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Council’s Planning Committee Votes 4-2 for Quicker Encampment Evictions – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

March 27, 2022
Ward 2 Clr Jason Farr wants the City’s staff and Hamilton Police to remove homeless encampments immediately upon the City learning about a new one, within 12 to 72 hours of the City becoming aware of an encampment.
On Tuesday, he succeeded in passing a motion that calls for enforcement seven days per week, including Sundays.
Farr’s motion passed 4-2, with Farr, Ferguson, Johnson, and Pearson in favour. Wilson and Danko voted opposed.
Hamilton’s Municipal Bylaw Enforcement Director, and the Director of Housing, both stated the new policy direction, if approved by Council, will result in city staff providing quicker notification to the Hamilton Police Service.
However, they stated the City cannot direct police enforcement operations and it does not guarantee police will increase the priority of support to city officials who clear encampments.
The planning committee meeting began with Clr Lloyd Ferguson challenging allowing delegations on the motion.
“I see there’s some 45 delegations requested,” Ferguson stated. “If they take five minutes each with a question that’s around four hours,” adding, many of “names look very familiar to me.”
Ferugson asked the meeting clerk to “make sure that we’re hearing something new as required under our rules of order, because four hours is a long time to sit here if we’re going to hear the same thing over again over and over again.”
As Chair of Planning Committee, Clr Brenda Johnson handled a few tense moments during the 37 delegations, including cutting microphones on occasion.
“Too many lives and all of our community relationships are at stake every single time the city commits, and recommits to violence instead of meaningful supports and investments,” delegate Vic Wojciechowska told councillors. “I’m running out of words to try and convince you into compassion into care into transformative policies that choose life for people.”
Members of the Hamilton Encampment Support Network, Wojciechowska among them, filmed their delegation videos at various locations where the City removed homeless individuals and encampments.
Other delegates state the City should not remove encampments until it provides safe housing and shelter options that fulfil people’s needs.
“There are variants of COVID-19 still around,” stated Jim Quinn. He said the City should stop “removing people from encampments and forcing them into shelters where they risk infection.”
Quinn added, “shelters do not allow houseless people to have pets and separating them from this support is harmful.”
“I know that there’s a camping bylaw, and that’s what we’re talking about. But I would argue that these people are not camping,” Quinn continued. “They’re trying to protect their lives … trying to avoid inclement weather. They’re living in small communities for friendship and safety. And they look out for each other in these settings.”
Delegate Wynne Baker directed a comment at Ward 2 Clr Jason Farr, stating, “Your willingness to advocate for your constituents is contingent on them having an address Councillor Farr.”
[Watch on YouTube]
Chair Johnson intervened, “I’m sorry, I’m going to have to interrupt you, please. You speak through the chair. You don’t point out anyone, with all due respect.”
Farr called a point of order, “I would also argue vehemently that what has been just stated is completely inaccurate and the record …”
Johnson interjected at this point, stating, “Stop the argument. This is not a debate.”
Baker continued “I would like to remind the councillor that he works for us, we pay his wages and we vote him in and this is a performance review.”
Eventually, Farr called another point of order. Baker and Farr began to debate.
Johnson directed the Legislative Assistant running the video meeting to “cut their mics please.” The two were silenced.
Addressing all waiting delegates, “Going forward, you are going to keep this respectful you are going to speak to me and not to anyone else. We are not going to make this personal.”
Delegate Joanna Aitcheson stated, “these meetings are an example of a white supremacist ladder climbing and another kind of controlling of people and I’ve frankly had enough of it.”
Clrs John-Paul Danko and Johnson both object to being referred to as white supremacists.
Aitcheson responded, “not saying that as an individual, anyone here is a white supremacist, but the amount of fragility that it must take to hear that and to take that into your own personal as a personal attack speaks to the fact that work needs to be done here. ”
Delegate Sarah Imrisek displayed the photo of her ex-husband John, “he died homeless,” she stated to councillors.
“He was living and staying at a homeless shelter at the time of his death. And I put him up there to explain how I became educated about the problems that people face.”
“John was a renovation carpenter who became addicted to prescription oxycontin during the big oxy push,” she stated that once his Doctor began pulling back on his prescription, John began buying pills from “non-official health sources.”
This “escalated into a really bad addiction that I couldn’t continue to support him through.”
Imrisek described how the medical system failed him.
“He came from a good family, his father was a judge,” she continued, it “could have been any of us.”
“When people end up in encampments, it is because they do not have other choices.”
Imrisek asked councillors to “not to harass them and take their last belongings away.” She added, “trying to sweep it under the rug” is not a “real solution” to homelessness.
She stated John “was robbed multiple times in shelters. He had conflicts with the staff. There were a lot of reasons why that was not a very safe place for him.”
Other delegates described the unaffordability of housing in Hamilton, especially for those who rely upon Ontario Works and the Ontario Disability Assistance Program for their income.
Clr Farr began the Council debating saying his motion is necessary because he is hearing “ongoing concerns from residents and businesses” in Ward 2 asking “why encampments are growing? Why are they remaining entrenched?”.
Farr says people want Council to enforce bylaws prohibiting camping.
“We cannot be the only city with an enforcement process that often results in encampments entrenched in parks, every competitive city I corresponded with, enforces their bylaw within a few days or sooner,” Farr stated.
He stated the previous encampment protocol, which Council ended during an emergency no-notice meeting on August 9, 2021, “was a disaster in many of my parks.”
The protocol limited where encampments were located, and capped the size of encampments at five tents.
Farr says Hamilton is doing more to assist homeless people than other cities.
“We are nationally recognized with our work on housing and homelessness,” Farr stated for “an effort unmatched anywhere else. Nobody went as long, nobody tried as hard, in no other community.”
Beginning his remarks, Clr Danko stated that he opposed ending the encampment protocol and appreciated the delegates genuinely care about those experiencing homelessness.
Danko said he “heard a lot of what I feel are really unfair characterizations of both the Ward Councillor and Council as a whole.”
One of the themes Danko stated he observed was the “idea that encampments are benign” and a “tendency to gloss over some of the really true issues in terms of community safety and the impacts on neighbourhoods.”
He stated he could not support Farr’s motion because of concern that councillors are “getting involved in operational issues” and directed enforcement could “lead to confrontations, as we’ve already seen.”
“I really don’t want to be seen or to have any part in directing operations.”
Farr told his fellow councillors they must act to end incidents related to encampments.
“We can’t avoid the conversation of what these impacts are,” he said. “140 plus fires in our neighbourhood parks for the most part, a kid exposed by a homeless gentleman, and a mother told that F-off when bringing it up with the individual, the public sex, the drugs, the crimes of all sorts, on and off encampment sites, the violence, the public urination and defecation the all-night parties, and there’s lots of those, threats that have occurred and on and on and on.”
During the debate which followed the delegations, Clr Maureen Wilson revealed city staff informed councillors last week, in a non-public email, the General Manager of Healthy and Safe Communities advised Council “that we were at capacity in our shelter system for families.”
The City did not disclose this information to the public.
Ward 8 Clr John-Paul Danko opened his remarks reminding watchers he supported the previous encampment protocol, ” respecting that the majority of council did make that decision to revoke that and then move forward with enforcement”
“Listening to the delegates today, it’s pretty clear that there’s a lot of genuine care in the community, but also heard a lot of what I feel are really unfair characterizations of both the Ward Councillor and Council as a whole,” Danko states.
During questioning, city staff were asked how the motion would impact the separate work of housing support outreach efforts and bylaw enforcement.
Edward John, Director of Housing, says “Obviously, trying to do more in a shorter period of time is a challenge.”
He stated he “will have to monitor as to what staffing pressures that puts upon staff to achieve those timelines and what that means for the engagement process.”
Monica Ciriello, Director, Licensing and By-law Services, stated the chance does “not substantially change the process we will be following” and that it gives “a little bit more direction to timeframes in order to achieve compliance”.
Homelessness and encampments are a challenge across North America at present.
Kitchener has an encampment that has grown to “nearly 20 people”, New York City’s Mayor announced plans to clear encampments, while Louisville in the US state of Kentucky is opening a “secure outdoor space” with insulated tents, portable washrooms, and showers.
Later in the meeting, after the 4-2 encampment vote, councillors unanimously approved
Demolition Control By-law exemption for a rapid housing initiative at 221-223 Charlton Avenue East that will create 17 new units of affordable housing.


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Election Notepad Day T-231 – Candidate Updates: Jeff Beattie Returns, and Loomis is a Free Agent – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

March 7, 2022
Jeff Beattie, the third-place finisher in 2018, announced he will run again in Ward 10 for City Council.
Beattie, who was the public school board trustee for Wards 9 & 10 during the 2014-2018 term, is the proprietor of Winona Gardens. Both his mother, Georgina, and his father, Stewart, served in elected office in the former Stoney Creek Council and former Wentworth County Board of Education.
In 2018, Beattie won the polls of Winona (eastern Stoney Creek) but had a weaker showing in the other areas of the ward.
While placing third, he enjoyed the most cost-effective campaign of the four candidates, spending $5.18 per vote ($13,957.90, 2692 votes).
Second place finisher Louie Milojevic spent $6.40 per vote ($19,148.68, 2990 votes) and winner Maria Pearson spent $5.99 per vote ($23,895.59, 3988 votes).
Second place finisher Milojevic has not yet declared his intentions for the upcoming election.
Beattie announced his candidacy in a short handheld smartphone video, filmed in Ferris Park which is near the western border of Ward 10.
Noting everyone knows his family business is at Fifty Road and Highway 8, Beattie states, “Now, back to Ferris Park see, over 20 years ago, I bought my first house and started my family just over there on Millen road. So first park is where I used to bring my daughter to play there’s a playground right over there. He used to walk my dog on the pathway used to go buy milk at the mill and variety. And that is something that not a lot of people might know about me, you know about my history in Winona, five generations in one place, but there’s a lot more to the story.”
A smart start to the campaign.
Incumbent Maria Pearson was not seen as overly vulnerable to defeat in 2018, but having won by a narrow margin of 36.34% against three stronger challengers.
Pearson’s 2018 victory is a classic example of the “coordination problem” when voters do not know which challenger is most likely to defeat an incumbent.
More discussion of the coordination problem in a future piece.
“Good morning, this is me on my very first workday post my almost nine-year tenure at the Hamilton Chamber of Commerce,” opened Keanin Loomis in a video clip posted to Twitter Monday morning.
In the minute-long clip, Loomis begins his transition out of the role of Chamber CEO into being a candidate for Mayor of Hamilton.
“Over the course of my nine years as the voice of business at the Chamber. I was always very cognizant of staying within my lane as well. It was never about me it was about the organization, about our members and the work we were doing for our members. However, now that I’m transitioning to being a candidate as of May 2nd, obviously, the expectations will be that I will be sharing more of my thoughts and as well as the platform that we develop over the course of the year as well. It will be expected that I will have comment on a much broader range of issues.”
Loomis is positioning to announce his own platform and to address some of the concerns expressed from those of a left-wing political persuasion regarding Chamber positions on things such as minimum wage. [Loomis discussed these issues in an OShow interview in late January.]
The video was viewed around 2000 times during Monday.
Loomis’ campaign team is still coming together and it seems he has yet to obtain a political communications advisor.
He ends the short message stating “Bear with me as I grow my voice over the course of the year but I really look forward to connecting with you, my Hamilton neighbours.”
A political communications advisor would encourage a memorable and optimistic message which remains with the listener.
It is early, this is not a gaffe, and it does not matter. Noteworthy to watch as the campaign develops.

source: news-thepublicrecord

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


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Former Mayor Bob Bratina Running for Mayor in the 2022 Municipal Election – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

March 28, 2022
Former Mayor Bob Bratina announced today that he is running again for mayor of Hamilton. Bratina, who served as mayor from 2010 to 2014, announced on radio station CHML where he was a morning host for decades.
“The world has changed a lot,” Bratina stated. “You’re gonna look at the February 24 invasion of Ukraine and the instability throughout the world that that has caused.”
Bratina says affordability will be a focus of his campaign.
“It’s having an effect here in Hamilton,” he said. “Of course with the price of the gas pumps, and there are a whole lot of issues of affordability that are confronting Hamiltonians.”
He says he will hold the line on tax increases as mayor, as he did during his term.
Bratina stated tax increases averaged 1.3% over his four years.
[This is correct, the 2011 increase was 0.8%, 2012 was 0.9%, 2013 was 1.9%, 2014 was 1.5%, an average of 1.275%.]
Bratina says “coming from immigrant parents who live within their means” guides his approach to finances.
“If you apply the basic principles of running a household to a city, you can make sure that the money that you are spending is well-spent value for tax money.”
Asked by host Scott Radley what becomes of the Light Rail Transit project if he is elected Mayor?
Radley noted Bratina decided against seeking re-election as a Liberal MP in protest of the federal Liberal government funding the project.
Bratina responded, “s the mayor under our system, I have one vote, Council will continue to deal with the issues of the LRT as they come along.”
Bratina expressed concerns about rising construction costs and how they could increase the cost of the LRT project.
“We need to look at a Plan B, just in case circumstances force the government to make other decisions,” he stated.
[The LRT agreement states the provincial government is responsible for any increased costs beyond the original budget]
He says LRT will not serve the entire city.
“Looking at these gas prices, there are more people who will now have to or want to choose transit if it’s available,” he stated.
Radley asked about Bratina’s relationships with councillors during his term as Mayor, “It wasn’t always smooth sailing.”
Bratina responded that he voted with the majority of council “something like 85 percent of the time.”
“It was a time on Council of personal attacks. When we stuck to the business of the city, things worked very well,” he continued. “We had some very large personalities, some of whom will not be there anymore.”
Council voted to have the Integrity Commissioner investigate Bratina for an incident on April 24, 2013, when Bratain approached City Manager Chris Murray in disagreement over Murray’s professional opinion on the meaning of wording regarding a motion related to LRT project.
Radley said, “there are those out there on social media” saying “it’s time for some new thoughts, new blood, new ideas on council, not recycled ideas or bringing people back. What do you say to that?”
Bratina responded “It’s a fair comment. But remember, there are going to be many new councillors” and they “will bring forward their new ideas … good ideas.”
He says “a Council in this time of instability needs a veteran hand at the tiller” and he is more experienced following his time as a federal Member of Parliament.
Bratina listed federal funding to Hamilton during his time as MP.
“There’s something about having lived experience that will amplify and benefit, youthful approaches and new ideas. So we can all work together and come to a happy result if we work with the sole intention of creating benefits for the City of Hamilton.”
Bratina says he plans to run a positive campaign.
Former Hamilton Chamber of Commerce President Keanin Loomis announced his mayoral plans on January 19.
Mayor Fred Eisenberger states he will announce his intentions at a later date, saying he is focused on his work as the current Mayor.


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Hamilton Announces Details For Voting By Mail in 2022’s Municipal Election – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

March 28, 2022
Hamiltonians will be able to vote by mail in the October municipal election after the City of Hamilton added the option in response to the COVID pandemic.
The City says people will be able to request mail ballots using an online form between September 1st and 22nd using an online form on the City of Hamilton website.
All mail ballots must arrive at City Hall by election day, October 22, to be counted.
The mail ballot packages will include a prepaid postage return envelope.
People can also drop their ballots at City Hall.
More information on the City of Hamilton elections website here.


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Hamilton Board of Health for March 21, 2022 – Roundup – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

March 25, 2022
Council was updated on the public health division’s projections for COVID this spring, asked public health to reverse their plan to remove beach water condition signs from Hamilton’s seven public beaches, and listened to a salient delegation from a young woman whose father died during the early months of the COVID pandemic.
Council heard a moving delegation from Carleton University Master’s student Kayla Hagerty.
“I’m here to represent over 24,000 Canadians that have lost their lives to opioid-related overdose deaths since January 2016.” Hagerty began, pausing, before saying, “One of which was my father, Ian Harrington, who passed away in May 2020. I’m sorry.”
Hagerty held back emotion as she spoke of her father’s death, and shared her research into overdose deaths during the pandemic, calling on Hamilton City Council to endorse decriminalizing simple possession of drugs and to increase public health programs to support those with addictions.
Council members spoke eloquently in response, committing to vote on decriminalization. and to continue efforts to open more safe consumption sites.
Full story, with more quotes, on The Public Record here.
Hagerty produced and directed a documentary entitled How the COVID-19 Pandemic Affected the Pre-existing Opioid Epidemic in Canada. It is dedicated to her father’s memory.
It can be viewed in its entirety on YouTube here.
Hamilton’s latest COVID projection is that cases will increase during coming weeks, with a “small swell in hospitalizations”, Hamilton’s Medical Officer of Health Dr. Elizabeth Richardson stated. Hamilton Public Health is beginning to focus upon addressing a backlog of work in other areas of public health.
Presently, there is a big push to get vaccinations caught up for teenagers who usually receive in-school vaccinations during Grades 7 & 8.
The Council discussion of COVID touched all the points about the benefits of masking, concerns about healthcare capacity, and the phases for reopening of in-person services offered by the City of Hamilton.
The head of Hamilton’s public health inspections announced last week that he was removing beach safe/unsafe water conditions signs from Hamilton’s seven public beaches.
City of Hamilton’s Director of Healthy Environments Kevin McDonald wrote the City is only required to post beach conditions on its website, not at beaches, and signs stating water is unsafe for swimming “creates an unfavourable image of City of Hamilton public beaches.”
At Board of Health, Council voted to ask staff to not remove the signs.
Additionally, in response to a letter from the Lakewood Beach Community Council, City Council is asking staff to review an unlisted beach on Lake Ontario between Millen Road and Green Road should be added to the City’s list of public beaches and the water there tested weekly.
Council accepted a report from Hamilton Medical Officer of Health Dr. Elizabeth Richardson notifying them of her decision to end COVID requirements in Hamilton’s high-rise residential buildings. The requirements were implemented following multiple COVID outbreaks in apartment buildings during the summer of 2021, and included common sense measures such as daily cleaning of common areas.
After 12 years as one of Hamilton’s Associate Medical Officers of Health, Dr. Ninh Tran left the City last week. The Doctor is now the Medical Officer of Health for Oxford, Elgin & St. Thomas.
During his tenure in Hamilton, Dr. Tran responded to a wide range of public health events and challenges.
He also answered questions from Terry Whitehead, such as if the world will end in 2031. Here’s the video clip from 2019.


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Hamilton Business Improvement Area Advisory Committee Roundup for March 2022 – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

March 27, 2022
The City of Hamilton is looking to review the procedures and the work involved in the free Christmas season parking program for Hamilton’s business improvement areas.
Amanda Mcilveen, Manager, Parking Operations, says the present process of manually changing parking metres is an “operational challenge” because it takes “four or five staff members off the road and off their regular duties” to insert blockers into metres.
The process takes up to 10 days to install, and another 10 days to remove, Mcilveen stated.
This “results in an additional 10 days worth of free parking in some BIA areas.”
Mcilveen asked the staff of Hamilton’s various BIAs for feedback on how to manage the over 20-year-old program going forward.
Among the suggestions is that BIA staff be responsible for bagging parking metres during the month of December.
BIA staff expressed concerns regarding assigning the work to them, many of the BIAs only have one staff member, often part-time, and some do not have their own staff members.
The City noted that over half of on-street parking transactions are now completed using mobile applications.
BIA representatives say they want the City to ensure the mobile application does not take payments during the free parking period.
Susie Braithwaite, Executive Director of the International Village BIA in Downtown Hamilton, stated “customers were super frustrated that they didn’t realize that the free parking program was happening” this past year using the mobile app.
Tracy MacKinnon, Executive Director of the Westdale BIA used high-quality stickers on the metre. “We’ve sourced some outdoor, waterproof, high-quality labels and put them on and poof, our problems went away instantly.”
City staff state because the metres are City assets, the BIAs cannot source their own stickers.
“We’re glad to be here in March,” stated the City’s Director of Transportation Planning and Parking Brian Hollingworth. “We don’t have a gun to our heads. We got a little bit of time.”
“I’m quite excited about the two-way dialogue on how we make this work for everyone,” he stated.
The City and BIAs will discuss the matter further in the coming months before bringing changes forward before Christmas.
Business Improvement Areas are municipal boards under the Municipal Act and must comply with open meeting requirements, the staff of the various BIAs were reminded during the meeting.
As one of the municipalities with one of the worse transparency records in Ontario, the City of Hamilton’s processes are under review.
The City will be posting notice of all BIA Board of Director meetings in the coming months.
BIAs must livestream their meetings, and if they hold in-person meetings, these meetings must be open to the public.
The BIA Advisory Committee lost quorum before they could complete the meeting.
The meeting video can be viewed on YouTube here.


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Hamilton Council Votes 10-2 To End Local COVID Mask Mandate – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

March 24, 2022
Once Ontario’s Chief Medical Officer of Health declared an end to the Provincial face mask mandate, it was inevitable that municipal councils would need to end local bylaw mandates.
Ontario’s municipal mandates predate the provincial implementation of a masking order in October 2020.
Hamilton City Council held a special meeting on Monday to end our local mask bylaw.
Mayor Fred Eisenberger said the decision comes with “a great deal of consternation and difficulty” in light of the continuing risk from COVID in the community.
Ultimately, the local bylaw is now unenforceable, he stated. Keeping it would be “very difficult for establishments and businesses in our community” because of “conflict” with people who will not obey a municipal masking bylaw.
Ward 6 Clr Tom Jackson said, “We’ve learned over humanity’s time how to learn and live and manage the common flu.”
He added, “Emergency wars wards have often been absolutely flooded during the peak of flu season and cold season. And yet some ways somehow we have been able to forge ahead and not be constantly in a state of either fear lockdowns, economic downturns, whatever the case might be, and isolationism.”
Ward 3 Clr Nrinder Nann and Ward 1 Clr Maureen Wilson both voted against ending the masking bylaw.
They each cited social determinants of health, the greater risk of exposure for those of lower-income, and the cost of purchasing N95 masks.
They both stated that mandatory masking is a greater benefit to society than removing the bylaw.
“We saw and acknowledged that wearing a mask is an act of care of protection,” Nann stated. “I would say an act of love for others around us.”
“Some will be at more risk than others.”
“Those who face the highest risk here in Hamilton are seniors. People with disabilities,” Nann continued. “Hamilton is home to the largest density of people living with disabilities in the entire province that those who are immunocompromised or have other comorbidities.”
Removing the mask bylaw “will basically say to those who are most vulnerable among us that we are not prepared to protect them by encouraging this masking a little bit longer,” Nann concluded.
“We know that our most vulnerable residents do not have access to those [N95 masks], and they are more expensive, Wilson stated. “The rate of death per capita from the lowest income quintile is double that of the highest income quintile.”
“In Hamilton, we have too many of our friends and neighbours living in Code Red conditions,” Wilson said. “Universal masking indoors is a really low barrier safety measure. It reduces the disparities that are facing this community in terms of risk.”
Ward 9 Clr Brad Clark said keeping the bylaw would be “setting up businesses to take an awful lot of abuse at the door.”
During the morning Board of Health meeting, Council was told they could reinstate a new masking bylaw in the future.
The vote to rescind the masking bylaw passed 10-2.
In Favour: Eisenberger, Farr, Merulla, Powers, Jackson, Pauls, Danko, Clark, Pearson, Johnson, Vanderbeek.
Opposed: Wilson, Nann.
Absent: Whitehead, Partridge.


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Hamilton Election Blog: Daily Roundup Day T-210 – Partridge & Bratina Announced, Mail Ballots, and new Public School Trustee Wards – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

March 28, 2022
With 210 days until Hamiltonians vote on October 24, today’s election news was surprisingly busy.
1) Bob Bratina formally announces he is running for Mayor, again.
2) Councillor Judi Partridge is not seeking re-election in Ward 15.
3) The Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board changes ward allocations in the first significant change since its creation in 1998.
4) City Clerk announces details on vote-by-mail ballots.
Bob Bratina is officially running for Mayor of Hamilton.
Bratina says his experience as mayor from 2010 to 2014 combined with his experience as a Member of Parliament from 2015 to 2021 makes him the best candidate to lead a new council after the election.
Bratina made his announcement on CHML earlier this evening, the station where he was a popular morning show host for decades prior to entering politics.
Bratina says he will bring “experience that will amplify and benefit, youthful approaches and new ideas.”
During a brief interview with CHML host Scott Radley, Bratina focused on affordability by keeping taxes low as he did in the past as mayor, stated he is only one vote on LRT but the City needs to have a “Plan B” if construction costs increase, says a new Council will not have some of the “very large personalities” councillors he clashed with during 2010 to 2014, and “in this time of instability” a new Council “needs a veteran hand at the tiller.”
More quotes from the interview and a video of one of the clashes at Council during Bratina’s tenure in the fuller story on TPR here: Former Mayor Bob Bratina Running for Mayor in 2022
Waterdown-Flamborough Councillor Judi Partridge announced this morning that she will not seek a fourth term on City Council.
“I’ve decided I am not going to run. I’ve served three terms. It’s 12 years,” Partridge stated to CHCH reporter Sean Cowan. “In my first term, I said that I believed in term limits, and I still believe in term limits.”
In a statement posted to Facebook, Partridge listed achievements during her three terms on City Council.
Partridge’s announcement means there are three incumbent members of Council who’ve announced they will not seek re-election.
Ward 4’s Sam Merulla and Ward 11’s Brenda Johnson have been announced they will not run for council again.
Former Ward 5 Councillor Chad Collins is now the Member of Parliament for Hamilton East – Stoney Creek.
As I detailed in a story earlier today, this puts Council one member announcing retirement short of being “Lame Duck” on August 19.
The City’s planning staff have to prioritize work to prevent developers from taking advantage of this. More on TPR here: Partridge Not Seeking Re-election: Lame Duck Council Potential and Impacts at City Hall
HWDSB elections in Wards 1 and 2 will now elect their own trustee in each ward for the first time since 1998 as the public school board’s trustees approved new ward allotments.
The residents of Stoney Creek will continue to share a trustee with another ward, just different wards this time.
The old Ward 9 & 10 is being split.
Upper Stoney Creek (Ward 9) will now share a trustee with the East Mountain (Ward 6).
Lower Stoney Creek (Ward 10) will now share a trustee with East Hamilton (Ward 5).
More details, and some history of trustee representation in the post-1998 HWDSB and in the pre-1998 City and County boards in the fuller TPR story here: Hamilton Public School Trustees Adopt New Wards for 2022 Election
Hamiltonians will be able to vote by mail in the October municipal election after the City of Hamilton added the option in response to the COVID pandemic.
The City says people will be able to request mail ballots using an online form between September 1st and 22nd using an online form on the City of Hamilton website.
All mail ballots must arrive at City Hall by election day, October 22, to be counted.
The mail ballot packages will include a prepaid postage return envelope.
People can also drop their ballots at City Hall.
More information on the City of Hamilton elections website here.
Top Photo: Newly sworn in as Mayor of Hamilton, Bob Bratina delivers his inaugural address at the Hamilton Convention Centre on December 1, 2010.  From Joey’s photo archive on Flickr.
Hamiltonians will be able to vote by mail in the October municipal election after the City of Hamilton added the option in response to the COVID pandemic.
The City says people will be able to request mail ballots using an online form between September 1st and 22nd using an online form on the City of Hamilton website.
All mail ballots must arrive at City Hall by election day, October 22, to be counted.
The mail ballot packages will include a prepaid postage return envelope.
People can also drop their ballots at City Hall.
More information on the City of Hamilton elections website here.


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Hamilton Ending Requirement for COVID Precautions in High Rise Buildings – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

March 18, 2022
The City of Hamilton is ending its requirement for buildings of 12 or more storey residential buildings to take extra precautions against COVID such as twice-daily disinfection of high contract surfaces and placement of hand sanitizer in common areas.
Hamilton’s Medical Officer of Health implemented the requirements in July 2021 following an outbreak of COVID at 235 Rebecca Street using a Letter of Instruction under the Reopening Ontario (A Flexible Response to COVID-19) Act.
Acting Hamilton Medical Officer of Health Dr. Ninh Tran lifted the letter of instruction effective Monday, March 21, writing “COVID-19 severity indicators continue to be lower than they have been during this wave, indicating Hamilton is now in the post-peak phase of the Omicron wave. Given the current epidemiology, and as Ontario enters the Province’s Roadmap Exit Step of the Reopening Ontario Act, current public health measures in Hamilton related to highrise apartment and condominium buildings should align with provincial measures. The Letter of Instruction is therefore no longer necessary.”


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Hamilton Masters Students Asks Council to Endorse Decriminalization of Simple Drug Possession – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

March 22, 2022
Kayla Hagerty is calling on Hamilton City Council to call for the decriminalization of simple drug possession as part of a broader strategy to end overdose deaths in Canada.
Hagarty, a Hamilton resident who is completing a Masters’ degree in sociology at Carleton University, delegated to City Council’s Board of Health meeting on Monday.
“I’m here to represent over 24,000 Canadians that have lost their lives to opioid-related overdose deaths since January 2016,” she stated.
Following a deep breath, “One of which was my father, Ian Harrington, who passed away in May 2020. I’m sorry.”
Hagerty held back emotion as she spoke of her father’s death.
“I soon discovered through my research that my father’s death was not an isolated issue.”
“In fact, public health Ontario reported that within the first 15 weeks of the pandemic, Ontario experienced a 30 percent increase in opiate overdose deaths. The Government of Canada reported between April and June 2021 that there were approximately 19 opiate toxicity-related deaths a day.”
Hagerty is asking Hamilton’s Board of Health to endorse the work of the Canadian Drug Policy Coalition, seeking the decriminalization of drug use – addiction is not a criminal matter, and to adopt best practices to respond to the ongoing opioid epidemic in Hamilton.
Mayor Fred Eisenberger agrees, “the issue of decriminalization of simple possession, which I think is a very unique distinction, I think is an important step.”
“I would admit that we’re treading water on those issues,” adding the City is “very aggressively pursuing” adding more safe consumption sites.
Ward 3 Clr Nrinder Nann added that Council voted three years ago to ask Public Health staff to prepare a report on decriminalization. Like nearly all public health matters, it was put aside in March 2020 due to the COVID pandemic response.
Staff state it remains on their outstanding business list for a future report back.
Hagerty’s delegation begins at 20:30 in the meeting video.
Additional: Hagerty produced and directed a documentary, in honour of her father, entitled How the COVID-19 Pandemic Affected the Pre-existing Opioid Epidemic in Canada. It is available to view on YouTube.


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Hamilton Planning Committee for March 22, 2022 – Roundup – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

March 29, 2022
Encampments dominated the agenda for one of the longer Planning Committee meetings of the COVID-era.
In a 4-2 vote at committee, councillors present voted to require bylaw enforcement to request Hamilton Police remove encampments within 12 to 72 hours of one becoming known.
The other major item, significantly underreported, was passing a new Secondary Plan, Urban Design guidelines, and Transportation Management Plan for Waterdown.
Other items dealt with include: voting to start a heritage designation process for the Grace Lutheran Church at 1107 Main West, increasing taxi fares, approving rapid housing at 221 Charlton East, responding to expected Planning Act changes, and more.
The meeting adjourned moments before 7:15 p.m. in the evening.
The total time in public session was approximately 8 hours and 47 minutes, councillors were in closed session for approximately 33 minutes.
In a noteworthy change, prompted by TPR’s coverage of Ontario Land Tribunal filings, Council will now release its OLT positions to the public.
There were 37 delegations in response to Councillor Jason Farr’s motion.
The meeting began with Clr Lloyd Ferguson questioning if the delegations should be allowed. During the delegations, there were tense movements as individuals directed comments at councillors and council as a whole.
As Chair of the Planning Committee, Clr Brenda Johnson had to cut the microphones of both council members and delegates to retain control of the meeting. Johnson handled the challenges well.
Farr’s motion passed 4-2, with Farr, Ferguson, Johnson, and Pearson in favour. Wilson and Danko voted opposed.
For more details on the debate, with extensive quotations from both councillors and delegates, read the full story on TPR here: Council’s Planning Committee Votes 4-2 for Quicker Encampment Evictions.
The motion will be debated at Council’s ratification meeting on March 30.
The most significant long-term decision made by councillors during Tuesday’s planning committee was approving a new Secondary Plan for Waterdown, Urban Design Guidelines, and a new Traffic Management Plan for the rapidly growing suburb upon the escarpment.
The plans will work together to guide the transition of Waterdown’s residential core to a pedestrian-friendly form while enabling the conversion of suburban commercial plazas to mixed-use at the same time the plan protects the pre-confederation neighbourhood character of the original Euro-Canadian settlement area centred on Dundas Street around the Grindstone Creek.
Ward 15 Clr Judi Partridge, who represents Waterdown and initiated the planning, says the new plans will “protect the heritage within Waterdown and Flamborough.”
Partridge asked staff to confirm the plans provide heritage character protection to 40 Mill Street North, commonly known as the Jam Factory, which is presently for sale.
“40 Mill Street North and the other properties that the councillor mentioned are located within the existing Millstreet Heritage Conservation District and are therefore designated under Part V (five) of the Ontario Heritage Act,” stated City of Hamilton Planner Melanie Pham.
The new Secondary Plan limits properties to “three storeys within that area to maintain the small scale character of that portion of the core,” she added.
Councillors praised the plans.
Ward 1 Councillor Maureen Wilson commended Partridge for initiating and working on the plans.
The Waterdown Transportation Master Plan says the City needs to add transit service connections west on Dundas Street into Burlington, and direct transit east to Downtown Hamilton. Additionally, the plan maps out plans for a network of bicycle and pedestrian routes to enable local trips to be taken by active transportation.
“We know where we are today with the traffic concerns, which are which are just ridiculous,” Partridge stated. “The sooner the last extension of the bypass is built, the better.”
Partridge asked how concerned Council and the community should be regarding rumours the Province will overrule local planning as part of expected Planning Act changes.
Hamilton’s Director of Planning and Chief Planner Steve Robichaud stated the Secondary Plan reflects present provincial planning policies.
“I’m not anticipating that we will see in the short term, any of the significant provincial changes around that anything could happen after an election,” Robichaud stated.
He stated he is “confident that we can still proceed with a secondary plan today, and that we will then obviously respond to any provincial changes as they come down the pipeline.”
More information on the new plans here: Council Planning Committee Unanimously Approves New Waterdown Zoning and Traffic Plans
Councillors endorsed the position of the Hamilton Municipal Heritage Committee to begin the process of designating the former Grace Lutheran Church under the Ontario Heritage Act.
The building is in Ward 1 at 1107 Main Street West.
Councillors voted to add the building to the municipal heritage registry which will give it 60 days of protection if a demolition permit is sought, sufficient time for the Council to issue hold special meetings to fully designate the building.
The developer proposes to retain “a portion of the church’s facade which includes the stained glass window” to be reused “in the redevelopment as part of the community garden at the corner of Main Street West and Dow Avenue,” the developers planning agent David Falletta stated.
Sarah Sheehan, a Hamilton heritage advocate who is writing a book on adaptive reuse, says Hamilton needs to be “standing by our heritage buildings by giving them official protection” and send “a clear message that we care about the environment.”
Sheehan states the developer can build behind the church and retain the structure, stating the City should require this as part of its climate action strategy due to the “high environmental cost of demolition.”
“Buildings have huge carbon footprints. demolishing a building throwing it away in a landfill is a staggering act of conspicuous consumption” and a “destructive approach to Canada’s built heritage” that has been “normalized over generations.”
Sheehan suggests the developer consider alternatives.
The vote to proceed towards designation was unanimous, with Ward 1 Councillor Maureen Wilson in favour.
Council discussed the fifty recommendations of the Ontario Housing Affordability Task Force and the response sent to the Province by the City’s planning department.
The Province is expected to implement some of the recommendations by amending the Planning Act during the present session of the Legislative Assembly.
The Queen’s Park rumour mill has included various dates the legislation would or will be tabled.
During Tuesday’s debate, Ward 8 Councillor John-Paul Danko said he heard rumours the legislation be tabled Thursday.
There were rumours the week prior it be tabled on Tuesday, and a rumour for each day of the coming week.
The staff response asks Ontario’s Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing Steve Clark to not impose “one size fits all” measures and to retain local control over planning, development, and heritage.
“We’re saying that it is not one size fits all major urban centers, such as Hamilton, it’s very complex, the issues that we are dealing with,” Hamilton’s Director of Planning and Chief Planner Steve Robichaud stated.
“We also have to deal with issues of gentrification, renovictions, homelessness, and how does our housing strategy respond to all of those elements?”
Clr Danko noted the provincial “report deals with market-based affordability but … didn’t address actual affordable housing.”
Danko suggests the Province needs to include “requirements for a certain number of units of affordable housing or other incentives for building below market value affordable housing.”
Danko is concerned the Province will allow developers to go to the Ontario Land Tribunal to get approval for 40-hectare urban boundary expansions, which he says be “a rubber stamp for incremental urban boundary expansions.”
Councillors received the staff update.
Jason Farr opened the brief public discussion of this Ontario Land Tribunal saying this is “a pretty significant project in our core” asking staff to provide reasons the developer is appealing for non-decision to the OLT.
Staff responded the development proposal received unfavourable comments from the Niagara Escarpment Commission and were concerned the NEC will not support the proposal if it were approved by City Council.
After a closed session meeting, councillors voted. Farr stated he may change his vote at the Council ratification. The meeting clerk did not disclose the vote result.
The City of Hamilton is increasing the base fare for municipally regulated taxis from $3.90 to $4.90, the first increase since 2013.
Clr Maria Pearson introduced the motion as a no-notice walk-on item, saying the increasing costs of fuel and insurance make it necessary to increase fares to maintain viable taxi services in Hamilton.
Clr Lloyd Ferguson declared a conflict of interest. Ferguson owns taxi plates.
The motion passed unanimously.
Councillors unanimously approved a zoning change to allow a restaurant in the Ancaster Business Park. The existing Prestige Business Park Zoning did not permit a restaurant.
The developers of a Council-approved mid-rise on the northeast corner of King Street West and Caroline Street have made modifications to the project related to setbacks and need smaller parking stall sizes related to the planned parking stacker system. The manufacturer of the parking stacker changed the dimensions of the unit since Council approved the project.
All these changes require minor variances under the Planning Act. The Act requires any development approved by Council during the previous 24 months to have Council consent to apply for variances.
Councillors approved consent to apply.
Back when tens of thousands of people worked at Hamilton’s steel mills, Ottawa Street was a major commuter route between the Mountain and the Mills.
Ottawa Street remained a major arterial road as the link between the Hamilton Brick Works Yard at the foot of the escarpment and Burlington Street. It is no longer in operation.
Ward 3 Clr Nrinder Nann, who represents the west side of Ottawa Street, asked the Planning Committee to approve a motion to request staff review the road classification of Ottawa Street. It passed unanimously.
Ward 1 Clr Maureen Wilson asked councillors to approve allowing McMaster to demolish the detached homes on the Traymore Avenue lands that McMaster will develop into a new residence.
The City and McMaster reached a settlement at the Ontario Land Tribunal which was approved by the Tribunal in early March.
Hamilton’s demolition control bylaw requires final site plan approval for new developments before allowing old buildings to be demolished.
Wilson noted McMaster is guaranteed to build the new building, and that the vacant structures are attracting “untoward activity at the property.”
Councillors approved the motion.


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Hamilton Police Investigating Graffiti as Hate Crime – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

March 18, 2022
Hamilton Police are investigating after hateful and racist graffiti was tagged upon the windows of the Hamilton Farmers Market’s main entrance at 35 York Blvd in Downtown Hamilton.
The tags include white supremacist statements, racial slurs, and a large Nazi swastika on the main entry door.
Police are asking the public to “check their security cameras between the hours of 1:00 a.m. and 2:15 a.m. for any suspicious activity and to contact police.”
Police also ask anyone who drove in the area during this time and dash camera video to contact detectives.
The Hate Crime Unit is investigating, their phone number is 905-546-5511.
The Public Record reported the tags around 9:30 am to the City of Hamilton.
Following TPR‘s inquiry, the City contacted Hamilton Police who arrived at approximately 10:30 am.
Police forensic unit officers collected evidence and received copies of security video from the Hamilton Public Library which manages security for the building.
The Market is located in the basement level of the building which houses the Central Branch and administrative offices of the Library.
Lyndon George, Executive Director of the Hamilton Anti-Racism Resource Centre, says the incident is very concerning. George states hateful graffiti is meant to harm minority groups.
HARRC notes the Market is both an essential place to purchase food and a significant community gathering place.
George says it is important for people to be and feel safe in all public spaces.
HARRC plans to post signs at the Market this afternoon to declare the area a Hate-Free Zone and ensure people not this morning’s hateful act is not accepted by the community at large.
HARRC, the Hamilton Centre for Civic Inclusion, the Hamilton Public Library, the Concession Street Business Improvement Area, and the City of Hamilton are holding a community response to hate Saturday at 12 noon in front of the Concession Street library following racist vandalism of the heritage plaque on February 5 at the library. The plaque depicts Hamilton Mountain’s early Black community.
More to come


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Hamilton Public School Trustees Adopt New Wards for 2022 Election – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

March 28, 2022
Hamilton’s public school electors will be voting in new districts this October after Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board Trustees changed ward groupings for trustee elections tonight.
This is the first significant revamp of school board trustee ward allotments since the Hamilton-Wentworth District School was created as Ontario District School Board 21 on January 1, 1998. DSB 21 was created by amalgamating the Board of Education for the City of Hamilton and the Wentworth County Board of Education.
The provincial government of Premier Mike Harris imposed a cap of 11 trustees for the new Board: seven from Hamilton, four from the suburban municipalities which were still independent from the City of Hamilton. (Municipal amalgamation occurred three years later)
Hamilton wards 1 & 2 were merged, with the other six city wards being assigned one trustee each.
The communities of Dundas, Flamborough, and Stoney Creek were each assigned a trustee, and Ancaster and Glanbrook shared a trustee.
The trustee boundaries shifted in 2000 when municipal government amalgamation occurred and shifted again in 2018 when City Council wards changed.
In 2000, the new City of Hamilton was created with 15 municipal wards. To create 11 trustee seats, the HWDSB needed to have four trustees who represented two wards.
Trustees kept Wards 1 & 2 grouped together. The Ancaster/Glanbrook trustee became the Ward 11 & 12 trustee, the Flamborough trustee became the Ward 14 & 15 trustee, Dundas remained the same as Ward 13, and Stoney Creek shrunk into the new Ward 9 & 10.
In 2018, Ward 14 (West Flamborough) was eliminated, and a new Ward 14 was created on the West Mountain. The HWDSB made Ward 15 a standalone seat, and merged the new Ward 14 with bordering Ward 8.
Tonight, Trustees voted to decouple Wards 1 & 2 and Wards 9 & 10.
The West Hamilton Ward 1 and Downtown Hamilton Ward 2 will now each have their own trustees.
Ward 9 (Upper Stoney Creek) is now coupled with Ward 6 (East Hamilton Mountain).
Ward 10 (Lower Stoney Creek) is now coupled with Ward 5 (Lower East Hamilton).
Trustees discussed the challenges of merging municipal wards into large trustee seats and the resulting workloads for trustees who represent large geographical areas or a large number of schools.
The new wards will be sent to Hamilton’s City Clerk. Candidates can register for the October election when nominations open on May 2, 2022.
Before amalgamation, there were 16 trustees for the Hamilton (City) Board, two per ward, and 12 trustees for the County Board.
The County allocated its seats by municipality: two for Ancaster, two for Dundas, one for Glanbrook, three for Flamborough, and four for Stoney Creek.
The County had 17 trustees before 1994 when they voluntarily decreased to 12 trustees.
During tonight’s votes, all the final options decoupled Wards 1 & 2, wo distinctive areas with different socio-economic characters.
The merger of Wards 1 & 2 into a single trustee seat made little sense in 1997 with the significant socio-economic differences.
The schools of West Hamilton’s Ward 1 draw students from some of Hamilton’s most wealthy census tracts.
Westdale Secondary School in Ward 1 differed significantly from Sir John A Macdonald Secondary School in Ward 2.
By accident, not design, the trustee who represented Wards 1 & 2 from 1997 to 2014 was a retiree who invested a great deal of time and effort into supporting priority schools in Ward 2.
Ward 1 resident Judith Bishop retired from the Board of Trustees in 2014. B
Bishop remains involved in championing better educational outcomes and advocating for better support for priority schools across Hamilton.
Bishop repeatedly argued that Ward 2 deserved its own trustee due to its schools’ unique and higher needs.
Due to gentrification during the past decade, Ward 2’s socio-economics are changing. StatCan will release the 2021 socio-economic data on April 27. It will be interesting to learn how much change has occurred during the past five years.


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Hamilton Public Works Committee for March 21, 2022 – Roundup – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

March 26, 2022
Councillors discussed road maintenance, in the middle of the ongoing pothole season, received the 2021 Annual Drinking Water Report, approved new procedures regarding incorporating land widenings into city roadways, addressed sewage capacity issues on along Dewitt Road, voted to implement natural burials at the Mount Hamilton Cemetery, voted for a new playground at Eleanor Park in the Templemead neighbour in honour of 11-year-old Jude Strickland, a new pedestrian crossing and sidewalk for the Ancaster performing arts centre, adding more wheelchair-accessible swings to parks, and a series of local park improvements.
Councillors heard from Hamilton’s Chief Road Official, Edward Soldo, on changes to how the City seals cracks on roadways.
“Once you have cracks in the road, you then will start to suffer things such as pavement falling apart in terms of creating potholes,” Soldo stated. “Crack sealing is a very effective means of preserving the roadway itself. We are right now in the process of developing and more robust preservation strategy for pavement.”
This follows the City conducting a “trial” sealing technique between 2017 and 2019 which failed, and a “pause in crack sealing by Transportation Operations & Maintenance in 2020 due to resourcing.”
An auditor revealed the decision of Public Works to discontinue crack sealing. Following the audit, in 2021, the City hired a private firm to conduct 18,000 linear metres of sealing. The City is increasing funding for sealing by 50% in 2022, and plans to increase funding by 5% each year going forward.
The City will prioritize sealing on roadways that are three to seven years old in non-residential locations. Sealing will occur during late summer and fall to prevent water from infiltrating the roadway during winter. This should prevent the development of potholes.
“All councillors have been getting a lot of tension on potholes,” noted Ward 8 Clr John-Paul Danko.
Councillors received the update without much debate.
The legal processes for incorporating new development and sub-division road widening and right-of-way lands into the City of Hamilton’s ownership is complex and “very cumbersome.”
City staff are streamlining the process by asking Council to approve delegating the entire process to staff. Council will approve the incorporation bylaws directly as bylaw bills instead of the present procedure of staff reports to committees, followed by Council approval, followed by drafting the bylaw bill.
Councillors discussed how complicated the present process is, and approved the new procedures.
Councillors approved adding $1,561,000 to the budget for road reconstruction to expand sewer capacity underneath Dewitt Road between Highway 8 and Barton Street in Stoney Creek.
The expanded capacity is needed to both address present capacity constraints and to respond to development plans along Highway 8.
An August 2019 engineering report found portions of the existing sewers are already overcapacity. The 375 mm portion of pipe which runs from Highway 8 to just north of Juniper Drive is overcapacity. The pipe expands to 450mm in front of Orchard Park Secondary School. This 450 mm section is nearing its capacity between approximately MacIntosh Drive to Dupont Street, where it expands to 525 mm at the northern edge of the Our Lady of Peace Catholic Elementary School.
Half of the expansion will be funded from Development Charges, and half funded from the existing rate budget. The 2019 Development Charges Study determined half the expansion need is attributable to existing need and half is to facilitate new development.
The sewers north of Barton Street, which run to the Sanitary Sewer Truck under Seaman Street will require further expansion as well.
The overall budget for the sewers and road reconstruction on Dewitt Road is $4,173,238 (not including contingency and non-refundable HST).
More details, including the capacity diagrams, in another TPR story: Council Votes to Expand Sewer Capacity on Dewitt Road Following 2019 Study Showing It’s Maxxed Out
The City of Hamilton will begin offering green burial options at Mount Hamilton Cemetery in the near future following Ward 7 Clr Esther Pauls committing $100,000 from the Ward 7 area-rated funds to create an 8,400 square metre space for burials done without non-biodegradable materials.
Hamilton resident Rochelle Martin worked to convince the City of Hamilton that green burials are viable, and many people expressed interest in the option. (See: TheSpec, August 2018)
Council also approved adding $55,000 per year to the cemeteries budget for a half-time position coordinating green burials.
“I think it’s very important that the funding for this natural burial section be passed to help people feel comfortable in how they want to proceed when there is a death in the family,” Pauls stated.
Ward 2 Clr Jason Farr thanked staff and Martin for working together on this initiative.
Councillors approved $220,300 for a new play structure at Eleanor Park in the Templemead neighbourhood which will include a plaque honouring Jude Strickland who was killed by a reckless driver operating a pickup truck in December 2020. Strickland was walking home from school. The driver pleaded guilty in January to charges of dangerous driving causing death and possession of a controlled substance.
The structure will be designed in consultation with Strickland’s family and the Templemead School community.
The playground will include a new climber. Jackson says “Jude absolutely loved spending so much time” on the climber.
“I still can’t get over the popularity of this young man,” Jackson continued. “There’s been families across the city that have, through the family and or directly to my office, reached out, with both love, sympathy, and support.”
$100,000 of the budget will come from the annual parks budget, and $120,300 from the Ward 6 area-rated funds.
Jackson says Council approval will “mean will so to the family.”
Council approved two new pedestrian crossings for the new Ancaster Memorial Art Centre at the request of Ward 12 Clr Lloyd Ferguson.
A pedestrian crossing (PXO) will be installed on Sulphur Springs Road in close proximity to the intersection of Sulphur Springs Road and Queen Street at a cost of $40,000.
A sidewalk will be on the west side of Queen Street between Sulphur Springs Road and the Ancaster Memorial Art Centre at a cost of $30,000.
This is to connect the parking lot of Ryerson United Church to the new Centre, which will use this for overflow parking.
The projects are funded using Ward 12 Councillor discretionary funds.
Council approved the purchase of two new ‘We-Go-Swing’ units for the parks at $60,000 each. The William Connell Park swing will be funded from Ward 8 area-rated funds and the Heritage Green swing is contingent upon funding from the Heritage Green Community Trust.
Powell Park’s basketball court will have newly repaired concrete, a new backboard, new rim, and the concrete wall behind the net will have a new community art mural as well.
Ward 3 Clr Nrinder Nann moved to spend $23,000 of the Ward 3 area-rating funds on the project.
Ward 7 Clr Esther Pauls moved to spend $90,000 to create a new park pathway “east to west at the south end of the park at Eastmount Park” and install additional lighting in the park’s parking lot.


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Hamilton’s “New” Commercial City-Wide Zoning Now in Effect – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

March 18, 2022
The city-wide appeals of Hamilton’s new commercial mixed-use zoning bylaw (CMZ) by Choice Properties Real Estate Investment Trust (Loblaws Properties Limited) and Canadian Tire Real Estate Limited are settled.
The two large real estate holding companies and the City of Hamilton agreed to a series of site-specific amendments for properties owned by the companies, clarification on language in the city-wide C3 zoning, and allowing a much wider range of commercial uses at Clappison’s Corner in Waterdown.
Hamilton’s Chief Planner Steve Robichaud describes the deal as the City getting “85 percent of what we want, they get 85 percent of what they want.”
Robichaud describes the outcome as positive for Hamilton, especially as it brings the CMZ, passed in November 2017, into force and effect across the City of Hamilton.
As part of the Minutes of Settlement, CTREL and Choice have agreed to withdraw their other appeals of the CMZ bylaw.
He says the settlement protects the public interest, especially “in light of the current climate at the OLT [Ontario Land Tribunal],” that favours landowners over municipalities.
Robichaud states Canadian Tire Real Estate Limited (CTREL) sought more explicit language in the CMZ’s permissive accessory uses language to ensure they continue to have flexibility to add new services to their properties.
Canadian Tire is one of the first businesses in Hamilton to add EV charging stations to their properties, Robichaud noted.
He states CTREL discussed more active transportation (cycling) connections as part of their planning during negotiations.
CTREL and Choice gained site-specific exemptions to allow them to build new one-storey buildings on their properties, count existing surplus parking spots towards parking requirements for new buildings, and expand existing buildings by up to 10 percent as of right.
Robichaud says this will enable them to continue reinvesting “until such time as the market conditions change to enable a fundamental rethinking of their sites” such as conversion into new residential communities.
Choice Properties is converting many of its strip plaza locations into mixed-use communities, such as 685 Warden in Scarborough.
The commercial “power centres” on the east sides of Clappison’s Corner [Highway 5 and Highway 6] in Flamborough are now subject to a separate Schedule being added to the CMZ.
The area will be allowed a wider range of uses, with nearly all types of commercial services now permitted. A maximum of one self-storage facility is now a permitted use.
The new Waterdown Transportation Master Plan calls for Clappison’s Corner to become a pedestrian-friendly area to facilitate active transportation use.
A development proposal for the north-east and south-east corners of Clappison Corners plans to build mid-to-high density residential with a dense urban form. The proposal is at the Ontario Land Tribunal on appeal.
TPR asked Robichaud how self-storage, traditionally a suburban land use, fits into the mid-term vision for this area.
“Self-storage is evolving,” Robichaud states. “New models are more vertical and supportive of intensification.”
“People have too much stuff,” he says as people move into more intensified small living units, they need storage. Companies are now building five and six-storey storage facilities in urban areas. People commonly store bulkier items in these facilities, such as winter sports equipment.
[The City is already reviewing an application for a five-storey self-storage building in the rear of 1550 Upper James.]
Hamilton’s Commerical Mixed-Use Zoning was approved by Council in November 2017.
TPR asked Robichaud if he expects appeals of the City’s proposed new city-wide residential zoning bylaw, that will go to Council in either Fall of 2022 or Winter 2023, to require a similar length of time for the OLT appeals that will follow.
Robichaud states COVID cause a delay in negotiations between the City and both Choice and CTREL.
Delays resulted from both challenges conducting complex negotiations by electronic means, and uncertainty in the commercial real estate market following changes caused by the pandemic.
Robichaud says both Choice and CTREL discussed long-term visions to convert their Hamilton properties to mixed-use.
There remain some site-specific appeals of the CMZ which are being dealt with in separate hearings.


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Joey’s Notepad: Lloyd Ferguson and the 2023 Council Calendar – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

March 31, 2022
Hamilton City Council’s Governance Committee set the 2023 City Council meeting calendar during their meeting today.
The new calendar includes a three-week March Break, an increase from the traditional two weeks for March Break.
In total, there are 16 weeks with no Council meetings planned for 2023.
Ward 12 Councillor Lloyd Ferguson took a noteworthy interest on the calendar.
” I like that extra long break at Christmas, so staff and ourselves can get away,” Ferguson stated. Adding “the same as that [with March Break.”
Ferguson requested staff be discouraged from booking additional meetings during the months of January and February, saying the council budget meetings during this period “get very exciting when you have conflicting ideologies, and we start to wear on each other’s nerves.”
Ferguson has yet to firmly declare if he intends to seek re-election.
Read into today’s discussion what you will.


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More Resignations from Hamilton Farmers Market Board Over Privatization Plans – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

March 28, 2022
More members of the Hamilton Farmers’ Market Board of Directors have resigned in protest of plans to privatize the Market.
The resignations occurred in February. The Board no longer has enough members quorum, with both March and April meetings cancelled.
Board Chair Elly Bowen and Treasurer Wilf Arndt resigned in early February following a February 2, 2022 Council vote to hire a fourth consultant, at a cost of $100,000, to review the Market with a stated intention of privatizing the facility prior to this October’s municipal election. [City Hall uses the term “partnership” with the private sector.]
Members of the Board declined to comment regarding the resignations. A new stricter code of conduct states citizen members are not to speak to journalists [Rule 9] with the exception of the Chair. The Market Board is without a Chair.
A spokesperson for the City of Hamilton says a special meeting of City Council will be held on April 6 to review membership requirements “to ensure that the board can continue to meet and carry out its business”.
The City has not updated the Board of Directors membership list.


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OSC Extends Temporary Order on Harry Stinson’s Buffalo Hotel Project – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

March 9, 2022
The Ontario Securities Commission is extending a temporary order prohibiting Hamilton-based developer Harry Stinson from selling securities for his Buffalo hotel project until 4:30 pm on July 6, 2022.
Stinson’s lawyers will return to the OSC Tribunal on July 6 for a second appearance hearing regarding allegations that Stinson and his associated companies violated the Ontario Securities Act by making “false or misleading statements to investors,” and improperly transferring investor funds intended for Stinson’s Buffalo Grand Hotel project into other projects and accounts controlled by Stinson.
Stinson refutes the allegations. His lawyers are reviewing OSC documents that were disclosed to them on February 23.
Both the OSC and lawyers for Stinson agreed to a second appearance.
During the interim, the OSC will consider a forthcoming motion to carve out an exception to the order regarding “any investors turning the age of 71 in this calendar year” to allow for the “transfer or conversion” of their assets in the project related to personal circumstances that were not detailed during today’s hearing.
OSC staff indicated they will not oppose the carve-out, but at this time will not provide consent. A legal distinction.
OSC Tribunal Vice-Chair Timothy (Tim) Moseley, presiding over today’s hearing, encouraged both sides to negotiate the carve-out as the Tribunal prefers to consider a consent motion.
Today’s hearing adjourned after approximately 20 minutes.


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Partridge Not Seeking Re-election: Lame Duck Council Potential and Impacts at City Hall – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

March 28, 2022
Ward 15 Councillor Judi Partridge announced today that she is not seeking re-election.
“I’ve decided I am not going to run. I’ve served three terms. It’s 12 years,” Partridge stated to CHCH reporter Sean Cowan. “In my first term, I said that I believed in term limits, and I still believe in term limits.” [Watch the full remarks at approximately 23:00 in the full interview posted by Cowan.]
In a statement posted to Facebook, Partridge listed achievements during her three terms on City Council.
Among the achievements Partridge lists are new businesses in the Flamborough Business Park, improvements to public parks, road upgrades, and new municipal community facilities including new library branches in Waterdown and Carlisle.
Partridge was first elected in 2010. The incumbent, Margaret McCarthy, did not run for re-election. Partridge ran in 2006, in what was a two-person race.
The Ontario Municipal Act [Section 275] restricts outgoing municipal councils from making major decisions if less than three-quarters of incumbent councillors are seeking re-election or not re-elected.
In Hamilton, this means that if 11 or fewer incumbent members of Council are running for re-election, Hamilton City Council becomes lame-duck.
Ward 4 Councillor Sam Merulla and Ward 11 Councillor Brenda Johnson have announced they do not plan to seek re-election. Ward 5 Councillor Russ Powers, who was appointed by Council after Chad Collins was elected a Member of Parliament, pledged to not run for the elected.
If these four do not register, and at least one more member of City Council joins them in not seeking re-election, Council becomes restricted “Lame Duck” at the close of municipal election nominations on August 19 at 2:00 pm.
During the restricted period between August 19 and the beginning of the new Council term on November 15, the outgoing council is prohibited from passing any bylaw that allocates spending more than $50,000 or creates a liability for the municipal corporation greater than $50,000.
Spending authorities delegated to staff remain in place. The City Manager can spend up to $250,000 per item during the restricted period.
TPR reported, in September 2021, the City’s planning staff were already preparing for a possible Lame Duck period by prioritizing planning applications to ensure Council makes a decision.
Developers can appeal to the Ontario Land Tribunal for non-decision, and lame-duck periods still count against the deadline for municipal councils to make a decision despite Council being prohibited from deciding.
This means some projects without deadlines, such as the ongoing comprehensive residential zoning review, will be delayed.
This is not to be confused with the Urban Boundary Expansion review, which planning staff will be present at a special council meeting during the first half of May.
The comprehensive review is a long-term project which began before the boundary review. While related, it is separate.
Because a lame-duck period does not pause decision timelines under the Building Code and Planning Act, the outgoing Council will still need to meet.
If only to discourage developers from applying for things such as demolition permits for buildings of heritage interest or listed on the municipal heritage registry.
[Wilson-Blanchard filed for demolition periods during the 2012 Council Christmas break in an attempt for the Gore buildings, WB backed down under public pressure]
In 2010, then Ward 15 Councillor Margaret McCarthy stopped attending council and committee meetings. It created challenges for the Council as a whole in reaching the 50 percent plus one threshold for quorum. There are no indicators Partridge will act in a similar matter.
Municipal election day is October 24, 2022. The new Council will take office on November 15, 2022.


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Red Hill Valley Parkway Inquiry to Begin Public Hearings on April 25 – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

March 31, 2022
The Red Hill Valley Parkway Inquiry will begin public hearings on April 25, after extensive delays caused by Hamilton City Council seeking to exclude documents from the Inquiry.
Inquiry Commissioner Justice Herman Wilton-Siegel will review submissions from City of Hamilton lawyers, and Inquiry Commission lawyers regarding the City’s notice of motion for directions to exclude 43 unique documents from the Inquiry’s review.
Media and members of the public have until April 6 to apply to make representations regarding the City’s privilege motion.
The City states the documents are subject to legal privilege and inadmissible to the Inquiry.
Lead Commission Counsel Robert A. Centa argues the documents are relevant to the Inquiry’s investigation.


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Walter Mulkewich, Mayor of Burlington 1991-1997, A Life of Public Service – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

March 1, 2022
Today brought the sad news that former Burlington Mayor Walter Mulkewich died on February 28.
He was truly one of the most decent people in Burlington politics and Hamilton as well. To say they don’t make politicians like Mulkewich anymore be an understatement.
He dedicated himself to public service, he showed courage, grace, and humility in the face of unbelievable adversity. He is an example to us all.
An NDPer who enjoyed 33 years of success in Burlington politics. For most people, that would say it all. For Mulkewich, this was only the first few chapters of his public service.
He devoted another nearly 25 years to public service after leaving elected politics.
Mulkewich was elected Mayor of Burlington twice, in 1991 and 1994.
As Mayor, he was a thoughtful champion of Burlington and an intellectual heavyweight among the mayors of the Greater Golden Horseshoe.
The Burlington Library scanned Mayor Mulkewich’s 1995 discussion paper, The Future of Local & Regional Government in Burlington and Halton.
He was expected to easily win a third term in 1997 when he had to leave public office due to a diagnosis of leukemia.
Mulkewich broke the news to the media in the living room of his home.
Here is how The Hamilton Spectator described that day in late March 1997.
“In the living room of his Aldershot home, Mayor Walter Mulkewich engaged in friendly banter with the gathered media. He offered coffee to the small group and talked about the council meeting the previous night.
He chatted about his political achievements and the expected workload next year when much of the province’s downloading is expected to hit Burlington. It was an appropriate buildup to his anticipated announcement that he would seek another term as mayor.
It was all discussed with a quiet casualness in the relaxed setting.
And then Mulkewich started the news conference. Reading from a prepared release he seemed to continue from the easy discussions he had with reporters.
Then came the bombshell: he has Chronic Lymphatic Leukemia, a blood disorder that weakens the immune system.
There would be no run for re-election.”
Walter Mulkewich wrote that same day to the residents of Burlington.
“I have always believed that politicians should only promise what they can deliver, and then mobilize the resources of government and community to keep those promises,” Mayor Mulkewich opened his farewell note.
“I have always been a fighter and throughout my political career have fought for those things I believe in. In the next number of years, my fight will shift from politics and municipal government to a fight for my health. I have been diagnosed with chronic lymphatic leukemia (CLL), a blood disorder which weakens the immune system. I intend to fight that disease with the same tenacity I have applied to political issues.”
The three years that followed were more difficult than anyone should ever endure.
He was diagnosed with colon cancer. Then came his toughest battle, a battle he bravely shared with the public.
“Dealing with the death of my spouse, Bev, by suicide, just four and a half months after I retired has been the major preoccupation in the last two and a half years of my life,” he told The Spectator in an October 2000 interview.
“That’s been a major part of my journey. I lost my wife, by suicide. My life has changed. So I’ve got to figure out what to do with the rest of my life.”
“We live in a death-denying society, where most people are afraid to think of death as being part of life and, therefore, don’t want to talk about it or think about it. I’ve learned you have to deal with it.”
“And I’ve become aware of the need for our society to deal with mental illness and suicide.”
Mulkewich’s return to public life in 2000 began a new chapter for a man who already contributed more than most.
He spoke with the wisdom he had always been known for.
“Mental illness is one of the fastest-growing diseases in our society. More people suffer from mental illness than from cancer. Yet we don’t treat it as a major illness. And we need to see it as a disease that is no one’s fault and that can be treated,” he stated in that Spec interview.
He took on the role of co-chair of Performing Arts Burlington.
He joined the Hamilton Port Authority was it was created in 2001, becoming HPA Chair in 2004. He took on the need to clean up Hamilton Harbour, helping to ensure the City of Burlington’s support and financing for the Harbour.
Mulkewich’s leadership, and the deep respect he earned in Burlington, was foundational to the Burlington Council’s 2011 commitment to increase their funding for the Randle Reef cleanup.
Burlington led the way at that critical time.
Hamilton’s own Council was balking at increasing its own funding share, and the federal government had other priorities.
Burlington increased its own funding contribution, Burlington’s councillors brought Halton Regional Council on board to increase its funding for the project.
Hamilton Council followed, and finally, in December 2012, the federal government announced its contribution.
Had Burlington not taking the lead, would Randle Reef still be haunting us today?
His leadership of Shape Burlington, beginning in 2009, helped to bring back Burlington’s politics from the brink of division, exhaustion, and frustration.
Here is Ryan McGreal’s summary of the Shape Burlington Initiative from 2010.
Shape Burlington is widely regarded as a gold standard in municipal engagement. Its final report can be read here.
During the later years of his time as a Burlington City Councillor, Mulkewich worked at the Hamilton Housing Help Centre as its Executive Director.
He was a teacher by career, teaching in many places, including Inuvik. He taught at Glendale High School in East Hamilton from 1961 to 1965.
The City of Burlington lowered flags at City Hall and its municipal facilities to half-mast in his honour.
Articles referenced


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Always Have a Plan at the Ontario Land Tribunal … and Hire a Planner – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

April 28, 2022
The Ontario Land Tribunal issued a rare denial decision earlier this month, overturning the Hamilton Committee of Adjustment’s approval of minor variances which were recommended for support by City staff.
Why?
Officially, the OLT ruled the variances were not minor and did not constitute good planning.
How?
The OLT decides what is “good planning” based upon the testimony and documentation presented before it.
Expert witnesses are given great weight. In nearly all cases, if one side brings forth experts and the other side does not, the side with the experts wins.
This is exactly what happened in this case involving the property at 64 Lovers Lane in Ancaster.
Briefly, the owner sought five variances to decrease lot setbacks to permit the construction of a large L-shaped home and an in-ground backyard pool on this corner lot property.
The variances were approved as minor by the Committee of Adjustment, following a supportive staff report. The two immediately adjacent neighbours, who spoke against the proposal at CoA, appealed to the Ontario Land Tribunal.
At the Tribunal, the neighbours hired Registered Professional Planner to provide expert testimony stating the lack of setbacks from neighbouring properties violates the Official Plan and the Zoning Bylaw, are not minor, and will adversely impact their privacy.
The property owner called no witnesses, merely submitting the City staff planning report without subpoenaing the City’s staff planner to speak to it.
Therefore, the only evidence before the Tribunal was that opposing the proposal and the OLT ruled against the plan.
Had the owner hired their own expert witness and subpoenaed the City planner, the outcome likely be different.
In September 2021, the City’s planning staff recommended [Page 88 of this document] approving the variances, finding they were minor, and Hamilton’s Committee of Adjustment agreed.
The CoA September hearing [YouTube link] heard delegations from the two neighbours opposing the application, and many letters from area residents opposing the application.
After almost 30 minutes of debate, the CoA approved the variances as minor by a 4-3 vote.
Both the neighbouring property owners appealed the decision to the OLT.
The OLT hears the matters De Novo, a new, they do not review the Committee of Adjustment hearing and do not give deference to it.
The neighbouring property owners were prepared. They submitted their statements, mobilized their neighbours who filed participant statements, and most importantly hired a Registered Professional Planner to provide expert testimony to the Tribunal.
The property owner was unprepared for the March 2022 OLT hearing. The day prior to the hearing, they hired a personal injury lawyer to represent them. This lawyer asked for an adjournment to prepare, the neighbours objected as they had their paid witness retained and taken time off work for the hearing.
The Tribunal recessed asking the neighbours to provide their costs for the day, for the Tribunal to consider in deciding upon the adjournment.
“Upon resumption of the hearing, Ms. Lamont advised that her retainer had ended,” the Tribunal wrote. Left with no lawyer, the property owner’s contractor “who had little, if any experience, before the Tribunal” represented them.
They did not subpoena City staff to testify to their report, merely filing the minimal staff comments provided to the CoA.
Left with no experts, no evidence, and no preparation, the owner lost.
The lesson here is expertise matters.


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BRIEF: City of Hamilton to Fund Concerts in BIAs – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

April 12, 2022
The City of Hamilton is funding a summer concert series this year which will see one concert in each of Hamilton’s 13 Business Improvement Areas.
“The program builds on the Music Mondays model,” says the City’s Director of Tourist and Culture Carrie Brooks-Joiner.
She says the City is responding to requests to expand from “being exclusively offered at City Hall to being available across the city.”
The City will fund all costs for BIAs to host one concert with two artists for a 90-minute show, Brooks-Joiner says.
“We want to showcase the diverse artists that are practicing music within our community, as well as the variety of musical genres that are available and active in the community,” says Senior Project Manager of Animation and Placemaking Sarah Ehmke.
The program is not just exclusive to BIAs. Other commercial areas can apply to host concerts. More information will be released in the coming weeks.


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BRIEF: Highway 403 Weekend Closures This Summer For Bridge Replacements – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

April 3, 2022
City of Hamilton staff state Ontario’s Ministry of Transportation will implement two weekend closures of Highway 403 between King Street West and Highway 6 to replace two overpass bridges.
The MTO will replace the Highway 403 Macklin Street overpass and the Old Guelph Road overpass.
“Two full weekend closures, one direction at a time, will utilized to complete the work and during the closures traffic will be detoured onto the Lincoln M. Alexander Parkway, Red Hill Valley Parkway, York Boulevard and Queen Elizabeth Way (QEW),” writes Hamilton Acting Director of Transportation Operations & Maintenance Mike Field.
“The two full weekend closures will be coordinated with the City and the
MTO and City will develop a robust communications plan to inform the public of the
construction, closure and detour.”
Dates for the closure are not finalized.


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Council’s Truck Committee Votes to Axe Heavy Truck Cut-Through Routes – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

April 3, 2022
Councillors on the Truck Route Sub-Committee voted 7-0 to recommend Council ratify a new truck route master plan that forbids large trucks from cutting through the Downtown Core.
Hamilton’s agri-industrial industries say the new recommended truck route will increase their cost of business, make Hamilton a less competitive location, and they may delay, or even cancel, planned investments in Hamilton.
The new proposal restricts trucks to four axles or fewer in the Downtown Core and most of King and Main Streets in the Lower City.
Four axle vehicles include delivery vans, utility trucks, dump trucks, and cement mixers. All trucks with five or more axles will be prohibited from Downtown unless making a local delivery.
The Sub-Committee’s recommendations must be approved by Council’s Public Works Committee and ratified by the whole Council at their April 13 ratification meeting.
Residents of the Lower City who delegated offered varying opinions regarding the change.
Some were satisfied with the change, others say it does not go far enough – Council should ban trucks.
Hamilton Port and industrial sector businesses state the restrictions will increase their shipping costs and make Hamilton less economically competitive.
Bunge Canada state they are reviewing their planned capital spending, saying the new truck restrictions harm the competitiveness of their Hamilton operation.
Two residents of Glanbrook delegated asking Council to prioritize building a new highway link between the Red Hill Valley Parkway and Hamilton’s International Airport, adding trucks are causing congestion on Upper James Street and illegally shortcutting using residential streets.
A group of Waterdown residents, who live on Fellowes Cresent, wrote Council to state they are concerned prohibiting trucks from using Hamilton Street overnight will increase the number of trucks on Parkside Drive and generate additional noise impacts for their homes.
They are requesting the City implement noise mitigation measures, reduce the speed limit on Parkside Drive, and consider excepting trucks servicing the Fortinos and Sobey grocery stores from the overnight restriction.
In a written submission, the Hamilton Chamber of Commerce called on councillors to allow a “time-managed” allowance for larger trucks to operate in the Lower City to “maintain network efficiencies” to access Highway 403.
“Failing to provide clear options to drivers to access this critical highway link” creates the risk of trucks using “undesignated routes” to access the 403, “clearly increasing a risk to the health and safety of our community,” wrote Interim Chamber CEO Marie Nash.
Nash wrote that the Chamber is concerned the new plan will “negatively impact Bayfront businesses that the City of Hamilton is eager to court and retain.”
The Hamilton-Oshawa Port Authority asked Council to allow trucks to access Highway 403 from the western piers of Hamilton Harbour.
“We have to find ways to successfully share the road between truck users and other users,” Larissa Fenn, HOPA’s Director of Public Affairs, told councillors.
“The elimination of in-city routes … does create a chill on investment, disruption of supply chains … and it creates a situation that builds in higher GHG emissions in a very systemic way, contrary to the city’s own climate change goals.”
HOPA asked councillors to adopt a truck route map allowing westbound trucks to access the 403 eastbound via York Boulevard. Fenn says this access is vital for agri-industrial businesses to access Highway 6 North.
Fenn stated the Port recognizes that Victoria Avenue has both residential and institutional uses and supports measures to make “make travelling, living and working in these areas better, safer for everyone” by adding “mitigation measures like dedicated truck lanes” and “protected cycling infrastructure.”
Resident Leah Avery delegated while holding her baby in hand.
“Just this morning, my baby put his finger into black soot on the window and then licked his finger,” she stated.
“We have to worry about some of the worst air pollution in the country as a direct result of industrial trucks saving eight to 10 minutes on their route.”
Avery called on councillors to live up to the City’s motto of Best Place to Raise a Child and remove trucks from Lower City neighbourhoods.
ArcelorMittal Dofasco says they plan to seek special permits to move steel between their mills in the industrial sector and a Transcare Logistics storage facility near the CPR Aberdeen Yard beside the Chedoke Golf Course.
“Our primary presence at the Transcare facility is for coil storage, it is not necessarily constituted as being used for the purpose of trans-loading to rail.”, stated Dofasco’s Kyle Reid.
He told councillors, “We’ve also been looking at the potential opportunity of permitting the in-city route between our facilities, both AMD and Transcare, which would be intended to reduce the number of trucks required to transit through that laneway, by allowing greater payloads on each truck. Therefore reducing the number of trucks, we would actually require to transit that route. If we were to obtain said permits, the highways would then become ineligible for transit because of MTO restrictions.”
Hugh Loomans of Sylvite Agri Service is concerned Council does not realize the importance of the agriculture sector to Hamilton’s economy. He stated Sylvite wants to “minimize our impact upon the community.” At the same time, he says, they need an “east-west access route” to move goods efficiently.
The Ontario Trucking Association’s Lak Shoan says the
City needs to retain the 403 East-West Access Route to ensure the competitiveness of Hamilton industries.
He says the new restrictions will increase costs and “lead to a corresponding growth in operating costs, which simply can’t be absorbed by fleets.”
The costs will “necessitate a trickle-down effect throughout the supply chain, increasing costs for businesses carriers and consumers.”
The OTA says the City can maintain existing truck routes and should focus on increased enforcement to address speeding, emissions, and road safety.
Gabe Pitura, representing the Residents of Dickenson Road East, says the City needs to prioritize building a “bypass link” on the south end of Hamilton (Red Hill to Airport) to divert trucks moving past Hamilton to Caledonia.
These trucks are presently using Upper James Street. Pitura says Upper James is becoming congested and trucks are using non-designated residential roads to bypass instead.
“The illegal truck traffic has created a large safety risk for the residents, including children, seniors, cyclists, cycling clubs, joggers and pedestrians accessing the rail trail. In fact, there have already been two fatalities at the rail trail junction on Dickinson Road East alone.”
Rene Lemay, Plant Manager of Bunge’s Hamilton operation, writes that the company may decrease its Hamilton capital investments and is already delaying some spending.
“A proposed multi-million dollar project to expand one of our product lines is now delayed from 2023 to at least 2025,” they write. “Pre-approval of long lead time equipment has been pushed back until transportation and related economic consequences are better understood.”
“Cutting off direct access to and from the 403 will have negative effects on Bunge’s competitiveness by increasing transportation costs, thought increased fuel consumption and increased delivery route times.”
Councillors voted unanimously to begin the Municipal Class Environmental Assessment for a “new arterial roadway in Glanbrook connecting the Airport Employment Growth District
to the Red Hill Business Park.”
City staff will complete the terms of reference for the study and present it to the next term of Council as part of the 2023 City capital budget.


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Hamilton City Council Board of Health for April 4, 2022 [Post Meeting Summary] – TPR Hamilton | Hamilton's Civic Affairs News Site

April 3, 2022
Hamilton City Council met as the Board of Health on Monday.
During the meeting, they received an update from Hamilton’s Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Elizabeth Richardson, regarding the latest COVID statistics and updated forecasting predicting case counts and outcomes until June 2022.
Two public delegations requesting to speak to the now-revoked provincial vaccination mandates were withdrawn.
Dr. Richardson provided a separate update on staffing challenges facing Hamilton Public Health due to a shortage of human resources in the health sector across Ontario and beyond.
Dr. Richardson says the number of COVID cases in the community and COVID hospitalization is rising in Hamilton.
“We do think this is due to changes in protective behaviours with the drop in the mandates for things like masking and capacity limits and those sorts of things,” she stated. “Also because of the increasing prevalence of BA.2, which is about 1.3 to 1.5 times more transmissible than the Omicron sub-variant BA.1.”
“Test positivity, hospitalizations, wastewater indicators all do continue to rise,” Dr. Richardson stated while displaying updated statistical slides to City Council.
“Our Intensive Care Unit admissions though can they’re a lagging indicator, and so far have remained low and stable,” she continued. “We’re hopeful that this is indicative of some of the protection that is there from the third dose of vaccine that is there as well as some treatment.”
Dr. Richardson says her staff are working to encourage more people to be “up to date” with their vaccinations. “You’ll see that change in our language from the booster language to being up to date,” saying “we’re really trying to make it clear that really the point is that we need to stay up to date with our vaccines as more vaccine [doses] are considered.”
Hamilton Public Health is now forecasting the sixth wave of COVID, which we are now in, surge “may be prolonged into the summer.”
The City’s hospitalization rate remains below the peaks of previous COVID waves and is forecast to remain lower than previous waves, however, the daily admission rate is increasing and is expected to keep increasing slightly in the coming weeks.
Presently,
Hamilton’s daily new hospitalization rate increased to 2.7 per day last week from 1.7 per day the week prior.
Dr. Richardson is encouraging people to wear masks, reduce their contacts, and engage in other COVID preventative measures “in order to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission to themselves and to their loved ones.”
Hamilton’s public health division had 395.73 full-time equivalent staff before the COVID pandemic.
At peak staffing during the pandemic, January 2022, there were 910.79 FTE working for public health.
Nearly half of public health pre-COVID staff were diverted to pandemic response, with most of the “base” public health programs suspended during the pandemic.
Presently, there are 683.31 FTEs working for public health [the peak included seconded staff from other city divisions and the library].
Dr. Richardson says Public Health will need 566.70 FTE “going forward” to resume “base” public health programs while adding staff for permanent COVID management, and some staff to address backlogs in various services including children’s vaccinations, dental screenings, mental health supports, and population health services.
The 556.70 staff will increase if regular COVID vaccination delivery is required into the future.
Across Ontario, there are shortages of qualified health professionals, especially in nursing.
Dr. Richardson originally forecast to spend $20,882,772 to address public health backlogs in 2022.
Public Health “continues to experience challenges with recruitment” and now forecasts it will only be able to deliver around half of its recovery projects budget.
The new spending forecast is $9,000,924.
The meeting was livestreamed on YouTube.