Author: John Draper

New Development – Albert and Division

John Draper

In early 2021, a developer asked for permission for their plans for the Property at the southwest corner of Albert and Division.  They proposed two buildings – one on Division and the second smaller one on Albert.  On the ground floors, they plan seven commercial units (stores) facing Division and 3 “live/work” units facing Albert plus a total of 20 apartments on second and third floors.  A public meeting was held and a big concern was that there was insufficient parking – 28 spaces compared to a normal zoning requirement for 45.  At the Committee of the Whole Council meeting on Monday May 30, a revised proposal will be presented that has 35 parking spaces.  The new plan, which has… Read complete articleNew Development – Albert and Division

Electric Vehicle Event at the Mall

John Draper

If you were at the Mall today (Saturday, May 28) you might have wondered what was happening in the Parking Lot – it was the “Electric Vehicle and Sustainability Event”.  Many electric vehicles were there ranging from KIAs to Teslas to the new Ford Mustang recently acquired by the Police.  The event was jointly staged by the EV Society (Northumberland Chapter) and Sustainable Cobourg and was opened by Mayor John Henderson.  You could take a test drive of one of four electric vehicles provided by “PlugnDrive” and many owners had their cars open for inspection or you could sit in them.  There was not a big crowd but I spotted several people in earnest conversations with owners – a good… Read complete articleElectric Vehicle Event at the Mall

Summary of Election Questions

John Draper

With the election less than a week away, it’s time to review the Cobourg News Blog series of posts featuring four key election issues.  As expected, many candidates simply pointed to the policies published by their party but some in particular took the trouble to spell out their personal positions.  Most electors in Canada decide their vote based on the policies and personalities of the party leaders and see the candidates as representatives and not individuals.  But in gathering responses to my questions, I have come to see them as distinct from their party leaders.  I can also safely say that from my perspective, they are all good people.  But let me try to analyse what Cobourg News Blog readers… Read complete articleSummary of Election Questions

Candidates Plans for Long Term Care

John Draper

Given that this Riding and Cobourg in particular has a higher than average demographic of seniors, the last question in this series should be of particular local interest: How will you ensure Seniors get good Long Term Care?  This issue got a good deal of interest during the pandemic since Long Term Care homes seemed to have a high proportion of Covid-19 cases and deaths. This is the fourth and last question in the series of questions I have asked of Election Candidates.  If you missed the earlier questions or need a refresher, see the Resources below. I would like to thank all candidates for their cooperation in providing responses – they make my job easier. I have tried to… Read complete articleCandidates Plans for Long Term Care

Parking Update

John Draper

A report on Cobourg News Blog on May 12 described the major changes coming to Cobourg with parking.  Waterfront parking, downtown parking and winter parking were all changed.  But since there were so many changes, there was a degree of uncertainty, especially about overnight parking.  When the by-Law was finally approved at the Regular Council Meeting on May 16, some text changes were made to clarify the revisions.  The changes were mostly to do with Winter parking – a map was added to show which streets had a ban on overnight parking and a new appendix (PP) listed which streets banned any winter parking. Winter is defined as “November 1 to March 31” and overnight is “between 2:00 am and 7:00… Read complete articleParking Update

Candidates on Environment and Sustainability

John Draper

This issue gets the attention of all levels of Government – no doubt because voters are concerned.  I asked all candidates in the upcoming Provincial election: What are your policies on the Environment and Sustainability? and they all responded. They all agreed that action is needed and most have specific ideas although general policies get some attention too. This is the third question in the series of four – the next question is: How will you ensure Seniors get good Long Term Care? This is scheduled for publication on May 23. Meanwhile advanced voting has started – you can get details from the voting information card you should already have received from Elections Ontario or from the Cobourg Internet Information… Read complete articleCandidates on Environment and Sustainability

Cobourg makes On-Demand Transit Permanent

John Draper

In December 2020, Council approved a pilot of an On-Demand Transit system to replace the existing fixed route system and at the Regular Council meeting on May 16, Council approved ongoing use of the On-Demand system.  This combines the existing On-Demand Wheels system for disabled users and will soon use three smaller (8 m – 26 ft) buses which will provide service for both Wheels and regular Transit users.  This requires purchase of two new buses like the existing Wheels Bus but Government grants reduce Cobourg’s cost (more below). Council debated changes to service hours but in the end, voted to stop service at 9:00 pm instead of 10:00 pm.  A second suggestion to reduce phone-in time from 10:00 pm… Read complete articleCobourg makes On-Demand Transit Permanent

Affordable Housing Question

John Draper

All six candidates were asked: “How will you make Housing more affordable?”  The term “affordable housing” is open to interpretation – does it mean that 100% of the population should be able to afford to buy a house or that no-one should have to pay more than (say) 30% of the income for housing or does it mean something else?  Whatever the interpretation, there’s no doubt that the resale price of housing in Cobourg is beyond the reach of many and rental rates are steadily increasing.  Is the problem “supply” or something else?  And what, if anything, should governments do about it?  It’s certainly a contentious issue and all candidates and their parties have solutions. Note that the sequence for… Read complete articleAffordable Housing Question