Tag Archives: amherstburg

Richard Peddie’s and Lauri Brouyette’s Restorations On TVO

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Richard Peddie and Lauri Brouyette, introduced as CO-CHAIRS of Thrive Amherstburg, appeared on the Restoring Rural Ontario TVO episode that aired December 8, 2021.

After Peddie and Brouyette promoted their restoration projects and shared the architectural history, Ashley Weeden, a PhD candidate in Rural Studies at the University of Guelph joined the panel, “I simply don’t believe in benevolent capitalists. It just doesn’t exist.” She shared her observations on outside wealth, colonialism and the focus on tourism and its largely cyclical benefits.

Peddie seemed peeved and countered her criticism with, “First of all, we’re not trying to look European” and “We’re also helping the town council think about what this town should do and reach out to be a better place to live for everyone.”

Brouyette’s answer, in part, was, “We formed a group that we call Thrive and it looks at housing, it looks at healthy living, and everything we want to be able to offer our community as a large group as a whole, not just Richard and I; that’s not even close.”

Related: Peddie cash: What happens when a philanthropist tries to build ‘the best small town in Ontario’

Reality To Counter Accolades – Open Air

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I would like to counter all the accolades with a dose of reality.

Shame on Anne Rota for recommending a report for adoption that omits compliance with provincial legislation.

Rota’s Report referenced under-utilized parking for employees but plans to continue offering those spots. However, the alleged under-utilized accessible parking in the King’s Navy Yard Park lot will be reduced. The rationale for this differentiation was unclear, until the council meeting when Ms. Rota stated this reduction would allow for a turn around to be created instead. Further, the plan is to add three accessible parking spaces in three locations at the outside perimeter.

Shame on council for approving a plan that fails to meet its obligation to consult with the public.

Mayor DiCarlo advised, in April 2021, the Amherstburg Accessibility Advisory Committee was not consulted with respect to Open Air Weekends and only one person with a disability was consulted in the design of the footprint.

It is mandatory, pursuant to O. Reg. 191/11: Integrated Accessibility Standards for the town to consult on the need, location and design of accessible on-street parking spaces and shall do so with the public and persons with disabilities as well as its Accessibility Advisory Committee.

My submission to members of council, prior to the council meeting, wherein I asked if the town would discriminate against persons with disabilities, quoted the provincial legislation regarding public consultation, and objected to the arbitrary placement of accessible parking spaces, especially in a distant perimeter, and accessible spaces that cannot be accessed due to road closures, was ignored.

Given council’s duty to represent the public and to consider the well-being and interests of the municipality, I must question the $90,000. taxpayer funded expenditure that creates barriers to persons with disabilities.

Commentary by Linda Saxon as published in the River Town Times December 1, 2021

Decorum, Please!

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The Town of Amherstburg Code of Conduct states, in part:

Every Member shall conduct themselves with decorum and respect at council, committee, local board and other meetings, and in accordance with the provisions of the Procedural By-law, this policy, and other applicable laws.

My personal observations of a meeting of council and the Amherstburg Accessibility Advisory Committee follow.

Members:

do not always go through the Chair.

talk over each other.

grandstand.

belabour the point.

go off-topic.

share irrelevant personal anecdotes.

use acronyms.

do not appear prepared.

Staff:

monopolize the discussion.

interject their opinions to lead the discussion.

belabour the point

General:

The committee’s agenda was posted the day before the meeting.

There was no link to the live feed of the committee meeting.

Off camera speakers do not identify themselves for home viewers.

Minutes do not accurately reflect content of meetings. (read the Mayor’s Youth Advisory Committee post.)

TEMPORARY SKATE PARK REMOVED IN AMHERSTBURG DUE TO ‘DESTRUCTIVE CONDUCT’

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am800 reports on the temporary skateboard park removal.

Aldo DiCarlo, Mayor of Amherstburg, says it’s being shut down despite having police and security there.

“We just can’t seem to get a handle on it,” he says. “We’re working on it but in the short term, unfortunately we’ve had so many complaints that we had to address it now.”

DiCarlo says everyone has been working on this since the problems started not long after the ramps were opened.

Thrive Amherstburg Wants Open Air To Continue And More Money Spent On It

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Thrive! Amherstburg will present its white paper on Open Air to council at its Tuesday, October 12 meeting.

The group recommends:

  1.  Continue with Open Air in 2022
  2.  Invest at least an additional $20,500 in new programming in 2022

Some municipalities closed their downtown to support retail operations and specifically did not include entertainment or additional costs to the taxpayers.

Amherstburg Fire Chief Montone Discloses Open Air Assessment

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Following an online request, Amherstburg Fire Chief Bruce Montone did not think 5 business days was an unreasonable amount of time and disclosed:

open air assessment;

Events – afd a document that is provided on occasion to event organizers should they require additional guidance.

There are no specific dates for the original 2020 or the 2021 review.

Paula Parker Spent Her Career Focused On Increasing Accountability and Transparency

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On Friday, October 1, 2021, The Town of Kingsville was happy to announce that Paula Parker will join the Town’s administrative team as its new Clerk.

Along with acknowledging her experience and education, the news included, “Paula has spent her career focused on increasing accountability and transparency and ensuring corporate compliance with many pieces of legislation.”

Amherst – What’s In A Name?

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CBC reported in 2017 on the dark history of Jeffrey Amherst, including text from one of Amherst’s letter;

“You will do well to try to inoculate the Indians by means of blankets, as well as to try every other method that can serve to extirpate this execrable race. I should be very glad your scheme for hunting them down by dogs could take effect, but England is at too great a distance to think of that at present,” wrote Amherst in a 1763 letter.

The September 29, 2021 River Town Times reports, Councillor calls for no reference to Jeffrey Amherst in new school name.

“McArthur said he preferred if the new school would have a new name, free of any Jeffrey Amherst references, stating Jeffrey Amherst advocated genocide against the Indigenous population in the 1700s. The councillor did say he opposed changing the name of the town, noting residents have made it a beautiful and inclusive community.“I don’t think we should change the name of the town,” he said, adding people “have made it their own” despite the man for whom it was named.”

Is it not hypocritical to promote ‘a step towards reconciliation’ for the new high school, when council has no jurisdiction to do so, yet dismiss the idea of a name change for the town?