Milton
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!
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
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:
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
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 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.
Earlier this morning the Milton Chamber of Commerce hosted a breakfast sponsored by CN for the announcement of their plans to construct a 400 acre $250 million intermodal facility in Milton.
The news broke earlier this week and over the last 48 hours, I along with other Milton and Regional Councillors have heard from Milton residents on both sides of the issue. There is a long history with these lands, CN and previous attempts at locating an intermodal and many respond with “here we go again”
The announcement was brief and all the details of their proposal as well as ways of contacting CN directly are located at a website www.cnmilton.ca This website is run by CN.
They will also be opening an office in Milton that will be open Saturdays where Milton residents can take their questions and concerns directly to their staff. The office will be at 61 James Snow Parkway and opening March 28th from 9am to 2pm.
The presentation made by CN mainly focused on the benefits of intermodal transport as opposed to trucks and other forms of goods transit and what they perceive will be the benefits brought to Milton. There were a few questions afterwards, even one by a CN employee in attendance.
There will be more to come as information becomes available so stay tuned to @Mike_Cluett and as always, please send me your comments, questions and concerns to mike.cluett@milton.ca
12pm Tuesday March 17th – Update
There will be more information coming out regarding the CN proposal in the coming days but I wanted to give people an idea about the possible truck traffic that can be expected at a CN Intermodal.
I grew up in Brampton roughly about 10kms from the Brampton CN Intermodal (Airport Road and 407 area). Earlier this morning I took a trip by the facility to observe the area, the amount of traffic that is around the area and the types of businesses an intermodal attracts.
At one entrance to the facility – in a 15 minute time period – I observed 14 long bed trucks coming out of the facility and 23 going in. This was one entrance to the CN Intermodal and there are a few more for trucks to enter to and from.
Doing the math it looked like at least 1 truck going in and out per minute. Another item to keep in mind is that this will be a 24 hr 7 day a week operation. Lights and noise will be seen and heard from for km’s around the facility and residential development is now underway just north of the proposed facility.
CN will be making a presentation Thursday morning and I will be in attendance. I will have more information for you then so please stay tuned.
Feel free to pass along any comments you might have in the comment section as well.
Canadian National Railway Company to Announce Plans for Proposed Intermodal Facility in Milton
CN has not provided the Town or Halton Region with a formal site plan for the project or other important details, but both governments have serious concerns that this location is not appropriate.
“As it stands, CN’s proposal is contrary to our vision for the Town of Milton,” said Mayor Gordon Krantz. “Their plan lacks detail and does not recognize the needs of our residents or that the integrity of our community is protected.”
Town and Regional staff noted that the expanded railway operations and services proposed by CN are not consistent with existing zoning or the Official Plans of the Town and the Region, and could have significant environmental, transportation, social and land use planning implications.
The Town and the Region have made CN aware of these issues, but the company still plans to proceed with the project, claiming that neither Milton, the Region, nor the provincial or federal government, has a say in determining whether the project moves forward.
Town and Regional staff will work to ensure that the proposed facility follows a full regulatory approval process.
This proposal marks CN’s second attempt to establish an intermodal facility in Milton. In 2001, CN proposed a similar project. Both the Town and the Region identified several major issues with that plan, including an increase in traffic, noise and air pollution, a loss of agricultural land, and negative impacts on wildlife, habitats and other environmental resources. The proposal also prompted outcry from members of the community and opposition groups before it was withdrawn The present project is also at odds with CN’s commitment to Regional Council that it would not build the intermodal facility, and would pursue a rail-served industrial development on the lands instead.
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For further information, please contact:
Brett Kelly
Communications Specialist
905-878-7252, ext. 2154