Niagara At Large

New Interim CAO Gayle Wood Sets Problem-Plagued Agency on Path to Renewal

A Brief Commentary by Niagara At Large reporter and publisher Doug Draper

Posted March 20^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Veteran Conservationist Gayle Wood, appointed interim NPCA CAO only three weeks ago, already making a positive mark on the troubled agency

Spring did not officially begin until 5:58 p.m. this March 20^th, but for member of the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority’s (NPCA) board, its staff, and for members of the public who were there, it began more than six hours earlier at the board’s latest monthly meeting.

For the first time in at least six years, there were smiles on the faces of almost each and every person around the big room at the Ball’s Falls Centre for Conservation where the board meetings are routinely held.

For the first time in just as many years there was a feeling in the air  that everyone, including members of the public and the media who, in recent years, have felt the need to say and to write things critical of the Conservation Authority’s senior staff and board, were welcome to attend.

And much of the reason for the end of what has been a very long and cold winter, and the arrival of spring with a real promise of renewal for this bruised and battered agency can be summed up in two words – Gayle Wood. Continue reading →

“The Ford government must hit “pause,” engage in proper public consultation and make a new priority of actually improving access to public health care services for the people of our province.”

An Analysis by Natalie Mehra, Exective Director of the Ongtario Health Coaltion

Posted March 20^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

It is called “The People’s Health Care Act.”

Ontario Health Coalition Executive Director Natalie Mehra

But the new health care omnibus bill, being rushed at breakneck speed through Ontario’s Legislature by Doug Ford’s majority caucus, does not reflect his promises to “the people” in the election. It does not open a single operating room to speed up surgical wait times, though lack of operating funds means that there are closed ORs in every major hospital in Ontario.

It doesn’t add a single new nursing home space, nor one more nurse, health professional, or doctor. It doesn’t open any of the dozens of hospital wards, closed down as real-dollar funding has been tightened year after year. Yet Ontario has the fewest hospital beds left of any province in the country.

The evidence is abundant that Ontario has a serious health care capacity problem. Cuts and rationing have gone too far. Health funding in this province has dropped to dead last in Canada. In fact, during the election, Ford traversed the province promising an expansion — not a wholesale dismembering — of the health system.

But what is in Ford’s health care omnibus bill is a new “super agency” forged out of 20 existing agencies with widely disparate mandates, histories, levels of effectiveness, and cultures. That alone is a mega-merger which carries a great deal of risk for vital patient care services.

But that’s not all. Written in the new law are vast powers that the Ford government has given itself and its political appointees in the new “super agency” to effect a wholesale restructuring of our local hospitals, long-term care, home care, community care, mental health and so on.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford is not listening enough to public concerns about health care reform

Restructuring powers are defined in the legislation as not only “service coordination” but also more ominously, mergers, amalgamations, transfers of all or part of a service, closures of service, and shutdowns of entire service providers. These are not simply voluntary. They can be ordered by decree of the minister or the government’s appointees in the super agency and they also can be coerced through use of the Agency’s funding powers.

Already the attention of every CEO and manager in the health system has turned to restructuring. The reality is that the large and ambitious will seek to expand their “market share” and profits using the new opportunities afforded in this legislation. They were the prime beneficiaries of the hospital mergers and restructuring under the Harris government in the late 1990s. Today, largely as a result of that round of health restructuring, public hospital services were transferred to for-profit long-term care and home care.

The majority of long-term care is privatized and that sector is dominated by the large for-profit chain companies. The Victorian Order of Nurses (VON), a non-profit health organization that provides home nursing care, and local non-profit home care has been decimated.

Large hospital CEOs, having taken over smaller hospitals in forced mergers, have seen their power (and salaries) balloon even while hospital beds and services are cut and privatized. Smaller towns have seen their services gutted. Patient advocates have faced an uphill battle trying to tighten regulatory regimes and improve care levels against the powerful for-profit lobby that pushes, often successfully, for ever more money for profit and deregulation of patient protections and care standards under the guise of “eliminating red tape.”

Concern continues to grow over what will happen to levels of care at hospitals like this one, already possibly on the chopping block in Welland/Niagara

The Provincial Auditor reported in 1999 that the last hospital restructuring that occurred under Premier Mike Harris from 1996 to 2000 cost $3.9 billion to lay off nurses and staff, close down local services, then rebuild them elsewhere. The final “savings” was $800 million. Yes, that is correct: they spent $3.9 billion to cut $800 million.

In Doug Ford’s new round of health care restructuring, years of mergers and takeovers and partnerships and so on are supposed to result, according to the current minister, in 30 to 50 giant health-care conglomerates running virtually all services for up to 15 million Ontarians.

Each conglomerate would be made up of hundreds of mergers, service transfers and takeovers, but also some separate entities: 1,800 service providers are to be pushed into these groupings. Each conglomerate will need a new tier of administration to run the relationship between its various parts. That equals 30 to 50 new administrations plus the mothership “super agency.” The administration of the conglomerates will be owned by the providers themselves in their interest, not public oversight in the public interests. This is worse than what already exists.

Virtually all the democratic protections, paltry as they were in previous legislation, have been stripped out of the new omnibus law.

There are no principles at all to guide restructuring, no mention of equity, no open board meetings for the super agency, no appeals of restructuring decisions, no requirement for public input or democratic process. There is no evaluation system for the vast new restructuring. There was no public consultation prior to this Bill. In fact, the first job of a public health care system is to measure and plan to meet the population’s need for care. But the Ford government’s new health care omnibus bill does not require the super agency (or anyone else) to actually do this.

Given how opaque the whole process has been, it is hard to know whether the Ford government realizes the full scope and implications of what it is doing.

In the coming weeks, we will learn whether they will hold any public hearings at all on the new law. Not only because we have a longstanding process of legislative democracy that should be respected, but also because it is essential to sound policy making, the Ford government must hit “pause,” engage in proper public consultation and make a new priority of actually improving access to public health care services for the people of our province.

~ Protecting Public Medicare for All ~

The Ontario Health Coalition represents more than 400 member organizations and a network of Local Health Coalitions and individual members. Our members include: seniors’ groups; patients’ organizations; unions; nurses and health professionals’ organizations; physicians and physician organizations that support the public health system; non-profit community agencies; student groups; ethnic and cultural organizations; residents’ and family councils; retirees; poverty and equality-seeking groups; women’s organizations, and others.

For more information on the Ontario Health Coaltion and its advocacy work, click on – https://www.ontariohealthcoalition.ca/ .

NIAGARA AT LARGE encourages you to join the conversation by sharing your views on this post in the space following the Bernie Sanders quote below.

A reminder that we only post comments by individuals who also share their first and last names.

For more news and commentary from Niagara At Large – an independent, alternative voice for our greater bi-national Niagara region – become a regular visitor and subscriber to NAL at www.niagaraatlarge.com .

“A politician thinks of the next election. A leader thinks of the next generation.” – Bernie Sanders

“There have been two billboard unveilings to promote a hospital (in the southwest end of Niagara Falls) that doesn’t have a clear time-line or construction date. This project is too important to the region for it to be a publicity stunt.” – Niagara Falls NDP MPP Wayne Gates

A News Release from the Constituency Office of Niagara Falls MPP Wayne Gates

Posted March 19^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Niagara Falls MPP Wayne Gates

Queen’s Park—On Tuesday (March 19th), Niagara Falls NDP MPP Wayne Gates released the following statement calling on the Ford government to commit to a clear and expedited timeline for a new Niagara Falls hospital:

“Niagara families have waited long enough for a new hospital in Niagara Falls. When the mental health and the maternity wards were taken out of the current Niagara Falls Hospital, families were told that they would be replaced in a the new, state-of-the-art hospital. That hasn’t happened — years later and families are still forced to drive across the region for these services.

There have been two billboard unveilings to promote a hospital that doesn’t have a clear time-line or construction date. This project is too important to the region for it to be a publicity stunt. Niagara families deserve to know, once and for all, when a new hospital is coming to Niagara.” Continue reading →

“Today’s (March 19^th’s federal budget) measures don’t fulfill the bold promises of national pharmacare.”

“Budget 2019 continues the federal government’s modest efforts to move forward on greening the economy.”

Much More on what may be Trudeau government’s last budget before the federal election below.

A Critical Analysis  from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, a non-profit body for advancing policy ideas

Posted March 19^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Budget 2019 identifies important targets, but falls short of substantial change

This could be the last budget Canada’s Trudeau government tables before it goes to the polls later this year.

Ottawa—Budget 2019, tabled today in the House of Commons, takes steps forward on municipal infrastructure, support for seniors and capping the regressive stock option deduction, but missed the mark on delivering housing affordability and the significant cost-savings that can only be achieved through a universal, single-payer pharmacare system, according to experts from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.

“Budget 2019 identifies the right targets, but holds off on making necessary investments: climate change, unaffordable housing and the lack of wage raises are issues that can’t afford to wait,” says CCPA Senior Economist David Macdonald.

“Experience over the past four years has shown that progressive promises during an election year do not always translate into action, adequate funding and truly transformational federal policies.” Continue reading →

Show your support by signing the “Protected Places Declaration” Below

From Ontario Nature, a province-wide advocacy group for protecting our natural places

Posted March 19^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

For the past year, we have been campaigning to get the governments of Ontario and Canada to meet an international commitment to protect at least 17 percent of our lands and inland waters by 2020.

This is in accordance with a target set under the UN Convention on Biological Diversity. So far, 140 organizations – big and small – have endorsed the Protected Places Declaration. Continue reading →

“Bullies use fear as a tool. They feed off of people’s insecurities and manipulate others to believe they are good.”

“Bullies may use a variety of threats, particularly when they themselves are feeling threatened: they will openly suggest that anyone who stands up to them will have to pay dearly for opposing their wishes.”

“Bullies don’t care about the common good, or a greater good, they care about one thing: themselves and their own personal interests.”

“The good news is, we don’t have to put up with bullies. And a first step to combating them is to recognize their tactics, and call out the strategies they use to intimidate, undermine and fear monger.”                                                                                                      – Betty Disero, Lord Mayor of Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario

Early in the last term of Niagara Regional Council, the Region’s then-chair, Al Caslin, appears in a photo op after a community group came to the council to promote a public campaign against bullying. The group’s message didn’t appear to get through to many members of that council.

(A Brief Foreword from Doug Draper, journalist and publisher, Niagara At Large – March 18th, 2019

I wish to thank a resident in Niagara-on-the-Lake for bringing what I consider to be this very timely and important message from one of Niagara’s political leaders to my attention because I may have missed it.

I say timely because, unfortunately, in the age we now live in, there is far too much of this bad behaviour around. And there are individuals in high places, like the current U.S. president Donald Trump, who personify bullying and embolden others to behave the same way.

As a journalist who covered the last term of Niagara Regional Council under the helm of then-chair Al Caslin, I had a regular front-row seat to this kind of behaviour and, fortunately, most of those on that council who engaged in it were defeated in last October’s municipal elections, or they did us a favour and decided not to run again.

The good news is that the current Regional Council with Jim Bradley sitting in the Chair’s seat and individuals like Betty Disero (who is serving her first term as NOTL’s Lord Mayor and Regional Council member) sitting around the horseshoe, any and all signs of that ugly behaviour is virtually gone. And let’s hope it stays that way.

What a difference an election can make. The new Niagara Regional Council, sworn in last December, and chaired by Jim Bradley (with NOTL Lord Mayor Betty Disero as one of its members), seems a world away from the bad conduct so frequently witnessed on the Caslin council.

That is not to say that there aren’t still many bullies out there among us, in public office, in places of employment, out there on the school yard and, most certainly, on social media where many of us who cared to share our views on a topic have become targets of cyber bullies at one time or another. Continue reading →

Doug Ford’s “Government for the People” is Steamrolling Health Restructuring Law Through in “Outrageously Undemocratic” Process

A Message from the Ontario Health Coaltion, a province-wide citizens group advocating for quality, public health services

Posted March 18^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Are Ontario Premier Doug Ford and his health minister, Christine Elliott (left in photo) now working to deconstruct the system of public health care generations of Canadians fought for and supported going back to Canada’s “father of medicare for all”, Tommy Douglas? Is gutting our health services worth more tax cuts for Ford and Elliott’s rich business friends?

Toronto, Ontario – The Ontario Health Coalition is expresing outrage at the process by which the Ford government is rushing their new sweeping health care restructuring legislation through and is demanding public hearings across Ontario.

In the new law, the Ford government has given itself new powers to order the privatization of health care services, along with mega-mergers, transfers, and closures of local health care services including hospitals, long-term care, home care, community care, mental health and addictions services, community health centres and non-profit family health teams and others, says the OHC.

One of many rallies the Ontario Health Coalition has organized in support of quality, public health care

In context, the planned restructuring covers 1,800 health care service providers and health care services for approximately 15 million Ontarians, according to the Health Minister’s own comments. Continue reading →

Animal rights at centre of upcoming Brock talk – Free to All on Thursday, March 21st from 4 to 7 p.m.

A Brock News Release by Jeannie Mackintosh, from Brock University, St. Catharines, Ontario

Posted March 18^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Renowned neuroscientist Lori Marino will speak at Brock on Thursday, March 21.

Niagara, Ontario – Two renowned scholars will be on campus next week to get the Brock and wider Niagara community thinking — and talking — about animals.

Acclaimed neuroscientist Lori Marino and Canadian academic Amy Fitzgerald will speak about marine mammal captivity, and animal advocacy and environmentalism, respectively.

Presented by Brock’s Department of Sociology, the free Thinking About Animals event takes place Thursday, March 21 from 4 to 7 p.m. at Pond Inlet. Everyone is welcome to attend. Continue reading →

Make it a Day of Celebration and of Paying a Bit of Homage to the Hardships that People of all Races, Colours and Creeds Have Been Through – And to the Love we should Share with and for Each Other

A Brief Commentary by Doug Draper

Posted March 17^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

As a veteran of quite a few St. Patrick’s Day parades and the wild parties that fill the pubs and pour out onto to the streets after the parades, one of thought that has often occurred to me during the height of it all is this.

Celebarting in the streets of Buffalo, New York on the day of a St. Patrick’s Day parade. File photo by Doug Draper

That kind of partying – as joyous as it so obviously seems – can often be a product of a long history of hardship and persecution.

The last few decades have arguably been relatively good ones for the Irish and for North Americans of Irish descent compared to many decades over the past couple of hundreds of years.

For a 50 or 60-year-old Canadian or American of Irish decent, the Irish Rising (also known as the Irish Rebellion) of April, 1916, is only a few generations in the past, and the potato famine of the mid-1800s which reportedly killed more than a million people through disease and starvation, is only four or five generations in the past.

Stories, along with so many of the hard feelings from those and other nightmare times in the history of the Irish people, have been passed on from generation to generation. Continue reading →

CIJA Horrified by Heinous Act of Terror Targeting the Muslim Community In Christchurch, New Zealand

“This is a very dark day for those of us who care about the rule of law, plurality, acceptance, and religious freedom.” – Jeffrey Rosenthal, Co-Chair of the Canadian-based Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs Board

From the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs in Toronto

Posted March 16, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Women mourn for loved ones in wake of mass shootings.

Toronto, Ontario – Yesterday (March 14^th), forty-nine Muslims were murdered while at prayer at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand. Upon learning this, Joel Reitman and Jeffrey Rosenthal, Co-Chairs of the National Board of Directors of the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA), issued the following:

“We condemn this vile act of terrorism targeting the Muslim community in the strongest possible terms and trust those responsible for this crime will be subject to the full force of the law,” said Joel Reitman, Co-Chair of the CIJA Board. Continue reading →

There is No Time Left for Delay and Denial. Our Last Chance to Address the Climate Crisis is Here and Now!

Greta Thunberg, speaking at a United Nations climate conference in Europe last December

“We can no longer save the world by playing by the rules,” says 16-year-old Greta Thunberg, a climate activist from Sweden, “because the rules have to be changed.”

A Commentary by Doug Draper

Posted March 15th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

At a United Nations conference on climate change last December, a remarkable 16-year-old girl from Sweden named Greta Thunberg, rose to the podium in front of an audience of greying adults and said the following –

“In the year 2078, I will celebrate my 75th birthday,” she said. “If I have children maybe they will spend that day with me. Maybe they will ask me about you. Maybe they will ask why you didn’t do anything while there still was time to act. You say you love your children above all else, and yet you are stealing their future in front of their very eyes.”

The year 2078 may be way too late for Greta’s children to ask that question about us, if they are around to ask any questions at all. Continue reading →

‘Back-to-Basics’ Math Curriculum, Renewed Focus on Skilled Trades and Cellphone Ban in the Classroom Coming Soon to Ontario

News from Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s ‘Government for the People’

Posted March 15^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Ontario Minister of Education Lisa Thompson Unveils Government’s Vision for ‘Education that Works for You’

Toronto – Students and parents in Ontario can look forward to the implementation of stronger math, STEM, and financial literacy curricula, improved skilled trades opportunities, and a province-wide ban on cellphones in the classroom as part of the Government of Ontario’s sweeping new vision for ‘Education that Works for You,’ Lisa Thompson, Minister of Education, announced today.

“This is our plan to protect a sustainable world-class education system for the students of today and the future,” said Thompson.

“We will make sure our students are leaving school with the skills they need to build good lives, families and careers right here in Ontario, while ensuring the system is both fiscally sustainable and respectful of parents.”

The government’s plan, Education that Works for You,will modernize curriculum, modernize classrooms and empower educators to better prepare students for the realities of today’s modern world.

“Shortly after we came to office we did what the previous government had been afraid to do – and threw the doors open to real, meaningful public and parental input into our education system,” said Thompson. Continue reading →

Niagara-on-the-Lake Lord Mayor Betty Disero

“Bullies use fear as a tool. They feed off of people’s insecurities and manipulate others to believe they are good.”

“Bullies may use a variety of threats, particularly when they themselves are feeling threatened: they will openly suggest that anyone who stands up to them will have to pay dearly for opposing their wishes.”

“Bullies don’t care about the common good, or a greater good, they care about one thing: themselves and their own personal interests.”

“The good news is, we don’t have to put up with bullies. And a first step to combating them is to recognize their tactics, and call out the strategies they use to intimidate, undermine and fear monger.”                                                                                                      – Betty Disero, Lord Mayor of Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario

Early in the last term of Niagara Regional Council, the Region’s then-chair, Al Caslin, appears in a photo op after a community group came to the council to promote a public campaign against bullying. The group’s message didn’t appear to get through to many members of that council.

(A Brief Foreword from Doug Draper, journalist and publisher, Niagara At Large – March 15th, 2019

I wish to thank a resident in Niagara-on-the-Lake for bringing what I consider to be this very timely and important message from one of Niagara’s political leaders to my attention because I may have missed it.

I say timely because, unfortunately, in the age we now live in, there is far too much of this bad behaviour around. And there are individuals in high places, like the current U.S. president Donald Trump, who personify bullying and embolden others to behave the same way.

As a journalist who covered the last term of Niagara Regional Council under the helm of then-chair Al Caslin, I had a regular front-row seat to this kind of behaviour and, fortunately, most of those on that council who engaged in it were defeated in last October’s municipal elections, or they did us a favour and decided not to run again.

The good news is that the current Regional Council with Jim Bradley sitting in the Chair’s seat and individuals like Betty Disero (who is serving her first term as NOTL’s Lord Mayor and Regional Council member) sitting around the horseshoe, any and all signs of that ugly behaviour is virtually gone. And let’s hope it stays that way.

What a difference an election can make. The new Niagara Regional Council, sworn in last December, and chaired by Jim Bradley (with NOTL Lord Mayor Betty Disero as one of its members), seems a world away from the bad conduct so frequently witnessed on the Caslin council.

That is not to say that there aren’t still many bullies out there among us, in public office, in places of employment, out there on the school yard and, most certainly, on social media where many of us who cared to share our views on a topic have become targets of cyber bullies at one time or another. Continue reading →

Niagara residents gather at one of many rallies in recent years to save wetlands in Niagara Falls’ Thundering Waters Forest from sprawling development

“Wetlands in the Great Lakes basin improve water quality in a variety of capacities (such as nutrient and sediment sequestration, flood retention, regulation of water temperatures) and provide many social, cultural and economic benefits to society. Yet they continue to face threats and stressors and a significant amount of wetlands have been degraded or lost throughout the region.”                                          –     – an excerpt from the International Joint Commission article   below

By John Wilson, for the Canada/U.S. International Joint Commission’s newsletter, Great Lakes Connection

Posted March 15^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Wetlands provide vital benefits to lakes and other waterways.

They serve as the home for a wide diversity of plants, insects, reptiles, animals and aquatic species, reduce erosion, trap and filter sediment and pollutants, and absorb nutrients that otherwise would flow directly into lakes, rivers and streams.

One of the provincially significant wetlands in the Niagara watershed of the Great Lakes, now at risk due to plans for urban development in the Thundering Waters Forest in Niagara Falls, Ontario

A recent webinar explored challenges and opportunities to achieving a “net habitat gain” for Great Lakes coastal wetlands.

Wetlands in the Great Lakes basin improve water quality in a variety of capacities (such as nutrient and sediment sequestration, flood retention, regulation of water temperatures) and provide many social, cultural and economic benefits to society. Continue reading →

“The current increase in life expectancy and our ever-expanding waistline goes hand in hand with the emergence of common age-related chronic diseases.” – Rebecca MacPherson, Assistant Professor of Health Sciences, Brock University

News from Brock University in St. Catharines, Ontario

Posted March 15^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Assistant Professor of Health Sciences Rebecca MacPherson was awarded a grant from the Canada Foundation for Innovation’s John R. Evans Leaders Fund (JELF) to purchase equipment for her research on the interactions between metabolism, diet and exercise.

It’s a common notion that people seem to become more forgetful as they get older, leading many to conclude that memory declines with age.

But Brock University Assistant Professor of Psychology Karen Campbell aims to counteract that view by showing that something else is happening in the brain that mimics memory loss.

Meanwhile, Assistant Professor of Health Sciences Rebecca MacPherson is concerned about rising rates of obesity and how diet and exercise — or lack thereof — affects people as they age.

To aid in their investigations, MacPherson and Campbell will be purchasing state-of-the-art equipment thanks to funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovation’s John R. Evans Leaders Fund (JELF). Continue reading →

“Ontario Shows Leadership on Women’s Issues At the United Nations

Minister Lisa MacLeod joined the Canadian delegation at the Commission on the Status of Women

A News Release from Ontario’s “Government for the People”

Posted March 15^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

The Honourable Lisa MacLeod, Ontario’s Minister of Children, Community and Social Services and Minister Responsible for Women’s Issues

New York City — Ontario’s Government for the People is strongly advocating for gender equality with a commitment to end violence against women and sex trafficking.

The Honourable Lisa MacLeod, Minister of Children, Community and Social Services and Minister Responsible for Women’s Issues, joined the Canadian delegation in New York City this week at the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women to highlight the inequities faced by women and girls at home and abroad.

“I was proud to speak up for equality with my fellow Ministers,” said MacLeod. “We need strong women to support vulnerable women but just as importantly we need strong men to support vulnerable women.” Continue reading →

Top Cop’s departure is just the latest in recent rush of high-office exits in a Niagara where a little less chaos and a little more stability would be nice

A News Commentary from Niagara At Large reporter and publisher Doug Draper

Posted March 14^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Mark McMullen, whose hiring as Niagara Parks Police Chief was celebrated when it was announced in May of 2017, was suddenly out of the job this past Monday, March 11th.

As if the heads of Niagara residents aren’t already spinning from four months of sudden departures and firings – not to mention some pretty hefty lawsuits – involving top administrators at Niagara Region and the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority (NPCA), now we learn through a report this March 12^th in local newspapers that Mark McMullen, Niagara Park’s Chief of Police, is suddenly gone.

It was only 22 months ago, that Ontario’s Niagara Parks Commission circulated a news release, announcing McMullen’s hiring to the top cop job at the Parks Police, one of the oldest (circa 1887) and most respected police forces in all of Canada. Continue reading →

Front-Line Cuts happening in Defiance of Ford’s pledge that only management-level jobs will disappear

A News Release from Ontario’s Official Opposition and New Democratic Party

Posted March 14^th, 2018 on Niagara At Large

Ontario Premier Doug Ford is making service cuts, he claims, to “put more money in (our) pocket.” Ontario residents may have to use some of that pocket money to pay for private health care and other public services that may be lost.

Queen’s Park — With another month to go before Doug Ford’s first budget, which is widely expected to include deep cuts, the NDP says the jobs that have already been cut include front-line staff that deliver health care and critical services.

Doug Ford revealed Wednesday in Cambridge that there will be job losses when he overhauls the health care system and creates his SuperAgency.

Ford’s tall tales indicate that only management-level people will be fired — but the job cuts resulting from a lack of funding from the province have already included: Continue reading →

Ontario Launches Online Consultation for Residents, Businesses and Stakeholders

A News Release from the Constituency Office of Niagara West MPP Sam Oosterhoff

Posted March 14^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Niagara West MPP Sam Oosterhoff

Niagara, Ontario — Sam Oosterhoff, MPP for Niagara West, is seeking local input on how to improve governance, decision-making and service delivery for regional governments in the Niagara Region.

All people who live or work in the region are invited to share their thoughts through the online consultation. The deadline to submit comments is April 23, 2019.

“We promised the people of Ontario that all levels of government would work harder, smarter and more efficiently,” said Steve Clark, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing.

“Our government is putting people first by seeking local input on how to improve governance, decision-making and service delivery for regional governments and their member municipalities.” Continue reading →

We Will Be Back With Renewed Vigor In A Matter of Days (and possibly sooner if there is breaking news we can’t ignore)

Read A Little About Our Plans For The Future Below

A Brief Message from Niagara At Large reporter and publisher    Doug Draper

Posted March 6^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Maybe it is the dog days of winter or maybe it is just that quite a few of us out there are slow walking into the March break week, but I am not getting anywhere near the hundred or two media releases and other messages that fill my inbox each day.

That is not unusual this time of year and it tells me that this may be a good time for this reporter to take a little time to  break from posting news and think about where we want to go with Niagara At Large in the weeks and months ahead. Continue reading →

Attend one of the upcoming Town Halls in or near your Community

Protect our local health care services from mega-mergers and privatization. Protect and improve our public health care! NO to cuts & privatization!

Town Hall Meetings brought to you by the Ontario Health Coalition and in Niagara, by its sister group, the Niagara Health Coalition

Posted March 6^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Ontario’s Ford government is proposing massive restructuring to hospitals, long-term care, home care, community care, mental health, etc. 

The new legislation, which has been forged with no public consultation whatsoever, will take away local control of health care services.

A Brief Call-Out from Niagara At Large –

Attend the following Town Hall meetings, hosted by the Ontario Health Coaltion and its local chapters, in Niagara and other communities across the province for a public discussion on what can be done to stop any and all moves by the Ford government to cut and privatize our public health care services.

Here is a list of locations, dates and times for a Town Hall meetings near you. For the sake of saving quality, public health care in Ontario, try to make it your business to show up –  Continue reading →

Ontario Environment Minister Rod Phillips

“Litter-reduction efforts will hinge on fostering a greater sense of personal responsibility for the people of Ontario and, in particular, our youth. … It begins with recognizing that real environmentalism involves more than just the social media of activists and celebrities but is instead founded on the personal decisions each of us make in our day-to-day lives.”                           – Rod Phillips, Ontario Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks

A Call-Out from Ontario’s Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks

Posted March 6th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Ontario’s government is working for the people to keep our province clean and beautiful for generations to come by taking steps to reduce litter and waste in our communities and increase and improve household recycling, as committed to in our environment plan.

The province is inviting public feedback on proposals to reduce plastic litter and waste in our neighbourhoods and parks, divert and reduce food and organic waste from households and businesses, and increase opportunities for the people of Ontario to participate in waste reduction efforts.

A discussion paper has been posted on the Environment Registry for a 45-day period.

Continue reading →

You are Invited to Town Hall Meetings this March          in St. Catharines, Welland and Grimsby

See Dates, Times and Locations for a Meeting in your area below

Hosted by the Niagara  and Ontario Health Coalitions

Posted March 5th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Join us as we learn more about the People’s Health Act . Discuss what we can do to protect our local health services and to make health care decisions more accountable to us – the people.

Ontario’s Ford government is proposing massive restructuring to hospitals, long-term care, community care, mental health etc. It calls for mega-mergers of health systems, privatization of health services and gives new powers to the Cabinet and the Minister of Health to make changes to the Act on their own. Continue reading →

Stop Private Clinics and Unlawful User Fees and Extra Billing of Patients

A Call-Out from the Ontario Health Coalition, a province-wide citizens group advocating for quality, public health care

Posted March 5^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

The Ontario Health Coalition in partnership with the Provincial Health Coalitions and Canada Health Coalition have been working tirelessly to bring an end to the unlawful extra-billing of patients by private health clinics and stop the privatization of health care services.

Private clinics undermine public health care and equal, universal health care for all Canadians.

We have written an Open Letter to all provincial and federal Health Ministers in Canada calling upon them to uphold the Canada Health Act, stop two-tier user fees, extra billing of patients and stop privatization. Continue reading →

‘Firing of deputy OPP commissioner Brad Blair is latest mess in a cesspool of political interference.’ – Ontario Official Opposition and NPD Leader Andrea Horwath

“His (Brad Blair’s) actions were instrumental in uncovering the extent of Doug Ford’s meddling in the hiring process of the new OPP commissioner, and shining a light on the cesspool of political interference into the OPP.”

News from Ontario’s New Democratic Party

Posted March 5th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Long-time OPP officer Brad Blair’s firing raises call for public inquiry

Queen’s Park — In light of the extremely disturbing news that the government has fired whistleblower and Deputy Director of the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP), Brad Blair, NDP Official Opposition Leader Andrea Horwath is calling for a full public inquiry into Doug Ford’s meddling in the OPP, and the firing of Blair. 

“Brad Blair is both a whistleblower and a distinguished officer with decades of exemplary service,” said Horwath.

“His actions were instrumental in uncovering the extent of Doug Ford’s meddling in the hiring process of the new OPP commissioner, and shining a light on the cesspool of political interference into the OPP — including Blair’s revelation of Ford’s disgusting, possibly illegal, attempts to procure a luxury super-van off the books, secretly using public money.” Continue reading →

“Enforcement could get better or it could get worse, depending on how the provincial government responds.” – Brock Professor Kendra Coulter

News from Brock University in St. Catharines/Niagara

Posted March 4th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Brock University animal welfare expert Kendra Coulter and friend. file photo courtesy of Brock University in Niagara, Ontario.

Niagara, Ontario – A Brock University Labour Studies professor and internationally recognized researcher on animal welfare issues said a Monday (March 4th, 2019) announcement leaves the handling of animal-related investigations at a crossroads.

The Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals sent a letter to Ontario Community Safety Minister Sylvia Jones Monday saying it would not renew its contract to provide animal welfare investigation and enforcement services in the province. Continue reading →

Find Out Below How You Can Help Put the Pressure On

A Call-out to all of us from the Ontario Clean Air Alliance

Posted March 4^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Today (this March 4^th) we are launching our Etobicoke Campaign to persuade Premier Ford to keep his promise to lower your hydro bills by 12%. He can do it by signing a deal with Quebec.

Quebec has a huge surplus off low-cost water power which can keep your lights on at less than 1/3rd the cost of re-building the Darlington Nuclear Station.

We’re taking the message about these huge potential savings to Premier Ford’s backyard in Etobicoke. We’ve already posted a billboard on Kipling Ave, south of Bethridge Road, and will soon be distributing our Cut My Bill pamphlets there as well. Continue reading →

“Climate adaptation is a critical element of sustainability and developing an action plan to guide staff and Council, is a step towards success. We are grateful for the funding to support this initiative funded by the Government of Canada.”                              – Lincoln CAO Michael Kirkopoulos

A News Release from the Town of Lincoln in Niagara, Ontario

Posted March 4^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Lincoln, Ontario – The Town of Lincoln has been granted $125,000 in funding from the Federation of Canadian Municipalities’ (FCM) Climate change staff grants initiative to help address staffing gaps and increase our capacity to adapt to the effects of climate change or reduce greenhouse (GHG) emissions.

Lincoln is among 59 communities across Canada benefitting from this initiative.

Lincoln will use the funding to dedicate staff to activities such as the research and development of climate adaptation plan. Continue reading →

Niagara At Large Will Have More on the Following Notice Later, and  on What it May Mean for Protecting Niagara’s Natural Heritage

Posted March 3rd, 2019 on Niagara At Large

The Following  Notice is now being circulated – 

To the past and current clients of LPASC,

The citizens battle is still on to save this great green place in Niagara Falls from urban development

I am writing to let you know that the Government of Ontario has made a decision to close the Local Planning Appeal Support Centre (LPASC), effective June 30, 2019.

As LPASC winds down its operation, we will continue to serve, to the best of our ability, clients who have previously retained our services.  We are now limited in the range of professional legal and planning services we are able to provide.   Continue reading →

‘Universal health care is our baby and we must care for and nurture it’

A Commentary by Linda McKellar, a Niagara, Ontario resident and retired hospital nurse

Posted March 1^st, 2019 on Niagara At Large

(The following commentary by retired nurse Linda McKellar has been shared with Niagara At Large in the wake of news late this February that Ontario’s Ford government is moving forward with plans to merge health services in the province under one umbrella where some health experts fear publicly funded services will give way to an array of privately funded services already up and operating in Ontario.

The end result of such a mega merger, critics fear, is ever more privatization and a possible end to publicly funded, universal health care as we known it in Ontario and Canada for more than half a century.)

The attempt to privatize health care services in Ontario has been going on for years, primarily by Conservative governments which have always been pro-business and privatization, but contributed to by both ruling parties to some degree.

It has had lousy results.

Outsourcing food supplies – horrible meals, petrified sandwiches, all pre-packaged and sent from someplace – from China for all we know. Maybe surplus airplane meals. Continue reading →

 “I’m pleased that the government recognized the importance of creating new, paid work opportunities for young people across the province. …  The Ontario NDP will be watching closely to see that the government makes good on this commitment.” NDP MPP and Official Opposition critic Faisal Hassan

A News Release from Ontario’s New Democratic Party

Posted March 1^st, 2019 on Niagara At Large

QUEEN’S PARK — Faisal Hassan, NDP MPP for York-South Weston and Official Opposition critic, said young people are one step closer to seeing new work opportunities after his motion calling on the government to create 27,000 paid co-ops and internships passed this February 28th.

If implemented, the motion would unlock opportunities in the public and private sector, as well as the trades, for students, recent graduates and unemployed youth. The motion aims to help young people gain the real-world experience that is increasingly becoming a prerequisite to entry-level positions. Continue reading →

Ontario Saving Families Money with Free Travel for Kids 12 and Under on GO Transit

Starting March 9, 2019, children 12 and under can ride for free on all GO Transit trains and buses without a PRESTO card or paper ticket

A News Release from the Constituency Office of Niagara West MPP Sam Oosterhoff

Posted February 28^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Niagara, Ontario —Today, Sam Oosterhoff, MPP for Niagara West welcomed news that Ontario’s Transportation Minister Jeff Yurek announced all children 12 and under will travel for free on GO Transit trains and buses starting March 9, 2019 – just in time for March Break. Continue reading →

Ford government introduces health restructuring/privatization omnibus bill 

An Analysis from Natalie Mehra, executive director of the Ontario Health Coalition, a province-wide advocacy group for quality public health care

Posted February 27^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Ontario Health Coalition Director Natalie Mehra

Under the guise of “service coordination” the Ford government is introducing its new health care legislation today.

 Despite the rosy sounding rhetoric of the Health Minister that has focused entirely on positive-sounding words like “coordination” and “teams”, the draft legislation that was leaked a few weeks ago by a concerned civil servant to the NDP who made it public, was very clearly written to give the new “Super Agency” powers to order — with the stroke of a pen — the privatization of anything deemed a “support service” in almost all of the health care system.

Similarly, the “Super Agency” has the power to order the privatization of any procurement (not limited by definition). The Minister and the Super Agency together have powers to order transfers, closures, mega-mergers of virtually all health care providers.  Continue reading →

“Young people should expect more from their government, not less, and an opportunity to build their best life in Ontario.” – NDP Official Opposition Youth Engagement critic Faisal Hassan

A News Release from Ontario’s Official Opposition and New Democratic Party

Posted February 27^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Queen’s Park—NDP Official Opposition Youth Engagement critic Faisal Hassan (York South-Weston) said that too many young people are still finding it difficult to land their first paid job and get the experience that they need to build a career.

This Wednesday, February 27th  Hassan announced a motion calling on the government to create 27,000 new paid work opportunities for students, recent graduates or unemployed youth to get the real life work opportunities that they need to build a good life in Ontario.

“Imagine a province where students and youth that work hard actually get a shot to build their best life in Ontario,” said Hassan. “Years of Conservatives and Liberals robbed young people of this chance, and created an environment where there are just too few entry level jobs to go around. Continue reading →

Renewed, connected and sustainable health care system will reduce hallway health care by focusing resources on patient needs

“Our government is taking a comprehensive, pragmatic approach to addressing the public health care system.” –  Sam Oosterhoff, Ford Government rep. and MPP for Niagara West

News from the Constituency Office of Niagara West MPP Sam Oosterhoff

Posted February 27^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Niagara West MPP Sam Oosterhoff

Niagara, Ontario — Christine Elliott, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health and Long Term Care, has announced the Government of Ontario’s long-term plan to fix and strengthen the public health care system by focusing directly on the needs of Ontario’s patients and families.

“The people of Ontario deserve a connected health care system that puts their needs first,” said Elliott. “At the same time the people of Ontario deserve peace of mind that this system is sustainable and accessible for all patients and their families, regardless of where you live, how much you make, or the kind of care you require.”

“Our government is taking a comprehensive, pragmatic approach to addressing the public health care system,” said Sam Oosterhoff, MPP for Niagara West. Continue reading →

Gayle Wood has performed executive roles in other Conservation Authorities across Ontario, and has worked for the Ontario ministries of Environment and Natural Resources

News from the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority

Posted February 26th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Veteran Conservationist Gayle Wood appointed interim CAO of a Niagara Peninsula Conservation in need of her kind of leadership

The Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority (NPCA) is pleased to welcome Ms. Gayle Wood to the position of Interim Chief Administrative Officer/Secretary-Treasurer.

Ms. Wood will commence her position on March 1, 2019. She was appointed by the Board of Directors for a term of 5 months, while the Board undergoes a permanent CAO search currently underway with the help of an external hiring firm.

“Ms. Wood brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise in conservation leadership as a senior executive to a number of Conservation Authorities across Ontario,” says NPCA Board Chair, Dave Bylsma. Continue reading →

We Need Several More Citizen Board Members Like Him To Finally Clean Up the Monumental Mess at the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority 

A News Commentary by Doug Draper

Posted February 26^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Citizen activist Ed Smith is on his way to a seat on the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority’s board of directors

Less than a week after the chair of the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority’s current board of directors cast the sole vote against allowing Ed Smith and another Niagara citizen speak at one of the board’s meetings, Smith may now only be weeks away from taking a seat around the board table.

The community activist, who has been among the most vocal critics across the region of the way the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority (NPCA) has been doing business in recent years, received the support of St. Catharines’ city council this February 25^th to sit on the Conservation Authority’s board.

Smith, a retired Canadian Armed Forces officer who, more than a year ago, defeated an attempt by the NPCA’s senior administrators and old board to sue him after he circulated a list of questions and concerns about the way the public agency is spending millions of Niagara tax dollars, was one of more than 30 St. Catharines residents who applied for the one and only seat the city can have on a board that currently allows one seat to be filled by each of Niagara’s 12 municipalities.

In 2016, at a meeting of Niagara’s Regional Council, Ed Smith argues against NPCA’s plan to use something called biodiversity offsetting to gut provincially significant wetlands to make way for urban development.

He was selected for St. Catharines seat by a three-person nominating committee made up of city councillors Bruce Williamson, Carlos Garcia and Greg Miller. The committee was assembled after the city’s new council was sworn in last December and began advertising publicly for interested citizens to apply for the board seat. Continue reading →

Targeted Investments Needed To Future-Proof Canada’s Automotive Sector

Thousands of Auto Sector-Related Jobs At Stake In Niagara Alone

A Report on Canada’s Auto Industry from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives

Posted February 26^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Ottawa, Canada —A new report out today from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives finds that maintaining the competitiveness of Canada’s important automotive sector in a rapidly changing industry requires decisive action and collaboration by provincial and federal governments, targeted investment and new policies designed for the new automobility.

“We do not accept automotive plant closures as a foregone conclusion,” says report co-author Charlotte Yates, Provost and Vice-President Academic at the University of Guelph. “While Canada’s most recent free trade agreements have left our automotive sector more vulnerable to tariff-free foreign competition, the solutions proposed in this report could promote a revitalization of Canada’s the auto industry.”

The report, by two researchers affiliated with the Automotive Policy Research Centre (APRC), assesses the sector’s current landscape and outlines a multi-pronged policy plan to boost competitiveness and avoid plant closures within the Great Lakes Region. Continue reading →

NDP Renews Calls For Ford Minister Lisa Macleod To Resign, Autism Program To Be Fixed

Ontario Opposition and NDP Leader Andrea Horwath

“Minister MacLeod mislead the very families she’s tasked with helping, and demanded that service providers hide the truth about the frozen wait lists. How many children were kept on the wait list when they could have received support?”                             – Ontario NDP Leader Andrea Horwath

A News Release from Ontario’s NDP and Official Opposition Party

Posted February 25^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Ford’s Minister of Children, Community and Social Services Lisa MacLeod – known to some as the “Minister of Mean” – is being asked to resign in the wake of reports that she has been trying to intimidate and bully experts in the care field who have questioned or criticized changes MacLeod and the Ford Government are planning to make to services for people living with autism.

New documents reveal that Doug Ford and Lisa MacLeod froze autism therapy wait lists five months ago, and instructed autism service organizations to hide that freeze from parents.

Now, the NDP is renewing calls for a revamp before the cuts are implemented, as well as calls for MacLeod to resign — for lying to parents, for threatening those who don’t support her cuts, and, most of all, for ripping treatment and hope away from children.

“By cutting autism therapy for thousands of kids, Lisa MacLeod is snuffing out hope, and robbing them of the opportunity to progress and develop,” said NDP Leader Andrea Horwath. “The fact that she and Mr. Ford actually ripped that hope away months ago, but decided to lie to parents about it, is reprehensible.”

Families of children living with autism joined the NDP at the legislature again Monday to demand better — a battle they’ve been forced to fight on behalf of their children since the underfunded and inadequate Liberal program let them down. Continue reading →

Niagara Parks Police say Ice Formations Pose Risk to Public Safety

News from Ontario’s Niagara Parks Commission

Posted February 2^nd, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Winds pushing ice up on Niagara River shore near Peace Bridge in Niagara, Ontario Town of Fort Erie. Niagara Parks Police image

Niagara Falls, Ontario – The Niagara Parks Commission would like to advise the public to exercise caution, when travelling along the south Niagara Parkway, particularly in the area of Mather Arch, in the Town of Fort Erie. Traffic is now being re-routed, with the south Niagara Parkway closed between Central Avenue and Queen Street.

As a result of the high-winds, large ice formations from Lake Erie have breached the Parapet Wall and have spilled onto the sidewalk, along the south Niagara Parkway. While visually stunning, these ice formations continue to move and shift, and members of the public are asked to please avoid this area, as the ice formations do pose a risk to public safety. Continue reading →

Royal Bank CEO David McKay made the highest salary of all Canadian bank executives in 2018, enjoying an eight per cent increase in salary over what he made in 2017. His bank has just announced plans to close its branch in downtown Thorold in Niagara, Ontario.

“This branch closure is happening at a time when Royal Bank is making healthy profits. Last year it had a record profit of $12.4 billion while your salary sir (CEO David McKay) was the highest of your colleagues at $12.43 million up nearly 8 percent from the previous year. I always thought that putting customers first was the way for a business to operate and succeed. Apparently not anymore” – from an Open Letter from Niagara Centre MPP Jeff Burch to Royal Bank of Canada President and CEO David McKay

An Open Letter to David McKay, President, CEO & Director, Royal Bank of Canada from Niagara Centre MPP Jeff Burch

Posted February 25^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Dear Mr. McKay –

A sign for the Royal Bank’s Credit Union in downtown Thorold welcomes one and all to “come bank with us.” The RC bank branch,, seen here across a downtown intersection and to the right of the sign, is now on Royal Bank’s chopping block.

I am sending this letter on behalf of many concerned residents in Thorold over yet another major bank deciding to leave the downtown. Royal Bank will officially close at 52 Front Street S on July 5th, just after Canada Day.

The attached letter from the RBC Regional Vice President seems to be an ongoing trend to close branches that have been part of the community for over a century citing changing times with online services and fewer customers. There is an indication the current employees will have their jobs at the end of this so called merger.

However, this branch closure is happening at a time when Royal Bank is making healthy profits. Last year it had a record profit of $12.4 billion while your salary sir was the highest of your colleagues at $12.43 million up nearly 8 percent from the previous year. Continue reading →

Canada’s Green Party Leader Elizabeth May

“So what exactly is the calculus for deciding when it’s worth wiping a species from the earth? For deciding we can ignore indigenous rights? For deciding we can give up on our own future? A handful of jobs, a risky business case, and propping up the old oil economy.”     – Canada’s Green Party Leader Elizabeth May

Posted February 25^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

A Call-Out from the Green Party of Canada

This past February 22nd, the National Energy Board (NEB) recommended approval of the Kinder Morgan pipeline.

This comes after they admitted that the pipeline could wipe out Southern Resident Killer Whales. After they admitted that it could devastate BC’s coastline and destroy our marine economies. After they admitted that construction will violate indigenous rights and dramatically increase greenhouse gases. Continue reading →

“This finding contrasts with the idea that people who use a lot of social media become more depressed over time.” – Brock researcher and Psychology PhD candidate Taylor Heffer

News from Brock University in St. Catharines

Posted February 25^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Niagara, Ontario – Worries that teens and adolescents who use social media are at a greater risk of developing symptoms of depression later in life may be unfounded.

New research out of Brock University’s Department of Psychology and the Centre for Lifespan Development Research finds no evidence that social media use is a predictor of depressive symptoms over time.

“By using data from two large longitudinal studies, we were able to empirically test the assumption that social media use is leading to greater depressive symptoms,” says Psychology PhD candidate Taylor Heffer, lead author of the paper published in Clinical Psychological Science.

Study authors from left, Brock Psychology master’s student Owen Daly, Brock alumna Marie Good and Psychology PhD candidates Taylor Heffer and Elliott MacDonnell

While some research has found an association between the average time spent using social media and average well-being scores, those studies tend to look at a single point in time. Continue reading →

A Brief Message from Niagara At Large reporter and publisher Doug Draper

Posted February 24th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

The winds are whistling wildly through the trees where I live above the Niagara Escarpment in Thorold/Niagara and the power may go out at any second now.

Some areas in the central and south ends of Niagara have reportedly already lost power so before it quite possibly goes down here, please don’t think we have gone out of business if there are no posts on the site for a day or more.

We’ll be back with a vengeance, with more news and commentary as soon as we possibly can.

In the meantime, if you lose the power in your house because of this severe wind storm, and find yourself sitting there with family and friends in the candle light, use the time to give some thought to the climate catastrophe that faces us and future generations.

And think hard about how much worse it will be for our children and grandchildren, if we don’t take action and address this crisis now.

There is no more time for the ignorant and dangerous politics of Doug Ford and his like. The short-sighted stupidity that Ford and the federal Tories and others who embrace their ideology respresents will take us down the road to environmental and economic ruin, and to catastrophe!

We will catch you on the flip side of the storm. Please keep coming back to Niagara At Large for a truly independent and alternative voice on the news in Niagara and the world around us.

• Doug Draper, Niagara At Large

Please click on the screen and listen to the plea for action from this brilliant young Swedish girl at a Climate Change conference late this past year –

NIAGARA AT LARGE encourages you to join the conversation by sharing your views on this post in the space following the Bernie Sanders quote below.

A reminder that we only post comments by individuals who also share their first and last names.

For more news and commentary from Niagara At Large – an independent, alternative voice for our greater bi-national Niagara region – become a regular visitor and subscriber to NAL at www.niagaraatlarge.com .

“A politician thinks of the next election. A leader thinks of the next generation.” – Bernie Sanders

Severe Winds May Cause Power Outages In Niagara and surrounding regions this Sunday February 24^th and Monday, February 25^th

Some Tips for Staying Safe during a power outage

A Message from Hydro One

Posted February 24^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

We’re preparing for a wind storm that may cause power outages

Our outage prediction tool is forecasting that the high winds expected to start Sunday morning could cause hundreds of outages across southern, central and eastern Ontario.

Our crews are moving into position to assess damage and quickly and safely restore power to affected customers. As the damage is assessed, we’ll provide an estimated time of restoration for each outage. We prioritize emergencies and restoration in order to bring power back to the largest number of customers in the shortest period of time. Continue reading →

A Brief Commentary from Niagara At Large reporter and publisher Doug Draper (with a little help from our good readers)

Posted February 22^nd, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Public response grows to news of David Barrick’s exit from the problem-plagued Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority

In the wake of news this February 21^st that David Barrick, one of the most controversial characters in an ongoing nightmare around affairs at the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority (NPCA), has made his exist as the public agency’s acting or interim CAO, many citizens across Niagara were quick to say they are pleased to see him go.

Many citizens say they also want to know how much of our municipal tax dollars Barrick may have received in what has been called by West Lincoln Mayor and NPCA board chair Dave Bylsma as a “mutual separation agreement” between lawyers for Barrick and the Conservation Authority.

And fair warning to Bylsma and the 11 other Niagara regional councillors and mayors on the NPCA board. The clear message we at Niagara At Large are getting is that many citizens are not taking word that the cost of the agreement with Barrick cannot be disclosed for an answer.

The public demand for disclosure of how much this settlement has cost area taxpayers, we predict, is only going to grow.

Why? Continue reading →

“You serve me
And I’ll serve you
Swing your partners, all get screwed
Bring your lawyer
And I’ll bring mine
Get together, and we could have a bad time

We’re gonna play the sue me, sue
You blues
We’re gonna play the sue me, sue
You blues”

• Lyrics from the George Harrison song,                                ‘Sue Me, Sue You Blues’

A Foreword by Niagara At Large reporter and publisher Doug Draper

Posted February 22^nd, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Here is one recent expression of all the suing that has been going on in Niagara, produced and posted on Facebook by one resident in the region, Peter Gill.

This January and February, there has been more than a little winter blues in Niagara.

What has been weighing down on us instead are one report after another about lawsuits and buyouts involving former Niagara regional government and Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority (NPCA) employees, and t all of them involving large amounts of our tax money.

I can hardly ever go in to grocery store or somewhere else these days where people recognize me and know that I cover the news without at least one person in the place expressing concern and anger over all of this, and talking about a time in our region’s history where it never seemed to be this bad.

And I think they are right. Continue reading →

Doug Ford stacks the deck against everyday people in disputes with wealthy developers

A Statement from Niagara Centre MPP Jeff Burch

Posted February 22nd, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Niagara Centre MPP Jeff Burch

Niagara, Ontario  — Jeff Burch, Niagara Centre MPP and Ontario NDP Municipal Affairs critic, released the following statement in response to news that Doug Ford is dismantling the Local Planning Appeal Support Centre:

“Doug Ford is once again doing favours for his friends by dismantling an office set up to help everyday Ontarians navigate the complex planning appeals process. The Local Planning Appeal Support Centre gave local communities a fighting chance when facing off against wealthy developers trying to ram unreasonable proposals through the municipal planning process. Continue reading →

The controversial “acting CAO” has left the Conservation Authority by “mutual agreement” – effective this February 21, 2019

(In our haste to get a breaking report about David Barrick’s departure from the NPCA up this February 21st, Niagara At Large made the mistake of using Grimsby Mayor Jeff Jordan’s headshot in the body of the report instead of NPCA chair and West Lincoln Mayor Dave Bylsma’s. We sincerely apologize to all concerned.)

A News Commentary by Niagara At Large reporter and publisher Doug Draper

Posted February 22nd, 2019 on Niagara At Large

David Barrick, NPCA’s now departed “acting CAO”

David Barrick, one of the most controversial figures who has worked his way up to top of the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority’s administrative food chain over the past six years, has now partied ways with the agency.

Members of the NPCA’s board of directors and staff received official word this February 21^st afternoon of a “mutual separation agreement,” effective immediately and signed between Barrick, who last served as the Conservation Authority’s “acting CAO,” and the board.

The agreement apparently bars any public disclosure of how much any buy out package for Barrick cost the taxpayers of Niagara, Hamilton and Haldimand County who contribute (with most of the money coming from Niagara) to the NPCA’s $9 million-plus a year budget.

A memo circulated this February 21^st from the NPCA board’s current Chair, Dave Bylsma, to other board members and the agency’s staff reads, in part –

“Hello NPCA Board of Directors …

“The Interim Chief Administrative Officer/Secretary Treasurer, David Barrick and the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority (NPCA) Board have concluded a mutual separation agreement effective today (February 21st, 2019).

Niagara citizens outside an NPCA board meeting as recently as this February 20th, holding up signs demanding the ouster of David Barrick. Photo courtesy of Emily Beth Spanton.

“I am proud of what I was able to accomplish during my tenure with the NPCA. During my time, and with the support of my team, we went from running at an annual net deficit of over $550,000 in 2013, to a combined net surplus for NPCA parks of over $280,000 by year-end 2018. The net surpluses add to the overall financial health of the organization, increased investment in capital have been made and operational reserves have been replenished,” said former Interim CAO David Barrick.

Continue reading →

The controversial “acting CAO” has left the Conservation Authority by “mutual agreement” – effective this February 21, 2019

(In our haste to get this breaking report about David Barrick’s departure from the NPCA up this February 21st, Niagara At Large made the mistake of using Grimsby Mayor Jeff Jordan’s headshot in the body of the report instead of NPCA chair and West Lincoln Mayor Dave Bylsma’s. We have corrected that error and we sincerely apologize to all concerned.)

By Doug Draper

Posted February 21^st, 2019 on Niagara At Large

David Barrick, NPCA’s now departed “acting CAO”

David Barrick, one of the most controversial figures who has worked his way up to top of the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority’s administrative food chain over the past six years, has now partied ways with the agency.

Members of the NPCA’s board of directors and staff received official word this February 21^st afternoon of a “mutual separation agreement,” effective immediately and signed between Barrick, who last served as the Conservation Authority’s “acting CAO,” and the board.

The agreement apparently bars any public disclosure of how much any buy out package for Barrick cost the taxpayers of Niagara, Hamilton and Haldimand County who contribute (with most of the money coming from Niagara) to the NPCA’s $9 million-plus a year budget.

A memo circulated this February 21^st from the NPCA board’s current Chair, Dave Bylsma, to other board members and the agency’s staff reads, in part –

“Hello NPCA Board of Directors …

“The Interim Chief Administrative Officer/Secretary Treasurer, David Barrick and the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority (NPCA) Board have concluded a mutual separation agreement effective today (February 21st, 2019).

Niagara citizens outside an NPCA board meeting as recently as this February 20th, holding up signs demanding the ouster of David Barrick.

“I am proud of what I was able to accomplish during my tenure with the NPCA. During my time, and with the support of my team, we went from running at an annual net deficit of over $550,000 in 2013, to a combined net surplus for NPCA parks of over $280,000 by year-end 2018. The net surpluses add to the overall financial health of the organization, increased investment in capital have been made and operational reserves have been replenished,” said former Interim CAO David Barrick.

Continue reading →

Passage of Bill could Spell the End of Captive Marine Mammal Exhibits at Marineland in Niagara Falls

A Brief Foreword by Niagara At Large reporter and publisher Doug Draper, followed by a Call-Out to Support the Bill from Canada’s Green Party

Posted February 21st. 2019 on Niagara At Large

One of the countless demonstrations every spring, summer and fall in front of Marineland in Niagara Falls. File photos by Doug Draper

Going back to my earliest years as an environment reporter at The St. Catharines Standard in the 1980s, there have been individuals and groups in Niagara and across the North American continent pressing senior levels of government to ban the captivity of whales and dolphins and other marine mammals at amusement parks and acquariums like Marineland in Niagara Falls.

Groups like Niagara Action for Animals (NAFA) and Zoocheck Canada, a handful of activist teachers in Niagara who decided to stop taking groups of grade school students to Marineland, and former Marineland trainers like Phil Demers, who is still facing a$1.5 million lawsuit for speaking out seven years ago about conditions for the mammals in the park, are among a long paraid of groups and individuals who have been fighting for an end of captivity for these remarkable animals.

And now, with a federal bill, S-203 – better known as the End the Captivity of Whales and Dolphins Act -coming closer to a final vote in Canada’s Parliament, the dream of ending the practice of keeping whales and other marine mammals in tanks for public exhibition may finally come true. Continue reading →

“This is a wonderful opportunity that will bring all of Niagara together as we welcome athletes, parents and spectators from across Canada.” – Barry Wright, associate professor, Brock’s Goodman School of Business

News from Brock University in Niagara, Ontario

Posted February 21^st, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Brock Prof Barry Wright will serve as CEO for the 2021 Canada Games when they come to Niagara

Organizers of the 2021 Canada Games have reached into the academic ranks at Brock University to find their new Chief Executive Officer.

Barry Wright, an associate professor who has also served as Interim Dean in Brock’s Goodman School of Business, will officially move into the CEO role on May 1.

An announcement from Doug Hamilton, who is Chair of the 2021 Canada Games Host Society, said Wright will oversee a range of key organizational activities that include human resources, volunteer programming, finance, and sport and athlete services.

Wright will take a secondment from his Brock duties in order to concentrate on the Games, which will take place in the Niagara region in the summer of 2021. Continue reading →

After Ford Government admission that only families earning less than $55,000 are entitled to full amount

“People everywhere are coming together to fight back against Conservative cuts that rip funding away from the kids that need it most.” – Ontario NDP Leader Andrea Horwath

A News Release from Ontario’s Official Opposition New Democratic Party

Posted February 21^st, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Queen’s Park—Official Opposition Leader Andrea Horwath said that families of children living with autism have spoken; and they oppose Doug Ford’s scheme to rip supports and treatment away from their kids.

This past Wednesday (February 20^th), about 200 families from every part of the province joined the NDP at Queen’s Park to push back against Ford’s callous cuts to autism services — all families with a child with autism, all devastated by Ford’s cut to funding. 

“People everywhere are coming together to fight back against Conservative cuts that rip funding away from the kids that need it most,” said Horwath. Continue reading →

Province Transforms Tarion Warranty Corporation’s Broken System to Protect Ontario Families

News from the Constituency Office of Niagara West NPP Sam Oosterhoff

Posted February 2^nd, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Niagara West MPP Sam Oosterhoff

Niagara, Ontario —Sam Oosterhoff, MPP for Niagara West is working for the people by protecting hardworking Ontarians when making one of the biggest purchases in their lives — a new home.

Ontario’s Government is transforming Tarion Warranty Corporation and implementing initiatives to better protect purchasers of cancelled pre-construction condominium projects.

“There are many families across the province who have faced difficulties over the years when seeking a solution from Tarion,” said Sam Oosterhoff, MPP for Niagara West. “For our government one thing is clear, Tarion is broken. That is why our government is pleased to announce that we are taking decisive action to put the People of Ontario first by transforming Tarion and strengthening consumer protection.” Continue reading →

Time  Rapidly Running Out For This Board to Take Real Action to Clean e Mess at  Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority Up

A News Commentary by Niagara At Large reporter and publisher Doug Draper

Posted February 19^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

I don’t believe I’d be too far off the mark to say that if the current board of the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority (NPCA) was a song, it would be lucky to ever make it on to the Hot 100 Billboard charts – not the way things on this board are going.

One of many demonstrations of citizens in front of the NPCA’s headquarters in Welland over the past four years. File photo by Doug Draper

Now more than two thirds of the way through a three-month interim mandate, the 12 area mayors and councillors Niagara’s Regional Council appointed to the board of this highly dysfunctional public agency, along with members from Hamilton and Haldimand County, have overseen a continuation of what an Ontario Superior Court Judge described this past December as the kind of chaos that cannot be tolerated any more. Continue reading →

April Jeffs is appointed Vice-Chair on board of Ontario’s  Niagara Parks 

A News Commentary by Doug Draper

Posted February 19th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Ontario’s Tory leader (now Premier) Doug Ford last year with then Tory candidate April Jeffs, who lost in the Niagara Centre riding last June to the NDP’s Jeff Burch. Jeffs also served as mayor of Wainfleet and sat on the board of the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority until Niagara’s Regional Council appointed new NPCA board members late this past year.

Ontario’s Ford government has appointed April Jeffs, a former Wainfleet mayor and a failed Ford candidate in last year’s provincial election, to the post of vice-chair on the Niagara Parks Commission’s board of directors.

Jeffs, who ran as a provincial Tory candidate in the Niagara Centre Riding last June and has been nominated to run as the Tory candidate in the same riding in this year’s federal election, also sat for the past four years as a member of the board for the problem-plagued Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority (NPCA).

Jeffs, who decided not to run for another term for Wainfleet’s mayor in last October’s municipal elections, is the second failed provincial Tory candidate since this past fall to get appointed by the Ford government to sit on the Niagara Parks Commission board. Continue reading →

News from Ontario’s Niagara Parks Commission

Posted February 19^th, 2019 on Niagara At Large

Boyer’s Creek coastal wetland project to utilize recycled blue spruce from Queen Victoria Park holiday tree display

New project, as part of riparian zones initiative, uses felled ash trees to mimic the natural environment, creating instant small-scale fish habitat

Niagara Falls, Ontario – As part of delivering on Niagara Parks’ mandate as the environmental and cultural stewards of the Niagara River corridor, Niagara Parks will be undertaking another Niagara River coastal wetland restoration project at Boyer’s Creek, beginning the week of February 18, 2019 (weather-permitting).

A stretch of the Niagara River shoreline along the parkway on the Canadian side of the border

Niagara River Coastal Wetlands Restoration

Beginning in 2016, in collaboration with the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry and Environment and Climate Change Canada, Niagara Parks began a series of coastal wetlands restoration projects to reduce shoreline erosion and provide essential fish habitat at seven strategic locations in the Niagara River. Continue reading →