Niagara At Large

A Call-Out from Bernie Sanders & His Bernie for U.S. President campaign

Posted July 6^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

(A Brief Foreword from NAL publisher Doug Draper – Bernie Sanders’ concerns about the potentially destructive impact this trade deal could have on everyday Americans applies just as much to Canadians if Canada’s Trudeau government signs this Harper negotiated deal. So why aren’t Canadians expressing more concern?)

Burlington, Vermont – U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (has) urged Democratic Party platform writers to take a stand against the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a proposed 12-nation trade pact that he said would have “disastrous” consequences for U.S. workers and the environment.

Bernie Sanders fights on for “a future to believe in.”

“The Democratic Party must go on record in opposition to holding a vote on the trade deal during the lame duck session of Congress and beyond,” Sanders said. “This is about preventing the outsourcing of jobs, protecting the environment, stopping pharmaceutical companies from increasing the price of prescription drugs, preserving our democracy and respecting human rights.” Continue reading →

By John Bacher

Posted July 6th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Niagara, Ontario – Under the peculiar system of land use planning we have in Niagara Region,  what is termed an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) is a powerful instrument.

Its findings are an important way to protect forested land that is outside of the Greenbelt and not designated as provincially significant wetlands. These forests – vulnerable to development – are categorized in the Niagara Regional Policy Plan as Environmental Conservation Areas(ECAs).

Thundering Waters forest and wetland tract targeted for ‘Paradise’ development scheme

The Niagara Regional Official Plan, along with the plans of eight local municipalities in the region, including Niagara Falls, have forested areas that are called Environmental Protection Areas (EPAs) and are truly protected from development.

Most of the forested areas in Niagara, however, are weakly protected. That is why an EIS is important.

An EIS  has the power through the Niagara Regional Official Plan and  based on detailed studies of what is termed “ecological function”, to change ECA lands into EPA areas. Continue reading →

By Sandra O’Connor

A Special to Niagara At Large, Posted July 5^th, 2016

Niagara, Ontario – The Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority (NPCA) has no basis in law to pursue biodiversity offsetting.

Ontario’s Conservation Authorities Act states; “The objects of an authority are to establish and undertake, a program designed to further the conservation, restoration, development and management of natural resources.”

Destroying one wetland in favour of creating another wetland is not conservation, restoration, development or management.

A provincially significant wetland in Niagara Falls, pegged for wholesale destruction by the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority under the guise of a “biodiversity offsetting” scheme.

The Conservation Authorities’ Regulations state: “an Authority may make regulations restricting and regulating the use of water in or from wetlands and prohibiting, regulating or requiring the permission of the authority for straightening, changing, diverting or interfering in any way with a wetland”. Continue reading →

Gather In Niagara Falls City Hall Courtyard On July 7^th, 6 P.M.

Posted July 4^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

A Call-Out from Karl Dockstader, a Niagara resident and member of the local indigenous community

The Thundering Waters Forest in Niagara Falls, Ontario is currently slated for a wholesale death by development by the Chinese GR (Can) Investment Co LTD.

There has not been official and full recognition of the value of this land asset by the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority, the Niagara Falls Council, Niagra’s Regional Council, the provincial government or the federal government. Continue reading →

News from Niagara, Ontario’s Regional Government

Posted July 4^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Niagara Region, Ontario – At this (past June 30^th) Regional Council meeting, Council directed staff to undertake 2017 budget preparations with tax levy guidance of a 1 per cent increase.

Niagara, Ontario’s regional council will soon address controversial bid to “off-set” natural wetlands to make way for urban development

For the average homeowner with a property valued at $240,500 a 1 per cent increase on the Regional portion of their property taxes would equal approximately $14 annually.

Regional staff will now spend the next several months developing budget options for council’s consideration and approval, as well as undertaking public engagement on budget options. These options will be presented to Council in the fall when the budget review committee resumes deliberations. Continue reading →

Holocaust Survivor, Humanitarian, Nobel Laureate – 1928-2016

“Elie Wiesel was one of the great moral voices of our time, and in many ways, the conscience of the world. He raised his voice, not just against antisemitism but against hatred, bigotry and intolerance in all its forms.” – U.S. President Barack Obama

Posted July 3^rd, 2016 on Niagara At Large

“There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but there must never be a time when we fail to protest.” – Elie Wiesel

“Wherever men and women are persecuted because of their race, religion, or political views, that place must – at that moment – become the center of the universe.” – Elie Wiesel

“There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but there must never be a time when we fail to protest.” – Elie Wiesel

In a world where we are seeing too many people succumb to individuals and groups that peddle hatred, intolerance, anger and fear in otherwise good nations like Britain, the United States and, yes, even in Canada where millions voted last year for a federal Conservative Party embracing policies that are racist, zenophobic and homophobic, we need voices like Elie Wiesel’s as much as ever.

In Canada, at least, the party of hate and intolerance did not prevail in last fall’s federal election but many of their members still sit in Canada’s House of Commons where many of them now pretend to be more open and tolerant. A few members of the former Harper cabal went so far this July 3rd as to march in Toronto’s Pride Parade.

Let’s make a promise to ourselves and each other not be fooled by those who would wear any mask they feel they must to curry favour and slither back to power. Be forever vigilant.

And remember that the best way to pay tribute to the life’s work of Elie Wiesel for peace, tolerance and justice for all is to stand up against the darker forces every time they surface in the communities and countries where we live.

For more on Elie Wiesel and his humanitarian mission click on – https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/jul/03/elie-wiesel-tributes-obama-clinton-netanyahu .

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/03/world/europe/elie-wiesel-auschwitz-survivor-and-nobel-peace-prize-winner-dies-at-87.html .

NOW IT IS YOUR TURN. Niagara At Large encourages you to share your views on this post in the space below.  A reminder that we only post comments by individuals who share their first and last name with them.

Visit Niagara At Large at www.niagaraatlarge.com for more news and commentary for and from the greater bi-national Niagara region.

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

A Brief Comment from Doug Draper

Posted July 1^st, 2016 on Niagara At Large

On the eve of this Canada Day 2016, the nation’s senior justices dealt what will hopefully be a fatal blow to yet another decision by the former Harper government that was affront to democracy and the common good.

This time it was the Federal Court of Appeal quashing a permit Harper’s cabinet issued the tar sands industry to construct the notorious Northern Gateway pipeline from Alberta’s tar pits through British Columbia to the west coast.

“The three-justice panel concluded that the former Conservative government failed in its duty to consult First Nations prior to issuing a cabinet order approving the $7.9-billion pipeline that would deliver 525,000 barrels a day of oil sands crude to the West Coast,” reads a story that appeared at the top of The Globe and Mail’s Report on Business this July 1^st.

Hopefully, the voice of U.S. President Barack Obama saying; “This is the only planet we’ve got, and this may be the last shot we’ve got to save it,” are still ringing in Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s ears from Obama’s visit to Ottawa this June 29^th, and he won’t take any steps to reissue that permit.

Watching the live coverage of Trudeau introduce Obama in Canada’s House of Commons this June 29^th before the president delivered a speech that discussed the urgent need to address climate change and the need to treat people with different skin colours, religious beliefs and cultural backgrounds with tolerance and compassion, I could not help but think; “What a difference a year can make.” Continue reading →

A Statement by the Prime Minister of Canada on Memorial Day in Newfoundland and Labrador

Posted July 1^st, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Ottawa, Ontario – The Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, today issued the following statement on Memorial Day in Newfoundland and Labrador:

“Beaumont Hamel is a name that is seared into the hearts of all Newfoundlanders and Labradorians. It is a name that represents courage, sacrifice, and sorrow.

Some members of the ill-fated regiment.

“One hundred years ago to this very day – in what would become the bloodiest battle of the First World War – 810 young men from the Newfoundland Regiment were ordered out of their trench. They calmly advanced, under withering machine gun and artillery fire, across no man’s land and into the teeth of the enemy. Continue reading →

Other Regions Of Ontario Are Years Ahead Of Us

A Commentary by Doug Draper

Posted June 30^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

“We have finally done it.”

Those were among the first words out of the mouth of a beaming Niagara regional chair Allan Caslin this past Tuesday, June 28^th when Ontario’s Transportation Minister Steven Del Duca announced that the province will move forward with plans to bring year-round, weekday GO rail services into the Niagara Region by the year 2021, and run them all the way through to Niagara Falls by 2023.

Former Niagara regional public works commissioner Ken Brothers (left), Niagara-on-the-Lake regional councilor and then regional chair Gary Burroughs, then Port Colborne Mayor Vance Badawey (now the MP for the Niagara Centre Riding), former Grimsby councilor Debbie Zimmerman, and St. Catharines regional councilor Tim Rigby at a 2011 ribbon cutting for lauching a “pilot” inter-municipal bus transit service. File photo by Doug Draper

That is encouraging news as far as it goes, Mr. Chair, but it is far too early to say ‘we have finally done it’.

First of all, a lot could happen before the first weekday Go train is expected to arrive in Niagara in 2021, including at least one municipal and one provincial election which could change the make-up of the political players and the priorities they have for transportation operations in this region and the province.

Second – and most importantly – Niagara still has a long way to go relative to many other regions in Ontario when it comes to establishing a real region-wide transit system of its own to work in tandem inter-regional commuter trains services.

Regions like Waterloo had the will and vision to upload public transit services from lower-tier municipalities, including the cities of Waterloo and Kitchener, to the regional government level more than a decade ago, and riderships have soared. So has the influx of business and younger people able to use the services for getting to where they want to go, when they need to be there.

And what has Niagara done? Continue reading →

By Bernie Sanders

An Excerpt of a Column, published June 28th, 2016 in The New York Times

Surprise, surprise.

Workers in Britain, many of whom have seen a decline in their standard of living while the very rich in their country have become much richer, have turned their backs on the European Union and a globalized economy that is failing them and their children.

Vermont Senator and U.S. presidential candidate Bernie Sanders

And it’s not just the British who are suffering. That increasingly globalized economy, established and maintained by the world’s economic elite, is failing people everywhere. Incredibly, the wealthiest 62 people on this planet own as much wealth as the bottom half of the world’s population — around 3.6 billion people.

The top 1 percent now owns more wealth than the whole of the bottom 99 percent. The very, very rich enjoy unimaginable luxury while billions of people endure abject poverty, unemployment, and inadequate health care, education, housing and drinking water.

Could this rejection of the current form of the global economy happen in the United States? You bet it could.

During my campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination, I’ve visited 46 states. What I saw and heard on too many occasions were painful realities that the political and media establishment fail even to recognize.

To read Bernie Sanders’ entire column in The New York Times click on – http://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/29/opinion/campaign-stops/bernie-sanders-democrats-need-to-wake-up.html?emc=edit_th_20160629&nl=todaysheadlines&nlid=58968427&_r=0 .

NOW IT IS YOUR TURN. Niagara At Large encourages you to share your views on this post. A reminder that we only post comments by individuals who share their first and last name with them.

Visit Niagara At Large at www.niagaraatlarge.com for more news and commentary for and from the greater bi-national Niagara region.

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

Province Removes Sex Designation on Health Card, New Gender Option On Driver’s Licence Coming In Early 2017

News from the Government of Ontario

Posted June 30th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Queen’s Park, Toronto – The Ontario government is changing the way it displays sex and gender information on health cards and driver’s licences to ensure the fair, ethical and equitable treatment of people with trans and non-binary gender identity.

Previous card with sex field

From June 13 onward, Ontario health cards no longer display information about a person’s sex on the face of the card. This change will not affect the validity of the card, and cards will continue to function in the same way.

Starting in early 2017, driver’s licence holders will be given the option to display an ‘X’ on their card as their gender identifier if they do not exclusively identify as male or female. Driver’s licences that display an ‘X’ instead of an ‘M’ or an ‘F’, will also be considered valid and can be used in the same way as previous cards.

Current card without sex field

This summer, Ontario will also launch public and stakeholder consultations to help develop policy on how ministries collect, use, retain and display sex and gender information on public-facing government forms and products. Ontarians can sign up to be notified when consultations open, as well as when the ‘X’ gender identifier option becomes available for driver’s licences, by visiting Ontario.ca/myID. Continue reading →

“This is the only planet we’ve got, and this may be the last shot we’ve got to save it. And America and Canada are going to need to lead the way.” – U.S. President Barack Obama

An Excerpt from U.S. President Barack Obama’s June 29^th, 2016 Address to Canada’s House of Commons

Posted June 29^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Ottawa, Ontario, Canada – There is one threat, however, that we cannot solve militarily, nor can we solve alone, and that’s the threat of climate change.

Now, climate change is no longer an abstraction. It’s not an issue we can put off for the future. It is happening now. It is happening here in our own countries.

The United States and Canada are both Arctic nations, and last year when I became the first U.S. president to visit the Arctic, I could see the effects myself. Glaciers like Canada’s Athabasca Glacier, are melting at alarming rates. Tundra is burning, permafrost is thawing.

This is not a conspiracy. It’s happening. Within a generation, Arctic sea ice may all but disappear in the summer. So skeptics and cynics and insist on denying what’s right in front of our eyes, but the Alaska natives that I met, whose ancestral villages are sliding into the sea, they don’t have that luxury. They know climate change is real. They know it is not a hoax. Continue reading →

 – Waterboarding Isn’t ‘Vicious Enough’ For Tough-Guy Trump

A  Commentary by Doug Draper

Posted June 29^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

The Donald says he “likes waterboarding” – certainly no surprise there – but he doesn’t feel it is a “vicious” enough form of torcher to use on those suspected or convicted of committing terrorist acts.

You’ve got to “fight fire with fire,” bellowed Trump – the Republican Party’s presumptive nominee running for the U.S. presidency – during another one of his raucous campaign rallies, this one staged in the State of Ohio this June 28^th.

Reacting to news earlier that day of what experts were already saying has all the earmarks of an ISIS attack that killed more than 40 people and wounded numerous others at a busy airport in Turkey, the blowhard billionaire, who has all but eviscerated the once proud ‘Party of Lincoln’ to become its presidential nominee, had the following to share with the world as his answer to those who commit such violence –

“Can you imagine them sitting around the table or wherever they’re eating their dinner, talking about the Americans don’t do waterboarding and yet we chop off heads,” Trump asked. “They probably think we’re weak, we’re stupid, we don’t know what we’re doing, and we have no leadership. You know, you have to fight fire with fire. …”

“What do you think about waterboarding,” Trump went on to ask the already fired-up crowd. “I like it a lot (but) I don’t think it’s tough enough. … “We have to be so strong. We have to fight so viciously. And violently because we’re dealing with violent people viciously.” Continue reading →

News from Brock University in Niagara, Ontario

Posted June 29^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Niagara, Ontario – The City of St. Catharines in Niagara is off to a good start with recent downtown revitalization efforts, but more needs to be done to attract residents and enable those who work downtown to relax, according to new Brock University research.

Downtown St. Catharines in Niagara, Ontario. Photo courtesy of Brock University

On Wednesday, June 29th Brock’s Niagara Community Observatory released the report Downtown Revitalization in St. Catharines: Building the Vibrant Public Space, which includes the results of data collected by Professor of Geography Michael Ripmeester through polling 300 city residents on what they thought of recent downtown redevelopment efforts.
Continue reading →

Plans for New Canadian Train Service Could Provide WNYers New Direct Link to Toronto and Open New Door for Canadian Visitors to Niagara Falls, NY

From the Office of Buffalo area U.S. Congressman Brian Higgins

Posted June 29^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Erie County, New York – Congressman Brian Higgins (NY-26) is advocating for a direct binational pedestrian connection to accommodate Canadian GO Train passengers and better facilitate cross-border tourism.   Higgins’ push comes following an announcement on June 28th by Ontario’s Transportation Minister of expanded GO Transit service between Toronto and Niagara Falls, Ontario.

Buffalo, New York area U.S. Congressman Brian Higgins applauds Ontario/Niagara Go Train announcement

The GO Train stop at the Via Rail Station in Niagara Falls, Ontario is in very close proximity, just a three-minute walk, to the Whirlpool Bridge connecting the U.S. and Canada.  The Whirlpool Bridge currently does not allow for pedestrian crossings. 

In a letter sent by Congressman Higgins to parties overseeing bridge operations, Higgins calls for the Niagara Falls Bridge Commission, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and Canada Border Services Agency to begin work now to establish pedestrian access at the Whirlpool Bridge between Niagara Falls, New York and Niagara Falls, Ontario.  Continue reading →

“Canada, the U.S., and Mexico will work together to implement the historic Paris Agreement.” – from the three leaders’ statement

“We announce a historic goal for North America to strive to achieve 50 percent clean power generation by 2025.” – from the three leaders’ statement

“The mainstreaming of conservation and sustainable biodiversity is a key component of sustainable development.” – from the three leaders’ statement

Leaders’ Statement on a North American Climate, Clean Energy, and Environment Partnership

Posted June 29^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Ontario Canada – Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, U.S, President Barack Obama, and Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto share a common commitment to a competitive, low-carbon and sustainable North American economy and society.

Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and U.S, President Barack Obama

The Paris Agreement was a turning point for our planet, representing unprecedented accord on the urgent need to take action to combat climate change through innovation and deployment of low-carbon solutions.

North America has the capacity, resources and the moral imperative to show strong leadership building on the Paris Agreement and promoting its early entry into force. We recognize that our highly integrated economies and energy systems afford a tremendous opportunity to harness growth in our continuing transition to a clean energy economy. Continue reading →

New Program to Start One Year Earlier

 (A Brief Foreword Note from Niagara At Large – This Ontario government announcement follows months of intensive pressure from the opposition PC Party and especially the New Democratic Party and lobbying from citizen groups not to cut support for children and youth with autism.)

News from the Government of Ontario

Posted June 2016, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Queen’s Park, Toronto – Ontario is providing more support for children and youth with autism, including an accelerated implementation of the new Ontario Autism Program. The new program will provide all children, regardless of age, with more flexible services at a level of intensity that meets each child’s individual needs, significantly reduce wait times for service, and increase the number of treatment spaces available to serve more children and accommodate the rising prevalence in autism diagnoses.

The government has listened closely to experts, stakeholders, service providers and families since its announcement and consulted widely on the development of the new program. Ontario is putting in place additional supports for children with autism and their families, including: Continue reading →

Trains To Grimsby Well Short Of Niagara Needs

News from Ontario’s Opposition PC Party’s Transportation Critic Michael Harris

Posted June 28^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

It was another day, another Transportation Minister GO announcement falling well short of the mark for Niagara, according to Ontario PC Transportation Critic Michael Harris.

“After this June 28th’s announcement, Minister Del Duca has confirmed that he is leaving Niagara commuters waiting for the train,” Harris indicated. “I don’t know if the Minister has checked the map lately, but trains to Grimsby by 2021 falls well short of Niagara’s needs now.”

While Harris remained hopeful regarding a subsequent commitment to deliver service to Niagara Falls by 2023, a promise that was supposed to have been completed nearly ten years earlier by 2015, he noted this announcement was only one in a series the Minister has been making on an almost daily basis. Continue reading →

–        A ‘Peaceful Awareness Rally’ Set For July 7^th at Niagara Falls City Hall

A Call-Out to One and All of Us from Karl Dockstader

Niagara, Ontario – The Thundering Waters Forest in the southwest end of Niagara Falls, Ontario is currently slated for irreparable destructive development.

There has not been official and full recognition of the value of this asset by Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority, the upper and lower tiers municipal government in Niagara, or the the provincial or the federal governments.

This lack of recognition remains the case despite the fact that destruction of a forest of this size is virtually unprecedented in our area in recent times. Continue reading →

“This is further proof of our government’s commitment to provide accessible, modern transit infrastructure that is reducing commute times and improving the quality of life for Ontarians.” – Ontario Transportation Minister Steven Del Duca

By Doug Draper

Posted June 28^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Niagara, Ontario – St. Catharines MPP introduced it as a “historic transportation announcement” for the Niagara Region.

Allan Caslin, Niagara’s regional government chair elected to the Region’s council by voters in St. Catharines, said it is the fulfillment of what has been his council’s “number one priority” for the past two years and a “team effort” by the Region, Niagara’s local councils and representatives of the provincial legislature.

Ontario Transportation Minister Steven Del Duca (left) with St. Catharines MPP Jim Bradley and Niagara regional chair Allan Caslin at June 28th Go Train announcement.

“We are thrilled today,” said Caslin this June 28^th as he stood at the St. Catharines rail station with Bradley, Ontario’s Transportation Minister Steven Del Duca and others. “We have finally done it.”

“Niagara, we are back and we are here to stay,” cheered Caslin before joining the others for a group shot with everyone flashing a thumb’s up.

The announcement, outlined by Del Duca during a media briefing at the rail station, is for plans by the province “to bring new weekday GO rail service between the future Confederation GO Station in Hamilton and the Niagara Region starting in 2021, with service to Niagara Falls by 2023.” Continue reading →

A Commentary by Doug Draper

Posted June 27^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

They call them “the beast.”

For weeks now, we have been hearing the word “beast” used to describe the Fort McMurray wildfires raging away in tar sands country in Alberta, Canada.

The wildfires have repeatedly been referred to as “the beast” by many of Canada’s federal and provincial leaders, by those with vested interests in Alberta’s tar sands, and by the mainstream media reporters across the country.

Wildfires raging in Alberta, Canada’s tar sands region

There can be no doubt about one thing.

These wildfires, which have already gone down as the worst of their kind in Canadian history –  have done a horrific amount of destruction – totalling well over $10 billion to date – to property and to the economy of the region.

But they are they are not the beast.

The beast is what breathed these fires. It is what played a roe in setting the conditions – the record setting dryness and heat for any spring in northern Alberta – that made it possible for such fires to spread so rapidly and out of control.

This is the beats! It is right here, in this aerial shot below.

But then, of course in Canada, going back right to early this May when these fires began leading to one round after another of mass evacuations of homes and businesses, you could not talk about climate change with reference to this disaster. Continue reading →

Stop The Unfair Denial Of Healthcare And Extend OHIP Coverage To All Ontarians

From the Council of Canadians & Other Citizens Groups

Posted June 27^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

A Call-Out to all Ontario Citizens  to add your name to the following Open Letter to Premier Kathleen Wynne and Health Minister  Eric Hoskins

Dear Premier Kathleen Wynne and Health Minister Eric Hoskins,   

We are a broad group of community members, health and social service providers, and we are concerned about the ongoing denial of healthcare to many of our fellow Ontarians.

Health care providers and supporters hold a rally to protest federal cuts to refugee care on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Monday, June 16, 2014. (Sean Kilpatrick/CP)

We call on the Ontario government to truly provide excellent care for all Ontarians, and extend the Ontario Health Insurance Plan (OHIP) to cover all residents of Ontario.      

In 2009, Duncan McCorkell was diagnosed with colon cancer while non-status, denied life-saving treatment, and subsequently died as a result of his illness in Toronto. In 2011, Maki Ueyama and her husband received a $22,000 bill after the premature birth of their twins during their three-month waiting period for OHIP as new immigrants. Continue reading →

–  A Response To Current Affordable Housing Need

Posted June 27^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Niagara Region, Ontario – Today Niagara Regional Housing (NRH) and the City of St. Catharines announced the site of future NRH development at 527 Carlton Street.

To respond to current affordable housing need and development pressure, NRH has purchased a site formerly occupied by Carlton United Church in St. Catharines. The location is in a built-up area, bound by the Carlton Public School soccer fields to the north, Carlton Street to the south, and single-family dwellings to the east and west. It is 2.3 acres and currently vacant, covered by sod and a gravel parking area. Continue reading →

Take It As A Warning To One Percenters Everywhere

A Commentary by Doug Draper

Posted June 25^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

They’re “reeling.” They’re “stunned.” They’re “shocked.”

Really?

These were but a few of the words media outlets around the world used all day Friday, June 24^th to describe the reaction of world leaders, along with that of bankers, traders and their like to news that a majority of British citizens had voted in a referendum to end their country’s membership in the European Union.

And my questions to these autocrats and plutocrats who are the one per cent is this. Why are you so shocked?

After three or four decades of feathering your gilded nests as you rip the flesh from working families  with your self-serving trade deals, billion-dollar tax loopholes, and with all the cuts you have made to services and benefits for the rest of us, you should have seen all of the feelings of betrayal and rage that led to something like this coming. Continue reading →

News from Brock University in Niagara, Ontario

Posted June 24^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

(A Brief Foreword Note from Niagara At Larger reporter and publisher Doug Draper – As someone who has both followed and worked professionally with Brian Hutchings in his work at Niagara Region, I can’t think of a better person to be chosen for this job. He has always impressed me as an intelligent and honourable person – and one many enjoyed working for and with – and as I said to him a few years back, he is Niagara’s regional government’s loss and Brock’s very fortunate gain. Congratulations to him.)

Brian Hutchings, Brock U’s new acting president

Niagara, Ontario – With one week left in Jack Lightstone’s 10 years as University President, Brock’s Board of Trustees on Thursday June 23 appointed Brian Hutchings as the Acting President for the summer months.

Hutchings, who is Brock’s Vice-President, Administration, will be Acting President from July 1 until Sept. 1, when Wendy Cukier begins her tenure as University President.

Hutchings, who joined Brock in 2012, has a Bachelor of Commerce degree in accounting from Saint Mary’s University and a Master of Laws degree from the University of Toronto. He is also a Certified Public Accountant and a graduate of the Queen’s University Public Executive Program. Continue reading →

News from the Constituency Office of Niagara Falls MPP Wayne Gates

Posted June 24^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Niagara Falls, Ontario – NDP MPP Wayne Gates is calling on Canada Post to settle with its workers on the eve of a potential work stoppage that he fears will impact the residents of his riding.

Niagara Falls Riding MPP Wayne Gates

“When I’m not in the House I’m in my constituency office almost every day and I see how much people in Niagara rely on being able to receive and send their mail,” said Gates. “Things like sending health card applications to the Ministry of Health or applications to the Ministry of Transportation will become far more difficult and potentially costly. Also imagine all of the residents who receive their cheques by mail who do not have access to transportation to pick them up – think of those who have disabilities or seniors” Continue reading →

A Statement by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau

Posted June 24th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Ottawa, Ontario -The Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, issued the following statement this June 24^th on the results of the referendum on the membership of the United Kingdom (UK) in the European Union (EU):

Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau

“The people of the UK have chosen to leave the EU.

“The UK and the EU are important strategic partners for Canada with whom we enjoy deep historical ties and common values. We will continue to build relations with both parties as they forge a new relationship.

“Canada’s connections to our partners around the world are among its greatest assets, and these relationships contribute greatly to the prosperity of all Canadians. Continue reading →

News from Brock University in Niagara, Ontario

Posted June 24rth, 2016 on Niagara At Large

St. Catharines, Ontario – Three Brock University students are the inaugural winners of a new academic award created by a professor who is using her own book royalties to help fund the prize.

Brock prof Kendra Coulter

Kata Boric, Cydney Cronk and Rebecca Hadfield have been awarded the Promise Prize for Top Achievement in the Study of Animals at Work after achieving the highest grades in the course ‘Animals at Work’, which challenges students to think deeply and differently about people, animals and the future of work.

The course, believed to be the only one of its kind in the world, is taught by Labour Studies associate professor Kendra Coulter, whose research into the treatment of animals at farms and other workplaces has made headlines across Canada and internationally. Coulter says the course leads students to explore professions that advocate for the promotion of humane jobs to protect animals and the environment.

Last year Coulter published her latest book, Animals, Work, and the Promise of Interspecies Solidarity, and used its royalties to help establish the prize, which she created “to recognize particularly strong students’ accomplishments and to encourage scholarship in this important but nascent field of study.”

Boric said the course leads students to understand political, sociological and economic theory in new and different ways.

“Professor Coulter helps students realize the intersectional oppressions experienced by all workers, human and non-human,” said Boric, “and how our actions, or lack thereof, have repercussions on the environment and all living things.”

Boric graduated earlier this month with a double major in Political Science and Labour Studies (Honours). As part of Brock’s collaborative program, she will attend George Brown College in September for post-graduate certification in Human Resource Management and Labour Studies.

Cronk graduated this spring with a BA (Honours) in Sociology and will return to Brock in September to start a Master’s in Critical Sociology.

Hadfield will be returning to Brock in September to continue working on a BA in Philosophy.

NOW IT IS YOUR TURN. Niagara At Large encourages you to share your views on this post. A reminder that we only post comments by individuals who share their first and last name with them.

Visit Niagara At Large at www.niagaraatlarge.com for more news and commentary for and from the greater bi-national Niagara region.

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

By Don Alexander

Posted June 23rd, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Niagara, Ontario – Back in 1969 when Go Transit and the Regional Government of Niagara were just starting out, Johnny Cash wrote and performed the song “I’ve Got A Thing About Trains”. Full of nostalgia, Johnny Cash mournfully finished the song “…….. Train train train, I’ve got a thing about trains”.

Sounds like a repetitive refrain from a few present-day Niagara area mayors and councillors. Letting the nostalgia and romance of trains be a “one-note-whistle”. Train Train Train is their “focussed demand”.

The way forward is “GO Service, GO service Go Service.” Don’t get railroaded by a self-imposed “Romance of Rail.”

Go Train running through the Greater Toronto Area.

The greatest number of Niagara people and communities will be better served by a transit service not solely focussed on the iron rail. Continue reading →

News from Brock University in Niagara, Ontario

Posted June 23^rd, 2016 on Niagara At Large 

Niagara, Ontario – New Brock research about the influence of race and age on the judgment of faces has implications on everything from grandparents picking up kids from school to border guards matching faces to identification cards.

These photos were used in the experiment to test participants’ abilities to distinguish faces. In each face pair, the features of an identity were undistorted in image (left) and either compressed or expanded in the other.

The research shows that other-race and older adult faces are hard to recognize perhaps because people are less able to judge differences in the distinctiveness of other-race faces. And people are less able to agree on the attractiveness of both other-race and older faces compared to younger faces, according to a study published this week in the journal Perception.

The study, Judging Normality and Attractiveness in Faces: Direct Evidence of a More Refined Representation for Own-Race, Young Adult Faces, involves three experiments with Brock Professor of Psychology Catherine Mondloch heading up the research team.

In the first, groups of young Caucasian adults in Canada and young Asian adults in China were shown pairs of photos of both Caucasian and Asian faces. One photo was untouched and the other had been digitally expanded or compressed. Participants were asked to identify which face was “normal.” Both Caucasian and Asian participants were less able to detect the “normal” image of the other-race photo compared to the photo of their own race. Continue reading →

An Invite To One and All from the Sierra Club of Western New York in Buffalo

For more information click on – https://niagarasierraclub.com/ .

and – http://www.e2.org/clean-jobs-ny/ .

NOW IT IS YOUR TURN. Niagara At Large encourages you to share your views on this post. A reminder that we only post comments by individuals who share their first and last name with them.

Visit Niagara At Large at www.niagaraatlarge.com for more news and commentary for and from the greater bi-national Niagara region.

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

News from the Office of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau

Posted on June 23^rd, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Ottawa, Ontario – The Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, today issued the following statement to mark the National Day of Remembrance for Victims of Terrorism:

“Thirty-one years ago, our country suffered the worst mass murder in its history when 329 innocent people on board Air India Flight 182 were killed by a terrorist bomb. Canadians were directly impacted by this senseless and brutal act of violence that left them grieving parents, children, relatives, friends, and colleagues.

Some of the 329 victims of the Air India bombing.

“On this solemn day, Canadians across the country stand in solidarity with all those who have experienced first-hand the incredible pain of losing a loved one to terrorism.

“The recent cold-blooded murders of fourteen Canadian Embassy security guards in Kabul, the two Canadian hostages in the Philippines, as well as the terrorist attacks which resulted in six Canadian deaths in Burkina Faso and another in Indonesia, are a stark reminder that we are not immune to the threat of terrorism – which can strike anywhere, anytime. Continue reading →

His Departure From Ontario Cabinet Would Only Comfort Those Who Mean To Do Our Earth Harm

By John Bacher

Posted June 23, 2016 on Niagara At Large

The departure this June of Jim Bradley, the veteran MPP for the Niagara, Ontario riding of St. Catharines,  from the provincial cabinet is a good time to reflect on his remarkable achievements.

Jim Bradley, the veteran MPP for the Niagara, Ontario riding of St. Catharines

It also reminds me of the honourable record of another friend of mine, the late Cayuga environmental delegate, Norm Jacobs. The political legacy of both is shaped by a determined and difficult drive to put the well being of the earth first.

As Bradley exits the real corridor of power at the cabinet table, what drives home to me is the tribute that Jacob’s friend, Chief Arni General, gave to him. It was that his death will “be mourned by many, but not by all.”

Just as those who savoured mad schemes of urban sprawl gave a sigh of relief when Norm Jacobs died, people of a similar bent are no doubt relieved at the thought of Jim Bradley receding into political wilderness of the back benches. Continue reading →

News from the Niagara Health System

Posted June 22^nd, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Niagara, Ontario – Discharged patients at risk of readmission now have enhanced access to services in the community and medical expertise, thanks to a new model of care designed to reduce unnecessary trips to the hospital.

The Niagara Health System’s newest hospital in west St. Catharines. File Photo by Doug Draper

The Integrated Comprehensive Care (ICC) program, which was recently launched by Niagara Health, directly integrates hospital and community care services for patients who are admitted with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and congestive heart failure (CHF) and require home care after discharge.

Key to the program is a team of Niagara Health Integrated Care Co-ordinators who help patients through every step of their journey, in the hospital and back into the community. Continue reading →

 “Employers in Niagara are suffering under increasing costs of doing business. We are concerned that additional mandatory pension contributions will add to these burdens.”                             — Mishka Balsom, President & CEO, Greater Niagara Chamber of Commerce

An Analysis from the Greater Niagara Chamber of Commerce

Posted June 22^nd, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Niagara, Ontario – The Government of Canada, at a meeting with representatives of the governments of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Ontario, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland and Labrador, has come to an agreement in principle over expanding the Canada Pension Plan, or CPP. Quebec and Manitoba have agreed to remain part of future discussions.

The Government of Ontario had previously committed to enacting the Ontario Retirement Pension Plan, or ORPP, at the provincial level. The business community and the Chamber network were apprehensive about the Plan, citing increased costs that essentially functioned as a payroll tax at a time when the cost of doing business in Ontario was already steep and increasing. The provincial government has repeatedly stated that it would abandon the ORPP if it felt there was a suitable replacement at the federal level, however. Continue reading →

News from Niagara College

Posted June 22^nd on Niagara At Large

Niagara, Ontario – Inspired by her young son and her own childhood, where she saw first-hand the power of social work, Sarah Danielle Greig graduates from Niagara College’s Social Service Worker program on June 23 at the head of the class.

Top Niagara College grad Sarah Grieg

With a 98.78% grade-point average, Greig is this year’s recipient of the Governor General’s Academic Medal, presented to the student with the highest overall academic average.

A Welland resident, Greig was born in Toronto and spent four years as a child living in South Africa, where her parents worked in an orphanage with an on-site hospice, sparking an interest in humanities and community development that eventually led her to pursue social service work as a career.

“My passion started in South Africa and maybe even before,” she said. “My mother worked at community development agencies and brought me to events where I would see the impact of her work. My interest started very young.” Continue reading →

A News Alert from the Alliance for the Great Lakes and National Wildlife Federation

Posted June 21^st, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Chicago, Illinois – This June 21st the eight Great Lakes states voted to approve Waukesha, Wisconsin’s diversion request. We believe that the conditions adopted by the Compact Council improved Waukesha’s proposal’s compliance with the Great Lakes Compact.

We applaud the Great Lakes Governors for agreeing with us that the Waukesha diversion application as submitted failed to meet the standards of the Great Lakes Compact.

While we need to review the details of the final decision, we are encouraged by the additional conditions placed on Waukesha’s diversion application that improved the request.

It is also important to note that the water diverted from Lake Michigan to Waukesha will be returned to the Great Lakes basin, resulting in no net loss of water to the lakes as required by the Compact.   Continue reading →

 A Statement from the Ontario Government

Posted June 21st, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Kathleen Wynne, Premier of Ontario, and David Zimmer, Minister of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation, released the following statement today:

“The 20th anniversary of National Aboriginal Day comes at a hopeful time — a time of renewal in the relationship between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples. On May 30, our government took an important step by apologizing in the Legislature for the brutalities committed for generations at residential schools and the continued intergenerational trauma this has caused.

We also released an action plan — developed working closely with Indigenous partners — that will help Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples journey together on a path of reconciliation.

The apology and the action plan are demonstrations of our government’s commitment to build relationships with Indigenous peoples based on mutual trust and respect. They reflect our acknowledgement that we cannot change the future without understanding and honouring the past. Continue reading →

Get On The Bus To Philadelphia on July 25^th, 2016

A Call Out from Buffalo for Bernie Sanders campaigners

Posted June 21^st, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Hello friends,

Buffalo, New York – We wanted to let you know of an offer to join us on a trip to Philadelphia on Monday, July 25 to March on the Democratic National Convention!

At a Bernie Sanders campaign stop in Buffalo this spring – attended by more than 10,000

Cost is $90 and includes a 24-hour trip on a chartered bus with lavatory, air conditioning, WiFi, and DVD. Bus will pick up in Buffalo (exact address TBD, likely the carpool lot at the Transit Rd, Depew exit from I-90) at approx 1:30am and in Rochester (just south of the 90/390 interchange) at approx 2:45am.

We’ll arrive in Philadelphia at City Hall in time for the organized, permitted March on the Democratic National Convention, and will participate in activities until approximately 6 or 6:30pm at which point we will board the bus to return home. Arrangements for stopping for meals is not finalized but cost does NOT include any food or snacks – be prepared to buy or bring your own. Continue reading →

A News Commentary by Doug Draper

Posted June 20^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Last time I looked at the calendar on my wall, I thought I read the year 2016 on it.

Yet when it comes to almost anything to do with environmental protection in this Niagara, Ontario region, most of those we now have sitting on our municipal councils have taken us back to a time – at least five or six decades ago – where we had the proverbial canary in the coalmine telling us it was time to hold an Earth Day and get an environmental movement started.

‘Energy-from-waste’ incinerator in the works for Niagara community of Allanburg. Photo of Allanburg Bridge over Welland Canal by Doug Draper

So how good it is that we are seeing growing numbers of everyday residents across this region, including members of that younger, millennial generation Bernie Sanders has tapped into across the border, standing up for a better regional transit system, for protecting what is left of our wetlands, woodlands and food lands, and against proposals to build and operate garbage incinerators.

That’s right, in the year 2016 in Ontario – right here in Niagara where “open for business” is code for treat anyone who appears before council to press for a greener agenda that is compatible with growth and prosperity like human garbage – there is a move afoot by private interests to burn the kind of garbage our society continues to generate far too much of in our homes and businesses in an incinerator that would be built and operated somewhere in or around Thorold community of Allanburg. Continue reading →

On the eve of National Aboriginal Day in Canada – June 21^st, 2016 – please see the following story about a new book by Brock University professor and author Maureen Lux exploring the history of Indigenous healthcare.

News from Brock University in Niagara, Ontario

Posted June 20^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Doreen Callihoo spent most of her childhood in an Indian hospital undergoing invasive treatments that eventually led to the loss of one of her lungs. Hospitalized at age eight, the First Nations girl spent 11 of the next 12 years in the Charles Camsell Indian Hospital in Edmonton.

Author Maureen Lux

As a tuberculosis patient, she underwent painful pneumothorax treatments twice a week, a procedure in which air was injected into her chest to collapse her lung. She was disfigured when twice she had several ribs removed, more procedures meant to collapse her lung. After a year on antibiotics, Callihoo left the hospital only to return to have her lung surgically removed, likely the result of years of invasive experimental treatments.

Brock University history professor Maureen Lux says Callihoo’s experience at the Indian hospital was not unusual. Until the 1970s, First Nations and Inuit patients often spent years in hospital undergoing tuberculosis treatments that ranged from bed rest to surgery to antibiotics. Continue reading →

A Commentary by Catherine Ens, Niagara Action for Animals

Posted June 20^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Niagara, Ontario – Niagara Action for Animals sent ‘modification packages’ to all City of St. Catharines Councilors last year talking about ways to deal with the Canada Goose population rather than re-locating them.

The packages included case studies, annotated bibliographies, 18 articles and studies cited, five source books with modification plans and management documents.

A family of Canada geese in Niagara, Ontario community of Port Dalhousie. Photo courtesy of Niagara Action for Animals

The City has made some minor efforts to deal with the geese, but it seems to me, they have not followed up effectively nor used the modifications to their full effect. For example, although the corporate report suggested ‘no-mow’ strips, the city stopped doing this because it ‘looked messy’.

Moving the geese is really not a long term solution.  Where there is food (especially tender grass shoots on mowed lawn areas) AND public feeding, other geese will continue to come and fill the niche left by those animals who were relocated. The older geese will come back to St. Catharines, if they manage to escape the hunter’s gun in Amherstburg. Continue reading →

‘(Trump) is able to say; “Look, I’m for you guys. I’ve been greedy in the past, but now I’m going to be greedy for you people; the game is rigged against you … so I’m here to help you because I understand the way the world works,’” – Stefan Dolgert, professor of political science, Brock University

News from Brock University in Niagara, Ontario

Posted June 20^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

St. Catharines, Ontario – In this era of political correctness, how is it that U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump is able to get away with such highly inflammatory speech against Muslims, Mexicans and others whom he identifies as threatening?

Donald Trump revin’ them up at one of his rallies

According to Brock University Professor of Political Science Stefan Dolgert, the answer may lie in the French word “resentiment,” which the Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines as “deep-seated resentment, frustration, and hostility accompanied by a sense of being powerless to express these feelings directly.”

Combine that with effective story-telling, and you have a powerful tool that is among the oldest in the book for politicians, says Dolgert. Continue reading →

News from Niagara, Ontario’s Regional Government

Posted June 20^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Niagara Region, Ontario – This June 20^th, Niagara Region and the City of Welland broke ground on the new Provincial Offences Court Facility at 445 East Main St., Welland (formerly known as 20 Duncan St., Welland). When completed, the Provincial Offences Court Facility will be a single storey courthouse with new public parking areas, landscaping, site lighting, and fencing.

Niagara, Ontario’s regional government headquarters

The new facility will be approximately 20,400 square feet in total area and will be the new home for the court services currently based out of the existing Welland Provincial Offences Court and the Niagara Falls Provincial Offences Court.  The project budget for the new Provincial Offences Court Facility in Welland is $12,400,000.

The Region anticipates that work on the site will begin in early July. First, the existing building that housed the former Empire Public School will be demolished and then construction on the new building will begin. Construction of the new facility is expected to take 14 months with the new building ready for use in early Fall 2017. Continue reading →

“The Greater Niagara Chamber of Commerce strongly supports a consolidated transit system for all of Niagara, and urges all those involved to commit to the project without delay.”                    – Mishka Balsom, President/CEO, GNCC

An Open Letter from Mishka Balsom, President/CEO, Greater Niagara Chamber of Commerce

Posted June 17th, 2016 in Niagara At Large

Niagara, Ontario – On behalf of Niagara’s business community, the Greater Niagara Chamber of Commerce wishes to express its support for the consolidation of the various public transit commissions and authorities in Niagara.

Mishka Balsom, President/CEO, Greater Niagara Chamber of Commerce

The 2015 Niagara Economic Summit identified a single inter-municipal public transit system with a single farebox as the highest policy priority for business in Niagara, and it is a demand we hear daily from the business community.

That being the case, the GNCC is pleased to see this issue gaining momentum. Significant political support from the Niagara Falls, St. Catharines and Welland Mayors is a good first step. An equally important step was the hiring of a consultant to deliver a menu of models and the monetary investment in the project that represents.

Funding for inter-municipal transit, however, is the crucial question. While local municipalities are facing budgetary restrictions and farebox recovery is stretched to affordable limits, our higher-tier governments have committed substantial funds for investment in transit infrastructure. Continue reading →

A Message from the Buffalo For Bernie Sanders Campaigners

Posted June 17th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Hello friends,

Many of us just watched (this Thursday, June 16^th) Bernie’s live address to us, his avid supporters. There are some key things he really wanted to make clear, so I wanted to send out this quick email to make sure everyone is well aware that WE ARE NOT GOING ANYWHERE!

“My hope is that when future historians look back on the campaign of 2016 they will say that is where it all began.” – Sen. Bernie Sanders, 6/16/2016

We need you to run for office! Continue reading →

News from the Office of Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne

Posted June 17^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker hosts Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne

On the final day of her U.S. tour, Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne released the following statement after finishing a productive meeting with Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker in Boston.

“Today (June 17th), Governor Baker and I met to discuss new trade opportunities and share ideas on developing innovative, knowledge-based economies.

Ontario and Massachusetts have much in common — both regions are innovation hubs, particularly for the ICT and financial industries, and both regions are home to world-class research institutions. Working together on research and innovation is a natural fit, and it will benefit both regions by generating economic growth and creating high-value jobs. Continue reading →

Organization Sees Increase Over Previous Year’s              Financial Results

News from Hospice Niagara

Posted June 17th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

St. Catharines, Ontario –  Hospice Niagara’s Board of Directors approved the FY2015/16 Annual Report, with Members approving the Audited Financial Statement at the Annual General Meeting held on June 16^th, 2016.  Hospice Niagara ended this fiscal year with a net surplus of $33,007, a significant improvement from the prior year’s deficit of $19,293.

“It has been an amazing year for Hospice Niagara,” observes Richard Williamson, Treasurer of the Board of Directors. “The fiscal year ended significantly better than the previous year due to stringent management of expenses and an increase in fundraising efforts.” He adds, “Financial support from the community and government sources must continue to provide financial stability in order for Hospice Niagara to maintain the level of care needed in our community.”

“The common thread that binds Hospice Niagara’s work is extraordinary people,” says Lori Watson, Board Chair. “We thank our Board member volunteers – Colleen Falco, Dolorese Bujold-Wright and Mary Mizen – who have fulfilled their terms and are pleased to announce the appointment of new Board members Fran Geike, Brenda Hookings and Roger Heise.” Continue reading →

Tell Your Governors and Premiers to say NO to setting a Dangerous Precedent for more than 40 million residents in the Great Lakes Basin

From Molly Flanagan, Alliance of the Great Lakes

Posted June 16th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

You’ve heard a lot from me over the past few months about Waukesha, Wisconsin (a community located in the Mississippi River Basin) and its plan to divert water from Lake Michigan for its own use.

Our Great Lakes and the vital to life gift of freshwater they give us, from a satellite photo

The Great Lakes governors are meeting next Tuesday, June 21, to make a final decision on Waukesha’s request. Tell your governor to protect the lakes when considering Waukesha’s diversion request.

The Great Lakes Compact, supported by all eight Great Lakes states and signed into law in 2008 to protect the Great Lakes from large-scale diversions of water, was created for scenarios like this. The compact does allow very limited exceptions to its diversion ban. Waukesha is eligible to apply for Great Lakes water — but only if it has exhausted all available options. In essence, a diversion must be a last resort. Continue reading →

A Way Forward for Central Fire Hall

News from the Welland Heritage Committee in Niagara, Ontario

Posted June 15^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Welland City Council can seize an opportunity to preserve its historic Central Fire Station and stimulate Welland’s downtown economy.

The Welland Heritage committee is urging Council to convert the 1920 fire hall to a fire museum and learning centre as part of local Canada 150th celebrations.

Welland Heritage sees a way to do it at no cost to the city.

Welland’s 96-year-old Central Fire Hall. Photo courtesy of Welland Heritage Committee

The city could provide the first two floors to the Welland Merrittsville Fire Brigade Historical Society. It would operate a seasonal (May to October) museum with volunteers and fill it with a collection of classic fire equipment dating back to 1876. Continue reading →

News from Ontario’s Niagara Parks Commission

Posted June 16^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Niagara Falls, Ontario –The Niagara Parks Commission’s (NPC) Floral Showhouse is pleased to announce that the first of its two developing Titan Arum buds is currently in bloom, with the second expected to open between late-June to early July.

Considered to be the world’s tallest flowers, the Amorphophallus titanum, or Titan Arum, is a massive bell-shaped flower, growing up to three metres in height. Aside from the massive size, the Titan Arum is also known for its unique smell. After flowering, a single leaf emerges in place of the blossom, which is the size of a small tree, standing up to six metres tall and five metres wide. Until 1989, fewer than 30 flowerings were recorded to have occurred in botanical gardens worldwide. Continue reading →

A Brief One from Doug Draper

Posted June 16^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

There are the epic scenes in the movie Gone With The Wind where the looters race up and down streets, smashing store windows as Atlanta is burned to the ground during the American Civil War.

In one of the scenes, Rhett  Butler turns Scarlett’s attention to the exodus of southern arm troops and says to her in so many words that they’ve got to leave too because with the departure of those troops, go the last shred of civility.

That scene came to mind recently when I turned on one of the cable news channels and there they were, comparing the lunatic rants of U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump against the measured intelligence of the current president, Barack Obama, as they both, in their very different ways, addressed the recent mass shooting of members of the LGBT community at a nightclub in Orlando, Florida.

It struck home when one of the cable channel commentators used the comparison to remind viewers that Obama will be moving out of the White House Office in a matter of months and heaven help America and the rest of the world if Trump moves in.

Around the same time, a Niagara At Large readers sent me a note along with an image of Obama with words burned in it that seem appropriate and that I wish to share with you now.

“I haven’t always liked what he did, but I have always been amazed at the almost frightening intelligence, maturity, and self-control of this man,” said the reader of the image.“I wonder how the same country that twice voted for Barak Obama as President can possibly think of descending to the likes of a Donald Trump. Farce? Or tragedy?”

What is your view?

NOW IT IS YOUR TURN. Niagara At Large encourages you to share your views on this post. A reminder that we only post comments by individuals who share their first and last name with them.

Visit Niagara At Large at www.niagaraatlarge.com for more news and commentary for and from the greater bi-national Niagara region.

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

“I extend on behalf of Regional Council our apologies for the offensive content of the delegation (meaning Niagara resident Ed Smith) in question.” – Niagara Regional Chair Alan Caslin in a June 9^th, 2016 letter to Niagara Peninsual Conservation Authority Board Chair Bruce Timms

By Doug Draper

Posted June 14^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

On May 19^th of this year, St. Catharines citizen Ed Smith, accompanied by more than two dozen other Niagara area citizens, appeared as a delegation at a regional council meeting to present a case for doing a detailed “value for money” audit of the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority’s operations.

Niagara Regional Chair Alan Caslin. File photo

Smith had appeared before the regional council a month earlier, on April 7^th, 2016, along with numerous other citizens from across Niagara who packed the council chambers that night, to oppose a bid by the same Conservation Authority to “pilot” something called biodiversity offsetting – code for destroying a provincially significant wetland in one spot and attempting to grow a comparable wetland somewhere else – in order to make way for buildings and pavement.

At the May 19^th meeting, Smith returned to the council to press for a detailed audit of the NPCA due to questions and concerns he and other citizens have over how the Conservation Authority’s administrators and board members are spending millions of dollars of money they receive each year – most of it coming from municipal taxpayers in Niagara, with some coming from the neighbouring regions of Hamilton and Haldimand. Continue reading →

Biodiversity Offsetting Was Just The Beginning. Dysfunction At Regional Government Level Must Be Addressed

From Liz Benneian, a Niagara citizen and founder of Ontario Zero Waste Coalition

Posted June 13^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Those receiving this message have met Ed Smith, a remarkable resident of Port Dalhousie (in Niagara, Ontario), who rallied the community over the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority’s plan to destroy existing wetlands while supposedly recreating others.

As citizens came together to oppose that plan, they realized that as bad as the plan was, there was dysfunction within the organization and at the Regional level that needed to be addressed. To that end citizen organizations and area residents have come together from across the Region to form Friends of the Niagara Peninsula (see more about FONP us at bottom of this post).

For the first time, students, landowners, environmentalists and community groups from all corners of Niagara are bringing their unique skills, talents, perspectives, creativity and experience to change the way decisions are made in our Region. Continue reading →

A Message from the Buffalo for Bernie Sanders campaign

Posted June 13^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

(A Brief Foreword Note from NAL publisher Doug Draper – This message from dedicated Bernie Sanders campaigners in Buffalo/Western New York raises hope that the ‘political revolution’ Sanders ignited over the past year  will bern on! For the sake of social justice for the 99% in the U.S., Canada and around the world, it must. Now here is the Buffalo for Bernie message.)

150 days until the Presidential election

Supporters of Bernie Sanders all over the country have come to the campaign from various backgrounds and with various viewpoints. We’re lifelong Democrats, recovering cynics who stepped off the sidelines, young voters getting involved in the process for the first time, independent voters critical of both major parties, and even right-of-center voters who see in Bernie Sanders an honest man with the best interests of all of us at heart.

It has become apparent that Hillary Clinton will very likely emerge as the Democratic nominee for president following the convention in Philadelphia. High profile Democrats, including President Obama and Senator Elizabeth Warren, have endorsed Hillary Clinton for president. In the coming weeks, calls for Democratic party unity will grow. Continue reading →

Statement from Leader of the Official Opposition Patrick Brown on Ontario Liberal Cabinet Shuffle

Posted June 13^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Queen’s Park, Toronto – Leader of the Official Opposition & Ontario PC Party Patrick Brown issued the following statement (this June 13^th) on the provincial Liberal Government’s cabinet shuffle:

Ontario Opposition and Tory Party leader Patrick Brown

“After 13 years of Liberal scandal, mismanagement, and waste, this remains a stale, tired, and self-interested Government.

Premier Wynne has established the largest provincial cabinet in the country.  This is a government that currently spends $1-billion on interest instead of essential government services, yet has added even more costly bureaucracy.  Unfortunately, Premier Wynne doesn’t realize that you shouldn’t add more weight to a sinking ship.   Continue reading →

“Strong Team Will Implement Plan to Create Jobs and Growth”

40 Per Cent of Cabinet Members are Women

News from the Ontario Government

Posted June 13^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

Queen’s Park, Toronto – Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne today (June 13^th) announced changes to her cabinet that will help deliver on her government’s top priority to create economic growth and good jobs.

Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne makes cabinet changes

At the halfway mark of the government’s mandate, Premier Wynne has chosen a strong team to implement her government’s ambitious, activist agenda. The cabinet named today at Queen’s Park represents continuity in several key portfolios, ten ministers taking on new roles and seven new members.

Women now make up 40 per cent of cabinet, reflecting the Premier’s commitment to take steps toward gender parity. Women make up 50 per cent of the Priorities, Delivery and Growth cabinet committee, responsible for tracking government priorities and steering the government’s four-part economic plan. Continue reading →

News from Pride Organizations in Niagara, Ontario and Western New York

Posted June 13^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

This Monday morning, St. Catharines, Ontario Mayor Walter Sendzik lowered the Pride flag to half-mast at City Hall in repsect for “our lost brothers and sisters” in Orlando Florida, representatives of Pride Niagara reported this morning.

A candlelight vigil for victims of a horrific mass shooting at an Orlando nightclub in the early hours of Sunday, June 12^th – where a lone gunman killed at least 49 and wounded more than 50 people in a place regarded by members of the LGBT community as somewhere safe and peaceful to go – will be held in front of St. Catharines City Hall off King and James Streets in the city’s downtown, will begin at 8:30 p.m. on this Monday, June 13^th.

The mayor will lead all who wish to attend the vigil in a moment of silence at 9 p.m. Continue reading →

President Jack Lightstone cautions against reprisals for “reprehensible” massacre: “Bigotry is not the answer to bigotry”

News from Brock University in Niagara, Ontario

Posted June 13^th, 2016 on Niagara At Large

St. Catharines, Ontario – The massacre of 49 people at a gay nightclub in Orlando early Sunday morning was an unthinkable tragedy that serves as a chilling reminder that homophobia still exists, says a Brock University professor.

The ‘Tower’ At the Brock U. campus in Niagara, Ontario

Julian Kitchen, an associate professor in the Department of Teacher Education, says the killings prove there’s still a long way to go when it comes to equality.

“This reminds us that the fight for rights and for acceptance isn’t over,” says Kitchen. “As a gay man, this creates feelings of vulnerability.”

“It used to be an act of courage to go to or march in a (gay pride) parade. More recently it has become more of a celebration. I think this will add a certain amount of gravity to the celebrations this month.” Continue reading →