Author: Mike Cluett

Is Milton doing an "Outstanding Job"?

Mike Cluett

In the May 9th edition of the Milton Canadian Champion, town CAO Mario Belvedere said the town of Milton was doing an “outstanding job” managing growth and roads over the past several years.

Town doing ‘outstanding job’: CAO

Town of Milton CAO Mario Belvedere tells council growth has been managed well overall

Melanie Hennessey, Published on May 09, 2008

While things may not be perfect when it comes to the timing of development and infrastructure in Milton, Town staff says that overall it’s doing a good job in managing growth.

This was one of the key messages staff delivered on Monday afternoon at an information workshop for council on growth management.

CAO Mario Belvedere told council he feels that generally the Town has done an outstanding job in managing growth.

He acknowledged there might be “hiccups” when it comes to things like the timing of road construction.

“But other than that we’ve done a pretty darn good job,” he said.

Town Director of Planning and Development Mel Iovio shared similar sentiments.

He said the planning, development phasing and financial agreements the Town has struck with developers have generally resulted in a controlled and logical growth pattern.

“I think we’re in pretty good shape,” he remarked.

He noted the fast rate of growth has caused some inconvenience, but on the plus side it’s resulted in communities being completed much faster.

Town Director of Engineering Services Paul Cripps pointed out that some roads projects are being fast-tracked through the Accelerated Transportation Capital Program, such as the widening of Derry Road from Tremaine Road to Bronte Street.

The work wasn’t slated to get underway until next year, but the timeline has now been moved up so that construction will start this spring and wrap up in the fall.

“We want to continue working with the development community to accelerate as many roads projects as we can,” he said.

He went on to outline other Town and Region road works scheduled to take place from now until 2021. Within the next few years, those projects include:

2008 — construction of James Snow Parkway from Steeles Avenue to Boston Church Road

2008 — reconstruction of Thompson Road from Derry Road to Main Street

2010 — construction of a road underpass on Main Street at the CPR tracks

2010 — widening Regional Road 25 from two lanes to four between Derry and Britannia roads

Cripps explained the timing of the projects coincides with when the “capacity crunch” will come along for those roads.

The downside of this, he said, is the pressure the Town receives from residents who are pushing for roads to be up to par before the development boom.

But Cripps said there’s also an advantage. With the new roads coming on board after the majority of developers’ heavy construction traffic has come and gone, residents will “get a brand new road with a maximum life expectancy.”

Ward 3 Councillor Cindy Lunau asked staff to keep in mind the road upgrades that are also required in the rural area. “We need to reserve a certain portion of our budget each year to maintain the quality of life in the rural area.”

Cripps said staff is mindful of the needs in rural Milton.

The workshop also included presentations from each of the Town’s senior staff members on the responsibilities and roles of their departments when it comes to planning for growth. For example, the Corporate Services department handles development charges and the financial agreements made with developers, Engineering Services looks after transportation issues and Community Services plans for facilities like arenas.

Iovio detailed the numerous items on the Planning and Development department’s plate for the coming years, including plans for the Derry Green Business Park, the next phase of residential development and the Milton Education Village, which will hopefully see Wilfrid Laurier University come to Milton.

Melanie Hennessey can be reached at mhennessey@miltoncanadianchampion.com

***

While I will disagree with some people who say the towns done a horrible job managing growth, outstanding isn’t a word I’d be using. That article made the town and its council sound very arrogant. Bad choice of words. It almost ranks up there with Mayor Gord Krantz telling the Champion during an interview that Milton didn’t have a traffic congestion problem right under a picture of Thompson Road (before all the work started) backed up from Main Street to Derry Road.

I think it isn’t up to the town to decide if they are doing a great job as only time will tell that tale for certain.

This article brought up a number of responses in the Letters to the Editor. Hmmm, next time a slice of humility before speaking with the press, shall we? It’s making those of us, like the author of this blog, who know everything look bad.

***

Let us decide if Town is doing the ‘wonderful’ job CAO claims

Published on May 16, 2008

In last Friday’s Champion, the front-page headline read ‘Town doing outstanding job: CAO.’

I think it would be a good idea if town council and members of regional council took a look around Milton before they decide how “wonderful” things are.

If they really want to know how things are going, they should have a town hall meeting and invite townspeople to speak about this subject — without limiting how people can voice their opinions and views.

AGOSTINO GALIOTO, MILTON

Comment on management of growth tough to swallow

Published on May 16, 2008

As a 22-year resident and taxpayer of Milton, it pained me to read the verbal diarrhea that emanated from the lips of our illustrious Town of Milton CAO, Mario Belvedere, at a recent town council meeting.

He stated that the Town is doing an “outstanding” job and that growth has been managed well overall. Not surprisingly, the statement was supported by his minions in the planning and engineering departments, who make me ask — outstanding compared to what?

The term outstanding is used to describe things that are exceptional, terrific, wonderful, stupendous, dazzling, marvelous, excellent, great or superior, not abysmal, myopic, unresolved, unsettled or incomplete.

Attempts to downplay the glaringly-visible deficiencies that plague Milton are disappointing to say the least, as statements suggesting there might be “hiccups” when it comes to things like the timing of road construction can only lead one to believe there have been and will continue to be numerous glitches, interruptions and setbacks. In my opinion, this has been characteristic of the progress of the roadwork and other infrastructure-related projects to date in Milton.

Now one may ask, how was the City of Mississauga able to implement access roadways into and out of subdivisions — equipped with proper turn lanes, fully-functioning street lights and pedestrian crossing systems — prior to new subdivisions being completed? Might it have something to do with the fact that the City of Mississauga actually controlled the manner and pace in which growth was implemented?

This logic seems to have evaded the grasp of the current director of engineering services, whose portfolio includes both transportation and community services plans for recreational facilities such as arenas.

In terms of roadways, commuters traveling east on Derry Road are now treated to a traffic backlog stretching all the way from Trafalgar Road down to Trudeau Drive.

Sixth Line south of Britannia Road is another source of commuter frustration, as drivers are greeted with an absence of turn lanes and traffic lights. Town Engineering Services Director Paul Cripps’ reply to this is that “staff is mindful of the needs in rural Milton.” Okay, prove it.

Meanwhile, Milton District Hospital is a mess that speaks to the collective inaction by the four levels of government within our area to ensure it’s able to adequately service the health-care needs of Miltonians. It’s abundantly clear that it isn’t.

I’m thankful my children were born between 1988 and 1992 when the hospital was able to adequately manage the patient load, and the emergency room was treating emergencies.

What has the Town of Milton’s executive and administration done in conjunction with the Region of Halton, provincial and federal levels of government to ensure the provincial minister of health, premier of Ontario and federal minister of health are aware of our hospital’s needs? And what has the Town done to secure the requisite funding to resolve the hospital’s need for expansion?

C.J. MCCARROLL, MILTON

***

OUCH. Maybe the Town needs a little help getting ready the next time it decides to pat itself on the back.

Where will ward one go

Mike Cluett

Is the town making the right decision by looking at changing the ward boundries in Milton?

By the sounds of this letter to the Champion last week, they might be jumping the gun. Milton resident Robert Harris states that the Town of Milton should wait until the Region of Halton completes its “Sustainable Halton” plan before making changes to how the town is divided up. Here’s the letter…

Doing review of town’s ward boundaries now is premature

Published on May 20, 2008

Hats off to Councillor Colin Best, who stated the obvious at a recent town council meeting about waiting for the Sustainable Halton plan as the template to follow before realigning ward boundaries in Milton.

He has shown that he can envision town growth and at the same time save taxpayers money — a sum of $40,000.

The optics around this ward boundary review recommended by council don’t look good at this time. Some would look at it as an attempt by some councillors to possibly ensure another term in office by surgically removing urban growth within their wards.

It could be initially viewed as an effect to ensure representation for rural Milton, but the consultant’s report will probably recommend a reduction in councillors in these sparsely-populated wards, favouring representation for urban areas.

Rural Milton stands to come up shorter in representation as a result of this poorly-timed initiative.

Best’s view to wait until the 2014 election to realign ward boundaries is prudent and falls in line with regional council’s decision.

The Region has stated that there’s to be no change in the number of councillors representing Milton until the 2014 election.

I say wait, Milton council, and save the taxpayers some money. This will prevent the possible hassle of a future Ontario Municipal Board hearing over proposed ward boundaries that will require changes again after another four years of growth.

ROBERT HARRIS, GOWLANDS CRESCENT

In case you missed it, the Town of Milton recently commissioned a study to review the ward boundaries for the next municipal election in 2010. Currently, the town has 4 wards with two councillors serving for each ward. For much of the new area south of Derry, we live in whats called ward one.

Before the “big pipe” was built and the throngs of new homes were constructed here, ward one was mainly a rural ward much like ward 3. Seeing ow the majority of the growth has happened here, theres a population spike in our ward and what looks like an unfair balance in the way we are represented on council.

Councillor Brian Penman at the April 28th meeting of council stated that it was difficult to answer the calls and emails from the growing number of residents in ward one. It is this logic which brings us to the changing of the boundaries in Milton.

Yes it does need to be done. Right now ward one has the largest population of all the wards and continues to grow with every new family that takes possession of their new homes. The population will continue to grow over the next couple of years and if I plan on running again in 2010 for town council, it will essentially be double the size of 2006 election. (I need the exercise anyways)

Milton, we have a problem. The Region of Halton has yet to make formal its “Sustainable Halton” initiative which will make clearer what new developments are going to be approved and when. While it might seem that Milton has reached its peak in development and population, there is still lots of land to build homes and businesses in the coming years. The Town of Milton has just entered into talks for the Wilfred Laurier University education park, which would bring thousands of new residents to town to continue their studies.

The land surrounding the hospital is to be developed for commercial and residential use, not to mention HOPEFULLY the province gets off its duff, and makes changes to ensure the expansion of Milton’s hospital (thats another rant) and many more subdivisions to come.

Regional Councillor Colin Best made mention of this very fact at that meeting and urged council to hold off until the Region has finalized its plans.

With all this new development to come, it could change the population of the now Ward one area by upwards of 40,000. Then at that time, changes would have to be made again.

So whats the hurry then? Why doesn’t it make sense to Milton council to hold off on the ward changes and wait for the Region in 2014 and then make the much needed adjustments to the wards? Good questions.

This doesn’t even touch the cost of the program yet. The Town staff has budgeted $40,000 to pay for the study to be done. Dr. Robert Williams, who is a political science professor is also doing a similar study for the city of Kitchener and is expected to make his ideas known soon. I do have a problem with the cost of this study and where the money was to be coming from.

The Town of Milton gets a per centage of the revenues from the Mohawk Racetrack just north in Milton. Its a great deal that was signed awhile back to ensure the racetrack gives back to the town. These revenues are to go to programs like the Milton Community Fund that helps organizations and events in town with raising money to help better our community. Proceeds from the racetrack revenues are NOT to go to operating expenses but towards programs like this and possibly capital programs to help the town grow.

It would be like you turn to your spouse and ask them to go to the corner store to buy a lottery ticket so you can afford to buy milk and bread for your family. Its just wrong.

The money to commission this report was going to come from that fund…which is wrong. Town staff does the odd thing right but this idea, whoever it was, is just plain stupid. Before the motion was passed by council, they made an amendment to have the cost of the study come from the Capital Works reserve fund.

So, given the fact that once the Region finalizes the SH plan, we as a town will have to do this all over again. Lets save $40,000 from our reserve funds and wait. The councillors can tough it out for another few years to give the residents the representation they need and once completed, we can get it right.

It doesnt seem that council is thinking that way. So, $40,000 is tossed away on a study that can wait and those funds can go to something else the town needs. The Town of Milton seems to like spending money.

Don’t get me started on how the Town of Milton is spending its away into financial problems…again, another post for another day. Seeing how time is limited with the new addition to the family, I have to pace myself in my rants to avoid bursts in blood pressure.

The topic was also brought up casually during the discussions of the April 28th meeting that they might want to look at making the Milton town council a full time position instead of what it currently is, a part time job.

While nothing was brought forward formally regarding the change in job description, the seed has now been planted to talk about it.

New Additions

Mike Cluett

It has been sometime, yet again, where I have been a tad busy to update the blog and let people in on whats going on in the Cluett family.  The reason why I have been so busy is that we welcomed a new addition to the family a couple of weeks ago. 

Namely our new daughter Miranda.

She was born at Women’s College Hospital in Toronto, weighing in at 6 lbs and 10 oz’s.  Both Pat and Miranda are doing very well and we are all enjoying this new foray in to parenthood.  My biggest worry about being a father of a new born is “will I remember how to do all of this again?”

The answer is yes, of course you remember it.  Its just like riding a bike, but the tires are a bit flatter and you move a little slower, especially after 7 years.

This time around was a lot less stressfull than the first time, partly due to the fact we knew what to expect this time.  It was a scheduled section at the hospital on April 30th and we both remarked as we casually walked into the entrance that it was much different than the last time.  With Anthony we were ushered into the lobby of the hospital in a speeding taxi cab in the middle of the night.

Anthony’s being a complete star about everything and has fallen in love with his little sister from the moment he laid eyes on her.  His FIRST reaction however was a bit concerning.  My mother, who is in for a visit from Newfoundland and Anthony were staying at the Delta Chelsea Hotel on the day of the birth so that they can come visit when Pat was sent to her hospital room.

So after she was resting in the recovery room, I made my way out to the lobby to make my designated 4,209 calls to everyone who wanted to know when it happened.  I also had my blackberry with me so I could send some emails and update Facebook with comments, and the official birth announcement but I was too scared to use it in front of the nurses.  I called the hotel room and both my mom and Anthony picked up the phone at the same time.  “You have a little sister!” I told Anthony and after a slight pause he says “OH MAN” and hangs up the phone!  NOT the reaction I was lookign for.

We made our way to the hospital from the hotel a couple of blocks away and from the moment he laid eyes on her, he was hooked.  THAT was the reaction I was looking for.  Hes been a stellar big brother so far but he only has one condition that he doesnt change ANY diapers.  OK…. for now!

Pat and I are adjusting well to the late night feedings and the interupted sleep patterns and crying babies and smelly diapers…and we wouldnt change it for the world.  Yes, it is like riding a bike, with the tires a tad flatter in my case.  Where did I put that bike pump?

 

Are you worried?

Mike Cluett

I had an opportunity to talk with a friend today that I havent spoken with for some time. Getting passed the usual questions about how are you and the family etc he asked what I did. “I sell leasing!” I replied.

You would have to have your head under a rock for the past several months not to realize our economy is going through some “interesting times” as the old saying goes. Especially in this industry.

I started working for a leasing company back in November of 2006. It was a smaller outfit, just getting started in the equipment leasing industry as a funder. They hired an aggressive sales staff (yours truly included) and we made our way out into the field…feet in the street. For a few months things were going quite well. New vendors were being signed up and deals were getting booked. The company was beginning to grow in leaps and bounds as the staff total ballooned from 10 core employees to close to 30 in a short time.

Then the brakes hit. Back in August as many avid readers of the financial newspapers know, the asset backed commercial paper industry took a nose dive into the sewers. Strong companies like Coventree took a huge hit and their stock price plummeted from a 52 week high of $ 16.30 to currently $ 2.50 per share.

Funding lines dried up faster than a glass of water in the desert and we were left with nothing really. The company tried its best over the coming months to secure some more funding, all the while selling off leases to other companies to make sure the lights stayed on. Needless to say, it didnt work and this young upstart of a company closed its doors officially in January of this year. Many of the staff have found other jobs, mainly in the leasing industry and we still keep in touch.

One of the things ive been asked is, why stay in it. Asset backed commercial paper still is in flux and other financial institutions are going through some massive changes. Recently GE purchased several divisions of Citifinancial and even one of the biggy’s in the industry CIT has now drained its $7.3 billion credit line. Why stay in it?

From a business sense, the leasing industry is going to go though more ups and downs over the next year or so but I think it offers up an opportunity for growth. With many of our current and potential customers trying to make plans over this tumultuous period of time, conserving cash will be paramount. Many people feel that during a recession (yes the ugly dreaded R word) is the perfect time for expansion and growth. While others close up their doors or scale back what they do in their business, others can reach out to grab more market share. To do this you can do a few things. Tap into your reserves and make acquisitions. But with uncertainty in our economy, do you really want to drain your savings in the hope something might work out? Other options include going to your bank to extend or use your credit lines.

This can be a lengthly process and with the tightening of the money supply by many of the big financial institutions, it will be a tall order to get more credit from your banks. Many of the major banks in Canada have been hit, whalopped, or just smacked around by the sub prime credit mess in the US and will be a little apprehensive to increase the credit lines of companies.

Leasing looks to be a very viable option for many companies looking to expand, get more equipment and prepare to take more market share. Now depending on what your product is, leasing might not be the right thing for you. If you sell individual widgets it wont be the right course of action to offer leasing to your customers to help you sell. If youre a company whos looking to increase the amount of equipment used to produce your widgets, then this can be looked at.

If youre a company looking to offer their customers another option to purchase your equipment, than leasing is something that you need to look at. The benefits to customers are great as they can acquire your equipment, conserve their capital and improve their cash flow. Payments are fixed over a period of time so you can properly budget out payments and also potentially take advantage of some tax benefits that come with leasing.

A company properly positioned in this “interesting” market can take advantage of these opportunities and thats why I think theres definitely room for growth. Thats why I guess I stay in the leasing business.

Needless to say the few months are going to be “interesting” to say the least but it keeps you on your toes. No one can say for certain whats going to happen with the asset backed commercial paper market in the next 6 months. More companies can fall, more can be sold and many more will be in limbo. Theres the impending real estate bubble burst in real estate that might throw a monkey wrench into the mix. Some out there are talking about impeding doom in that market, some others are taking a wait and see.

Theres just so much going on in the financial industry, how CAN you leave? Its fun when the market stumbles a bit. Thats it, Im done. My “leasing commercial” is done. In case you need to know more, you can check out HERE for more information.

Mayor Smitherman?

Mike Cluett

smitherman

The buzz in the City of Toronto is that Ontario Health Minister George Smitherman is contemplating a run at the City’s top job. In a recent speech at the Toronto Board of Trade, many people who were there and heard the speech feel hes either testing the waters for a mayoral run or has already decided he will.

Also, in a recent interview on CFRB Toronto Councillor Rob Ford spoke with Leslie Roberts saying that once he settles his “personal issues” he will definitely be running against Mayor David Miller. In a survey of CFRB callers before Rob Ford came on, there was strong support for Rob to run.

You can tell things are getting antsy in the City of Toronto when more than 2 years before the next municipal election you are seeing high profile candidates preparing for a run at the top job.

I know the City of Toronto is a bigger place with a lot more on the line as it seems than lets say the Town of Milton. But what would your reaction be if one of the sitting councillors here said, “Oh ya, Im going to run for Mayor of Milton.” Thats 2 years away. I think theres a few issues that need some immediate attention other than ones political career…especially in Toronto.

To be honest I think Mr Smitherman should be working on his governments promises of reducing wait times in our emergency rooms and improving our health care system. And not just in the City of Toronto. The province is grossly understaffed in doctors and nurses and the ones we have now are being stretched to the limit. In the coming years, Ontario will see more doctors and nurses retire than anytime in history, while the number of people entering the field wont be enough to cover the short fall. This means family doctors will be harder to find, emergency rooms will be like madhouses, people wont have places to go to get regular checkups, families that have children with autism will continue to lag on the waiting lists for much needed funding and too many more issues to mention here.

Many people who frequent Milton hospital are running into some issues. Milton’s population is now over 70,000 and in a short time will be getting close to 100,000. One major thing thats been ignored over these years? The roads? Yes. But just as important if not MORE important…The hospital.

And to be clear, people have to realize (before the start blaming the town, which is a sport it seems here) that funding for the hospital comes from the province. There are some drastic needs that our hospital faces in the coming years. It needs to expand…now.

The same kind of problems was faced in Brampton. For years, Peel Memorial (then called William Osler Health Centre) was the only hospital in town. One hospital for almost 400,000 people. It only took about 10-15 years to get another health care facility opened in Brampton and recently Peel Memorial has closed down, creating a huge vacuum of need there.

Milton Hospital, if not addressed soon…can be headed the same way. Recent estimations of Milton’s future population growth see it reaching 170,000 and maybe even more in the next 20 years. We could be facing the same issues Brampton has if we dont do something about it now. This province needs a full time health care minister and not a part time mayoral candidate. With this speech and others like it to come, Smitherman will be dogged by the media to find out when hes going to be running, if hes going to be running, what will his platform be, etc all the while the hospitals go unchecked.

On the other hand, the hospital is making the improvements it can, especially with the CT scanner and the fund raising involved in it. Through the generosity of many Milton residents and businesses, Milton hospital now has the CT scanner up and running.

The importance of this issue just isnt prevalent in adults and corporations. Recently a friend of my son Anthony had a birthday party and included in his invitation was a request. In lieu of presents he would like the guests to his party to make a donation to the CT scanner in Milton hospital. Through a small group of kids, they raised $250 and he personally delivered it to the hospital.

Too bad it seems that the provincial government doesnt show the same concern to our hospital as does this 8 year old and his friends. Smitherman has time after time made claims that they are fixing the problems in our hospitals, all the while people are stuck in the waiting room looking for care.

I know in some cases, there are people who really shouldnt be in our emergency rooms and going to either a walk in clinic or their family doctor would be more productive and less of a strain on our emergency room staff. There are legitimate cases where care is needed NOW, but they are forced to either wait, suffer or try to find another hospital that can take them.

The fact that Smitherman, a full 31 months before the next election, is “shaking the bushes” shows his concerns lie somewhere else and not in Ontario’s health care system. If being Mayor George is important to him, maybe he should call Dalton and ask that he be replaced in the health care file so that someone who isnt worrying about his next political step can take charge and make real changes to hospitals and health care in our province.

Step aside George.

WLU coming to Milton?

Mike Cluett

I was able to take sometime tonight to attend a Milton Town Council meeting and as the old saying goes….

Breaking news!!!!

Milton CAO Mario Belvedere is making a presentation to council about the proposed education village in Milton. During his report he made official that Wilfred Laurier University has entered into a memorandum of understanding to work on bringing a campus to Milton.

The proposed site would be on Tremaine Road south of Derry Road and north of Britannia on the west side.

There’s still a lot of work to be done to get this rolling more but it’s the first step to bringing a university to our town.

More to come.

Also, here’s a link to the story in The Record  and in today’s Milton Canadian Champion.

Halton Region Police Services is outlining some of the benchmark statistics in the region of Halton and more specifically in the Town of Milton.

Many of the major stats have shown a decline in Milton like the number of violent crimes, robberies and incidents of impaired driving remaining the same.

Also included in the report is new technology (like photo radar) for residential streets that will send an occurrence report to the registered owner of the vehicle.

Again, more to come.