Conservation Halton CEO Hassaan Basit kicks off the days events with a land acknowledgement and a welcome to Pride In Nature
Under the warmth of a bright blue sky, people filed into Area 8 Kelso in Milton to take part in Conservation Halton’s Pride In Nature event.
Activities for the day included live music, dancing, drag queen performances as well as planting of shrubs and wildflowers along with a hike around Kelso Quarry Lake.
Dance, dance, dance!
It was a beautiful day to take in nature and support the Positive Space Network and to welcome everyone I luck g our 2SLGTBQ+ community. CH is committed to making sure we that diversity and inclusion for all is part of the fabric of the organization and community.
Mona Mousa was our emcee for the day and her energy and passion for this is infectious (and she happens to be a dedicated Glen Eden skier in the winter)
Thank you to everyone who attended this special day. Proceeds from ticket sales goes to support the Positive Space Network.
At tonights Town of Milton Council meeting we will be having a public meeting on an upcoming staff report to regulate short term rentals.
Over the last few years, the issue of short term rentals has come up on a number of occasions in both the urban and rural areas. In some cases in ward 3, properties are being used as “Party Houses” in residential areas. I was witness to a full sized bus dropping off close to 75 people to one house and in turn there was local property damage, loud music and a huge disruption in the neighbourhood due to excess noise and “other activities”
Council recently asked staff to come up with guidelines for future uses of short term rentals in Milton to avoid these problems that do come up. Trying to balance the right of the homeowner to rent out their property and the rights of the surrounding neighbourhood is difficult and we’re asking Milton residents what they think.
Ban them? What kinds of restrictions should be put in place? It’s all up for discussion.
Here is a link to the report we have so far and after this meeting tonight, and via Lets Talk Milton website, they will come back to council on June 20th with the final report. There are already some delegations set up but being a public meeting, you can have your say tonight. If you cant make the meeting tonight, please feel free to email me your comments mike.cluett@milton.ca
As we inch closer to the summer months and higher demands for services like Air BNB, Vrbo and others its important we establish some clear guidelines to protect local neighbourhoods and the property owners themselves.
The Town of Milton is asking residents of Milton to take part in a discussion for “Living In Milton” policy to address important community issues from today until June 8th.
The discussion will look at the following topics – affordability and housing choices, climate change, history & culture, parks & recreation, places of worship, rural living, urban design & youth.
There are a series of videos you will find on Let’s Talk Milton that provide more detail on what we are looking for. All feedback received will be complied into a report to be presented to council for June 20, 2022.
This hasn’t been an overnight effort to get to this point. Our council has been working on this plan for the last few years, consulting with businesses & residents alike to hear what you need and want for the future of this town. We are surrounded by some amazing amenities and live a wonderful quality of life and we want to make it better.
This council and future ones need to hear from you on what the best direction forward is going to be. We’ve done a good job so far getting to this point but strong leadership is going to be needed to move forward and not get left behind. This is where your input is so valued.
In addition to finalizing our official plan, we need to ensure going forward this council continues making the investments needed in infrastructure and the delivery of services to make sure the quality of life in Milton improves.
The decisions that will be made going forward regarding future growth, economic development, the environment and the delivery of services to the residents of Milton will have a long term impact on our future prosperity and the ability to become the complete community we desire to be.
We want to hear from you!
Over the last 4 years, I along with other members of both Town and Regional council have been working through literally thousands of pages of documents on growth plans, where we are growing, how to grow, what to build, who to build for, and what we want our community to look like in the next 30 years. To say its been exhausting would be an understatement. Hundreds of hours of consultation with the public, staff, consultants and councillors has occurred over the last 3 years and we are reaching the end of our official plan review and soon be able to set the course for the future.
You’ve told me that you want walkable communities, the ability to live and work in town, better transit connectivity, and access to services provided by the town and region. Im confident that the course we are on is the best one for not only us, but for our children to provide them with a complete community where they can live, work, play, learn and raise their family in comfort and sustainability.
Please register online to Let’s Talk Milton and have your say. As always, Im available for comments via this site, my social media or simply pick up the phone and call/text/WhatsApp me.
Halton’s mask by-law was originally adopted by Regional Council on July 15, 2020, as an important measure to slow the spread of the COVID-19 virus and keep the Halton community safe. While the mask by-law is being rescinded in Halton, some Provincial and Federal masking requirements will remain in place.
As of March 21, masking will continue to be required in select settings such as public transit, long-term care homes, retirement homes, and other health care settings, shelters, jails and congregate care and living settings, including homes for individuals with developmental disabilities.
In addition to the settings above, masks will also be required in the following circumstances:
Individuals who test positive for COVID-19 are required to wear a mask until day 10 following a positive test result or the onset of symptoms (whichever occurred first).
Close contacts and household contacts of individuals with COVID-19 are required to wear a mask for 10 days after exposure.
Individuals who have recently traveled outside of Canada, have to wear a mask for 14 days upon return.
Halton Region Public Health is also reminding residents that wearing a mask continues to be an effective public health measure for reducing the spread of COVID-19 and to be kind to those who choose to continue wearing a mask to protect themselves and others.
“There is still risk of transmission in Halton and we need to be mindful that the risk of infection and severe disease is greater for some individuals than others, including those who are immunocompromised or have underlying health conditions, and older adults,” said Dr. Hamidah Meghani, Halton Region’s Medical Officer of Health. “Some individuals may choose to keep wearing masks in places where they are not required, and others, such as those who are close contacts of COVID-19 cases, will be required to wear masks for a period of time. Businesses and organizations may also continue to require or encourage mask use based on the risk in their workplaces and to their patrons. I encourage all Halton residents to continue to be kind and respectful to everyone, regardless of their decision to wear a mask or not.”
The Regional Municipality of Halton serves more than 595,000 residents in the City of Burlington, the Town of Halton Hills, the Town of Milton, and the Town of Oakville. Halton Region is committed to meeting the needs of its residents through the delivery of cost-effective, quality programs and services, including water and wastewater; Regional roads and planning; paramedic services; waste management; public health; social assistance; children’s and seniors’ services; housing services; heritage programs; emergency management and economic development. For more information, call 311 or visit Halton Region’s website at halton.ca.
I would just like to express my disappointment at the Mayor of Oakville’s comments in his recent email newsletter about working on a motion to limit the expansion of the urban boundary that will put at risk Milton’s ability to grow into a complete community.
Halton Region yesterday had a workshop that lasted several hours where Halton planners answered many questions brought forward by my colleagues around the table coming to the conclusion that the only option to move forward on is minimal expansion to the urban boundary.
For the last 10 plus years, Milton residents have worked on a vision they wanted for our town. There has been in person consultations, Milton’s Vision report and a lot of discussion on Lets Talk Milton about what we want Milton to be in the coming years.
Without expansion of the urban boundary, it puts at risk our long term economic development plans and bringing jobs for residents to live, work and learn in our community. A majority of Milton Town Council along with a majority of our Halton Region Councillors agree with the urban boundary expansion.
The sole Milton voice at Halton Region that opposes our vision that we have built is Councillor Best. He feels that all we need to do is “drive around town” and see that we have enough space for development out to 2051. This is a completely uninformed analysis based on anecdotal evidence. He ignores the numerous Region & Town of Milton’s studies and Land Needs Assessments that have come to the conclusion that no urban boundary expansion will work.
The next meeting of Halton Region council will be on February 16th where this and possibly other motions will be entertained to delay the submission for our official plan. If we don’t meet this deadline, there are chances where the province will step in and plan our growth without our plan.
This cannot happen. Its not about saving farmland as they might say…its simply about politics. Let Milton control its own growth and not have outside forces dictate to us what kind of community we should be. We already know what kind we want…a complete community.
Happy to be in attendance this morning for the announcement for the green light Milton 13 Elementary School for the Halton District School Board. In the middle of one of the next developments in Milton, we are excited to see progress in the approval of new schools. From now until completion we are looking at at least 2 years and lots of work left to do, but this is the first step into more spaces for students as well as much needed child care spaces for our growing community.
“Young families are moving to Milton and they need child care & access to it. This is another school in Milton that will have child care spaces available for parents.”
As I mentioned today in my remarks, one of the top issues Milton is facing is schools for our young people, both elementary and secondary and the quality of their educational experience. We at the town/regional level will continue to advocate to the province for faster approvals on schools so we can begin to make a dent in the number of schools needed and reduce our dependence on portables. For example one of our high schools now has 60 portables and some students need to be bused to other areas in the region for their education. This isn’t the way it should be done.
We’re currently in the process of approving our master plans for development both at the local and regional levels and we must adapt to the Provincial Growth Plan which is saying we need to be able to accommodate 1.1 million people and 500,000 jobs, not to mentioned growth in others areas of the GTA.
That alone is a tough challenge but it won’t be possible without more schools to be built. While todays announcement is another good first step, we need to have a commitment from the Province of Ontario to accelerate approving much needed infrastructure for Milton, like schools and increased transit funding, so we can meet those growth targets and not have students left behind with a sub standard educational experience and a never ending parade of portables.
(Photos courtesy of YourTV Halton News / FM101 Milton)
With Minister Lecce, MPP Parm Gill, Trustee Heather Gerrits, Mayor Krantz, Trustee Donna Danielli & yours truly.
