Author: John Draper

Library MOU approved

John Draper

When budgets were being prepared in 2019 for the 2020 year, it was apparent that Library management was not clear on what the Town would pay for and what the Library should include in their budget. Things like heating systems, managing tenders and maintenance of the grounds and building were not clearly the responsibility of either the Library or the Town so budgeting was difficult. The Library is funded mostly by the Town (69%) but also by the Township of Hamilton (23%) and some small Provincial grants but the main building is in Cobourg and owned by the Town. In November 2019, the Library asked that a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) be prepared that would spell out who was responsible for what. After… Read complete articleLibrary MOU approved

Rotary Wants to Promote Vaccinations

John Draper

Cobourg’s Rotary Club has been providing volunteers to the Vaccination Clinic at the Cobourg Community Centre but they are also keen on encouraging people to get their shots.  Their idea is that everyone who has had a shot should advertise this fact with a lawn sign and simultaneously thank the volunteers who have been helping.  They don’t spell it out but there are a number of covidiots people who don’t want to be vaccinated either because they don’t understand the benefit or have unfathomable reasons and perhaps the signs will be moral persuasion for them to get with the program.  Rotary says it more diplomatically:  that the signs will “create heightened awareness for the need to get vaccinated and foster… Read complete articleRotary Wants to Promote Vaccinations

Beach to be Closed on Weekends and Holidays

John Draper

At a special Emergency meeting tonight, Council voted six to one to allow Victoria beach to be open only on weekdays but with capacity limited to 1200. This is effective May 31.  Councillors Burchat and Beatty would have preferred it to be open all days and Councillor Darling wanted an opening delayed until June 14.  Councillor Chorley explained that the public survey indicated a partial opening was preferred and Health advice is to avoid crowds which are more likely on weekends.  The decision taken was essentially the second of three options proposed by staff.  Option one was to keep the Beach closed and Option three was to open it with no restrictions.  The Staff report (see links below) included the… Read complete articleBeach to be Closed on Weekends and Holidays

West Harbour Concerns Resolved

John Draper

In September 2019, Town staff presented a report to Council called an “Aquatic Safety Audit Report”.  It was conducted by the Lifesaving Society and it recommended a wide range of changes that were strongly criticized by West Harbour user groups. Jeremy Fowlie of the Dragon Boat and Canoe club said that implementing the recommendations would mean the club would need to shut down.  Critics said that it seemed that Staff wanted to limit usage so that the West Harbour could accommodate more boat slips.  Key recommendations were the need to provide a detailed schedule of activities, a powered safety boat should be mandated and a safety manual should be written.  The report was referred to the Parks and Recreation Committee… Read complete articleWest Harbour Concerns Resolved

Cobourg Ponders Revised Covid rules

John Draper

Late Saturday, May 22, the Town of Cobourg issued a Press Release “asking for the community’s patience and understanding as the Town takes some time to assess the implications of the most recent public health measures as announced on May 20th by the Province of Ontario.” Because of the recent announcement by the Province of its Roadmap to Reopen plan, some rules have now changed and others may change after June 2 and again possibly after June 14. The Town is saying that they “need time to assess the new guidelines, regulations and implications to municipal programs and services, and the logistics involved with our required response”;.  They then spell out some of the immediate changes and announce that once again,… Read complete articleCobourg Ponders Revised Covid rules

Update on Developments – Part 2

John Draper

Councillor Nicole Beatty’s report was long so I divided it into two parts – the first part being published on Tuesday, May 18, and this being part two.  A couple of projects are in both reports but most are additional.  These reports are abbreviated from Nicole’s full report (see link below) – mostly by removing references to paperwork but Nicole notes that some required paper work is being delayed because of a backlog at the Land Registry Office. We should also be aware that the actual sources of Nicole’s report are no doubt Director Glenn McGlashon and his staff.  Note also that planning staff have a comprehensive list of relevant documents  on the Town’s web site – see link below…. Read complete articleUpdate on Developments – Part 2

Council Closes Beach until 7 June

John Draper

A special Council meeting was called today to decide what to do about people staying on Victoria Beach during the Stay at Home Order.  The  Emergency Control Group (ECG) recommended that it be closed until Council makes a final decision on the status of the Beach at the Monday June 7, 2021 Regular Council Meeting. This plan of action was not specifically directed by the HKPR Health Unit but they did support the ECG decision.  Council discussed the issue at length with questions about signage, enforceability and more. Police Chief Paul Vandgraaf said that today there were 100 people on the beach and many were “congregating” contrary to the rules of the “Stay at Home Order”.  The Chief estimated that… Read complete articleCouncil Closes Beach until 7 June

Update on Developments – May 2021

John Draper

At Regular Council meetings, Councillors are asked to provide reports in their role as coordinator. At Monday’s meeting, Councillor Nicole Beatty, Coordinator of Planning and Development Services,  gave a full report on activity in the Planning Department.  Some projects are slow getting through the process but there are a lot of them for a small town.  So if you wondered what happened to that development you heard about, this article (and a second one in a couple of days) will provide an update.  Nicole’s report is divided into 1) Subdivisions, 2) Site Plan Approvals, 3) Heritage and 4) Special Projects.  This first article will cover Site Plan Approvals and their status.  Many have been the subject of previous articles –… Read complete articleUpdate on Developments – May 2021