As viewers of this blog will know, there is a lot of discussion amongst local residents about this ranging from outright opposition to people accepting it as a way of improving mobile services in town.  I urge you to send me your comments as well as the contact at the Altus Group before April 12th to make sure your views are heard.

I have spent a number of days door knocking the area in ward 6 listening to concerns from residents and answering any questions that I can.  There is a lot of data to review and its not an easy issue to deal with.  The best advice I would have is to get as much information as possible during this public process.

Recently CHCH News had a story on some of the local residents commenting on the potential tower installation.

If you remember back at the beginning of March, I posted the information that was sent to councillors in the area to ensure there is a full and open discussion of what is coming down the road with this potential cell phone tower installation. According to the guidelines & regulations, the Town of Milton notifies the residents within the 120 m radius of these types of issues. Im not saying thats wrong, but I am not a fan of that small radius and think that in cases like this, more homes should be notified, hence my original posting. I wanted to ensure as many people as possible are informed of whats happening and provide sources of information so that we are all fully informed and get both sides of the issue. The final decision belongs to Industry Canada and the town provides its comments during this public process.

There are a number of residents circulating a petition against the cell tower and if you would like more information send an email to me and I can forward you their contact information.

No matter what side of the issue you are on, I do urge you to review the available information in my previous posts, comments on the blog as well as what the Altus Group will present at its public information session on the 12th.

I look forward to attending the meeting on the 12th and I hope to see you there.

Ontario budget won’t affect MDH

Christina Commisso, Milton Canadian Champion

Group say they’ll keep advocating for the MDH expansion until it’s complete. GRAHAM PAINE/Metroland Media Group

The Milton hospital expansion is still a go.

Following media reports last week that new hospital projects announced prior to the provincial election would be put on the chopping block in today’s budget, members of the Friends of Milton Hospital team were relieved to learn that the Milton District Hospital (MDH) expansion is safe and sound.

Speaking to the Champion from Queen’s Park, Councillor Mike Cluett said MDH isn’t one of the four hospital projects that have been cancelled in Ontario’s 2012 budget.

“Halton Healthcare Services is working on a plan for the expansion and has never stopped with the planning from what we’ve heard,” said Cluett.

He said after Finance Minister Dwight Duncan delivered his budget speech, a thumbs up from Halton MPP Ted Chudleigh signaled the much needed local expansion was on track.

Cluett attended the budget presentation with fellow Friends of Milton Hospital member Samantha Attew.

“We were ready with pitch forks,” said Attew, who said she was elated to learn the plan to triple MDH is moving ahead.

“I look forward to putting this thing in the ground,” she said from Queen’s Park. “You cannot play with health care. It’s something every Canadian is entitled to. It’s not a political thing.”

She continued, “I’m proud to be part of Milton and proud of Ted (Chudleigh).”

Cluett said the Friends of Milton Hospital will continue to advocate for the expansion until construction is complete — which was previously estimated for 2015 or 2016. “I give credit to the people of Milton for speaking their mind and letting the government know that we’re not backing down.”

Last night, Milton council unanimously passed a motion that reaffirmed the Town’s support for MDH and their willingness to help with the 10 per cent local contribution needed for the construction.