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Milton Has To Wait For University Campus … again

Mike Cluett

Markham chosen by the Province of Ontario for new York Campus while Milton continues to wait….yet again.

Here is a press release from the Town of Milton today.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Town of Milton forges on with plans for a Laurier campus

On Wednesday, May 20, 2015, Reza Moridi, Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities announced that the City of Markham’s proposal for a combined York University/Seneca College campus has been accepted by the ministry’s capital expansion process. According to Minister Moridi, Markham’s is the sole proposal that will be considered at this time.

The announcement has deeply disappointed the Town of Milton and Wilfrid Laurier University. Since 2008, the two have been building a strong and determined partnership with the goal of bringing post-secondary opportunities to Canada’s fastest-growing municipality.

The Laurier Milton bid proposed a 150-acre university campus situated within a 400-acre Milton Education Village (MEV) on the southwest side of town, adjacent to the Niagara Escarpment. The MEV would be a purpose-built, fully integrated neighbourhood of multi-level education, research and commercialization, as well as complementary residential and commercial development.

“While I am thoroughly disappointed and saddened by this decision, it only strengthens our resolve to make the Milton Education Village a reality,” said Mayor Gord Krantz. “A university campus is key to building a complete community and we will continue to work closely with Laurier to bring that vision to life.”

During his announcement, Minister Moridi also mentioned that a targeted call for proposals for a postsecondary facility in Peel and Halton regions will be issued in the spring of 2016. The Town, along with Wilfrid Laurier and Halton Region will continue to move forward with conceptual plans for the MEV and will develop strategies to ensure that their bid is successful when the second call comes forward.

“Halton Region is committed to continuing to work with our community partners to help bring high-quality post-secondary education to the Town of Milton,” said Gary Carr, Halton’s Regional Chair. “The proposed Milton Education Village would fuel economic growth and foster community partnerships. We look forward to a successful outcome during the next investment by the Province in 2016.”

For additional information about the Milton Education Village, visitwww.milton.ca/en/townhall/miltoneducationvillage.asp.

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Rural Speed Review & Open House June 16th

Mike Cluett

70_kmAs many know, the Town of Milton has been taking some time to review speed limits in the rural areas of town.

There will be a report coming to Milton Town Council soon but we have arranged a couple of opportunities for residents in the rural area to get information on possible changes and provide their input on those changes.

Questions will be:  Do we move to a standard speed limit for rural roads?  Do we give the same consideration to rural residents as we do those in residential areas?

For residents in wards 1,6,7,8 (south of Derry) there is an open house scheduled for Tuesday June 16th at Milton Town Hall (Milton Room) starting at 630pm.

For residents in wards 2,3,4,5 (north of Derry) there is an open house scheduled for Wednesday June 29th at Brookville Hall beginning at 7pm.

Please let me know if you will be attending.

Deadline Approaching to Comment On CN Proposal

Mike Cluett

Just a quick reminder for residents that you have until April 27th to submit your comments on the CN Intermodal proposal.

For all the information you will need, please go to www.halton.ca/cn and read the FAQ’s.  There are links to where you need to go to submit comments and have any questions answered.

As always you can email me mike.cluett@milton.ca

Let your voice be heard!

Traffic Lights Coming – James Snow Parkway and Trudeau

Mike Cluett

 

Lights are beginning to be installed at James Snow Parkway and Trudeau today.

This has been a high collision area recently & Councillors Colin Best, Rob Duvall and I have been working at getting this done as quickly as possible.  There have been delays due to the frost still in the ground but they have begun the work today.  The lights should be energized by mid-May 2015.

There is also another area of concern for residents at JSP and Clark Blvd and I’ve been told that should be installed and active by September 2015 at the latest.

As always please drive safely.

 

 

Halton Municipalities Respond to CN Proposal

Mike Cluett

Halton Municipalities Respond to CN Proposal

http://milton.ca/en/News/index.aspx?newsId=165d6c68-2e61-4366-8bd9-daf3856fbe1a

Incomplete. Improper The Town of Milton demands a “Full environmental review”

Here is the press release from the Town of Milton

Halton Municipalities Respond to CN’s Submission to the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency

Posted on Friday April 17, 2015

News release-

On Friday, April 17, the five Halton municipalities (the Town of Milton, the Town of Oakville, the Town of Halton Hills, the City of Burlington and Halton Region) jointly issued a formal response to the Canadian National Railway Company’s (CN) project description for its proposed Milton Logistics Hub. The project description was submitted by CN to the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency (CEAA) and is available for public comment through CEAA’s website until Monday, April 27.

The joint response highlights several concerns, including:

  • CN has provided incomplete information;
  • CN has improperly narrowed the scope of relevant environmental effects;
  • CN has failed to identify all possible federal approvals; and
  • CN has not demonstrated how this project is exempt from the Canada Transportation Act railway line approval process.

The joint response also asserts that the proposed Milton Logistics Hub project should be subject to a full environmental assessment by CEAA. It outlines a number of reasons for this suggestion, specifically citing CEAA’s mandate to protect the environment and human health, and to consider any adverse impacts that may be caused by a project like the one proposed by CN.

“As municipalities, we have key responsibilities to protect the public interest,” said Halton Regional Chair Gary Carr. “We expect to see our federal regulators do the same.”

“We have heard from our residents in the Town Milton,” said Mayor Gordon Krantz. “The Town of Milton demands a full environmental review of this project.”

The Town and the Region encourage residents to review CN’s project description and provide comments through CEAA’s website before April 27.  After this date, CEAA will review feedback and determine whether this project will require a full environmental assessment.

To review and comment on CN’s project description, visit http://www.ceaa-acee.gc.ca/050/details-eng.cfm?evaluation=80100

For additional information about the proposed Milton Logistics Hub, please visit http://www.milton.ca/en/build/CN-Rail-Proposal.asp or http://www.halton.ca/cn

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Backgrounder attached: CEAA Letter – Milton Logistics Hub Project by Canadian National Railway Company (CN)

For further information, please contact:

Brett Kelly
Communications Specialist
Town of Milton
905-878-7252, ext. 2154
519-222-7412

Heather Anderson
Manager, Communications
Halton Region
905-825-6000, ext. 7576

Provincial Legislation Being Reviewed By Ontario Government

Mike Cluett

PUBLIC INPUT SESSION: Tuesday April 14th Milton Sports Centre Room #3 at 7pm!

Recently the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing announced a province wide review of a number of pieces of legislation to be conducted over the next several months.

These are just some of the laws that govern municipalities and how fast we grow, where we grow and the limitations of that growth.

They include:

  • The Growth Plan for the GTHA
  • The Greenbelt Plan
  • The Oakridges Moraine Conservation Plan
  • The Niagara Escarpment Plan

The Ministry has announced a number of public open house sessions throughout the province including one here in Milton on April 22nd.

Given the impact that these pieces of legislation have on a municipalities ability to plan its growth, I felt that it was important that we try to gain a better Milton and Halton perspective on some of these items before we make our views known during the ministry’s provincial meetings.  I have scheduled a public input session for Tuesday April 14th at Milton Sports Centre Room #3 starting at 7pm and with the assistance of fellow Councillor Colin Best we can get important feedback from Milton and Halton residents on these potential changes.

All are welcome as we discuss ideas on the Greenbelt and your thoughts as to the future. Is the Greenbelt too big? Is it too small? What changes can be made to better plan for Milton/Halton’s growth over the next 20 years?

There are many questions to be asked and we would like to hear from you.

As always if you cant make it, please email me your thoughts mike.cluett@milton.ca or here in the comments.