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Replay: Hamilton Planning Committee for May 19, 2015 – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

May 19, 2015
Note: Change in format: click links below for full stories on The Public Record
Councillors voted to deny a severance request at 12 McDonald Court in Flamborough and deferred a decision on the City covering 65 percent of the cost of Hess Village police paid duty fees.
Councillors wish to have an update on paid duty costs, the necessity of the extra officers, and alternatives to sworn police officers. The matter will return to the next Planning Committee meeting on June 16.
The meeting took just under one hour, with the closed session item removed from the agenda to give staff more time to provide a comprehensive report to the Councillors.
Prior to Meeting Version
On the agenda is a follow up to last year’s audit claim of 684 potential unlicensed businesses (spoiler: there were only 27 in that 684), City staff are recommending denial of a severance request in older Waterdown, and ratification of Heritage Award recommendations.
Councillors will go into closed session for a “proposed settlement of appeals of Flamborough Power Centre Inc., Flamborough South Centre Inc. and Clappison Five Six Properties Inc. et al”


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Replay: Planning Committee for May 5, 2015 – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

May 5, 2015
The big item for today’s Planning Committee is a proposal to completely reform the procedure for citizens to appeal provincial offenses (parking) tickets.
Also: A new subdivision in Waterdown, farmers’ market amendments to allow farmers to sell produce grown by other farmers, and Hamilton General Hospital seeks a parking lot expansion.
Live Video starts shortly after 9:30am.
(The Public Record is not allowed to set up prior to meetings by order of the City Clerks based upon the allegations of former Integrity Commissioner Earl Basse.)

source: news-thepublicrecord

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/


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Replay: Premier to Make Hamilton's Rapid Transit Announcement – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

May 25, 2015
(Mobile and smart-tv viewers, click here for live video: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=zCzd-1RZqQs)
Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne, alongside Minster of Transportation Steven Del Duca and local MPP Ted McMcMeekin, announced up to $1-billion dollars to fund Hamilton’s Light Rail Transit line.
This live video is made possible by viewers who have become patrons and fund The Public Record with contributions to crowdfunding campaigns.


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McMaster to Open New "Accelerator" Program in James North Arts District – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

May 24, 2015
McMaster University is coming to James Street North with a 2,500 square feet business incubator focused on “digital media and  information communication technology, tourism and culture, education and life sciences and advanced health.”
City Council is expected to ratify a $25,000 “forgivable loan” to McMaster University to assist with leasehold improvements for the new office located at 109 James Street North.
The building at 109 James North is owned by Mark Milne and Tim Potocic of Sonic Unyon fame and most recently housed Haji Grocery.
Milne and Potocic own five street addresses on the block and are nearing completion of extensive renovation and additions to the upper floors of three of the buildings.


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Province Looks to Halton For Next Higher Education Expansion, Takes Pass on Downtown Hamilton – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

May 24, 2015
The Province didn’t choose a McMaster University proposal for a new downtown satellite undergraduate campus as part of its Major Capacity Expansion Policy Framework. The Province announced the next round of provincial expansion funding will be directed to projects in Halton and Peel regions.
The Province looked for proposals which will expand both the capacity and access to post-secondary education in underserviced areas.
McMaster University proposed an initial expansion of 1,000 students in a downtown satellite campus which would include a new residence building.
City Council voted in September to commit two-to-four acres of land for the proposal. The City owned parking lots on the block of James/Vine/MacNab/Cannon is widely talked about as the location.
Only one proposal received provincial approval: York University will build a new campus in Markham in partnership with Seneca College.
The prospect of a McMaster Downtown undergraduate campus is less hopeful for the next round of funded expansion. The Province is issuing a second round of call for proposals for expansion projects “to principally serve Peel and Halton regions”.
As a former national higher education reporter, I read this as the nearly decade-old Milton campus proposal of Wilfrid Laurier University which the Town of Milton is heavily invested in.
(As an aside, I’m disappointed to see the University of Ottawa proposal for a francophone campus in Woodstock didn’t make the cut. It had great potential to build a great liberal arts campus and spur greater economic development for Woodstock.)
McMaster University’s President Patrick Deane continues to show a commitment to expansion projects in Downtown Hamilton, and the University – which is facing intense budget pressures – has opened the new Health campus at Bay and King, recently moved its continuing education programs into a new Jackson Square campus, and is opening a small business incubator in the heart of the James Street North arts district.
Dr. Deane’s experience as Provost at two downtown universities prior to McMaster give him credibility when speaking about a desire to improve McMaster’s footprint in the Downtown Core. Both Queen’s and University of Winnipeg are directly connected to their downtowns.
During Deane’s time at Winnipeg, the University President Lloyd Axworthy (of Chretien cabinet fame nationally) engaged in an ambitious campaign of urban renewal.
(Axworthy’s focus on renewing the west side of Winnipeg’s downtown lead me to write that he was acting more as a “Minister of Urban Renewal then University President” in some of my Maclean’s columns)
Deane’s seen firsthand the significant positive impact a university can have in an urban core.
I fully expect Deane to take every opportunity to continuing expanding McMaster’s footprint in the downtown.


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Recap: Public Works Committee for May 4, 2015 – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

May 4, 2015
The Public Works Committee focused on the City’s response to the emerald ash borer bug, received a public delegation requesting a boat ramp at Confederation Park, and spent a great deal of time determining if the City’s tree bylaw can be used to block the installation of Canada Post community mailboxes.
Councillors asked many good questions related to the City’s response to the emerald ash borer. The questions primarily focused on how the City will catch up with planting new trees (
On the agenda today: Update on removal of ash trees due to the emerald ash borer, Confederation Park boat ramp, and routine capital budget lines report.
Live Video starts shortly after 9:30am.
Index: Emerald Ash Borer Tree Removal Update, Confederation Park Boat Ramp, Capital Budget Line Items Overbudget (Attendance Report), Media Coverage, Consented Items
(Agenda Page on City website)
The City’s forestry department is working to get ahead of the Emerald Ash Borer, an invasive species insect (good backgrounder from the City of Toronto), which feeds on the bark of ash species.
Trees die after becoming infected and will pose a risk to public safety due to falling branches and rot.
Over a ten year period, 2012-2022, the City is removing all ash species and planting new trees in place of removed trees. As ash species are the predominant species in many areas of the city, this is having a significant impact upon the urban canopy.
A staff presentation states City crews have removed 6,761 trees thus far, with 3,747 stumps removed, and 1,946 replacements planted.
There is a public delegation regarding a Confederation Park boat ramp. In 2014, a petition of 232 signatures asked the City to reinstall a boat ramp at Confederation Park.
The March Public Works Committee meeting received a staff report stating a boat ramp would conflict with the planned uses of Confederation Park and conflict with the heavily used recreation trails.
The cost of building a ramp is estimated at $1,350,000 with an annual cost of $162,000 to operate and maintain.
Council voted to not install a boat ramp.
Dave Steeves will speak to Committee as a public delegation.
The capital budget lines show the majority of projects are on time and close to budget.
Two completed traffic signal installation projects stick out for going significantly over their budgets.
The new traffic signal at Upper Wentworth and Education Court (near Limeridge Mall) went $162,800.82 over its $250,000 budget. The signal at Sirente/Towercrest (Upper Wellington, south of the Linc) went $123,217.58 over its $150,000 budget.
Membership: Merulla (Chair), VanderBeek (Vice-Chair), Collins, Conley, Duvall, Ferguson, Jackson, Pasuta, Pearson, Whitehead.
Here are links to stories by other journalists at the meeting:


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RRCA Gives Council Power to Order Move of West Harbour CN Yard – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

May 11, 2015
As cities across Canada engage in urban redevelopment and moving disruptive railways, a dormant piece of powerful legislation is returning to the spotlight – legislation which gives Hamilton City Council the power to finally move the Stuart Street marshalling yard along Hamilton’s West Harbour waterfront.
The federal Railway Relocation and Crossing Act (CanLii version) enables municipalities to apply to the Canadian Transportation Agency for an order to move railways and yards – provided the municipality pays and relocation does not harm the viability and finances of the railway.
Relocating the Stuart Street CN marshalling yard was identified as a priority economic development project by the first Council of the new City of Hamilton in 2002.
Each successive Council have renewed this priority. Most recently as a key priority in the West Harbour Barton-Tiffany Urban Design Study.
Yet, after over a decade, what little talks have occurred have made no change to the situation.
With US Steel lands for sale as a location to relocate the marshalling yard, City Council is provided an opportunity to act this term to ends ongoing conflicts caused by West Harbour residential and recreation uses abutting the CN yard.
Using the RRCA is not a sledgehammer to a fly situation. It does not preclude reaching a mutual agreement – it sets a clear timeline for the outcome the City is expecting.
The RRCA guarantees Hamilton City Council can fulfill its vision for the West Harbour.
(Credit to Dan Lett of the Winnipeg Free Press whose column introduced me to the RRCA. I strongly encourage you to read the column as it inspired this post.)
The RRCA’s requirements for the City are not onerous and most of the time-consuming work to meet them is already complete. Modifications to the West Harbour Secondary Plan and the Barton-Tiffany Urban Design Study can produce the urban development and transportation plans required.
In 2012, a group of citizens gathered – independent of the City – to create their own plans for redevelopment of the CN rail yard which showed a wide variety of people-friendly uses including residential, entertainment, and parks.
A consultant can write a financial plan for relocating CN to the Stelco lands.
With all the documents in place, Council can submit a full application to the Canadian Transportation Agency in 2015.
The RRCA requirements to issue an order are:
The RRCA enables the federal government to fund cost of rail relocation up to 50%.
The US Steel lands are an ideal location to relocate the rail marshalling yards – it is land located along the CN rail line that does not have any conflicting abutting land uses.
This new location will enable CN to continue their operations without being negatively impacted.
In fact, with better connections to major highways and the ability to build a more modern facility, the new yard could better serve CN’s needs and become a leading inter-modal hub that will improve CN’s bottom line.
The RRCA was used by the City of Regina in 1987 to relocate CN and CP rail yards, and is presently being used by White Rock in British Columbia to force the relocation of a coastal rail line that is dangerous and frustrating public access to their waterfront.
(The City’s “Rail in White Rock” page outlines how disruptive the line has become to the city. This Global News report shows video of the interaction between pedestrians and the railway)
The City hired Mary-Jane Bennett of the Frontier Centre for Public Policy as a consultant to prepare their application. Bennett’s 23-page report to the Council outlines the requirements of the Act, costs of relocation in White Rock, and the timelines expected of the process.
White Rock is being closely watched and, if successful, could spur other communities to use the RRCA to force relocation of urban rail lines – especially as the transportation of hazardous goods is a more prevalent concern after the Lac-Mégantic rail disaster that killed 47 people.
(A search of the CTA and CanLii databases finds no other cases. Bennett’s report states this fact as well.)
Winnipeg is the intersection of Canada’s railway networks and the lines divide the City. (See above map created by the Winnipeg Free Press)
It costs the City of Winnipeg hundreds of millions of dollars in infrastructure to build bridges and underpasses to ensure traffic flows in the City.
With the recent boom in railway traffic, Winnipeg is looking at a $175-million underpass as its top infrastructure priority.
With grade separation taking priority over other infrastructure needs, Winnipeggers are having a serious discussion of spending $1-billion (yes, billion) to use the RRCA to move cross-Canada rail traffic out of the urban area.
The idea is getting traction because it will save Winnipeg hundreds of millions in planned grade separate road work and create urban renewal opportunities across the City as rail lands are converted to other uses.
The Social Planning Council of Winnipeg wrote an extensive report on moving the railways in 2014, but didn’t get as much traction as the current discussion.
The current relocation discussion appears to have originated with Winnipeg businessman Art DeFehr who penned an open statement entitled Rail Location in Winnipeg – Think Bold and Big outlining the opportunities which rail relocation provides for Winnipeg. DeFehr’s proposal received a positive editorial from the WFP editorial board.
The cost of relocating the Stuart Street CN yard is not insignificant, the timelines is likely to be nearly a decade between the RRCA hearing and relocation, and funding will require focused leadership at the local level.
Some of the costs will be recouped from eventual development of the West Harbour CN lands, and improved land values in the new Tiffany-Barton development area.
Hamilton City Council will need to secure a tripartite funding agreement with the provincial and federal government, will have to prioritize municipal funding within the City budget for many years, and have the patience to create a structure to lead the project over multiple Council terms.
Is there the willpower on Council to act on relocating the Stuart Street CN yard? Or will there only be more declarations that this is a priority this this term of Council?


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Councillors Vote Down Severance Request in Older Waterdown – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

May 18, 2015
Update: Councillors on the Planning Committee unanimously rejected the severance application, agreeing with the City planning staff position against the severance.
A resident owning a large lot in an older area of Waterdown wishes to sever their property to allow for the construction of a new single detached home.
The property, 12 McDonald Court, is 1656.97 square metres and the severance proposes to split the property into two separate properties of 888.56 sq m and 773.41 sq m. (City Map at bottom of post)
Staff are opposed to the recommendation as it is not keeping with the character of the existing neighbourhood and represents over-intensification of the area, triggering similar applications in older parts of Waterdown.
The larger lot is a legacy of when homes in many parts of Waterdown were serviced by septic systems and private water supplies, the homes on McDonald Court were established in the late 1950s.
There have been severances granted for a few lots on McDonald Court, all of which were corner lots. This proposal is a mid-block request.
The Ontario Municipal Board upheld a decision of Council to not grant a severance to 24 McDonald Court. Council voted against the severance in April 2014, the owner appeals to the OMB, and on April 1, 2015, the OMB ruled in Council’s favour.
Nearby neighbours have signed a petition against the proposal.
Planning Committee will vote on this during the May 19 meeting.


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Statement Regarding Conclusion of OPP Investigation – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

May 28, 2015
The OPP is not proceeding to charges related to Mr. Lloyd Ferguson’s assault against myself on February 26, 2014 which occurred in the public foyer of Council Chambers at City Hall.
The OPP must weigh numerous factors in determining whether to prosecute offences and I agree with their decision that public interest is not best served by using court time and resources on this matter.
The OPP concluded that Mr. Ferguson’s actions were wrong and unjustified.
I wish to thank my fellow Hamiltonians for their support and both the Hamilton Police Service, and the Ontario Provincial Police for their professionalism.
Though I respect how these events have concluded, I do request that Council consider formal action to rescind former Integrity Commissioner Mr. Basse’s flawed report, a report that has been widely criticized , and a report that untruthfully maligns my character.  I hope to work with staff to see this action taken.
Where these events might undermine public confidence in our civic government and civilian oversight of policing, increasing cynicism and disengagement, I implore the public to stay engaged with an inquisitive eye on City Hall.
My final message is thank everyone for your support. The strong support from the community is what enables me to continue my work.


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City Cancelled Sidewalk Inspections in 2012 due to Computer Issues – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

June 10, 2015
The City’s beleaguered Public Works Department admitted in court that it did not inspect the City’s 2,382 kilometers of sidewalks in 2012 due to “experiencing computer problems”.
Paul McShane, a project manager in Road Operations for the City, told the Superior Court of Justice this information in a lawsuit the City lost in which a 89-year-old woman tripped on a sidewalk which was not properly maintained.
The woman, who was in good health and fully independent prior to the incident, suffered severe injuries which required hospitalization for 42 or 43 days and then placement in a rehabilitation centre.
From the Court ruling:
[26] Paul McShane is a project manager in the road operations section of the defendant and is responsible for concrete and asphalt services, which includes sidewalks.
[27] He looks after the defendant’s sidewalk inspection program and looks after capital projects such as sidewalk replacement. He does so for all of Hamilton.
[28] Mr. McShane explained that at the time of this fall the defendant was in the process of implementing a new inspection program, but was experiencing computer problems in doing so. For this reason, while inspections had been done for the years 2009, 2010 and 2011, there was no inspection done in 2012. An inspection was done again in 2013, but using the old system as the new program was still not working.
This is just the latest revelation about the City’s Roads division which most recently was involved in arbitration when managers fired 29 employees assigned to fill potholes. Of the employees, all but 6 were rehired with 15 of them ordered rehired by an arbitrator who found there is a “culture of low expectations” from managers in the Public Works Department and this explained the widespread problems, especially in the Roads division.
The Judge found City staff to be uncooperative with the court, declaring the City’s district investigator Ron Mol to be a “openly hostile to counsel” in court “obviously biased in favour of his employer, and unreasonably defensive and resistant when asked any questions that he perceived to be contrary to his position or interests, or those of his employer.”
The Judge continued, saying the Public Works investigator lacked impartiality and not as credible as the injured woman’s son, “Mr. Mol’s opinion is that he is right because he says so, and that he says so because he is right. His rigidity and defiance undermine his credibility”.
Findings of Fact
[68] In my opinion, on the issue of the height discrepancy as between the 2 sidewalk slabs, the evidence of Mr. Worthey was the most credible. While I am aware that his relationship with the plaintiffs has to be considered in terms of possible bias, I carefully observed his demeanour as well as what he had to say. I was struck by the fact that in my assessment he was very much aware of his training, both while working in pathology and for the police, and he was not a man given to carelessness or exaggeration. In my assessment he told it exactly as he saw it. He answered questions directly and in a forthright manner, without adding extra comments favourable to the plaintiff’s case but not directly called for by the question. I am satisfied that he understood, as a result of this training and his vocation, as well as his character, the importance of both impartiality and precision, and that his testimony reflected both.
[69] I was not impressed with the evidence of Mr. Mol as he is obviously biased in favour of his employer, and unreasonably defensive and resistant when asked any questions that he perceived to be contrary to his position or interests, or those of his employer. He was openly hostile with counsel. The manner of his presentation lacked impartiality. Mr. Mol’s opinion is that he is right because he says so, and that he says so because he is right. His rigidity and defiance undermine his credibility.
[70] While free from open hostility and intolerance, the evidence of Mr. Dykeman, in my opinion, demonstrated a bias in favour of the defendant, who he acknowledged to be a main customer.
[71] With respect to both Mr. Mol and Mr. Dykeman, I am not satisfied from the photographs taken by them, or by the answers they gave and the way in which they gave them, that their rulers were touching the top of the lower slab. Mr. Dykeman acknowledges that it does not appear to be the case in his photographs. He would not admit that his first measurement location demonstrates his apparatus to have been leaning over to the left, although clearly it is in the photograph.
[72] In my best assessment, the evidence of Mr. Worthey is the most reliable of the three. I find the height discrepancy between the top of the lower slab and the top of the higher slab to be 15/16” as testified to by him.
Ultimately, the Judge found the injured woman to be 30% responsible for her fall – a significantly low number for these types of cases, and put 70% of the fault squarely on the negligence of the Public Works Department.
She is to be awarded $192,500 plus legal costs to be determined.
The Public Record sent the City of Hamilton a series of questions related to this ruling.
“Staff are investigating and will be meeting to discuss [the matter]”, wrote Michael Kirkopoulos, the City’s Director of Communications, to The Public Record on Wednesday prior to the Council meeting.
At Council Wednesday evening, General Manager of Public Works Gerry Davis said he wasn’t able to confirm the Judge’s findings of fact that the Public Works Department skipped sidewalk inspections in 2012.
He says he needs to look into what is happening in the Roads division of his department.
Mr. Davis quickly left at the conclusion of the Council meeting and was not available for media questions.
As of noon on Thursday, the City has yet to issue a statement or respond to questions on this matter.
Questions Sent to City Manager Chris Murray by The Public Record:


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Government Relations Sub-Committee for June 23, 2015 – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

June 23, 2015
Council’s Government Relations Sub-Committee held a brief meeting to direct staff to organize a Hamilton Day at Queen’s Park and to receive staff information updates on government relations strategy.


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Hamilton Aboriginal Advisory Committee for July 2015 – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

June 27, 2015
The AAC will discussed the Council endorsed Aboriginal Justice Strategy, National Aboriginal Awareness Month, calls for an national public inquiry into missing and murdered Aboriginal women, and the City Clerk’s plan to eliminate the Aboriginal Advisory Committee along with most citizen committees.
View the agenda:


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Hamilton Board of Health for June 15, 2015 – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

June 15, 2015
A light agenda for the Board of Health with a staff update public health services preparation for the Pan Am Games, an update on the Food Strategy, and addressing an increase in reports of rat infestations in Hamilton.
Replay


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Hamilton City Council for June 10, 2015 [Replay] – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

June 10, 2015
Hamilton City Council meets to discuss their committee business of the past two weeks.


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Hamilton City Council for June 24, 2015 – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

June 24, 2015
Council ratified their committee work of the past two weeks including: City position on the Provincial Planning Review, golf courses business marketing plan, Hamilton Health Sciences OMB appeal for increased parking near General Hospital, a City appeal of the decision in Canada Post v. City of Hamilton, a reconsideration motion on selling the Auchmar Estate, a study of land transfer taxes, the annual report on homelessness, and sending the province a bill for the Social Assistance Management Software fiasco.
On Canada Post v. Hamilton, Councillors voted 10 to 5 to proceed with an appeal. On Auchmar, they voted 12 to 3 to suspend the negotiations to sell Auchmar to a private bidder.
Replay Video


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Hamilton City Council GIC for June 17, 2015 – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

June 17, 2015
Council meets in committee today to discuss a wide range of issues.
Live video starts at 9:30am.


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Hamilton Council – Audit, Finance, & Administration Committee for June 22, 2015 – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

June 21, 2015
The City’s toxic corporate culture is the main topic of discussion on this agenda. Councillors will receive an update on the current efforts to change the culture which are at the mid-way point to their 2017 goals. Of note, there will be discussion of the Council Code of Conduct and if it needs to be amended to hold Councillors to the same standards as City staff and citizens in City facilities.
Live video starts at 9:30am Monday.
Full Agenda on the City Website here: http://hamilton.siretechnologies.com/sirepub/mtgviewer.aspx?meetid=778&doctype=AGENDA


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Hamilton Council – Emergency & Community Services for June 22, 2015 – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

June 21, 2015
A presentation from Dundas Living Centre on the Unshippable.ca campaign starts the meeting which will include discussion on affordable housing, the 2014 report on homelessness, and an update on the fiasco of the new provincial social assistance software.
Live video starts at 1:30pm Monday.
Full Agenda on the City website here:
http://hamilton.siretechnologies.com/sirepub/mtgviewer.aspx?meetid=781&doctype=AGENDA


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Hamilton Planning Committee for June 16, 2015 – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

June 16, 2015
OMB appeals, three new developments, and the City’s response to the provincial growth plan are the items for the only Planning Committee meeting in June.
Replay
Councillors will discuss:
Three closed session items related to OMB appeals:


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Hamilton Police Release Photo of Suspect in June 5th Sexual Assault – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

June 6, 2015
Hamilton Police are asking the public’s assistance in determining the identity of a suspect in a sexual assault which occurred Friday afternoon in the area of San Pedro Drive and Scenic Drive on the West Mountain.
Here’s the full Hamilton Police press statement:
(PDF Version)
The Hamilton Police Service is investigating a sexual assault occurrence which occurred on June 5th, 2015 at 5:30pm in the area of San Pedro Drive and Scenic Drive, City of Hamilton. A female was walking in this area when an unknown male suspect approached her from behind and grabbed her buttocks. The suspect then fled on foot eastbound on San Pedro Drive, and turned southbound on Scenic Drive into a wooded area.
The suspect is described as:
Male, white, approximately 6 feet tall, lanky build, 25 to 30 years of age, dark short hair with a lower lip patch of facial hair. The suspect was wearing a white baseball cap, dark sunglasses, a plain white t-shirt, green or grey cargo shorts and running shoes.
The Hamilton Police Service continues to investigate and is looking for any information regarding the incident or suspect. Witnesses are being asked to contact Mountain Division Staff Sergeant at #905:546-3886 on the weekend, D/Sgt HENNICK of the Sexual Assault Unit during the week at #905-546-4962 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS.
There is no guaranteed way to prevent a sexual assault. Sharing the details of this assault is intended to provide the community information, and people are encouraged to trust their instincts. For confidential support, please call the Sexual Assault Centre’s 24-hour support line at 905-525-4162 or connect at www.sacha.ca, or the Sexual Assault/Domestic Violence Care Centre at www.hhsc.ca/sadv


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Hamilton Police Services Board for June 2015 – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

June 25, 2015
The Hamilton Police Services Board meets for their June 2015 with accountabilitiy and transparency being a primary theme of the meeting.
The meeting will beginning with a significant delegation by the group Black, Brown, Red Lives Matter to the Police Board on the issue of carding.
Replay Video


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Hamilton Police Services Board Governance Committee for June 25, 2015 – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

June 25, 2015
The Hamilton Police Services Board’s Governance Committee meets this morning to discuss a new media relations policy which is the centre of debate between Councillor Terry Whitehead and Chair of the PSB Councillor Lloyd Ferguson.
Ferguson supports including gag provisions in the policy that will ban Board members from speaking to the media and public about Board members, Whitehead favours allowing individuals members to speak on matters so long as they make clear they are expressing a personal opinion and not speaking for the Board as a whole.
The meeting starts at 10:30am. The City of Hamilton is refusing to disclose which room the meeting is in, citing “privacy concerns” with revealing the room. (This will delay live video)


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Hamilton Public Works Committee for June 15, 2015 – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

June 14, 2015
Council’s Public Works Committee agenda doesn’t include the latest two problems in the beleaguered department – the revelation that sidewalk inspections were cancelled for an entire year because of “computer problems” and a new employee culture survey that finds Hamilton in the bottom percentile in numerous measurements.
Councillors will discuss business planning for the City’s two municipally owned golf courses, supporting private installations of rooftop solar panels, HSR bus traffic on Redfern Avenue, and improving fencing along Mountain Brow Boulevard. The Friends of Gage Park will speak on the Youth Council proposed Bike Pump Track which is Council approved and funded.
On the rubber stamp agenda, Councillors will approve a road closure permit for a gigantic street water slide which will use the Princess Point hill on Saturday, August 29, and Councillors will approve allowing Supercrawl to extend into Gore Park with a road closure of King from John to MacNab and James from King to Main for the major festival event on the weekend of September 11 to 13.
Replay Video


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Intensification – The Hamilton Neighbourhoods Discussion – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

June 16, 2015
Replay Video
Hamilton’s Ward 1 and 2 neighbourhood associations hosted a discussion on intensification with an informed group of panelists moderated by Ryan McGreal:


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Police Shooting or Police Involved Shooting – Journalistic Terminology Debate – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

June 7, 2015
I use the term “police-involved” to describe police incidents that are investigated by the Special Investigations Unit.
I do so to not judge fault.
I’m reconsidering this terminology after listening to Craig Martin, co-director of the International and Comparative Law Centre at the Washburn University School of Law.
Mr. Martin argues, in a piece published on The Huffington Post:
Compounding this distortion is the use of the passive voice in the detailed account of these incidents. When articles or news reports go on to state that the person “died” in the context of an “officer involved shooting,” they imply or leave an impression of indeterminacy as to cause. Reports of death or disaster in the passive voice insinuate that the event was a result of some natural cause or inevitable chain of events. The victim in the shooting did not mysteriously die, he was killed, and there was a specific agent and cause of his violent death. To say that he died in this passive voice is to disguise both the cause and agency of the killing, and is thus misleading. Consider the difference in tone and implication of the sentence “A policeman shot and killed John Doe,” as compared to “John Doe died in an officer-involved shooting.”
Now, to be clear, this has absolutely nothing to do with justification. Many police shootings are justified. Many may not be. There are arguments to be made about the legal standards in place for justification. But none of that is relevant to the language used to report the basic facts about these shootings. Some may wonder whether the media’s use of language reflects efforts to be “objective” or “neutral” on the issue of legal culpability for the shooting. But this is wrong. Whether it was justified or not, the police shot and killed a person, and any uncertainty over the legal or moral basis for that act ought not to impact on how the fact itself is reported.
I strive for clear and plain language in my practice of journalism.
A fire is a fire, as I say. I don’t use terms such as blaze or inferno as synonyms for fire. I use adjectives to describe the fire.
Why? Because clear language is important especially when much of my communication is done 140 characters at a time.
Is using “police-involved shooting” instead of “police shooting” contrary to my practice practice of using direct and clear language? Yes.
I have a responsibility to use language that is not prejudicial and the common use of “police-involved” by other media may create the impression that I’m making a judgement on the justification of the shooting.
I’m going to weight these factors and make a decision before the next time I write about police shooting incident.
I’m weight towards “police shooting” and making clear in my writing the laws governing police use-of-force.


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City to Release Video of Lloyd Ferguson Incident – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

July 6, 2015
In response to Freedom of Information requests from The Hamilton Spectator and CHCH Television, with a supporting FOI filing from myself, the City of Hamilton plans to release video of the incident in which Councillor Lloyd Ferguson used physical force against me on February 26, 2014.
The video will be released on July 29, 2015.
The City initially denied FOI requests for the video, citing privacy reasons.
I filed my own FOI supporting the request of The Hamilton Spectator and CHCH, and to ensure I clearly waived any privacy considerations for my being in the video.
At present, there are two significantly differing versions of what occurred. The release of the video will allow you to determine what actually happened and the truth.
Councillor Ferguson claims his actions were excusable because I was “eavesdropping” on a private conversation, that Councillor Ferguson had politely and calmly asked me twice to move, that after giving time for me to move, Councillor Ferguson calmly and gently moved me only three feet, and that I overreacted to Councillor Ferguson’s actions.
Former Integrity Commissioner Earl Basse’s report on the incident includes Ferguson’s comments. It has been lambasted widely for failing to interview me or any other witnesses, for having no evidence to support the allegations made against me, and for failing to include any analysis of Basse’s decision to excuse Councillor Ferguson’s actions.
What is not disputed is that Clr. Ferguson made physical contact with me.
Ontario Ombudsman Andre Marin publicly criticized the report saying it is a “model of how not to write a report”.
If #Bill8 had been in effect, I would have sent #HamOnt IC report back 2 drawing board. And not the grade 3 one it appears it was written on
— Ontario Ombudsman (@Ont_Ombudsman) February 27, 2015
Mr. Marin, who does not have oversight of municipalities until January 2016, says that if he had oversight, he sent the report back to be properly done.
My statement of events, posted shortly after the event, states that I was standing in the public foyer of the Council Chamber:
At approximately 10:45pm Wednesday evening, I was following the City’s Corporate Communications Manager to a press conference.
The conference was originally scheduled for a meeting room in the City Councillors area and was being moved into the City Manager’s Boardroom, a non-public area.
I had to follow the Manager to get into this Boardroom.
The Manager was stopped by Ward 9 Councillor Brad Clark. The two began a conversation.
I stepped back and was standing approximately three metres from their conversation, holding my tripod – with camera attached – over my right shoulder.
Behind me, from the Councillors offices, a visibly agitated Councillor Lloyd Ferguson walked in front of me saying – to either the Manager or Councillor Clark – “I need to talk to you about something”.
Immediately, Ferguson looked at me and aggressively told me to get away from the area.
Before I had a chance to move, Ferguson turned around, strongly clenched my upper right arm and shoved me with force.
He did not let go of his grip, continuing to clench me and strengthening his grip as he very angrily stated with a threatening tone that I wasn’t welcome to stand where I had been.
The City Manager Office ruled that Councillor Lloyd Ferguson was in his capacity as a Councillor when the incident occurred and the City will release the video despite the objection of a person in the video.
The City approached all parties in the video seeking their approval of the release. I’ve spoke with the City’s Communications Director Michael Kirkopoulos, former Councillor Brad Clark, and Councillor Jason Farr. All of them state they signed the release.
One person in the video is not consenting to the release and the City must wait 30 days to provide them an opportunity to appeal to a provincial tribunal.
The City plans to release the video to The Hamilton Spectator, CHCH, myself, and others who have filed Freedom of Information requests on July 29.
I wish to thank everyone who has supported me during this difficult experience. I’m humbled by the faith you’ve shown in my character and approach to journalism, especially in light of the serious allegations made.
I welcome the release of the video. It will conclusively prove that I committed none of the wrongs alleged by Councillor Ferguson.


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Council Audit, Finance, and Administration Committee for July 8, 2015 – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

July 8, 2015
Council meets for their Audit, Finance, and Administration meeting. There is one big item on the agenda, a motion to study the merits of a Municipal Land Transfer Tax.
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Council Ends Red Hill Valley Parkway Lawsuit Against Federal Government – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

July 29, 2015
It is over. After over a decade, the City of Hamilton is withdrawing its ill-fated lawsuit against the Federal Government claiming bad-faith in a federal environmental assessment order which delayed the project.
Mayor Fred Eisenberger made the announcement in a press statement this morning.
The federal government agreed to not seek costs. 18 months ago, the cost to taxpayers was already over $5.4-million with City Council’s costs just over $3-million of that amount.
City Solicitor Janice Atwood-Petkovski says the City’s incurred $141,000 in further legal costs since that date, bring the City’s total legal bill to approximately $3,150,000.
In 2012, Justice P.B. Hambly criticized the suit as experimental litigation without regard to cost:
“Counsel for the City has acted as if it had a client with inexhaustible resources to finance endless experimental litigation and that it could conduct litigation against the federal government with impunity.” (Paragraph 29)
This year, the City lost more motions and added at least $39,500 to its legal costs payable to the federal government.
Officially, Council voted in March to continue pursuing the suit during a closed session meeting. The vote was not made public.
In 2004, when the lawsuit was initially approved by Council, the vote was 8-7 in favour.
Only five of those 15 Councillors remain on Council today.
Opposed to the suit at the time were current Councillors Terry Whitehead and Sam Merulla. In favour at the time were Councillor Maria Pearson, Tom Jackson, and Chad Collins.
There are four new Councillors this term. Ward 3 Councillor Matthew Green replaced the late Bernie Morelli who voted for the suit in 2004.
We don’t know if the four new Councillors tipped the balance towards settlement or if the City had been seeking resolution under a motion from the previous term of Council.
Retired lawyer David Harvey (DISCLOSURE: Harvey is a friend of mine) wrote on his personal blog of the high legal hurdles the City of Hamilton faced in winning its lawsuit.
His assessment is the City faces a near impossibility in winning the suit.
Last Updated 10:45am.
Version history
1 (1045am): Summary opening paragraphs
2 (1105am): Added history of suit, quote from Justice P. B. Hambly, paragraph about Council turnover, possible change of position during March closed session, and link to David Harvey blog post.
3 (1110am): Added legal costs from City Solicitor


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Councillors Look at Making Pay More Transparent, Drop Tax-Free Portion – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

July 31, 2015
Hamilton City Councillors will consider dropping the 0ne-third tax-free portion of their current salaries to make it clearer exactly what they are paid in comparison to fully taxable salaries.
At present, City Councillors are paid $72,640.80 per year, and the Mayor is paid $127,284.56 with the first third tax-free.
Due to their tax-free portion, their take home pay is equivalent to $90,385.76 or $171,441.92 for a person paying tax on their full earnings.
The tax-free portion is a lost revenue to the provincial and federal governments, and is not paid by the City.
Before 2003, it was common practice across Ontario municipalities for elected officials to receive one-third of their salary tax-free.
The Municipal Act was amended in 2003 to allow municipalities to decide to eliminate the tax-free provision to make salaries more transparent by being the same as nearly all other salaries.
The Act requires Councils to vote every term on continuing the tax-free exemption.
This term, Council gave staff direction to provide a report on the cost of eliminating the exception.
Staff are recommending the exception be ended and that Councillors pay be changed to $90,385.76 and the Mayor to $171,441.92.
The change will impact councillors’ pensions, which are calculated the same as staff pensions under the Ontario Municipalities Employees Retirement System, by increasing the amount of taxable earnings used to calculate pensions.
The change will result in an increase of $1,453 to the annual pension of a Councillor for each year of service, and $3,074 for each year of service for the Mayor. (A
Mayor’s pension upon retiring after a Council career is calculated upon the average salary during their final five years)
City staff state the change will cost $434,245 annually.
Councillors will vote on this at Committee on August 6, and it will go to full Council in September.


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Dave Meslin Speaks in Hamilton on Electoral Reform – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

July 9, 2015
Famed electoral reform advocate – who Hamilton City Clerks say is the “activist” that spurred the province to review the Municipal Elections Act – Dave Meslin (@Meslin) is speaking at Hamilton City Hall tonight.
Meslin is a leading force for electoral reform in Hamilton, a renowned speaker, and leading engaged citizen in Toronto.
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Feds Award Contract for Randle Reef to Hamilton's McNally Construction – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

July 17, 2015
The Federal Government finds a bidder who can work within its budget for the remediation of Randle Reef.
The approximately $140-million project was originally put out to tender late in 2013, only to have no bids come in under the projected budget.
The project was scaled back and put back out to tender with the hope of finding a bid at or under budget.
Today, July 17, the Federal government’s procurement website says the contract is awarded to Hamilton’s McNally Construction.
Just after 11:00am, the Federal government put out a press statement announcing the awarding of three contracts for the work:
Today, the partners involved in the Randle Reef sediment remediation project are pleased to celebrate an important step forward with the awarding of three major contracts. These awards will allow the project to advance within the budget envelope, without compromising its environmental goals.
The Stage One Construction contract was awarded to McNally Construction Inc. The first stage of the project includes constructing the engineered containment facility (ECF) into which the contaminated sediment will later be placed. The contract for the reconstruction of an adjacent harbour wall, which is in poor condition and therefore necessary to allow dredging of contaminated sediments in Stage two of the project, was awarded by the Hamilton Port Authority to Dean Construction Co. Ltd. of LaSalle, ON. Work to re‑construct the harbour wall is expected to begin in September.
The Engineering Services contract was awarded to Riggs Engineering Ltd. They will work closely with the construction company and provide civil engineering services for the supervision of Stage One Construction. Preparations for ECF construction, including the development of a detailed project schedule, will begin later this year.
The bottom of the release includes quotes from various politicians hailing the announcement.
No hard dates have been provided in the backgrounder for the start of work.


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Hamilton City Council for July 2015 – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

July 10, 2015
Hamilton City Council meets to debate the committee work of the July Council week. Among the highlights are the massive Rural Zoning Bylaw changes, study of a land transfer tax, municipal elections reform, restructuring citizen advisory committees, and the Ticats stadium dispute. The Ticats stadium dispute will be dealt with in closed session.
Replay


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Hamilton City Council GIC for July 6, 2015 – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

July 6, 2015
City Council holds a full day summer GIC meeting with electoral reform, free parking for all veterans, the 2014 election review, moving the Football Hall of Fame to the stadium, and City funding for organizations on all on the agenda.
The meeting starts at 9:30am with live video here on ThePublicRecord.ca


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Hamilton Planning Committee for July 7, 2015 – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

July 7, 2015
A long Planning Committee is expected today as Councillors debate and approval a new Rural Zoning Bylaw for the entire City of Hamilton. Many delegations registered to speak, and it is expected the Bylaw will be appealed to the OMB.
Replay


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Hamilton Police Services Board for July 2015 – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

July 23, 2015
The Hamilton Police Services Board held its meeting for the month of July with reports from the Chief and the Ontario Association of Police Boards.
One of the main issues on the agenda is police “street checks”/”carding”, and the cost of policing and “retention bonuses”.


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Municipal Government Is Important, Elections Should Be Treated As Such – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

July 16, 2015
Ontario’s municipal elections need an independent organization to operate and oversee them.
The current system is a broken hodge-podge of local officials appointed by their local councillors, who become the candidates they oversee, and local Election Compliance Audit Committees who are also appointed by local councillors.
This system may work in some municipalities, but it is not a robust system that ensure that even the appearance of a conflict is prevented.
It’s time for the province to amend the Municipal Elections Act to standardize Ontario’s municipal elections by having a non-partisan body above reproach or accusation of political interference oversee them.
Elections Ontario should run our municipal elections.
Elections Ontario is a non-partisan entity. The appointment of the Chief Electoral Officer is done by the unanimous consent of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario and the independence of the office is guaranteed. No single party can fire the CEO and pressuring them is strictly forbidden – it is taboo.
Elections is what Elections Ontario does, it’s in the name. No matter where you live in Ontario, during a provincial election, you know what to expect -a consistent professionally run voting experience.
At the municipal level, it is not consistent.
Each municipal Clerk operates their elections differently, and have different standards of accountability for enforcement of election laws.
The municipality’s Clerk has many roles that are not related to elections. and they serve at the pleasure of the councillors who become candidates every four years.
The structure of the system is not robust and not above the appearance of possible interference.
In Hamilton, the City Clerk does not enforce Municipal Election Act requirements for complete finance returns and caps on maximum contributions to multiple candidates.
Instead, private individuals are required to enforce our election rules, at their own cost, applying to the Election Compliance Audit Committee for a hearing.
We’ve seen in Hamilton that the committee is not effective, and hesitant to fulfil its mandate:
“We are not corporate sheriffs. We cannot stop company A from contributing $10,000 even though the limit under the municipal act says $5000, to a particular total, and a $750 maximum per candidate,” declared Hamilton’s Election Compliance Audit Committee Ross Anderson in response to evidence of a possible violation of the rules.
Later in the same meeting, when presented undisputable evidence that a candidate spending over $10,000 is required to submit audited statements, Chair Anderson stated he was not familiar with the Municipal Elections Act.
The whole purpose of his committee is to enforce the requirements of the Act, it was a stunning statement.
Section 78 of the MEA is clear that candidates are required to submit audits, Chair Anderson suggested it was only meant to apply to successful candidates.
It is a glaring indication that the ECAC is incapable of following proper process to render a decision – much to the determent of both candidates and citizens.
Candidates who are found to be in compliance by ECAC will continue to have a cloud of doubt surrounding them because citizens cannot have full confidence in the findings.
Citizens are not well served because the entire elections oversight process must be robust and decisions of ECAC must be above reproach.
In Hamilton, two unsuccessful candidates failed to complete audits. Both were genuine in their regrets for not meeting the requirement and offered to submit audits, putting themselves at the mercy of the committee, which reserved a decision to a later date.
Other municipalities are more effective at their electoral oversight, including verifying the completion of election returns – which in the case of the two candidates who filed to include auditor’s statements for their over $10,000 campaigns would have avoided the need for ECAC.
Both candidates filed their returns prior to the deadline, and the check for completion takes minutes, and could be done before City Clerks sign off on the candidate’s declaration of truthful return. Clerks could’ve flagged the error and granted a deadline extension for both to complete their audits.
Municipalities have varying resources, some can afford to operate professional full-time elections offices, others cannot. Some municipalities fund voter information campaigns, others do not.
Municipal government is important, when it fails, people can die. Every morning, you turn on your tap water – that’s a municipal responsibility.
Yet, we don’t take electing that government as seriously as we could. We, somehow, accept 34% voter turnout in Hamilton.
It’s time for the province to step in, fund Elections Ontario to operate our municipal elections, and for serious action to be taken to increase voter knowledge and turnout before the 2018 elections.
Submit your feedback and ideas for changes to our municipal elections before July 27 to the provincial review of the Municipal Elections Act. More info on the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing website here: http://www.mah.gov.on.ca/Page11112.aspx


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NDP Rally A Full Dress Rehearsal for Fall Campaign – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

July 22, 2015
A large crowd of NDP supporters – 400 to 500 people – rallied Tuesday evening as their federal leader Tom Mulcair stopped in Hamilton as part of a pre-campaign campaign style sweep of Ontario.
Not since the 1993 election that saw the Brian Mulroney Progressive Conservative government caucus destroyed and left with only two seats in the House of Commons as the potential outcome of a federal election been open to so many possibilities. For all three official parties in the House of Commons, and the Green Party, there is much more at stake than just forming government or opposition: the future of the parties themselves could be in jeopardy if they lose their current seats.
It’s the first time that the NDP is entering the election as official opposition – interchangeably called the “government-in-waiting” or “shadow-cabinet”. The NDP is campaigning for government with reasonable expectations of winning. Sure, in the past the NDP leader was introduced as “Canada’s Next Prime Minister” but every one knew the best the NDP could hope for was a large enough third-party caucus to be heard in a minority or bare-majority Parliament.
Polls – for what they are worth, which isn’t much beyond providing a thread for narrative – are showing the NDP climbing following their decision to oppose the Harper Conservatives’ anti-Charter Bill C51.
You could see the difference as soon as the NDP announced the event – the Hamilton Convention Centre as venue. Not a union hall, the Convention Centre.
Stepping into the ballroom on the third floor, there was something different about the human backdrop behind Mulclair. This was not a typecast NDP rally. The advance team had pulled a good mix of people and didn’t try to over manufacture the visual – other than the handed out placards for cheering – there were no thunderclap sticks, but plenty of orange t-shirts.
Behind the human backdrop, a giant Canadian flag. They wanted to project that Mulcair is Prime Ministerial. They even had the lighting right – the stage was set perfectly.
Political rallies are about theatre and creating an experience that drives home a message or narrative.
The NDP could’ve bussed in more supporters, advertised more widely using targeted ads on Facebook and Twitter, and made this the defining stop of the Hamilton region campaign. They did not.
This was the full dress-rehearsal for a bigger rally during the fall campaign – Mulcair will be back to try winning Hamilton West—Ancaster—Dundas, Brant, and Niagara West. (The NDP already holds the three urban Hamilton ridings, Flamborough-Glanbrook is Conservative David Sweet’s choose riding and his campaign machine is formidable)
The NDP needed the dress-rehearsal for the fall, tonight’s performance didn’t have flaws, but the crowd wasn’t quick to respond to cues. The best comparison I can make is when the Roman Catholic Church changed the words in Mass. Roman Catholics had to change 40 years of response “and also with you” to “and with your spirit”.
For the NDP, it is “Brothers and Sisters” and the recant “Shame” that are changing in use. They are still used – the NDP isn’t betraying its roots or traditions – but not every mention of the other parties now ends with shame, not every reference to each other is brother and sister.
The NDP vernacular is reflecting the changes within the party that have occurred as society has changed. Labour is a big wing of the NDP, but it stands beside small business owners like Trevor Westerhoff who was their 2011 candidate in Ancaster—Dundas—Flamborough—Westdale.
Mulcair’s speech often hailed small businesses – the true job creators, he said – as good and contrasted them with hand-out taking big business.
Small business, middle class, better targeting of government tax breaks to benefit those who need them, more support for municipalities (‘Mayors like Fred Eisenberger’ as Mulcair named dropped), $15 per day day care, environment protection, open government, a federal minimum wage. These were some of the items in the speech.
As Mulcair paused for applauds, there were times when the crowd response was delayed – a political party wants immediate response, and will fix this for the fall when the broadcast networks are live.
The loudest applauds from the crowd came when Mulcair promised to reverse Canada Post’s decision to end door-to-door delivery – clearing an issue that touches a nerve with the NDP base in Hamilton.
Standing applauds were attempted a few times, but it wasn’t until the exit that the entire crowd joined in. Another part of the political theatre they’ll improve in fall.
Mulcair took on Prime Minister Stephen Harper citing ethics scandals, mismanagement, and failing the middle class. At the pauses, the crowd wasn’t sure if they should respond with loud cries of “shame”. The cries required someone to start and then the crowd joined in.
The NDP is no longer the party of frustration, it is as repeatedly stated, a “government-in-waiting” and the party faithful were learning their new parts in the campaign production.
Scanning the crowd of over 400 people, there was no specific demographic overwhelming the room. It was an interesting mix. You can feel their excitement – this is their campaign to win and they know it. But you could also feel the tension – they’ve made it to the championship match and they prize is so close. To place second will be a disappointment, and for many of the NDP faithful, the day that hoped for has finally arrived.
That was the interesting undercurrent of the evening, listening to the conversations among attendees as the rally dispersed. Many talking of the old battles, the days when the NDP was third party, then the 90s when the NDP was reduced to fourth party with the rise of the separatist Bloc Quebecois.
‘I’ve been waiting 40 years for this moment’, I overhead one Hamilton East NDPer say.
For younger NDPers, there is the excitement of being on a team with momentum. Some of them remember the early 2000s when the Young Liberals at McMaster were the “cool” party and the McMaster NDP struggled to attract enough members to keep club status.
This reflected the political landscape of Hamilton – the Liberals were a machine and they won handily.
Mulcair gives a great political delivery, with strong gravitas and punctuates with his body language. He stayed mostly to his script on the teleprompter. His focus was on Stephen Harper and the Conservatives, ignoring the Justin Trudeau Liberals.
Two key themes were woven in the speech – the NDP is the party of change and the NDP wants to “build the Canada of our dreams”.
It took Mulcair almost 30 minutes to get out of the room after his speech as the NDP faithful sought photos and selfies with their leader. I heard many ‘I’ve been waiting for this day’ as they spoke with Mulcair. The excitement for the faithful is real and they are motivated to give their all to the campaign.
Ambitions are high, with a small group chatting about “uniting the left” in this election, overtaking the Liberal Party as the option for Canada’s left of centre voters.
Overall, there were no flaws in the rally and the NDP campaign looks to be ready for their main-stage appearance this fall.


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Sarcoa and Noise Bylaw – The City Hall Debates Video Flashback – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

July 15, 2015
Sarcoa, the name brings to mind visuals of a nice lunch on a waterfront patio with smoothing music mixed with the sounds of the waterfront.
This is the Sarcoa most of us know from our own experiences, but it is not what the residents of the North End and Burlington’s harbour neighbourhoods experience late at night on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.
On those nights, Sarcoa changes to a night club with large crowds and loud bass-heavy music.
Neighbours in the North End have filed numerous complaints about the noise and disruption in their community.
On the other side of the harbour, residents in Aldershot state the geography and water of the harbour enhances the noise and bass from Sarcoa resulting in sleepless evenings as they houses vibrate at times.
The issue is back in the spotlight following a column by Andrew Dreschel about the ongoing matter and concerns of Burlington City Councillor Rick Craven.
Sarcoa is not zoned to operate as a nightclub and is leasing the space from the Hamilton Waterfront Trust. The Waterfront Trust, a creation of City Council, tried to claim that it was exempt from the City’s noise bylaw on the grounds that the land Sarcoa is on is owned by the Federal Government.
In 2014, facing action by the City’s Bylaw department, the Waterfront Trust applied for a change in zoning at the Committee of Adjustment.
The hearing was on August 21, 2014 and was very well attended. I attended the hearing and recorded the proceeding in their entirety.
(Werner Plessl, executive director of the Trust, and Bob Charters, chair of the Trust, attended the meeting to support Sarcoa. They moved to sit behind cameras and out of view of the public gallery. See them at 3:22 of the video.)
The application was filed by the Hamilton Waterfront Trust, which tried to distance itself from Sarcoa after the hearing. Eventually, the Waterfront Trust withdrew its application. Sarcoa representatives left the meeting declaring to Matthew Van Dongen of TheSpec they were willing to pay any fines from bylaw charges for noise violations.
The issue a major concern for the City of Burlington and was brought to joint Greater Bay Area Committee as a significant concern by Burlington’s Mayor Rick Goldring and Councillor Rick Craven. Hamilton promised “Zero Tolerance” against Sarcoa this summer.
Here’s the video from April 21, 2015:


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Town Hall on Electoral Reform With Desmond Cole – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

July 23, 2015
How do we build a fair electoral system?
Three speakers will address the issue:
Professor Karen Bird, McMaster University
Be the Vote, a youth voting initiative
Desmond Cole, writer and project co-ordinator for City Vote
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Wilson-Blanchard Moving Forward with Plans for 21 Main Street West – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

July 2, 2015
Wilson-Blanchard is planning a new 4-storey building on Main Street West behind the heritage designated Bank of Montreal building which presently houses Gowlings law firm.
The building, which will contain two floors of underground parking, will be reviewed by Hamilton’s Design Review Panel on July 9 at 4pm. The meeting, in 264 of City Hall, is open to the public. (Note: TPR will be unable to cover due to Board of Health at the same time)
The proposal is for the first floor to be commercial retail space and the upper three floors to house offices. The vacant lot owned by Wilson-Blanchard at 20 Jackson Street will be converted to provide surface parking for office tenants.
At present, the portion of the 20 Jackson lot that was previously an office tower is blocked off from parking following the demolition of the previous office building in November 2013.
Wilson-Blanchard held a pre-consultation with the City in the late spring of 2014 about a longer timeline Phase 2 development at 20 Jackson Street to build a 19-storey condominium tower attached to a 2-storey retail/office building. Currently, the City is only reviewing Phase 1 at 21 Main West.
The Design Review Panel will look at the renderings by project architects DPAI (David Premi) and provide their recommendations of changes to the design plan to City staff who will consider them at a Site Plan review meeting.
The proposal does not require any zoning changes and will not be subject to a public Planning Committee hearing. (Phase 2, if submitted as envisioned, will require a full Planning process)
I reviewed the full file of staff comments and most City departments are supportive of the Phase 1 proposal. In fact, many of the comments from urban planner were very positive.
There are two hurdles to the development – road widening and parking.
Officially, the City of Hamilton plans to expand Main Street from its presently five lanes of one-way traffic to six lanes of one-way traffic. In keeping with this City plan, the Development Engineering division is asking for a setback of the building from Main Street.
City Council is concerned that recent developments in the Downtown Core could make the City’s downtown parking “crisis” worst. At present, the City of Hamilton has a large amount of surface parking in the downtown and one of the lowest rates in Canada. Monthly surface parking can be had in the downtown for as little as $50 per month, just over half the price of a monthly bus pass.
How bad is the crisis? At peak usage, 68 percent of parking spaces are taken according to the City’s Downtown Parking Study.
Parking’s comments are odd in the context of this development which will include twice as much parking as the current surface lot by digging two stories of underground parking!
The General Manager of Economic Development and Planning has delegated authority from Council to waive the road widening requirement for Main Street.
Comments from parking are not binding upon the process and are for the consideration of the Chief Planner.
If approvals are given, this building could be constructed in 2016.


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From The Editor: The Public Record Suspends Operations, Thanks Patrons for Support – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

August 13, 2015
UPDATE – September 16, 2015 – The Public Record will relaunch.
The Public Record must suspend operations.
I cannot say thank you enough to everyone who has supported The Public Record over the years, you’ve made all that was achieved possible. You understood that local journalism – the kind written by journalists who live in the community they cover – is important and you helped fund it.
I’m no longer able to sustain The Public Record, no matter how much I desire to do so. This was a difficult decision to make but, simply put, The Public Record is unable to fulfill its goals and I’m not able to continue to operate the site.
I’m proud of how we’ve improved coverage of civic affairs in Hamilton and thankful I’ve been able to serve my community for many years. I hope to again serve the community in the future once I’ve cleared my name of the allegations made by City Council.
Covering my hometown has been the most fulfilling part of my journalism career thus far.
Sure, my work prior to returning to local journalism was great (and travelling across the world was fun), but it was being able to innovate and contribute to my community which brought me greater satisfaction that anything else I’ve done. It was the enjoyment of the work that made it easy to ignore the exhausting hours and challenges of running the business side of the operation.
To report first-hand how Hamiltonians are making our City better, to report on great people doing great things in our community, and to be part of that – I wouldn’t trade this for anything.
Even before the events of the past few months, my independent journalism was not yet sustainable and I don’t know if I would’ve been able to reach sustainability even if City Council hadn’t acted to shut down my work. I wish I could’ve found out.
I entered 2015 with a strong plan to reach sustainability by June. The Public Record was making progress towards this goal when, in February, City Council used its powers of Municipal Law against The Public Record following a widely discredited investigation by Council’s Integrity Commissioner Earl Basse that has been criticized by many including the Ontario Ombudsman Andre Marin.
I face many legal and court costs in the coming weeks as I prove my innocence against the accusations. I have a filing deadline of August 25 for my legal documents and will be spending the next two weeks completing them.
Once I get past the flurry of legal filings, I look forward to sharing my experiences of being one of the first crowdfunded journalists in the hope others can learn from my work.
At this time, I feel the bitter taste of failure. But I’m mindful that I’ve failed before, and I hope to have the opportunity to fail again. Failure can only occur when one tries to succeed.
I hope to see you all soon. I’ll be throwing a closing/thank you party once I’ve figured out what’s next for me. Someone has suggested calling a “Stag and Joe” and I suspect it will be fun.
Thank you for giving me the opportunity to serve our community,
– Joey
P.S. I’ll be posting once again on my personal website www.joeycoleman.ca
P.S.S. Here’s the video I used to explain the work involved in going live. I hope it shows just how much fun this experience has been for me.


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Hamilton City Council GIC for August 10, 2015 – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

August 10, 2015
City Council meets to discuss how to implement LRT – with many community delegations on the agenda, a report on the Mayor’s proposal for an anti-gun bylaw, replacing the tax-free portion of Councillors salary, and North End traffic at Bay and Burlington Streets.
Replay
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Hamilton Planning Committee for August 11, 2015 – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

August 11, 2015
Live video not available due to lack of internet connection in Council Chambers today.


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Relaunching The Public Record With Your Support! – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

September 16, 2015
Dear Readers, Patrons, and Friends,
Let the rebuilding and relaunch of The Public Record begin.
I hope to see you Friday night, 9pm at Mills Hardware (95 King Street East) for the official restart of The Public Record. It will be a great opportunity to chat with friends and fellow engaged Hamiltonians following the City’s sold-out Chris Hatfield event at Hamilton Place. Mills will sell the drinks and Gorilla Cheese will sell the food. I hope to you there.
Thank you for your ongoing support during this difficult time.
I’ve struggled with how to balance the necessities of legal strategy facing off against City Council and my practice of open journalism.  With this post, I’m weighting the scales in favour of my practice of being open.
There are three sections to this update: relaunching The Public Record, details on my fundraising event this Friday, and an update on the quasi-judicial Information and Privacy Commission hearing.
Here’s the main points:
The Public Record will return to City Hall on January 3, 2016 when the Ontario Ombudsman gains oversight of City Council.
When I shutdown The Public Record in August, it was because I had exhausted all avenues of continuing my work and could not maintain the site while managing legal litigation.
It was not a publicity stunt, it was a reluctant acceptance that I couldn’t do more.
I had to walk away from my dream to be part of the solution of the crisis of local journalism, to be part of the new revival of Hamilton by providing full coverage of civic affairs to enable an informed engaged citizenry, and to continue practicing journalism living in Hamilton.
Shutting down was one of the most difficult decisions I ever made.
The events of the past few weeks make it possible for me to relaunch The Public Record.
Among the development, former City Councillor Brad Clark – a witness to the February 26, 2014 assault by Lloyd Ferguson – blew the whistle and revealed the truth of why City Council targeted The Public Record:
The Public Record is forever changed by the events of the past few months. I’m forever changed.
City Council is removing both the audio feed and internet line that The Public Record used to broadcast all City Hall meetings.
This alone forces a major change – I’ll no longer be able to stream meetings. This is an opportunity to make my coverage better.
It takes on average an hour to set up for a livestream of a sub-committee and approximately 2 to 3 hours for a standing committee meeting. This is time I’ll be able to use to create highlight clips and write summaries to reach a larger audience who do not have time to watch full meetings.
I have some ideas and will discuss them at Friday’s event, I’m actively rewriting the business plan for The Public Record and I’ll have cards for how you can get involved in helping make The Public Record sustainable as Hamilton’s local public interest news outlet.
I’ll be looking to form advisory groups to assist with logistics, technology, business, and strategy of The Public Record.
I have a journalistic responsibility to return to City Hall with professionalism. My role as a journalist is to hold truth to power, and I’m not going to shy away from that responsibility. I also have a duty to be fair and impartial in holding truth to power.
City Council may accuse The Public Record of having a vendetta in an attempt to discredit my reporting. I simply won’t engage in a vendetta because it’s not why I practice journalism and I have better things to do like cover every meeting.
I plan to get back to work quickly and effectively – there no point in doing anything else and I’m a better person than that.
I’ll launch a crowdfunding campaign to fund The Public Record relaunch. The campaign will launch in late October to early November.
As I’m modifying The Public Record’s business plan and will be working with those of you who join The Public Record’s advisory groups, the campaign can only start after we’ve completed redefining how The Public Record will operate and what the new TPR looks like.
I hope you’ll support the relaunch.
I hope to see you Friday night, 9pm at Mills Hardware (95 King Street East) for the official restart of The Public Record.
Walk over after the Chris Hatfield event ends and enjoy a few drinks while chatting with other engaged Hamiltonians. Gorilla Cheese will be out front serving up their famed sandwiches and there are many other nearby food options.
I’m going to have some old friends, many of whom you may not know, on stage telling their favourite “Joey stories” for your enjoyment.
There will be a contribution box at the front door, I’m asking people to contribute $10 as an entry fee but it is definitely not mandatory.
I’d like to gauge interest for a non-partisan election night party. Depending on interest, I’ll look at various venues for the event.
On the legal front, I’m winning preliminary victories.
I have all my paperwork complete for a Judicial Review of City Council’s use of Municipal Law and the widely criticized Integrity Commissioner’s report. I’ll be asking the Superior Court of Justice to review Council’s actions and the Basse Report on the Ferguson incident.
The Judicial Review Application must await the release of the City Hall security video.
I have a separate post regarding the ongoing Information and Privacy Commission of Ontario hearing into an appeal blocking the release of security camera video of the February 26, 2014 incident.
I want the video released as the video will conclusively prove the Basse Report is false, and will prove that I was not engaged in any wrongful activities alleged by Council.
I’m spending the next few weeks working on the backend of the website, the business plan, meeting with people who’ve volunteered to help The Public Record become better, and I’ll be covering some community events as time allows.
The unfortunate reality is that I have to spend a great deal of time on the various legal matters and that will limit my coverage.
I’ve been able to find some time to research a feature I’ve wish to write for a long time – a brief history of Burlington’s La Salle Park and how the City of Hamilton came to own one of Burlington’s best parks. The ownership of La Salle Park is an ongoing point of contention between our two cities and an interesting historic quirk. I’ve found my research into the park to be fascinating and look forward to sharing the story with you in the near future.
Thank you again for your ongoing support,
Joey

created: September 16, 2015


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The Alex Johnstone Controversy: Making Sense of It, and How She Can Still Win in HWAD – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

September 25, 2015
Hamilton West Ancaster Dundas NDP candidate Alex Johnstone, who is also Vice Chair of the Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board, is making headlines for all the wrong reasons.
The headlines are generated by a mixture of legitimate concern about a 32-year-old candidate who didn’t know about the Auschwitz death camp, partisan positioning, a social media pile-on which is generating significant traffic for media outlets, and an election campaign that’s the longest in Canadian history at a time where our public attention span seems to be at its shortest.
It all started Monday with a faux-controversy about a comment she posted in 2008 on a friend Facebook photo of a fence post at the death camp
“Ahhh, the infamous Pollish, phallic, hydro posts … of course you took pictures of this! It expresses the how the curve is normal, natural, and healthy right!” – Alex Johnstone in 2008 on a friend’s Facebook photo.
A day after the faux controversy, Johnstone tells Andrew Dreschel of The Hamilton Spectator:
“Well, I didn’t know what Auschwitz was, or I didn’t up until today” – Alex Johnstone on Tuesday, September 22, 2015
The Hamilton Spectator published their story late Wednesday afternoon.
What followed a perfect storm leading to an online feeding frenzy – this is easily the most read and widely reported political story in Hamilton’s history (and sadly one of the least important) – as a gap in leaders campaigning in the lead-up to Thursday night’s French debate opened a news hole that Johnstone’s comment filled.
By Wednesday’s prime time newscasts, the controversy was the top story on numerous news websites and spreading rapidly among the country’s political journalists and pundits. As I finish this post early Friday morning, the story has spread to Australia and into other languages as Continental European newspapers pick it up.
The controversy is real, but is it really deserving of world attention? No.
Should it be the top story in the Canadian election? No.
Does it deserve to be considered by voters in Hamilton West Ancaster Dundas? Yes, but voters should be weighting her platform and record significantly more than a gap in her history credentials.
Will it impact her chances of being elected? Yes, the question is will it be positive or negative? I’m not sure which, while the controversy is bad publicity in the short-term, the amount of negative worldwide publicity may neutralize the controversy as it is completely disproportionate to the perceived offense.
@RandazzoPaula @LauraBabcock the general pile-on has been a bit much even to this editorial cartoonist
— Graeme MacKay (@mackaycartoons) September 25, 2015
It started seemingly common enough – someone finds a social media comment made years ago by a candidate.
The second act follow the script – the candidate apologizes for the comment, the media notes that it happened years ago, and the story itself starts to fade into the background as the 24/7 news cycle moves forward. There’s some discussion about what the statute of limitations should be for social media comments, and then the candidate is in the clear. The show should have been over.
Attention was recently drawn to a comment I posted on social media seven years ago. While never intending any malice,…
Posted by Alex Johnstone on Tuesday, 22 September 2015
Then Johnstone takes this non-story and turned it into the international sensation it became.
Now, all Johnstone can hope people will move onto other issues and the hangover of gouging on this story will leave people reconsidering the narrative. (Exhibit A of reconsideration here)
When I read the quote attributed to Johnstone, I was stunned. I immediately tried to find an explanation, any explanation rather than accept the possibility she was stating the truth.
How is it possible for anyone born and raised in our society to not be aware of Auschwitz? Is it even possible? Was Johnstone taken out of context? Was there a legitimate misunderstanding in the question and answer between the journalist and Johnstone? Was Johnstone lying or playing stupid? Why would Johnstone say this?
The original photo and comment have been removed from Facebook since the controversy erupted. However, the context of Johnstone’s comment give her stunning statement credibility. She knew her friend was in Poland and the photo could be seen as a weird hydro pole – she didn’t seem to know it was Auschwitz.
To counter this, her thesis, Beyond Professional Affiliation: Race, Class & Gender Dynamics in Interdisciplinary Teams, makes her statement regarding Auschwitz even harder to believe. How could someone school in social justice not be aware of one of history’s greatest injustices?
I literally cannot fathom growing up and existing in this society and not having heard the word Auschwitz, tho.
— kady o'malley (@kady) September 23, 2015
I’ve observed Johnstone since she started chasing public office in Hamilton nearly six years ago. In the past, she’s responded to controversy by stating she only just became aware of the issues – it’s a common non-answer answer from politicians in Hamilton. (They promise to get back to you, but they rarely do.)
This doesn’t seem to be the case in this instance. Each time she’s dodged a question, she’s done so with a short non-answer that sounds believable to the casual observer.
“Well, I didn’t know what Auschwitz was, or I didn’t up until today”
This is a direct answer.
I want to believe she choose to mislead, she choose to claim ignorance, anything to not have to accept the facts as I see them.
The truth is hard to grasp, but it is the truth: Johnstone didn’t know about Auschwitz until this week and she was honest about it.
"I'll take 20th Century History for $1,000, Alex." http://t.co/xOiJsrTYpG
— Glen McGregor 🐘 (@glen_mcgregor) September 23, 2015
Ignorance seems to be the word that is sticking on social media.
While I prefer it over stupidity, ignorance doesn’t seem accurate. There is no formal requirement for a candidate for Parliament to know the names of the individual Nazi death camps.
This isn’t pop culture trivia, Auschwitz is important and the most infamous of the Nazi death camps but knowledge of its name isn’t a requirement to understand the horrors of the Holocaust. She should know Auschwitz, but she didn’t. Johnstone knows what the Holocaust is, participates in its remembrance, and is promising to improve her knowledge of this horrible chapter of history.
The Nazi death camps cannot be forgotten. Learning about them is a requirement of our elementary and secondary curriculum in Ontario.
I’ve struggled to find a word, but I can’t think of one common to my vocabulary that fits this situation. What definitely doesn’t fit and are offensive are words such as stupid, bimbo, and the whole lot of personal attacks being launched against Johnstone.
The best name I can attach to this? Human
Somehow, she didn’t know Auschwitz by name.
I worry for Johnstone’s well-being in this firestorm. I’m assured by the strong support I see local NDP stewards publicly showing for her.
She wants to be in public office, it is her goal. I’ve never seen her not campaigning for votes, building her alliances within the NDP, growing her profile within the community. She’s not going to disappear from Hamilton’s political scene.
There is little chance she’ll be stepping aside from her leadership roles as a School Board Trustee.
I don’t see how she recovers from this, I know she won’t stop trying to recover. I fully expect she’ll be back in 2018 running for either Council or Provincial Parliament.
She may still win her current race for the AWAD seat.
Johnstone’s style of politics is well suited to the challenge of overcoming this controversy before election day. She doesn’t want to convince someone to vote for her who isn’t likely to, she focuses on getting her base to the polling station and their ballot in the box.
You don’t win elections by getting the majority of votes, victory is getting more votes that any other single opponent.
In the community and at the door, Johnstone is merciless in identifying her supporters and quickly getting out of conversations with non-supporters. She covers more ground than her opponents because they lose time trying to convince a voter to see their viewpoint and to vote for them, even when it is in vain.
If she gets back out canvassing, the NDP will have a strong voters list for Election Day – she’ll focus almost exclusively on identifying her voters.
This may sound like a criticism, it is not. This is how Johnstone can win this election.
A strong voters list and an even stronger election day operation can savage victory for Johnstone.
She has lost a key asset in her campaign: A visit by NDP leader Thomas Mulcair to boost her campaign is now out of the question.
Hamilton Centre, Hamilton East – Stoney Creek, Hamilton Mountain are safe NDP seats.
The candidates in these three ridings do not need the profile of a visit from NDP Leader Thomas Mulcair to rally their campaign teams and are not in need of media coverage to boost their name recognition – the impact of this is limited to one seat.
https://twitter.com/votetassi/status/647085689583091712
For local Liberals, this is the opportunity they needed – the national campaign will increase resources to the Filomena Tassi campaign. In a minority Parliament, every seat counts. The national campaign already added resources to the HWAD campaign, this controversy means the Liberals have an opportunity to seize momentum from the NDP as the Johnstone campaign is effectively suspended.
Longer term, the Liberals gaining a seat in Hamilton is significant. The Liberals lost all their Hamilton seats in 2006 and have been unable to mount a close campaign in Hamilton since then. Other than former Flamborough Mayor Ted McMeekin at Queen’s Park, there are no elected Liberals in Hamilton.
Both David Christopherson and Wayne Marston could retire after this term, leaving both Hamilton Centre and Hamilton East – Stoney Creek as potential open seats. A Liberal MP in HWAD means a higher profile for the local Liberals, an improved ability to raise funds, and a stronger riding association that can support other local candidates in 2018, or earlier if the result of this election is a minority government.
This could be the longer impact of this controversy – a shift in the power struggle between the NDP and Liberals.
Johnstone is taking advice from the NDP national campaign at this point. Any wise political strategist will tell her to avoid media opportunities and stay out of the public eye until after this controversy peaks.
She doesn’t get to choose how to win, she only gets to manage her losses.
Meanwhile, some of her supporters are trying to rally against the controversy. They must be careful to not restart the controversy – support for Johnstone is useful, criticisms of others roles in the controversy will not be.
Alex Johnstone created this controversy. It wasn’t the other parties, the media, or even the frat-boyish website that dug up the 2008 Facebook post.
The controversy isn’t the Facebook post, it’s Johnstone’s statement.
My advice: Make Johnstone human, have her take full responsibility for her comments, and let the pendulum of public opinion swing back from this current overreaction to Johnstone’s longer term favour.
People are starting to suffer social media hangovers, offer them the best brunch choice.
And yes, this means letting Liberal tweets like this one slide:
Did you know the Hamilton District School Board helps sponsor a wonderful local Holocaust Education Program? #hamont #hwad #dundas #onpoli
— Ted McMeekin (@TedMcMeekin) September 25, 2015

created: September 25, 2015


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City: No Formal Application for Future of Mount St. Joseph Site – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

October 26, 2015
The City’s Planning Division says there is no formal application for the redevelopment of the now-former Mount St. Joseph site at 354 King Street West.  Ann Lamanes, spokesperson for the Planning and Economic Development Department, confirmed by email in response to questions from The Public Record.
The City’s Chief Planner Robichaud said, though Lamanes, that the site is subject to the  Interim Control By-Law passed by Council this month along the LRT corridor and the existing parking on the property cannot be expanded onto the demolished building footprint.
The ICBL prevents the expansion of low-density uses which will be incompatible with LRT economic development plans.
In a follow-up email, The Public Record asked if there are any loopholes similar to those used to create the “legal non-conforming” parking lot to the north of this site on Queen Street North in 2012. Robichaud confirmed there are no loopholes.
The owner of the building, Darko Vranich’s King West Crossing Inc., began demolition of the building on Saturday – much to the surprise of the local neighbourhood association.
The demolition came only weeks prior to the expiry of a demolition permit issued for the site in November 2014.
The permit was applied for on October 7, 2014.
For some reasons, which City staff never explained, the application was not properly reported to the Hamilton Municipal Heritage Committee on October 16, 2014.
As a result, the permit was issued without any public knowledge during the Council election recess and only came to public attention on November 12, 2014. Demolition permits cannot be revoked, leaving the building without protection and the neighbourhood outraged.
The building was only listed as being of heritage interest and was not on the Heritage Interest Registry. Being outside of the Downtown Core Boundary, which ends at Queen Street, the building was not protected from demolition.
During the Municipal Heritage Committee meeting on January 22, 2015, a rendering of a proposal for two 22-storey condominium buildings on the site with distributed to the committee. One of the proposed buildings integrated the now-demolished building at its base.
This proposal was not submitted formally to the City and was distributed as part of efforts by the Heritage Committee, which includes Ward 1 Councillor Aidan Johnson as a member, to find a solution to fund the preservation of the nearly 80-year-old building.
The demolition will significantly decrease property taxes on the site. The change in property taxes will be reflected in either the Winter or Spring quarterly tax adjustment report to Council.
The Public Record will monitor for this update and for any formal applications to redevelop the site.

created: October 26, 2015


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Hamilton Town Hall on Carding – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

October 5, 2015
Replay video of Hamilton’s Town Hall into the police practice of carding.

created: October 5, 2015


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City Releases Partial Video of Ferguson Physical Altercation, Half of Video Not Preserved – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

November 23, 2015
It’s only 15 seconds partially preserved video of the incident where Councillor Ferguson violently grabbed journalist Joey Coleman, but it is clear enough to prove the Basse Report false, to prove Councillor Ferguson was unjustified in his use of physical violence, that Coleman was standing where he should be in City Hall – the public foyer outside the media room -, and that Councillor Ferguson violated the City’s Zero Tolerance for Violence Policy.
Here’s description of the video from a outside party, Ryan McGreal of Raise The Hammer:
In the video, which runs for only 15 seconds and has no audio, Councillor Ferguson is seen walking up to City Communications Manager Mike Kirkopoulos and former Ward 9 Councillor Brad Clark to talk to them, while Coleman is walking into the lobby.
Coleman walks up to the group, and immediately Ferguson turns around to his left, leans forward, grabs Coleman’s left shoulder with his right hand and pushes him backwards. Coleman’s foot slides from the force of the push.
Ferguson starts to move away, and then swings back around and points his finger twice in Coleman’s face before the video ends.
The City of Hamilton, following repeated Freedom of Information Requests, has released a partial security video of the incident on February 26, 2014 when Councillor Lloyd Ferguson grabbed The Public Record’s Joey Coleman after becoming angry about a vote in the Council Chamber and objecting to The Public Record’s coverage of the Accountability and Transparency Committee
The City only preserved 15 seconds of video.
The video shows the beginning of the incident, but ends during the middle of the altercation. As the video ends, Councillor Ferguson is approaching Coleman a second time and Councillor Farr is moving to intervene.
The video does not show Ferguson’s second physical grab, Farr’s intervention, or Ferguson being removed by other Councillors. Despite there being numerous cameras in the foyer, the City did not preserve video from any of the other cameras.
The day after the incident, Councillor Brad Clark confirmed there were two pushes and a second part to the confrontation.

created: November 23, 2015