As published in The Erin Advocate
After urging people to shop local recently, I was reminded that there are sometimes good reasons for shopping foreign.
It was at the Erin Rotary Club Pasta Dinner, held last month at the Hillsburgh Arena, an event to raise money for a big screen TV and a Wii Sports video game at the nearby Meadowview Place Seniors Home.
There was a display of hand-made jewelry from the Lacan Kwite group of women, who live in a refugee camp in Gulu, Northern Uganda. Proceeds from the sale were shared, with 25 per cent to Rotary, and the rest to Paper Bead Works, which imports the beads, assembles the jewelry and markets it under the name "KWITE essential BEADS".
It is difficult to imagine the stress of living in a society torn by 20 years of civil war: homes and farms burned, children abducted to become soldiers, widows caring for orphans, shortages of clean water and many people dying from diseases such as malaria, diarrhea and HIV/AIDS.
"They are a resilient group facing huge difficulties," said Toni Andrews of Guelph, who is helping the women find a wider market for their products. "The way that people just keep going is amazing."
She encountered the women while visiting the area with her husband Rick, who was working on a US Agency for International Development project. Sitting on mats under a mango tree, they were cutting discarded paper into thin strips, rolling them, then applying glue and varnish to create colourful, sturdy beads for necklaces, bracelets and earrings.
While inexpensive by North American standards – I bought a pair of earrings for $12 – the revenue is significant for people who are struggling to improve their lives. The money is managed as a trust fund by an aid agency, and the women decide how it is used – often it is for school fees or bus fares.
"Their main hope is for a better future for their children," says the brochure. "The Lacan Kwite group is not waiting for charity to bring them out of abject poverty, but rather they are eager to work and develop beading as an important source of family income."
The jewelry is available at Karger Gallery in downtown Elora and the Surroundings store on MacDonell Street in Guelph. More information is available via email: paperbeadworks@gmail.com.
The enterprise brings to mind the Fair Trade movement, which originated partly as response to Free Trade, with the goal of helping the people in developing countries who produce goods for the world's wealthier countries. Getting a fair price helps them develop their economies, reducing dependence on foreign aid.
"It makes moral sense," said Heidi Matthews, who helped get a Fair Trade project started at St. John Brebeuf Church in Erin more than 15 years ago. They sell coffees, teas, sugar and cocoa products at the church door once a month.
"It was a social justice initiative," she said. "It seemed like a really important way to ease some suffering in the Global South."
The Nova Scotia cooperative Just Us! that supplies the products had sales revenue of $6.5 million last year, an indication of the concept's growing popularity.
The product range through other channels has expanded to include wine, cotton, spices, soap, rice, fruits and flowers. For information on the criteria for certification, go to www.transfair.ca.
December 30, 2009
December 23, 2009
Erin could be an oasis in Ontario landscape
As published in The Erin Advocate
Is resistance futile? Is the charming small town about to be assimilated by the urban monster as it stretches out its tentacles? Is it already too late?
The answer to all three questions is "No" – for now, at least. When people in Erin look to the south, they have good reason to be skeptical of development. High-traffic routes are plastered with fast-food joints, car dealerships, shopping centres and gas stations. The subdivisions seem endless.
Are there any role models we can look to, places that have preserved their small-town charm and local economy in the face of urban sprawl?
If you ask people why they moved here, whether it be to a small village house or a huge recreational farm, most will say it was to escape from that urban environment. Many define Erin by what it is not – in other words, not like Brampton, Milton, Georgetown or even Orangeville.
Some have told me they will move away if Erin village becomes more urbanized, which is sad perhaps, but not as sad as living passively in an uncomfortable environment. Maybe they will only have to move to Hillsburgh.
I've been reading up on highway development and attending community liaison meetings as part of the Town's Settlement and Servicing Master Plan (SSMP) process. Naturally, people have different ideas about how to resist the undesirable aspects of development.
One strategy is to oppose virtually all change. It will be too expensive, too disruptive for some residents and local businesses, too much of a threat to our white, middle-class culture. Are we willing to pay the price of doing nothing: polluted water, traffic congestion, an exodus of seniors, lack of local jobs and valuable land sitting idle? Do we accept, with resentment, only what is forced upon us?
Change will come – just look at the last 50 years. Wouldn't it be better to choose the changes we want, resist the negative trends we see in other towns, and create something special? It may seem idealistic, but if we come up with a vision that reflects the common values of the community, good things are more likely to actually happen.
That is what the Town is trying to do with the SSMP. After a series of consultations, our well-paid consulting firm is now going to write a proposed vision statement. They will be studying an environmental report from Credit Valley Conservation, and coming up with a Problem/Opportunity Statement that will be discussed at a public meeting in March. To find out more, and to add your views to the mix, go to www.erin.ca and click the "Defining Erin" link.
Gone are the days of an unquestioned need for development. In 1864, 200 Erin residents packed the Sportsman's Hotel to demand that the county gravel the road to Guelph – better to pay tolls than be stuck in the mud. Back in the 1870s, did anyone question the value of running a railroad through Erin? Did anyone regret the transformation of our economy, or resent the flood of weekend tourists coming to Stanley Park?
Erin is a desirable destination, but not as a place for huge numbers to live. I do not think a 400-series highway east of Guelph will be justified in the next 30 years, but no matter what is done, traffic will always expand to fill the available capacity. We may need County Road 124 widened to four lanes, plus a four-lane route south on Winston Churchill, east on Olde Baseline and south on Mississauga Road. This would move traffic down to Mayfield Road without a fresh cut through the escarpment, linking it to the proposed "Halton Peel Freeway" that would go to Highways 401 and 407.
Now that Erin is a well-known destination, a bypass for through traffic will be beneficial, helping our tourist trade and industrial growth, while protecting key areas from excessive traffic.
In this century, if we are both smart and fortunate, Erin will become an oasis in the Southern Ontario landscape. Within the protected Greenbelt there will be no "urban sprawl", and our tightly limited urban areas will have the opportunity to become even better living spaces.
We need a small number of new homes (including the affordable variety), better shopping, better social services, better recreation facilities and more light industry to provide jobs and tax revenue. It is not too much to hope for, and certainly worthy of a concerted community effort.
Is resistance futile? Is the charming small town about to be assimilated by the urban monster as it stretches out its tentacles? Is it already too late?
The answer to all three questions is "No" – for now, at least. When people in Erin look to the south, they have good reason to be skeptical of development. High-traffic routes are plastered with fast-food joints, car dealerships, shopping centres and gas stations. The subdivisions seem endless.
Are there any role models we can look to, places that have preserved their small-town charm and local economy in the face of urban sprawl?
If you ask people why they moved here, whether it be to a small village house or a huge recreational farm, most will say it was to escape from that urban environment. Many define Erin by what it is not – in other words, not like Brampton, Milton, Georgetown or even Orangeville.
Some have told me they will move away if Erin village becomes more urbanized, which is sad perhaps, but not as sad as living passively in an uncomfortable environment. Maybe they will only have to move to Hillsburgh.
I've been reading up on highway development and attending community liaison meetings as part of the Town's Settlement and Servicing Master Plan (SSMP) process. Naturally, people have different ideas about how to resist the undesirable aspects of development.
One strategy is to oppose virtually all change. It will be too expensive, too disruptive for some residents and local businesses, too much of a threat to our white, middle-class culture. Are we willing to pay the price of doing nothing: polluted water, traffic congestion, an exodus of seniors, lack of local jobs and valuable land sitting idle? Do we accept, with resentment, only what is forced upon us?
Change will come – just look at the last 50 years. Wouldn't it be better to choose the changes we want, resist the negative trends we see in other towns, and create something special? It may seem idealistic, but if we come up with a vision that reflects the common values of the community, good things are more likely to actually happen.
That is what the Town is trying to do with the SSMP. After a series of consultations, our well-paid consulting firm is now going to write a proposed vision statement. They will be studying an environmental report from Credit Valley Conservation, and coming up with a Problem/Opportunity Statement that will be discussed at a public meeting in March. To find out more, and to add your views to the mix, go to www.erin.ca and click the "Defining Erin" link.
Gone are the days of an unquestioned need for development. In 1864, 200 Erin residents packed the Sportsman's Hotel to demand that the county gravel the road to Guelph – better to pay tolls than be stuck in the mud. Back in the 1870s, did anyone question the value of running a railroad through Erin? Did anyone regret the transformation of our economy, or resent the flood of weekend tourists coming to Stanley Park?
Erin is a desirable destination, but not as a place for huge numbers to live. I do not think a 400-series highway east of Guelph will be justified in the next 30 years, but no matter what is done, traffic will always expand to fill the available capacity. We may need County Road 124 widened to four lanes, plus a four-lane route south on Winston Churchill, east on Olde Baseline and south on Mississauga Road. This would move traffic down to Mayfield Road without a fresh cut through the escarpment, linking it to the proposed "Halton Peel Freeway" that would go to Highways 401 and 407.
Now that Erin is a well-known destination, a bypass for through traffic will be beneficial, helping our tourist trade and industrial growth, while protecting key areas from excessive traffic.
In this century, if we are both smart and fortunate, Erin will become an oasis in the Southern Ontario landscape. Within the protected Greenbelt there will be no "urban sprawl", and our tightly limited urban areas will have the opportunity to become even better living spaces.
We need a small number of new homes (including the affordable variety), better shopping, better social services, better recreation facilities and more light industry to provide jobs and tax revenue. It is not too much to hope for, and certainly worthy of a concerted community effort.
December 16, 2009
Major highway would harm Erin and escarpment
As published in The Erin Advocate
Would you rather have a major highway cutting through southern Erin, or an expansion of County Road 124 to four lanes from Guelph to Caledon, including a bypass of Erin village?
Those are just two of many options being considered by the Ministry of Transportation (MTO), figuring out how to move people and freight between Guelph and Highway 400 as the population of Southern Ontario grows. It may be 10-20 years before any new highways are built, but preferred routes and strategies will be chosen in the next few months.
Erin is on the northern fringe of the GTA West study area. The third round of public information sessions was held recently, part of an Environmental Assessment looking at improved public transit, rail service and roads. There will be more sessions next year, after the preferred routes are chosen.
The road options fall into two groups. The first involves widening existing routes like County Road 124, Highway 7, Trafalgar Road and Mayfield Road, and building bypasses around urban areas. The second is "New Transportation Corridors" – major highways, complete with separate, dedicated bus lanes.
The planning at this stage is based solely on the forecast demand for transportation by 2031, without regard for impact on people and the land. Details about how to minimize the damage will be determined later, as will the exact routes.
One issue for planners is the volume of traffic that will flow from Kitchener-Waterloo to Guelph on an expanded Highway 7. Do they channel most of it south on the Hanlon Expressway, or build a major new highway through a Northern Corridor, between Acton and Erin village? The project would cut a new path through the Niagara Escarpment, allowing the highway to run east near Mayfield Road to join Highway 410.
Three other major highway corridor paths are being studied, all running south of Georgetown. They would link the 410-Mayfield route either with Highway 407 at Winston Churchill, with Milton, or with Highway 6 by running parallel to Highway 401 through Puslinch (see map).
I asked MTO Senior Transportation Planner Jin Wang what the impact would be on County Road 124 if the Northern Corridor is chosen for a major highway. He said there would be no need to upgrade 124 to four lanes. "We would do one or the other," he said.
My property lies within the fuzzy-edged potential Northern Corridor, but I can still say objectively that any benefits from a major highway through Erin would not justify the cost – in dollars, environment damage or social disruption.
As the MTO documents note, it would affect the rural character of communities, disrupt escarpment and Greenbelt lands, break up farms, destroy prime farmland, generate more noise and light in the countryside and have the "potential to impact cultural features near Ballinafad and Cheltenham."
If the Northern Corridor is chosen, the uprising of public opposition will make the multi-million dollar battle over the Rockfort Quarry seem like a minor skirmish. (Will the government be inclined to allow construction of a quarry, knowing that it could provide the material needed to build its web of highways?)
The loss of farmland south of Georgetown would be regrettable, but it would make more sense to forge a major highway link with the 407 or with Milton, and simply widen County Road 124 in the north. That would avoid a new cut through the escarpment, although it could mean expanding Highway 401 to 14 lanes near Milton. Lanes could be also added to other existing roads if more capacity was needed to move traffic between Erin and the Mayfield Road corridor.
As for a bypass around Erin village, it may not be a local decision if the government decides it is needed to serve the needs of the provincial economy. The MTO is well aware that bypasses "may reduce exposure for businesses in existing built-up areas", but eventually there could be so much truck traffic between Guelph and Alliston that a bypass will be a necessity.
If you want to stay informed or submit your comments to the MTO planners, go to www.gta-west.com.
Would you rather have a major highway cutting through southern Erin, or an expansion of County Road 124 to four lanes from Guelph to Caledon, including a bypass of Erin village?
Those are just two of many options being considered by the Ministry of Transportation (MTO), figuring out how to move people and freight between Guelph and Highway 400 as the population of Southern Ontario grows. It may be 10-20 years before any new highways are built, but preferred routes and strategies will be chosen in the next few months.
Erin is on the northern fringe of the GTA West study area. The third round of public information sessions was held recently, part of an Environmental Assessment looking at improved public transit, rail service and roads. There will be more sessions next year, after the preferred routes are chosen.
The road options fall into two groups. The first involves widening existing routes like County Road 124, Highway 7, Trafalgar Road and Mayfield Road, and building bypasses around urban areas. The second is "New Transportation Corridors" – major highways, complete with separate, dedicated bus lanes.
The planning at this stage is based solely on the forecast demand for transportation by 2031, without regard for impact on people and the land. Details about how to minimize the damage will be determined later, as will the exact routes.
One issue for planners is the volume of traffic that will flow from Kitchener-Waterloo to Guelph on an expanded Highway 7. Do they channel most of it south on the Hanlon Expressway, or build a major new highway through a Northern Corridor, between Acton and Erin village? The project would cut a new path through the Niagara Escarpment, allowing the highway to run east near Mayfield Road to join Highway 410.
Three other major highway corridor paths are being studied, all running south of Georgetown. They would link the 410-Mayfield route either with Highway 407 at Winston Churchill, with Milton, or with Highway 6 by running parallel to Highway 401 through Puslinch (see map).
I asked MTO Senior Transportation Planner Jin Wang what the impact would be on County Road 124 if the Northern Corridor is chosen for a major highway. He said there would be no need to upgrade 124 to four lanes. "We would do one or the other," he said.
My property lies within the fuzzy-edged potential Northern Corridor, but I can still say objectively that any benefits from a major highway through Erin would not justify the cost – in dollars, environment damage or social disruption.
As the MTO documents note, it would affect the rural character of communities, disrupt escarpment and Greenbelt lands, break up farms, destroy prime farmland, generate more noise and light in the countryside and have the "potential to impact cultural features near Ballinafad and Cheltenham."
If the Northern Corridor is chosen, the uprising of public opposition will make the multi-million dollar battle over the Rockfort Quarry seem like a minor skirmish. (Will the government be inclined to allow construction of a quarry, knowing that it could provide the material needed to build its web of highways?)
The loss of farmland south of Georgetown would be regrettable, but it would make more sense to forge a major highway link with the 407 or with Milton, and simply widen County Road 124 in the north. That would avoid a new cut through the escarpment, although it could mean expanding Highway 401 to 14 lanes near Milton. Lanes could be also added to other existing roads if more capacity was needed to move traffic between Erin and the Mayfield Road corridor.
As for a bypass around Erin village, it may not be a local decision if the government decides it is needed to serve the needs of the provincial economy. The MTO is well aware that bypasses "may reduce exposure for businesses in existing built-up areas", but eventually there could be so much truck traffic between Guelph and Alliston that a bypass will be a necessity.
If you want to stay informed or submit your comments to the MTO planners, go to www.gta-west.com.
December 09, 2009
Piper mystery serves up light comedy
As published in The Erin Advocate.
Just like Macbeth, The Piper of Grimmgilliedhu takes place in a spooky Scottish castle. That's about it for similarities, since the new show from Erin Community Theatre careens through a series of comedic scenarios instead of an inexorable path of doom.
The energy of the cast translates into plenty of laughs for guests as they enjoy their dinner. There is a plot, of course, a lighthearted tale in the murder mystery genre (minus the murder, it being the Christmas season). It is more like a party, with the plot serving primarily to set up opportunities for funny business.
The recipe calls for ample portions of good old-fashioned motivators, like greed, lust, fear of undead bagpipe players and distrust of the English. Blend in an ancient mystery, some clan warfare and a gaggle of goofy Canadian tourists, and you have a quite a pot of stew.
It feels a bit strange to review a play that includes some cast members I know and have acted with in other shows. For me, reviews have never been about looking for things that are less than ideal, but about showcasing what has been achieved by people who are on stage for the love of it.
In dinner theatre style, the actors sit among the guests in the Wellington Room at David's Restaurant, doing their best to stay in character during the dinner conversation. It is as though we are all tourists who have arrived for a holiday at Grimmgilliedhu Castle, much to the regret of the Lord of the castle, Dugald MacDonald, played with bombastic blusteriness by Fred Bilton.
When he hears the ghost of the piper of Grimgilliedhu playing a warning on the wind, the hunt is on for an enemy who has entered the castle. I could tell you what treasure is stolen, the name of the villainous descendant of the McMean clan and where the treasure turns up, but I will keep it under my hat.
You could find out for yourself tomorrow or Friday (December 10-11), or on Friday, December 18. Tickets are $39.95, including a nice buffet dinner of salad, potatoes, pasta, chicken and prime rib roast beef. Call 519-833-5085 for reservations, or go to www.erinlivetheatre.com for more information.
It was real-life bagpipe playing by Steve Rossiter, who portrays the oafish Harold Payne-Lauden, that inspired Susanna Lamy of Hillsburgh to write the play, her third in this style for Erin Community Theatre. The creation was developed with the input of the actors, under the direction of Kathryn DeLory.
"It was interesting to see someone else take it, work it and interpret it – she has a good eye," said Lamy, who also plays the feisty, tightly-corsetted Aislynne O'Rourke. "It's more relaxing to just act in it."
The informal style of the show allows for some pleasant diversions, such as getting the audience to join in for a singing of Loch Lomond, and some lively Scottish dancing by Paulina and Eileen Grant.
The group should consider even more of that sort of entertainment in next year's production. The lulls when people are lining up for their food could be opportunities for live music or other ways to engage the audience.
On opening night, the cast was still fine-tuning their timing, and they need to pick up the pace overall. None of that took away from the many highlights, including the tipsiness of maid Bridget MacBean (Carol McCone), the frenetic energy of Lucille Payne-Lauden (Suzanne Rayfield), the scheming haughtiness of tour leader Janis Eager (Jeanette Massicotte), the guitar playing of Conall Sinclair (Robert Dodds) and the improbable tales of Randall Wylie (John Carter).
The audience tries to solve the mystery, submitting their guesses about the guilty party. In the end, it is Professor Theodore Booker, played with confidence by Jeff Davison, and his alluring assistant Constance Bright (who has a thing for young men in kilts), played with passion by Denise Wakefield, who get to the bottom of things. Just in time for a singing of Auld Lang Syne, for old times' sake.
Just like Macbeth, The Piper of Grimmgilliedhu takes place in a spooky Scottish castle. That's about it for similarities, since the new show from Erin Community Theatre careens through a series of comedic scenarios instead of an inexorable path of doom.
The energy of the cast translates into plenty of laughs for guests as they enjoy their dinner. There is a plot, of course, a lighthearted tale in the murder mystery genre (minus the murder, it being the Christmas season). It is more like a party, with the plot serving primarily to set up opportunities for funny business.
The recipe calls for ample portions of good old-fashioned motivators, like greed, lust, fear of undead bagpipe players and distrust of the English. Blend in an ancient mystery, some clan warfare and a gaggle of goofy Canadian tourists, and you have a quite a pot of stew.
It feels a bit strange to review a play that includes some cast members I know and have acted with in other shows. For me, reviews have never been about looking for things that are less than ideal, but about showcasing what has been achieved by people who are on stage for the love of it.
In dinner theatre style, the actors sit among the guests in the Wellington Room at David's Restaurant, doing their best to stay in character during the dinner conversation. It is as though we are all tourists who have arrived for a holiday at Grimmgilliedhu Castle, much to the regret of the Lord of the castle, Dugald MacDonald, played with bombastic blusteriness by Fred Bilton.
When he hears the ghost of the piper of Grimgilliedhu playing a warning on the wind, the hunt is on for an enemy who has entered the castle. I could tell you what treasure is stolen, the name of the villainous descendant of the McMean clan and where the treasure turns up, but I will keep it under my hat.
You could find out for yourself tomorrow or Friday (December 10-11), or on Friday, December 18. Tickets are $39.95, including a nice buffet dinner of salad, potatoes, pasta, chicken and prime rib roast beef. Call 519-833-5085 for reservations, or go to www.erinlivetheatre.com for more information.
It was real-life bagpipe playing by Steve Rossiter, who portrays the oafish Harold Payne-Lauden, that inspired Susanna Lamy of Hillsburgh to write the play, her third in this style for Erin Community Theatre. The creation was developed with the input of the actors, under the direction of Kathryn DeLory.
"It was interesting to see someone else take it, work it and interpret it – she has a good eye," said Lamy, who also plays the feisty, tightly-corsetted Aislynne O'Rourke. "It's more relaxing to just act in it."
The informal style of the show allows for some pleasant diversions, such as getting the audience to join in for a singing of Loch Lomond, and some lively Scottish dancing by Paulina and Eileen Grant.
The group should consider even more of that sort of entertainment in next year's production. The lulls when people are lining up for their food could be opportunities for live music or other ways to engage the audience.
On opening night, the cast was still fine-tuning their timing, and they need to pick up the pace overall. None of that took away from the many highlights, including the tipsiness of maid Bridget MacBean (Carol McCone), the frenetic energy of Lucille Payne-Lauden (Suzanne Rayfield), the scheming haughtiness of tour leader Janis Eager (Jeanette Massicotte), the guitar playing of Conall Sinclair (Robert Dodds) and the improbable tales of Randall Wylie (John Carter).
The audience tries to solve the mystery, submitting their guesses about the guilty party. In the end, it is Professor Theodore Booker, played with confidence by Jeff Davison, and his alluring assistant Constance Bright (who has a thing for young men in kilts), played with passion by Denise Wakefield, who get to the bottom of things. Just in time for a singing of Auld Lang Syne, for old times' sake.
December 02, 2009
Deer Pit storm water headed for Credit
As published in The Erin Advocate
Work has started on a project to drain storm water from Erin's Deer Pit into the Credit River at the Tenth Line, solving a drainage problem that dates back to construction of the railroad.
Located north of Centre 2000 near the Elora-Cataract Trail, the Deer Pit is a low-lying area of Town-owned land. Surface water from a 451-acre zone, including Main Street storm sewers, the industrial subdivision and farmland well north of County Road 124, drains to the Deer Pit, but has nowhere to go.
The ability of the pit to absorb the water is declining, so a plan to flow it east to join the Credit River system was made ten years ago, with a price tag of $800,000. The expenditure was never approved, and now the cost will be $1.21 million.
The Town is proceeding with the help of infrastructure funding announced this year. The federal and provincial governments will each pay one-third of the cost, and Erin will use money held in reserves to pay its share, said Town Manager Lisa Hass.
Long-known for its dirt bike trails, the Deer Pit is actually an old quarry. A spur line of the Credit Valley Railroad (later Canadian Pacific) was completed in 1879, linking Cataract, Erin, Hillsburgh and Elora. A short siding had been built into the Deer Pit to haul out ballast – stone and gravel needed to build the rail bed further down the line.
Local historian Steve Revell said a second siding was built on the other side of the rail line, through what is now Centre 2000, for a small quarry near the current baseball diamond. (The area beyond the outfield is another prime candidate for improved drainage – it is now a stagnant pond, covered in algae and strewn with garbage.)
The federal government website on this project (Google: Deer Pit) says it will "help mitigate flooding in neighbouring residential developments and recreational areas".
Hass said that while moving the surface water could reduce the risk of basement flooding in the May Street area, there is no guarantee it will help. Flooding has been due to underground water, not directly from water in the Deer Pit, she said.
The new Deer Pit will still have a natural appearance. The western half will have an improved ditch, but large storms could still soak the whole area. The eastern half will be carved into a more formal "pool" area, with a layer of clay trucked in to reduce infiltration of water into the ground. Water will flow into a forebay next to the school's sewage treatment plant, then through a wetland and into a deep pool (five feet deep). There will be no fencing.
This will "treat" the water, by allowing dirt from the industrial area to settle out before it flows to the river. If the industrial park were being built now, it would be required to have its own storm water treatment facility, said Hass. The sewage plant does not discharge into the Deer Pit; the effluent goes to a tile field back on the south side of the trailway.
From the Deer Pit, a controlled flow of water will go into a pipe buried 3-10 feet directly under the trailway, over to the Tenth Line. It will go south a short distance under the road and discharge into a tributary of the West Credit River. The outlet will disperse the water flow, reducing impact on the stream, which joins the main branch of the river near the Woollen Mills Conservation Area.
An access road has been built from Erin Park Drive to bring in equipment and clay. Roads Superintendent Larry Van Wyck plans to start the pipe work late this winter, before the spring thaw, with most of the project done by early summer and final landscaping / cleanup by September.
Work has started on a project to drain storm water from Erin's Deer Pit into the Credit River at the Tenth Line, solving a drainage problem that dates back to construction of the railroad.
Located north of Centre 2000 near the Elora-Cataract Trail, the Deer Pit is a low-lying area of Town-owned land. Surface water from a 451-acre zone, including Main Street storm sewers, the industrial subdivision and farmland well north of County Road 124, drains to the Deer Pit, but has nowhere to go.
The ability of the pit to absorb the water is declining, so a plan to flow it east to join the Credit River system was made ten years ago, with a price tag of $800,000. The expenditure was never approved, and now the cost will be $1.21 million.
The Town is proceeding with the help of infrastructure funding announced this year. The federal and provincial governments will each pay one-third of the cost, and Erin will use money held in reserves to pay its share, said Town Manager Lisa Hass.
Long-known for its dirt bike trails, the Deer Pit is actually an old quarry. A spur line of the Credit Valley Railroad (later Canadian Pacific) was completed in 1879, linking Cataract, Erin, Hillsburgh and Elora. A short siding had been built into the Deer Pit to haul out ballast – stone and gravel needed to build the rail bed further down the line.
Local historian Steve Revell said a second siding was built on the other side of the rail line, through what is now Centre 2000, for a small quarry near the current baseball diamond. (The area beyond the outfield is another prime candidate for improved drainage – it is now a stagnant pond, covered in algae and strewn with garbage.)
The federal government website on this project (Google: Deer Pit) says it will "help mitigate flooding in neighbouring residential developments and recreational areas".
Hass said that while moving the surface water could reduce the risk of basement flooding in the May Street area, there is no guarantee it will help. Flooding has been due to underground water, not directly from water in the Deer Pit, she said.
The new Deer Pit will still have a natural appearance. The western half will have an improved ditch, but large storms could still soak the whole area. The eastern half will be carved into a more formal "pool" area, with a layer of clay trucked in to reduce infiltration of water into the ground. Water will flow into a forebay next to the school's sewage treatment plant, then through a wetland and into a deep pool (five feet deep). There will be no fencing.
This will "treat" the water, by allowing dirt from the industrial area to settle out before it flows to the river. If the industrial park were being built now, it would be required to have its own storm water treatment facility, said Hass. The sewage plant does not discharge into the Deer Pit; the effluent goes to a tile field back on the south side of the trailway.
From the Deer Pit, a controlled flow of water will go into a pipe buried 3-10 feet directly under the trailway, over to the Tenth Line. It will go south a short distance under the road and discharge into a tributary of the West Credit River. The outlet will disperse the water flow, reducing impact on the stream, which joins the main branch of the river near the Woollen Mills Conservation Area.
An access road has been built from Erin Park Drive to bring in equipment and clay. Roads Superintendent Larry Van Wyck plans to start the pipe work late this winter, before the spring thaw, with most of the project done by early summer and final landscaping / cleanup by September.
November 25, 2009
Stronger rural health network needed
As published in The Erin Advocate
Regional health planners are considering new efforts to improve the quality of rural health care for people in areas like Erin.
Recommendations from the current Rural Health Care Review were released at a public meeting at Centre 2000 last week, hosted by the Waterloo Wellington Local Health Integration Network (WWLHIN).
"Rural Canadians are not as healthy in two-thirds of categories," said Jim Whaley, who wrote the draft report. It recommends an array of improvements including fair distribution of community support services, based on need, especially for rural seniors.
The WWLHIN has a budget of $858 million, allocating funding to eight hospitals, plus nursing homes, mental health / addictions agencies, community health centres, home care, and community support services such as those offered by East Wellington Community Services (EWCS). It covers the 750,000 people living in Waterloo Region, Wellington County and South Grey County. Erin residents, including those in built-up village areas, are considered rural for this study.
"We are accountable to the public – it is taxpayers' money we are spending," said WWLHIN CEO Sandra Hanmer. Regarding the efficient coordination of services, she said: "Sometimes we get it right; sometimes we get it wrong."
The study recommends a Rural Health Network, with representatives of the municipality, schools and heath / social service groups, to work on details of how to achieve the study goals, and improved coordination of services.
"Rural health care service delivery is unique due to a variety of factors including location, recruitment and retention of health care professionals, low patient volumes and an aging population," said Hanmer. A good network of services is considered important in attracting doctors to the area.
Compared to city-dwellers, residents of Erin and other rural areas of the WWLHIN have poorer access to health care and lower use of home care service. We have higher rates of premature death, some chronic diseases (like diabetes), hospitalization and long term care institutionalization.
Erin has the lowest population growth and one of the lowest percentages of seniors among the WWLHIN rural communities. No new homes are being built, and few small, affordable ones are available, so many seniors are moving away.
The WWLHIN funds the Seniors Day Program and the Volunteer Transportation Program operated by EWCS.
"We are looking for more services to help seniors age within their homes, with dignity and respect," said EWCS Executive Director Glenyis Betts.
Erin's Primary Care health care organization is the East Wellington Family Health Team (EWFHT), which is now building a clinic in Rockwood. It is expected to announce very soon the details of a new facility for on-staff family physicians and its many other health services, to be built next year in Erin. While EWFHT is not funded through the WWLHIN (it gets its funding directly from the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care), it operates within the regional planning framework.
EWFHT Executive Director Michelle Karker said the renewed focus on rural health is likely to create "opportunities" for better local service. From the new medical clinic in Erin village, they hope to offer satellite services in other centres such as Hillsburgh.
They are also developing a telemedicine service, a concept used extensively in Northern Ontario. Using an internet feed to transmit video and diagnostic information, local clinics are able to link patients with specialists in big-city hospitals. The technology also has the potential to monitor patients at home as they recover from illness or surgery.
The report also says hospitals should be obliged to have "specific provisions for serving rural communities" when it comes to access to specialists and regional centres for cancer and cardiovascular care. The report recommendations have not yet been approved by the WWLHIN board of directors.
Regional health planners are considering new efforts to improve the quality of rural health care for people in areas like Erin.
Recommendations from the current Rural Health Care Review were released at a public meeting at Centre 2000 last week, hosted by the Waterloo Wellington Local Health Integration Network (WWLHIN).
"Rural Canadians are not as healthy in two-thirds of categories," said Jim Whaley, who wrote the draft report. It recommends an array of improvements including fair distribution of community support services, based on need, especially for rural seniors.
The WWLHIN has a budget of $858 million, allocating funding to eight hospitals, plus nursing homes, mental health / addictions agencies, community health centres, home care, and community support services such as those offered by East Wellington Community Services (EWCS). It covers the 750,000 people living in Waterloo Region, Wellington County and South Grey County. Erin residents, including those in built-up village areas, are considered rural for this study.
"We are accountable to the public – it is taxpayers' money we are spending," said WWLHIN CEO Sandra Hanmer. Regarding the efficient coordination of services, she said: "Sometimes we get it right; sometimes we get it wrong."
The study recommends a Rural Health Network, with representatives of the municipality, schools and heath / social service groups, to work on details of how to achieve the study goals, and improved coordination of services.
"Rural health care service delivery is unique due to a variety of factors including location, recruitment and retention of health care professionals, low patient volumes and an aging population," said Hanmer. A good network of services is considered important in attracting doctors to the area.
Compared to city-dwellers, residents of Erin and other rural areas of the WWLHIN have poorer access to health care and lower use of home care service. We have higher rates of premature death, some chronic diseases (like diabetes), hospitalization and long term care institutionalization.
Erin has the lowest population growth and one of the lowest percentages of seniors among the WWLHIN rural communities. No new homes are being built, and few small, affordable ones are available, so many seniors are moving away.
The WWLHIN funds the Seniors Day Program and the Volunteer Transportation Program operated by EWCS.
"We are looking for more services to help seniors age within their homes, with dignity and respect," said EWCS Executive Director Glenyis Betts.
Erin's Primary Care health care organization is the East Wellington Family Health Team (EWFHT), which is now building a clinic in Rockwood. It is expected to announce very soon the details of a new facility for on-staff family physicians and its many other health services, to be built next year in Erin. While EWFHT is not funded through the WWLHIN (it gets its funding directly from the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care), it operates within the regional planning framework.
EWFHT Executive Director Michelle Karker said the renewed focus on rural health is likely to create "opportunities" for better local service. From the new medical clinic in Erin village, they hope to offer satellite services in other centres such as Hillsburgh.
They are also developing a telemedicine service, a concept used extensively in Northern Ontario. Using an internet feed to transmit video and diagnostic information, local clinics are able to link patients with specialists in big-city hospitals. The technology also has the potential to monitor patients at home as they recover from illness or surgery.
The report also says hospitals should be obliged to have "specific provisions for serving rural communities" when it comes to access to specialists and regional centres for cancer and cardiovascular care. The report recommendations have not yet been approved by the WWLHIN board of directors.
November 18, 2009
New website tracks sewer saga
As published in The Erin Advocate
Erin finally has a website to help people keep track of what's going on in the Town's quest for a sewer system.
With a link on the home page of the Town website, www.erin.ca, you can explore the "Defining Erin" site. It explains the stages of the Servicing and Settlement Master Plan (SSMP) study and has the results of "visioning" sessions, including a public meeting last May with 40 residents attending. Recently, there was a session with 55 local real estate agents and another with 10 members of the Business Improvement Area.
The website also includes comments from Erin students, who wrote 19 letters telling the planners how they would like Erin to look in the future. Comments can still be submitted, and you can provide your email address to receive reports when they are released. Comments so far show that residents do not want Erin to lose its small-town character.
"You like to cheat," said Project Manager Matt Pearson, at a Liaison Committee meeting last month. "You like the proximity to urban centres, but you don't want to be one."
A report is expected soon from Credit Valley Conservation on environmental aspects of the SSMP, and the Town may ask for additional technical studies. Two main public meetings are scheduled, one in March to review the problems, and one next fall to discuss solutions.
"A longer timeframe allows for more understanding of the solutions," said Pearson. "More of a bottom up approach, than a top down imposition."
Since 2007, there has been virtually no growth in the Town's urban areas, and little is expected until sewers and a treatment plant are built. The SSMP study will take until the end of 2010, and it will be at least five years after that before any service is in place.
Population growth would be moderate, even with sewers. By 2031, the County estimates Erin village would grow by 1,300, to a total of 4,400 people; Hillsburgh would grow by 700, to a total of 2,080 and the rural area would grow by 1,040, to a total of 9,050.
The sewer project will mean significant costs and disruption for the Town and property owners in the urban areas, but it also represents an opportunity to build a better community and safeguard the natural environment.
"You will need to chase grants – it's going to be expensive," said Pearson. There is no cost projection yet, but the failed plan from 1995 for Erin village alone was estimated at $25 million. Sewage facilities are prime candidates for infrastructure funding though. Grand Valley and Mount Forest have recently received substantial federal and provincial grants for their systems.
If no sewers are built, there will also be major costs and disruption in Erin. Pearson said it is estimated that 30 per cent of local septic systems are deficient. The average lifespan of a septic system is 25-30 years, but the average system in Erin village is 34 years old. Town records show only 23 systems replaced in a recent 8-year period.
"There are many failed systems in the community," said Pamela Scharfe, of the consulting firm B.M. Ross, making a presentation on septic systems to the Liaison Committee.
The Town has the authority to set up an inspection system that could force property owners to repair or replace deficient septic systems, but it has not done so.
The Ontario Building Code is stricter now than when most local houses were built. About half the septic systems in Erin village and Hillsburgh cannot be replaced with a standard tank and leaching bed, because the lots are less than 15,000 square feet (100' x 150'). They will require smaller systems that include an extra treatment phase, and cost $5,000 to $10,000 extra. Owners must pay for a maintenance contract, and problems may be reported to the health unit.
A 1995 study by the Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Health Unit also found that 94 Erin village lots were inaccessible for the equipment needed to replace their septic systems, due to large trees and the houses being too close together. If a system like this failed completely, the house could be declared uninhabitable.
Meetings of the SSMP Liaison Committee, which has representatives from local government, businesses and environment/social service groups, are not formal public meetings, but they are open to the public.
Erin finally has a website to help people keep track of what's going on in the Town's quest for a sewer system.
With a link on the home page of the Town website, www.erin.ca, you can explore the "Defining Erin" site. It explains the stages of the Servicing and Settlement Master Plan (SSMP) study and has the results of "visioning" sessions, including a public meeting last May with 40 residents attending. Recently, there was a session with 55 local real estate agents and another with 10 members of the Business Improvement Area.
The website also includes comments from Erin students, who wrote 19 letters telling the planners how they would like Erin to look in the future. Comments can still be submitted, and you can provide your email address to receive reports when they are released. Comments so far show that residents do not want Erin to lose its small-town character.
"You like to cheat," said Project Manager Matt Pearson, at a Liaison Committee meeting last month. "You like the proximity to urban centres, but you don't want to be one."
A report is expected soon from Credit Valley Conservation on environmental aspects of the SSMP, and the Town may ask for additional technical studies. Two main public meetings are scheduled, one in March to review the problems, and one next fall to discuss solutions.
"A longer timeframe allows for more understanding of the solutions," said Pearson. "More of a bottom up approach, than a top down imposition."
Since 2007, there has been virtually no growth in the Town's urban areas, and little is expected until sewers and a treatment plant are built. The SSMP study will take until the end of 2010, and it will be at least five years after that before any service is in place.
Population growth would be moderate, even with sewers. By 2031, the County estimates Erin village would grow by 1,300, to a total of 4,400 people; Hillsburgh would grow by 700, to a total of 2,080 and the rural area would grow by 1,040, to a total of 9,050.
The sewer project will mean significant costs and disruption for the Town and property owners in the urban areas, but it also represents an opportunity to build a better community and safeguard the natural environment.
"You will need to chase grants – it's going to be expensive," said Pearson. There is no cost projection yet, but the failed plan from 1995 for Erin village alone was estimated at $25 million. Sewage facilities are prime candidates for infrastructure funding though. Grand Valley and Mount Forest have recently received substantial federal and provincial grants for their systems.
If no sewers are built, there will also be major costs and disruption in Erin. Pearson said it is estimated that 30 per cent of local septic systems are deficient. The average lifespan of a septic system is 25-30 years, but the average system in Erin village is 34 years old. Town records show only 23 systems replaced in a recent 8-year period.
"There are many failed systems in the community," said Pamela Scharfe, of the consulting firm B.M. Ross, making a presentation on septic systems to the Liaison Committee.
The Town has the authority to set up an inspection system that could force property owners to repair or replace deficient septic systems, but it has not done so.
The Ontario Building Code is stricter now than when most local houses were built. About half the septic systems in Erin village and Hillsburgh cannot be replaced with a standard tank and leaching bed, because the lots are less than 15,000 square feet (100' x 150'). They will require smaller systems that include an extra treatment phase, and cost $5,000 to $10,000 extra. Owners must pay for a maintenance contract, and problems may be reported to the health unit.
A 1995 study by the Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Health Unit also found that 94 Erin village lots were inaccessible for the equipment needed to replace their septic systems, due to large trees and the houses being too close together. If a system like this failed completely, the house could be declared uninhabitable.
Meetings of the SSMP Liaison Committee, which has representatives from local government, businesses and environment/social service groups, are not formal public meetings, but they are open to the public.
November 11, 2009
A challenge to stimulate Erin's economy
As published in The Erin Advocate
With all the government attempts to stimulate the economy these days, we should not forget that Christmas is an opportunity to give Erin businesses a boost.
Building the local economy by shopping locally is not a new concept, but it often requires a change in shopping habits, especially for people who work in nearby cities that have convenient malls and big-box stores.
Here is a challenge to every employed person in town: try to spend at least $50 at local shops this Christmas season. It is not a lot, and it is money you would be spending anyway.
A small change in shopping strategy could end up having a real impact throughout the year. These are the businesses that employ local people, pay local taxes and create a positive atmosphere and image for the town.
Tourists recognize the value. But we should not have to rely on tourists to drive our economy when we have the means to do it ourselves.
It is not a matter of charity, or feeling sorry for the small business owner. These people have to compete to survive, and they are out there working to earn customers' support. Erin and Hillsburgh have excellent shops that might have what you want. Or they might not. It is a matter of giving them an opportunity to meet your needs.
As an example, when I wanted to buy a guitar, I shopped around, but ended up buying one at The Village Music Store. I gave the store the opportunity to earn my business because it is local, but I bought there because it offered quality products, good service and competitive prices.
There is a campaign gaining popularity in the US and Canada called "The 3/50 Project". It encourages employed people to pick three small businesses and spend a total of $50 at them each month. Started by retail consultant Cinda Baxter of Minneapolis, it is a push to empower consumers and revive communities suffering due to the recession.
"For every $100 spent in locally owned independent stores, $68 returns to the community in taxes, payroll and other expenditures," she says on her website, the350project.net. "If you spend that in a national chain, only $43 stays here. Spend it online and nothing comes home."
When we "invest" with our shopping dollars, we help small businesses prosper, expand, offer more selection and hire more people.
Downtown Erin stores are holding their 7th annual Window Wonderland this Friday, November 13, starting at 6 p.m., to raise their profile for the Christmas shopping season.
Last year's event had a nice party atmosphere despite the rain, and this year's should be even better with the lighting of the Christmas tree at the new park at 109 Main Street. The name of the park will be announced.
BIA shops will unveil their window displays and stay open until 9 p.m. Santa will drop in for a visit. There will be horse and carriage rides, hot dogs, cookies, hot apple cider and hot chocolate to help folks stay warm.
I just got home from a rehearsal of the strolling Christmas carol singers preparing for the event, and we're sounding pretty good. We will be in pseudo-Dickensian attire – my first opportunity to wear a top hat this year.
So come out for some fun, but be on the lookout for investment opportunities.
With all the government attempts to stimulate the economy these days, we should not forget that Christmas is an opportunity to give Erin businesses a boost.
Building the local economy by shopping locally is not a new concept, but it often requires a change in shopping habits, especially for people who work in nearby cities that have convenient malls and big-box stores.
Here is a challenge to every employed person in town: try to spend at least $50 at local shops this Christmas season. It is not a lot, and it is money you would be spending anyway.
A small change in shopping strategy could end up having a real impact throughout the year. These are the businesses that employ local people, pay local taxes and create a positive atmosphere and image for the town.
Tourists recognize the value. But we should not have to rely on tourists to drive our economy when we have the means to do it ourselves.
It is not a matter of charity, or feeling sorry for the small business owner. These people have to compete to survive, and they are out there working to earn customers' support. Erin and Hillsburgh have excellent shops that might have what you want. Or they might not. It is a matter of giving them an opportunity to meet your needs.
As an example, when I wanted to buy a guitar, I shopped around, but ended up buying one at The Village Music Store. I gave the store the opportunity to earn my business because it is local, but I bought there because it offered quality products, good service and competitive prices.
There is a campaign gaining popularity in the US and Canada called "The 3/50 Project". It encourages employed people to pick three small businesses and spend a total of $50 at them each month. Started by retail consultant Cinda Baxter of Minneapolis, it is a push to empower consumers and revive communities suffering due to the recession.
"For every $100 spent in locally owned independent stores, $68 returns to the community in taxes, payroll and other expenditures," she says on her website, the350project.net. "If you spend that in a national chain, only $43 stays here. Spend it online and nothing comes home."
When we "invest" with our shopping dollars, we help small businesses prosper, expand, offer more selection and hire more people.
Downtown Erin stores are holding their 7th annual Window Wonderland this Friday, November 13, starting at 6 p.m., to raise their profile for the Christmas shopping season.
Last year's event had a nice party atmosphere despite the rain, and this year's should be even better with the lighting of the Christmas tree at the new park at 109 Main Street. The name of the park will be announced.
BIA shops will unveil their window displays and stay open until 9 p.m. Santa will drop in for a visit. There will be horse and carriage rides, hot dogs, cookies, hot apple cider and hot chocolate to help folks stay warm.
I just got home from a rehearsal of the strolling Christmas carol singers preparing for the event, and we're sounding pretty good. We will be in pseudo-Dickensian attire – my first opportunity to wear a top hat this year.
So come out for some fun, but be on the lookout for investment opportunities.
November 04, 2009
Reconstructed sideroad shows signs of the times
As published in The Erin Advocate
After 24 years of turning left out of my driveway to go to work every morning, it is not easy to get into the habit of turning right. When I do remember to turn right, I am quickly rewarded with a trip on the newly-paved 5 Sideroad.
It means I can get out of town and over to Mississauga Road via Olde Baseline Road, without driving on the bumpy section of Winston Churchill Boulevard near Terra Cotta. The only local road worse than that was 5 Sideroad before it was paved.
Some residents of Terra Cotta have lobbied to keep that section of Winston Churchill unpaved to reduce commuter traffic, despite safety concerns with the current road. It will not be paved for at least four more years, so they are getting their way for now. I do not have to drive through Terra Cotta any more, and that is just fine with me.
The 5.5-kilometre project on 5 Sideroad includes new culverts, and elevation of the surface in low-lying areas. It is a continuation of Wellington Road 50, (the direct route from Rockwood) linking Trafalgar Road to the paved section of Winston Churchill.
Drivers are confronted with an array of signs on the new road. There is the common warning about Slow Moving Vehicles, and the No Trucks symbol – a relief to those who feared 5 Sideroad would become a gravel truck corridor.
There are four-way stops at the Eighth, Ninth and Tenth Lines, and the maximum speed is 60 kph. That may seem low for an open stretch of country road, even if many drivers treat it as a suggestion instead of a law.
Caution has become the norm for posted speed limits, and that is not a bad thing for a road like this. It still has a few hills, and there is only a three-foot shoulder of gravel beside some steep embankments. By such standards, the hilly section of Ninth Line just to the north should have a lower speed limit as well, even though its surface is a few inches wider.
Signs from the Road Watch organization are also prominent, urging people to report incidents of aggressive or dangerous driving. The local group has not been active lately, but there are plans to promote the concept throughout Wellington County.
You can file a report on-line at www.roadwatch.ca. Your name is not revealed to the driver or owner of the vehicle, who will get a stern letter from police. On second report they will get a phone call, and the third time a personal visit from police. It is a way of educating and applying pressure without issuing tickets or laying charges.
The sideroad signs also proclaim the funding sources: "Building Canada: Federal gas tax funds at work in your community", "Creating Jobs, Building Ontario" and "Canada's Economic Action Plan". Last June the project got a boost of about $330,000 from each of the federal and provincial governments, with the Town providing a matching amount, allowing all the work to be done this year, instead of just half of it.
There has a tempest in the Ottawa teapot recently, after Conservatives printed their own logo on some infrastructure cheques. And there are accusations (denied by the prime minister) that Conservative ridings are getting a higher percentage of stimulus money for large projects.
It is hard to know what to believe, since a complete list of projects has not been made public, and not all the money has been doled out yet. The Liberals were accused of similar manipulations when they were in power – it seems like a Canadian tradition.
Still, when MP Michael Chong talks proudly in his fall newsletter about "Delivering Results" in the form of millions of dollars in funding for his riding, it is worth remembering that he has only delivered our money to us. It is not the result of any special skill or generosity on the part of the MP, his party or the government.
Chong says the new, huge federal deficit is "short-term". It will be interesting to see if that turns out to be a realistic assessment. As everyone knows, running up debt is easy. Paying it off is a real test of political skill.
After 24 years of turning left out of my driveway to go to work every morning, it is not easy to get into the habit of turning right. When I do remember to turn right, I am quickly rewarded with a trip on the newly-paved 5 Sideroad.
It means I can get out of town and over to Mississauga Road via Olde Baseline Road, without driving on the bumpy section of Winston Churchill Boulevard near Terra Cotta. The only local road worse than that was 5 Sideroad before it was paved.
Some residents of Terra Cotta have lobbied to keep that section of Winston Churchill unpaved to reduce commuter traffic, despite safety concerns with the current road. It will not be paved for at least four more years, so they are getting their way for now. I do not have to drive through Terra Cotta any more, and that is just fine with me.
The 5.5-kilometre project on 5 Sideroad includes new culverts, and elevation of the surface in low-lying areas. It is a continuation of Wellington Road 50, (the direct route from Rockwood) linking Trafalgar Road to the paved section of Winston Churchill.
Drivers are confronted with an array of signs on the new road. There is the common warning about Slow Moving Vehicles, and the No Trucks symbol – a relief to those who feared 5 Sideroad would become a gravel truck corridor.
There are four-way stops at the Eighth, Ninth and Tenth Lines, and the maximum speed is 60 kph. That may seem low for an open stretch of country road, even if many drivers treat it as a suggestion instead of a law.
Caution has become the norm for posted speed limits, and that is not a bad thing for a road like this. It still has a few hills, and there is only a three-foot shoulder of gravel beside some steep embankments. By such standards, the hilly section of Ninth Line just to the north should have a lower speed limit as well, even though its surface is a few inches wider.
Signs from the Road Watch organization are also prominent, urging people to report incidents of aggressive or dangerous driving. The local group has not been active lately, but there are plans to promote the concept throughout Wellington County.
You can file a report on-line at www.roadwatch.ca. Your name is not revealed to the driver or owner of the vehicle, who will get a stern letter from police. On second report they will get a phone call, and the third time a personal visit from police. It is a way of educating and applying pressure without issuing tickets or laying charges.
The sideroad signs also proclaim the funding sources: "Building Canada: Federal gas tax funds at work in your community", "Creating Jobs, Building Ontario" and "Canada's Economic Action Plan". Last June the project got a boost of about $330,000 from each of the federal and provincial governments, with the Town providing a matching amount, allowing all the work to be done this year, instead of just half of it.
There has a tempest in the Ottawa teapot recently, after Conservatives printed their own logo on some infrastructure cheques. And there are accusations (denied by the prime minister) that Conservative ridings are getting a higher percentage of stimulus money for large projects.
It is hard to know what to believe, since a complete list of projects has not been made public, and not all the money has been doled out yet. The Liberals were accused of similar manipulations when they were in power – it seems like a Canadian tradition.
Still, when MP Michael Chong talks proudly in his fall newsletter about "Delivering Results" in the form of millions of dollars in funding for his riding, it is worth remembering that he has only delivered our money to us. It is not the result of any special skill or generosity on the part of the MP, his party or the government.
Chong says the new, huge federal deficit is "short-term". It will be interesting to see if that turns out to be a realistic assessment. As everyone knows, running up debt is easy. Paying it off is a real test of political skill.
October 28, 2009
Signs praise farmers' environmental efforts
As published in The Erin Advocate
Ontario farmers are reaching out to trail users with a series of educational signs, highlighting their efforts to make farms more environment-friendly.
The first of 60 signs throughout the Greenbelt was unveiled in Erin early this month, where the Elora-Cataract Trail crosses Dundas Street, to mark the launch of a public relations campaign called "Agriculture Hits the Trails". It is a project of AGCare, a coalition of crop-related farm groups, and the Ontario Farm Animal Council.
"Farmers are doing a great job of protecting and enhancing the environment," said Jackie Fraser, AGCare Executive Director. “The colourful and informative signs showcase a range of advancements.”
Erin's sign is mainly about Canada-Ontario Environmental Farm Plans, through which farmers get grants to defray the cost of improvements like buffer zones near streams to reduce erosion and fertilizer run-off, fencing to keep farm animals away from streams and better management of pesticides and manure. Wellington County and the City of Guelph fund similar measures through the Wellington Rural Water Quality program.
Farmers have invested about $600 million on such improvements, and reduced tilling has lowered greenhouse gas emissions more than 600 kilotonnes.
"The Friends of the Greenbelt Foundation (FGF) has granted millions of dollars over the past three years to support the many Greenbelt farmers who are taking on environmental projects," said FGF Program Manager Shelley Petrie.
The sign project is supported by trail organizations and conservation authorities, but funded primarily by the FGF. The Foundation provided $180,000, over three years, to produce six different 24" x 18" laminated wood signs on steel posts. A total of 60 are spread across the 1.8 million acres of the Greenbelt, from the Niagara River to Cobourg, including the Escarpment.
The grant does not cover staff time at any of the agencies, but does cover things like design, physical production, installation and professional PR help.
The signs are attractive and well-written, an example of your provincial tax dollars at work. The FGF is independent of the government, but received a one-time $25 million provincial grant in 2005 to help cover start-up and on-going costs.
Grant applications are assessed for relevancy and value. The signs are clearly within the FGF criteria, but at $3,000 each, they are quite expensive.
This year the Town of Erin, through its Trails Subcommittee, and Credit Valley Conservation (CVC) completed a similar project on a smaller scale, with five different educational signs for the Woollen Mills Trail, near downtown Erin village.
The town paid $1,200 each for these colourful, all-metal signs which are 37" x 25".
The project was spearheaded by Amy Doole through WeCARE (West Credit Appreciation, Rehabilitation & Enhancement), with support from the Ontario Trillium Foundation. It benefited from substantial staff time at CVC for research, design, writing and installation, while historical research was provided free by Steve Revell. An additional version of the mill history sign was unveiled last week at the 109 Main Street park.
Other FGF grants in the Erin area include $100,000 for the Hills of Headwaters Tourism Association, to "foster cooperation among tourism operators, to enhance their 'natural' marketing brand, while increasing visitors to the area and lengthening their stay."
The Caledon Countryside Alliance got $30,000 for a community map project, Conservation Halton got $75,000 to build "awareness of the Greenbelt" through signs and other communications materials, while Credit Valley Conservation Foundation got $12,000 for 15 signs promoting the Credit's "clean water and healthy watersheds".
You can get more information at www.greenbelt.ca, www.caringfortheland.com, www.agcare.org and www.ofac.org.
Ontario farmers are reaching out to trail users with a series of educational signs, highlighting their efforts to make farms more environment-friendly.
The first of 60 signs throughout the Greenbelt was unveiled in Erin early this month, where the Elora-Cataract Trail crosses Dundas Street, to mark the launch of a public relations campaign called "Agriculture Hits the Trails". It is a project of AGCare, a coalition of crop-related farm groups, and the Ontario Farm Animal Council.
"Farmers are doing a great job of protecting and enhancing the environment," said Jackie Fraser, AGCare Executive Director. “The colourful and informative signs showcase a range of advancements.”
Erin's sign is mainly about Canada-Ontario Environmental Farm Plans, through which farmers get grants to defray the cost of improvements like buffer zones near streams to reduce erosion and fertilizer run-off, fencing to keep farm animals away from streams and better management of pesticides and manure. Wellington County and the City of Guelph fund similar measures through the Wellington Rural Water Quality program.
Farmers have invested about $600 million on such improvements, and reduced tilling has lowered greenhouse gas emissions more than 600 kilotonnes.
"The Friends of the Greenbelt Foundation (FGF) has granted millions of dollars over the past three years to support the many Greenbelt farmers who are taking on environmental projects," said FGF Program Manager Shelley Petrie.
The sign project is supported by trail organizations and conservation authorities, but funded primarily by the FGF. The Foundation provided $180,000, over three years, to produce six different 24" x 18" laminated wood signs on steel posts. A total of 60 are spread across the 1.8 million acres of the Greenbelt, from the Niagara River to Cobourg, including the Escarpment.
The grant does not cover staff time at any of the agencies, but does cover things like design, physical production, installation and professional PR help.
The signs are attractive and well-written, an example of your provincial tax dollars at work. The FGF is independent of the government, but received a one-time $25 million provincial grant in 2005 to help cover start-up and on-going costs.
Grant applications are assessed for relevancy and value. The signs are clearly within the FGF criteria, but at $3,000 each, they are quite expensive.
This year the Town of Erin, through its Trails Subcommittee, and Credit Valley Conservation (CVC) completed a similar project on a smaller scale, with five different educational signs for the Woollen Mills Trail, near downtown Erin village.
The town paid $1,200 each for these colourful, all-metal signs which are 37" x 25".
The project was spearheaded by Amy Doole through WeCARE (West Credit Appreciation, Rehabilitation & Enhancement), with support from the Ontario Trillium Foundation. It benefited from substantial staff time at CVC for research, design, writing and installation, while historical research was provided free by Steve Revell. An additional version of the mill history sign was unveiled last week at the 109 Main Street park.
Other FGF grants in the Erin area include $100,000 for the Hills of Headwaters Tourism Association, to "foster cooperation among tourism operators, to enhance their 'natural' marketing brand, while increasing visitors to the area and lengthening their stay."
The Caledon Countryside Alliance got $30,000 for a community map project, Conservation Halton got $75,000 to build "awareness of the Greenbelt" through signs and other communications materials, while Credit Valley Conservation Foundation got $12,000 for 15 signs promoting the Credit's "clean water and healthy watersheds".
You can get more information at www.greenbelt.ca, www.caringfortheland.com, www.agcare.org and www.ofac.org.
October 21, 2009
Fair entertainment a great blend of old and new
As published in The Erin Advocate
It is always a pleasure to hear a singer you know perform their greatest hits, but it is even better to discover relatively new talent. It was this dynamic that made the Saturday line-up at the Exhibits Hall so entertaining at this year's Erin Fall Fair.
I first saw Murray McLauchlan more than 30 years ago, and have always enjoyed his edgy lyrics and smooth melodies. He looks a good deal wiser at 61, but he still seems to have the spark to stir things up with bluesy songs and stories about his journeys.
"Canada is so huge," he said. "It is one of the most divided places on earth that actually works."
The hall was packed to hear him sing classics like On the Boulevard and Whispering Rain, plus some fine new compositions, accented by his trademark riffs on the harmonica. Naturally, he finished up with Farmer's Song, which seemed to fit in nicely: giving thanks to farmers, at a Thanksgiving agricultural fair, with the roar of the nearby tractor pull as a backdrop.
It was actually the continuation of a theme from the previous act, the Murray Williams Band. This is Williams' third year at the Erin Fair, with a clean, hard-driving country sound that people seem to really enjoy. He has been in the business since the '80s, and made a name for himself with a debut single called Thank a Farmer.
It was all about farmers' struggles when he sang The Farmin' Life is the Life for Me, he had the feet stompin' with his version of the Johnny Cash's Folsom Prison Blues, and he did a nice rendition of Charley Pride's Crystal Chandeliers.
When he was singing Kenny Chesney's hit, She Thinks My Tractor's Sexy, the outdoor tractors seemed to chime in right on queue.
Much as I enjoyed McLauchlan and Williams, the highlight of the evening for me was The Gnomes, who played first. It is also their third year at the fair, with Amy Campbell on acoustic guitar and lead vocals, and Hillsburgh native Brad McIsaac on bass and backup vocals.
A few years ago, they won the talent contest at the Erin Fair. Now they live in Beaverton and play around the Orillia area. They have been featured on the CBC Radio 2 show Deep Roots.
The music is mellow and upbeat, leaning toward county in some of their own material, like I Do Believe, and more to folk, blues and soul in the tunes they cover, like (Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay, by Otis Redding and Steve Cropper, and the Aretha Franklin hit (You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman, written by Carole King and Gerry Goffin.
The strong voice and energetic stage presence of Amy Campbell made the show something special. She has a light, evocative tone, with the power to soar and improvise when needed.
It often seems that the most passionate performances come from artists who are still early in their careers, still discovering what they can really do. I wish The Gnomes well, and hope their career becomes a long one.
For more information and streaming audio, myspace seems to be the most popular web source:
www.myspace.com/murraymclauchlan
www.myspace.com/murraywilliamsmusic
www.myspace.com/stopgnomeslavery
For a taste of the garden gnome liberation movement, check out:
www.freethegnomes.com
It is always a pleasure to hear a singer you know perform their greatest hits, but it is even better to discover relatively new talent. It was this dynamic that made the Saturday line-up at the Exhibits Hall so entertaining at this year's Erin Fall Fair.
I first saw Murray McLauchlan more than 30 years ago, and have always enjoyed his edgy lyrics and smooth melodies. He looks a good deal wiser at 61, but he still seems to have the spark to stir things up with bluesy songs and stories about his journeys.
"Canada is so huge," he said. "It is one of the most divided places on earth that actually works."
The hall was packed to hear him sing classics like On the Boulevard and Whispering Rain, plus some fine new compositions, accented by his trademark riffs on the harmonica. Naturally, he finished up with Farmer's Song, which seemed to fit in nicely: giving thanks to farmers, at a Thanksgiving agricultural fair, with the roar of the nearby tractor pull as a backdrop.
It was actually the continuation of a theme from the previous act, the Murray Williams Band. This is Williams' third year at the Erin Fair, with a clean, hard-driving country sound that people seem to really enjoy. He has been in the business since the '80s, and made a name for himself with a debut single called Thank a Farmer.
It was all about farmers' struggles when he sang The Farmin' Life is the Life for Me, he had the feet stompin' with his version of the Johnny Cash's Folsom Prison Blues, and he did a nice rendition of Charley Pride's Crystal Chandeliers.
When he was singing Kenny Chesney's hit, She Thinks My Tractor's Sexy, the outdoor tractors seemed to chime in right on queue.
Much as I enjoyed McLauchlan and Williams, the highlight of the evening for me was The Gnomes, who played first. It is also their third year at the fair, with Amy Campbell on acoustic guitar and lead vocals, and Hillsburgh native Brad McIsaac on bass and backup vocals.
A few years ago, they won the talent contest at the Erin Fair. Now they live in Beaverton and play around the Orillia area. They have been featured on the CBC Radio 2 show Deep Roots.
The music is mellow and upbeat, leaning toward county in some of their own material, like I Do Believe, and more to folk, blues and soul in the tunes they cover, like (Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay, by Otis Redding and Steve Cropper, and the Aretha Franklin hit (You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman, written by Carole King and Gerry Goffin.
The strong voice and energetic stage presence of Amy Campbell made the show something special. She has a light, evocative tone, with the power to soar and improvise when needed.
It often seems that the most passionate performances come from artists who are still early in their careers, still discovering what they can really do. I wish The Gnomes well, and hope their career becomes a long one.
For more information and streaming audio, myspace seems to be the most popular web source:
www.myspace.com/murraymclauchlan
www.myspace.com/murraywilliamsmusic
www.myspace.com/stopgnomeslavery
For a taste of the garden gnome liberation movement, check out:
www.freethegnomes.com
October 14, 2009
BIA Chefs' Night a feast for the senses
As published in The Erin Advocate
It was a tough assignment, but someone had to do it. Advocate readers deserve to know just what it was like to tour through five magnificent homes and sample culinary masterpieces from some of Erin's finest chefs. So I made the sacrifice.
The Erin House Tour, a fundraiser organized by the Erin Village Business Improvement Area (BIA) on October 2 and 3, opened with a "progressive dinner". We travelled from home to home with about 60 fellow diners, partaking of a new course at each location.
It was a great column topic, and a fun night out for Jean and I to celebrate our 28th anniversary, so I knocked off two birds with one stone.
The appetizer was served at Someday Farm on Winston Churchill Boulevard, the home of Willa Gauthier. It was a flaky Ricotta Tart, with feta and goat cheese, and a touch of balsamic fig jam, made by Jim Devonshire of Tintagels, at 50 Main Street.
It was a fine social event, with familiar faces from around town, and new people to chat with. Now if I could only connect all those names and faces. It was also quite an undertaking for the hosts, welcoming a horde of dinner guests into their homes.
The next course was at Ashlar House, located on Main Street just past the stop lights at the south end of the village. It is not easily visible from the street, but it is one of Erin's oldest homes, an impressive stone farmhouse from 1850 that was once on the road to Belfountain. Now owned by Tim and Rebecca Sutherns, it can be rented during much of the year for corporate events, retreats, weddings, vacations or even as a film set (www.ashlarhouse.ca).
Jo Fillery of What's Cookin', at 98 Main Street, served up a delicious Autumn Harvest Soup, created by Tamara Honiball. It included locally-grown pumpkin, parsnip and carrot, with Steen's cream (of course), and an ample shot of ginger. Some of the decorating highlights were provided by Decor Solutions and The Village Green.
The pasta course took place at Cattail Farm, on the Eighth Line, the home of Jim and Susan Clift. A superb gnocchi, fried with onions, was served by David Netherton of David's Restaurant at 20 Shamrock Road, and chef Dwayne Presley. It is soon to be added to their catering menu.
Next, we braved the mud of the Tenth Line to reach Hayven Farm, the home of Genie Hayward and Robert Venables. There we were treated to a creative and tasty variation on fish and chips. It was prepared by chef Thorntin Holdsworth, who with his wife Sonia Catino operates Bistro Riviere at 82 Main Street. The fish batter used crushed Miss Vickie's potato chips, while the fries were made from long, curly strings of sweet potato. Fantastic with beer.
The dessert finale was at Little Brook Farm, also on the Tenth Line, the home of John and Jennifer Rogers. Jeff Holtom, of Holtom's Bakery at 78 Main Street, stirred up an addictive mixture of custard, berries, chocolate and liqueur, topped with whipped cream. It went nicely with Joe Lafontaine's Turkey Truffles (in the shape of turkeys, not made with turkey), courtesy of Debora's Chocolates.
The guests were truly impressed as they toured these homes, not just with the decor, but with the architecture. The innovations used to expand older houses and make unique living spaces were a marvel to behold.
The dinner and tour was a great deal at $45 per person. The pace was more relaxed for the house tour only on Saturday, with tickets at $25. This idea looks like a winner for the BIA, so I hope they do it again next year.
This column reminds me of 1988, when I worked as a restaurant critic in Etobicoke. People always envied my job, not realizing that it is not always easy to come up with entertaining ways to describe restaurant food, decor and service. The thrill can wear off if you do it every week, even with an expense account. Speaking of which, I wonder if I can get one of those at The Advocate. [Editor's note: Forget about it.]
It was a tough assignment, but someone had to do it. Advocate readers deserve to know just what it was like to tour through five magnificent homes and sample culinary masterpieces from some of Erin's finest chefs. So I made the sacrifice.
The Erin House Tour, a fundraiser organized by the Erin Village Business Improvement Area (BIA) on October 2 and 3, opened with a "progressive dinner". We travelled from home to home with about 60 fellow diners, partaking of a new course at each location.
It was a great column topic, and a fun night out for Jean and I to celebrate our 28th anniversary, so I knocked off two birds with one stone.
The appetizer was served at Someday Farm on Winston Churchill Boulevard, the home of Willa Gauthier. It was a flaky Ricotta Tart, with feta and goat cheese, and a touch of balsamic fig jam, made by Jim Devonshire of Tintagels, at 50 Main Street.
It was a fine social event, with familiar faces from around town, and new people to chat with. Now if I could only connect all those names and faces. It was also quite an undertaking for the hosts, welcoming a horde of dinner guests into their homes.
The next course was at Ashlar House, located on Main Street just past the stop lights at the south end of the village. It is not easily visible from the street, but it is one of Erin's oldest homes, an impressive stone farmhouse from 1850 that was once on the road to Belfountain. Now owned by Tim and Rebecca Sutherns, it can be rented during much of the year for corporate events, retreats, weddings, vacations or even as a film set (www.ashlarhouse.ca).
Jo Fillery of What's Cookin', at 98 Main Street, served up a delicious Autumn Harvest Soup, created by Tamara Honiball. It included locally-grown pumpkin, parsnip and carrot, with Steen's cream (of course), and an ample shot of ginger. Some of the decorating highlights were provided by Decor Solutions and The Village Green.
The pasta course took place at Cattail Farm, on the Eighth Line, the home of Jim and Susan Clift. A superb gnocchi, fried with onions, was served by David Netherton of David's Restaurant at 20 Shamrock Road, and chef Dwayne Presley. It is soon to be added to their catering menu.
Next, we braved the mud of the Tenth Line to reach Hayven Farm, the home of Genie Hayward and Robert Venables. There we were treated to a creative and tasty variation on fish and chips. It was prepared by chef Thorntin Holdsworth, who with his wife Sonia Catino operates Bistro Riviere at 82 Main Street. The fish batter used crushed Miss Vickie's potato chips, while the fries were made from long, curly strings of sweet potato. Fantastic with beer.
The dessert finale was at Little Brook Farm, also on the Tenth Line, the home of John and Jennifer Rogers. Jeff Holtom, of Holtom's Bakery at 78 Main Street, stirred up an addictive mixture of custard, berries, chocolate and liqueur, topped with whipped cream. It went nicely with Joe Lafontaine's Turkey Truffles (in the shape of turkeys, not made with turkey), courtesy of Debora's Chocolates.
The guests were truly impressed as they toured these homes, not just with the decor, but with the architecture. The innovations used to expand older houses and make unique living spaces were a marvel to behold.
The dinner and tour was a great deal at $45 per person. The pace was more relaxed for the house tour only on Saturday, with tickets at $25. This idea looks like a winner for the BIA, so I hope they do it again next year.
This column reminds me of 1988, when I worked as a restaurant critic in Etobicoke. People always envied my job, not realizing that it is not always easy to come up with entertaining ways to describe restaurant food, decor and service. The thrill can wear off if you do it every week, even with an expense account. Speaking of which, I wonder if I can get one of those at The Advocate. [Editor's note: Forget about it.]
October 07, 2009
Farmland Trust donation blocks new development
As published in The Erin Advocate
When Deidre Wright gave up the right to sell her land to a developer, she did not view it as a sacrifice, but rather an opportunity to help stop the spread of subdivisions and quarries into Ontario's dwindling supply of good farmland.
"The land is being gobbled up by housing and gravel pits," said Wright, who has owned Belain Farm, on Shaws Creek Road near Belfountain, since 1965. "The land is precious. We should keep it rural."
She recently completed a deal with the Ontario Farmland Trust (OFT), a not-for-profit organization that promotes farmland preservation. She donated to them a "conservation easement" on her 97-acre property – a legal stipulation that prohibits a change in the land use. This is binding on her and all future owners of the property.
Various land trust groups have built up a network of nature reserves that now protect more than 60,000 acres across Ontario, primarily for natural areas such as forest and wetlands. Wright's property is mainly farmland, making it the first land securement for the OFT.
"Ontario is indebted to individuals like Deirdre Wright, whose concern for what the landscape will look like in the future has translated into action," said OFT Executive Director Bruce Mackenzie, who is working on three similar easements in or adjacent to the Greenbelt.
"Mrs. Wright's foresight and generosity will ensure that farmland and greenspace are protected in perpetuity – good news for agriculture and the environment."
Credit Valley Conservation (CVC) is a partner in this project and will monitor the property. With a donated easement, the owner keeps the land and is free to sell it or bequeath it, though subsequent owners cannot change the land use.
The land gets two market value appraisals, one with the easement, and one without it. The difference between these amounts is the dollar value of the easement, which can be quite high if the land has development potential. When the easement is donated to the land trust, the land owner gets an income tax receipt for the value of the easement.
For the Belain Farm donation, the costs for legal work, surveying and appraising were covered using a portion of a $75,000 grant from the Friends of the Greenbelt Foundation, a charitable group supported by the Ontario government.
Anyone with farmland can potentially get involved, even if there are no special natural features on their land. It is important to discuss the matter with children or others who may inherit the land. In some cases there may be capital gains tax to deal with, so landowners must find out all the details before they proceed.
Land trusts can also accept outright donations of land, as well as buy land and lease it to farmers. Land deals involving direct acquisition by trusts often occur when a landowner retires from farming: part of the farm may be sold for development, leaving the owner able to donate the remainder, or sell it at a lower price.
Municipal official plans already control development, and most of Erin is within Ontario's Greenbelt zone, as is Wright's property in Caledon. The conservation easement goes above and beyond both of those.
"It is an added level of protection," said Mackenzie, noting that the easement would remain in force even if future municipal or provincial governments were eager to encourage development of an area. "It is empowering for the landowner."
Imagine that – something substantial a landowner can do, which will have an impact long after they have died, standing up to commercial pressures and the whims of politicians. If many local farmers donated easements, it could make a huge difference.
"I'm trying to persuade my neighbours to do it," said Wright.
Ontario contains just over half of Canada's optimal class one farmland, but significant portions of it have been lost to urban sprawl. The Greenbelt is an attempt to control that sprawl, in a 1.8 million-acre band that wraps around Toronto, from the Niagara River to Cobourg. It includes the Niagara Escarpment, hundreds of towns and some 7,100 farms.
For more information, go to: www.ontariofarmlandtrust.ca and www.greenbelt.ca
When Deidre Wright gave up the right to sell her land to a developer, she did not view it as a sacrifice, but rather an opportunity to help stop the spread of subdivisions and quarries into Ontario's dwindling supply of good farmland.
"The land is being gobbled up by housing and gravel pits," said Wright, who has owned Belain Farm, on Shaws Creek Road near Belfountain, since 1965. "The land is precious. We should keep it rural."
She recently completed a deal with the Ontario Farmland Trust (OFT), a not-for-profit organization that promotes farmland preservation. She donated to them a "conservation easement" on her 97-acre property – a legal stipulation that prohibits a change in the land use. This is binding on her and all future owners of the property.
Various land trust groups have built up a network of nature reserves that now protect more than 60,000 acres across Ontario, primarily for natural areas such as forest and wetlands. Wright's property is mainly farmland, making it the first land securement for the OFT.
"Ontario is indebted to individuals like Deirdre Wright, whose concern for what the landscape will look like in the future has translated into action," said OFT Executive Director Bruce Mackenzie, who is working on three similar easements in or adjacent to the Greenbelt.
"Mrs. Wright's foresight and generosity will ensure that farmland and greenspace are protected in perpetuity – good news for agriculture and the environment."
Credit Valley Conservation (CVC) is a partner in this project and will monitor the property. With a donated easement, the owner keeps the land and is free to sell it or bequeath it, though subsequent owners cannot change the land use.
The land gets two market value appraisals, one with the easement, and one without it. The difference between these amounts is the dollar value of the easement, which can be quite high if the land has development potential. When the easement is donated to the land trust, the land owner gets an income tax receipt for the value of the easement.
For the Belain Farm donation, the costs for legal work, surveying and appraising were covered using a portion of a $75,000 grant from the Friends of the Greenbelt Foundation, a charitable group supported by the Ontario government.
Anyone with farmland can potentially get involved, even if there are no special natural features on their land. It is important to discuss the matter with children or others who may inherit the land. In some cases there may be capital gains tax to deal with, so landowners must find out all the details before they proceed.
Land trusts can also accept outright donations of land, as well as buy land and lease it to farmers. Land deals involving direct acquisition by trusts often occur when a landowner retires from farming: part of the farm may be sold for development, leaving the owner able to donate the remainder, or sell it at a lower price.
Municipal official plans already control development, and most of Erin is within Ontario's Greenbelt zone, as is Wright's property in Caledon. The conservation easement goes above and beyond both of those.
"It is an added level of protection," said Mackenzie, noting that the easement would remain in force even if future municipal or provincial governments were eager to encourage development of an area. "It is empowering for the landowner."
Imagine that – something substantial a landowner can do, which will have an impact long after they have died, standing up to commercial pressures and the whims of politicians. If many local farmers donated easements, it could make a huge difference.
"I'm trying to persuade my neighbours to do it," said Wright.
Ontario contains just over half of Canada's optimal class one farmland, but significant portions of it have been lost to urban sprawl. The Greenbelt is an attempt to control that sprawl, in a 1.8 million-acre band that wraps around Toronto, from the Niagara River to Cobourg. It includes the Niagara Escarpment, hundreds of towns and some 7,100 farms.
For more information, go to: www.ontariofarmlandtrust.ca and www.greenbelt.ca
September 30, 2009
A call for memories about new park site
As published in The Erin Advocate
I was reading again the series of columns published on this page by Harry Smith called "Gleanings from memories by paths of Erin". That was the title of the memoir written in the 1940s by Florence Baker, recalling what life was like in Erin village in the late 19th century.
Harry's excerpts from her writings are available on the Town website, www.erin.ca, in the history section. As I read that elegant prose, I wondered what people will read many generations from now, when they want to know what life was like here in the 20th century.
Already it is starting to fade away. People are naturally busy with their families and jobs, so often it is only the highlights of a place that stand out in memory. As people pass away, many fine memories are lost. But when they are recorded and shared, memories build up the bonds that make a community unique.
Often the most vivid memories spring from growing up in a particular place. More people are writing memoirs now, some with the aid of fancy scrapbooking and photo software, but it is still mainly a private activity, intended to preserve memories for friends and family.
What if we could get more memories of Erin out into the public sphere, so that relative newcomers could get a better picture of what the place was like 40 or 50 years ago? How can we tap into that collective memory bank in a way that does not overwhelm readers with a huge flood of details that are difficult to absorb?
I was talking recently with Annamarie Holtom, who had been enjoying local talent at the gazebo in the new park at 109 Main Street. She was reminiscing with a friend about watching local folks perform at that same spot in the 1950s, on the stage at the old village hall. The "Erinettes" had put on "The Pirates of Penzance" and "HMS Pinafore" by Gilbert and Sullivan.
So I got to thinking about future columns. What if I could collect memories from lots of people about a specific place. It would not be an official history, but it would be interesting to read.
From time to time I will announce a local history topic and ask people to send me some memories that would be of interest to the general public. I will sort through them and choose excerpts to make into a column.
The first topic is 109 Main Street. Were you an Erinette, or did you know one? Did you attend any special public meetings there? What did the site look like? What other types of community events were held there? Did you see Prime Minister Louis St. Laurent when he visited?
I am expecting memories mainly from the 1950s and 1960s, but older ones are even better. Please include details so that readers can picture the scene, as well as your name, which I would like to include.
The Town has had many suggestions for a name for the new park at 109 Main. The new name will be announced at the Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony on Friday, November 13. I will have a column of memories ready in time to promote that event.
Just one or two paragraphs would be plenty. I cannot promise to include everything, but I will put in as much as I can. If you would like to write something a bit longer, please do – I will try to get it printed separately, like a letter to the editor. If you are already writing a memoir about Erin, or if you have ideas about future topics, please let me know.
Send memories or other messages by Friday, October 16 via email to: erininsight@gmail.com. Or send a letter to: Phil Gravelle, RR5, Georgetown, ON, L7G 4S8 (it is in Erin).
I would also be glad to chat with people on the phone, or in person if they prefer. Call the Advocate office at 519-833-9603 if you want to leave me a phone message.
I was reading again the series of columns published on this page by Harry Smith called "Gleanings from memories by paths of Erin". That was the title of the memoir written in the 1940s by Florence Baker, recalling what life was like in Erin village in the late 19th century.
Harry's excerpts from her writings are available on the Town website, www.erin.ca, in the history section. As I read that elegant prose, I wondered what people will read many generations from now, when they want to know what life was like here in the 20th century.
Already it is starting to fade away. People are naturally busy with their families and jobs, so often it is only the highlights of a place that stand out in memory. As people pass away, many fine memories are lost. But when they are recorded and shared, memories build up the bonds that make a community unique.
Often the most vivid memories spring from growing up in a particular place. More people are writing memoirs now, some with the aid of fancy scrapbooking and photo software, but it is still mainly a private activity, intended to preserve memories for friends and family.
What if we could get more memories of Erin out into the public sphere, so that relative newcomers could get a better picture of what the place was like 40 or 50 years ago? How can we tap into that collective memory bank in a way that does not overwhelm readers with a huge flood of details that are difficult to absorb?
I was talking recently with Annamarie Holtom, who had been enjoying local talent at the gazebo in the new park at 109 Main Street. She was reminiscing with a friend about watching local folks perform at that same spot in the 1950s, on the stage at the old village hall. The "Erinettes" had put on "The Pirates of Penzance" and "HMS Pinafore" by Gilbert and Sullivan.
So I got to thinking about future columns. What if I could collect memories from lots of people about a specific place. It would not be an official history, but it would be interesting to read.
From time to time I will announce a local history topic and ask people to send me some memories that would be of interest to the general public. I will sort through them and choose excerpts to make into a column.
The first topic is 109 Main Street. Were you an Erinette, or did you know one? Did you attend any special public meetings there? What did the site look like? What other types of community events were held there? Did you see Prime Minister Louis St. Laurent when he visited?
I am expecting memories mainly from the 1950s and 1960s, but older ones are even better. Please include details so that readers can picture the scene, as well as your name, which I would like to include.
The Town has had many suggestions for a name for the new park at 109 Main. The new name will be announced at the Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony on Friday, November 13. I will have a column of memories ready in time to promote that event.
Just one or two paragraphs would be plenty. I cannot promise to include everything, but I will put in as much as I can. If you would like to write something a bit longer, please do – I will try to get it printed separately, like a letter to the editor. If you are already writing a memoir about Erin, or if you have ideas about future topics, please let me know.
Send memories or other messages by Friday, October 16 via email to: erininsight@gmail.com. Or send a letter to: Phil Gravelle, RR5, Georgetown, ON, L7G 4S8 (it is in Erin).
I would also be glad to chat with people on the phone, or in person if they prefer. Call the Advocate office at 519-833-9603 if you want to leave me a phone message.
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