milton town hall report

Road Closure Tremaine to Dymott Avenue

Mike Cluett

Attention residents in Ward 8.

From the Region of Halton Website

Starting in February 2013, Halton Region will be installing a 400 mm watermain on Tremaine Road from Britannia Road to Dymott Avenue. The new watermain will ensure the safe delivery of water to existing and new communities in the Town of Milton.

To complete this infrastructure improvement safely and efficiently, Tremaine Road will be closed from Britannia Road to Dymott Avenue starting February 25, 2013. During the closure, northbound and southbound traffic will be redirected to Bronte Street. Local access will be maintained at all times for residents of Tremaine Road who live within the limits of the road closure. The planned reopening date is April 20, 2013.

Road closures are only undertaken when absolutely necessary to ensure the safety of motorists and construction workers. The watermain construction will be completed as quickly as possible to lessen the inconvenience to local residents and commuters.
The watermain construction work will be completed by Tedescon Infrastructure Ltd. and is expected to be finished by May 2013. Project updates can be found at www.halton.ca/construction.

Utilities such as Union Gas, Hydro and Bell Canada have already started to locate and mark out their existing infrastructure to prepare for this construction. Please do not remove these marker stakes or paint markings until the project is finished.

Project-related Information and Recommendations:

  • Truck Traffic – At times you will notice increased truck traffic in the construction area.  Please be aware and use extra caution while driving.
  • Noise and Vibration – You may experience some noise and slight vibration due to the work being done. As a precaution, we recommend that you remove small, light objects from shelving and walls. Any noise from the construction will be scheduled in accordance with local noise by-laws.

This project is part of Building a Better Halton, the Region’s infrastructure construction plan for roads, water, wastewater, and waste management projects across Halton Region. For more information on these projects or the Building a Better Halton plan, visit our website at www.halton.ca/construction.

If you have any questions, need more information or have any special accommodation or accessibility needs, please contact me by dialing 311 or 905-825-6000, extension 7141 or by sending an email to chris.ewen@halton.ca

Thank you for your patience and cooperation as this work gets underway.

MCRC Trivia Night Sat March 2nd 2013

Mike Cluett

SAVE THE DATE!

Every year Milton Community Resource Centre (MCRC) holds its annual trivia night and every year it gets bigger and bigger.  Last year we sold out tickets very fast so if you want to go send me an email mike@mikecluett.ca to book your spot.

One of the committee’s I sit on through my town council duties is the Board of Directors for MCRC.  When I first moved to Milton, I had personally experienced the MCRC program with my son Anthony and was very impressed.  They do wonderful work for the children of our community so its a great program to support.  MCRC is also a Milton United Way supported organization.

From the MCRC Website:

Milton Community Resource Centre (MCRC) is a Not–for-profit, multi-service organization that provides services to children and families of Milton and the surrounding communities. Through our Ontario Early Years Centre and our Family Resource programs we provide early learning programs for children, their parents and caregivers at minimal or no cost to participants. MCRC’s parent resource library offers a variety resources and workshops including access to our parent educators. Through our Licensed Child Care programs, MCRC provides quality early learning and care at an affordable cost and subsidy is available for eligible families. Collaboratively with Halton Region Children Services, MCRC operates The Halton Resource Connection, which provides training, support and resources to individuals and organizations working with children and youth.

Tickets are on sale now at the reception desk at 410 Bronte Street South – $20 per person or $150 per table of 8.

Dont you dare miss this!  Its always a blast.  Stay tuned to my Twitter account for sample questions from last years event.

Senior of the Year 2013 Nominations Are Open

Mike Cluett

Do you know an outstanding senior? Nominate him/her for Senior of the Year 2013!

This award helps to build respect and honour for community residents, fosters community pride, and recognizes and values diversity.

Nominations are due February 8, 2013 at 4:30 pm.  For nomination forms and criteria, visit the Senior of the Year page.

New Years Levee 2013

Mike Cluett

This year we continued our tradition of members of town council “serving” the public…literally.

Every year on January 1st Mayor Gord Krantz and members of town council host a levee, a meet and greet of sorts, for members of the public.  This has been a tradition for many years but since 2010 its had a bit of a change.  In the past, members of the Milton Historical Society have handled the event, from the coffee and snacks, to music and everything in between.  In 2010 members of council lead by Clr Cindy Lunau decided it would be fun if WE would take on those duties.

All the snacks and drinks were donated and arranged by members of council for the public.  So thanks to Tim Hortons (Steeles/Thompson Road) and LaRose Bakery for the coffee, tea and snacks.  I along with others took the time to serve drinks and greet residents as they came in to have a chat.  Thanks to Clr Colin Best and management of town staff, we had a display in the Milton Room of town hall to show residents the many projects underway in Milton which was a big hit.

Many thanks to everyone who came out this year to share in the holiday cheer, have some coffee and chat about important issues in town.  This is one of my favourite parts of the job and I know the other members of council feel the same way.

So on behalf of the Mayor and Town Council, thank you to all who came out New Years Day and the night before for the annual bell ringing as well.  We wish you nothing but the best for the upcoming year!  HAPPY NEW YEAR MILTON!

Happy New Year Milton

Mike Cluett

Thank you to everyone who came out to the annual New Year Bell Ringing at Milton Town Hall last night.  Over 100 people braved the chill in the air to join Mayor Krantz, myself along with some other councillors to help ring in the new year.

This tradition goes back to 1967 when Jim Dills started it.  Every year there is an honourary bell ringer to start us off.  This year was a young girl named Cara Slade who throughout the year had been job shadowing Mayor Krantz to learn about how local government worked and politics in general.  Look out Gord…shes gunning for your job!

Joining us this year as usual was the world’s most famous hockey dad Walter Gretzky who helped the kids and other adults cheer and ring in 2013.

It was a great night…to be followed by the Mayor and Councillors New Year’s Levee on January 1st.  I’ll post more about that later this week.

Happy New Year Milton!!! Have a wonderful, peaceful and prosperous 2013!

Town of Milton Population Hits Six Digits

Mike Cluett

Town’s population hits six digits

From Julia Le, Milton Canadian Champion

Milton is ending the year with a bang.  With the population hitting the 100,000 mark by year’s end, according to Town planning estimates, the town is staying true to its ranking as Canada’s fastest growing community.

Milton Acting CAO Bill Mann said the Town is excited about seeing its vision for the community come to fruition.

He said Milton truly embodies a place where you can live, work and play.

Over the last 15 years, the Town has made a considerable effort to attract people through affordable housing and businesses that will in turn create employment opportunities, according to Mann.

He added the Town has also been creating more neighbourhood parks and building a complete community that has recreational facilities, an arts centre and other amenities, while ensuring residents have the required essential services.

Mann cited that Milton is home to large distribution centres for Target and Lowe’s. The Target distribution centre set to open in May 2013 will be a 1.3 million-sq.-ft. facility and will employ hundreds of people, while the Lowe’s distribution centre, which broke ground last August, will be a 626,000-sq.-ft. facility also expected to employ hundreds of people.

Mann said the Town is guided by the principles of growth engrained in its strategic plan.

He said in 1997, the Town’s official plan anticipated Halton Region’s delivery in 2000 of ‘The Big Pipe’ carrying Lake Ontario water up from Oakville to Milton, and a population that would grow to about 165,000 people by 2021.

Mann said the Town is keeping pace and may exceed that estimate, considering the population grew from 31,471 residents in 2001 to 53,889 in 2006 and 84,362 in 2011, according to census data.

“If we’re able to generate intensification, our population may be 185,000 in 2021 and then by 2031 we’re looking at a minimum of 236,000 people,” he said, adding that Milton has the potential to grow out to 300,000 to 350,000 people. “(If so) Milton will ultimately be larger than Burlington and Oakville.”

But developing and shaping Milton hasn’t come without a price.

“As you can appreciate in any community that is growing as fast as we are, we are experiencing growing pains,” said Mann.

The Town is doing everything in its power to ensure schools, transportation and transit and the hospital keeps up with the population boom.

He said Craig Kielburger Secondary School opened this year and a new catholic high school will open the following year.

Mann added the Town is working with the Region to widen Regional Road 25 and Tremaine Road. Tremaine Road has already been widened between Main Street and Derry Road and next spring there are plans to widen it from Derry to Britannia roads and then from Main Street to Steeles Avenue.

There’s also a long-term plan to expand transit service, have two more GO stops within Milton and encourage the community to get out of cars and walk, cycle or use public transit.

The hospital will also be expanded, with the first patient likely to be seen in December 2017 or January 2018.

“If you look at the last census, the average age dropped down to 34. That’s the youngest age in any community,” he said. “And when you look at the birth rate, we have the highest birthrate at 1,500 births a year, which is phenomenal, hence our need to expand the hospital.”

He said the Town is taking on the challenges head-on and planning for the future.

Other major projects down the line include seeing the Milton Education Village come to fruition and encouraging the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) to work with Mohawk Racetracks to have a full casino and entertainment complex built. He said it would include a hotel and golf course.

Mann said Milton may be expanding, but it hasn’t lost its roots.

“We’re still maintaining that small town atmosphere,” he said, adding that the town has a tremendous historical fabric. “One of the most beautiful things about Milton is people are on a first-name basis.”

He said with the Niagara Escarpment as its backdrop, Milton is really the place to be.

“There is tremendous opportunity within Milton,” he said. “Growing pains will always be there, but they’re manageable and will diminish as we move forward to ultimate state of Milton.”