After hours of deliberation and discussion, our council passed an overall tax increase of 2.83% based on Milton’s budget increase of 5.63%.
I think it is imperative that people know how exactly this impacts them and for that reason I am presenting the following stats:
On an average single detached home, valued at approximately around 650,000, your tax increase will be $88 per annum which comes to $7.35 per month.
Over the past year, my colleagues and I have had many discussions with you and what we heard was that you want better and “proportionate to growth” services. Also, the one thing we have learned over the last several years on council is that you can not build a community without a long term vision and certainly not one based on cuts. We have to build our town and our homes based on long term investments. This budget is a good start in that direction.
We received a lot of input from Milton taxpayers and the 2020 budget provides for a $45 million investment in building & improving current roads as well as the maintenance and rehabilitation of existing roadways.
In 2020, a fifth Fire Station is planned to open near Regional Road 25 and Louis St. Laurent and the Sherwood Community Centre will celebrate its first full year of operation. These new facilities help to maintain and deliver important services for Milton’s growing community.
Based on the Youth Strategy recommendations approved in 2019, the Town will also implement a pilot project in 2020 focusing on youth-specific spaces and programming at facilities.
Milton’s 2020 budget also maintains our position of having one of the lowest property tax rates in the GTA & Ontario while preparing us to be more sustainable as we continue to grow.
“Evidence shows that youth who are exposed to vapour product advertising through various channels are significantly more likely to use the products,” Dr. Hamidah Meghani Halton Medical Officer of Health
At this past weeks Halton Region council meeting, we received a report from the Halton Medical Officer of Health with recommendations for the province to address our concerns with underage vaping.
Recently in the media there have been many reports of medical issues coming from teens and the use of vaping products.
From the article: “All reported cases of vaping-related severe pulmonary disease have a history of vaping cannabis, nicotine or both in the 90 days prior to illness,” said Dr. Meghani, noting the majority of cases described were among youth and young adults. “The investigation to date has not identified any specific vapour product or substance that is linked to all cases.”
Under the Smoke Free Act there are exemptions about advertising of vaping products as one can see when paying for gas anywhere…tobacco products are hidden but vaping products and their advertisements are front and centre. There has been a significant rise in youth vaping in the last couple of years and Halton Region is providing its input on possible changes that can be made to the Smoke Free Act.
The report was submitted to the province with an extra amendment from council which was passed unanimously to recommend a “one strike and you’re out” meaning if a retailer is convicted of selling vaping products to underage youth.
Where is Milton going…or for that matter GROWING from here?
The Town of Milton recently announced to town council that we are preparing a new official plan. For those of you who are unsure of what exactly the “official plan” is, its essentially a road map and our guideline for land use planning going forward to 2041.
“We Make Milton” is the beginning of a multi stage process of the official plan where we want to hear from you on what your input is. As a town councillor, we are faced with many planning decisions every meeting.
Does this new development get approved?
What kind of development goes in this specific area?
What are the impacts of these choices going forward…not just a few years but 10, 15, 20 years from now. What will Milton “look” like in 2041.
We have to deal with many pieces of legislation, mainly from the province, and these rules/guidelines/plans etc change constantly. This is a source of frustration not only as a resident, but as a municipal councillor as well. The Province of Ontario has deemed us a place to grow. This town has grown from roughly 40,000 when my family and I moved here in 2003 to unofficially about 125,000 and counting. The most recent change to our provincial growth plan has the Halton Region (Burlington, Milton, Oakville and Halton Hills) growing to a population of over 1 million by 2041.
Where is everyone going to go?
That’s what the official plan is for. Where are we building…what are we building…what kind of development will go where? So many questions and sadly no consistent document to show us the way. Hence the official plan.
I could sit here and type forever about this process, what is included in it, how its dealt with, who approves it, who can make changes to it using technical jargon but you’d either leave the site or your head would spin.
In comes “We Make Milton”. We want to hear from you…the new resident of 3 months, 3 years or 30 plus years on what your vision of Milton is. This is going to be a comprehensive, detailed and I certainly hope FUN process to be involved in.
BUT we need to hear from you. And we’re making it as easy as possible.
First … watch this video “Meet the Milton’s”
Then we’d like you to visit https://www.letstalkmilton.ca/WeMakeMilton and register to comment. There are many different places to get involved in the Lets Talk Milton site, but that will be for a post later on.
We want your stories. What does Milton mean to you? What do you like about it and what’s some of the challenges we face? Now before everyone thinks this will be an exercise where we take the good and leave the bad, please stop that train of thought there. We want to hear it all. Again, this is the first stage of many and you’ll see where we’re going as the process moves along.
I will also be following along in this process with you, because like you, I have a stake in where Milton goes from here. I’m a father of 2 wonderful kids and I want to ensure that we are building a community that they, along with your children, can be a part of. A place where we have different housing options, and yes that includes high density residential. It also includes the single family home, condo developments, rental options, and more affordable housing. I want to create transit friendly and active transportation routes (cycling, walking, trails, parks) for us to enjoy. This way you can simply walk to a restaurant, take the bus to the First Ontario Centre for the Arts in Milton to take in a show, go for dinner and support the local economy. This is how Milton can grow.
I want Miltonians to have the option of working from their home town. Being able to hop on the bus, or bicycle to go to work instead of their car, sitting on a highway for a few hours only to repeat the process on the way back. This way we can spend more time with our families, relaxing in the parks, taking our kids to sports and school events. Milton has so much to offer in this area…conservation parks, neighbourhood parks, cricket pitches, soccer fields, softball and baseball diamonds, walking tracks, cycling at the Mattamy National Cycling Centre and who knows…even more. This is how Milton can grow.
I want to harness the entrepreneurial spirit we have with our educated population. Someone who’s got a skill or talent or idea that we haven’t thought of yet and that has no description other than a statement “Wow, I never of that.” A place where someone can take part in something like our Milton Innovation Centre, get their start and grow. To open up an office or location and employ people. This is how Milton can grow.
I want us to grab our shoes and walk along a trail from one side of town and get to the other, enjoying green spaces and parks along the way. I want us to create and build a complete community. We stay healthier and more active and enjoy all of what this town has to offer. This is how Milton can grow.
There isn’t just one solution available that will work in Milton as we continue to grow. It will be a combination of things that will give us the ability to grow smarter, attract more business and jobs and to become more sustainable in this great community. Some of the options will be new to people. Some will seem obvious as our population increases. There will be discussions along the way and that is what this official plan process is for.
Everyone speaks of the small town feel we all know and love. The small town feel isn’t just bricks and mortar and buildings and houses. It’s not about “new” vs “old” either. The small town feel is inside us. It’s in our stories that we tell to our friends and neighbours. We need to hear these stories as a part of WE MAKE MILTON and the official plan process.
Going back to the beginning of the year, the province of Ontario set out for a number of reviews to “find efficiencies” in government. They set out to review a number of two tiered municipalities, of those Halton Region was included.
In this edition of #LocalMatters on YourTV Halton, myself and fellow Councillor Colin Best set out to explain the process, what is currently happening and what might be happening when the province renders a decision.
As far as we know now, it doesn’t look like a decision will be announced until after the upcoming federal election in October, so for the time being we’re in a holding pattern waiting.
Please provide me any comments about the show, or if you have any questions, feel free to ask.
As I mentioned a few posts ago (here) I mentioned that I was beginning a new program on our local community television channel from Cogeco YourTV Halton. This is where I meet with other local politicians and community leaders and discuss issues that are important to Milton and its residents.
I will be posting some clips from previous shows soon but here is the most recent program.
This episode I spoke with Ward 4 Councillor Sameera Ali and we talked about life as a new councillor and her ideas for the future. Enjoy.
Growth has never paid for growth, and with MPP Parm Gill and the province supporting this legislation, the Town will have less to provide for new infrastructure in high growth areas, slower development of parks and trails and lowering the quality of services to residents in Milton – our place of possibility.
One of the outcomes of Bill 108 now that it has passed is that what little local control municipalities gained when the governing body changed to LPAT has now been taken away by going back to the OMB rules.
We as a town agree that red tape must be eliminated, but we can’t do it simply by putting more financial pressures on municipalities who have no choice other than reduce programs or further increase taxes. This law now puts fast growing communities like Milton under even further financial pressures.
The people of Milton understand that growth is happening but what they want the most is more local control of HOW their community is growing. By reverting back to old OMB rules, it ensures that the residents of Milton will have an even smaller voice on how we grow going forward. Any reduction in the amount of development charges Milton and Halton Region can collect puts further financial pressures on both levels and eventually will lead to further tax increases.
Growth has never paid for growth, and with MPP Parm Gill and the province supporting this legislation, the Town will have less to provide for new infrastructure in high growth areas, slower development of parks and trails and lowering the quality of services like public transit to residents in Milton – our place of possibility.
Sadly this government didn’t listen when we asked to be at the table to discuss these changes. The bill has passed and its now the law and we are going to have to figure out how to keep up with a lot less.
